There was a crooked man
And what is a stile? ...an arrangement
of steps allowing people but not animals to climb over a fence
or wall... This rhyme apparently originates from the time of Charles 1 and the crooked man is commonly supposed to be General Sir Alexander Leslie of Scotland. The General is one of those who signed the Covenant which secured religious and political freedom for Scotland. The 'crooked sixpence' being Charles 1 and the 'crooked stile' being the England/Scotland border. 'They all lived together in a little crooked house' refers to the fact that the English and Scots had come to an agreement. http://nurseryrhymes.allinfoabout.com/crooked_man.html Midi: There Was a Crooked Man
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