 | The Five Notions |  |
53
PITCHED OUT
I'm sittin' in the 'Ouse, Mary,
With the pore on either hand,
I'm sittin' in the 'Ouse, Mary,
Who once stood in the Strand
And sold the pearly collar stud
At “free a penny, Sir,”
And had a pitch worth fifty quid,
Vide the Westminster.
With the pore on either hand,
I'm sittin' in the 'Ouse, Mary,
Who once stood in the Strand
And sold the pearly collar stud
At “free a penny, Sir,”
And had a pitch worth fifty quid,
Vide the Westminster.
The Strand is little changed, Mary,
Being muggy now, as then,
Its hansoms rattle in my ear,
Its 'busmen swear again;
But wot 'es got the flower girls?
An' where—oh, bitter loss!—
Is the man that sold toy bagpipes
Outside of Charing Cross?
Being muggy now, as then,
Its hansoms rattle in my ear,
Its 'busmen swear again;
But wot 'es got the flower girls?
An' where—oh, bitter loss!—
Is the man that sold toy bagpipes
Outside of Charing Cross?
54
'Tis but a step down Chancery Lane,
And the little church stands near,
But who would purchase pearly studs
In Chancery Lane, my dear?
For Chancery Lane is a lane to itself
An' very hard to please,
An' it never buys nuffin' at all
Except Academies.
And the little church stands near,
But who would purchase pearly studs
In Chancery Lane, my dear?
For Chancery Lane is a lane to itself
An' very hard to please,
An' it never buys nuffin' at all
Except Academies.
An' 'es for side streets—on my oath,
They ain't worth lookin' at,
Though they be filled with offices
An' oyster shops an' that.
The very thought of standing there
Is enough to break yer rest;
You might as well go plant yerself
In them solemn squares out West.
They ain't worth lookin' at,
Though they be filled with offices
An' oyster shops an' that.
The very thought of standing there
Is enough to break yer rest;
You might as well go plant yerself
In them solemn squares out West.
I'm very lonely now, Mary,
For the pore make no new friends;
An' luck is luck, an' the pore must take
Whatever bad luck sends;
But the Strand was all I had, Mary,
My livin' and my pride;
There's nothing left to care for now,
An' here I am “inside.”
For the pore make no new friends;
An' luck is luck, an' the pore must take
Whatever bad luck sends;
55
My livin' and my pride;
There's nothing left to care for now,
An' here I am “inside.”
I'm biddin' you a long farewell,
My Mary—kind and true;
The 'Ouse is nice an' snug, Mary,
But it wouldn't do for you.
They say there's bread and work for all,
An', at times, a drop of beer;
But I can't forget the muddy Strand
And the trade I did, my dear.
My Mary—kind and true;
The 'Ouse is nice an' snug, Mary,
But it wouldn't do for you.
They say there's bread and work for all,
An', at times, a drop of beer;
But I can't forget the muddy Strand
And the trade I did, my dear.
P.S.
They also say I've been took in,That the Strand is still all right,
That the 'awker an' his little tray
Is not what chokes it quite,
Is not wot chokes it quite, my dear,
Is not wot chokes it quite,
So meet me roun' by the Sesil, love,
For I'm comin' out to-night.
| The Five Notions | |