School: Ceathrú Clochar

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1. Patrick Sheehan (continued)

   

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   Bereft of woe, of kith and kin, & plenty all around
   I starved within my cabin, lay upon the ground
   But as cruel as my lot is, & ne'er did hardships know,
   Until I joined the English army, Far away from Aherlow.
   (5)
   "rouse up, cried the corporal, you lazy irish hound
   Why don't you hear you sleepy dog. The call to arms sound.
   Alas I had been dreaming, of days long, long ago.
   I awoke before the Sebastapool, but not in Aherlow.
   (6) I groped to find my rifle, how dark I thought the night, O! Blessed God it was not dark,
   It was the broad daylight,
   When i found out, that I was blind, my tears began to flow,
   I longed for even a paupers grave,
   In the glen of Aherlow.
   (7)
   Oh! blessed Virgin Mary mine is a mournful tale
   A porr blind prisoner, here I am
   In Galways dreary Jail. Struck blind within the trenches, where I never feared a foe, and now I'll never see again. My friends in Aherlow.

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. genre
      1. poetry
         1. folk poetry (~9,504)

   Language

   English

   Informant

   James Fahey

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   50

   Address

   Rocksborough South, Co. Mayo