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Classic and Contemporary Poetry


SONNET: 108 by LUIS DE CAMOENS

First Line: FAIR TAJO! THOU WHOSE CALMLY-FLOWING TIDE
Last Line: AND BLEND MY TEARS WITH OTHER WAVES THAN THINE!
Subject(s): STREAMS; FAREWELL;

FAIR Tajo! thou whose calmly-flowing tide
Bathes the fresh verdure of these lovely plains,
Enlivening all where'er thy waves may glide,
Flowers, herbage, flocks, and sylvan nymphs and swains.

Sweet stream! I know not when my steps again
Shall tread thy shores; and while to part I mourn,
I have no hope to meliorate my pain,
No dream that whispers -- I may yet return!

My frowning destiny, whose watchful care
Forbids me blessings, and ordains despair,
Commands me thus to leave thee, and repine:
And I must vainly mourn the scenes I fly,
And breathe on other gales my plaintive sigh,
And blend my tears with other waves than thine!



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