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 ^E-UNIVER%
 
 The W O R K S, 
 
 IN VERSE AND PROSE, 
 
 O F 
 
 WILLIAM SHENSTONE, Efq; 
 
 In THREE VOLUMES. With DECORATIONS 
 
 ' Safe tgo longoi 
 Cantando puerum memini me conJere folet* ViRO. 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 Right well I call to mind 
 
 When (yet a Boy) whole funs and lengthen'd day* 
 1 oft employ'd in chaunting fylvan lays. 
 
 The SIXTH EDITION. _ VOL. I. 
 
 \ 
 
 LONDON : Printed for J. DODSLEV in Pall-mall. 1791,
 
 o
 
 A 
 
 A D V E R T I S E M E N T 
 
 y.l 
 
 To the READER. 
 
 TO this Edition is fubjoined (for the 
 fake of thofe Readers to whom it may 
 not prove unwelcome) an Explanation, or 
 rather, in moft Places, <a liberal Imitation, 
 of all tke Latin Infcriptipns and Quotations 
 throughout this Work, by Mr. HULL. 
 That Gentleman's well-known Friendfhip for 
 Mr. SHENSTONE, and Willingnefs to oblige, 
 being his fole Inducements to this (as be 
 choofes to have it called) trifling Addition, 
 the Editor thinks it no more than a juft 
 Return of Gratitude to let his Purchafers 
 know to whom they are beholden for it. 
 Be it remembered however that it was exe- 
 cuted in a Country Retirement, where our 
 eminent Tranflators of the daffies- were 
 not at hand to be confuhed. 
 
 A3 PREFACE. 
 
 .19
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 A Great part of the poetical works of Mr. 
 SHENSTONE, particularly his Elegies and 
 Paftorals, are (as he himfelf exprefles it) " The 
 exact tranfcripts of the fituation of his own mind j" 
 and abound in frequent allufions to his own place, 
 the beautiful fcene of his retirement from the world. 
 Exclufively therefore of our natural curiofity to be 
 acquainted with the hiftory of an author whofe 
 works we perufe with pleafure, fome ftiort account 
 of Mr. SHENSTONE'S perfonal character, and fitu- 
 ation in life, may not only be agreeable, but abfo- 
 lutely neceflary, to the reader ; as it is impoflible he 
 Ihould enter into the true fpirit of his writings, if 
 he is entirely ignorant of thofe circumftances of his 
 life, which fometimes fo greatly influenced his reflec- 
 tions. 
 
 ~ 
 
 I could wifli however that this tafk had been al- 
 lotted to fome perfon capable of performing it in 
 that mafterly manner which the fubjecl fo well de- 
 ferves. To confefs the truth, it was chiefly to pre- 
 A 4 ' vent
 
 8 PREFACE. 
 
 vent his remains from falling into the hands of 
 any one ftill lefs qualified to do him juftice, that I 
 have unwillingly ventured to undertake the publica- 
 tion of them myfelf. 
 
 Mr. SHENSTONE was the eldeft fon of a plain un- 
 educated gentleman in SHROPSHIRE, who farmed 
 his own eftate. The father fenfible of his fon's ex- 
 traordinary capacity, refolved to 2;ive him a learned 
 education, and fent him a commoner to PEMBROKE 
 College in OXFORD, defigning him for the church: 
 but tho' he had the moft aweful notions of the wif- 
 dbm, power, and goodnefs of God, he never could 
 be perfuaded to enter into orders. In his private 
 opinions he adhered to no particular feel:, and hated 
 all religious difputes. But whatever were his own 
 fentiments, he always jfhewed great tendernefs to 
 thofe who differed from him. Tendernefs, indeed, 
 in every fenfe of the word, was his peculiar charac- 
 teriftic ; his friends, his domeftics, his poor neigh- 
 bours, all daily experienced his benevolent turn of 
 mind. Indeed, this virtue in him was often carried to 
 fuch excefs, that it fometimes bordered upon weak- 
 nefs; yet if he was convinced that any of thofe 
 ranked amongft the number of his friends, had 
 treated him ungeneroufly, he was not eafily recon- 
 ciled. He ufed a maxim, however, on fuch occa-
 
 PREFACE. 9 
 
 fions, which is worthy of being obferved and imi- 
 tated; " I never (faid he) will be a revengeful 
 enemy; but I cannot, it is not in my nature, to be 
 half a friend." He was in his temper quite unfufpi- 
 cious ; but if fufpicion was once awakened in him, 
 it was not laid afleep again without difficulty, 
 
 He was no oeconomift ; the generofity of his 
 temper prevented him from paying a proper regard 
 to the ufe of money: he exceeded therefore the 
 bounds of his paternal fortune, which before he 
 died was confiderably encumbered. But when one 
 recollects the perfect paradife he had raifed around 
 him, the hofpitality with which he lived, his great 
 indulgence to his iervants, his charities to the indi- 
 gent, and all done with an eftate not more than 
 three hundred pounds a year, one fhould rather be 
 led' to wonder that he left any thing behind him, 
 than to blame his want of oeconomy. He left how- 
 ever more than fufficient to pay all his debts ; and 
 by his will appropriated his whole eftate for that 
 purpofe. 
 
 It was perhaps from fome confiderations on the 
 narrownefs of his fortune, that he forbore to marry ; 
 for he was no enemy to wedlock, had a high opinion 
 of many among the fair fex, was fond of their fociety, 
 
 and
 
 10 P R E F A C E. 
 
 and no flranger to the tendereft imprefllons. One, 
 \vhich he received in his youth, was with difficulty 
 furmounted. The lady was the fubject of that 
 fweet paftoral, in four parts, which has been fo 
 univerfally admired ; and which, one would have 
 thought, muft have fubdued the loftieft heart, and 
 foftened the moft obdurate. 
 
 His perfon, as to height, was above the middle 
 flature, but largely and rather inelegantly formed: his 
 face feemed plain till you converfed with him, and 
 then it grew very pleafmg. In his drefs he was 
 negligent, even to a fault ; though when young, 
 at the univerdty, he was accounted a BEAU. He 
 wore his own hair, which was quite grey very early, 
 in a particular manner ; not from any affectation of 
 fingularity, but from a maxim he had laid down, 
 that without too flavifh a regard to fafhion, every 
 one (hould drefs in a manner moft fuitable to his 
 own perfon and figure. In fhort, his faults were 
 only little bkmifhes, thrown in by nature, as it 
 were on purpofe to prevent him from rifing too 
 much above that level of imperfection allotted to 
 humanity. 
 
 His character as a writer will be diftinguifhed by 
 fnnplicity with elegance, and genius with correct - 
 
 nefs.
 
 PREFACE. it 
 
 nefs. He had a fublimity equal to the higheft at- 
 tempts ; yet from the indolence of his temper, he 
 chofe rather to amufe himfelf in culling flowers at 
 the foot of the mount, than to take the trouble of 
 climbing the more arduous fteeps of P'ARNASSUS. 
 But whenever he was difpofed to rife, his fteps, 
 though natural, were noble, and always well fup- 
 ported. In the tenderriefs of elegiac poetry he hath 
 not been excelled ; in the fimplicity of paftoral, one 
 may venture to fay he had very few equals. 'Of 
 great fen'fibility himfelf, he never failed to engage 
 the hearts of his readers : and amidft the niceft at- 
 tention to the harmony of his numbers, he always 
 took care to exprefs with propriety the fentiments of 
 an elegant mind. In all his writings, his greateft 
 difficulty was to pleafe himfelf. I remember a paf- 
 fage in one of his letters, where, fpeaking of his 
 love fongs, he fays, " Some were written on oc- 
 ." cafions a good deal imaginary, others not fo; and 
 <l the reafon there are fo many is, that I wanted to 
 " write ONE good fong, and could never pleafe 
 " myfelf." It was this diffidence which occafioned 
 him to throw afide many of his pieces before he had 
 beftowed upon them his laft touches. I have fup- 
 prefled feveral on this account ; and if among thofe 
 which I have fele&ed, there fhould be difcovered 
 fbme little want of his finifhing polifh, I hope it 
 
 will
 
 12 PREFACE. 
 
 will be attributed to this caufe, and of courfe be ex- 
 cufed : yet I flatter myfelf there will always appear 
 fbmething well worthy of having been preferved. 
 And though I was afraid of inferring what might in - 
 jure the character of my friend, yet as the fketches 
 of a great mafter are always valuable, I was unwill- 
 ing the public fhould lofe any thing material of 
 fo accomplifhed a writer. In this dilemma it will 
 eafily be conceived that the tafk I had to perform 
 would become fomewhat difficult. How I have ac- 
 quitted myfelf, the public rrruft Judge. Nothing, 
 however, except what he had already publifhed > has 
 been admitted without the advice of his mofr. judicious 
 friends, nothing altered, without their particular 
 concurrence. It is impoftible to pleafe every one ; 
 but 'tis hoped that no reader will be fo unreafonable, 
 as to imagine that the author wrote folely for his 
 amufement : his talents were various ; and though 
 it may perhaps be allowed that his excellence chiefly 
 appeared in fubje&s of tendernefs and fimplicity, yet 
 he frequently condefcended to trifle with thofe of hu- 
 mour and drollery: thefe, indeed, he himfelf in fome 
 meafure degraded by the title which he gave them of 
 LEVITIES; but had they been entirely rejected, the 
 public would have been deprived of fome JEUX 
 D'ESPRITS, excellent in their kind, and Mr. 
 SHENSTONE'S character, as a writer, would have 
 been but imperfectly exhibited. 
 
 But
 
 PREFACE. 13 
 
 But the talents of Mr. SUENSTONE were not 
 confined merely to poetry ; his character, as a 
 man of .clear judgment, and deep penetration, 
 will beft appear from his profe works. It is there 
 we muft fearch for the acutenefs of his underftand- 
 ing, and his profound knowledge of the human heart. 
 It is to be lamented indeed, that fome things here 
 are unfinished, and can be regarded only as frag- 
 ments : many are left as fingle thoughts, but which, 
 like the fparks of diamonds, fliew the richnefs of 
 the mine to which they belong j or like the foot 
 of a HERCULES, difcover the uncommon ftrength, 
 and extraordinary dimenfions of that hero. I have 
 no apprehenfion of incurring blame from any one, 
 for preferving thefe valuable remains : they will 
 difcover to every reader, the author's fentiments on 
 feveral important fubjects. And there can be very 
 few, to whom they will not impart many thoughts 
 which they would never perhaps have been able to 
 draw from the fource of their own reflections. 
 
 But I believe Jittle need be faid to recommend 
 the writings of this gentleman to public atten- 
 tion. His character is already fufficiently eftab- 
 lifhed. And if he be not injured by the ina- 
 bility
 
 i 4 P- R E F A C E. 
 
 bility of- his editor, there is no doubt but he will 
 ever maintain an emineat ftatipn among the beft of 
 O&F Engliih y/riters. 
 
 D O D S L E Y, 
 
 A PRE-
 
 PREFATORY ESSAY 
 
 ON 
 
 ELEGY. 
 
 J <T is cbfervable, tbat difcourfer prefixed to 
 -* -poetry are contrived very frequently to inculcate 
 Juch tenets as may exhibit the performance to the- 
 great eft advantage. 'The fabric is very commonly 
 raifed in the firft place, and the meajures, by 
 which we are to judge of its merit, are afterwards 
 adjufted* 
 
 'There have been few rules given us by the cri- 
 tics concerning the ftruffure of elegiac poetry, and 
 far be it from the author of the following trifles, 
 to dignify his own opinions with that denomina- 
 tion. He would only intimate the great variety 
 tf fubje&s, and the different * ftyles in which 
 
 the 
 
 * This eflay was written near twenty years ago.
 
 1 6 A PREFATORY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 
 
 the writers of elegy have hitherto indulged them- 
 Jelves, and endeavour to jhield the following ones 
 by the latitude of their example. 
 
 If we confider the etymology 0/*/&*word, the 
 epithet which f HORACE gives it, or the confef- 
 Jion which J OVID makes concerning it, I think 
 we may conclude thus much however ; that elegy, 
 in its true and genuine acceptation, includes a ten- 
 der and querulous idea : that it looks upon this as its 
 peculiar charatleriftic, and Jo long as this is tho- 
 roughly fuftained, admits of a variety cfjubjefts ; 
 which by its manner of treating them, it renders 
 its own. It throws its melaticholy flole over pretty 
 different objects -, which, like the drejfes at a fune- 
 ral prccejjion, gives them all a kind ofjolemn and 
 uniform appearance* 
 
 It is probable that elegies were written at firft 
 upon the death of intimate friends and near rela- 
 tions i celebrated beauties, or favourite mif- 
 
 trefles ; 
 
 * f-Xtyfix, r-particulam dolendi. 
 f Miferabiles elegos. HOR. 
 
 J Heu nimis ex vero nunc tibi nomen eru. 
 
 OVID, de Morte Tibulli,
 
 A PREFATORY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 17 
 
 trefiesi beneficent governors and illuftrious 
 men : one may add perhaps, of all thoje, who 
 are placed by VIRGIL in the laurel-grove of his 
 Elyfium, (Vide HURD'S Dijfertation on HO- 
 RACE'S Epiftle) 
 
 Quique fui memores alios fecere merendo. 
 
 After thefe fubjefts were fufficiently exhaufted, 
 and the feverity of fate displayed in the moft 
 affebJing in/lances, the poets fought occajion to 
 vary their complaints - t and the next tender fpecies 
 offorrow that prefented itfelf, was the grief of 
 abfent or neglected lovers. And this indulgence 
 might be indee-d allowed them ; but with this they 
 were not contented. They had obtained a Jmall 
 corner in the province of love > and they took ad- 
 vantage, from thence, to over-run the whole ter- 
 ritory. Theyfung itsfpoils, triumphs , ovations, 
 and rejoicings *,' as 'well as the captivity and exe- 
 quies that attended it. They gave the name of 
 elegy to their pleafantries as well as lamenta- 
 tions j '//// at lajl t through their abundant find- 
 
 nefs 
 
 * Dicite Io Paean, & lo bis dicite Piean. OTII>. 
 VOL. L B
 
 IS ,A PREFATORY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 
 
 tefsfer the myrtle, they forgot that the cyprefs 
 was their peculiar gwhnd. 
 
 In this it is probable they deviated from tht 
 criminal defign [of elegy j and'itJhanUjeem^ thai 
 any kind ef fufyeffs, frtated infuch d manner as 
 to diffuje a pleafing melancholy, might far better 
 deferve the name, than the facetious mirth and 
 libertine feftivity of the Juccefsful votaries of 
 love. 
 
 But *Mt to dwell too long upon an opinion which 
 may feem perhaps introduced to favour tht 'fol- 
 lowing performance ', it may not le improper to 
 examine into the ufe and end of elegy. he moft 
 important end of all poetry is to encourage virtue. 
 Epic and tragedy chiefy recommend the public 
 Virtues -, elegy is cfajpecies ivhicb illiterates and 
 endears the private, tfhere. is a truly virtuous 
 plecjure connected with, many penfive contempla- 
 tions^ which it is the province and excellency of 
 elegy io enforce. This, by prejentingfuitable 'ideas, 
 has difcovered fiveets in melancholy which we 
 could mt find in mirth j and has led us withjuc- 
 cefs to the dufty urn, when we could drawm plea- 
 
 Jure
 
 A PREFATORY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 19 
 
 Jure from tbejfarkling bowl ; as paftoral conveys 
 an idea of fimplicity and innocence, it is in- .parti- 
 cular the tajk and merit of elegy to /hew the inno- 
 cence md fimplicity of rural life to advantage : 
 and that, in a way diftinft from paftoral, as much 
 as the plain but judicious landlord may be imagined 
 to fcrpafs his tenant both in dignity and under- 
 ftanding. It fawld alfo tend to devote the more 
 trimqwl virtues of humility, dilintereftednefs, 
 fimplicity, and innocence: but then there is a 
 degree of elegance and refinement, no way incon- 
 fiftent with tbefg rural virtues ; and that rtii/es 
 tlcgy. above that merum rus, that iffipoijflied 
 ruftidty which has given sur paftoral writers 
 their higheft reputation. 
 
 Wealtb andjplatdsr wiU nener want their ptv- 
 ]xr weight : the danger is > kft they jbould tm mwcb 
 Jikmd yf poetry therefore which 
 chief mfluatct into the other fcak, tb*t 
 ihefiveets af liberty and uidependencS) 
 tbgt endears tbebsneft delights vfkveandfriend- 
 fiip, that celebrates /^ glory of a good name af- 
 ter death, that ridicules the futile arrogance cf 
 B 2 birth,
 
 2,0 A PREFATORY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 
 
 birth, that recommends the innocent amufement of 
 letters* and injenfibly prepares the mind for that 
 humanity it inculcates, fuch a kind of poetry may 
 chance to pleafe ; and if it pleafe, Jhouldjeem to 
 be offervice. 
 
 As to the ftyle cf elegy, it may be well enough 
 determined from what has gone before. It Jhould 
 imitate the -voice and language of grief ", or if a 
 metaphor of drefs be more agreeable, it Jhould be 
 fimple and diffufe, and flowing as a mourner* we'd. 
 Averfificatim therefore is deferable, which, by in- 
 dulging a free and unconftrained exprejjion, may 
 admit of that Jimplicity which elegy requires. 
 
 Heroic metre, with alternate rhime,feems well 
 enough .adapted to this Jpecies of poetry; and, 
 however exceptionable upon other pccafions, its in- 
 unveniencies appear to loje their weight in fhorter 
 elegies ; and its advantages feem to acquire MI 
 additional importance, fbe world has an admir- 
 able example of its beauty in a collet! ion of elegies * 
 
 not 
 
 * N. B. This preface was .written near twenty years 
 ago.
 
 A PREFATORY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 21 
 
 not longjince publiflied ; the produtJ of a gen- 
 tleman of the mofi exatt tafte, and whofe untimely 
 death merits all the tears that elegy canjhed. 
 
 - It is not impo/tble that fome may think this 
 metre too lax and profaic : others, that even a 
 more diffblute 'variety of numbers may have fupe- 
 rior advantages. And, in favour of thefe loft, 
 might be produced the example of MILTON in his 
 LYCIDAS, together with one or two recent and 
 beautiful imitations of his verjif cation in that 
 monody. But this kind of argument, I am apt 
 to think, muft prove too much ; ftnce the wri- 
 ters I have in viewfeem capable enough of re- 
 commending any metre they Jhall choofe ; though 
 it muft be owned alfo, that the choice they make 
 of any, is at the fame time the ftrongeji prefump- 
 tion in its favour. 
 
 Perhaps it may be no great difficulty to com- 
 promife the difpute. 'There is no one kind of 
 metre that is diftinguifned by rbimes, but is liable 
 to fome objection or other. Heroic verfe, where 
 every fecond line is terminated by a rhime, (with 
 which the judgment requires that the fenkfoould 
 83 in
 
 22 A PREFATORY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 
 
 infome majure aljo terminate) is apt to render 
 tbe exprejfion either fcanty or conftrained. . And 
 this i&Jmetiwes objervable in tbe writings of a 
 poet lately deceafed; though I believe no one ever 
 tbrcvjo mucbjenfe together with Jo much eafc in- 
 to a couplet as Mr. POPE. But as an air 0/con- 
 ftraint too often- accompanies this metre, itjeems by 
 no means proper for a writer of elegy. 
 
 The previous rhime in MILTON'S LYCIDAS 
 is very frequently placed at fuck a diftancefrom 
 tbe following) that it is often dropt by the memory 
 (much better employed in attending to tbe Jtnti- 
 ment) before it be brought to join its partner : and 
 thisfeems to be tbe great eft objection to that kind 
 of verftficaticn. But tben tbe peculiar eafe and 
 variety it admits of, are no doubt fiifficient to 
 overbalance the objection, and to give it tbe pre~ 
 ference to any fiber, in an elegy ^length. 
 
 <Tbe chief exception to which ftanza of all kinds 
 is liable, is, that it breaks thefenfe toe regularly, 
 whm it is continued through a long pcem. And 
 this may be perhaps tbe fault of Mr. WALLER'S 
 excellent panegyric. But if this fault be Iffi dif- 
 3 cernibls
 
 A PRIFATOXY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 23 
 
 terrible inJmaUer eompofitions, as I fuppcfe it is, 
 I flatter ivyfetf, that the advantages 1 ham be- 
 fore m&ttiwed re/jilting from alternate rhime 
 (with which ftanxa is, I think, connected) way, 
 of Itajt in ihorter elegias, be alhwed to out- 
 weigh its i 
 
 I Jballjty but little of the diferent kinds of 
 elegy, 'fhe melancholy of a lover is different, no 
 doubt, frem what we feel on other mixed occa- 
 fions. $he mind in which love and grief at one* 
 predominate is Joftened to an excefs. Love- 
 elegy therefore is wore negligent of order and 
 dejtgn, and, being addrefcd chiefy to the ladies, 
 requires little more than tendernsjs. and ferfpi- 
 cmty. Elegies, that are formed upon promifcuous 
 incidents, and addrejfed to the world in general, 
 inculcate feme Jort of moral, and admit a different 
 degree ef reajbn'mg, thought, and order. 
 
 ^The author of the following elegies entered on 
 his Jubjetts occafionally, as particular incidents 
 in life fuggefted, or difpefitioHs of mind recom- 
 mended them to his choice. If he dtfcribes a 
 rural lan4Jki$> w unfolds tbe train cf Jenti- 
 B 4 merits
 
 24 A PREFATORY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 
 
 tnents it in/fired, be fairly drew bis picture from 
 the fpot ; and felt very fenfibly the affetlion be 
 communicates. If befpeaks of bis bumble Jhed> 
 bis flocks and bis fleeces , be does not counterfeit 
 tbefcene-, who having (whether through choice 
 or necejjity, is not material) retired betimes to 
 country folitudes y and fought his bappinefs in 
 rural employments* has a right to confider bimfelf 
 as a real Jhepherd. The flocks, the meadows, and 
 the grottos, are his own, and the embellijhment 
 of bis farm bis Jole amufement. As the jenti- 
 ments therefore were infpired by nature^ and that 
 in the earlier part of bis life* be hopes they 'will 
 retain a natural appearance-, diffufing at leaft 
 feme part of that amujement, which he freely 
 acknowledges be received front the compofition of 
 them. 
 
 There will appear perhaps a real inconjijlency- 
 in the moral tenour of thefeveral elegies j and the 
 fubfequent ones may jome times Jeem a recantation 
 of the preceding. 'The reader willfcarcely impute 
 this to overfighi ; but will allow, that men's opi- 
 nions as well as tempers vary, that neither public 
 nor private, active nor Jpecuktive life, are un- 
 
 exceptionabfy
 
 A PREFATORY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 25 
 
 exceptionally happy, and canfequently that any 
 change of opinion concerning them may afford an 
 additional beauty to poetry, as it givts us a more 
 Jlr iking reprefentation cf life. 
 
 If the author has hazarded, throughout, the 
 life of Englijh or modern allv.fions, he hopes it 
 will not be imputed to an intire ignorance, or to 
 the leaft dijefteem cf the ancient learning. He 
 has kept the ancient plan and method In his eye, 
 though he builds his edifice with the material's of 
 his own nation. In other 'words, through afond^ 
 nefs for his native country, he has made uje of 
 the flowers it produced, though in crdcr to ex- 
 hibit them to the greater advantage, he has en- 
 deavoured to weave his garland by the befl model 
 be could find: with what fuccefs, beyond his 
 own amujement, muft be left to judges .lejs par- 
 tial to him than either his acquaintance or his 
 friends. If any of thcfe faould be Jo candid, as 
 to approve the variety of Jubjefts he has chcfen, 
 and the tendernejs ofjentiment he has endeavoured 
 to imprejs, he begs the metre alfo may not be too 
 Juddenly condemned. 'The public ear, habituated 
 of late to a quicker mcajure, may perhaps conji- 
 
 der
 
 26 A PREFATORY ESSAY ON ELEGY. 
 
 der this as heavy and languid -, but aft objection 
 cf that kind may gradually loje its force, if ibis 
 meafure flovld be allowed to fait the nature of 
 elegy. 
 
 If it Jbould happen to be confidered as an ob- 
 jeftion with others, that there is too much of a 
 moral cafl diffufed through the whole ; it is re* 
 f!jed, that he endeavoured to animate the poetry 
 fifar as not to render this objection too obvious ; 
 or to rifque excluding the fajbionable reader : at 
 the fame time never deviating from a fixed prin- 
 ciple, that poetry without morality is but the 
 bloflbm of a fruit-tree. Poetry is indeed like 
 tbatfpecies of plants, which may bear at once both 
 fruits and bloffoms, and the tree is by no means 
 in perfection -without the former, however it may 
 be embelliffitd by the flowers which furround it* 
 
 ELEGIES,
 
 ELEGIES, 
 
 WRITTEN ON 
 
 Many different Occafions. 
 
 Tantum inter denfas, umbrofa cacumina, fagos 
 
 AJJidiie veniebat ; ibi heec incondita,folus> 
 
 Montibus et Jll<visjiudio jattabat inani ! VlRC, 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 The fpreading beech alone he would explore 
 With frequent ftep ; beneath it's fhady top, 
 ( Ah ! profitlefs employ ! ) to hills and groves 
 Thefe indigefted lays he wont repeat.
 
 ELEGY I. 
 
 He arrives at his retirement in the country, and 
 takes occafion to expatiate in praife of fim- 
 plicity. To a FRIEND. 
 
 FOR rural virtues, and for native flues, 
 I bade AUGUSTA'S venal fons farewel; 
 Now, 'mid the trees, I fee my fmoke arife ; 
 
 Now hear the fountains bubbling round my cell. 
 
 O may that Genius, which fecures my reft, 
 Preferve this villa for a friend that's dear ! 
 
 Ne'er may my vintage glad the fordid breaft ; 
 Ne'er tinge the lip that dares be unfmcere ! 
 
 Far
 
 Far from thefe paths, ye faithlefs friends, depart ! 
 
 Fly my plain board, abhor my hoftile name ! 
 Hence ! the faint verfe that flows not from the heart, 
 
 But mourns in labour'd ftrains, the price of fame ! 
 
 O lov'd iimplicity ! be thine the prize ! 
 
 Affiduous art correct her page in vain ! 
 His be the palm who, guiltlefs of difguife, 
 
 Contemns the pow'r, the dull refource to feign! 
 
 Still may the mourner, lavifli of his tears 
 For lucre's venal meed, invite my fcorn ! 
 
 Still may the bard diflembling doubts and fears, 
 For praife, for flatt'ry fighing, figh forlorn ! 
 
 Soft as the line of love-fick HAMMOHD flows, 
 'Twas his fond heart effus'd the melting theme; 
 
 Ah 1 never tsGttld AONTA'S hill difctofe 
 So fair a. fountain, or fo ter'd a ftrewn. 
 
 Ye lovelefs bards ! intent with artful pains 
 
 To form figh, or tt> contrive a tear I 
 Forego your Pindus, and on ^ ~ plains 
 
 Survey CAM i LL A'S charms, and grow fincere, 
 
 But thou, my friend ! while in thy youthful foul 
 Love's genri* tyrant feats bis ftweftri tkrone, 
 
 Write from thy bfo*n--4t not art contrcwl 
 The ifeady pen, that makes hi edids fonown* 
 
 Pleafing
 
 Pleating when youth is long expir'd, to trace 
 The forms our pencil, Or our pen defign'd ! 
 
 Such 'was our youthful air and lhape and face 1 
 " Such the foft image of our youthful mind! 1 * 
 
 Soft whilft we fleep beneath the rural bow'rs, 
 The loves and graces fteal unfeen away ; 
 
 And where the turf diffus'd its pomp of flow'rs, 
 We wake to wintry fcenes of chill decay ! 
 
 Curfe the fad fortune that detains thy fair; 
 
 Praife" the foft hours that gave thee to her arms ; 
 Paint thy proud fcorn of ev'ry vulgar ca*e, 
 
 When hope exalts thee, of when doubt alarms. 
 
 Where with (E JION E thou haft worn the day, 
 Near fount or fliream, in meditation, rove ; 
 
 If in the grove CEN-eVNE lov'd to ftray, 
 
 The faithful mefe ha!l meet thee in the grove. 
 
 E L E G Y II. 
 
 On pofthumous reputation. To a FRIEND. 
 
 OGR IE F of griefs ! that envy's frantic ire 
 Should rob the living virtue of its praife.; 
 O fooliih mufes ! that with zeal afpire 
 
 To deck the cold infenfate fhrine with 'bays ! 
 
 When
 
 ( 3* ) 
 
 When the free fpirit quits her humble frame, 
 
 To tread the flues with radiant garlands crown'd, 
 
 Say, will fhe hear the diflant voice of fame ? 
 Or hearing, fancy fweetnefs in the found ? 
 
 Perhaps ev'n genius pours a flighted lay ; 
 
 Perhaps ev'n friendlhip fheds a fruitlefs tear ; 
 Ev'n LYTTELTON but vainly trims the bay, 
 
 And fondly graces HAMMOND'S mournful bier. 
 
 Tho* weeping virgins haunt his favour'd urn, 
 Renew their chaplets, and repeat their fighs ; 
 
 Tho' near his tomb, Sabaean odours burn, 
 
 The loit'ring fragrance will it reach the flues ? 
 
 No, {hould his DELIA votive wreaths prepare, 
 DELIA might place the votive wreaths in vain: 
 
 Yet the dear hope of DELIA'S future care 
 
 Once crown'd his pleafures, and difpell'd his pain. 
 
 Yesthe fair pro (peel of furviving praife 
 
 Can ev'ry fenfe of prefent joys excel : 
 For this, great HADRIAN chofe laborious days; 
 
 Thro' this, expiring, bade a gay farewel. 
 
 Shall then our youths, who fame's bright fabric raife, 
 To life's precarious date confine their care ? 
 
 O teach them you, to fpread the facred bafe, 
 To plan a work, thro' lateft ages fair I 
 
 Is
 
 ( 33 ) 
 
 It is fmall tranfport, as with curious eye 
 You trace the flory of each attic fage, 
 
 To jhink your blooming praife fhall time defy ? 
 Shall waft like odours thro' the pleafing page ? 
 
 To mark the day when through the bulky tome, 
 Around your name the varying ftyle refines \ 
 
 A^d readers call their loft attention home, 
 Led by that index where true genius ihines ? 
 
 Ah let not BRITONS doubt their focial aim, 
 Whofe ardent bofoms catch this ancient fire ! 
 
 Cold intereft melts before the vivid flame, 
 And patriot ardours, but with life, expire ! 
 
 ELEGY III. 
 
 On the untimely death of a certain learned 
 acquaintance. 
 
 IF proud PYGMALION quit his cumbrous frame, 
 Funereal pomp the fcanty tear fupplies j 
 Whilft heralds loud with venal voice proclaim, 
 Lo ! here the brave and the puiflant lies. 
 
 When humbler At CON leaves his drooping friends, 
 
 Pageant nor plume diftinguifli A L CON'S bier; 
 The faithful mufe with votive fong attends, 
 
 And blots the mournful numbers with a tear. 
 VOL. I. C He
 
 ( 3* ) 
 
 He little knew the fly penurious art ; 
 
 That odious art which fortune's favourites know J 
 Form'd to bellow, he felt the \varmeft heart, 
 
 But envious fate forbade him to beftow. 
 
 He little knew to ward the (ecret wound ; 
 
 He little knew that mortals could enfnare ; 
 Virtue he knew; the nobleft joy he found, 
 
 To fmg her glories, and to paint her fair ! 
 
 Ill was he fkill'd to guide his wand'ring fheep ; 
 
 And unforefeen difafler thin'd his fold ; 
 Yet, at another's lofs, the {wain would weep ; 
 
 And, for his friend, his very crook were fold. 
 
 Ye fons of wealth ! proteft the mufe's train ; 
 
 From winds protecl them, and with food fupply ; 
 Ah ! helplefs they, to ward the threaten'd pain, 
 
 The meagre famine, and the wintry fky ! 
 
 He lov'd a nymph : amidft his {lender ftore, 
 
 He dar'd to love ; and CYNTHIA was his theme ; 
 
 He breath'd his plaints along the rocky more, 
 They only echo'd o'er the winding ftream. 
 
 His nymph was fair ! the fweeteft bud that blows, 
 Revives lefs lovely from the recent mow'rj 
 
 So PHILOMEL enamour'd eyes the rofe; 
 
 Sweet bird ! enamour'd of the fweeteft flow'r ! 
 
 5 He
 
 ( 35 ) 
 
 He lov'd the mufe; fhe taught him to complain; 
 
 He faw his tim'rous loves on her depend ; 
 He lov'd the mufe, altho' (lie taught in vain ; 
 
 He lov'd the mufe, for [he was virtue's friend. 
 
 She guides the foot that treads on Parian floors ; 
 
 She wins the ear when formal pleas are vain; 
 She tempts patricians from the fatal doors 
 
 Of vice's brothel, forth to virtue's fane. 
 
 He wiih'd for wealth, for much he wifli'd to give ; 
 
 He griev'd that virtue might not wealth obtain ; 
 Piteous of woes, and hopelefs to relieve, 
 
 The penfive profpeft fadden'd all his ftrain. 
 
 I faw him faint ! I faw him fink to reft ! 
 
 Like one ordain'd to fwell the vulgar throng ; 
 As tho' the virtues had not warm'd his breaft, 
 
 As tho' the mufes not infpir'd his tongue. 
 
 I faw his bier ignobly crofs the plain ; 
 
 Saw peafant hands the pious rite fupply : 
 The generous ruftics mourn'd the friendly fwain, 
 
 But pow'r and wealth's unvarying cheek was dry ! 
 
 Such ALCON fell; in meagre want forlorn ! 
 
 Where were ye then, ye powerful patrons, where ? 
 Wou'd ye the purple fhou'd your limbs adorn, 
 
 Go wafh the confcious blemifh with a tear. 
 
 C 2 ELEGY
 
 ( 36 ) 
 
 ELEGY IV. 
 
 OPHELIA'S urn. To Mr. G . 
 
 THRO' the dim veil of ev'ning's dufky made, 
 Near fome lone fane, or yew's funereal green, 
 What dreary forms has magic fear furvey'd ! 
 What fhrouded ipe&res fuperftition feen ! 
 
 But you fecure fhaU pour your fad complaint, 
 Nor dread the meagre phantom's wan array; 
 
 What none but fear's officious hand can paint, 
 What none, but fuperftition's eye, furvey. 
 
 The glim.'ring twilight and the doubtful dawn 
 Shall fee your ftep to thefe fad fcenes return : 
 
 Conftant, as cryftal dews impearl the lawn, 
 
 Shall STREPHON'S tear bedew OPHELIA'S urnl 
 
 Sure nought unhallow'd mail prefume to ftray 
 Where fieep the reliques of that virtuous maid ; 
 
 Nor aught unlovely bend its devious way, 
 Where foft OPHELIA'S dear remains are laid. 
 
 Haply thy mufe, as with unceafing fighs 
 She keeps late vigils on her urn reclin'd, 
 
 May fee light groups of pleafing vifions rife j 
 And phantoms glide, but of celeftial kind. 
 
 Then
 
 ( 37 ) 
 
 Then fame, her clarion pendant at her fide, 
 Shall feek forgivenefs of OPHELIA'S made; 
 
 " Why has fuch worth, without diflinc"Uon, dy'd, 
 Why, like the defert's lilly, bloom'd to fade ?" 
 
 Then young funplicity, averfe to feign, 
 Shall unmolefted breathe her fofteft figh : 
 
 And candour with unwonted warmth complain, 
 And innocence indulge a wailful cry. 
 
 Then elegance with coy judicious hand, 
 
 Shall cull frefh flow'rets for OPHELIA'S tomb : 
 
 And beauty chide the fates' fevere command, 
 That ftiew'd the frailty of fo fair a bloom ! 
 
 And fancy then with wild ungovern'd woe, 
 Shall her lov'd pupil's native tafte explain : 
 
 For mournful fable all her hues forego, 
 And afk fweet folace of the mufe in vain ! 
 
 Ah, gentle forms, expect no fond relief; 
 
 Too much the facred Nine their lofs deplore : 
 Well may ye grieve, nor find an end of grief 
 
 Your beft, your brightelt fav'rite is no more. 
 
 ELEGY 
 
 -3 Q
 
 ELEGY V. 
 
 He compares the turbulence of love with the 
 tranquillity of friendfhip. 
 
 To MELISSA his Friend. 
 
 FROM love, from angry love's inclement reign 
 I pafs awhile to friendihip's equal fkics ; 
 Thou, gen'rous maid, reliev'ft my partial pain, 
 And chear'ft the viftim of another's eyes. 
 
 'Tis thou, MELISSA, thou deferv'ft my care : 
 
 How can my will and reafon difagree ? 
 How can my paffion live beneath defpair ? 
 
 How can my bofom figh for aught but thee ? 
 
 Ah dear MELISSA ! pleas'd with thee to rove, 
 My foul has yet furviv'd its drearieft time ; 
 
 111 can I bear the various clime of love ! 
 Love is a pleafing, but a various clime ! 
 
 So fmiles immortal MARO'S fav'rite more, 
 PART HE NOPE, with ev'ry verdure crown'd! 
 
 When ftrait VESUVIO'S horrid cauldrons roar, 
 And the dry vapour blafts the regions round. 
 
 Oh
 
 ( 39 ) 
 
 Oh blifsful regions ! oh unrival'd plain:; ! 
 
 When MARO to thefe fragrant haunts retir'd ! 
 O fatal realms ! and oh accurft domains ! 
 
 When PLINY, 'mid falphureous clouds, explr'd ! 
 
 So fmiles the furface of the treacherous main, 
 As o'er its waves the peaceful halcyons play; 
 
 When foon rude winds their woated rule regain, 
 And fky arid ocean mingle in the fray. 
 
 But let or air contend, or ocean rave ; 
 
 Ev'n hope fubfide amid the billows toil ; 
 Hope, (till emergent, fall contemns the wave, 
 
 And .not a feature', we:. 
 
 ELEGY VI. 
 
 To a lady on the language of birds. 
 
 COME then DIONE, let us range the grov.e,. 
 The fcience of the feather'd chor.s explore : 
 Hear linnets argue, larks defcant of love, 
 And blame the glcorn of fbUtude no more. 
 
 My doubt fubfidei 'tis no Italian long, 
 Nor fenfelefs ditty .cliears the vernal tree : 
 
 Ah ! who, that hears DIONE'S tuneful tongue, 
 Shall doubt that inufic may with fer.fe agree ? 
 
 C . And
 
 ( 4 ) 
 
 And come, my mufe ! that lov'ft the fdvan ihade j 
 
 Evolve the mazes, and the mift difpel : 
 Tranflate the fong ; convince my doubting maid, 
 
 No folemn dervife can explain fo well. 
 
 Penfive beneath the twilight (hades I fate, 
 The {lave of hopelefs vows and cold difdain ! 
 
 When PHILOMEL addrefs'd his mournful mate, 
 And thus I conltru'd the mellifluent ftrain. 
 
 " Sing on, my bird the liquid notes prolong. 
 
 At ev'ry note a lover fheds his tear; 
 Sing on, my bird 'tis DAMON hears thy fong; 
 
 Nor doubt to gain applaufe when lovers hear. 
 
 He the fad fource of our complaining knows j 
 
 A foe to TE RE us and to lawlefs love ! 
 He mourns the ftory of our ancient woes ; 
 
 Ah could our mufic his complaint remove ! 
 
 Yon* plains are govern'd by a peerlefs maid; 
 
 And fee pale CYNTHIA mounts the vaulted flcy, 
 A train of lovers court the chequer'd made ; 
 
 Sing on, my bird, and hear thy mate's reply. 
 
 Ere while no fhepherd to thefe woods retirM; 
 
 No lover bleft the glow-worm's pallid ray : 
 But ill-ftar'd birds, that lift'ning not admir'd, 
 
 Or lift'ning envy'd our fuperior lay. 
 
 Chear'd
 
 Chear'd by the fun, the vafials of his pow'r, 
 Let fuch by day unite their jarring (trains ! 
 
 But let us chufe the calm, the filent hour, 
 Nor want fit audience while DIONE reigns." 
 
 ELEGY VII. 
 He defcribes his vifion to an acquaintance, 
 
 Ctftera per terras omnes animalla, &C. ViRC. 
 IMITATION. 
 
 All animals beiide, o'er all the earth, &c. 
 
 ON diftant heaths, beneath autumnal flues, 
 Penfive I faw the circling {hade defcend; 
 Weary and faint I heard the ftorm arife, 
 
 While the fun vanifh'd-like a faithlefs friend. 
 
 No kind companion led my fleps aright ; 
 
 No friendly planet lent its glim'ring ray ; 
 Ev'n the lone cot refus'd its wonted light, 
 
 Where toil in peaceful (lumber clos'd the day. 
 
 Then the dull bell had giv'n a pleafing found ; 
 
 The village cur 'twere tranfport then to hear; 
 In dreadful (ilence all was hum'd around, 
 
 While the rude ftorm alone diftrefs'd mine ear. 
 
 As
 
 ( 4? ) 
 
 As led by ORWELL'S winding banks I ftray'd, 
 Where tow'ring WOLSEY breath'd his native air; 
 
 A fudden luftre chas'd the fiittuig (hade, 
 
 The founding winds were hufh'd, and all was fair. 
 
 Jnilant a grateful form appear'd confeft ; 
 
 White were his locks with awful fcarlet crown'd, 
 And livelier far than Tyrian feem'd Ms veil, 
 
 That with the glowing purple ting'd the ground. 
 
 " Stranger, he faid, amid this pealing rain, 
 
 Benighted, lonefome, wither wou'dft thou ftray ? 
 
 Does wealth or povv'r thy weary Itep conftrain ? 
 Reveal thy wifli, and let me point the way. 
 
 For know I trod the trophy'd paths of pow'r j 
 Felt every joy that fair ambition brings ; 
 
 And left the lonely roof of yonder bow'r 
 To fland beneath the canopies of kings. 
 
 I bade low hinds the tow ? ring ardour mare ; 
 
 Nor meanly rofe, to blefs myfelf alone : 
 I fnatch'd the fhep herd from his fleecy care, 
 
 And bade his wholefome diftate guard the throne. 
 
 Low at my feet the fuppliant peer I faw ; 
 
 I faw. proud empires my decifion wait ; 
 My will was duty, and my word was law, 
 
 My fmile was tranfport, and my frown was fate." 
 
 Ah
 
 ( 43 ) 
 
 Ah me ! faid I, nor pow'r I feck, nor gain ; 
 
 Nor urg'd by hope of fame thefe toils endure; 
 A fimple youth, that feels a lover's pain, 
 
 And, from his friend's condolance, hopes a cure. 
 
 He, the dear yorith, to whofe abodes I roam,] 
 Nor can mine 'honours, nor my fields extend ; 
 
 Yet for .his fake I leave my diftant home, 
 Which oaks embofom, and which hills defend. 
 
 Beneath that home I fcorn the wintry wind ; 
 
 The fpring, to (hade me, robes her faireft tree ; 
 And if a friend my grate-grown threfhold find, 
 
 how my lonely cot refounds with glee ! 
 
 Yet, tho' averfe to gold in heaps amafs'd, 
 
 1 wifh to blefs, I languifh to beftow ; 
 
 And tho' no friend to fame's -obftreperous blafr, 
 Still, to her dulcet murmurs not a foe. 
 
 Too proud with fervile tone to deign addrefs ; 
 
 Too mean to think that honours are my due ; 
 Yet ftiou'd fome patron yield my ftores to blefs, 
 
 J fure fhou'd deem my boundlefs thanks were few. 
 
 But tell me, thou ! that, like a meteor's fire, 
 Shot'ft blazing forth ; difdaining dull degrees ; 
 
 Shou'd I to wealth, to fame, to pow'r afpire, 
 Muft I not pafs more rugged paths than thefe ? 
 
 Muft
 
 ( 44 ) 
 
 Muft I not groan beneath a guilty load, 
 Praife him I fcorn, and him I love betray ? 
 
 Does not felonious envy bar the road ? 
 
 Or falfehood's treach'rous foot befet the way ? 
 
 Say fhou'd I pafs thro' favour's crowded gate, 
 Muft not fair truth inglorious wait behind ? 
 
 Whilft I approach the glitt'ring fcenes of ftate, 
 My beft companion no admittance find ? 
 
 'Nurs'd in the mades by freedom's lenient care, 
 
 Shall I the rigid fvvay of fortune own ? 
 
 Taught by the voice of pious truth, prepare 
 
 To fpurn an altar and adore a throne i 
 
 And when proud fortune's ebbing tide recedes, 
 And when it leaves me no unmaken friend, 
 
 Shall I not weep that e'er I left the meads, 
 Which oaks embofom, and which hills defend ? 
 
 Oh ! if thefe ills the price of pow'r advance, 
 Check not my fpeed where focial joys invite ! 
 
 The troubled vifion caft a mournful glance, 
 And %hing vanifh'd in the mades of night. 
 
 ELEGY
 
 ( 45 ) 
 
 ELEGY VIII. 
 
 He defcribes his early love of poetry, and its 
 confequences. To Mr. G . * 1745. 
 
 AH me ! what envious magic thins my fold ? 
 What mutter'd fpell retards their late increafe ? 
 Such lefs'ning fleeces muft the fwain behold, 
 That e'er with Doric pipe eflays to pleafe. 
 
 I faw my friends in ev'ning circles meet ; 
 
 I took my vocal reed, and tun'd my lay ; 
 I heard them fay my vocal reed was fweet : 
 
 Ah fool ! to credit what I heard them fay ! 
 
 Ill- fated bard ! that feeks his {kill to (how, 
 Then courts the judgment of a friendly ear ! 
 
 Not the poor veteran, that permits his foe 
 To guide his doubtful ftep, has more to fear^ 
 
 Nor cou'd my G miftake the critic's laws, 
 'Till pious friendfhip mark'd the pleafing way : 
 
 Welcome fuch error ! ever bleft the caufe ! 
 Ev'n tho' it led me boundlcfs leagues aftray ! 
 
 Couldft 
 N. B. Written after the death of Mr. Port.
 
 ( 4* ) 
 
 Couldft thou reprove me, when I nurs'd the flame 
 On lift'ning CHERWEI,L'S ofier banks reclin'd? 
 
 While foe to fortune, unfeduc'd by fame, 
 I footh'd the bias of a carelefs mind. 
 
 Youth's gentle kindred, health and love were met ; 
 
 What though in ALMA'S guardian arms I play'df 
 How lhall the mufe thofe vacant hours forget ? 
 
 Or deem that blifs by folid cares repaid ? 
 
 ,Thou know'ft how tranfport thrills the tender breaft. 
 Where love and fancy fix their op'ning reign ; 
 
 How nature ftrines in livelier colours dreft, 
 To blefs their union, and to grace their train. 
 
 So firft when PHOEBUS met the Cyprian queen> 
 And favour'd RHODES beheld their paffion crown'd, 
 
 Unufual flow'rs enrich'd the painted green ; 
 And fwift fpontaneous rofes blulh'd around. 
 
 Now fadly lorn, from Tw ir NAM'S widovv'd bow'r. 
 The drooping mufes take their cafual way ; 
 
 And where they flop, a flood of tears they pour; 
 And where they weep, no more the fields are gay. 
 
 Where is the dappled pink, the fprightly rofe ? 
 
 The cowflip's golden cup no more I fee : 
 Dark and difcolour'd ev'ry flow'r that blows, 
 
 To form the garland, Elegy ! for thee ! 
 
 Enough
 
 ( 47 ) 
 
 Enough of tears has wept the virtuous deadj 
 Ah might we now the pious rage controul ! 
 
 Hufh'd be my grief ere ev'ry fmile be fled, 
 Ere the deep fwelling figh fubvert the foul I 
 
 If near fome trophy fpring a ftripling bay, 
 Pleas'd \>e behold the graceful umbrage rife ; 
 
 But foon too deep it works its baneful way, 
 And, low on earth, the proftrate * ruin lies. 
 
 ELEGY IX. 
 
 He defcribes his difmtereftednefs to a friend. 
 
 I NE'ER mull tinge my lip with Celtic wines ; 
 The pomp of India muft I ne'er difplay ; 
 Nor boaft the produce of Peruvian mines, 
 Nor, with Italian founds, deceive the day. 
 
 Down yonder brook my cryftal bev'rage flows ; 
 
 My grateful fheep their annual fleeces bring ; 
 Fair in my garden buds the damafk rofe, 
 
 And, from my grove, I hear the throflle fing. 
 
 My 
 
 * Alludes to what Is reported of the bay tree, that if It is planted 
 too near the walls of an edifice, its roots will work their way un- 
 derneath, till they deftroy the foundation*
 
 ( 48 > 
 
 My fellow fwains ! avert your dazzled eyes; 
 
 In vain allar'd by glittering fpoils they rove ; 
 The fates ne'er meant them for the ftiepherd's prize, 
 
 Yet gave them ample recompence in love. 
 
 They gave you vigour from your parent's veins ; 
 
 They gave you toils ; but toils ycur fmews brace ; 
 They gave you nymphs, that own their amorous pains, 
 
 And mades, the refuge of the gentle race. 
 
 To carve your loves, to paint your mutual flames, 
 See ! polim'd fair, the beech's friendly rind ! 
 
 To fing foft carrels to your lovely dames, 
 See vocal grotts, and echoing vales afiign'd ! 
 
 Would'fl thou, my STREPHON, love's delighted flave ! 
 
 Tho' fure the wreaths of chivalry to (hare, 
 Forego the ribbon thy MATILDA gave, 
 
 And giving, bade thee in remembrance wear ? 
 
 Ill fare my peace, but ev'ry idle toy, 
 
 If to my mind my DELIA'S form it brings, 
 
 Has truer worth, imparts fmcerer joy, 
 
 Than all that bears the radiant ilamp of kings* 
 
 O my foul weeps, my breaft with anguifti bleeds, 
 When love deplores the tyrant pow'r of gain ! 
 
 Difdaining riches as the futile weeds, 
 I rife fuperior, and the rich difdain. 
 
 Of
 
 t 49 ) 
 
 Oft from the ftream, flow-wandering down the glade, 
 Penfive I hear the nuptial peal rebound ; 
 
 Some mifer weds, I Cry, the captive maid, 
 " And fome fond lover fickens at the found.'* 
 
 Not SOMERVILLE, the mufe's friend of old, 
 Tho' now exalted to yon ambient fky, 
 
 So fhun'd a foul diilain'd with earth and gold, 
 So lov'd the pure, the generous breaft, as I. 
 
 Scorn'd be the wretch that quits his genial bowl, 
 His loves, his friendfhips, ev'n his felf, refigns ; 
 
 Perverts the facred inftinft of his foul, 
 And to a ducate's dirty fphere confines. 
 
 But come, my friend, with tafte, with fcience blell, 
 Ere age impair me, and ere gold allure ; 
 
 Reftore thy dear idea to my breaft, 
 
 The rich depoiit mall the fhrine fecure. 
 
 Let others toil to gain the fordid ore, 
 The charms of independence let us fmg ; 
 
 Bleft with thy friendihip can I wifh for more ? 
 I'll fpurn the boailed wealth of * Ly DIA'S king. 
 
 * Crotfus. 
 
 VOL. I. D ELEGY
 
 ELEGY X. 
 
 To Fortune, fuggefting his motive for re- 
 pining at her difpenfations, 
 
 ASK not the caufe, why this rebellious tongue 
 Loads with frem curfes thy detefted fway ! 
 Afk not, thus branded in my fofteft fong, 
 Why Hands the flatter'd name, which all obey ? 
 
 'Tis not, that in my ftied I lurk forlorn, 
 
 Nor fee my roof on Parian columns rife ; 
 That, on this breaft, no mimic ftar is borne, 
 
 Rever'd, ah ! more than thofe that light the ficies, 
 
 'Tis not, that on the turf fupinely laid, 
 
 I fing or pipe, but to the flocks that graze ; 
 
 And, all inglorious, in the loneibme fhade, 
 My finger ftifiens, and my voice decays. 
 
 Not, that my fancy mourns thy ftern command, 
 When many an embrio dome is loft in air ; 
 
 While guardian prudence checks my eager hand, 
 And, ere the turf is broken, cries, " Forbear. 
 
 " Forbear, vain youth ! be cautious, weigh thy gold ; 
 
 " Nor let yon rifmg column more afpire ; 
 " Ah ! better dwell in ruins, than behold 
 
 " Thy fortunes mould'ring, and thy domes entire. 
 
 " HONORIO
 
 " Ho NOR io built, but dar'd my laws defy; 
 
 " He planted, fcornful of my fage commands ; 
 " The peach's vernal bud regal'd his eye ; 
 
 " The fruitage ripen'd for more frugal hands." 
 
 See the fmall ftream that pours its murm'ring tide 
 O'er fome rough rock that wou'd its wealth difplay, 
 
 Difplays it aught but penury and pride ? 
 Ah ! conftrue wifely what fuch murmurs fay. 
 
 How wou'd fome flood, with ampler treafures bleft, 
 Difdainful view the fcantling drops diftil ! 
 
 How muft f VELINO make his reedy creft ! 
 How ev'ry cygnet mock the boaftive rill ! 
 
 Fortune, I yield ! and fee, I give the fign ; 
 
 At noon the poor mechanic wanders home ; 
 Collefts the fquare, the level, and the line, 
 
 And, with retorted eye, forfakes the dome. 
 
 Yes, I can patient view the fhadelefs plains ; 
 
 Can unrepining leave the rifing wall : 
 Check the fond love of art that fir'd my veins, 
 
 And my warm hopes, in full purfuit, recall. 
 
 D 2 Defcend, 
 
 f A river in I T A L v, that falls an hundred yards perpen- 
 dicular.
 
 ( 5* 1 
 
 Defcend, ye dorms ! deltroy my rifing pile ; 
 
 Loos'd be the whirlwind's unremitting {Way ; 
 Contented I, altho' the gazer fmile 
 
 To fee it fcarce furvive a winter's day. 
 
 Let fome dull dotard bafk in thy gay fhrine, 
 
 As in the fun regales his wanton herd ; 
 Guiltlefs of envy, why fhou'd I repine, 
 
 That his rude voice, his grating reed's prefer'd ? 
 
 Let him exult, with boundlefs wealth fupply'd, 
 Mine and the fwain's relu&ant homage mare ; 
 
 But ah ! his tawdry fhepherdefs's pride, 
 
 Gods ! mull my DELIA, muft my DELIA bear? 
 
 Muft DELIA'S foftnefs, elegance, and eafe 
 
 Submit to MARIAN'S drefs ? to MARIAN'S gold ? 
 
 Muft MARIAN'S robe from diftant INDIA pleafe ? 
 The funple fleece my DELIA'S limbs enfold . ? 
 
 Yet fure on DELIA feems the ruflet fair ; 
 
 " Ye glitt'ring daughters of difguife, adieu !" 
 So talk the wife, who judge of mape and air, 
 
 But will the rural thane decide fo true ? 
 
 Ah ! what is native worth efteem'd of clowns ? 
 
 'Tis thy falfe glare, O fortune ! thine they fee : 
 'Tis for my DELIA'S fake I dread thy frowns, 
 
 And my laft gafp mail curfes breathe on thee. 
 
 ELEGY
 
 ( 53 ) 
 
 ELEGY XI. 
 
 He complains how foon the pleafing novelty 
 of life is over. To Mr. J . 
 
 AH me, my friend ! it will not, will not lafl ! 
 This fairy fcene, that cheats our youthful eyes ! 
 The charm diflblves ; th' aerial mufic's paft ; 
 The banquet ceafes, and the vifion flies. 
 
 Where are the fplendid forms, the rich perfumes, 
 Where the gay tapers, where the fpacious dome ? 
 
 Vanifh'd the coftly pearls, the crimfon plumes, 
 And we, delightlefs, left to wander home ! 
 
 Vain now are books, the fage's wifdom vain ! 
 
 What has the world to bribe our fteps aftray ? 
 Ere reafon learns by ftudy'd laws to reign, 
 
 The weaken'd paffions, felf-fubdued, obey. 
 
 Scarce has the fun fev'n annual courfes roll'd, 
 Scarce (hewn the whole that fortune can fupply ; 
 
 Since, not the mifer fo carefs'd his gold, 
 As I, for what it gave, was heard to figh. 
 
 On the world's ftage I wifh'd fome fprightly part j 
 To deck my native fleece with tawdry lace ! 
 
 'Twas life, 'twas talte, and K>h my foolifh heart ! 
 Subftantial joy was fix'd in pow'r and place. 
 
 D 3 And
 
 ( 54 ) 
 
 And you, ye works of art ! allur'd mine eye, 
 The breathing pidlure, and the living ftone : 
 
 " Tho' gold, tho' fpk-ndour, heav'n and fate deny, 
 " Yet might I call one Titian ftroke my own !" 
 
 Smit with the charms of fame, whofe lovely fpoil, 
 The wreath, the garland, fire the poet's pride, 
 
 I trim'd my lamp, confum'd the midnight oil 
 But foon the paths of health and fame divide ! 
 
 Oft too I pray'd, 'twas nature form'd the pray'r, 
 To grace my native fcenes, my rural home ; 
 
 To fee my trees exprefs their planter's care, 
 And gay, on Attic models, raife my dome. 
 
 But now 'tis o'er, the dear delusion's o'er ! 
 
 A ftagnant breezelefs air becalms my foul : 
 A fond afpiring candidate r.o more, 
 
 I fcorn the palm, before I reach the goal. 
 
 O youth ! enchanting ftage, profufely bleft ! 
 
 Blifs ev'n obtrufive courts the frolic mind ; 
 Of health negle&ful, yet by health careft ; 
 
 Carelefs of favour, yet fecure to find. 
 
 Then glows the breaft, as op'ning rofes fair ; 
 
 More free, more vivid than the linnet's wing } 
 Horieft as light, tranfparent ev'n as air, 
 
 Tender as buds, and lavim as the fpring. 
 
 Not
 
 ( 55 ) 
 
 Not all the force of manhood's active might, 
 
 Not all the craft to fubtle age aflign'd, 
 Not fcicnce mall extort that dear delight, 
 
 Which gay delufion gave the tender mind. 
 
 Adieu foft raptures ! tranfports void of care ! 
 
 Parent of raptures, dear deceit, adieu ! 
 And you, her daughters, pining with defpair, 
 
 Why, why fo foon her fleeting fteps purfue ! 
 
 Tedious again to curfe the drizling day ! 
 
 Again to trace the wint'ry trafts of fnow ! 
 Or, footh'd by vernal airs, again furvey 
 
 The felf-fame hawthorns bud, and cowHips blow ! 
 
 O life ! how foon of ev'ry blifs forlorn ! 
 
 We ftart falfe joys, and urge the devious race : 
 A tender prey ; that cheers our youthful morn, 
 
 Then finks untimely, and defrauds the chace. 
 
 "1 t * * * * * * * ** * * * * -I * 1 * * * 4- * * 'I * * * * * * * * * * '1-4' * 
 
 ELEGY XII. 
 His recantation. 
 
 NO more the mufe obtrudes her thin difguife ! 
 No more with awkward fallacy complains, 
 How ev'ry fervour from my bofom flies, 
 And reafon in her lonefome palace reigns. 
 
 D4 Ere
 
 ( 56 ) 
 
 Ere the chill winter of our days arrive, 
 
 No more (he paints the breaft from paflion free ; 
 
 I feel, I feel one loitering wifh furvive 
 
 Ah need I, FLORIO, name that wifh to thee ? 
 
 The ftar of VENUS ufhers in the day, 
 
 The firft, the lovelieft of the train that fhine 1 
 
 The ftar of VENUS lends her brighteft ray, 
 When other ftars their friendly beams refign, 
 
 Still in my breaft one foft defire remains, 
 
 Pure as that ftar, from guilt, from int'reft free ; 
 
 Has gentle DELIA trip'd acrofs the plains, 
 
 And need I, FLORIO, name that wifh to thee ? 
 
 While, cloy'd to find the fcenes of life the fame, 
 I tune with carelefs hand my languid lays ; 
 
 Some fecret impulfe wakes my former flame, 
 And fires my ftrain with hopes of brighter days. 
 
 I flept not long beneath yon rural bow'rs ; 
 
 And lo ! my crook with flow'rs adorn'd I fee : 
 Has gentle DELIA bound my crook with flow'rs, 
 
 And need I, FLORIO, name my hopes to thee ? 
 
 
 E L E G V
 
 I 57 ) 
 ELEGY XIII. 
 
 To a friend, on fomc flight occafion eftranged 
 from him. 
 
 HEALTH to my friend, and many a chearful day 
 Around his feat may peaceful fliades abide ! 
 Smooth flow the minutes, fraught with fmiles, away, 
 And, till they crown our union, gently glide ! 
 
 Ah me ! too fwiftly fleets our vernal bloom ! ' 
 Loft to our wonted friendfhip, loft to joy ! 
 
 Soon may thy breaft the cordial wifh refume, 
 Ere wintry doubt its tender warmth deftroy ! 
 
 Say, were it ours, by fortune's wild command, 
 By chance to meet beneath the torrid zone ; 
 
 Would'ft thou reject thy DAMON'S plighted hand ? 
 Would'ft thou with fcorn thy once lov'd friend difown 
 
 Life is that ftrangcr land, that alien clime : 
 Shall kindred fouls forego their focial claim ? 
 
 Launch'd in the vaft abyfs of fpace and time, 
 Shall dark fufpicion quench the gen'rous flame ? 
 
 Myriads of fouls, that knew one parent mold, 
 See fadly fever'd by the laws of chance ! 
 
 Myriads, in time's perennial lift enroll'd, 
 
 Forbid by fate to change one tranfient glance ! 
 
 But
 
 ( 58 } 
 
 But we have met where ills of every form, 
 Where pafHons rage, and hurricanes defcend : 
 
 Say, fcuJl we nurfe the rage, aiuft tlie ilorm ? 
 And guide them to the bofom of a friend ! 
 
 Yes, we have met thro' rapine, fraud, and wrong 
 Might our joint aid the paths of peace explore ! 
 
 Why leave thy friend amid the boilVrous throng, 
 Ere death divide us, and we part no more ? 
 
 For oh ! pale ficknefs warns thy friend away ; 
 
 For me no more the vernal rofes bloom ! 
 I fee ftern Fate his ebon wand difplay ; 
 
 And point the wither'd regions of the tomb. 
 
 Then the keen anguifh from thine eye mail ftart, 
 Sad as thou follow'ft my untimely bier ; 
 
 (' Fool that I was if friends fa foon muft part, 
 To let fufpicion intermix a fear." 
 
 ELEGY
 
 ( 59 
 
 ELEGY XIV. 
 
 JDeclining an invitation to vifit foreign coun- 
 tries, lie takes occafion to intimate the ad^ 
 
 vantages of his own. 
 
 " 
 
 To Lord TEMPLE. 
 
 T T 7 HI L E others loft to friendfhip, lofl to love, 
 VV Waite their beft minutes on a foreign flrand, 
 Be mine, with Britifli nymph or fwain to rove, 
 And court the genius of my native land. 
 
 Deluded youth ! that quits thefe verdant plains, 
 
 To catch the follies of an alien foil ! 
 To win the vice his genuine foul difdains, 
 
 Return exultant, and import the fpoil ! 
 
 In vain he boafts of his detailed prize ; 
 
 No more it blooms to Britilh climes convey'd, 
 Cramp'd by the impulfe of ungenial flues, 
 
 See its frefti vigour, in a moment, fade ! 
 
 Th' exotic folly knows its native clime ; 
 
 An awkward ftranger, if we waft it o'er ; 
 Why then thefe toils, this coftly waite of time, 
 
 To fpread foft poifon on our happy more ? 
 
 ? I covet
 
 ( 60 O 
 
 I covet not the pride of foreign looms ; 
 
 In fearch of foreign modes J fcorn to rove 
 Nor, for the worthlefs bird of brighter plumes, 
 
 Wou'd change the meaneft warbler of my grove. 
 
 No diftant clime mall fervile airs impart, 
 Or form thefe limbs with pliant eafe to play ; 
 
 Trembling I view the GAUL'S illufive art, 
 That fteals my lov'd rufticity away. 
 
 'Tis long fince freedom fled th* Hefperian clime ; 
 
 Her citron groves, her flow'r-embroider'd more ; 
 She faw the Britifh oak afpire fublime, 
 
 And foft CAMPANIA'S olive charms no more. 
 
 Let partial fans mature the weftern mine, 
 To fhed its luftre o'er th* Iberian maid ; 
 
 ^lien, beauty, fhape, O native foil, are thine ; 
 Thy peerlefs daughters aflc no foreign aid. 
 
 Let * CEYLON'S envy'd plant perfume the feas, 
 
 'Till torn to feafon the Batavian bowl ; 
 Ours is the bread whofe genuine ardours pleafe, 
 
 Nor need a drug to meliorate the foul. 
 
 Let the proud Soldan wound th' Arcadian groves, 
 
 Or with rude lips th' Aonian fount profane ; 
 The mufe no more by flow'ry LA DON roves, 
 She feeks her THOMSON, on the Britim plain. 
 
 Tell 
 * The cinnamon.
 
 ( 61 ) 
 
 Tell not of realms by ruthlefs war difmay'd ; 
 
 Ah ! haplefs realms that war's opprefiion feel ! 
 In vain may AUSTRIA boaft her Noric blade, 
 
 If AUSTRIA bleed beneath her boafted fleel. 
 
 Beneath her palmlouME vents her moan; 
 
 Raptor'd fhe once beheld its friendly fhade ! 
 And hoary MEMPHIS boafts her tombs alone, 
 
 The mournful types of mighty pow'r decay'd 1 
 
 No crefcent here difplays its baneful horns ; 
 
 No turban'd hoft the voice of truth reproves; 
 Learning's free fource the fage's breaft adorns* 
 
 And poets, not inglorious, ehaunt their loves. 
 
 Boaft, favoured MEDIA, boaft thy flow'ry ftores; 
 
 Thy thoufand hues by chymic funs refin'd ; 
 'Tis not the drefs or mien my foul adores, 
 
 'Tis the rich beauties of BRITANNIA'S mind. 
 
 While * GREENVILLE'S breaft cou'd virtue's ftores afford, 
 What envy'd flota bore fo fair a freight ? 
 
 The mine compar'd in vain its latent hoard, 
 The gem its luftre, and the gold its weight. 
 
 Thee, GREENVILLE, thee with calmeft courage fraught, 
 Thee the lov'd image of thy native fhore ! 
 
 Thee by the Virtues arm'd, the Graces taught, 
 When (hall we ceafe to boaft, or to deplore ? 
 
 Pre- 
 * Written about the time of captain GRF.ENYILIE'S death.
 
 C 6* 3 
 
 Prefumptaous war, which could thy life deiboy, 
 What lhall it now in recompence decree ? 
 
 While friends that merit every earthly joy, 
 Feel every anguifh ; feel the lofs of dice ! 
 
 Bid me no more a fervile realm compare, 
 No more the mufe of partial praife arraign ; 
 
 BRITANNIA fees no foreign breaft fo fair, 
 And if me glory, glories not in vain. 
 
 ELEGY XV. 
 
 In memory of a * private family in 
 WORCESTERSHIRE. 
 
 FR O M a lone tow'r with rev'rend ivy crovvn'd, 
 The pealing bell awak'd a tender iigh ; 
 Still, as the village caught the waving found, 
 A fwelling tear diftream'd from ev'ry eye. 
 
 So droop'd, I ween, each BRITON'S breaft of old, 
 When the dull curfew fpoke their freedom fled ; 
 
 For lighing as the mournful accent roll'd, 
 Our hope, they cry'd, our kind fupport, is dead ! 
 
 'Twas 
 
 * The Perms of HAR.BOROUOH j a place whofe name in the 
 SAXON language, alludes to an army. And there is a tradition 
 that there was a battle fought, on the Downs adjoinin> betwixt 
 the B&ITONS and the ROMANS.
 
 *T\'/as good PA LEMON* near a Ihaded pool* 
 A group of ancient elms umbrageous rofe ; 
 
 The flocking rooks, by inflincl's native rule, 
 This peaceful fcene, for their afylum, chofe. 
 
 A few finall fpires, to Gothic fancy fair, 
 
 Amid the fhades emerging (truck the view-; 
 *Twas here his youth refpir'd its earlielt air ; 
 'Twas here his age breath'd out its laft adieu. 
 
 One favour'd fon engag'd his tendereft care ; 
 
 One pious youth his whole affe&ion crown'd : 
 In his young bread the virtues fprung fo fair, 
 
 Such charms difplay'd, fuch fweets diffus'd around* 
 
 But whilft gay tranfport in his face appears, 
 A noxious vapour clogs the poifon'd fky ; 
 
 Blafts the fair crop the fire is drown'd in tears, 
 And, fcarce furviving, fees his CVNTHIO die ! 
 
 O'er the pale corfe we faw him gently bend ; 
 
 Heart- chill'd with grief " My thread, he cry'd, is fpun ! 
 If Heav'n had meant I fhou'd my life extend, 
 
 Heav'n had preferv'd my life's fupport, my fon. 
 
 Snatch'd in thy prime ! alas the ftroke were mild, 
 Had my frail form obey'd the fates' decree ! 
 
 Bleft were iny lot, O C YN T H 10 ! Omy child ! 
 Had Heav'n fo pleas'd, and I had dy'd for thee." 
 
 Five
 
 ( 64 ) 
 
 Five fleeplefs nights he ilem'd this tide of woes ; 
 
 Five irkfome funs he faw, thro' tears, forlorn ! 
 On his pale corfe the fixth fad morning rofe ; 
 
 From yonder dome the mournful bier was borne. 
 
 'Twas on thofe * downs, by Roman hofls annoy'd; 
 
 Fought our bold fathers ; ruftic, unrefin'd ! 
 Freedom's plain fons, in martial cares employ 'd ! 
 
 They ting'd their bodies, but unmafk'd their mind, 
 
 J Twas there, in happier times, this virtuous race, 
 Of milder merit, fix'd their calm retreat ; 
 
 War's deadly crimfon had forfook the place, 
 And freedom fondly lov'd the chofen feat. 
 
 No wild ambition fir'd their tranquil breaft, 
 To fwell with empty founds a fpotlefs name ; 
 
 If foft'ring fkies, the fun, the Ihow'r were bleil, 
 Their bounty fpread ; their field's extent the fame. 
 
 Thofe fields, profufe of raiment, food, and fire, 
 They fcorn'd to leffen, carelefs to extend ; 
 
 Bade luxury, to lavifh courts afpire, 
 And avarice, to city-breafts defcend. 
 
 None, to a virgin's mind, prefer'd her dow'r ; 
 
 To fire with vicious hopes a modeft heir : 
 
 The fire, in place of titles, wealth, or pow'r, 
 
 Afilgn'd him virtue ; and his lot was fair. 
 
 They 
 * HARBOROUCH Dov.-ns.
 
 They fpoke of fortune, as fome doubtful dame, 
 That fway'd the natives of a diftant fphere ; 
 
 From lucre's vagrant fons had learnt her fame, 
 But never wim'd to place her banners here. 
 
 Here youth's free fpirit, innocently gay, 
 Enjoy'd the moft that innocence can give ; 
 
 Thofe wholefome fweets that border virtue's way j 
 Thofe cooling fruits, that we may tafte and live. 
 
 Their board no ftrange ambiguous viand bore ; 
 
 From their own ftreams their choicer fare they drew, 
 To lure the fcaly glutton to the more, 
 
 The fole deceit their artlefs bofom knew ! 
 
 Sincere themfelves, ah too fecure to find 
 
 The common bofom, like their own, fincere ! 
 
 'Tis its own guilt alarms the jealous mind ; 
 'Tis her own poifon bids the viper fear. 
 
 Sketch'd on the lattice of the adjacent fane, 
 
 Their fupp'liant bufts implore the reader's pray'r : 
 
 Ah gentle fouls ! enjoy your blifsful reign, 
 And let frail mortals claim your guardian care. 
 
 For fure, to blifsful realms the fouls are flown, 
 That never flatter'd, injur'd, cenfur'd, drove } 
 
 The friends of fcience ! muflc all their own ; 
 Mufic, the voice of virtue and of love ! 
 
 VOL. I. E The
 
 ( 66 ) 
 
 The journeying peafant, thro' the fecret 
 
 Heard their foft lyres ertgage his M'ning ear ; 
 
 And haply deem'd fome courteous angel pb.y'd ; 
 No angel play'd but might with tranfport hear. 
 
 For thefe the founds that chafe unholy ftrife ! 
 
 Solve envy's charm, ambition's wretch releafe ! 
 Raife him to fpurn the radiant ills of life : 
 
 To pity pomp, to be content with peace. 
 
 Farewel, pure fpirits ! vain the praife we give, 
 The praife you fought from lips angelic flo\vs ; 
 
 Farewel ! the virtues which deferve to live, 
 Deferve an ampler blifs than life beftows. 
 
 Laft of his race, PA LEMON, now no more 
 
 The -modeft merit of his line difplay'd; 
 Then pious Hou G H Vi COR N j A'S mitre wore 
 
 Soft fleep the duft of each deferving fhade. 
 
 ^.ip.|...|.^^4H^^.t.^.tt*'M>H- 
 
 ELEGY XVI. 
 
 He fuggefts the advantages of birth to a per- 
 fon of merit, and the folly of a fuperci- 
 lioufnefs that is built upon that fole foun- 
 dation. 
 
 WHEN genius grac'd with lineal fp lender 'glows, 
 When title fhines with ambient virtues crown'd. 
 Like fome fair almond's flow'ry pomp it (hews ; 
 The pride, the perfume of the regions round. 
 
 Then
 
 C 67 ) 
 
 Then learn, ye fair ! to foften fplendor'* ray; 
 
 Endure the fwain, the youth of low degree ; 
 Let meeknefs join'd its temperate beam difplay : 
 
 'Tis the mild verdure that endears the tree. 
 
 Pity the fandal'd fwain, the fhepherd's boy ; 
 
 He fighs to brighten a negledted name ; 
 Foe to the dull appulfe of vulgar joy, 
 
 He mourns his lot j he wifhcs, merits fame. 
 
 In vain to groves and pathlefs vales we fly ; 
 
 Ambition there the bow'ry haunt invades ; 
 Fame's awful rays fatigue the courtier's eye, 
 
 But gleam ftill lovely thro' the checquer*d fhadtt. 
 
 Vainly, to guard from love's unequal chain. 
 Has fortune rear'd us in the rural grove ; 
 
 Should ****' s eyes illume the defart plain, 
 Ev'n I may wonder, and ev'n I muft love. 
 
 Nor unregarded fighs the lowly hind ; 
 
 Tho' you contemn, the gods refpeft his VOW* 
 Vindictive rage awaits the fcornful mind, 
 
 And vengeance, too fevere ! the gods allow. 
 
 On S A RUM'S plain I met a wand'ring fair; 
 
 The look of forrow, lovely fUll fhe bore : 
 Loofe flow'd the foft redundance of her hair. 
 
 And, on her brow, a flow'ry wreath ftifc wore* 
 
 Ea Oft
 
 ( 68 ) 
 
 Oft (looping as (he flray'd, me cull'd the pride 
 Of ev'ry plain ; fhe pillag'd ev'ry grove 1 
 
 The fading chaplet daily me fupply'd, 
 
 And ftill her hand fome various garland wove. 
 
 Erroneous fancy fhap'd her wild attire ; 
 
 From BET HI. EM'S walls the poor lyinpatic ftray'd; 
 Seem'd with her air her accent to confpire, 
 
 When, as wild fancy taught her, thus Ihe faid : 
 
 " Hear me, dear youth ! oh hear an haplefi maid, 
 Sprung from the fcepter'd line of ancient kings I 
 
 Scorn'd by- the world, I afk thy tender aid ; 
 Thy gentle voice mall whiiper kinder things. 
 
 The world is frantic fly the race profane 
 Nor I, HOT you, mall its compaffion move ; 
 
 Come friendly let us wander, and complain, 
 
 And tell me, fhepherd ! halt thou feen my love ? 
 
 My love is young but other loves are young ; 
 
 And other loves are fair, and fo is mine ; 
 An air divine difclofes whence he fprung ; 
 
 He is my love, who boails that air divine. 
 
 No vulgar DAMON robs me of my reft, 
 
 IANTHE liftens to no vulgar vow ; 
 A prince, from gods defcended, fires her bread j 
 
 A brilliant crown diftinguifhes his brow. 
 
 What,
 
 ( 69 ) 
 
 What, mall I ftain the glories of my race ? 
 
 More clear, more lovely bright than HESPER'S beam? 
 The porc'lain pure with vulgar dirt debafe ? 
 
 Or mix with puddle the pellucid ftream ? 
 
 See thro' thefe veins the faphire current mine ! 
 
 'Twas JOVE'S own nedlar gave th' etherial hue : 
 Can bafe plebeian forms contend with mine ! 
 
 Difplay the lovely white, or match the blue ? 
 
 The painter ftrove to trace its azure ray ; 
 
 He chang'd his colours, and in vain he ftrove ; 
 He frown'd I fmiling view'd the faint eflay ; 
 
 Poor youth ! he little knew it flow'd from Jovi. 
 
 Pitying his toil, the wond'rous truth I told ; 
 
 How am'rous JOVE trepann'd a mortal fair ; 
 How thro' the race the generous current roll'd, 
 And mocks the poet's art, and painter's care, 
 
 Yes, from the gods, from earlieft Saturn, fprung 
 Our facred race ; thro' demigods, convey'd ; 
 
 And he, ally'd to PHOEBUS, ever young, 
 
 My god-like boy, muft wed their duteous maid. 
 
 Oft, when a mortal vow profanes my ear, 
 My fire's dread fury murmurs thro' the fky ; 
 
 And mould I yield his inftant rage appears, 
 He darts th' uplifted vengeance and I die* 
 
 E 3 Have
 
 Have you not heard unwonted thunders roll ? 
 
 Have you not feen more horrid light'nings glare ? 
 'Twas then a vulgar love enfnar'd my foul : 
 
 'Twas then I hardly fcap'd the fatal (hare. 
 
 Twas then a peafant pour'd his amorous vow, 
 
 All as J liften'd to his vulgar ftrain ; 
 Yet fuch his beauty wou'd my birth allow, 
 
 Dear were the youth, and blifsful were the plain. 
 
 But oh ! I faint ! why waftes my vernal bloom, 
 In fruitlefs fearches ever doom'd to rove ? 
 
 My nightly dreams the toilfome path refume, 
 And ihall I die before I find my love. 
 
 When laft I flept, methought, my raviih'd eye 
 On diftant heaths his radiant form furvey'd j 
 
 Tho' night's thick clouds encompafs'd all the flcy, 
 The gems that bound his brow, difpell'd the ftiadc 
 
 O how this bofom kindled at the fight ! 
 
 Led by their beams I urg'd the pleafing chace ; 
 
 'Till, on a fudden, thefe with-held their light- 
 All, all things envy the fublime embrace. 
 
 But now no more behind the diftant grove, 
 Wanders my deftin'd youth, and chides my ftay : 
 
 See, fee, he grafps the fteel forbear, my love 
 IAVTHE comes ; thy princefs haftes away." 
 
 Scornful
 
 ( 71 ) 
 
 Scornful Ihe fpoke, and heedlefs of reply 
 The lovely maniac bounded o'er the plain j 
 
 The piteous victim of an angry iky ! 
 
 Ah me ! the victim of her proud difdain ! 
 
 ELEGY XVII. 
 
 He indulges the fuggeftions of fpleen : 
 an elegy to the winds. 
 
 e, namque tibi divum pater atque bominum rex 
 Et mulcere dedit mentes et toilers venlo. 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 O ! ^Eolus, to thee, the Sire fupreme 
 
 Of gods and men, the mighty pow'r bequeath'd 
 
 To roufe pr to afluage the human mind. 
 
 STERN monarch of the winds, admit my pray'r ! 
 Awhile thy fury check, thy ftorms confine ! 
 No trivial blafl impels the paffive air, 
 But brews a tempeft in a breaft like mine. 
 
 What bands of black ideas ipread their wings ! 
 
 The peaceful regions of content invade ! 
 With deadly poifon taint the cryftal fprings ! 
 
 With noifome vapour blaft the verdant (hade ! 
 
 E 4 I know
 
 ( 7* ) 
 
 I know their leader, SPLEEN ; and dread the fway 
 
 Of rigid EURUS, his detefted fire ; 
 Thro' one my bloflbms and my fruits decay ; 
 
 Thro' one my pleafures and my hopes expire. 
 
 Like fome pale tripling, when his icy way 
 
 Relenting yields beneath the noontide beam, 
 I ftand aghaft ; and chill'd with fear furvey 
 How far I've tempted life's deceitful ftream. ! 
 
 Where by remorfe impell'd, repuls'd by fears, 
 Shall wretched fancy a retreat explore ? 
 
 She flies the fad prefage of coming years, 
 
 And forr'wing dwells on pleafures now no more ! 
 
 Again with patrons, and with friends me roves ; 
 
 But friends and patrons never to return ! 
 She fees the nymphs, the graces, and the loves, 
 
 But fees them, weeping o'er LUCINDA'S urn. 
 
 She vifits, Is is ! thy forfaken ftream, 
 
 Oh ill forfaken for Boeotian air ! 
 She deems no flood reflefts fo bright a beam, 
 
 No reed fo verdant, and no flow'rs fo fair. 
 
 She deems beneath thy facred (hades were peace, 
 Thy bays might ev'n the civil ftorm repel ; 
 
 Reviews thy focial blifs, thy learned eafe, 
 And with no chearful accent cries, farewel J 
 
 Farewel,
 
 ( 73 ) 
 
 Farewel, with whom to thefe retreats I ftray'd ! 
 
 By youthful fports, by youthful toils sJly'd 1 
 Joyous we fojourn'd in thy circling made, 
 
 And wept to find the paths of life divide. 
 
 She paints the progrefs of my rival's vow ; 
 
 Sees ev'ry mufe a partial ear incline ; 
 Binds with luxuriant bays his favour'd brow, 
 
 Nor yiehfc the ref ufe- of his wreath to mine. 
 
 She bids the flatt'ring mirror, form'd to pleafe, 
 Now blaft my hope, now vindicate defpair ; 
 
 Bids my fond verfe the love-fick parley ceafe ; 
 Accufe my rigid fate, acquit my fair. 
 
 Where circling rocks defend fome pathlefs vale, 
 
 Superfluous mortal, let me ever roye ! 
 Alas ! there echo will repeat the tale 
 
 Where mall I find the filent fcenes I love ? 
 
 Fain would I mourn my lucklefs fate alone ; 
 
 Forbid to pleafe, yet fated to admire ; 
 Away, my friends ! my forrows are my own ! 
 Why mould I breathe around my fick defire ? 
 
 Bear me, ye winds, indulgent to my pains, 
 Near fome fad ruin's ghaftly ihade to dwell ! 
 
 There let me fondly eye the rude remains, 
 
 And from the mould'ring refufe, build my cell ! 
 
 Genius
 
 ( 74 ) 
 
 Genius of ROME ! thy profirate pomp difplay ! 
 
 Trace ev'ry difinal proof of fortune's po\v'r; 
 Let me the wreck of theatres furvey, 
 
 Or penfive fit beneath fome nodding tow'r, 
 
 Or where fome duft, by rolling feafons worn, 
 Convey'd pure ftreams to ROME'S imperial wall, 
 
 Near the wide breach in filence let me mourn ; 
 Or tune my dirges to the water's fall. 
 
 Genius of CARTHAGE ! paint thy ruin'd pride; 
 
 Tow'rs, arches, fanes in wild confufion ftrewn ; 
 Let banilh'd * MARIUS, low'ring by thy fide, 
 
 Compare thy fickle fortunes with his own. 
 
 Ah no ! thou monarch of the florms ! forbear ; 
 
 My trembling nerves abhor thy rude controul ; 
 And fcarce a pleafing twilight foothes my care, 
 
 Ere one vait death-like darknefs {hocks my foul. 
 
 Forbear 
 
 * Incfemqxe vitji* vt tugurlo rulnarum Cartbaginen/tum tsleravitf 
 cum Mariui infpider.s Can/jagixemj ilia intucns Mariuutf alter alien 
 feflent ejjcfs.'ario. Liv. 
 
 . 'EXPLANATION. 
 
 Marius endured a life of poverty, under (belter of the Cartha- 
 ginian ruins ; and while he contemplated Carthage, and Carthage 
 beheld him, they might be faid mutually to referable and accour.i 
 for each other.
 
 ( 75 > 
 
 Forbear thy rage on no perennial bafe 
 Is built frail fear, or hope's deceitful pile ; 
 
 My pains are fled my joy refumes its place, 
 Shou'd the fky brighten, or MELISSA fmile. 
 
 * * * : 1 1 * * * * * * t > * * * * * -V * * * >l * * * * * * * * * * ** 
 
 ELEGY XVIII. 
 
 He repeats the fong of COLLIN, a difcerning 
 Ihepherd j lamenting the ftate of the wool- 
 len manufactory. 
 
 Ergo omni ftudio glaciem veutcfqHe ni<vales t 
 
 t%uo minus eft illis cur<s mortalis egcjlas, 
 
 Aver us: tviftumque feres. VIXGII- 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 Thou therefore, in proportion to their lack 
 Of human aid, with all thy care defend 
 From frozen feafons, and inclement blafts, 
 And give them timely food. 
 
 NEAR AVON'S bank, on AR DEN'S flow'ry plain, 
 A * tuneful fhepherd charm'd the liil'ning wave ; 
 And funny COTSOL' fondly lov'd the ftrain ; 
 Yet not a garland crowns the fhepherd's grave ! 
 
 Oh 
 
 * Mr. SoMERVILLE.
 
 ( 76 ) 
 
 Oh loft OPHELIA ! fmoothly flow'd the day, 
 To feel his mufic with my flames agree ! 
 
 To tafte the beauties of his melting lay, 
 To taile, and fancy it was dear to thee. 
 
 When, for his tomb, with each revolving year, 
 I fteal the mufk-rofe from the fcented brake, 
 
 I drew my cowflips, and I pay my tear, 
 I'll add the myrtle for OPHELIA'S fake. 
 
 Shiv'ring beneath a leaflefs thorn he lay, 
 
 When death's chill rigour feiz'd his flowing tongue j 
 The more I found his fault'ring notes decay, 
 
 The more prophetic truth fublim'd the fong. 
 
 **. Adieu my flocks, he faid ! my wonted care, 
 By funny mountain, or by verdant fhore ! 
 
 May fome more happy hand your fold prepare, 
 
 And may you need your COLLIN'S crook no more, 
 
 And you, ye fhepherds ! lead my gentle fheep j 
 
 To breezy hills, or leafy flickers lead ; 
 But if the fky with fhow'rs inceflant weep, 
 
 Avoid the putrid moilture of the mead, 
 
 Where the wild thyme perfumes the purpled heath, 
 Long loit'ring there your fleecy tribes extend-^ 
 
 But what avail the maxims I bequeath ? 
 The fruitlefs gift of an officious friend ! 
 
 Ah!
 
 ( 77 ) 
 
 Ah ! what avails the tim'rous lambs to guard, 
 Tho' nightly cares, with daily labours, join ? 
 
 Jf foreign floth obtain the rich reward, 
 
 If GALL i A 's craft the pond'rous fleece purloin ! 
 
 Was it for this, by conftant vigils worn, 
 
 I met the terrors of an early grave ? 
 For this, I led them from the pointed thorn ? 
 
 For this, I bath'd 'em in the lucid wave ? 
 
 Ah heedlefs ALBION ! too benignly prone 
 Thy blood to lavifh, and thy wealth refign ! 
 
 Shall ev'ry other virtue grace thy throne, 
 But quick-ey'd prudence never yet be thine ? 
 
 From the fair natives of this peerlefs hill 
 
 Thou gav'fl the iheep that browze Iberian plains : 
 
 Their plaintive cries the faithlefs region fill, 
 Their fleece adorns an haughty foe's domains. 
 
 Ill-fated flocks ! from cliff to cliff they ftray ; 
 
 Far from their dams, their native guardians, far ! 
 Where the foft fhepherd, all the livelong day, 
 
 Chaunts his proud miflrefs to his hoarfe guittar. 
 
 But ALBION'S youth her native fleece defpife; 
 
 Unmov'd they hear the pining fhepherd's moan ; 
 In filky folds each nervous limb difguife, 
 
 Allur'd by ev'ry treafure, but their own. 
 
 Oft
 
 ( 78 ) 
 
 Oft have I hurry'd down the rocky fteep, 
 Anxious, to fee the wintry tempefl drive ; 
 
 Preferve, faid I, preferve your fleece, my fheep ! 
 Ere long will PHILLIS, will my love arrive. 
 
 Ere long me came : ah t woe is me, fhe came ! 
 
 Rob'd in the Gallic loom's extraneous twine : 
 For gifts like thefe they give their fpotlefs fame, 
 
 Refign their bloom, their innocence refign. 
 
 Will no bright maid, by worth, by titles known, 
 Give the rich growth of Britifh hills to fame ? 
 
 And let her charms, and her example, own 
 That virtue's drefs, and beauty's are the fame ? 
 
 Will no fam'd chief fupport this gen'rous maid ? 
 
 Once more the patriot's arduous path refume ? 
 And, comely from his native plains array'd, 
 
 Speak future glory to the Britifh loom ? 
 
 What pow'r unfeen my ravifh'd fancy fires ? 
 
 I pierce the dreary ftade of future days ; 
 Sure 'tis the genius of the land infpires, 
 
 To breathe my lateil breath in * * praife. 
 
 O might my breath for * * * praife fuffice, 
 How gently fhou'd my dying limbs repofe ! 
 
 O might his future glory blefs mine eyes, 
 
 My ravilh'd eyes ! how calmly would they clofe ! 
 
 * * *wsu
 
 ( 79 ) 
 
 * * * was born to fpread the gen'ral joy ; 
 
 By virtue rapt, by party uncontroul'd, 
 BRITONS for BRITAIN mall the crook employ; 
 
 BRITONS for BRITAIN'S glory fliear the fold." 
 
 * * * 1 * 
 
 ELEGY XIX. 
 
 Written in fpring 1743. 
 
 AGAIN the lab'ring hind inverts the foil 
 Again the merchant ploughs the tumid 
 Another fpring renews the foldier's toil, 
 And finds me vacant in the rural cave. 
 
 As the foft lyre difplay'd my wonted loves, 
 The penfive pleafure and the tender pain, 
 
 The fordid ALP HE us hurry 'd thro' my groves 
 Yet flop'd to vent the didates of difdain, 
 
 He glanc'd contemptuous o'er my ruin'd fold ; 
 
 He blam'd the graces of my fav'rite bow'r; 
 My breaft, unfully'd by the luft of gold ; 
 
 My time unlavilh'd in purfuit of pow'r. 
 
 Yes, ALPHEUS ! fly the purer paths of fate; 
 
 Abjure thefe fcenes from venal paillons free; . 
 Know, in this grove, I vow'd perpetual hate, 
 
 War, endlefs war, with lucre and with thee* 
 
 Here
 
 Here nobly zealous, in my youthful hours, 
 
 I dreft an altar to THALIA'S name : 
 Here, as I crown'd the verdant fhrine with flow'rs, 
 
 Sbft on my labours ftole the fmiling dame. 
 
 DAMON, me cry'd, if pleas'd with honeft praife, 
 Thou court fuccefs by virtue or by fong, 
 
 Fly the falfe- dilates of the venal race ; 
 Fly the grofs accents of the venal tongue. 
 
 Swear that no lucre mail thy zeal betray ; 
 
 Swerve not thy foot with fortune's vot'ries more ; 
 Brand thou their lives, and brand their lifelefs day * 
 
 The winning phantom urg'd me, and I fwore. 
 
 Forth from, the ruftic altar fwift I ilray'd, 
 " Aid my firm purpofe, ye celeftial pow'rs ! 
 
 Aid me to quell the fordid breaft," I faid ; 
 
 And * threw my jav'lin tow'rds their hoflile tow'rs. 
 
 Think not regretful I furvey the deed ; 
 
 Or added years no more the zeal allow ; 
 Still, ftill obfervant to the grove I Ipeed, 
 
 The fhrine embellim, and repeat the vow. 
 
 Sworn from his cradle ROME'S relentlefs foe, 
 
 Such gen'rous hate the f Punic champion bore; 
 Thy lake, OTHRASIMENE ! beheld it glow, 
 
 And CANNES walls, and TREBIA'S crimfon more. 
 
 But 
 * The Roman ceremony in declaring war. f HANNIB AL.
 
 8i 
 
 But let grave annals paint the warrior's fame; 
 
 Fair fhine his arms in liiftory enroll'd ; 
 Whilft humbler lyres his civil worth proclaim. 
 
 His nobler hate of avarice and gokL 
 
 Now Punic pride its final eve furvey'd ; 
 
 Its holts exhausted, and its fleets on fire ; 
 Patient the victors' lurid frown obey'd, 
 
 And faw th' unwilling elephants retire* 
 
 But when their gold deprefs'd the yielding fcale, 
 Their gold in pyramidic plenty pil'd, 
 
 He faw th' unutterable grief prevail ; 
 
 He faw their tears, and, in his fury, finil'd. 
 
 Think not, he cry'd, ye view the (miles of eafe, 
 Or this firm breaft difclaims a patriot's pain; 
 
 I fmile, but from a foul eftrang'd to peace, 
 Frantic with grief, delirious with difdain J 
 
 But were it cordial, this detefted fmile, 
 
 Seems it lefs timely than the grief ye mow? 
 
 O fons of CARTHAGE ! grant me to revile 
 The fordid fource of your indecent woe ! 
 
 Why weep ye now ! ye faw with tearlefs eye 
 When your fleet perim'd on the Punic wave ; 
 
 Where lurk'd the coward tear, the lazy figh, 
 When TYRE'S imperial ftate commenc'd a flavc f 
 
 VOL. I. F 'Tij
 
 Tis paft O CARTHAGE! vanqtuih'd ! honour'd /hade ! 
 
 Go, the mean farrows of thy fons deplore ; 
 Had freedom fliar'd the vow to fortune paid, 
 
 She ne'er, like fortune, had forfook thy fhore." 
 
 He ceas'd abafh'd the confcious audience hear ; 
 
 Their pallid cheeks a crimfon blufh unfold ; 
 Yet o'er that virtuous blufh diftreams a tear, 
 
 And falling moiftens their abandon'd gold. * 
 
 ELEGY XX. 
 
 He compares his humble fortune with the dif- 
 trefs of others; and his fubjedlion to DELIA, 
 with the miferable fervitude of an African 
 flave. 
 
 \<\7 H Y droops this heart with fancy'd woes forlorn ? 
 
 Why finks my foul beneath each wint'ry fty ? 
 What penfive crowds, by ceafelefs labours worn, 
 What myriads, wifti to be as bleft as I ! 
 
 What 
 
 * By the terms forced upon theCARTHAciNiAVS bySciPio, 
 they were to deliver up all the elephants, and to py near tw 
 millions fterling.
 
 ( 83 ) 
 
 What tho* ray roofs devoid of pomp arife. 
 Nor tempt the proud to quit his dellin'd way ? 
 
 Nor coftly art my flow'ry dales difguife, 
 Where only fimple friendftup deigns to fly ? 
 
 See the wild fons of LAP LA NO'S chili domain. 
 That fcoop their couch beneath the drifted fhows I 
 
 How void of hope they ken the frozen plain, 
 Where the fharp caft for ever, ever blows ! 
 
 Slave tho' I be, to PELIA'S eyes a flave, 
 
 My DELIA'S eyes endear the bands I wear; 
 
 The figh (he caufes well becomes the brave, 
 The pang ftre caufes, 'tis ev'a blifc to bear. 
 
 See the poor native quit the Lybian fhores, 
 Ah '. pot in love's delightful fetters bound ! 
 
 No radiant fmile his dying peace reftores, 
 Nor love, nor fame, nor friendship heal* his wound. 
 
 Let vacant bards difplay their boafted woes, 
 
 Shall I the mockery $f grief 4kplay * 
 No, let the mufe his piercing pangs difclofe, 
 
 Who bleeds and weeps his fum of life away I 
 
 On the wild beach in mournful gaife he flood, 
 Ere the mrill boatfwain gave the hated fign ; 
 
 He dropt a tear unfeen into the flood ; 
 He flole ooe fccret moment, to repine. 
 
 Fz Yet
 
 ( 84 ) 
 
 Yet the mufe lirten'd to the plaints he made ; 
 
 Such moviag plaints as nature could infpire ; 
 To me the mufe his tender plea convey'd, 
 
 But fmooth'd and fuited to the founding lyre. 
 
 " Why am I ravifti'd from my native ftrand ? 
 
 What favage race protects this impious gain ? 
 Shall foreign plagues infeft this teeming land, 
 
 And more than fea-born monfters plough the main s 
 
 Here the dire locufts horrid fwarms prevail ; 
 
 Here the blue afps with livid poifon fwell ; 
 Here the dry dipfa writhes his fmuous mail; 
 
 Can we not here, fecure from envy, dwell ? 
 
 When the grim lion urg'd his cruel chace, 
 
 When the ftern panther fought his midnight prey, 
 
 What fate referv'd me for this * chriltian race ? 
 O race more polifh'd, more fevere than they ! 
 
 Ye prouling wolves, purfue my lateft cries ! 
 
 Thou hungry tyger, leave thy reeking den ! 
 Ye fandy waftes, in rapid eddies rife ! 
 
 O tear me from the whips and fcorns of men ! 
 
 Yet in their face fuperior beauty glows ; 
 
 Are fmiles the mien of rapine and of wrong ? 
 Yet from their lip the voice of mercy flows, 
 And ev'n religion dwells upon their tongue. 
 
 Of 
 * Spoke by a favage.
 
 Of blifsful haunts they tell, and brighter climes, 
 Where gentle minds convey'd by death repair; 
 
 But ftain'd with blood, and crimfon'd o'er with crimes. 
 Say, (hall they merit what they paint; fo fair ? 
 
 No, carelefs, hopelefs of thqfe : fertile plains, 
 Rich by our toils, and by our forrows gay, 
 
 They ply our labours, and enhance our pains, 
 And feign thefe diftant regions to repay. 
 
 For them our tufky elephant expires ; 
 
 For them we drain the mine's embowel'd gold ; 
 Where rove the brutal nations' wild defires ? 
 
 Our limbs are purchas'd, and our life is fold ! 
 
 Yet mores there are, bleft mores for us remain, 
 And favour'd ifles with golden fruitage crowu'd, 
 
 Where tufted flow'rets paint the verdaut plain, 
 Where ev'ry breeze (hall med'cine ev'ry wound. 
 
 There the ftern tyrant that embitters life- 
 Shall, vainly fuppliant, fpread his aflting hand j 
 
 There mall we view the billows' raging ftrife, 
 Aid the kind breaft, and waft his boat to land," 
 
 i 
 Fj ELEGY
 
 ( 66 ) 
 
 ELEGY XXL 
 
 - 
 
 Taking A view of the country from his re- 
 tirement, he is led to meditate on the cha- 
 racter of the ancient BRITONS. Written 
 at the time of a rumoured tax upon 
 luxury, 1746. 
 
 THUS DA MOW fung -What tho' unknown topraife 
 Umbrageous coVerts hide my Jnufe and me J 
 Or 'mid the rural ftiepherds, flow my dayB, 
 Amid the rural ihepherds, I am free. 
 
 To view fieek vafials crowd a ftately hall, 
 Say, mould I grow myfelf a folemn flave I 
 
 To find thy tints, O TITIAN ! grace my wall, 
 Forego the flow'ry fields nay fortune gave ? 
 
 Lord of my time, my devious path I bend, 
 
 Thro' fringy woodland, or fmooth- (haven lawn ; 
 
 Or penfile grove, or airy cliff afcend. 
 
 And hail the fcene by nature's pencil drawn. 
 
 Thanks be to fate tho' nor the racy vine, 
 Nor fatt'ning olive cloath the fields I rove, 
 
 Sequefter'd Ihades, and gurgling founts are mine, 
 And ev'ry filvan grott the mufes love. 
 
 Here
 
 Here if my vtfta point the mould'ring pile, 
 Where hood and cowl devotion's afpefit wore, 
 
 I trace the tott'ring reliques with a fmile, 
 To dunk die mental boadage is 119 more ! 
 
 Pleas'd, if the glowing landscape wave with corn ; 
 
 Or the tall oaks, my country's bulwark, rife ; 
 Pleas'd if mine eye, o'er thoufand vallies borne, 
 
 Difcern the Cambrian hills iupport the &ies. 
 
 And fee PLJNLIMMON ! ev'n the youthful figlit 
 Scales the proud hill's etherial cliffs with pajsi ! 
 
 Such, CAER-CARADOC ! thy flupendous height, 
 Whofe ample {hade obfcures th' lernian mak. 
 
 Bleak, joylefs regions I where, by fcience nr'd, 
 Some pryieg fage his lonely flep may bend ; 
 
 There, by the love of novel plants infpir'd, 
 Inviduous view the clamb'ring goats afccod. 
 
 Yet for thole mountains, clad with lading foow, 
 The freeborn BRITON left his greeneft mead; 
 
 Receding fullen from his mightier foe, 
 For here he faw fair liberty recede. 
 
 Then if a chief perform'd a patriot's part, 
 Suilain'd her drooping fons, repdl'd her foes, 
 
 Above or Perfun luxe, or Attic art, 
 The rude majeftic monument arofe. 
 
 F 4 . Progreffive
 
 ( 88 ) 
 
 Progreffive ages carol'd forth his fame ; 
 
 Sires, to his praife, attun'd their children's tongue ; 
 The hoary druid fed the gen'rous flame, 
 
 While, in fuch ftrains, the rev'rend wizard fung. 
 
 " Go forth, my fons ! for what is vital breath, 
 Your gods expell'd, your liberty refign'd ? 
 
 Go forth, my fons ! for what is inftant death 
 To fouls fecure perennial joys to find ? 
 
 For fcenes there are, unknown to war or pain, 
 
 Where drops the balm that heals a tyrant's wound ; 
 
 Where patriots, bleft with boundlefs freedom, reign, 
 With miiletoe's myfterious garlands crown'd. 
 
 Such are the names that grace your myftic fongs ; 
 
 Your folemn woods refound their martial fire ; 
 To you, my fons, the ritual meed belongs, 
 
 If in the caufe you vanquish, or expire. 
 
 Hark ! from the facred oak that crowns the groves, 
 What aweful voice my raptur'd bofom warms ; 
 
 This is the favour'd moment heav'n approves, 
 
 Sound the mrill trump ; this inftant, found, to arms." 
 
 Theirs was the fcience of a martial race, 
 To fliape the lance, or decorate the fhield ; 
 
 Ev'n the fair virgin ftain'd her native grace, 
 To give new horrors to the tented field. 
 
 Now,
 
 Now, for fome cheek where guilty blufhes glow, 
 For fome falfe FLORI MEL'S impure difguife, 
 
 The lifted youth, nor war's loud fignal know, 
 Nor virtue's call, nor fame's imperial prize. 
 
 . Then if foft concord lull'd their fears to fleep, 
 
 Inert and filent flept the manly car ; 
 But rulh'd horrific o'er the fearful fteep, 
 If freedom's aweful clarion breath'd to war. 
 
 Now the fleek courtier, indolent and vain, 
 
 Thron'd in the fplendid carriage glides fupine; 
 
 To taint his virtue with a foreign ftrain, 
 Or at a fav'rite's board, his faith refign. 
 
 Leave then, O luxury ! this happy foil ! 
 
 Chafe her, BRITANNIA, to fome hoftile more ! 
 Or * fleece the baneful peft with annual fpoil, 
 
 And let thy virtuous offspring weep no more ! 
 
 + 4. * * * * * * .t< ******** ******** ********* 
 
 ELEGY XXII. 
 
 Written in the year when the rights of 
 
 fepulture were fb frequently violated. 
 
 SAY, gentle Sleep, that lov'ft the gloom of night, 
 Parent of dreams ! thou great magician, fay, 
 Whence my late vifion thus endures the light ; 
 Thus haunts my fancy thro' the glare of day. 
 
 The 
 Alludes to a tax upon Luxury, then in debate.
 
 The filent moon had fcal'd the vaulted flues, 
 And anxious care refign'd my limbs to reft ; 
 
 A fudden luftre ftruck my wond'ring eyes, 
 And SILVIA ftood before my couch confeft. 
 
 Ah ! not the nymph Ib blooming and fo gay, 
 That led the dance beneath the feftive flude ! 
 
 But flie that, in the morning of her day, 
 
 Intomb'd beneath the grafs-green fod was laid. 
 
 No more her eyes their wonted radiance caft ; 
 
 No more her breaft infpir'd the lover's flame ; 
 No more her cheek the Paeftan rofe furpaft ; 
 
 Yet feem'd her lip's e die rial fmile the fame. 
 
 Nor fuch her hair as deck'd her living face ; 
 
 Nor fuch her voice as charm'd the lift'ning crowd ; 
 Nor fuch her drefs as heighten'd cv'ry grace; 
 
 Alas ! all vanifh'd for the mournful fhroud ! 
 
 Yet feem'd her lip's etherial charm the fame ; 
 
 That dear diftin&ion every doubt remov'd ; 
 Perifti the lover, whofe imperfect flame 
 
 Forgets one feature of the nymph he lov'd. 
 
 " DA MOW, me faid, mine hour allotted flies ; 
 
 Oh do not wafte it with a fruidefs tear ! 
 Tho' griev'd to fee thy SILVIA'S pale difguiie, 
 
 Sufpend thy forrcw, and attentive hear. 
 
 So
 
 < 9 ) 
 
 So may thy mufe with virtuous fame be bleft ! 
 
 So be thy love with mutual love repaid ! 
 So may thy bones in facred filence reft, 
 
 Faft by the reliques of fome happier maid I 
 
 Thou know'ft, how ling'ring on a diftant flioro 
 Difeafe invidious nipt my flow'ry prime ; 
 
 And oh ! what pangs my tender bofom tore, 
 To think I ne'er muft view my native clime ! 
 
 No friend was near to raife my drooping head ! 
 
 No dear companion wept to fee me die j 
 Lodge me within my native foil, I faid ; 
 
 There my fond parents' honour'd reliques lie* 
 
 Tho' now debarr'd of each domeftic tear, 
 Unknown, forgot, I meet the fatal blow ; 
 
 There many a friend lhall grace my woeful bier, 
 And many a figh ihall rife, and tear fhall flow. 
 
 J (poke, nor fate forbore his trembling fpoil ; 
 
 Some venal mourner lent his carelefs aid ; 
 And foon they bore me to my native foil, 
 
 Where my fond parents' dear remains were laid. 
 
 'Twas then the youths from ev'ry plain and grove, 
 Adorn'd with mournful verfe thy SILVIA'S bier; 
 
 'Twas then the nymphs their vodve garlands wove, 
 And ftrew'd the fragrance of the youthful year, 
 
 But
 
 ( 9* ) 
 
 But why alas ! the tender fcene difplay ! 
 
 Cou'd DAMON'S foot the pious path decline ? 
 Ah no ! 'twas DAMON firft attun'd his lay, 
 
 And fure no fonnet was fo dear as thine. 
 
 Thus was I bofom'd in the peaceful grave ; 
 
 My placid ghoft no longer wept its doom ; 
 When favage robbers every fan&ion brave, 
 
 And with outrageous guilt defraud the tomb ! 
 
 Shall my poor corfe, from hoftile realms convey'd, 
 Lofe the cheap portion of my native fands i 
 
 Or, in my kindred's dear embraces laid, 
 Mourn the vile ravage of barbarian hands ? 
 
 Say, wou'd thy breaft no death-like torture feel, 
 To fee my limbs the felon's gripe obey ? 
 
 To fee them gafh'd beneath the daring fteel ? 
 To crowds a fpe&re, and to dogs a prey ? 
 
 If P /BAN'S fons thefe horrid rites require, 
 If health's fair fcience be by thefe refm'd, 
 
 Let-guilty convifts, for their ufe, expire ; 
 And let their breathlefs corfe avail mankind. 
 
 Yet hard it feems, when guilt's laft fine is paid, 
 To fee the vidtim's corfe deny'd repofe 1 
 
 Now, more fevere ! the poor offencelefs maid 
 Breads the dire outrage of inhuman foes. 
 
 Where
 
 ( 93 ) 
 
 Where is the faith of ancient pagans fled ? 
 
 Where the fond care the wand'ring manes claim f 
 Nature, inftincHve, cries, Protect the dead, 
 
 And facred be their afhes, and their fame ! 
 
 Arife, dear youth ! ev'n now the danger calls ; 
 
 Ev'n now the villain fnuffs his wonted prey ; 
 See ! fee ! I lead thee to yon' facred walls 
 
 Oh ! fly to chafe thefe human wolves away." 
 
 *** * * 'V * > * * **** t* * 'H- * * -I" -I' 'H * * * ******** 
 
 ELEGY XXIII. 
 
 Reflexions fuggeiled by his fituation. 
 
 BORN near the fcene for * KE N E L M 's fate renown'd, 
 I tafce my plaintive reed, and range the grove, 
 And raife my lay, and bid the rocks refound 
 The favage force of empire, and of love. . 
 
 Fail 
 
 * KEN ELM in the Saxon heptarchy was heir to the kingdom 
 of MERC i A ; but being very young at his father's death, was, by 
 the artifices of his fitter and her lover, depriv'd of his crown and 
 life together. The body was found in a piece of ground near 
 the top of Clent Hill, exactly facing Mr. SHENS TONE'S houfe : 
 near which place a church was afterwards erefled to his memory, 
 ftill ufed for divine worfhip, and called St. KENELM'S. See 
 Pfco x's Hiftory of StaffordQiire.
 
 ( 94 ) 
 
 Faft by the centre of yon' various wild, 
 
 Where fpreading oaks embow'r a gothic fane ; 
 
 KENDRIDA'S arts a brother's youth beguil'd ; 
 There nature urg'd her tend'reft pleas in vain* 
 
 Soft o'er his birth, and o'er his infant hours, 
 Th' ambitious maid cou'd every care employ ; 
 
 Then with affiduous fondnefs cropt the flow'rs, 
 To deck the cradle of the princely boy ! 
 
 But foon the bofom's pleafing calm is flown ; 
 
 Love fires her breaft ; the fultry paffions rife j 
 A favour'd lover feeks the Mercian throne, 
 
 And views her KENELM with a rival's eyes. 
 
 How kind were fortune, ah t how juft were fate, 
 Wou'd fate or fortune MERCIA'S heir remove I 
 
 How fweet to revel on the couch of ftate ! 
 To crown at once her lover and her love ! 
 
 See, garnifh'd for the chace, the fraudful maid 
 To thefe lone hills diredl his devious way ; 
 
 The youth, all prone, the filler guide obey'd, 
 Ill-fated youth 1 himfclf the deftin'd prey* 
 
 But now, nor fhaggy hill, nor pathlefs plain, 
 Forms the lone refuge of the fiK-an game; 
 
 Since LYTTELTON has crown'd the fweut domain 
 With faftex pleafurcs, and wirh fairer fame. 
 
 Where
 
 C 95 ) 
 
 Where the rough bowman org'd his headlong fteed, 
 Immortal bards, a polim'd race, retire ; 
 
 And where hoarfe fcream'd the ftrepent horn, fucceed 
 The melting graces of no vulgar lyre. 
 
 See THOMSON, loit'ring near fome limpid well, 
 
 For BRITAIN'S friend the verdant wreath prepare ! 
 
 Or, ftudious of revolving feafons, tell, 
 How peerlefs LUCIA made all feafons fair ! 
 
 See **** from civic garlands fly, 
 
 And in thefe groves indulge his tuneful vein! 
 
 Or from yon' fummit, with a guardian's eye, 
 Obferve how freedom's hand attires the plain ! 
 
 Here POPE ! ah never muft that tow'ring mind 
 
 To his lov'd haunts, or dearer friend, return i 
 
 What art, what friendfhips ! oh ! what fame refign'd ! 
 In yonder glade I trace his mournful urn. 
 
 Where is the breail can rage or hate retain, 
 
 And thefe glad ftreams and fmiling lawns behold t 
 
 Where is the breaft can hear the woodland (train, 
 And think fair freedom well exchang'd for gold ? 
 
 Thro' thefe foft Ihades delighted let me ftray. 
 
 While o'er my head forgotten funs defcend ! 
 Thro' thefe dear valleys bend my cafual way, 
 
 'Till fetting lire a total fliad extend ! 
 
 Here
 
 Here far from courts, and void of pompous cares, 
 I'll mufe how much 1 owe mine humbler fate : 
 
 Or (hrink to find, how much ambition dares, 
 To mine in anguifn, and to grieve in ftate ! 
 
 Canft thou, O fun ! that fpotlefs riirone difclofe, 
 Where her bold aim has left no fanguine ftain ? 
 
 Where, mew me where, the lineal fcepter glows, 
 Pure, as the fimple crook that rules the plain ? 
 
 Tremendous pomp ! where hate, diftruft, and fear, 
 
 In kindred bofoms folve the focial tie ; 
 There not the parent's fmile is half fincere ; 
 
 Nor void of art the coniort's melting eye. 
 
 There with the friendly wifli, the kindly flame, 
 No face is brighten'd, and no bofoms beat ; 
 
 Youth, manhood, age, avow one fordid aim, 
 And ev'n the beardlefs lip eflays deceit. 
 
 There coward rumours walk their murd'rous round ; 
 
 The glance, that more than rural blame inftills ; 
 Whifpers, that ting'd with friendlhip doubly wound, 
 
 Pity that injures, and concern that kills. 
 
 There anger whets, but love can ne'er engage ; 
 
 Carefling brothers part but to revile ; 
 There all men fmile, and prudence warns the wife 
 
 To dread the fatal flroke of all that fmile. 
 
 There
 
 ( 97 ) 
 
 There all are rivals ! filter, fon, and fire, 
 With horrid purpofe hug deftru&ive arms ; 
 
 There foft-ey'd maids in murd'rous plots confpire, 
 And fcorn the gentler mifcluef of their charms. 
 
 Let fervile minds one endlefs watch endure ; 
 
 Day, night, nor hour, their anxious guard refign : 
 But lay me, fate ! on flow'ry banks, fecure, 
 
 Tho* my whole foul be, like my limbs, fupine. 
 
 Yes, may my tongue difdain a vaffal's care ; 
 
 My lyre refound no proftituted lays ; 
 More warm to merit, more elate to wear 
 
 The cap of freedom, than the crown of bays. 
 
 Sooth'd by the murmurs of my pebbled flood, 
 I wifli it not o'er golden fands to flow ; 
 
 Chear'd by the verdure of my Ipiral wood, 
 I fcorn the quarry, where no fhrub can grow. 
 
 No midnight pangs the Ihepherd's peace purfue ; 
 
 His tongue, his hand, attempts no fecret wound j 
 He lings his DELIA, and if Ihe be true, 
 
 His love at once, and his ambition's crown'd. 
 
 VOL. I. G ELEGY
 
 ( 93 ) 
 
 ELEGY XXIV. 
 
 He takes occafion from the fate of ELEANOR 
 ofBRETAGNE*, to fuggeft the imperfect 
 pleafures of a folitary life. 
 
 WHEN beauty mourns, by fate's injurious doom, 
 Hid from the chearful glance of human eye ; 
 When nature's pride inglorious waits the tomb, 
 Hard is that heart which checks the rifmg figh. 
 
 Fair ELEONORA ! wou'd no gallant mind 
 The caufe of love, the caufe of juftiee own ? 
 
 Matchlefs thy charms, and was no life refign'd 
 To fee them fparkle from their native thr,one ? 
 
 Or had fair freedom's hand unveil'd thy charms, 
 Well might fuch brows the regal gem refign ; 
 
 Thy radiant mien might fcorn the guilt of arms, 
 Yet ALBION'S aweful empire yield to thine. 
 
 O fhame of B R i TONS ! in one fullen tow'r 
 She wet with royal tears her daily cell ; 
 
 She found keen anguiih ev'iy rofe devour ; 
 They fprung, they Ihone, they faded, and they fell. 
 
 Thro' 
 
 * ELEANOR of BRET ACNE, the lawful heirefs of the Englifh 
 crown, upon the death of ARTHUR, in the reign of king JOHN. 
 She was efteemed the beauty of her time ; was imprifoned fortjr 
 years (till the time of her death) in Bnftol caftle.
 
 
 ( 99 ) 
 
 Thro' one dim lattice fring'd with ivy round, 
 Succeffive funs a languid radiance threw ; 
 
 To paint how fierce her angry guardian frown'd, 
 To mark how faft her waning beauty flew. 
 
 This, age might bear ; then fated fancy palls, 
 Nor warmly hopes what fplendor can fupply ; 
 
 Fond youth inceflant mourns, if rigid walla 
 Reftrain its lift'ning ear, its curious eye. 
 
 Believe me * * * * the pretence is vain ! 
 
 This boafted calm that fmooths our early days ; 
 For never yet could youthful mind reftrain 
 
 Th' alternate pant for pleafure and for praife. 
 
 Ev'n me, by Ihady oak or limpid fpring, 
 Ev'n me, the fcenes of polim'd life allure ; 
 
 Some genius whifpers " Life is on the wing, 
 And hard his lot that languifhes obfcure. 
 
 What tho' thy riper mind admire no more 
 The mining cincture, and the broider'd fold 
 
 Can pierce like lightning thro' the figur'd ore, 
 And melt to drofs the radiant forms of gold. 
 
 Furs, crmins, rods may well attract thy fcorn ; 
 
 The futile prefeuts of capricious pow'r ! 
 But wit, but worth, the public fphere adorn, 
 
 And who but envies then the focial hour ? 
 
 G 2 Can
 
 ( 100 ) 
 
 Can virtue, carelefs of her pupil's meed, 
 
 Forget how * * * fuftains the fhepherd's caufe ? 
 
 Content in (hades to tune a lonely reed, 
 Nor join the founding paean of applaufe ? 
 
 For public haunts, impell'd by BRITAIN'S weal, 
 See GRENVILLE quit the mafe's fav'rite eafe j 
 
 And (hall not fwains admire his noble zeal ? 
 Admiring praife, admiring ftrive to plcafe ? 
 
 Life, fays the fage, affords no blifs fmcere ; 
 
 And courts, and cells in vain our hopes renew : 
 But ah ! where GRENVILLE charms the lilt'ning ear, 
 
 'Tis hard to think the che'arlefs maxim true. 
 
 The groves may fmile ; the rivers gently glide ; 
 
 Soft thro' the vale refound the lonefome lay ; 
 Ev'n thickets yield delight, if tafte prefide, 
 
 But can they pleafe> when LYTT ELTON'S away. ? 
 
 Pure as the fwain's the breaft of * * * glows, 
 
 Ah ! were the fliepherd's phrafe, like his, refin'd ! 
 
 But, how improv'd the generous dictate flows 
 Thro' the clear medium of a polilh'd mind ! 
 
 Happy the youths who warm with BRITAIN'S love, 
 
 Her inmoft wifti in * * * periods hear ! 
 Happy that in the radiant circle move, 
 
 Attendant orbs, where Lows DALE gilds the fphere ! 
 
 While
 
 While rural faith, and ev'ry poliih'd art, 
 Each friendly charm, in * * * confpire, 
 
 From public fcenes all penfive mult you part ; 
 All joylefa to the greeneft fields retire ! 
 
 Go, plaintive youth ! no more by fount or ftream, 
 Like foms lone halcyon, focial pleafure fhun ; 
 
 Go dare the light, enjoy its chearful beam, 
 And hail the bright proceffion of the fun. 
 
 Then cover'd by thy ripenM (hades, refume 
 The filent walk ; no more by paffion toft : 
 
 Then feek thy ruftic haunts ; the dreary gloom, 
 Where ev'ry art that colours life, is loft." 
 
 In vain ! the lift'ning mule attends in vain ! 
 
 Reftraints in hoftile bands her motions wait 
 Yet will I grieve, and fadden all my ftrain, 
 
 When injur'd beauty mourns the mufe's fate. 
 
 ELEGY XXV. 
 To DELIA, with fome flowers ; complaining 
 how much his benevolence fuffers on ac- 
 count of his humble fortune. 
 
 "\X7 Hate'er could fculpture's curious art employ, 
 
 Whate'er the lavifh hand of wealth can ihow'r, 
 Thefe would I give^-rand every gift enjoy, 
 
 That pleas'd my fair but fate denies my pow'r. 
 
 G 3 Bleft
 
 Bleft were my lot to feed the focial fires ! 
 
 To learn the latent wifhes of a friend 1 
 To give the boon his native tafte admires, 
 
 And, for my tranfport, on his fmile depend ! 
 
 Bleft too is he, whofe ev'ning ramble ftrays 
 Where droop the fons of indigence and care ! 
 
 His little gifts their gladden'd eyes amaze, 
 
 And win, at fmall expence, their fondeft pray'r ! 
 
 And oh the joy ! to mun the confcious light, . 
 
 To fpare the modeft blufh ; to give unfeen ! 
 Like fhow'rs that fall behind the veil of night, 
 
 Yet deeply tinge the finiling vales with green. 
 
 But happieft they, who drooping realms relieve '. 
 
 Whofe virtues in our cultur'd vales appear I 
 For whofe fad fate a thoufand fhepherds grieve, 
 
 And fading fields allow the grief fmcere. 
 
 To call loft worth from its oppreflive made ; 
 
 To fix its equal fphere, and fee it mine ; 
 To hear it grateful own the gen'rous aid; 
 
 This, this is tranfport- but muft ne'er be mine. 
 
 Faint is my bounded blifs ; nor I refufe 
 To range where daifies open, rivers roll ; 
 
 While profe or fong the languid hours amufe, 
 And foothe the fond impatience of my foul. 
 
 Awhile
 
 Awhile I'll weave the roofs of jafmin bow'rs, 
 And urge with trivial cares the loit'ring year ; 
 
 Awhile I'll prune my grove, proteft my flow'rs, 
 Then, unlarnented,'prefs an- early bier ! 
 
 Of thofe lov'd flowers the lifelefs corfe may mare, 
 Some hireling hand a fading wreath beftow ; 
 
 The reft will breathe as fweet, will glow as fair, 
 As when their mafter fmil'd to fee them glow. 
 
 The fequent morn mall wake the filvan quire ; 
 
 The kid again mall wanton ere 'tis noon ; 
 Nature will fmile, will wear her beft attire ; 
 
 ! let not gentle DELIA fmile fo foon ! 
 
 While the rude hearfe conveys me flow away, 
 And carelefs eyes my vulgar fate proclaim, 
 
 Let thy kind tear my utmoft worth o'erpay ; 
 And, foftly fighing, vindicate my fame. - 
 
 O D E L i A ! chear'd by thy fuperior praife, 
 
 1 blefs the filent path the fates decree ; 
 Pleas'd, from the lift of my inglorious days, 
 
 To raze the moments crownM with blifs, and thee. 
 
 ELEGY
 
 ELEGY XXVI, 
 
 Defcribing the forrow of an ingenuous mind, 
 on the melancholy event of a licentious 
 amour. 
 
 \X7 H Y mourns my friend 1 why weeps his downcaft eye ? 
 That eye where mirth, where fancy us'd to ihine ; 
 Thy chearful meads reprove that fwelling figh ; 
 Spring ne'er enamell'd fairer meads than thine. 
 
 Art thou not lodg'd in fortune's warm embrace ? 
 
 Wert thou not form'd by nature's partial care f 
 Bleft in thy fong, and bleft in ev'ry grace 
 
 That wins the friend, or that enchants the fair ! 
 
 DAMON, faid he, thy partial praife reftrain ! 
 
 Not DAMON'S friendfhip can my peace reftore ; 
 Alas ! his very praife awakes my pain, 
 
 And my poor wounded bofom bleeds the more. 
 
 For oh ! that nature on my birth had frown'd, 
 
 Or fortune fix'd me to fome lowly cell ! 
 Then had my bofom 'fcap'd this fatal wound, 
 
 Nor had I bid thefe vernal fweets farewel. 
 
 But led by fortune's hand, her darling child, 
 My youth her vain licentious blifs admir'd ; 
 
 In fortune's train the fyren flatt'ry fmil'd, 
 And rafhly hallow'd all her queen infpir'd. 
 
 Of
 
 Of folly ftudious, ev'n of vices vain, 
 Ah vices ! gilded by the rich and gay ! 
 
 I chas'd the guilelefs daughters of the plain, 
 Nor dropt the ciiace, till JESSY was my prey. 
 
 Poor artlefs maid ! to ftain thy fpotlefs name, 
 Expence, and art, and toil, united itrove ; 
 
 To lure a breaft that felt the pureft flame, 
 Sullain'd by virtue, but betray 'd by love, 
 
 School'd in the fcience of love's mazy wiles, 
 I cloath'd each feature with affected fcorn ; 
 
 I fpoke of jealous doubts, and fickle fmiles, 
 And, feigning, left her anxious and forlorn. 
 
 Then, while the fancy'd rage alarm'd ter care. 
 Warm to deny, and zealous to difprove ; 
 
 I bade my words the wonted foftnefs wear, 
 And feiz'd the minute of returning love. 
 
 To thee, my DAMON, dare I paint the reft ? 
 
 Will yet thy love a candid ear incline ? 
 Aflur'd that virtue, by misfortune preft, 
 
 Feels not the fharpnefs of a pang like mine. 
 
 Nine envious moons matur'd her growing flume ; 
 
 Ere while to flaunt it in the face of day ; 
 When fcorn'd of virtue, ftigmatiz'd by fame, 
 
 Low at my feet dcfponding JESSY lay. 
 
 5 ' HENRY,
 
 * HENRY, me faiii, by thy dear form fubdu'd, 
 See the fad reliques of a nymph undone ! 
 
 I find, I find this rifing fob renew'd : 
 I figh. in fhades, and taken at the fun. 
 
 Amid the dreary gloom of night, I cry, 
 
 When will: the morn's once pleafing fcenes return ? 
 
 Yet what can morn's returning ray fupply, 
 
 But foes that triumph, or but friends that mourn } 
 
 Alas ! no more that joyous morn appears 
 That lei the tranquil hours of fpotlefs fame ; 
 
 For I have fteep'd a father's couchin tears, 
 And ting'd a mother's glowing cheek with fhaine. 
 
 The vocal birds ihat raife their matin ftrain, 
 The fportive lambs, increafe my penfive moan ; 
 
 All feem to chafe me from the chearful plain, 
 And talk of truth and innocence alone. 
 
 If thro' the garden's flow'ry tribes I ftray, 
 
 Where bloom the jafmins that could once allure, 
 
 Hope not to find delight in us, they fay, 
 For we are Ipotlefs, JESSY ; we are pure. 
 
 Ye flow'rs ! that well reproach a nymph fo frail, 
 Say, could ye with my virgin fame compare ? 
 
 The brightejt bud that fcents the vernal gale 
 Was not fo fragant, and was not fo fair. 
 
 Now
 
 t 107 ) 
 
 Now the grave old alarm the gentler young ; 
 
 And all my fame's abhorr'd contagion flee ; 
 Trembles each lip, and faulters ev'ry tongue, 
 
 That bids the morn propitious fmile on me. 
 
 Thus for your fake I fhun each human eye ; 
 
 I bid the fweets of blooming youth adieu j 
 To die I languifti, but I dread to die, 
 
 Left my fad fate fhou'd nourifh pangs for you. 
 
 Raife me from earth ; the pains of want remove. 
 And let me filent feek fome friendly more ; 
 
 There only, banifti'd from the form I love, 
 My weeping virtue (hall relapfe no more. 
 
 Be but my friend ; I afk no dearer name ; 
 
 Be fuch the meed of fome more artful fair; 
 Nor could it keal my peace, or chafe my fhame, 
 
 That pity gave, what love refus'd to fliare. 
 
 Force not my tongue to afk its fcanty bread ; 
 
 Nor hurl thy JESSY to the vulgar crew ; 
 Not fuch the parent's board at which I fed ! 
 
 Not fuch the precept from his lips I drew 1 
 
 Haply, when age has filver'd o'er my hair, 
 Malice may learn to fcorn fo mean a fpoil ; 
 
 Envy may flight a face no longer fair ; 
 And pity welcome to my native foil." 
 
 She
 
 io8 
 
 She fpcke- nor was I born of favage race ; 
 
 Nor could thefe hands a niggard boon aflign ; 
 Grateful fhe clafp'd me in a lafl embrace, 
 
 And vow'd to wafte her life in pray'rs for mine. 
 
 J faw her foot the lofty bark afcend ; 
 
 I faw her breaft with ev'ry paffion heave ; 
 I left her torn from ev'ry earthly friend ; 
 
 Oh 1 my hard bofom, which could bear to leave ! 
 
 Brief let me be ; the fatal florm arofe ; 
 
 The billows rag'd, the pilot's art was vain ; 
 O'er the tall maft the circling furges clofe ; 
 
 My jEssv-Wloats upon the wat'ry plain ! 
 
 And fee my youth's impetuous fires decay ; 
 
 Seek not to flop reflection's bitter tear ; 
 But warn the frolic, and inftruft the gay, 
 
 From JESSY floating on her wat'ry bier ! 
 
 ODES,
 
 ODES, 
 
 SONGS, 
 BALLADS, &c.
 
 RURAL ELEGANCE. 
 
 An ODE to the late Dutchefs of SOMERSET. 
 Written 1750. 
 
 WHILE orient flcies reftore the day, 
 And drew-drops catch the lucid ray ; 
 Amid the fprightly fcenes of morn, 
 
 Will aught the mufe infpire ! 
 Oh ! peace to yonder clam'rous horn 
 That drowns the facred lyre ! 
 
 Ye rural thanes that o'er the mofly down 
 
 Some panting, timorous hare purfue ; 
 Does nature mean ycur joys alone to crown ? 
 
 Say, does flie fmooth her lawns for you ? 
 For you does echo bid the rocks reply, 
 And urg'd by rude conftraint refound the jovial cry ? 
 
 See
 
 ( II* ) 
 
 See from the neighbouring hill, forlorn 
 The wretched fwain your fport furvejr; 
 
 He finds his faithful fences torn, 
 He finds his labour'd crops a prey ; 
 
 He fees his flock no more in circles feed ; 
 
 Haply beneath your ravage bleed, 
 And with no random curfes loads the deed. 
 
 Nor yet, ye fwains, conclude 
 
 That nature fmiles for you alone ; 
 Your bounded fouls, and your conceptions crude, 
 
 The proud, the felfim boaft difown : 
 
 Yours be the produce of the foil : 
 
 O may it ilill reward your toil 1 
 
 Nor ever the defencelefs train 
 Of clinging infants, aflc fupport in vain ! 
 
 But tho' the various harvelt gild your plains, 
 
 Does the mere landfcape feaft your eye ? 
 Or the warm hope of diilant gains 
 
 Far other caufe of glee fupply ? 
 Is not the red-ftreak's future juice 
 
 The fource of your delight profound, 
 Where Ariconium pours her gems proiufe, 
 
 Purpling a whole horizon round ? 
 Athirft ye praife the limpid ftrcam, 'tis true : 
 
 But tho', the pebbled fhores among, 
 
 It mimic no unpleafing fong, 
 The limpid fountain murmurs not for you* 
 
 Unpleas'd
 
 ( "3 ) 
 
 Unpleas'd ye fee the thickets bloom, 
 Unpleas'd the fpring her flowery robe refume ; 
 
 Urunov'd the mountain's airy pile, 
 
 The dappled mead without a fmile. 
 
 O let a rural confcious mufe, 
 For well fhe knows, your froward fenfe accufe : 
 Forth to the folemn oak you bring the fquare, 
 And fpan the maffy trunk, before you cry, 'tis fair* 
 
 Nor yet ye learn'd, nor yet ye courtly train, 
 
 If haply from your haunts ye ilray 
 
 To wafte with us a fummer's day, 
 
 Exclude the taite of every fwain, 
 
 Nor our untutor'd fenfe difdain : 
 'Tis nature only gives exclufive right 
 
 To relilh her fupreme delight ; 
 
 She, where me pleafes kind or coy, 
 Who furnilhes the fcene, and forms us to enjoy. 
 
 Then hither bring the fair ingenuous mind, 
 By her aufpicious aid refin'd ; 
 
 Lo ! not an hedge-row hawthorn blows, 
 Or humble hare-bell paints the plain, 
 Or valley winds, or fountain flows, 
 
 Or purple heath is ting'd in vain : 
 For fuch the rivers dafh the foaming tide^, 
 The mountain fwells, the dale fubfides ; 
 Ev'n thriftlefs furze detains their wandering fight, 
 And the rough barren rock grows pregnant with delight. 
 VOL. I. ' H With
 
 C "4 ) 
 
 With what fufpicious fearful care 
 
 The fordid wretch fecures his claim, 
 If haply fome luxurious heir 
 
 Should alienate the fields that wear his name ! 
 What fcruples left fome future birth 
 
 Should litigate a fpan of earth ! 
 Bonds, contrails, feoffments, names unmeet for profe, 
 The towering mufe endures not to difclofe ; 
 Alas ! her unrevers'd decree, 
 More comprehensive and more free, 
 Her lavilh charter, tafte, appropriates all we fee. 
 
 Let gondolas their painted flags unfold, 
 And be the folemn day enroll'd, 
 When to confirm his lofty plea, 
 
 In nuptial fort, with bridal gold, 
 The grave Venetian weds the fea : 
 Each laughing mufe derides the vow ; 
 
 Ev'n A D R i A fcorns the mock embrace, 
 To fome lone hermit on the mountain's brow, 
 Allotted, from his natal hour, 
 With all her myrtle mores in dow'r. 
 His breaft to admiration prone 
 Enjoys the fmile upon her face, 
 Enjoys triumphant every grace, 
 And finds her more his own. 
 
 Fatigu'd with form's opprefiive laws, 
 When SOMERSET avoids the great; 
 
 When
 
 When cloy'd with merited applaufe, 
 
 She feeks the rural calm retreat ; 
 Does ihe not praife each mofly cell, 
 And feel the truth my numbers tell ? 
 When deafen'd by the loud acclaim, 
 
 Which genius grac'd with rank obtains> 
 Could fhe not more delighted hear 
 Yon throfHe chaunt the rifing year ? 
 Could fhe not fpurn the wreaths of fame, 
 
 To crop the primrofe of the plains ? 
 Does fixe not fweets in each fair valley find, 
 Loft to the fons of pow'r, unknown to half mankind f 
 
 Ah can fhe covet there to fee 
 The fplendid flaves, the reptile race, 
 
 That oil the tongue, and bow the knee, 
 That flight her merit, but adore her place ? 
 
 Far happier, if aright I deem, 
 When from gay throngs, and gilded fpires, 
 
 To where the lonely halcyons play, 
 Her philofophic ftep retires : 
 While ftudious of the moral theme, 
 She, to fome fmooth fequefter'd ftream 
 
 Likens the fwain's inglorious day; 
 Pleas'd from the flowery margin to furvey, 
 How cool, ferene, and clear the current glides away. 
 
 O blind to truth, to virtue blind, 
 Who flight the fweetly-penfive mind ! 
 On whofe fair birth the graces mild, 
 And every mufe prophetic finil'd. 
 
 H 2 No?
 
 Not that the poet's boafted fire 
 
 Should fame's wide-echoing trumpet fwell J 
 Or, on the mufic of his lyre 
 
 Each future age with rapture dwell; 
 The vaunted fweets of praife remove, 
 
 Yet mall fuch bofoms claim a part 
 
 In all that glads the human heart ; 
 Yet thefe the fpirits, fonn'd to judge and prove 
 All nature's charms immenfe, and heaven's unbounded 
 
 [love. 
 And oh ; the tranfport, molt ally'd to fong, 
 
 In fome fair villa's peaceful bound, 
 To catch foft hints from nature's tongue, 
 
 And bid ARCADIA bloom around : 
 Whether we fringe the Hoping hill, 
 
 Or fmoothe below the verdant mead ; 
 Whether we break the falling rill, 
 
 Or thro' meandering mazes lead ; 
 Or in the horrid bramble's room 
 Bid carelefs groups of rofes bloom ; 
 Or let fome ftielter'd lake ferene 
 Refleft flow'rs, woods and fpires, and brighten all the fcene. 
 
 O fweet difpofal of the rural hour ; 
 
 O beauties never known to cloy ! 
 While worth and genius haunt the favour'd bow'r, 
 
 And every gentle breaft partakes the joy 1 
 While charity at eve furveys the fwain, 
 
 Enabled by thefe toils to chear 
 
 A train of helplefs infants dear, 
 Speed whittling home acrofs the plain ; 
 
 See
 
 ( "7 ) 
 
 See vagrant luxury, her hand-maid grown, 
 
 For half her gracelefs deeds atone, 
 And hails the bounteous work, and ranks it with her own. 
 
 Why brand thefe pleafures with the name 
 Of foft, unfocial toils, of indolence and fhame? 
 Search but the garden, or the wood, 
 
 Let yon admir'd carnation own, 
 Not all was meant for raiment or for food, 
 
 Not all for needful ufe alone ; 
 There while the feeds of future bloflbms dwell, 
 'Tis colour'd for the fight, perfum'd to pleafe the fmell. 
 
 Why knows the nightingale to fing ? 
 
 Why flows the pine's neclareous juice ? ? 
 Why mines with paint the linnet's wing ? 
 
 For fuftenance alone ? For ufe ? 
 For prefervation ? Every fphere 
 Shall bid fair pleafure's rightful claim appear. 
 And fure there feem, of human kind, 
 
 Some born to fhun the folemn ftrife ; 
 Some for amufive tafks defign'd, 
 
 To foothe the certain ills of life ; 
 Grace its lone vales with many a budding rofe, 
 
 New founts of blifs difclofe, 
 Call forth refrefhing (hades, and decorate repofe. 
 From plains and woodlands ; from the view 
 Of rural nature's blooming face, 
 Smit with the glare of rank and place. 
 To courts the fons of fancy flew j 
 
 H 3 There
 
 ( "8 ) 
 
 There long had art ordain'd a rival feat, 
 
 There had me lavilh'd all her care 
 
 To form a fcene more dazzling fair, 
 
 And call'd them from their green retreat 
 
 To (hare her proud controul ; 
 Had given the robe with grace to flow. 
 Had taught extotic gems to glow ; 
 And emulous of nature's pow'r, 
 Mimick'd the plume, the leaf, the flow'r ; 
 Chang'd the complexion's native hue, 
 Moulded each ruftic limb anew, 
 And warp'd the very foul. 
 
 Awhile her magic firikes the novel eye, 
 Awhile the fairy forms delight j 
 And now aloof we feem to fly 
 On purple pinions thro' a purer fky, 
 Where all is wonderous, all is bright : 
 Now landed on fome fpangled more 
 Awhile each dazzled maniac roves 
 By faphire lakes, thro' em'rald groves. 
 Paternal acres pleafe no more ; 
 Adieu the fimple, the fmcere delight 
 Th' habitual fcene of hill and dale, 
 The rural herds, the vernal gale, 
 The tangled vetch's purple bloom, 
 The fragrance of the bean's perfume, 
 Be theirs alone who cultivate the foil, 
 And drink the cup of thirft, and eat the bread of toil. 
 
 But
 
 But foon the pageant fades away ! 
 'Tis nature only bears perpetual fway. 
 
 We pierce the counterfeit delight, 
 
 Fatigu'd with fplendor's irkfome beams. 
 
 Fancy again demands the fight 
 
 Of native groves, and wonted ftreams, 
 Pants for the fcenes that charm'd her youthful eyes, 
 Where truth maintains her court, and baniihes difguife. 
 
 Then hither oft ye fenators retire, 
 
 With nature here high converfe hold ; 
 For who like STAMFORD her delights admire, 
 
 Like STAMFORD mall with fcorn behold 
 Th' unequal bribes of pageantry and gold ; 
 Beneath the Britifh oak's majeftic made. 
 
 Shall fee fair truth, immortal niakl, 
 
 Friendmip in anlefs guife array'd, 
 
 Honour, and moral beauty ftiine 
 With more attractive charms, with radiance more divine. 
 
 Yes, here alone did higheft heav'n ordain 
 The lafting magazine of charms, 
 Whatever wins, whatever warms, 
 Whatever fancy feeks to mare, 
 The great, the various, and the fair, 
 For ever mould remain ! 
 
 Her impulfe nothing may reftrain > 
 Or whence the joy 'mid columns, tow*rs, 
 
 'Midft all the city's artful trim, 
 To rear fome breathlefs vapid flow'rs, 
 
 H Or
 
 C o ) 
 
 Or Ihrubs Fuliginoufly grim : 
 From rooms of filken foliage vain, 
 To trace the dun far diftant grove, 
 Where fmit with undiffembled pain, 
 The wood-lark mourns her abfent love, 
 Borne to the dufty town from native air, 
 To mimic rural life, and foothe fome vapour'd fair ? 
 
 But how muft faithlefs art prevail, 
 
 Should all who tafte our joy fincere, 
 
 To virtue, truth, or fcience dear, 
 
 Forego a court's alluring pale, 
 
 For dimpled brook and leafy grove, 
 For that rich luxury of thought they love ! 
 Ah no, from thefe the public fphere requires 
 
 Example for its giddy bands ; 
 
 From thefe impartial heav'n demands 
 To fpread the flame itfelf infpires ; 
 
 To fift opinion's mingled mafs, 
 Imprefs a nation's tafte, and bid the fterling pafs. 
 
 Happy, thrice happy they, 
 Whofe graceful deeds have exemplary ftione 
 Round the gay precin&s of a throne, 
 
 With mild effective beams ! 
 Who bands of fair ideas bring, 
 By folemn grott, or fhady fpring, 
 To join their pleafing dreams ! 
 Theirs is the rural blifs without alloy, 
 They only that deferve, enjoy. 
 
 What
 
 What tho' nor fabled dryad haunt their grove, 
 
 Nor naiad near their fountains rove. 
 Yet all embody 'd to the mental fight, 
 
 A train of fmiling virtues bright 
 
 Shall there the wife retreat allow, 
 Shall twine triumphant palms to deck the wanderer's brow. 
 
 And though by faithlefs friends alarm'd, 
 Art have with nature wag'd prefumptuous war ; 
 By SEYMOUR'S winning influence charm'd, 
 In whom their gifts united fhine, 
 
 No longer mail their counfels jar. 
 'Tis hers to mediate the peace j 
 
 Near PERcv-lodge, with awe-ftruck mieiv 
 The rebel feeks her lawful queen, 
 And havock and contention ceafe. 
 I fee the rival pow'rs combine, 
 And aid each other's fair defign ; 
 Nature exalt the mound where art mail build ; 
 Art ihape the gay alcove, while nature paints the field. 
 
 Begin, ye fongfters of the grove ! 
 O warble forth your nobleft lay ; 
 Where SOMERSET vouchfafes to rove 
 Ye leverets freely fport and play. 
 
 Peace to the ftrepent horn ! 
 iLet no harm diffonance difturb the morn, 
 No founds inelegant and rude 
 Her facred folitudes profane, 
 
 Unlefs
 
 Unlefs her candour not exclude 
 The lowly (hepherd's votive ftrain, 
 Who tunes his reed amidft his rural chear, 
 Fearful, yet not averfe, that SOMERSET fhould hear. 
 
 ODE to MEMORY. 1748. 
 
 O Memory ! celeftial maid ! 
 Who glean'il the flow'rets cropt by time j 
 And, fufFering not a leaf to fade, 
 
 Preferv'ft the bloflbms of our prime ; 
 Bring, bring thofe moments to my mind 
 When life was new, and LESBIA kind. 
 
 And bring that garland to my fight, 
 
 With which my favorM crook me bound ; 
 
 And bring that wreath of rofes bright, 
 Which then my feftive temples crown' J. 
 
 And to my raptur'd ear convey 
 
 The gentle things fhe deign'd to fay. 
 
 And fketch with care the mule's bow'r, 
 
 Where Is is rolls her filver tide ; 
 Nor yet omit one reed or flow'r 
 
 That mines on CHSRWELL'S verdant fide; 
 If fo thou may'ft thofe hours prolong, 
 When polifh'd LYCOK join'd my fong. 
 
 The
 
 < "3 ) 
 
 The fong it 'vails not to recite 
 
 But fure, to foothe our youthful dreams, 
 
 Thofe banks and ftreams appear'd more bright 
 Than other banks, than other ftreams : 
 
 Or by thy foftening pencil (hewn, 
 
 Affume they beauties not their own ? 
 
 And paint that fweetly vacant fcene. 
 
 When, all beneath the poplar bough, 
 My fpirits light, my foul ferene, 
 
 I breath'd in verfe one cordial vow : 
 That nothing fhould my foul infpire, 
 But friendihip warm, and love entire. 
 
 Dull to the fenfe of new delight, 
 
 On thee the drooping mufe attends ; 
 As fome fond lover, robb'd of fight, 
 
 On thy expreffive pow'r depends ; 
 Nor would exchange thy glowing lines, 
 To live the lord of all that mines. 
 
 But let me chafe thofe vows away 
 
 Which at ambition's fhrine I made ; 
 Nor ever let thy fltill difplay 
 
 Thofe anxious moments, ill repaid ; 
 Oh ! from my breaft that feafon rafe, 
 And bring my childhood in its place. 
 
 Bring me the bells, the rattle bring, 
 And bring the hobby J beftrode ; 
 
 When
 
 ( IH ) 
 
 When pleas'd, in many a fportive ring. 
 
 Around the room I jovial rode : 
 Ev'n let me bid my lyre adieu, 
 And bring the whittle that I blew. 
 
 Then will I mufe, and penfive fay, 
 
 Why did not thefe enjoyments lafl ; 
 How fweetly wafted I the day, 
 
 While innocence allow'd to wafte ? 
 Ambition's toils alike are vain, 
 But ah ! for pleafure yield us pain. 
 * * * * * * t * & * 'V ft ** ft * * * * 'I' * * * 
 
 The PRINCESS ELIZABETH: 
 
 A Ballad alluding to a ftory recorded of her, 
 
 when flie was prifoner at WOODSTOCK, 1554. 
 
 "\T7ILL you hear how once repining 
 
 Great ELIZA captive lay ? 
 
 Each ambitious thought refigning, 
 
 Foe to riches, pomp, and fway ? 
 
 While the nymphs and fwains delighted 
 
 Tript around in all their pride ; 
 Envying joys by others flighted, 
 
 Thus the royal maiden cry'd. 
 
 " Bred on plains, or bora in vallies, 
 
 Who would bid thofe fcenes adieu ? 
 Stranger to the arts of malice, 
 
 Who would ever courts purfue ? 
 
 Malice
 
 I 1*5 ) 
 
 Malice never taught to treafure, 
 Cenfure never taught to bear : 
 
 Love is all the Ihepherd's pleafure ; 
 Love is all the damfel's care. 
 
 How can they of humble ftation 
 Vainly blame the powers above ? 
 
 Or accufe the difpenfation 
 
 Which allows them all to love ? 
 
 Love like air is widely given ; 
 
 Pow'r nor chance can thefe reflrain; 
 Trueft, nobleft gifts of heaven ! 
 
 Only pureft on the plain ! 
 
 Peers can no fuch charms difcover, 
 All in ftars and garters dreft, 
 
 As, on Sundays, does the lover 
 With his nofegay on his breafl. 
 
 Pinks and rofes in profufion, 
 
 Said to fade when CHLOE'S near; 
 
 Fops may ufe the fame allufion ; 
 But the fhepherd is fincere. 
 
 Hark to yonder milk-maid fmging 
 Chearly o'er the brimming pail ; 
 
 Cowflips all around her fpringing 
 Sweetly paint the golden vale. 
 
 
 Neve*
 
 C 1*6 1 
 
 Never yet did courtly maiden 
 Move ib fprightly, look fo fair; 
 
 Never breait with jewels laden 
 Pour a fong fo void of care. 
 
 Would indulgent heav'n had granted 
 Me fome rural damfel's part 1 
 
 All the empire I had wanted 
 
 Then had been my fhepherd's heart. 
 
 Then, with him, o'er hills and mountains, 
 Free from fetters, might I rove : 
 
 Fearlefs tafte the cryftal fountains ; 
 Peaceful fleep beneath the grove. 
 
 Ruftics had been more forgiving ; 
 
 Partial to my virgin bloom : 
 None had envy'd me when living; 
 
 None had tiiumph'd o'er my tomb." 
 
 ODE to a young LADY, 
 
 Somewhat too folicitous about her manner of 
 expreflion. 
 
 SUR VE Y, my fair ! that lucid ftream 
 Adown the fmiling valley ftray ; 
 Would art attempt, or fancy dream, 
 To regulate its winding way ? 
 
 So
 
 C 
 
 So pleas'd I view thy fhining hair 
 In loofe diftievel'd ringlets flow : 
 
 Not all thy art, not ail thy care 
 Can there one fingle grace beftow. 
 
 Survey again that verdant hill, 
 With native plants enamel'd o'er ; 
 
 Say, can the painter's utmoft fkill 
 Inftrucl one flow'r to plcafe us more ? 
 
 As vain it were, with artful dye, 
 
 To change the bloom thy cheeks difclofe 
 
 And oh may LAURA, ere (he try, 
 With frefh vermilion paint the rofe. 
 
 Hark, how the wood-lark's tuneful throat 
 Can every ftudy'd grace excel ; 
 
 Let art conftrain the rambling note, 
 And will me, LAU RA, pleafe fo well ? 
 
 Oh ever keep thy native cafe, 
 
 By no pedantic law confin'd ! 
 For LAURA'S voice is form'd to pleafe, 
 
 So LAURA'S words be not unkind. 
 
 NANCY
 
 NANCY of the VALE. A BALLAD. 
 
 Nerine Galatea ! thymo mibi dulcior Hybl<e ! 
 Candidior cygnis ! bederdformc/ior alba ! 
 
 I M I T A T I ON. 
 
 Galatea, Nereus' blooming child, 
 
 More fvveet than thyme by * Hybla bees exhal'd. 
 Fairer than fwans, more beauteous to behold 
 Than ivy's purefl white. 
 
 TH E weftern fey was purpled o'er 
 With every pleafing ray : 
 And flocks reviving felt no more 
 The fultry heats of day : 
 
 When from an hazle's artlefs bower 
 
 Soft warbled STREPHON'S tongue; 
 He bleft the fcene, he bled the hour, 
 
 While NANCY'S praife he fung. 
 
 ' Let fops with fickle falmood range 
 
 The paths of wanton love, 
 While weeping maids lament their change, 
 
 And fadden every grove : 
 
 But endlefs bleflings crown the day 
 
 1 faw fair ESHAM'S dale ! 
 And every bleflmg find its way 
 
 To NANCY of the Vale. 
 
 Twas 
 
 * H Y B t A a mountain in Sicily, famous for'produciog th ftneft 
 honey.
 
 ( "9 ) 
 
 'Twas from A VON A 's banks the maid 
 
 Diffus'd her lovely beams ; 
 And every fhining glance difplay'd 
 
 The naiad of the ftreams. 
 
 Soft as the wild-duck's tender young, 
 
 That float on AVON'S tide; 
 Bright as the water-lily, fprung, 
 
 And glittering near its fide. 
 
 Frefh as the bordering flowers, her bloom ; 
 
 Her eye, all mild to view ; 
 The little halcyon's azure plume 
 
 Was never half fo blue. 
 
 Her ihape was like the reed io fleck* 
 
 So taper, ftrait, and fair ; 
 Her dimpled fmile, her blufhing cheek, 
 
 How charming fweet they, were ! 
 
 Far in the winding Vale retir'd, 
 
 This peerlefs bud I found ; 
 And lhadowing rocks, and woods confpir'd 
 
 To fence her beauties round. 
 
 That nature in Ib lone a dell 
 
 Should form a nymph fo fweet ! 
 Or fortune to her fecret cell 
 
 Conduct my wandering feet ! 
 VOL. I. I Gay
 
 Gay lordlings-imight her for their brid?,* 
 
 But fhe would ne'er indirte : 
 Prove to your equals true-, fhe cry'd, 
 
 As I will prove to mine. 
 
 Tis STREPHON, on the mountain's brow> 
 Has won my right gooxU-wil! ; 
 
 To him I gave my plighted TOW, 
 With him I'll climb the hill." 
 
 Struck with fi'er channs and genttc truth* 
 
 I clafp'd the conltant fair ; 
 To her alone I gave my youth, 
 
 And vow my future care. 
 
 And when this vow fhafl faithlefs prove, 
 
 Or I thofe charms forego ; 
 The ftream that faw our tender love, 
 
 That ftream mall ceafe to flow. 
 
 -I- 
 
 ODE to INDOLENCE. 1750, 
 
 AH ! why for ever on the Wing 
 Perfifts my weary 'd foul to roam ? 
 Why, ever cheated, ftrives to bring 
 Or pleafure or contentment home ? 
 
 Tiiu.
 
 ( '3' ) 
 
 Thus the poor bird, that draws his name 
 
 From Paradife's honour'd groves, 
 Carelefs fatigues his little frame ; 
 
 Nor finds the refting-plaee he loves. 
 
 Lo ! on the rural mofly bed 
 
 My limbs with carelefs eafe reclin'd j 
 Ah, gentle floth ! indulgent fpread 
 
 The fame foft bandage o'er my mind. 
 
 For why mould ling'ring thought invade, 
 
 Yet ev'ry worldly profpefl cloy ? 
 Lend me, foft floth, thy friendly aid, 
 
 And give me peace, debarr'd of joy. 
 
 Lov'ft thou yon cahn and filent flood, 
 
 That never ebbs, that never flows ; 
 Protected by the circling wood 
 
 From each tempeftuous wind that blows J 
 
 An altar on its bank mall rife, 
 
 Where oft thy votary mail be found ; 
 What time pale autumn lulls the flues, 
 
 And fickening verdure fades around. 
 
 Ye bufy race, ye factious train, 
 
 That haunt ambition's guilty fhrine ; 
 No more perplex the world in vain, 
 
 But offer here your vows with mine. 
 
 I 2 And
 
 ( 132 ) 
 
 And thou, puiffant queen ! be kind : 
 If e'er I fhar'd thy balmy pow'r ; 
 
 If e'er I fway'd my a&ive mind, 
 To weave for thee the rural bo\v'r ; 
 
 Diflblve in fleep each anxious care ; 
 
 Each unavailing figh remove ; 
 And only let me wake to (hare, 
 
 The fweets of friendfhip and of love. 
 
 ***** * * i > ** * * * * * * * ! ! * * * ! i ! * * * * * 
 
 ODE to HEALTH. 1730. 
 
 O HEALTH, capricious maid ! 
 Why doft thon fhun my peaceful bow'r, 
 Where I had hope to mare thy pow'r, 
 And blefs thy lafting aid ? 
 
 Since thou, alas ! art fiown, 
 It 'vails not whether mufe or grace, 
 With tempting fmile, frequent the place ; 
 
 I figh for thee alone. 
 
 Age not forbids thy ftay ; 
 Thou yet rnight'ft aft the friendly part ; 
 Thou yet might'ft raife this languid heart; 
 
 Why fpced^lb fwift away ? 
 
 Thou
 
 ( 133 ) 
 
 Thou fcorn'ft the city -air ; 
 I breathe frefh gales o'er furrow'd ground. 
 Yet hail not thou my wilhes crown'd, 
 
 falfe ! O partial fair ! 
 
 1 plunge into the wave ; 
 
 And tho' with purelt hands I raife 
 A rural altar to thy praife, 
 Thou wilt not deign to fkve. 
 
 Amid my well-known grove, 
 Where mineral fountains vainly bear 
 Thy boafted name, and titles fair, 
 
 Why fcorns thy foot to rove ? 
 
 Thou hear'ft the fportfman's claim ; 
 Enabling him, with idle noife, 
 To drown the mufe's melting voice, 
 
 And fright the timorous game. 
 
 Is thought thy foe ? adieu 
 Ye midnight lamps ! ye curious tomes ! 
 Mine eye o'er hills and valleys roams, 
 
 And deals no more with you. 
 
 Is it the clime you flee ? 
 Yet 'midft his unremitting fnows, 
 The poor LAPONIAN'S bofora glows, 
 
 And mares bright rays from thee. 
 
 I 3 There
 
 ( 134 ) 
 
 There was, there was a time, 
 When tho' I fcorn'd thy guardian care. 
 Nor made a vow, nor faid a pray'r, 
 
 I did not rue the crime. 
 
 Who then more bleft than I ? 
 When the glad fchool-boy's talk was done^ 
 And forth, with jocund-fprite, I run 
 
 To freedom, and to joy ? 
 
 How jovial then the day ! 
 What fince have all my labours found, 
 Thus climbing life to gaze around, 
 
 That can thy lofs repay ? 
 
 Wert thou, alas ! but kind, 
 Methinks no frown that fortune wears, 
 Nor leffen'd hopes, nor growing cares, 
 
 Could fink my chearful mind. 
 
 Whate'er my ftars include ; 
 What other breads convert to pain, 
 My tow'ring mind mould foon difdain, 
 
 Should fcorn Ingratitude ! 
 
 Repair this mouldering cell, 
 And bleft with objefts found at home, 
 And envying none their fairer dome, 
 
 How pleas'd my foul mould dwell ! 
 
 Tern*
 
 Temperance (hould guard .the doors ; 
 From room to room ihould memory ftray, 
 And, ranging all in neat array, 
 
 Enjoy her pleafittg Horcs ? 
 
 There let them;reft unknown, 
 The types ,of-many,a pleafiqg.fcene ; 
 But to preferve them bright-or. clean, 
 
 Is thine, fair queen ! alone. 
 
 * t ft -t< i4- 1 * 1 1 . * -H' '!' f.i < *,* * * 'I' * 
 
 To a LADY of QJJALITY, 
 
 Fitting -up 'her (LIBRARY. 173^. 
 
 AH ! what is fcknce, .what is .art, 
 Or what the t plea{iire, thei e impart? 
 Ye trophies .which: the leavn'd.purfue 
 Through endlefs fruitkfs toils, .adiu ! 
 
 What can the, tediaus. tomes Jieflow, 
 To foothe the miferiesithey fhew? 
 What, like the:blifs for him decreed, 
 Who tends his flock, And tunes his teedi 
 
 Say, wretched fancy ! thus refin'd 
 From all that glads the fimpleft hind, 
 How rare that object, which fupplies 
 A charm for too difcerning eyes ! 
 
 J4 Th*
 
 ( 136 ) 
 
 The polilh'd bard, of genius vain, 
 Endures a deeper fenfe of pain : 
 As each invading blaft devours 
 The richeft fruits, the faireft flow'rs. 
 
 Sages, with irkfome wafte of time, 
 The fteep afcent of knowledge climb ; 
 Then, from the tow'ring heights they fcale, 
 Behold contentment range the vale. 
 
 Yet why, ASTERIA, tell us why 
 We fcora the crowd, when you are nigh ; 
 Why then does reafon feem fo fair, 
 Why learning then, deferve our care ? 
 
 Who can unpleas'd your fhelves behold, 
 While you fo fair a proof unfold 
 What force the brighteft genius draws 
 From polilh'd wifdom's written laws ? 
 
 Where are our humbler tenets flown ? 
 What ftrange perfection bids us own 
 That blifs with toilfome fcience dwells, 
 And happieft he, who moft excels ? 
 
 U P O N
 
 ( 137 ) 
 
 UPON A 
 VISIT to the fame in WINTER. 1748. 
 
 ON fair ASTERIA'S blifsful plains, 
 Where ever- blooming fancy reigns, 
 How pleas'd we pafs the winter's day ; 
 And charm the dull-ey'd fpleen away ! 
 
 No linnet, from the leaflefs bough, 
 Pours forth her note melodious now ; 
 But all admire ASTERIA'S tongue, 
 Nor wifh the linnet's vernal fong. 
 
 No flow'rs emit their tranfient rays : 
 Yet fure ASTERIA'S wit difplays 
 More various tints, more glowing lines, 
 And with perennial beauty fhines. 
 
 Tho' rifled groves and fetter'd ftreams 
 But ill befriend a poet's dreams : 
 ASTERIA'S prefence wakes the lyre; 
 And well fupplies poetic fire. 
 
 The fields have loft their lovely dye; 
 No chearful azure decks the flcy ; 
 Yet ftill we blefs the louring day ; 
 ASTERIA fmiles and all is gay. 
 
 Hence
 
 ( 138 ) 
 
 Hence let the mufe no more prefume 
 To blame the winter's dreary gloom ; 
 Accufe his loit'ring hours no more ; 
 Bat ah ! their envious haftc deplore ! 
 
 For foon, from wit and friendfhip's reign, 
 The focial hearth, the fprightly rein, 
 I gc to meet the coming year,, 
 On favage plains, and deferts drear ! 
 
 I go to feed on pleasures flown, 
 Nor find the rpring my lofs atone { 
 But 'mid the flowery fcveets of May 
 With pride recal this winter's day. 
 
 A N 
 Irregular ODE after SICKNESS. 1749. 
 
 Meliut, <um ixnerit ipfa, canenus. 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 His wilh'd-for prefence will improve the fong. 
 
 TO O long a ftranger to repofe, 
 At length from pain's abhorred couch I rofe, 
 And wanderd forth alone ; 
 To court once more the balmy breeze, 
 And catch the verdure of the trees 
 Ere yet their charms were flown. 
 
 'Twas
 
 ( '39 ) 
 
 'Twas from a bank with panfies gay 
 J hail'd once more the chearful tlay, 
 The fun's forgotten beams ; 
 
 fun '. how pleafing were thy rays, 
 Reflected from the polim'd face 
 
 Of yon refulgent ftreams 1 
 
 Rais'd by the fcene my feeble tongue 
 Eflay'd again the fweets of fong : 
 And thus in feeble drains and flow 
 The loitering nnmbers 'gan to flow. 
 
 " Come, gentle air ! my languid limbs reftore, 
 And bid me welcome from the Stygian fhore : 
 For fure I heard the tender fighs, 
 
 1 feem'd to join the plaintive cries 
 
 Of haplefs youths, who thro' the myrtle grove 
 Bewail for ever their unfinim'd love : 
 
 To that unjoyous clime, 
 Torn from the fight of thefe etherial flciep ; 
 Debarr'd the luftre of their DELIA'S eyes; 
 
 And banifh'd in their prime. 
 
 Come, gentle air ! and, while the thickets bloom* 
 
 Convey the jafmin's breath divine, 
 Convey the woodbine's rich perfume, 
 Nor fpare the fweet-lcaft eglantine. 
 And may'ft thou fhun the rugged florm 
 'Till health her wonted charms explain, 
 With rural pleafure in her train, 
 To greet me in her faireft form. 
 
 While
 
 ( 140 ) 
 
 While from tills lofty mount I view 
 The fons of earth, the vulgar crew, 
 Anxious for futile gains, beneath me itray, 
 And feek with erring ftep contentment's obvious way. 
 
 Come, gentle air ! and thou celeflial mufe, 
 
 Thy genial flame infufe ; 
 Enough to lend a penfive bofom aid, 
 
 And gild retirement's gloomy made ; 
 
 Enough to rear fuch ruftic lays 
 As foes may flight, but partial friends will praife." 
 
 The gentle air allow'd my claim ; 
 And mpre to chear my drooping frame, 
 She mix'd the balm of opening flowers ; 
 Such as the bee, with chymic powers, 
 From HYBLA'S fragrant hills inhales, 
 Or fccnts SABEA'S blooming vales. 
 But ah ! the nymphs that heal the penfive mind, 
 By prefcripts more refin'd, 
 Negleft their votary's anxious moan : 
 Oh, how mould they relieve ? the mufes all were flown. 
 
 By flow'ry plain, or woodland fhades, 
 I fondly fought the charming maids ; 
 By woodland fliades, or flow'ry plain, 
 I fought them, faithlefs maids ! in vain ! 
 
 When lo ! in happier hour, 
 I leave behind my native mead, 
 To range where zeal and friendfhip lead, 
 
 To vifit L * * * * ! s honour'd bower. 
 
 Ah
 
 ( 14' ) 
 
 Ah fooliih man ! to feek the tuneful maids 
 On other plains, or near lefs verdant {hades ! 
 
 Scarce have my* footfteps prefs'd the favoured ground, 
 When founds etherial ftrike my ear ; 
 At once celeftial forms appear ; 
 
 My fugitives are found ! 
 The mufes here attune their lyres, 
 Ah partial ! with unwonted fires ; 
 Here, hand in hand, with carelefs mien, 
 The fportive graces trip the green. 
 
 But whilft I wander'd o'er a fcene fo fair, 
 
 Too well at one furvey I trace, 
 
 How every mufe, and every grace, 
 
 Had long employ'd their care. 
 Lurks not a flone enrich'd with lively ftain, 
 
 Blooms not a flower amid the vernal ilore, 
 Falls not a plume on INDIA'S diftant plain, 
 
 Glows not a fhell on ADRIA'S rocky fhorc, 
 But torn methought from native lands or feas, 
 From their arrangement, gain frefh pow'r to pleafe. 
 
 And fome had bent the wildering maze, 
 Bedeckt with every fhrub that blows ; 
 
 And fome entwin'd the willing fprays, 
 To mield th' illuftrious dame's repofe : 
 
 Others had grac'd the fprightly dome, 
 And taught the portrait where to glow ; 
 
 Others arrang'd the curious tome ; 
 
 Or
 
 Or 'mid th& decorated fpace, 
 
 Affign'd ike laurel'd bruit a place, 
 
 And given to learning all the pomp of fliow, 
 
 Aad ROW from- every tafk withdrawn* 
 
 They met and friflt'd it o'er the lawn. 
 
 Ah ! woe is me, faid I, 
 And * * * 's hilly circuit heaFd my cry ; 
 Have I for this, with labour ftrove, 
 
 And laviftx'd all my littk ftofre 
 To fence for you my mady grove, 
 
 And fcollop every winding more; 
 And fringe with every purple rofe 
 The faphire ftream that down my valky flows? 
 
 Ah ! lovely treacherous maids ! 
 To quit unfeen my votive mades, 
 When pale difeaie, and torturing paia 
 Had torn me from the breezy plain, 
 And to a reftlefs couch, confin'd, 
 Who ne'er your wonted tafks declin'd. 
 She needs not your officious aid 
 To fwell the fong, or plan the fliade ; 
 
 By genuine fancy nVd, 
 Her native genius guides her hand, 
 And while ihe marks the fage command,- 
 More lovely fcenes her fltill mall raife, 
 Her lyre refound with nobler lays 
 
 Than &vor you iafpir'd. 
 
 Thus
 
 ( H3 ) 
 
 Thus I my rage and grief difplay ; 
 But vainly blame, and vainly mourn, 
 Nor will a grace or mufe return 
 'Till LUXBOROUGH lead the way. 
 
 * * * * * * * * 'I' * * * * ***** * 
 
 Written in a FLOWER BOOK of ray own Co- 
 louring, defigned for Lady PLI MOUTH. 
 J753-4- 
 
 Debit ee nymphis opifex corona. HOR. 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 Conftru&or of the tributary wreath 
 For rural maids. 
 
 BRIN'G, FLORA, bring thy treafures here,- 
 The pride of all the blooming year ; 
 And let me, thence, a garland frame, 
 To crown this fair, this peerlefs dame ! 
 
 But ah ! fince envious winter lours, 
 And HEWELL meads refign their flow'rs, 
 Let art and friendfhip's joint eflay 
 Diffufe their fbw'rets in her way. 
 
 Not nature can, herfelf, prepare 
 A worthy wreath f<br LESBIA'S hair, 
 Whofe temper, like her forehead, fmooth, 
 Whofe thoughts and accents form'd to foothe, 
 Whofe pleafmg mien, and make refin'd, 
 Whofe artlefs breaft, and polim'd mind, 
 From all the nymphs of .plain or grove, 
 Deferv'd and won my PLIMOU.T H'S lore ! 
 
 A N A-
 
 ( 144 ) 
 
 ANACREONTIC. 1738, 
 
 >/ "T~ v WAS in a cool Aonian glade, 
 
 A The wanton CUPID, fpent with toil, 
 
 Had fought refrefhment from the ihade ; 
 And ftretch'd him on the mofly foil. 
 
 A vagrant mufe drew nigh, and found 
 
 The fubtle traitor faft afleep ; 
 And is it thine to fnore profound, 
 
 She faid, yet leave the world to weep ? 
 
 But hufh 'from this aufpicioqs hour, 
 
 The world, I ween, may reft in peace ; 
 
 And robb'd of darts, and ftript of pow'r, 
 Thy peevifh petulance decreafe. 
 
 Sleep on, poor child ! whilft I withdraw, 
 
 And this thy vile artillery hide- 
 When the Caftalian fount Ihe faw, 
 
 And plung'd his arrows in the tide. 
 
 That magic fount ill-judging maid ! 
 
 Shall caufe you foon to curfe the day 
 You dar'd the fhafts of love invade ; 
 
 And gave his arms redoubled fway.- 
 
 for
 
 C 
 
 For in a ftream fo wonderous dear, 
 When angry CUPID fearches round, 
 
 Will not the radiant points appear ? 
 Will not the furtive fpoils be found ? 
 
 Too foon they were; and every dart, 
 Dipt in the mufe's mylHc fpring, 
 
 Acquir'd new force to wound the heart ; 
 And taught at once to love and fing. 
 
 Then farewell ye Pierian quire ; 
 
 For who will now your altars throng ? 
 From love we learn to fwell the lyre ; 
 
 And echo aflts no fweeter fong. 
 
 ODE. Written 1739. 
 
 Uritjpes animi credula mutui. Hon. 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 Fond hope of a reciprocal defire 
 
 Inflames the breall. 
 
 ' 
 
 ''TTAWAS not by beauty's aid alone, 
 JL That love ufurp'd his airy throne, 
 His boafled pow'r difplay'd : 
 'Tis kindnefs that fecures his aim, 
 'Tis hope that feeds the kindling flame, 
 Which beauty firft convey'd. 
 
 In CLARA'S eyes, the lightnings view ; 
 Her lips with all the rofe's hue 
 
 Have all its fweets combin'd ; 
 VOL. I. K Yet
 
 < 146 ) 
 
 Yet vain the blum, and faint the fire, 
 'Till lips at once, and eyes confpire 
 To prove the charmer kind - 
 
 Tho* wit might gild the tempting fnare, 
 With fofteft accent, fweeteft air, 
 
 By envy's felf admir'd ; 
 If LESBIA'S wit betray'd her fcorn, 
 In vain might every grace adorn 
 
 What every mufe infpir'd. 
 
 Thus airy STREPHON tun'd his lyre 
 
 He fcorn'd the pangs of wild defire, 
 
 Which love-lick fwains endure : 
 Refolv'd to brave the keeneft dart ; 
 Since frowns could never wound his heart, 
 
 And fmiles muft ever cure. 
 
 But ah ! how falfe thefe maxims prove, 
 How frail fecurity from love, 
 
 Experience hourly mows ! 
 Love can imagiu'd fmiles fupply, 
 On every charming lip and eye 
 
 Eternal fweets beftows. 
 
 In vain we truft the fair-one's eyes; 
 In vain the fage explores the Ikies, 
 
 To learn from ftars his fate : 
 'Till led by fancy wide aflray, 
 He finds no planet mark his way ; 
 
 Couvinc'd and wife too late. 
 
 As
 
 ( H7 ) 
 
 As partial to their words we prove ; 
 Then boldly join the lifts of love, 
 
 With towering hopes fupply'd : 
 So heroes, taught by doubtful fhrines, 
 Miftook their deity's defigns ; 
 
 Then took the field and dy'd. 
 
 The DYING KID. 
 
 Optima quteque dies mtferis mortal'tlrus xvi 
 Primafugit - V i R fc . 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 Ah ! wretched mortals we ! our brighteil days 
 On fleeteft pinion fly. 
 
 A Tear bedews my DELIA'S eye, 
 To think yon playful kid muft die ; 
 From cryftal fpring, and flow'ry mead, 
 Muft, in his prime of life, recede ! 
 
 Erewhile, in fportive circles round 
 She faw him wheel, and friOc, ?Jid 
 From rock to rock purfuc his way, 
 And, on the fearful margin, play. 
 
 PleasM oh his various fs-enks to dwell, 
 She faw him climb my ruftic cell ; 
 Thence eye my lawns with verdure bright, 
 And feem all raviih'd at the light. 
 
 K 2 She
 
 She tells, with what delight he flood, 
 To trace his features in the flood : 
 Then fkip'd aloof with quaint amaze; 
 And then drew near again to gaze. 
 
 She tells me how with eager fpeed 
 He flew, to hear my vocal reed ; 
 And how with critic face profound, 
 And ftedfaft ear, devour'd the found. 
 
 His every frolic, light as air, 
 Deferves the gentle DELIA'S care ; 
 And tears bedew her tender eye, 
 To think the playful kid mult die. 
 
 But knows my DELIA, timely wife, 
 How foon this blamelefs aera flies ? 
 While violence and craft fucceed ; 
 Unfair defign, and ruthlefs deed ! 
 
 Soon would the vine his wounds deplore, 
 
 And yield her purple gifts no more ; 
 
 Ah foon, eras'd from every grove 
 
 Were DELIA'S name, and STREPHON'S love. 
 
 No more thofe bow'rs might STREPHON fee, 
 Where firft he fondly gaz'd on thee ; 
 No more thofe beds of flow'rets find, 
 Which for thy charming brows he twin'd. 
 
 Each
 
 ( 149 ) 
 
 Each wayward paffion foon would tear 
 His bofom, now fo void of care; 
 And, when they left his ebbing vein, 
 What, but infiped age, remain ? 
 
 Then mourn not the decrees of fate, 
 That gave his life fo fhort a date ; 
 And I will join my tendered fighs, 
 To think that youth fo fwiftly flies ! 
 
 ONGS, written chiefly between the 
 Year 1737 and 1742. 
 
 SONG I. 
 
 I Told my nymph, I told her true, 
 My fields were fmall, my flocks were few ; 
 While faultering accents fpoke my fear, 
 That FLAVIA might not prove fincere. 
 
 Of crops deftroy'd by vernal cold, 
 And vagrant fheep that left my fold : 
 Of thefe (he heard, yet bore to hear ; 
 And is not FLAVIA then fincere ? 
 
 How chang'd by fortune's fickle wind, 
 The friends I lov'd became unkind, 
 She heard, and Ihed a generous tear ; 
 And is not FLAVIA then fincere ? 
 
 Kj How
 
 t 150 ) 
 
 How, if (he deign'd my love to blefs, 
 My FLA vi A rnuft not hope for drefs; 
 This too me heard, and finil'd to hear; 
 And FLAVIA fure muft be fincere. 
 
 Go (hear your flocks, ye jovial fwains, 
 Go reap the plenty of your plains ; 
 Defpoil'd of all which you revere, 
 I know my FLAVIA'S love fincere. 
 
 ********* * 1' * * -I' * -H" * * * * * >H- * * t * * * * 'I- * ** *** 
 
 
 
 SONG II. The LANDSKIP. 
 
 HOW pleas'd within my native bowers 
 Ere while I pafs'd the day ! 
 Was ever fcene fo deck'd with flowers ? 
 Were ever flowers fo gay ? 
 
 How fweetly fmil'4 the hill, the vale, 
 
 And all the landfkip round ! 
 The river gliding down the dale ! 
 
 The hill with beeches crown'd ! 
 
 But now, when urg'd by tender woes 
 
 I fpeed to meet my dear, 
 That hill and ftrcam my zeal oppofe, 
 
 And check my fond caieer. 
 
 No
 
 f S' ) 
 
 No more, fmce DAPHNE was my theme, 
 
 Their wonted charms I fee : 
 That verdant hill, and filver ftream, 
 Divide my love and me. 
 
 SONG III. 
 
 YE gentle nymphs and geaerows dames, 
 That rul,e o'er every Britifh nund ; 
 Be fure ye foothe their amorous flames, 
 Be fure your laws are not unkind. 
 
 For hard it is to wear their b'ooin 
 
 In unremitting fighs away : 
 To mourn the night's oppreffive gloom, 
 
 And faintly blefs the riling day. 
 
 And cruel 'twere a free-bora fwain, 
 A Britim youth ihoold vainly moan ; 
 
 Who, fcornful of a tyrant's chain, 
 Submits to yours, and yours aloae. 
 
 Nor pointed fpear, nor links of fteel, 
 Could e'er thofe gallant minds fubdue, 
 
 Who beauty's wounds with pleafure feel, 
 And boait the fetters wrought by you. 
 
 SONG
 
 t 15* ) 
 
 SONG IV. The SKY-LARK. 
 
 GO, tuneful bird, that glad'fl the flues, 
 To DAPHNE'S window fpeed thy way ; 
 And there on quiv'ring pinions rife, 
 And there thy vocal art display. 
 
 And if fhe deign thy notes to hear, 
 And if fhe praife thy matin fong, 
 
 Tell her the founds that foothe her ear, 
 To DAMON'S pative plains belong. 
 
 Tell her, in livelier plumes array'd, 
 
 The bird from Indian groves may mine ; 
 
 But aflt the lovely partial maid, 
 What are his notes compar'd to thine ? 
 
 Then bid her treat yon witlefs beau, 
 And all his flaunting race with fcom ; 
 
 And lend an ear to DAMON'S woe, 
 Who fings her praife, and fmgs forlorn, 
 
 SONG
 
 ( '53 ) 
 SONG V. 
 
 Ab f ego tioa aliter trifles evincere morbos 
 Optarem, quam te fee qttoque vel/e putem. 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 Why fhould I wifh to banifh fore difeafe, 
 Unlefs returning health my DELIA pleafe? 
 
 ON every tree, in every plain, 
 I trace the jovial fpring in vain ! 
 A fickly langour veils mine eyes, 
 And faft my waning vigor flies. 
 
 Nor flow'ry plain, nor budding tree, 
 That fmile on others, fmile on me ; 
 Mine eyes from death mall court repofe, 
 Nor fhed a tear before they clofe. 
 
 What blifs to me can {eafbns bring ? 
 Or, what the needlefs pride of fpring ? 
 The cyprefs bough, that fuits the bier, 
 Retains its verdure all the year. 
 
 >Tis true, my vine fo frefh and fair 
 Might claim awhile my wonted care^ 
 My rural ftore fome pleafure yield ; 
 So white a flock, fo green a field ! 
 
 My friends, that each in kindnefs vie, 
 Might well expedt one parting figh ; 
 Might well demand one tender tear ; 
 For when was DAMON unfincere ? 
 
 But
 
 ( '54 ) 
 
 But ere I afk once more to view 
 Yon fetting fun his race renew, 
 Inform me, fwains ; my friends, declare, 
 Will pitying DELIA join the prayer ? 
 
 -I- * * * * * * * * * * * * * * <l< * * 'I- * 
 
 SONG VI. 
 
 The Attribute of VENUS. 
 
 ES; FULVIA islike VENusfair; 
 Has all her bloom, and fhape, and air 
 But fHll, to perfeft ev'ry grace, 
 She wants the fmile upon her face. 
 
 The crown majeftic JUNO wore ; 
 And CYNTHIA'S brow the crefcent bore, 
 An helmet mark'd MINERVA'S mien, 
 But fmiles diltingui&'d beauty's queen. 
 
 Her train was form'd of fmiles and loves, 
 Her chariot drawn by gentleft doves ! 
 And from her zone, the nymph may find, 
 'Tis beauty's province to be kind. 
 
 Then fmile, my fair ; and all whofe aim 
 Afpires to. paint the Cyprian dame, 
 Or bid her breathe in living fome, 
 Shall take their forms from you slower, 
 
 SONG
 
 SONG VII. 1744. 
 
 THE lovely DELIA fmiles again ! 
 That killing frown h;is left her brow: 
 Can me forgive my jealous pain, 
 And give me back my angry vow ? 
 
 Love is an April's doubtful day : 
 
 Awhile we fee the tempeft low'r ; 
 Anon the radiant heav'n furvey, 
 
 And quite forget the flitting fliow'r. 
 
 The flow'rs, that hung their languid head. 
 
 Are burnifh'd by the tranfient rains ; 
 The vines their wonted tendrils fpread, 
 
 And double verdure gilds the plains. 
 
 The fprightly birds, that droop'd no lefs, 
 
 Beneath the pow'r of rain and wind, 
 In every raptur'd note, exprefs 
 
 The joy I feel when thou art kind. 
 
 ******************* t ******** ********** 
 SONG VIII. 1742. 
 
 VT7HEN bright ROXAN A treads the green, 
 
 In all the pride of drefs and mien; 
 Averfe to freedom, love and play, 
 The dazzling rival of the day : 
 
 None
 
 C 156 ) 
 
 None other beauty (hikes mine eye, 
 The lilies droop, the rofes die. 
 
 But when, difclaiming art, the fair 
 Aflumes a foft engaging air ; 
 Mild as the opening morn of May, 
 Familiar, friendly, free and gay : 
 The fcene improves, where'er fhe goes, 
 More fweetly fmile the pink and rofe. 
 
 O lovely maid ! propitious hear, 
 Nor deem thy (hepherd infincere ; 
 Pity a wild illuiive flame, 
 That varies objefts (till the fame : 
 And let their very changes prove 
 The never-vary'd force of love. 
 
 SONG IX. 1743. VALENTINE'S DAY. 
 
 " I * IS faid that under diffant flues, 
 
 A Nor you the faft deny ; 
 What firft attracts an Indian's eyes 
 
 Becomes his deity. 
 
 Perhaps a lily, or a rofe, 
 
 That (hares the morning's ray, 
 May to the waking fwain difclofe 
 
 The regent of the day. 
 
 Perhaps
 
 Perhaps a plant in yonder grove, 
 Enrich'd with fragrant pow'r, 
 
 May tempt his vagrant eyes to rove, 
 Where blooms the fov'reign flow'r. 
 
 Perch'd on the cedar's topmoft bough, 
 And gay with gilded wings, 
 
 Perchance, the patron of his vow, 
 Some artlefs linnet fings. 
 
 The fwain furveys her pleas'd, afraid, 
 Then low to earth he bends ; 
 
 And owns upon her friendly aid 
 His health, his life depends. 
 
 Vain futile idols, bird or flow'r, 
 To tempt a votary's pray'r ! 
 
 How would his humble homage tow'r 
 Should he behold my Fair ! 
 
 Yes might the pagan's .waking eyes, 
 O'er FLAVIA'S beauty range, 
 
 He there would fix his lafting choice, 
 Nor dare, nor wilh to change. 
 
 SONG
 
 SONG X. 1743. 
 
 HE fatal hours are wonderous near, 
 That, from thefe fountains, bear my dear; 
 A little fpace, is giv'n ; in vain : 
 She robs my fight, and fhuns the plain. 
 
 A little fpace, for me to prove 
 My boundlefs flame, my endlefs love ; 
 And like the train of vulgar hours, 
 Invidious time that fpace devours. 
 
 Near yonder beech is DELIA'S way, 
 On that I gaze the livelong day ; 
 No eaftern monarch's dazzling pride 
 Should draw my longing eyes afide, 
 
 The chief, that knows of fuccours nigh, 
 And fees his mangled legions die, 
 Cafts not a more impatient glance, 
 To fee the loitering aids advance. 
 
 Not more, the fchool-boy that expires 
 Far from his native home, requires 
 To fee fome friend's familiar face, 
 Or meet a parent's laft embrace 
 
 She
 
 ( 159 ) 
 
 She comes but ah ! what crowds of beaux 
 In radiant bands my fair enclofe ; 
 Oh ! better hadft thou Jhun'd the green, 
 Oh DELI A! better far unfeen. 
 
 Methlnks, by all my tender fears, 
 By all my fighs, by all my tears, 
 I might from torture now be free 
 'Tis more than death to part from thee ! 
 
 SONG XL 1744. 
 
 PE R H A P S it is not love, faid I, 
 That melts my foul when FLAVIA'S nigh; 
 Where wit and fenfe like her's agree, 
 One may be pleas'd, and yet be free. 
 
 The beauties of her polifh'd mind, 
 It needs no lover's eye to find ; 
 The hermit freezing in his cell 
 Might wifh the gentle FLAVIA well. 
 
 It is not love averfe to bear 
 The fervile chain that lovers wear ; 
 Let, let me all my fears remove, 
 My doubts difpel it is not love- 
 
 Oh!
 
 C 160 ) 
 
 Oh ! when did wit fo brightly fhine 
 In any form lefs fair than thine f 
 It is - it is love's fubtle fire, 
 And under friendihip lurks defire. 
 
 SONG XII. 1744. 
 
 O' E R defert plains, and ruftiy meers, 
 And wither'd heaths I rove ; 
 Where tree, nor fpire, nor cot appears, 
 I pafs to meet my love. 
 
 But tho' my path were damaflc'd o'er 
 
 With beauties e'er fo fine ; 
 My bufy thoughts would fly before 
 
 To fix alone on thine. 
 
 No fir-crowu'd hills cou'd give delight, 
 
 No palace pleafe mine eye : 
 No pyramid's aerial height, 
 
 Where mouldering monarchs lie. 
 
 Unmov'd, mould Eaftern kings advance, 
 
 Could I the pageant fee : 
 Splendour might catch one fcornful glance, 
 
 Not fteal one thought from thee. 
 
 SONG
 
 SONG XIII. The SCHOLAR'S RELAPSE, 
 
 BY the fide of a grove, at the foot of a hill, 
 Where whifper'd the beech, and where murmur'd 
 I vovv'd to the mufes my time and my care, [the rill ; 
 Since neither could win me the fmiles of my fair. 
 
 Free I rang'd like the birds, like the birds free I fung, 
 And DEL i A'S lov'd name fcarce efcap'd from my tongue : 
 But if once a fmooth accent delighted my ear, 
 I mould wim, unawares, that my DELIA might hear. 
 
 With faireft ideas my bofom I ftor'd, 
 Allufive to none but the nymph I ador'd { 
 And the more I with ftudy my fancy refin'd, 
 The deeper impreffion me made on my mind. 
 
 So long as of nature the charms I purfue, 
 I ftill muft my DELIA'S dear image renew : 
 The graces have yielded with DELIA to rove, 
 And the mufes are all in alliance with love. 
 
 VOL. I. L S O N Gt
 
 ( Ife ) 
 
 SONG XIV. The RosE-Buo. 
 
 SEE, DAPHNE, fee, FLORELIO cry'd, 
 And learn the fad effefts of pride ; 
 Yon (helter'd rofe, how fafc conceal'd ! 
 How quickly blafled, when reveal'd ! 
 
 The fun with warm attractive rays 
 Tempts it to wanton in the blaze : 
 A gale fucceeds from Eaftern fkies, 
 And all its blufhing radiance dies. 
 
 So you, my fair, of charms divine, 
 Will quit the plains, too fond to mine 
 Where fame's tranfporting rays allure, 
 Tho' here more happy, more fecure. 
 
 The breath of fome neglefted maid 
 Shall make you figh you left the fhade ; 
 A breath to beauty's bloom unkind, 
 As, to the rofe, an Eaftern wind. 
 
 The nymyh reply'd You firft, my fwain, 
 Confine your fonnets to the plain ; 
 One envious tongue alike difarms, 
 You, of your wit, me, of my charms. 
 
 What
 
 ( 1*3 ) 
 
 What is, unknown, the poet's /kill ? 
 Or what, unheard, the tuneful thrill ? 
 What, unadmir'd, a charming mien, 
 Or what the rofe's blufh, unfeen ? 
 
 V'VV T K VTVT*r4 u I*V l **'T'**'T VT 
 
 SONG XV. WINTER. 1746. 
 
 NO more, ye warbling birds, rejoice : 
 Of all that chear'd the plain, 
 Echo alone preferves her voice, 
 And me repeats my pain. 
 
 Where'er my love-fick limbs I lay, 
 
 To man the rufliing wind, 
 Its bufy murmur feems to fay, 
 
 She never will be kind ! " 
 
 The naiads, o'er their frozen urns. 
 
 In icy chains repine ; 
 And each in fullen filence mourns 
 
 Her freedom loft, like mine ! 
 
 Soon will the Cm's returning rays 
 
 The chearlefs froft controul ; 
 When will relenting DELIA chafe 
 
 The winter of my foul ? 
 
 L 2 SONG
 
 ( 16* ) 
 
 SONG XVI. DAPHKE'S Vifit, 
 
 YE birds ! for whom I rear'd the grove, 
 With melting lay falute my love : 
 My DAPHNE with your notes detain : 
 Or I have rear'd my grove in vain. 
 
 Ye flow'rs ! before her footfleps rile ; 
 Difplay at once your brighteft dyes ; 
 That me your opening charms may fee : 
 Or what were all your charms to me ? 
 
 Kind Zephyr ! brufh each fragrant flow'r. 
 And fhed its odours round my bow'r : 
 Or never more, O gentle wind, 
 Shall I, from thee, refreftunent find. 
 
 Ye ftreams ! if e'er your banks I lov'd, 
 If e'er your native founds improv'd, 
 May each foft murmur foothe my fair : 
 Or oh 1 'twill deepen my defpair. 
 
 And thou, my grot ! whofe lonely bounds 
 The melancholy pine furrounds, 
 May DAPHNE praife thy peaceful gloom ; 
 Or thou (halt prove her DAMON'S tomb. 
 
 SONG
 
 SONG XVII. Written in a Colleftion 
 of BACCHANALIAN SONGS. 
 
 ADieu, ye jovial youths, who join 
 To plunge old care in floods of wine ; 
 And, as your dazzled eye-balls roll, 
 Difcern him ftruggling in the bowl. 
 
 Nor yet is hope fo wholly flown, 
 Nor yet is thought fo tedious grown, 
 But limpid ftream and fhady tree 
 Retain, as yet, fome fweets for me. 
 
 And fee, thro' yonder fdent grove, 
 See yonder does my DAPH N E rove : 
 With pride her footfteps I purfue, 
 And bid your frantic joys adieu. 
 
 The folc confufion I admire, 
 Is that my DAPHNE'S eyes infpire ; 
 I fcorn the madnefs you approve, 
 And value reafon next to love. 
 
 SONG
 
 ( 166 ) 
 
 SONG XVIII. Imitated from the FRENCH. 
 
 'TL7 E S, thefe are the fcenes where with Iris I ftray'd, 
 
 But fhort was her fway for fo lovely a maid ! 
 In the blooift of her youth to a cloyfter me run ; 
 In the bloom of her graces, too fair for a nun ! 
 Ill-grounded, no doot>t> a devotion muft prove, 
 So fatal to beauty, fo killing to love ! 
 
 Yes, thefe are the meadows, the fhrubs and the plains, 
 Once the fcene of my pleafures, the fcene of my pains ; 
 How many foft moments I fpent in this grove ! 
 How fair was my nymph ! and how fervent my love ! 
 Be ftill tho', my heart ! thine emotion give o'er ; 
 Remember, the feafon of love is no more. 
 
 With her how I ftray'd amid fountains and bow'rs 
 
 Or loiter'd behind and colleded the flow'rs ! 
 
 Then breathlefs with ardor my fair-one purfu'd, 
 
 And to think with what kindnefs my garland (he view'd ! 
 
 But be ftill, my fond heart ! this emotion give o'er ! 
 
 Fain wouldit thou forget thou muft love her no more. 
 
 W 
 
 The HALCYON. 
 
 H Y o'er the verdant banks of ooze 
 Does yonder halcyon fpeed fo faft ? 
 
 'Tis all becaufe me would not lofe 
 Her fav'rite calm that will not laft. 
 
 The
 
 The fun with azure paints the &ies, 
 The ftream reflects each flow'ry fpray ; 
 
 And frugal of her time flie flies 
 To take her fill of love and play. 
 
 See her, when rugged Boreas blows, 
 Warm in fome rocky pell remain ; 
 
 To feek-for pleafure, well fhe knows, 
 Would only then enhance the pain. 
 
 Defcend, fhe cries, thou haled fhow'r, 
 Deform my limpid waves to-day, 
 
 For I have chofe a fairer hour 
 To take my fill of love and play. 
 
 You too, my SILVIA fure will own 
 Life's azure feafons fwiftly roll : 
 
 And when our youth, or health is flown, 
 To think of love but mocks the foul. 
 
 Could DAMON but deferve thy charms, 
 As thou art DAMON'S only theme; 
 
 fly as quick to DELIA'S arms, 
 As yonder halcyon ikims the ftream. 
 
 L4 ODE.
 
 O D E. 
 
 SO dear my Lucio is to me, 
 So well our minds and tempers blend j 
 That feafons may for ever flee, 
 
 And ne'er divide me from my friend ; 
 But let the favour'd boy forbear 
 To tempt with love my only fair. 
 
 O LYCON, born when every mufe, 
 When every grace benignant fmil'd, 
 
 With all a parent's bread could chufe 
 To blefs her lov'd, her only child ; 
 
 'Tis thine, fo richly grac'd, to prove 
 
 More noble cares, than cares of love. 
 
 Together we from early youth 
 
 Have trod the flowery tracks of time. 
 
 Together mus'd in fearch of truth, 
 O'er learned fage, or bard fublime ; 
 
 And well thy cultur'd breaft I kncnv, 
 
 What wonderous treafure it can lho\v. 
 
 Come then, refume thy charming lyre, 
 And fmg fome patriot's worth fublime, 
 
 Whilft I in fields of foft defire, 
 
 Confume my fair and fruitlefs prime ; 
 
 Whofe reed afpires but to difplay 
 
 The flame that burns me night and day. 
 
 O come 5
 
 O come ! the dryads of the woods 
 Shall daily foothe thy ftudious mind, 
 
 The blue-ey'd nymphs of yonder floods 
 Shall meet and court thee to be kind ; 
 
 And fame fits liftening for thy lays 
 
 To fvvell her trump with Lucio's'praife. 
 
 Like me, the plover fondly tries 
 
 To lure the fportfman from her neiV, 
 
 And flutt'ring on with anxious cries, 
 Too plainly mews her tortur'd breaft; 
 
 O let him, confcious of her care, 
 
 Pity her pains, and learn to fpare. 
 
 ** * * * * * * * < ****** * * * 'H- *** *' 
 
 A PASTORAL ODE, 
 
 To the Honourable 
 
 Sir RICHARD LYTTELTON. 
 
 >T*HE morn difpens'd a dubious light, 
 ^ A fullen miil had itolen from fight 
 
 Each pleafing vale and hill ; 
 When DAMON left his humble bowers 
 To guard his flocks, to fence his flowers, 
 Or check his wandering rill. 
 
 Tho' fchool'd from fortune's paths to fly, 
 The fwain beneath each low'ring fky, 
 Would oft his fate bemoan ; 
 
 That
 
 ( '70 ) 
 
 That he, In fylvan fiudes, forlorn ! 
 Muft wafte his chearlefs ev'n and mom, 
 Nor prais'd, nor lov'd, nor known. 
 
 No friend to fame's obftreperous noife, 
 Yet to the whifpers of her voice, 
 
 Soft murmuring, not a foe : 
 The pleafures he thro' choice declin'd, 
 When gloomy fogs deprefs'd his mind, 
 
 It griev'd him to forego. 
 
 Griev'd him to lurk the kkes befide, 
 Where coots in rufhy dingles hide, 
 
 And moorcocks (hun the day ; 
 While caitiff bitterns, undifmay'd, 
 Remark the fwain's familiar made, 
 
 And fcorn to quit their prey. 
 
 But fee, the radiant fun once more 
 The brightening face of heaven refiore, 
 
 And raife the doubtful dawn ; 
 And more to gild his rural fphere, 
 At once the brighteft train appear, 
 
 That ever trod the lawn. 
 
 Amazement chill'd the ftiepherd's frarue, 
 To think * BRIDCEWATER'S honour'd name 
 Should grace his i uftic ceil ; 
 
 That 
 
 * TheDuchefs of BRIECEWATER, married to Sir R.ICHAM? 
 LTITELTOK.
 
 That (he, on all whofe motions waif 
 Piftinftion, tides, rank and ftate, 
 Should rove where ihepherds dwell. 
 
 B ut true it is, the generous mind, 
 By candour fway'd, by tafle refinM, 
 
 Will nought but vice difdain ; 
 Nor will the breafl where fancy glows 
 Deem every flower a weed, that blows 
 
 Amid the defart plain. 
 
 Befeems it fuch, with honour crown'd, 
 To deal its lucid beams around, 
 
 Nor equal meed receive : 
 At moft fuch garlands from the field, 
 As cowflips, pinks, and panfics yield, 
 
 And rural hands can weave. 
 
 Yet flrive, ye fhepherds, ftrive to find, 
 And weave the faireft of the kind, 
 
 The prime of all the fpring ; 
 If haply thus yon lovely fair 
 May round her temples deign to wear 
 
 The trivial wreaths 
 
 O how the peaceful halcyons play'd, 
 Where'er the confcious lake betray 'd 
 
 AT H E N i A'S placid mien ! 
 How did the fprightlier linnets throng, 
 Where PAP HI A'S charms requir'd the long, 
 
 'Mid hazel copfes green !
 
 ( '72 ) 
 
 Lo, DARTMOUTH on thofe banks reclin'd, 
 While bufy fancy calls to mind 
 
 The glories of his line t 
 Methinks my cottage rears its head, 
 The ruin'd walls of yonder fried, 
 
 As thro' enchantment, fhine. 
 
 But who the 'nymph that guides their way? 
 Could ever nymph defcend to ftray 
 
 From HA c, L E Y'S fam'd retreat } 
 Elfe by the blooming features fair, 
 The faultlefs make, the matchlefs air, 
 
 'Twere CYNTHIA'S form compleat. 
 
 So would fome tuberofe delight, 
 
 That ftruck the pilgrim's wondering fight 
 
 'Mid lonely defarts drear ; 
 All as at eve, the fovereign flower 
 Difpenfes round its balmy power, 
 
 And crowns the fragrant year, 
 
 
 
 Ah, now no more, the fhepherd cryM, 
 Muft I ambition's charms deride, 
 
 Her fubtle force difown ; 
 No more of fawns or fairies dream, 
 While fancy, near each cryftal ftream^ 
 
 Shall paint thefe forms alone. 
 
 By low-brow'd rock, or pathlefs mead, 
 I deem'd that fplendour ne'er fhould lead 
 My dazzled eyes aftray ; 
 
 But
 
 ( 173 ) 
 
 But who, alas ! will dare contend, 
 If beauty add, or merit blend 
 Its more illuftrious ray ? 
 
 Nor is it long O plaintive fwain ! 
 Since GUERNSEY faw, without difdain, 
 
 Where, hid in woodlands green, 
 The * partner of his early days, 
 And once the rival of his praife, 
 
 Had flol'n thro' life unfeen. 
 
 Scarce faded is the vernal flower, 
 
 Since STAMFORD left his honour'd bower 
 
 To fmile familiar here : 
 O fonn'd by nature to difclofe 
 How fair that courtefy which flows 
 
 From focial warmth fincere I 
 
 Nor yet have many moons decay'd, 
 Since POLLIO fought this lonely made, 
 
 Admir'd this rural maze : 
 The nobleft breaft that virtue fires, 
 The graces love, the mufe infpires, 
 
 Might pant for POL no's piaife. 
 
 Say THOMSON here was known to reft; 
 For him yon vernal feat I dreft, 
 
 Ah, never to return ! 
 In place of wit, and melting flrains, 
 And focial mirth, it now remains 
 To weep befide his urn. 
 
 Come 
 * They were fchool-feHows.
 
 Come then, my LELIXJS, come once mote, 
 And fringe the melancholy fhore 
 
 With rofes and with bays ; 
 While I each wayward fate accufe> 
 That envy'd his impartial mufe> 
 
 To fing your early praife. 
 
 While PHILO, to whofe favour 'd fight, 
 Antiquity, with full delight, 
 
 Her inmoft wealth difplays, 
 Beneath yon ruin's moulder'd wall 
 Shall mufe, and with his friend recall 
 
 The pomp of ancient days. 
 
 Here too mail CON WAY'S name appear. 
 He prais'd the ftream fo lovely clear, 
 
 That fhone the reeds among ; 
 Yet clearnefs could it not difclofe, 
 To match the rhetoric that flows 
 
 From CONWAY'S poliih'd tongue. 
 
 Ev'n PITT, whofe fervent periods roll 
 Refiftlefs, thro' the kindling foul 
 
 Of fenates, councils, kings ! 
 Tho' form'd for courts, vouchfafd to rov<$ 
 Inglorious, thro' the fhepherd's grove, 
 
 And ope his baihful fprings. 
 
 But what can courts difcover more, 
 Than thefe rude haunts have feen before, 
 Each fount and Ihady tree ! 
 
 Have
 
 < '75 ) 
 
 Have not thefe trees and fountains feeit 
 The pride of courts, the winning mien 
 Ofpeerlefs AYLESBURY ? 
 
 And GRENVILLE, me whofe radiant eyes 
 Have mark'd by flow gradation rife 
 
 The princely piles of STOW; 
 Yet prais'd thefe unembellifh'd woods, 
 And fmil'd to fee the babbling floods 
 
 Thro' felf-worn mazes flow. 
 
 Say DARTMOUTH, who your banks admir'd, 
 Again beneath your caves retir'd, 
 
 Shall grace the penfive fhade ; 
 With all the bloom, with all the truth, 
 With all the fprightHnefs of youth, 
 
 By cool refledion fway'd ? 
 
 Brave, yet humane, {hall SMITH appear; 
 Ye failors, tho' his name be dear, 
 
 Think him not yours alone : 
 Grant him in other {pheres to charm ; 
 The ihepherds' breads tho' mild are warm, 
 
 And ours are all his own. 
 
 O LYTT ELTON ! my honour'd gueft, 
 Could I defcribe thy generous bread, 
 
 Thy firm, yet polifh'd mind ; 
 How public love adorns thy name, 
 How fortune too confpires with fame ; 
 
 The fong (hould pleafe mankind. ' 
 
 VERSES
 
 I 176 ) 
 
 VERSES written towards the clofe of the 
 Year 1748, to WILLIAM LvTTELTON a Efq, 
 
 HO W blithely pafs'd the fummer's day ! 
 How bright was every flow'r ! 
 While friends arriv'd, in circles gay, 
 To vifit DAMON'S bow'r ! 
 
 But now, with filent ftep, I range 
 
 Along fome lonely fhore ; 
 And DAMON'S bow'r, alas the change ! 
 
 Is gay with friends no more. 
 
 Away to crowds and cities borne 
 
 In queft of joy they fteer; 
 Whilft I, alas ! am left forlorn, 
 
 To weep the parting year I 
 
 O penfive Autumn ! how I grieve 
 
 Thy forrowing. face to fee ! 
 When languid funs are taking leave 
 
 Of every drooping tree. 
 
 Ah let me not, with heavy eye, 
 
 This dying fcene furvey ! 
 Hafte, Winter, hafte ; ufurp the (ky ; 
 
 Compleat my bow'r's decay. 
 
 ill
 
 t 177 ) 
 
 lU can I bear the motley cart 
 Yon fickening leaves retain ; 
 
 That fpeak at once of pleafure pair, 
 And bode approaching pain. 
 
 At home unbleft, I gaze around, 
 
 My diflant fcenes require ; 
 Where all in murky vapours drown'd 
 
 Are hamlet, hill, and fpire. 
 
 Tho' THOMSON, fweet defcriptive bard! 
 
 Infpiring Autumn fung ; 
 Yet how mould we the months regard, 
 
 That ftopp'd his flowing tongue ? 
 
 Ah lucklefs months, of all the reft, 
 
 To whofe hard (hare it fell ! 
 For fure he was the gentleft breaft 
 
 That ever fung fo well. 
 
 And fee, the fwallows now difown 
 
 The roofs they lov'd before ; 
 Each, like his tuneful genius, flown 
 
 To glad fome happier Ihore. 
 
 The wood-nymph eyes, with pale affright, 
 The fportfman's frantic deed ; 
 
 While hounds and horns and yells unite 
 To drown the mufe's reed. 
 
 VOL, I. M
 
 Ye fields with blighted herbage brown, 
 
 Ye flues no longer blue 1 
 Too much we feel from fortune's frown, 
 
 To bear thefe frowns from you. 
 
 Where is the mead's nnfullied green ? 
 
 The zephyr's balmy gale ? 
 And where fweet friendfhip's cordial mien. 
 
 That brighten'd every vale ? 
 
 What tho' the vine difclofe her dyes, 
 
 And boaft her purple ftore ; 
 Not all the vineyard's rich fupplies 
 
 Can foothe our forrows more. 
 
 He ! he is gone, whofe moral ftrain 
 
 Could wit and mirth refine ; 
 He ! he is gone, whofe focial vein- 
 
 Surpafs'd the pow'r of wine. 
 
 Faft by the ftreams he deign'd to praifr 
 
 In yon fequefter'd grove, 
 To him a votive urn I raife ; 
 
 To him, and friendly Jove. 
 
 Yes there, my friend ! forlorn and fad, 
 
 I grave your THOMSON'S name ; 
 And there, his lyre ; which fate forbad 
 To found your growing fame. 
 
 There
 
 ( '79 ) 
 
 There (hall my plaintive fong recount 
 
 Dark themes of hopelefs woe; 
 And fafter than the dropping fount, 
 
 I'll teach mine eyes to flow. 
 
 There leaves, in fpite of Autumn green, 
 
 Shall made the hallow'd ground ; 
 And Spring will there again be feen, 
 
 To call forth flow'rs around. 
 
 But no kind funs will bid me fhare, 
 
 Once more, his focial hqu,r ; 
 Ah Spring ! thou never canft repair 
 
 This lofs, to DAMON'S bow'r. 
 
 ************************************** 
 
 JEMMY DAW SON. 
 
 A BALLAD ; written about the Time of his 
 Execution, in the Year 1745. 
 
 /"t 6 M E liften to my mournful tale, 
 ^"^ Ye tender hearts and lovers dear ; 
 Nor will you fcorn to heave a figh, 
 Nor need you blufh to fhed a tear. 
 
 And thou, dear KITTY, peerlefs maid, 
 
 Do thou a penfive ear incline ; 
 For thou canft weep at eveiy woe ; 
 
 And pity every plaint but mine, 
 
 M 2 Young
 
 Young DAW SON was a gallant boy, 
 
 A brighter never trod the plain ; 
 And well he lov'd one charming maid, 
 
 And dearly was he lov'd again. 
 
 One tender maid, me lov'd him dear, 
 
 Of gentle blood the damfel came ; 
 And faultlefs was her beauteous form, 
 
 And fpotlefs was her virgin fame. 
 
 But curfe on party's hateful ftrife, 
 
 That led the favour'd youth aftray ; 
 The day the rebel clans appear'd, 
 
 O had he never feen that day ! 
 
 Their colours, and their fam he wore, 
 
 And in the fatal drefs was found ; 
 And now he muft that death endure, 
 
 Which gives the brave the keenefl wound. 
 
 How pale was then his true-love's cheek, 
 When JEMMY'S fcntence reach'd her ear ! 
 
 For never yet did Alpine fnows 
 So pale, or yet fo chill appear. 
 
 With faultering voice, me weeping faid, 
 
 O DAW so N, monarch of my heart ; 
 Think not thy death mall end our loves, 
 
 For thou and I will never part. 
 
 Yet
 
 Yet might fweet mercy find a place, 
 
 And bring relief to JEMMY'S woes ; 
 O GEORGE, without a pray'r for thee, 
 
 My orifons fhould never clofe. 
 
 The gracious prince that gave him life, 
 
 Would crown a never-dying flame ; 
 And every tender babe I bore 
 
 Should learn to lifp the giver's name. 
 
 But tho' he fhould .be dragg'd in fcorn 
 
 To yonder ignominious tree ; 
 He (hall not want one conftant friend 
 
 To ihare the cruel fates' decree. 
 
 O then her mourning coach was call'd, 
 
 The fledge mov'd flowly on before ; 
 Tho' borne in a triumphal car, 
 
 She had not lovM her fav'rite more. 
 
 She follow 'd him, prepar'd to view 
 
 The terrible behefts of law ; 
 And the laft fcene of JEMMY'S woes, 
 
 With calm and ftedfaft eye fhe faw. 
 
 Diftorted was that blooming face, 
 
 Which {he had fondly lov'd fo long ; 
 And ftifled was that tuneful breath, 
 
 Which in her praife had fweetly fung. 
 
 M 3 And
 
 < 182 > 
 
 And fever'd was that beauteous neck, 
 Round which her arms had fondly clos'd ; 
 
 And mangkd was that beauteous breaft, 
 On which her love-fick head repos'd ; 
 
 And ravilh'd was that conitant heart, 
 
 She did to every heart prefer ; 
 For tho' it could its king forget, 
 
 'Twas true and loyal 1H11 to her. 
 
 Amid thofe unrelenting flames, 
 
 She bore this conftant heart to fee ; 
 But when 'twas mouldered into duft, 
 
 Yet, yet, fhe cry'd, I follow thee. 
 
 My death, my death alone can fhew 
 
 The pure, the lafting love I bore ; 
 Accept, Q heaven 1 of woes like ours, 
 
 And let us, let us weep no more. 
 
 The difinal fcene was o'er and paft, 
 
 The lover's mournful hearfe retir'd ; 
 The maid drew back her languid head, 
 
 And fighing forth his name, expir'd. 
 
 Tho' juftice ever muil prevail, 
 
 The tear my Ki T T y fheds, is due ; 
 For feldom fhall (he hear a tale 
 
 So fad, fo tender, yet fo true. 
 
 A Pafloral
 
 I 183 ) 
 
 A Paftoral B A L L A D, in Four Parts. 
 Written 1743. 
 
 Arbv/t& humilefque myricee. VlRG. 
 
 EXPLANATION. 
 
 Groves and lowly ftirubs. 
 
 I. ABSENCE. 
 
 YE fhepherds fo chearful and gay, 
 Whofe flocks never carelefly roam ; 
 Should CORYDON'S happen to ftray, 
 Oh ! call the poor wanderers home. 
 Allow me to mufe and to figh, 
 
 Nor talk of the change that ye find ; 
 None once was fo watchful as I ; 
 
 I have left my dear PHILLIS behind. 
 
 Now I know what it is to have ftrove 
 
 With the torture of doubt and defire ; 
 What it is, to admire and to love, 
 
 And to leave her we love and admire. 
 Ah lead forth my flock in the morn, 
 
 And the damps of each ev'ning repel ; 
 .Alas ! I am faint and forlorn : 
 
 I ha,ve bade my dear PHYLLIS farewel. 
 
 Since PHILLIS vouchfafd me a look, 
 
 I never once dreamt of my vine; 
 May I lofe both my pipe and my crook, 
 
 If I knew of a kid that was mine. 
 
 M 4. I priz'd
 
 84 
 
 I priz'd every hour that went by, 
 
 Beyond all that had pleas'd me before ; 
 
 But now they are paft, and I figh ; 
 
 And I grieve that I priz'd them no more. 
 
 But why do I languifh in vain ? 
 
 Why wander thus penfively here ? 
 Oh ! why did I come from the plain, 
 
 Where I fed on the fmiles of my dear ? 
 They tell me, my favorite maid, 
 
 The pride of that valley, is flown ; 
 Alas ! where with her I have ftray'd, 
 
 J could wander with pleafure, alone. 
 
 When forc'd the fair nymph to forego, 
 
 What anguilh I felt at my heart ! 
 Yet I thought but it might not be fo 
 
 'Twas with pain that fhe faw me depart. 
 She gaz'd, as I flowly withdrew ; 
 
 My path I could hardly difcern ; 
 So fweetly me bade me adieu, 
 
 I thought that fhe bade me return. 
 
 Tne pilgrim that journeys all day 
 
 To vifit fome far-diftant fhrine, 
 If he bear but a relique away, 
 
 Is happy, nor heard to repine. 
 Thus widely remov'd from the fair, 
 
 Where my vows, my devotion, I owe, 
 Soft hope is the relique I bear, 
 
 And my folace wherever I go. 
 
 II. H O P E.
 
 ( 185 1 
 
 II. HOP E. 
 
 MY banks they are furnim'd with bees, 
 Whofe murmur invites one to fleep ; 
 My grottos are ftiaded with trees, 
 
 And my hills are white-over with fheep. 
 I feldom have met with a lofs, 
 
 Such health do my fountains beftow ; 
 My fountains all border'd with mofs, 
 Where the hare-bells and violets grow. 
 
 Not a pine in my grove is there feen, 
 
 But with tendrils of woodbine is bound : 
 Not a beech's more beautiful green, 
 
 But a fweet-briar entwines it around, 
 Not my fields, in the prime of the year, 
 
 More charms than my cattle unfold j 
 Not a brook that is limped and clear, 
 
 But it glitters with fifties of gold. 
 
 One would think me might like to retire 
 
 To the bow'r I have labour'd to rear : 
 Not a fhrub that I heard her admire, 
 
 But I haded and planted it there. 
 O how fudden the jeflamine ftrove 
 
 With the lilac to render it gay ! 
 Already it calls for my love, 
 
 To prune the wild branches away. 
 
 From
 
 From the plains, from the woodlands and groves* 
 
 What ftrains of wild melody flow ! 
 How the nightingales warble their loves 
 
 From thickets of rofes that How ! 
 And when her bright form mall appear, 
 
 Each bird mail harmonioufiy join 
 In a concert fo foft and fo clear, 
 
 As me may not be fond to refign. 
 
 I have found out a gift for my fair ; 
 
 I have found where the wood-pigeons breed: 
 But let me that plunder forbear, 
 
 She will fay 'twas a barbarous deed. 
 For he ne'er could be true, me averr'd, 
 
 Who could rob a poor bird of its young ; 
 And I lov'd her the more, when I heard 
 
 Such tendernefs fall from her tongue. 
 
 I have heard her with fweetnefs unfold 
 
 How that pity was due to a dove : 
 That it ever attended the bold ; 
 
 And me call'd it the Mer of love. 
 But her words fuch a pleafure convey, 
 
 So much I her accents adore, 
 Let her fpeak, and whatever (he fay, 
 
 Methinks I mould love her the more. 
 
 Can
 
 r 4*7 ) 
 
 Can a bofom fo gentle remain 
 
 Unmov'd, when her CORY DON fighs! 
 Will a nymph that is fond of the plain, 
 
 Thefe plains and this valley defpife I 
 Dear regions of file nee and ftiade ! 
 
 Soft fcenes of contentment and eafe 1 
 Where I could have plcafingly ftray'd, 
 
 If aught, in her abfence, could pleafe* 
 
 But where does my PHYLLIOA ftray ? 
 
 And where are her grots and her bow'rs I 
 Are the groves and the valleys as gay, 
 
 And the fhepherds as gentle as ours } 
 The groves may perhaps be as fair, 
 
 And the face of the valleys as fine ; 
 The fwains may in manners compare, 
 
 But their love is not equal to mine. 
 
 III. SOLICITUDE. 
 
 ' 
 TT7 H Y will you my paflion reprove ? 
 
 Why term it a folly to grieve f 
 Ere I mew you the charms of my love. 
 
 She is fairer than you can believe. 
 With her mien me enamours the brave ; 
 
 With her wit (he engages the free ; 
 With her modefty pleafes the grave ; 
 She is ev'ry way pleafmg to me, 
 
 Oyou
 
 you that have been of her train, 
 Come and join in my amorous lays ; 
 
 1 could lay down my life for the fwain, 
 
 That will fing but a fong in her praiie. 
 When he fings, may the nymphs of the town 
 
 Come trooping, and liften the while ; 
 Nay on him let not PHYLLIDA frown ; 
 
 But I cannot allow her to finile. 
 
 For when PA RID EL tries in the dance 
 
 Any favour with Phyllis to find, 
 O how, with one trivial glance, 
 
 Might fhe ruin the peace of my mind ! 
 In ringlets he dreffes his hair, 
 
 And his crook is be-ftudded around ; 
 And his pipe oh may PHYLLIS beware 
 
 Of a magic there is in the found 1 
 
 *Tis his with mock paffion to glow ; 
 
 'Tis his in fmooth tales to unfold, 
 ' How her face is as bright as the fnow, 
 
 And her bofom, be fure, is as cold. 
 How the nightingales labour the llrain, 
 
 With the notes of his charmer to vie ; 
 How they vary their accents in vain, 
 
 Repine at her triumphs, and die.'* 
 
 To
 
 ( 1*9 ) 
 
 To the grove or the garden he ftrays, 
 
 And pillages every fweet ; 
 Then, Anting the wreath to his lays, 
 
 He throws it at P H Y L LI s's feet. 
 " O PHYLLIS, he whifpers, more fair, 
 
 More fweet than the jefTamine's flow'r ! 
 What are pinks, in a morn, to compare ? 
 
 What is eglantine, after a fhow'r ? 
 
 Then the lily no longer is white ; 
 
 Then the rofe is depriv'd of its bloom ; 
 Then the violets die with defpight, 
 
 And the wood-bines give up their perfume." 
 Thus glide the foft numbers along, 
 
 And he fancies no fhepherd his peer; 
 Yet I never mould envy the fong, 
 
 Were not PHYLLIS to lend it an ear. 
 
 Let his crook be with hyacinths bound, 
 
 So PHYLLIS the trophy defpife : 
 Let his forehead with laurels be crown'd, 
 
 So they mine not in PHYLLIS'S eyes. 
 The language that flows from the heart 
 
 Is a ftranger to PARIOEL'S tongue ; 
 Yet may me beware of his art, 
 
 Or fure I mult envy the fong. 
 
 . DIS,
 
 ( 19* 
 
 IV. DISAPPOINTMENT. 
 
 E fhepherds give ear to my lay, 
 
 And take no more heed of ray fheep : 
 They have nothing to do but to ftray ; 
 
 I have nothing to do but to weep. 
 Yet do not my folly reprove ; 
 
 She was fair and my paffion begun 5 
 She fmil'd and I could not but love ; 
 She is faithlefi and I am undone. 
 
 Perhaps I was void of all thought : 
 
 Perhaps it was plain to forefee, 
 That a nymph fo compleat would be fought 
 
 By a fwain more engaging than me. 
 Ah ! love ev'ry hope can infpire ; 
 
 It banifhes wifdom the while ; 
 And the lip of the nymph we admire 
 
 Seems for ever adorn'd with a finile. 
 
 She is faithlefs, and I am undone ; 
 
 Ye that witnefs the woes I endure, 
 Let reafon inftrud you to mun 
 
 What it cannot inftrucl you to cure. 
 Beware how you loiter in vain 
 
 Amid nymphs of an higher degree : 
 It is not for me to explain 
 
 How fair, and how fickle they be. 
 
 Alas!
 
 ( '91 ) 
 
 Alas ! From the day that we met, 
 
 What hope of an end to my woes f 
 When I cannot endure to forget 
 
 The glance that undid my repofe. 
 Yet time may diminifh the pain : 
 
 The flow'r, and the fhrub, and the tree, 
 Which I rear'd for her pleafure in vain, 
 
 In time may have comfort for me. 
 
 The fweets of a dew-fprinkled rofe, 
 
 The found of a murmuring ftream, 
 The peace which from folitude flows, 
 
 Henceforth fhall be CORY DON'S theme: 
 High tranfports are (hewn to the fight, 
 
 But we are not to find them our own ; 
 Fate never beftow'd fuch delight, 
 
 As I with my PHYLLIS had known. 
 
 ye woods, Ipread your branches apace ; 
 To your deepeft recefles I fly; 
 
 1 would hide with the beafts of the chace 
 
 I would vanifh from every eye. 
 Yet my reed fhall refound thro' the grove 
 
 With the fame fad complaint it begun j 
 How (he fmil'd, and I could not but love 3 
 
 Was faithlefs, and I am undone ! 
 
 LEVITIES;
 
 LEVITIES; 
 
 O R 
 
 PIECES of HUMOUR. 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 N
 
 FLIRT and PHILj 
 
 A. Decifion for the LADIES. 
 
 A Wit, by learning well refin'd, 
 A beau, but of the rural kind, 
 To SILVIA made presences; 
 They both profefs'd an equal love : 
 Yet hop'd, by different means to move 
 Her judgment, or her fenfes. 
 
 Young fprightly FLIRT, of blooming mien, 
 Watch'd the beft minutes to be feen ; 
 
 Went when his glafs advjs'd him : 
 While meagre PHIL of books enquir'dj 
 A wight for wit and parts admir'd ; 
 
 And witty ladies priz'd him. 
 
 N 2 SILVIA
 
 ( '9* ) 
 
 SILVIA had wit, had fpirits too ; 
 To hear the one, the other view, 
 
 Sufpended held the fcales : 
 Her wit, her youth too, claim'd its mare, 
 l,et none die preference declare, 
 
 JJut turn upheads or tails. 
 
 STANZAS to the Memory of an agreeable 
 J-ADY, buried in Marriage to a Perfon 
 undeferving her. 
 
 V WAS always held, and ever willj> 
 
 By fage mankind, difcreeter, 
 T* anticipate a lefler ill, 
 Than undergo a greater, 
 
 '^ I V 
 A 
 
 When mortals dread difeafes, pain, 
 
 And languiming condidons ; 
 Who don't the lefler ills fuftain 
 
 . Of phyfic and phyficians ? 
 
 Rather than lofe his whole eftate, 
 
 He that but little wife is, 
 full gladly pays four parts in eight 
 
 To taxes and excifes. 
 
 Our merchants Spain has near undone 
 
 For loft mips not requiting : 
 This bears our noble k , to fhun 
 
 The lofs of blood in fighting ! 
 
 With
 
 ( '97 ) 
 
 With num'rous ills, in /ingle life, 
 
 The bachelor's attended : 
 Such to avoid, he takes a wife- 
 
 And much the cafe is mended 1 
 
 Poor GRATIA, in her twentieth year, 
 
 Forefeeing future woe, 
 Chofe to attend a monkey here* 
 
 Before an ape below. 
 
 C O L E M I R A. 
 
 A Culinary ECLOGUE. 
 
 Nee tantum Veneris, quantum ft udiof a ciJuutt 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 Infcnfible of foft defire, 
 
 Behold Colemira prove 
 More partial to the kitchen fire 
 
 Than to the/;* of low. 
 
 Night's fable clouds had half the globe o'erfpread, 
 And lilence reign'd, and folks were gone to bed ; 
 When love, which gentle fleep can ne'er inlpire, 
 Had feated DAMON by the kitchen fire. 
 
 Penfive he lay, extended on the ground ; 
 The little lares kept their vigils round ; 
 The fawning cats compaflionate his cafe, 
 And purr around, and gently lick his face : 
 
 N 3 t
 
 To all his 'plaints the fleeping curs reply, 
 And with hoarfe fnoringfi imitate a figh. 
 Such gloomy fcenes with lovers' minds agree, 
 And folitude to them is belt fociety. 
 
 Could I (he cry'd) exprefs, how bright a grace 
 Adorns thy morning hands, and well-wafh'd face ; 
 Thou would' ft, COL EMIR A, grant what I implore, 
 And yield me love, or wa(h thy face no more. 
 
 Ah ! who can fee, and feeing not admire, 
 Whene'er me fets the pot upon the fire ! 
 Her hands out-ihine the fire, and redder things ! 
 Her eyes are blacker than the pots me brings. 
 
 But fure no chamber-damfel can compare, 
 When in meridian luftre mines my fair, 
 When warm'd with dinner's toil, in pearly rills, 
 Adown her goodly cheek the fweat diftills. 
 
 Oh ! how I long, how ardently defire, 
 To view thofe rofy fingers ftrike the lyre ! 
 For late, when bees to change their climes began, 
 How did I fee 'em thrum the frying-pan ! 
 
 With her ! I mould not envy G his queen, 
 Tho' me in royal grandeur deck'd be feen : 
 Whilft rags, juft fever'd from my fair-one's gown, 
 In ruflet pomp, and greafy pride hang down. 
 
 Ah!
 
 ( 199 ) 
 
 Ah ! how it does my drooping heart rejoice, 
 When in the hall I hear thy mellow voice ! 
 How would that voice exceed the village bell ; 
 Wou'dft thou but fmg, I like thee paffing well !" 
 
 When from the hearth fhe bade the pointers go, 
 How foft ! how eafy, did her accents flow ! 
 " Get out," fhe cry'd, " when flrangers come to fup, 
 " One ne'er can raife thofe fnoring devils up." 
 
 Then, full of wrath, fhe kick'd each lazy brute, 
 Alas ! I envy'd even that falute : 
 'Twas fure mifplac'd, SHOCK faid, or feem'd to fay, 
 He had as lief, I had the kick, as they. 
 
 If fhe the myftic bellows take in hand, 
 Who like the fair can that machine command ? 
 
 may'ft thou ne'er by EOLUS be feen, 
 
 For he wou'd fure demand thee for his queen. 
 
 But (hou'd the flame this rougher aid refute, 
 And only gentler med'cines be of ufc ; 
 With full-blown checks fhe ends the doubtful ftrife, 
 Foments the infant flame, and puffs it into life. 
 
 Such arts, as thefe, exalt the drooping fire, 
 But in my breaft a fiercer flame infpire : 
 
 1 burn ! I burn ! O ! give thy puffing o'er, 
 
 And fwell thy cheeks, and pout thy lips no more ! 
 
 N 4 With
 
 ( 200 ) 
 
 With all her haughty looks, the time Pve feen, 
 When this proud damfel has more humble been, 
 When with nice airs (he hoift the pancake round, 
 And dropt it, haplefs fair ! upon the ground. 
 
 Look, with what charming grace ! what winning tricks ! 
 The artful charmer rubs the candlefticks ! 
 So bright me makes the candlefticks fhe handles, 
 Oft have I faid, there were no need of candles. 
 
 But thou, my fair ! who never would'ft approve, 
 Or hear the tender ftory of my love ; 
 Or mind, how burns my raging breaft, a button- 
 Perhaps art dreaming of a breaft of mutton. 
 
 Thus faid, and wept, the fad defponding fwain, 
 Revealing to the fable walls his pain : 
 But nymphs are free with thofe they fhou'd deny ; 
 To thofe, they love, more exquifitely coy ! 
 
 Now chirping crickets raife their tinkling voice, 
 The lambent flames in languid ftreams arife, 
 And fmoke in azure folds evaporates and dies. 
 
 The RAPE of the TRAP, 
 A BALLAD, 1737. 
 
 > f-ri W A S in a land of learning, 
 
 JL The mufes' fav'rite city, 
 Such pranks of late 
 Were play'd by a rat, 
 
 As tempt one to be witty. 
 
 All
 
 All in a college ftudy, 
 
 Where books were in great plenty ; 
 This rat would devour 
 More fenfe in an hour, 
 
 Than I cou'd write in twenty. 
 
 Corporeal food, 'tis granted, 
 
 Serves vermin lefs refin'd, Sir ; 
 But this, a rat of tafte, 
 All other rats furpafs'd ; 
 
 And he prey'd on the food of the mind, Sir. 
 
 His breakfaft, half the morning, 
 
 He conftantly attended; 
 And when the bell rung 
 For ev'ning fong, 
 
 His dinner fcarce was ended ! 
 
 He fpar'd not ev'n heroics, 
 
 On which we poets pride us ; 
 And wou'd make no more 
 Of king ARTHUR'S *, by the fcore, 
 
 Than all the world befide does. 
 
 In books of geo-graphy, 
 
 He made the maps to flutter : 
 A river or a fea 
 Was to him a difli of tea ; 
 
 And a kingdom, bread and butter. 
 
 But 
 * By BLACKMORS.
 
 C 202 ) 
 
 But If fome mawkim potion 
 
 Might chance to over-dofe him, 
 To check its rage, 
 He took a page 
 
 Of logic to compofe him 
 
 A trap, in hafte and anger, 
 
 Was bought, you need not doubt on't; 
 And, fuch was the gin, 
 Were a lion once got in, 
 
 He cou'd not, I think, get out on't. 
 
 With cheefe, not books, 'twas baited, 
 
 The fad I'll not belye it 
 Since none I tell you that- 
 Whether fcholar or rat, 
 
 Minds books, when he has other diet. 
 
 But more of trap and bait, Sir, 
 
 Why fhou'd I ling, or either ? 
 Since the rat, who knew the fleight, 
 Came in the dead of night, 
 
 And dragg'd 'em away together : 
 
 Both trap and bait were vanifh'd, 
 
 Thro' a fraclure in the flooring ; 
 Which, tho' fo trim 
 It now may feem, 
 
 Had then a dozen or more in. 
 5 Then
 
 t 203 ) 
 
 Then anfwer this, ye fages ! 
 
 Nor deem I mean to wrong ye, 
 Had the rat which thus did feize on 
 The trap, lefs claim to reafon, 
 
 Than many a fcull among ye ? 
 
 DAN PRIOR'S mice, I own it, 
 
 Were vermin of condition ; 
 But this rat, who merely learn'd 
 What rats alone concern'd, 
 
 Was the greater politician. 
 
 That England's topfy-turvy, 
 
 Is clear from thefe mifhaps, Sir ; 
 Since traps, we may determine, 
 Will no longer take our vermin, 
 
 But vermin * take ou-r traps, Sir, 
 
 Let fophs, by rats infefted, 
 
 Then truft in cats to catch 'em ; 
 Left they grow as learn'd as we, 
 In our ftudies ; where, d'ye fee, 
 
 No mortal fits to watch 'em. 
 
 Good luck betide our captains ; 
 
 Good luck betide our cats, Sir ; 
 And grant that the one 
 May quell the Spanifli Don, 
 
 And the other deftroy our rats, Sir. 
 
 On 
 * Wriueu at the time of the Spifoifh depredations.
 
 On certain PASTORALS. 
 
 O O rude and tunelefs are thy lays, 
 *J The weary audience vow, 
 'Tis not th* Arcadian fwain that lings, 
 But 'tis his herds that low. 
 
 On Mr. C of KIDDERMINSTER'S Poetry. 
 
 THY verfes, friend, are KIDDERMINSTER * fluff", 
 And I muft own you've meafur'd out enough. 
 
 To the VIRTUOSOS. 
 
 HAIL curious wights ! to whom fo fair 
 The form of mortal flies is ! 
 Who deem thofe grubs beyond compare, 
 Which common fenfe defpifes. 
 
 Whether o'er hill, morafs or mound, 
 You make your fportfman Tallies ; 
 
 Or that your prey in gardens found 
 Is urg'd thro' walks and allies, 
 
 Yet, 
 
 *KIDDERMIKSTER, famous for a coarfe woollen manufa&uve,
 
 Yet, in the fury of the chace, 
 
 No flope cou'd e'er retard you ; 
 Bleft if one fly repay the race, 
 
 Or painted wing reward you. 
 
 Fierce as CAMILLA * o'er the plain 
 
 Purfu'd the glitt'ring ftranger; 
 Still ey'd the purple's pleaiing ftain, 
 
 And knew not fear nor danger. 
 
 'Tis you difpenfe the fav'rite meat 
 
 To nature's filmy people ; 
 Know what conferves they chufe to eat, 
 
 And what liqueurs to tipple. 
 
 
 And, if her brood of infects dies, 
 
 You fage affiftance lend her ; 
 Can ftoop to pimp for am'rous flies, 
 
 And help 'em to engender. 
 
 'Tis you protect their pregnant hour ; 
 
 And, when the birth's at hand, 
 Exerting your obftetric pow'r, 
 
 Prevent a mothlefs land. 
 
 Yet oh ! howe'er your tow'ring view 
 
 Above grofs objects rifes, 
 Whate'er refinements you purfue/ 
 Hear, what a friend advifes : 
 
 A friend, 
 * See VIRGIL.
 
 I 206 > 
 
 A friend, who, weigh'd with yours, muft 
 
 DOM i T i A N'S idle paffion ; 
 That wrought the death of teazirtg flies, 
 
 But ne'er their propagation. 
 
 Let FLAVIA'S eyes more deeply warm, 
 Nor thus your hearts determine, 
 
 TO flight dame nature's faireft form 
 And figh for nature's vermin. 
 
 And fpeak with fome refpeft of beaux, 
 No more as triflers treat 'em ; 
 
 *Tis better learn to fave one's c!oaths> 
 Than cherifh moths, that eat 'em, 
 
 The EXTENT of C O O K E R Y. 
 
 Jliufque et Idem. 
 
 EXPLAKATION. 
 
 Another and the fame. 
 "\T7HEN TOM to CAMBRIDGE firfl was fent 
 
 A plain brown bob he wore ; 
 Read much, and look'd as tho' he meant 
 To be a fop no more. 
 
 See him to LINCOLN'S-!NN repair, 
 
 His resolution flag ; 
 He cherifhes a length of hair, 
 
 And tucks it in a bag. 
 
 Nor
 
 Nor COKE nor SAL KELD he regards, 
 
 But gets into the houfe, 
 And foon a judge's rank rewards 
 
 His pliant votes and bows. 
 
 Adieu ye bobs ! ye bags give place ! 
 
 Full bottoms -come inftead ! 
 Good L d ! to fee the various ways 
 
 Of dreffing a calve's-head ! 
 
 4 * * ,|. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * -t- ! * * * * W * 4- * * * 
 
 The PROGRESS of ADVICE. 
 A Common CASE. 
 
 Suade, aem certum eft. 
 
 EXPLANATION. 
 
 Advife it, for 'tis fix'd. 
 
 SAYS RICHARD to THOMAS (and feem'd half afraid) 
 " I am thinking to marry thy miflrefs's maid : 
 Now, becaufe Mrs. Lucy to thee is well known, 
 I will do't if thou bid'It me, or let it alone. 
 
 Nay don't make a jeft on't ; 'tis no jeft to me; 
 For 'faith I'm in earneft, fo prithee be free. 
 J have no fault to find with the girl fmce I knew her, 
 But I'd have thy advice, ere I tye myfelf to her." 
 
 Said THOMAS to RICHARD, "To {peak my opinion, 
 There is not fuch a bitch in King GEORGE'S dominion, 
 And I firmly believe, if thou knew'ft her as I do, 
 Thou wou'dft chufe out a whipping -poft, firft, to be ty'd to. 
 
 She's
 
 ( 208 ) 
 
 She's peevifh, (he's thievifli, flic's ugly, fhe's old, 
 And a lyar, and a fool, and a flut, and a fcold," 
 Next day RICHARD haften'd to church and was wed 
 And ere night had inform'd her what THOMAS had faid. 
 
 A BALLAD. 
 
 ^"rahitfua quemque voluftas. HOR. 
 
 PROVERBIALIZ'D. 
 Every one to his liking. 
 
 T"> ROM Lincoln to London rode forth ouryoung fquire, 
 SL To bring- down a wife, whom the fwains might ad- 
 But in fpite of whatever the mortal cou'd fay, [mire ; 
 The goddefs objefted the length of the way ! 
 
 To give up the op'ra, the park, and the ball, 
 
 For to view the flag's horns in an old country hall ; 
 
 To have neither China nor India to fee ! 
 
 Nor a laceman to. plague in a morning not fhe ! 
 
 To forfake the dear play -houfe, Quin, Garrick, and Clive 
 Who by dint of mere humour had kept her alive ; 
 To forego the full box for his lonefome abode, 
 O heav'ns I me fliou'd faint, fhe ftiou'd die on the road ! 
 
 To forget the gay fafiiions and geftures of France, 
 And to leave dear Augnfte in the midft of die dance, 
 And Harlequin to ! 'twas in vain to require it ; 
 And ihe wonder'd how folks had the face to defire it, 
 
 She
 
 She might yield to refign the fweet-fingers of Ruckholt, 
 
 Where the citizen-matron feduces her cuckold ; 
 
 But Ranelagh foon would her footfteps recall, 
 
 And the mufic, the lamps, and the glare of Vauxhall. 
 
 To be fure me cou'd breathe no where elfe than in town. 
 Thus me talk'd like a wit, and he look'd like a clown ; 
 But the while honeft Harry defpair'd to fucceed, 
 A coach with a coronet trail'd her to Tweed. 
 
 * * * * * * '! * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 
 SLENDER'S Ghoft. -wW. SHAK.ESPEAR. 
 
 BEneath a church-yard yew, 
 Decay'd and worn with age, 
 At duflc of eve methought I fpy'd 
 Poor SLENDER'S ghoil, that whimp'ring cry'd, 
 O fweet O fweet ANNE PAGE ! 
 
 Ye gentle bards ! give ear ! 
 
 Who talk of am'rous rage, 
 Who fpoil the lily, rob the rofe, 
 Come learn of me to weep your woes : 
 
 O fweet O fweet ANNE PAGE ! 
 
 Why mou'd fuch labour'd ftrains 
 
 Your formal Mufe engage ? 
 I never dreamt of flame or dart, 
 That fir'd my breaft, or pierc'd my heart, 
 
 But figh'd, O fweet ANNE PAGE! 
 VOL. I. O And
 
 And you ! whofe love-fick minds, 
 
 No med'cine can alTuage ! 
 Accufe the leech's art no more, 
 But learn of SLENDER to deplore ; 
 
 O fweet O fweet AN xi PAGE ! 
 
 And ye ! whofe fonls are held, 
 
 Like linnets in a cage ! 
 Who talk of fetters, links and chains^ 
 Attend, and imitate my ftrains ! 
 
 O fweet O fweet ANNE PAGE ! 
 
 . . . 
 And you who boaft or grieve, 
 
 What horrid wars ye wage ! 
 Of wounds receiv'd from many an eye ; 
 Yet mean as I do, when I figh 
 
 O fweet O fweet ANNE PAGE ! 
 
 Hence ev'ry fond conceit 
 
 Of Ihepherd or of fage ; 
 'Tis SLENDER'S voice, 'tis SLENDEK'S way 
 Expreffes all you have to fay, 
 
 O fweet O fweet ANNE PAGE ! 
 -I- * * * * * * *** * * * t * 'i' * * * * -I * 'i' -I' * -t * * * * -t i * ** 
 The INVIDIOUS. MART. 
 
 O Fortune ! if my pray'r of old 
 Was ne'er felicitous for gold, 
 With better grace thou may 'A allow 
 My fuppliant with, that afla it now. 
 
 Yet
 
 ( 2" ) 
 
 Yet think not, goddefs ! I require it 
 
 For the fame end your clowns defirt it. 
 
 In a well-made effectual ftring, 
 
 Fain would I fee LIVIDIO fwing f 
 
 Hear him, from Tyburn's height haranguing, 
 
 But fuch a cur's not worth one's hanging. 
 
 Give me, O goddefs ! ftore of pelf, 
 
 And he will tye the knot himfelf. 
 
 f > i t . .|. ! * * * i > * * * .f -I- < -I' t * 't !< - 
 The PRICE of an EQUIPAGE. 
 
 Servum jt potes, Ole, non kabere, 
 Et regem potts, Ole, non kabere. MART. 
 
 If thou from Fortune doft no fervant crave, 
 Believe me, thou no mafter need'ft to have." 
 
 IAfk'd a friend, amidft the throng, 
 Whofe coach it was that trail'd along: 
 '" The gilded coach there don't ye mind ? 
 That, with the footmen ftuck behind." 
 
 O Sir ! fays he, what ! han't you feen it ? 
 'Tis DAMON'S coach, and DAMON in it. 
 'Tis odd methinks you have forgot 
 Your friend, your neighbour, and what not ! 
 Your old acquaintance DAMON ! " True ; 
 But faith his equipage is new." 
 
 " Blefs me, faid I, where can it end ? 
 What madnefs has poflefs'd my friend ? 
 Four powder'd flaves, and thofe the taHeft, 
 Their ftomachs donbtlefs npt the fmalleft ! 
 
 Oz Can
 
 Can DAMON'S revenue maintain 
 In lace and food, fo large a train ? 
 I know his land each inch o' ground 
 'Tis not a mile to walk it round 
 If DAMON'S whole eftate can bear 
 To keep his lad, and one-horfe chair, 
 I own 'tis paft my compreheniion." 
 Yes, Sir, but DAMON has a penfion 
 Thus does a falfe ambition rule us, 
 Thus pomp delude, and folly fool us; 
 To keep a race of flick'ring knaves, 
 He grows himfelf the worft of flaves. 
 
 HINT from V O I T U R E. 
 
 LET SOL his annual journeys run, 
 And when the radiant tafk is done, 
 Confefs, thro' all the globe, 'twould pofe him, 
 To match the charms that CELIA mews him. 
 
 And mou'd he boaft he once had feen 
 
 As juft a form, as bright a mien, 
 
 Yet muft it ftill for ever pofe him, 
 
 To match what CELIA never mews him. 
 
 INSCRIPTION. 
 
 To the memory 
 
 Of A. L. Efquire, 
 
 Jufticc of the peace for this county : 
 
 Who,
 
 Who, in the whole courfe of his pilgrimage 
 Thro' a trifling ridiculous world, 
 Maintaining his proper dignity, 
 Notwithftanding the feoffs of ill-difpos'd perfons, 
 
 And wits of the age, 
 That ridicul'd his behaviour, 
 
 Or cenfur'd his breeding ; 
 Following the didlates of nature, 
 
 Defiring to eafe the afflifted, 
 Eager to fet the prifoners at liberty, 
 
 Without having for his end 
 The noife, or report fuch things generally caufc 
 
 In the world, 
 
 (As he was feen to perform them of none) 
 But the fole relief and happinefs 
 Of the party in diftrefs ; 
 
 Himfelf refting eafy, 
 When he cou'd render that fo ; 
 Not griping, or pinching himfelf, 
 To hoard up fuperfluities ; 
 Not coveting to keep in his pofleflion 
 What gives more difquietude, than pleafure ; 
 But charitably diffufing it 
 To all round about him : 
 Making the mod forrowful countenance 
 
 To fmile, 
 In his prefcnce ; 
 
 Always beftowing more than he was aflc'd, 
 
 Always imparting before he was defir'd ; 
 
 Not proceeding in this manner, 
 
 O 3 Upon
 
 Upon every trivial fuggeftkm, 
 But the moft mature, and folemn deliberation ; 
 With an incredible pretence, and undauntednefs 
 
 Of mind j 
 With an inimitable gravity and oeconomy 
 
 Of face; 
 
 Bidding loud defiance 
 
 To politenefs and the falhion, 
 
 Dar'd let a f t. 
 
 To a FRIEND. 
 
 HAVE you pe'er feen, my gentle fquire, 
 The humours of your kitchen fire ? 
 Says NED to SAL, " I lead a fpade, 
 Why don't ye play ? the girl's afraid 
 Play fomething any thingbut play 
 'Tis but to pafs the time away 
 Phoo how fhe ftands biting her na;ls 
 As tho' fhe play'd for half her vails 
 Sorting her cards, hagling and picking 
 We play for nothing, do us, chicken ? 
 That card will do 'blood, never doubt it, 
 It's not worth while to think about it." 
 
 SAL thought, and thought, and mifs'd her aim, 
 And NED, ne'er ftudying, won the game. 
 
 Methinks, old friend, 'tis wond'rous true, 
 That verfe is but a game at loo. 
 
 While
 
 While many a bard, that {hews fo clearly 
 He writes for his amufement merely, 
 Is known to ftudy, fret, and toil ; 
 And play for nothing all the while : 
 Or praife at moil ; for wreaths of yore 
 Ne'er fignify'd a farthing more : 
 'Till having vainly toil'd to gain it, 
 He fees your flying pen obtain it. 
 
 Thro' fragrant fcenes the trifler roves, 
 And hallow'd haunts that PHOEBUS loves : 
 Where with ftrange heats his bofom glows, 
 And myftic flames the God beftows. 
 You now none other flame require, 
 Than a good blazing parlour fire ; 
 Write verfes to defy the fcorners, 
 In (hit-houfes and chimney-corners. 
 
 SAL found her deep-laid fchemes were vain- 
 The cards are cut come deal again 
 No good comes on it when one lingers 
 I'll play the cards come next my fingers- 
 Fortune could never let NED loo her, 
 When flie had left it wholly to her. 
 
 Well, now who wins ? why, ftill the fame 
 For SAL has loft another game. 
 
 ' I've done ; (fixe mutter'd) I was faying. 
 It did not argufy my playing. 
 Some folks will win, they cannot chufe, 
 But think or not think fome muft lofe. 
 I may have won a game or fo . 
 But then it was an age ago 
 
 4 It
 
 It ne'er will be my lot again 
 I won it of a baby then- 
 Give me an ace of trumps and fee, 
 Our NED will beat me with a three. 
 *Tis all by luck that things are carry'd 
 He'll fuffer for it, when he's marry'd." 
 
 Thus SAL, with tears in either eye ; 
 While viclor NED fate titt'ring by. 
 
 Thus I, long envying your fuccefs, 
 And bent to write, and ftudy lefs, 
 Sate down, and fcribbled in a trice, 
 Juft what you fee and you defpife. 
 
 You, who can frame a tuneful fong, 
 And hum it as you ride along ; 
 And, trotting on the king'o highway, 
 Snatch from the hedge a fprig of bay ; 
 Accept this verfe, howe'er it flows, 
 From one that is your friend in profe. 
 
 What is this wreath, fo green ! fo fair ! 
 Which many wifh, and few muft wear ? 
 Which fome men's indolence can gain, 
 And fome men's vigils ne'er obtain ? 
 For what muft SAL or poet fue, ^ 
 
 Ere they engage with NE D or you ? V 
 
 For luck in verte, for luck at loo ? J 
 
 Ah no ! 'tis genius gives you fame. 
 And NED, thro' (kill, fecures the game. 
 
 The
 
 The POET and the DUN. 1741. 
 
 Thefe are meflengers 
 That feelingly pcrfuade me what I am. 
 
 SHAKESPEAR. 
 
 COMES a dun in the morning and raps at my door 
 "I made bold to call 'tis a twelvemonth and more 
 I'm forry, believe me, to trouble you thus, Sir, 
 But JOB wou'd be paid, Sir, had JOB been a mercer." 
 My friend, have but patience Ay thefe are your ways-" 
 I have got but one milling to ferve me two days 
 But, Sir prithee take it, and tell your attorney, 
 Jf I han't paid your bill, I have paid for your journey. 
 Well, now thou art gone, let me govern my paffion, 
 And calmly confider confider ? vexation ! 
 What whore that muft paint, and mull put on falfe locks, 
 And counterfeit joy in the pangs of the pox ! 
 What beggar's wife's nephew, now ftarv'd, and now beaten, 
 Who, wanting to eat, fears himfelf mall be eaten ! 
 What porter, what turnfpit, can deem his cafe hard ! 
 Or what dun boaft of patience that thinks of a bard ! 
 Well, I'll leave this poor trade, for no trade can be poorer, 
 Turn (hoe-boy, or courtier, or pimp, or procurer ; 
 Get love, and refped, and good living, and pelf, 
 And dun fome poor dog of a poet myfelf. 
 One's credit, however, of courfe will grow better; 
 Here enters the footman, and brings me a letter. 
 
 Dear
 
 " Dear Sir ! I receiv'd your obliging epiftle, 
 Your fame is fecure bid the critics go whittle. 
 I read over with wonder the poem you fent me ; 
 And I muft (peak your praifes, no foul fhall prevent me. 
 The audience, believe me, cry'd out ev'ry line 
 Was ftrcng, was affedling, was juft, was divine ; 
 All pregnant, as gold is, with worth, weight and beauty, 
 And to hide fuch a genius was far from your duty. 
 I forefee that the court will be hugely delighted : 
 Sir RICHARD, for much a lefs genius, was knighted. 
 Adieu, my good friend, and for high life prepare ye ; 
 I cou'd fay much more, but you're modeit, I fpare ye." 
 Quite fir'd with the flatt'ry, I call for my paper, 
 And wafte that, and health, and my time, and my taper : 
 I fcribble 'till morn, when with wrath no fmall ftore, 
 Comes my old friend the mercer, and raps at my door. 
 " Ah ! friend, 'tis but idle to make fuch a pother, 
 Fate, fate has ordain'd us, to plague one another." 
 * * <l> * > * * * * * * ! * * > * < * * -I- * * * * i * * * * * -> '! -I- 
 
 Written at an Inn at HENLEY. 
 
 TO thee, fair freedom ! I retire 
 From flattery, cards, and dice, and din ; 
 Nor art thou found in manfions higher 
 Than the low cott, or humble inn. 
 
 'Tis here with boundlefs pow'r I reign ; 
 
 And every health which I begin, 
 Converts dull port to bright champaigne ; 
 
 Such freedom, crowns it, at an inn. 
 
 Jfly
 
 I fly from pomp, I fly from plate ! 
 
 I fly from falfehood's fpecious grin ! 
 Freedom I love, and form I hate, 
 
 And chufe my lodgings at an inn. 
 
 Here, waiter ! take my fordid ore, 
 Which lacquey$ elfe might hope to win 
 
 It buys, what courts have not in ftore ; 
 It buys me freedom at an inn. 
 
 Whoe'er has travell'd life's dull round, 
 Where'er his ftages may have been, 
 
 May figh to think he ftijl has found 
 The warmeft welcome, at an inn. 
 
 A SIMILE. 
 
 WHAT village but has fometimes feen 
 The clumfy fhape, the frightful mien, 
 Tremendous claws, and (bagged hair, 
 Of that grim brute yclep'd a bear ? 
 He from his dam, the learn'd agree, 
 Receiv'd the curious form you fee ; 
 Who with her plaftic tongue alone, 
 Produc'd a vifage like her own 
 And thus they hint, in myftic falhion, 
 The pow'rful force of education* 
 Perhaps yon croud of fwains is viewing 
 E'en now, the ftrange exploits of Bruin ; 
 
 Who 
 
 * Of a fond matron's education.
 
 ( 220 ) 
 
 Who plays his antics, roars aloud ; 
 The wonder of a gaping croud ! 
 
 So have I known an awkward lad, 
 Whofe birth has made a parifh glad, 
 Forbid, for fear of fenfe, to roam, 
 And taught by kind mamma at home ; 
 V/ho gives him many a well-try'd rule, 
 With ways and means to play the fool. 
 In fenfe the fame, in ftature higher, 
 He mines, ere long, a rural fquire, 
 Pours forth umvitty jokes, and fwears, 
 And bawls, and drinks, but chiefly flares : 
 His tenants of fuperior fenfe 
 Caroufe, and laugh, at his expence ; 
 And deem the paftime I'm relating, 
 To be as pleafant, as bear-baiting. 
 4. * {, $ $ .{, .|. .t. g, |, ,|, fr 4, . $ $ $ $ ,| t , ,|, fr 4, 
 
 The CHARMS of PRECEDENCE. 
 
 A TALE. 
 " Q I R, will you pleafe to walk before ?" 
 
 *J No, pray Sir you are next the door. 
 Upon mine honour, I'll not ftir " 
 Sir, I'm at home, confider, Sir 
 * Excufe me, Sir, I'll not go firft." 
 Well, if I muft be rude, I muft 
 But yet I wifh I cou'd evade it 
 'Tis ftrangely clownifh, be perfuaded 
 
 Go forward, cits ! go forward, fquires ! 
 Nor fcruple each, what each admires. 
 
 Life
 
 ( "I ) 
 
 Life fquares not, friends, with your proceeding ; 
 
 It flies, while you difplay your breeding ; 
 
 Such breeding as one's granam preaches, 
 
 Or fome old dancing-matter teaches. 
 
 O for fome rude tumultuous fellow, 
 
 Half crazy, or, at leaft, half mellow, 
 
 To come behind you unawares, 
 
 And fairly pum you both down ftairs ! 
 
 But death's at hand let me advife ye, 
 
 Go forward, friends, or he'll furprize ye. 
 
 Befides, how infmcere you are ! 
 Do ye not flatter, lye, forfwear, 
 And daily cheat, and weekly pray, 
 And all for this to lead the way ? 
 
 Such is my theme, which means to prove, 
 That tho' we drink, or game, or love. 
 As that or this is moft in faftiion, 
 Precedence is our ruling paflion. 
 
 When college-ftudents take degrees, 
 And pay the beadle's endlefs fees, 
 What moves that fcicntific body, 
 But the firft cutting at a gawdy ? 
 And whence fuch fhoals, in bare conditions, 
 That ftarve and languifh as phyficians, 
 Content to trudge the ftreets, and flare at 
 The fat apothecary's chariot ? 
 But that, in CHAR LOT'S chamber (fee 
 MOLIERE'S Medicin malgre lui) 
 The leach, howe'er his fortunes vary. 
 Still walks before the apothecary. 
 
 FLA vi A
 
 FLATIA in vain has wit and charm*, 
 And all that mines, and all that warms ? 
 In vain all human race adore her, 
 For lady MARY ranks before her, 
 
 O CELIA, gentle CELIA ! tell ns, 
 You who are neither vain, nor jealons ! 
 The fofteft breaft, the mildeft mien ! 
 Wou'd you not feel fome little fpleen, 
 Nor bite your lip, fior furl yoar brow, 
 If FLORIMEL, yonr equal now, 
 Shou'd, one day, gain precedence of ye f 
 Firft: ferv'd tho' in a difli of coffee ? 
 Plac'd firft, altho* where you are found, 
 You gain the eyes of all around ? 
 Nam'd firft, tho' not with half the fame, 
 That waits my charming CELIA'S name ? 
 
 Hard fortune ! barely to infpire 
 Our fix'd eileem, and fond defire ! 
 Barely, where'er you go, to prove 
 The fource of univerfal love ! 
 Yet be content, obferving this, 
 Honour's the offspring of caprice : 
 And worth, howe'er you have purfu'd it, 
 Has now no pow'r but to exclude it. 
 You'll find your general reputation 
 A kind of fupplemental ftation. 
 
 Poor SWIFT, with all his worth, coii'd ne'er. 
 He tells us, hope to rife a peer ; 
 So, to fupply it, wrote for fame : 
 And well the wit fecur'd his aim. 
 
 Acorn-
 
 A common patriot has a drift, 
 
 Not quite fo innocent as SWIFT: 
 
 In BRITAIN'S caufe he rants, he labours; 
 
 " He's honeft, faith" Have patience, neighbours, 
 
 For patriots may fometimes deceive, 
 
 May beg their friends' reluctant leave. 
 
 To ferve them in a higher fphere ; 
 
 And drop their virtue, to get there. 
 
 As LUCIAN tells us, in his fafhion, 
 How louls put off each earthly paffion. 
 Ere on ELYSIUM'S flow'ry ftrand, 
 Old CHARON fuffer'd 'em to land ; 
 So ere we meet a court's carefles, 
 No doubt our fouls muft change their drefies : 
 And fouls there be, who, bound that way* 
 Attire themfelves ten times a day. 
 
 If then 'tis rank which all men covet, 
 And faints alike and fmners love it ; 
 If place, for which our courtiers throng 
 So thick, that few can get along ; 
 For which fuch fervile toils are feen, 
 Who's happier than a king ? -a queen. 
 
 Howe'er men aim at elevation, 
 'Tis properly a female paflioh : 
 Women, and beaux, beyond all meafure 
 Are charm'd with rank's cxtatic pkafure. 
 
 Sir, if your drift I rightly fcan, 
 You'd hint a beau were not a man : 
 Say, women then are fond of places ; 
 I wave ajl difputable cafes. 
 
 A man
 
 A man perhaps would fomething linger, 
 Were his lov'd rank to coft a finger ; 
 Or were an ear or toe the price on't, 
 He might delib'rate once or twice on't ; 
 Perhaps afk GATAKE&'S advice on't. 
 And many, as their frame grows old, 
 Would hardly purchafe it witli gold. 
 
 But women wi(h precedence ever ; 
 'Tis their whole life's fupreme endeavour ; 
 It fires their youth with jealous rage, 
 And ftrongly animates their age. 
 Perhaps they would not fell outright 
 Or maim a limb that was in fight ; 
 Yet on worfe terms they fometimes chufe it ; 
 Nor ev'n in punifhments, refufe it. 
 
 Pre-eminence in pain ! you cry, 
 All fierce and pregnant with reply. 
 But lend your patience, and your ear, 
 An argument mall make it clear. 
 But hold, an argument may fail, 
 Befide my title fays, a tale. 
 
 Where AVON rolls her winding ftream, 
 AVON, the mufes' fav'rite theme ! 
 AVON, that fills the farmers' purfes, 
 And decks with flow'rs both farms, and verfes, 
 She vifits many a fertile vale- 
 Such was the fcene of this my tale. 
 For 'tis in EV'SHAM'S vale, or near it, 
 That folks with laughter tell, and hear it. 
 
 The foil with annual .plenty bleft 
 Was by young CORY DON polTefL 
 
 His
 
 His youth alone I lay before ye, 
 
 As moft material to my ftory : 
 
 For ftrength and vigour too, he had 'em, 
 
 And 'twere not much amifs, to add 'em. 
 
 Thrice happy lout ! whofe wide domain 
 Now green with grafs, now gilt with grain, 
 In ruflet robes of clover deep, 
 Or thinly veil'd, and white with fheep ; 
 Now fragrant with the bean's perfume, 
 Now purpled with the pulfe's bloom, 
 Might well with bright alluilon ftore me ; 
 But happier bards have been before me ! 
 
 Amonglt the various year's increafe, 
 The ftripling own'd a field of peafe ; 
 Which, when at night he ceas'd his labours. 
 Were haunted by fome female neighbours. 
 Each morn difcover'd to his fight 
 The fhameful havoc of the night ; 
 Traces of this they left behind 'em, 
 But no inftruftions where to find 'em. 
 The devil's works are plain and evil, 
 But few or none have feen the devil. 
 Old NOLL, indeed, if we may credit 
 The words of E c H A R D, who has faid it, 
 Contriv'd with SATAN how to fool us ; 
 And bargain'd face to face to rule us ; 
 But then old Noll was one in ten, 
 And fought him more than other men. 
 Our fhepherd too, with like attention, 
 May meet the female fiends we mention. 
 
 VOL. I. P He
 
 He rofe one morn at brtak of day, 
 And near the field in ambulh lay : . 
 When lo ! -a brace of girls appears, 
 The third, a matron much jn years. 
 Smiling, amidll :the peafe. th*- nnere 
 Sate down to cuH their future dinners ; 
 And, caring little who.niight own 'em, 
 Made free as tho' ttemfelveb had fawn 'em. 
 
 'Tis worth a Cage's ob&rvation 
 How loye tan make a jeil of paffion. 
 Angef had Ibcc'd the fwain from "bed, 
 His early dues to love unpaid ! 
 And love, a god that keeps a pother, 
 And v?iil be paid -one time or other, 
 Now banifti'd anger out o' door ; 
 And claim'd the debt withheld before. 
 If anger bid our youth revile, 
 Love form'd bis features to -a iroile : 
 And knowing well, 'twas all grimace, 
 To threaten with a jmiling face, 
 He in few wdrds expre&'d his mind- 
 And none would deem them much unkind, 
 
 The am'pous youth, for their offence, 
 Demanded inltant recompence : 
 That recompence from each, which flume 
 Forbids a bafhful mufe to name. 
 Yet, more this fentence to difcover, 
 'Tis what Bferr * * grants -her 'lover, 
 When he, to make the ftrumpet willing. 
 Has fpent his fortune to a fhilling. 
 
 Each
 
 ( 7 ) 
 
 Each Hood a while, as 'twere fufpended. 
 And loth to do, what each intended. 
 
 At length with foft pathetic fighs, 
 The matron, bent with age, replies. 
 
 'Tis vain to ftrive -juftice, -I know, 
 
 And our ill ftars wiH have it fo - 
 
 But let my tears your wrath affuage, 
 
 And fhew fome deference for age ! 
 
 I from a diftant village came, 
 
 Am old, G knows, and fomethmg lame ; 
 
 And if we yield, as yield we maft, 
 
 Difpatch my crazy body firft. 
 
 Our fhepherd, like the Phrygian fwain> 
 When circled round on IDA'S plain, 
 With goddefles, he ftood fufpended, 
 And PALLAS'S grave fpeech was ended, 
 Own'd what me aflc'd might be his duty ; 
 But paid the compliment to beauty. 
 
 *i4+*+*i * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * -H- * * * -t 
 
 ODE 
 To be performed by Dr. BRITTLE, and a 
 
 Chorus of HALES-OWEN CITIZENS. 
 The Inftrumental Part, a Viol d'Amour. 
 
 AIR by the DOCTOR. 
 
 AWAKE ! I fay, awake good people ! 
 And be for once alive and gay ; 
 Come let's be merry ; Mr the tipple ; 
 
 How can you deep, 
 Whilft I do play i" how can you fleep, &c. 
 
 P* " CHORUS
 
 ( 223 ) 
 
 CHORUS of CITIZENS. 
 
 Pardon, O pardon, great mufician I 
 On drowfy fouls fome pity take ! 
 For wond'rous hard is our condition, 
 To. drink thy beer, 
 Thy ftrains to hear ; 
 To drink, 
 To hear, 
 And keep awake ! 
 
 SOLO by the DOCTOR. 
 
 Hear -but this ftrain 'twas made by HAN DEL, 
 A wight of fkill, and judgment deep ! 
 
 Zoonters, they're gone SAL, bring a candle- 
 No, here is one, and he's afleep. 
 
 D U E T T E. 
 DR. How cou'd they go Soft mufic. 
 
 Whilftldoplay? 
 SAL. How cou'd they go ? Warlike mufi*. 
 
 How fhou'd they flay ? 
 
 E P I-
 
 9 
 
 EPILOGUE to the Tragedy of CLEONE. 
 
 ELL, ladies fo much for the tragic ftile 
 And now the cuftom is to make you fmile. 
 To make us fmile ! methinks I hear you fay 
 Why, who can help it, at fo ftrange a play ? 
 The captain gone three years ! and then to blame 
 The faultlefs conduct of his virtuous dame ! 
 My ftars ! what gentle belle would think it treafon, 
 When thus provok'd, to give the brute fome reafon ? 
 Out of my houfe ! this night, forfooth, depart ! 
 A modern wife had faid " With all my heart 
 But think not, haughty Sir, I'll go alone ! 
 Order your coach conduit me fafe to town 
 Give me my jewels, wardrobe, and my maid 
 And pray take care my pin-money be paid." 
 
 Such is the language of each modifh fair ; 
 Yet memoirs, not of modern growth, declare 
 The time has been when modefty and truth 
 Were deem'd additions to the charms of youth : 
 When women hid their necks, and veil'd their faces, ^ 
 Nor romp'd, nor rak'd, nor ftar'd at public places, 
 Nor took the airs of amazons for graces : 3 
 
 Then plain domeftic virtues were the mode, 
 And wives ne'er dreamt of happinefs abroad ; 
 They lov'd their children, learnt no flaunting airs, 
 But wkh the joys of wedlock mixt the cares. 
 
 P 3 Thofe
 
 Thofe times are paft yet fure they merit praife, 
 For marriage triumph'd' in thofe golden days : 
 By chafte decorum they affedlion gain'd ; 
 By feith and fondnefs what they won, maintain'd. 
 
 s Tis yours, ye fair, to bring thofe days agen, 
 And form anew the hearts of thoughtlefs men ; 
 Make beauty's luftre amiable as bright, 
 And give the foul, as well as fenfe, delight ; 
 Reclaim from folly a fantaftic age, 
 That fcorns the prefs, the pulpit, and the ftage, 
 Let truth and tendernefs your breails adorn, 
 The marriage chain with tranfport ihall be worn ; 
 Each blooming virgin rais'd into a bride 
 Shall double all their joys, their cares divide ; 
 Alleviate grief, compofe the jars of ihife, 
 And pour the balm that fweetens human life. 
 
 MORAL
 
 MORAL PIECES.
 
 THE 
 
 JUDGMENT of HERCULES. 
 
 XX7 Hile blooming fpring defcends from genial flues, 
 
 By whofe mild influence inltant wonders rife ; 
 From whofe foft breath Elyfian beauties flow, 
 The fweets of HAGLEY, or the pride of STOWE; 
 Will LYTTELTON the rural landflcip range, 
 Leave noify fame, and not regret the change ? 
 Pleas'd will he tread the garden's early fcenes, 
 And learn a moral from the rifing greens ? 
 There, warm'd alike by Sol's enliv'ning pow'r, 
 The weed, afpiring, emulates the flow'r : 
 The drooping flow'r, its fairer charms difplay'd, 
 Invites, from grateful hands, their gen'rous aid : 
 
 Soon,
 
 ( 234 ) 
 
 Soon, if none check th' invafive foe's defigns, 
 The lively luftre of thefe fcenes declines ! 
 
 'Tis thus, the fpring of youth, the morn of life, 
 Rears in our minds the rival feeds of firife. 
 Then paifton riots, reafon then contends ; 
 And, on the conqueft, ev'ry blifs depends : 
 Life, from the nice decifion, takes ks hue : 
 And bleft thofe judges who decide like you ! 
 On worth like theirs mall ev'ry blifs attend : 
 The world their fav'rite, and the world their friend. 
 
 There are, who blind to thought's fatiguing ray, 
 As fortune gives examples urge their way : 
 Not virtue's foes, though they her paths decline, 
 And fcarce her friends, tho' with her friends they join. 
 In her's, or vice's cafual road advance 
 Thoughtlefs, the finners or the faints of chance ! 
 Yet fome more nobly fcorn the vulgar voice ; 
 With judgment fix, with zeal purfue their choice, 
 Wheri ripen'd thought, when reafon born to reign, 
 Checks the wild tumults of the youthful vein; 
 While paffion's lawlefs tides, at their command, 
 Glide thro' more ufeful traces, and blefs the land. 
 
 Happieft of thefe is he whofe matchlefs mind, 
 By learning ftrengthen'd, and by tafte refin'd, 
 In virtue's caufe eflay'd its earlieft pow'rs ; 
 Chofe virtue's paths, and ftrew'd her paths with floxv'rs. 
 The firft alarm'd, if freedom waves her wings : 
 The fitteft to adorn each, art fhe brings : 
 Lov'd by that prince whom ev'ry virtue fire's : 
 Prais'd by that bard whom ev'ry mufe infpires : 
 
 Bleft
 
 Bleft in the tuneful art, the focial flame ; 
 In all that wins, in all that merits fame ! 
 
 'Twas youth's perplexing ftage his doubts infpirM, 
 When great ALCJDES to a grove retir'd. 
 Thro' the lone windings of a devious glade, 
 Refign'd to thought, with, ling' ring fteps he ftray'd; 
 Bleft with a mind to talk iincerer joys : 
 Arm'd with a heait each falfe one to defpife. 
 Dubious he ftray'd, with wav'ring thoughts poffeft, 
 Alternate paffions ftruggling mar'd his breail: ; 
 The various arts whkh human cares divide, 
 In deep attention all his mind employ'd : 
 Anxious, if fame an equal blifs fecur'dj 
 Or filent eafe with fofter charms allur'd. 
 The filvan choir whofe numbers fweetly flow'd, 
 The fount that murmur'd, and the flow'rs diat blow'd; 
 The filver flood that in meanders led 
 His glitt'ring ftreams along th' enliven'd mead; 
 The foothing breeze, and all thofe beauties join'd, 
 Which, whiHt they pleaie, effeminate the mind, 
 In vain ! \vhile diftant, on a fummit rais'd, 
 Th' imperial tow'rs of fame attractive blaz' J. 
 
 While thus he trac'd thro' fancy's puzzling maze 
 The fep'rate fweets of pleafure, and of praile; 
 Sudden the wind a fragrant gak convey 'd, 
 And a new luitre gained upon tiie made. 
 At once, before his wond'ring eyes were feen 
 Two female forms, of more than mortal mien. 
 Various their charms ; and in their drefs and face, 
 Each feem.'d to vie with fome- peculiar grace. 
 
 This,
 
 This, whofe attire lefs clogg'd with art appear'd, 
 
 The fimple fweets of innocence endear'd. 
 
 Hex fprightly bloom, her quick fagacious eye, 
 
 Shew'd native merit mix'd with modefty. 
 
 Her air diffus'd a mild yet aweful ray, 
 
 Severely fweet, and innocently gay. 
 
 Such the chafte image of the martial maid, 
 
 In artlefs folds of virgin white array'd ! 
 
 She kt no borrow'd rofe her cheeks adorn, 
 
 Her bluming cheeks, that fham'd the purple morn. 
 
 Her charms nor had, nor wanted artful foils, 
 
 Or ftudy'd geftures, or well-pra&is'd fmiles. 
 
 She fcorn'd the toys which render beauty lefs ; 
 
 She prov'd th' engaging chaflity of drefs ; 
 
 And while me chofe in native charms to mine, 
 
 Ev'n thus me feem'd, nay more than feem'd, divine. 
 
 One modeft em'rald clafp'd the robe fhe wore, 
 
 And, in her hand, th' imperial fword (he bore. 
 
 Sublime her height, majeftic was her pace, 
 
 And match'd the aweful honours of her face. 
 
 The fhrubs, the flow'rs, that deck'd the verdant ground, 
 
 Seem'd, where me trod, with rifmg luftre crown'd. 
 
 Still her approach with ftronger influence warm'd ; 
 
 She pleas'd, while diftant, but, when near, me charm'd. 
 
 So ftrikes the gazer's eye, the fiiver gleam 
 
 That glitt'ring quivers o'er a diftant ftream : 
 
 But from its banks v/c fee new beauties rife, 
 
 And, in its cryftal bofom, trace the fkies. 
 
 With other charms the rival vifion glow'd ; 
 And from her drefs her tinfel beauties fiow'd. 
 
 A flutt'ring
 
 ( 37 
 
 A fluttering robe her pamper'd fhape conceal'^, 
 And feem'd to fhade the charms it bed reveal'd. 
 Its form, contriv'd her faulty fize to grace ; 
 Its hue, to give frefh luftre to her face. 
 Her plaited hair difguis'd with brilliants glar'd ; 
 Her cheeks the ruby's neighb'ring luftre fhar'd; 
 The gaudy topaz lent its gay fupplies, 
 And ev'ry gem that ftrikes lefs curious eyes ; 
 Expos'd her breaft with foreign fweets perfum'd ; 
 And, round her brow, a rofeate garland bloom'd. 
 Soft fmiling, bluihing lips conceal'd her wiles ; 
 Yet ah ! the blufhes artful as the fmiles. 
 Oft-gazing on her fhade, th' enraptur'd fair 
 Decreed the fubftance well deferv'd her care : 
 Her thoughts, to others' charms malignly blind, 
 Center'd in that, and were to that confin'd ; 
 And if on others' eyes a glance were thrown, 
 'Twas but to watch the influence of her own. 
 Much like her guardian, fair CYTHERA'S queen, 
 When for her warrior me refines her mien ; 
 Or when, to blefs her DELI AN fav'rite's arms, 
 The radiant fair invigorates her charms. 
 Much like her pupil, EGYPT'S fportive dame, 
 Her drefs expreffive, and her air the fame, 
 When her gay bark o'er filver CYDNOS rolFd, 
 And all th' emblazon'd ftreamers wav'd in gold. 
 Such fhone the vifion : nor forbore to move 
 The fond contagious airs of lawlefs love. 
 Each wanton eye deluding glances fir'd, 
 And am'rous dimples on each cheek confpir'd. 
 
 Liftkfi
 
 ( 233 ) 
 
 Lifelefs her gait, and flow, with feeming pain, 
 She dragg'd her loitering limbs along the plain ; 
 Yet made fpme faint efforts, and firft approach'd the fwain 
 So glaring draughts, with taudry luftre bright, 
 Spring to the view, and rofa upon the fight : 
 More fiowly charms a RAPHAEL'S chafter air, 
 Waits the calm, fearch, and pays the fearcher's cafe. 
 
 Wrap'd in a pleas'd fufpence, the youth fi: 
 The various charms of each attractive maid : 
 Alternate each he view'd, and^eadh admir'd, 
 And found, alternate, varying fiames infpir'd. 
 Quick o'er their forms his eyes with pleafure raw, 
 When fhe, who firft approach'd him, tirit began. 
 
 " Hither, dear boy, direS thy wand'ring eye$$ 
 'Tis here the lovely vale of pleafure lies. 
 Debate no more, to me thy life refign ; 
 Each fweet which nature can diffufe is mine. 
 For me the nymph diverfifies her pow'r, 
 Springs in a tree, or bloflbms in a flow'r ; 
 To pleafe my ear, fhe tunes the linnet's ftrai 
 To pleafe my eye, with lilies paints the plains ; 
 To form my couch, in mofiy beds fhe grows ; 
 To gratify my fmell, perfumes the rofe ; 
 Reveals the fair, the fertile fcene you fee, 
 And fweUs the vegetable world, for me. 
 
 Let t!;c gull'd fool the toils of war purfue, 
 Where bleed the many to enrich the few : 
 Where chance from courage claims the boafted prize : 
 Where, tho' fhe give, your country eft denies. 
 Induflrious thou fhalt CUPID'S wars maintain, 
 And ver gently fight his foft campaign. 
 
 I 
 
 S 
 
 m. *
 
 t 339 ) 
 
 His darts alone (halt wield, his wounds ndare, 
 Yet only fuffer, to enjoy the cure. 
 Yield but to jne a choir of nymphs mall riie, 
 And fire thy breaft, and blefs thy ravifh'd eyes. 
 Their beauteous cheeks a fairer rofe (hall wear, 
 A brighter lily OH their necks appear ; 
 Where fondly thou thy favour'd head {halt reft, 
 Soft as the down that {wells the cygnet's neft ! 
 While PHILOMEL in each foft voice complains, 
 And gently hills thee with mellifluous flrains : 
 Whilft, with each accent, fweeteft odours flow ; 
 And fpicy gums round ev'ry bofom glow. 
 Not the fam'd bird Arabian climes admire, 
 Shall in fuch luxury of Iweets expire. 
 At floth let war's victorious fons exclaim ; 
 In vain ! for pleafure is my real name ; 
 Nor envy thou the head with bays o'er-grown ; 
 No, feek thou rofes to adorn thy own : 
 For well each op'ning fcene, that claims my care, 
 Suits and deferves the beauteous crown I wear. 
 
 Let others prune the vine ; the genial bowi 
 Shall crown thy table, and enlarge thy foul. 
 Let vulgar hands explore the brilliant mine, 
 So the gay produce glitter ftill on thine. 
 Indulgent BACCHUS loads his lab'ring tree, 
 And, guarding, gives its cluft'ring fweets to me. 
 For my lov'd train, APOLLO'S piercing beam 
 Darts thro' the paffive glebe, and frames the gent. 
 See in my caufe confenting gods employ'd, 
 Nor flight thofe geds, their blcffings unenjoy'd ! - 
 " For
 
 For thee the poplar fhall its amber drain ; 
 For thee, in clouded. beauty, fpring the cane; 
 Some coftly tribute ev'ry clime fhall pay ; 
 Some charming treafure ev'ry wind convey ; 
 Each objecl round fome pleafing fcene fhall yield ; 
 Art build thy dome, while natui'e decks thy field ; 
 OfCoRiNTH's order fhall the ftrufture rife ; 
 The fpiring turrets glitter thro* the fkies ; 
 Thy coftly robe fhall glow with Tyrian rays ; 
 Thy vafe fhall fparkle, and thy car fhall blaze ; 
 Yet thou, whatever pomp the fun difplay, 
 Shalt own the am'rous night exceeds the day. 
 
 When melting flutes, and fweetly-founding lyres 
 Wake the gay loves, and cite the young defires ; 
 Or, in th' Ionian dance, fome fav'rite maid 
 Improves the flame her fparkling eyes convey'd ; 
 Think, can'ft thou quit a glowing DELIA'S arms, 
 To feed on virtue's vifionary charms ; 
 Or flight the joys which wit and youth engage, 
 For the faint honour of a frozen fage ? 
 To find dull envy ev'n that hope deface, 
 And, where you toil'd for glory, reap difgrace ? 
 
 O ! think that beauty waits on thy decree, 
 And thy lov'd lovelieft charmer pleads with me. 
 She, whofe foft fmile, or gentler glance to move, 
 You vow'd the wild extremities of love ; 
 In whofe endearments years, like moments flew ; 
 For whofe endearments millions feem'd too few ; 
 She, me implores ; fhe bids thee feize the prime, 
 And tread with her the flow'ry tra&i of time ; 
 
 Nor
 
 ( 24' ) 
 
 Nor thus her lovely bloom of life be How 
 
 On fome cold lover, or infuldng foe. 
 
 Think, if againft that tongue thou canft rebel. 
 
 Where love yet dwelt, and reafon feem'd to dwell j 
 
 What flrong perfuafion amis her fofter fighs ! 
 
 What full convidion fparkles in her eyes ! 
 
 See nature fmiles, and birds falute the ihade, 
 Where breathing jafmin fcreens the fleeping maid: 
 And fuch her charms, as to the vain may prove, 
 Ambition feeks more humble joys than love ! 
 There bufy toil (hall ne'er invade thy reign, 
 Nor fciences perplex thy lab'ring brain : 
 Or none, but what with equal iweets invite ; 
 Nor other ajts, but to prolong delight : 
 Sometimes thy fancy prune her tender wing, 
 To praife a pendant> or to grace a ring ; 
 To fix the drefs that fuits each varying mien ; 
 To mew where beft the cluilering gems are feen ; 
 To figh foft ftrains along the vocal grove, 
 And tell the charms, the fweet effedls of love ! 
 Nor fear to find a Coy difdainful mufe ; 
 Nor think the fillers will their aid refufe. 
 Cool grots, and tinkling rills, or filent fhades, 
 Soft fcenes of leifure 1 fuit th' harmonious maids ; 
 And all the wife, and all the grave decree 
 Some of that facred train ally'd to me. 
 
 But if more fpecious eafe thy wimes claim, 
 And thy bread glow with faint defire of fame, 
 Some fofter fcience mall thy thoughts amufe. 
 And learning's name a fokmn found diffiife : 
 
 VOL. I. Q_ To
 
 ( 242 1 
 
 To thee all nature's curious ftores I'll bring, 
 Explain the beauties of an infecTs wing ; 
 The plant, which nature, lefs diffufely kind, 
 Has to few climes with partial care confin'd ; 
 The ihell me fcatters with more carelefs air, 
 And, in her frolics, feems fupremely fair ; 
 The worth that dazzles in the tulip's ftains, 
 Or lurks beneath a pebble's various veins. 
 
 SleepYdowny god, averfe to war's alarms, 
 Shall o'er thy head diffufe his fofteft charms ; 
 Ere anxious thought thy dear repofe afiail, 
 Or care, my moft deftruclive foe, prevail. 
 The wat'ry nymphs ihall tune the vocal vales, 
 And gentle zephyrs harmonize their gales, 
 For thy repofe, inform, with rival joy, 
 Their ftreams to murmur, and their winds to figh. 
 Thus fhalt thou fpend the fweetly -flowing day, 
 'T i 1 loft in blifs thou breathe thy foul away ; 
 'Till Ihe t' Elyfian bow'rs of joy repair, 
 Nor find my charming fcenes exceeded there." 
 
 She ceas'd ; and on a lily'd bank reclin'd, 
 Her flowing robe wav'd wanton with the wind : 
 One tender hand her drooping head fuftains j 
 One points, exprefiive, to the flow'ry plains. 
 Soon the fond youth perceiv'd her influence roll 
 Deep in his brea'ft, tcunelt his-'manl/ foul : 
 As when FAVONI unjoins the iblar blaze, 
 And each fair fabric of the froft decays. 
 Soon, to his breatt, the foft harangue convey'd 
 Refolves too partial to the fpecious maid. 
 
 He
 
 He figh'd, he gaz'd, fo fweetly finil'd the dame; 
 Yet fighing, gazing, feem'd to fcorn his flame, 
 And, oft as virtue caught his wand'ring eye, 
 A crimfon blufh condemn'd the rifuig figh. 
 'Twas fuch the ling'ring TROJAN'S ftiame betray'd, 
 When MAIA'S fon the frown of JOVE difplay'd : 
 When wealth, fame, empire, could no balance prove, 
 For the foft reign of DIDO, and of love. 
 Thus ill with arduous glory love confpires ; 
 Soft tender flames with bold impetuous fires ! 
 
 Some hov'ring doubts his anxious bofom mov'dj 
 And virtue, zealous fair ! thofe doubts improv'd. 
 
 " Fly, fly, fond youth, the too indulgent maid, 
 Nor err, by fuch fantaflic fcenes betray'd. 
 Tho' in my path the rugged thorn be feen, 
 And the dry turf dilclofe a fainter green ; 
 Tho' no gay rofe, or flow'ry product fliine, 
 The barren furface ftill conceals the mine. 
 Each thorn that threatens, ev'n the weed that grows 
 In virtue's path, fuperior fweets bellows 
 Yet fhou'd thofe boafted, ipecious toys allure, 
 Whence cou'd fond floth the flatt'ring gifts procure ? 
 The various wealth that tempts thy fond defire, 
 'Tis I alone, her greateft foe, acquire. 
 I from old ocean rob the treafur'd ftore ; 
 I thro' each region latent gems explore ; 
 'Twas I the rugged brilliant firft reveal 'd, 
 By num'rous ftrata deep in earth conceal'd ; 
 'Tis I the furface yet refine, and mow 
 The modeft gem's intrinfic charms to glow. 
 
 Nor
 
 ( 244 ) 
 
 Nor fwells the grape, nor fpires its feeble tree 
 Without the firm fupports of induftry. 
 
 But grant we floth the fcene herfelf has drawn, 
 The mofly grotto, and the flow'ry lawn ; 
 Let PHILOMELA tune th' harmonious gale, 
 And with each breeze eternal fweets exhale ; 
 Let gay POMONA flight the plains around, 
 And chufe, for faireft fruits, the favour'd ground ; 
 To blefs the fertile vale fhou'd virtue ceafe, 
 Nor mofly grots, nor flow'ry lawns cou'd pleafe ; 
 Nor gay POMONA'S lufcious gifts avail, 
 The found harmonious, or the fpicy gale. 
 
 Seeft thou yon rocks in dreadful pomp arife, 
 Whofe rugged cliffs deform th' encircling fides ? 
 Thofe fields, whence PHOEFVS all their moifture drains. 
 And, too profufely fond, difrobes the plains ? 
 When I vouchfafe to tread the barren foil, 
 Thofe rocks feem lovely, and thofe deferts fmile. 
 The form thou view'ft, to ev'ry fcene with eafe 
 Transfers its charms, and ev'ry fcene can pleafe. 
 When I have on thofe pathlefs wilds appear'd, 
 And the lone wand'rer with my prefence chear'd ; 
 Thofe cliffs the exile has with pleafure view'd, 
 And call'd that defert blifsful folitude ! 
 
 Nor I alone to fuch extend my care: 
 Fair-blooming health furveys her altars there. 
 Brown exercife will lead thee where fhe reigns, 
 And with reflected luftre gild the plains. 
 With her, in flow'r of youth, and beauty's pride, 
 Her offspring/ calm content and peace, rcfide. 
 
 One
 
 ( HS ) 
 
 One ready off'ring fiats each neighboring fhrine j 
 And all obey their laws, who pra&ife mine. ' 
 
 But health averfe from floth's fmooth region flies ; 
 And, in her abfence, pleafure droops and dies. 
 Her bright companions, mirth, delight, repofe, 
 Smile where me fmiles, and ficken when me goes. 
 A galaxy of pow'rs ! whofe forms appear 
 For ever beauteous, and for ever near. 
 
 Nor will foft fleep to floth's requeft incline, 
 He from her couches flies unbid to mine. 
 
 Vain is the fparkling bowl, the warbling {train, 
 TV incentive fong, the labour'd viand vain ! 
 Where (he relentlefs reigns without controul, 
 And checks each gay excurfion of the foul : 
 Unmov'd, tho' beauty, deck'd in all its charms, 
 Grace the rich couch, and fpread the fofteft arms : 
 'Till joylefs indolence fuggefts deflres ; 
 Or drugs are fought to furnifh languid fires ; 
 Such languid fires as on the vitals prey, 
 Barren of blifs, but fertile of decay. 
 As artful heats, apply'd to thirfty lands, 
 Produce no flow'rs, and but debafe the fands. 
 
 But let fair health her chearing fmiles impart, 
 How fweet is nature, how fuperfluous art ! 
 'Tis fhe the fountain's ready draught commends, 
 And fmooths the flinty couch which fortune lends, 
 And when my hero from his toils retires, 
 Fills his gay bofom with unufual fires, 
 And, while no checks th' unbounded joy reprove^ 
 Aids and refines the genuine fweets of love. 
 
 CU His
 
 His faired profpeft riling trophies frame ; 
 His fweeteft mufic is the voice of fame : 
 Pleafures to floth unknown ! fhe never found 
 How fair the profpeft, or how fweet the found. 
 
 See fame's gay ftru&ure from yon fummit charms, 
 And fires the manly breaft to arts or arms : 
 Nor dread the fteep afcent, by which you rife 
 From grov'ling vales to tow'rs which reach the flues. 
 
 Love, fame, efteem, 'tis labour muft acquire ; 
 The fmiling offspring of a rigid fire ! 
 To fix the friend, your fervice muft be fhewn ; 
 All, ere they lov'd your merit, lov'd their own. 
 That wond'ring GREECE your portrait may admire, 
 That tuneful bards may ftring for you their lyre, 
 That books may praife, or coins record your name, 
 Such, fuch rewards 'tis toil alone can claim ! 
 And the fame column which difplays to view 
 The conqu'ror's name, difplays the conqueft too. 
 
 *Twas flow experience, tedious miftrefs ! taught 
 All that e'er nobly fpoke, or bravely fought. 
 'Twas fhe the patriot, fhe the bard refin'd, 
 In arts that ferve, protect, or pleafe mankind. 
 Not the vain vifions of inaftive fchools, 
 Not fancy's maxims, not opinion's rules, 
 E'er form'd the man whofe gen'rous warmth extends 
 T' enrich his country, or to ferve his friends. 
 On a&ive worth the laurel war beftows : 
 Peace rears her olive for induftrious brows : 
 Nor earth, uncultur'd, yields its kind fupplies : 
 Nor heav'n, its fhow'rs without a facrifice. 
 
 See
 
 See far below fuch grov'ling fcenes of fliame, 
 As lull to reft IONAYIA'S flumb'riag dame. 
 Her friends* from all the toils of fame fecure, 
 Alas ! inglorious, greater toils endure. 
 Doom'd all to mourn, who in her cauie engage, 
 A youth enervate, and a painful age ; 
 A fickly faplefs mafs, if reafon flies ; 
 And, if fhe linger, impotently wife ! 
 A thoughtlefs train, who, pamperM, fleek, and gay, 
 Invite old age, and revel youth away ; 
 From life's frefh vigour move the load of care, 
 And idly place it where they lead can bear. 
 When to the mind, difeas'd, for aid they fly, 
 What kind refkaion fhall the mind fupply ? 
 When, with loft health, what fliou'd the lofs allay, 
 Peace, peace is loft : a comfortlefs decay ! 
 But to my friends, when youth, when pleafure flies, 
 And earth's dim beauties fade before their eyes, 
 Thro' death's dark vifta flowery tracks are feen, 
 Elyfian plains, and groves for ever green. 
 If o'er their lives a refluent glance they caft, 
 Their's is the prefent who can praife the paft. 
 Life has its bljfs for thefe, when paft its bloom, 
 As wither'd rofcs yield a late perfume. 
 
 Serene, and fafe from paflion's ftormy taeje, 
 How calm they glide into the port of age I 
 Of the rude voyage lefs depriv'd than eas'd; 
 More tir'd than pain'd, and weaken'd than difeas'd. 
 For health on age, 'tis temp'rance muft bcftow ; 
 And peace from piety alone can flow ; 
 
 Ct And
 
 And all the incenfe bounteous JOVE requires, 
 Has fweets for him who feeds the facred fires. 
 
 Sloth views the tow'rs of fame with envious eye;; 
 Delirous ftill, ftill impotent to rife. 
 Oft, when refolv'd to gain thofe blifsful tow'rs, 
 The penfive queen the dire afcent explores, 
 Comes onward, wafted by the balmy trees, 
 Some filvan mufic, or fome fcented breeze : 
 She turns her head, her own gay realm me fpies, 
 And all the fhort-liv'd refolution dies. 
 Thus fome fond infeft's fault'ring pinions wave, 
 Clafp'd in its fav'rite fweets, a lafting flave : 
 And thus in vain thefe charming vifions pleafe 
 The wretch of glory, and the flave of eafe : 
 Doom'd ever in ignoble ftate to pine, 
 Boaft her own fcenes, and languifh after mine. 
 
 But flinn her fnares : nor let the world exclaim, 
 Thy birth, which was thy glory, prov'd thy fhame. 
 With early hope thine infant adlions fir'd ; 
 Let manhood crown what infancy infpir'd. 
 Let gen'rous toils reward with health thy days, 
 Prolong thy prime, and eternize thy praife. 
 The bold exploit that charms th' attefting age, 
 To lateft times mail gen'rous hearts engage ; 
 And with that myrtle fiiall thy fhrine be crown'd, 
 With which, alive, thy graceful brows were bound : 
 'Till time (hall bid thy virtues freely bloom, 
 And raife a temple where it found a tomb. 
 
 Then in their feafts thy name (hall GRECIANS join ; 
 Shall pour the fparkling juice to JOVE'S and thine. 
 
 Thine,
 
 Thine, us'd in war, fhall raife their native fire ; 
 Thine, us'd in peace, their mutual faith infpire. 
 Dulnefs perhaps, thro' want of fight, may blame, 
 And fpleen, with odious ihduftry, defame ; 
 And that, the honours giv'n, with wonder view, 
 And this, in fecret fadnefs own them due : 
 Contempt and envy were by fate defign'd 
 The rival tyrants which divide mankind ; 
 Contempt, which none, but who deferve, can bear ; 
 While envy's wounds the fmiles of fame repair. 
 For know, the gen'rous thine exploits (hall fire, 
 Thine ev'ry friend it fuits thee to require, 
 Lov'd by the gods, and, till their feats I mew, 
 Lov'd by the good, their images below." 
 
 
 
 Ceafe, lovely maid, fair daughter of the flues ! 
 My guide ! my queen ! th' extatic youth replies. 
 In thee 1 trace a form defign'd for fway ; 
 Which chiefs may court, and kings with pride obey. 
 And, by thy bright immortal friends I fwear, 
 Thy fair idea (hall no toils impair. 
 Lead me ! O lead me where whole hofls of foes, 
 Thy form depreciate, and thy friends oppofe ! 
 Welcome all toils th' inequal fates decree, 
 While toils endear thy faithful charge to thee. 
 Such be my cares, to bind th' cppreffive hand, 
 And crufli the fetters of an injur'd land : 
 To fee the monfter s noxious life refign'd, 
 And tyrants quell'd, the monfters of mankind ! 
 Nature mail fmile to view the vanquifh'd brood, 
 And none, but envy, riot unfubdu'd. 
 
 In
 
 In cloifter'd ffate let felfifh fages dwell, 
 Proud that their heart is narrow as their cell I 
 And boaft their mazy labyrin A of rules, 
 Far lefs the friends of virtue, than the fools : 
 Yet fuch hi vain thy fav'ring fmiles pretend ; 
 For H E is thine, who proves his country's friend. 
 Thus when my life well-fpent the good enjoy, 
 And the mean envious labour to deflroy ; 
 When, llrongry lur'd by fame's contiguous mrine, 
 I yet devote my choicer vows to thine ; 
 If all my toils thy promis'd favour claim, 
 O lead thy fav'rite thro' the gates of fame ! 
 
 He ceas'd his vows, and, with difd sinful air. 
 He turn'd to blaft the late exulting fair. 
 But vanilh'd, fled to fome more friendly more, 
 The confcious phantom's beauty pleas'd no more? 
 Convinc'd, her fpurious charms of drefs and face 
 Claim'd a quick conqneft, or a fure difgrace. 
 Fantaftic pow'r ! whofe tranfient charms allur'd. 
 While error's mift the reas'ning mind obfcur'd : 
 Not fuch the viftrefs, virtue's conftant queen, 
 Endur'd the teft of truth, and dar'd be feen. 
 Her bright'ning form and features feem'd to own, 
 'Twas all her wifh, her int'reft to be known : 
 And when his longing view the fair declin'd, 
 Left a full image of her charms behind. 
 
 Thus reigns the moon, with furtive fplendor crown'd, 
 While glooms opprefs us, and thick fhades furround. 
 But let the fource of light its beams difplay, -j 
 
 Languid and faint the mimic flames decay, > 
 
 And all the fick'ning fplendor fades away. 3 
 
 The
 
 The PROGRESS of TASTEi 
 
 The FATE of DELICACY. 
 
 A POEM on the Temper and Studies of the AU- 
 THOR: and how great a Misfortune it is, for a 
 Man of fmall Eftate to have much TASTE. 
 
 PART the FIRST. 
 
 PERHAPS fome cloud eclips'd the day, 
 When thus I tun'd my penfive lay. 
 M The fliip is launch'd we catch the gale 
 On life's extended ocean fail : 
 For happinefs our courfe we bend, 
 Our ardent cry, our general end \ 
 Yet ah ! the fcenes which tempt our care 
 Are like the forms difpers'd in air, 
 Still dancing near diforder'd eyes ; 
 And weakeft his, who beft defcries ! 
 
 Yet let me not my birthright barter, 
 (For wifhing is the poet's charter; 
 All bards have leave to wim what's wanted, 
 Tho' few e'er found their wimes granted ; 
 Extenfive field ! where poets pride them 
 In tinging all that is deny'd them,) 
 
 For humble eafe, ye pow'rs ! I pray ; 
 That plain warm fuit for ev'ry day ! 
 And pleafure, and brocade, beftow ; 
 To flaunt it once a month, or fo. 
 
 The
 
 The firft for conftant wear we want; 
 The firft, ye pow'rs ! for ever grant ! 
 But conftant wear the laft befpatters, 
 And turns the tifiue into tatters. 
 
 Where'er my vagrant courfe I bend, 
 Let me fecure one faithful friend. 
 Let me, in public fcenes, requeft 
 A friend of wit and tafte, well drefs'd : 
 And, if I muft not hope fuch favour, 
 A friend of wit and tafte, however. 
 
 Alas ! that wifdom ever fhuns 
 To congregate her fcatter'd fons ; 
 Whofe nervous forces well combin'd, 
 Would win the field, and fway mankind. 
 The fool will fqoeeze, from morn to night, 
 To fix his follies full in fight ; 
 The note, he flrikes, the plume he mows, 
 Attract whole flights of fops and beaux ; 
 And kindred-fools, who ne'er had known him* 
 Flock at the fight, carefs, and own him ; 
 But ill-ftar'd fenfe, nor gay nor loud, 
 Steals foft on tip-toe, thro' the crowd : 
 Conveys his meagre form between ; 
 And flides like pervious air, unfeen : 
 Contracts his known tenuity. 
 As though 'twere ev'n a crime, to be : 
 Nor ev'n permits hi: eyes to ftray, 
 And win acquaintance in their way. 
 
 In company, fo mean his air, 
 You fcarce are confcious he is there : 
 
 'Tilt
 
 ( 253 ) 
 
 ' ill from fome nook, like fharpen'd fteel, 
 Occurs his face's thin profile. 
 Still feeming, from the gazer's eye, 
 Like VENUS, newly bath'd, to fly. 
 Yet while reluftant he difplays 
 His real gems before the blaze, 
 The fool hath, in its center, plac'd 
 His tawdry flock of painted pafte. 
 Difus'd to fpeak, he tries his (kill ; 
 Speaks coldly, and fucceeds but ill ; 
 His penfive manner, dulnefs deem'd ; 
 His mode fly, referve efteem'd ; 
 His wit unknown, his learning vain, 
 He wins not one of all the train. 
 And thofe who, mutually known, - 
 In friendftiip's fairefl lift had fhone, 
 Lefs prone, than pebbles, to unite, 
 Retire to (hades from public fight ; 
 Grow favage, quit their focial nature j 
 And ftarve, to ftudy mutual fatirc. 
 
 But friends, and fav'rites, to chagrin them, 
 Find counties, countries, feas between them : 
 Meet once a year, then part, and then 
 Retiring, wifh to meet again. 
 
 Sick of the thought, let me provide 
 Some human form to grace my fide ; 
 At hand, where'er I (hape my courfe ; 
 An ufeful, pliant, (hiking- horfe ! 
 
 No gefture free from fome grimace ; 
 No feam, without its (hare of lace : 
 
 But,
 
 ( 254 ) 
 
 But, mark'd with gold or filver either, 
 
 Hint where his coat was piec'd together. 
 
 His legs be lengthen'd, J advife, 
 
 And ftockings roll'd abridge his thighs. 
 
 What tho' VA N D Y c K had other rules, 
 
 What had VANDYCK to do with fools i 
 
 Be nothing wanting, but his mind ; 
 
 Before, a folitaire j behind, 
 
 A twifted ribbon, like the track 
 
 Which nature gives an afs's bad;. 
 
 Silent as midnight ! pity 'twere 
 
 His wifdom's flender wealth to mare ! 
 
 And, whilft in flocks our fancies ftray, 
 
 To wiih the poor man's lamb away. 
 
 This form attracting ev'ry eye, 
 I ftroll all unregarded by : 
 This wards the jokes of ev'ry kind, 
 As an umbrella fun or wind ; 
 Or, like a fpunge, abfoibs the fallies, 
 And peftilential fumes of malice ; 
 Or like a fplendid fhield is fit 
 To fcreen the templar's random wit ; 
 Or what fome gender cit lets -fall, 
 As wool-packs quafh the leaden ball. 
 
 Allufions thefe of weaker force, 
 And apter ftill the Aalking-horfe ! 
 
 O let me wander all unfeen, 
 Beneath the fanftion of his mien ! 
 As lilies foft, as rofes fair ! 
 Empty as air-puoaps drain.' d of air ! 
 
 With
 
 With fteady eye and pace remark 
 
 The fpeckled flock that haunts the park * ; 
 
 Level my pen with wond'rous heed 
 
 At follies, flocking there to feed : 
 
 And, as my fatire burfts amain, 
 
 See feather'd fopp'ry 3re\v the plain. 
 
 But when I feek my rural grove, 
 And flure the peaceful haunts I love, 
 Let none of this unhallow'd train 
 My fweet fequefter'd paths profane. 
 Oft may fome pdliih'd virtuous friend 
 To thefe foft-winding vales defcend ; 
 And love with me inglorious things, 
 And fcorn with me the pomp of kings : 
 And check me, when my bofom burns 
 For ftatues, paintings, coins and urns. 
 For I in DAMON'S pray'r cou'd join, 
 And DAMON'S wifh might now be mine- 
 But all difpers'd! the wffh, the pray'r, 
 Are driv'n to mix with common air. 
 
 PART the SECOND. 
 
 HO W happy once was DAMON'S lot, 
 While yet romantic fchemes were not ! 
 Ere yet he fent his weakly eyes, 
 To plan frail caftles in the fkies ; 
 Forfaking pleafures cheap and common, 
 To court a blaze, ftill flitting from one. 
 
 Ah happy DAMON ! thrice and more, 
 Had talle ne'er touch'd thy tranquil fhore. 
 
 Oh 
 
 * St. JAMES'S.
 
 Oh days ! when to a girdle ty'd 
 The couples jingled at his fide ; 
 And DAMON fwore he would not barter 
 The fportfman's girdle, for a garter ! 
 
 Whoever came to kill an hour, 
 Found eafy DAMON in their pow'r; 
 Pure focial nature all his guide, 
 " DAMON had not a grain of pride." 
 
 He wiih'd not to elude the mares 
 Which knav'ry plans, and craft prepares ; 
 But rather wealth to crown their wiles, 
 And win their univerfal fmiles : 
 For who are chearful, who at eafe, 
 But they who cheat us as they pleafe t 
 
 He wink'd at many a grofs defign, 
 The new-fall'n calf might countermine : 
 Thus ev'ry fool allow'd his merit; 
 " Yes ! DAMON had a gen'rous fpirit I'* 
 
 A coxcomb's jeft, however vile, 
 Was fure, at leaft, of DAMON'S finite: 
 That coxcomb ne'er deny'd him fenfe; 
 For why ? it prov'd his own pretence : 
 All own'd, were modefty away, 
 DAMON cou'd mine as much as they. 
 
 When wine and folly came in feafon, 
 DAMON ne'er flrove to fave his reafonj 
 Obnoxious to the mad uproar : 
 A fpy upon a hoflile more ! 
 'Twas this his company endear'd : 
 Mirth never came till he appear'd ; 
 
 Hi,
 
 His lodgings ev'ry draw'r cou'd fhew 'em ; 
 The flave was kick'd, who did not know 'em. 
 
 Thus DAMON, ftndious of his eafe, 
 And pleating all, whom mirth cou'd pleafe ; 
 Defy'd the world, like idle COL LEY, 
 To fhew a fofter word than folly. 
 Since wifdom's gorgon-fhield was known 
 To ftare the gazer into ftone; 
 He chofe to trull in folly's charm, 
 To keep his breaft alive and warm. 
 
 At length grave learning's fober train 
 Remark'd the trifler with difdain ; 
 The fons of tafte contemn'd his ways, 
 And rank'd him with the brutes that graze: 
 While they to nobler heights afpir'd, 
 And grew belov'd, efteem'd, admir'd. 
 
 Hence with our youth, not void of fpiritj 
 His old companions loft their merit : 
 And ev'ry kind well-natur'd fot 
 Seem'd a dull play, without a plot ; 
 Where ev'ry yawning gueft agrees, 
 The willing creature ftrives to pleafe : 
 But temper never could amufe j 
 It barely led us to excufe ; 
 'Twas true, converting they aver'd, 
 All they had feen, or felt, or heard : 
 Talents of weight ! for wights like thefe 
 The law might chafe for witnefles : 
 But fure th' attefting dry narration 
 111 fuits a judge of converfation. 
 
 VOL, I. R What
 
 * What were their freedoms ? mere excufes 
 To vent ill manners, blows and bruifes. 
 Yet freedom, gallant freedom ! hailing, 
 At form, at form, inceflant railing, 
 Would they examine each offence, 
 Its latent caufe, its known pretence, 
 Pun&ilio ne'er was known to breed 'em; 
 So fure as fond prolific freedom. 
 Their courage ? but a loaded gun ; 
 Machine the wife wou'd wifti to fhun ; 
 Its guard unfafe, its lock an ill one, 
 Where accident might fire and kill one. 
 
 In fhort, difgufted out of meafure, 
 Thro' much contempt, and flender pleafure, 
 His fenfe of dignity returns ; 
 With native pride his bofom burns ; 
 He feeks refpeft but how to gain it ? 
 Wit, focial mirth, cou'd ne'er obtain it : 
 And laughter, where it reigns uncheck'd, 
 Difcards and diffipates refpeft. 
 The man who gravely bows, enjoys it ; 
 But making hands, at once, deftroys it. 
 Precarious plant, which, frelh and gay, 
 Shrinks at the touch, and fades away ! 
 
 Come then, referve ! yet from thy train 
 Banim contempt, and curft difdain. 
 Teach me, he cry'd, thy magic art 
 To aft the decent diftant part : 
 To hufband well my complaifance, 
 Nor let ev'n wit too far advance 5 
 
 But 
 
 * Boifterous mirth.
 
 ( 259 ) 
 
 But chufe calm teafon for my theme. 
 In thefe her royal realms fupreme ; 
 And o'er her tharms, with caution mewn, 
 Be (till a graceful umbrage thrown ; 
 And each abrupter period crown'd, 
 With nods, and winks, and fmiles profound, 
 'Till refcu'd from the crow'd beneath, 
 No more with pain to move or breathe, 
 I rife with head elate, to fliare 
 Salubrious draughts of purer air. 
 Refpeft is won by grave pretence 
 And filence, furer ev'n than fenfe 
 
 'Tis hence the facred grandeur fprings 
 Of Eaftern and of other kings, 
 Or whence this awe to virtue due, 
 While virtue's diftant as PERU ? 
 The ftieathlefs fword the guard difplays, 
 Which round emits its dazzling rays : 
 The ftately fort, the turrets tall, 
 Portcullis'd gate, and battled wall, 
 Lefs fcreens the body, than controuls, 
 And wards contempt from royal fouls. 
 
 The crowns they wear but check the eye, 
 Before it fondly pierce too nigh ; 
 That dazzled crowds may be employ'd 
 Around the furface of the void. 
 O ! 'tis the ftatefman's craft profound 
 To fcatter his amufements round ; 
 To tempt us from their confcious breaft, 
 Where full-fledg'd crimes enjoy their neft. 
 
 R 2 Nor
 
 fror awes us every worth reveal'd, 
 So deeply, as each vice conceal'd. 
 
 The lordly log, difpatch'd of yore, 
 That the frog people might adore, 
 With guards to keep them at a diftance, 
 Had reign' d, nor wanted wit's affiftance : 
 Nay had addrefles from his nation, 
 In praife of log-adminiftratioru 
 
 PART the THIRD. 
 
 TH E buoyant fires of youth were o'er, 
 And fame and finery pleas'd no more ; 
 Productive of that gen'ral flare, 
 Which cool reflection ill can bear ! 
 And, crowds commencing mere vexation, 
 Retirement fent its invitation. 
 
 Romantic fcenes of pendent hills, 
 And verdant vales, and falling rills, 
 And mofly banks the fields adorn, 
 Where DAMON, fimple fwain, was born. 
 
 The dryads rear'd a fliady grove ; 
 Where fuch as think, and fuch as love, 
 May fafely figh their fummer's day ; 
 Or mufe their filent hours away. 
 
 The oreads lik'd the climate well ; 
 And taught the level plain to fwell 
 In verdant mounds, from whence the eye 
 Might all their larger works defcry. 
 
 The naiads pour'd their urns around, 
 From nodding rocks o'er vales profound. 
 
 They
 
 They form'd their ftreams to pleafe the view, 
 And bade them wind, as ferpents do : 
 And having mewn them where to ftray, 
 Threw little pebbles in their way. 
 
 Thefe fancy, all-fagacious maid, 
 Had at their feveral talks furvey'd : 
 She faw and finil'd ; and oft would lead 
 Our DAMON'S foot o'er hill and mead ; 
 There, with defcriptive finger, trace 
 The genuine beauties of the place ; 
 And when me all its charms had mewn, 
 Prefcribe improvements of her own. 
 
 " See yonder hill, fo green, fo round, 
 Its brow with ambient beeches crown'd ! 
 'Twould well become thy gentle care 
 To raife a dome to VENUS there : 
 Pleas'd would the nymphs thy zeal furvey ; 
 And VENUS, in their arms, repay. 
 'Twas fuch a {hade, and fuch a nook, 
 In fuch a vale, near fuch a brook ; 
 From fuch a rocky fragment fpringing j 
 That fam'd APOLLO chofe, to fing in. 
 There let an alter wrought with art 
 Engage thy tuneful patron's heart. 
 How charming there to mufe and warble 
 Beneath his buft of breathing marble I 
 With laurel wreath and mimic lyre, 
 That crown a poet's vaft define. 
 Then, near it, fcoop the vaulted cell 
 Where mufic's * charming maids may dwell ; 
 * The mufes. 
 
 R 3 Prone
 
 C 262 ) 
 
 Prone to indulge tky tender paffion, 
 And make thee many an affignation. 
 Deep in the grove's obfcure retreat 
 Be plac'd MINERVA'S facred feat; 
 There let her aweful turrets rife, 
 (For wifdom flies from vulgar eyes :) 
 There her calm dictates {halt thou hear 
 DifHnftly ftrike thy lift'ning ear : 
 And who would fliun die pleafing labour, . 
 To4iave MINERVA for his neighbour ?" 
 
 In fhort, fo charm'd each wild fuggeflion^ 
 Its truth was little call'd in queilion : 
 And E>AMON dreamt he faw the Fauns, 
 And Nymphs, diilin&ly, Ikim the lawns ; 
 Now trac'd amid the trees, and then 
 Loft in the circling ihades again. 
 With leer oblique their lover viewing- 
 And CUPID panting and purfuing 
 Fancy, enchanting fair, he cry'd, 
 Be thou my goddefc ! thou my guide ! 
 For thy bright vifions I defpife 
 
 What foes may think, or friends advife. 
 
 The feign'd concern, when folks furvey 
 
 Expence, time, ftudy caft away ; 
 
 The real fpleen, with which they fee : 
 
 I pleafe myfelf, and follow thee. 
 
 Thus glow'd his breaft by fancy warm'd j 
 
 And thus the fairy landflcip charm'd, 
 
 But moft he hop'd his conftant care 
 
 Might win the favour of the fair ; 
 
 And,
 
 And, wand'ring late thro' yonder glade, 
 He thus the foft defign betray'd. 
 
 " Ye doves ! for whom I rear'd the grove, 
 With melting lays falute my love ! 
 My DELIA with your notes detain, 
 Or I have rear'd the grove in vain ! 
 Ye flow'rs ! which early fpring fupplies, 
 Difplay at once your brighteft dyes ! 
 That me your op'ning charms may fee j 
 Or what were elfe your charms to me ? 
 Kind zephyr ! brufh each fragrant flow'r, 
 And fhed its odours round my bow'r, 
 Or ne'er again, O gentle wind ! 
 Shall I, in thee, refremment find. 
 Ye ftreams, if e'er your banks I lov'd, 
 If e'er your native founds improv'd, 
 May each foft murmur foothe my fair ; 
 Or oh 'twill deepen my defpair ! 
 Be fure, ye willows ! you be feen 
 Array'd in livelieft robes of green ; 
 Or I will tear your flighted boughs, 
 And let them fade around my brows. 
 And thou, my grott ! whofe lonely bounds 
 The malancholy pine furrotmds ! 
 May me admire thy peaceful gloom, 
 Or thou malt prove her lover's tomb." 
 
 And now the lofty domes were rear'd ; 
 Loud laugh'd the fquires, the rabble ftar'd. 
 
 " See, neighbours, what our DAMON'S doing ! 
 I think fome folks are fond of ruin ! 
 
 R I faw
 
 t 264 ) 
 
 I few his fheep at random ftray 
 But he has thrown his crook away- 
 And builds fuch huts, as, in foul weather, 
 Are fit for fheep nor fhepherd neither." 
 
 Whence came the fober {wain mifled ? 
 Why, PHOEBUS put it in his head. 
 PHOEBUS befriends him, we are told; 
 And PHOEBUS coins bright tuns of gold, 
 'Twere prudent not to be fo vain on't, 
 I think he'll never touch a grain on't, 
 And if, from PHOEBUS, and his mufe, 
 Mere earthly lazinefs enfues ; 
 'Tis plain, for aught that I can fay, 
 The dev'l infpires, as well as they. 
 So they while fools of g^rofler kind, 
 Lefs weeting what our bard defign'd, 
 Impute his fchemes to real evil ; 
 That in thefe haunts he met the devil. 
 
 He own'd, tho' their advice was vain, 
 It fuited wights who trod the plain : 
 For dullnefs tho' he might abhor it- 
 In them, he made allowance for it. 
 Nor wonder'd, if beholding mottos, 
 And urns, and domes, and cells, and grottos, 
 Folks, little dreaming of the mufes, 
 Were plagu'd to guefs their proper ufes. 
 
 But did the mufes haunt his cell ; 
 Or in his dome did VENUS dwell ? 
 Did PALLAS in his counfels fhare ? -\ 
 
 The Delian god reward his pray'r ? 
 Or did his zeal engage the fair ? 3 
 
 When
 
 When all the ftrufture mone compleat ; 
 Not much convenient, wond'rous neat ; 
 Adorn'd with gilding, painting, planting, 
 And the fair guefts alone were wanting ; 
 Ah me ! ('twas DAMON'S own confeffion) 
 Came poverty and took pofleffion. 
 
 PART the FOURTH. 
 
 WHY droops my DAMON, whilft he roves 
 Thro' ornamented meads and groves . ? 
 Near columns, obelifks, and fpires, 
 Which ev'ry critic eye admires ? 
 'Tis poverty, detefted maid, 
 Sole tenant of their ample made ! 
 Tis me, that robs him of his eafe ; 
 And bids their very charms difpleafe. 
 But now, by fancy long controul'd, 
 And with the fons of tafte enroll'd, 
 He deem'd it fhameful, to commence 
 jFirft minifter to common-fenfe : 
 Far more elated, to purfue 
 The loweft talk of dear vertu, 
 
 And now behold his lofty foul, 
 That whilom flew from pole to pole, 
 Settle on fome elaborate flow'r ; 
 And, like a bee, the fweets devour ! 
 Now, of a rofe enamour'd, prove 
 The wild folicitudes of love ! 
 Now, in a lily's cup enmrin'd, 
 Forego the commerce pf mankind ! 
 
 As
 
 < 266 ) 
 
 As in thefe toils he wore away 
 The calm remainder of his day ; 
 Conducing fun, and {hade, and mow'r. 
 As moft might glad the new-born flow'r, 
 So fate ordain 'd before his eye 
 Starts up the long-fought butterfly 1 
 While flutt'ring round, her plumes unfold 
 Celeftial crimfon* dropt with gold. 
 
 Adieu, ye bands of flow'rets fair ! 
 The living beauty claims his care : 
 For this he ftrips nor bolt, nor chain, 
 Cou'd DAMON'S warm purfuit reftrain. 
 
 See him o'er hill, morafs, or mound, 
 Where'er the fpeckled game is found, 
 Tho' bent with age, with zeal purfue ; 
 And totter tow'rds the prey in view. 
 
 Nor rock, nor ftream, his fteps retard 
 Intent upon the bleft reward ! 
 One vaflal fly repays the chace ! 
 A wing, a film, rewards the race ! 
 Rewards him, tho' difeafe attend, 
 And in a fatal furfeit end. 
 So fierce CAMILLA fldm'd the plain, 
 Smit with the purple's pleafing ftain, 
 She ey'd intent the glitt'ring ftranger, 
 And knew, alas ! nor fear, nor danger ; 
 'Till deep within her panting heart. 
 Malicious fate impell'd the dart ! 
 
 How ftudious he what fav'rite food 
 Regales dame nature's tiny brood 1 
 
 What
 
 ( 26; ) 
 
 What junkets fat the filmy people ! 
 And what liqueurs they chufe to tipple ! 
 
 Behold him, at fome crife, prefcribe, 
 And raife with (frugs the fick'niug tribe ! 
 Or haply, when their fpirits fau'ter, 
 Sprinkling my Lord of CLOYNE'S tar-water. 
 
 When nature's brood of infedls dies, 
 See how he pimps- for am'rous flies ! 
 See him the timely fuccour lend her, 
 And help the wantons to engender ! 
 
 Or fee him guard their pregnant hour; 
 Exert his foft obftetric power : 
 And, lending each his lenient hand, 
 With new-born grubs enrich the land ! 
 
 * OWiLKs! what poet's loftieft lays 
 Can match thy labours, and thy praife ? 
 Immortal fage 1 by fate decreed 
 To guard the moth's illuftrious breed ; 
 'Till flutt'ring fwarms on fwarms arife, 
 And all our wardrobes teem with flies ! 
 
 And muft we praife this tafte for toys ? 
 Admire it then in girls and boys. 
 Ye youths of fifteen years, or more, 
 Refign your moths the feafon's o'er. 
 'Tis time more focial joys to prove; 
 'Twere now your nobler taflc to love. 
 Let * * * *'s eyes more deeply warm; 
 Nor flighting nature's faireft form, 
 
 The 
 
 * Alluding to mcths nntl butterflies delineated by BENJAMIN 
 WILKS. See his very expcnfive propofals.
 
 'The bias of your fouls determine 
 Tow'rds the mean love of nature's vermin. 
 
 But ah ! how wond'rous few have known, 
 To give each ftage of life its own. 
 
 'Tis the pretexta's utmoft bound, 
 With radiant purple edg^d around, 
 To pleafe the child j whofe glowing dyes 
 Too long delight maturer eyes : 
 And few, but with regret, aflume 
 The plain-wrought labours of the loom. 
 Ah ! let not me by fancy fleer, 
 When life's autumnal clouds appear ; 
 Nor ev'n in learning's long delays 
 Confume my faireft, fruitlefs days : 
 Like him, who mould in armour fpend 
 The Aims that armour fhould defend. 
 
 Awhile, in pleafure's myrtle bow'r, 
 We mare her fmiles, and blefs her pow'r: 
 But find at laft, we vainly drive 
 To fix the worft coquette alive. 
 
 O you ! that with affiduous flame 
 Have long purfu'd the faithlefs dame ; 
 Forfake her foft abodes awhile, 
 And dare her frown, and flight her fmile. 
 Nor fcorn, whatever wits may fay, 
 The foot-path road, the king's highway. 
 No more the fcrup'lous charmer teaze, 
 But feek the roofs of honeft eafe ; 
 The rival fair, no more purfu'd, 
 Shall there with fonvard pace intrude ; 
 
 Shall
 
 Shall there her ev'ry art eflay, 
 To win you to her flighted fway ; 
 And grant your fcorn a glance more fair 
 Than e'er (he gave your fondefl pray'r. 
 
 But would you happinefs purfue ? 
 Partake both eafe, and pleafure too ? 
 Would you, thro' all your days, difpenfe 
 The joys of reafon, and of fenfe ? 
 Or give to life the moft you can? 
 Let focial virtue lhape the plan, 
 for does not to the virtuous deed 
 A train of pleafing fvveets fucceed ? 
 Or like the fweets of wild defire, 
 Did focial pleafures ever tire ? 
 
 Yet midft the groupe be fome preferr'd, 
 Be fome abhorr'd for DAMON err'd : 
 And fuch there are of fair addrefs 
 As 'twere unfocial to carefs. 
 O learn by reafon's equal rule 
 To Ihun the praife of knave, or fool ! 
 Then, tho' you deem it better ftill 
 To gain fome ruIUc '{quire's good will ; 
 And fouls, however mean or vile, 
 Like features, brighten by a fmile ; 
 Yet reafon holds it for a crime, 
 The trivial bread mould (hare thy time : 
 And virtue, with reluctant eyes, 
 Beholds this human facrifice ! 
 
 Thro' deep referve, and air ereft, 
 Miflaken DA MOK won refpeft ; 
 
 But
 
 But cou'd the fpacious homage pafs, 
 With any creature, but an afs ? 
 If confcious, they who fear'd the fkin, 
 Wou'd fcorn the fluggifh brute within. 
 What awe-ftruck flaves the tow'rs enclofe, 
 Where Perfian monarchs eat, and doze ! 
 What proftrate rev'rence all agree, 
 To pay a prince they never fee ! 
 Mere vaflals of a royal throne ! 
 The fophi's virtues muft be fhewn, 
 To make the reverence his own. 
 
 As for THALIA wouldft thou make her 
 Thy bride without a portion ? take her. 
 She will with duteous care attend, 
 And all thy penfive hours befriend ; 
 Will fwell thy joys, will mare thy pain ; 
 With thee rejoice, with thee complain ; 
 With fmooth thy pillow, pleat thy bow'rs, 
 And bind thine aching head with flow'rs. 
 But be this previous maxim known 
 If thou can'ft feed on love alone : 
 If, bleft with her, thou canft fuftain 
 Contempt, and poverty, and pain : 
 If fb then rifle all her graces- 
 And fruitful be your fond embraces ! 
 
 Too foon, by caitliff-fpleen infpir'd, 
 Sage DAMON to his groves retir'd: 
 The path difclaim'd by fober reafon ; 
 Retirement claims a bter feafon ; 
 Ere a&ive youth and warm defires 
 Have quite withdrawn their ling' ring fires. 
 
 With
 
 With the warm bofom, ill agree 1 , 
 Or limpid ftream, or fhady tree. 
 Love lurks within the rofy bow'r, 
 And claims the fpeculative hour ; 
 Ambition finds his calm retreat, 
 And bids his pulfe too fiercely beat ; 
 Ev'n focial friend/hip duns his ear, 
 And cites him to the public fphere. 
 Does he refift their genuine force ? 
 His temper takes fome froward courfe ; 
 'Till paffion, mifdirefted, fighs 
 For weeds, or mells, or grubs, or flies ! 
 
 Far happieil he, whofe early days 
 Spent in the focial paths of praife, 
 Leave, fairly printed on his mind, 
 A train of virtuous deeds behind : 
 From this rich fund, the mem'ry draw? 
 The lafting meed of felf-applaufe. 
 
 Such fair ideas lend their aid 
 To people the fequefter'd made. 
 Such are the naiads, nymphs, and fauns, 
 That haunt his floods, or chear his lawns. 
 If where his devious ramble ftrays, 
 He virtue's radiant form furveys ; 
 She feems no longer now to wear 
 The rigid mien, the frown fevere ; * 
 To fhew him her remote abode ; 
 To point the rocky arduous road : 
 But from each flower, his fields allow, 
 She twines a garland for his brow. 
 
 OECO- 
 * Alluding tothe allegory In CEBES'S tablet.
 
 O E C O N O M Y, 
 A RHAPSODY, addrefied to young POETS. 
 
 Infants ; omnes gelidis quicunque lacernis 
 
 Stint tibi, Na/ones yirgiliofyue vides. MART* 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 . Thou know'ft not what thou fay'ft, 
 
 In garments that fcarce fence them from the cold, 
 Our Ovids and our Virgils you behold. 
 
 PART the FIRST. 
 
 TO you ye bards ! whofe lavifh breaft requires 
 This monitory lay, the ftrains belong ; 
 Nor think fome mifer vents his fapient faw, 
 Or fbme dull cit unfeeling of the charms 
 That tempt profufion, fings ; while friendly zeal^ 
 To guard from fatal ills the tribe he loves, 
 Infpires the meanefl of the mufe's train ! 
 Like you I loathe the groveling progeny, 
 Whofe wily arts, by creeping time matur'd, 
 Advance them high on pow'r's tyrannic throne ; 
 To lord it there in gorgeous ufeleflrrefs, 
 And fpurn fuccefslefs worth that pines below ! 
 
 See the rich churl, amid the focial fons 
 Of wine and wit, regaling ! hark he joins 
 In the free jeft delighted ! fecms to mew 
 A meliorated heart ! he laughs ! he fings 1 
 Songs of gay import, madrigals of glee. 
 
 And
 
 And drunken anthems, fet agape the board. 
 
 Like * DEMEA, in the play, benign and mild, 
 
 And pouring forth benevolence of foul, 
 
 'Till Mi cio wonders : or, in SHAKE s PEAR'S line, 
 
 Obftrep'rous SILENCE f ; drowning SHALLOW'S voice> 
 
 And ftartling FALSTAFF, and his mad compeers. 
 
 He owns 'tis prudence, ever and anon, 
 To fmoothe his careful brow ; to let his purfe 
 Ope to a fixpence's diameter ; 
 He likes our ways ; he owns the ways of wit 
 Are ways of pleafaunce, and deferve regard, 
 True, we are dainty good fociety, 
 But what art thou ? alas ! confider well, 
 Thou bane of focial pleafure, know thyfelf. 
 Thy fell approach, like fome invafive damp 
 Breath'd thro' the pores of earth from Stygian caves, 
 Deftroys the lamp of mirth ; the lamp which we 
 Its flamens boait to guard : we know not how, 
 But at thy fight the fading flame aflumes 
 A ghaftly blue, and in a ftench expires. 
 
 True, thou feem'ft chang'd ; all fainted, all eftflcy'd ; 
 The trembling tears that charge thy melting eyes 
 Say thou art honeft, and of gentle kind ; 
 But all is falfe ! an intermitting figh 
 Condemns each hour, each moment giv'n to fmiles, 
 And deems thoie only loft, thou doil not lofe. 
 Ev'n for a demi-groat, this open'd foul, 
 This boon companion, this elaftic brealt 
 
 VOL. I. S Revi- 
 
 * In Terence's Adelphi. 
 
 f Juftice Silence, in Shakefpeare's Henry IVth, fecond part.
 
 Revibrates quick ; and fends the tuneful tongue 1 
 
 To lavifh mufic on the rugged walls 
 
 Of fome dark dungeon. Hence thou caitiff, fly ! 
 
 Touch not my glafs, nor drain my facred bowl, 
 
 Monfter, ihgrate ! beneath one common fky 
 
 Why fhould'ft thou breathe ; beneath one common root 
 
 Thou ne'er malt harbour ; nor my little boat 
 
 Receive a foul with crimes to prefs it down. 
 
 Go to thy bags, thou recreant ! hourly go, 
 
 And gazing there, bid them be wit, be mirth, 
 
 Be converfation. Not a face that fmiles 
 
 Admit thy prefence ! not a foul that glows 
 
 With focial purport, bid or ev'n or morn 
 
 Inveft thee happy ! but when life declines, 
 
 May thy fure heirs ftand titt'ring round thy bed, 
 
 And um'ring in their fav 'rites, burft thy locks, 
 
 And fill their laps with gold ; 'till want and care 
 
 With joy depart, and cry, " We afk no more.'* 
 
 Ah never never may th' harmonious mind 
 Endure the worldly ! poets ever void 
 Of guile, diftruftlefs, fcorn the treafur'd gold, 
 And fpurn the mifer, fpurn his deity. 
 Ballanc'd with friendlhip, in the poet's eye 
 The rival fcale of intereft kicks the beam, 
 Than lightning fwifter. From his cavern'd ftore 
 The fordid foul, with felf-applaufe, remarks 
 The kind propenfity ; remarks and fmiles, 
 And hies with impious hafle to fpread the fnare. 
 Him we deride, and in our comic fcenes 
 Contemn the niggard form MOLIERE has drawn. 
 We loathe with juftice ; but alas the pain 
 
 To
 
 ( 275 ) 
 
 To bow the kr.ee before this calf of gold ; 
 Implore his envious aid, and meet his frown ! 
 
 But 'tis not GOMEZ, 'tis not he whofe heart 
 Is crufted o'er with drofs, whofe callous mind 
 Is fenfelefs as his gold, the flighted mufe 
 Intenfely loathes. 'Tis fure no equal tailc 
 To pardon him, who lavifhes his wealth 
 On racer, fox -hound, hawk or fpaniel, all 
 But human merit ; who with gold efiays 
 All, but the nobleft pleafure, to remove 
 The wants of genius, and its fmiles enjoy. 
 
 But you, ye titled youths ! whofe nobler zeal 
 Would burnifh o'er your coronets with fame ; 
 Who liften pleas'd when poet tunes his lay ; 
 f ermit him not, in diftant folitudes 
 To pine, to languifh out the fleeting hours 
 Of aftive youth ! then virtue pants for praiie, 
 That feafon unadorn'd, the carelefs bard 
 Quits your worn threfhold, and like honefl GAY 
 Contemns the niggard boon ye time fo ill. 
 Your favours then, like trophies giv'n the tomb, 
 Th' enfranchis'd fpirit foaring not perceives, 
 Or fcorns perceiv'd; and execrates the fmile 
 Which bade his vig'rous bloom, to treacherous hopes 
 And fervile cares a prey, expire in vain ! 
 
 Two lawlefs pow'rs, engag'd by mutual, hate 
 In endlefs war, beneath their flags enroll 
 The vaffal world. This avarice is nam'd, 
 That luxury ; 'ti& true their partial friends 
 Affign them fofter names ; ufurpers both ! 
 
 S 2 That
 
 ( 276 ) 
 
 That fhare by dint of arms the legal throne- 
 
 Of juft ceconomy ; yet both betray'd 
 
 By fraudful nunifters. The niggard chief 
 
 Lift'ning to want, all faithlefs, and prepar'd 
 
 To join each moment in his rival's train, 
 
 His conduft models by the needlefs fears 
 
 The {lave infpires ; while luxury, a chief 
 
 Of ampleft faith, to plenty's rule refigns 
 
 His whole campaign. 'Tis plenty's flatt'ring founds 
 
 Engrofs his ear ; 'tis plenty's fmiling form 
 
 Moves ftill before his eye. Difcretion ftrives, 
 
 But ftrives in vain, to banilh from the throne 
 
 The perjur'd minion. He, fecure of truft, 
 
 With latent malice to the hoftile camp 
 
 Day, night, and hour, his monarch's wealth convey?. 
 
 Ye tow'ring minds ! ye fublimated fouls ! 
 Who carelefs of your fortunes, feal and fign, 
 Set, let, contract, acquit, with eaiier mien 
 Than fops take fnuff! whofe oeconomic care 
 Your green-filk purfe engrofles ! eafy, pleas'd, 
 To fee gold fparkle thro' the fubtle folds ; 
 Lovely, as when th' Hefperian fruitage fmil'd 
 Amid the verd'rous grove ! who fondly hope 
 Spontaneous harvefts ! han-efts all the year ! 
 Who fcatter wealth, as tho' the radiant crop 
 Glitter'd on ev'ry bough ; and ev'ry bough, 
 Like that the Trojan gather'd, once avuls'd 
 Were by a fplendid fucceflbr fupply'd 
 Inftant, fpontaneous ! Men to my lays. 
 For 'tis not fools, whate'er proverbial phrafe 
 
 Have
 
 < 277 ) 
 
 Have long decreed, that quit with greateli cafe 
 The treafur'd gold. Of words indeed profufe, 
 Of gold tenacious, their torpefcent foul 
 Clenches their coin, and what eleftral fire 
 Shall folve the frofty gripe, and bid it flow ? 
 'Tis genius, fancy, that to wild expence 
 Of health ! of treafure ! {Emulates the foul : 
 Thefe, with officious care, and fatal art, 
 Improve the vinous flavour ; thefe the fmile 
 Of CLOE foften; thefe the glare of drefs 
 Illume ; the glitt'ring chariot gild anew, 
 And add ftrange wifdom to the furs of pow'r. 
 
 Alas ! that he, amid the race of men, 
 That he, who thinks of pureft gold with fcorn, 
 Shou'd with unfated appetite demand ; 
 And vainly court the pleafare it procures ! 
 When fancy's vivid fpark impels the foul 
 To fcorn quotidian fcenes, to fpurn the blifs 
 Of vulgar minds, what noitrum mall compofe 
 Its fatal tenfion ? in what lonely vale 
 Of balmy med'cine's various field, afpires 
 The bleft refrigerant ? Vain, ah vain the hope 
 Of future peace, this orgafm uncontroul'd ! 
 Impatient, hence, of all the frugal mind 
 Requires ; to eat, to drink, to fleep, to fill 
 A cheft with gold., the fprightly bread demands 
 Inceflant rapture ; life, a tedious load 
 Deny'd its continuity of joy. 
 But whence obtain ? philofophy requires 
 No lavifli coil ; to crown its utmofl pray'r 
 
 S 3 Suflice
 
 Suffice the root-built-cell, the fimple fleece, 
 The juicy viand, and the cryftal flream. 
 Ev'n mild ftupidity rewards her train 
 With cheap contentment. Tafte alone requires 
 Entire profufion ! Days and nights, and hours 
 Thy voice, hydropic fancy ! calls aloud 
 For coflly draughts, inundant bowls of joy, 
 Rivers of rich regalement ! feas of blifs ! 
 Seas without more ! infinity of vvveets ! 
 
 And yet, unlefs fage reafon join her hand 
 In pleafure's purchafe, pleafure is unfure : 
 And yet, unlefs ceconomy's confent 
 Legitimate expence, feme gracelefs mark, 
 Some fymptom ill-conceal'd, mall, foon or late, 
 Burft like a pimple from the vicious tide 
 Of acid blood, proclaiming want's difeafe, 
 Amidft the bloom of mew. The fcanty ftream 
 Slow-loitering in its channel, feems to vie 
 With VAGA'S depth; but mould the fedgy pow'r 
 Vain-glorious empty his penurious urn 
 O'er the rough rock, how mufl his fellow dreams 
 Deride the tinklings of the boaftive rill ! 
 
 I not afpire to mark the dubious path 
 That leads to wealth, to poets mark'd in vain ! 
 But ere felf-flattery foothe the vivid breaft 
 With dreams of fortune near ally'd to fame, 
 Refleft how few, who charm'd the lift'ning ear 
 Of fatrap or of king, her fmiles enjoy'd ! 
 Confider well, what meagre alms repay'd 
 The great Maeonian, fire of tuneful fong, 
 
 And
 
 ( 279 ) 
 
 And prototype of all that foar'd fublime, 
 
 And left dull cares below ; what griefs impell'd 
 
 The modefl bard of learn'd ELIZA'S reign 
 
 To fwell with tears his MULLA'S parent ftream, 
 
 And mourn aloud the pang " to ride, to run, 
 
 To fpend, to give, to want, to be undone." 
 
 Why fhou'd I tell of COWLEY'S penfive mufe 
 
 Belov'd in vain ? too copious is my theme 1 
 
 Which of your boafted race might hope reward 
 
 Like loyal BUTLER, when the lib'ral CHARLES, 
 
 The judge of wit, perus'd the fprightly page 
 
 Triumphant o'er his foes ? Believe not hope, 
 
 The poet's parafite ; but learn alone 
 
 To fpare the fcanty boon the fates decree. 
 
 Poet and rich ! 'tis folecifm extreme ! 
 
 'Tis heighten'd contradiction ! in his frame, 
 
 In ev'ry nerve and fibre of his foul, 
 
 The latent feeds and principles of want 
 
 lias nature wove; and fate confirm'd the clue. 
 
 Nor yet defpair to fhun the ruder gripe 
 Of penury ; with nice precifion learn 
 A dollar's value. Foremoil in the page 
 That marks th' expence of each revolving year, 
 Place inattention. When the lull of praiff, 
 Or honour's falfe idea, tempts thy foul 
 To flight frugality, aflure thine heart 
 That danger's near. This perifhable coin 
 Is no vain ore. It is thy liberty, 
 It fetters mifers, but it muft alone 
 Enfranchife thee. The world, the sit-like world, 
 
 84 Bidi
 
 Bids thee beware ; thy little craft eflay ; 
 Nor, pidling with a tea-fpoon's flender form, 
 See with foup-ladles devils gourmandize. 
 
 (Economy ! thou good old aunt ! whofe mien 
 Furrow'd with age and care the wife adore, 
 The wits contemn ! referving flill thy ftores 
 To chear thy friends at laft ! why with the cit, 
 Or booklefs churl, with each ignoble name, 
 Each earthly nature, deign' ft thou to refide ? 
 And fhunning all, who by thy favours crown'd 
 Might glad the world, to feek fome vulgar mind, 
 Infpiring pride, and felfifh fliapes of ill ? 
 
 Why with the old, infirm, and impotent, 
 And childifti, love to dwell, yet leave the breaft 
 Of youth unwarn'd, unguided, uninform'd ? 
 Of youth, to whom thy monitory voice 
 Were doubly kind ? for fure to youthful eyes, 
 (How fhort foe'er it prove) the road of life 
 Appears protracted ; fair on either fide 
 The loves, the graces play, on fortune's child 
 Profufely fmiling ; well might youth eflay 
 The frugal plan, the lucrative employ, 
 Source of their favour all the live-long day. 
 But fate aflents not. Age alone contracts 
 His meagre palm, to clench the tempting bane 
 Of all his peace, the glitt'ring feeds of care ! 
 
 O that the mufe's voice might pierce the ear 
 Of gen'rous youth ! for youth deferves her fong, 
 Youth is fair virtue's feafon, virtue then 
 Requires the pruner's hand_; the fequent ftage, 
 
 It
 
 It barely vegetates ; nor long the fpace 
 
 Ere robb'd of warmth its arid trunk difplay 
 
 Fell winter's total reign. O lovely fource 
 
 Of gen'rous foibles, youth ! when op'ning minds 
 
 Are honeft as the light, lucid as air, 
 
 As foft'ring breezes kind, as linnets gay, 
 
 Tender as buds, and lavifh as the fpring ! 
 
 Yet, haplefs flate of man ! his earlieft youth 
 
 Cozens itfelf; his age defrauds mankind. 
 
 Nor deem it ftrange that rolling years abrade 
 The focial biafs. Life's extenfive page, 
 What doe? it but unfold repeated proofs 
 Of gold's omnipotence? With patriots, friends, 
 Sick'ning beneath its ray, enervate fome, 
 And others dead, whofe putrid name exhales 
 A noifome fcent, the bulky volume teems. 
 With kinfmen, brothers, fons, moift'ning the fhroud, 
 Or honouring the grave, with fpecious grief 
 Of fhort duration ; foon in fortune's beams 
 Alert, and wond'ring at the tears they fhed. 
 
 But who fhall fave by tame profaic ftrain 
 That glowing breaft, where wit with youth confpires 
 To fweeten luxury ? The fearful mufe 
 Shall yet proceed, tho' by the fainteft gleam 
 Of hope infpir'd, to warn the train (he loves. 
 
 PART
 
 ( 282 ) 
 
 PART the SECOND. 
 
 IN feme dark feafon, when the mifty fliow'r 
 Obfcures the fun, and faddens all the flcy ; 
 When linnets drop the wing, nor grove nor ftream 
 Invites thee forth, to fport thy drooping mufe ; 
 Seize the dull hour, nor with regret affign 
 To worldly prudence. She nor nice nor coy 
 Accepts the tribute of a joylefs day : 
 She fmiles well-pleas'd, when wit and mirth recede, 
 And not a grace, and not a mufe will hear. 
 Then, from majeflic M ARC'S aweful fhain, 
 Or tow'ring HOMER, let thine eye defcend 
 To trace, with patient induftry, the page 
 Of income and expence. And oh ! beware, 
 Thy breafi, felf-flatt'ring, place no courtly fmile, 
 No golden promife of your faithlefs mufe, 
 Nor latent mine which fortune's hand may mew, 
 Amid thy folid ftore. The liren's fong 
 Wrecks not the lift'ning failor, half fo fure. 
 See by what avenues, what devious paths, 
 The foot of want, detefted, fteals along, 
 And bars each fatal pafs ! Some few fhort hours 
 Of punctual care, the refufe of thy year, 
 On frugal fchemes employ'd, Ihall give the mufe 
 To fing intrepid many a chearful day. 
 
 But if too foon before the tepid gales 
 Thy refolution melt ; and ardent vows 
 In wary hours preferr'd, or die forgot, 
 
 Or
 
 Or feem the forc'd efFeft of hazy fides ; 
 Then, ere furprizc, by whofe impetuous rage 
 The mafTy fort with which thy gentler breaf: 
 I not compare, is won, the fong proceeds. 
 
 Know too by nature's undiminim'd law, 
 Throughout her realms obey'd, the various parts 
 Of deep creation, atoms, fyftems, all ! 
 Attract and are attracted ; nor prevails the law- 
 Alone in matter ; foul alike with foul 
 Afpires to join ; nor yet in fouls alone, 
 In each idea it imbibes, is found 
 The kind propenfity. And when they meet, 
 And grow familiar, various tho' their tribe, 
 Their tempers various, vow perpetual faith : 
 That, fhou'd the world's disjointed frame once more 
 To chaos yield the fway, amid the wreck 
 Their union fhou'd furvive ; with Roman warmth, 
 By facred hofpitable laws endear'd, 
 Shou'd each idea recollect its friend. 
 
 Here then we fix ; on this perennial bafe 
 Ereft thy fafety, and defy the florm. 
 Let foft profufion's fair idea join 
 Her hand with poverty ; nor here defift, 
 'Till, o'er the groupe that forms their various train 
 Thou fing loud hymeneals. Let the pride 
 Of outward fhew in lafting leagues combine 
 With fhame thread-bare ; the gay vermilion face 
 Of rafh intemp'rance, b? difcreetly pair'd 
 With fallow hunger ; the licentious joy, 
 With mean dependence; ev'n the dear delight 
 
 Of
 
 Of fculpture, paint, intaglios, books, and coins, 
 Thy breaft, fagacious prudence ! (hall conned 
 With filth and beggary ; nor difdain to link 
 With black infolvency. Thy foul alarm'd 
 Shall fhun the firen's voice ; nor boldly dare 
 To bid the foft enchantrefs (hare thy breaft, 
 With fuch a train of horrid fiends conjoin'd. 
 
 Nor think, ye fordid race ! ye groveling minds ! 
 I frame the fong for you ! for you, the mufe 
 Cou'd other rules impart. The friendly ftrain 
 For gentler bofoms plan'd, to yours wou'd prove 
 The juice of lurid aconite, exceed 
 Whatever COL CMOS bore ; and in your bread 
 Compaflion, love, and friendship all deftroy ! 
 
 It greatly fhall avail, if e'er thy ftores 
 Increafe apace, by periodic days 
 Of annual payment, or thy patron's boon, 
 The lean reward of grofs unbounded praife ! 
 It much avails, to feize the prefent hour, 
 And, undeliberating, call around 
 Thy hungry creditors ; their horrid rage 
 When once appeas'd, the fmall remaining ftore 
 Shall rife in weight tenfold, in luftre rife, 
 As gold improv'd by many a fierce aflay. 
 'Tis thus the frugal hufbandman directs 
 His narrow ftream, if o'er its wonted banks 
 By fudden rains impell'd, it proudly fwell ; 
 His timely hand thro' better tracks conveys 
 The quick-decreafing tide ; ere borne along 
 Or thro' the wild morafs, or cultur'd field, 
 
 Or
 
 Or bladed grafs mature, or barren fands, 
 It flow dcftrudtive, or it flow in vain ! 
 But happieft he who fanftifies expence 
 By prefent pay ! who fubjefls not his fame 
 To tradefmen's varlets, nor bequeaths his name, 
 His honour'd name, to deck the vulgar page 
 Of bafe mechanic, fordid, unfmcere ! 
 There haply, while thy mufe fublimely foars 
 Beyond this earthly fphere, in heav'n's abodes, 
 And dreams of neftar and ambrofial fweets, 
 Thy growing debt fteals unregarded o'er 
 The punctual record ; 'till nor PHOEBUS' felf, 
 Nor fage MINERVA'S art can aught avail 
 To foothe the ruthlefs dun's detefted rage. 
 Frantic and fell, with many a curfe profane 
 He loads the gentle mufe ; then hurls thee down 
 To want, remorfe, captivity and mame. 
 
 Each public place, the glitt'ring haunts of men, 
 With horror fly. Why loiter near thy bane ? 
 Why fondly linger on a hoftile more 
 Difarm'd, defencelefs ? why require to tread 
 The precipice ? or why, alas ! to breathe 
 A moment's fpace, where ev'ry breeze is death ? 
 Death to thy future peace ! Away, colledl 
 Thy diflipated mind ; contrail thy train 
 Of wild ideas, o'er the flow'ry fields 
 Of Ihew diffusM, and fpeed to fafer climes. 
 CEconomy prefents her glafs, accept 
 The faithful mirror ; powerful to difclofe 
 A thoufand forms ; unfeen by carelefs eyes, 
 
 That
 
 ( 286 ) 
 
 That plot thy fete. Temptation in a robe 
 
 Of Tyrian dye, with every fweet perfum'd, 
 
 Befets thy fenfe ; extortion follows clofe 
 
 Her wanton ftep, and ruin brings the rear. 
 
 Thefe and the reft (hall her myiierious glafs 
 
 Embody to thy view ; like VENUS kind, 
 
 When to her lab'ring fon, the vengeful pow'rs 
 
 That urg'd the fall of ILIUM, ihe difplay'd. 
 
 He, not imprudent, at the fight declin'd 
 
 Th' inequal conflict, and decreed to raiie 
 
 The Trojan welfare on fome happier more. 
 
 For here to drain thy fwelling purfe await 
 
 A thoufand arts, a thoufand frauds attend : 
 
 " The cloud-wrought canes, the gorgeous fnuff-boxes ; 
 
 The twinkling jewels, and the gold etwee, 
 
 With all its bright inhabitants, mail wafte 
 
 Its melting ftores, and in the dreary void 
 
 Leave, not a doit behind." Ere yet exhauft 
 
 Its flimfy folds offend thy penfive eye, 
 
 Away ! embofom'd deep in diftant fhades, 
 
 Nor feen nor feeing, thou may'ft vent thy fcortl 
 
 Of lace, embroidery, purple, gems, and gold ! 
 
 There of the farded fop and eflenc'd beau, 
 
 Ferocious with a ftoic's frown difclofe 
 
 Thy manly fcom, averfe to tinfel pomp ; 
 
 And fluent thine harangue. But can thy<foul 
 
 Deny thy limbs the radiant grace of drefs, 
 
 Where drefs is merit ! where thy graver friend 
 
 Shall wifh thee burnim'd ! where the fprightly fair 
 
 Demand embelliihment ! ev'n DELIA'S eye, 
 
 As
 
 As in a garden, roves, of hues alone 
 
 Inquirent, curious ? Fly the currt domain ; 
 
 Thefe are the realms of luxury and {hew, 
 
 No claflic foil ; away ! the bloomy fpring 
 
 Attra&s thee hence ; the waning autumn warns ; 
 
 Fly to thy native (hades, and dread ev'n there, 
 
 Left bufy fancy tempt thy narrow ftate 
 
 Beyond its bounds. Obferve FLORELIO'S mien. 
 
 Why treads my friend with melancholy ftep 
 
 That beauteous lawn ? why penfive ftrays his eye 
 
 O'er ftatues, grottoes, urns by critic art 
 
 Proportion'd fair ? or from his lofty dome 
 
 Bright glitt'ring through the grove, returns his eye 
 
 Unpleas'd, difconfolate ? And is it love, 
 
 Difaftrous love, that robs the finim'd fcenes 
 
 Of all their beauty ? cent'ring all in her 
 
 His foul adores ? or from a blacker caufe 
 
 Springs this remorfeful gloom ? is confcious guilt 
 
 The latent fource of more than love's defpair? 
 
 It cannot be within that polifh"d breaft 
 
 Where fcience dwells, that guilt mould harbour there, 
 
 No ! 'tis the fad furvey cf prefent want, 
 
 And pail profufion ! Loft to him the fweets 
 
 Of yon pavilion, fraught with ev'ry charm 
 
 For other eyes; or, if remaining, proofs 
 
 Of criminal expence ! Sweet interchange 
 
 Of river, valley, mountain, woods and plains ! 
 
 How gladfome once he rang'd your native turf, 
 
 Your fimple fcenes, how raptur'd ! ere expence 
 
 Had lavim'd thoufand ornaments, and taught 
 
 Convenience
 
 C 288 ) 
 
 Convenience to perplex him, art to pal!, 
 Pomp to dejeft, and beauty to difpleafe. 
 
 Oh ! for a foul to all the glare of wealth, 
 To fortune's wide exhauftlefs treafury, 
 Nobly fuperior ! but let caution guide 
 The coy difpofal of the wealth we fcorn, 
 And prudence be our Almoner ! Alas ! 
 The pilgrim wand'ring o'er fome diilant clime, 
 Sworn foe of avarice ! not difdains to learn 
 Its coin's imputed worth ; the deftin'd means 
 To fmoothe his paflage to the favour'd Ihrine. 
 Ah let not us, who tread this ilranger-world, 
 Let none who fojourn on the realms of life. 
 Forget the land is merc'nary ; nor wafte 
 His fare, ere landed on no venal more. 
 
 Let never bard confult PALLADIO'S rules; 
 Let never bard, O BURLINGTON ! furvey 
 Thy learned art, in CHISWICK'S dome difplay'd; 
 Dang'rous incentive ! nor with ling'ring eye 
 Survey the window VENICE calls her own. 
 Better for him, with no ingrateful mufe, 
 To iing a requiem to that gentle foul 
 Who plan'd the fky-light ; which to lavifh bards 
 Conveys alone the pure etherial ray : 
 For garrets him, and fqualid walls await, 
 Unlefs, prefageful, from this friendly ftrain, 
 He glean advice, and fhun the fcribbler's doom. 
 
 PART
 
 ; PART the THIRD. 
 
 YE T once again, and to thy doubtful fate 
 The trembling mufe configns thee. Ere contempt, 
 Or want's empoifon'd arrow, ridicule, 
 Transfix thy weak unguarded breaft, behold ! 
 The poet's roofs, the carelefs poet's, his 
 Who fcorns advice, fhall clofe my ferious lay. 
 
 When GULLIVER, now great, now little deem'd, 
 The play-thing of comparifon, arriv'd 
 Where learned bofoms their aerial fcheme 
 Projected, fludious of the public weal ; 
 'Mid thefe, one fubtler artift he defcry'd, 
 Who cherifti'd in his dufty tenement 
 The fpider's web, injurious, to fupplant 
 Fair ALBION'S fleeces ! Never, never inay 
 Our monarch on fuch fatal purpofe fmile, 
 And irritate MINERVA'S beggar'd fons 
 The MELKSHAM weavers 1 Here in ev'ry nook 
 Their wefts they fpun ; here revell'd uncontroul'd, 
 And, like the flags from WESTMINSTER'S high roof 
 Dependant, here their fluttering textures wav'd. 
 Such, fo adorn'd, the cell I mean to fmg ! 
 Cell ever fqualid ! where the fneerful maid 
 Will not fatigue her hand ! broom never comes. 
 That comes to all ! o'er whofe quiefcent walls 
 ARACHNE'S unmoleiled care has drawn 
 Curtains fubfufk, and fave th' expence of art. 
 
 Survey thofe walls, in fady texture clad, 
 VOL. I. T Where
 
 Where wand'ring fnails in many a (limy path, 
 
 Free, unrefh-ain'd, their various jourfteys crawl j 
 
 Peregrinations flrange, and labyrinths 
 
 Confus'd inextricable ! fuch the clue 
 
 Of Cretan ARIADNE ne'er explain'd ! 
 
 Hooks ! angles ! crooks ! and involutions wild ! 
 
 Mean time, thus fJver'd with meanders gay, 
 
 In mimic pride the friail^-wrought tiffue mines, 
 
 Perchance of tabby, or of harrateen, 
 
 Not ill expreffive ! fuch the pow'r of fiiails. 
 
 Behold his chair, whofe fraftur'd feat innrfn 
 An aged cufhion hides t replete with duft 
 The foliag'd velvet ; pleating to the eye 
 Of great ELIZA'S reign, but now the fnarc 
 Of weary gueft that on the fpecious bed 
 Sits down confiding. Ah ! difaftrous wight ! 
 In evil hour -and rafhly doft thoa truft 
 The fraudful couch ! for tho' in velvet cas'd, 
 The fated thigh mall kifs the dufty floor. 
 The traV'ler thus, that o'er Hibernian plains 
 Hath fhap'd his way ; on beds profufe of flow'rs 
 Cowilip, or primrofe, or the circ'lar eye 
 Of daifie fair, decrees to bafk fupine. 
 And fee ! delighted, down he drops, fecure 
 Of fweet refrefhment, eafe without annoy, 
 Or lufcious noon-day nap. Ah much deceiv'd, 
 Much fufPring pilgrim ! thou nor noon-day nap, 
 Nor fweet repofe fhak find ; the falfe morafs 
 In quiv'ring undulations yields beneath 
 Thy burden, in the miry gulph -endos'd ! 
 
 And
 
 ( 991 ) 
 
 And who would truft appearance ? caft thine eye 
 
 Where 'mid machines of het'rogeneous form 
 
 His coat depends ; alas ! his only coat, 
 
 Eldeft of things ! and naplefs, as an heath ' 
 
 Of fmall extent by fleecy myriads graz'd. 
 
 Not different have I feen in dreary vault 
 
 Difplay'd, a coffin ; on each fable fide 
 
 The texture unmolefled feems entire. 
 
 Fraudful, when touch'd it glides to duft away ! 
 
 And leaves the wond'ring fwain to gape, to Hare, 
 
 And with expreffive fhrug, and piteous figh, 
 
 Declare the fatal force of rolling years, 
 
 Or dire extent of frail mortality. 
 
 This aged vefture, fcorn of gazing beaux, 
 
 And formal cits, (themfelves too haply fcornM) 
 
 Both on its fleeve and on its fkirt, retains 
 
 Full many a pin wide-fparkling : for, if e'er 
 
 Their well-known creft met his delighted eye, 
 
 Tho' wrapt in thought, commercing with the fey. 
 
 He, gently ftooping, fcorn'd not to upraife, 
 
 And on each fleeve, as confcious of their ufe, 
 
 Indenting fix them ; nor, when arm'd with thefs. 
 
 The cure of rents and feparations dire, 
 
 And chafms enormous, did he view djfmay'd 
 
 Hedge, bramble, thicket, buih, portending fate 
 
 To breeches, coat and hofe ! had any wight 
 
 Of vulgar fkill, the tender texture own'd ; 
 
 But gave his mind to form a fonnet quaint 
 
 Of SILVIA'S flioe-ftring, or of CLOE'S fun, 
 
 Or fweetly-falhion'd tip of CLIA'S ear. 
 
 T3 Alas I
 
 Alas ! by frequent ufe decays the force 
 Of mortal art ! the refractory robe 
 Eludes the taylor's art, eludes his own ; 
 How potent once, in union quaint conjoin'd ' 
 
 See near his bed (his bed too falfely call'd 
 The place of reft, while it a bard fuftains ; 
 Pale, meagre, mufe-rid wight ! who reads in vair 
 Narcotic volumes o'er) his candleftick, 
 Radiant machine, when from the plaftic hand 
 Of MULCIBER, the may'r of B i R M i N c H A M , 
 The engine iiTu'd ; now alas difguis'd 
 By many an unftuous tide, that wand'ring down 
 Its fides congeal ; what he, perhaps, effays 
 With humour forc'd, and ill-diflembled fmile, 
 Idly to liken to the poplar's trunk 
 When o'er its bark the lucid amber, wound 
 In many a pleafing fold, incrufts the tree. 
 Or fuits him more the winter's candy'd thorn, 
 When from each branch, anneal'd, the works of froil 
 Pervafive, radiant icicles depend ! 
 
 How (hall I fing the various ill that waits 
 The careful fonneteer ? or who can paint 
 The fhifts enormous, that in vain he form; 
 To patch his panelefs window ; to cement 
 His batter'd tea-pot, ill-retentive vafe ? 
 To war with ruin ? anxious to conceal 
 Want's fell appearance, of the real ill 
 Nor foe, nor fearful. Ruin unforefeen 
 Invades his chatties ; ruin will invade ; 
 Will claim his whole invention to repair, 
 
 Nor,
 
 C 293 ) 
 
 Nor, of the gift, for tuneful ends defign'd, 
 Allow one part to decorate his fong. 
 While ridicule, with ever-pointing hand 
 Confcious of ev'ry fhift, of ev'ry fhift 
 Indicative, his inmoft plot betrays, 
 Points to the nook, which he his ftudy calls 
 Pompous and vain ! for thus he might efteem 
 His cheft, a wardrobe ; purfe, a treafury ; 
 And (hews, to crown her full difplay, himfelf. 
 One whom the pow'rs above, in place of health. 
 And wonted vigour ; of paternal cot, 
 Or little farm ; of bag, or fcrip, or ftaff, 
 Cup, dim, fpoon, plate, or worldly utenfil, 
 A poet fram'd ; yet fram'd not to repine, 
 And wilh the cobler's loftieft fite his own ; 
 Nor, partial as they feem, upbraid the fates, 
 Who to the humbler mechanifm, join'd 
 Goods fo fuperior, fuch exalted blifs ! 
 
 See with what feeming eafe, what labour'd peace 
 He, haplefs hypocrite ! refines his nail, 
 His chief amufement ! then how feign'd, how forc'd, 
 That care-defying fonnet, which implies 
 His debts difcharg'd, and he of half a crown 
 Jn full poffeffion, uncontefted right 
 And property ! Yet ah ! whoe'er this wight 
 Admiring view, if fuch there be, diltruft 
 The vain pretence ; the fmiles that harbour grief, 
 As lurks the ferpent deep in flow'rs enwreath'd. 
 Forewarn'd, be frugal ; or with prudent rage 
 Thy pen demolifh ; chufe the truftier flail, 
 
 T 3 And
 
 And blefs thofe labours which the choice Infpir'd. 
 But if thou view 'ft a vulgar mind, a wight 
 Of common fenfe, who feeks no brighter name, 
 Him envy, him admire, him, from thy bread, 
 Prefcient of future dignities, falute 
 Sheriff, or may'r, in comfortable furs 
 Enwrapt, fecure : nor yet the laureat's crown 
 In thought exclude him ! He perchance fliall rift 
 To nobler heights than forefight can decree. 
 
 When fir'd with wrath, for his intrigues difplay'd 
 In many an idle fong, Satamian JOVE 
 Vow'd fure deflruction to the tuneful race ; 
 Appeas'd by fuppliant PHOEBUS, " Bards, he faid, 
 Henceforth of plenty, wealth, and pomp debarr'd, 
 But fed by frugal cares, might wear the bay 
 Secure of thunder." Low the Delian bow'd, 
 Nor at th* invidious favour dar'd repine. 
 
 <* * * $ * 1 4' * 'f 'V 'i * * * 'I' * 'I' 'I' * * -I' * -I- * * >t< * ft '! 'f * 'I' * * - 
 
 The RUIN'D ABBY 5 
 
 The EFFECTS of SUPERSTITION. 
 
 AT length fair peace with olive crown'd regains 
 Her lawful throne, and to the facred haunts 
 Of wood or fount the frighted mufe returns, 
 
 Happy the bard, who, frOm his native hills, 
 Soft mufing on a fummer's eve, furveys 
 
 His
 
 His azure ftream, with penfilc woods enclos'd ! 
 Or o'er the glafly furface, with his friend, 
 Or faithful fair, thro' bord'ring willows green 
 Wafts his fmall frigate. Fearlefs he of fhouts, 
 Or taunts, the rhetoric of the wat'ry crew 
 That ape confufion from the realms thy rule I 
 Fearlefs of thefe ; who fhares the gentler voice 
 Of peace and mufic ; birds of fweeteft fong 
 Attune from native boughs their various lay, 
 And chear the foreft ; birds of brighter plume 
 With bufy pinion fkim the glitt'ring wave, 
 And tempt the fun ; ambitious to difplay 
 Their feveral merit, while the vocal flute, 
 Or numbcr'd verfe, by female voice endear'd, 
 Crowns his delight, and mollifies the fcene, 
 
 If folitude his wand'ring fteps invite 
 To fome more deep recefs, (for hours there are, 
 When gay, when focial minds to friendmip's voice, 
 Or beauty's charm, her wild abodes prefer) 
 How plcas'd he treads her venerable fhades, 
 Her folemn courts ! the center of the grove ! 
 The root-built cave, by far extended rocks 
 Around embofom'd, how it foothes the foul ! 
 Jf fcoop'd at firft by fuperftitious hands 
 The rugged cell receiv'd alone the fhoals 
 Of bigot minds, religion dwells not here, 
 Yet virtue pleas'd, at intervals, retires : 
 Yet here may wifdom, as fhe walks the maze, 
 Some ferious truths colled, the rules of life, 
 And ferious truths of mightier weight than gold ! 
 
 T 4 I afc
 
 ( 296 ) 
 
 I afk not wealth ; but let me hoard with care, 
 With frugal cunning, with a niggard's art, 
 A few fix'd principles ; in early life, 
 Ere indolence impede the fearch, explor'd. 
 Then like old LATIMER, when age impairs 
 My judgment's eye, when quibbling fchools attack 
 My grounded hope, or fubtler wits deride, 
 Will I not blufh to fhun the vain debate, 
 And this mine anfwer ; " Thus, 'twas thus I thought, 
 *' My mind yet vigorous, and my foul entire ; 
 " Thus will I think, averfe to HfJen more 
 ' To intricate difcuffion, prone to ftray. 
 " Perhaps my reafon may but ill defend 
 ' My fettled faith ; my mind, with age impair'd, 
 " Too fure its own infirmities declare. 
 " But I am arm'd by caution, ftudious youth, 
 ' And early forefight ; now the winds may rife, 
 The tempeft whittle, and the billows roar ; 
 My pinnace rides in port, defpoil'd and worn, 
 *' Shatter'd by time and ftorms, but while it fhuns 
 Th' inequal confiift, and declines the deep, 
 ' Sees the ftrong veffel fluctuate lefs fecure." 
 
 Thus while he ftrays, a thoufand rural fcenes 
 Suggeft inftruftion, and inftrufting pleafe. 
 And fee betwixt the grove's extended arms 
 An abby's rude remains attraft thy view, 
 Gilt by the mid-day fun : with ling'ring ftep 
 Produce thine axe, (for, aiming to deftroy 
 Tree, branch, or {hade, for never mall thy breaft 
 Too long deliberate) with timorous hand 
 
 Remove
 
 Remove th' obflrudHve bough ; nor yet refufe, 
 Tho' fighing, to deftroy that fav'rite pine, 
 Rais'd by thine hand, in its luxuriant prime 
 Of beauty fair, that fcreens the vaft remains. 
 Aggriev'd, but conftant as the Roman fire, 
 The rigid MAN LI us, when his conqu'ring fon 
 Bled by a parent's voice ; the cruel meed 
 Of virtuous ardor, timelefsly difplay'd ; 
 Nor ceafe 'till, thro' the gloomy road, the pile 
 Gleam unobftrufted ; thither oft thine eye 
 Shall fweetly wander ; thence returning, foothc 
 With penfive fcenes thy philofophic mind. 
 
 Thefe were thy haunts, thy opulent abodes, 
 G fuperftition ! hence the dire difeafe 
 (Ballanc'd with which the fam'd Athenian pefl 
 Were a fhort head-ach, were the trivial pain 
 Of tranfient indigeftion) feiz'd mankind. 
 
 Long time fhe rag'd, and fcarce a fouthern gale 
 Warm'd our chill air, unloaded with the threats 
 Of tyrant ROME ; but futile all, 'till me, 
 ROME'S abler legate, magnify'd their pow'r, 
 And in a thoufand horrid forms attii'd. 
 
 Where then was truth, to fanftify the page 
 Of Britifh annals ? if a foe expir'd, 
 The perjur'd monk fuborn'd infernal fhrieks, 
 And fiends to fnatch at the departing foul 
 With hellim emulation. If a friend, 
 High o'er his roof exultant angels tune 
 Their golden lyres, and waft him to the flues. 
 
 What then were vows, were oaths, were plighted faith ? 
 
 The
 
 The fovereign's juft, the fubjecVs loyal pact 
 To cherifh mutual good, annull'd and vain, 
 By Roman magic, grew an idle fcroll 
 Ere the frail fanclion of the wax was cold. 
 
 With thee,* PLAWTAGENET, from civil broila 
 The land awhile refpir'd, and all was peace. 
 Then BECKET rofe, and impotent of mind, 
 From regal courts with lawlefs fury march'd 
 The church's blood-flain'd convi&s, and forgave ; 
 Bid murd'rous priefts the fov'reign frown contemn, 
 And with unhallow'd crofier bruis'd the crown. 
 
 Yet yielded not fuplinely tame a prince 
 Of HENRY'S virtues ; learn'd, courageous, wife, 
 Of fair ambition. Long his regal foul 
 Firm and ereft the peevifh prieft exil'd, 
 And brav'd the fury of revengeful ROME. 
 In vain ! let one faint malady diffufe 
 The penfive gloom which fuperftition loves, 
 And fee him, dwindled to a recreant groom, 
 Rein the proud palfrey while the prieft afcends ! 
 
 Was f COEUR-DE-LION bleft with whiter days? 
 Here the cowl'd zealots with united cries 
 Urged the crufade ; and fee, of half his floras 
 Defpoil'd the wretch, whofe wifer bcfom chofe 
 To blefs his friends, his race, his native land. 
 
 Of ten fair funs that rolPd their annual race, 
 Not one beheld him on his vacant throne : 
 While haughty J LONGCHAMP, 'mid his liv'ry'd files 
 Of wanton vafials, fpoil'd his faithful realm, 
 
 Battling 
 
 * HENRY II. f RICHARD I. J Bifhop of ELY, Lord 
 Chancellor.
 
 Battling in foreign fields ; colle&ing wide 
 A laurel harveft for a pillag'd land, 
 
 Oh dear-bought trophies ! when a prince deferti 
 His drooping realm, to pluck the barren (prays ! 
 
 When faithlefs JOHK ufurp'd the fully'd crown, 
 What ample tyranny ! the groaning land 
 Deem'd earth, deem'd heav'n its foe ! fix tedious years 
 Our helplefs fathers in defpair obey'd 
 The papal interdict ; and who obey'd, 
 The fovereign plunder'd. O inglorious days ! 
 When the French tyrant by the futile grant 
 Of papal refcript, claim'd BRITANNIA'S throne, 
 And durft invade ; be fuch inglorious days 
 Or hence forgot, or not recall'd in vain ! 
 
 Scarce had the tortur'd ear dejected heard 
 ROME'S loud anathema, but heartlefs, dead 
 To ev'ry purpofe, men nor wim'd to live, 
 Nor dar'd to die. The poor laborious hind 
 Heard the dire curfe, and from his trembling hand. 
 Fell the neglefted crook that rul'd the plain. 
 Thence journeying home, in ev'ry cloud he fees 
 A vengeful angel, in whofe waving fcroll 
 He reads damnation ; fees its fable train 
 .Of grim attendants pencil'd by defpair! 
 
 The weary pilgrim from remoter climes 
 By painful fteps arriv'd ; his home, his friends, 
 His offspring left, to laviiri on the fhrine 
 Of fome far-honour'd faint his coftly (lores, 
 Inverts his footftep ; fickens at the fight 
 Of the barr'd fane, and filent fheds his tear* 
 
 The
 
 ( 300 ) 
 
 The wretch whofe hope by ftern oppreffion chas'd 
 From ev'ry earthly blifs, ftill as it faw 
 Triumphant wrong, took wing and flew to heav'n 
 And refted there, now mourn'd his refuge loft 
 And wonted peace. The facred fane was barr'd, 
 And the lone alter, where the mourners throng'd 
 To fupplicate remiffion, finok'd no more ; 
 While the green weed, luxuriant round uprofe. 
 Some from their death-bed, whofe delirious faith 
 Thro' ev'ry ftage of life to ROME'S decrees 
 Obfequious, humbly hop'd to die in peace, 
 Now faw the ghaftly king approach, begirt 
 In tenfold terrors ; now expiring heard 
 The laft loud clarion found, and heavVs decree 
 With unremitting vengeace bar the fkies. 
 Nor light the grief, by fuperftition weigh'd, 
 That their difhonour'd corfe, {hut from the verge 
 Of hallow'd earth, or tutelary fane, 
 Muft fleep with brutes their vafials ; on the field ; 
 Unneath fome path, in marie \mexorcifed 1 
 No folemn bell extort a neighbour's tear ! 
 No tongue of prieft pronounce their foul fecure ! 
 Nor fondeft friend afTure their peace obtain'd I 
 
 The prieft ! alas fo boundlefs was the ill ! 
 He, like the flock he pillag'd, pin'd forlorn ; 
 The vivid vermeil fled his fady cheek, 
 And his big paunch, diftended with the fpoils 
 Of half his flock : emaciate, groan'd beneath 
 Superior pride, and mightier luft of pow'r ! 
 'Twas now ROMK'S fondeft friend, whole meagre hand 
 
 Told
 
 Told to the midnight lamp his holy beads 
 With nice precifion, felt the deeper wound 
 As his gull'd foul rever'd the conclave more. 
 
 Whom did the ruin fpare ? for wealth, for pow'r, 
 Birth, honour, virtue, enemy, and friend, 
 Sunk helplefs in the dreary gulph involv'd; 
 And one capricious curfe envelop'd all '. 
 
 Were kings fecure ? in tow'ring ftations born, 
 In fiatt'ry nurs'd, inur'd to fcorn mankind, 
 Or view diminifh'd from their lite fublime ; 
 As when a Ihepherd, from the lofty brow 
 Of feme proud cHif", furveys his lefs'ning flock 
 In fuowy groups diffufive, feud the vale. 
 
 Awhile the furious menace JOH N return'd. 
 And breath'd defiance loud. Alas ! too foon 
 Allegiance fick'ning faw its fov'reign yield, 
 An angry prey to fcruples not his own. 
 The loyal foldier, girt around with ftrength, 
 Who ftole from mirth and wine his blooming years, 
 And feiz'd the fauchion, refolute to guard 
 His fovereign's right, impalfy'd at the news, 
 Finds the firm bias of his foul revers'd 
 For foul defertion ; drops the lifted fteel, 
 And quits fame's noble harveft, to expire 
 The death of monks, of furfeit and of floth ! 
 
 At length fatigu'd with wrongs the fervile king 
 Drain'd from his land its fmall remaining ilores 
 To buy remilfion. But could thefe obtain ? 
 No 1 reiblute in wrongs the prieft obdur'd ; 
 'Till crawling bafe to ROME'S deputed flave 
 
 His
 
 His fame, his people, and his crown he gave. 
 Mean monarch ! flighted, brav'd, abhor'd before \ 
 
 And now, appeas'd by delegated fway, 
 The wily pontiff fcorns not to recall 
 His interdiaions. Now the facred doors 
 Admit repentant multitudes, prepar'd 
 To buy deceit ; admit obfequious tribes 
 Of fatraps ! princes ! crawling to the fhrine 
 Of fainted villainy ! the pompous tomb 
 Dazzling with gems and gold, or in a cloud 
 Of incenfe wreath'd, amidft a drooping land 
 That figh'd for bread ! 'Tis thus the Indian clov 
 Difplays its verdant leaf, its crim.fpn flow'r, 
 And fheds its odours ; while the flocks around 
 Hungry and faint the barren fands explore 
 In vain ! n,or plant nor herb endears the foil ; 
 Drain'd and exhauft to fwell its thirfty pores, 
 And furniCh luxury Yet, yet in vain 
 B R I-T.A N N i A ftrove ; and whether artful ROM 5 
 Carefs'd or ours'd her, fuperftition rag'd 
 And blinded, fetter'd and defpoil'd the land. 
 
 At length fome murd'rous monk, with poia'nous an 
 Expell'd the life his brethren robb'd of peace. 
 
 Nor yet furceas'd with JOHN'S difaftrous fate 
 Pontific fury ! JEnglifh wealth exhauft, 
 The -fequent reign * beheld the beggared more 
 Grim with Italian ufurers ; prepar'd 
 To lend, for griping unexampled hire, 
 To lendwhat Rome might pillage uncontroul'd. 
 
 For now with more extenfive havock rag'd 
 
 Relentlef* 
 * Henry III. who cancell'd tlie Magna Charta.
 
 ( 30* ) 
 
 Relentlefs GHEG'RY, with a thousand arts. 
 And each rapacious, born to drain the world ! 
 Nor mall the mufe repeat, how oft he blew 
 The croife's trumpet ; then for fums of gold 
 Annull'd the vow, and bade the falfe alarm 
 Swell the grofs hoards of HENRY, or his own. 
 Nor (hall fhe tell, how pontiffs dar'd repeal 
 The beft of charters ! dar'd abfolve the tye 
 Of Britim kings by legal oath reftraia'd. 
 Nor can fhe dwell on argofies of gold 
 From ALBION'S realm to fervile ihores convey'd. 
 Wrung from her fons, and fpeeded by her kings J 
 Oh irkfome days ! when wicked thrones combine 
 With papal craft, to gull their native land ! 
 
 Such was our fete, while ROME'S director taught 
 Of fubje&s, born to be their monarch's prey. 
 To toil for monks, for gluttony to toil, 
 For vacant gluttony ; extortion, fraud, 
 For av'rice, envy, pride, revenge, and fhamH 
 O doctrine breath'd from Stygian caves ! exhal'd 
 From inmoft EREBUS ! Such HEK RT'S reign 1 
 Urging his loyal realm's reluctant hand 
 To wield the peaceful fword, by JOHN erewhile 
 Forc'd from its fcabbard^ and with burnifh'd lancfl 
 Eflay the favage cure, domefHc war ! 
 
 And now fome nobler fpirits chas'd the mift 
 Of general darknefs. G ROST E D * now adorn'd 
 The mitred wreath he wore, with jeafon's Iword 
 
 Stag- 
 
 * Bifliop of LINCOLN, called Malleus Rcmanorum.
 
 Stagg'ring delufion's frauds ; at length beneath 
 ROME'S interdift expiring calm, refign'd 
 No vulgar foul, that dar'd to Heav'n appeal 1 
 But ah this fertile glebe, this fair domain 
 Had well nigh ceded to the flothful hands 
 Of monks libidinous; ere EDWARD'S care 
 The lavilh hand of death-bed fear reftrain'd. 
 Yet was he clear of fuperltition's taint ? 
 He too, mifdeemful of his wholefome law, 
 Ev'n he, expiring, gave his treafur'd gold 
 To fatten monks on SAL EM'S diilant foil ! 
 
 Yes, the third EDWARD'S breaft, to papal fway 
 So little prone, and fierce in honour's caufe, 
 Cou'd fuperltition quell ! before the tow'rs 
 Of haggard PARIS, at the thunder's voice 
 He drops the f\vord, and figns ignoble peace I 
 
 But ftill the night by Romiih art diftus'd 
 Collects her clouds, and with flow pace recedes. 
 When, by foft BOURDEAU'S braver queen approv'd, 
 Bold Wi c K L i F F rofe : and while the bigot pow'r 
 Amidft her native darknefs fkulk'd fecure, 
 The demon vanifh'd as he fpread the day. 
 So from his bofom CACUS breath'd of old 
 The pitchy cloud, and in a night of fmoke 
 Secure awhile his recreant life fuitain'd; 
 Till fam'd ALCIDES, o'er his fubtleft wiles 
 Victorious, chear'd the ravag'd nations round. 
 
 Hail, honour 'd Wi c K L i F F ! enterprizing fage ! 
 An Epicurus in the caufe of truth ! 
 For 'tis not radiant funs, the jovial hours 
 
 Of
 
 Of youthful fpring, an aether all ferene, 
 Nor all the verdure of CAMPANIA'S vales, 
 Can chafe religious gloom ! 'Tis reafon, thought, 
 The light, the radiance that pervades the foul, 
 And Iheds its beams on heav'n's myilerious way ! 
 As yet this light but glimmer'd, and again 
 Error prevail'd ; while kings by force uprais'd 
 Let loofe the rage of bigots on their foes, 
 And feek affection by the dreadful boon 
 Of liccns'd murder. Ev'n the kindeft prince, 
 The moft extended breaft, the royal HA L ! 
 All unrelenting heard the Lollards' cry 
 Burft from the center of remorfelefs flames; 
 Their fkrieks endur'd ! O ftain to martial praife ! 
 When COB HAM, gen'rous as the noble peer 
 That wears his honours, pay'd the fatal price 
 Of virtue blooming, ere the ftorms were laid ! 
 
 'Twas thus, alternate, truth's precarious flame 
 Decay'd or flourim'd. With malignant eye 
 The pontiff faw B R i T A N N r A'S golden fleece, 
 Once all his own, inveft her worthier fons ! 
 Her verdant valleys, and her fertile plains, 
 Yellow with grain, abjure his hateful fway ! 
 Eflay'd his utmoft art, and inly own'd 
 No labours bore proportion to the prize. 
 
 So when the tempter view'd, with envious eye, 
 The nrft fair pattern of the female frame, 
 All nature's beauties in one form difplay'd, 
 And cent'ring there, in wild amaze he flood ; 
 
 VOL. I. U Then 

 
 Then only envying heav'n's creative hand : 
 Wifh'd to his gloomy reign his envious aits 
 Might win this prize, and doubled ev'ry fnare. 
 
 And vain were reafon, courage, learning, all, 
 Till pow'r accede : till Tu DOR'S wild caprice 
 Smile on their caufe ; TUDOR, whofe tyrant reign 
 With mental freedom crown'd, the beft of kings 
 Might envious view, and ill prefer their own ! 
 Then WOLSEY rofe, by nature form'd to leek 
 Ambition!s trophies, by ^ddrefs to win, 
 By temper to enjoy <whofe humbler birth 
 Taught the gay fcenes of pomp to dazzle more. 
 
 Then from its tow'ring height with horrid, found 
 Rufti'd the proud abby. Then the vaulted roofs, 
 Torn from..their wa'ls, difclos'd, the wanton fcene 
 Of monkifii chaftity ! Each angry .friar 
 Crawl'd from his bedded rtrumpet, mutt'ring low 
 An inefieclual curfe. The pervious nooks 
 That, ages, pail, convey'd.the guileful prieft 
 To play fome image on tjie gaping crowd. 
 Imbibe the novel day-light ; and expofe 
 Obvious, the fraudful cngin'ry of ROME. 
 As tho' this op'ning earth to neither realms 
 Shou'd flam meridian day, the hooded race 
 Shudder abafh'd to find their cheats difplay'd : 
 And confcious of their guilt, and pieas'd to wave 
 Its fearful meed, refign'd their fair domain. 
 
 Nor yet fupine, norvoid of rage, retir'd 
 The peft gigantic ; whofe revengeful ftroke 
 
 TiHg'd
 
 ( 37 ) 
 
 Ting'd the red annals of MARIA'S reign. 
 
 When from the tendered bread, each wayward prieft 
 
 Cou'd banifh mercy and implant a fiend ! 
 
 When cruelty the fun'ral pyre uprear'd, 
 
 And bound religion there, and fir'd the bafe ! 
 
 When the fame blaze, which on each tortur'd limb 
 
 Fed with luxuriant rage, in ev'ry face 
 
 Triumphant faith appear'd, and fouling hope. 
 
 O bleft ELIZA ! from thy piercing beam 
 
 Forth flew this hated fiend, the child of ROME ; 
 
 Driv'n to the verge of ALBION, linger'd there, 
 
 Then with her JAMES receding, caft behind 
 
 One an#ry frown, and fought more fervile clime*. 
 
 Henceforth they ply'd the long-continued taflc 
 
 Of righteous havoc, cov'ring diftant fields 
 
 With the wrought remnants of the fhatter'd pile. 
 
 While thro' the land the mufmg pilgrim fees 
 
 A tracl of brighter green, and in the midft 
 
 Appears a mouldering wall, with ivy crown'd ; 
 
 Or gothic turret, pride of ancient days [ 
 
 Now but of ufe to grace a rural fcene ; 
 
 To bound our viftas, and to glad the fons 
 
 Of G EOR c E'S reign, rferv'd for fairer times ! 
 
 Uz LOVE
 
 LOVE and HONOUR. 
 
 Sett neque Medorumfilva, ditiffinta. terra 
 Nee pulcher Ganges, atque aura turbidus Heemus, 
 Laudibus Angligenum certent : non Baflra, nee Indi t 
 Totaque turriferis Pancbaia pinguis arenis. 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 Yet let not Median woods (abundant traft !) 
 Nor Ganges * fair, nor Haemus f, mifer-like, 
 Proud of his hoarded gold, prefume to vie 
 With Britain's boaft and praife ; nor Perfian Baftra \, 
 Nor India's coafts, nor all Panchaia's || fands, 
 Rich, and exulting in their lofty towers. 
 
 LE T the green olive glad Hefperian fhores ; 
 Her tawny citron, and her orange-groves, 
 Thefe let IBERIA boaft ; but if in vain, 
 To win the ftranger plant's diffufive fmile, 
 The BRITON labours, yet our native minds, 
 Our conftant bofoms, thefe, the dazzled world 
 May view with envy ; thefe, Iberian dames 
 Survey with fixt efteem and fond defire. 
 
 Hap- 
 
 * Gungci the greateft river, which divides the Indies in two parts, 
 f H*emus-an high mountain dividing Thrace and Thefialy. 
 
 * Bafira the Baftrians, provincials of Perfia. 
 
 |j Pambaia a country of Arabia Felix, fruitful in frankincenfe, and 
 various fpices, remarkable alfo for its many towers, and lofty 
 buildings.
 
 ( 309 ) 
 
 Haplefs ELVIRA ! thy difaftrous fat 
 May well this truth explain ; nor ill adorn 
 The Britifh lyre ; then chiefly, if the mufe. 
 Nor vain nor partial, from the fimple guifc 
 Of ancient record catch the penfive lay ; 
 And in lefs groveling accents give to fame. 
 ELVIRA! lovelieft maid ! th' Iberian realm 
 Could boaft no purer breaft, no fprightlier mind, 
 No race more fplendent, and no form fo fair. 
 Such was the chance of war, this peerlefs maid, 
 In life's luxuriant bloom, enrich'd the fpoil 
 Of Britiih vidors, vift'ry's nobleft pride ! 
 She, me alone, amid the wailful train 
 Of captive maids, affign'd to HENRY'S care ; 
 Lord of her life, her fortune, and her fame ! 
 
 He, gen'rous youth, with no penurious hand, 
 The tedious moments that unjoyous roll 
 Where freedom's chearful radiance fliines no more, 
 EfTay'd to foften; confcious of the pang 
 That beauty feels, to wafte its fleeting hours 
 In fome dim fort, by foreign rule reftrain'd, 
 Far from the haunts of men, or eye of day ! 
 
 Sometimes, to cheat her bofom of its cares, 
 Her kind protector number'd o'er the toils 
 Himfelf had worn : the frowns of angry fcai, 
 Or hoftile rage, or faithlefs friend, more fell 
 Than ftorm or foe : if haply (he might find 
 Her cares diminifh'd ; fruitlefs fond eflay ! 
 Now to her lovely hand, with modeft awe 
 The tender lute he gave ; me not averfe, 
 
 U 3 Nor
 
 Nor deftitute of {kill, with willing hand 
 Call'd forth angelic ftrains ; the facred debt 
 Of gratitude, (he faid; whofe juft commands 
 Still might her hand with equal pride obey ! 
 
 Nor to the melting founds the nymph refus'd 
 Her vocal art ; harmonious, as the flrain 
 Of fome imprifon'd lark, who daily chear'd 
 By guardian cares, repays them with a fong : 
 Nor droops, nor deems fweet liberty refign'd. 
 
 The fong, not artlefs, had fhe fram'd to paint 
 Difaftrous paffion ; how, by tyrant laws 
 Of idiot cuftom fway'd, fome fpft-ey'd fair 
 Lov'd only one : nor dar'd that love reveal ! 
 How the foft anguim banifh'd from her cheek 
 The damafe rofe full-blown ; a fever came ; 
 And from her bofom forc'd the plaintive tale. 
 Then, fwift as light, he fought the love-lorn maid, 
 But vainly fought her ; torn by fwifter fate 
 To join the tenants of the myrtle {hade, 
 Love's mournful viflims on the plains below. 
 
 Sometimes, as fancy fpoke the p!ea{iug taflc, 
 She taught her artful needle to difplay 
 The various pride of fpring : then fwift upfprung 
 Thickets of myrtle, eglantine, and rofe: 
 There might you fee, on gentle toils intent, 
 A train of bufy loves ; fome pluck the flow'r, 
 Some twine the garland, fome with grave grimace 
 Around a vacant warrior caft the wreath. 
 'Twas paint, 'twa$ life ! and fure to piercing eyes 
 The warrior's face depiftur'd HENRY'S mien, 
 
 Now
 
 ( 3*1 ) 
 
 Now had the gen'rous chief with joy perus'A 
 The royal fcroll, which to their native home 
 Their ancient rights, uninjur'd, unredeem'd, 
 Reftor'd the captives. Forth with rapid haft 
 To glad his fair ELVIRA'S ear, he fprung ; 
 Fir'd by the blifs he panted to convey ; 
 But fir'd in vain ! Ah ! what was his amaze, 
 His fond diftrefs, when o'er her pallid face 
 Deje&ion reign' d, and from her lifelefs hand 
 Down dropt the myrtle's fair unfiniih'd flow'r ! 
 Speechlefs (he ftood ; at length with accents faint, 
 " Well may my native more, me faid, refound 
 " Thy monarch's praife ; and ere ELVIRA prove 
 " Of thine forgetful, flow'rs (hall ceafe to feel 
 The foft'ring breeze, and nature change her laws !" 
 
 And now the grateful edift wide alarm'd 
 The Britim hoft. Around the fmiling youths 
 Call'd to their native feenes, with willing hafte 
 Their fleet unmoor ; impatient of the love 
 That weds each bofom to its native foil. 
 The patriot paffion ! ftrong in ev'ry clim 
 How juftly theirs, who find no -foreign fweets 
 To diilipate their loves, or match their own. 
 
 Not fo ELVIRA ! me, difaftrous maid, 
 "Was doubly captive ! po<v'r nor chance cou'd loefe 
 The fubtle bands ; me lov'd irer gen'rotts foe. 
 She, where her HENRY dwelt, her HENRY fmil'd, 
 Cou'd term her native more ; her naiirc more 
 
 U 4 By
 
 By him deferted, fome unfriendly ftrand, 
 Strange, bleak, forlorn ! a defert wafle and wild. 
 
 The fleet careen'd, the wind propitious fill'd 
 The fwelling fails, the glitt'ring tranfports wav'd 
 Their pennants gay, and halcyons' azure wing 
 With flight aufpicious fkim'd the placid main. 
 
 On her lone couch in tears ELVIRA lay, 
 And chid th' officious wind, the tempdng fea, 
 And wifti'd a ftorm as mercilefs, as tore 
 Her lab'ring bofom. Fondly now fhe ftrove 
 To banifh paffion ; now the vaflal days, 
 The captive moments that fo fmoothly part, 
 By many an art recall'd; now from her lute 
 With trembling fingers call'd the fav'rite founds 
 Which HEN R Y deign'd to praife ; and now effay'd 
 With mimic chains of filken fillets wove 
 To paint her captive ftate ; if any fraud 
 Might to her love the pleafing fcenes prolong, 
 And with the dear idea feail the foul. 
 
 But now the chief return'd ; prepar'd to launch 
 On ocean's willing breaft, and bid adieu 
 To his fair pris'ner. She, foon as me heard 
 His hated errand, now no more conceal'd 
 The raging flame ; but with a fpreading bluih, 
 And rifmg figh, the latent pang difclos'd. 
 
 " Yes, gen'rous youth ! I fee thy bofom glow 
 With virtuous tranfport, that the ta/k is thine 
 To folve my chains j and to my weeping friends, 
 
 And
 
 ( 313 ) 
 
 And every longing relative, reftore 
 
 A foft-ey'd maid, a mild offencelefs prey ! 
 
 But know, my foldier, never youthful mind, 
 
 Torn from the laviih joys of wild expence 
 
 By him he loath'd, and in a dungeon bound 
 
 To languifh out his bloom, could match the pains 
 
 This ill-ltarr'd freedom gives my tortur'd mind. 
 
 What call I freedom ? is it that thefe limbs 
 From rigid bolts fecure, may wander far 
 From him I love ? Alas ! ere I may boaft 
 That facred blefling, fome fuperior pow'r 
 To mortal kings, to fublunary thrones, 
 Mult loofe my paffion, muft unchain my foul. 
 Ev'n that 1 loath ; all liberty I loath ! 
 But moft the joylefs privilege to gaze 
 With cold indifference, where defert is love. 
 
 True, I was born an alien to thofe eyes 
 I aflc alone to pleafe ; my fortune's crime ! 
 And ah ! this flatter'd form by drefs endear'd 
 To Spaniih eyes, by drefs may thine offend, 
 Whilft I, ill-fated maid ! ordain'd to ftrive 
 With cuftom's load, beneath its weight expire. 
 
 Yet HENRY'S beauties knew in foreign garb 
 To vanquifh me ; his form, howe'cr diiguis'd, 
 To me were fatal ! no fantaflic robe 
 That e'er caprice invented, cuftom wore, 
 Or folly fmil'd on, cou'd eclipfe thy charms. 
 
 Perhaps by birth decreed, by fortune plac'd 
 Thy country's foe, ELVIRA'S warmcft plea 
 
 Sreras
 
 ( 31+ ) 
 
 Seems but the fubtler accent fraud infpires ; 
 My tendereft glances, but the ipecious 'flow'rs 
 That {hade the viper while me plots her wouudL 
 And can the trembling candidate of love 
 Awake thy fears ? and can a female breaft, 
 By ties of grateful duty bound, enfoare ? 
 Is there, no brighter mien, no fofter finile 
 Far love to wear, to dark deceit unknown : 
 Heav'n fearch my foul, and if thro' ail its cells 
 Lurk the pernicious drop of pois'nous guile ; 
 Full on my fencelefs head its phial'd wrath 
 May fate exhauft ; and for my happieft how- 
 Exalt the vengeance I prepare for thee I 
 
 Ah me I nor HENRY'S, nor his country's foe, 
 On thee I gaz'd, and reafon loon diipell'd 
 Dim error's gloom, and to thy favour'd ille 
 Affign'd its total merit, unreftrain'd. 
 Oh ! lovely region to the candid eye ! 
 'Twas there my fancy faw the virtues dwell, 
 The loves, die graces play ; and bleft the foil 
 That nurtured thee ! for fure the virtues form'J 
 Thy gen'rous breaft ; the loves, the graces plan'd 
 Thy fliapely limbs. Relation, birth eflay'd 
 Their partial pow'r in vain : again I gaz'd, 
 And ALBION'S ifle appear'd, amidft a traft 
 Of favage waftes, the darling of the fkies ! 
 And thou by nature form'd, by fate afiign'd 
 To paint the genius of thy native fliore. 
 
 'Tis true, with flow'rs, with many a dazzling fcerie 
 Of burniih'd plants, to lure a female eye, 
 
 IBERIA
 
 < 315 ) 
 
 IBERIA glows : but ah ! the genial fun, 
 That gilds the lemon's fruit, or fcents the fknv'r, 
 On Spanifti minds, a nation's nobler boa 3 ! 
 Beams forth ungentle influences. There 
 Sits jealoufy enthron'd, and at each ray 
 Exultant lights his flcw-confuming fires. 
 Not fuch thy charming region ; long before 
 My fvveet experience taught me to decide 
 Of Englifh worth, the found had pleas'd mine ear. 
 Is there that favage coaft, that rude fojourn 
 Stranger to Britilh worth ? the worth which forms 
 The kindefl friends ; the moil tremendous foes ; 
 Firft, beft fupports of liberty and love ! 
 No, let fubjeded INDIA, while fne throws 
 O'er Spanifh deeds the veil, your praifc refound. 
 Long as I heard, or ere in ftory read 
 Of Englifh fame, my bias'd partial bread 
 Wilh'd them fuccefs, and happieft me, I cry'J, 
 Of women happieft Ihe, who (hares the love, 
 The fame, the virtues of an Englifh lofd. 
 And now what mall I fay ? bleil be the hour 
 Your fair-built veflels touch'd th' Iberian mores : 
 Bleft did I fay the time ? if I may blefs 
 That Icv'd event, let HEXRY'S fnriles declare. 
 Our hea'rts and cities won, will HEJCRY'S youth 
 Forego its nobler conqueft ? will he flight 
 The foft endearments of the lovelier fpoil ? 
 And yet IBERIA'S fons with every vow 
 Of lading faith, have fvvorn thefe humble charms 
 Were not excelled ; the fource of all their pains, 
 
 And
 
 ( 3'* ) 
 
 And love her juft defert, who faes for love ; 
 But fues to thee, while natives figh in vain. 
 
 Perhaps in HENRY'S eye (for vulgar minds 
 Diflent from his) it fp reads ah hateful ftain 
 On honeft fame, amid his train to bear 
 A female friend. Then learn, my gentle youth ! 
 Not love himfelf, with all the pointed pains 
 That ftore his quiver, (hall feduce my foul 
 From honour's laws. ELVIRA once deny'd 
 A confort's name, more fwift than lightning flies, 
 When elements difcordant vex the Iky, 
 Shall blufhing from the form fhe loves retire. 
 
 Yet if the fpecious wim the vulgar voice 
 Has titled prudence, fways a foul like thine, 
 In gems or gold what proud Iberian dame 
 Eclipfes me ? Nor paint the dreary ftorms 
 Or hair-breadth fcapes that haunt the boundlefs deep, 
 And force from tender eyes the filent tear ; 
 When mem'ry to the penfive maid fuggefts 
 In full contraft, the fafe domeftic fcene 
 For thefe refign'd. Beyond the frantic rage 
 Of conqu'ring heroes brave, the female mind, 
 When fteel'd by love, in love's -moft horrid way 
 Beholds not danger, or beholding fcorns. 
 Heav'n take my life, but let it crown my love." 
 
 She ceas'd, and ere his words her fate decreed, 
 Impatient, watch'd the language of his eye : 
 There pity dwelt, and from its tender fphere 
 Sent looks of Jove, and faithlefs hopes infpir'd. 
 
 " Forgive
 
 ( 317 ) 
 
 CT Forgive me, gen'rous maid, the youth return'd, 
 If by thy accents charm 'd, thus long I bore 
 To let fuch fweetnefs plead, alas ! in vain ! 
 Thy virtue merits more than crowns can yield 
 Of folid blifs, or happieft love beftow. 
 But ere from native fhores I plough'd the main, 
 To one dear maid, by virtue and by charms 
 Alone endear'd, my plighted vows I gave, 
 To guard my faith, whatever chance mould wait 
 My warring fword : if conqueft, fame and fpoil 
 Grac'd my return, before her feet to pour 
 The glitt'ring treafure, and the kurel wreath; 
 Enjoying conqueft then, and fame and fpoil. 
 If fortune frown'd adverfe ; and death forbade 
 The blifsful union, with i,iy lateft breath 
 To dweJl on MEDWAY'S and MARIA'S name. 
 This ardent vow deep-rooted, from my foul 
 No dangers tore ; this vow my bofom fir'd 
 To conquer danger, and the fpoil enjoy. 
 Her fliall I leave, with fair events elate, 
 Who crown'd mine humbled fortune with her love ? 
 Her mall I leave, who now perchance alone 
 Climbs the proud cliff, and chides my flow return r 
 And (hail that veflel, whofe approaching {ails 
 Shall fwell her breaft with extafies, convey 
 Death to her hopes, and anguiih to her foul 
 No ! may the deep my villain-corfe devour, 
 If all the wealth Iberian mines conceal, 
 If all the charms Iberian maids difclofe, 
 If thine, ELVIRA, thine, uniting all! 
 
 Thui
 
 Thus far prevail nor can thy virtuous breaft 
 Demand, what honour, faith, and love denies." 
 
 " Oh ! happy fhe, rejoin'd the penfive maid, 
 Who mares .thy fame, thy virtue, and thy love ! 
 And be me happy ! thy dittinguifh'd choice 
 Declares her worth, and vindicates her claim. 
 Farewel my lucklefs hopes, my flatt'ring dreams 
 Of rapt'rous days ! my guilty fuit, farewel ! 
 Yet fond howe'er rny plea, or deep the wound 
 That waits my fame, let not the random maft 
 Of cenfure pierce with me th' Iberian dames : 
 They love with caution, and with happier flars. 
 And oh ! by pity mov'd, reftrain the taunts 
 Of levity, nor brand ELVIRA'S flame ; 
 By merit rais'd ; by gratitude approv'd ; 
 By hope confirm'd ; with artlefs truth reveal'd ; 
 Let, let me fay, bat for one matchlefs maid 
 Of happier birth, with mutual ardor crown'd. 
 
 Thefe radiant gems, whicli burniih happinefs, 
 But mock misfortune, to thy fav'rite's hand 
 With care convey. And v/ell may fuch adorn 
 Her chearfui front, who finds ia thee alone 
 The fource of every tranfport ; but difgrace 
 My peniive breaft, which doom'd to lading woe, 
 Jn thee the fource of ev'ry blifs refign. 
 
 And now farewel, thou darling youth ! the gent 
 Of Englim merit ! peace, content, and joy, 
 And tender hopes, and young defires, farewel I 
 Attend, ye fmiling train, this gallant mind 
 
 3 Back
 
 ( 3>9 ) 
 
 Back to his native mores ; there fweetly fmooth 
 His ev'ning pillow ; dance around his groves ; , 
 And, where he treads, with vi'lets paint his way. 
 But leave ELVIRA ! leave her, now no more 
 Your frail companion ! in 'the facred cells 
 Of fome lone cloifter let me fhroud my mame : 
 There, to the matin bell, obfcquioas, pour 
 My conftant orifons. The wanton loves 
 And gay defires fliall fpy the glimm'ring tow'rs, 
 And wing their flight aloof : but reft confirm'd 
 That never fhall ELVIRA'S tongue conclude 
 Her Ihorteft pray'r ere KEN R Y'S dear fuccefs 
 The warmeft accept of hey zeal employ." 
 
 Thus fpoke the weeping fair, whofe artlefs mind 
 Impartial fcorn'd taimodtfl ker.eileem 
 By native cuftoms ; drefsy and face, and air, 
 And manners, lefs ; nor yet reiblv'd in vain. 
 He, bound by prior tow, line folemn vow 
 Giv'n and received, to foft companion gave 
 A tender tear ; then with that kind adieu 
 EUcem could warrant, v/eary'd heav'n'-with pray'j* 
 To (lucid that tender bread he left forlotn. 
 
 He ceas'd, and to the cloiAer's penfive fcenc - 
 ELVIRA fhap'd her folitary way. 
 
 The
 
 ( 320 5 
 
 The SCHOOL-MISTRESS. 
 
 In Imitation of S p E N s E R. 
 
 Audits voces, -vagitus & ingens, 
 Infantumque animte fientes in limine prime. Vi R c. 
 
 IMITATION. 
 
 And mingled founds and infant plaints we hear, 
 
 That pierce the entrance fhrill, and wound the tender ear. 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 What particulars in Spenfer were imagined moft proper 
 for the Author's imitation on this ccca/ion, are his lan- 
 guage t his Jimplicity, his manner of defcription, and a 
 peculiar tendernefs cffentiment remarkable throughout 
 his works. 
 
 AH me ! full forely is my heart forlorn, 
 To think how modefl worth neglc&cd lies ; 
 Wliile partial fame doth with her blafls adorn 
 Such deeds alone, as pride and pomp difguife ; 
 Deeds of ill fort, and mifchievous emprize : 
 Lend me thy clarion, goddefs I let me try 
 To found the praife of merit, ere it dies ; 
 Such as I oft have chaunced to efpy, 
 Loft in the dreary fliades of dull obfcurity. 
 
 In
 
 '( 3" ) 
 
 In ev'ry village mark'd with little fpire, 
 Embow'rM in trees, and hardly known to fame> 
 There dwells, in lowly fhed, and mean attire, 
 A matron old, whom we fchool-miftrefs name ) 
 Who boafts unruly brats with birch to tame ; 
 They grieven fore, in piteous durance pent, 
 Aw'd by the pow'r of this relentlefs dame ; 
 And oft-times, on vagaries idly bent, 
 For unkempt hair, or taflc unconn'd, are forely (hent. 
 
 And all in fight doth rife a birchen tree, 
 Which learning near her little dome did ftowe ; 
 Whilom a twig of fmall regard to fee, 
 Tho' now fo wide its waving branches flow ; 
 And work the fimple vaflals mickle wOe ; 
 For not a wind might curl the leaves that blew, 
 But their limbs fhudder'd, and their pulfe beat low ; 
 And as they look'd they found their horror grew, 
 And fhap'd it into rods, and tingled at the view. 
 
 So have I feen (who has not, may conceive,) 
 A lifelefs phantom near a garden plac'd ; 
 So doth it wanton birds of peace bereave, 
 Of fport, of fong, of pleafure, of repaft ; 
 They ftartj they ftare, they wheel, they look aghaft j 
 Sad fervitude ! fuch comfortlefs annoy 
 May no bold Briton's riper age e'er tafte ! 
 Ne fuperftition clog his dance of joy, 
 Ne vifion empty, vain, his native blifs dcflroy. 
 VOL. I. X
 
 ( 3" ) 
 
 Near to this dome is found a patch fo green, 
 On which, the tribe their gambols do dirplay ; 
 And at the door impris'ning board is feen, 
 Left weakly wights of fmaller fize fhould ftray ; 
 Eager, perdie, to bafk in funny day I 
 The noifes intermix'd, which thence refound, 
 Do learning's little tenement betray : 
 Where fits the dame, difguis'd in look profound, 
 And eyes her fairy throng, and turns her wheel around. 
 
 Her cap, far whiter than the driven fnow, 
 Emblem right meet of decency does yield: 
 Her apron dy'd in grain, as blue, I trowe, 
 As is. the hare-bell that adorns the field : 
 And in her hand, for fcepter, flie does wield 
 Tway birchen fprays ; with anxious fear entwiu'd, 
 With dark diitruft, and fad repentance fill'd ; 
 And ftedfaft hate, and fharp affliction join'd, 
 And fury uacontroul'd, and chaftifement unkind. 
 
 Few but have kcn'd, in feinblance meet pourtray'd. 
 The childiih faces of old Eol's train ; 
 LIES, NOT us, AUSTER .*: thefe in frowns array'd, 
 How then would fare or earth, or fky, or main, 
 Were the (tern god to give his flaves the rein ? 
 And were not me rebellious breafts to quell, 
 And were not me her ftatutes to maintain, 
 The cot no more, I ween, were deem'd the cell, 
 W'icre comely peace of mind, and decent order dwell. 
 
 A ruflet 
 * The iouth-weft wind, fouth, i;c. &c.
 
 ( 3*3 > 
 
 A ruf&t ftole was o'er her fixmlders thrown fc 
 A rufTet kirtle fcnc'd the nipping air ; 
 "Avas {impl* ruflet, but it was her own ; 
 'Twas her own country bred the Rock fo fair; 
 'Twas her own labour did the fleece prepare ; 
 And, footh to fay. her pupils, rang'd around, 
 Thro' picas awe, did term it parting rare ; 
 For thy in gaping wonderment abound, 
 
 And. think, no doabt-, (he been the greateft wight on 
 
 [ground* 
 
 Albeit ne fiitt'ry did corrupt her truth, 
 Ne pompous title did debauch her ear ; 
 Goody, good-woman, goffip, n'aunt, forfooth, 
 Or dame, the fole additions fhe did hear ; 
 Yet thefe (he challenged, thefe fhe held right dear : 
 Ne waaM efteem him aft as mought behove, 
 Who fhould not honour'd eld with thefe revere : 
 For never title yet fo mean coold prove, 
 
 But there was eke a mind which 'did that title lore. 
 
 One amsent hen fhe took delight to feed, 
 The plodding pattern of the bufy dame ; 
 Which, ever and anon, impelPd by need, 
 Into her fchooJ, begirt with chickens, came ; 
 Such favour did her paft deportment claim : 
 And, if negled had lavifh'd on the ground 
 Fragment of bread, (he would collcil the fame } 
 For well fhe knew, and quaintly could expound, 
 Whr.t fin it were to wxfte the fmaileft crumb fhe found. 
 X 2 Herbs
 
 Herbs too flie knew, and well of each could fpeak 
 That in her garden fip'd the filv'ry dew ; 
 Where no vain fiow'r difclos'd a gaudy ftrealc; 
 But herbs for ufe, and phyfick, not a few, 
 Of grey renown, within thofe borders grew : 
 The tufted bafil, pun-provoking thyme, 
 Frefli baum, and mary-gold of chearful hue ; 
 The lowly gill, that never dares to climb ; 
 And more I fain would fmg, difdaining here to rhyme. 
 
 Yet euphrafy may not be left unfung, 
 That gives dim eyes to wander leagues around ; 
 And pungent radifh, biting infant's tongue ; 
 And plantain ribb'd, that heals the reaper's wound ; 
 And marj'ram fweet, in fhepherds pofie found ; 
 And lavender, whofe fpikes of azure bloom 
 Shall be, ere-while, in arid bundles bound, 
 To lurk amidil the labours of her loom, 
 And crown her kerchiefs clean with mickle rare perfiime. 
 
 And here trim rofemarine, that whilom crown'd 
 The daintieft garden of the proudeft peer ; 
 Ere, driven from its envy'd fite, it found 
 A facred fhelter for its branches here ; 
 Where edg'd with gold its glitt'ring flurts appear. 
 Oh waffel days ! O cuftoms meet and well ! 
 Ere this was banifh'd from its lofty fphere : 
 Simplicity then fought this humble cell, 
 Nor ever would me more with thane and lordling dwell. 
 
 Here
 
 Here oft the dame, on fabbath's decent eve, 
 Hymned fiich pfalms as STERNHOLD forth did mete, 
 If winter 'twere, me to her hearth did cleave ; 
 But in her garden found a fummer feat : 
 Sweet melody ! to hear her then repeat 
 How ISRAEL'S fons, beneath a foreign king, 
 While taunting foe-men did a fong intreat, 
 All, for the nonce, untuning ev'ry ftring, 
 Uphung their ufelefs lyres ifmall heart had they to fmg. 
 
 For me was juft, and friend to virtuous Iore> 
 And pafs'd much time in truly virtuous deed ; 
 And, in thofe elfins' ears, would oft deplore 
 The times, when truth by popiih rage did bleed ; 
 And tortious death was true devotion's meed ; 
 And fimple faith in iron chains did mourn, 
 That nould on wooden image place her creed; 
 And lawny faints in fmould'ring flames did burn: 
 Ah ! deareit Lord, forefend, thilk days mould e'er return. 
 
 In elbow chair, like that of Sccttifli item 
 By the fharp tooth of cank'ring eld defac'd, 
 In which, when he receives his diadem, 
 Our fov'rcign prince and liefelt liege is plac'd, 
 The matron fate ; and fome with rank {he grac'd,* 
 (The (ource of children's and of courtier's pride !) 
 Redrefs'd affronts, for vile affronts there pafs'd j ' 
 And warn'd them not the fretful to deride, 
 
 But love each other dear, whatever them betide. ; 
 
 - . X 3 Right
 
 Right well fhe.knew each temper to defcry ; 
 To thwart the proud, and the fubmifs to raife ; 
 Some with vile copper prize exalt on high, 
 And fome entice with pittance fmall of praife ; 
 And other fome with baleful fprig fhe 'frays : 
 Ev'n abfent, fhe the reins of pow'r doth hold, 
 While with quaint arts the giddy crowd fhe fways 5 
 Forewarn'd, -if little bird their pranks behold, 
 'Twill whiiper in her ear, -and all the fcene unfold. 
 
 Lo now with ftate fhe utters the command ! 
 Eftibons the urchins to their tafks repair ; 
 Their books of ftature fmall they take in hand, 
 Which with pellucid horn fecund are ; 
 To fave from ringer wet the letters fair : 
 The work fo gay, that on their back is feen, 
 St. GEORGE'S high achievements does declare; 
 On which thilk wight that has y-gaaing been 
 Kens the forth-coming rod, unpleafing fight, I ween ! 
 
 Ah lucklefs he, and born beneath the beam 
 Of evil ftar ! it irks me whilft I write'! 
 As erft the * bard by MULLA'S filver ftream, 
 Oft, as he told of deadly dolorous plight, 
 Sigh'd as he fung, and did in tears indite. 
 For brandifhing the rod, fhe doth begin 
 To loofe the brogues, the ftripling's late delight I 
 And down they drop ; appears his dainty fkin, 
 Fair as the furry coat of whiteft ermilin, 
 
 O ruth- 
 * SPENSER,
 
 ( 3*7 ) 
 
 O ruthful fcene ! when from a nook obfcurc, 
 His little filler doth his peril lee : 
 All playful as fhe fate, ihe grows demure ; 
 She finds full foon her wonted fpirits flee-; 
 She meditates a pray'r to fet him free : 
 Nor gentle pardon could this dame deny, 
 (If gende pardon could with dames agree) 
 To her fad grief tha; fwells in either eye. 
 And wrings her fo that all for pity {he could die. 
 
 No longer can me now her mrieks command ; 
 And hardly fhe forbears thro' aweful fear, 
 To rumen forth, and, with prciumptuoas hand, 
 To ftay harlh juftice in its mid career. 
 On thee me calls, on thec her parent dear ! 
 (Ah ! too remote to ward the ihameful blow '.) 
 She fees no kind dome-flic vilage near, 
 And foon a flood of tears begins to flow ; 
 And gives a loofe at lalt to unavailing woe. 
 
 But ah ! what pen his piteous plight may ; 
 Or what device his loud laments explain ? 
 The form uncouth of his diiguifed face r . 
 The pallid hue that dyes his looks amain : 
 The plenteous ihdw'r that does his cneek diftain ? 
 When he, in abjeft wife, implores the danu, 
 Ne hopeth aught of {V/eet reprieve to gain ; 
 Or when from liigh Ihe levels well her 'aim, 
 And, tiu'o' thtthatcti,iiisv claim. 
 
 A 4 The 
 
 .
 
 ( 3** ) 
 
 The ofher tribe, aghafl, with fore difmay, 
 Attend, and conn their tafks with mickle care: 
 By turns, aftony'd, ev'ry twig furvey, 
 And, from their fellow's hateful wounds, beware j 
 Knowing, I wift, how each the fame may fhare ; 
 'Till fear has taught them a performance meet, 
 And to the well-known cheil the dame repair ; 
 Whence oft with fugar'd cates fhe doth 'em greet. 
 And ginger-bread y-rare ; now, certes, doubly fweet ! 
 
 See to their feats they hye with merry glee, 
 And in befeemly order fitten there ; 
 All >but the wight of bum y-galled, he 
 Abhorreth bench and ftool, and fourm, and chair ; 
 (This hand in mouth y-fix'd, that rends his hair ;) 
 And eke with fnubs profound, and heaving breaft, 
 Convulfions intermitting ! does declare 
 His grievous wrong; his dame's unjuft beheft; 
 And fcorns her offer'd love, and fhuns to be carefjU, 
 
 His face befprent with liquid cryftal mines, 
 His blooming face that feems a purple flow'r, 
 Which low to earth its drooping head declines, 
 All fmear'd and fully'd by a vernal fhow'r. 
 O the hard bofoms of defpotic pow'r ! 
 All, all, but fhe, the author of his fhame, 
 All, all, but fhe, regret this mournful hour : 
 Yet hence the youth, and hence the flow'r, mall claim, 
 If fo I d.eem aright, tranfcending worth and fame. 
 
 Behind
 
 ( 329 ) 
 
 Behind fome door, in melancholy thought, 
 JVflindlefs of food, he, dreary caitiff"! pines ; 
 Ne for his fellow's joyaunce careth aught, 
 But to the wind all merriment refigns ; 
 And deems it fhame, if he to peace inclines ; 
 And many a fullen look afcance is fent, 
 Which for his dame's annoyance he defigns ; 
 And ttill the more to pleafure him (he's bent, 
 The more doth he, perverfe, her haviour paft refent. 
 
 Ah me ! how much I fear left pride it be ! 
 But if that pride it be, which thus infpires, 
 Beware, ye dames, with nice difcernment fee, 
 ^Ye quench not too the fparks of nobler fires : 
 Ah ! better far than all the mufes' lyres, 
 All coward arts, is valour's generous heat ; 
 fhe firm hxt breaft which fit and right requires, 
 Like VERNON'S patriot foul ; more jultly gteat 
 Than, craft that pimps for ill, or flow'ry falfe deceit. 
 
 Yet nurs'd with Ccill, what dazzling fruits appear ! 
 Ev'n now fagacious forefight points to fliovv 
 A little bench of heedlefs lulhops here, 
 And there a chancellcur in embr> r o, 
 Or bard fublime, if bard may e'er be Co, 
 AsMiLTON,SHAKESPEAR, names that ne'er mail die! 
 Tho' now he crawl along the ground fo low, 
 Nor weeting how the mufe mou'd foar on high, 
 Wifheth, poor ftarv'ling elf! his paper kite may fly. 
 
 And
 
 . ( 350 1 
 
 And this perhaps, who, cens'ring the de%n, 
 Low lays the houfe which that of cards doth build, 
 Shall DENNIS be ! if rigid fates incline, 
 And many an epic to his rage {hall yield ; 
 And many a poet quit th' Aonian field ; 
 And, four'd by age, profound he fhall appear, 
 As he who now with 'fdainful fury thrill'd 
 Surveys mine work ; and levels many a fneer, 
 And furls his wrinkly front, and cries, "What ftuff is here :' ' 
 
 But now DAN PHOEBUS gains the middle flue, 
 And liberty unbars her prifon-door ; 
 And like a ruming torrent out they fly, 
 And now the grafiy cirque han cover'd o'er 
 With boiil'rous revel-rout and wild uproar; 
 A thoufand ways in wanton rings they run, 
 Heav'n fhield their fhort-liv'd paftimes, I implore ! 
 For well may freedom, erft fo dearly won, 
 Appear to Britifli elf more gladfome than the fun. 
 
 Enjoy, poor imps ! enjoy your fportive trade, 
 And chafe gay flies, and cull the faireit flow'rs ; 
 For when my bones in grafs-green fods are laid ; 
 For never may ye tafte more carelefs hours 
 In knightly caftles, or in ladies bow'rs. 
 O vain to feek delight in earthly thing ! 
 But moft in courts where proud ambition tow'rs ; 
 Deluded wight ! who weens fair peace can fpring 
 Beneath the pompous dome of kefar or of king. 
 
 See
 
 ( 33' ) 
 
 See in each fprite fome various bent appear ! 
 Thefe rudely carol rrroft incondite lay ; 
 Thofe faunt'ring on the green, with jocund leer 
 Salute the ftranger pafling on his way ; 
 Some builden fragile tenements of clay ; 
 Some to the ftanding lake their courfes bend, 
 With pebbles fmooth at duck and drake to play j 
 Thilk to the huxter's fav'ry cottage tend, 
 In paftry kings and queens th' allotted mite to fpend. 
 
 Here, as each feafon yields a different (lore, 
 Each feafon's ftores in order ranged been j 
 Apples with cabbage-net y-cover'd o'er, 
 Galling full fore th' unmoney'd wight, are feen; 
 And goofe-b'rie clad in liv'ry red or green; 
 And here of lovely dye, the cath'rine pear, 
 Fine pear ! as lovely for thy juice, I ween : 
 O may no wight e'er pennylefs come there, 
 Left fmit with ardent love he pine with hopelefs care I 
 
 See ! cherries here, ere cherries yet abound, 
 With thread fo white in tempting pofies ty'd, 
 Scatt'ring like blooming maid their glances round, 
 With pamper'd look draw little eyes afide; 
 And muft be bought, tho* penury betide. 
 The plumb all azure and the nut all brown, 
 And here each feafon, do thofe cakes abide, 
 Whofe honour'd names th' inventive city own, 
 Rend'ring thro' Britain's ifle Salopia's praifes known. * 
 
 Admir'd 
 * SHREWSBURY cakes.
 
 Admlr'd SALOP i A ! that with venial pride 
 Eyes her bright form in SEVERN'S ambient wave, 
 Faio'd for her loyal cares in perils try'd, 
 Her daughters lovely, and her ftriplings brave : 
 Ah ! midft the reft, may flowers, adorn his grave, 
 Whofe art did firft thefe dulcet cates difplay ! 
 A motive fair to learning's imps he gave, 
 Who chearlefs o'er her darkling region ftray ; 
 'Till reafon's morn arife, and light them on their way 
 
 CON-
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 I. ELEGIES on feveral Occafions. 
 
 J Prefatory eJJ'ay on elegy. . Page 1$ 
 
 ELEGY I. 
 
 He arrives at his retirement in the country, and takes occa- 
 Jlon to expatiate inpraife ofjtmplicity. To a friend. 2J 
 
 EL E'G Y II. 
 On pcjthumous reputation. To a friend. Jl 
 
 E L E G Y III. 
 On the untimely death of a certain learned acquaintance. 33 
 
 ELEGY IV. 
 Ophelia's urn. To Mr. G. . 36 
 
 ELEGY V. 
 
 He compares the turbulence of 'love with the tranquillity sf 
 fritndjhip. To Meliffa his friend. . 3 8 
 
 ELEGY VI. - 
 To a lady on the language cf birds. 39 
 
 E L E'G Y VII. 
 He defcrila his ft/ton to an acquaintance 4! 
 
 ELEGY" VIII. 
 He defcribes his early Io<ve of-poefrj, and its conferences. 
 
 r Mr.G , i 74? .- .;;. ,; *- 45 
 
 E LEG Y IX, . 
 He defcriltf hit difenjtrefiednefi to a friend* .. .47 
 
 ELEGY X, 
 
 To fortune, fuggefting his motive for reputing at her difpen- 
 fations. - 50 
 
 E L E G Y XI. 
 He complains hcnv foen the pleaftng novelty of life is over. 
 
 To Mr. J . . - . **,.-: 53 
 
 ELEGY
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 ELEGY XH. 
 His recantation. Page $$ 
 
 ELEGY XIII. 
 To afriexd,.Qn fate flight' oicafim eft ranged fro.m him. 57 
 
 ELEGY XIV. 
 
 Declining an invitation to wife foreign countries, he take: 
 cccafton to intimate the advantages ofbir own. To Lord 
 Temple. 59 
 
 E L E G Y XV. 
 In memory of a private family in Worceftcrjbire. 62 
 
 ELEGY XVI. 
 
 He foggefts the advantages- of birth to a perfon of merit, 
 and the folly cf ajupercilici'fnefs that is built upon that 
 file foundation* 66 
 
 ELEGY XVII. 
 
 He indulges the fuggejiions of fpleen : an elegy to tht 
 winds. 71 
 
 ELEGY XVIII. 
 
 He repeats the feng of Collin, a difcerning Jhepherd ; la* 
 menting the Jlate of the woollen manufatiorj* 75 
 
 E. L E G Y XIX. 
 Written in fpring 1743. 79 
 
 ELEGY XX. 
 
 He compares his humble fortune with tht diftrefs of others ; 
 and his fuljeaion to Delia ivith the tr.ij'srable 'fer'vitude 
 of an African Jla^e. 8z 
 
 ELEGY XXI. 
 
 taking a view of the country from his retirement, he is led 
 
 to meditate on the character vf the ancient Britons* 
 
 Written at the time of a rumoured: tax upon luxury. 
 
 i ?4 6. ' 86 
 
 ELEGY XXII. 
 
 Writttn in the year , ivben the right t offepultvre *voerr 
 
 Jtfreqtutttfy -violated. 89 
 
 ELEGY XXIII. 
 
 Reflections fuggtfted- by his fitttticn r 93 
 
 ELEGY
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 ELEGY XXIV. 
 
 fit :a\es cccafonfrctn the fate of Eleanor ofBrttagxe, to fig- 
 gejl tiff iniperfsd plenfures of afolitary lift. Page 9$ 
 
 ELEGY XXV. 
 
 To Delia, iKttb feme flwoers ; complaining how much bis 
 benevolence fujfers on account of his humble for tvne. 1OI 
 
 ELEGY XXVI. 
 
 f)ffcribing tTjejorrvw of an ingenuous mir.d, an t&f melan- 
 choly Client of a licentious amour. 1 04 
 
 II. ODES, SONGS, BALLADS, &c. 
 
 Rural elegance : an ode to the late duchefi ef Somtrjet. 
 
 Wrnttr. 1750. Hi 
 
 Ode to- memory. 174^. 122 
 
 Tbefrintcjs Elizabeth-: a ballad alhidir.g to a ft cry recorded' 
 
 ef her, nchen jhe ivas prifcner at Wwdftock, 1554. -124 
 Ode to a young latty,fome~Mbat tm fclititous about her wf- 
 
 aer of exprejfitn. 126 
 
 Nancy of the vale. A ballad: 1 28 
 
 O/zfe to Indolence. ^750. 130 
 
 Qdc to Health. 1730. * 1?2 
 
 To a lady cf quality, fating up her library. 1738. 13^ 
 Upon a*uifit to the fine in -winter. 1748. 
 
 An irregular ode after ficknrfi. 1749. 138 
 Written in afimxcr book of my o=vun ccfairing, drJigneJfor 
 
 lady Plimouth. 1753-4. ' H3 
 
 Anacreontic. 17^8. 144 
 
 Qde. Written 1739. ~~ J 45 
 
 The dying kid. 1 47 
 
 Sjiugs, written chiefly btttwcen the year 1/37 and 1742 
 
 149 166 
 
 Fix balcjcn. - 166 
 
 QJe. i6S 
 
 Apaftwalcde, to. the honourable Sir Richard Lytttlton. 169 
 Verjes written towards the cleft of the y tar 1748, to //'/;'- 
 
 Ham Lyttelton, Efq. 176
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Jemmy Da-wjox, a ballad; written about the time ofhii 
 
 execution, in the year 1745. P a g e i?9 
 
 A ' paftoral ballad, in four parts. Written 1743. l %3 
 
 III. LEVITIES,or PIECES of HUMOUR. 
 
 Flirt and Phil ; a decijion for the ladies. 195 
 Stanzas to the memory of an agreeable lady, buried in mar- 
 riage to a perfon undeferving her. 196 
 Colemira. A culinary eclogue. 197 
 The rape of the trap. A ballad. 1737. 200 
 On certain pajlorah. 204 
 On Mr. C ' i of Kidderminfter's poetry. ibid, 
 To the virtuo/os. ibid. 
 The extent of cookery. 206 
 The progrefs of advice. A common cafe. 207 
 A ballad. 208 
 Slender 1 s gboft. 209 
 The invidious. 2 1 o 
 The price of an' equipage. 21 1 
 Hint from Voiture. 212 
 Jnfcription. ibid. 
 To a friend. 214 
 The poet and the dun. 1741. 2 1 7 
 Written at an inn at Henlej. 218 
 AJimile. 219 
 The charms of precedence. A tale. 220 
 Ode. 227 
 Epilogue to the tragedy of Clean e. 229 
 
 IV. MORAL PIECES. 
 
 The judgment of Hercules. - 23'3 
 
 The progrefs nf tctjie : or, the fate of delicacy. 251 
 
 Oeconomy, a rhapfody, addreffed to yottng poets. 272 
 
 JThe ruin'd abby ; o*s the ejf'eeh of fuperftiTibn. 294 
 
 Love and honour. 308 
 
 The fcbool-miftrefs. - 320 
 
 THE EKD OF THE FIRST VOLUM 
 
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