by James Stephens (1882 - 1950)
Check
Language: English
The night was creeping on the ground ; She crept and did not make a sound Until she reached the tree, and then She covered it, and stole again Along the grass beside the wall. I heard the rustle of her shawl As she threw blackness everywhere Upon the sky and ground and air, And in the room where I was hid : But no matter what she did To everything that was without, She could not put my candle out. So I stared at the night, and she Stared back solemnly at me.
Text Authorship:
- by James Stephens (1882 - 1950), "Check", appears in The Adventures of Seumas Beg [and] The Rocky Road to Dublin, first published 1915 [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 Arthur Butterworth (b. 1923), "Check", 1948 [ soprano and piano ], from Four Nocturnal Songs [sung text not yet checked]
- by Walter Byron Mourant (1910 - 1995), "Check", copyright © 1963 [ medium voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-01-22
Line count: 14
Word count: 93