So Well Go No More A-Roving

So we'll go no more a-roving  So late into the night,

Though the heart still be as loving,  And the moon still be as bright.

For the sword outwears its sheath,  And the soul outwears the breast,

And the heart must pause to breathe,  And love itself have rest.

Though the night was made for loving,  And the day returns too soon,

Yet we'll go no more a-roving  By the light of the moon.

This poem was written in a letter to Thomas Moore and describes the weariness of age.

Byron, 29 when it was written, was recovering from fatigue, probably brought on by over-indulgence.

The poem would appear to be based on the chorus of a Scottish song entitled “The Jolly Beggar” which was published in Herd’s “Scots Songs” in 1776, 41 years