University of Virginia Library

SHE WAS THE FAIREST.

I

She was the fairest, many there
Had long been call'd most bright and fair,
Their beaming eyes, their braided hair,
Were deem'd the rarest.
Unconscious of her charms she came,
And startled at her beauty's fame,
Blush'd when we breath'd no other name,
For she was fairest!

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II

She left us soon a happy bride
To roam with one how briefly tried.
Oh, woman! by the loved one's side,
All ills thou darest.
Few years are past, yet she is gone,
The widow'd mother weeps alone,
O'er infant features like her own,
When they were fairest.