In Former Times

DESCRIPTION: Now we drink swipes instead of good ale. Farmer's daughters used to spin but now "their fingers they're afraid to soil"; they play the piano instead of mop or broom. Farmer's used to ride a horse to the market or fair, but now it's to fox-hunting.
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1923 (Williams-FolkSongsOfTheUpperThames)
KEYWORDS: vanity farming hunting drink nonballad
FOUND IN: Britain(England(South))
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Williams-FolkSongsOfTheUpperThames, p. 139, "In Former Times" (1 text) (also Williams-Wiltshire-WSRO Wt 358)
Roud #1262
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "The Good Old Days of Adam and Eve" (theme) and references there
NOTES [24 words]: "swipes ... Brit: poor, thin, or spoiled beer" (source: Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged, 1976) - BS
Last updated in version 2.6
File: WT139

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