George Marion McClellan, "An Octoroon's Farewell" (1895)
O love, farewell, a long farewell,
Ten thousand times good-night,
God's benediction with thee dwell,
And guide thy steps aright.
We part to-night; it must be so,
Tis best for thee and me,
But my true heart can never know
Love lessening for thee.
Love's promises were but a myth,
A mockery and sham; I've lived to learn
I'm tainted with
The cursed blood of Ham.
Dear love, how could I know when I
Gave to thee all my heart,
That far as earth is from the sky,
Our lives must lie apart?
Yet I can never rue the day,
Though all the world I miss,
For death itself can not outweigh,
My momentary bliss--
Published in Poems, 1895