“Alas! the praise given to the ear
Ne'er was nor e'er can be sincere—
And does but waste away the mind
On which it preys: in vain
Would they in whom its poison lurks
A worthier state attain.”

—  Letitia Elizabeth Landon


Poetical Portrait III
The Venetian Bracelet (1829)

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Letitia Elizabeth Landon 785
English poet and novelist 1802–1838

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