William Drummond, of Hawthornden. 1585-1649
225. Madrigal
1 min to read
98 words

    LIKE the Idalian queen,     Her hair about her eyne, With neck and breast's ripe apples to be seen,     At first glance of the morn In Cyprus' gardens gathering those fair flow'rs     Which of her blood were born, I saw, but fainting saw, my paramours. The Graces naked danced about the place,     The winds and trees amazed     With silence on her gazed, The flowers did smile, like those upon her face; And as their aspen stalks those fingers band,     That she might read my case, A hyacinth I wish'd me in her hand.

paramours] = sing. paramour. band] bound.

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William Drummond, of Hawthornden. 1585-1649
226. Spring Bereaved 1
1 min to read
93 words
Return to The Oxford Book of English Verse, 1250–1900






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