Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, JUSTINE, YOU LOVE ME NOT, by JOHN GODFREY SAXE


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

JUSTINE, YOU LOVE ME NOT, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: I know, justine, you speak me fair
Last Line: Justine, you love me not!
Subject(s): Love - Unrequited


I KNOW, Justine, you speak me fair
As often as we meet;
And 't is a luxury, I swear,
To hear a voice so sweet;
And yet it does not please me quite,
The civil way you've got;
For me you're something too polite, --
Justine, you love me not!

I know, Justine, you never scold
At aught that I may do:
If I am passionate or cold,
'T is all the same to you.
"A charming temper," say the men,
"To smooth a husband's lot":
I wish 't were ruffled now and then, --
Justine, you love me not!

I know, Justine, you wear a smile
As beaming as the sun;
But who supposes all the while
It shines for only one?
Though azure skies are fair to see,
A transient cloudy spot
In yours would promise more to me, --
Justine, you love me not!

I know, Justine, you make my name
Your eulogistic theme,
And say -- if any chance to blame --
You hold me in esteem.
Such words, for all their kindly scope,
Delight me not a jot;
Just so you would have praised the Pope, --
Justine, you love me not!

I know, Justine, for I have heard
What friendly voices tell, --
You do not blush to say the word,
"You like me passing well";
And thus the fatal sound I hear
That seals my lonely lot:
There's nothing now to hope or fear, --
Justine, you love me not!





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