A man says farewell to the stream that curls around Eliza’s home, and the goodbye uncovers a suffering he has long suppressed. Consumed by a love he dare not confess, he feels condemned to drag a ‘hopeless chain’ — burning inwardly, yet forced into silence. Any outward sign, a sigh or groan, might betray him, but he sees no chance of relief; she cannot or will not ease his pain. His only plea is for her pity and forgiveness, as if his devotion were a wrongdoing. He recalls being enslaved by her voice and her eyes without realising the danger, much like a sailor caught unawares by a deadly whirlpool, only comprehending the ruin when it’s too late. The stream itself becomes a silent witness to his grief, winding away like the hope he can’t hold onto. The mood is heavy with quiet desperation and longing, the tenderness sharpening the isolation. There is no anger, just the gentle, crushing weight of a hidden love.
494. Song—Farewell thou stream that winding flows — Summary
FAREWELL, thou stream that winding flows Around Eliza’s dwelling; O mem’ry! spare the cruel thoes Within my bosom swelling. Condemn’d to drag a hopeless chain And yet in secret languish; To feel a fire in every vein, Nor dare disclose my anguish.
Love’s veriest wretch, unseen, unknown, I fain my griefs would cover; The bursting sigh, th’ unweeting groan, Betray the hapless lover. I know thou doom’st me to despair, Nor wilt, nor canst relieve me; But, O Eliza, hear one prayer— For pity’s sake forgive me!
The music of thy voice I heard, Nor wist while it enslav’d me; I saw thine eyes, yet nothing fear’d, Till fears no more had sav’d me: Th’ unwary sailor thus, aghast The wheeling torrent viewing, ’Mid circling horrors sinks at last, In overwhelming ruin.