a bit a fat in, at made hear a star, an thear a star : an as for clooas, us coit cloth wor awlis as cooarse as if it had been wovven throo a noin barr'd gate ; an us britches made a lether, butten'd rahnd us hips, an raich'd dahn tot cap on us knees : an for all meit wor so cheeap, we varra seldom tasted off a Sundiz yo mut a bowt it at tuppence- hopena a pahnd, an if yo'd twenta pahnd at wonce, they'd a geen ya a sheep heead in. Samma, dusta remember hah menni names we had for sahwer wotcake?
OUD SAMMA SQUAREJOINT: O kno'nt lad; bur o think we'd foive or six. Let's see: Slammak wer won, an Flat-dick wer anuther; an't tuther wor a dear, mo memra fails ma Flannel an Jonta ; an-an-an-an bless me, wot a thing it is tubbe oud, mo memra gers war for ware, bur o kno heah's anuther ; o'st think on enah. O, it wer Tooa Clate. A, Jerra, heah's menni a thahsand dogs nah days, at's better dun too nor we wor then; an them were t' golden days a Hallamshoir, they sen. An they happen wor, for't mesters. Hofe at prentis lads e them days wor lether'd whoile ther skin wor skoi blue, an clam'd whoile ther booans wer bare, an work'd whoile they wor as knock-kneed as oud Nobbletistocks. Thah nivver sees nooa knock-kneed cutlers nah ; nou, not sooa ; they'n better mesters nah, an they'n better sooat a wark anole. They dooant mezher em we a stick, as oud Natta Hall did. But for all that, we'd none a yer wirligig polishin; nor Tom Dockin scales, wit bousters cumin off; nor yer sham stag, nor sham revvits, an sich loik. T' noives wor better made then, Jerra.
JERRA FLATBACK: Hah, they wor better made; they made t' noives for yuse then, but they mayn em to sell nah.—Bywater, p. 32.
The other is a song, of uncertain authorship, which may be called—
The Cutler's Song.
- Cum all yo cutlin heroes, where'ersome'er yo be,
- All yo wot works at flat-backs, cum lissen unto me ;
- A baskitful for a shillin,
- To mak em we are willin,
- Or swap em for red herrins, ahr bellies tubbe fillin,
- Or swap em for red herrins, ahr bellies tubbe fillin.
- A baskitful o flat-backs o'm shooar we'll mak, or mooar,
- To ger reit intot gallara, whear we can rant an rooar ;
- Thro flat-backs, stooans, an sticks ;
- Red herrins, booans, an bricks.
- If they dooant play Nansa's fansa, or onna tune we fix,
- We'll do the best at e'er we can to braik sum ore ther necks.
- Hey, Jont, lad, is that thee, lad, where art ta waddlie[1] to ?
- Dusta work at flat-backs yit, as thah's been used to do?
- Hah, cum, and thah's gooa wimma.
- An a sample o will gi'tha;
- It's won at o've just fooaged uppa Jeffra's bran new stidda;
- Look at it well, it duz excel all t' flat-backs e ahr smitha.
- ↑ An error, or misprint for waddling.
