Nell Barnes

Nell Barnes written by William Henry Davies

From "The Bird of Paradise", 1914

Link to further information

They lived apart for three long years,
  Bill Barnes and Nell, his wife;
He took his joy from other girls,
  She led a wicked life.

Yet ofttimes she would pass his shop,
  With some strange man awhile;
And, looking, meet her husband's frown
  With her malicious smile.

Until one day, when passing there,
  She saw her man had gone;
And when she saw the empty shop,
  She fell down with a moan.

And when she heard that he had gone
  Five thousand miles away,
And that she'd see his face no more,
  She sickened from that day.

To see his face was health and life,
  And when it was denied,
She could not eat, and broke her heart -
  It was for love she died.

This work is in the public domain in countries where the copyright term is the author's life plus 70 years or less.