Sia,—The following lines will give the answer to your corre-
spondent's question (Spectator, August 13th) about the Yorkshireman's coat-of-arms, which has for its subscription, " Tak' hod an' sup, lad " ; and is the sign of 'The Black Swan' at York :—
"A Flea, a Fly, a Magpie, an' Bacon Flitch
Is t' Yorksherman's coit-of-arms ; An' If reason they've choszen these things so rich Is becoss they hey all speshal charms.
A flea will bite whoiyyer it can,—
An' soa, my lads, will a Yorksherman.
A fly will sup with Dick, Tom, or Dan,—
An' soa, by Gow ! will a Yorksherman.
A magpie can talk for a terrible span,—
An' soa, an' all, can a Yorksherman.
A flitch is no gooid whol it's hung, yell agree,—
No more is a Yorksherman, don't ye see!"
am, Sir, &c., A. W. POPE.
cup in "Foley Faience," with the verses printed above on one side, and on the other a coat-of-arms surmounted by the Yorkshire toast, "Here's tiv us, all on us. May we niver want nowt, noan of us. Nor me, nawther ! " "Bite," as more than one correspondent points out, is used in the sense, "get the better of."—En. Spectator.] ENGLISH GROUSE GROUND.
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