MAID of Athens, ere we part,
Give, Oh give, me back my heart;
Or, since that has left my breast,
Keep it now, and take the rest:
Hear iny vow, before I go-
My love, my life, I love thee!
By those tresses unconfined,
Wooed by each Ægean wind;
By those lids, whose jetty fringe
Kiss thy soft cheek's blooming tinge
By those wild eyes, like the roe-
My dearest life, I love thee!
By that lip I long to taste;
By that zone-encircled waist;
By all the token-flowers that tell
What words can never speak so well;
By love's alternate joy and woe-
I vow, dear girl, I love thee!
Maid of Athens, I am gone;
Think of me, sweet, when alone :
Though I fly to Islambol,
Athens holds my heart and soul:
Can I cease to love thee ?-No:
My dearest life, I love thee!