The Norsk Nightingale; Being the Lyrics of a "Lumberyack"Kirk, William Frederick
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The Norsk Nightingale; Being the Lyrics of a "Lumberyack"
Kirk, William Frederick
Dialect poetry, American; Humorous poetry, American
"Roll out!" yell cookee
"It ban morning," say he,
"It ban daylight in svamps, all yu guys!"
So out of varm bunk
Ve skol falling kerplunk,
And rubbing lak blazes our eyes.
Breakfast, den hustle; dinner, den yump!
Lumberyack faller ban yolly big chump.
"Eat qvick!" say the cook.
"Oder fallers skol look
For chance to get grub yust lak yu!"
So under our yeans
Ve pack planty beans,
And Yim dandy buckvheat cakes, tu.
Den out on the skidvay, vorking lak mule.
Lumberyack faller ban yolly big fule.
"Vatch out!" foreman say.
Den tree fall yure vay,
And missing yure head 'bout an inch.
Ef timber ban green,
Ve skol rub kerosene
On places var coss cut skol pinch.
Sawing and chopping, freeze and den sveat.
Lumberyack faller ban yackass, yu bet.
Ven long com the spring,
Ve drenk and we sing;
And calling town faller gude frend,
He help us to blow
Our whole venter's dough,
But ant got no panga to lend.
Drenk and headache, headache and drenk.
Lumberyack faller ban sucker, ay tenk.
LITTLE STEENA YOHNSON
Ay ban tenking lots of yu,
Little Steena Yohnson,
Ay ban sure yu love me true,
Little Steena Yohnson.
Oder geezers lak to play
In yure yard, but yu skol say,
"Ay don't lak yu fallers, nay!"
Little Steena Yohnson.
Some day yu skol be my vife,
Little Steena Yohnson:
Ay ban glad, yu bet yure life,
Little Steena Yohnson.
Ay ban vork lak nigger, tu,
Yumping 'round vith treshing crew;
Ay skol building home for yu,
Little Steena Yohnson.
Maybe ve skol saving dough,
Little Steena Yohnson;
Back to Norvay ve skol go,
Little Steena Yohnson--
Back var dis har midnight sun
Shining lak a son of a gun;
Ant yu tenk dis har ban fun,
Little Steena Yohnson?
OLAF
Yust two years ago last venter
Ay meet Olaf op in camp;
Ve ban lumberyacks togedder.
Every morning we skol tramp
'Bout sax miles yust after breakfast
Till we come to big pine-trees;
Den our straw boss he skol make us
Vork lak little busy bees.
Olaf, he ban yolly faller,
He skol taling yoke all day;
Sometimes he sing dis har ragtime,
Yust to passing time avay.
And at night, ven we ban smoking
After supper, he skol make
All us lumberyacks to laughing
Till our belts skol nearly break.
Me and Olaf bunked together,
And sometimes he taling me
'Bout his vife and little Torger,
Who ban living cross big sea.
"Ay ban saving dough," say Olaf;
"And next summer, ef ay can,
Ay skol send for vife and baby;
Den ay ban a happy man!"
One night Olaf getting letter
Ven we coming back to camp;
He yust tal me, "Little Torger,"
And his eyes ban gude and damp.
Dis ban how ay know vy Olaf
Never taling no more yoke,--
Vy he yust sit down at night-time,
Close by me, var he skol smoke.
"YENNIE DEAR"
Vy yu mak my heart to yump,
Yennie dear?
Ay ban yust a fulish chump,
Yennie dear.
Yu ban sveet lak summer rose,
Lak a qveen from head to toes.
Ay ant fit for you, ay s'pose,
Yennie dear.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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