by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832 - 1898), as Lewis Carroll
They told me you had been to her
Language: English
They told me you had been to her, And mentioned me to him: She gave me a good character, But said I could not swim. He sent them word I had not gone (We know it to be true): If she should push the matter on, What would become of you? I gave her one, they gave him two, You gave us three or more; They all returned from him to you, Though they were mine before. If I or she should chance to be Involved in this affair, He trusts to you to set them free, Exactly as we were. My notion was that you had been (Before she had this fit) An obstacle that came between Him, and ourselves, and it. Don't let him know she liked them best, For this must ever be A secret, kept from all the rest, Between yourself and me.'
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832 - 1898), as Lewis Carroll, no title, appears in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, London, Macmillan; chapter 12, first published 1865 [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 Liza Lehmann (1862 - 1918), "They Told Me You Had Been to Her", published 1908 [ soprano, contralto, tenor, and bass ], from Nonsense Songs: The Songs That Came Out Wrong, no. 8 [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Henri Bué) , no title
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2004-04-27
Line count: 24
Word count: 147