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Cantai, or piango; e non men di dolcezza.

THOUGH IN THE MIDST OF PAIN, HE DEEMS HIMSELF THE HAPPIEST OF MEN.


I sang, who now lament; nor less delight
Than in my song I found, in tears I find;...

I' piansi, or canto; che 'l celeste lume.

AT HER RETURN, HIS SORROWS VANISH.


I wept, but now I sing; its heavenly light
That living sun conceals not from my view,...

Lasso! Amor mi trasporta ov' io non voglio.

HE EXCUSES HIMSELF FOR VISITING LAURA TOO OFTEN, AND LOVING HER TOO MUCH.


Alas! Love bears me where I would not go,...

I' mi vivea di mia sorte contento.

HE FEARS THAT AN ILLNESS WHICH HAS ATTACKED THE EYES OF LAURA MAY DEPRIVE HIM OF THEIR SIGHT.


I lived so tranquil, with my lot content,...

Vincitore Alessandro l' ira vinse.

THE EVIL RESULTS OF UNRESTRAINED ANGER.


What though the ablest artists of old time
Left us the sculptured bust, the imaged form...

Qual ventura mi fu, quando dall' uno.

HE REJOICES AT PARTICIPATING IN HER SUFFERINGS.


Strange, passing strange adventure! when from one
Of the two brightest eyes which ever were,...

O cameretta che gi' fosti un porto.

HE NO LONGER FINDS RELIEF IN SOLITUDE.


Thou little chamber'd haven to the woes
Whose daily tempest overwhelms my soul!...

Quand' io v' odo parlar si dolcemente.

TO ONE WHO SPOKE TO HIM OF LAURA.


Whene'er you speak of her in that soft tone
Which Love himself his votaries surely taught,...

N' cos' bello il sol giammai levarsi.

THE CHARMS OF LAURA WHEN SHE FIRST MET HIS SIGHT.


Ne'er can the sun such radiance soft display,
Piercing some cloud that would its light impair;...

Pommi ove 'l sol occide i fiori e l' erba.

HIS INVINCIBLE CONSTANCY.


Place me where herb and flower the sun has dried,
Or where numb winter's grasp holds sterner sway:...

O d' ardente virtute ornata e calda.

HE CELEBRATES LAURA'S BEAUTY AND VIRTUE.


O mind, by ardent virtue graced and warm'd.
To whom my pen so oft pours forth my heart;...

Questa umil fera, un cor di tigre o d' orsa.

HE PRAYS HER EITHER TO WELCOME OR DISMISS HIM AT ONCE.


Fiercer than tiger, savager than bear,
In human guise an angel form appears,...

Mirando 'l sol de' begli occhi sereno.

THE SWEETS AND BITTERS OF LOVE.


Marking of those bright eyes the sun serene
Where reigneth Love, who mine obscures and grieves,...

Fera stella (se 'l cielo ha forza in noi).

TO PINE FOR HER IS BETTER THAN TO ENJOY HAPPINESS WITH ANY OTHER.


Ill-omen'd was that star's malignant gleam...

Quando mi vene innanzi il tempo e 'l loco.

RECOLLECTIONS OF EARLY LOVE.


The time and scene where I a slave became
When I remember, and the knot so dear...

Per mezzo i boschi inospiti e selvaggi.

EVER THINKING ON HER, HE PASSES FEARLESS AND SAFE THROUGH THE FOREST OF ARDENNES.


Through woods inhospitable, wild, I rove,...

Mille piagge in un giorno e mille rivi.

TO BE NEAR HER RECOMPENSES HIM FOR ALL THE PERILS OF THE WAY.


Love, who his votary wings in heart and feet,
To the third heaven that lightly he may soar,...

Amor che 'ncende 'l cor d' ardente zelo.

LOVE AND JEALOUSY.


'Tis Love's caprice to freeze the bosom now
With bolts of ice, with shafts of flame now burn;...

Amor mi sprona in un tempo ed affrena.

HE HEARS THE VOICE OF REASON, BUT CANNOT OBEY.


Love in one instant spurs me and restrains,
Assures and frightens, freezes me and burns,...

Geri, quando talor meco s' adira.

HE APPEASES HER BY HUMILITY, AND EXHORTS A FRIEND TO DO LIKEWISE.


When my sweet foe, so haughty oft and high,
Moved my brief ire no more my sight can thole,...