Here's another version of "My Mother Said (I Never Should Play Eith the Gypsies In The Wood) from another Mudcat thread:

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Add: Nursery rhymes
From: GUEST
Date: 27 Mar 01 - 02:36 PM

My Mother said, I never should Play with the gypsies in the wood. If I did, she would say; 'Naughty girl to disobey! Your hair shan't curl and your shoes shan't shine, You gypsy girl, you shan't be mine! And my father said that if I did, He'd rap my head with the teapot lid. My mother said that I never should Play with the gypsies in the wood. The wood was dark, the grass was green; By came Sally with a tambourine. I went to sea - no ship to get across; I paid ten shillings for a blind white horse. I upped on his back and was off in a crack, Sally tell my mother I shall never come back

thread.cfm?threadid=32361

-snip-

The line "I paid ten shillings for a blind white horse" reminds me of the "Went To The River But I Couldn't Get Across/paid five dollars for an old gray horse" verses that are found in a number of 19th century or earlier African American secular songs. Some of those songs also include the "hopped on his back" line.

Could the popularity of the American minstrel shows in 19th century England account for that line showing up in that version of the "My Mother Said" rhyme? In other words, does anyone here think that
the "I paid ten shillings for a blind white horse" comes from the African American influenced minstrel songs?