Shepherds/Sailors Take Warning
After sending in this cartoon
I got this message:
Panel 2 seems to be another Briticism, between “shepherds take warning” (UK) and “sailors take warning” (US). “Sailor” returns more Google hits, and I’d never heard the “shepherd” version before myself; but it seems to be an accepted variant of the rhyme even if it’s use is more limited. Do you think it would be confusing enough to readers to warrant a change?
I guess there weren’t as many shepherds in the US as in the UK, Australia and New Zealand when this phrase came into use.