Ah, wasteful woman, she who may
On her sweet self set her own price,
Knowing man cannot choose but pay,
How has she cheapen'd paradise;
How given for nought her priceless gift,
How spoil'd the bread and spill'd the wine,
Which, spent with due, respective thrift,
Had made brutes men, and men divine.

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Coventry Patmore (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.