This section is from the book "Lessons In English", by Chestine Gowdy, Lora M. Dexheimer. Also available from Amazon: Lessons in English.
A chieftain to the Highlands bound
Cries, "Boatman, do not tarry ! And I'll give thee a silver pound
To row us o'er the ferry !"
"Now who be ye, would cross Lochgyle,
This dark and stormy water?" "Oh, I'm the chief of Ulva's isle,
And this, Lord Ullin's daughter.
"And fast before her father's men
Three days we've fled together, For should he find us in the glen,
My blood would stain the heather.
"His horsemen hard behind us ride, -
Should they our steps discover, Then who will cheer my bonny bride
When they have slain her lover?"
Out spoke the hardy Highland wight,
"I'll go, my chief, I'm ready; It is not for your silver bright,
But for your winsome lady:
"And by my word ! the bonny bird
In danger shall not tarry; So though the waves are raging white,
I'll row you o'er the ferry."
By this the storm grew loud apace. The water-wraith was shrieking;
And in the scowl of heaven each face Grew dark as they were speaking.
But still as wilder blew the wind,
And as the night grew drearer Adown the glen rode armed men,
Their trampling sounded nearer.
"O haste thee, haste!" the lady cries, "Though tempests round us gather;
I'll meet the raging of the skies, But not an angry father !"
The boat has left a stormy land,
A stormy sea before her, - When, oh, too strong for human hand!
The tempest gather'd o'er her.
And still they row'd amidst the roar
Of waters fast prevailing: Lord Ullin reach'd that fatal shore, -
His wrath was changed to wailing.
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For, sore dismay'd, through storm and shade
His child he did discover: One lovely hand she stretch'd for aid,
And one was round her lover.
"Come back! come back 1" he cried in grief,
"Across this stormy water, And I'll forgive your Highland chief: -
My daughter! - O my daughter I"
'Twas vain: the loud waves lash'd the shore,
Return or aid preventing: The waters wild went o'er his child,
And he was left lamenting.
- Thomas Campbell.
Lochgyle, a lake; wight, a person, or man; winsome, lovely; wraith, ghost or spirit; glen, a valley.
Read the poem through. In what country did the events that are told take place? What tells you so?
What is a "silver pound"? Why did the boatman inquire who the chieftain was? Why was he willing to go?
1. Write synonyms for these: tarry discover.
slain haste.
tempest fled.
Use the words of your list in the poem, in place of those which the author used. Have you given the same meaning? Do you like your words as well as the author's?
2. Write a sentence of your own to explain each of these lines: a. My blood would stain the heather. b. Who will cheer my bonny bride?
c. His horsemen hard behind us ride.
d. His wrath was changed to wailing. e. The loud waves lashed the shore.
f. The waters wild went o'er his child.
3. In what words of the poem is the apostrophe used? Give the reason for its use in each word.
1. Tell the story of Lord Ullin's Daughter to the class.
2. Tell what might have happened if there had been no storm, or if the two in the boat had not been drowned.
1. Write the conversation between the chieftain and the boatman. Use capitals, commas, and quotation marks correctly.
2. Describe a picture which the first, eleventh, or last stanza makes you see.
 
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