I remember reading that "Polly Put the kettle On" was written in the 18th century by an Englishman with four children. The daughters,Polly and Sukey, liked to play tea-party with dolls while the sons liked to play with soldiers. Anyway, supposedly when their sisters were playing with the dolls, the boys would leave the room and only come back in when Sukey took the kettle off. Anyone else come across this explanation?