Edna St.Vincent Millay: Fatal Interview 03 - No Lack Of Counsel

[chaffinch1]

III
No lack of counsel from the shrewd and wise
How love may be acquired and how conserved
Warrants this laying bare before your eyes
My needle to your north abruptly swerved;
If I would hold you, I must hide my fears
Lest you be wanton, lead you to believe
My compass to another quarter veers,
Little surrender, lavishly receive.

But being like my mother the brown earth
Fervent and full of gifts and free from guile,
Liefer would I you loved me for my worth,
Though you should love me but a little while,
Than for a philtre and doll can brew, —
Though thus I bound you as I long to do.

There is a mistake in the English, which was evidently sourced from another mistaken version on the web.
it should be:
...
Than for a philtre any doll can brew, —
...
(http://digitalcommons.colby.edu/cgi/view...context=cq)