Classic Poem

There were three cavaliers that went over the Rhine,
And gayly they called to the hostess for wine.
" And where is thy daughter? We would she were here, —
Go fetch us that maiden to gladden our cheer! "

" I 'll fetch thee thy goblets full foaming, " she said,
" But in yon darkened chamber the maiden lies dead. "
And lo! as they stood in the doorway, the white
Of a shroud and a dead shrunken face met their sight.

Then the first cavalier breathed a pitiful sigh,
And the throb of his heart seemed to melt in his eye,
And he cried, " Hadst thou lived, O my pretty white rose,
I ween I had loved thee and wed thee — who knows? "

The next cavalier drew aside a small space.
And stood to the wall with his hands to his face
And this was the heart-cry that came with his tears:
" I loved her, I loved her these many long years! "

But the third cavalier kneeled him down in that place,
And, as it were holy, he kissed that dead face:
" I loved thee long years, and I love thee to-day,
And I'll love thee, dear maiden, forever and ave! "