by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928)
I need not go
Language: English
I need not go Through sleet and snow To where I know She waits for me; She will tarry me there Till I find it fair, And have time to spare From company. When I've overgot The world somewhat, When things cost not Such stress and strain, Is soon enough By cypress sough To tell my Love I am come again. And if someday, When none cries nay, I still delay To seek her side, (Though ample measure Of fitting leisure Await my pleasure) She will not chide. What not upbraid me That I delayed me, Nor ask what stayed me So long? Ah no! New cares may claim me, New loves inflame me, She will not blame me, But suffer it so.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928), no title, appears in Poems of the Past and Present, first published 1902 [author's text not yet checked 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 Gerald Finzi (1901 - 1956), "I need not go", op. 19b no. 1, published 1958 [low voice and piano], from I said to love, no. 1. [text verified 1 time]
- by Donald Waxman (b. 1925), "I need not go", published 1960 [SATB chorus a cappella], from Eight songs : for a cappella chorus from poems of Thomas Hardy, no. 5. [text not verified]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 32
Word count: 123