When I Was One-And-TwentyWhen I was one-and-twenty I heard a wise man say,`Give crowns and pounds and guineas But not your heart away;Give pearls away and rubies But keep your fancy free.'But I was one-and-twenty No use to talk to me. When I was one-and-twenty I heard him say again,`The heart out of the bosom Was never given in vain;'Tis paid with sighs a plenty And sold for endless rue.'And I am two-and-twenty And oh, 'tis true, 'tis true.

The thoughts of othersWere light and fleeting,Of lovers' meetingOr luck or fame.Mine were of trouble,And mine were steady;So I was readyWhen trouble came.

All knots that lovers tieAre tied to sever.Here shall your sweetheart lie,Untrue for ever.

It is no gift I tender,A loan is all I can;But do not scorn the lender;Man gets no more from man.Oh, mortal man may borrowWhat mortal man can lend;And ‘twill not end to-morrow,Though sure enough ‘twill end.If death and time are stronger,A love may yet be strong;The world will last for longer,But this will last for long.

Because I liked you betterThan suits a man to say,It irked you, and I promisedI'd throw the thought away.To put the world between usWe parted stiff and dry:'Farewell,' said you, 'forget me.''Fare well, I will,' said I.If e'er, where clover whitensThe dead man's knoll, you pass,And no tall flower to meet youStarts in the trefoiled grass,Halt by the headstone shadingThe heart you have not stirred,And say the lad that loved youWas one that kept his word.

The half-moon westers low, my love,And the wind brings up the rain;And wide apart lie we, my love,And seas between the twain.I know not if it rains, my love, In the land where you do lie;And oh, so sound you sleep, my love,You know no more than I.

Oh, when I was in love with you,Then I was clean and brave,And miles around the wonder grewHow well did I behave.And now the fancy passes by,And nothing will remain,And miles around they'll say that IAm quite myself again.