nder was loud,
And the sky wore a shroud,
And the lightning blue was gleaming;
And the foaming flood,
Where the good mill stood,
Pell-mell o'er the dam was teeming.

O the Miller, that night,
Toiled on in a fright,--
Though, through terror, few bushels he grinded!
Yet, although he'd stayed long,
The storm was so strong
That full loath to depart was he minded.

Lo! at midnight a jolt,
As loud as the bolt
Of the thunder on high that still rumbled,
Assailed the mill-doors,
And burst them, perforce,--
And in a drenched beggar-lad stumbled!

"Saint Luke and saint John
Save the ground we stand on"--
Cried the Miller,--"but ye come in a hurry;"
While the lad, turning pale,
'Gan to weep and to wail,
And to patter this pitiful story:

"Goodman Miller, I pray,
Believe what I say,--
For, as surely as thou art a sinner,--
Since the break of the morn
I have wandered forlorn,
And have neither had breakfast nor dinner!"

O the Miller looked sad,
And cried, "Good lack, my lad!
But ye tell me a dolorous ditty!--
And ye seem in sad plight
To travel to-night:--
The sight o' ye stirs up one's pity!

"Go straight to my cot,
And beg something that's hot,--
For ye look very haggard and hollow:--
The storm's nearly o'er;
I will not grind much more,--
And when I have done, I will follow.

"Keep by the brook-side!
The path is not wide--
But ye cannot soon stray, if ye mind it;--
At the foot of the hill,
Half a mile from the mill,
Stands my cottage:--ye can't fail to find it."

Then out the lad set,
All dripping with wet,--
But the skies around him seemed brighter;
And he went gaily on,--
For his burthen was gone,--
And his heart in his bosom danced lighter.

Adown by the brook
His travel he took,
And soon raught the Miller's snug dwelling;--
But, what he saw ere
He was admitted there--
By Saint Bridget!--I must not be telling!

Thus much I may say--
That the cot was of clay,
And the light was through wind-cracks ejected;
And he placed close his eye,
And peeped in, so sly,--
And saw--what he never expected!

O the lad 'gan to fear
That the Miller would appear,--
And, to him, this strange sight would be vexing;
So he, first, sharply coughed,
And, then, knocked very soft,--