Page talk:Lyrics of Life, Coates, 1909.djvu/101
Another stanza appears in August 1908 Smart Set issue (p. 62) edit
DEARTH
By Florence Earle Coates
AS one who thirsting waits, while mocking him
The waves o'erleap his shattered vessel's brink;
And, drifting on, life's cup but once to brim,
Fain to sheer depths would sink—
So everywhere beholding love neglected,
Carelessly set aside, despised, rejected,
I faint for a pure draught not mine to drink.
As one who faring o'er a desert plain
Sees fountains clear in the mirage arise,
And, parchèd, longs the nectar sweet to gain
Which still before him flies—
So, wistfully, half doubting, half-believing,
Scornful of hope—yet hopeful, self-deceiving,
I thirst for love, which wastes before my eyes.