Page:Barnes (1879) Poems of rural life in the Dorset dialect (combined).djvu/211

Rh J. An’ eäle ’s good stuff to vill en up.

A. An’ horn vor eyes is horn vor light, &emsp;&ensp;Vrom Goodman’s lantern after night; &emsp;&ensp;Horn vor the ears is woone to sound &emsp;&ensp;Vor hunters out wi’ ho’se an’ hound; &emsp;&ensp;But horn that vo’k do buy to smell o’ &emsp;&ensp;Is hart’s-horn.&emsp;J. Is it? What d’ye tell o’ &emsp;&ensp;How proud we be, vor ben’t we smart? &emsp;&ensp;Aye, horn is horn, an’ hart is hart. &emsp;&ensp;Well here then, Anne, while we be at it, &emsp;&ensp;’S a ball vor you if you can bat it. &emsp;&ensp;On dree-lags, two-lags, by the zide &emsp;&ensp;O’ vower-lags, woonce did zit wi’ pride, &emsp;&ensp;When vower-lags, that velt a prick, &emsp;&ensp;Vrom zix-lags, het two lags a kick. &emsp;&ensp;An’ two an’ dree-lags vell, all vive, &emsp;&ensp;Slap down, zome dead an’ zome alive.

A. Teeh! heeh! what have ye now then, Joe, &emsp;&ensp;At last, to meäke a riddle o’?

J. Your dree-lagg’d stool woone night did bear &emsp;&ensp;Up you a milkèn wi’ a peair; &emsp;&ensp;An’ there a zix-lagg’d stout did prick &emsp;&ensp;Your vow’r-lagg’d cow, an meäke her kick, &emsp;&ensp;A-hettèn, wi’ a pretty pat, &emsp;&ensp;Your stool an’ you so flat ’s a mat. &emsp;&ensp;You scrambled up a little dirty, &emsp;&ensp;But I do hope it didden hurt ye.

A. You hope, indeed! a likely ceäse, &emsp;&ensp;Wi’ thik broad grin athirt your feäce. &emsp;&ensp;You saucy good-vor-nothèn chap, &emsp;&ensp;I’ll gi’e your grinnèn feäce a slap, &emsp;&ensp;Your drawlèn tongue can only run &emsp;&ensp;To turn a body into fun.