[Editor: This poem was published in Melbourne Punch (Melbourne, Vic.), 11 June 1857.]
Colonial lyrics.
The Lass of Yackandandah.
Let poets sing of English girls,
Their beauty and their candour;
Give me a sweeter nymph than all,—
The lass of Yackandandah.
When dress’d in all her Sunday best,
No Melbourne belle looks grander;
In sheeny Sabbath satin shines
The lass of Yackandandah.
Her spotless name hath never known
One touch or taint of slander,
Though barmaid at the “Harrow” is
The lass of Yackandandah.
I’d like to see the man who’d dare
With calumny to brand her,—
He’d find he’d got his match in her,—
The lass of Yackandandah.
Her tongue subdues us, one and all;
We dare not reprimand her;
Each brawling sot is mute before
The lass of Yackandandah.
The lazy landlord long has ceased
The effort to command her;
And in the “Harrow” reigns supreme
The lass of Yackandandah.
She draws a cork with such an air,
No mortal can withstand her;
She turns a tap, and turns our heads,—
The lass of Yackandandah.
When she’s behind the bar, I stand
And stare, like any gander;
Whereat, she calls me silly goose,—
The lass of Yackandandah.
For her dear sake a goose I’d be,—
A bunyip, salamander,
Or anything, in short, to win
The lass of Yackandandah.
I wish I were Belshazzar, or
The Emp’ror Alexander,
My crown I’d lay at her dear feet,—
The lass of Yackandandah.
My wages all in drinking healths
To her, I weekly squander,
Yet cannot drown my passion for
The lass of Yackandandah.
When in the house, from off her face,
My eyes they never wander,
But do not melt her stony heart,—
The lass of Yackandandah.
Her coldness is enough to raise
An angel’s bile or dander,—
She’ll be the death of me, I know,—
The lass of Yackandandah.
Oh would that I, in marriage, could
Within a week demand her.
For rest I can’t, till I obtain
The lass of Yackandandah.
Source:
Melbourne Punch (Melbourne, Vic.), 11 June 1857, p. 160
Also published in:
The Courier (Hobart Town, Tas.), 22 June 1857, p. 3
Editor’s notes:
In the context of this poem, the “Harrow” is the name of a pub. It appears to have been a fictional pub; no trace could be located of such a pub in Yackandandah, although Victoria did have a Harrow Hotel (located in Harrow, south-east of Edenhope), as well as several hotels named the Plough and Harrow (in Ballarat, Brighton, and North Mooroopna).
Alexander = Alexander II (1818-1881); he was born in Moscow (Russia) in 1818; became Emperor of Russia, King of Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland in 1855; he was assassinated in Saint Petersburg (Russia) in 1881
See: “Alexander II of Russia”, Wikipedia
belle = a very beautiful and charming female, especially referring to the most beautiful and charming woman in a crowd or group (e.g. as used in the phrase “the belle of the ball”)
Belshazzar = Belshazzar, the crown prince and regent (556 BC – 539 BC) of the Second Babylonian Empire (also known as the Neo-Babylonian Empire, or as the Chaldean Empire); he reigned (in place of his father) until his death in 539 BC
See: “Belshazzar”, Wikipedia
bunyip = an Australian mythological beast, said to be located in billabongs, creeks, lagoons, swamps, and other waterways
See: “Bunyip”, Wikipedia
calumny = an untrue and defamatory accusation, charge, or misrepresentation which would have the effect of damaging, discrediting, disparaging, or tarnishing someone’s reputation or standing; a falsification or malicious statement used to damage or injure the respect and admiration held by people for someone or something; defamation, slander
cork = (in the context of a hotel, pub, or a venue serving drinks) the cork of a bottle of alcoholic drink; a piece of cork (normally manufactured in a suitable shape) which is used to stop the flow of liquid from a bottle
dander = temper, e.g. to “get your dander up” is to lose your temper (derived from the Dutch phrase “op donderen”, meaning “to burst into a sudden rage”; from “donder”, meaning “thunder”); also refers to the microscopic skin flakes shed from the body of humans and other animals (those which have feathers, fur, or hair)
See: 1) “Get Your Dander Up”, Historically Speaking, 23 June 2010
2) “dander”, English Linguistics
dress’d = (archaic) dressed
Emp’ror = (vernacular) Emperor
hath = (archaic) has
house = a “public house”, also known as a “public drinking-house” (commonly abbreviated as “pub”), being an establishment which serves alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises
See: 1) “Pub”, Wikipedia
2) “Drinking establishment”, Wikipedia
nymph = in Greek and Roman mythology, nymphs were young beautiful nubile women, with a propensity to dance, sing, and frolic; they were a class of deity who were not immortal but had very long lives; the dwelling places of most nymphs were generally depicted as being forests, groves, and mountains, and in or nearby lakes, springs, and streams, although there were also sea nymphs
See: “Nymph”, Wikipedia
Sabbath = the Biblical seventh day, regarded as a day of rest (from Exodus 20:8-11, in the Bible); observed as a day of rest and worship by most Christian denominations on Sundays, and by Jewish denominations and a minority of Christian denominations on Saturdays
See: “Sabbath”, Wikipedia
salamander = a group of amphibious animals which have a lizard-like appearance
See: “Salamander”, Wikipedia
sot = an habitual drunkard
Sunday best = someone’s best, finest, or nicest clothes (such as those worn for going to church on a Sunday, or for wearing to a formal event or to a special occasion)
tap = (in the context of a hotel, pub, or a venue serving drinks) the tap from which an alcoholic beverage (such as beer or wine) is poured
Yackandandah = a town in north-east Victoria, located south of Wodonga and north-east of Beechworth
See: “Yackandandah”, Wikipedia
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