Page:Golden Treasury of English Songs and Lyrics.djvu/22

This page has been validated.
6
Book
Here shall he see No enemy But winter and rough weather. W. Shakespeare


viii

It was a lover and his lass With a hey and a ho, and a hey-nonino! That o’er the green cornfield did pass In the spring time, the only pretty ring time, When birds do sing hey ding a ding: Sweet lovers love the Spring.
Between the acres of the rye These pretty country folks would lie:
This carol they began that hour, How that life was but a flower:
And therefore take the present time With a hey and a ho and a hey-nonino! For love is crownéd with the prime In spring time, the only pretty ring time, When birds do sing hey ding a ding: Sweet lovers love the Spring. W. Shakespeare


ix

PRESENT IN ABSENCE

Absence, hear thou my protestation Against thy strength Distance, and length; Do what thou canst for alteration: For hearts of truest mettle Absence doth join, and Time doth settle.
Who loves a mistress of such quality, He soon hath found Affection’s ground Beyond time, place, and all mortality. To hearts that cannot vary Absence is Presence, Time doth tarry.
This article is issued from Wikisource. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.