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by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928)

At the Altar‑rail
Language: English 
'My bride is not coming, alas!' says the groom,
And the telegram shakes in his hand. 'I own
It was hurried! We met at a dancing-room
When I went to the Cattle-Show alone,
And then, next night, where the Fountain leaps,
And the Street of the Quarter-Circle sweeps.

'Ay, she won me to ask her to be my wife --
'Twas foolish perhaps! -- to forsake the ways
Of the flaring town for a farmer's life.
She agreed. And we fixed it. Now she says:
"It's sweet of you, dear, to prepare me a nest,
But a swift, short, gay life suits me best.
What I really am you have never gleaned;
I had eaten the apple ere you were weaned."'

Text Authorship:

  • by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928), "At the Altar-rail", appears in Satires of Circumstance, Lyrics and Reveries with Miscellaneous Pieces [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), "At the Altar-rail", published 1993 [ duet for mezzo-soprano and baritone with piano ], from Satires of Circumstance, no. 5 [sung text checked 1 time]

Researcher for this page: Iain Sneddon [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2009-10-15
Line count: 14
Word count: 119

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