Thomas Humphry Ward, ed. The English Poets. 1880–1918.rnVol. II. The Seventeenth Century: Ben Jonson to Dryden

Thomas Carew (1595?–1639?)

A Prayer to the Wind

GO, thou gentle whispering wind,

Bear this sigh, and if thou find

Where my cruel fair doth rest,

Cast it in her snowy breast,

So, enflamed by my desire,

It may set her heart a-fire.

Those sweet kisses thou shalt gain

Will reward thee for thy pain;

Boldly light upon her lip,

There suck odours, and thence skip

To her bosom; lastly fall

Down, and wander over all;

Range about those ivory hills,

From whose every part distils

Amber dew,—there spices grow,

There pure streams of nectar flow;

There perfume thyself, and bring

All those sweets upon thy wing;

As thou return’st, change by thy power

Every weed into a flower,

Turn each thistle to a vine,

Make the bramble eglantine!

For so rich a booty made,

Do but this, and I am paid.

Thou canst with thy powerful blast

Heat apace, and cool as fast;

Thou canst kindle hidden flame,

And again destroy the same;

Then, for pity, either stir

Up the fire of love in her,

That alike both flames may shine,

Or else quite extinguish mine.