[Verse 1]
Come all ye fair and tender ladies
Be careful how you court your men
They're like the stars on a summer morning
They'll first appear, and then they're gone

[Verse 2]
How I remember our days a-courtin'
I met my love in the failing light
But now she flies to meet another
The day is lonelier than night

[Verse 3]
If I had known before I courted
That true love was so hard to win
I'd have locked my heart in a box a-golden
And never opened it again

[Verse 4]
I'll find a place come tomorrow
I'll find some mountain way up high
There I'll sit down to weep in sorrow
And try to pass my troubles by

[Verse 5]
Come all ye fair and tender ladies
Be careful how you court your men
They're like the stars on a summer morning
They'll first appear, and then they're gone