William Stanley Braithwaite, ed. The Book of Restoration Verse. 1910.
Song: Why, dearest, shouldst thou weep, when I relateCharles Cotton (16301687)
W
The story of my woe?
Let not the swarthy mists of my black fate
O’ercast thy beauty so;
For each rich pearl lost on that score
Adds to mischance, and wounds your servant more.
Oh, spare that precious tear!
Nor let those drops unto a deluge tide,
To drown your beauty there;
That cloud of sorrow makes it night;
You lose your lustre, but the world its light.