CULLYBACKEY ON THE MAINE

Dear sur an’ editor, sae kind,
A word or twa I’d write,
Aboot a piece o’ poetry
A saw in black and white.

‘Twus in your famous paper,
A read this boasting scrawl,
‘Boot the village o’ Ahoghill,
An’ its talen yin an’ all.

Nae doot a gee it credit
For haen some smart yins,
The oddest place ye iver went,
Ye aye some smert yin fin’s.

A dinna mean this as a slur
Tae that respected toon;
Nae thoughts like that a iver hae,
But noo tae turn me roon.

Oor village fairly weel can boast,
Of many buildings fine,
Churches grand and great big works,
And a station on the line.

We also hae a young men’s hall,
A police berricks, too,
A mason and a Orange hall,
A guid day school bran new.

Althoug’ we hae nae creamery,
We ir wae milk supplied,
Frae a guid dairy in the Parks,
That stans the test when tried.

We tae hae lamps tae gae us light,
An’ some talk o’ a park;
But mind the mair we hae a bleese
We’re no feared in the dark.

The ootskirts o’ oor famous toon
Haes monie a beauty spot,
But ivery yin clings tae their ain,
Whaur eer daes fa’ their lot.

So there’s nae use in quarrelin’
‘Boot Hoghill an’ the Maine,
Shure baith o’ them improvements need,
Such yin haud up yer ain.

An’ let us hope that baith o’ them,
Wull grow until they meet,
And keep on biggin’ hooses guid,
Yin big lang solid street.

Noo here’s tae ‘Hoghill an’ the Maine,
And Cullybackey, too,
May success a’ their efforts croon,
And not I bid adeu.

Mainette
Ballymena Weekly Telegraph
15th November 1913