Hunt and Lee, comps. The Book of the Sonnet. 1867. Sonnets to Winter I. Old Wine to Drink By John R. Thompson (18231873)
YES! 1 fill the goblet high with generous wine,
As sparkling as the draughts of ancient Massic
Or old Falernian made by Horace classic,
Brought from the sunny valleys of the Rhine,
And throwing off their daughters brilliant glances, 5
Just as the diamond, long obscured from sight,
With all the rays it last absorbed is bright,
This wine, as oer the festal board it dances,
Gives back the flashes from the beaming eye
Of the brown vineyard beauty, on our meeting: 10
Fill up! to friends a kind, a cordial greeting,
And though Decembers winds may rustle by,
And lead the howlings of the furious storm,
Our faces kindle and our hearts are warm.
Note 1. It was a remark of one of the Spanish kings, that the four greatest blessings in life were, Old Wine to drink, Old Wood to burn, Old Books to read, and Old Friends to love. [back ]