Clear Away the Morning Dew
As I walked out one morning fair,
To see what I could shoot'
I there espied a pretty fair maid
Come a-tripping by the road.
cho: And sing, Hail the dewy morning'
Blow all the winds high-O.
Clear away the morning dew,
How sweet the winds do blow.
We both jogged on together
'Till we came to some pooks of hay.
She said' "Young man, there is a place,
Where you and I can lay.
I put me arms around her waist
And I tried to throw her down.
She said "Young man, the dewy grass
Will rumple my silk gown. "
"But if you come to me father 's house
There you can lay me down.
You can take away me maidenhead,
Likewise a thousand pounds."
So I took her to her father's house,
But there she locked me out.
She said' "Young man' I'm a maid within,
And you're a fool without! ''
So it's if you come to a pretty maid,
A mile outside of town,
Don't you take no heed of the dewy grass
Or the rumpling of her gown.
Recorded by Ian Robb, Hang the Piper (Folk Legacy)
He reports " the bulk of the text and the tune coming from 'This
Singing Island', MacColl and Seeger"