by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936)
The mill‑stream, now that noises cease
Language: English
The mill-stream, now that noises cease, Is all that does not hold its peace; Under the bridge it murmurs by, And here are night and hell and I. Who made the world I cannot tell; 'Tis made, and here I am in hell. My hand, though now my knuckles bleed, I never soiled with such a deed. And so, no doubt, in time gone by, Some have suffered more than I, Who only spend the night alone And strike my fist upon the stone.
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Text Authorship:
- by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936), no title, appears in More Poems, no. 19, first published 1936 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Leslie Mann (1923 - 1977), "The mill stream", 1954 [high voice and piano], from Green Buds [text not verified]
- by John Ramsden Williamson (1929 - 2015), "The mill stream", published 2001 [baritone and piano], from Four Housman Songs, no. 4, Da Capo Music Ltd. [text not verified]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-08-18
Line count: 12
Word count: 84