Lucy Wan
18th Century
Child Ballad 51
Fair Lucy she sits at her father's door,
A-weeping and making moan,
And by there came her brother dear:
'What ails thee, Lucy Wan?'
'I ail, and I ail, dear brother,' she said,
'I'll tell you the reason why;
There is a child between my two sides,
Between you, dear Billy, and I.'
And he has drawn his good broad sword,
That hung down by his knee,
And he has cutted off Lucy Wan's head.
And her fair body in three.
'Oh, I have cutted off my greyhound's head,
And I pray you pardon me.'
'Oh, this is not the blood of our greyhound,
But the blood of our Lucy.'
'Oh, what shall you do when your father
comes to know?
My son, pray tell unto me.'
'I shall dress myself in a new suit of blue
And sail to some far country.'
'Oh, what will you do with your houses
and your lands?
My son, pray tell unto me?'
'Oh, I shall leave them all to
my children so small,
By one, by two, by three.'
'Oh, when shall you turn to your
own wife again?
My son, pray tell unto me.'
'When the sun and the moon rise
over yonder hill,
And I hope that may never, never be.'
DayPoems Poem No. 2540
<a href="http://www.daypoems.net/poems/2540.html">Lucy Wan by Anonymous</a>
The DayPoems Poetry Collection, www.daypoems.net
Timothy Bovee, editor
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