The Orphaned Old Maid
I wanted to marry, but father said, "No - 'Tis weakness in women to give themselves so; If you care for your freedom you'll listen to me, Make a spouse in your pocket, and let the men be." I spake on't again and again: father cried, "Why - if you go husbanding, where shall I bide? For never a home's for me elsewhere than here!" And I yielded; for father had ever been dear. But now father's gone, and I feel growing old, And I'm lonely and poor in this house on the wold, And my sweetheart that was found a partner elsewhere, And nobody flings me a thought or a care.
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"I wanted to marry, but father said, "No -..."
"The Orphaned Old Maid" is a quintessential example of Thomas Hardy's signature style... ### Why We Love This Line At Linespedia, we believe that poetry is the ultimate sanctuary for the soul...