And all thy cares.... I wonder how before

This satisfied companionship I bore

The old dull days, for thou with marriage gave

So much! And yet,—bear with me, dear!—My brave

Heart seems defenceless now! Those days of yore

Full of ambitious dreams, beyond my reach

Have vanished far. O love me! since the whole

Of life is narrowed down to this! and teach

Me willing subjugation, as years roll,—

Be more than lost ambitions I beseech,—