CLAI. And then fair Haidee tried her tongue at speaking But not a word could Juan comprehend, Although he listen'd so that the young Greek in Her earnestness would ne'er have made an end· And, as he interrupted not, went eking Her speech out to her protegé and friend, Till, pausing at the last her breath to take, She saw he did not understand Romaic. CLXII. And then she had recourse to nods, and signs, A world of words, and things at which she guess'e CLXIII. And now, by dint of fingers and of eyes, No doubt, less of her language than her look: As he who studies fervently the skies Turns oftener to the stars than to his book, CLXIV. "Tis pleasing to be school'd in a strange tongue They smile so when one's right, and when one's wrong They smile still more, and then there intervene Pressure of hands, perhaps even a chaste kiss ;I learn'd the little that I know by this: CLXV. That is, some words of Spanish, Turk, or Greek, I hate your poets, so read none of those. As for the ladies, I have nought to say, A wanderer from the British world of fashion, Where I, like other "dogs, have had my day," Like other men, too, may have had my passionBut that, like other things, has pass'd away: And all her fools whom I could lay the lash on, Foes, friends, men, women, now are nought to me But dreams of what has been, no more to be. CLXVII. Return we to Don Juan. He begun To hear new words, and to repeat them; but Some feelings, universal as the sun, Were such as could not in his breast be shut More than within the bosom of a nun: He was in love-as you would be, no doubt With a young benefactress,-so was she Just in the way we very often see. CLXX. While Venus fills the heart, (without heart really For love must be sustain'd like flesh and blood. While Bacchus pours out wine, or hands a jelly: Eggs, oysters too, are amatory food; But who is their purveyors from above It was a wild and breaker-beaten coast, With cliffs above, and a broad sandy shore, And rarely ceased the haughty billows' roar, Heaven knows,-it may be Neptune, Pan, or Jove. The outstretch'd ocean glitter like a lake. CLXXI. When Juan woke, he found some good things ready, A bath, a breakfast, and the finest eyes That ever made a youthful heart less steady, Besides her maid's, as pretty for their size; But I have spoken of all this already And repetition's tiresome and unwise.Well-Juan, after bathing in the sea, Came always back to coffee and Haidee. CLXXII. Both were so young, and one so innocent, Of whom these two years she had nightly dream'd, To be her happiness, and whom she deem'd To render happy; all who joy would win Must share it,-happiness was born a twin. CLXXIII. It was such pleasure to behold him, such But then the thought of parting made her quake: CLXXIV. And thus a moon roll'd on, and fair Haidee For certain merchantmen upon the look, But three Ragusan vessels, bound for Scio. CLXXVIII. Man, being reasonable, must get drunk ; Ring for your valet-bid him quickly bring Nor Burgundy in all its sunset glow, CLXXXI. The coast-I think it was the coast that I The sands untumbled, the blue waves untosɛ'd And dolphin's leap, and little billow cross'd By some low rock or shelve that made it fret Against the boundary it scarcely wet. CLXXXII. And forth they wander'd, her sire being gone, Thought daily service was her only mission, CLXXXIII. It was the cooling hour, just when the rounded Red sun sinks down behind the azure hill, And thus they wander'd forth, and hand in hand, And in the worn and wild receptacles CLXXXV. They look'd up to the sky, whose floating glow Whence the broad moon rose circling into sight; CLXXXVI. A long, long kiss, a kiss of youth, and love, Such kisses as belong to early days, Where heart, and soul, and sense, in concert move, CLXXXVII. By length I mean duration; theirs endured reckon'd, And if they had, they could not have secured They had not spoken; but they felt allured, As if their souls and lips each other beckon'd, CLXXXIX. They fear'd no eyes nor ears on that lone beach, Of nature's oracle-first love,-that all CXC. Haidee spoke not of scruples, ask'd no vows, CXCI. She loved, and was beloved-she adored, And she was worshipp'd; after nature's fashion, Again to be o'ercome, again to dash on; CXCII. Alas! they were so young, so beautiful, So lonely, loving, helpless, and the hour And, having o'er itself no further power, But pays off moments in an endless shower CXCIII. Alas! for Juan and Haidee! they were CXCIV. They look upon each other, and their cyes Gleam in the moonlight; and her white arm claspr Which, being join'd, like swarming bees they clung-And thus they form a group that's quite antique, spring. CLXXXVIII. They were alone, yet not alone as they Who, shut in chambers, think it loneliness; The twilight glow, which momently grew less, CXCV. And when those deep and burning moments pass d And then on the pale cheek her breast now warm CXCVI. An infant when it gazes on a light, A child the moment when it drains the breast, A devotee when soars the host in sight, An Arab with a stranger for a guest, A sailor, when the prize has struck in fight, CXCVII. For there it lies so tranquil, so beloved, And all unconscious of the joy 'tis giving, CXCVIII. The lady watch'd her lover-and that hour Of Love's, and Night's, and Ocean's solitude, O'erflow'd her soul with their united power; Amidst the barren sand and rocks so rude, She and her wave-worn love had made their bower, Where nought upon their passion could intrude, And all the stars that crowded the blue space, Saw nothing happier than her glowing face. CXCIX. Alas! the love of women! it is known And their revenge is as the tiger's spring, Deadly, and quick, and crushing: yet as real Torture is theirs-what they inflict they feel. CC. fhey're right; for man, to man so oft unjust, Buys them in marriage-and what rests beyond ? CCI. Some take a lover, some take drams or prayers, ССІІ. Haidee was nature's bride, and knew not this; Haidee was passion's child, born where the sun Showers triple light, and scorches even the kiss Of his gazelle-eyed daughters; she was one Made but to love, to feel that she was his Who was her chosen: what was said or done Elsewhere was nothing-She had nought to fear, Hone, care, nor love beyond, her heart beat here. ССІІІ. And oh! that quickening of the heart, that beat: How much it costs us, yet each rising throb Is in its cause as its effect so sweet, That wisdom, ever on the watch to rob Joy of its alchymy, and to repeat Fine truths; even conscience, too, has a tough job! To make us understand each good old maxim, So good-I wonder Castlereagh don't tax 'em. CCIV. And now 'twas done on the lone shore were plighted Their hearts; the stars, their nuptial torches, sted Beauty upon the beautiful they lighted: Ocean their witness, and the cave their bed, By their own feelings hallow'd and united, Their priest was solitude, and they were wed: And they were happy, for to their young eyes Each was an angel, and earth paradise. CCV. Oh love! of whom great Cæsar was the suitor, Sappho the sage blue-stocking, in whose grave All those may leap who rather would be neuter(Leucadia's rock still overlooks the wave) Oh Love! thou art the very god of evil, CCVI. Thou makest the chaste connubial state precarious And jestest with the brows of mightiest men: Cæsar and Pompey, Mahomet, Belisarius, Have much employed the muse of history's pen Their lives and fortunes were extremely various,Such worthies time will never see again :Yet to these four in three things the same luck holds They all were heroes, conquerors, and cuckolds. CCVII. Thou makest philosophers: there's Epicurus If only from the devil they would insure us, How pleasant were the maxim, (not quite new,) Eat, drink, and love, what can the rest avail us ?” So said the royal sage, Sardanapalus. CCVIII. But Juan! had he quite forgotten Julia? And should he have forgotten her so soon? Else how the devil is it that fresh features I hate inconstancy-I loathe, detest, I saw the prettiest creature, fresh from Milan, "Stop! CCXI. CANTO III. I. so I stopp'd. But to return: that which HAIL, Muse! et cetera.-We left Juan sleeping, Men call inconstancy is nothing more Than admiration, due where nature's rich Pillow'd upon a fair and happy breast, And watch'd by eyes that never yet knew weeping And loved by a young heart too deeply bless'd To feel the poison through her spirit creeping, Or know who rested there; a foe to rest, Had soil'd the current of her sinless years, And turn'd her pure heart's purest blood to tears. II. Oh, love! what is it in this world of ours Which makes it fatal to be loved? Ah, why With cypress branches hast thou wreathed thy And made thy best interpreter a sigh? [bowers. As those who dote on odors pluck the flowers, And place them on their breast-but place to dieThus the frail beings we would fondly cherish Are laid within our bosoms but to perish. III. In her first passion woman loves her lover, I know not if the fault be men's or theirs ; But one thing's pretty sure; a woman planted, Unless at once she plunge for life in prayers,) After a decent time must be gallanted; Although, no doubt, her first of love affairs Is that to which her heart is wholly granted; Yet there are some, they say, who have had none. But those who have ne'er end with only one. V. 'Tis melancholy, and a fearful sign Of human frailty, folly, also crime, That love and marriage rarely can combine, Although they both are born in the same clime, Marriage from love, like vinegar from wineA sad, sour, sober beverage-by time Is sharpen'd from its high celestial flavor Down to a very homely household savor. VI. There's something of antipathy, as 'twere, A kind of flattery that's hardly fair Is used, until the truth arrives too lateYet what can people do, except despair? The same things change their names at such a rate For instance-passion in a lover's glorious, But in a husband is pronounced uxorious. |