Penny Napoleonic Wars prompted the use of base metals in 1797. Despite the decimalization of currencies in the United States and, later, throughout the British Commonwealth, the name remains in informal use. No penny is currently formally subdivided, although farthings (¼ d.), halfpennies, and half cents have previously been minted and the mill (1/10¢) remains in use as a unit of account in some contexts. "Penny" is first attested in a 1394 Scots text, a variant of Old English ', a development of numerous variations including ', ', and '. The etymology of the term "penny" is uncertain, although cognates are
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly of the song was released on Brunswick Records in 1953, where it was sung by Burl Ives. Ives' rendition appears on his album, "Folk Songs, Dramatic and Humorous"—which debuted in late summer, 1953. The 1961 illustrated book by Rose Bonne also indicates that the lyrics are hers, whereas the music was composed by Alan Mills. The following is one form of the lyrics, that are representative of the nature of this cumulative lyric: There was an old lady who swallowed a fly; There was an old lady who swallowed a spider; <br>That wriggled and jiggled and tickled inside her! There