Page:Poems - Southey (1799) volume 1.djvu/116

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When tir'd and sore amid the piteous throngHungry and cold and wet I limp'd along,And growing fainter as I pass'd and colder,Curs'd that ill hour when I became a soldier!In town I found the hours more gayly passAnd Time fled swiftly with my girl and glass;The girls were wonderous kind and wonderous fair,They soon transferred me to the Doctor's care;The Doctor undertook to cure the evil,And he almost transferred me to the Devil.'Twere tedious to relate the dismal storyOf fighting, fasting, wretchedness and glory.At last discharg'd, to England's shores I came,Paid for my wounds with want instead of fame;Found my fair friends, and plunder'd as they bade me;They kist me, coax'd me, robb'd me, and betray'd me.Tried and condemn'd his Majesty transports meAnd here in peace, I thank him, he supports me.So ends my dismal and heroic story,And Humphrey gets more good from guilt than glory.
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