Captain Hayet is Stan Hugill's source for this, and almost every other, French shanty. For his English translation, Hugill has chosen the slightly archaic term "favor" in lieu of the more upfront "virginity".
L'était une frégate, lon, la
Ch: L'était une frégate,
C'était la Danaë,
Ch: Aprendr'un ris!
Ch: C'était la Danaë
Ch: Aprendr'un ris dans les huniers!
A son premier voyage, lon, la,
La frégate a sombré
Et de tout l'équipage, lon, la,
Un gabier s'a sauvé
Il aborde sur la plage lon, la,
Il savait bien nager.
Mais la, sur le rivage, lon, la,
Une belle éplorée.
Belle comm'une frégate, lon, la,
Française et pavoisée
"Pourquoi pleurer, la belle lon, la,
Pourquoi si tant pleurer."
Je pleure mon pucelage, lon, la,
Dans la mer qu'est tombé.
Et qu'aurait donc la belle, lon, la
Celui qui vous l'rendrait?
Lui en ferai offrande, lon, la,
Avec mon amitié
A la première plonge, lon la,
L'marin n'a rien trouvé.
A la centième plonge lon, la,
L'gabier s'a noyé.
Car jamais pucelage, lon, la,
Perdu, n'est retrouvé
There was a frigate, tra, la,
Ch: Repeat the first line in each verse as chorus
She was the Danaë,
Ch: Take a reef in the courses!
Ch: Repeat second line in each verse
Ch: Take a reef in the tops'ls!
Oh her first voyage, tra, la,
The frigate sank.
And of all the crew, tra, la,
A topman saved himself.
He gets ashore on the beach,
He could swim.
But there on the beach,
A tearful beauty.
As beautiful as a frigate,
French, and decked with flags.
"Why are you weeping, fair one?
Why are you weeping so much?"
"I am weeping for my favor,
Which has fallen into the sea."
"And what would he have then, fair one?
Who gave it back to you?"
"I shall offer it to him,
With my friendship."
On the first dive,
The sailor found nothing.
On the hundredth dive,
The poor fellow got drowned.
For never is a lost favor
Found again