THE ARAB STEEDI gave the 'orse 'is evenin' feed,And bedded of 'im down,And went to 'ear the sing-songIn the bar-room of the Crown,And one young feller spoke a pieceAs told a kind of tale,About an Arab man wot 'adA certain 'orse for sale.I 'ave no grudge against the man —I never 'eard 'is name,But if he was my closest palI'd say the very same,For wot you do in other thingsIs neither 'ere nor there,But w'en it comes to 'orsesYou must keep upon the square.Now I'm tellin' you the storyJust as it was told last night,And if I wrong this Arab manThen 'e can set me right;But s'posin' all these fac'sarefac's,Then I make bold to sayThat I think it was not sportsmanlikeTo act in sich a way.For, as I understand the thing,'E went to sell this steed —Which is a name they give a 'orseOf some outlandish breed —,And soon 'e found a customer,A proper sportin' gent,Who planked 'is money down at onceWithout no argument.Now when the deal was finishedAnd the money paid, you'd thinkThis Arab would 'ave asked the gentAt once to name 'is drink,Or at least 'ave thanked 'im kindly,An' wished 'im a good day,And own as 'e'd been treatedIn a very 'andsome way.But instead o' this 'e startedA-talkin' to the steed,And speakin' of its "braided mane"An' of its "winged speed,"And other sich expressionsWith which I can't agree,For a 'orse with wings an' braids an' thingsIs not the 'orse for me.The moment that 'e 'ad the cash —Or wot 'ecalled the gold,'E turned as nasty as could be:Says 'e, "You're sold! You're sold!"Them was 'is words; it's not for meTo settle wot he meant;It may 'ave been the 'orse was sold,It may 'ave been the gent.I've not a word to say aginHis fondness for 'is 'orse,But why should 'e insinivateThe gent would treat 'im worse?An' why should 'e go talkin'In that aggravatin' way,As if the gent would gallop 'imAnd wallop 'im all day?It may 'ave been an' 'arness 'orse,It may 'ave been an 'ack,But a bargain is a bargain,An' there ain't no goin' back;For when you've picked the money up,That finishes the deal,And after that your mouth is shut,Wotever you may feel.Supposin' this 'ere Arab man'Ad wanted to be free,'E could 'ave done it businesslike,The same as you or me;A fiver might 'ave squared the gent,An' then 'e could 'ave claimedAs 'e'd cleared 'imself quite 'andsome,And no call to be ashamed.But instead 'o that this Arab manWent on from bad to worse,An' took an' chucked the moneyAt the cove wot bought the 'orse;'E'd 'ave learned 'im better manners,If 'e'd waited there a bit,But 'e scooted on 'is bloomin' steedAs 'ard as 'e could split.Per'aps 'e sold 'im after,Or per'aps 'e 'ires 'im out,But I'd like to warm that Arab manWen next 'e comes about;For wot 'e does in other thingsIs neither 'ere nor there,But w'en it comes to 'orsesWe must keep 'im on the square.
I gave the 'orse 'is evenin' feed,And bedded of 'im down,And went to 'ear the sing-songIn the bar-room of the Crown,And one young feller spoke a pieceAs told a kind of tale,About an Arab man wot 'adA certain 'orse for sale.I 'ave no grudge against the man —I never 'eard 'is name,But if he was my closest palI'd say the very same,For wot you do in other thingsIs neither 'ere nor there,But w'en it comes to 'orsesYou must keep upon the square.Now I'm tellin' you the storyJust as it was told last night,And if I wrong this Arab manThen 'e can set me right;But s'posin' all these fac'sarefac's,Then I make bold to sayThat I think it was not sportsmanlikeTo act in sich a way.For, as I understand the thing,'E went to sell this steed —Which is a name they give a 'orseOf some outlandish breed —,And soon 'e found a customer,A proper sportin' gent,Who planked 'is money down at onceWithout no argument.Now when the deal was finishedAnd the money paid, you'd thinkThis Arab would 'ave asked the gentAt once to name 'is drink,Or at least 'ave thanked 'im kindly,An' wished 'im a good day,And own as 'e'd been treatedIn a very 'andsome way.But instead o' this 'e startedA-talkin' to the steed,And speakin' of its "braided mane"An' of its "winged speed,"And other sich expressionsWith which I can't agree,For a 'orse with wings an' braids an' thingsIs not the 'orse for me.The moment that 'e 'ad the cash —Or wot 'ecalled the gold,'E turned as nasty as could be:Says 'e, "You're sold! You're sold!"Them was 'is words; it's not for meTo settle wot he meant;It may 'ave been the 'orse was sold,It may 'ave been the gent.I've not a word to say aginHis fondness for 'is 'orse,But why should 'e insinivateThe gent would treat 'im worse?An' why should 'e go talkin'In that aggravatin' way,As if the gent would gallop 'imAnd wallop 'im all day?It may 'ave been an' 'arness 'orse,It may 'ave been an 'ack,But a bargain is a bargain,An' there ain't no goin' back;For when you've picked the money up,That finishes the deal,And after that your mouth is shut,Wotever you may feel.Supposin' this 'ere Arab man'Ad wanted to be free,'E could 'ave done it businesslike,The same as you or me;A fiver might 'ave squared the gent,An' then 'e could 'ave claimedAs 'e'd cleared 'imself quite 'andsome,And no call to be ashamed.But instead 'o that this Arab manWent on from bad to worse,An' took an' chucked the moneyAt the cove wot bought the 'orse;'E'd 'ave learned 'im better manners,If 'e'd waited there a bit,But 'e scooted on 'is bloomin' steedAs 'ard as 'e could split.Per'aps 'e sold 'im after,Or per'aps 'e 'ires 'im out,But I'd like to warm that Arab manWen next 'e comes about;For wot 'e does in other thingsIs neither 'ere nor there,But w'en it comes to 'orsesWe must keep 'im on the square.