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Mermaid

No: 289; variant: 289D

  1. TWAS a Friday morning when we set sail, And our ship was not far from land, When there we spied a fair pretty maid, With a comb and a glass in her hand. Oh, the raging seas they did roar, And the stormy winds they did blow, While we poor sailor-boys were all up aloft, And the land-lubbers lying down below, below, below, And the land-lubbers lying down below.
  2. Then up spoke the captain of our gallant ship, And a mariner good was he; 'I have married a wife in fair London town, And this night a widow she will be.'
  3. Then up spoke the cabin-boy of our gallant ship, And a brave little boy was he; 'I've a father and a mother in old Portsmouth town, And this night they will both weep for me.'
  4. Then up spoke a seaman of our gallant ship, And a well-spoken man was he; 'For want of a long-boat we shall all be drowned, And shall sink to the bottom of the sea.'
  5. Then three times round went that gallant ship, And down like a stone sank she; The moon shone bright, and the stars gave their light, But they were all at the bottom of the sea.