by Gilbert Elliot, 3rd Baronet of Minto, Sir (1722 - 1777)
My sheep I neglected, I broke my...
Language: English
My sheep I neglected, I [broke]1 my sheep-crook, And all the gay haunts of my youth I forsook; No more for [Amynta]2 fresh garlands I wove; For ambition, I said would soon cure me of love. Oh, what had my youth with ambition to do? Why left I Amynta? Why broke I my vow? Oh, give me my sheep, and my sheep-hook restore, And I'll wander from love and Amynta no more. Through regions remote in vain do I rove, And bid the wide ocean secure me from love! O fool! to imagine that aught could subdue A love so well founded, a passion so true! Alas! 'tis too late at thy fate to repine; Poor shepherd, Amynta can [never]3 be thine: Thy tears are all fruitless, thy wishes are vain, The moments neglected return not again.
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)1 Haydn: "lost"
2 Haydn: "Aminta" (passim)
3 Haydn: "no more"
Authorship:
- by Gilbert Elliot, 3rd Baronet of Minto, Sir (1722 - 1777), "Amynta" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732 - 1809), "My apron deary", Hob. XXXIa:189, JHW. XXXII/3 no. 234. [voice and piano] [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Ferdinando Albeggiani
This text was added to the website: 2009-07-15
Line count: 16
Word count: 137