Translation by Samuel Ferguson, Sir (1810 - 1886)
Boatman's hymn
Language: English  after the Irish (Gaelic)
Bark that bears me thro' foam and squall You in the storm are my castle wall; Tho' the sea should redden from bottom to top, From pillar to mast, she takes no drop. Tide top, tide top, Ho! Wherry aroon, my land and store, she is the boat! She is the boat can sail goleor! She dresses herself and goes gliding, Like a dame in her robes of lawn. For God has blessed her gunnel and wale, And if you could see her stretch out to the gale! Tide top, tide top, Ho! Wherry aroon, my land and store, she is the boat! She is the boat can sail goleor! Whilan Ahoy! Old heart of stone, stopping so black o'er the beach alone, Andswer me well, on the busrting brine, saw you ever a bark like mine? Whillan since first I wa made of stone, I have looked abroad o'er the beach alone, But til today on the bursting brine, Saw I never a ship like thine. "God of the air!" the seaman shout When they see us tossing the brine about, "Give us the shelter of strand or rock, Or through and through us goes with a shock!" Tide top, tide top, Ho! Wherry aroon, my land and store, she is the boat! She is the boat can sail goleor!
Authorship:
- by Samuel Ferguson, Sir (1810 - 1886) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Irish (Gaelic) from Volkslieder (Folksongs) [text unavailable]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Margaret Ruthven Lang (1867 - 1972), "Boatman's hymn", op. 13, copyright © 1892, first performed 1893. [men's chorus and piano] [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Abigail Imhof
This text was added to the website: 2012-05-17
Line count: 29
Word count: 221