Excerpt from Recreations For the King is filled with sorrow, And he bids his harem dance, While he sinks in dreamy languor 'neath the anguish of their glance, As their feet are gaily tripping Through a maze of utter woe, And the streaming flames are stripping From their bodies, bare as snow; As they dazzle him with whiteness, Throwing high their tortured arms, Singing with transmuted madness, Luring him with hellish charms, Writhing in delirious revel, Bathed in life, forever drenched With the never-ending torments Of Desire that's never quenched. Who will soothe the King in sadness, Who will share his bridal bed, Who will drain the bitter gladness Steeped in love forever dead? Look, his eyes are slowly turning To a woman's flowing hair, Pale the lambent tongues are burning Round her face so strangely fair. Now his face is grim with passion, Like a death his limbs are set, Fast his soul is ebbing from him What will such a love beget? About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.