The
Rascal Horse of Rumpsford
A Cautionary Tale Told in Verse
by Kate Walker
Published by Kate Walker at Smashwords
Copyright Kate Walker 2011
ISBN
978-1-4657-3862-2
All rights reserved. No part of
this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by
any means, electronic or mechanical, without the prior written
permission of the author or subsequent copyright holder
All characters are fictitious and
any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental.
The Rascal Horse
of Rumpsford
by Kate Walker
Table of Contents
1 - Starvation!
The land around old Rumpsford town
was gripped by awful drought.
The fields dried up! The farmers starved!
Their food had long run out!
But, lo, the wicked landlord just
got fatter every day.
And richer too from selling high-priced
beans and oats and hay.
‘This can’t go on!’ the blacksmith cried
one morning to his wife.
‘That greedy monster of a man
is robbing us of life!’
He clenched his fist. ‘Don’t do it, Sam,
you put that fist away,’
His good wife said, ‘and search your heart.
You’ll find another way.’
They’d sold the clothes from off their backs,
the shoes from off their feet,
The pots and pans from off their stove
to get enough to eat,
And now had nothing left to sell
except their wedding rings.
And Angela their old cart horse
whose hips stuck out like wings.
Old Angela had been a rascal
way back in her prime,
As apt to give the village boys
a nip on the behind,
As kick the neighbor’s dog for six
or sometimes just for spite,
Relieve herself on flower beds
of folks she didn’t like.
But now she was a starved old stick,
devoid of strength and pride.
Her only worth to anyone
was just her bones and hide.
Sam fetched his axe. This wasn’t fair
repayment for the years
His faithful horse had served him
and his eyes filled up with tears.
2 - The Horse’s Dream