That did it, Mo. Here they are:


The Manchester Ship Canal

I sing a theme deserving praise, a theme of great renown, sir,
The Ship Canal in Manchester, that rich and trading town, sir
I mean to say, it once was rich, ere these bad times came on. sir,
But good times will come back, you know - when these bad times are gone sir.

In 1825, when we were speculating all, sir,
We wise folks club'd together and we made this Ship Canal, sir,
I should have said we meant to do so, for we'd schemes laid down, sir,
That would have made this Manchester a first rate seaport town, sir.

Instead of lazy Old Quay flats, that crawls three miles an hour, sir,
We'd fine three-masted steam-ships, some of ninety horse's power, sir;
That is, had it been made we would, and, Lord how fine 'twould be, sir!
When all beyond St. Peter's Church, was open to the sea, sir.

Success, then, unto Manchester, and joking all aside, sir,
Her trade will flourish as before, and be her country's pride, sir,
That is to say, if speculation can but be kept down, sir,
And sure we've had enough of that - at least within this town, sir.

Poetry was also used to criticise local events. During the 1850s and 1860s the Bradford Canal had become extremely polluted and was regarded as a major health hazard. There had been several epidemics in the area for which the canal had been blamed. On 29th June 1865 the Bradford Observer published the following poem. As a result of such propaganda, the canal was closed until its water supply was improved. It had originally been supplied from the Bradford Beck which had become polluted by the numerous textile works along its banks. The poem shows the increasing awareness of environmental and health problems in the late nineteenth century.