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| BEHOLD what riuers feeble nature spends, | |
| And melts vs into seas at losse of friends: | |
| Their mortall state this fountaine neuer dies, | |
| But fills the world with worlds of weeping eies. | |
| Man is a creature borne and nurst in teares, | 5 |
| He through this life the markes of sorrow beares, | |
| And dying, thinkes he can no off’ring haue | |
| More fit then teares distilling on his graue. | |
| We must these floods to larger bounds extend; | |
| Such streames require a high and noble end. | 10 |
| As waters in a chrystall orbe contain’d | |
| Aboue the starry firmament, are chain’d | |
| To coole the fury of those raging flames | |
| Which eu’ry lower spheare by motion frames; | |
| So this continuall spring within thy head | 15 |
| Must quench the fires in other members bred. | |
| If to our Lord our parents had been true, | |
| Our teares had been like drops of pleasing dew: | |
| But sinne hath made them full of bitter paines, | |
| Vntimely children of afflicted braines: | 20 |
| Yet they are chang’d, when we our sinnes lament, | |
| To richer pearles then from the East are sent. | |
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