OHN.

An' then, when I ha' nothen else to do,
Why I can teaeke my hook an' gloves, an' goo
To cut a lot o' vuzz and briars
Vor heten ovens, or vor lighten viers.
An' when the childern be too young to eaern
A penny, they can g'out in zunny weather,
An' run about, an' get together
A bag o' cow-dung vor to burn.

THOMAS.

'Tis handy to live near a common;
But I've a-zeed, an' I've a-zaid,
That if a poor man got a bit o' bread,
They'll try to teaeke it vrom en.
But I wer twold back tother day,
That they be got into a way
O' letten bits o' groun' out to the poor.

JOHN.

Well, I do hope 'tis true, I'm sure;
An' I do hope that they will do it here,
Or I must goo to workhouse, I do fear.

[Gothic: Eclogue.]

TWO FARMS IN WOONE.

_Robert an' Thomas._

ROBERT.

You'll lose your meaester soon, then, I do vind;
He's gwain to leaeve his farm, as I do larn,
At Mielmas; an' I be zorry vor'n.
What, is he then a little bit behind?

THOMAS.

O no! at Mielmas his time is up,
An' thik there sly wold fellow, Farmer Tup,
A-fearen that he'd get a bit o' bread,
'V a-been an' took his farm here over's head.

ROBERT.

How come the Squire to treat your meaester zoo?

THOMAS.

Why, he an' meaester had a word or two.

ROBERT.

Is Farmer Tup a-gwain to leaeve his farm?
He han't a-got noo young woones vor to zwarm.
Poor over-reachen man! why to be sure
He don't want all the farms in parish, do er?

THOMAS.

Why ees, all ever he can come across,
Last year, you know, he got away the eaecre
Or two o' ground a-rented by the beaeker,
An' what the butcher had to keep his hoss;
An' vo'k do beaenhan' now, that meaester's lot
Will be a-drowd along wi' what he got.

ROBERT.

That's it. In theaese here pleaece there used to be
Eight farms avore they wer a-drowd together,
An' eight farm-housen. Now how many be there?
Why after this, you know there'll be but dree.

THOMAS.

An' now they don't imploy so many men
Upon the land as work'd upon it then,
Vor all they midden crop it worse, nor stock it.
The lan'lord, to be sure, is into pocket;
Vor half the housen been down, 'tis clear,
Don't cost so much to keep em up, a-near.
But then the jobs o' work in wood an' morter
Do come I 'spose, you know, a little shorter;
An' many that wer little farmers then,
Be now a-come all down to leaeb