Mole-Catcher, The
DESCRIPTION: The old molecatcher learns that his wife is carrying on with a young farmer. He catches them in the act, and demands ten pounds of the farmer for "tilling my ground." The farmer says that's a fair price, "For that won't amount t'above tuppence a time."AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1905
KEYWORDS: adultery sex trick commerce humorous bawdy
FOUND IN: Britain(England(Lond,South,West))
REFERENCES (8 citations):
Kennedy 206, "The Mole-Catcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
Copper-SoBreeze, pp. 268-269, "The Molecatcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
MacSeegTrav 38, "The Molecatcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
Reeves-Circle 93, "The Molecatcher" (1 text)
Purslow-Constant, p. 61, "The Molecatcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
Palmer-ECS, #104, "The Mole Catcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
RoudBishop #83, "The Molecatcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
DT, MOLECATCH*
Roud #1052
RECORDINGS:
Alec Bloomfield, "The Mole-Catcher" (on FSBFTX19)
A. L. Lloyd, "The Molecatcher" (on Lloyd01)
File: K206
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The Ballad Index Copyright 2020 by Robert B. Waltz and David G. Engle.
And here are the lyrics from the Digital Tradition:
THE MOLECATCHER
In Wellington town at the sign of the plough
There lived a molecatcher, shall I tell you how?
Singing to rel i day fol di lie laddie lie laddie di day
He'd go a molecatching from morning to night
And a young fellow came for to play with his wife
The molecatcher jealous of this very same thing
He hid in the wash house to see him come in
He saw the young fellow come over the stile
Which caused the molecatcher so crafty to smile
He knocked on the door and thus he did say
"Where is your husband, good woman, I pray?"
"He's gone a-molecatching, you need never fear"
But little did she think the molecatcher was near
She went up the stairs and gave him the sign
And the molecatcher followed them quickly behind
And while the young fellow was up to his frolics
The molecatcher caught him right fast by his bollocks
The trap it squeezed tighter, which caused him to smile
Saying, "Here's the best mole that I've caught in a while"
"I'll make you pay dearly for tilling my ground
And the money it'll cop you no less than ten pound"
"Ten pound," says the young fellow, "That I don't mind
It only works out about tuppence a grind"
So come all you young fellows and mind what you're at
And don't get 'em caught in the molecatcher's trap
______________
@bawdy @infidelity
collected by Gardiner from G. Digwood and Lloyd from R. Copper
sung by Nic Jones
filename[ MOLECATC
TUNE FILE: MOLECATC
CLICK TO PLAY
SOF
I'm trying to figure out where the Digital Tradition lyrics come from. From the notes at the bottom of the lyrics, I would thing the DT lyrics came from Gardiner/Digwood, Lloyd, Copper, or Nic Jones. I have Gardiner/Digwood and Copper and will post them below because they're not the DT lyrics. If Lighter is correct (in the first message) that the DT lyrics from Lloyd, what book are they in? Or is it from a Nic Jones recording - but I couldn't find a Nic Jones recording.
Here's a recording by Peter Bellamy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7f84RDSIEd8