The Maori: Yesterday and To-day
The Deserted Girl's Lament
The Deserted Girl's Lament.
Tangi tikapa,
A tangi kupapa,
A tangi hurihuri
Te moenga ra-e!
Hua au, e hine,
He piné mau to piné.
Koia-a nei-i
Ko taku te mau roa-e!
Ko te paru i repo
Ko te ma i te wai,
Ko te paru o te aroha
Ka mau roa e-i!(Translation.)
With quivering limbs
And bowed head I weep,
And restlessly turn on
My lonely sleeping-mat
Once fondly I dreamed
Your love ne'er would wane.
Ah me! it is dead;
But mine ceaselessly burns.
Swamp-stains on the feet
Are washed clean in the stream,
But the heart-stains of love
For ever remain.