Tis early In the morning,
As daylght does appear,
A whistle from the engine
Tells another day is here.
The cook's been up an hour or more
To get the buckets boiled,
So rise my lads and get some scran,
Before you start to toiL
We've travelled o'er the lonely plains,
To reach the shearing sheds;
We've camped upon the old bore-drains,
To rest our weary heads.
Without a stick to boil the quart,
Without a sheltering tree,
We've started on the track again,
Yes, fearless, bold, and free.
And now we're ready for a start,
The sheep are in the shed,
And we hear the noisy buzzing
Of the driving wheels o'er head.
And in our midst we have a man,
Who is Australia's best,
He's known throughout the country,
By his tallies in the West.
This hero is a credit
To the home where he was reared ;
To the parents whom he toils for,
And with them his earnings shares ;
He came across the border,
Deepwater is his home,
But he gets a hearty welcome
Wherever he may roam.
The world may boast of champions
Of the pugilistic fame,
Of runners, rowers, cricketers
And sports of every game ;
But we can boast of shearers,
Who toil from day to day,
To beat our ringers' tallies
But as yet they're far away.
This man of whom I speak with pride,
Is with a splendid team,
Which hail from down the southern side--
His name is Edward Dean.
The team, no doubt, is Queensland's best.
Tis known in every town
By the record tallies they put up
This year at Alice Downs.
Now the Shearing Season's over.
And we'll bid the West farewell,
And of the shearing incidents
Unto our mates we'll tell :
We'll proudly speak of tallies,
And records held by Dean :
And let us pray from day to day,
"Success to Leahy's team."
--ROBERT MATTHEWS, 1908
Notes
From the NSW Newspaper The Glen Innes Examiner 1 Oct 1954 Page 3.
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