Forget me not! Can young love's power
of self-devotion be forgot
while lives his dearly cherish'd flower,
his azure-eyed Forget-me-not,
Love's watchword in the parting hour?
Oh, what a tale its leaflets tell
of him, who gave that name, its dower,
e'en as he bade his life farewell!
The knight who for his Lady's smile
swam to the stormy Rhine's green isle,
through the deep waves the flow'ret bore,
but perish'd, as he near'd the shore!
The faithful knight who, as he sank,
threw the wish'd blossom to the bank,
and as he threw it faintly cried:
Forget me not, sweet love! and died.