Historical & Legendary Ballads & Songs By Walter Thornbury. Illustrated by J. Whistler, F. Walker, John Tenniel, J. D. Watson, W. Small, F. Sandys, G. J. Pinwell, T. Morten, M. J. Lawless, and many others |
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Christmas in the Workhouse.
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 | Historical & Legendary Ballads & Songs |  |
Christmas in the Workhouse.
The prickly holly, spotted with red,
Bristled at every pane,
There were waggons shaking with holly
Brushing down many a lane;
Laughing children raced and ran,
Red as the Winter berry;
I listened outside the workhouse gate,
And even “the paupers” were merry.
Bristled at every pane,
There were waggons shaking with holly
Brushing down many a lane;
Laughing children raced and ran,
Red as the Winter berry;
I listened outside the workhouse gate,
And even “the paupers” were merry.
Pleasant to see the frosted flowers
On every window-pane;
Pleasant to hear the red-faced lads
Run shouting down the lane;
But the sound that cheered me Christmas through,
Over my dry old sherry,
Was hearing there, at the workhouse gate,
That even “the paupers” were merry.
On every window-pane;
Pleasant to hear the red-faced lads
Run shouting down the lane;
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Over my dry old sherry,
Was hearing there, at the workhouse gate,
That even “the paupers” were merry.
Christmas was gay in the old squire's hall,
Gay at the village inn,
Cheery and loud by the farmer's fire,
Happy the manse within;
But the surest signs of the general joy,
And that all the world was happy—very,
Were the sounds that proved at the workhouse door
That even “the paupers” were merry.
Gay at the village inn,
Cheery and loud by the farmer's fire,
Happy the manse within;
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And that all the world was happy—very,
Were the sounds that proved at the workhouse door
That even “the paupers” were merry.
| Historical & Legendary Ballads & Songs | |