My bed is like a little boat;
      Nurse helps me in when I embark;
She girds me in my sailor’s coat
      And starts me in the dark.

At night I go on board and say
      Good-night to all my friends on shore;
I shut my eyes and sail away
      And see and hear no more.

And sometimes things to bed I take,
      As prudent sailors have to do;
Perhaps a slice of wedding-cake,
      Perhaps a toy or two.

All night across the dark we steer;
      But when the day returns at last,
Safe in my room beside the pier,
      I find my vessel fast.