The animals went in two by two

The animals went in two by two
The animals went in two by two, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in two by two, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in two by two, the elephant and the kangarooAnd they all went into the ark, for to get out of the rain.
The animals went in three by three, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in three by three, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in three by three, the wasp, the ant and the bumble beeAnd they all went into the ark, for to get out of the rain.
The animals went in four by four, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in four by four, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in four by four, the great hippopotamus stuck in the doorAnd they all went into the ark, for to get out of the rain.
The animals went in five by five, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in five by five, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in five by five, they warmed each other to keep aliveAnd they all went into the ark, for to get out of the rain.
The animals went in six by six, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in six by six, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in six by six, they turned out the monkey because of his tricksAnd they all went into the ark, for to get out of the rain.
The animals went in seven by seven, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in seven by seven, hurrah! hurrah!The animals went in seven by seven, the little pig thought he was going to heavenAnd they all went into the ark, for to get out of the rain.
Part of the popularity of the arks was due to the era’s strict observance of the Sabbath. From Victorian households to the western pioneers, many children were restricted to biblical games. Eleanor Achland, who grew up in Victorian England, recalls:
We began our play with the traditional “animals went in two by two,” and then branched off into variations of Treasure Island or Swiss Family Robinson, or stories made up by ourselves, any of these being tolerably sabbatical so long as we remembered to call the leading characters Mr. And Mrs. Noah, Shem, Ham and Japheth.
As both girls and boys played with these toys, they became favorite gifts to give on Christmas. Though characterized as hallmark Sunday toys for Victorian households and wealthier families, simpler arks often made their way into the modest homes of the American west.
A further attraction of the arks was the plentiful, exotic animals stuffed inside them. Reminiscent of a Barnum & Bailey’s spectacle, the brightly decorated animals from a wide variety of species indicate that the carvers and painters drew heavily from picture books as well as their imagination and observation.