I guess it is still alive around scout camp fires.

In the version that we did one person would sing the song dressed in a campfire blanket. He would sing the song directly to one other scout. At the end of the verse the scout would have to jump up and sing the second verse - yes I've seen etc. The second person would grab the first around the waist and they would dance around sining 'we've all seen the Muffin Man............ this would carry on until a long chain had developed. At some point the chain would break into 2 and most people would be dancing and singing.

Lots of fun but I suppose if you really tried you could read something into it.

A similar ritual surounded a song 'Two Little Elephants':
Two Little Elephants came out one day
Upon a sliders web to play
They thought it was such treamendous fun
They called on a another little elephant to come


And so chains of elephants would grow linked as elephants are made to in the circus