Bal Maiden

One glance from the southern sky and a spark falls, she passes by
Waking from the creeping dawn
From the background of our valley torn
Our maiden leaves a bed of stone
Two hungry mouths to feed at home
In a ruffled dress, in a bodies bound
All tarnished boots, they weigh her down

Come in close and I’ll tell to you
Let those sweet notes rise and run me through

She’s a figure on a winding road
She’s a face that fears no heavy load
She walks a path where those can run
She pounds her week for thirty tonnes

Come in close and I’ll tell to you
Let those sweet notes rise and run me through
In the half laid of the sunken shaft
The rumbling of a deeper blast
Those steady stampers one by one
They draw the chambers and block the sun

Come in close and I’ll tell to you
Let those sweet notes rise and run me through

A last long leap, a crooked climb
As she’s summoned from the steam and grime
To a fading sun, a paler sky
A pale window to her bloodshot eyes

Come in close and I’ll tell to you
Let those sweet notes rise and run me through
Growing old with no repair
Her task and toll go undeclared
Bal Maiden, now your works run dry
Sweet widow from the deepest mine