As I went to the well-head I heard a bird sing: “ Lie yonder, lie yonder The Islands of Ling. “ Leagues o’er the water Their shores are away. In a darkness of stars, And a foaming of spray ”
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Confirmed with Walter de la Mare, Rhymes And Verses Collected Poems For Children, New York : Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1947, p.134
Text Authorship:
- by Walter De la Mare (1873 - 1956), "As I went to the well-head" [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 Esther Rofe (1904 - 2000), "As I went to the well-head", 1940 [ voice and piano ], from Five songs of Walter de la Mare, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2025-08-21
Line count: 8
Word count: 40