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Timeless lines

• Message 1. 

  Posted by germinator (U13411914) on Friday, 14th January 2011

  I came across the Dorset poet William Barnes in David Crystal's new book 'Evolving English'.
  
  The ’Lotments.
  John and Richard.
  
  JOHN.
  
  Zoo you be in your groun’ then, I do zee,
  A-workèn and a-zingèn lik’ a bee.
  How do it answer? what d’ye think about it?
  D’ye think ’tis better wi’ it than without it?
  A-recknèn rent, an’ time, an’ zeed to stock it,
  D’ye think that you be any thing in pocket?
  
  RICHARD.
  
  O’, ’tis a goodish help to woone, I’m sure o’t.
  If I had not a-got it, my poor bwones
  Would now ha’ eäch’d a-crackèn stwones
  Upon the road; I wish I had zome mwore o’t.
  
  JOHN.
  
  I wish the girt woones had a-got the greäce
  To let out land lik’ this in ouer pleäce;
  But I do fear there’ll never be nwone vor us,
  An’ I can’t tell whatever we shall do:
  We be a-most starvèn, an’ we’d goo
  To ’merica, if we’d enough to car us.
  
  RICHARD.
  
  Why ’twer the squire, good now! a worthy man,
  That vu’st brought into ouer pleäce the plan,
  He zaid he’d let a vew odd eäcres
  O’ land to us poor leäb’rèn men;
  An’, faïth, he had enough o’ teäkers
  Vor that, an’ twice so much ageän.
  Zoo I took zome here, near my hovel,
  To exercise my speäde an’ shovel;
  An’ what wi’ dungèn, diggèn up, an’ zeedèn,
  A-thinnèn, cleänèn, howèn up an’ weedèn,
  I, an’ the biggest o’ the childern too,
  Do always vind some useful jobs to do.
  
  JOHN.
  
  Aye, wi’ a bit o’ ground, if woone got any,
  Woone’s bwoys can soon get out an’ eärn a penny;
  An’ then, by workèn, they do learn the vaster
  The way to do things when they have a meäster;
  Vor woone must know a deäl about the land
  Bevore woone’s fit to lend a useful hand,
  In geärden or a-vield upon a farm.
  
  RICHARD.
  
  An’ then the work do keep em out o’ harm;
  Vor vo’ks that don’t do nothèn wull be vound
  Soon doèn woorse than nothèn, I’ll be bound.
  But as vor me, d’ye zee, with theäse here bit
  O’ land, why I have ev’ry thing a’mwost:
  Vor I can fatten vowels for the spit,
  Or zell a good fat goose or two to rwoast;
  An’ have my beäns or cabbage, greens or grass,
  Or bit o’ wheat, or, sich my happy feäte is,
  That I can keep a little cow, or ass,
  An’ a vew pigs to eat the little teäties.
  
  JOHN.
  
  An’ when your pig’s a-fatted pretty well
  Wi’ teäties, or wi’ barley an’ some bran,
  Why you’ve a-got zome vlitches vor to zell,
  Or hang in chimney-corner, if you can.
  
  RICHARD.
  
  Aye, that’s the thing; an’ when the pig do die,
  We got a lot ov offal for to fry,
  An’ netlèns for to bwoil; or put the blood in,
  An’ meäke a meal or two o’ good black-pudden.
  
  JOHN.
  
  I’d keep myzelf from parish, I’d be bound,
  If I could get a little patch o’ ground.
  
  

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