THE PEDLAR
The pedlar man came into town;
He was selling silks and laces
And bits and bobs and shiny beads
And fancy belts and braces
“Come out, come out, good folk!” he cried,
“Come out and buy my wares!”
And all the people in the town
Came bounding out like hares.
They crowded round the pedlar man;
But I was rather shy
For I hadn’t got much money
And I didn’t know what to buy.
And when it came to my turn at last,
There was nothing left to see
Except a little golden ring,
And I swear it winked at me.
And the pedlar winked and said to me,
“Step up and look, my son,
I’ll let you have this last one cheap.”
And so the deal was done.
The lads and lasses laughed at me;
They said I was an ass
To waste my precious pennies
On a bit of common brass.
But Nancy, she was smiling;
She said the ring was fine.
So I put it on her finger
When she promised to be mine.
Now I know for certain that it’s true
What the old folk used to say
That there's a little bit of luck
In every pedlar’s tray.
Many happy years have passed
And now it can be told
That the ring the pedlar sold me
Was made of fairy gold.
The pedlar never came again
He went his wandering way
But I bless him that this bit of luck
Is with me to this day.
The pedlar man came into town;
He was selling silks and laces
And bits and bobs and shiny beads
And fancy belts and braces
“Come out, come out, good folk!” he cried,
“Come out and buy my wares!”
And all the people in the town
Came bounding out like hares.
They crowded round the pedlar man;
But I was rather shy
For I hadn’t got much money
And I didn’t know what to buy.
And when it came to my turn at last,
There was nothing left to see
Except a little golden ring,
And I swear it winked at me.
And the pedlar winked and said to me,
“Step up and look, my son,
I’ll let you have this last one cheap.”
And so the deal was done.
The lads and lasses laughed at me;
They said I was an ass
To waste my precious pennies
On a bit of common brass.
But Nancy, she was smiling;
She said the ring was fine.
So I put it on her finger
When she promised to be mine.
Now I know for certain that it’s true
What the old folk used to say
That there's a little bit of luck
In every pedlar’s tray.
Many happy years have passed
And now it can be told
That the ring the pedlar sold me
Was made of fairy gold.
The pedlar never came again
He went his wandering way
But I bless him that this bit of luck
Is with me to this day.