at home the green remains || dutty tough
TRANSCRIPT
Dutty ToughAuthor(s): Louise BennettSource: Caribbean Quarterly, Vol. 49, No. 1/2, <italic>At Home the Green Remains</italic>(March-June 2003), pp. 78-79Published by: University of the West Indies and Caribbean QuarterlyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40654337 .
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78
So wen church member mel me, I Don't answer till it reach A rainy day wen Parson stay Home, an Uriah preach.
Dutty Tough (lhe Ground is Hard)
"Rain a-fall but dutty tuff: wages rise but so do prices and the cost of living.
Sun a-shine but tings noh bright, Doah pot a-bwile, bickle noh nuff, River flood but water scarce yaw, Rain a-fall but dutty tuff!
Tings so bad, dat now-a-days wen Yuh ask smaddy how dem do, Dem fraid yuh teck i tell dem back So dem noh answer yuh!
Noh care omuch we dah-work fa Hard time still eena we shut, We dah-fight, Hard-Time a-beat we, Dem might raise we wages, but
One poun gwan awn pon we pay, an We noh feel noh merriment, For ten poun gawn on pon we food An ten poun pon we rent!
Salfish gawn up! mackerel gawn up! Pork an beef gawn up same way, An wen rice an butter ready, Dem jus go pon holiday!
Cloth, boot, pin an needle gawn up, Ice, bread, taxes, wata-rate! Kersene ile, gasolene, gawn up An de poun devaluate!
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79
De price o bread gawn up so high Dat we haffe agree, Fe cut we yeye pon bread an all Tun dumplin refugee!
An all dem mawga smaddy weh Dah-gawn like fat is sin, All dem deh weh dah-fas wid me, Ah lef dem to dumplin!
Sun a-shine an pot a-bwile, but Tings noh bright, bickle noh nuff! Rain a- fall, river dah-flood, but Wata scarce an dutty tuff!
Colonisation in Reverse
Wat a joyful news, Miss Mattie, I feel like me heart gwine burs Jamaica people colonizin Englan in reverse.
By de hundred, by de tousan From country and from town, By de ship-load, by de plane-load Jamaica is Englan boun. Dem a-pour out ο Jamaica, Everybody future plan Is fe get a big-time job An settle in de mother Ian.
What a islan! What a people! Man an'woman, old an young Jusa pack dem bag an baggage An tun history upside dung!
Some people don like travel, But fe show dem loyalty Dem all a-open up cheap-fare- To-Englan agency.
An week by week dem shippin off Dem countryman like fire, Fe immigrate an populate De seat ο de Empire.
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