"Mine too he threatens; but his dotage still
"Would fain reserve me for his lordly will:
"When wearier of these fleeting charms and me,
"There yawns the sack—and yonder rolls the sea!
"What, am I then a toy for dotard's play,
"To wear but till the gilding frets away?1510
"I saw thee—loved thee—owe thee all—would save,
"If but to shew how grateful is a slave.
"But had he not thus menaced fame and life,
"(And well he keeps his oaths pronounced in strife)
"I still had saved thee—but the Pacha spared.
"Now I am all thine own—for all prepared—
"Thou lov'st me not—nor know'st—or but the worst.
"Alas! this love—that hatred are the first—
"Oh! could'st thou prove my truth, thou would'st not start,
"Nor fear the fire that lights an Eastern heart,1520
" 'Tis now the beacon of thy safety—now
"It points within the port a Mainote prow:
"But in one chamber, where our path must lead,
"There sleeps—he must not wake—the oppressor Seyd!"
"Gulnare—Gulnare—I never felt till now
Page:The Corsair (Byron).djvu/92
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78
THE CORSAIR.
