SCOTS Project - www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk Document : 796 Title : Dipper: 50 - The Auld Jenny Heron Author(s): Dr James A Begg Copyright holder(s): Dr James A Begg Audio transcription M623: The Auld Jenny Heron Silent an solitary, staunin sae still, 'Neath a mossy bank by the tail o the puil, Hauf hid by the feathery fronds o a fern, Watches an waits an auld Jenny Heron. Wi her heid set low on her streikit breist, She luiks fast asleep, or dozin at least, But her bricht yella een are luikin aboot For an eel or a puddock, or even a troot. Wi her braw grey shawl roun her shouders happt, She dreams o times whan her craw wis stappt Fou o rainbow troot frae the rearin pond O yon fishery ferm at the back o beyond. 'Twas no oot o greed, but mair oot o need, Wi a hantle o steirin weans tae feed, That she an her mate gaed aft tae this spot, Till yae April mornin her guid-man wis shot By some chiel wi a gun an nae mair sense - - Whan aa that wis wantit - a wee wire fence A fuit or sae heich, at the edge o the watter, Wad hae stoppit the need for sic senseless slaughter. For try as they micht their lang necks tae streitch, The end o the rainbows'd be aye oot o reach But sic is the wey o Man wi Nature, Whan his ploys are threitened by some puir craitur; He claims aa the warld as his ain dominion, An rides ruch-shod ower ony opinion That denies him the richt tae dae as he pleases, An the 'Balance o Nature' can gae tae the Bleezes That a Heron itsel, as ane o God's wonders Micht juist hae a richt tae a share o the plunders, Is no tae the likin o some tottie minds That dwell in the realms of their maisters' behinds, Whase answer tae aa thing things they cannae work oot Is tae rax for the gun, tak guid aim an shoot. - An fishermen tae maun shouder some blame Whan they grudge the auld Heron a troot for its wame; Their heids fou o nonsense an common hearsay That a Heron eats ten pun o troot in a day! If they'd juist haud a-wee at the back o thae birks, An no breinge on throu like a couple o stirks, Tae fley the auld burd, mak her bend at the knees, Tak fricht an gae screichin up ower the trees; But staun an tak tent o the wey she bides still, Patient as Job by the edge o that puil, Waitin for some unsuspectin wee treat Tae linger ower lang forenent her big feet. Stey still, haud a meenit, Auld Jenny's steirin, Neck set like a spring, her neb ready for spearin, She bous hersel forrit, her heid bendin low, Then faster than lichtnin, a daith-dealin blow An a puir wee bit beardie is gruppt like a vice, Turnt roun heidfurst an gulped doun in a trice; Gies her heid a wee shoogle, plumes wavin like hair, Then luiks roun aboot - she's got room for some mair. Her een lippen on something faur oot o her reach - - Nou watch weel ye fishers, this auld yin can teach Ye juist hou tae gang warily efter a fush, Cannily, daintily, nae hint o a rush. Wi her heid set weel forrit, her een niver stray As she ever sae slowly creeps up on her prey, Yae fuit at a time, nae ripple or splash, She hovers a blink, then quick as a flash Heid's in/oot the watter an twists tae reveal The frichtsome deid-thraws o a muckle great eel Wrappt ticht roun her neck like a hengman's noose! - Auld Jenny's hauf-chucklt afore she breks loose, Syne draps the big eel, then grups it again, Pecks twa or three times, dauds its heid aff a stane, It's tossit an turnt till she's got it juist richt Then it's slid ower her thrapple, an doun oot o sicht Whaur it rummles aboot for a while in her wame, Till she's poukt aa her feathers - An flees awa hame. This work is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. The SCOTS Project and the University of Glasgow do not necessarily endorse, support or recommend the views expressed in this document. Information about document and author: Audio Audio audience General public: For gender: Mixed Audience size: 1000+ Audio awareness & spontaneity Speaker awareness: Aware Degree of spontaneity: Fully scripted Audio footage information Original title: The Dipper an the Three Wee Deils Year of recording: 1993 Recording person id: 752 Size (min): 4 Size (mb): 15 Audio footage publication details Published: Publisher/Broadcaster: Scotsoun Publication/Broadcast date: 1993-01-01 Place of publication/broadcast: Glasgow Audio medium Radio/audio: Audio setting Leisure/entertainment: Private/personal: Audio relationship between recorder/interviewer and speakers Friend: Speakers knew each other: Yes Audio speaker relationships Friend: Other: Co-authors of book from which recording was made Audio transcription information Title of original: The Dipper an the Three Wee Deils Transcriber id: 689 Year of transcription: 2005 Year material recorded: 1993 Word count: 684 Audio transcription publication details Published: Publisher/Broadcaster: Luath Press Publication/Broadcast date: 1991-01-01 Place of publication/broadcast: Barr, Ayrshire ISBN/ISSN: 0946487227 Audio type Poetry reading/song/ballad performance: General description: From a recording of a selection of short stories and prize winning poems (Scottish National Open Poetry Competition) Author Author details Author id: 623 Title: Dr Forenames: James Initials: A Surname: Begg Gender: Male Decade of birth: 1940 Educational attainment: University Age left school: 17 Upbringing/religious beliefs: Protestantism Occupation: Medical Practitioner Place of birth: New Cumnock Region of birth: S Ayr Birthplace CSD dialect area: Ayr Country of birth: Scotland Place of residence: Ayr Region of residence: S Ayr Residence CSD dialect area: Ayr Country of residence: Scotland Father's occupation: Clerical Officer, NCB Father's place of birth: Sandbank Father's region of birth: Argyll Father's birthplace CSD dialect area: Arg Father's country of birth: Scotland Mother's occupation: Primary Teacher Mother's place of birth: New Cumnock Mother's region of birth: S Ayr Mother's birthplace CSD dialect area: Ayr Mother's country of birth: Scotland Languages: Language: Danish Speak: No Read: No Write: No Understand: No Circumstances: A little Language: English Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Home, socially, at work Language: French Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Holidaying in France Language: Norwegian Speak: No Read: No Write: No Understand: No Circumstances: A little Language: Scots Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Home, socially, at work Participant Participant details Participant id: 623 Gender: Male Decade of birth: 1940 Educational attainment: University Age left school: 17 Upbringing/religious beliefs: Protestantism Occupation: Medical Practitioner Place of birth: New Cumnock Region of birth: S Ayr Birthplace CSD dialect area: Ayr Country of birth: Scotland Place of residence: Ayr Region of residence: S Ayr Residence CSD dialect area: Ayr Country of residence: Scotland Father's occupation: Clerical Officer, NCB Father's place of birth: Sandbank Father's region of birth: Argyll Father's birthplace CSD dialect area: Arg Father's country of birth: Scotland Mother's occupation: Primary Teacher Mother's place of birth: New Cumnock Mother's region of birth: S Ayr Mother's birthplace CSD dialect area: Ayr Mother's country of birth: Scotland Languages: Language: Danish Speak: No Read: No Write: No Understand: No Circumstances: A little Language: English Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Home, socially, at work Language: French Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Holidaying in France Language: Norwegian Speak: No Read: No Write: No Understand: No Circumstances: A little Language: Scots Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Home, socially, at work