Home Along

Cicely Fox Smith 1882 (Lymm, Cheshire) – 1954 (Bow, Devon)



When days are getting' short an' cold, an' the long nights begin,
With waves like mountains rollin' high, an' the norther blowin' thin,
Oh, then my thoughts do stretch their wings an' fly across the sea,
Home along, home along, to the place where I would be!

Home along, home along, there's deep an' leafy lanes,
Where kind an' warm's the summer sun an' soft the autumn rains;
An' many a ship to harbour comes, an' sailor home from sea,
Home along, home along, in the West Countrie!

I wonder how they're farin' now, the young folks an' the old,
An' if they think at all o' me, when nights are cold;
An' what's the tale on Market Strand, the news on Fish Strand Quay,
Home along, home along, in the West Countrie!

Home along, home along, 'tis maybe not the same
Wi' no one left but old men there, the faint 'earts an' the lame;
Who'll pull my oar to lifeboat now, when the blue lights burn at sea,
Home along, home along, in the West Countrie?

I wish that 'Igh Kiel fleet would come, the waitin's cruel slow,
An' when I get my bit o' leave, oh, I know where I will go,
To sit me down beside the fire, or stroll beside the quay,
Home along, home along, in the West Countrie.

Home along, home along, an' I'd like to see it now,
The ruddy furrow white wi' gulls behind my father's plough -
A friend to greet, an' a girl to meet, an' a score o' folks to see,
Home along, home along, in the West Countrie!

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:24 min read
50

Quick analysis:

Scheme aabb ccbD eebD ffbD ggbD hhbD
Closest metre Iambic heptameter
Characters 1,384
Words 273
Stanzas 6
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4

Cicely Fox Smith

Cicely Fox Smith (1 February 1882 – 8 April 1954) was an English poet and writer. Born in Lymm, Cheshire and educated at Manchester High School for Girls, she briefly lived in Canada, before returning to the United Kingdom shortly before the outbreak of World War I. She settled in Hampshire and began writing poetry, often with a nautical theme. Smith wrote over 600 poems in her life, for a wide range of publications. In later life, she expanded her writing to a number of subjects, fiction and non-fiction. For her services to literature, the British Government awarded her a small pension. more…

All Cicely Fox Smith poems | Cicely Fox Smith Books

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