'Once I caught a fish alive' lyrics

Did you know the counting nursery rhyme '12345 Once I caught a fish alive' dates back to around 1765, when it was published in Mother Goose's Melody - only then it was a hare that was caught not a fish...

Today's modern version stems from variations Henry Bolton collected in the 1880s from America

'12345 once I caught a fish alive'

One, two, three, four, five
Once I caught a fish alive.
Six, seven, eight, nine, ten
Then I let it go again.
Why did you let it go?
Because it bit my finger so.
Which finger did it bite?
This little finger on my right.

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