Song: Dost Thou Idly Ask To Hear by William Cullen Bryant

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American Literature – American Poetry – William Cullen Bryant – Poems from William Cullen Bryant
< < < An Indian at the Burial-place of his Fathers
Hymn of the Waldenses > > >

Song: Dost Thou Idly Ask To Hear

Dost thou idly ask to hear
    At what gentle seasons
Nymphs relent, when lovers near
    Press the tenderest reasons?
Ah, they give their faith too oft
    To the careless wooer;
Maidens’ hearts are always soft:
    Would that men’s were truer!

Woo the fair one, when around
    Early birds are singing;
When, o’er all the fragrant ground.
    Early herbs are springing:
When the brookside, bank, and grove,
    All with blossoms laden,
Shine with beauty, breathe of love,—
    Woo the timid maiden.

Woo her when, with rosy blush,
    Summer eve is sinking;
When, on rills that softly gush,
    Stars are softly winking;
When, through boughs that knit the bower,
    Moonlight gleams are stealing;
Woo her, till the gentle hour
    Wake a gentler feeling.

Woo her, when autumnal dyes
    Tinge the woody mountain;
When the dropping foliage lies
    In the weedy fountain;
Let the scene, that tells how fast
    Youth is passing over,
Warn her, ere her bloom is past,
    To secure her lover.

Woo her, when the north winds call
    At the lattice nightly;
When, within the cheerful hall,
    Blaze the fagots brightly;
While the wintry tempest round
    Sweeps the landscape hoary,
Sweeter in her ear shall sound
    Love’s delightful story.

< < < An Indian at the Burial-place of his Fathers
Hymn of the Waldenses > > >

American Literature – American Poetry – William Cullen Bryant – Poems from William Cullen Bryant

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Song: Dost Thou Idly Ask To Hear

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