e.~ .n ^-^ 0^ ^ ... -Q ^^. ^ '"<«'. ..^^ vO 0^ o. ,0- «^°^ ^"^ o- ^-/"^•^A^^.-./V*""" .^^ '>o^ ; •e^^^^^ /^^\ \^/ •*^^''° %'^^^ -^^fe' "^vo/ v^ . t . . ^ -/i <&-*" cO" o V *i*.5^ 3^M 6G625 LIFE OF BLAIR BY S. C. HALL. It is a common remark, that the lives of men of letters, are in general destitute of incident. But it is more parti- cularly the case in such instances as that now before us, of a clergyman, who considered the duties of his profession as sacred, and whose abode was constantly in the country. But as everything which concerns him must be interesting to the reader, the few particulars of his life that have been collected, will here be detailed. Robert Blair was born in Edinburgh, in the year 1699. His father, the Rev. David Blair, was one of the chaplains to the king. His grandfather, Rev. Robert Blair, was one of the most distinguished Scottish clergymen in the time of the civil wars. The Poet's son was Solicitor-Gleneral for Scotland, and his cousin was Hugh Blair, D. D., the emi- nent Professor of Rhetoric and Belles Lettres in the Uni- versity of Edinburgh. Having obtained the advantages of a sound and liberal education, and improved those advantages by travel and a residence of " some time" on the continent, he was, in 1731, ordained minister of Athelstaneford, in the county of East Lothian : here the subsequent years of his life were passed, in ease, quiet, and contentment; in the enjoyment of tran- quil pleasures, in cultivating literary pursuits, in discharging the duties of his profession, and in the happiness of domes- tic life. His tastes were elegant and domestic. Books and flowers seem to have been the only rivals in his thoughts. He was IV LI F E OF B L AI R. conversant in optical and microscopical knowledge ; a bo- tanist and florist. His rambles were from his fireside to bis garden ; and although the only record of his genius is of a gloomy character, it is evident that habit and circumstances combined to render him cheerful and happy. As a preacher, he was zealous and animated, discovering much poetical imagination. He married Isabella Law, daughter of Mr. Law of Elvingston, a lady of uncommon beauty and amia- ble manners. With her father, who had been Professor of Moral Philosophy in the University of Edinburgh, he had been long and intimately acquainted ; and, on the occasion of his death, which happened several years before Blair's mar- riage with his daughter, he wrote and printed a funeral poem to his memory. By his lady, who survived him several years, he had five sons and one daughter. Our author died of a fever, on the 4th of February, 1746, in the 47th year of his age : and was succeeded in his living at Athelstane- ford, by Mr. John Home, the celebrated author of Douglas. "The last end Of the good man was peace!" This is all that has been collected relating to this accom- plished scholar and elegant poet; whose genius and virtue, though celebrated by some of the most eminent of his poeti- cal contemporaries, have sufiiered such unmerited neglect, that his name is not to be found in any collection of literary biography. In extenuation, it may be urged, that the life of a country clergyman, constantly engaged in the duties of his profession, in the practice of the domestic virtues, and in the occupation of literature, however respectable such a character may be, can afford slender materials for biography. Our author's passion for natural history obtained him the correspondence of that celebrated naturalist, Henry Bar- ker, Esq., F. B. S., an intelligent, upright, and benevolent m.m, who was particularly attentive to the improvement of LIFEOF BLAIR. V natural science, and very solicitous for the prosecution of useful discoveries. With Dr. Doddridge, a man whose learn- ing was respected by Warburton and Newton, and whose piety was venerated by Lyttleton and West, he also culti- vated a correspondence ; probably through the kindness of Dr. Watts, or the good offices of their common friend, Co). James Gardiner, who was slain at the battle of Prestonpans, Sept. 21, 1745, and aifectionately commemorated by Dr. Doddridge, in '' Some Remarkable Passages in his Life," published in 1747. The " Grave" is the only Poem Dr. Blair ever wrote — if we except the lines to the memory of Mr. Law. It is sin- gular that a poet so capable of producing great things — and with ample leisure and ease of mind to do so — should have written nothing else. Even this must have been commenced at an earl}^ age. The following letter, written in 1742, ad- dressed to Dr. Doddridge, exhibits an advantageous speci- men of Blair's temper and disposition, and contains some interesting information relating to the composition and pub- lication of The Grave. " You will be justly surprised with a letter from- one whose name is not so much as known to you : nor shall 1 offer to make an apology. Though I am entirely unac- quainted with your person, I am no stranger to your merit as an author ; neither am I altogether unacquainted with your personal character, having often heard honorable men- tion made of you by my much respected and worthy friends Colonel Gardiner and Lady Frances. About ten months ago. Lady Frances did me the favor to transmit to me some manuscript hymns of yours, with which I was wonderfully delighted. I wish I could, on my part, contribute in any measure to your entertainment, as you have sometimes done to mine, in a very high degree. And that I may show how wil- ling I am to do so, I have desired Dr. Watts to transmit you \ 1 LIVE ov B j: a 1 k . a manuscript poem of mine, entitled The Grave, written, I hope, in a way not unbecoming my profession as a minister of the Gospel, though the greatest part of it was composed several years before I was clothed with so sacred a character. I was urged by some friends here to whom I showed it, to make it public ; nor did I decline it, provided I had the approba- tion of Dr. Watts, from whom I have received many civili- ties, and for whom I have ever entertained the highest re- gard. Yesterday I had a letter from the Doctor, signifying his approbatiun of the piece, in a manner most obliging. A great deal less from him would have done me no small honor. But, at the same time, he mentions to me, that he had offered it to two booksellers of his acquaintance, who, he tells me, did not care to run the risk of publishing it. They can scarcely think (considering how critical an age we live in, with respect to such kind of writings) that a per- son living three hundred miles from London could write so as to be acceptable to the fashionable and polite. Perhaps it may be so j though at the same time, I must say, in order to make it more generally liked, I was obliged sometimes to go cross to my own inclination, well knowing that whatever poem is written on a serious argument, must, on that very account, be under peculiar disadvantages ; and therefore proper arts must be used to make such a piece go down with a licentious age, which cares for none of those things. I beg pardon for breaking in on moments precious as yours, and hope you will be so kind as to give me your opinion of the poem." The first edition of " The Grrave" was printed at Edin- burgh, in 1747, consequently the author never enjo3'ed the luxury of seeing it in print. Since then, that which the " two booksellers" rejected, has been reprinted perhaps a hundred times, and will never be long out of print while the English lano'uaaie endures. It is to be lamented that the [, I F K (t F n I, A I K praise which this poem received was limited to a few friends, and that his attempt to extend his name was discouraged by the ignorance of those who did not " care to run the risk of publishing it." Had circumstances been either less or more favorable to the Poet, he might have left a still richer le- gacy to posterity. '' The Grave," however, is sufficient to place the writer high in the list of British poets. Its popularity is not alone dependent upon the fine moral tone that pervades it. Not only because it is in the happiest sense of the term '' reli- gious," has it been universally read, and as universally ad- mired. The language is rich, nervous, and pathetic. It abounds in pictures — original, striking, and always natural. At times he flies from the actual to the imaginative, but he never passes the bounds of probability. What he depicts — even the strong man in his agony, &c., he might have seen. Above all, the Poet's kindly, generous, and benevolent na- ture, peers out even in his gloomiest or most harrowing de- scriptions : — and he at all times bears in mind that the office of a Christian clergyman involves a high and imperative duty. He therefore never loses an opportunity of impress- ing upon the minds of his readers the solemn lessons it is his business to teach and inculcate. Even in those passages which call upon satire to co-operate with truth — and which sometimes verge too closely upon the ludicrous — his one great object is clearly paramount — to '^ warn and scare" from the path which alone leads to a grave that must be terrible. His more awful descriptions are, however, at times, relieved by those that are gentle as well as beautiful — the Apostrophe to Friendship, " The tie more stubborn far than nature's band," may be quoted as one of the most delicious in the language. The Grave is a volume of " pic- tures to the ear." The representations of the Poet ai-e as vivid as if they were conveyed to us on canvas. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAINTER. FRONTISPIECE, CRESWICK,. ENGRAVER. . . STEEL. THE BELL, RETZSCH, REASE. FRIENDSHIF, AVARREN, STEEL. THE FUNERAL PAGEANT, RETZSCH, REASE. INVOCATION OF PEACE, RETZSCH, REASE. THE POET,. . .■ CORBOULD, STEEL. THE GRAVE, ETCHING CLUB, STEEL. THE FALL OF THE LEAF RETZSCH, REASE. Cjir (Sriirth Whilst some affect the sun, and some the shade, Some flee the citj, some the hermitage, Their aims as various as the roads thej take In journeying through life ; the task be mine To paint the gloomy horrors of the tomb ; Th' appointed place of rendezvous, where all These trav'llers meet. Thy succors I implore. Eternal King ! whose potent arm sustains The keys of hell and death. The Grave, dread thing ! Men shiver when thou'rt named : nature appall'd Shakes off her wonted firmness. Ah ! how dark Thy long-extended realms, and rueful wastes ! Where nought but silence reigns, and night, dark night, Dark as was chaos ere the infant sun Was rolled together, or had tried its beams Athwart the gloom profound ! The sickly taper By glim'ring through thy loAV-brow'd misty vaults, Furr'd round with mouldy damps, and ropy slime, 1 T UK U K A V h; Lets fall a supernumerary horror, And only serves to make thy night more irksonif. Well do I know thee by thy trusty yew, Cheerless, unsocial plant ! that loves to dwell 'Midst skulls and coffins, epitaphs and worms ; Where light-heel'd ghosts, and visionary shades. Beneath the wan cold moon (as fame reports) Embodied thick perform their mystic rounds : No other merriment, dull tree ! is thine. Ctje Inillnnrii jfanr. See yonder hallow'd fane ! the pious work Of names once famed, now dubious or forgot. And buried mid'st the wreck of things which were ; There lie interr'd the more illustrious dead. The wind is up : hark ! how it howls ! methinks. Till now I never heard a sound so dreary. Doors creak, and Avindows clap, and night's foul bird. Rook'd in the spire, screams loud; the gloomy aisles Black plaster'd, and hung round with shreds or scutcheons. And tatter'd coats of arms, send back the sound Laden with heavier airs, from the low vaults, The mansions of the dead. Rous'dfrom their slumbers, In grim array the grizly spectres rise, Grin horrible, and obstinately sullen Pass and repass, hush'd as the foot of night. Again ! the screech-owl shrieks : ungracious sound I I'll hear no more ; it makes one's blood run cliill. C'jir CliurrlninnV Quite round the pile, a row of rev'rend elmg, C^oeval near with that, all ragged show. Long lash'd by the rude winds : some rift half down Their branchless trunks : others so thin a-top That scarce two crows could lodge in the same tree. Strange things, the neighbors say, have happened here Wild shrieks have issued from the hollow tombs : Dead men have come again and walk'd about : And the great bell has toll'd unrung, untouch VI. Such tales their cheer, at wake or gossipping. When it drnws near to witchiug time of night. t ItjjlUllllUlj. Oft in the lone church-yard at night I've seen, By glimpse of moon-shine, cheqii'ring through the trees, The school-boy, with his satchel in his hand. Whistling aloud to bear his courage up, And lightly tripping o'er the long flat stones (With nettles skirted, and with moss o'ergrown) That tell in homely phrase who lie below ; Suddenly he starts ! and hears, or thinks he hears, The sound of something purring at his heels : Full fast he flies, and dares not look behind him. Till out of breath he overtakes his fellows ; Who gather round, and wonder at the tale Of horrid apparition, tall and ghastly. That walks at dead of night, or takes his stand O'er some new-open'd grave ; and, strange to tell ! Evanishes at crowing of the cock. €\)t 'IVihnit, The new-made widow too, I've sometimes spied. Sad sight ! slow moving o'er the prostrate dead : Listless she crawls along in doleful black, While bursts of sorrow gush from either eye, Fast falling down her now untasted cheek. Prone on the lonely grave of the dear man She drops ; while busy meddling memory, In barbarous succession, musters up The past endearments of their softer hours. Tenacious of its theme. Still, still she thinks She sees him, and indulging the fond thought, Clings yet more closely to the senseless turf. Nor heeds the passenger who looks that way. rri.sinik.Drl, And sal us (Umii l|,u]. ilir sl.ipiiii;' towsliii .nvorii hank. ,f^rinihijii|i. Invidious Grave ! how dost thou rend in sunder Whom love has knit, and sympathy made one I A tie more stubborn far than nature's band. Friendship ! mysterious cement of the soul ! Sweet'ner of life ! and solder of society ! I owe thee much. Thou hast deserv'd from nie Far, far beyond what I can ever pay. Oft have I prov'd the labors of thy love, And the Avarm efforts of the gentle heart Anxious to please. ! when my friend and 1 In some thick wood have wander 'd heedless on, Hid from the vulgar eye ; and sat us down Upon the sloping cowslip-cover'd bank. Where the pure limpid stream has slid along In grateful eddies through the underwood. Sweet murm'ring; methought, the shrill-tongu'd thrusli Mended his song of love ; the sooty blackbird Mellow'd his pipo, and softon'd every note : F 15 r r, N t) S IT I !• . I O The eglantine smell'd sweeter, and the rose Assum'd a dye more deep ; whilst every flower Vied with its fellow-plant in luxury Of dress. ! then the longest Summer's day Seem'd too, too much in haste ; still the fidl heart Had not imparted half: 'twas happiness Too exquisite to last. Of joys departed, Not to return, how painful the remembrance I Clir ^Filter. Dull Grave ! thou spoil'st the dance of youthful blood, Strik'st out the dimple from the cheek of mirth, And every smirking feature from the face ; Branding our laughter with the name of madness. Where are the jesters now ? the men of health Complexionally pleasant? where the droll. Whose very look and gesture was a joke To clapping theatres and shouting crowds, And made e'en thick-lipp'd musing Melancholy To gather up her face into a smile Before she was aware ? Ah ! sullen now, And dumb as the green turf that covers them ! €\}t Barriur ling. Where are the mighty thunderbolts of war. The Roman Csesars and the Grecian chiefs, The boast of story? Where the hot-brain'd youtli. Who the tiara at his pleasure tore From kings of all the then discover'd globe ; And cried, forsooth, because his arm was hamper'd, And had not room enough to do its work ? Alas ! how slim ! dishonorably slim ! And cramm'd into a space we blush to name. Proud royalty ! how alter'd in thy looks ! How blank thy features, and how wan thy hue I Son of the morning ! whither art thou gone ? Where hast thou hid thy many spangled-head, And the majestic menace of thine eyes, Felt from afar ? pliant and powerless now : Like new-born infant bound up in his swatb.es, Or victim tumbled flat upon his back. That throbs beneath the sacrificer's knife ; Mute must thou bear the strife of little tongue-,, 1' 1 1 i; W A R K I 1 1 K Iv I N ii . "J 1 And coward insults of the base-born crowd. That grudge a privilege thou never hadst, But only hoped for in the peaceful Grave, Of being unmolested and alone. Arabia's gums and odoriferous drugs, And honors by the heralds duly paid In mode and form, e'en to a very scruple ; cruel irony ! these come too late ; And only mock whom they were meant to honor. Surely, there's not a dungeon slave that's buried In the highway, unshrouded and uncoffin'd, But lies as soft, and sleeps as sound as he. Sorry pre-eminence of high descent Above the baser born, to rot in state ! €ht jFiuirrnl |3ngrnnt. But see ! the a\ ell-plunied hearse conies nodding on. Stately and slow ; and proj^erly attended By the whole sable tribe, that jminful Avateh The sick man's door, and live upon the dead, By letting out their persons by the hour To mimic sorroAV, Avhen the heart's not sad. IIoAV rich the trappings, now they're all unfurl'd And glitt'ring in the sun ! Triumphant entries Of conquerors, and coronation pomps, In glory scarce exceed. Great gluts of people Retard th' unwieldy show ; whilst from the casement,*^ And houses' tops, ranks behind ranks close wedg'd Hang bellying o'er. But tell us, why this waste ? Why this ado in earthing up a carcase That's falln into disgrace, and in the nostril Smells horrible ! Ye undertakers ! tell us, "Midst all the gorgeous figures you exhibit, Why is the principal conceal'd, for Avhich Yon make this mighty stir ? 'Tis Avisely don(> : What Avould oftend the eye in a good picture. The painter casts discreetly into shades. lottnr. Pkoud lineage ! now how little thou appear'st ! Below the envy of the private man ! Honor, that meddlesome officious ill, Pursues thee e'en to death ; nor there stops short, Strange persecution ! when the Grave itself Ts no protection from rude suflferance. /nine. Absurd ! to think to over-reach the Grave, And from the wreck of names to rescue our's I The best concerted schemes men lay for fame Die fast away : only themselves die faster. The far-famed sculptor, and the laurell'd bard, These bold insurers of eternal fame, Supply their little feeble aids in vain. The tapering pyramid, the Egyptian's pride, And wonder of the world ! whose spiky top Has wounded the thick cloud, and long out-liv'd The angry shaking of the winter's storm ; Yet spent at last by th' injuries of Heaven, Shatter'd with age, and furrow'd o'er with years, The mystic cone, with hieroglyphics crusted, Gives way. lamentable sight ! at once The labor of whole ages lumbers down, A hideous and mis-shapen length of ruins. Sepulchral columns wrestle but in vain With all-subduing Time : his cank'ring hand F A M K . "^9 With calm, deliberate malice wasted them : Worn on the edge of days, the brass consumes. The busto moulders, and the deo|) cut marble. Unsteady to the steel, gives up its charge. Ambition, half convicted of her folly. Hangs down the head, and reddens at the talc. t±M (m ws Clir tfairniit. Here all the mighty trouhlers of the earth, Who swam to sov'reign rule through seas of blood ; Th' oppressive, sturdy, man-destroying villains. Who ravaged kingdoms, and laid empires waste, And in a cruel wantonness of power Thinn'd states of half their people, and gave up To want the rest ; now, like a storm that's spent. Lie hush'd, and meanly sneak behind thy covert. Vain thought ! to hide them from the general scorn. That haunts and dogs them like an injur'd ghost. Implacable. Here too the petty tyrant, Whose scant domains geographer ne'er noticed, And well for neighb'ring grounds, of arm as shoit : AVho fix'd his iron talons on the poor. And grip'd them, like some lordly beast of prey. Deaf to the forceful cries of gnawing hunger, And piteous, plaintive voice of misery (As if a slave was not a shred of nature. Of the same common substance with his lord) ; THE T Y R A N T . 33 Now tame and humble, like a child that's whipp'd, Shakes hands with dust and calls the worm his kinsman Nor pleads his rank and birthright. Under ground Precedency's a jest ; vassal and lord, Grossly familiar, side by side consume. /liitteri). When selt-esteem, or others' adulation, Would cunningly persuade us we were sometliing Above the common level of our kind ; The Grave gainsays the smooth-complexion'd flatt'ry, xVnd with blunt truth acquaints us what we are. iUnutii. Beauty ! thou pretty plaything ! dear deceit I That steals so softly o'er the stripling's heart, And gives it a new pulse unknown before, The Grave discredits thee : thy charms expung'd, Thy roses faded, and thy lillies soil'd, What hast thou more to boast of? Will thy lovers Flock round thee now, to gaze and do thee homage ? Methinks I see thee with thy head low laid : Whilst surfeited upon thy damask cheek, The high-fed worm, in lazy volumes roll'd, Riots unscar'd. For this was all thy caution ? For this thy painful labors at thy glass, T' improve those charms, and keep them in repair, For which the spoiler thanks thee not ? Foul feeder ! Coarse fare and carrion please thee full as well. And leave as keen a relish on the sense. Look, how the fair one weeps ! the conscious tears Stand thick as dew-drops on the bells of flowers : Honest effusion ! the swoln heart in vain Works hard to put a gloss on its distress. ?trrngtli. Strexotii, too I tliou surly, and less gentle boast Of those that laugh loud at the village ring I A fit of common sickness pulls thee down With greater ease than e'er thou didst the stripling That rashly dared thee to th' unequal fight. What groan was that I heard ? deep groan indeed I With anguish heavy laden ! let me trace it : From yonder bed it comes, where the strong man. By stronger arm belabor'd, gasps for breath Fiike a hard-hunted beast. How his great heart Beats thick I his roomy chest by far too scant To give the lungs full play. What now avail The strong-built sinewy limbs, and well-spread shoulder: See how he tugs for life, and lays about him, Mad with his pain ! eager he catches hold Of what comes next to hand, and grasps it hard, •fust like a creature drownint; ! hideous sight I how his eyes stand out, and stare full ghastly I Whilst the distemper's rank and deadly venom S T H V. N a T H . 41 Shoots like a l)nrning arrow 'cross his bowels, And drinks his marrow up. Heard you that groan ? It was his last. See how the great Goliath, Just like a child that brawl'd itself to rest, Lies still. What mean'st thou then, mighty boaster, To vaunt of nerves of thine ? What means the bull. Unconscious of his strength, to jDlay the coward. And flee before a feeble thing like man ; That, knowing well the slackness of his arm , Trusts only in the well-invented knife ! ^t Inge. With study pale, and midniglit vigils spent. The star-surveying sage, close to his eye Applies the sight-invigorating tube, And trav'Uing through the boundless length of space Marks well the courses of the far-seen orbs, That roll with regular confusion there. In ecstacy of thought. But ah ! proud man I Great heights are hazardous to the weak head : Soon, very soon, thy firmest footing fails, And down thou dropp'st into that darksome place, Where nor device nor knowlodsre ever came. ^jjc cDratnr. Here the tongue-warrior lies ! disabled now. Disarm'd, dishonor'd, like a wretch that's ga^rg d, iVnd cannot tell his ail to passers-by. Great man of language ! whence this mighty chanii This dumb despair, and drooping of the head ? Though strong Persuasion hung upon thy lip, And sly Insinuation's softer arts In ambush lay about thy flowing tongue ; Alas ! how chop-fall'n now ! thick mists and siloiuc Rest, like a weary cloud upon thy breast Unceasing. Ah ! where is the lifted arm. The strength of action, and the force of words. The well-turn'd period, and the well-tun'd voice, With all the lesser ornaments of phrase ? Ah ! fled forever, as they ne'er had been ! Ras'd from the book of fame : or, more provokiii;-, Perhaps some hackney hunger-bitten scribbler Insults thy memory, and blots thy tomb With long flat narrative, or duller rhymes With heavy halting pace, that drawl along ; Enough to rouse a dead man into rage. And warm, with red resentment, the won cheek. t inrtnr. Here the great masters of the healing art. These mighty mock defrauders of the tomb, Spite of their juleps and catholicons, Resign to fate. Proud -^sculapius' son, Where are thy boasted implements of art, And all thy well-cramm'd magazines of health ? Nor hill, nor vale, as far as ship could go, Nor margin of the gravel-bottom'd brook, Escap'd thy rifling hand : from stubborn shrulis Thou Avrung'st their shy retiring virtues out, And vex'd them in the fire ; nor fly, nor insect. Nor writhy snake, escap'd thy deep research. But why this apj^aratus ? why this cost ? Tell us, thou dought}" keeper from the grave ! Where are thy recipes and cordials now. With the long list of vouchers for thy cures ? Alas ! thou speak'st not. The-bold impostor Tjooks not more sillv, when the cheat's found out. Cbr JHtspr, Here the lank-sided miser, Avorst of felons ! Who meanly stole (discreditable shift !) From back and belly too their j^roper cheer ; Eas'd of a tax it irk'd the wretch to pay To his own carcase, now lies cheaply lodg'd. By clam'rous appetites no longer teas'd. Nor tedious bills of charges and repairs. But, ah ! where are his rents, his comings in ? Ay ! now you've made the rich man poor indeed : Robb'd of his gods, what has he left behind ? cursed lust of gold ! when for thy sake The fool throws up his interest in both worlds, First starved in this, then damn'd in that to come. €\ii 'llHMlltjill. How shocking must thy summons be, U Deatli To him who is at ease in his possessions ! Who, counting on long years of pleasure here. Is quite unfurnish'd for that world to come ! In that dread moment, how the frantic soul Raves round the walls of her clay tenement. Runs to each avenue, and shrieks for help. But shrieks in vain ! how wishfully she looks On all she's leaving, now no longer hers I A little longer, yet a little longer, might she stay to wash away her stains, And fit her for her passage : mournful sight I Her very eyes weep blood ; and every groan She heaves is big with horror ; but the foe. Like a staunch murd'rer, steady to his purpose, Pursues her close through every lane of life. Nor misses once the track, but presses on : 'Till forced at last to the tremendous verge, At once she sinks to everlastino; rain. •rii:il .iivliil -nil' Mil li..M-l,il rvr if |>.i.st!tl T" Icll wlials ,U»UK illl lb.' c.lluT Slili"' (Tyjif jFitinl Mnmtnt. Sure 'tis a serious thing to die, my soul ! What a strange moment must it be, when near The journey's end, thou hast the gulf in view ! That awful gulf no mortal ere repass'd To tell what's doing on the other side ! Nature runs back and shudders at the sight, And every life-string bleeds at thoughts of parting I For part they must : body and soul must part ; Fond couple ! link'd more close than wedded pair. This wings its way to its Almighty Source, The witness of its actions, now its judge ; That drops into the dark and noisome grave, Like a disabled pitcher, of no use. (Kh ?iiitih. 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