After A While Crocodile Poem

If you should meet a crocodile
Don't accept a stick and poke him;
Ignore the welcome in his smile,
Exist careful not to stroke him.
For equally he sleeps upon the Nile,
He thinner gets and thinner;
And whene'er you meet a crocodile
He's ready for his dinner.

Christine F Fletcher

The story of my crocodile poem (so far ...)

From 1956 to 1961, I attended Prince Henry's Grammar School in Otley, Yorkshire. During one of my English lessons, in the early years that I was there, we were asked to write a poem about an animal. For some reason, and I don't recollect why, I chose the crocodile; I can only presume I'd recently learnt or read something about crocodiles. I retrieve quite vividly writing the verse form on a slice of paper, not in an practise book, and changing the "Whenever" to "Whene'er" to lose a syllable and keep the rhythm of the poem. I wrote my name at the top of the paper, handed it to my instructor and never really thought much nigh it after that.

BBC's Play School

Almost 20 years later in the mid 1970'south, by which time I'd grown up, married and was bringing up my own children, my daughter and I were watching BBC's Play School (a British children'south tv set programme that ran from the mid-1960'due south to the belatedly lxxx's), when the presenter read out my poem. I was speechless! I knew then of course that my poem had been published. I wrongly causeless that someone else's name would be accredited to it.

Baffled and confused; I couldn't piece of work out how the BBC had got agree of my poem some 20 years after information technology was written. I told my husband when he got home and my friends and family; they were amazed and mystified. I didn't try to contact the BBC, the corporation was so less approachable in those days, different these times of instant communication and the Internet. The details of how the BBC got hold of my poem seemed so trivial compared to the other events of our family life; my husband'due south career, the children'south education etc.

I put it out of my listen after that; except when my children asked me to tell them my "Famous Crocodile poem from Play School". I never idea I'd see or hear information technology again, how wrong could I exist?!

In February 2006 my girl was reading "Read Me 1" by Gaby Morgan with my grandson when she came across my verse form in the volume. She instantly recognised it every bit my poem, even though it was credited to "Anon".

When she phoned to tell me I couldn't believe it, and and then she said "Mum, I've looked on the Internet. It'south not just in this volume, it'southward all over the identify. It's used in pedagogy, as a warning to children in countries where crocodiles live and at that place's even a lot of speculation as to its age because of the 'Whene'er', with people suggesting it's a couple of hundred years onetime."

Later searching the Net myself I discovered that it has been published in many books worldwide and forms a part of the curriculum primary schools and the BBC Schoolhouse's Service. I wrote to four of the publishers request if they could provide more data about how the verse form came to be published. Although I received replies, none of them were able to help.

I wrote to the headmaster and head of English at my sometime school, Prince Henry's, just neither of them replied to my letters. I was quite surprised as I idea they would be really interested to hear an ex-educatee's story. I didn't know what else I could practice and although I registered my poem with the UK Copyright Service on viii^th November 2006, I was still very frustrated.

With my limited abilities of the Net, I found six books, which had my verse form's name as the title. One was published by Diane Elson in 1979 and 1 by Margaret Mayo in 1974. As these were the earliest publications I could observe, I tracked down the authors' contact details and wrote to both of them. I was then pleased when both authors took the fourth dimension and trouble to reply with really squeamish letters. Unfortunately neither could help in any manner, nonetheless Margaret Mayo suggested that she could have institute the poem in one of Barbara Ireson's anthologies.

Between then and late 2009 I trawled the Internet searching for more publications of my verse form, searched Friends Reunited in the hope of finding a lead there and had spells of inactivity when I felt it was all to no avail.

Then my son (who is much more adept at sifting through data on the Cyberspace) establish a publication of my poem in a book called "The Barnes Book of Plant nursery Verse" published in 1960 in the USA by A Due south Barnes & Co, Inc. It was compiled past Barbara Ireson!

This was another shock equally it meant that I was still at school when it was published and it had fabricated a very swift transition from Prince Henry'southward all the way to America. I wrote to A S Barnes (at present known as Barnes & Noble) and, as expected, got no reply. I as well wrote over again to the head at Prince Henry's and this time received a very pleasant reply from the new headmistress (Janet Sheriff). She was intrigued by my letter and had discussed information technology at a governors' meeting. Unfortunately she confirmed that the schoolhouse does not have whatever records going so far back and that the governors were unable to recall any relevant data. She did yet advise that I contact the Leeds Archive Service.

It struck me as very foreign that the first publication of the poem should be in united states, so my son and I connected searching and sure enough establish "The Faber Book of Nursery Poesy" once more compiled by Barbara Ireson and this fourth dimension published in 1958 by Faber and Faber of London.

I believe this to be the first publication of my poem, as it was merely a year (peradventure a little more or less) later on I wrote it. 1 matter seems sure though; that Barbara Ireson is the central to this mystery.

I'm currently attempting to go far contact with her - or her family, in the hope that I can find the missing piece of this well-nigh puzzling of puzzles.

Update December 2010

I made contact with Barbara Ireson through a publisher and had 2 telephone conversations with her. She said she couldn't remember where she got the poem from but - she said she did live in Leeds at that time (I went to schoolhouse in Otley which is only viii miles from Leeds).

Barbara was very keen to hear all virtually my piffling poem and my quest to get recognition, unfortunately her wellness has taken a plow for the worst and I oasis't had much contact recently. If y'all're reading this Barbara, I hope you are feeling meliorate shortly.

I also contacted the Leeds Archive Service and the outcome - I have no dubiousness - has solved the mystery! In May 1957, a Mrs G Jones joined Prince Henry's Grammer School as English teacher. She had just graduated from Leeds University. This tied in with me remembering that the teacher in whose class I wrote the poem was "young" and "new". Further enquiry has shown that Barbara was in Leeds at that fourth dimension as her married man, Professor John C Ireson taught at the university and his subjects were French and Poetry. They now alive in French republic. The link has been made!!

The quest continues ...

Christine F Fletcher

After A While Crocodile Poem,

Source: http://www.ifyoushouldmeetacrocodile.com/

Posted by: weaverdecroure.blogspot.com

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