Songs and Riddles from
Salamandastron
Compiled by Griever
Rhyme recited by young beasts in
anticipation of a Nameday feast
Food to eat and games to play.
Tell me why, tell me why.
Serve it out and eat it up.
Nameday, Nameday, fun and game day,
Come, Brother, Sister, join our play.
Ballad sung by Sister Nasturtium
at the Nameday feast
In days of old a warrior bold,
All pawsore, tired and lame,
Came marching through the winters cold,
Martin, Martin, the Warrior of Redwall,
With courage and his trusty sword, he came to
save us all.
Now in those high and far-off days,
The country was oppressed
By vermin cruel, whose tyrant ways
Would let no creature rest.
But truth and brav'ry won the day,
For through all Mossflow'r wide,
Good honest creatures made their way
To stand by Martin's side...And they cried:
Martin, Martin, the Warrior of Redwall,
With courage and his trusty sword, he came to save us
all.
The evil ones he put to flight
His heart was strong, his cause was right,
And mighty was his sword.
He helped to build our Abbey here,
The land rings with his fame.
Now peace lives here, we know no fear,
Martin, Martin, the Warrior of Redwall,
With courage and his trusty sword,
Poem recited by Sister
Nasturtium, speaking for Martin the Warrior
I am but an orchard shadow in the sunny tide
of noon,
The dust of olden seasons on a stone.
My paw is light and silent as a waning autumn
moon;
I walk the halls of memory, alone.
You may hear me as a whisper that the wind
has left behind,
Or see me as the pale calm light of dawn,
Feel me take the toll of care, from off your sleeping
mind,
In times of deep despair and hope forlorn.
Then I will be beside you in the corridors of
dream.
A warrior's strength I'll give to you, my friend,
Like the waters of a storm that swell a tiny mountain
stream,
A mightiness your loved ones to defend.
Injustice and evil will flee from your law,
As all about you will say,
'There walks one touched, by the Warrior's paw.'
So wait, I will find you one day.
A story told by Brother
Hollyberry
Old travellers tell, at the midnight bell,
When the nightdark covers all,
Mid the falling snow, when the cold winds blow,
Of the ghost that walks Redwall...
Yes, the ghost that haunts the stairways goes slowly
Moaning low in the moonlight's glow.
'Give me young one's to eat!'
The one night as the lightning was flashing
And the thunder was crashing out, boomz!
The beastly phantom came a-haunting
When up stood a young one, pale as the ghost,
'How dare you moan round here at night
And wake me from my bed!'
The ghost sprang at him with a cry:
'Whoohoo I'll eat you whole!'
The pale mouse laughed as he replied,
'You'll need a great big bowl!
For I am Martin the Warrior,
Whilst I protect this Abbey,
You'll eat nobeast at all!'
Then Martin drew his trusty sword
And chopped that ghost apart.
He sliced his nose, he carved his ears,
He whacked its legs and head,
He chopped its claws, he hacked its jaws,
Then to the ghost he said:
'Be sure to brush up all your bits,
Goodnight, I'm off to bed!'
Poem recited by Sister
Nasturtium, speaking for Martin the Warrior
When night meets day, stand clear away,
Stay close beside the rampart wall,
The flame of storm will strike my blade
And bring back to Redwall one day
Challenge, issued by Thrugg, acting as the
Guardian
What want you here, young beast,
young beast,
What want you here at my feast,
my feast?
Response to the challenge, by two mousemaids
O stripedog, great guardian,
some food for us all,
For we are good young ones who
live at Redwall!
Some food, you say. Nay nay,
away,
Unless our good Abbess says it
is Nameday!
Opening for Nameday, recited by the youngest of Redwall
(Dumble)
Kind muvva, gudd muvva, er, er,
O pleeze tell this
Dat this is our Nameday, an',
an', an' we wanna
Fie on you, great guardian, for
can you not see,
These young ones are hungry, and
they are with me!
Young ones shout, in conclusion
"So stand aside and let us
pass!"
Recitation by Faith Spinny, at
the burial of Brother Hal
Your seasons have run their course, old friend.
In your goodlife, we were proud to take part,
But in springtimes unborn and in summers to come,
You will live in each Redwaller's heart.
Seas and lifespans, ebbing, flowing,
Past and future merge as one.
Mountain rulers, coming, going,
Seasons future, seasons gone.
Badger warriors from the shades
Stand beside me, guide my paw.
O wise Lords and gentle maids,
Restrain my rage, preserve our law.
Translation of Badger rune
Faintheart shall be made strong,
But a warrior's fate for the mountain Lord.
Blue eyes bring battle ere long,
Whilst the maid comes of her own accord.
The mount shall be ruled by badger kin,
The sword shall make Mossflower free
The Abbey will take its Guardian in
Far from this rock by the sea.
Songs composed by Thrugg and
Dumble
O give me a road to walk along,
An' a bite of food or two,
I'll tramp an' eat the livelong
day,
My liddle friend, with you.
O, I'll sit on top'a Mista
Thrugg
An' give 'em food to scoff,
'Cos, he's my great big matey
an'
'E won't let me fall off!
O, Dumble is a scallywag,
He's eaten so much vittles,
O Mista Thrugg, don't turn
around,
And don't you cause a fuss.
There's four ol' foxes wiv big
sticks --
I fink they're followin' us!
There's no roof mouse, nor chimbley mouse,
No winder mouse or floor mouse,
An' I ain't gotta nokker on me nose, but
There's a fieldmouse anna 'arvest mouse,
An 'edgemouse an' prob'ly a shoremouse,
But I'm the bestest of the lot,
'Cos I'm a likkle dormouse.
Yes, I'm a likkle dormouse.
So I'll eat me dinner an' grow big
An' then I'll be enor-mouse!
Shrew song to keep the paddles
steady
I'll sing a song of the river-o,
Where the water's clean and clear,
And the long fast Guosssom logboats go.
We're the shrews that know no fear,
So bend your back and use those paws.
From gravel bank to sandy shores,
Your cares and woes will disappear,
Just sitting paddling here.
Guossssssssom...Guossssssssom!
I'll sing you a song of the river-o.
It belongs to me and you.
O'er deeps and shallows we'll both go,
With the finest Guosssom crew,
When other creatures bound to land,
Will not feel half so free or grand,
Or know the water shrews' great skill.
Guossssssssom...Guossssssssom!
O, we're the sons of the roarin' shrews
And a logboat is the home we choose.
O, pull, me bullies, pull!
Now we can stamp an' we can fight
An' paddle logboats day and night.
I was born in a stream on a stormy day,
So I jumped in a boat and paddled away.
O, pull, me bullies, pull!
A paddle's me son an' a boat's me wife,
An' the open water is me life.
O, I can scoff an' outfight you,
I'm the paddlin' son of a roarin' shrew.
O, pull, me bullies, pull!
O, I'm a Salamandastron lad,
An' by my reckonin' that's not bad.
Now listen, shipmate, as I say
I'd rather scoff than paddle all day.
O, scoff, y'villains, scoff!
I don't think that I'd feel so sore
With an apple pudden in each paw.
So set me down on good dry earth,
I'll eat and snooze for all I'm worth.
O, scoff, y'villains, scoff!
Life ain't always true an' just,
A villainous vermin you can't trust!
From lake to the river and down to the sea,
Paddling, paddling, onward go we.
The sun on the water does shine merrily
As away go the logboats like birds wild and free.
So paddle, my brother, I'll sit next to you,
A fine handsome creature, a bold Guosssom shrew.
High sky and deep water are both colored blue.
Our boats like our friends are all solid and true.
The Guosssom shrews are off to war,
With our rapiers close to paw.
Woe to him who will not go
Logalog Logalog Log-a-log!
Guosssom shrews must live or die
Free beneath the open sky.
Battle on while we have breath,
Logalog Logalog Log-a-log!
Sister Nasturtium, speaking for
Martin the Warrior
Bring me back a squirrel carrying my blade,
Bring me back a little mole, a pretty fair young maid,
Bring me back a speedy one with hunger and long ears,
And a Redwall Guardian to watch us through the years.
Beating up the river, paddling down the stream,
Find me a berth, lads, somewhere I can dream,
Still quiet waters there, where the lilies float,
Cool and green, dark and clean, there I'll moor
Oho, you old paddle, you have made me sore,
Bent all my back and wearied my paw.
Pull me into harbor, there I'll make my thanks,
Lie by the river, slumber on the banks.
Where the willow's leaning o'er
And the waters kiss the shore,
That's the place that I will rest, linger
I'd give my left ear an' raise a cheer
For a piece of woodland pie,
And as for a pudden, if it was a good 'un,
I'd give my best right eye.
I'd give a paw to get my jaw
For a dumplin' stew, my tail could go too.
I mean, for goodness sake,
If I saw a pastie, I wouldn't get nasty
I'd trade it for my nose.
And if I couldn't smell, I'd just say, 'Well,
I'd rather have one of those.'
So take my heart and leave me that tart,
But my mouth I won't take off,
Because, I'll plead, it's a mouth I'll need
To eat all that bally scoff!
Squirrels, otters, hedgehogs, mice,
Moles with fur like sable,
Gathered in good spirits all,
Sit we down to eat and drink.
Friends, before we do, let's think,
Fruit of forest, field and banks
To the seasons we give thanks.