Broadside regarding a fishwife and a fish-hauliers journey

Transcription

An Accounts of the Comical Courtship between a Fishwife and a
Haddie Carter, shewing what past while in the Steam-Boat
between Newhaven and Musselburgh, and what happened after
landing, how she went to see the shows, and what the Black
Art Man told her, which was the beginning of her troubles, and
the desperate Battle which was fought betwixt some fishwifes
and her, on the Race course, with an account of a trick played
her, and other awful misfortunes.

THE following ludicrious scene
happened at Musselburgh Races
which can be given credit to, as it
is written by an eye witness, who
made one of the gay throng. Peggy
???, a weel kend fish-winch,
wha daily sits in the market, except
at times when her fish rins the dan-
ger of being coudemed to the mid-
den by the inspectors, then she is
seen traversing the streets giving
them the apellation of 'Caller Had-
dies." She is about 26 years of age,
never has been married, but ill-mind-
ed foaks say, that she some time a-
go, while disturbing the town's foaks
in some of the months of the year
that has an R in them, with the dis-
agreeable cry of Whe'll buy Oysts'
she had the misfourtune to tak a wee
drappy past her guage oure muckle,
and met in wi' a daft chield on the
road as she gaed hame. As the road
was Jang and wearisome a body's lace
and it very Jate, Peggy was unco
fain wi' the kind words the chield
spake to her, and was happy to get
sac guid a convey : away they set,
but what befel them, or what they
were about on the road, they ken
best themsels, but what passed in the
dark naebody saw, and it was far
gane in the morning before she got
name; in a wee while Peggy got
unco fat, or elslins she put twa-three
mair petticoats about her hurdiess,
be that as it may, she went across
the water to get cured of a dropsey,
and some ill-tongued jades said it
was to ly-in, but which o' the twa
I'se no pretend to ken, for she soon
came hame again quite cured. At
this time she got the preference at
ane o' the haddie carts, she being a
smart good looking kimmer, and
Sawny, the carter, taking a notion o'
her, he made her count out the fish
to the rest of her sisterhood, who
seeing Peggy sae much in power,
did na ken what was ill enough to
say about her; but, at any rate, the
bastard brat was cast up to her fifty
times a-day; this didna hinder Sawny
from liking her, for she made him
believe it was spite to her.

At this time Musselburgh Races
was drawing apace, and Sawny was
to tak Peggy to see them, he thought
on asking his master for a cart and
horse to gie her a ride out, but he was
afraid the fishwives in Musselburgh
wad rise a mob about them, for they
did na Iike her aweel I wat, and
ca'd her a' the limmers for takin awa
the callan, poor thing, just to fether
some mair o' her bastards ; and his
ears rang ilka morn wi' stories made
up about her, by the wives who had
tappies o' daughters at hame ; Sawny
thought it Was best to sail down in
the Steam-boat, which was taking
passengers from Newhaven to Mus-
selburgh. On board they went, and
got a snug corner to themsels, Sawny
thought this was a bra time to court
her, but. bashfu lad he coldna dae
naething but look at her, indeed she
is a sturdy wench, for there nane in
a' the place coud lay curpen to creel
wi' her, the fint a fellow in a' the
place but she wad a laid on the
breadth o' his back, and had a pair
o'   cheeks like   a packman's doup ;

he was cunning eneugh, however. to
ack her if she had any gear gathered
thegether, but she tald him plump
down the gill stoup swallowed a' her
savings, and he had got share o'
money a ane, ' so thou's get nae
mair tocher than gammon to gam-
mon, blankets and sheets, twa cods,
a ca'f bed and bowsters, wi' a auld
and a new creel. This didna please
Sawny oure wee], but he coud
na draw back. and Peggy began to
speer Whan the wedding was to tak
place, aweel says Sawny I'll venture
to tak ye, but ye maun tell me if
the chield that gaed hame wi' ye frac
Edinborough ever briddled ye, or
taen a trying trotty o' ye, she assur-
ed him o' the contrary. They then
landed, and awa to the links they
gaed, taking a' the bye-paths for
fear o' being seen by some o' their
gude friends o' the town ; they did-
na mind the horses rinning muckle,
but ay kept about the Show., and
the up-aud-down things, which peg-
gy wada liked to hae taen a ride in,
but was feard the weans wad laugh
at her. After getting a glass or twa
(in some of Which a queer chap',
who was ane o" the company, put
a groat's worth o' the tincture o
-allup.) they set off to see a man
dealing in the Black Art, wi' cards,
siller, and sic like, but waes me, this
was the beginning of Peggys trou-
bles, for the man said, he wad find
out wha was married, and wha was-
na ; and wha had weans, and wha
hadna weans. So he showed them
some of his hocus pocus tricks, and
strange to tell, teld Peggy she had
haen a wean, and wad hae anither
before lang! how the Black Art body
kend that, nae body coud gues, but
any body that coud see as far into a
whin stane as mason, coud hae
guesed she wad hae anither soon,
but Sawny never suspected any thing
of the kind, poor man, he didna ken
far to look ; and as bad luck wad
hae it, there were some of the Mus-
selburgh fish-wives in the show, and
they werna lang in telling a Peggys
fauts. Peggy condna stand this,
but flew at them, then what a noise !
the showman cursing, mutches and
hair fleeing, noses gushing wi' bluid,
and wives squalling, amidst hundreds
o" foaks laughing and halooing, but
faith Peggy got about a'dozen o them
down amang her feet, but waes me,
wi the heat of fighting, the jallup
began to rumble,'and ma conscience;
a' that Peggy coud do, she coudna
keep it within bounds, and just at
the time she was standing triumph-
ant on the tap o' them she had sae
gloriously got the better o', Out the
effects o' the purging burst, amidst
repeated shouts o' the mob. Peggy,
wi grief and shame sprang out frae
amang the mob, and no ane coud
lay saut on her tail. The poor fish-
bodys, wi" their braws a bespattered
made the best o' their way hame wi'
hundred ahint laughing; and Sawny
poor callan, made affat the beginning
o' the hurley-burley, and I trow has
heard enough about Pegggy to mak
him determined never to see her
again.

            Price One Penny.

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