I'm a Goat (1873)
I'm a goat, I'm a goat, with a kid by my side,
The common's my pasture, and its long and wide ;
Up up with my tail, let it wag o'er the lea,
I'm a goat, I'm a goat, and like to be free ;
I fear none of your dogs, I heed not their claw,
I'm a stunner at jumping, a beggar at jaw,
And ne'er like a coward or slave will I kneel
While there's spring in my legs and a jerk in my tail ;
Quick, quick trim our beards, let them float in the wind,
And I'll warrant we'll soon leave the mongrel behind ;
Up, up with my tail, let it wag o'er the lea,
I'm a goat, I'm a goat, and the devil take me.
I think nought of a fence, I can top a good wall.
And walk into their greens, their flowers and all ;
But oft an old dame, who can handle the broom,
Were she smart enough would soon settle our doom :
While stones like hail around us may fall,
They may strike, they may bruise, but they cannot appal ;
With clear sky above us, and a footing below.
Like devils bewitch'd right onward we go ;
Hurrah! my dear friends, ye may watch, ye may sleep.
Yet into your gardens we always will creep ;
Our tail of defiance still wags o'er the lea,
I'm a goat, I'm a goat, and a devil I be.
El Dorado, January 23, 1873.
Notes
From the Victorian newspaper the Ovens and Murray Advertiser Tuesday 28 January 1873, p. 3.