AN HUMBLE OFFERING TO THE Sacred Memory OF THE LATE MOST SERENE AND Potent Monarch CHARLES II. By J. Phillip's, Gent.  
LONDON, Printed for Randal Taylor, near Stationers-Hall. MDCLXXXV.   

AN HUMBLE OFFERING TO THE Sacred Memory OF THE LATE Most Serene and Potent MONARCH CHARLES II.  

I.  
'TIS not for Vulgar Verse  
To soar those heights, and reach those Fires,  
That should inflame  
The Breast of Him, that full of Thought aspires  
Above the Common Flight of Fame,  
To pay the Tribute due  
To Royal funerals, and a Monarch's Hearse.  
'Twas therefore that the Ancient World assigned  
Another way to grace  
The State of Kings, when they in Marriage joined  
The Sons of God with Humane Race.  
From thence by Holy Writ allowed  
Those Consecrated Odds  
Above the Common Crowd.  
For Sovereign Kings  
Are our Terrestrial Gods.  
From Them, as from the proper Springs,  
Mercy and Justice, Peace and Safety flow:  
They Blessings on the People shower;  
With equal Power  
To punish, or Rewards bestow.   

II.  
And such was our Immortal CHARLES the Great,  
Embracing now  
His Father's Blessed Soul;  
Whose soft Control  
Three Nations made  
The Happy Seat  
Of Plenty and Peace, and all our former Storms allayed.  
Departed therefore to another Throne,  
And the Enjoyment of another Crown,  
Where His Dominions full as far extend  
In Blissful Rule, and Undisturbed Command.  
For if in Heaven there be Degrees  
Of Power and Dignities,  
We may have Reason to believe,  
'Tis the Sublime Prerogative  
Of Kings on Earth, to be in Heaven the same,  
In those vast Regions of Ethereal Flame  
And spacious Empire, where  
Exalted Bliss, that never wants,  
Can ne'er impair  
The Sovereign Dignity of Royal Saints.   

III.  
Let it not then be said, Kings die;  
They only change their Spheres;  
For here, they move like Stars;  
Above, They other Orbs assume,  
And Constellations strait become.  
Thus Leda's Eldest Son,  
To his beloved Brother Kind,  
His Grand Prerogative on Earth resigned,  
To share with One he loved to that Degree,  
His Royal Immortality.   

IV.  
Long had Three Potent Realms bewailed  
Th' Oppressive Hand  
Of Bold Rebellion, pampered with Success;  
Discord and Slaughter Chaosed all the Land,  
And ruinous Anarchy prevailed,  
Till at length Rebels against Rebels fought,  
With deadly feud,  
And their own Monstrous Bulk of Strength subdued.  
But than it was,  
Three Kingdoms, bleeding, mangled, torn,  
In Ruins all forlorn,  
Showing their ghastly Wounds, for swift Redress  
Their Exiled Prince besought:  
Who strait appearing, with His Vernal Heat  
Revived th' Autumnal Face  
Of Church and State,  
And Wild Disorder became Lovely Grace.   

V.  
This a Bright Star, that at His Birth  
Out-shone the Noonday Light,  
Foretold the wondering Earth.  
For Heaven, that shows no Prodigies in vain,  
By that made known,  
That one day He should so outshine the Sun,  
And like that Star regain  
The Ancient Luster of His Clouded Right.  
The Valiant Son of jesse thus  
Distressed at first, perplexed, and grieved,  
And sparingly in Foreign Courts relieved,  
Disgraced at Home, to Death pursued,  
No Safety in judea found;  
By Restoration till in Hebron Crowned.  
Then courted by his Foes,  
The Israelites renewed  
Their broken Vows.  
The silenced Virgins once more sweetly sang;  
And shady Hermon with his Triumphs rang.   

VI  
And now He sits Enthroned;  
Tho Young, the Eldest Prince in Europe Crowned:  
And justly too might He in Years excel,  
That knew so well  
To dazzle all the World  
By Great Examples of His own;  
So Bright within His Northern Sphere  
The Glory of His Virtues shone.  
Virtues in Constellation met  
And radiant only in the British Sky,  
For other Kings to steer,  
Since Pilots too of Kingdoms They,  
The different Vessels of their distant Sway.  
To Wonder Just, and Clement to Excess;  
In that more Godlike Great,  
Who Mercy still prefers  
Before His Judgment-Seat.  
This the Young Vespasian famed;  
This our Immortal CHARLES no, less;  
Both therefore the Delight of Humane Kind.  
Such Matchless Patterns of Imperial Glory  
By Providence designed,  
That reading One, we read the Other's Story;  
While Both with equal Ardour strove  
By Acts of Grace to win their Subjects Love.   

VII.  
Alike Indulgent, equally Sincere,  
His Lovely Eyes were the more Lovely Seat  
Of Humble and Majestic Both;  
At once begetting Love and Fear.  
When He gave Audience to the Great,  
His Bright Majestic Beams He wore;  
But His Humility received the Poor,  
With open Ear  
Their just Complaints to hear.  
Truly Religious, far beyond  
The vain Impertinence of Bigotism,  
For still the Church's Rights  
And Public Worship were His Reverend Cares;  
Which all along He still secured from Schism,  
And sly Attacks of Canting Hypocrites,  
While only Learned Worth He called  
To fill the Patriarchal Chairs.   

VIII.  
Prudent in Counsel, and in Battle Fierce;  
No Prince more studious of His People's Weal:  
Yet for their Sakes, when once provoked to Wars,  
He would not fail  
To keep Invasion from his guarded Shore;  
And rather chose  
To be th' Aggressor, then expect His Foes.  
Thus Plenty flourished in the Arms of Peace,  
And Peace with Plenty War supplied;  
For all His Wars took Peace's Side;  
And only They that fought for Honour, died.  
The Rest, Estates and Harvests still enjoyed;  
And all were Blest that valued Happiness;  
Such Leisure our Terrestrial God  
On Us bestowed,  
To sleep in War secure.  
But neither did those Storms endure,  
For by His Far-famed Brother's Conquering Sword,  
Those daring Foes subdued,  
For Mercy sued,  
And Peace was also to the Waves restored.  
The Victor would no longer then pursue  
His Just Revenge: for well he knew,  
Earth only then resembles Heaven, when free  
From Rage, and Man-devouring Cruelty.   

IX.  
His Sea-girt Islands thus at Peace,  
The vaster Continent was all embroiled,  
And her most Fertile Fields, without Surcease▪  
By wicked War despoiled:  
What time, by their Distresses driven,  
The loud continual Cries  
Of the Afflicted crossed the Seas,  
As at a distance Poor men's Tears reach Heaven,  
And pierced His Sacred Breast.  
Then could not our Compassionate sovereign brook  
The Havoc that Ambition made,  
While ransacked Cities their lost Wealth condole,  
And Desolation revealed in the Waste  
Of whole Dispeopled Provinces.  
But feeling His Magnanimous Soul  
With Royal Pity struck,  
He straight resolved their Succour, & His timely Aid.   

X.  
He knew His wide Command  
Of Sea and Land.  
And therefore generously disdained  
In vain to hold the Balance in His Hand:  
The gallic Rage  
Must therefore feel His powerful Might,  
Or render to His Sacred Umpirage.  
But first, in Prudence, He more softly chose  
By holy Mediation to Compose  
The Bloody Strife, and gently cool  
The Flaming Ardour of Aspiring Rule;  
Deeming, Victorious Reason would afford  
A Nobler Conquest than the Sword.  
Thus interposing, all submit,  
And with respectful Awe  
Lay their Pretensions at His Feet:  
And finding His Determinations Just,  
The Germans gladly yield,  
The gallic Fury murmuring, quits the Field;  
And the distinct Confederates  
Applaud the Issue of His Wise Debates.   

XI.  
heavens! Could it e'er enter Humane Thought,  
To practise Mischief against such a Prince?  
This surely must the World convince,  
That Earth is Wickeder than Hell,  
Where God's Proud Criminals united burn,  
And their Great Lucifer Reigns safe from Plots:  
But here, Rebellion Heads a Monstrous Rout  
More Mischievous than They.  
Such was that Impious Cabal,  
Th' Offspring of Night, Contention's Sons,  
By whom we learn, there is no Rest,  
But where the Whole are Wicked, or All Blessed.  
Was our sweet Sovereign's Mercy such a Crime,  
To move your eager Gall?  
Yes— All was Criminal,  
Which They themselves had forfeited.  
Was it His Prudence, most sublime,  
That Charged their cursed Infernal Guns?  
Or was His Patience at the Rye waylaid?  
Did His Humility your Pride incense  
To murder Sacred Innocence?  
And in His Person show,  
Could ye reach Heaven, what you to God would do?  
Must the Faith's True Defender bleed to Death,  
A Sacrifice to Cooper's Wrath?  
Must God's Anointed lose His Sacred Blood,  
To gratify a Cursed Brood  
Of Joiner's, Catchpoles, and a Priest of Baal?  
Hear, O ye heavens! who had designed His Fall.  
But thus a Young misguided Son,  
Even in Saturn's Golden Reign,  
Found an Ungodly Train  
Of Villainous Confederates, his Father to Dethrone.   

XII.  
Had our Great Caesar fallen by such rude Hands,  
We might with Reason have bewailed His Fate;  
But Heaven was kind,  
Disclosed their Monstrous Hate,  
And up to Public Shame resigned  
Those Bold Contemners of His soft Commands.  
And all the Land with cordial Sounds  
Of Loyalty rejoiced,  
To see encroaching Tumult curbed,  
And those that would have our sweet Peace disturbed  
By Justice cropped, or Foreign Vagabonds.   

XIII.  
When Providence these Miracles had wrought,  
One now remained, already then designed,  
(For Providence does not work by Rote)  
To call our Monarch to Eternal Bliss,  
And leave His Parallel behind.  
Nor could Heaven miss▪  
For straight th' Illustrious JAMES, desired  
Of all with Loyal Thoughts inspired,  
Was still preserved, to show  
How kindly Heaven supplies,  
Intending well to order Things below.   

XIV.  
Kingdoms, like Men  
Their Paroxysms have;  
Which, if they meet not timely Cure,  
Send 'em to fell Destruction's Grave.  
Thus Mournful Britain, sick by Sympathy,  
Languished as He lost Strength,  
Until at length  
In losing Him, the Kingdom feared to die.  
He all the while like Great Augustus lay,  
Nor grieving for His Quiet Day;  
Nor anxious for His People, well aware  
Who would be next their Angel Tutelar.  
For, like the old  
Expiring Herb's, He foresaw  
The future Grandeur of His Brother's Awe.  
For Kings Before their last Aerial Flight,  
Are privileged to deep Foresight.  
Orodes thus, half Bloodless, and half Cold,  
Mezentius Fate foretold.  
From other Fears His Virtues set Him free,  
Prepared for Second Caesar's wished Euthanasie;  
What time that Sable Cloud  
That soon or late eclipses all our Light,  
Hung o'er His Brows, and took Him from His Subject's Sight.   

XV.  
Dull Sorrow in the Morn;  
I' th' Afternoon a strange  
And sudden Turn:  
And then distracted by the Change,  
We knew not whether to Rejoice, or Mourn.  
At length we mourned, rejoiced, rejoiced and grieved,  
And thus our Joys our Sorrows still relieved.  
But Mourning surely is His Due,  
And we must mourn, since He mourns too  
That to His Brother's High Renown Succeeds.  
Ill would it Loyalty beseem  
Not now to bear a Part with Him,  
Till He put off, His Mourning Weeds.  
Mourn for His Sake that now is gone;  
'Twould be Ingrateful to forget so soon  
The Peace and Plenty of His Reign,  
And His Preserving Cares  
So Nobly to supply His Throne.  
Mourn for His Sake, who now survives  
Protector of our Laws and Lives;  
Whose Glories now outshine  
The Story of the British Line:  
He'll recompense your Grief  
With a more generous Supply  
Of long Tranquillity,  
While You enjoy  
Th' Effects of His Courageous Flame,  
And those Great Deeds, that must enlarge His Fam●  
And when we see Him Crowned with all His Beams,  
Let's not Forget our Second CHARLES,  
But Honour and Obey our Second JAMES.   
FINIS.