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Roses at first were white,
Till they could not agree,
Whether my Sappho's breast
Or they more white should be.
But, being vanquish'd quite,
A blush their cheeks bespread;
Since which, believe the rest,
The roses first came red.

— Robert Herrick Hesperides (1648)

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More quotes by Robert Herrick

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying:
And this same flower that smiles to-day
To-morrow will be dying.

Hesperides (1648)

Attempt the end, and never stand to doubt;
Nothing's so hard but search will find it out.

Hesperides (1648)

Thou art a plant sprung up to wither never,
But like a laurel to grow green for ever.

Hesperides (1648)

Against diseases here the strongest fence
Is the defensive virtue, abstinence.

Hesperides (1648)

If well thou hast begun, go on fore-right;
It is the end that crowns us, not the fight.

Hesperides (1648)

All Robert Herrick quotes →

Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Robert Herrick (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.