A HARVEST HOME 



tioned early on that unless a good harvest was 

 assured there could be no harvest home. Well, 

 I shall see that we get a good harvest next year, 

 and we must all hope this will bring another jolly 

 evening." 



Then followed the head shepherd, full of 

 anxiety to express his sentiments on the evening's 

 entertainment. He hadn't got very far before 

 someone chipped in to say, " Now then, Charley, 

 can't 'ee make a better speech than that ? Why 

 damn'ee, you goes up to that shepherds' supper 

 every year, 'avn't 'ee learned nothing up there ? " 

 Then the shepherd, being challenged, has another 

 go. " Well," he said, " it's all very well for you 

 engine-drivers to talk, but the governor tells me 

 this 'ere threshing business don't pay, but he did 

 tell me that he got a bit of profit out of sending a 

 few rams out to Germany." 



The head dairyman rises to put in a spoke for 

 the dairy staff. " Now, sir, I would like to say a 

 word for my mate. He has given me no end of 

 help during the last year and I feel quite certain 

 I shall get it again this next winter. Now you chaps 

 that belongs to my staff at the dairy, the governor 

 tells me we shall get a smaller income from the 

 milk this year. Now what are we going to do 

 about it ? Well, we must all pull together and see 

 if we can't make the cows give a drop more 

 milk." 



Finally a call is put in for a speech from a member 

 of the staff on an off-lying farm, and he expressed 

 himself in these actual words : 



57 



