Francis Duggan Poems

The morning cool and scarce a puff of breeze
And pale eyed ravens cawing on the sunlit trees
And the last petal has gone from the rose
And Autumn near and Summer at a close.
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In the village of Cullen there is the corner of dance
'Luibin na rince' I think it's Gaelic name
You see it at the left on hill up village
If you are journeying northwards towards Kiskeam.
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There goes that chap best known as crooked eyes
The former leader of the toughie boys
He's not the toughie leader anymore
'Alas' for him the glory days are o'er.
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Old Gabby say the harder you work the sooner you'll be dead
Just always work at your own pace it pays to use your head
Just keep looking busy me friend pace yourself through the day
To work hard like a driven slave won't get you extra pay.
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From Fionn MacCumhaill to Brian Boru to O Neill and O Donnell
And right up to the glory days of the wizard Dan O Connell
These men inspired a Nation's soul their names will live forever
And will we see their likes again? far more than likely never.
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The hungry fox on the high field was barking
And where heron fished the river trickled slow
And the moon shone on the old fields of Duhallow
And the wind blew chill 'twas cold enough to snow.
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You've heard the song 'The wild colonial boy'
An oft sung ballad of decades gone by
His name was Jack Doolin from Castlemaine
Where now no trace of his existence remain.
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When last I heard the dipper sing the stream in flood flowed brown
And birds piped in the leafy groves towards west of Millstreet Town
And hawthorns looked resplendent in their white flowers of the May
And sun that hid all morning peeped through the clouds of gray.
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An Autumn day in the wooded hills near Belgrave
Brown leaves are falling in the gentle breeze
The day is overcast and slightly chilly
And a forecast high of 17 degrees.
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The butcherbird sings a happy song but butcherbird's a sinner
He steals the young of other birds and eats them for his dinner
He eats the young of other birds and sing his merry ditty
The ruthless killer butcherbird to others show no pity.
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