# Songs and Ballads

This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.
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Reflects the order in David Erdman's "The Complete Poetry & Prose" edition. Source: "Blake Archive".
[From Blake’s Notebook (c.1793)]

### "Never pain to tell thy Love..."

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### "I fear'd the fury of my wind..."

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### "I saw a chapel all of gold..."

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### "I laid me down upon a bank..."

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### A Cradle Song

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### "I asked a thief to steal me a peach..."

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### To my Mirtle

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### "O lapwing thou fliest around the heath..."

[To go] on I Plate
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### An answer to the parson

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### Experiment. "Thou hast a lap full of seed..."

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### Riches

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### "If you trap the moment before its ripe..."

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### Eternity

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### "Silent Silent Night..."

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### To Nobodaddy

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### "Are not the joys of morning sweeter..."

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### "How came pride in Man..."

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### How to know Love from Deceit

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### The wild flowers song

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### Soft Snow

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### Merlins prophecy

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### "Why should I care for the men of thames..."

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### Day

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### "The sword sung on the barren heath..."

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### "Abstinence sows sand all over..."

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### "In a wife I would desire..."

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### Lacedemonian Instruction

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### "An old maid early eer I knew..."

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### Several Questions Answerd

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### "The look of love alarms"

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### "Soft deceit & Idleness"

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### "What is it men do in women require..."

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### An ancient Proverb

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### The Fairy

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### "My Spectre around me night & day..."

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### “Oer my Sins Thou sit & moan...”

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### "Mock on Mock on Voltaire Rousseau"

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### Morning

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### "Terror in the house does roar"

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### The Birds

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### "Why was Cupid a Boy"

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### "Now Art has lost its mental Charms"

[Dedication to Blake's Illustrations to Blair's Grave, printed 1808]

### To the Queen

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### "The Caverns of the Grave Ive seen"

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### "I rose up at the dawn of day"

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### "A fairy skipd upon my knee"

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[With Blake's Illustrations to Gray's Poems ]

### "Around the Springs of Gray my wild root weaves"

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### To Mrs Ann Flaxman

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[The Pickering Manuscript]

### The Smile

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### The Golden Net

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### The Mental Traveller

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### The Land of Dreams

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### Mary

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### The Crystal Cabinet

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### The Grey Monk

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### Auguries of Innocence

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### Long John Brown & Little Mary Bell

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### William Bond

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### Mr Blake's Nursery Rhyme

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* ↑ "Never pain to tell thy Love..." N 115 rev The poem developed out of the first four lines, and these were then deleted line by line. Editors are in agreement that the poem cannot stand without its first stanza—as Blake would surely have discovered if he had chosen to transfer it to copper. (Lines deleted in ms were restored in such poems as “Earth's Answer” [third stanza].) 1 pain] seek 1st rdg del 12 O was no deny] He took her with a sigh 1 st rdg del
* ↑ "I feard the fury of my wind..." N 113 rev 1 fury] roughness 1st rdg del 4 And] But 1st rdg del
* ↑ "I saw a chapel all of gold..." N 115 rev 8 Down … tore) Till he broke the pearly door 1st rdg del
* ↑ "I laid me down upon a bank..." N 115 rev
* ↑ A cradle song N 114 rev Line 3 was written first, followed by 4, 1, and 2; after much revision these were rearranged by numbering in the present order. 2 Dreaming oer] Thou shalt taste 1st rdg del 4 Little sorrows sit & weep] Thou wilt every secret keep 1st rdg del; Canst thou any secret keep 2 nd rdg changed to Thou canst any Secret keep, then del An abortive 2nd stanza was begun but deleted: “Yet a little while the moon / Silent” Lines 5-8 were written as the 4th stanza, then numbered "2" when all stanzas were numbered in the final sequence. 8 Little pretty infant wiles] Such as burning youth beguiles 1st rdg del 9 feel] touch 1st rdg del; stroke 2nd rdg del 10 steal] broke 1st rdg del 17 From … eye] O the cunning wiles that creep 1st rdg del 19 Infant … infant] Female … female 1 st rdg del
* ↑ "I asked a thief to steal me a peach..." N 114 rev Punctuation and line and stanza divisions follow the fair copy in Princeton University Library inscribed “W Blake / Lambeth / 1796”, the text of which is identical to final rdg in the Notebook (in which lines 5-6 were written as one and line 9 did not begin a new stanza). 1 to steal] if he'd steal 1st rdg 2 He turned] And he turnd 1st rdg del 4 Holy] And holy 1st rdg del 7 He] And he 1st rdg del 8 And] And he 1st rdg del 9 said] spoke 1st rdg del 11 And twixt earnest & game 1st rdg ; … joke 2nd rdg, del 12 He enjoyd the da[me] 1st rdg; … lady 2nd rdg
* ↑ To my Mirtle N 106 rev Salvaging unused lines from the “Infant Sorrow” stanzas of p 111 (see above, p 798), Blake first wrote down the “O how sick” couplet but then erased it before the ink was dry. He then copied the stanza numbered “1” and then canceled its second couplet, perhaps not before continuing with two more couplets from p 111 on the “bound-ground” rhyme: To a lovely mirtle bound Blossoms showring all around Like to dung upon the ground Underneath my mirtle bound He then canceled, selected, and rearranged lines to make the present poem, all that remains not lined through in the Notebook, and he gave it a title. (A similar process of reduction takes place with the “Fayette” lines. See below.)
* ↑ [To go] on 1 Plate Five poems are grouped here in accordance with Blake's penciled memorandum, on p 101 reversed (see text p 695). “Thou hast a lap full of seed” is included conjecturally: it seems to be the only current poem that would fit the title “Experiment”. No plate is extant containing these five poems; indeed none of these poems is lined through vertically to indicate transfer to a plate, except the “lap full” poem. "O lapwing thou fliest around the heath..." N 113 rev
* ↑ An answer to the parson N 103 rev
* ↑ Experiment. "Thou hast a lap full of seed..." N 111 rev 5 Shall I] Oft Ive 1st rdg del 6 turn] turnd 1st rdg del 7 For] But 1st rdg del 9 tearing] pulling 1st rdg del
* ↑ Riches N 103 rev 1 countless we 1st rdg del; count 2nd rdg del (the poet wavering between “wealth” and “countless”) 3 indolent] idle man 1st rdg del 4 secret] cunning 1st rdg del
* ↑ "If you trap the moment before its ripe..." N 105 rev 1 trap] catch 1st rdg del 4 You can] Youll 1st rdg
* ↑ Eternity N 105 rev 1 binds] Previous editors have wavered between “bends” and “binds”, but the dot on the i is visible in strong light (the whole poem is in pencil) to himself] himself to 1st rdg 3 who kisses] who just kisses 1st rdg 4 eternity's] an eternal 1st rdg del
* ↑ "I heard an Angel singing..." N 114 rev Second attempt at an “Experience” counterpart to “The Divine Image”; written after A Divine Image (which see); very faintly lined through vertically and abandoned for a quite different version, “The Human Abstract”, which became a Song of Experience. 3 Pity Peace] Pity & Peace 1st rdg 15 At his curse] Thus he sang & 1 st rdg del 17 Down] And down 1st rdg 19-20 And … Peace] And Mercy & Pity & Peace descended The Farmers were ruind & harvest was ended 1st rdg del And Mercy Pity & Peace Joyd at their increase With Povertys Increase Are 2nd rdg del And by distress increase Mercy Pity Peace 3rd rdg del By Misery to increase Mercy Pity Peace 4th rdg del
* ↑ "Silent Silent Night..." N 113 rev
* ↑ To Nobodaddy N 109 rev Lined through vertically, as if after copying, but not extant elsewhere. Title crowded in after composition; first written without the “To”. 2 Father] Man 1st rdg del Lines 9-10 were an afterthought, crowded in as one line. 10 females loud] feminine 1st rdg del
* ↑ "Are not the joys of morning sweeter..." ”N 109 rev Lined through vertically, but not extant elsewhere.
* ↑ "How came pride in Man..." N 107 rev Heavily deleted, and unfinished. Visually, the poem that immediately follows, “The Human Abstract” (see Songs of Experience), looks like a continuation of the same poem, the title being inserted later.
* ↑ How to know Love from DeceitN 107-106 rev Blake may only tentatively have considered these two stanzas, written on separate pages, as one poem; he added the title after composition and later deleted it. 3 Lawless] Always 1st rdg del 5 confind] inclind 1st rdg del 6 Lawful … refind] Modest prudish & confind 1st rdg del & refind] 2nd rdg del 7 To every thing but] Never is to 1st rdg del 8 And … mind] And chains & fetters every mind 1st rdg del
* ↑ The wild flowers song N 109, 107 rev The 2nd and 3rd stanzas were written first; the introductory stanza and explanatory title were written two pages later. Previous misreading of “fond” as “found” in line 5, 1st rdg, has obscured the original Innocence theme. 3 flower] thistle 1st rdg del 5 slept] was fond 1st rdg del
* ↑ Soft Snow Lined through vertically, but not extant elsewhere. 4 And … crime] Ah that sweet love should be thought a crime 1st rdg del
* ↑ Merlins prophecy N 106 rev
* ↑ "Why should I care for the men of thames..." N 113 rev Trace of an erased title, beginning with “T”—perhaps “Thames”; text is lined through vertically—perhaps when “chartered” was taken over to the “London” poem. 7 The Ohio shall … me] 8 go] long 1 st rdg del 8 go] long 1st rdg del
* ↑ Day N 105 rev Crossed out with a heavy vertical line, but not found elsewhere. 1 Sun] day 1st rdg del 4 bosom] ancles 1st rdg del
* ↑ "The sword sung on the barren heath..." N 105 revl
* ↑ "Abstinence sows sand all over..." N 105 rev 2 flaming hair mended (over what was probably only a bad scribble for the same two words)
* ↑ "In a wife I would desire..." N 105 rev
* ↑ Lacedemonian Instruction N 103 rev
* ↑ An old maid early eer I knew N 100 rev The two stanzas were written in reverse order but then numbered 2, 1.
* ↑ Soft deceit & Idleness These are Beautys sweetest dress] Line added, on p 103, after cancellation of an introductory question: “Which are beauties sweetest dress”. The poem began as question and answer, was changed to pure answer.
* ↑ "What is it men do in women require..." 1 in women] of women 1st rdg p 103 3 in men] of men 1st rdg p 103
* ↑ An ancient Proverb 3 that-------------] that place 1st rdg p 107; that man 2nd rdg p 1O7. (Was the long dash put in to avoid writing “palace”? See “London” line 12.) 4 Youll] Twill 1st rdg del, p 99
* ↑ The Kid N 105 rev &c] written over a capital D No further trace of the poem is found.
* ↑ "My Spectre around me night & day..." N 13, 12 Canceled stanzas b and c, with revisions and numbering, read: [Her]<Thy> weeping [She]<thou> shall neer give oer I sin against [her]<thee> more—& more [El]<And> never will from sin be free Till she forgives & comes to me [4] [<5>] Thou hast parted from my side Once thou wast a virgin bride Never shalt thou a [lover]<true love> find My Spectre follows thee Behind One and then another replacement was written for stanza b, thus (as numbered for various arrangements): [3] <4> 1 When my Love did first begin 2 Thou didst call that Love a Sin 3 Secret trembling night & day 4 Driving all my Loves away 2 [[To]⟨In⟩ a dark cold winter night] A deep winter [night] dark <&> cold [Within my [loves] Heart] Within my heart thou didst unfold A Fathomless & boundless deep There we wander there we weep