Jamaican Song and Story Part 24

NOTES.

The black land-crab is a much-esteemed delicacy. Formerly every property had its crabber, whose duty it was to provide crabs for the house. Since the introduction of the mongoose they have become scarcer.

=form himself as=, pretends to be.

=stop in the night=, stop in for the night.

=put up=, put away.

=do the same, etc.=, live in the same way as the Crabs.

=plat-card=, placard; a rough written advertis.e.m.e.nt affixed to the trunk of a tree. When there is a public gathering the musicians play as they walk to the place of entertainment and again as they leave it.

XXIV. GAULIN.

One day there was an India woman who have a daughter, an' when the gal born she born with a gold ring on her finger. An' everybody hear about it but they never see it.

An' Mr. Annancy was very crave to got the gal to be his wife.

An' Annancy study a plan an' take up his bands of music an' go down to the gal yard, an' when him go down they admit Mr. Annancy.

An' when they admit him Annancy beguns to play all different tune just to see if the gal would laugh with him. But the gal was very sad, neither would laugh nor smile, until Annancy see there was no good, an' tell good bye an' go home back.

Annancy when him goes home back, met his friend Mr. Rabbit in the road.

Rabbit ask him:--"Brother Annancy, where you is comin' from?"

An' Annancy begun to tell Rabbit.

So Rabbit make a bargain with Annancy that he is going to try his luck.

So Annancy say:--"As you being such a clean an' white gentleman I think you will succeed. So if you succeed, when you coming home back you must make me know; then you can take me to be your servant."

That time Rabbit didn' know what Annancy study. Annancy mean was to take away the gal from Rabbit.

So Rabbit start to the yard, an' when him go they admit him in.

An' the mumma ask Rabbit what he come about.

Rabbit says he is looking for a courtier.

An' the mumma say to Rabbit:--"Oh, my dear Mr. Rabbit, I am very sorry! You is only but a meat,[44] so I can't give you my daughter."

[Footnote 44: Cf. the Bantu use of _nyama_ ("meat") for "an animal."

(A.W.)]

An' Rabbit spend a little time till he tell goodbye.

Meanwhile Annancy wouldn' go home. Him sit in the road till Rabbit coming home back. An' him ask Rabbit if him succeed.

Rabbit say:--"Oh no!"

So they begin to talk. An' by this time Sea-gaulin was pa.s.sing an'

hear what they are saying.

An' when Gaulin go home back, him 'tudy between himself that, if him only get a bus an' dress himself tidy an' drive to the gal yard, she'll sure be his wife.

An' Sea-gaulin goes down, an' the gal was very glad to see him an'

invite him inside the house, an' they begun to arrange to be married.

An' there was a old-witch boy which was brother to the gal whisper to her:--"That one is Gaulin."

An' the gal say:--"Oh no, it is my dear love."

So the boy say to then:--"Never mind, one day you will find out if he is not Mr. Gaulin."

So, when Gaulin tell goodbye an' go home to his yard back, the boy follow him an' go to the river side where Gaulin is fishening, an' he climb a tree which hung over the water.

An' when Gaulin come down the river he 'tart a singing:--

[Music:

My iddy, my iddy Pyang halee, Come go da river go Pyang, me Yahky Yahky Pyang me jewahlee Pyang, me Yahky Yahky Pyang me jewahlee Pyang.]

An' that time Gaulin didn' know that the boy was on the tree hearing him.

When he first sing his hat fall off.

An' he sing again his jacket was off.

That time the boy was seeing every bit.

An' he sing again an' his s.h.i.+rt was off.

Sing an' sing till the trousies drop off.

An' as he done he find himself inside the water begun to fishening.

An' as him put him head under a stone-hole the boy come down off the tree an' find himself back to his yard.

An' next Wednesday when Gaulin come to get married, the boy provide for him to sing that very same tune when they are on the cake table.

An the boy say:--"Ladies and gentlemen will you like to hear a song?"