 | The music-lesson of Confucius, And Other Poems |  |
116
WOMAN'S WILL.
Con la muger y el dinero
No te burles, companero.
No te burles, companero.
MANY a charm is round thee,
Many a spell hath bound thee,
Though awhile I give thee leave to range.
Soon, thy wild flight over,
Soon, no more a rover,
Back thou'lt fly and never dare to change.
If thou wilt, go flutter
Here and there, to utter
Burning words to all with wanton will;
But—thou canst not leave me,
No—nor once deceive me;
And in chains I hold thee captive still.
Many a spell hath bound thee,
Though awhile I give thee leave to range.
Soon, thy wild flight over,
Soon, no more a rover,
Back thou'lt fly and never dare to change.
If thou wilt, go flutter
Here and there, to utter
Burning words to all with wanton will;
But—thou canst not leave me,
No—nor once deceive me;
And in chains I hold thee captive still.
To some love enchanting,
Every favour granting,
Go and sigh—I bid thee!—'tis in vain;
For no woman clever
Lost a lover ever
When she willed to hold him in her chain.
She who's sure of winning,
When the game's beginning
Throws away of course a stake or two;
But when higher aiming,
Bent on bolder gaming—
Back they come, and then she holds them true.
Every favour granting,
Go and sigh—I bid thee!—'tis in vain;
For no woman clever
Lost a lover ever
When she willed to hold him in her chain.
She who's sure of winning,
When the game's beginning
Throws away of course a stake or two;
But when higher aiming,
Bent on bolder gaming—
Back they come, and then she holds them true.
| The music-lesson of Confucius, And Other Poems | |