As I Came Out of Grundy Greet
As I came out of Grundy Greet
Four cats were marching down the street
One was long and gray and thin
With lots of whiskers on his chin,
And one was round and sleek and fat
(He must have been a butcher’s cat).
One was dapper, slight, and frail,
With bells and tassels on his tail,
And one had starey yellow eyes
Almost as big as pumpkin pies.
These four came marching down the street
As I came out of Grundy Greet.
First published in The Peter Patter Book of Nursery Rhymes (1918).
This rhyme reads like the opening scene of a tiny parade — but one led entirely by cats. Each cat feels like its own little character: the thin one with too much dignity, the plump butcher’s cat with secrets, the elegant fellow jingling as he walks, and lastly the eerie, yellow-eyed cat who probably sees more than he should.
