Behold him issuin’ fra yon den,
In his owd filthy garment ;
Despised of women, shunn’d by men,
A prey to fleeas and varmint.
For weeks he ne’er hes wesh’d his faace,
His haar he ne’er puts comb in ;
Wi’ dogged looks fra plaace to plaace
He cheerlessly is roamin’,
A Bachelor.
Naa cheerful hearth, naa fireside breet, —
A pictur’ maast delightin’ —
Shines in his gloomy cot at neet,
His haamward steps invitin’.
Naa thrifty wife, wi’ queen-like pride,
Sits thaar an’ plies her knittin’ ;
Thaar, by his dull an’ dark fireside,
He all forlorn is sittin’,
A Bachelor.
Come on wi’ me an’ view his cot, —
His haam, his habitation ;
Mark weel the lone man’s dreary lot,
His cheerless situation.
Thaar meeat, hauf-cook’d i’ mucky pan,
He swallows for subsistence :
It can’t be said “ Here lives a man ! ”
But yan drags out existence,
A Bachelor.
Mark weel his bed, baath stock an’ post,
His blanket an’ his sheet ;
Yon heeap o’ duds, in uproar tost,
Sarves for a bed at neet,
He doesn’t tak the thowt an’ caar
To spreead his rags about ;
But, like a fox into his lair,
Creeps in whar he crept out,
A Bachelor.
Exposed to cowd, exposed to damps,
Wi’ smook an’ muck weel scented ;
Wi’ rheumatism, pains an’ cramps,
He hourly is tormented.
To fower baar waus he may complain,
Naa livin’ soul comes near him ;
Thaar he may roll an’ graan with pain,
There’s naa kind wife to cheer him,
A Bachelor.
Of au the troubles, girt an’ sma’,
That harrass an’ distress man, —
Of au the evils that befa’,
To punish an’ oppress man, —
Of au the ills that curse his lot,
The warst that I can tell
Is to be shut in some dark cot
To live thaar by hissel,
A Bachelor.
Of au the sluts that e’er were seen
To slop through muck an’ watter,
Wi’ haar au hingin’ ower their een,
An’ claas au rag an’ tatter —
Or ony ill-tongued, scoldin’ shrew
Ye chance to hear or see —
Give me the warst amang the crew,
Before I’ll live an’ dee
A Bachelor.