John Fletcher. Poem. Bridal Song.

John Fletcher

Bridal Song
CYNTHIA, to thy power and thee
              We obey.
Joy to this great company !
              And no day
Come to steal this night away
    Till the rites of love are ended,
And the lusty bridegroom say,
    Welcome, light, of all befriended !

Pace out, you watery powers below ;
              Let your feet,
Like the galleys when they row,
              Even beat ;
Let your unknown measures, set
    To the still winds, tell to all
That gods are come, immortal, great,
    To honour this great nuptial !

Source:
The Oxford Book of English Verse.
Arthur Quiller-Couch, ed.
Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1919. 236.