“ But if some sorrow do oppress my heart,
You creep as if you never meant to part.
From William Byrd’s Songs of Sundry Natures, 1589.
Is Love a boy,—what means he then to strike?
Or is he blind,—why will he be a guide?
Is he a man,—why doth he hurt his like?
Is he a God,—why doth he men deride?
No one of these, but one compact of all:
A wilful boy, a man still dealing blows,
Of purpose blind to lead men to their thrall,
A god that rules unruly—God, he knows. ”

“ It would ne’er have grieved my heart,
Hope delayed had been the worst;
But ah to kiss and then to part!
How deep it struck, speak, gods, you know
Kisses make men loath to go.
From Robert Jones’ Second Book of Songs and Airs, 1601.
My Love is neither young nor old,
Not fiery-hot nor frozen-cold,
But fresh and fair as springing briar
Blooming the fruit of love’s desire;
Not snowy-white nor rosy-red,
But fair enough for shepherd’s bed;
And such a love was never seen
On hill or dale or country-green.
From William Byrd’s Psalms, Sonnets, and Songs, 1588. ”

“ Wealth prized in itself no outward value needs:
Fair you are, and passing fair;
You know it, and ’tis true;
Yet let none despair
But to find as fair as you.
From John Dowland’s First Book of Songs or Airs, 1597.
Dear, if you change, I’ll never choose again;
Sweet, if you shrink, I’ll never think of love;
Fair, if you fail, I’ll judge all beauty vain;
Wise, if too weak, more wits I’ll never prove.
[Pg 21] Dear, sweet, fair, wise! change, shrink, nor be not weak;
And, on my faith, my faith shall never break.
Earth with her flowers shall sooner heaven adorn ”

“ From Thomas Campion’s Third Book of Airs (circ. 1613) .
Now winter nights enlarge
The number of their hours,
And clouds their storms discharge
Upon the airy towers.
Let now the chimneys blaze,
And cups o’erflow with wine;
Let well-tuned words amaze
With harmony divine.
Now yellow waxen lights
Shall wait on honey love,
While youthful revels, masques, and courtly sights
Sleep’s leaden spells remove.
This time doth well dispense
With lovers’ long discourse;
Much, speech hath some defence
Though beauty no remorse.
All do not all things well ”

“ Blessèd times were known of old
Long ere Law became an art:
Shame deterred, not statutes then;
Honest love was law to men.
Deeds from love, and words, that flow,
Foster like kind April showers;
In the warm sun all things grow,
Wholesome fruits and pleasant flowers:
All so thrives his gentle rays
Whereon human love displays.
[Pg 172] From John Dowland’s Second Book of Songs or Airs, 1600.
Woeful Heart, with grief oppressèd! ”

“ And bees have stings, although they be not great;
Seas have their source, and so have shallow springs;
And love is love, in beggars and in kings!
Where waters smoothest run, deep are the fords;
The dial stirs, yet none perceives it move;
The firmest faith is in the fewest words;
The turtles cannot sing, and yet they love;
True hearts have eyes and ears, no tongues to speak;
They hear, and see, and sigh, and then they break!
From Campion and Rosseter’s Book of Airs, 1601.
The man of life upright,
Whose guiltless heart is free
From all dishonest deeds,
Or thought of vanity ”

“ False love is ever flying.
False! then farewell for ever!
Once false proves faithful never!
He that boasts now of thy love,
Shall soon, my present fortunes prove
Were he as fair as bright Adonis:
Faith is not had where none is!
From Thomas Weelkes’ Madrigals of Five and Six Parts, 1600
Now let us make a merry greeting
And thank God Cupid for our meeting:
My heart is full of joy and pleasure
Since thou art here, mine only treasure.
Now will we dance and sport and play
And sing a merry roundelay.
[Pg 89] From Robert Jones’s Second Book of Airs, 1601. ”

“ Much then wilt thou blame thy Saint, that made thy heart so holy
And with sighs confess, in love that too much faith is folly.
[Pg 105] Yet be just and constant still, Love may beget a wonder,
Not unlike a summer’s frost or winter’s fatal thunder:
He that holds his sweetheart true unto his day of dying,
Lives, of all that ever breathed, most worthy the envying.
From Giles Farnaby’s Canzonets, 1598. ”

“ In Elizabeth’s days composers were not content to regard the words of a song as a mere peg on which to hang the music, but sought the services of true-born lyrists. It is not too much to say that, for delicate perfection of form, some of the Elizabethan songs can compare with the choicest epigrams in the Greek Anthology. At least one composer, Thomas Campion, wrote both the words and the music of his songs; and there are no sweeter lyrics in English poetry than are to be found in Campion’s song-books. But it may be assumed that, as a rule, the composers are responsible only for the music. ”

“ Called to thy mind, thy heart would burn;
And couldst thou fly ne’er so fast,
They would make thee straight return.
From William Byrd’s Psalms, Sonnets and Songs, 1588.
If women could be fair and never fond,
Or that their beauty might continue still,
I would not marvel though they made men bond
By service long to purchase their goodwill:
But when I see how frail these creatures are,
I laugh that men forget themselves so far.
To mark what choice they make and how they change,
How, leaving best, the worst they choose out still ”

“ From John Wilbye’s Second Set of Madrigals, 1609.
So light is love, in matchless beauty shining,
When he revisits Cypris’ hallowed bowers,
Two feeble doves, harness’d in silken twining,
Can draw his chariot midst the Paphian flowers,
Lightness in love! how ill it fitteth!
So heavy on my heart he sitteth.
[Pg 109] From William Corkine’s Airs, 1610.
Some can flatter, some can feign,
Simple truth shall plead for me;
Let not beauty truth disdain,
Truth is even as fair as she.
But since pairs must equal prove,
Let my strength her youth oppose,
Love her beauty, faith her love ”

“ From William Byrd’s Psalms, Sonnets, and Songs, 1588.
Who likes to love, let him take heed!
And wot you why?
Among the gods it is decreed
That Love shall die;
And every wight that takes his part
Shall forfeit each a mourning heart. ”

“ But in music the base part is no disgrace to the best ears’ attendancy. I confess my conscience is untoucht with any other arts, and I hope my confession is unsuspected; many of us musicians think it as much praise to be somewhat more than musicians as it is for gold to be somewhat more than gold, and if Jack Cade were alive, yet some of us might live, unless we should think, as the artisans in the Universities of Poland and Germany think, that the Latin tongue comes by reflection. ”

“ We the grovy hills will climb and play the wantons there;
Other whiles we’ll gather flowers,
Lying dallying on the grass;
And thus our delightful hours,
Full of waking dreams, shall pass.
When thy joys were thus at height, my love should turn from thee,
Old acquaintance then should grow as strange, as strange might be:
[Pg 52] Twenty rivals thou shouldst find,
Breaking all their hearts for me,
While to all I’ll prove more kind
And more forward than to thee.
Thus thy silly youth, enraged, would soon my love defy,
But, alas, poor soul, too late! clipt wings can never fly. ”

“ Then shield me, heavens, from such a subtle thing!
From John Wilbye’s Second Set of Madrigals, 1609.
Where most my thoughts, there least mine eye is striking;
Where least I come there most my heart abideth;
Where most I love I never show my liking ”

“ Old ed. “mate”; but “make,” which is required for the rhyme, was a recognised form of “mate.”
From Robert Jones’ Ultimum Vale or Third Book of Airs (1608) .
Think’st thou, Kate, to put me down
With a ‘No’ or with a frown?
Since Love holds my heart in bands
I must do as Love commands.
Love commands the hands to dare
When the tongue of speech is spare,
Chiefest lesson in Love’s school,—
Put it in adventure, fool!
Fools are they that fainting flinch
For a squeak, a scratch, a pinch:
Women’s words have double sense:
‘Stand away!’—a simple fence. ”

“ How fair an entrance breaks the way to love!
How rich the golden hope, and gay delight!
What heart cannot a modest beauty move?
Who seeing clear day once will dream of night?
She seemed a saint, that brake her faith with me;
But proved a woman, as all other be.
So bitter is their sweet that True Content
Unhappy men in them may never find:
Ah! but without them, none. Both must consent,
Else uncouth are the joys of either kind.
Let us then praise their good, forget their ill!
Men must be men, and women women still.
From Francis Pilkington’s Second Set of Madrigals, 1624. ”

“ From Thomas Campion’s Two Books of Airs (circ. 1613) .
Wise men patience never want,
Good men pity cannot hide;
Feeble spirits only vaunt
Of revenge, the poorest pride:
He alone forgive that can
Bears the true soul of a man. ”

“ From John Dowland’s Pilgrim’s Solace, 1612. (The first stanza is found in a poem of Donne.)
Sweet, stay awhile; why will you rise?
The light you see comes from your eyes;
The day breaks not, it is my heart,
To think that you and I must part. ”

“ I see not, if souls do not partly consist of music, how it should come to pass that so noble a spirit as your’s, so perfectly tuned to so perpetual a tenor of excellence as it is, should descend to the notice of a quality lying single in so low a personage as myself. ”

“ From William Corkine’s Airs, 1610.
Sweet Cupid, ripen her desire,
Thy joyful harvest may begin;
If age approach a little nigher,
’Twill be too late to get it in.
Cold Winter storms lay standing Corn,
Which once too ripe will never rise,
And lovers wish themselves unborn,
When all their joys lie in their eyes.
Then, sweet, let us embrace and kiss:
Shall beauty shale [16] upon the ground?
If age bereave us of this bliss,
Then will no more such sport be found.
[16] Shell, husk (as peas) .
[Pg 112] From Thomas Weelkes’ Ballets and Madrigals, 1598.
Sweet heart, arise! ”

“ Enough, enough; your joyful look excels;
Tears kill the heart, believe.
O strive not to be excellent in woe,
Which only breeds your beauty’s overthrow.
From John Wilbye’s First Set of English Madrigals, 1598. ”

“ Gudgeons only can be caught with such poor tricks of treason.
Ruth forgive me (if I erred) from human heart’s compassion,
When I laughed sometimes too much to see thy foolish fashion:
But, alas, who less could do that found so good occasion!
[Pg 131] From John Wilbye’s Madrigals, 1598.
Thou art but young, thou say’st,
And love’s delight thou weigh’st not:
O, take time while thou may’st,
Lest when thou would’st thou may’st not.
If love shall then assail thee,
A double anguish will torment thee ”

“ No musician of the Elizabethan age was more famous than John Dowland, whose “heavenly touch upon the lute” was commended in a well-known sonnet (long attributed to Shakespeare) by Richard Barnfield. Dowland was born at Westminster in 1562. At the age of twenty, or thereabouts, he started on his travels; and, after rambling through “the chiefest parts of France, a nation furnished with great variety of music,” he bent his course “towards the famous province of Germany,” where he found “both excellent masters and most honourable patrons of music.” ”

“ From the title one would gather that Byrd’s first English collection was mainly of a sacred character, but in an epistle to the reader he hastens to set us right on that point:—“Benign reader, here is offered unto thy courteous acceptance music of sundry sorts, and to content divers humours. If thou be disposed to pray, here are psalms; if to be merry, here are sonnets.” There is, indeed, fare for all comers; and a reader has only himself to blame if he goes away dissatisfied. ”

“ In his charming collection of “Rare Poems” Mr. Linton quotes freely from the song-books of Byrd and Dowland, but gives only one lyric of Dr. Thomas Campion. As Mr. Linton is an excellent judge of poetry, I can only suppose that he had no wide acquaintance with Campion’s writings, when he put together his dainty Anthology. There is clear evidence [1] that Campion wrote not only the music but the words for his songs—that he was at once an eminent composer and a lyric poet of the first rank. ”