by Emily Pauline Johnson (1861 - 1913)
Erie Waters
Language: English
A dash of yellow sand, Wind-scattered and sun-tanned; Some waves that curl and cream along the margin of the strand; And, creeping close to these Long shores that lounge at ease, Old Erie rocks and ripples to a fresh sou’-western breeze. A sky of blue and grey; Some stormy clouds that play At scurrying up with ragged edge, then laughing blow away, Just leaving in their trail Some snatches of a gale; To whistling summer winds we lift a single daring sail. O! wind so sweet and swift, O! danger-freighted gift Bestowed on Erie with her waves that foam and fall and lift, We laugh in your wild face, And break into a race With flying clouds and tossing gulls that weave and interlace.
Confirmed with Emily Pauline Johnson, Flint and Feather: The Complete Poems of E. Pauline Johnson, Tekahionwake, The Musson Book Co., 1917
Text Authorship:
- by Emily Pauline Johnson (1861 - 1913), "Erie Waters" [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 Gwyneth Walker (b. 1947), "Erie Waters", 2018/2022, copyright © 2023 [ alto and piano ], from The Great Lakes, no. 3, E.C.Schirmer
Score: ECS Publishing [external link]  [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2026-02-21
Line count: 18
Word count: 124