Cornwall

Was all

An engineer’s dream,

As they built and exploited inventions with steam.

Its miners

Were finders

Of techniques all new,

Which they took round the world -- and explained what to do.

And its seamen

Were toughened

By life out afloat,

Crewing steamers or trawlers or local lifeboats.

Now mining’s

Declining.

‘Fact someone has said:

One day he just woke up and read it was dead.

But fishing

We’re hoping

Will not do the same,

Though’ daily some strangers to our grounds lay claim.

I ‘spect we

D’reckly

Will hear on the news:

That the boats out of Newlyn have got Spanish crews!

‘Tis no joke

For menfolk,

If their jobs they lose,

And there aren’t any options of new jobs to choose;

It’s computers

And software

Which these days somehow

Are the country’s main needs for new jobs right now.

The young lads

Of those dads

Find it easy. I s’pose

To them it’s as plain as the tip of their nose.

There’s layout

And logout

And words like splitscreen;

And passwords and programs all part of the scene.

There’re formats

And inserts --

That’s just for a start --

And a run and a printout are also a part.

There’s data

To cater

For, modems and such --

But to say it all now is really too much!

At worst,

We must first

Establish and find

New skills to be learned by the men who once mined.

They don’t shirk

Hard work

Of the manual kind,

But keyboards an’ suchlike they might find a bind.

But we must,

‘Cos its just

And its right and its proper,

Teach them to know what technologies offer.

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