Harri Webb : When Christ was born on Dowlais Top

WHEN CHRIST WAS BORN ON DOWLAIS TOP

When Christ was born on Dowlais Top
The ironworks were all on stop
The money wasn't coming in
But there was no room at the Half-Moon Inn.
The shepherds came from Twyn-y-waun,
And three kings by the Merthyr and Brecon line.
The star shone over the Beacons' ridge
And the angels sang by Rhymney Bridge.
When Christ turned water into stout
A lot of people were most put out,
And wrote cross letters to the paper,
Protesting at such a wicked caper.
When Christ fed the unemployed,
The authorities were most annoyed.
'He hasn't gone through the proper channels',
Said the public men on the boards and panels.
When Christ walked upon Swansea Bay
The people looked the other way,
And murmured: 'This is not at all
The sort of thing that suits Porthcawl'.
When Christ preached the sermon on Kilvey Hill
He'd have dropped dead if looks could kill.
And as they listened to the Beatitudes,
They sniffed with scorn and sneered 'Platitudes'.
When Christ was hanged in Cardiff Jail,
'Good riddance', said the Western Mail.
But, daro, weren't all their faces red
When He came to judge the quick and the dead.

Thanks to Robert Griffiths for pubishing this poem of Harri Webb's