misery is the river of the world

the higher that the monkey can climb

the more he shows his tail

call no man happy 'till he dies

there's no milk at the bottom of the pail

god builds a church

the devil builds a chapel

like the thistles that are growing

'round the trunk of a tree

all the good in the world

you can put inside a thimble

and still have room for you and me

if there's one thing you can say about mankind

there's nothing kind about man

you can drive out nature with a pitch fork

but it always comes roaring back again

misery's the river of the world

misery's the river of the world

misery's the river of the world

the higher that the monkey can climb

the more he shows his tail

call no man happy 'till he dies

there's no milk at the bottom of the pail

god tempers all the ruins for the new shorn lands

the devil knows the bible like the back of his hand

all the good in the world

you can put inside a thimble

and still have room for you and me

if there's one thing you can say about mankind

there's nothing kind about man

you can drive out nature with a pitch fork

but it always comes roaring back again

for want of a bird

the sky was lost

for want of a nail

a shoe was lost

for want of a life

a knife was lost

for want of a toy

a child was lost

and misery's the river of the world

misery's the river of the world

everybody row! everybody row!

misery's the river of the world

misery's the river of the world

misery's the river of the world

everybody row! everybody row!

everybody row! everybody row!

misery's the river of the world

misery's the river of the world

everybody row! everybody row!

everybody row! everybody row!

everybody row!

misery's the river of the world

misery's the river of the world

misery's the river of the world

misery's the river of the world

everybody row! everybody row!

everybody row!