The Shearer Poem by Francis Duggan

He has shorn hundreds of thousands of sheep in the big Countryside
And as a top shearer he is known far and wide
In the country Town pubs he enjoys the good cheer
And he has a liking for women and beer.

His brown hair starting to gray with the passing of time
And he has turned forty ten years past his prime
But at Rural agricultural shows when put to the test
Against the top shearers he still comes out best.

Though not yet a father and yet without wife
He never goes short of women in his life
He has had a few fine women in every Town
In their twenties to fifties of black, white and brown.

Some tough days behind him and tough days ahead
And no easy pay made in the shearing shed
He has driven on many a highway and road
And his is the life of the no fixed abode.

He earns his living in the hardest way
And for him there's never an easy day's pay
A man with a liking for women and beer
Tomorrow he may be a long way from here.