Martin Carthy - The Wife Of Usher's Well lyrics

There lived a wife in Usher's Well And a wealthy wife was she She'd three fine and stalwart sons And sent them o'er the sea They'd not been gone a week And a week but barely one When d**h sweeping over the land Took 'em one by one And they'd not been gone a week A week but barely three When word come to that young girl Her babes she'd never see I wish the wind would never blow No fish swim in the flood Till my darling babes are home They're home in flesh and blood And there about the Martinmas Nights are long and dark Her three kids come to her door Their hats were made of bark And the tree never grew in any ditch Nor down by any wall But at the gates of Paradise Grew strong grew tall Blow up the fire my maidens all Bring water from the well Since my darling babes are home They've come home safe and well So she has laid the table With bread and with wine Come eat and drink my darling babes Eat and drink of mine We may not eat your bread mother Nor may we drink your wine For cold d**h is lord of all To him we must resign The green gra** is at our head And the clay is at our feet And your tears come tumbling down And wet our winding sheet So she has made the bed for them Spread the milk-white sheet She's laid it all with cloth of gold To see if they could sleep And up and crew the red co*k Up and crew the grey And the youngest to the eldest says Brother we must away And the co*k had not crowed once And clapped his wings for day When the eldest to the youngest says Brother we must away For the co*k crow the day dawn The chunnering worm chide And if we're missed out of our place Then pain we must bide Farewell farewell my mother dear Farewell to barn and byre And farewell the sweet young girl Kindling my mother's fire