按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页,按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页,按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部!
————未阅读完?加入书签已便下次继续阅读!
And go to meet their fate;
There's one who ought to enter in;
For good deeds done on earth;
Such deeds as merit ought to win;
Kind deeds of sterling worth。
Not by the strait and narrow gate;
Reserved for wealthy men;
But through the big gate; opened wide;
The grizzled figure; eagle…eyed;
Will travel through and then
Old Peter'll say: 〃We pass him through;
There's many a thing he used to do;
Good…hearted things that no one knew;
That's T。Y。S。O。N。〃
As Long as your Eyes are Blue
Wilt thou love me; sweet; when my hair is grey
And my cheeks shall have lost their hue?
When the charms of youth shall have passed away;
Will your love as of old prove true?
For the looks may change; and the heart may range;
And the love be no longer fond;
Wilt thou love with truth in the years of youth
And away to the years beyond?
Oh; I love you; sweet; for your locks of brown
And the blush on your cheek that lies
But I love you most for the kindly heart
That I see in your sweet blue eyes。
For the eyes are signs of the soul within;
Of the heart that is leal and true;
And mine own sweetheart; I shall love you still;
Just as long as your eyes are blue。
For the locks may bleach; and the cheeks of peach
May be reft of their golden hue;
But mine own sweetheart; I shall love you still;
Just as long as your eyes are blue。
Bottle…O!
I ain't the kind of bloke as takes to any steady job;
I drives me bottle cart around the town;
A bloke what keeps 'is eyes about can always make a bob
I couldn't bear to graft for every brown。
There's lots of handy things about in everybody's yard;
There's cocks and hens a…runnin' to an' fro;
And little dogs what comes and barks we take 'em off their guard
And we puts 'em with the Empty Bottle…O!
Chorus
So it's any 〃Empty bottles! Any empty bottle…O!〃
You can hear us round for a half a mile or so。
And you'll see the women rushing
To take in the Monday's washing
When they 'ear us crying; 〃Empty Bottle…O!〃
I'm drivin' down by Wexford…street and up a winder goes;
A girl sticks out 'er 'ead and looks at me;
An all…right tart with ginger 'air; and freckles on 'er nose;
I stops the cart and walks across to see。
〃There ain't no bottles 'ere;〃 says she; 〃since father took the pledge;〃
〃No bottles 'ere;〃 says I; 〃I'd like to know
What right you 'ave to stick your 'ead outside the winder ledge;
If you 'aven't got no Empty Bottle…O!〃
I sometimes gives the 'orse a spell; and then the push and me
We takes a little trip to Chowder Bay。
Oh! ain't it nice the 'ole day long a…gazin' at the sea
And a…hidin' of the tanglefoot away。
But when the booze gits 'old of us; and fellows starts to 〃scrap〃;
There's some what likes blue…metal for to throw:
But as for me; I always says for layin' out a 〃trap〃
There's nothin' like an Empty Bottle…O!
The Story of Mongrel Grey
This is the story the stockman told;
On the cattle camp; when the stars were bright;
The moon rose up like a globe of gold
And flooded the plain with her mellow light。
We watched the cattle till dawn of day
And he told me the story of Mongrel Grey。
。 。 。 。 。
He was a knock…about station hack;
Spurred and walloped; and banged and beat;
Ridden all day with a sore on his back;
Left all night with nothing to eat。
That was a matter of every…day
Common occurrence to Mongrel Grey。
We might have sold him; but someone heard
He was bred out back on a flooded run;
Where he learnt to swim like a waterbird;
Midnight or midday were all as one。
In the flooded ground he could find his way;
Nothing could puzzle old Mongrel Grey。
'Tis a special gift that some horses learn;
When the floods are out they will splash along
In girth…deep water; and twist and turn
From hidden channel and billabong。
Never mistaking the road to go;
For a man may guess but the horses KNOW。
I was camping out with my youngest son
Bit of a nipper just learnt to speak
In an empty hut on the lower run;
Shooting and fishing in Conroy's Creek。
The youngster toddled about all day;
And with our horses was Mongrel Grey。
All of a sudden the flood came down
Fresh from the hills with the mountain rain;
Roaring and eddying; rank and brown;
Over the flats and across the plain。
Rising and rising at fall of night
Nothing but water appeared in sight!
'Tis a nasty place when the floods are out;
Even in daylight; for all around
Channels and billabongs twist about;
Stretching for miles in the flooded ground。
And to move was a hopeless thing to try
In the dark with the water just racing by。
I had to try it。 I heard a roar;
And the wind swept down with the blinding rain;
And the water rose till it reached the floor
Of our highest room; and 'twas very plain
The way the water was sweeping down
We must shift for the highlands at once; or drown。
Off to the stable I splashed; and found
The horses shaking with cold and fright;
I led them down to the lower ground;
But never a yard would they swim that night!
They reared and snorted and turned away;
And none would face it but Mongrel Grey。
I bound the child on the horse's back;
And we started off with a prayer to heaven;
Through the rain and the wind and the pitchy black;
For I knew that the instinct God has given
To guide His creatures by night and day
Would lead the footsteps of Mongrel Grey。
He struck deep water at once and swam
I swam beside him and held his mane
Till we touched the bank of the broken dam
In shallow water then off again;
Swimming in darkness across the flood;
Rank with the smell of the drifting mud。
He turned and twisted across and back;
Choosing the places to wade or swim;
Picking the safest and shortest track;
The pitchy darkness was clear to him。
Did he strike the crossing by sight or smell?
The Lord that led him alone could tell!
He dodged the timber whene'er he could;
But the timber brought us to grief at last;
I was partly stunned by a log of wood;
That struck my head as it drifted past;
And I lost my grip of the brave old grey;
And in half a second he swept away。
I reached a tree; where I had to stay;
And did a perish for two days hard;
And lived on water but Mongrel Grey;
He walked right into the homestead yard
At dawn next morning; and grazed around;
With the child on top of him safe and sound。
We keep him now for the wife to ride;
Nothing too good for him now; of course;
Never a whip on his fat old hide;
For she owes the child to that old grey horse。
And not Old Tyson himself could pay
The purchase money of Mongrel Grey。
Gilhooley's Estate
(A ballad concerning the amalgamation of the legal professions。)
Oh; Mr。 Gilhooley he turned up his toes;
As most of us do; soon or late;
And Jones was a lawyer; as everyone knows;
So they took him Gilhooley's Estate。
Gilhooley in life had been living so free
'Twas thought his possessions were great;
So Jones; with a smile; says; 〃There's many a fee
For me in Gilhooley's Estate。〃
They made out a list of his property fine;
It totalled a thousand…and…eight;
But the debts were nine hundred and ninety and nine
The debts of Gilhooley's Estate。
So Mrs。 Gilhooley says; 〃Jones; my dear man;
My childer have little to ait:
Just keep the expenses as low as you can
Against poor Gilhooley's Estate。〃
But Jones says; 〃The will isn't clear in its terms;
I fear it will need some debate;
And the law won't allow me (attorneys are worms)
To appear in Gilhooley's Estate。〃
So a barrister…man; with a wig on his head;
And a brief in his hand quite elate;
Went up to the Court where they bury the dead;
Just to move in Gilhooley's Estate。
But his Honor the Judge said; 〃I think that the joint
Legatees must be called to proBATE
Ex parte Pokehorney is clear on the point
The point of Gilhooley's Estate。
〃I order a suit to be brought just to try
If this is correct that I state
A nice friendly suit; and the costs; by and by;
Must be borne by Gilhooley's Estate。〃
So Mrs。 Gilhooley says; 〃Jones; you'll appear!
Thim barristers' fees is too great;
The suit is but friendly。〃 〃Attorneys; my dear;
Can't be heard in Gilhooley's Estate。〃
From the Barristers' Court there's a mighty hurrah
Arises both early and late:
It's only the whoop of the Junior Bar
Dividing Gilhooley's Estate。
The Road to Hogan's Gap
Now look; you see; it's this way like;
You cross the broken b