Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. 1690-1762.
Let this great maxim be my virtue's guide,—
In part she is to blame that has been tried:
He comes too near that comes to be denied.[350:1]
The Lady's Resolve.
And we meet, with champagne and a chicken, at last.[350:2]
The Lover.
Be plain in dress, and sober in your diet;
In short, my deary, kiss me, and be quiet.
A Summary of Lord Lyttelton's Advice.
Satire should, like a polished razor keen,
Wound with a touch that 's scarcely felt or seen.
To the Imitator of the First Satire of Horace. Book ii.
But the fruit that can fall without shaking
Indeed is too mellow for me.
The Answer.
Footnotes
[350:1] A fugitive piece, written on a window by Lady Montagu, after her marriage (1713). See Overbury, page 193.
[350:2] What say you to such a supper with such a woman?—Byron: Note to a Second Letter on Bowles.