G'day Betsy,

Here is the full text of the original publication in Singabout magazine (Complete with 1958 side notes on female shearer's rouseabouts ... in shorts!):

Singabout Vol 2, No 4, May 1958

THE SHEARER'S DREAM

Words: Henry Lawson
Tune: Traditional

Collected by John Meredith from the singing of Charles Ayger, aged 80, of Glebe, a suburb of Sydney.

It is doubtful whether THE SHEARER'S DREAM is an original composition of Lawson's, or a traditional ballad which Lawson heard around the sheds and polished up for publication. It seems more likely that it is the latter. The singing of this song, described as a traditional ballad, is the highlight of a short story titled THE SHEARER'S DREAM, in the collection, SEND ROUND THE HAT. It is hardly likely that Lawson would introduce one of his own compositions in this way; but if he did write these verses, then he must have done so while still in his 'teens, for Charles Ayger learned the song at a time when Lawson would have been about 19 years of age.

Mr. Ayger was born in 1877, and learned the song while going to school at Geurie, near Wellington, New South Wales. This singer says that the name of the air is THE SAXON TONGUE, and it closely resembles CASTLE GARDENS or COVENT GARDENS, (also known as CONVENT GARDENS) which is fairly well known to New South Wales folk singers, and is the air used f or THE BACK-BLOCK SHEARER (WIDGEEGOWEERA JOE). THE SHEARER'S DREAM is said to have been widely sung in the bush at the turn of the century, and another version is sung by Duke Tritton.



Oh, I dreamt I shore in a shearin'-shed, and it was a dream of joy,
For every one of the rouseabouts was a girl dressed up as a boy --
Dressed up like a page in a pantomime, and the prettiest ever seen
They had flaxen hair, they had coal-black hair -- and every shade between.
Chorus:
There was short, plump girls, there was tall slim girls, and the handsomest ever seen --
They was four-foot-five, they was six-foot high, and every height between.

The shed was cooled by electric fans that was over every shoot;
The pens was of polished ma-ho-gany, and everything else to suit;
The huts had springs to the mattresses, and the tucker was simply grand,
And every night by the billerbong we danced to a German band.

Our pay was the wool on the jumbuck's backs, so we shore till all was blue --
The sheep was washed afore they was shore (and the rams was scented too);
And we all of us wept when the shed cut out, in spite of the long, hot days,
For every hour them girls waltzed in with whisky and beer on tr-a-a-a-ys!

There was three of them girls to every chap, and as jealous as they could be --
There was three of them girls to every chap, and six of 'em picked on me;
We was draftin' 'em out for the homeward track and sharin' 'em round like steam,
When I woke with my head in the blazin' sun to find 'twas a shearer's dream.

(It is interesting to note that this year (1958), in New Zealand, Maori girls were employed for the first time as rouseabouts -- and they worked in shorts, "like a page in a pantomime"!

The tune - clearly related to that of Widgeegoweera Joe - is as follows (in Alan of Oz's no-longer-supported-by-Mudcat MIDItext program). If you can't run Alan's program ... well, there is the included ABC format version, for fanciers of that format!

MIDI file: shearrsd.mid

Timebase: 240

TimeSig: 6/8 36 8
Tempo: 165 (363636 microsec/crotchet)
Start
0600 1 67 080 0048 0 67 064 0012 1 67 080 0048 0 67 064 0012 1 69 080 0192 0 69 064 0048 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 60 080 0192 0 60 064 0048 1 64 080 0113 0 64 064 0007 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 69 080 0096 0 69 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 67 080 0192 0 67 064 0048 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 65 080 0192 0 65 064 0048 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 62 080 0552 0 62 064 0048 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 59 080 0192 0 59 064 0048 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 71 080 0192 0 71 064 0048 1 71 080 0096 0 71 064 0024 1 71 080 0192 0 71 064 0048 1 69 080 0048 0 69 064 0012 1 69 080 0048 0 69 064 0012 1 67 080 0192 0 67 064 0048 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 69 080 0096 0 69 064 0024 1 67 080 0552 0 67 064 0048 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 69 080 0192 0 69 064 0048 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 60 080 0192 0 60 064 0048 1 64 080 0113 0 64 064 0007 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 69 080 0096 0 69 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 67 080 0113 0 67 064 0007 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0048 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 65 080 0192 0 65 064 0048 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0000 1 62 080 0552 0 62 064 0048 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 59 080 0192 0 59 064 0048 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 71 080 0192 0 71 064 0048 1 69 080 0096 0 69 064 0024 1 67 080 0192 0 67 064 0048 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 64 080 0192 0 64 064 0048 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 60 080 0552 0 60 064 0048 1 67 080 0057 0 67 064 0003 1 67 080 0048 0 67 064 0012 1 69 080 0192 0 69 064 0048 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 60 080 0192 0 60 064 0048 1 64 080 0113 0 64 064 0007 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 69 080 0096 0 69 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 67 080 0192 0 67 064 0048 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 65 080 0192 0 65 064 0048 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 62 080 0552 0 62 064 0048 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 59 080 0192 0 59 064 0048 1 60 080 0096 0 60 064 0024 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 71 080 0192 0 71 064 0048 1 69 080 0096 0 69 064 0024 1 67 080 0192 0 67 064 0048 1 64 080 0096 0 64 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 67 080 0096 0 67 064 0024 1 65 080 0096 0 65 064 0024 1 64 080 0192 0 64 064 0048 1 62 080 0096 0 62 064 0024 1 60 080 0552 0 60 064
End

This program is worth the effort of learning it.

To download the March 10 MIDItext 98 software and get instructions on how to use it click here

ABC format:

X:1
T:
M:6/8
Q:1/4=165
K:C
G11/2G/2|A2GEFG|C2EGAE|G2GF2E|D5C|B,2CDEF|
B2BB2A/2A/2|G2FEFA|G5G|A2GEFG|C2EGAE|GG5/4GF2E3/4|
D5C|B,2CDEF|B2AG2E|FGFE2D|C5G/2G/2|A2GEFG|
C2EGAE|G2GF2E|D5C|B,2CDEF|B2AG2E|FGFE2D|C37/8||

Enjoy!

Bob

miditext link corrected Oct 7 '04 - joeclone