Re: Australian railway songs

[jshugg@westpac.com.au]

In article <3a2faf67.0@news1.mweb.co.za>,
  "steamfreak" <steamfreak711@yahoo.com> wrote:
> > Getting back on topic, I recall that Patsy Adam-Smith in her book
> > "Folklore of Australian Railways" in the early 70s reproduced the
> > lyrics of various poems and songs.  One of them was about the end of
> > steam on the QR, and included a verse describing how the local vicar
> > had the measels, meaning he couldn't bless the stinking diesels.
> > Unfortunately the book is archived on the other side of the world
in my
> > parent's house (in Tassie) so I can't provide any more than that.
>
> The poem (not sure if it is a song as well) is called "The Blessing
of the
> Fleet".  From memory it went something like this (my copy is also
half a
> world away, but for some reason I remember this poem
> [snip]
> Those N's and K's are spic 'n span
> And those 4 lovely S's
> Are shining much more brightly than
> Die Lorelei's gold tresses.
[snip
>
> A truth, they hear the fireman say,
> Which makes the meeting shiver,
> "The vicar can't be here today,
> He's sick at Little River"
>

That's the poem! Good memory.

But I gather it refers to VR, not QR as I errantly recalled, what with
Ns and Ks, and lovely Ss, and with the vicar at L'l River... J


Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.