| T. R. Smith, comp. Poetica Erotica: Rare and Curious Amatory Verse. 1921–22. | | | | A Love Lesson | | By Thomas Burke (1886–1945) |
| | (From The Song Book of Quong Lee of Limehouse, 1920) |
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LAST night I dreamed of the maid with yellow curls, | |
| She came to me in the room above my shop, | |
| And we two were alone, freed from the laws of day. | |
| I held her then to myself. | |
| I took from her her clothing, garment by garment, | 5 |
| And watched them fall about her feet— | |
| White petals of a flower. | |
| And I drew from her to myself her thoughts, one by one, | |
| As often I had wished, till all of her was mine. | |
| And then I was sad, for nothing was left to love. | 10 |
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| And quickly I clothed her again, garment by garment, | |
| And gave her back her thoughts, one by one, | |
| And awoke in joy. | |
| I was glad that the dream was a dream, | |
| And that all of her was not mine; | 15 |
| For I had learned | |
| That love released from bond, and unburdened of its fetters, | |
| Is love no longer. | | | |
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