Retort

"Thou art a fool," said my head to my heart,
"Indeed, the greatest of fools thou art
To be led astray by the trick of a tress,
By a smiling face or a ribbon smart."
And my heart was in sore distress.

Then Phyllis came by, and her face was fair,
The light gleamed soft on her raven hair;
And her lips were blooming a rosy red.
Then my heart spoke out with a right bold air;
"Thou art worse than a fool, Oh head!"

This poem appears in the following book(s):