*
Submit
Login
Links
Contests
Featured Poems
Fun & Games
Poems
Poets
Famous Poems
Famous Poets
Dictionary
Poem Types
Books
Resources
Blogs
Syllable Counter
Articles
Forum
POTD
New Poems
Anthology
Classifieds
Quotes
*
Contests
Featured Poems
Fun & Games
Poems
Poets
Famous Poems
Famous Poets
Fun & Games
Dictionary
Types of Poems
Books
Resources
Blogs
Syllable Counter
Articles
Forum
Poem of the Day
New Poems
Anthology
Classifieds
Quotes
Email Poem
Your IP Address: 104.23.243.100
From Email:
Required
Email Address Not Valid.
To Email:
Email Address Not Valid.
Required
Subject
Required
Personal Note:
Poem Title:
Poem
It chanced out back at the Christmas time, When the wheat was ripe and tall, A stranger rode to the farmer's gate -- A sturdy man and a small. "Rin doon, rin doon, my little son Jack, And bid the stranger stay; And we'll hae a crack for Auld Lang Syne, For the morn is Christmas Day." "Nay noo, nay noo," said the dour guidwife, "But ye should let him be; He's maybe only a drover chap Frae the land o' the Darling Pea. "Wi' a drover's tales, and a drover's thirst To swiggle the hail nicht through; Or he's maybe a life assurance carle To talk ye black and blue," "Guidwife, he's never a drover chap, For their swags are neat and thin; And he's never a life assurance carle, Wi' the brick-dust burnt in his skin. "Guidwife, guidwife, be nae sae dour, For the wheat stands ripe and tall, And we shore a seven-pound fleece this year, Ewes and weaners and all. "There is grass tae spare, and the stock are fat. Where they whiles are gaunt and thin, And we owe a tithe to the travelling poor, So we maun ask him in. "Ye can set him a chair tae the table side, And gi' him a bite tae eat; An omelette made of a new-laid egg, Or a tasty bit of meat." "But the native cats have taen the fowls, They havena left a leg; And he'll get nae omelette at a' Till the emu lays an egg!" "Rin doon, rin doon, my little son Jack, To whaur the emus bide, Ye shall find the auld hen on the nest, While the auld cock sits beside. "But speak them fair, and speak them saft, Lest they kick ye a fearsome jolt. Ye can gi' them a feed of thae half-inch nails Or a rusty carriage bolt." So little son Jack ran blithely down With the rusty nails in hand, Till he came where the emus fluffed and scratched By their nest in the open sand. And there he has gathered the new-laid egg -- 'Twould feed three men or four -- And the emus came for the half-inch nails Right up to the settler's door. "A waste o' food," said the dour guidwife, As she took the egg, with a frown, "But he gets nae meat, unless ye rin A paddy-melon down." "Gang oot, gang oot, my little son Jack, Wi' your twa-three doggies sma'; Gin ye come nae back wi' a paddy-melon, Then come nae back at a'." So little son Jack he raced and he ran, And he was bare o' the feet, And soon he captured a paddy-melon, Was gorged with the stolen wheat. "Sit doon, sit doon, my bonny wee man, To the best that the hoose can do -- An omelette made of the emu egg And a paddy-melon stew." "'Tis well, 'tis well," said the bonny wee man; "I have eaten the wide world's meat, And the food that is given with right good-will Is the sweetest food to eat. "But the night draws on to the Christmas Day And I must rise and go, For I have a mighty way to ride To the land of the Esquimaux. "And it's there I must load my sledges up, With the reindeers four-in-hand, That go to the North, South, East, and West, To every Christian land." "Tae the Esquimaux," said the dour guidwife, "Ye suit my husband well!" For when he gets up on his journey horse He's a bit of a liar himsel'." Then out with a laugh went the bonny wee man To his old horse grazing nigh, And away like a meteor flash they went Far off to the Northern sky. When the children woke on the Christmas morn They chattered with might and main -- For a sword and gun had little son Jack, And a braw new doll had Jane, And a packet o' screws had the twa emus; But the dour guidwife gat nane.
Type the characters you see in the picture
Required
Member Area
My Admin
Profile and Settings
Edit My Poems
Edit My Quotes
Edit My Short Stories
Edit My Articles
My Comments Inboxes
My Comments Outboxes
My Poetry Duels
Soup Mail
Poetry Contests
Contest Results/Status
Followers
Poems of Poets I Follow
Friend Builder
Member Authors
Poetry Challenges
Soup Social
Poetry Forum
New/Upcoming Features
The Wall
Soup Facebook Page
Who is Online
Link to Us
Member Poems
Featured Poems of the Week
Poems - Top 100 New
Poems - Top 100 All-Time
Poems - Best
Poems - by Topic
Poems - New
Poems - Read
Poems - Unread
Member Poets
Best New Poets
New Poets
Top 100 Poets with Most Poems
Top 100 Poets with Most Poems Recent
Top 100 Community Poets
Top 100 Contest Poets
In Memoriam
Famous Poems
Famous Poems - African American
Famous Poems - Best
Famous Poems - Classical
Famous Poems - English
Famous Poems - Haiku
Famous Poems - Love
Famous Poems - Short
Famous Poems - Top 100
Famous Poets
Famous Poets - Living
Famous Poets - 100 Most Popular
Famous Poets - Women
Famous Poets - African American
Famous Poets - Beat
Famous Poets - Cinquain
Famous Poets - Classical
Famous Poets - English
Famous Poets - Haiku
Famous Poets - Hindi
Famous Poets - Jewish
Famous Poets - Love
Famous Poets - Metaphysical
Famous Poets - Modern
Famous Poets - Punjabi
Famous Poets - Romantic
Famous Poets - Spanish
Famous Poets - Suicidal
Famous Poets - Urdu
Famous Poets - War
Poetry Resources
Anagrams
Bible
Book Store
Character Counter
Cliché Finder
Poetry Clichés
Common Words
Copyright Information
Grammar
Grammar Checker
Greeting Card Maker
Homonym
Homophones
How to Write a Poem
Lyrics
Love Poem Generator
New Poetic Forms
Plagiarism Checker
Poetry
Poetry Art
Publishing
Random Word Generator
Short Stories
Spell Checker
Videos
Word Counter