Ja deus mi sal, si ja soi amoroza Coindeta soi; De lui amar mia sui cobeitoza Coindeta soi; Ans qan lo vei ne soi tan vergonhoza Q’en prec la mort q’el venga tost aucire. Coindeta soi. Mas d’una re m’en soi ben acordada Coindeta soi; S’il mieus amics m’a s’amor emendada Coindeta soi; Vel bel esper a cui me soi donada Planh e sospir qar nol vei nil remire, Coindeta soi. E dirai vos de qem soi acordada Coindeta soi; Qel mieus amics m’a longamen amada Coindeta soi A li sera m’amors abandonada El bels espers q’eu tant am e dezire, Coindeta soi. En aqest son fas coindeta balada Coindeta soi; E prec a totz qe sia lonh cantada, Coindeta soi; E qe la chant tota domn’ ensenhada Del mieu amic q’eu tant am e dezire. Coindeta soi. An attempt at translation in prose or verse would be as impossible as it would be superfluous. The charm lies in the music of the words. Moreover, the subject is by no means edifying. It is the ever recurring burden of Provençal poetry: a lady dissatisfied with her husband and openly calling for death to come and kill him soon in order that she may be united to her lover. Essentially identical with the _balada_ is the _dansa_, of which also several examples are found in the manuscripts. The difference which the _Leys d’amors_ tries to establish between these and other variations of the dance-song are evidently pedantic quibbles, and, moreover, not borne out by the best models. CHAPTER XI. ARTIFICIAL FORMS OF POETRY.—THE SESTINA. In the forms of lyrical verse hitherto considered by us we were able to trace some popular germs, considerably modified and highly developed though they might appear. But any such connection ceases in the numberless variations of verse and stanza, in which the unrivalled workmanship of the troubadours loved to shine. That this ease of inventing ever new and ever more complicated combinations frequently led to excesses of artificiality need not surprise us. Our admiration of the marvellous ingenuity displayed by the poets is mingled with regret at seeing it wasted on trifles.