by Willa Cather (1873 - 1947)
The tavern
Language: English
In the tavern of my heart Many a one has set before, Drunk red wine and sung a stave, And, departing, come no more. When the night was cold without, And the ravens croaked of storm, They have set them at my hearth, Telling me my house was warm. As the lute and cup went round, They have rhymed me well in lay; When the hunt was on at morn, Each, departing, went his way. On the walls, in compliment, Some would scrawl a verse or two, Some have hung a willow branch, Or a wreath of cornflowers blue. Ah! my friend, when thou dost go, Leave no wreath of flowers for me; Not pale daffodils nor rue, Violets nor rosemary. Spill the wine upon the lamps, Tread the fire, and shut the door; So defile the wretched place, None will come forevermore.
Authorship:
- by Willa Cather (1873 - 1947), appears in April Twilights, first published 1903 [author's text not yet checked 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 Garth Baxter (b. 1946), "The tavern" [voice and guitar], from From the Heart: Three American Women - Willa, no. 1. [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Garth Baxter
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 24
Word count: 143