Random Rhymes and Rambles Part 11

The Spring-heead Band then played sum of their favorite tunes, "Oud Rosen the Bow," "Jessey's Pig," and ended wi "G.o.d save the Queen," and all departed to their homes wi smiling faces.

CHAPTER II.

Gather fra Stanbury, lads we yor carrot heeads, c.u.m dahn fra Locker tahn, lads, be the railway; c.u.m we yor wives, yor dowters, and relatives, Shout lads, shout for the Worth Valley Railway.

Heard you Ned Oufield mak his noration, Yoh'l say in yohr conshunce he spak it reyt fairly, He said poor Haworth nivver yet hed fairashun, And spak of the thing that will flurish it rarely.

Railway, &c.

Saw yoh Icholden wi his mahogany wheelbarrow, c.u.m dig the first sod wi his trowel o' silver, He wheeled it dahn t' plenk as streyt as an arrow, And tipt it as weel as a navvy or delver.

Railway, &c.

Saw yoh the church so anshent in history, Read yoh the Latin words high in the steeple, Hear to the sounds that arise from the belfry, It seems to be shaating along wi the people, Railway, &c.

Nah then, lads, for wark; nout but wark al do, and these at can't work mun plan. This wor the cry all up and dahn Haworth next mornin, and for weeks all wor vary bizzy. Won man made a weel-barra it chamber but it wor so big wal it couldn't be gotten aht withaht takin the haase side dahn. Another invented a koulin-masheen to koul t' muck up both sides to save wheelbarras and work tooils for the navvies. Some started a practicing for porters at the railway, wi oppenin and shutting the oven doors wi a bang, shating aht at the same time, "All aht for Haworth."

Wun man wor trying the dodge on, and the cat wor it ovan, and poor thing, expecting that it wor it the wrong place, jumpt aht just at time at he wor whistling to start, and wor catcht bi the tail and the poor thing lost it, for it wur cut off as clean as a whistle. A crookt legg'd pedlar com fra Keighley wun day wi winter-edges, and they tuke him for a sapper and miner et hed c.u.m to mezhur for the railway, and mind yoh they did mak summat on him, they thout that the winter-edges wur the apparatus to mezhur by. But hasumivver, the reyt uns com at after, and a sore disaster they hed yo mind, for they laid the plans o' t'railway dahn at green swarth, and a oud kah belanging to Blue Beard swallowed t' job; they tried ta save em but all i vain: a sore do wur this for both folk and the railway, for it put em a year or two back, and folk wur raging mad abaht t' kah, and if it hednt a been a wizzen'd oud thing they'd a swallowed it alive-the nasty greedy oud thing.

They hed a meeting tother neet, Fair o' t'top o' Wutherin Street, To see what things they'd got complete, Concerning Haworth Railway.

Wen Penny Wabbac tuke the chair, He lukt to be i grate despair, He sez, good folk, are yoh aware, Wat's happened to the Railway.

We persperashun on his brah, He sez, good folk, al tell yoh nah; Oud Blue Beard's nasty wizened kah Hes swallowed plan o' t' Railway.

Wi these remarks poor Wabbac sat, Wen Jonny Broth doft off his hat, His een they blazed like sum wild cat Wi vengence for the Railway.

He sed my blud begins to boil, To think et we sud work an' toil, And ev'n the cattle cannot thoyle To let us hev a Railway.

On hearing this the Haworth foak Began to swear it wur no joak, An wisht at greedy cah ma choak, At swallowed t' plan o' t' Railway.

But hasumivver they gat ower this, and wur not long at after afore they hed more disasters, such as tunnils shutterin, and chapels sinkin, and law suits, and so on, wal Haworthers thout be t' hart at both the fouk and the grund wur soft dahn at Keighley, and threttened to comb sum o'

the crookt-legged ens their heeads if they insinuated; and the Volunteers threttened to tak their part if there wur owt to do; and farther ner that, they vowed that they were ready to go to war wi onny nashun that sud insult awther them or ther railway under the present difficulties.

But sighs and tears and doubts and fears, Prevails with greatest folly, For 't sinagog has c.o.c.kt its clog, And 't parson's melancholy.

Tunnils sink and navvies drink, And chapels are upsetting; For Railway Shares n.o.body cares, And iverybody's fretting.

The iron horse they curse of course, And fane wud it abandon; And loyers fees their pockets ease, A thousand pound e Lundun.

Misfortunes speed as rank as weed, An' puts on sich a damper; Wal t' foaks declare e grate dispair, Its up wi't iron tramper.

The volunteers p.r.i.c.k up their ears, An mak a famos rattle; Thay want ta run ta Wimbleton, Or onny field o' battle.

Their black cravats an toppen'd hats Are causing grate attraction; Against Boneypart thay want ta start, E reglar fightin action.

The raw recuits hev got ther suits, Thay brag ta wun another: Ta't first campaign thay'l tak the train, Withaat the sliteist bother.

But t' oud foak thinks thair'l be some stinks, At menshun of invazhun; An hopes et taan will ride em daan, E cabs ta Howorth Stashun.

But hasumiver toime works wonders wi it an perseverance its gotten ta't last stage na, an foak is varry impashent fer it ta c.u.m up, an tha're preparin ta give it a grand recepshun; wun oud woman hes a peggy tub full o meyl an' saar swillins for th' ingen, and they are preparin another puddin for th' pa.s.sengers fra Keighley.

They're standing i' groups and they're living i' hopes, And more disappointments they dread, Wi' they're ears touching th' grand, they've harken'd for th' saand, Wal they've omust gone wrong i' ther head.

Sez d.i.c.k o' Grate Beckers, just keep up yor p.e.c.k.e.rs, Yo hevn't much longer to wait For blue milk and porridge, yol get better forridge, Wen the railway gets fairly agait.

For its labour i' vain to harken for th' train When all's goin on varry steady; So pray yo be calm its takin no harm, They'll bring it as soin as its ready.

For th' rails are all laid, and there's nowt to be made, n.o.bbut th' navvies to clear off all th' muck; Then all al be goin, for th' Cowinhead mooin Is bahn to be browt on a truck.

So Sam o' Blue Bills, wi' thi' pints an' thi' gills, Its bahn to be better for thee, To Keighley an' back tha ma go in a crack, When tha's bahn on a bit of a spree.

And John o' Pot Anns tha mun alter thi plans, For tha nivver can get him i' force; For I'm happy to tell at steead o'th' ca.n.a.l They're bahn to try th' big iron horse.

There's oud Jim o' Kyas is bahn to be wise, An' th' folk sez at he's takkin a hig; He'll see it first tried afore he will ride, He's dahn abaht the Paper Mill Brig.

He sez he'll be sure, it dropt in before, And it might do again for a pinch; For he sez they'll be kapt if sum on em trapt, So he's blest if he'll trust it an inch.

There's oud Mally Brook hez been dahn to look, And shoo's sore disappointed they say; Shoo's omust goan crackt for shoo sez it weant act, For they n.o.bbut can run it wun way.

Sho sez at high cla.s.s ats laid dahn all th' bra.s.s, Just nah they're beginnin ta craw; To mak up for th' trouble they're bahn to charge double, For bad speckulashun it law.

So to sattle em dahn, Sir Chrestofer Brahn, Hez tould em it wur his intent, If they'd n.o.bbut be quiet till things wur all reight, He'd give em a trip to Chow Bent.

Yes, and besides a trip to Chow Bent, they gat several more trips promised bi th' diffrent distingwisht citizens o' Haworth. Wun promised to give em trip to Bullock's Smithy, anuther to Tingsley Bongs, wal they wur getting quite up o' thersels and th' railway. Or else they'd been for many a year and cudn't sleep a wink at neet for dreamin abaht th'

railway ingens, boilers, and so on, and mony a time they've wakken'd i'

ther sleep shakkin th' bed posts, thinkin they wur setting th' ingen on or stoppin it. But they'd gotten reight and thout they wur bahn to hev no more trouble; but alas! it wur a mistak, for on th' morning of the 14th o' November an' oud skyologer went aht a weather-gazin and planet-ruling, and woful news and bad omens he browt back wi' him, for he sed at th'

Stars wur shoiting in and aht, And gravel ratches wur abaht, And th' folk, he sed, they little knew What mischief it wur bahn ta brew.

And news he spred abaht the tahn, What lots o' rain wud tumble dahn; And like his anshent sires he spoke, The shockin news withaht a joke.

For soin the rain i torrents fell, And O what awful news to tell, It lookt as th clahds wur bahn to shutter, For every d.y.k.e, and ditch, and gutter, A reguler deluge did resemble, Which made Haworth folk to tremble.

Some tried to stop its course wi' stones, And some dropt on their marrow bones, And hoped at if the wurld wur drahnd, The railway wud be safe an' sahnd;

But prayers like these hed no avail, For th' waters deluged all the dale; And th' latest news et I hev heerd Th' railway's nearly disappeared; But if its fun withaht a flaw, Wha, folks, I'm like to let yo know.

CHAPTER III.

"Work boys, work, and be contented."

Ha, its all varry weel for the poit to sing that, but if he hed a railway at stake he wud happen alter his tune, an espeshully if he wur an eye-witness nah, for th' storm wur ragin at heyest, and the folks wur waiting wi' pashent expectashun to knaw whether they wur bahn to be at an end or not, for th' flooid wur coming dahn thicker an' faster, and there look'd to be monny a hundred mile o' watter in the valley. Hasumivver they muster'd all t' energy they cud, for they wur determined to knaw th'

warst, so they went to see if they could find th' oud weather gazer at hed proffesied th' flooid; and after a good deal o' runnin abaht, they fan him peepin thru summat at shap of a tunnel. Sum sed he wur lookin at th' mooin, others sed he wor looking into futurity, hasumivver they asked him to come dahn an' look at the railway, and tell em whether th' flooid wur bahn to tak it away or not, but th' saucy oud hound refused at first, for he said at he wur flaid at sum on em wodn't be able to stand th'

shock if he tell'd em th' warst, so th' oud lad sed

If my advice yoh want, poor things, An cannut do withaht it, Go arm yor seln to th' teeth, he sed, An' doant be long abaht it; Both rakes an' powls an' props an' ropes Yo cannot get ta sooin, An' take the Cowinheeader's plan When they discuver'd the mooin, Doant gape abaht, but when yor arm'd Take each a diffrent rowt; And let yor cry be ivvery man, Th' poor railway's up the spout.