10 THE FAIRIES OF THE CALDON-LOW. "Then take me on your knee, mother, "And merry was the glee of the harp-strings, "And what were the words, my Mary, That you "I'll tell you all, my mother, But let me have my way. "And some they played with the water, 6 'And this,' they said, shall speedily turn The poor old miller's mill; "For there has been no water Ever since the first of May; "Oh, the miller, how he will laugh, The jolly old miller, how he will laugh 11 THE FAIRIES OF THE CALDON-LOW. "And some they seized the little winds, That sounded over the hill, And each put a horn into his mouth, And blew so sharp and shrill : "And there,' said they, 'the merry Away from every horn; winds go And those shall clear the mildew dank "Oh, the poor blind widow Though she has been blind so long, She'll be merry enough when the mildew's gone, "And some they brought the brown linseed, "Oh, the poor lame weaver ! "And then upspoke a brownie, "And with that I could not help but laugh, THE FAIRIES OF THE CALDON-LOW. 13 "And all on top of the Caldon-Low The mists were cold and gray, And nothing I saw but the mossy stones "But, as I came down from the hill-top, I heard, afar below, How busy the jolly miller was, And how merry the wheel did go. “And I peeped into the widow's field, The yellow ears of the mildewed corn "And down by the weaver's croft I stole, But I saw the weaver at his gate, "Now this is all I heard, mother, So, prithee, make my bed, mother, MARY HOWITT. 14 THE LITTLE DOVES. THE LITTLE DOVES. High on the top of an old pine-tree Broods a mother-dove with her young ones three. And they sing so sweetly in their nest. 66 Coo," the little 66 All in their nest on the old pine-tree. Soundly they sleep through the moonshiny night, When in the nest they are all left alone, While their mother far for their dinner has flown, Quiet and gentle they all remain, Till their mother they see come home again. When they are fed by their tender mother, |