SCOTS Project - www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk Document : 635 Title : Dipper: 23 - The Red Sea Crossing Author(s): John Reid Copyright holder(s): John Reid Text The brickwork ran like a weel-gaun mill, Wi bricks piled up in a muckle hill, An Moses wiped the sweit frae his broo As he keekit tae see gin the kiln wis fou. A sodger chiel cam up at his back An leant on his spear an stopped for a crack, Syne Moses caad ower tae his brither Aaron, ‘Juist see that the wark gangs on - nae sparin. This sodger says I've tae gang tae the palace Tae hear whit Pharoah has tae tell us.' Sune he chapped on the door o Pharoah's ha An gaed straucht in at Pharoah's ca. ‘Guid mornin, Pharoah,' says he, no blate. ‘Guid mornin,' says Pharoah. 'Tak a sate. I’ve caad ye in aboot these bricks, For things are gettin in a fix. Whit wi pyramids an palaces Your lads will hae tae rax their galluses. Tae meet my plans in ilk iota They maun pit oot a bigger quota, An juist tae free a cairt or twae They'll hae tae gether their ain strae.' ‘This is a maitter for the union,' Said Moses, ‘but, in my opeenion, It's fair yont sense! Mair bricks! Nae strae! Wad ye hae us workin nicht an day?' He daudit the door near aff its hinges Syne back intae the brickwork breenges, Caas oot the men an tells them stark Bauld Pharoah's plan for increased wark. ‘Tae Hell wi this,' cries ae heid ganger, ‘We'll thole Egyptian rule nae langer! Let's gether aa the graith we can, An set aff for the Promised Lan!' Sae Moses, wi his kith an kizzens, Herdit their nowt in droves an dizzens, Yokit cairts, filled bynes an barras, An fettled gairds wi bows an arrows. (But naebody seemed tae tak the notion They micht need boats tae cross the ocean.) Sae, wi a steir wad deave a miller, Sheltered tween clood and fiery pillar, Wi wives an weans, doos, hens and bestial, They set oot on their path celestial. Days later, tired o stour an heat, They ettled sair tae rest their feet An soum or paidle in the sea, But that, alas, wis no tae be. For ill-set Pharoah had renagit, Forgettin hou he had been plaguit, An nou, for aince, wis aff his hunkers Tae chase his Israelitish plunkers! His chauriots drave as though gane wud, An Moses saw they meant nae guid. Wi's muckle stauve he gied a blatter An jauped his goun wi saun an watter, But, Goad be here, the reamin tide Gaed rowin back on aither side! An sae, oot ower the shinin saund They crossed intae the Promised Land. But time wis short. 'Chase on thae laddies,' Moses cried. 'Nae time for haddies, Or guddlin 'mang the kelp for cod. There's Pharoah comin doun the road!' The Israelites stood on the shore An watched as Pharoah cursed an swore, While aa his drivers, near an faur, Sank aye the deeper in the glaur. ‘Ach, boys,' said Moses, 'it's a sin, They'd aa be better happit in.' Wi that he struck aince mair the watter, An feenished, mair or less, the maitter. ___ crack/talk chapped/knocked blate/bashful,timid rax/stretch galluses/braces yont/beyond stark/vigorously graith/possessions, wealth kizzens/cousins yokit/harnessed byne/washtub steir/uproar doos/pigeons bestial/livestock stour/dust soum/swim hunkers/haunches plunkers/truants wud/mad stauve/stave blatter/heavy blow jaup/splash,bespatter reamin/owerflowing guddlin/catching fish by hand kelp/seaweed glaur/mud happit in/covered over 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: Text Text audience General public: Audience size: 1000+ Text details Method of composition: Handwritten Year of composition: 1975 Word count: 595 General description: Anthology of prizewinning and other Scots poems, and short stories in Ayrshire Scots. Text medium Book: Radio: Other: Audiocassette Text publication details Published: Publisher: Luath Press Publication year: 1991 Place of publication: Barr, Ayrshire ISBN/ISSN: 0946487227 Edition: First Part of larger text: Contained in: The Dipper an the Three Wee Deils: Tales and Poems in Ayrshire Scots Editor: Authors: Dr. J. A. Begg and J. Reid Page numbers: 51-52 Text setting Leisure/entertainment: Private/personal: Text type Poem/song/ballad: Author Author details Author id: 738 Forenames: John Surname: Reid Gender: Male Decade of birth: 1910 Educational attainment: University Age left school: 17 Upbringing/religious beliefs: Protestantism Occupation: Retired Head Teacher Place of birth: Dalry Region of birth: N Ayr Birthplace CSD dialect area: Ayr Country of birth: Scotland Place of residence: Lockerbie Region of residence: Dumfries and Galloway Residence CSD dialect area: Dmf Country of residence: Scotland Father's occupation: Commmercial Traveller Father's place of birth: Dalry Father's region of birth: N Ayr Father's birthplace CSD dialect area: Ayr Father's country of birth: Scotland Mother's occupation: Housewife Mother's place of birth: Beith Mother's region of birth: N Ayr Mother's birthplace CSD dialect area: Ayr Mother's country of birth: Scotland Languages: Language: English Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Home, socially Language: French Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: As necessary Language: Scots Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Home, socially