Lullabies usually soothe, but this one keeps handing the baby permission to cry. The father promises things: a toy elephant, another song, a blanket against the cold. Each promise is followed by a "then" that undercuts it. If the elephant won't walk, cry. If daddy has to go to work, cry. If the blanket doesn't warm you, cry.
The speaker sounds tender on the surface, even affectionate with "little baby," but the poem suggests he knows his gifts are small next to the child's needs. A toy can't walk, a song ends, and work takes him away. The third stanza stretches the crying out "'til you're old," which turns a nursery moment into something like a whole life of disappointment.
The mood is quietly sad, with a dry, resigned edge. The rocking, singsong rhythm and rhymes make it sound gentle, while the words admit that comfort often falls short. That gap between sound and meaning is what makes it unsettling.