The Waxies Dargle (Traditional)
Says my oul wan to your oul wan will you come to the Waxies Dargle
Says your oul wan to my oul wan sure I haven't got a farthin'
I went down to Monto Town to see young Kill McArdle
But he wouldn't give me a half a crown to go to the Waxies Dargle
What will you have? Will you have a pint?
I'll have a pint with you sir
And if one of you don't order soon we'll be thrown out of the boozer
Says my aul one to your aul one will you come to the Galway Races
Says your aul one to my aul one with the price of my aul lad's braces
I went down to Capel Street to the Jew man money lenders
But they wouldn't give me a couple of bob on me oul lad's red suspenders
What will you have? Will you have a pint?
I'll have a pint with you sir
And if one of you don't order soon we'll be thrown out of the boozer
Says my aul one to your aul one we have no beef nor mutton
But if we go down to Monto Town we might get a drink for nothin'
Here's a nice piece of advice I got from an aul fishmonger
When food is scarce and you see the hearse you know you've died of hunger What will you have? Will you have a pint? I'll have a pint with you sir And if one of you don't order soon we'll be thrown out of the boozer
Says my oul wan to your oul wan will you come to the Waxies Dargle
Says your oul wan to my oul wan sure I haven't got a farthin'
I went down to Monto Town to see young Kill McArdle
But he wouldn't give me a half a crown to go to the Waxies Dargle
What will you have? Will you have a pint?
I'll have a pint with you sir
And if one of you don't order soon we'll be thrown out of the boozer
The air to which the song is sung is that of Brighton Camp (a reel in G Major), which is also used for The Girl I Left Behind and The Rare Old Mountain Dew.
The earliest known version of the melody was printed about 1810 in Hime's Pocket Book for the German Flute or Violin (Dublin), vol. 3, p. 67, under the title The Girl I left Behind
Me (in the National Library of Ireland, Dublin) The words of this song (brought to contemporary culture by Sweeney's Men in 1968 ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgLGVy2tCXE) and latterly by The Pogues http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpbHiQOZTJ0)are about two Dublin "aul' wans" (ladies) discussing how to find money to go on an excursion.
In the 19th century, during the Summer, the gentry of Dublin would travel out to Bray and Enniskerry with their entourages and have picnics on the banks of the River Dargle.
The Dargle was a popular holiday resort, and the name in Dublin slang became synonymous with "holiday resort".
The shoe-makers and repairers in Dublin were known as waxies, because they used wax to waterproof and preserve the thread they used in stitching the shoes.
Easter and Whitsun were their principal holidays, Monday being the excursion for men and Tuesday for women.
The original Waxies' Dargle was said to be part of Donnybrook Fair, but due to riotous behaviour this fair closed in 1855.
In any case, the waxies' excursions did not go all the way to Bray, but only went as far as Irishtown which is located between Ringsend and Sandymount.
In imitation of the gentry, they called their outing the Waxies' Dargle. They drove out from the city to Ringsend on flat drays, ten or a dozen to each vehicle. It cost two pence per car-load and the usual cry of the driver was "Tuppence, an' up with yeh!".
Those who wanted a more comfortable ride could take a jaunting car from D'Olier Street for threepence.
Their destination was a favourite resort for Dubliners, a grass-covered triangle near the sea-front at Irishtown.
On Summer evenings fiddlers, flautists and melodeon-players played dance music (sets, half-sets and reels) until midnight.
There was a roaring trade in porter, cockles and mussels and "treacle Billy". On Bank holidays there were boxing contests.
There is an engraved stone, marking the location of the Waxies' Dargle "picnic" site near Gleesons Pub in Irishtown.
Robert Gogan describes how the "Waxies' Dargle" focuses on working-class Dublin.
The places referenced are in areas frequented by the poor. Monto was an area around Montgomery Street, a notorious red-light district near the centre of Dublin.
Capel Street is on the north side of the city and was renowned for its pawnbroking shops, a few of which remain to this day.
The Waxies Dargle features twice in the text of Ulysses by James Joyce, most notably when Stephen Dedalus is telling the story of the two aul wans from Fumbally's Lane on their day trip to climb Nelson's Pillar (which stood in the centre of O'Connell St until blown up by the IRA in 1966) and Myles Crawford interjects "Out for the Waxies Dargle. Two old trickies, what?"
The cache was originally placed near the Wax Museum. which has now moved to Westmoreland Street facing O'Connell Bridge.
It is a very busy location so please try not to get muggled and use maximum stealth and minimum writing!
There are a number of public transport options available so you can reach the site
The closest Dart Station is Tara Street
The closest Luas Stop is either Trinity on the Green line or Jervis Street on the Red line.
The Bus Bus routes to Dame Street include the 7b, 7d, 11/a, 11b, 14, 14a, 16, 16a, 46a, 46b, 46c, 46d, 46e, 51n, 67, 69, 116, 746
The closest car park to the museum is Park Rite Car Park, Fleet Street.
Please replace it carefully. so it doesn't fall
Please take care not to be seen while retrieving and replacing the cache...