The Blind Harper

[Verse 1]
Have you heard of the blind harper?
How he lived in Lochmaben town?
How he went down to fair England
To steal King Henry's wanton brown?

[Verse 2]
First he went unto his wife
With all the haste that go could he
"This work," he said, "It will never go well
Without the help of our good grey mare"

[Verse 3]
Says she, "You take the good grey mare
She'll run o'er hills both low and high
Go take the halter in your hose
And leave the foal at home with me"

[Verse 4]
So he is up to England gonе
He went as fast as go could he
And whеn he got to Carlisle gates
Who should be there but King Henry?

[Verse 5]
"Come in, come in, you blind harper
And of your music let me hear"
But up and says the blind harper
"I'd rather have a stable for my mare"

[Verse 6]
The king he looks over his left shoulder
And he says unto his stable groom
"Go take the poor blind harper's mare
And put her beside my wanton brown"

[Verse 7]
Then he's harped and then he sang
Till he played them all so sound asleep
And quietly he took off his shoes
And down the stairs he did creep

[Verse 8]
And straight to the stable door he goes
With a tread so light as light could be
And when he opened and went in
There he found thirty steeds and three

[Verse 9]
And he took the halter from his hose
And from his purse he did not fail
He slipped it over the wanton's nose
And he's tied it to the grey mare's tail

[Verse 10]
Then he let her loose at the castle gates
And the mare didn't fail to find her way
She's back to her own colt foal
Three long hours before the day

[Verse 11]
So then in the morning, at fair daylight
When they had ended all their cheer
Behold the wanton brown has gone
And so has the poor blind harper’s mare

[Verse 12]
"And oh and alas," says the blind harper
"However alas that I come here
In Scotland I've got me a little colt foal
In England they've stolen my good grey mare"

[Verse 13]
"Hold your tongue," says King Henry
"And all your mournings let them be
For you shall get a far better mare
And well paid shall your colt foal be"

[Verse 14]
Again he harped and again he sang
Sweet was the music he let them hear
He was paid for a foal that he never had lost
And three times over for the good grey mare