Poems (Davidson)/The Coquette
For works with similar titles, see The Coquette.
THE COQUETTE.
I hae nae sleep, I hae nae rest, My Ellen's lost for aye,My heart is sair and much distressed, I surely soon must die.
I canna think o' wark at a', My eyes still wander far,I see her neck like driven snaw, I see her flaxen hair.
Sair, sair, I begged; she would na' hear, She proudly turned awa',Unmoved she saw the trickling tear, Which, spite o' me, would fa',
She acted weel a conqueror's part, She triumphed in my woe,She gracefu' waved me to depart, I tried, but could na' go.
"Ah why," (distractedly I cried,) "Why yield me to despair?Bid lingering Hope resume her sway, To ease my heart sae sair."
"Adieu!" I proudly cried.
I fled! nor Ellen hae I seen, Sin' that too fatal day:My "bosom's laird" sits heavy here, And Hope's fled far away.
Care, darkly brooding, bodes a storm, I'm Sorrow's child indeed;She stamps her image on my form, I wear the mourning weed!
