Poems
The Fairies
Up the airy mountain,
Down the rushy glen,
We daren’t go a-hunting
For fear of little men;
Wee folk, good folk,
Trooping all together;
Green jacket, red cap,
And white owl’s feather!
Down along the rocky shore
Some make their home,
They live on crispy pancakes
Of yellow tide-foam;
Some in the reeds
Of the black mountain lake,
With frogs for their watch-dogs,
All night awake.
High on the hill-top
The old King sits;
He is now so old and gray
He’s nigh lost his wits.
With a bridge of white mist
Columbkill he crosses,
On his stately journeys
From Slieveleague to Rosses;
Or going up with music
On cold starry nights
To sup with the Queen
Of the gay Northern Lights.
They stole little Bridget
For seven years long;
When she came down again
Her friends were all gone.
They took her lightly back,
Between the night and morrow,
They thought that she was fast asleep,
But she was dead with sorrow.
They have kept her ever since
Deep within the lake,
On a bed of flag-leaves,
Watching till she wake.
By the craggy hill-side,
Through the mosses bare,
They have planted thorn-trees
For pleasure here and there.
If any man so daring
As dig them up in spite,
He shall find their sharpest thorns
In his bed at night.
Up the airy mountain,
Down the rushy glen,
We daren’t go a-hunting
For fear of little men;
Wee folk, good folk,
Trooping all together;
Green jacket, red cap,
And white owl’s feather!
Structure and Form: The quatrains follow a regular ABAB rhyme scheme with rhythmic consistency, contributing to the ballad-like quality. Repetition of the first stanza at the end creates a cyclical structure, reinforcing the inescapable presence of the supernatural in the landscape. The meter, mostly anapestic, mimics movement and journeying, reflecting the fairies’ travels and hunters’ hesitance.
Cultural Context and Folk Influence: Rather than idealizing Irish folklore, the poem presents it as an ingrained, lived reality that shapes human caution and behavior. This aligns with 19th-century romantic nationalism but avoids overt political statements. Instead, it channels local belief systems, particularly rural fears and superstitions surrounding natural sites like lakes, hills, and thorn trees.
Comparison to Other Works: Compared to the author’s more melancholic or nature-focused poems, this piece stands out for its narrative cohesion and folk authenticity. It’s less concerned with introspection than his lyrical works, favoring oral storytelling rhythms akin to traditional ballads. While many of his contemporaries exoticized the supernatural, this poem treats it as immediate and local.
Treatment of Time and Mortality: The Bridget episode introduces a time slippage motif common in Celtic myth, but here the emotional aftermath is emphasized—her sorrow and disappearance suggest a critique of romanticized abduction tales. Her suspended state beneath the lake introduces a liminal space between life and death, handled with restraint rather than melodrama.
Ecological and Territorial Undertones: The fairies’ control over specific terrains—shore, lake, hill—implies a proto-ecological worldview where nature is not passive but inhabited and defended. The thorn-tree curse warns against human encroachment, resonating with 19th-century anxieties about land use and modernization. This ecological subtext is understated but consistent.
Place in Author’s Oeuvre: Among the author’s lesser-known works, this poem gains prominence due to its frequent anthologization and folk authenticity. It diverges from his typical focus on personal reflection by embracing communal myth. Its blend of danger and beauty distinguishes it from more sanitized Victorian fairy verse.
