 The rhyme is made up of <unk> , with a rhyming scheme of <unk> ( with occasional internal rhymes ) , using falling rhymes ( where the rhyming sound is on a relatively <unk> syllable : de @-@ emphasising the rhyme ) and a <unk> rhythm ( with the stress falling on the first of a pair of syllables ) , known as a ballad form , which is common in nursery rhymes . The melody commonly associated with the rhyme was first recorded by the composer and nursery rhyme collector James William Elliott in his National Nursery Rhymes and Nursery Songs ( 1870 ) . The Roud Folk Song Index , which catalogues folk songs and their variations by number , classifies the song as <unk> . 
