106 ANNE BRADSTREET A LETTER TO HER HusBAND, AssENT UPON PuBL

No candle there, nor yet torchlight, But with death's parting blow is sure to n
For there shall be no darksome night. 100 The sentence past is most ｾｲ･ｶ＿｣｡｢ｬＬ＠
From sickness and infirmity A common thing, yet oh, mevJtable.
Forevermore they shall be free; How soon, my Dear, death may my ｳｴ･ｾ＠
Nor withering age shall e'er come there, How soon't may be thy Iot to lose thy fn
But beauty shall be bright and clear; We both are ignorant, yet Iove bids me
This city pure is not for thee, 105 These farewelllines to recommend to tt
For things unclean there shall not be. That when that knot's untied that made
If I of heaven may have my fill, I may seem thine, who in effect a,m nor
Take thou the world and all that will. And if I see not half my days that s due,
What nature would, God grant to yours
The many faults that ｷ･ｬｾ＠ ｾｯｵ＠ know I h
Let be interred in my obhvi?us grave;
If any worth or ｶｩｲｴｵｾ＠ were m me,
The Author to Her Book 1 Let that live freshly m thy n:emory
And when thou feel'st no gnef, ｾｳ＠ In?
Thou ill-formed offspring of my feeble brain, y et Iove thy dead, who long lay. m ｴｾｭ＠
Who after birth didst by my side remain, And when thy loss shall be repaid ｷｊｴｾ＠
Till snatched from thence by friends, less wise than true, Look to my little babes, my dear remaiJ
Who thee abroad, exposed to public view, And if thou Iove thyself, or ｬｯｶ･Ｌ､Ｚｳｾ＠ me
Made thee in rags, halting to th' press to trudge, These 0 protect from stepdame s ｉｾｊｕ＠
Where errors were not lessened (all may judge). And if chance to thine eyes shall bnng
At thy return my blushing was not small, With some sad sighs honor my absent I
My rambling brat (in print) should mother call, And kiss this paper for thy love's dear ｾＺ＠
I cast thee by as one unfit for light, Who with salt tears this last farewell di'
Thy visage was so irksome in my sight; 10
Yet being mine own, at length affection would
Thy blemishes amend, if so I could:
I washed thy face, but more defects I saw,
And ruhhing off a spotstill made a flaw. To My Dear and Loving H
I stretched thy joints to make thee even feet, 2 15
Yet still thou run' st more hobbling than is meet; If ever two were one, then surely we.
In better dress to trim thee was my mind, If ever man were loved by wife, then I
But nought save homespun cloth i' th' house I find. If ever wife was happy in a man;
In this array 'mangst vulgars 3 may'st thou roam. Campare with me, ye women, If ｹｯｾ＠
In critic's hands beware thou dostnot come, I prize thy Iove more than whöle mm
20
And take thy way where yet thou art not known; Or all the riches that the East doth h<
If for thy father asked, say thou hadst none; My Iove is suchthat rivers ｣｡ｮｾｴ＠ qu
And for thy mother, she alas is poor, Nor ought but Iove from thee, give n
Which caused her thus to send thee out of door. Thy Iove is such I can no way repay,
The heavens reward thee manifold, I
Then while we live, in Iove let's so P
That when we live no more, we may

Before the Birth of One of Her Children

All things within this fading world hath end, A Letter to Her Husba
Adversity doth still our joys attend;
No ties so strong, no friends so dear and sweet,
Absent upon Public Empl
My head, my heart, mine eyes, my life
L The Tenth Muse was published in 1650 without Anne plated.
Bradstreet's knowledge. She is thought to have written Z. I. e, metrical feet; to smooth out the lines.
My joy, my magazine 1 of earthly store,
this poem in 1666 when a second editionwas contem- 3. The common people. L Warehouse
J. Le., stepmother's.