Again, and once again, did I repeat the song;
Nay, said I, more than half to the damsel must
belong;
For she looked with such a look, and she spake
with such a tone,
That I almost received her heart into my own.

[Illustration: Father William and the Young Man.]




FATHER WILLIAM AND THE
YOUNG MAN.


You are old, Father William, the young man cries,
The few locks which are left you are gray:
You appear, Father William, a healthy old man;
Now tell me the reason, I pray.

When I was a youth, Father William replied,
I remembered that youth would fly fast;
I abused not my health and my vigor at first,
That I never might need them at last.

You are old, Father William, the young man said,
And pleasures, with youth, pass away;
And yet you repent not the days that are gone
Now tell me the reason, I pray.