What is darling?

Famous quotes containing the word darling:

“With drums and guns, and guns and drums
The enemy nearly slew ye,
My darling dear, you look so queer,
Och, Johnny, I hardly knew ye!”
—Unknown. Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ye (l. Chorus.)

“Of all the girls that are so smart
There’s none like pretty Sally;
She is the darling of my heart,
And she lives in our alley.”
—Henry Carey (1693?–1743)

“My darling boy whom I shall never know,
My son, I love you in my deepest fears....”
—Allen Tate (1899–1979)