章节正文
`If he will not shout we must take him down,'
Remarked the yokels of Walgett Town.
Page: 43
They baited a trap with a crafty bait,
With a crafty bait, for they held discourse
Concerning a new chum who of late
Had bought such a thoroughly lazy horse;
They would wager that no one could ride him down
The length of the city of Walgett Town.
The stranger was born on a horse's hide;
So he took the wagers, and made them good
With his hard-earned cash - but his hopes they died,
For the horse was a clothes-horse, made of wood! -
'Twas a well-known horse that had taken down
Full many a stranger in Walgett Town.
The stranger smiled with a sickly smile -
'Tis a sickly smile that the loser grins -
And he said he had travelled for quite a while
In trying to sell some marsupial skins.
`And I thought that perhaps, as you've took me down,
`You would buy them from me, in Walgett Town!'
He said that his home was at Wingadee,
At Wingadee where he had for sale
Some fifty skins and would guarantee
They were full-sized skins, with the ears and tail
Page: 44
Complete, and he sold them for money down
To a venturesome buyer in Walgett Town.
Then he smiled a smile as he pouched the pelf,
`I'm glad that I'm quit of them, win or lose:
`You can fetch them in when it suits yourself,
`And you'll find the skins - on the kangaroos!'
Then he left - and the silence settled down
Like a tangible thing upon Walgett Town.
Page: 45
FATHER RILEY'S HORSE
'TWAS the horse thief, Andy Regan, that was hunted like a dog
By the troopers of the Upper Murray side,
They had searched in every gully - they had looked in every log,
But never sight or track of him they spied,
Till the priest at Kiley's Crossing heard a knocking very late
And a whisper `Father Riley - come across!'
So his Rev'rence in pyjamas trotted softly to the gate
And admitted Andy Regan - and a horse!
`Now, it's listen, Father Riley, to the words I've got to say,
`For its close upon my death I am to-night.
`With the troopers hard behind me I've been hiding all the day
`In the gullies keeping close and out of sight.
Page: 46
`But they're watching all the ranges till there's not a bird could fly,
`And I'm fairly worn to pieces with the strife,
`So I'm taking no more trouble, but I'm going home to die,
`'Tis the only way I see to save my life.
`Yes, I'm making home to mother's, and I'll die o' Tuesday next
`An' be buried on the Thursday - and, of course,
`I'm prepared to meet my penance, but with one thing I'm perplexed
`And it's - Father, it's this jewel of a horse!
`He was never bought nor paid for, and there's not a man can swear
`To his owner or his breeder, but I know,
`That his sire was by Pedantic from the Old Pretender mare
`And his dam was close related to The Roe.
`And there's nothing in the district that can race him for a step,
`He could canter while they're going at their top:
`He's the king of all the leppers that was ever seen to lep,
`A five-foot fence - he'd clear it in a hop!
Page: 47
`So I'll leave him with you, Father, till the dead shall rise again,
`'Tis yourself that knows a good 'un; and, of course,
`You can say he's got by Moonlight out of Paddy Murphy's plain
`If you're ever asked the breeding of the horse!
`But it's getting on to daylight and it's time to say good-bye,
`For the stars above the East are growing pale.
`And I'm making home to mother - and it's hard for me to die!
`But it's harder still, is keeping out of gaol!
`You can ride the old horse over to my grave across the dip
`Where the wattle bloom is waving overhead.
`Sure he'll jump them fences easy - you must never raise the whip
`Or he'll rush 'em! - now, good-bye!' and he had fled!
So they buried Andy Regan, and they buried him to rights,
In the graveyard at the back of Kiley's Hill;
Page: 48
There were five-and-twenty mourners who had five-and-twenty fights
Till the very boldest fighters had their fill.
There were fifty horses racing from the graveyard to the pub,
And their riders flogged each other all the while.
And the lashins of the liquor! And the lavins of the grub!
Oh, poor Andy went to rest in proper style.
Then the races came to Kiley's - with a steeplechase and all,
For the folk were mostly Irish round about,
And it takes an Irish rider to be fearless of a fall,
They were training morning in and morning out.
But they never started training till the sun was on the course
For a superstitious story kept 'em back,
That the ghost of Andy Regan on a slashing chestnut horse,
Had been training by the starlight on the track.
And they read the nominations for the races with surprise
And amusement at the Father's little joke,
Page: 49
For a novice had been entered for the steeplechasing prize,
And they found that it was Father Riley's moke!
He was neat enough to gallop, he was strong enough to stay!
But his owner's views of training were immense,
For the Reverend Father Riley used to ride him every day,
And he never saw a hurdle nor a fence.
And the priest would join the laughter; `Oh,' said he, `I put him in,
`For there's five and twenty sovereigns to be won.
`And the poor would find it useful, if the chestnut chanced to win,
`And he'll maybe win when all is said and done!'
He had called him Faugh-a-ballagh, which is French for clear the course,
And his colours were a vivid shade of green:
All the Dooleys and O'Donnells were on Father Riley's horse,
While the Orangemen were backing Mandarin!
It was Hogan, the dog poisoner - aged man and very wise,
Who was camping in the racecourse with his swag,
Page: 50
And who ventured the opinion, to the township's great surprise,
That the race would go to Father Riley's nag.
`You can talk about your riders - and the horse has not been schooled,
`And the fences is terrific, and the rest!
`When the field is fairly going, then ye'll see ye've all been fooled,
`And the chestnut horse will battle with the best.
`For there's some has got condition, and they think the race is sure,
`And the chestnut horse will fall beneath the weight,
`But the hopes of all the helpless, and the prayers of all the poor,
`Will be running by his side to keep him straight.
`And it's what's the need of schoolin' or of workin' on the track,
`Whin the saints are there to guide him round the course!
`I've prayed him over every fence - I've prayed him out and back!
`And I'll bet my cash on Father Riley's horse!'
.
.
.
.
.
Page: 51
Oh, the steeple was a caution! They went tearin' round and round,
And the fences rang and rattled where they struck.
There was some that cleared the water - there was more fell in and drowned,
Some blamed the men and others blamed the luck!
But the whips were flying freely when the field came into view,
For the finish down the long green stretch of course,
And in front of all the flyers - jumpin' like a kangaroo,
Came the rank outsider - Father Riley's horse!
Oh, the shouting and the cheering as he rattled past the post!
For he left the others standing, in the straight;
And the rider - well they reckoned it was Andy Regan's ghost,
And it beat 'em how a ghost would draw the weight!
But he weighed it, nine stone seven, then he laughed and disappeared,
Like a Banshee (which is Spanish for an elf),
Page: 52
And old Hogan muttered sagely, `If it wasn't for the beard
They'd be thinking it was Andy Regan's self!'
And the poor of Kiley's Crossing drank the health at Christmastide
Of the chestnut and his rider dressed in green.
There was never such a rider, not since Andy Regan died,
And they wondered who on earth he could have been.
But they settled it among 'em, for the story got about,
'Mongst the bushmen and the people on the course,
That the Devil had been ordered to let Andy Regan out
For the steeplechase on Father Riley's horse!
Page: 53
THE SCOTCH ENGINEER
WITH eyes that searched in the dark,
Peering along the line,
Stood the grim Scotchman, Hector Clark,
Driver of `Forty-nine',
And the veldt-fire flamed on the hills ahead,
Like a blood-red beacon sign.
There was word of a fight to the north,
And a column hard-pressed,
So they started the Highlanders forth,
Without food, without rest.
But the pipers gaily played,
Chanting their fierce delight,
And the armoured carriages rocked and swayed,
Laden with men of the Scotch Brigade,
Hurrying up to the fight,
And the grim, grey Highland engineer,
Driving them into the night.
Page: 54
Then a signal light glowed red,
And a picket came to the track.
`Enemy holding the line ahead,
`Three of our mates we have left for dead,
`Only we two got back.'
And far to the north through the still night air,
They heard the rifles crack.
And the boom of a gun rang out,
Like the sound of a deep appeal,
And the picket stood in doubt
By the side of the driving-wheel.
But the Engineer looked down,
With his hand on the starting-bar,
`Ride ye back to the town,
`Ye know what my orders are,
`Maybe they're wanting the Scotch Brigade
`Up on those hills afar.
`I am no soldier at all,
`Only an engineer,
`But I could not bear that the folk should say,
`Over in Scotland - Glasgow way -
Remarked the yokels of Walgett Town.
Page: 43
They baited a trap with a crafty bait,
With a crafty bait, for they held discourse
Concerning a new chum who of late
Had bought such a thoroughly lazy horse;
They would wager that no one could ride him down
The length of the city of Walgett Town.
The stranger was born on a horse's hide;
So he took the wagers, and made them good
With his hard-earned cash - but his hopes they died,
For the horse was a clothes-horse, made of wood! -
'Twas a well-known horse that had taken down
Full many a stranger in Walgett Town.
The stranger smiled with a sickly smile -
'Tis a sickly smile that the loser grins -
And he said he had travelled for quite a while
In trying to sell some marsupial skins.
`And I thought that perhaps, as you've took me down,
`You would buy them from me, in Walgett Town!'
He said that his home was at Wingadee,
At Wingadee where he had for sale
Some fifty skins and would guarantee
They were full-sized skins, with the ears and tail
Page: 44
Complete, and he sold them for money down
To a venturesome buyer in Walgett Town.
Then he smiled a smile as he pouched the pelf,
`I'm glad that I'm quit of them, win or lose:
`You can fetch them in when it suits yourself,
`And you'll find the skins - on the kangaroos!'
Then he left - and the silence settled down
Like a tangible thing upon Walgett Town.
Page: 45
FATHER RILEY'S HORSE
'TWAS the horse thief, Andy Regan, that was hunted like a dog
By the troopers of the Upper Murray side,
They had searched in every gully - they had looked in every log,
But never sight or track of him they spied,
Till the priest at Kiley's Crossing heard a knocking very late
And a whisper `Father Riley - come across!'
So his Rev'rence in pyjamas trotted softly to the gate
And admitted Andy Regan - and a horse!
`Now, it's listen, Father Riley, to the words I've got to say,
`For its close upon my death I am to-night.
`With the troopers hard behind me I've been hiding all the day
`In the gullies keeping close and out of sight.
Page: 46
`But they're watching all the ranges till there's not a bird could fly,
`And I'm fairly worn to pieces with the strife,
`So I'm taking no more trouble, but I'm going home to die,
`'Tis the only way I see to save my life.
`Yes, I'm making home to mother's, and I'll die o' Tuesday next
`An' be buried on the Thursday - and, of course,
`I'm prepared to meet my penance, but with one thing I'm perplexed
`And it's - Father, it's this jewel of a horse!
`He was never bought nor paid for, and there's not a man can swear
`To his owner or his breeder, but I know,
`That his sire was by Pedantic from the Old Pretender mare
`And his dam was close related to The Roe.
`And there's nothing in the district that can race him for a step,
`He could canter while they're going at their top:
`He's the king of all the leppers that was ever seen to lep,
`A five-foot fence - he'd clear it in a hop!
Page: 47
`So I'll leave him with you, Father, till the dead shall rise again,
`'Tis yourself that knows a good 'un; and, of course,
`You can say he's got by Moonlight out of Paddy Murphy's plain
`If you're ever asked the breeding of the horse!
`But it's getting on to daylight and it's time to say good-bye,
`For the stars above the East are growing pale.
`And I'm making home to mother - and it's hard for me to die!
`But it's harder still, is keeping out of gaol!
`You can ride the old horse over to my grave across the dip
`Where the wattle bloom is waving overhead.
`Sure he'll jump them fences easy - you must never raise the whip
`Or he'll rush 'em! - now, good-bye!' and he had fled!
So they buried Andy Regan, and they buried him to rights,
In the graveyard at the back of Kiley's Hill;
Page: 48
There were five-and-twenty mourners who had five-and-twenty fights
Till the very boldest fighters had their fill.
There were fifty horses racing from the graveyard to the pub,
And their riders flogged each other all the while.
And the lashins of the liquor! And the lavins of the grub!
Oh, poor Andy went to rest in proper style.
Then the races came to Kiley's - with a steeplechase and all,
For the folk were mostly Irish round about,
And it takes an Irish rider to be fearless of a fall,
They were training morning in and morning out.
But they never started training till the sun was on the course
For a superstitious story kept 'em back,
That the ghost of Andy Regan on a slashing chestnut horse,
Had been training by the starlight on the track.
And they read the nominations for the races with surprise
And amusement at the Father's little joke,
Page: 49
For a novice had been entered for the steeplechasing prize,
And they found that it was Father Riley's moke!
He was neat enough to gallop, he was strong enough to stay!
But his owner's views of training were immense,
For the Reverend Father Riley used to ride him every day,
And he never saw a hurdle nor a fence.
And the priest would join the laughter; `Oh,' said he, `I put him in,
`For there's five and twenty sovereigns to be won.
`And the poor would find it useful, if the chestnut chanced to win,
`And he'll maybe win when all is said and done!'
He had called him Faugh-a-ballagh, which is French for clear the course,
And his colours were a vivid shade of green:
All the Dooleys and O'Donnells were on Father Riley's horse,
While the Orangemen were backing Mandarin!
It was Hogan, the dog poisoner - aged man and very wise,
Who was camping in the racecourse with his swag,
Page: 50
And who ventured the opinion, to the township's great surprise,
That the race would go to Father Riley's nag.
`You can talk about your riders - and the horse has not been schooled,
`And the fences is terrific, and the rest!
`When the field is fairly going, then ye'll see ye've all been fooled,
`And the chestnut horse will battle with the best.
`For there's some has got condition, and they think the race is sure,
`And the chestnut horse will fall beneath the weight,
`But the hopes of all the helpless, and the prayers of all the poor,
`Will be running by his side to keep him straight.
`And it's what's the need of schoolin' or of workin' on the track,
`Whin the saints are there to guide him round the course!
`I've prayed him over every fence - I've prayed him out and back!
`And I'll bet my cash on Father Riley's horse!'
.
.
.
.
.
Page: 51
Oh, the steeple was a caution! They went tearin' round and round,
And the fences rang and rattled where they struck.
There was some that cleared the water - there was more fell in and drowned,
Some blamed the men and others blamed the luck!
But the whips were flying freely when the field came into view,
For the finish down the long green stretch of course,
And in front of all the flyers - jumpin' like a kangaroo,
Came the rank outsider - Father Riley's horse!
Oh, the shouting and the cheering as he rattled past the post!
For he left the others standing, in the straight;
And the rider - well they reckoned it was Andy Regan's ghost,
And it beat 'em how a ghost would draw the weight!
But he weighed it, nine stone seven, then he laughed and disappeared,
Like a Banshee (which is Spanish for an elf),
Page: 52
And old Hogan muttered sagely, `If it wasn't for the beard
They'd be thinking it was Andy Regan's self!'
And the poor of Kiley's Crossing drank the health at Christmastide
Of the chestnut and his rider dressed in green.
There was never such a rider, not since Andy Regan died,
And they wondered who on earth he could have been.
But they settled it among 'em, for the story got about,
'Mongst the bushmen and the people on the course,
That the Devil had been ordered to let Andy Regan out
For the steeplechase on Father Riley's horse!
Page: 53
THE SCOTCH ENGINEER
WITH eyes that searched in the dark,
Peering along the line,
Stood the grim Scotchman, Hector Clark,
Driver of `Forty-nine',
And the veldt-fire flamed on the hills ahead,
Like a blood-red beacon sign.
There was word of a fight to the north,
And a column hard-pressed,
So they started the Highlanders forth,
Without food, without rest.
But the pipers gaily played,
Chanting their fierce delight,
And the armoured carriages rocked and swayed,
Laden with men of the Scotch Brigade,
Hurrying up to the fight,
And the grim, grey Highland engineer,
Driving them into the night.
Page: 54
Then a signal light glowed red,
And a picket came to the track.
`Enemy holding the line ahead,
`Three of our mates we have left for dead,
`Only we two got back.'
And far to the north through the still night air,
They heard the rifles crack.
And the boom of a gun rang out,
Like the sound of a deep appeal,
And the picket stood in doubt
By the side of the driving-wheel.
But the Engineer looked down,
With his hand on the starting-bar,
`Ride ye back to the town,
`Ye know what my orders are,
`Maybe they're wanting the Scotch Brigade
`Up on those hills afar.
`I am no soldier at all,
`Only an engineer,
`But I could not bear that the folk should say,
`Over in Scotland - Glasgow way -
- thoroughly [´θʌrəli]
ad.完全地，彻底地 (初中英语单词) - well-known [,wel´nəun] a.著名的，众所周知的 (初中英语单词)
- priest [pri:st] n.教士；牧师；神父 (初中英语单词)
- whisper [´wispə] v.耳语 n.低语；沙沙声 (初中英语单词)
- softly [´sɔftli] ad.软化地；柔和地 (初中英语单词)
- moonlight [´mu:nlait] n.&a.月光(的) (初中英语单词)
- daylight [´deilait] n.日光；黎明 (初中英语单词)
- mostly [´məustli] ad.主要地；多半；通常 (初中英语单词)
- amusement [ə´mju:zmənt] n.娱乐；文娱设施 (初中英语单词)
- gallop [´gæləp] n.&v.奔驰；急速行进 (初中英语单词)
- laughter [´lɑ:ftə] n.笑，笑声 (初中英语单词)
- helpless [´helpləs] a.无助的，无依靠的 (初中英语单词)
- running [´rʌniŋ] a.奔跑的；流动的 (初中英语单词)
- freely [´fri:li] ad.自由地；慷慨地 (初中英语单词)
- standing [´stændiŋ] n.持续 a.直立的 (初中英语单词)
- column [´kɔləm] n.柱；柱状物；纵队 (初中英语单词)
- fierce [fiəs] a.残忍的；强烈的 (初中英语单词)
- related [ri´leitid] a.叙述的；有联系的 (高中英语单词)
- fearless [´fiələs] a.不怕的，无畏的 (高中英语单词)
- chestnut [´tʃesnʌt] n.栗子；栗树；栗色(马) (高中英语单词)
- reverend [´revərənd] a.可尊敬的 (高中英语单词)
- terrific [tə´rifik] a.可怕的；极大的 (高中英语单词)
- scotch [skɔtʃ] vt.&n.刻痕(于)；划伤 (高中英语单词)
- highland [´hailənd] n.山地，高地 (高中英语单词)
- sickly [´sikli] a.多病的；病态的 (英语四级单词)
- trying [´traiiŋ] a.难堪的；费劲的 (英语四级单词)
- breeding [´bri:diŋ] n.饲养，教养 (英语四级单词)
- superstitious [,sju:pə´stiʃəs] a.迷信的 (英语四级单词)
- steeple [´sti:pəl] n.(礼拜堂等的)尖塔 (英语四级单词)
- glasgow [´glɑ:sgəu] n.格拉斯哥 (英语四级单词)
- crafty [´krɑ:fti] a.狡猾的 (英语六级单词)
- taking [´teikiŋ] a.迷人的 n.捕获物 (英语六级单词)
- penance [´penəns] n.悔过；(赎罪的)苦行 (英语六级单词)
- starlight [´stɑ:lait] n.星光 (英语六级单词)
- novice [´nɔvis] n.新手；初学者 (英语六级单词)
- beacon [´bi:kən] n.灯塔；信标 v.照亮 (英语六级单词)
- picket [´pikit] n.(尖)桩 v.设置；监视 (英语六级单词)
- holding [´həuldiŋ] n.保持，固定，存储 (英语六级单词)
- wanting [´wɔntiŋ, wɑ:n-] a.短缺的；不足的 (英语六级单词)
文章标签:名著
章节正文
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