If ever two were one, then surely we.
If ever man were loved by wife, then thee. 
If ever wife [was]1 happy in a man, 
Compare with me, ye women, if you can.
I prize thy love more than whole mines of gold,
Or all the riches that the East doth hold.
My love is such that rivers cannot quench,
Nor [ought]2 but love from thee give recompense.
Thy love is such I can no way repay;
The heavens reward thee manifold, I pray. 
Then while we live, in love let's so [persever]3,
That when we live no more, we may live ever.

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Confirmed with The Complete Works of Anne Bradstreet, 1981.

¹ Wilkinson: "were"
² Wilkinson: "aught"
³ Rorem: "persevere"

Text Authorship:

• by Anne (Dudley) Bradstreet (1612? - 1672), "To my dear and loving husband" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

• by Ernst Bacon (1898 - 1990), "To a loving husband", 195-? [ voice, piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
• by Leslie R. Bassett (b. 1923), "To my dear and loving husband", published 1977 [ soprano and piano ], from Five Love Songs, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
• by Leonard Bernstein (1918 - 1990), "To my dear and loving husband", published 1977 [ vocal sextet for soprano, alto, mezzo-soprano, tenor, baritone, and bass, with orchestra ], from Songfest, no. 6 [sung text not yet checked]
• by Andrew Hudson , "To my dear and loving husband" [sung text not yet checked]
• by Ned Rorem (1923 - 2022), "To my dear and loving husband", published 1979, from Women's Voices, no. 3 [sung text checked 1 time]

The text above (or a part of it) is used in the following settings:

• by Stephen Wilkinson (b. 1919), "Nosegay" [ voice and piano ], from Eternal Summer, no. 12
  • View the full text. [sung text checked 1 time]
    

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 107