Songs and Ballads for The People By the Rev. John M. Neale |
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| IX. |
| X. |
| XI. | XI. The English Yeoman. |
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 | Songs and Ballads for The People |  |
XI. The English Yeoman.
1
I am an English yeoman!And my father's lands I hold;
For a hundred years, and more than that,
They have never been bought or sold!
I sit by the same old hearth as they,
I rest in the same old seat;
And storms, when they roar on a winter's day,
On the same old gables beat.
2
They never knew an empty houseWhen Christmas-tide drew near;
And they never knew an empty hand
At any time o' th' year:
They kept up good old customs,
As every month came round;
They paid their tithes at Easter,
And at Whitsun beat the bound.
3
I am an English yeoman!And we yeomen know no change:
Though anti-corn-law lecturers
About the country range;
16
And let them have their way;
For we know the good old proverb—
“Give every dog his day!”
4
We never drive the hungryFrom our hearth and from our door;
We never built the unions
Wherein they starve the poor:
We keep up good old customs,
And are never over-nice;
For while we have one loaf of bread,
The poor shall have a slice.
5
I am an English yeoman!And I glory in the name,
That since old England was a state
Has ne'er been mark'd with shame.
They loved the Church for many a day,
Ay, and we love Her still;
So let who may be turn'd away,
We yeomen never will.
6
Though Baptists, Chartists, Infidels,Have set upon Her sore;
Wesleyans, Independents,
And other sects a score;
Yet how can we forsake Her,
When She alone hath power
To guard and guide us while we live,
And bless our dying hour?
7
I've heard that English yeomanryIn battle-fields have stood,
And would not flinch a single inch,
Although the ground ran blood.
17
You'd think would want long search:
I'll tell you, and I'll tell you true,—
They dare not leave their Church!
| Songs and Ballads for The People | |