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by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928)

The inquiry
Language: English 
And are ye one of Hermitage -
Of Hermitage, by Ivel Road,
And do ye know, in Hermitage
A thatch-roofed house where sengreens grow?
And does John Waywood live there still --
He of the name that there abode
When father hurdled on the hill
Some fifteen years ago?

Does he now speak o' Patty Beech,
The Patty Beech he used to -- see,
Or ask at all if Patty Beech
Is known or heard of out this way?
-- Ask ever if she's living yet,
And where her present home may be,
And how she bears life's fag and fret
After so long a day?

In years agone at Hermitage
This faded face was counted fair,
None fairer; and at Hermitage
We swore to wed when he should thrive.
But never a chance had he or I,
And waiting made his wish outwear,
And Time, that dooms man's love to die,
Preserves a maid's alive.

Text Authorship:

  • by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928), "The inquiry", appears in Time's Laughingstocks and Other Verses, in At Casterbridge Fair, no. 5, first published 1909 [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 Frederic Goossen (b. 1927), "The inquiry" [duet for mezzo-soprano and baritone with piano], from At Casterbridge Fair, no. 5. [
     text not verified 
    ]
  • by Alfred Matthew Hale (1875 - 1960), "The inquiry", op. 27 no. 5 [voice and piano], from At Casterbridge Fair, no. 5. [
     text not verified 
    ]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2008-01-14
Line count: 24
Word count: 152

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