‘ Twas bold MacCodrum of the Seals,
Whose heart would never fail,
Would hear yon fairy ban-dog fierce
Come howling down the gale;
The patt'ring of the paws would sound
Like horse's hoofs on frozen ground,
While o'er its back and curling round
Uprose its fearsome tail.
‘ Twas bold MacCodrum of the Seals —
Yon man that hath no fears —
Beheld the dog with dark-green back
That bends not when it rears;
Its sides were blacker than the night,
But underneath the hair was white;
Its paws were yellow, its eyes were bright,
And blood-red were its ears.
‘ Twas bold MacCodrum of the Seals —
The man who naught will dread —
Would wait it, stooping with his spear,
As nigh to him it sped;
The big black head it turn'd and toss'd,
“I'll strike,” cried he, “ere I'll be lost,”
For every living thing that cross'd
Its path would tumble dead.
‘ Twas bold MacCodrum of the Seals —
The man who ne'er took fright —
Would watch it bounding from the hills
And o'er the moors in flight.
When it would leave the Uist shore,
Across the Minch he heard it roar —
Like yon black cloud it bounded o'er
The Coolin Hills that night.