IX.

What poisoned pen has written The words that bar my breath; What hard, harsh hand has smitten My soul with death?

"Love, my love"—these the words I read— "The vision and dream of a life have died. Hurt to the heart by the words you said, Angered, stung by a wounded pride, Mad with the thought that your love was dead— I have wedded a loveless, unloved bride— Would I had died instead!"

My heart refuses to understand The words that burn my brain; Palsied, stunned by a felling blow Struck by a cherished hand, I am all too numb for pain; Dead to a deathless woe, Helpless to understand, Shall I ever feel again?