The Ballad of the King's Daughter
'If my Love come to me over the water,
Lowly born, and the King stood by,
How should I greet him, a Monarch's daughter—
Coldly, strangely, and haughtily?
If my Love come to me over the land,
Lowly born, and the King stood by,
Should I kiss him, or give him a frozen hand,
Coldly, strangely, and haughtily?'
Many came to her over the water,
Princes all, and the King stood by;
But she gave them the scorn of a Monarch's daughter,
Coldly, strangely, and haughtily.
Many came to her over the land,
Princes all, and the King stood by;
But she gave them to kiss a frozen hand,
Coldly, strangely, and haughtily.
There came to her one from over the water,
Lowly born, and the King stood by;
And the warm blood flushed through the Monarch's daughter,
And lo! she fell on his neck with a cry.
Many there be by land and water,
(Wait and watch ye patiently)
That gave their love to a Monarch's daughter,
That bound their heart in the days gone by.
Hope is little by land or water,
Wait and watch ye patiently.
Gold wins not a Monarch's daughter,
Neither jewels nor bravery.
Get ye fame by land and water,
That your name live and do not die,
And ye win the love of a Monarch's daughter…
Little of blessing comes thereby.
This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published in 1884, before the cutoff of January 1, 1929.
The longest-living author of this work died in 1936, so this work is in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 87 years or less. This work may be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works.
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