‘Ta mish Ree ny Ein, Ree ny Ein.’
‘I am King of the Birds, King of the Birds.’
But little Jinny Wren was one too many for him there again. She had taken tight hold of him by a feather under his great, broad wing and hidden herself. And as he cried ‘Ta mish Ree ny Ein,’ she flew on top of his head and called out, ‘Cha nel, cha nel, ta mish er-y-skyn.’
‘Not so, not so, I’m above him, I’m above him.’
Down dropped the Eagle, and down dropped the Wren, breathless, but King of the Birds.
And that’s why the boys go round on St. Stephen’s Day to this day, singing:
The Wren, the Wren, the King of all Birds,
We’ve caught St. Stephen’s Day in the gorse,
Though he’s small his family is many;
We pray you, good woman, give us a drop to drink.