The Rowdy
[Air: Comin' through the Rye']

If a rowdy meet a rowdy,
Going down the street-
If a rowdy ask a rowday,
Must a rowdy treat?

CHORUS
Every rowdy has his toddy,
Ne'er a "tod" have I;
But all the rowdies follow me,
Whenever they are dry.

2
If a rowdy sees a rowdy
Take a glass of grog,
Should a rowdy call a rowdy
D-d infernal hog?
Every rowdy has his toddy,&c.

3
If a rowdy meet a rowdy
Anywhere in town,
Should a rowdy curse a rowdy,
Knock a rowdy down.
Every rowdy has his toddy,&c.

4
If a rowdy sees a rowdy
Trying to raise a "fout,"
Should a rowdy say to rowdy,
"Go in, let's clean him out."
Every rowdy has his toddy,&c.

5
If a rowdy will be a rowdy,
Ride him on a rail;
Tar the rowdy, feather rowdy,
Take him off to jail!
Every rowdy has his toddy,&c.


Put's Golden Songster, page 25
Tune and lyrics in Dwyer & Lingenfelter, The Songs of the Gold Rush, p. 122

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So would I.

If Eastern fops who paint their cheeks,
And wear their standing collars,
Would live and work with me two weeks
I'd give five hundred dollars.

For breakfast, ere we went to work,
We'd take a bit "for greens,"
For dinner we'd have beans and pork,
For supper, pork and beans.

If California was an eel,
A bullhead, shark or whale,
I'm satisfied, as I now feel,
That I would be the tail!

---

A sour old maid once asked the advice of a neighbor how she should get rid of a troublesome suitor.
"Oh, marry him," was the advice.
"Nay," said she, "I had rather see him hanged first."
"That's all the same," was the reply, "for after your marriage it will not be long before he will hang himself."

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Click to play (The Contemplator tunebook)

[Tune notes by Artful Codger]
The tune used for Robert Burns' song "Comin' thro' the Rye" is "Miller's Wedding". If anyone doesn't already know the tune (what pack of wolves raised you?) you can find it in the Digital Tradition entry (click).

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