A tramp was trampin' on the road,
The afternoon was warm an' muggy,
And by-and-by he chanced to meet
A parsin ridin' in a buggy.
Said he: 'As follerers ov the Loard,
To do good offices we oughter!'
An' from a water-bag he poured,
An' guv the tramp, a drink er water.
The parsin he went rattlin' 'ome
To ware his fam-i-lee was thrivin',
The tramp went on until he met
A bullick-driver, bullick drivin',
'It's bilin' 'ot,' the driver sed
As soon's the dirty tramp drawed nearer,
And from a little keg he poured,
And giv the tramp a pint of beer, 'ah!'
(P.S., The 'ah' is meant to stand for the tramp a-drinking ov it.)
I ain't agin the temperance cause,
Nor yet no advocate ov drinkin',
I only tells the yarn because,
Well, at the time it somehow seemed
Ter kind ov set me thinkin'.