CLXXX Schottische
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Me da Coolie sleep on piazza with me wrapper round me shoulder,
Me da Coolie sleep on piazza with me wrapper round me shoulder.
“Me da,” literally, “I is,” I am.
The piazza, which is not pronounced in the Italian way but nearly rhymes with razor, is the long narrow entrance-room of Jamaican houses. A wrapper is a large piece of linen which serves all sorts of purposes. It is used as an article of clothing both by day and night, and also makes a convenient bag for rice.
Many of the East Indian Coolies, originally brought over to work on plantations, have now settled in Jamaica.