The original joke of this rhyme was to say it fast so it would sound like it was Latin.
In Fir Tar Is
In fir tar is,
In oak none is.
In mud eel is,
In clay none is.
Goat eat ivy,
Mare eat oats.
Notes
This shares the last two lines with the song Mairzy Doats. This came first!
Thanks and Acknowledgements
This rhyme can be found in The Nursery Rhymes of England, collected and edited by James Orchard Halliwell (1843) and The Nursery Rhyme Book, edited by Andrew Lang and illustrated by L. Leslie Brooke (1897).
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