Opera Stories from Wagner
By Florence Akin

Presented by
Authorama
Public Domain Books

The Rhine-Gold

The Happy Rhine-Daughters

In the Rhine River there lived three beautiful maidens. They were called the Rhine-daughters.

They had long, golden hair, which floated upon the waves as they swam from rock to rock.

When their father went away, he left in their care a great lump of pure gold.

This gold was on the very top of the highest rock in the river.

Every morning the beautiful Rhine-daughters would dance and sing about their gold.

They sang a happy song:–

  “Heigh-ho! hither, ye waters!
  Waver and waft me to sleep on your breast!
  Heigh-ho! hither, ye waters!
  Weave me sweet dreams on your billowy crest!”

More About the Stories • The Rhine-Gold • Alberich • The Careless Rhine-Daughters • The Theft • The Sad Rhine-Daughters • A Castle On the Rhine • The Morning • The Payment • Loki • Youth or Age? • Nibelheim • The Best Smith in Nibelheim • The Master • The Boaster • The Wishing-Cap • The Trick • The Curse • The Greedy Fafner • A Slave to Gold • The Beautiful Valhalla • The Walkuere • The Valiant Siegmund • Hunding’s Wife • Hunding • The War-Maidens • Wotan’s Wife • Wotan and Brunhilde • Off to the Battlefield • The Flight • The Punishment • The Sleep • The Magic Fire • Siegfried • The Dragon • A Baby in the Forest • Mimi and the Baby • Siegfried and His Friends • The Broken Sword • A Big Brown Bear • Siegfried and Mimi • Siegfried Mends His Father’s Sword • Siegfried Goes to Fight the Dragon • A Wood-Bird’s Song • Siegfried and the Dragon • A Change Comes Over Siegfried • Mimi Has a Surprise • Mimi and Alberich Stop to Quarrel Too Long • Siegfried Reaches the Mountain • Siegfried Learns What Fear Is • The Awakening • Goetterdaemmerung • A Song of the Present • A Song of the Future • A Pledge of Love • The Doom of Valhalla • Love