by Robert Seymour Bridges (1844 - 1930)
The windmill
Language: English
The green corn waving in the dale, The ripe grass waving on the hill: I lean across the paddock pale And gaze upon the giddy mill. Its hurtling sails a mighty sweep Cut thro' the air: with rushing sound Each strikes in fury down the steep, Rattles, and whirls in chase around. Beside his sacks the miller stands On high within the open door: A book and pencil in his hands, His grist and meal he reckoneth o'er. His tireless merry slave, the wind, Is busy with his work to-day: From whencesoe'er he comes to grind, He hath a will and knows the way. He gives the creaking sails a spin, The circling millstones faster flee, The shuddering timbers groan within, And down the shoot the meal runs free. The miller giveth him no thanks, And doth not much his work o'erlook: He stands beside the sacks, and ranks The figures in his dusty book.
Text Authorship:
- by Robert Seymour Bridges (1844 - 1930), "The windmill", appears in The Shorter Poems of Robert Bridges, first published 1890 [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 William Gillies Whittaker (1876 - 1944), "The windmill", published 1936. [unison chorus and piano] [text not verified]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2009-01-28
Line count: 24
Word count: 156