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Classic and Contemporary Poetry
THE IRISHMAN AND THE LADY, by WILLIAM MAGINN Poet's Biography First Line: There was a lady lived at leith Last Line: Irishman. | |||
THERE was a lady lived at Leith, A lady very stylish, man; And yet, in spite of all her teeth, She fell in love with an Irishman -- A nasty, ugly Irishman, A wild, tremendous Irishman, A tearing, swearing, thumping, bumping, ranting, roaring Irishman. His face was no ways beautiful. For with small-pox 't was scarred across; And the shoulders of the ugly dog Were almost double a yard across. Oh, the lump of an Irishman, The whiskey-devouring Irishman, The great he-rogue with his wonderful brogue -- the fighting, rioting Irishman. One of his eyes was bottle-green, And the other eye was out, my dear; And the calves of his wicked-looking legs Were more than two feet about, my dear. Oh, the great big Irishman, The rattling, battling Irishman -- The stamping, ramping, swaggering, staggering, leathering swash of an Irishman He took so much of Lundy-foot That he used to snort and snuffle -- O! And in shape and size the fellow's neck Was as bad as the neck of a buffalo. Oh, the horrible Irishman, The thundering, blundering Irishman -- The slashing, dashing, smashing, lashing, thrash- ing, hashing Irishman. His name was a terrible name, indeed, Being Timothy Thady Mulligan; And whenever he emptied his tumbler of punch He'd not rest till he filled it full again. The boozing, bruising Irishman, The 'toxicated Irishman -- The whiskey, frisky, rummy, gummy, brandy, no dandy Irishman. This was the lad the lady loved, Like all the girls of quality; And he broke the skulls of the men of Leith, Just by the way of jollity. Oh, the leathering Irishman, The barbarous, savage Irishman -- The hearts of the maids, and the gentlemen's heads, were bothered I'm sure by this Irishman. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...ST. PATRICK [OF IRELAND, MY DEAR!] by WILLIAM MAGINN THE SOLDIER-BOY by WILLIAM MAGINN TO EMILIE BIGELOW HAPGOOD - PHILANTHROPIST by GEORGIA DOUGLAS JOHNSON TO HIS MISTRESS OBJECTING TO HIM NEITHER TOYING OR TALKING by ROBERT HERRICK IF THE POETS HAD FEARED THE ADVERTISERS by FRANKLIN PIERCE ADAMS FABLE: 16 by ANTOINE VINCENT ARNAULT TO HELEN KELLER by FRANCES BEEBE |
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