Page:Poems Sherwin.djvu/30

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26
Yes! and my marriage vow I've truly kept,
And through the many changes we have known,
When I have laughed in glee, in anguish wept,
Both smiles and tears were ever all his own.

But when the labours of the day are done,
From home and me he spends his hours of joy;
Whilst I in bitter anguish weep alone,
And count the tardy moment rolling by.

With anxious ear I list to every sound,
And my heart flutters at each tone I hear;
Until some distant clock, with toll profound,
Proclaims the first dim hour of morning near.

At length he reeling comes, with maddened brain,
Whilst I, absorbed in sorrow, pale with woe,
Hear with a shudder the wild curse profane,
Or trembling, shrink beneath the unmanly blow.

Oh! when will all this bitter grief be o'er?
When will my broken spirit be at rest?
When shall my eyes be dried to weep no more?
Oh! when shall peace possess my tortured breast?

Not until death his welcome aid shall lend,
And end at once my sorrows and my life;
No earthly power can with success befriend
The poor unhappy wretch, a Drunkard's Wife!