by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928)
Farmer Dunman's Funeral
Language: English
"Bury me on a Sunday" He said, "so as to see Poor folk there; 'tis their one day To spare for burying me." With forethought of that Sunday He wrote while he was well, "On ten rum bottles one day Drink for my funeral." They buried him on a Sunday So folk might not be balked His wish, as 'twas their one day, And forty couples walked. They said to have it Sunday Was always his concern, His meaning being that one day He'd do us a good turn. We must, had it been Monday, Have got it over soon. But now we gain, being Sunday, A jolly afternoon.
Authorship:
- by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928) [author's text not yet checked 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 Betty Roe (b. 1930), "Farmer Dunman's Funeral", published 2005 [solo male voices and female voices and piano], from Three Hardy Conversations, no. 2. [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Iain Sneddon [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2009-10-15
Line count: 20
Word count: 109