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Classic and Contemporary Poetry


EUDOCIA'S SONG, FR. THE EMPOEROR OF THE EAST by PHILIP MASSINGER

First Line: WHY ART THOU SLOW, THOU REST OF TROUBLE, DEATH
Last Line: IN ONE SHORT HOUR'S DELAY, IS TYRANNY.
Subject(s): OLD AGE;

WHY art thou slow, thou rest of trouble, Death,
To stop a wretch's breath,
That calls on thee, and offers her sad heart
A prey unto thy dart?
I am nor young nor fair; be, therefore, bold;
Sorrow hath made me old,
Deformed and wrinkled; all that I can crave
Is quiet in my grave.
Such as live happy, hold long life a jewel;
But to me thou art cruel,
If thou end not my tedious misery
And I soon cease to be.
Strike, and strike home, then; pity unto me,
In one short hour's delay, is tyranny.



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