Percy Bysshe Shelley

Aug. 4, 1792 - July 8, 1822

 

Song. (Come [Harriet]! sweet is the hour...)

IV. Come [Harriet]!...

by Percy Bysshe Shelley

Come [Harriet]! sweet is the hour,
Soft Zephyrs breathe gently around,
The anemone's night-boding flower,
Has sunk its pale head on the ground.

'Tis thus the world's keenness hath torn,
Some mild heart that expands to its blast,
'Tis thus that the wretched forlorn,
Sinks poor and neglected at last. --

The world with its keenness and woe,
Has no charms or attraction for me,
Its unkindness with grief has laid low,
The heart which is faithful to thee.

The high trees that wave past the moon,
As I walk in their umbrage with you,
All declare I must part with you soon,
All bid you a tender adieu! --

Then [Harriet]! dearest, farewell,
You and I, love, may ne'er meet again;
These woods and these meadows can tell
How soft and how sweet was the strain. --

April, 1810.

Source:

The Lyrics and Shorter Poems of Percy Bysshe Shelley
Copyright 1907, reprinted 1913
London: J.M. Dent and Sons, Ltd.
New York: E.P. Dutton and Co.