by Violet Jacob (1863 - 1946)
The water hen
Language: English
As I gae'd doon by the twa mill dams i' the mornin' The water-hen cam' oot like a passin' wraith And her voice cam' through the reeds wi' a sound of warnin', "Faith - keep faith!" "Aye, bird, tho' ye see but ane ye may cry on baith!" As I gae'd doon the field when the dew was lyin', My ain love stood whaur the road an' the mill-lade met, An it seemed to me that the rowin' wheel was cryin', "Forgi'e - forget, An turn, man, turn, for ye ken that ye lo'e her yet!" As I gae'd doon the road 'twas a weary meetin', For the ill words said yest're'en they were aye the same, And my het he'rt drouned the wheel wi' its heavy beatin'. "Lass, think shame, It's no for me to speak, for it's you to blame!" As I gae'd doon by the toon when the day was springin' The Baltic brigs lay thick by the soundin' quay And the riggin' hummed wi' the sang that the wind was singin', "Free - gang free, For there's mony a load on shore may be skailed at sea!" * * * * * * When I cam' hame wi' the thrang o' the years 'ahint me There was naucht to see for the weeds and the lade in spate, But the water-hen by the dams she seemed aye to mind me, Cryin' "Hope - wait!" "Aye, bird, but my een grow dim, an' it's late - late!"
Authorship:
- by Violet Jacob (1863 - 1946), "The water hen" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Humphrey Procter-Gregg (1895 - 1980), "The water hen" [voice and piano] [text not verified]
Researcher for this page: Mike Pearson
This text was added to the website: 2016-06-13
Line count: 26
Word count: 250