My young love said to me,
"My mother won't mind
And my father won't slight you
For your lack of kind."
And she stepped away from me
And this she did say:
"It will not be long, love,
Till our wedding day."
As she stepped away from me
And she moved through the fair
And fondly I watched her
Move here and move there
And then she turned homeward
With one star awake
Like the swan in the evening
Moves over the lake.
The people were saying,
No two e'er were wed
But one had a sorrow
That never was said
And I smiled as she passed
With her goods and her gear,
And that was the last
That I saw of my dear.
Last night she came to me,
My dead love came in
So softly she came
That her feet made no din
As she laid her hand on me
And this she did say
"It will not be long, love,
Till our wedding day."
By Padraic Colum, © 1908,
Origins of She Moved Through the Fair
Padraic Colum
Colum was a poet and writer as well as a collector of traditional songs, and it’s likely that he rewrote and edited the original to make it more appealing (in his eyes) to contemporary audiences.
The fact that he was a writer might also have made it impossible for him to resist the temptation of “improving” it and putting his own stamp on it. This could also account for why some verses may have been removed.
Please take the time to listen to this song beautifully sung by Fergal Sharkey
lack of kind – I think that the most likely meaning for this is “lack of kin”, ie the narrator has no family to support him (perhaps he is an orphan, a foundling or his family are so unspeakable that he has forsworn them).
the fair – the market
one star awake – early evening. Just one star is showing in the sky (probably Venus).
no two were e’er wed – no two people were ever married.
a sorrow that never was said – this is ambiguous. I read it as an unfortunate open secret (perhaps she has had a child out of wedlock; perhaps it is his dreadful family). Others have read it as referring to a disease – TB (tuberculosis )
her goods and her gear – a long and poetical way of saying “the things she is carrying”. Things she has bought or is selling; equipment or tools.
a sorrow that never was said – this is ambiguous. I read it as an unfortunate open secret (perhaps she has had a child out of wedlock; perhaps it is his dreadful family). Others have read it as referring to a disease – TB (tuberculosis )
her goods and her gear – a long and poetical way of saying “the things she is carrying”. Things she has bought or is selling; equipment or tools.
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