SONG.
In the gray of the dawn, when the moon has gone down,
Ere the sun has got up over country and town,
'Tis the time for the lover to steal to his dear,
In the heart-beating May of the incoming year.
Chorus.--In the gray of the dawn, &c.
In the gray of the dawn, when the fox is asleep,
And the foxes of cities in slumber are deep,
'Tis the time for the wise from his tent to walk out,
And to see what the rest of the world is about.
In the gray of the dawn, &c.
In the gray of the dawn, ere the milkmaid trips by,
To bring home the milk from the bright-coated kye,
Some earlier hand may have taken the pain
To render her milking all labour in vain.
In the gray of the dawn, &c.
In the gray of the dawn, if you'll meet me down by,
My own pretty maid with the dark gleaming eye,
We'll wander away far o'er mountain and plain,
And leave the old fools to look for us in vain.
In the gray of the dawn, &c.
In the gray of the dawn, if you'll not come to me,
My own pretty maid, by the green hawthorn tree,
You may stumble by chance o'er the corpse of your love,
As you trip with some other along the dim grove.