Page:Memoir and poems of Phillis Wheatley, a native African and a slave.djvu/135

Rh Never, till death's resistless blow,

Whose call the dearest must obey—

In twain together then may go,

And thus together dwell for aye.

Say to the suitor, Come away.

Nor break the knot which love has tied—

Nor to the world thy trust betray,

And fly forever from thy bride.

And wilt thou, love, my soul display,

And all my secret thoughts betray?

I strove, but could not hold thee fast,

My heart flies off with thee at last.

The favorite daughter of the dawn,

On love's mild breeze will soon be gone;

I strove, but could not cease to love,

Nor from my heart the weight remove.

And wilt thou, love, my soul beguile,

And gull thy fav'rite with a smile?

Nay, soft affection answers, nay,

And beauty wings my heart away.

I steal on tiptoe from these bowers,

All spangled with a thousand flowers;