Songs, Ballads, and Other Poems by the late Thomas Haynes Bayly; Edited by his Widow. With A Memoir of the Author. In Two Volumes |
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THE FORSAKEN TO THE FALSE ONE. |
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 | Songs, Ballads, and Other Poems |  |
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THE FORSAKEN TO THE FALSE ONE.
I
I dare thee to forget me! go, wander where thou wilt,Thy hand upon the vessel's helm, or on the sabre's hilt;
Away! thou'rt free! o'er land and sea go rush to danger's brink!
But oh, thou canst not fly from thought! thy curse shall be—to think!
II
Remember me! remember all my long-enduring loveThat link'd itself to perfidy; the vulture and the dove!
Remember in thy utmost need I never once did shrink,
But clung to thee confidingly; thy curse shall be—to think!
III
Then go! that thought would render thee a dastard in the fight,That thought, when thou art tempest-tost, will fill thee with affright!
In some vile dungeon may'st thou lie, and, counting each cold link
That binds thee to captivity, thy curse shall be—to think!
IV
Go! seek the merry banquet hall, where younger maidens bloom,The thought of me shall make thee there endure a deeper gloom;
That thought shall turn the festive cup to poison while you drink,
And while false smiles are on thy cheek, thy curse will be—to think!
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V
Forget me! false one, hope it not! when minstrels touch the string,The memory of other days will gall thee while they sing;
The air I us'd to love will make thy coward conscience shrink—
Ay, ev'ry note will have its sting, thy curse will be—to think!
VI
Forget me! no, that shall not be! I'll haunt thee in thy sleep,In dreams thou'lt cling to slimy rocks that overhang the deep;
Thou'lt shriek for aid! my feeble arm shall hurl thee from the brink,
And when thou wak'st in wild dismay, thy curse will be—to think!
| Songs, Ballads, and Other Poems | |