Rose and rose-buds answering, Nay.”
‘So staunch were the five to their word of mouth,
That they baffled all suitors who throng’d to the bower,
Till a breeze that came murmuring out of the south
Stole home to the heart of the queenliest flower.
‘She droop’d in her beauty to hear him sigh,
And ever the brighter and fairer she grew;
What wonder, then, that each rose-bud nigh
Should open its leaves to the breezes too?
‘Oh! gather the dew while the freshness is on;