Three Jolly Welchmen

And we hunted and we harried and little did we find,
A pig in the lane and that we left behind,
Look 'ee there!
Some said it was a pig, but the second said, "Nay!"
Some said it was an elephant with his snout blown away,
Look 'ee there!

And we hunted and we harried, and little did we find
A man in the road, and him we left behind
Look 'ee there!
Some said it was a man, but the second said "Nay!"
Some said it was a monkey with his tail cut away
Look 'ee there!

A frog in the well...
...a canary bird with his feathers washed away.

An owl in an ivy bush...
...the devil, and we all ran away

*...A privy in a field,
...a church with the steeple blown away.


From Ballads and Songs, Belden. Additional verse (*) RG's memory.
A version, called Cape Ann, was published in 1843 as sung by the
Hutchinson family.
DT #315
RG
oct96