A Selection from the Lyrical Poems of Robert Herrick






86. ART ABOVE NATURE: TO JULIA

     When I behold a forest spread
     With silken trees upon thy head;
     And when I see that other dress
     Of flowers set in comeliness;
     When I behold another grace
     In the ascent of curious lace,
     Which, like a pinnacle, doth shew
     The top, and the top-gallant too;
     Then, when I see thy tresses bound
     Into an oval, square, or round,
     And knit in knots far more than I.
     Can tell by tongue, or True-love tie;
     Next, when those lawny films I see
     Play with a wild civility;
     And all those airy silks to flow,
     Alluring me, and tempting so—
     I must confess, mine eye and heart
     Dotes less on nature than on art.

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