Badger - by
John Clare
Badger Encounters in the Wild book |
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Superb
book of Jim Crumley's encounters with badgers in the wild in Scotland. The quality of the writing is superb.
A great read. Click here to buy:
Encounters in the wild
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Badger by John Clare
When midnight comes a host of
dogs and men
Go out and track the badger to his den,
And put a
sack within the hole, and lie
Till the old grunting badger passes
by.
He comes an hears - they let the strongest loose.
The old
fox gears the noise and drops the goose.
The poacher shoots and
hurries from the cry,
And the old hare half wounded buzzes
by.
They get a forked stick to bear him down
And clap the dogs
and take him to the town,
And bait him all the day with many
dogs,
And laugh and shout and fright the scampering hogs.
He
runs along and bites at all he meets:
They shout and hollo down
the noisy streets.
He turns about to face the loud uproar
And drives the rebels to their very door.
The frequent stone
is hurled where'er they go;
When badgers fight, then everyone's a
foe.
The dogs are clapped and urged to join the fray'
The
badger turns and drives them all away.
Though scarcely half as
big, demure and small,
He fights with dogs for hours and beats
them all.
The heavy mastiff, savage in the fray,
Lies down and
licks his feet and turns away.
The bulldog knows his match and
waxes cold,
The badger grins and never leaves his hold.
He
drives the crowd and follows at their heels
And bites them
through - the drunkard swears and reels
The frighted women
take the boys away,
The blackguard laughs and hurries on the
fray.
He tries to reach the woods, and awkward race,
But
sticks and cudgels quickly stop the chase.
He turns again and
drives the noisy crowd
And beats the many dogs in noises
loud.
He drives away and beats them every one,
And then they
loose them all and set them on.
He falls as dead and kicked by
boys and men,
Then starts and grins and drives the crowd
again;
Till kicked and torn and beaten out he lies
And leaves
his hold and crackles, groans, and dies.
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