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by Anonymous / Unidentified Author

Widow are ye wakin'?
Language: English 
"O! wha's that at my chamber door?" 
"Fair widow are ye wakin'?"
"Auld carle, your suit give o'er, 
"Your love lies a' in tawkin';
"Gie me a lad that's young and tight, 
"Sweet like an April meadow; 
"'Tis sic as he can bless the sight
"And bosom of a widow!"

"O! widow, wilt thou let me in? 
"I'm pawky, wise, and thrifty;
"And come of a right gentle kin, 
"I'm little mair than fifty."
"Daft carle, dit your mouth; 
"What signifies how pawky, 
"Or gentle born ye be -- but troth, 
"In love ye're but a gawky."

"Then, widow, let those guineas speak, 
"That powerfully plead clinkan; 
"And if they fail, my mouth I'll steek,
"And nae mair love will think on."
"These court indeed, I maun confess, 
"I think they mak' you young, sir;
"An' ten times better can express 
"Affection, than your tongue, sir."

GLOSSARY
Auld carle = name for an old man
Tight = well-built
Sic = such
Pawky = Cunning
Dit = shut
Gawky = idiot
Clinkan = money
Steek = close
Maun = must

Text Authorship:

  • by Anonymous / Unidentified Author [author's text not yet checked 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 (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732 - 1809), "Widow are ye wakin'?", JHW. XXXII/5 no. 423, Hob. XXXIa no. 75bis [
     text verified 1 time
    ]

Researcher for this page: Ferdinando Albeggiani

This text was added to the website: 2012-08-14
Line count: 24
Word count: 145

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