he sweetest thing
That cometh in all the year!
Oh, a morn in spring is the sweetest thing
That cometh in all the year!'

"Ring, ting! it is the merry springtime;
How full of heart a body feels!
Sing hey, trolly-lolly! oh, to live is to be jolly,
When springtime cometh with the summer at her heels!

"God save us all, my jolly gentlemen,
We'll merry be to-day;
For the cuckoo sings till the greenwood rings,
And it is the month of May!
For the cuckoo sings till the greenwood rings,
And it is the month of May!"

Then the men at the table all waved their pewter pots, and thumped upon
the board, roaring, "Hey, trolly-lolly! oh, to live is to be jolly!"
until the rafters rang.

[Illustration:

1. Hey! lad-die, hark, to the mer-ry, mer-ry lark, How high he sing-eth
clear. O a morn in Spring is the sweeter thing That cometh in all the
year; O a morn in Spring is the sweet-est thing That com-eth in all
the year!

REFRAIN. Piano.

Ring! Ting! It is the mer-ry Spring-time. How full of heart a bod-y
feels! Sing hey trol-ly lol-ly! O to live is to be jol-ly, When
Spring-time cometh with the Summer at her heels!

2. God save us all, my jol-ly gen-tle-men! We'll mer-ry be to-day; For
the cuc-koo sings till the greenwood rings, And it is the month of May;
For the cuc-koo sings till the greenwood rings, And it is the month
of May!

_Repeat Refrain after 2d Stanza._]

"What, lad!" cried good Dame Davenant, "come, stay with me all year and
sing, thou and this little maid o' thine. 'Twill cost thee neither cash
nor care. Why, thou'ldst fill the house with such a throng as it hath
never seen!" And in the morning she would not take a penny for their
lodging nor their keep. "Nay, nay," said she; "they ha' brought good
custom to the house, and left me a brave little tale to tell for many a
good long year. We inns-folk be not common penny-grabbers; marry, no!"
and, furthermore, she made interest with a carrier to give them a lift
to Woodstock on their way.

When they came to Woodstock the carrier set them down by the gates of a
park built round by a high stone wall over which they could not see, and
with his wain went in at the gate, leaving them to journey on together
through a little rain-shower.

The land grew flatter than before. There were few trees upon the hills,
and scarcely any springs at which to drink, but much tender grass,