Fertile Lands And Mammoth Cheese.

        In barren district you may meet
        Small fertile spot doth grow fine wheat,
        There you may find the choicest fruits,
        And great, round, smooth and solid roots.

        But in conditions such as these
        You cannot make a mammoth cheese,
        Which will weigh eight thousand pounds,
        But where large fertile farms abounds.

        Big cheese is synonymous name,
        With fertile district of the Thame,
        Here dairy system's understood,
        And they are made both large and good.

James McIntyre

James McIntyre was a Canadian poet, most notable for his poetry concerning cheese, cheese-making, dairying, and dairy products. Often referred to as 'The Cheese Poet,' McIntyre's work is celebrated for its earnestness and unintentional humor, making him both a beloved and an infamous figure in literary circles. He emigrated from Scotland to Canada in 1851 and settled in Ingersoll, Ontario, where he became a successful businessman and community leader.

James McIntyre

Whittier.

James McIntyre, Simple Poetry

A Bird's Nest.

James McIntyre, Simple Poetry

Canadian Charms.

James McIntyre, Simple Poetry

The Useful Weed.

James McIntyre, Simple Poetry

English

Suggested Poems

Explore a curated selection of verses that share themes, styles, and emotional resonance with the poem you've just read.

Dairy Odes.

        The sweet milkmaid of early days
        Her own household she ably sways,
        And her daughters now milk the cows,
        And her sons they now guide the plows.

        These pleasing changes on a farm
        Doth give to rural life a charm,
        Let occupation none upbraid,
        But honor plowman and milkmaid.

        For Burns with glory did endow
        And wove a garland round the plow,
        The source from which all wealth doth spring
        And happiness to all doth bring.

        Our muse it doth refuse to sing
        Of cheese made early in the spring,
        When cows give milk from spring fodder
        You cannot make a good cheddar.

        The quality is often vile
        Of cheese that is ...

James McIntyre

Ode On The Mammoth Cheese.

Weight over seven thousand pounds.

        We have seen thee, queen of cheese,
        Lying quietly at your ease,
        Gently fanned by evening breeze,
        Thy fair form no flies dare seize.

        All gaily dressed soon you'll go
        To the great Provincial show,
        To be admired by many a beau
        In the city of Toronto.

        Cows numerous as a swarm of bees,
        Or as the leaves upon the trees,
        It did require to make thee please,
        And stand unrivalled, queen of cheese.

        May you not receive a scar as
        We have heard that Mr. Harris
        Intends to send you off as far as
        The great world's show at Paris.

        Of the youth beware of these,
        For ...

James McIntyre

Oxford Cheese Ode.

        The ancient poets ne'er did dream
        That Canada was land of cream,
        They ne'er imagined it could flow
        In this cold land of ice and snow,
        Where everything did solid freeze,
        They ne'er hoped or looked for cheese.

        A few years since our Oxford farms
        Were nearly robbed of all their charms,
        O'er cropped the weary land grew poor
        And nearly barren as a moor,
        But now their owners live at ease
        Rejoicing in their crop of cheese.

        And since they justly treat the soil,
        Are well rewarded for their toil,
        The land enriched by goodly cows
        Yields plenty now to fill their mows,
        Both wheat and barley, oats and peas,
        But still...

James McIntyre

Hints To Cheese Makers.

        All those who quality do prize
        Must study color, taste and size,
        And keep their dishes clean and sweet,
        And all things round their factories neat,
        For dairymen insist that these
        Are all important points in cheese.

        Grant has here a famous work
        Devoted to the cure of pork,
        For dairymen find it doth pay
        To fatten pigs upon the whey,
        For there is money raising grease
        As well as in the making cheese.

James McIntyre

Lines Read at a Parsonage Opening at the Village where Ranney had once flourished, 1883.

        Some do boast of their pedigrees,
        But Salford's parent of the cheese,
        Ranney, industrious and wise,
        Here started this great enterprise.

        He did work on the dairy plan,
        While Farrington was factoryman,
        Both of these men it well did please
        To hear of progress making cheese.

        The farmers are in cheerful mood,
        For harvest all it has been good,
        And all the grain was sown this spring
        An abundant yield will bring.

        And you can scarcely stow away
        The yield of barley, oats and hay,
        Such pasture it is seldom seen,
        E'en now it is so fresh and green.

        This beauteous colour nature decks,
        While it insures yo...

James McIntyre

Lines Read At A Dairymen's Supper.

        It almost now seems all in vain
        For to expect high price for grain,
        Wheat is grown on Egyptian soil
        On the banks of mighty Nile.

        And where the Ganges it doth flow,
        In India fine wheat doth grow,
        And price of labor is so cheap
        That it they can successful reap.

        Then let the farmers justly prize
        The cows for land they fertilize,
        And let us all with songs and glees
        Invoke success into the cheese.

James McIntyre