The sonnets of William Shakspere Author:William Shakespeare Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: PART SECOND. Ep. I.] xxv. Where art thou, Muse, that thou forgett'st so long To speak of that which gives thee all thy might ? Spend'st thou thy fury on... more » some worthless song, Darkening thy power, to lend base subjects light ? Return, forgetful Muse, and straight redeem In gentle numbers time so idly spent; Sing to the ear that doth thy lays esteem, And gives thy pen both skill and argument. Rise, restive Muse, my love's sweet face survey, If time have any wrinkle graven there; If any, be a satire to decay, And make Time's spoils despised everywhere. Give my love fame faster than Time wastes life; So thou prevent'st his scythe, and crooked knife. XXVI. 0 truant Muse, what shall be thy amends, For thy neglect of truth in beauty dyed ? Both truth and beauty on my love depends; So dost thou too, and therein dignified. Make answer, Muse : wilt thou not haply say, ' Truth needs no colour with his colour fix'd, Beauty no pencil, beauty's truth to lay; But best is best, if never intermix'd ?'— Because he needs no praise, wilt thou be dumb ? Excuse not silence so; for it lies in thee To make him much outlive a gilded tomb, And to be praised of ages yet to be. Then do thy office, Muse; I teach thee how To make him seem long hence as he shows now. XXVII. My love is strengthen'd, though more weak in seeming; I love not less, though less the show appear; iThat love is merchandised, whose rich esteeming 1 The owner's tongue doth publish everywhere. Our love was new, and then but in the spring, When I was wont to greet it with my lays; As Philomel in summer's front doth sing, Sj— And stops his pipe in growth of riper days : Not that the summer is less pleasant now Than when her mournful hymns did hush the night, But that wild ...« less