Mary Wyatt and Henry Green

1.

Come, listen to my tragedy, good people, young and old;
An awful story you shall hear, 'twill make your blood run cold;
Concerning a fair damsel; Mary Wyatt was her name—
She was poisoned by her husband, and he hung for the same.

2.

Mary Wyatt she was beautiful, not of a high degree,
And Henry Green was wealthy, as you may plainly see;
He said, “My dearest Mary, if you'll become my wife,
I will guard you and protect you, through all this gloom of life.”

3.

“O Henry, I would marry you, I would give my consent,
But before that we'd been married long, I fear you would repent;
Before that we'd been married long, you'd make me a disgrace,
Because I'm not as rich as you, which oft times is the case.”

4.

“O Mary, dearest Mary, how can you grieve me so?
I'll vow and 'clare by all that's fair, I always will prove true;
But unless you consent to become my wife, you'll surely end my life,
For no longer do I wish to live, unless you are my wife.”

5.

Believing what he said was true, she then became his wife,
But little did she think, poor girl, that he would end her life;
O little did she think, poor child, and little did she expect
That he would end her precious life he'd just sworn to protect.

6.

They had not been married but a week or two, when she was taken ill,
Great doctors were sent for, to try their powerful skill;
Great doctors were sent for, but none of them could save,
And soon it was proclaimed she must go to her grave.

7.

O when her brothers heard of this, straightway to her did go,
Saying, “Sister dear, you're dying, the doctors tell us so”;
Saying, “Sister dear, you're dying, your life is at an end”;
Saying, “Haven't you been poisoned by the one you call your friend.

8.

“I'm on my deathbed lying. I know that I must die,
I know I'm going before my God, and the truth I won't deny;
I know my Henry's poisoned me—dear brother, for him send,
For I love him now as dearly as when he was my friend.”

9.

When Henry heard those tidings, straightway to his wife to see,
Saying “Mary, my dearest Mary, was you ever deceived in me?”
Three times she called “Dear Henry,” then, and sank into a swoon;
He gazed on her indifferently, and in silence left the room.

10.

“Now Henry has deceived me,—how my poor heart is wrung!
But when I'm dead and buried, O don't have poor Henry hung!
I freely have forgiven him—” and she turned upon her side;
“In Heaven meet me, Henry!” and she sweetly smiled and died.
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