Mole-Catcher, The

DESCRIPTION: The old molecatcher learns that his wife is carrying on with a young farmer. He catches them in the act, and demands ten pounds of the farmer for "tilling my ground." The farmer says that's a fair price, "For that won't amount t'above tuppence a time."
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1905 (Baring-Gould/Sheppard-SongsOfTheWest2ndEd)
KEYWORDS: adultery sex trick commerce humorous bawdy
FOUND IN: Britain(England(Lond,South,West))
REFERENCES (12 citations):
Gardham-EarliestVersions, "MOLECATCHER, THE"
Kennedy-FolksongsOfBritainAndIreland 206, "The Mole-Catcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
Copper-SongsAndSouthernBreezes, pp. 268-269, "The Molecatcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
MacColl/Seeger-TravellersSongsFromEnglandAndScotland 38, "The Molecatcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
Reeves-TheEverlastingCircle 93, "The Molecatcher" (1 text)
Purslow-TheConstantLovers, p. 61, "The Molecatcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
Palmer-EnglishCountrySongbook, #104, "The Mole Catcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
Baring-Gould/Sheppard-SongsOfTheWest2ndEd, #45, "The Mole-Catcher" (1 text, 1 tune, a Baring-Gould creation because the original words were "very gross")
Roud/Bishop-NewPenguinBookOfEnglishFolkSongs #83, "The Molecatcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
Harding-FolkSongsOfLancashire, pp. 54-55, "The Manchester Molecatcher" (1 text, 1 tune)
Morgan/Green-RugbySongs, pp.24-25, "The Mole Catcher" (1 text)
DT, MOLECATCH*
Roud #1052
RECORDINGS:
Alec Bloomfield, "The Mole-Catcher" (on FSBFTX19)
A. L. Lloyd, "The Molecatcher" (on Lloyd01)
File: K206

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