"What though they call me country lass; I read it plainly in my glass That for a duchess I might pass! O, could I see the day! Would Fortune but attend my call, At Park, at Play, at Ring, at Ball, I'd brave the proudest of them all,— With a 'Stand by! Clear the way!' Surrounded by a crowd of beaux, With smart toupees and powdered clothes, At rivals I'd turn up my nose! O, could I see the day! I'd dart such glances from these eyes, Shall make some lord or duke, my prize! And then, O, how I'll tyrannise, With a 'Stand by! Clear the way!' O, then for every new delight, For equipage and diamonds bright, Quadrille, and Plays, and Balls, all night! O, could I see the day! Of love and joy I'd take my fill, The tedious hours of life to kill. In everything I'd have my will, With a 'Stand by! Clear the way!'" | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...BEFORE A PAINTING by JAMES WELDON JOHNSON MY ORCHA'D IN LINDEN LEA by WILLIAM BARNES BRUCE AND THE SPIDER by BERNARD BARTON MY LOVE by JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL GARDEN DAYS: 3. THE FLOWERS by ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON THE ARTILLERYMAN'S VISION by WALT WHITMAN EIGHT VOLUNTEERS by LANSING C. BAILEY |