Sir John Suckling.
SINCE FIRST I SAW YOUR FACE.
Since first I saw your face I resolved
To honour and renown you;
If now I be disdained
I wish my heart had never known you.
What! I that loved, and you that liked,
Shall we begin to wrangle?
No, no, no, my heart is fast
And cannot disentangle.
The sun whose beams most glorious are,
Rejecteth no beholder,
And your sweet beauty past compare,
Made my poor eyes the bolder.
Where beauty moves, and wit delights
And signs of kindness bind me,
There, oh! there, where'er I go
I leave my heart behind me.
If I admire or praise you too much,
That fault you may forgive me,
Or if my hands had strayed but a touch,
Then justly might you leave me.
I asked you leave, you bade me love;
Is't now a time to chide me?
No, no, no, I'll love you still,
What fortune e'er betide me.
Circa 1617.