The Old Oaken Bucket

Working on writing a new Wampatuck School song today (in my spare time!). I needed an old folksong to pair it with - and in a nod to Scituate's history, I am working with this:

The Old Oaken Bucket

How dear to my heart are the scenes of my childhood
When fond recollection presents them to view
The orchard, the meadow, the deep tangled wildwood,
And ev'ry loved spot which my infancy knew
The wide spreading pond, and the mill that stood by it,
The bridge and the rock where the cataract fell;
The cot of my father, the dairy house nigh it,
And e'en the rude bucket that hung in the well.
The old oaken bucket, the iron bound bucket,
The moss covered bucket that hung in the well.

The moss covered bucket I hailed as a treasure,
For often at noon, when returned from the field,
I found it the source of an exquisite pleasure,
The purest and sweetest that nature can yield.
How ardent I seized it, with hands that were glowing,
And quick to the white pebbled bottom it fell
Then soon, with the emblem of turth overflowing,
And dripping with coolness, it rose from the well.
The old oaken bucket, the iron bound bucket,
The moss covered bucket that hung in the well.

These words were written in 1818 by Samuel Woodworth. They were originally sung to the traditional tune Jesse, The Flower o Dumblane (aka Jesse, the Flower of Dunblane). In 1870 they were set to this melody (Download Midi File ) by English composer George Kiallmark which was written for Moore's Araby's Daughter.

Bonus! Before 1922 is public domain, so now I just need Wampatucky words (thank goodness - I haven't a clue what all this falling cataract stuff is about!)