Page:Romance of the Rose (Ellis), volume 1.pdf/121

The inmates. But, if thou awake
Shouldst find thy love, then mayst thou take2680
Advantage of that moment blest
To tell her all the hard unrest
And bitter suffering undergone
By thee for her sweet love alone.
O surely thou her heart shalt touch
With pity, when she hears how much
Thou hast endured, unless more stern
Her bosom grows, as thine doth burn.

Now hearken thou what next shall be
Thy work for her who robbeth thee2640
By her sweet beauty of thy rest.

Lovers lean and pale When thou against her door hast pressed
Thy lips at parting, have a care
That no man of thy step is ware
About her threshold-gate, or way
That leads thereto, ere dawns the day.
These midnight wanderings, to and fro,
And ceaseless promenades, high and low,
Cause lovers, who of late were hale
And strong, to turn as lean and pale2650
As hungry churls, and thou shalt see
This proved in thine identity.
No faithful lover e’er is found
Rosy and jovial, sleek and round
Of limb and visage, such like traits
Belong to lovers false, who praise
Ladies with mean and base desire
To cheat their trusting hearts; the fire