King Chico read his lady's note and silent laid it down;
Then to the window he drew nigh, and gazed upon the town;
And lost in thought he pondered upon each tender line,
And sudden tears and a sigh of grief were his inward sorrow's sign.
And he called for ink and paper, that Vindaraja's heart
Might know that he remembered her and sought to heal its smart.
He would tell her that the absence which caused to her those fears
Had only made her dearer still, through all those mournful years.
He would tell her that his heart was sad, because she was not near--
Yes, far more sad than Moorish slave chained on the south frontier.