Shadows (Howe)/Lesbia's Sparrow: from Catullus

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LESBIA'S SPARROW
FROM CATULLUS
MOURN, Goddesses of Love, and Cupids, mourn,And men of gentler mould where'erye be;My sweetheart's sparrow hath been seized by Death— ​The sparrow, darling of my loved one's heart,Which she was wont to love more than her eyes;For he was sweet as honey unto her,And knew her as a maid her mother knows;Nor from her bosom was he fain to move,But hopping round about, now here, now there,He piped unto his mistress, her alone.And now along the darksome road he goesWhere never step, men say, has yet turned back.Then ill betide you, wicked shades of hell,Which swallow up all lovely things! So fairA sparrow have ye borne away from her.The evil deed is done, alas! Poor bird,It is thy fault that swollen eyes are redThrough weeping,—that my loved one's eyes are red.
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