James James
Morrison Morrison
Weatherby George Dupree
Took great care of his Mother
Though he was only three.
James James
Said to his Mother,
“Mother,” he said, said he,
“You must never go down to the end of the town if you don’t go down with me.”

These lines open A. A. Milne’s comic poem “James James Morrison Morrison Weatherby George Dupree,” a piece written in the voice of a mock-solemn nursery rhyme. Milne, best known for the Winnie-the-Pooh books, also published light verse for children that plays with rhythm, repetition, and exaggerated moral lessons. In the poem, the very young James insists on escorting his mother “to the end of the town,” presenting himself as her protector. The humor comes from the mismatch between his age (“only three”) and his grand, officious sense of responsibility, setting up the poem’s later cautionary turn about what happens when his mother goes without him.

Milne satirizes childish self-importance and the way children mimic adult authority. James’s doubled-and-tripled name and the chant-like repetition make him sound ceremonious, as if he were a dignitary rather than a toddler. His warning—never go to the end of town without him—reverses the usual parent-child dynamic: the child appoints himself guardian of the adult. The poem’s broader effect is both affectionate and cautionary: it delights in a child’s earnestness while hinting that rigid rules and overconfidence can lead to trouble. The sing-song form also underscores how “lessons” can be absorbed through playful storytelling rather than direct instruction.