The Fairy Folk of Donegal, Part I

"The Fairies"
by William Allingham (1824-1889)

Up the airy mountain
    Down the rushy glen,
We dare n'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 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.
Is any man so daring
    As dig them up in spite?
He shall find the thornies set
    In his bed at night.

Up the airy mountain
    Down the rushy glen,
We dare n'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. 

It’s only dawned on me that I’ve never actually posted that poem before, which is mad considering it’s probably one of the most famous fairy poems ever and it’s by a Donegal man about Donegal fairies!  Granted, Mr Allingham was from the other end of the county but that’s still just down the road really. And sure don’t I know the area well. I even spent a lovely long summer as a teenager down with the fairy king in verse two there. I can tell you, ‘tis an otherworldly place indeed.

Anyhow,  this isn’t actually the post on Donegal fairies I’d intended on.  I still have those folk tales for my friend Laura I said I’d post over a week ago. I did consider tacking them on at the end here but that’d make the post just far too long. Plus I’m lazy. So I’m sorry missus, but I hope it’s ok if I put them off just once more. Tomorrow, I promise!