 | Collected Poems of Thomas Parnell |  |
Song.
My Days have been so wondrous Free,
The little Birds that flie
With careless Ease from Tree to Tree,
Were but as bless'd as I.
The little Birds that flie
With careless Ease from Tree to Tree,
Were but as bless'd as I.
Ask gliding Waters, if a Tear
Of mine encreas'd their Stream?
Or ask the flying Gales, if ere
I lent a Sigh to them?
Of mine encreas'd their Stream?
Or ask the flying Gales, if ere
I lent a Sigh to them?
But now my former Days retire,
And I'm by Beauty caught,
The tender Chains of sweet Desire
Are fix'd upon my Thought.
And I'm by Beauty caught,
The tender Chains of sweet Desire
Are fix'd upon my Thought.
An eager Hope within my Breast
Does ev'ry Doubt controul,
And charming Nancy stands confest
The Fav'rite of my Soul.
Does ev'ry Doubt controul,
And charming Nancy stands confest
The Fav'rite of my Soul.
Ye Nightingales ye twisting Pines,
Ye Swains that haunt the Grove,
Ye gentle Ecchoes, breezy Winds,
Ye close Retreats of Love;
Ye Swains that haunt the Grove,
Ye gentle Ecchoes, breezy Winds,
Ye close Retreats of Love;
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With all of Nature, all of Art,
Assist the dear Design;
O teach a young unpractis'd Heart
To make Her ever Mine.
Assist the dear Design;
O teach a young unpractis'd Heart
To make Her ever Mine.
The very Thought of Change I hate,
As much as of Despair;
And hardly covet to be great,
Unless it be for Her.
As much as of Despair;
And hardly covet to be great,
Unless it be for Her.
'Tis true, the Passion in my Mind
Is mix'd with soft Distress;
Yet while the Fair I love is kind,
I cannot wish it Less.
Is mix'd with soft Distress;
Yet while the Fair I love is kind,
I cannot wish it Less.
| Collected Poems of Thomas Parnell | |