Songs of Jamaica (1912)
Little Jim
Me lard! me caan’ bear it no mo’!
‘Twill kill me dead, dis bad sore toe;
All day all night, ’tis de same,
Mek me a bawl out Massa name.[1]
O Lard o’ me, a ‘fraid[2] to tu’n,
De way de dreadful bluestone bu’n![3]
A[4] feel it movin’ t’rough me j’ints,
Like million load o’ needle-p’ints.
An’ oh! me schoolmates dem[5] did laugh
De day I nearly knock’[6] it off;
Me laugh meself fe sake o’ shame,[7]
An’ didn’ know I’d go so lame.
I didna’ then t’ink what I’d got—[8]
Good Lard, mumma de bluestone hot![9]
I tell you, a wi’ lose me head;[10]
You satisfy to kill me dead?[11]
An’ oh! it is a double pain,
For I caan’ go to school again,
To gellop over fyahn[12] an ditch,
An’ crew de j’int o’ teacher switch.[13]
No mo’ roas’ corn[14] fe little Jim,
Dem say dat it no good[15] fe him:
Me hide me face, for me caan’ bear
To see dem passin’ wid de pear.[16]
But me a don’t gwin’[17] to fret,
De half a toe wi’ better get:
I’ll go to school once more, go bad;[18]
Ay it ease me a bit,[19] t’ank God!
- Making me bawl (pronounce bahl) out Massa's (God's) name ↵
- I am afraid ↵
- So dreadfully does the bluestone (sulphate of copper) burn ↵
- I ↵
- Redundant word. It is tacked closely to the preceding word ↵
- Knocked ↵
- I laughted myself, out of bravado ↵
- I did not then picture to myself the extent of the injury ↵
- Is painful ↵
- I shall go out of my mind, I tell you ↵
- Can it be that you don't care whether you kill me or not? ↵
- To gallop over fern ↵
- To screw the joint of teacher's switch, is to cut it so that it breaks when he uses it ↵
- Baked cob of green maize ↵
- They say it is not good ↵
- Alligator pear (Persea gratissima), not allowed to those suffering from wounds ↵
- The half toe will get well some day ↵
- Play the mischief; play tricks. The a sounds as in French la. ↵
- It is a bit easier ↵