Ouse-keeper sent tha my lass, fur New Squire coomd last night.
Butter an heggsyisyis. Ill goä wi tha back: all right;
Butter I warrants be prime, an I warrants the heggs be as well,
Hafe a pint o milk runs out when ya breäks the shell.
II.
Sit thysen down fur a bit: hev a glass o cowslip wine!
I liked the owd Squire an is gells as thaw they was gells o mine,
Fur then we was all es one, the Squire an is darters an me,
Hall but Miss Annie, the heldest, I niver not took to she:
But Nelly, the last of the cletch,2 I liked er the fust on em all,
Fur hoffens we talkt o my darter es died o the fever at fall:
An I thowt twur the will o the Lord, but Miss Annie she said it wur draäins,
Fur she hednt naw coomfut in er, an arnd naw thanks fur er paäins.
Eh! thebbe all wi the Lord my childer, I hant gotten none!
Sa new squires coomd wi is taäil in is and, an owd Squires gone.
III.
Fur staäte be i taäil, my lass: tha dosn knaw what that be?
But I knaws the law, I does, for the lawyer ha towd it me.
When theers naw ead to a Ouse by the fault o that ere maäle
The gells they counts fur nowt, and the next un he taäkes the taäil.
IV.
What be the next un like? can tha tell ony harm on im lass?
Naäy sit downnaw urrysa cowd!hev another glass!
Straänge an cowd fur the time! we may happen a fall o snaw
Not es I cares fur to hear ony harm, but I likes to knaw.
An I oäps es e beänt booöklarnd: but e dosn not coom fro the shere;
Wed anew o that wi the Squire, an we haätes booöklarnin ere.
V.
Fur Squire wur a Varsity scholard, an niver lookt arter the land
Whoäts or tonups or taätese ed hallus a booök i is and,
Hallus aloän wi is booöks, thaw nigh upo seventy year.
An booöks, whats booöks? thou knaws thebbe naither ere nor theer.
VI.
An the gells, they hednt naw taäils, an the lawyer he towd it me
That is taäil were soä tied up es he couldnt cut down a tree!
Drat the trees, says I, to be sewer I haätes em, my lass,
Fur we puts the muck o the land an they sucks the muck fro the grass.
Vll.
An Squire wur hallus a-smilin, an gied to the tramps goin by
An all o the wust i the parishwi hoffens a drop in is eye.
An ivry darter o Squires hed her awn ridin-erse to ersen,
An they rampaged about wi their grooms, an was unten arter the men,
An hallus a-dallackt3 an dizend out, an a-buyin new cloäthes,
While e sit like a greät glimmer-gowk4 wi is glasses athurt is noäse,
An is noäse sa grufted wi snuff es it couldnt be scroobd awaäy,
Fur atween is reädin an writin e sniff: up a box in a daäy,
An e niver runnd arter the fox, nor arter the birds wi is gun,
An e niver not shot one are, but e leäved it to Charlie is son,
An e niver not fishd is awn ponds, but Charlie e cotchd the pike,
For e warnt not burn to the land, an e didnt take kind to it like;
But I eärs es ed gie fur a howry5 owd book thutty pound an moor,
An ed wrote an owd book, his awn sen, sa I knawd esed coom to be poor;
An e giedI be feard fur to tell tha ow muchfur an owd scratted stoän,
An e diggd up a loomp i the land an e got a brown pot an a boän,
An e bowt owd money, es wouldnt goä, wi good gowd o the Queen,
An e bowt little statutes all-naäkt an which was a shaäme to be seen;
But e niver looökt ower a bill, nor e niver not seed to owt,
An e niver knawd nowt but booöks, an booöks, as thou knaws, beänt nowt.
VIII.
But owd Squires laädy es long es she lived she kep em all clear,
Thaw es long es she lived I niver hed none of er darters ere;
Burt arter she died we was all es one, the childer an me,
An sarvints runnd in an out, an offens we hed em to tea.
Lawk! ow I laughd when the lasses ud talk o their Mississ waäys,
An the Missisis talkd o the lasses.Ill tell tha some o these daäys.
Hoänly Miss Annie were saw stuck oop, like er mother afoor
Er an er blessed darterthey niver derkend my door.
IX.
An Squire e smiled an e smiled till ed gotten a fright at last,
An e calls fur is son, fur the turneys letters they follerd sa fast;
But Squire wur afeard o is son, an e says to im, meek as a mouse,
Lad, thou mun cut off thy taäil, or the gells ull goä to the Ouse,
Fur I finds es I be that i debt, es I oaps es thoull elp me a bit,
An if thoull gree to cut off thy taäil I may saäve mysen yit.
X.
But Charlie e sets back is ears, an e swears, an e says to im Noa.
Ive gotten the staäte by the taäil an be dangd if I iver let goa!
Coom! coom! feyther, e says, why shouldnt thy booöks be sowd?
I hears es soom o thy booöks mebbe worth their weight i gowd.
XI.
Heäps an heäps o booöks, I ha seed em, belongd to the Squire,
But the lasses ed teärd out leäves i the middle to kindle the fire;
Sa moäst on is owd big booöks fetchd nigh to nowt at the saäle,
And Squire were at Charlie agean to git im to cut off is taäil.
XII.
Ya wouldnt find Charlies likese were that outdacious at oam,
Not thaw ya went fur to raäke out Hell wi a small-tooth coamb
Droonk wi the Quolotys wine, an droonk wi the farmers a 8;le,
Mad wi the lasses an allan e wouldnt cut off the taäil.
XIII.
Thous coomd oop by the beck; and a thurn be a-grawin theer,
I niver ha seed it sa white wi the Maäy es I seed it to-year
Theerabouts Charlie joomptand it gied me a scare tother night,
Fur I thowt it wur Charlies ghoäst i the derk, fur it looökt sa white.
Billy, says e, hev a joomp!thaw the banks o the beck be sa high,
Fur he cad is erse Billy-rough-un, thaw niver a hair wur awry;
But Billy fell bakkuds o Charlie, an Charlie e brok is neck,
Sa theer wur a hend o the taäil, fur e lost is taäil i the beck.
XIV.
Sa is taäil wur lost an is booöks wur gone an is boy wur deäd,
An Squire e smiled an e smiled, but e niver not lift oop is eäd:
Hallus a soft un Squire! an e smiled, fur e hednt naw friend,
Sa feyther an son was buried togither, an this wur the hend.
XV.
An Parson as hesnt the call, nor the mooney, but hes the pride,
E reads of a sewer an sartan oäp o the tother side;
But I beänt that sewer es the Lord, how-siver they praäyd an praäyd,
Lets them inter eaven eäsy es leäves their debts to be paäid.
Siver the mouds rattled down upo poor owd Squire i the wood,
An I cried along wi the gells, fur they weänt niver coons to naw good.
XVI.
Fur Molly the long un she walkt awaäy wi a hofficer lad,
An nawbody eärd on er sin, sa o coorse she be gone to the bad!
An Lucy wur laäme o one leg, sweet-arts she niver ed none
Straänge an unheppen6 Miss Lucy! we naämed her Dot an gaw one!
An Hetty wur weak i the hattics, wiout ony harm i the legs,
An the fever ed baäked Jinnys eäd as bald as one o them heggs,
An Nelly wur up fro the craädle as big i the mouth as a cow,
An saw she mun hammergrate,7 lass, of she weänt git a maäte onyhow!
An es for Miss Annie es calld me afoor my awn foälks to my faäce
A hignorant village wife as ud hev to be larnd her awn plaäce,
Hes fur Miss Hannie the heldest hes now be a-grawin sa howd,
I knaws that mooch o sheä, es it beänt not fit to be towd!
XVII.
Sa I didnt not taäke it kindly ov owd Miss Annie to saäy
Es I should be talkin ageän em, es soon es they went awaäy,
Fur, lawks! ow I cried when they went, an our Nelly she gied me er and,
Fur Id ha done owt for the Squire an is gells es belongd to the land;
Booöks, es I said afoor, thebbe neyther ere nor theer!
But I sarved em wi butter an heggs fur huppuds o twenty year.
XVIII.
An they hallus paäid what I haxd, sa I hallus deald wi the Hall,
An they knawd what butter wur, an they knawd what a hegg wur an all;
Hugger-mugger they lived, but they wasnt that eäsy to pleäse,
Till I gied em Hinjian curn, an they laäid big heggs es tha seeas;
An I niver puts saäme8 i my butter, they does it at Williss farm,
Taäste another drop o the winetweänt do tha naw harm.
XIX.
Sa new Squires coomd wi is taäil in is and, an owd Squires gone;
I heard im a roomlin by, but arter my nightcap wur on;
Sa I hant clapt eyes on im yit, fur he coomd last night sa laäte
Pluksh! ! ! 9 the hens i the peäs! why didnt tha hesp the gaäte?
The Village Wife
Alfred Lord Tennyson
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