By: Charles Mackay :- The wave on the River Dee in Chester There dwelt a miller, hale and bold, Beside the rive...
By: Charles Mackay :-
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| The wave on the River Dee in Chester |
There dwelt a miller, hale and bold,
Beside the river Dee;
He worked and sang from morn till night,
No lark more blithe than he,
And this the burden of his song
For ever used to be,
"I envy nobody - no, not I,
And nobody envies me!"
"Thou'rt wrong, my friend," said good King Hal,
"As wrong as wrong can be;
For could my heart be light as thine,
I'd gladly change with thee,
And tell me now, what makes thee sing
With voice so loud and free,
While I am sad, though I am king,
Beside the river Dee?"
The miller smiled and doffed his cap;
"I earn my bread," quoth he,
"I love my wife, I love my friend,
I love my children three;
I owe no penny I can not pay;
I thank the river Dee,
That turns the mill that grinds the corn
That feeds my babes and me."
"Good friend," said Hall, and sighed the while,
"Farewell, and happy be;
But say no more, if thou'dst say true,
That no one envies thee.
Thy mealy cap is worth my crown,
Thy mill my kingdom's fee;
Such men as thou are England's boast.
O miller of the Dee."
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