He's tired of taking care of someone and decides to leave that person; however, the construction "pray you won't follow" seems out of proportion. Perhaps he suspects he won't be able to leave that person a second time; all the "others" who have known and followed him might have taken advantage of that, or he knows this lover in particular would be hard to forget unless he puts as much distance between them as possible. The lover did, after all, give him a ring - a sign of commitment if there ever was one.
The lyrics read like he's brutally dumping someone - but pay attention to the way he delivers them and you'll find a whole different story. Isn't he absolutely miserable when he signs "How happy I will then be"?
He's tired of taking care of someone and decides to leave that person; however, the construction "pray you won't follow" seems out of proportion. Perhaps he suspects he won't be able to leave that person a second time; all the "others" who have known and followed him might have taken advantage of that, or he knows this lover in particular would be hard to forget unless he puts as much distance between them as possible. The lover did, after all, give him a ring - a sign of commitment if there ever was one.
The lyrics read like he's brutally dumping someone - but pay attention to the way he delivers them and you'll find a whole different story. Isn't he absolutely miserable when he signs "How happy I will then be"?