“Friend,” quoth Lord Nevil, “thou art young
To face the world, and thou art blind
To subtle ways of womankind;
The meshes thou wilt fall among.
“Take an old married man’s advice;
Use the experience I have earned;
Watch well where women are concerned,-
They’re not all birds of paradise!
“Be circumspect, or thou mayst fall;
Abjure a blind faith-nay, trust none-
Till thou hast chosen, proven one;
Then trust her truly-trust in all.
“Keep a calm brain and quiet eye,
And watch. The doll of powder and paint,
The flirt, the artificial saint,
The loud man-woman pass them by.
“The innocent one, who craves thy cares
To shield her from life’s fret and fray;
Lad, watch her-maybe she’ll betray
Some doubtful knowledge, unawares.
“The pensive one, who droops and sighs-
Wait till her dreaming comes to test;
Be gentle, yet be wary, lest
‘Tis but a graceful grey disguise.
“The world-wise husband-hunter-she
Who knows no love but love of gold,
And lands and titles-empty, cold,-
Pity her, lad, and let her be.
“And the rich heiress-let her pass.
Belike she’s stupid, drugged with wealth,
And just enjoys her life and health
As some fat cow in clover grass.
“Or insolent with prosperity,
Unsharpened, shallow, unrefined;-
And thou art poor, and thou wilt mind
That proud blood cometh down to thee.
“The gushing gossip-she who rains
Incessant chatter in thine ears;-
She may be worth thy keenest fears,
She may be simply lacking brains,
“And lacking grace and modesty.
She will make mischief, at the best;
She may be wily, like the rest;
Keep thy tongue still when she is by.
“They that would master thee, if they could,
In brain and muscle-flaring lights-
The clamorous for false woman’s rights;-
Snub them, my friend-it does them good-
“And do not think of them for wives.
Fit mates for such seem somewhat rare;
But when two odd ones make a pair,
They spoil at least four precious lives.
“But shouldst thou chance to meet a girl
With brave, bright eyes, that front thee straight,
A kindly tongue that does not prate,
And quiet lips that cannot curl;
“With fine sense, quick to understand,
With dignity that is not cold,
Sweet, sunny mirth that is not bold,
A ready ear, a willing hand;
“One skilled in household arts, and skilled
In little courteous, graceful ways,
That make no show and win no praise-
Wherewith discordant jars are stilled:
“One who will never touch a sore;
One who sheds sunshine round about,
And draws life’s hidden comfort out;
One whom the boys and babes adore:
“One with an intellect to reach
The highest range that thou canst rise;
Who will aye help thee, woman-wise,
And yet not set herself to teach:
“One of whom women love to speak,
In honest kindness, and whose name
Men let alone; whose chiefest fame
Lies hidden where men may not seek;-
“Friend, woo her, as a good knight can,
And win her. Lay thou at her feet
Faith, love, and honour, true and sweet;
And count thyself a happy man.”
A few random poems:
- Lamia. Part II poem – John Keats poems
- Олег Сердобольский – Черная считалка
- Praying Hurriedly by Satish Verma
- Maudlin by Sylvia Plath
- Нина Пикулева – Ой, да чья ж это девчушка
- Promise Ya by Miraj Patel
- Antimatter by Russell Edson
- Epilogue poem – Ezra Pound poems
- The Morning Breeze by Mousumi Guha Roy
- Владимир Высоцкий – Надо с кем-то рассорить кого-то
- Владимир Маяковский – Если белогвардейщину не добьем совсем… (РОСТА №148)
- Константин Батюшков – Мечта
- For The Dead
- 10 Valentine’s Day Scrapbooking Ideas With or Without Photos
- Владимир Маяковский – Шестой
External links
Bat’s Poetry Page – more poetry by Fledermaus
Talking Writing Monster’s Page –
Batty Writing – the bat’s idle chatter, thoughts, ideas and observations, all original, all fresh
Poems in English
- England! The Time Is Come When Thou Should’st Wean by William Wordsworth
- Emperors And Kings, How Oft Have Temples Rung by William Wordsworth
- Ellen Irwin Or The Braes Of Kirtle by William Wordsworth
- Elegiac Stanzas Suggested By A Picture Of Peele Castle by William Wordsworth
- Dion [See Plutarch] by William Wordsworth
- Crusaders by William Wordsworth
- Composed While The Author Was Engaged In Writing A Tract Occasioned By The Convention Of Cintra by William Wordsworth
- Composed Upon Westminster Bridge, September 3, 1802 by William Wordsworth
- Composed on The Eve Of The Marriage Of A Friend In The Vale Of Grasmere by William Wordsworth
- Composed Near Calais, On The Road Leading To Ardres, August 7, 1802 by William Wordsworth
- Composed In The Valley Near Dover, On The Day Of Landing by William Wordsworth
- Composed During A Storm by William Wordsworth
- Composed By The Side Of Grasmere Lake 1806 by William Wordsworth
- Composed By The Sea-Side, Near Calais, August 1802 by William Wordsworth
- Composed At The Same Time And On The Same Occasion by William Wordsworth
- Composed After A Journey Across The Hambleton Hills, Yorkshire by William Wordsworth
- Characteristics Of A Child Three Years Old by William Wordsworth
- Character Of The Happy Warrior by William Wordsworth
- Calm is all Nature as a Resting Wheel. by William Wordsworth
- “Call Not The Royal Swede Unfortunate” by William Wordsworth
More external links (open in a new tab):
Doska or the Board – write anything
Search engines:
Yandex – the best search engine for searches in Russian (and the best overall image search engine, in any language, anywhere)
Qwant – the best search engine for searches in French, German as well as Romance and Germanic languages.
Ecosia – a search engine that supposedly… plants trees
Duckduckgo – the real alternative and a search engine that actually works. Without much censorship or partisan politics.
Yahoo– yes, it’s still around, amazingly, miraculously, incredibly, but now it seems to be powered by Bing.
Parallel Translations of Poetry
The Poetry Repository – an online library of poems, poetry, verse and poetic works

Ada Cambridge (1844 – 1926), also known as Ada Cross, was an English-born Australian author and poetess. She wrote more than 25 works of fiction, three volumes of poetry and two autobiographical works.