“And a bit of a poet, too, aren’t you, Dan?” “Well, I puts things down sometimes in the winter evenings like.” “About your shooting, isn’t it?” “Yees, moästlins.” “And you have got tunes to them?” “Yees. It’s easy to maäke the tunes up o’ the fiddle, but the words is a straänge hard job oftens.” “Well now, will you let us hear one of them?” “To be sewer I will,” and he took his fiddle and sat on the gunwale, while we listened to the following:— It was in the iambic metre—which befits a ballad—with occasional anapæsts. [Sidenote: THE SWAN] [Sidenote: YOUNG JIM HALL] “It’s called The Swan this ’ere un,” he said, and, with a preliminary flourish on the fiddle, he went off. I should say that we got the words in his own writing afterwards spelt as I give them. THE SWAN. Now it Gentel men hall cum lisen to me, And ile tell you of a spre, When Sam and Tom Gose in there boats, Tha never dise a Gre. CHORUS. For the Halls they are upon the spre, Tha’ll do the best tha can, Am when tha goä to seä my boys Tha meäns to shoot a Swan. Then a storking down clay-’ole,[14] And laying as snug as tha can, For it’ Slap Bang went both the guns And down come the Swan. Now Sam and Tom ’as got this Swan, Tha do not now repent; Tha will pull up to Fosedyke Brige, And sell him to Hary Kemp. Now Sam and Tom they got a shere Tha dow not see no Feer, Tha will call too the Public-house, An git a Galling of Beer. Sam says to Tom here’s luck my lad, We will drink hall we can; And then wele pull down Spalding sett To loke for another Swan. There’s young Jim Hall he has a fine gun Tha say it weighs a ton, And he will pull down Spalding Set To have a bit of fun. CHORUS. For the Halls they are upon the spre, Tha’ll do the best tha can, And when tha goä to seä my boys Tha means to shoot a swan. And when tha hev got side by side Tha moastly scheme and plan, Tha meän to shoot either duck or goose Or else another swan. Jim, Bill an Tom was storking At thousands of geese in a line, Tha fired three guns before daylight An killed ninety-nine. (My eye! they did an’ all.) The old man larned the boys to shoot Without any fere or doubt, And young Jim Hall he was the man Who made the Gun and Shout.[15] There’s young Ted Hall he’s fond of life, His diet is beäf and creäm He cares nothing about shooting He’d rayther goä by steäm. Captain Rice, he’s deäd an gone, We hope he is at rest, All his delight was guns and boäts, And he always did his best. He was a hearty old cock As ever sailed on the sea. He has paid for many a galling of ale When he was in company. CHORUS. For the Halls tha are upon the spre, Tha’ll do the best tha can, An when tha goä to seä my boys Tha meäns to shoot a swan.