He came forth to visit meshrouding himself in the cloak of the nightAnd hastened his stepsas he wendedfor caution and fear and affright.
Then rose I and laid in his pathway my cheekas a carpet it wereFor abjectionand trailed o'er my traces my skirts，to efface them from sight.
But lothe new moon rose and shonelike a nail-paring cleft from the nailAnd all but discovered our loves with the gleam of her meddlesome light.
And then there betided between us what I'll not discoveri'faith： So question no more of the matter and deem not of ill or unright.
And a fourth：
Foregather with thy loverwhilst night your loves may screen；For that the sun's a telltalethe moon a go-between.
And a fifth：
I love not white womenwith fat blown out and overlaid；The girl of all girls for me is the slender dusky maid.
Let others the elephant mountif it like them；as for meI'll ride but the fine-trained colt on the day of the cavalcade.
And a sixth：
My loved one came to me by night And we did clip and interlace And lay together through the dark；Butlothe morning broke apace.
To Godmy LordI pray that He Will reunite us of His grace And make night last to mewhat while I hold my love in my embrace.
Were I to set forth all the praise of blacknessI should be tedious；but little and enough is better than great plenty and too much. As for theeO blondethy colour is that of leprosy and thine embrace is suffocation；and it is of report that frost and intense cold are in Hell for the torment of the wicked. Againof black things is inkwherewith is written the word of God；and were is not for black ambergris and black musk，there would be no perfumes to carry to kings. How many glories are there not in blackness and how well saith the poet：