Post by Ciúnas on Sept 13, 2008 9:23:38 GMT -5
I've long been a fan of these books ;D I was first given a copy of the original 'Dr Syn' story when I was 7,but it's not a childrens book by any stretch of the imagination 
The first of the books was published in 1915.The stories are set in the late 18th century and based on an infamous region of England,namely Romley Marsh in Kent,and the local Smuggler population there.The only and generally loved son(Christopher Syn) of an old local family,having been well raised,become a vicar and married,is betrayed and abandoned by his new wife and friend and swears his revenge.To acheive this he takes to the seas in pursuit of them as a pirate,one Captain Clegg as he eventually comes to be known,and has various adventures in the Americas and the Carribean until,having finally managed that his ex-friend should hang in his stead as 'Captain Clegg',he returns to the marsh to take up his post as their vicar.Here he sets up his new alter-ego,'The Scarecrow' and starts riding with 'The Marsh Men,Demon Riders and Jack-O-Lanterns' aka the local smugglers and the shenannigans begin once more ;D
To round off,Captain Clegg's Song ;D
Here's to the feet wot have walked the plank-
"Yo Ho!" for the Dead Man's Throttle.
And here's to the corpses afloat in The Tank,
And the Dead Man's Teeth in the bottle.
For a pound of gunshot tied to his feet
And a ragged bit of sail for a winding-sheet;
Then the signal goes with a bang and a flash,
And overboard you go with a horrible splash.
And all that isn't swallowed by the sharks outside,
Stands up again upon it's feet upon the running tide;
And it keeps a-blowin' gently,and a-lookin' with surprise
At each little crab a-scrambling from the sockets of it's eyes.
The first of the books was published in 1915.The stories are set in the late 18th century and based on an infamous region of England,namely Romley Marsh in Kent,and the local Smuggler population there.The only and generally loved son(Christopher Syn) of an old local family,having been well raised,become a vicar and married,is betrayed and abandoned by his new wife and friend and swears his revenge.To acheive this he takes to the seas in pursuit of them as a pirate,one Captain Clegg as he eventually comes to be known,and has various adventures in the Americas and the Carribean until,having finally managed that his ex-friend should hang in his stead as 'Captain Clegg',he returns to the marsh to take up his post as their vicar.Here he sets up his new alter-ego,'The Scarecrow' and starts riding with 'The Marsh Men,Demon Riders and Jack-O-Lanterns' aka the local smugglers and the shenannigans begin once more ;D
To round off,Captain Clegg's Song ;D
Here's to the feet wot have walked the plank-
"Yo Ho!" for the Dead Man's Throttle.
And here's to the corpses afloat in The Tank,
And the Dead Man's Teeth in the bottle.
For a pound of gunshot tied to his feet
And a ragged bit of sail for a winding-sheet;
Then the signal goes with a bang and a flash,
And overboard you go with a horrible splash.
And all that isn't swallowed by the sharks outside,
Stands up again upon it's feet upon the running tide;
And it keeps a-blowin' gently,and a-lookin' with surprise
At each little crab a-scrambling from the sockets of it's eyes.
