The Jolly Beggar Reel

Summary: A beggar arrives at a farm house. The farmers daughter takes a shine to him, so much so that after little persuasion he wangles himself a bed by the kitchen fire. In the middle of the night she comes down to the kitchen and finds the beggar naked, they soon end up in bed. After the event she turns to him starry eyed and he says.... he was just after a quickie. The beggar is soon running for his life from woman hurling furniture.

Moral: Don't get on the wrong side of a farmers daughter unless you can run pretty quick.

It's of a jolly beggar man came tripping o'er the plain,
He came unto a farmer's door, a lodging for to gain.

The farmers daughter she came down, and mewed him cheek and chin,
She says he is a handsome man i pray you take him in

We'll go no more a-roving, a-roving in the night,
We'll go no more a-roving, Let the moon shine so bright,
We'll go no more a-roving.

He would not lie within the barn, nor yet within the byre,
But he would in the corner lie, down by the kitchen fire.

O then the beggar's bed was made of good clean sheets and hay,
And down beside the kitchen fire the jolly beggar lay.

We'll go no more a-roving...

The farmer's daughter, she got up to bolt the kitchen door
And there she saw the beggar standing naked on the floor.

He took the daughter in his arms and to the bed he ran,
Kind sir, she says be easy now, she says, you'll waken our goodman.

We'll go no more a-roving...

now you are no beggar, you are some gentleman,
For you have stole my maidenhead, and I am quite undone.

I am no lord, I am no squire, of beggars I be one,
And beggars they be robbers all, so you are quite undone.

We'll go no more a-roving...

Additional Information:

This song featured in Dave's Angle on episode 4 of the Garden Sessions FREE fortnightly internet radio show (or Podcast).