"Far, far away from hees own vill-age
An' soun' of de parish bell."
"I never can play on de Hudson Bay
Or mountain dat lie between
But I meet heem singin' hees lonely way
De happies' man I know—
I cool hees face as he 's sleepin' dere
Under de star of de Red Rivière,
An' off on de home of de great w'ite bear,
I 'm seein' hees dog traineau.[3]
"De woman an' chil'ren 's runnin' out
On de wigwam of de Cree—
De leetle papoose dey laugh an' shout
W'en de soun' of hees voice dey hear—
De oldes' warrior of de Sioux
Kill hese'f dancin' de w'ole night t'roo,
An de Blackfoot girl remember too
De ole tam Voyageur.
"De blaze of hees camp on de snow I see,
An' I lissen hees 'En Roulant'
On de lan' w'ere de reindeer travel free,
Ringin' out strong an' clear—
Offen de grey wolf sit before
De light is come from hees open door,
An' caribou foller along de shore
De song of de Voyageur.
"If he only kip goin', de red ceinture,[4]
I 'd see it upon de Pole
Some mornin' I 'm startin' upon de tour
For blowin' de worl' aroun'—
But w'erever he sail an' w'erever he ride,
De trail is long an' de trail is wide,
An' city an' town on ev'ry side
Can tell of hees campin' groun'."
So dat 's 'de reason I drink to-night
To de man of de Grand Nor' Wes',
For hees heart was young, an' hees heart was light
So long as he 's leevin' dere—
I 'm proud of de sam' blood in my vein
I 'm a son of de Nort' Win' wance again—
So we 'll fill her up till de bottle 's drain
An' drink to de Voyageur.
[1] New Year's day.
[2] Indian boot.
[3] Dog-sleigh.
[4] Canadian sash.