The Pool By The Mill

No one bathes in the pool, The deep pool by the mill . . . There's never a flash of a limb, Nor a boy's form, straight and slim, Taking off for a dive, Making the stillness alive Of the deep pool by the mill. It's the best place for a swim Up the river or down; For it's always clear and still, Deep and tempting and cool, In the shadows green and brown Of the deep pool by the mill. When the boys come from the school They run with laughter and cries, Strip, and splash in the shallows Where the minnows glance, and the swallows Dart for the dancing flies, But no one bathes in the pool - The deep pool by the mill - Because of the thing in the pool That drags them down.