The Sun's Cousin

歌詞

By forest and marsh on a lonely plain Lived a harsh old miller who hated grain He hated grain, his wife the same Still to the mill the farmers came On the shortest day when the sun was born The miller's wife she gave birth, too A daughter beautiful as she Was kinder than a summer's day She grew to work all in the dust And sang the spring song of the thrush Then on a cold gray winter morn A marshwife came tae grind her corn Said the miller, "Half your corn I'll take So you can bake your yuletide cake" But the woman said tae him wi' scorn "That price I never can afford" The daughter up to her, she ran As through the marsh she had began "If you return tomorrow morn My parents to the town are gone" So the daughter, she did turn the corn When the old marshwife came back next morn Saying, "For your work, reward you've won I am the mother of the sun The princess of the lands around When riding out with hawk and hound Out in the fields she lost her key If you can find it, rich you'll be" It's the daughter, she stepped out to find The key the mother said did lie But as she took it from the hay The princess' men their whips did flay "Such a fee forsaken, ill-bred girl You'll not have these riches for yourself The key of gold we'll have from thee Or you'll not leave the woods this day" It's then a noble knight drew near Up to his saddle he's lifted her His heart was taken by her sight And to the princess they did ride "Since you'll not have the miller's girl Then I shall take her for myself" The keys the knight tossed in her lap And on the princess turned his back But three days westward they did ride 'Til his hillside fortress they did sight But what the knight, he had not said The princess with him should be wed So for a month and on a day The lovers they lived happily When came in sight the princess bold With all her bitter men she rode Up to the fortress soon they came The arrow flew and spear, it flashed The knight, he saw the day would lose His ten against a hundred swords The daughter, she looked up and saw The mighty sun across the sky "Oh sun, my kinsmen, will you help? 'Twas I who turned your mother's grain" The army dark with weapons high Did stop and turn towards the sky The sun, he struck down on the men Their armor melting as they ran And in their paces, they did stop Like candles set before the fire The angry princess too was lost Her body burned and turned to dust The sun, his rage did die away As dusk on any summer's day He came to earth and gave away His cousin born midwinter day