Mary’s Ghost. A Pathetic Ballad.

’Twas in the middle of the night,

To sleep young William tried,

When Mary’s ghost came stealing in,

And stood at his bedside.

O William dear! O William dear!

My rest eternal ceases;

Alas¹! my everlasting² peace

Is broken into pieces.

I thought the last of all my cares

Would end with my last minute;

But though I went to my long home,

I didn’t stay long in it.

The body-snatchers they have come,

And made a snatch at me;

It’s very hard them kind of men

Won’t let a body be!

You thought that I was buried deep,

Quite decent-like and chary³,

But from her grave in Mary-bone,

They’ve come and boned your Mary.

The arm that used to take your arm

Is took to Dr. Vyse;

And both my legs are gone to walk

The hospital at Guy’s.

I vowed⁴ that you should have my hand,

But fate gives us denial;

You’ll find it there, at Dr. Bell’s,

In spirits and a phial.

As for my feet, the little feet

You used to call so pretty,

There’s one, I know, in Bedford Row,

The t’other’s in the City.

I can’t tell where my head is gone,

But Doctor Carpue can;

As for my trunk, it’s all packed up

To go by Pickford’s van.

I wish you’d go to Mr. P.

And save me such a ride;

I don’t half like the outside place,

They’ve took for my inside.

The cock it crows — I must be gone!

My William, we must part!

But I’ll be yours in death, altho’

Sir Astley has my heart.

Don’t go to weep upon my grave,

And think that there I be;

They haven’t left an atom there

Of my anatomie.

1 alas   

int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等)

参考例句：

• Alas!The window is broken!哎呀！窗子破了！
• Alas,the truth is less romantic.然而，真理很少带有浪漫色彩。

2 everlasting   

adj.永恒的，持久的，无止境的

参考例句：

• These tyres are advertised as being everlasting.广告上说轮胎持久耐用。
• He believes in everlasting life after death.他相信死后有不朽的生命。

3 chary   

adj.谨慎的，细心的

参考例句：

• She started a chary descent of the stairs.她开始小心翼翼地下楼梯。
• She is chary of strangers.她见到陌生人会害羞。

4 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。