AIR - 'Tis said that absence conquers love.

'Tis said that wine will cheer the heart,

But oh! believe it not;

  Touch not the cup, 'twill leave a smart,

Which cannot be forgot.

  The wine cup as it passes round,

Is hailed with jovial cheer,

  But soon, alas, is changed the sound,

The smile becomes a tear.

Too many hearts have felt the sting,

  That lurks within the bowl;

And many hearts it yet will wring,

  Who heed not its controul.

But take the warning ere too late,

  And leave that cup of wo,

And seek a better, happier fate,

  Than wine can e'er bestow.

Nature has given in plenteous streams,

  The beverage of the rose,

To drink the dew that on them gleams,

  The flowers their leaves unclose.

Then why should ye not drink the same,

  And leave the ruby wine;

It will not rob thee of thy name,

  Ner leave thy heart to pine.