Smugglers Pie

The body of smuggler Robert Long

Hung by the road in chains,

His flesh was mouldering from his bones

Washed clean by the Cornish rains,

The crows had taken his sorry eyes,

His wife, the gold from his teeth,

But some kind soul from near Mousehole

Had left at his feet, a wreath!

 

The Excise men ranged over the cliffs,

The Revenue men below,

And Customs Officers manned the cutters

That intercepted the flow,

They boarded the bold East Indiamen

Who sold their goods tax free,

And many a thief has come to grief

When the waves tipped them into the sea!

 

The goods that lay in the Cornish coves

Tobacco, brandy and rum,

Were smuggled up onto Bodmin Moor

And sold for a tidy sum,

The coast was riddled with tunnels, caves,

And one led into a church,

The spirits that lay in the belfry there

Were hidden away from the search!

 

Battling Bill at the Halfway House

Long lightened the nation’s purse,

He’d run his brandy up to the Inn

Using a horse-drawn hearse,

Surprised one day by the Revenue

They shot poor Bill through the neck,

But dead, his hand whipped the horses’ still

And the hearse ran away from the wreck.

 

The hearse, it rattled Polperro streets,

Rolled over the cobblestones,

With Bill stuck firm to the riding seat

Not ready to make old bones,

He drove the length of the shopping street

And straight down onto the quay,

Then toppled into the harbour there,

But his ghost came back from the sea!

 

They smuggled silk, they smuggled wine,

They smuggled bags of tea,

Whatever the King put taxes on

The Cornish smuggled for free,

A convict ship to Australia

Was the worst that most of them got,

Apart from the likes of Robert Long

As he hung in his chains, to rot!

 

David Lewis Paget

Reviews

[Veronica Chandler]

Such a pleasure to read your works, and I must say I have missed them this past month! This piece was a delightful read which painted such clear imagery. I could see poor Bill's corpse bouncing on the horse drawn hearse down the cobbled stones; the way you have with words always seems to take me on journeys as though propelled by a song to end, and before I know it, I reached the end. I find the sheer volume of your works astonishing, but it is even more extraordinary because each one is a master piece!

[Dean Kuch®]

As always David, you hold told a fantastic story in flawless poetic verse, and an entertaining one at that! I really admire your style and the obvious God given gift you've been given.
Thanks so much, and keep them comin'!

[MOON]

Fun historical lesson as usual .

[Mz]

I think you're my favorite person ever!

I so do enjoy your writing and am happy to point out that you have developed a unique voice and style that I love even more.

[Debbie_Philly]

Your such an amazing writer and I so enjoy reading you...... what a ride with this one David... you take the reader on the journey of your subjects and place them at the scene.... loved it !!

[Fréyjä Helv..]

Always a pleasure to read your works... I've always loved the stories let out by your works...

[Helen Crutchett]

Oh bloom'n brilliant write! I am in awe of the standard of poetry you have written and really wish I could write like that. Much enjoyed the poem, its going into 'my favourites' now!

[Distant horizons]

Wonderful. I'm sure they could merge history and poetry classes and put the fun back into learning with your wonderful tales.

[Clayton Bardwell]

Besides the pure joy of reading your work I get to learn wonderul new words like mouldering. I'm gonna steal it! What a mental image it created once I knew its meaning.

[Clayton Bardwell]

You know, I just read it again and the last stanza made me laugh. Now aint that funny. It must be because it's so damn clever.