University of Virginia Library

No, no! but still there'd be gels about,
Bless ye! often slippin' out
On the sly, and there they'd wait and they'd watch
For the signs of the boys, and lift the latch
The way no finger on earth will guide it
But a gel's, when her lad is waiting outside it.
So that was Tommy's trouble, the sowl!
The poor little mortal! out in the cowld,
And no gel in his arms, nor him in hers,
That's better than mittens and comforters,
Out in the cowld—and cowld is bad,
But what was driving this Tommy mad
Was thinkin' if Nelly was one of the crew,
And, if she was, then who, then? who?
Who was the chap? And he'd be creepin' and creepin'
All around, and peepin' and peepin',
And seein' her shaddher on the blind,
And very nearly out of his mind;
And hearin' a click, and 'd have to jump,
And hidin' himself behind the pump,
And gettin' in the way of others that was lookin'
After their own sweethearts, and hookin'
Over into the garden, and stumblin'
Against some others, and all of them grumblin'—
And often chased, but never caught;
Till at last they got freckened, for of course they thought
It was ghosts; and—the night was very injurious,
Mrs. Ball was sayin'; but the boys was furious,
And had a reg'lar hunt, but no use,
For Tommy would dodge them, and off with his shoes,
And away like the wind. So the chaps was fo'ced,
As you might say, to give up the ghost.
But a terrible disappointment, it's lek,
For the Captain's gels was the very pick
Of the sarvints about—aw, splendid lasses—
Shuperior, you know, was the Ballaglasses.
So the chaps was comin' from far and wide,
Sulby way, Ballaugh, Kirk Bride—
Chaps, you know, that had any consate
Of themselves, and likin' to be nate
And dacent—dacent—none of your scum—
Why, light-keepers was used to come—
Light-Keepers! yes, and eireys too—
Eireys—'deed I could tell ye the who—
But still, for all, it's hardly worth—
Just the tip-top coortin' on the North.