“Drink to Me Only with Thine Eyes” is a song that appears in “Mrs. Spring Fragrance,” a short story by Sui Sin Far that appears in the collection of the same name. The lyrics of the song are taken from the poem “Song: To Celia” by Ben Jonson. Although Sui Sin Far only briefly mentions the song, I searched online to see if I could find sheet music that would indicate she was thinking of an actual song when she wrote this story.
I found that the song is quite old, originally seen as early as the mid-18th century, but that the most popular version is one often falsely attributed to Colonel R. Mellish. According to an episode of the Sounds Like History to Me podcast, the earliest documented composer of this version is Dr. Henry Harrington in 1803-4 [1].
The sheet music (link opens in new tab) I found to guide my recording of the song comes from a book titled One Hundred Songs of England published in 1914, two years after the publication of Mrs. Spring Fragrance. Although the transcription I used was published after Sui Sin Far’s book, this version of the song was undoubtedly in existence long before.
I also found that there are several recordings of this song available. Johnny Cash sang and recorded it for his album Bootleg Vol. 1: Personal File [2]. The 2020 movie Emma, an adaptation of the Jane Austen novel of the same name, also used this song [3].
After finding the music, I created a recording of myself singing it so that others can hear what she was likely thinking of when she was writing the story. I recommend listening to the recording as you read the text.
Song: To Celia [Drink to me only with thine eyes]
By Ben Jonson
Drink to me only with thine eyes,
And I will pledge with mine;
Or leave a kiss but in the cup,
And I’ll not look* for wine.
The thirst that from the soul doth rise
Doth ask a drink divine;
But might I of Jove’s nectar sup,
I would not change for thine.
I sent thee late a rosy wreath,
Not so much honouring thee
As giving it a hope, that there
It could not withered be.
But thou thereon didst only breathe,
And sent’st it back to me;
Since when it grows, and smells, I swear,
Not of itself, but thee.
*The song changes "look" to "ask."
Referenced in “Mrs. Spring Fragrance,” Mrs. Spring Fragrance, 2.
- Refer to this Sounds Like History podcast episode (transcript provided) (link opens in new tab) for more interesting information on the ambiguous origins and variations of this song!
- Listen to Johnny Cash’s version on YouTube (link opens in new tab) or Spotify (link opens in new tab).
- Listen to the version from the film Emma on YouTube (link opens in new tab) or Spotify (link opens in new tab).
Sui Sin Far 