What a coincidence - I'm right now in the process of learning this song from a recording by Jean Redpath, who does an awesome job of ornamentation. Can someone please tell me what the reference to "thye crickets's singing stone" means?

Of the two recordings I have of this song, neither contains the third verse. I'm wondering if it was added after the first two were written - all that stuff about "felicity" and "no taint of sin" seems very stiff and puritan compared to the pastoral imagery in the first two verses.

And I have to confess I assumed that "soot" was a typo and changed it to "foot" in my lyrics file (didn't old English use f's for s's and vice versa?)