| William Stanley Braithwaite, ed. The Book of Restoration Verse. 1910. | | | | A Song: ‘If wine and music have the power’ | | By Matthew Prior (1664–1721) |
| | | IF wine and music have the power, | |
| To ease the sickness of the soul, | |
| Let Phœbus every string explore, | |
| And Bacchus fill the sprightly bowl. | |
| Let them their friendly aid employ, | 5 |
| To make my Chloe’s absence light, | |
| And seek for pleasure, to destroy | |
| The sorrows of this live-long night. | |
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| But she to-morrow will return: | |
| Venus, be thou to-morrow great; | 10 |
| Thy myrtles strow, thy odours burn, | |
| And meet thy favourite nymph in state. | |
| Kind goddess, to no other powers | |
| Let us to-morrow’s blessings own: | |
| Thy darling loves shall guide the hours, | 15 |
| And all the day be thine alone. | | | | |
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