Classic Poem

1.

" I am a poor girl, and my fortune is bad; "
I have long time been courted by the wagoner's lad
He courted me duly by night and by day,
And now for to leave me he is going away.

2.

" Your wagon's to grease, your bill is to pay;
Come seat yourself beside me so long as you stay. "
" My wagon's done greased, my whip's in my hand;
So fare you well, Nancy, I have no time to stand.

3.

" I am a loving lad, and I can love long,
I can love an old sweetheart till a new one comes on;
I can hug them and kiss them and keep them at ease,
Or I can turn my back upon them and court who I please. "

4.

" So hard is the fortune of poor womankind, —
They are always objected, always confined;
They are controlled by their parents until they are made wives,
And slaves for their husbands the rest of their lives.

5.

" I'll build me a castle on the mountains so high,
Where the wild geese can see me as they pass me by,
Where the wild geese can hear me my cries and my groans, —
Be kind to the wagoner so far from his home. "

6.

" At the top of yon mountain, where my love's castle stands,
It is dressed in green ivy from the top to the end;
At the foot of yon mountain, where the wide ocean runs,
We will commence our music and the firing of guns. "