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 1' H E 
 
 OEM 
 
 O F 
 
 MARK A K E N S I D E, M. D. 
 
 LONDON, 
 
 PRINTED BY W. BOWYER AND J. NICHOLS: 
 AND SOLD BY J. DODSLEY, IN PALL MALL. 
 
 MDCCLXXIL 
 
 131701
 
 Al 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 THIS Volume contains a complete Colledllon of the 
 poems of the late Dr. Akendde, cither reprinted 
 from the original Editions, or faithfully publiflied from 
 Copies which had been prepared by himfelf for publication. 
 
 That the principal Poem fliould appear in fo difadvanta- 
 geous a ftatc, may require fome explanation. The firll pub- 
 lication of it was at a very early part of the Author's 
 life. That it wanted Revifion and Correction, he was 
 fufficiently fenfible ; but fo quick was the demand for fc- 
 veral fucceflive republications, that in any of the intervals 
 to have completed the whole of his Corredlions was utterly 
 impoifible ; and yet to have gone on from time to time 
 making farther Improvements in every new Edition would 
 (he thought) have had the appearance at leafi: of abufing 
 the favor of the Public. Pie chofe therefore to continue for 
 fome time reprinting it without alteration, and to forbear 
 publifhing any Corredions or Improvements until he fhould 
 be able at once to give them to the Public complete. And 
 
 a 3 with
 
 vi ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 with this view, he went on for feveral years to review and 
 corre£l the Poem at his Icifure ; till at length he found the 
 task grow fo much upon his hands, that, defpairing of ever 
 beincT able to execute it fufficiently to his own fatisfadtion, 
 he abandoned the purpofe of corredting, and refolved to 
 write the Poem over anew upon a fomewhat diiFerent 
 and an enlarged Plan. And in the execution of this Defigii 
 he had made a confiderable Progrefs. What Reafon there may 
 be to regret that he did not live to execute the whole of it, 
 Avill beft appear from the perufal of the Plan itfelf, as ftated 
 in the General Argument, and of the Parts which he had 
 executed, and which are here publllhed. For the Perfon, to 
 whom he intruded the Difpofal of his Papers, would have 
 thought hlmfelf wanting, as well to the Service of the Public, as 
 to the Fame of his Friend, if he had not produced as much 
 of the Work as appeared to have been prepared for publication. 
 In this light he confidered the intire firll and fecond Books, 
 of which a itvf Copies had been printed for the ufe only of the 
 Author and certain Friends : alfo a very confiderable part 
 of the third Book, which had been tranfcribed in order to 
 its being printed in the fame manner : and to thefe is added 
 the Introduction to a fubfequent Book, which in the Manu- 
 fcript is called the Fourth, and which appears to have been 
 compofed at the time when the Author intended to comprize 
 
 the
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. vii 
 
 the whole in Four Books ; but which, as he had afterwards 
 determined to dillribute the Poem into more Books, might 
 perhaps more properly be called the Laft Book. And this 
 is all that is executed of the new work, which although it 
 appeared to the Editor too valuable, even in its imperfed: 
 State, to be withholden from the Public, yet (he conceives) 
 takes in by much too fmall a part of the original Poem to 
 fupply its place, and to fuperfede the re-publication of it. 
 For which reafon both the Poems are infeited in this col- 
 ledtion. 
 
 Of Odes the Author had defigned to make up Two Books, 
 confifting of twenty Odes each, including the feveral Odes 
 which he had before publifhed at different times. 
 
 The Hymn to the Naiads is reprinted from the fixth Volume 
 of Dodfley's Mifcellanies, with a few Corredions and the 
 addition of fome Notes. To the Infcriptions taken from 
 the fame Volume three new Infcriptions are added ; the laft 
 of which is the only inftance wherein a liberty has been 
 taken of inferting any thing in this Colledion, which did not 
 appear to have been intended by the Author for publication ;. 
 among whofe papers no Copy of thiswas found, but it is 
 
 printed
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 viu 
 
 printed from a Copy which he had many years jdnce given to 
 the Editor. 
 
 The Author of thefe Poems was born at Newcaftle upon 
 Tyne, on the 9th Day of November 172 1. He was edu- 
 cated at the Grammar School at Newcaftle, and at the 
 Univerdties of Edinburgh and Leyden, at the latter of which 
 he took his Degree of Dodor in Phylic. He was afterwards 
 admitted by Mandamus to the Degree of Dodor in Phyfic 
 in the Univerfity of Cambridge : eleded a Fellow of the 
 Royal College of Phylicians, and one of the Phyiicians 
 of St. Thomas's Hofpital : and upon the Eftablifhment of 
 the Queen's Houfehold, appointed one of the Phyficians 
 to Her Majefty. He died of a putrid Fever, on the 23d 
 Day of June 1770, and is buried in the Parifh Church of St. 
 James, Weftminfter. 
 
 CONTENTS.
 
 THE 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 O F 
 
 IMAGINATION. 
 
 POEM. 
 
 IN THREE BOOKS. 
 
 Epict. apud Anian. II. 23, 
 Publifhcd in the Year MDCCXLIV. 
 
 B
 
 T II K 
 
 DESIGN. 
 
 np HERE are- certain powers la human nature which fecm to hold 
 a middle place between the organs of bodily fenfc and the facul- 
 ties of moral perce])tion : Tlicy have been called by a very p-eneral 
 name, The Powers of hnag'inallon. Like the external fcnfes, thcv re- 
 late to matter and motion; and, at the fame time, give tlic mind ideas 
 analogous to thofe of moral ajiprobation and diilike. As they arc tlio 
 inlets of fomc of the mod exquifite pleafures with Vvhich we arc ac- 
 quainted, it has naturally happened that men ofwarm and lenfible tem- 
 pers have fought means to recall the delightful perceptions which they 
 aftbrd, independent of the objects which originally produced tliem. 
 This gave rife to the imitative or dcfigning arts ; Ibme of which, as 
 painting and fculpture, dire«5lly copy the external appearances wliich 
 were achnired in nature ; others, as mufic and poetry, bring them back 
 to remembrance by figns univerfally eftablilhed and undcrftood. 
 
 But thefe arts-, as they grew more corrcifl and deliberate, were of- 
 courfe led to extend their Imitation beyond the peculiar objects of the 
 imaginative powers ; efpccially poetry, which, making ufe of language 
 as the inftrument by which it imitates, is confequently l^ccome an un- 
 limited reprefentative of every fpccies and mode of being. Yft ai 
 
 B 2 their
 
 4. r HE D E S I c; N. 
 
 their intention was only to exprefs the obje^ls of imagination, and as 
 they ftill abound chiefly in ideas of that chifs, they of courfc retain 
 their original character; and all the different pleafures which they ex- 
 cite, are termed, in general, Pleafures of Imaginallon. 
 
 The defign of the following poem is to give a view of ihefc in tliC 
 largefl: ^acceptation of the term:; fo that 'lohaiever our.- imag'inat'ion feels 
 from the agreeable appetfranccs of 7hnure, and all the various entertainment 
 ive meet ivith cither hf poetry, painting, luufc, cr any of the elegant arts. 
 Plight be deJucible from one or other of thofe principles In the cojifltutlon of- 
 tlie human vihid, "which are here eflabllfl^ed and explahied. 
 
 In executing this general plan, it was necdlary fiifl of all. to diftin-t 
 
 <^uifli the Imaeination from our other fliculties ; and in the next placs 
 
 to charafterize thofe original forms or properties of being, about which 
 
 it is converfant, and which are by nature adapted to it,, as light is to 
 
 the eves, cr trvvth to the- underftanding» Thefe properties Mr. Addlfon 
 
 had reduced to the three general claflbs of greatnefs,. novelty, and beau-? 
 
 ty; and into thefe we may analyfe every objei^,. however complex, which^ 
 
 properly fpeaking, is delightful to tlie imagination. But fuch an object 
 
 may alfo include many other fources of pleafure.; and its beauty, or no^ 
 
 vclty, or grandeur, will make a ftronger imprefiion by reafou of this 
 
 concurrence. Bcfides which, the iiTutativ.e arts,.efpecially poetry, owe 
 
 much of their effeft to a fmjlar exhibition; of properties quite foreign 
 
 to the imagination, infomuch that in every line of the moft applauded 
 
 poems, we meet with either ideas drawn from the- external iei-ifes, or 
 
 truths dilcovered to the underftanding, or illultrations of contrivance 
 
 and final caufes, or, above all the refl, wich circamftances proper to 
 
 awaken and ingage the pafUons. It was therefore neccil'ary to enume- 
 
 xatc and exemplify thefe •different fp-ccies of pleafure: eipccially that 
 
 from
 
 T HE D E S I G- N. 5 
 
 from the pafllons, .which, as it is fuprcmc in the noblcfl: work of human 
 genius, fo being in fbme particuhirs not a httle furprizing, gave an op- 
 ptwtimity to enliven the didactic turn of the poem, by introducing aa 
 allegory to account for the appearance. 
 
 After thefe parts of the fubject which hold chiefly of admiration, or 
 naturally warm and intereft the mind, a pleafure of a very diflerent 
 nature, that which arifes from ridicule, came next to be confidered. As- 
 this is the foundation of the comic manner in all the arts, and has been 
 hut very invperfeclly treated by moral writers, it was thought proper to- 
 give it a particular illuftratlon,. and to diftinguifh the general fources 
 from which the ridicule of characters is derived. Here too a change of 
 ftile became necefl'ary ; fuch a oiie as might yet be confident, if poflible, 
 witli the general taftc of compofition in the. ferious parts of the fubje£l : 
 nor is it an eafy tafk to give any tolerable force to images of this kind, 
 without running either into the gigantic expreffioiis of the mock heroic, 
 or the familiar and poetical raillery of profcflcd fatire ; neither of which 
 w:ould have been proper here. . 
 
 The materials of all imitation being thus laid open, nothing now re-- 
 mained but to illuftrate fome particular plcafures which arife either from 
 the relations of different objects one to another, or from the nature of 
 imitation itielf. Of the firft kind is that various and complicated re- 
 lemblance exifting between fe\'eral parts of the material and immaterial, 
 worlds, which is the foundation of metaphor and wit. . As it leems in 
 a great meafuie to depend on the early aflbciation of our ideas, and as 
 this habit of aflbciating is the fource of many pleafures and pains in life, 
 and on that account bears a great fhare in the influence of poetry and 
 the other arts, it is therefore mentioned here and its efFeifts defcribed. 
 'i'hcn follows a general account of the production of thele elegant arts> 
 
 and
 
 6 THE D E S 1 G N. 
 
 aiiJ oi" the fcconJary plcarure, as it is called, arifing from the refem- 
 hhuKC ol" their imitations to the original appearances of nature. After 
 which, the work concludes with fome reflexions on the general conduct 
 of the powers of imagination, and on their natural and moral ufcfulnefs 
 ill life, 
 
 Conccnu^'.rr the manner or turn of comnofition whic ii prevails in this 
 piece, little can be laid with propriety by the author. He had two mo- 
 dels; that antient and (implc one of tlie hrfl; Grcecian poets, as it is re* 
 lined by rirgil in the Georg/'cs, and th.e familiar epiftolary way of Ho- 
 nrce. This latter has fevcral advantages. It admits of a greater variety 
 q{ llile; it more readily ingages the generality of readers, as partaking 
 more of the air of converfation ; and, efpccially with tlie afliftance of 
 rhyme, leads to a clofer and more concife expreilicn. Add to this the 
 example of the moll: perfect of modern poets, who has fo happily ap- 
 ])lied this manner to the noblcfl: parts of philofophy, that the public 
 talle is in a great meafure formed to it alone. Yet, after all, the fubject 
 before us> tending almoft conflantly to admiration and enthuliafm, 
 :leemed rather to demand a more open, pathetic and figured flile. This 
 too appeared more natural, as the author's aim was not fo much to give 
 formal precepts, or enter into the way of direct argumentation, as, by 
 rexhibiting tlie mofi; ingaging profpetfts of nature, to enlarge and har- 
 monize the iiTiagination, and by that means infenfibly difpofe the minds 
 of men to a limilar taflc and habit of thinking in religion, morals, and 
 civil life. "Tis on this account that he is fo careful to point out the 
 .benevolent intention of the Author of nature in every principle of the 
 •human conftitution here infilled on ; and alfo to unite the moral cxcel- 
 •■icncies of life in the fame point of view with the meer external objcvSts 
 of good tafte; thus recommending them in common to our natural pro- 
 -penfity for admiring what is beautiful and lovely. The lame views 
 
 have
 
 T H E D E S I G N. 7- 
 
 have alfo led him to introduce fome fcntiments wliich may perhaps be 
 looked upon as not quite diretSl to the fuhjcd ; but, fmcc they bear 
 an obvious rehition to it, the authority of V'lrgU^ the faultlefs model 
 of didadic poetry, will bcfl fupport him in this particular. For tiie 
 fentimcnts thcralelves, he makes no apology,- 
 
 T ME
 
 *l 
 
 1 i
 
 C « ] 
 
 CONTENT S, 
 
 THE PLEASURES OF IMAGINATION. 
 
 [As firft publilheci.] 
 
 THE Defign, p. 3 
 
 Book the Firfty, p. 9 
 
 Book the Second, V' 25 
 
 Book the Third, P- ^9 
 
 Notes on the Three Books, P* 97 
 
 THE PLEASURES OF THE IMAGINATION. 
 
 [On an enlarged Plan.] 
 
 The General Argument^ p. 115 
 
 Book the Firfl, P* i ^ 7 
 
 Book the Second, p. 149 
 
 Book the Third, [unfiniflied,] p. 1 79 
 
 Book the Fourth, [a Fragment,]} p. 203 
 
 ODES ON SEVERAL SUBJECTS, 
 BOOK THE FIRST, 
 
 Ode L Preface, P'-2i3- 
 
 IL On the Winter Solfllce, p. 216 
 
 III. To a Friend, unfuccefsful in Love, P- 221 
 
 IV. Affe£led Indifference. To the fame^ p. 225 
 V, Againfl- Sufpicion, P- 226 
 
 c ^^' Hymn
 
 p- 
 
 230 
 
 p- 
 
 237 
 
 p- 
 
 240 
 
 p- 
 
 245 
 
 p- 
 
 231 
 
 -p- 
 
 ^53 
 
 p- 
 
 257 
 
 9. 
 
 261 
 
 X CONTENTS. 
 
 Ode VI. Hymn to Cheeifulnefs, 
 VII. On the Ufe of Poetry, 
 
 VIII. On leaving Holland, 
 IX. To Curio, 
 ^. To riie Mufe, 
 XI. On Love, to a Friend, 
 
 XII. To Sir Francis Henry Drake, Baronet, 
 
 XIII. Oil Lyric Poetry, 
 
 XIV. To the Honorable CharlesTownfliend, from the Covuitry, p. 266 
 XV. To the Evening Star, p. 269 
 
 XVI. To Caleb Hardinge, M. D. p. 274 
 
 XVII. On a Sermon againfl Glory, p. 276 
 
 XVUI. To the Right Honorable, Francis Earl of Huntingdon, p. 278 
 
 BOOK THE SECOIJD. 
 
 'Ode I. The Remonftrancc of Slialcefpeare, fuppdfed to have been 
 ipoken at theTheatre Royal, while the French Comedlaiis 
 \vere ading by Subfcription, p. 289 
 
 II. To Sleep, • p. 294 
 
 III. To the Cuckow, P* 297 
 
 IV. To the Honorable Charles Townlhend, in the Country, p. 299 
 V. On Love of Praife, p. 308 
 
 VI. To William Hall, Efquire, with the Works of Chaulieu, p. 310 
 
 VII. To the Right Reverend Benjamin Lord BiHiop of Win- 
 
 cheflei;, ?• 3^3 
 
 VIII. p. 317 
 
 IX. At Study, P" 3'9 
 
 X. To Thomas Edwards, Efqulre, on the late Edition of Mr. 
 
 Pope's Works, p. 321 
 
 XI. To the Country Gentlemen of England, p. 324 
 XII. On recovering from a Fit of Sicknefs, in the Country, p. ^33 
 
 XIII. To the Author of Memoirs of tlie Houfe of Brandeuburgh, p. 337 
 
 Ode
 
 CONTENTS, kl 
 
 Ode XIV. The Complaint, p. 339 
 
 XV. On Domefllc Manners, [uiifinifhcd,] p. 340 
 
 Notes on the Two Books of Odes, p. 343 
 
 HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 
 
 Argument, p. 348 
 
 The Hymn, p. 349 
 
 Notes, p. 363 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 I. For a Grotto, P- 37^ 
 
 II. For a Statue of Chaucer at Woodflock, p. 37* 
 
 III. P- 373 
 
 IV. p. 374 
 
 V. P* 375 
 
 VI. For a Column at Runnymede, p. 376 
 
 VII. The Wood-nymph, p. Zll 
 
 VIII. P- Zl'^ 
 IX. P- 380 
 
 THE
 
 THE 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 O F 
 
 IMAGINATION. 
 
 BOOK THE FIRST.
 
 A R G U M E N 
 
 OF 
 
 THE FIRST BOOK. 
 
 T'HE fuhjeSi propofed. Difficulty of treating it poetically^ 
 ^fhe ideas of the divine mind, the origin of every quality 
 pleafng to the imagination. The natural variety of confli- 
 tut ion in the minds of men.., with its final caufe. The idea 
 of a fine imagination, and the flate of the mind in the en- 
 joyment of thofe pleafures which it affords. All the primary 
 pleafures of the imagination refult from the perception of 
 greatnefs, or wonderfulnefs, or beauty in ohjeSis. The plea- 
 fure from greatnefs, with its final caufe. Pleafure from 
 novelty or wonderfulnefs, with' its final caufe. Pleafure from 
 beauty, with its final caufe. The connexion of beauty weth 
 truth and good, applied to the conduSi of life. Invitation to 
 the fudy of moral philofophy. The differe?it degrees of 
 beauty in different fpecies of objeBs : colour ; fhape ; na^ 
 tural concretes ; vegetables ; animals ; the mind. The fub- 
 lime, the fair, the wonderful of the mind. The connexion 
 of the imagination and the moral faculty. Conclufion. 
 
 THE
 
 THE 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 O F 
 
 IMAGINATION. 
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 W I T H what attractive charms this goodly frame 
 Of nature touches the confenting hearts 
 Of mortal men ; and what the pleafing ftores 
 Which beauteous imitation thence derives 
 To deck the poet's, or the painter's toil ; jj 
 
 My verfe unfolds. Attend, ye gentle powers 
 Of mufical delight 1 and while i fing 
 Your gifts, your honours, dance around my ftrain. 
 Thou, fmiling queen of every tuneful breaft, 
 Indulgent Fancy ! from the fruitful banks lo 
 
 Of Avon, whence thy rofy fingers cull 
 Frefli flowers and dews to fprinkle on the turf 
 Where Shakefpeare lies, be prefent : and with thee 
 Let Fiction come, upon her vagrant wings 
 Wafting ten thoufand colours through the air, XS 
 
 C 2 Which,
 
 :; IHEPLEASURESOF 
 
 Which, by the glances of her magic eye, 
 
 She blends and fhifts at will, through countlefs forms, 
 
 Her wild creation. Goddefs of the lyre, 
 
 Which rules the accents of the moving fphere, 
 
 Wilt thou, eternal Harmony 1 defcend 20 
 
 And join this feftive train ? for with thee comes 
 
 The guide, the guardian of their lovely fports, 
 
 Majeftic Truth ; and where Truth deigns to come, 
 
 Her fifler Liberty will not be far. 
 
 Be prefent all ye Genii, who conduct 25 
 
 The wandering footfteps of the youthful bard. 
 
 New to your fprings and fhades : who touch his ear 
 
 With finer founds : who heighten to his eye 
 
 The bloom of nature, and before him turn 
 
 The gay eft, happieft attitude of things. " 30 
 
 Oft have the laws of each poetic ftrain 
 The critic-verfe imployed ; yet ftill unfung 
 Lay this prime fubjedl, though importing moft 
 A poet's name : for fruitlefs is the attempt, 
 By dull obedience and by creeping toil 35 
 
 Obfcure to conquer the fevere afcent 
 Of high Parnafl'us. Nature's kindling breath 
 Muft fire the chofen genius ; nature's hand 
 Muft ftring his nerves, and imp his eagle-wings 
 Impatient of the painful ftccp, to foar 40 
 
 High
 
 ^3 
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK!. 
 High as the fummit ; there to breathe at large 
 iEthereal air : with bards and fages old, 
 Immortal fons of praife. Thefc flattering fcenes 
 To this negledled labour court my fong ; 
 
 Yet not unconfcious what a doubtful tafk 45 
 
 To paint the fineft features of the mind, 
 And to moil: fubtle and myfterious things 
 Give colour, ftrength, and motion. But the love 
 Of nature and the mufes bids explore, 
 
 Through fecret paths erewhile untrod by man, 50 
 
 The fair poetic region, to deted: 
 Untafted fprings, to drink infpiring draughts, 
 And fliade my temples with unfading flowers 
 Cull'd from the laureate vale's profound recefs, 
 Where never poet gain'd a wreath before. 55 
 
 From heaven my ftrains begin ; from heaven defcends 
 The flame of genius to the human breaft. 
 And love and beauty, and poetic joy 
 And infplration. Ere the radiant fun 
 
 Sprang from the eaft, or 'mid the vault of night 60 
 
 The moon fufpended her ferener lamp ; 
 Ere mountains, woods, or ftreams adorn'd the globe. 
 Or wifdom taught the fons of men her lore ; 
 Then liv'd the almighty One : then, deep-retir'd 
 In his unfathom'd efl'ence, view'd the forms, 65 
 
 The
 
 J4 TIIEPLEASUllESOF 
 
 The forms eternal of created things ; 
 
 'Hie radiant fun, the moon's nodurnal lamp, 
 
 The mountains, woods and ftreams, the rowling globe. 
 
 And wifdom's mien celeftial. From the firft 
 
 Of days, on them his love divine he fix'd, 70 
 
 His admiration : till in time compleat, 
 
 AVhat he admir'd and lov'd, his vital fmile 
 
 Unfolded into being. Hence the breath 
 
 Of life informing each organic frame, 
 
 Hence the green earth, and wild refounding waves ; 75 
 
 Hence light and fhade alternate j warmth and cold ] 
 
 And clear autumnal fkies and vernal {howerSj 
 
 And all the fair variety of things. 
 
 But not alike to every mortal eye 
 Is this great fcene unvell'd. For fince the claims 80 
 
 Of focial life, to different labours urge 
 The adlive powers of man ; with wife intent 
 The hand of nature on peculiar minds 
 Imprints a different byafs, and to each 
 Decrees its province in the common toil. 
 To fome {he taught the fabric of the fphere, 
 The changeful moon, the circuit of the ftars, 
 The golden zones of heaven : to fome fhe gave 
 To weigh the moment of eternal things, 
 Of time, and fpace, ajid fate's unbroken chain, 90 
 
 And
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K t. i^ 
 
 And will's quick impulfe : others by the hand 
 
 She led o'er vales and mountains, to explore 
 
 What healing virtue fwells the tender veins 
 
 Of herbs and flowers ; or what the beams of morn 
 
 Draw forth, diftilling from the clifted rind 95 
 
 In balmy tears. But fome, to higher hopes 
 
 Were deftin'd ; fome within a finer mould 
 
 She wrought, and temper'd with a purer flame. 
 
 To thefe the fire omnipotent unfolds 
 
 The world's harmonious volume, there to read lOO 
 
 The tranfcript of himfelf On every part 
 
 They trace the bright impreffions of his hand : 
 
 In earth or air, the meadow's purple ftores, 
 
 The moon's mild radiance, or the virgin's form 
 
 Blooming with rofy fmiles, they fee portray 'd 1 05 
 
 That uncreated beauty, which delights 
 
 The mind fupreme. They alfo feel her charms, 
 
 Enamour'd ; they partake the eternal joy. 
 
 For as old Memnon's image, long renown'd 
 By fabling Nilus, to the quivering touch no 
 
 Of Titan's ray, with each repulfive ftring 
 Confenting, founded through the warbling air 
 Unbidden drains ; even fo did nature's hand 
 To certain fpecies of external things 
 
 Attune the finer organs of the mind: 115 
 
 So
 
 ,6 THEPLEASURESOt 
 
 So the glad impuUe of congenial powers, 
 
 Or of fweet found, or fair proportion'd form. 
 
 The grace of motion, or the bloom of light, 
 
 Thrills through imagination's tender frame, 
 
 From nerve to nerve : all naked and alive I20 
 
 They catch the fpreading rays : till now the foul 
 
 At length difclofes every tuneful fpring, 
 
 To that harmonious movement from without 
 
 Refponfive. Then the inexpreflive ftrain 
 
 Diffufes its inchantment : fancy dreams 125 
 
 Of facred fountains and Elyfian groves, 
 
 And vales of blifs : the intelledlual power 
 
 Bends from his awful throne a wondering ear. 
 
 And fmlles : the paffions, gently footh'd away, 
 
 Sink to divine repofe, and love and joy 130 
 
 Alone are waking ; love and joy, ferene 
 
 As airs that fan the fummer. O ! attend. 
 
 Whoe'er thou art, whom thefe delights can touch, 
 
 Whofe candid bofom the refining love 
 
 Of nature warms, o! Hften to my fong; 135 
 
 And i will guide thee to her favourite walks. 
 
 And teach thy folltude her voice to hear, 
 
 And point her lovelieft features to thy view. 
 
 Know then, whatever of nature's pregnant flores, 
 Whate'er of mimic art*s refleded forms 140 
 
 With
 
 1 M A G I N A i" ION. BOOK 1. 
 
 With love and admiration lluis inflame 
 The powers of fancy, her delighted Ions 
 To three illullrious orders have referr'd ; 
 Three filler- graces, whom the painter's hand, 
 The poet's tongue confefl'es ; the fublime, 
 The wonderlul, the fair. I fee them dawn I 
 I fee the radiant vilions, where they rife, 
 More lovelv than when Lucifer difplavs 
 ^ His beamino; forehead throucrh the spates of morn. 
 To lead the train of Phoebus and the fprin"-. 
 
 J +5 
 
 iro 
 
 Sav, why was man fo eminently rais'd 
 Amid the vail creation ; \\ hy ordain'd 
 .^Through life and death to dart his piercing eye, 
 With thoughts beyond the limit of his frame ; 
 But that the omnipotent might fend him forth 155 
 
 In fight of mortal and immortal powers, 
 As on a boundlefs theatre, to run 
 The great career of juftice ; to exalt 
 His generous aim to all diviner deeds j 
 
 To chafe each partial purpofe from his breall ; i 60 
 
 And through the mills of paflion and of fenle, 
 And through the toffmg tide of chance and pain, 
 To hold his CGurfe unfaultering, while the voice 
 Of truth and virtue, up the flecp afeciit . 
 Of nature, calls him to his high reward, ^65 
 
 D The
 
 i8- T H E P L E A S U R E S O l- 
 
 The applauding funic of heaven ? Elfe wherefore burns 
 
 In mortal bofoms tliis unquenchcd hope, 
 
 'J'h'U breathes from day to day fuhlimer things, 
 
 And mocks poiillHon ? wherefore darts the mind,, 
 
 Vv^ith fjch refilUefs ardour to embrace 17Q 
 
 Mijcflic forms ; impatient to be ^-cc, 
 
 Spurning the grofs controul of wilful miglit ;, 
 
 Proud of the flrong contention of her toils ; 
 
 Proud to be daring ? Who but rather turns 
 
 To heaven's broad lire his unconftrained view, i-.j ^. 
 
 Than to tlie olimmerlno; of a waxen flame ? 
 
 Who that, from Alpine heights, his labouring eye 
 
 Sb.oots round the wide horizon, to furvey 
 
 Nilus or Ganges rowling his bright wave. 
 
 Through mountains,. plains, through empires black with fliade. 
 
 And continents of fand ; will turn his gaze 
 
 To mark the windings of a fcanty rill 
 
 That murm.urs at his feet ? The high-born foul. 
 
 Difdains to r.fl: her heaven-afpiring vring 
 
 Beneath its native quarry. Tir'd of earth 185 
 
 And this diurnal fcene, fhe fprings aloft 
 
 Through fields of air ; purfues the flying ftcrm ; 
 
 Rides on the vollied hghtning through the heavens ; 
 
 Or, yok'd with whirlwinds and the northern blaft, 
 
 Sweeps the long trad of day. Then high flie foars 190 
 
 The blue profound, and hovering round the fun 
 
 Beholds
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K I. 19 
 
 Beholds him pouring Uic redundant ArCvim 
 
 Of light ; beholds his unrelenting I'way 
 
 Eend the rcludant planets to abfolve 
 
 The fated rounds of time. Thence far effus'd !(?5 
 
 She darts her fwiftnefs up the long career 
 
 Of devious comets ; through its burning figns 
 
 Exulting meafures the perennial wheel 
 
 Of nature, and looks back on all the liars, 
 
 Whofe blended light, as with a milky zone, 200 
 
 Invefts the orient. Now amaz'd Ihc views 
 
 The empyreal walle, where happy fpirits hold, 
 
 Beyond this concave heaven, their calm abode j 
 
 And fields of radiance, whofe unfading light 
 
 Has travell'd the profound fix thoufand years, 205 
 
 Nor yet arrives in fight of mortal things. 
 
 Even on the barriers of the world untir'd 
 
 She meditates the eternal depth below ; 
 
 Till half recoiling, down the headlong fteep 
 
 She plunges; foon o'crwhelm'd and fwallow'd up 210 
 
 In that immenfe of being. There her hopes 
 
 Reil at the fated goal. For from the birth 
 
 Of mortal man, the fovran maker faid, 
 
 That not In humble nor in brief delight, 
 
 Not in the f-iding echoes of renov/n, 215 
 
 Power's purple robes, nor pleafure's flowery lap, 
 
 The foul fiiould find enjoyment : but from thefe 
 
 D 2 Turning
 
 :o THE PLEASURES OF ' 
 
 Turning cUrdalnful to an equal good, 
 
 Through all the afcent of things inlarge her view. 
 
 Till every bound at length fliould difappcar, 220 
 
 And infinite perfedion clofe the fcene. 
 
 Call now to mind what high capacious powers 
 Lie folded up in man ; how far bevond 
 The prailc ol mortals, may the eternal growth 
 Of nature to perfection half divine, 225 
 
 If xpand the blooming foul ? What pity then 
 Should lloth's unkindly fogs deprefs to earth 
 Her tender bloflbm j choak the flreams of life, 
 And blaft her fpring I Far otherwife defign'd 
 Almighty wlfdoxTi ; nature's happy cares 21Q 
 
 The obedient heart far otherwife incline. 
 Witnefs the fprightly joy when aught unknown 
 Strikes the quick fenfe, and wakes each aclive power 
 To brifker meafures : witnefs the neolecl 
 Of all familiar profpeds, though beheld 
 With tranfport once ; the fond attentive gaze 
 Of young aftoniiliment ; the fober zeal 
 Of age, commenting on prodigious things. 
 For fuch the bounteous providence of heaven, 
 In every breaft implanting this defire , 240 
 
 Of objccls new and ilrange, to urge us on 
 With unremitted labour to purfue 
 
 Thofe 
 
 o' 
 
 ■7 1 /-
 
 I M A G I N A T I O N. B O O K I. 21 
 
 Thofc facred ftorcs that wait the ripening foul, 
 In Truth's exhauttlefs bofom. What need words 
 To paint its power ? For this the daring youth 245 
 
 Breaks from his weeping mother's anxious arms, 
 In foreign climes to rove : the penfive fage, 
 Hcedlefs of fleep, or midnight's harmful damp, 
 Hangs o'er the {ickly taper ; and untir'd 
 
 The virgin follows, with inchanted ftep, 250 
 
 The mazes of fome wild and wondrous tale, 
 From morn to eve ; unmindful of her form, . 
 Unmindful of the happy drefs that ftole 
 The wifhes of the youth, when every maid 
 With envy pin'd. Hence, finally, by night 255 
 
 The village- matron, round the blazing hearth, 
 Sufpends the infant-audience v/ith her tales. 
 Breathing aftonifhment ! of witching rhimes, 
 And evil fpirits ; of the death- bed call 
 
 Of him who robb'd the widow, and devour'd 260 
 
 The orphan's portion ; of unquiet fouls 
 Rifen from the grave to eafe the heavy guilt 
 Of deeds in life conceal'd ; of (hapes that v/alk 
 At dead of night, and clank their chains, and wave 
 The torch of hell around the murderer's bed. 265 
 
 At every folemn paufe the croud recoil 
 Gazing each other fpcechlefs, and congeal'd 
 
 \^'ith fhivering fighs : till eager for the event, 
 
 Around
 
 i5 T II n P L E A S U II E S O F 
 
 Around the beldame all arrc^i they hang, 
 
 Each trembling heart with grateful terrors qucll'd. 270 
 
 But lo! dlfclos'd in all her fmiling pomp, 
 Where Beauty onward moving claims the verfe 
 Her charnis Ihfpire : the freely-flowing verfe 
 In thy immortal praife, o form divine. 
 
 Smooths her mellifluent ilream. Thee, Beauty, thee 275 
 The regal dome, and thy enlivening ray 
 The mofTy roofs adore : thou, better fun ! 
 For ever beamed on the enchanted heart 
 Love, and harmonious wonder, and delight 
 Poetic. Brighteft progeny of heaven ! 280 
 
 How fhall i trace thv features ? where feleft 
 The rofeate hues to em\nlate thy bloom? 
 Hafte then, my fong, through nature's wide cxpanfe, 
 Hafte then, and gather all her comelieft wealth, 
 Whate'er bright fpoils the florid earth contains, 285 
 
 Whatc'er the waters, or the liquid air. 
 To deck thy lovely labour. Wilt thou fly 
 With laughing Autumn to the Atlantic Ifles, 
 And range with him the Hefperian field, and fee 
 Where'er his fingers touch the fruitful grove, 290 
 
 The branches fboot with gold ; where'er his fliep 
 Marks the glad foil, the tender cluflers grow 
 With purple rlpenefs, and inveil each hill 
 
 As
 
 I M AGINATION. BOO K I. 23 
 
 As with the bkiflics of an evening fky ? 
 
 Or wilt thou rather {Icx)p thy vagrant plume, 295 
 
 Where gliding through his daughter's honour'd fhadcs, 
 
 The fmoolh Peneus from his glafly flood 
 
 Reflcds purpureal Tempo's pleafant fccne ? 
 
 Fair Tcmpe ! haunt belov'd of fylvan powers, 
 
 Gf Nymphs and Fauns ; where in the golden age SCCt 
 
 They play'd in fecret on the fliady brink 
 
 AVith ancient Pan : while round their choral fleps 
 
 Young Hours and o-enial Gales with conilant hand 
 
 Shower'd blollbms, odours, fliower'd ambrofial dews, 
 
 And fpring's Elyfian bloom. Her flowery flore 305 
 
 To thee nor Tempe fnall refufe ; nor watch 
 
 Of winged Hydra guard Hefperian fruits 
 
 From thy free fpoil. O bear then, unreprov'd, 
 
 Thy fmiling trcafures to the green, recefs 
 
 "Where young Dione ftays. "With fweeteft airs 310, 
 
 Intice her forth to lend her angel-form 
 
 For Beauty's honour'd image. Hither turn 
 
 Thy graceful footileps ; hither, gentle maid, , 
 
 Incline thy polifh'd forehead : let thy eyes 
 
 Efiufe the mildncfs of their azure dawn ; 315-; 
 
 And may the fanning breezes waft aGde 
 
 Thy radiant locks : difcloiing, as it bends 
 
 With airy foftnefs from the m.arble neck, 
 
 The cheek fair- blooming, and the rofy lip. 
 
 Where
 
 .^ T il £ r L E A S U R E S O F 
 
 Where winning fmilcs and plcafurcs fwcet as love, 320 
 
 With fandity and wifdom, tempering blend 
 
 Their (ok allurement. Then the pkafing force 
 
 Oi nature, and her kind parental care 
 
 Worthier i'd finG: : then all the enamour'd youth, 
 
 With each admiring virgin, to my lyre 325 
 
 Should throng attentive, while i point on high 
 
 Where Beauty's living image, like the morn 
 
 That wakes in Zephyr's arms the bludung May, 
 
 JNIoves onward ; or as Venus, when Hic Hood 
 
 Efi'ulgent on the pearly car, and fmil'd, 330 
 
 Frelli from the deep, and confcious of her form, 
 
 To fee the Tritons tune their vocal (hells, 
 
 And each coerulean filler ol the flood 
 
 With loud acclaim attend her o'er the waves, 
 
 To feek the Idalian bower. Ye fmiling band 335 
 
 Of youths and virgins, who through all the maze 
 
 Of young defire with rival-lleps purfue 
 
 This charm of beauty ; if the pleafing toil 
 
 Can yield a moment's refpite, hither turn 
 
 Your favourable ear, and trufl: my words. 340 
 
 I do not mean to wake the gloomy form 
 
 Of Superliition drefs'd in Wifdom's garb, 
 
 To damp your tender hopes ; i do not mean 
 
 To bid the jealous thunderer fire the heayens, 
 
 Or fliapcs infernal rend the groaning earth 345 
 
 To
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK!. 25 
 
 To fright you from your joys, my cheerful foiK'- 
 With better omens calls you to the field, 
 Pleas'd with your generous ardour in the chacc, 
 And warm like you. Then tell me, for ye know, 
 Does beauty ever deign to dwell where health 350 
 
 And adlivc ufe are ftrangers ? Is her charm 
 Confefs'd in aught, whofe moll peculiar ends 
 Are lame and fruitlefs ? Or did nature mean 
 This pleafing call the herald of a lye ; 
 
 To hide the ihame of difcord and difeafe, 355 
 
 And catch with fair hypocrify the heart 
 Of idle faith ? O no ! with better cares 
 The indulo;cnt mother, confcious how infirm 
 Her offspring tread the paths of good and ill. 
 By" this illuflrious image, in each kind 360 
 
 Still mofl illuftrious where the objed holds 
 Its native powers moft perfedl, fhe by this 
 Illumes the hcadftrong impulfe of defirc, 
 And landihes his choice. The generous glebe 
 Whofc bofona fmiles with verdure, the clear tract 365 
 
 Of ftreams delicious to the thlrfty foul, 
 The bloom of nedbar'd fruitage ripe to fenfe, 
 And every charm of animated things, 
 Are only pledges of a flate fincere. 
 The integrity and order of their frame, S^^ 
 
 When all is well within, and every end 
 
 J? Accomplilli'd.
 
 26 T 11 K PLEASURES OF 
 
 Accom|>]il]rd. Thus Was beauty fcnt from heavcn>, 
 
 The lovclv minilh-efs of truth and Q-ood 
 
 In this dark world : for truth and wod are one,. 
 
 And beauty dwells in them, and they in her, 27!>. 
 
 With like participation. Wherefore then, 
 
 O fons of earth ! v/ould ye diflblve the tye ? 
 
 O wherefore, with a ralh impstuous aim, 
 
 Seek ye tliofe flowery joys with which the hand' 
 
 Of lavifii fancy paints each flattering fccne 380 
 
 Where beauty feems to dwell, nor once inquire 
 
 Where is the fimftion of eternal truth, 
 
 Or where the feal of undeccitful good. 
 
 To fave vour fearch from folly ! Wantincr thefej 
 
 Lo 1 beauty v/ithers in your void embrace,. 385. 
 
 And with the 2:litterinf>" of an Idiot's toy 
 
 Did fancy mock your vows. Nor let the gleam 
 
 Of youthful hope that fl:iines upon your hearts, 
 
 Be chill'd or clouded at this awful tafk. 
 
 To learn the lore of undeccitful good,. 390 
 
 And truth eternal. Though the poifonous charms 
 
 Of baleful fupe^-ftition guide the feet 
 
 Of fervile numbers, through a dreary v/ay 
 
 To their abode, through defarts, thorns and mire ,. 
 
 And leave the v/retched pilgrim all forlorn 395: 
 
 To mufe at laft, amid the ghofily gloom 
 
 Of graves, and hoary vaults, and cloifler'd cells i 
 
 To
 
 I M A G I N A r ION. BOO Iv I. 27 
 
 To walk with fpcdrcs through the midniglit fliadc^ 
 And to the Icieaming ovvrs accurfcd fong 
 Attune the dreadful workings of his heart j 400 
 
 Yet be not yc difmay'd. A gentler ftar 
 Your lovely fcarch illumines. From the 2;rove 
 Where vvifdom talli'd wkh her Athenian fons, 
 Could mv ambitious hand intvvine a wreath 
 Of Plato's olive with the Mantuan bay, -40^ 
 
 Then fliould my powerful verfe at once difpell 
 Thofe monkifli horrors : then in lip-ht divine 
 
 O 
 
 Difclofc the Elyfian profpcctj where the fteps 
 
 Of thofe whom nature charms, through blooming walks, 
 
 Through fragrant mountains and poetic ftreamsj 4to 
 
 Amid the train of fages, heroes, bards, 
 
 Led by their winged Genius and the choir 
 
 Of laurell'd fcicnce and harmonious art, 
 
 Proceed exultino; to the eternal flirlne. 
 
 Where truth confpicuous with her fifter-twinsj 415 
 
 The undivided partners of her fway, 
 
 With o;ood and beautv reirns. O let not us* 
 
 Lu>ird by luxurious pleafure's languid flrain^ 
 
 Or crouchini^ to the frowns of bigot- rage, 
 
 O let us not a moment paufe to join 4-*^ 
 
 That godlike band. And if the gracious power 
 
 Who firfl: awakcn'd mv untutor'd fong, 
 
 Will to my invocation breathe anew 
 
 E 2 The
 
 28 T II E P L E A S U R E S O F 
 
 The tuneful fpirit ; then through all our paths, 
 
 Ne'er fliall the found of this devoted lyre 425 
 
 Be wanthig ; whether on the rofy mead, 
 
 When fummer fmiles, to warn the melting heart 
 
 Of luxury *s allurement ; whether firm 
 
 Ao-alnft the torrent and the (lubborn hill 
 
 To urge bold virtue's unremitted nerve, 43q>. 
 
 And wake the ftrong divinity of foul 
 
 That conquers chance and fate ; or whether flruck 
 
 For founds of triumph, to proclaim her tolls- 
 
 Upon the lofty fummit, round her brow 
 
 To twine the wreath of incorruptive praife ; 435- 
 
 To trace her hallow'd light through future worlds, 
 
 And blefs heaven's image in the heart of man. 
 
 Thus with a faithful aim have we prefum'd; 
 Adventurous, to delineate nature's form ; 
 Whether in vaH:, majeftic pomp- array 'd) 440 
 
 Or drciL for pleafing wonder, cr ferene- 
 In beauty's rofy fmile. It nov/ remains,. 
 Through various being's fair-proportion'd fcale^. 
 To trace tlie rifino; luftre of her charms, 
 From their firfi: twilight, fliining forth at length: 445: 
 
 To full meridian fplendour. Of degree 
 The leall and lowlieft, in the effuiive warmth 
 
 Of colours mindingr with a random blaze. 
 
 Doth
 
 I M A G I N A T I O N. B O O K I. 27 
 
 Doth beauty dwell. Then higher in the hnc 
 
 i\nd variation of detcrmin'd (hapc, 450 
 
 "Where truth's eternal meafures mark the bound 
 
 Of circle, cube, or fphcre. The third afcent 
 
 Unites this va-i^ied fymmetry of parts 
 
 With colour's bland alkirement ; as the pearl. 
 
 Shines in the concave of its azure bed, 455- 
 
 And painted fliells indent their fpeckled wreath. 
 
 Then more attra£tive rife the blooming forms 
 
 Through which the breath of nature has infus'd, 
 
 Her genial power to draw with pregnant veins 
 
 Nutritious moiiture from the bounteous earth,. 460 
 
 In fruit and feed prolific: thus the flowers 
 
 Their purple honours with the fpring refume >. 
 
 And fuch the {lately tree which autumn bends 
 
 With blufhing trsafurcs. But more lovely Aill 
 
 Is nature's charm, where to the full confent 465 
 
 Gf complicated members, to the bloom 
 
 Of colour, and the vital change of growth, 
 
 Life's holy flame and piercing fcnfe are givenp. 
 
 And adive motion fpeaks the tempcr'd foul i 
 
 So moves the bird of Juno ; fo the fteed 470 
 
 With rival ardour beats the, du fly plain,,. 
 
 And faithful dogs with eager airs of joy. 
 
 Salute their fellows. Thus doth beauty dwell 
 
 There moil confpicu.ous, even in outward fliape, 
 
 Where
 
 ,3 T n E P L E A 5 U R E S O P 
 
 \\ here (lavv-iio ihc high cxpreiiion of a mind: 475. 
 
 Bv flcps concUi£ling our inraplur'd icarch 
 To that eternal origin, ^vhofe power, 
 ThroLicrh all the unbounded iVmrnetry of things, 
 Like rays eft'ulging from the parent fun, 
 
 This endlefs mixture of her charms diftus'd. 4,80 
 
 JNlhid, mind alone, (bear witnefs, earth and heaven !) 
 The living fountains m itfcU contains 
 Of beauteous and fubllme : here hand in hand, 
 Sit paramount the Graces ; here inthron'd, 
 Coeleftial Venus, vAth divincft airs, 485 
 
 Invites the foul to never-fading joy. 
 Look then abroad through nature, to the range 
 Of planets, funs, and adamantine fpheres 
 Wheelino- unfliaken ihroug^h the void immcnfe; 
 And fpeak, o man! does this capacious fcene 490 
 
 With half that kindling majefty dilate 
 Thy rirong conception, as v.'hen Brutus rofe 
 Refulgent from the llroke of C^ti^ii's f.Ue, 
 Amid the croud of patriots ; and his arm 
 Aloft extending, like eternal Jove 495 
 
 When guilt brings down the thunder, call'd aloud 
 On Tully's name, and fhook his crimlbn ficel. 
 And bade the father of his country, hail I 
 For lo! the tyrant proftrate on the dult, 
 
 And Rome again is free ! Is aught fo fair 500 
 
 In
 
 1 M A G I N A T ION. B O O K I. 31 
 
 In all the dewy landfcapcs of the Spring, 
 
 In the bright eye of Hefper or the morn, 
 
 In nature's faireft forms, is aught fo fair 
 
 As virtuous frlcndfliip ? as the candid blufh 
 
 Of him who ftrives with fortune to be juft ? ro.^ 
 
 The (graceful tear that ftreams for others v;ocs ? 
 
 Or the mild majefty of private life, 
 
 Vv'here peace with ever- blooming oHve crowns 
 
 The gate ; where honour's liberal hands efFufe 
 
 Unenvied treafures, and the fnowy wings 510 
 
 Of innocence and love prote6b the fcenc ? 
 
 Once more fearch, undifmay'd, the dark profound 
 
 Where nature works in fccret ; view the beds 
 
 Of mineral treafure, and the eternal vault 
 
 That bounds the hoary ocean ; trace the forms 515 
 
 Of atoms movino: v/ith inceilant chanoje 
 
 Their elemental round ; behold the feeds 
 
 Of being, and the energy of life 
 
 Kindlins: the mafs with ever- active flame : 
 
 Then to the fccrets of the working mind 520, 
 
 Attentive turn; from dim oblivion call 
 
 Her fleet, ideal band ; and bid them, go ! 
 
 Break through time's barrier, and o'ertake the hour 
 
 That faw the heavens created : then declare 
 
 If aught were found in thofe external fcenes 525 
 
 To mo\'e thy wondcj now. For what are all 
 
 f - 
 
 Th 
 
 e
 
 ,yi T H E V LEAS U RES O V 
 
 The forms which brute, unconfclous matter wears, 
 
 Grcatnels of bulk, or fymmetry of parts ? 
 
 Not reaching to the heart, foon feeble grows 
 
 The fupcrhcial impiiifci dull their charms, 530 
 
 And fatiate foon, and pall the languid eye. 
 
 Not fo the moral fpecles, nor the po^vers 
 
 Of frenius and delig;n ; the ambitious mind 
 
 There fees hericlf : by thefe congenial forms 
 
 Touched and awakeii'd, with intenfer act 535 
 
 She bends each nerve, and meditates well-pleas'd 
 
 Her features in the mirror. For of all 
 
 The inhabitants of earth, to man alone 
 
 Creative Vv^ifdoni gave to lift his eye 
 
 To truth's eternal mcafures j thence to frame 54.0 
 
 TJae ilicred laws of a<Slion ajid of will, 
 
 Difcerning juftice from unequal deeds, 
 
 And temperance from folly. But bevond 
 
 This energy of truth, whofe dictates bind 
 
 Aflenting reafon, the benignant (ire, 54.5 
 
 To deck the honour'd paths of jufl and good. 
 
 Has added bright imagination's rays : 
 
 Where virtue, rifmg from the awful depth 
 
 Of truth's myfierious bofora, doth forfake 
 
 The unadorn'd condition of her birth; 550 
 
 And drefs'd by fancy in ten thouland hues, 
 
 Affumes a various feature, to attra<ft, 
 
 With 
 
 I
 
 I U A G I N A T I O N. BOOK I. 33 
 
 With charms rcfponfive to each gazer's eye, 
 
 The hearts of men. Amid his rural walk, 
 
 The ingenuous youth, whom folitude infpires 555 
 
 With purell wiflies, from the penfive (hade 
 
 Beholds her moving, like a virgin-mufc 
 
 That wakes her lyre to fome indulgent theme 
 
 Of harmony and wonder : while among 
 
 The herd of fervile minds, her Itrenuous form 563 
 
 Indignant flaflics on the patriot's eye, 
 
 And through the rolls of memory appeals 
 
 To ancient honour, or in act ferene. 
 
 Yet watchful, raifes the majeftic fword 
 
 Of public power, from dark ambition's reach 365 
 
 To guard the facred volume of the laws. 
 
 ^ 
 
 Genius of ancient Greece ! whofe faithful fleps- 
 Well-pleas'd i foUov/ through the facred paths 
 Of nature and of fcience ; nurfc divine 
 Of all heroic deeds and fair defires ! 570 
 
 ! let the breath of thy extended praifc 
 Infpire my kindling bofom to the height 
 
 Of this untempted theme. Nor be my thoughts 
 
 Prefumptuous counted, if amid the calm 
 
 That fooths this vernal evening. into fmiles, 575 
 
 1 fteal impatient from the fordid haunts 
 Of llrife and low ambition, to attend 
 Thy facred prefence in tl:e f\'lvan fliade, 
 
 F By
 
 34 T 11 F. V LEAS U tl E 3, Sic. 
 
 By their malignant footftcps ne'er profan'd. 
 
 Dcfcend, propitious! to my tavour'd eye; 580 
 
 Sucli in thy m.ien, thy warm, exalted air, 
 
 As when the Perlian tyrant, foil'd and liung 
 
 With ihame and defperation, gnafli'd his teet'i 
 
 To fee thee rend the pageants of his throne ; 
 
 And at the lightning of thy Hftcd fpear 585 
 
 Cfouch'd hke aflave. Bring all thy martial fpoils, 
 
 Thv palms, thy laurels, thy ttiumphal fongs., 
 
 Thv fmilino; band of arts, thv crodlike fires 
 
 Of civil wifdom, thy heroic youth 
 
 Warm from the fchools of glory. Guide my way 590 
 
 Uhrough fair Lyceum's walk, the green retreats 
 
 Of Academus, and the thymy vale, 
 
 "IVhere oft inchantcd with Socratic founds, 
 
 Ililfus purcdevolv'd his tuneful Ih^eam 
 
 In gentler murmurs. From the blooming ftore 595 
 
 of thefe aufpicious fields, may i unblam'd 
 
 Tsanfplant fome living bloffoms to adorn 
 
 Mv native clime : while far above the fiiirht 
 
 Of fancy's plume afpiring, i unlock 
 
 The fprings of ancient wifdom ; while i join 600 
 
 Thy name, thrice honour'd ! with the immortal praife 
 
 Of nature, while to my compatriot vouth 
 
 I point the high example of thy fens., 
 
 And tune to Attic themes the Britifh lyre. 
 
 END OF BOOK I. 
 
 1
 
 T. H E. 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 O F' 
 
 I M A G I N A T I O N. 
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 F 2
 
 ARGUMENT 
 
 O F 
 
 THE SECOND BOOK. 
 
 THE feparation of the ivorks of imaginat'ioii from fhilo- 
 fophy, the caife of their abufe among the moderns. ProfpeB 
 of their re-union tinder the infuence of public liberty. Enu- 
 meration of accidental pleafures, which increafe the effeci cf 
 objecls delightful to the imagi?iation. The pleafures of fe?fe. I 
 Particular circumflances of the mind. Difcovery of truth, f 
 Perception of co7itrivance and deftgn. Emotio7i of the pdf- 
 fons. All the natural pajfions partake of a plcafing fe7fa- 
 tion \ with the final caufe of this conflitution illufl rated by a7i 
 allegorical vifion^ and exefnplifed in for row ^ pity, terror, and T 
 .indignation. 
 
 T n E
 
 T II ■£ 
 
 P L E ASURES 
 
 O F 
 
 IMAGINATION, 
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 VV HEN Hiall the laurel and the vocal liring; 
 
 Refume their honours ? When fliall we behold 
 
 The tuneful tono-ue, the Promethean hand 
 
 Afpire to ancient praii'e ? Alas ! how fliint, 
 
 How flow the dawn of beauty and of truth 5 
 
 Breaks the rclufl:ant Ihades of Gothic m.-A\t 
 
 Which yet involve the nations ! Long they groan'd 
 
 Beneath the furies of rapacious force ; 
 
 Oft as the gloomy north, with iron-fwarms 
 
 Tempeftuous pouring from her frozen cavc>, 10 
 
 Blafted the Italian fliore, and fvvept the works 
 
 Of liberty and wifdom down the gulph 
 
 Of all-devourinc: niizht. As lon^; immur'd 
 
 In noon-tide da-rknefs by the glimmering lamp. 
 
 Each mufe and each fair fcience pin'd away i 5 
 
 The 
 
 i iJi
 
 58 T H E P L E A S U II E S O F 
 
 The fordid hours : while foul, barbarian hands 
 
 Their myfheries profan'd, unft'rung the lyre, 
 
 And chain'd the foaring pinion down to earth. 
 
 At laft the mufes rofe, and fpurn'd their bonds,. 
 
 And wildly warbling, fcatter'd, as they flew, 20- 
 
 Their blooming wreaths from fair Valclufi's bowers 
 
 To Arno's myrtle border and the fliore 
 
 Of foft Parthenope. But ftili' the rage 
 
 Of dire ambition and gigantic power, 
 
 From public aims and from the bufy walk 2 c 
 
 Of civil commerce, drove the bolder train 
 
 Of penetrating fcience to the cells. 
 
 Where ftudious cafe confumes the nlent hour 
 
 In fliadowy fearches and unfruitful care. 
 
 Thus from their guardians torn, the tender arts -to 
 
 Of mimic fancy and harmonious joy,. 
 
 To priellly domination and the luft 
 
 Of lawlefs courts, their amiable toil 
 
 For three inglorious ages have refign'd. 
 
 In vain reludant : and Torquato's tongue '^r 
 
 Was tun'd for flavifh pieans at the throne 
 
 Of tlnfcl pomp : and Raphael's magic hand 
 
 Eftus'd its fair creation to enchant 
 
 The fond adoring herd In Latlan fanes 
 
 To blind belief; while on their proftrate necks 40 
 
 The fable tyrant plants his heel fccure. 
 
 * But
 
 I 1\I A G I N A T I O N. BOOK H. 39 
 
 But now behold ! the radiant vera dawns, 
 When freedom's ample fabric, fix'd at Icngtli 
 For endlefs years on Albion's happy Ihore 
 In full proportion, once more fliall extend 45 
 
 To all the kindred powers of focial blifs 
 A common manlion, a parental roof. 
 There jfliall the virtues, there {hall wifdom's train, 
 Their long- loft friends rejoining, as of old. 
 Embrace the fmiling family of arts, 1^ > 
 
 The mufes and the graces. Then no more 
 Shall vice, dilhafling their delicious gifts 
 To aims abhorr'd, with high dillaile and fcorn 
 Turn from their charms the philofophic eve, 
 The patriot-bofom ; then no more the paths 5 5 
 
 Of public care or intellecflual toil, 
 Alone by footfteps haughty and fevere 
 In gloomy ftatc be trod: the harmonious Mule 
 And her perfuafive fifters then iliall plant 
 Their fhcltering laurels o'er the bleak afcent, 60 
 
 And fcatter flowers along the rugged way. 
 Arm'd with the lyre, already have we dar'd 
 To pierce divine philofoph)'s retreats, 
 And teach the Mufe her lore; already llrove 
 Their long- divided honours to unite, "5 
 
 While tempering this deep argument we iang 
 
 Of truth r,nd beautv. Now the fame glad tads 
 
 Impends ;
 
 ^b T H E P L E A S U R E S O r 
 
 ImpcnJs ; now urging our ambitious toil, 
 Wc haRen to recount tlie various fprings 
 
 Of adventitious pkafure, which adjoin 70 
 
 Their erateful influence to the prime efl^ecl 
 Of objeds grand or beauteous, and inlarge 
 The compHcatcd joy. The fweets of fenfe,, 
 Do they not oft with kind acceflion flow. 
 To raife harnionious fancy's native charm? 75 
 
 So while we taite the fragrance of the rofe, 
 Glows not her blufh the fairer ? While v/e view 
 Amid the noontide walk a limpid rill 
 Gulh through the trickling herbage, to the thirfl 
 Of fummer yielding the delicious draught 80. 
 
 'Of cool refrefliment ; o'er the mofi'y brink 
 Sliines not the furface clearer, and the waves 
 Widi fweeter muflc murmur as thcv flow ? 
 
 Nor this alone ; the various lot of life 
 Oft irom external circumftance aflumes 85 
 
 A moment's difpoiition to rejoice 
 In thofj delights which at a diflerent hour 
 V/ould pafs unheeded. Fair the face of fpring, 
 When rural fongs and odours wake the morn. 
 To every eye ; but how much more to his 90 
 
 Round v.'hom the bed of (icknefs long difi'us'd 
 Its melancholy gloom ! how doubly fair. 
 
 When
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K II. ^t 
 
 When firft with frefh-born vigour he inhales 
 The balmy breeze, and feels the blefled fun 
 Warm at his bofom, from the fprings of life or 
 
 Chafing oppreflive damps and languid pain ! 
 
 Or fhall i mention, where ca?lefl:ial truth 
 Her awful light difclofes, to beftow 
 A more majeftic pomp on beauty's frame ? 
 For man loves knowledge, and the beams of truth loo 
 
 More welcome touch his undcrftanding's eye, 
 Than all the blandilhments of found his ear, 
 Than all of tafte his tongue. Nor ever yet 
 The meltinsf rainbow's vernal-tinQiur'd hues 
 To me have (hone fo pleafing, as when firft 105 
 
 The hand of fcience pointed out the path 
 In which the fun-beams gleaming from the weft 
 Fall on the watry cloud, whofe darkfomc veil 
 Involves the orient ; and that trickling fhower 
 Piercing through every cryftallinc convex no 
 
 Of clullering dew-drops to their flight oppos'd, 
 Recoil at len<2;th where concave all behind 
 The internal furface of each glafly ovh 
 Repells their forward pad'age into air; 
 
 That thence direft they feek the radiant goal 1 1 5 
 
 •From which their courfe began ; and, as they ilrike 
 In different lines the gazer's obvious eye, 
 
 G Affume
 
 ^2 THEPLEASURESOF 
 
 Aflume a different luftre, through the brede 
 
 Of colours changing from the fplendid roie 
 
 To the pale violet's dejedled hue. 120 
 
 Or fhall we touch that kind accefs of joy, 
 That fprings to each fair obje£t, while we trace 
 Through all its fabric, wifdom's artful aim 
 Difpofing every part, and gaining ftill 
 
 By means proportion'd her benignant end? 125 
 
 Speak, ye, the pure delight, whofe favour'd Heps 
 The lamp of fcience through the jealous maze 
 Of nature guides,, when haply you reveal 
 Her fecret honours : whether in the fky, 
 
 The beauteous laws of light, the central powers 13.Q 
 
 That wheel the penfile planets round the year;. 
 Whether in wonders of the rowHng deep,. 
 Or the rich fruits of all-fuftalning earth,. 
 Or fine- adjufted fprings of life and fenfe, 
 Ye fcan the counfels of their author's hand.. 135 
 
 What, when to raife the meditated fcene, 
 The flame of paflion, through the ftruggling foul 
 Deep-kindled, fhows acrofs that fudden blaze 
 The objeft of its rapture, vafl; of fize, 
 
 With fiercer colours and a night of fliade ?• i'40 
 
 What? like a ftorm from their capacious bed 
 
 The
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K II. 43 
 
 The founding fcas o'erwhelming, when the might 
 Of thefe eruptions, working from the depth 
 Of man's ftrong apprehenfion, fliakes his frame 
 Even to the bafe j from every naked fcnfe 141; 
 
 Of pain or pleafure diffipating all 
 Opinion's feeble coverings, and the veil 
 Spun from the cobweb fafliion of the times 
 To hide the feeling heart ? Then nature fpeaks 
 Her genuine language, and the words of men, 150 
 
 Big with the very motion of their fouls, 
 Declare with what accumulated force, 
 The impetuous nerve of paffion urges on 
 The native weight and energy of things. 
 
 Yet more : her honours where nor beauty claims, 155 
 
 Nor lliews of good the thirfty fenfe allure, 
 From paffion's power alone our nature holds 
 EfTential pleafure. PalFion's fierce illapfe 
 Rouzes the mind's whole fabric ; with fupplies 
 Of dally impulfe keeps the elaftic powers 160 
 
 Intenfely poiz'd, and polifhes anew 
 By that collifion all the fine machine : 
 Elfe ruft would rife, and foulnefs, by degrees 
 Incumbering, choak at laft v/hat heaven defign'd 
 For ceafelefs motion and a round of toil. 165 
 
 — But fay, does every pailion thus to man 
 
 G 2 Adminifter
 
 44 THEPLEASUIIESOF 
 
 Admlnifter delight? That name indeed 
 
 Becomes the rofy breath of love ; becomes 
 
 The radiant fmiles of joy, the applauding hand 
 
 Of admiration : but the bitter (hower 1 70 
 
 That forrow flieds upon a brother's grave. 
 
 But the dumb palfy of nocturnal fear, 
 
 Or thofe confuming fires that gnaw the heart 
 
 Of panting indignation, find we tliere 
 
 To move delight? — Then liften while ray tongue 175 
 
 The unaltered will of heaven with faithful awe 
 
 Reveals ; what old Harmodius wont to teach 
 
 My early age ; Harmodius, who had weigh'd 
 
 Within his learned mind whate'er the fchools 
 
 Of wifdom-, or thy lonely- whifpering voice, 180 
 
 O faithful nature ! didate of the laws 
 
 Which govern and fupport this mighty frame 
 
 Of imiverfal being. Oft the hours 
 
 From morn to eve have ftolen unmark'd away. 
 
 While mute attention hung upon his lips, 185 
 
 As thus the fage his awful tale began. 
 
 'Twas in the windings of an ancient wood,. 
 When fpotlefs youth with folitudc refigns 
 To fweet philofophy the ftudious day, 
 
 What time pale autumn fhades the filent eve, 190 
 
 Mufing i rov'd. Of good and evil much, 
 
 And
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K II. j^^ 
 
 And much of mortal man my thought revolv'd ; ' 
 
 When flarting full on Hincy's gufhing eye 
 
 The mournful image of Par then ia's fate, 
 
 That hour, o long belov'd and long dcplor'd ! 195 
 
 When blooming youth, nor gcntlefl wifdom's arts, 
 
 Nor Hymen's honours gather'd for thy brov/, 
 
 Nor all thy lover's, all thy father's tears 
 
 Avail'd to fnatch thee from the cruel grave ; 
 
 Thy agonizing looks, thy laft farcwel 200 
 
 Struck to the inmofl feeling of my foul 
 
 As with the hand of death. At once the /hade 
 
 More horrid nodded o'er me, and the winds 
 
 With hoarfer murmuring fhook the branches. Dark 
 
 As midnight ftorms, the fcene of human things 205 
 
 Appear'd before me ; defarts, burning fands, 
 
 Where the parch'd adder dies ; the frozen fouth, 
 
 And defolation blading all the weft 
 
 With rapine and with murder : tyrant power 
 
 Here fits enthron'd with blood; the baleful charms 210 
 
 Of fuperftition there infctS; the fkies, 
 
 And turn the fun to horror. Gracious heaven ! 
 
 What is the life of man ? Or cannot thefe,. 
 
 Not thefe portents thy awful will fuffice ? 
 
 That, propagated thus beyond their fcope, 2 1 5 
 
 Thev rife to a<St their cruelties anew 
 
 la my afflided bofom, thus decreed 
 
 The
 
 46 T H E P L E A S U R E S O.F 
 
 The univeiral fenfitivc of pain, 
 
 The wretched heir of evils not its own 1 
 
 Thus i impatient; when, at once effus'd, 220 
 
 A fladiing torrent of cceleftial day 
 Burft through the iLadowy void. With flow defcent 
 A purple cloud came floating through the {ky, 
 And pois'd at length within the circling trees, 
 HuHg obvious to my view; till opening wide 225 
 
 Its lucid orb, a more than human form 
 Emerging lean'd majeftic o'er my head, 
 And inftant thunder fliook the confcious grove. 
 Then melted into air the liquid cloud. 
 
 And all the fliining vifion flood reveal'd. 230 
 
 A wreath of palm his ample forehead bound. 
 And o'er his Ihoulder, mantling to his knee, 
 Flow'd the tranfparent robe, around his vvaift 
 Collected with a radiant zone of eold 
 
 ^Ethereal: there in myftic figns ingrav'd, 235 
 
 I read his office high and facred name. 
 Genius of human kind. Appall'd i gaz'd 
 The godlike prefence ; for athwart his brow 
 Difpleafure, temper'd .with a mild concern, 
 Look'd down reludant on me, and his words 
 .Like dillant thunders broke. the murmuring air.
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK II. 
 
 ^ 
 
 Vain are thy thoughts, o child of mortal birth 1 
 And impotent thy tongue. Is thy fhort fpan 
 Capacious of this univerfal frame ? 
 
 Thy wifdom all-fufficient ? Thou, alas ! 245 
 
 Doft thou afpirc to judge between the Lord 
 Of nature. and his works? to lift thy voice 
 Againft the fovran order he decreed, 
 All good and lovely ? to blafpheme the bands 
 Of tendernefs innate and fecial love^ 250 
 
 Holiefl of things ! by which the general orb 
 Of being, as by. adamantine links. 
 Was drawn to perfed: union and fuftain'd 
 From everlafting ? Haft thou felt the pangs 
 Of foftening forrow, of indignant zeal 255 
 
 SO-srievous to the foul, as thence to wiHi 
 The ties of nature broken from thy frame ; 
 That fo thy felhdi, unrelenting heart 
 Might ceafe to mourn its lot, no longer then 
 The wretched "heir of evils not its own? 260 
 
 O fair benevolence of generous minds ! 
 O man by nature form'd for all mankind ! 
 
 He fpoke ; abail:i'd and filent i remained. 
 As confcious of my tongue's offence, and aw d 
 Before his prefence, though my fecret foul 265 
 
 Dlfdain'd
 
 ^8 T H E P L E A S U R E S O F. 
 
 Dlfdain'J the imputation. On the ground 
 
 I fix'd my eyes ; till from his airy couch 
 
 He ftoop'd fublime, and touching with his hand 
 
 My dazling forehead, Raife thy fight, he cry'd 
 
 And let thy fenfe convince thy erring tongue, 270 
 
 I look'd, and lo ! the former fcene was chang'd ; 
 For verdant alleys and furroundino; trees, 
 A folltary profpecfl, wide and wild, 
 Rulli'd on my fenfes. 'Twas an horrid pile 
 Of hills with many a fhaggy foreft mix'd, 275 
 
 With many a fable cliff and glittering ftream. 
 Aloft recumbent o'er the hanging ridge. 
 The brown woods wav'd ; while ever-trickling fprings 
 Wafh'd from the naked roots of oak and pine 
 The crumbling foil ; and ftill at every fall 280 
 
 Down the lleep windings of the channel'd rock, 
 Remurmuring ruih'd the congregated floods 
 With hoarfer inundation ; till at laft 
 They reach'd a grafly plain, which from the fklrts 
 Of that high defart fpread her verdant lap, 2S5 
 
 And drank the gufliing molfture, where confln'd 
 In one fmooth current, o'er the lilied vale 
 Clearer than glafs it flow'd. Autumnal fpoils 
 .Luxuriant fpreading to the rays of morn, 
 Bluili'd o'er .the cliffs, whofe half-incircling mound 290 
 
 As
 
 1 M A G I N A T I O N. B O O R II. ^9 
 
 As in a fvlvaii theatre inclos'd 
 That flowciy level. On the river's brink 
 I fpy'd a fliir pavilion, which diffus'd 
 Its floating umbrage 'mid tlie iilver fliadc 
 Of ofiers. Now the wcftern fun rcveal'd 295 
 
 Between two parting cliffs his golden orb, 
 And poiir'd ncrofs the Ihadow of the hills, 
 On rocks and floods, a yellow flream of light 
 That cheer'd the folemn fcene. My liitening powers 
 Were aw'd, and every thought in (ilence hung, 300 
 
 And wondering cxpedlation. Then the voice 
 Of that cocleftial power, the mylHc (how 
 Declaring, thus my deep attention call'd. 
 
 Inhabitant of earth, to whom is given 
 The gracious ways of providence to learn, 305 
 
 Receive my fayings with a ftedfaft ear — ■ 
 Know then, the fovran fpirit of the world, 
 Though felf-colleded from eternal time. 
 Within his own deep efience he beheld 
 
 The bounds ol true felicity complete j 310 
 
 Yet by immcnfe benignity inclin'd 
 To fpread around him that prim^Eval joy 
 Which iiU'd himfelf, he rais'd his plaliic ariii, 
 And founded through the hollow depth ot Ipacc 
 The flrong, creative nxindate. Strait aroic 3 f 5 
 
 II Thde
 
 ^o. T H E P L E A S U R E S O F 
 
 Thcfe heavenly orbs, the glad abodes of Hfe 
 
 Effufive kindled by his breath divine 
 
 Throiioh endlefs forms of being. Each inhal'd 
 
 From him its portion of the vital flame, 
 
 In meafure fuch, that, from the wide complex 320 
 
 Of coexiitent orders, one might rife, 
 
 One order, all-involving and intire. 
 
 Ke too beholding in the facred light 
 
 Of his effential reafon, all the fliapes 
 
 Of fvvift contingence, all fucceilive tics 325 
 
 Of adion propagated through the fum 
 
 Of poffible exiftence, he at once, 
 
 Down the long feries of eventful time> 
 
 So fix'd the dates of being, fo difpos'd. 
 
 To every living foul of every kind 330 
 
 The field cf motion and the hour of reft. 
 
 That all confpir'd to his fupreme defign, 
 
 To univerfal good : with full accord 
 
 Anfvvering the mighty model he had chofen, 
 
 The bcft and faireft of unnumber'd worlds 335 
 
 That lay from cverlafting in the ftore 
 
 Of his divine conceptions. Nor content, 
 
 By one exertion of creative power 
 
 His goodnefs to reveal ; through every age, 
 
 Through every moment up the trad of time 34-O 
 
 His parent-hand with ever-new increafe 
 
 Of
 
 I M A G I N A T 1 O N. B () O K II. 51 
 
 Of happincfs and virtue has adoin'd 
 
 The vaft harmonious frame : his parent-hand, 
 
 From the mute ihell-fini gapping on the fliorc, 
 
 To men, to angels, to cceleAial minds 315 
 
 For ever leads the generations on 
 
 To higher fcenes of being ; while fupply'd 
 
 From day to day with his enlivening breath, 
 
 Inferior orders in fuccefilon rife 
 
 To iill the void below. As flame afcends, 350 
 
 As bodies to their pi^oper center move, 
 
 As the pois'd ©cean to the attrading moon 
 
 Obedient fwells, and e^'ery headlong Uream 
 
 Devolves its winding waters to the main ; 
 
 So all things whieh have life afpire to God, 355 
 
 The fun of being, boundlcfs, unimpair'd. 
 
 Center of fouls ! Nor does the faithful voice 
 
 Of nature ceafe to prompt their eager fteps 
 
 Aright: nor is the care of heaven withheld 
 
 From granting to the tafk proportion'd aid j 360 
 
 That in their flations all may perfevere 
 
 To climb the afcent of being, and approach 
 
 For cN'er nearer to tlie life divine. 
 
 That rocky pile thou feeft, that verdant lawn 
 Frefii-water'd from the mountains. Let the i-^wo. 365 
 
 Paint in thy fancy the primaeval leat 
 
 H 2 Of
 
 ft T II E P L E A S U R E S .0 F 
 
 Of man, and where the will fuprcme ordain'd 
 
 His manfion, that pavilion fair-diffus'd 
 
 Along the fliady brink ; in this recefs 
 
 Ta wear the appointed feafon of his youth, 370 
 
 Till riper hours fliould open to his toil 
 
 The high communion of fuperlor minds, 
 
 Of confecrated heroes and of gods. 
 
 Nor did the fire omnipotent forget 
 
 His tender bloom to cherifli; nor withheld 375 
 
 Cocleilial footfteps from his green abode. 
 
 Oft from the radiant honours of his throne, 
 
 He fent v/hom moft he lov'd, the fovran fair, 
 
 The effluence of his glory, whom he plac'd 
 
 Before his eyes for ever to behold ; 3.8 o» 
 
 The godd^fs from whofe infpiration flows 
 
 The toil of patriots, the delight of friends ; 
 
 Without whofe work divine, in heaven or earth, 
 
 Nought lovely, nought propitious comes to pafs, 
 
 Nor hope, nor prajfe, nor honour. Her the (ire S.^S-; 
 
 Gave it in charge to rear the blooming mind, 
 
 The folded powers to open, to. diredb 
 
 The growth luxuriant of his young defires, . 
 
 And from the laws of this majeftic world 
 
 To teach him what was good. As thus the nymph 390 
 
 Her daily care attended, by her {ide 
 
 Widi conflant ileps her gay companion ftay'd. 
 
 The
 
 I M AGINATION. BOOK IF. 5: 
 
 The fiir Euphrofync, the gentle queen 
 
 Of fmilcs, and graceful gladncfs, and delights 
 
 Tiiat cheer alike the hearts of mortal men 395 
 
 And powers immortal. See the fliining pair ! 
 
 Behold, where fi-om his dwelling now difclos'd 
 
 They quit their youthful charge and feek the fkles. 
 
 I look'd, and on the flowery turf there flood 
 Between two radiant forms a fmiling youth 400 
 
 Whofe tender cheeks difplay'd the vernal flower 
 Of beauty ; fweetefl innocence lllum'd 
 His bafliful eyes, and on his polifh'd brow. 
 Sate young fimplicity. With fond regard 
 He view'd the aflbciates, as their fleps they mov'd ; 405 
 
 The younger chief his ardent eyes detain'd, , 
 V/ith mild regret invoking her return- 
 Bright as the liar of evening flie appear'd 
 Amid the duflcy fcene. Eternal youth 
 
 O'er all her form its clowinri honours breath'd j 4^0 
 
 And fmiles eternal from her candid eyes 
 FJow'dj like the. dewy lullre of the morn 
 EfTuiive trembling on the placid weaves. . 
 The fpring of heaven had Ihcd its blufhing fpoils 
 To bind her fable trefTes : full dIfFus'd 4^5 
 
 Her yellow mantle floated in the breeze ; 
 
 And in hex hand fhe.wav'd a living branch.. 
 
 Rich
 
 54 T II i: r L E A S U R E S OF 
 
 Rich uitli immortal fruits, of power to calm 
 
 The wrathful heart, and from the brightening eyes, 
 
 To chafe the cloud of fadnefs. More fublime 420 
 
 The heavenly partner mov'd. The prime of age 
 
 Compos'd her ftcps. The prcfencc of a god, 
 
 High on the circle of her brow inthron'd. 
 
 From each majeftic motion darted awe. 
 
 Devoted awe! till, cherifli'd by her looks 425 
 
 Benevolent and meek, confiding love 
 
 To filial rapture foften'd all the foul. 
 
 Hpree-in her graceful hand flie pois'd the fword 
 
 Of chalte dominion. An heroic crown 
 
 Difplay'd the old fimplicity of pomp 430 
 
 Around her honour'd head. A matron's robe, 
 
 White as the funfliine ftreams through vernal clouds, 
 
 Her ftately form invefted. Fland in hand 
 
 The immortal pair forfook the enamcfd green, 
 
 A-fcending Howly. Rays of limpid light 435 
 
 Gleam'd round their path; coeleftial founds were heard, 
 
 And through the fragrant air csthereal dews 
 
 DiiHird around them ; till at once the clouds 
 
 Dlfparting wide in midway fky, withdrew 
 
 Their airy veil, and left a bright expanfe 340 
 
 Of empyrean flame, where fpent and drown'd, 
 
 Afflidcd vifion plung'd in vain to fcan 
 
 What objed it involv'd. ISTy feeble eyes 
 
 IndurM
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK U. 55 
 
 IncluiVi not. Bending clown to earth i flood, 
 
 With dumb attention. Soon a iemalc voice, 445 
 
 As watry murmurs fwcet, or warbhng fliadcs, 
 
 "With facred invocation thus began. 
 
 Father of 2:ods and mortals ! whofe ri^fht arm' 
 
 With reins eternal guides the moving heavens, 
 
 Bend thy propitious ear. Behold vvell-plcas'd 450 
 
 I feek to finifh thy divine decree. 
 
 With frequent fteps I vifit yonder feat 
 
 Of man, thy offspring ; from the tender feeds 
 
 Of jullice and of wifdom, to evolve 
 
 The latent honours of his generous frame; 455 
 
 Till thy conducing hand fliall raife his lot 
 
 From earth's dim fcene to thefe tjsthereal walks, 
 
 The temple of thy glory. But not me, 
 
 Not my direiling voice he oft requires, 
 
 Or hears delighted : this inchanting maid, 460 
 
 The affociate thou haft given me, her alone 
 
 Fie loves, o Father ! abfent, her he craves ; 
 
 And but for her glad prefence ever join'd, 
 
 Rejoices not in mine : that all my hopes 
 
 This thy benignant purpofe to fulfil, 4^^5 
 
 I deem uncertain ; and my daily cares 
 
 Unfruitful all and vain, unlefs by thee 
 
 Still farther aided in the work divine. 
 
 She
 
 36 
 
 T n r. r l i: a s v r r. s o v 
 
 'She ccasM ; a voice more awful thus reply'd. 
 O thou ! in whom for ever i dehght, 47° 
 
 Fairer than all the inhabitants of heaven, 
 Bcil image of thy author ! far from thee 
 Be difappointment, or diftafte, or blame ; 
 Who foon or late flialt every work fulfil, 
 
 And no refiftance find. If man refufe 475 
 
 To hearken to thy dictates ; or allur'd 
 By meaner joys, to anv other power 
 Transfer the honours due to thee alone ; 
 That joy which he purfues he ne'er iliall tafte, 
 That power in whom delighteth ne'er behold. 480 
 
 Go then, once more, and happy be thy toil ; 
 Go then ! but let not this thy fmiling friend 
 Partake thy footfteps. In her ftead, behold ! 
 With thee the fon of Nemefis i fend ; 
 
 The fiend abhorr'd ! whofe vengeance takes account 485 
 
 Of facred order's violated lavi's. 
 See where he calls thee, burning to be gone, 
 Fierce to cxhaull the tempeft of his wrath 
 On yon devoted head. But thou, my child, 
 Controul his cruel phrenzy, and proteft 490 
 
 Thy tender charge ; that when defpair fliall grafp 
 His agonizing bofom, he may learn. 
 Then he may learn to love the gracious hand 
 
 Alon
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K II. 57 
 
 Alone fufficient in the hour of ill, 
 
 To fave his feeble fpirit ; then confefs 495- 
 
 Thy genuine honours, o excelling fliir I 
 When all the plagues that wait the deadly will 
 Gf this avenging dzemon, all the ftorms 
 Of night infernal, ferve but to difplay, 
 
 The energy of thy fuperior charms 500 
 
 With mildcfl awe triumphant o'er his rage, , 
 And fliining clearer in the horrid gloom. . 
 
 Here ceas'd that awful voice, and Toon i felt 
 The cloudy curtain of refreihing eve 
 
 V/as clos'd once more, from that immortal fire 505 
 
 Sheltering my eye-lids. Looking up, i view'd. 
 A vaft gigantic fpedlre ftriding on 
 Through murmuring thunders and a wafte of clouds, 
 With dreadful adion. Black as night his brow 
 Relentlefs frowns involv'd. Ilis favage limbs 510 
 
 With fiiarp impatience violent he writh'd, 
 As through convulfive angulfli ; and his hand, 
 Arm'd with a fcorpion-lafii, full oft he rais'd 
 In m.adnefs to his bofom ; while his eves 
 
 Rain'd bitter tears, and bellowing loud he fliook 515 
 
 The void with horror. Silent by his fide 
 The virgin came. No difcompofure ttirr'd 
 
 I Her
 
 jg THEPLEASURESOF 
 
 Ilcr features. From the glooms which hung around 
 
 No ftain of darknefs mingled with the beam 
 
 Of her divine effulgence. Now they ftoop 520 
 
 Upon the river- bank ; and now to hail 
 
 His wonted gueib, with eager fteps advanc'd 
 
 The unfufpefting inmate of the fliade. 
 
 As when a famifli'd wolf, that all night long 
 Had rang'd the Alpine fnows, by chance at morn 525 
 
 Sees from a cliff incumbent o'er the fmoke 
 Of fome lone village, a neglected kid 
 That llrays along the wild for herb or fpring ; 
 Down from the winding ridge he fweeps amain. 
 And thinks he tears him : fo with tenfold rage, 530 
 
 The monfler fprung remorfelefs on his prey. 
 Amaz'd the ftripling Hood : with panting breafl: 
 Feebly he pour'd the lamentable wail 
 Of helplefs confternation, ftruck at once, 
 And rooted to the ground. The queen beheld 535 
 
 His terror, and with looks of tenderefl: care 
 Advanc'd to fave him. Soon the tyrant felt 
 Her awful power. His keen, tempefluous arm 
 HunGf nervelefs, nor defcendcd where his rao;e 
 Had aim'd the deadly blow : then dumb retir'd 540 
 
 With fuUen rancour. Lo I the fovran maid 
 Folds with a mother's arms the fainting boy, 
 
 Till
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K II. Jj^, 
 
 Till life rekindles in his rofy cheek ; 
 
 Then grafps his hands, and cheers him with Iier tongue. 
 
 O wake thee, rouze thy fpirit ! Shall the fpite 545 
 
 Of yon tormentor thus appall thy heart, 
 While i, thy friend and guardian, am at hand 
 To refcue and to heal } O let thy foul 
 Remember, what the will of heaven ordains 
 Is ever good for all ; and if for all, 55a 
 
 Then good for thee. Nor only by the warmth 
 And foothing funfhine of delightful things, 
 Do minds grow up andflourifh. Oft mifled 
 By that bland light, the young unpradlis'd vicv/s 
 Of reafon wander through a fatal road, ^^ 5 
 
 Far from their native aim : as if to lye 
 Inglorious in the fragrant lliade, and wait 
 The foft accefs of ever-circling joys, 
 Were all the end of being. Afk thyfelf, 
 This pleadng error did it never lull 560 
 
 Thy wifhes ? Has thy conftant heart refus'd 
 The filken fetters of delicious eafe ? 
 Or when divine JEuphrofyne appear'd. 
 Within this dv/elling, did not thy dcfires ■ 
 Hang far below the meafure of thy fate, 565 
 
 Which i reveal'd before thee ? and thy eyes, , 
 Impatient of my counfels, turn away 
 
 I 2 To
 
 ^o THEPLEASURESOF 
 
 To drink the fofc effufion of her fmiles ? 
 
 Know then, for this the everlalling fire 
 
 Deprives thee of her prefence, and inflead, 570 
 
 O wife and ftill benevolent ! ordains 
 
 This horrid vifige hither to purfue 
 
 My fteps ; that fo thy nature may difcern 
 
 Its real 2:ood, and what alone can fave 
 
 Thy feeble fpirit in this hour of ill 575 
 
 From folly and defpair. O yet belov'd ! 
 
 Let not this headlong terror quite o'erwhelm 
 
 Thy fcatter'd powers ; nor fatal deem the rage 
 
 Of this tormentor, nor his proud afl'ault. 
 
 While i am here to vindicate thy toil, 580 
 
 Above the generous queftion of thy arm. 
 
 Brave by thy fears and in thy weaknefs ftrong, 
 
 This hour he triumphs : but confront his might. 
 
 And dare him to the combat, then with eafe 
 
 Difarm'd and quell'd, his fiercenefs he reiigns 585 
 
 To bondage and to fcorn : while thus inur'd 
 
 By watchful danger, by unceafing toil, 
 
 The immortal mind, fuperior to his fate. 
 
 Amid the outrage of external things, 
 
 Firm as the folid bafe of this great world, 590 
 
 P.efts on his own foundations. Blov/, ye winds ! 
 
 Ye waves ! ye thunders ! rowl your tempeft on ; 
 
 Shake, ye old pillars of the marble fky ! 
 
 Till
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K 11. Ci 
 
 Till all its orbs and all its worlds of fire 
 
 Be loofen'd from their feats ; yet ftill ferene, rcje 
 
 The unconquer'd mind looks down upon the wreck ; 
 And ever ftronTCr as the ftorms advance. 
 Firm through the clofing ruin holds his way, 
 Where nature calls him to the deftin'd o-oal. 
 
 o 
 
 So fpake the goddefs ; while through all her frame 600 
 Cceleftial raptures flow'd, in every word, 
 In every motion kindling warmth divine 
 To feize who liflcn'd. Vehement and fwifc 
 As lightening fires the aromatic fhade 
 
 In Ethiopian fields, the ftripling felt 605 
 
 Her infpiration catch his fervid foul. 
 And flarting from his languor thus exclaim'd. 
 
 Then let the trial come ! and witnefs thou, 
 If terror be upon me ; if i flirink 
 
 To meet the ftorm, or faulter in my ftrength 610 
 
 When hardeft it befets me. Do not think 
 That i am fearful and infirm of foul, 
 As late thy eyes beheld : for thou haft chang'd 
 IMy nature ; thy commanding voice has wak'd 
 My languid powers to bear me boldly on, 615 
 
 Where'er the will divine my path ordains 
 Through toil or peril : only do not thou 
 
 Forfake
 
 <j; THEPLEASURESO? 
 
 Forfake me ; o be thou for ever near, 
 
 That i may Hfteii to thy facred voice, 
 
 And guide by thy decrees my conftant feet. 620 
 
 But fay, for ever are my eyes bereft ? 
 
 Say, rhall the fair Euphrofyne not once 
 
 Appear again to charm me ? Thou, in heaven ! 
 
 O thou eternal arbiter of things ! 
 
 Be thy great bidding done: for who am i, 625 
 
 To qucilion thy appointment ? Let the frowns 
 
 Of this avenger every morn o'ercafl: 
 
 The cheerful dawn, and every evening damp 
 
 With double night my dwelling; i will learn 
 
 To hail them both, and unrepining bear 630 
 
 His hateful prefence : but permit my tongue 
 
 One glad requefl:, and if my deeds may find 
 
 Thy awful eye propitious, o reftore 
 
 The rofy-featur'd maid ; again to cheer 
 
 This lonely feat, and blefs me with her fmiles, ^35 
 
 He fpoke ; when Inftant through the fable glooms 
 Wifh which that furious prefence had involv'd 
 The ambient air, a flood of radiance came 
 Swift as the lightening flalli ; the melting clouds 
 Flew diverfe, and amid the blue ferene 640 
 
 :£uphrofyne appeared. With fprightly ftep 
 
 The.
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK II. 6^ 
 
 The nymph ah'ghted on the irriguous lawn, 
 And to her Avondering audience thus began. 
 
 Lo ! I am here to anfvvcr to your vows, 
 And be the meeting fortunate ! i come 645 
 
 With joyful tidings , we fhall part no more — ■ 
 Hark ! how the sjcntle echo from her cell 
 Talks through the cliffs, and murmuring o'er the dream 
 Repeats the accents ; we fliall part no more. 
 O my delightful friends ! well-pleas'd on high 650 
 
 The father has beheld you, while the might 
 Of that ftern foe with bitter trial prov'd 
 Your equal doings ; then for ever fpake 
 The high decree : that thou, cceleftial maid ! 
 Howe'er that gricfly phantom on thy {leps 655 
 
 May fometimes dare intrude, yet never more 
 Shalt thou, defcending to the abode of man, 
 Alone endure the rancour of his arm, 
 Or leave thy' lov'd Euphrol}'nc behind. 
 
 She ended; and the whole romantic fcene 66o 
 
 Immediate vanifli'd ; rocks, and woods, and rills. 
 The mantling tent, and each mvfterious form 
 Flew like the pidlures of a morning dream, 
 When fun-/hine fills the bed. A while i flood 
 Perplex'd and giddy; till the radiant power 665 
 
 Who
 
 <C4 THEPLEASURESOF 
 
 Who bade the vifionary landlcape rife, 
 As up to him i turn'd, with gentleft looks 
 Preventing my enquiry, thus began. 
 
 There let thy foul acknowledge its complaint 
 How blind, how impious! There behold the ways 670 
 
 Of heaven's eternal deftiny to man. 
 For ever juft, benevolent and wife : 
 That virtue's awful fteps, howe'er purfu'd 
 By vexing fortune and intrufive pain. 
 
 Should never be divided from her chafte, 675 
 
 Her fair attendant, pleafure. Need i urge 
 Thy tardy thought through all the various round 
 Of this exiftence, that thy foftening foul 
 At length may learn what energy the hand. 
 Of virtue mingles in the bitter tide 68q 
 
 Of pallion f»velling with diftrefs and pain, 
 To mitigate the lliarp with gracious drops 
 Of cordial pleafure? Afk the faithful youth, 
 Why the cold urn of her whom long he lov'd 
 So often fills his arms; fo often draws^ 6S5 
 
 His lonely lootfieps at the lilent hour, 
 To pay the mournful tribute of his tears ? 
 O ! he will tell thee, that the wealth of worlds 
 Should ne'er feduee his bcfom to forceo 
 
 That facred Lour, when, dealing from the nolfe 690 
 
 Of
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K il. 6^ 
 
 Of care and envv, fweet remembrance fooths 
 
 Y/ith virtue's kindefl: looks his aking breaft, 
 
 And turns his tears to rapture. — Afk the croud 
 
 Which flies impatient from the village- walk 
 
 To climb the neighbouring cliffs, when far belovv 695 
 
 The cruel winds have hurl'd upon the coait 
 
 Some helplefs bark ; while facred pity melts 
 
 The general eye, or terror's icy hand 
 
 Smites their dillorted limbs and horrent hair ; 
 
 "While every mother clofer to her breaft 700 
 
 Catches her child, and pointing where the waves 
 
 Foam through the fliatter'd vefiel, flirieks aloud 
 
 As one poor wretch that fpreads his piteous arms 
 
 For fuccour, fwallow'd by the roaring furge, 
 
 As now another, dafh'd againft the rock, 705 
 
 Drops lifelefs down : o ! deemcft thou indeed 
 
 No kind endearment here by nature given 
 
 To mutual terror and compaffion's tears ? 
 
 No fweetly-melting foftncfs which attradis, 
 
 O'er all that edge of pain, the focial pov/ers 710 
 
 To this their proper aclion and their end ? 
 
 — AfiC thv own heart ; v/hen at the midnight hour, 
 
 Slow through that ftudious gloom thy paufing eye 
 
 Led bv the orHiiin'icrins taper moves around 
 
 The facred volumes of the dead, the fongs 715 
 
 Of Grecian bards, and records writ by fame 
 
 K For
 
 ^5. THEPLEASURESOF 
 
 For Grecian heroes, where the prefcnt power 
 
 Of heaven and earth lurveys the immortal page. 
 
 Even as a fluher blefTing, while he reads 
 
 The praifes of his fon. If then thy foul, 720 
 
 Spurning the yoke of thefe inglorious days, 
 
 Mix in their deeds and kindle with their flame ; 
 
 Sav, when the profpe£t blackens on thy view, 
 
 When rooted from the bafe, heroic flates 
 
 Mourn in the duft and tremble at the frown 725 
 
 Of curfi: ambition ; when the pious band 
 
 Of youths who fought for freedom and their CivcSy 
 
 Lie fide by fide in gore; when rufEan pride 
 
 Ufurps the throne. of juftice, turns the pomp 
 
 Of public power, the majefty of rule, 730. 
 
 The fword, the laurel, and the purple robe,. 
 
 To flavifli empty pageants, to adorn 
 
 A tyrant's walk, and glitter in the eyes 
 
 Of fuch as bow the knee ; when honour'd urns 
 
 Of patriots and of chiefs, the awful bull 73.5 
 
 And ftoried arch, to glut the coward-rage 
 
 Of regal envy, ftrev/ the public way 
 
 With hallowed ruins ; when the Mufe's haunt. 
 
 The marble porch where wifdom wont to talk 
 
 With Socrates or Tully, hears no more, 74,0 
 
 Save the hoarfe jargon of contentious monks, 
 
 Or female, fyperftitipn's midnight prayer ; 
 
 When.
 
 I M A G I N A T I O K. B O OK II. «7 
 
 When ruthlcfs rapine from the hand oF time 
 
 Tears the clefiroying fcythe, with furer blow 
 
 To fweep the works of glor}- from their bafe; 745 
 
 Till defolation o'er the grafs-grown ftreet 
 
 Expands his raven-wings, and up the wall, 
 
 Where fenates once the price of monarchs doom'd, 
 
 HifTes the gliding fnake through hoary weeds 
 
 That clafp the mouldering column; thus defac'd, 750 
 
 Thus widely mournful when the profpe6l thrills 
 
 Thy beating bofom, when the patriot's tear 
 
 Starts from thine eye, and thy extended arm 
 
 In fancy hurls the thunderbolt of Jove 
 
 To fire the impious wreath on Philip's brow, 755 
 
 Or dafh Odlavius from the trophied car ; 
 
 Say, does thy fecret foul repine to tafte 
 
 The big diftrefs ? Or vvould'ft thou then exchange 
 
 Thofe heart- ennobling forrows for the lot 
 
 Of him who fits amid the gaudy herd 760 
 
 Of mute barbarians bending to his nod, 
 
 And bears aloft his gold-invefted front. 
 
 And fays v/ithin himfelf, " i am a king, 
 
 " And wherefore lliould the clamorous voice of woe 
 
 " Intrude upon mine ear? — " The baleful dregs 7^5 
 
 Of thefe late ao-es, this inp-lorious drau2:ht 
 
 Of fervitude and folly, have not yet, 
 
 Blclx be the eternal ruler of the world ! 
 
 K 2 D^-fil'd
 
 ^g T n E P L E A S U R E S, «:c. 
 
 Defird to fuch a depth of fordid fliame 
 
 The native honours of the human foul, 77^ 
 
 Nor fo effac'd the image of its fire. 
 
 END OF BOOK II.
 
 T. H. E. 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 O F 
 
 IMAGINATION. 
 
 BOOK THE THIRD,
 
 A R G U M E N 
 
 O F 
 
 THE THIRD BOOK. 
 
 PLEASURE in olferv'mg the tempers ajtd manners of 
 
 men, even 'where 'vicious or ahfurd. 'The origin of vicey 
 
 frofn fcilfe reprefentations of the fancy, producing falfe 
 
 opinions concerning good and evil. Inquiry ijtto ridicule. The 
 
 general fources of ridicule in the minds and chara&ers of 
 
 men, e?2umerated. Final caufe of the fenfe of ridicule. "The 
 
 refemblance of certain afpeSls of inanimate things to the fen- 
 
 fations and properties of the mind. The operations of the 
 
 mind in the produEiio7i of the works of imagination, defcribed. 
 
 The fecondary pleafure from imitation. The benevolent order 
 
 of the world illuf rated in the arbitraiy connexion of thefe 
 
 pleafures with the objeEis which excite them. The jjature and 
 
 co/iduSl of tafle. Concluding with an account of the natural 
 
 and 7noral advantages refulting f-07n a fenfible a?id well- 
 
 forjned imagination. 
 
 T H E
 
 T II E 
 
 PL E ASURES 
 
 O F 
 
 IMAGINATION. 
 
 BOOK T II E THIRD. 
 
 VV HAT wonder therefore, fince the mdearing ties 
 Of paffion b'nk the univerfal kind 
 Of man fo clofe, what v/onder if to fearch 
 This common nature throu^jh the various chano-e 
 Of fex, and age, and fortune, and the frame 5 
 
 Of each peculiar, draw the bufy mind 
 With unrelifted charms ? The fpacious weft,. 
 And all the teemino; reo-ions of the fouth 
 Hold not a quarry, to the curious flight 
 
 Of knowledge, half fo tempting or fo fair, 10 
 
 As man to man. Nor only where the fmiles 
 ©f love invite ; nor only where the applaufe. 
 Of cordial honour turns the attentive eye 
 On virtue's o;raceful deeds. For fincc the courfe 
 Of things external a(3:s in diiifc-rent ways 15 
 
 Gn;
 
 72 T H E P L E A S ir R E S O F 
 
 On human apprehenfions, as the hand 
 
 Oi" nature temper'd to a different frame 
 
 Peculiar minds ; fo haply where the powers 
 
 Cf fancy neither Icffen nor enlarge 
 
 The images of things, but paint in all 20 
 
 Their genuine hues, the features which they wore 
 
 In nature ; there opinion will be true, 
 
 And adion right. For aftion treads the path 
 
 In which opinion fays he follows good, 
 
 Or flies from evil ; and opinion gives 25 
 
 Report of good or evil, as the fcene 
 
 Was drawn by fancy, lovely or deform'd : 
 
 Thus her report can never there be true 
 
 Where fancy cheats the intelle£lual eye. 
 
 With darine colours and diilorted lines. 3-© 
 
 Is there a man, who at the found of death 
 
 Sees ghaftly iliapes of terror conjur'd up, 
 
 And black before him j nought but death-bed groans 
 
 And fearful prayers, and plunging from the brink 
 
 Of light and being, down the gloomy air, 't^^ 
 
 An unknown depth ? Alas 1 in fuch a mind, 
 
 If no brio;ht forms of excellence attend 
 
 The image of his country ; nor the pomp 
 
 Of facred fenates, nor the guardian voice 
 
 Of juftice on her throne, nor aught that wakes 40 
 
 The confcious bofom with a patriot's flame \ 
 
 Will
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III.. 7j 
 
 Will not opinion tell him, that to die, 
 
 Or Hand the hazard, is a greater ill 
 
 Than to betray his country ? And in ad 
 
 Will he not chufe to be a wretch and live ? 45 
 
 Here vice begins then. From the inchanting cup 
 
 Which fancy holds to all, the unwary thiril 
 
 Of youth oft fwallows a Circaean draught, 
 
 Thut flieds a baleful tincture o'er the eye 
 
 Of reafon, till no longer he difcerns, 50 
 
 And only guides to err. Then revel forth 
 
 A furious band that fpurn him from the throne; 
 
 And all is uproar. Thus ambition grafps 
 
 The empire of the foul : thus pale revenge 
 
 Unfheaths her murderous dagger; and the hands 55 
 
 Of luft and rapine, with unholy arts, 
 
 Watch to o'erturn the barrier of the laws 
 
 That keeps them from their prey : thus all the plagues 
 
 The wicked bear, or o'er the trembling fcene 
 
 The tragic mufe difclofes, under fhapes 60 
 
 Of honour, fafety, plcafure, eafe or pomp, 
 
 Stole iirft into the mind. Yet not by all 
 
 Thofe lying form.s which fancy in the brain 
 
 Engenders, are the kindling pallions driven, 
 
 To guilty deeds ; nor reafon bound in chains, 65 
 
 That vice alone may lord it : oft adorn'd 
 
 With folemn pageants, folly mounts the throne, • 
 
 L And
 
 ^^ THEPLEASURESOl- 
 
 And plays her idiot-anticks, like a queen. 
 
 A thoiifand garbs llie wears ; a thoufand ways 
 
 She wheels her giddy empire. — Lo ! thus far 70 
 
 With bold adventure, to the Mantuan lyre 
 
 I fino- of nature's charms, and touch well-pleas'd 
 
 A ftridter note : now haply muft my fong 
 
 Unbend her ferious meafure, and reveal 
 
 In lighter ftrains, how folly's aukward arts 75 
 
 Excite impetuous laughter's gay rebuke ; 
 
 The fportive province of the comic mufe. 
 
 See ! in v/hat crouds the uncouth forms ad^ ance : 
 Each would outftrip the other, each prevent 
 Our careful fearch, and offer to your gaze, 8q 
 
 Unafk'd, his motley features. Wait awhile. 
 My curious friends ! and let us firft arrange 
 In proper order your promifcuous throng. 
 
 Behold the foremoft band ; of (lender thought,. 
 And eafy faith ; whom flattering fancy fooths 85 
 
 "With lying fpeclres, in themfelves to view 
 Illuilrious forms of excellence and good, 
 That fcorn the manflon. With exulting hearts 
 They fpread their fpurious treafures to the fun, 
 And bid the world admire ! but chief the glance 90 
 
 Of wifhful envy draws their joy- bright eyes,. 
 
 And
 
 I M A C; I N A T I O N. BOOK III. 75 
 
 And lifts with felf-applaufe each lordly brow. 
 
 In number boimdlefs as the blooms of fpring, 
 
 Behold their glaring idols, empty fhades 
 
 By fancy gilded o'er, and then fet up 95 
 
 For adoration. Some in learning's garb, 
 
 With formal band, and fable-cinSur'd gown, 
 
 And rags of mouldy volumes. Some elate 
 
 With martial fplendor, fteely pikes and fwords 
 
 Of coflly frame, and gay Phoenician robes 100 
 
 Inwrought with flowery gold, afliime the port 
 
 Of ftately valour : liftening by his fide 
 
 •There ftands a female form ; to her, with looks 
 
 Of earnell import, pregnant with amaze, 
 
 He talks of deadly deeds, of breaches, ftorms, 105 
 
 And fulphurous mines, and ambufh : then at once 
 
 Breaks off, and fmiles to fee her look fo pale, 
 
 And afks fome wondering queftion of her fears. 
 
 Others of graver mien ; behold, adorn'd 
 
 With holy enfigns, how fublime they move, no 
 
 And bending oft their fanclimonious eyes 
 
 Take homage of the fimple-minded throng ■, 
 
 AmbafTadors of heaven I Nor much unlike 
 
 Is he v/hofe vifage, in the lazy raift 
 
 That mantles every feature, hides a brood 115 
 
 Of politic conceits ; of whifpers, nods, 
 
 And hints deep omen'd with unwieldy fchcmes, 
 
 L 2 And
 
 7<j TIIEPLEASURESOF 
 
 And dark portents of llatc. Ten thoufand more, 
 
 Prodigious habits and tumultuous tongues. 
 
 Pour dauntlefs in and fwell the boaftful band. 120 
 
 Then comes the fecond order ; all who feck 
 The debt of pralfe, where watchful unbelief 
 Darts through the thin pretence her fquinting eye 
 On fome retir'd appearance which belies 
 
 The boafted virtue, or annuls the applaufe 125 
 
 That jufiice elfe would pay. Here fide by fide 
 I fee two leaders of the folemn train 
 Approaching : one a female old and grey, 
 With eyes demure, and wrinkle-furrow'd brow,. 
 Pale as the cheeks of death ; yet ftill (he ftuns . ljq 
 
 The fickening audience with a naufeous tale ; 
 How many youths her myrtle-chains have worn,. 
 How many virgins at her triumphs pin'd ! 
 Yet how refolv'd fhe guards her cautious heart ;, 
 Such is her terror at the rifques of love, 135 
 
 And man's feducins: tongue! The other feems 
 A bearded Hige, ungentle in his mien,. 
 And fordid all his habit ; peevifli wan4; 
 Grins at his heels, while down the gazing throng. 
 He flalks, refounding in magmfic phrafe 1:40- 
 
 The vanity of riches, the contempt 
 Of pomp and power. Be prudent in your zeal,. 
 
 Ye
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. 77 
 
 Ye grave aflbciates ! let the filcnt grace 
 
 Of her who bluilies at the fond regard 
 
 IJcr charms infpirc, more eloquent unfold 145 
 
 The praife of fpotlefs honour : let the man 
 
 Whofe eye regards not his illuftrious pomp 
 
 And ample ftore, but as indulgent ftreams 
 
 To cheer the barren foil and fj)read the fruits 
 
 Of, joy, let him by jufter meafures fix 150 
 
 The price of riches and the end of power. 
 
 Another tribe fucceeds ; deluded long 
 By fancy's dazling optics, thefe behold 
 The images of fome peculiar things 
 
 With brighter hues refplendent, and portray'd ^55' 
 
 With features nobler far than e'er adorn'd 
 Their genuine objeds. Hence the fever'd heart 
 Pants with delirious hope for tinfel charms j . 
 Hence oft obtrufive on the eye of fcorn, . 
 Untimely zeal her witlefs pride betrays I 160 
 
 And ferious manhood from the towering aim . 
 Of wifdom, Hoops to emulate the boaft 
 Of childifh toil. Behold yon my flic form, 
 Bedeck'd with feathers, infeds, weeds and fhells ! 
 Not with intenfer view the Samian fage 165 
 
 Bent his fixt eye on heaven's intenfer fires. 
 When firfl: the order of that radiant fcene 
 
 Sweird..
 
 "78 T HE P L E A S U U E S OF 
 
 Swcird his cxultlns: thouiiht', than this lurvcvs 
 A muckworm's entrails or a fpider's fang. 
 Next him a youth, with flowers and mvrtlcs crown'd, 
 Attends that virgin form, and blufliing kneels, 
 With fondeft geliure and a fuppliant's tongue. 
 To win her coy regard : adieu, for him, 
 The dull incrao-ements of the bulUin^ world ! 
 Adieu the fick impertinence of pralfe ! 
 And hope, and adion ! for with her alone, 
 By ftreams and fliades, to fteal thefe fighlng hours, 
 Is all he aiks, and all that fate can give ! 
 Thee too, facetious Momion, wandering here. 
 Thee, dreaded cenfor, oft have i beheld 
 Bewilder'd unawares : alas ! too Ions: 
 Flufli'd with thv comic triumphs and the fpoils 
 Of flv derilion ! till on every fide 
 Hurling thy random bolts, offended truth 
 Allicrn'd thee here thv flatlon v/ith the flaves 
 Of folly. Thy once formidable name 
 Shall grace her humble records, and be heard 
 In feoffs and mockery bandied from the lips 
 Ot all the vengeful brotherhood around, 
 -So oft the patient vidims of thy fcorn. 
 
 170 
 
 ^75 
 
 iR 
 
 190 
 
 But now, ye gayl to whom indulgent fate, 
 Of all the mufe's empire hath affign'd 
 
 The
 
 I M A G I N A r I O N. BOOK in. 79 
 
 The fields of folly, hither each advance 
 
 Your Tickles; here the teeming foil aiiords 
 
 Its richeft growth. A favourite brood appears ; 195 
 
 In whom the dsmon, with a mother's joy, 
 
 Views all her charms reflected, all her cares 
 
 At full repay'd. Ye moft illuftrious band I 
 
 Vv ho, fcorning reafon's tame^ pedantic rules, 
 
 And order's vulgar bondage, never meant 2co 
 
 For fouls fublime as yours, with generous zeat 
 
 Pav vice the reverence virtue long ufurp'd,. 
 
 And yield deformity the fond applaufe 
 
 Which beauty wont to claim ; forgive my fonsj. 
 
 That for the blufning diffidence of youth, 205 
 
 It fhuns the unequal province of your praife. 
 
 Thus far triumphant in the pleafing guile 
 Of bland imagination, foliv's train 
 Have darM our fearch : but nov/ a daftard-kind 
 Advance reluciant, and Vvnth faultering feet 210 
 
 Shrink from the gazer's eye : infeebled hearts. 
 "Whom fancy chills with viiionary fears, 
 Jr bends to fervile tamenefs vvi':h conceits. 
 Of ihame, of evil, or of bafe defe<3:,. 
 
 Fantaflic and delu five. Here the flave 115 
 
 Who droops abalVd when fullen pomp furveys 
 Kis humbler habit ; here the trenibling; wretch 
 
 Unnerv'd
 
 8j t h e p l e a s u r e s o f 
 
 Unncrv'd and llriick with terror's icy bolts, 
 
 Spent in weak vvailings, drown'd in fliameful tears, 
 
 At every dream of danger : here fubdued 220 
 
 By frontlefs laughter and the hardy fcorn 
 
 Of old, unfeeling vice, the abje6l foul, 
 
 Who blufhing half refigns the candid praife 
 
 Of temperance and honour ; half difovvns 
 
 A freeman's hatred of tyrannic pride; 225 
 
 And hears with (ickly fmiles the venal mouth 
 
 With fouleft licence mock the patriot's name. 
 
 Lafl: of the motley bands on whom the power 
 Of gay deriiion bends her hoflile aim, 
 
 Is that where fliameful ignorance prefides. 23a 
 
 Beneath her fordid banners, lo ! they march, 
 Like blind and lame. Whate'er their doubtful hands 
 Attempt, confulion flraight appears behind, 
 And troubles all the work. Through manv a maze, 
 Perplex'd they^ ftruggle, changing every path, 235 
 
 O'erturning every purpofe ; then at laft 
 Sit down difmay'd, and leave the entangled fcene 
 For fcorn to fport with. Such then is the abode 
 Of folly in the mind ; and fuch the fhapes 
 In which flie governs her obfequious train. 240 
 
 I'hrough
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. 3i 
 
 ThroiiofH every fcene of ridicule in thino-s 
 To lead the tenour of my devious lay ; 
 Through every fwift occafion, v/hich the hand 
 Of laughter points at, when the mirthful fting 
 Diftends her fallying nerves and choaks her tongue; 241; 
 
 What were it but to count each cryllal drop 
 Which morning's dewy fingers on the blooms 
 Of May diftill ? Suffice it to have faid, 
 Where'er the power of ridicule difplays 
 
 Her quaint-ey'd vifage, fome incongruous form, 250 
 
 Some ftubborn difTonance of things combin'd, 
 Strikes on the quick obferver : whether pomp, 
 Or praife, or beauty, mix their partial claim 
 Where fordid fafliions, where ignoble deeds, 
 Where foul deformity are wont to dwell ; 255 
 
 Or whether thefe with violation loath'd, 
 Invade refplendent pomp's imperious mien. 
 The charms of beauty, or the boaft of praife. 
 
 Afk we for what fair end, the almighty fire 
 In mortal bofoms wakes this gay contempt, 260 
 
 Thefe grateful llings of laughter, from difgufl: 
 Educing plcafure ? Wherefore, but to aid 
 The tardy fleps of reafon, and at once 
 By this prompt impulfe urge us to deprefs 
 
 M The
 
 82 THEPLEASURESOF 
 
 The giddy alms of folly ? Though the light 265 
 
 Of truth flow- dawning on the inquiring mind, 
 
 At length unfolds, through many a fubtile tie, 
 
 How thefe uncouth diforders end at laft 
 
 In public evil ! yet benignant heaven, 
 
 Confcious how dim the dawn of truth appears 270 
 
 To thoufands ; confcious what a fcanty paufe 
 
 From labours and from care, the wider lot 
 
 Of humble life affords for ftudious thought 
 
 To fcan the maze of nature ; therefore ftamp'd. 
 
 The glaring fcenes with charafl:ers of fcorn, 275 
 
 As broad, as obvious, to the paffing clown, 
 
 As to the letter'd fage's curious eye. 
 
 Such are the various afpedls of the mind — 
 Some heavenly genius, whofe unclouded thoughts 
 Attain that fecret harmony which blends 280 
 
 The a^thereal fpirit with its mold of clay ; 
 O 1 teach me to reveal the grateful charm 
 That fearchlefs nature o'er the fenfe of man 
 Diffufes, to behold, in lifelefs things. 
 
 The inexpreflive femblance of himfelf, 285 
 
 Of thought and pailion. Mark the fable woods 
 That fliade fublime yon mountain's nodding brow j 
 With what religious awe the folemn fcene 
 Commands your fleps ! as if the reverend form 
 
 Of
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. 83 
 
 Of Minos or of Numa niould forfake 290 
 
 The Elyfian feats, and down the embowering glade 
 
 Move to your pausing eye ! Behold the expanfe 
 
 Of von gay landfcape, where the filver clouds 
 
 Flit o'er the heavens before the fpriglitly breeze : 
 
 Now their grey cln£ture fkirts the doubtful fun ; 295 
 
 Now ftreams of fplendor, through their opening veil 
 
 Effulgent, fweep from off the gilded kuvn 
 
 The aerial Hiadows ; on the curling brook, 
 
 And on the fliady margin's quivering leaves 
 
 With quickefl: luflre glancing ; while you \iew 300 
 
 The profpecSt, fliy, within your cheerful breaft 
 
 Plays not the lively fenfe of winning mirth 
 
 With clouds and fun-fhine chequer'd, while the round 
 
 Of focial converfe, to the infpiring tongue 
 
 Of fome gay nymph amid her fubjedl train, 305 
 
 Moves all obfequious ? Whence is this effc61:, 
 
 This kindred power of fuch difcordant things ? 
 
 Or flows their femblance from that myftic tone 
 
 To which the new-born mind's harmonious powers 
 
 At firft were ftrung ? Or rather from the links 3 i o 
 
 Which artful cuftom twines around her frame? 
 
 For when the different Images of things 
 Bv chance combin'd, have flruck the attentive foul 
 With deeper impulfe, or conne<fled loiig, 
 
 M 2 Have
 
 64 T II E r L E A S U R E S O F 
 
 Have drawn her frequent eye; howe'er diftln^l 315 
 
 The external fcenes, yet oft the ideas gain 
 From that conjundion an eternal tie, 
 And fympathy unbroken. Let the mind 
 Recall one partner of the various league, 
 
 Immediate, lo ! the firm confederates rife, 320 
 
 And each his former ftation ftrait refumcs : 
 One movement governs the confenting throng. 
 And all at once with rofy pleafure fhlne. 
 Or all are fadden'd with the blooms of care. 
 'Twas thus, if ancient fame the truth unfold, 325 
 
 Two faithful needles, from the informing touch 
 Of the fame parent- ftone, together drew 
 Its myftic virtue, and at firft confpir'd 
 With fatal impulfe quivering to the pole t 
 Then, though disjoin'd by kingdoms, though the main 33^0 
 Rowl'd its broad furge betwixt, and different liars. 
 Beheld their wakeful motions, yet preferv'd 
 Tiie former friendfhip, and remember'd ftill 
 The allianee of their birth : whate'er the line 
 Which one poffefs'd, nor paufe, nor quiet knew 3.35. 
 
 The fure affociate, ere with trembling fpeed 
 He found its path and fix'd unnerring there,. 
 Such is the fecret union, when we feel 
 A fong, a flov/er, a name, at once reftore 
 Thofc long- connected fcenes where fir ft they niov'd, 34^0 
 
 The
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K m, 85 
 
 The attention : backward through her mazy walks 
 
 Guiding the wanton fancy to her fcope, 
 
 To temples, courts or fields ; with all the band 
 
 OF painted forms, of paflions and defigns 
 
 Attendant : M-hence, if plcafing in itfelf, 34.5 
 
 The profpcfl from that fvveet acceflion gains 
 
 Redoubled influence o'er the liftening mind. 
 
 By thefe myflerious ties the bufy power 
 Of memory her ideal train preferves 
 
 Intire ; or when they would elude her watch, • 350 
 
 Reclaims their fleeting footftcps from the wafte 
 Of dark oblivion ; thus collecling all 
 The various fornis of being to prefent, , 
 Before the curious aim of mimic art. 
 
 Their largeft choice : like fpring's unfolded blooms 355 
 
 Exhaling fwectnefs, that the fkillful bee. 
 May tafte at will, from their feleded fpoils 
 To work her dulcet food. For not the expanfe 
 Of living lakes in fummer's noontide calm, 
 Reflects the bordering fliade, and fun- bright heavens 360 
 
 With fairer femblance ; not the fculptur'd gold , 
 More faithful keeps the graver's. lively trace,. 
 Than lie vvhofe birth the After powers of art 
 Propitious view'd, and from his genial ftar. 
 Shed influence to the feeds of fancy kind; 365 
 
 Than
 
 36 T II E P L E A S U R E S O F 
 
 Than his attcmpcr'd bofom mud: preferve 
 The Hal of nature. There alone unchang'd, 
 Her form remahis. The balmy walks of May- 
 There breathe perennial fweets : the trembling chord 
 Refounds for ever in the abftraded ear, 370 
 
 Melodious : and the virgin's radiant eye, 
 Superior to difeafe, to grief, and time, 
 Shines with unbating luftre. Thus at length 
 Indovv'd with ail that nature can beflow. 
 
 The child of fancy oft in filence bends 375 
 
 O'er thefe mixt treafures of his pregnant breaft, 
 With confcious pride. From them he oft refolves 
 To frame he knows not what excelling things ; 
 And win he knows not what fublime reward 
 Of praife and wonder. By degrees, the mind 380 
 
 Feels her young nerves dilate : the plailic powers 
 Labour for action : blind emotions heave 
 His bofom ; and with lovelieft frenzy caught, 
 From earth to heaven he rowls his daring eve, 
 From heaven to earth. Anon ten thoufand fliapes, 385 
 
 Like fpedres trooping to the wifard's call, 
 Flit fwift before him. From the womb of earth, 
 From ocean's bed they come : the eternal heavens 
 Difclofe their fplendors, and the dark abyfs 
 Pours out her births unknown. With fixed gaze 
 He marks the rifing phantoms. Now compares
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. 87 
 
 Their difierent forms ; now blends them, now divides, 
 
 Inlarges and extenuates by turns ; 
 
 Oppofes, ranges in fantaftic bands, 
 
 And infinitely varies. Hither now, 395 
 
 Now thither fluftuates his inconftant aim, 
 
 With endlefs choice perplex'd. At length his plan 
 
 Begins to open. Lucid order dawns ; 
 
 And as from Chaos old the jarring feeds 
 
 Of nature at the voice divine repair'd 4C0 
 
 Each to its place, till rofy earth unveil'd. 
 
 Her fragrant bofom, and the joyful fun 
 
 Sprung up the blue fercne ; by fwift degrees, 
 
 Thus difentangled, his entire defign 
 
 Emerges. Colours mingle, features join, 4.05 
 
 And lines converge : the fainter parts retire;. 
 
 The fairer eminent in light advance ; 
 
 And every image on its neighbour fmiles. 
 
 A while he ftands, and with a father's joy 
 
 Contemplates. Then with Promethean art, 4.10 
 
 Into its proper vehicle he breathes 
 
 The fair conception; which, imbodied thus, 
 
 And permanent, becomes to eyes or ears 
 
 An objed afcertain'd : while thus inform'd,. 
 
 The various organs of his mimic fkill, 415 
 
 The confonance of founds, the featur'd rock,, 
 
 The iliadowy picfture and impaflion'd verfe. 
 
 Beyond
 
 88 T n L P L E A S U R E S O F 
 
 Beyond their proper powers attraft the foul 
 
 By that exprcflive femblance, while in fight 
 
 Of nature's great original we fcan 420 
 
 The lively child of art ; while line by line, 
 
 And feature after feature we refer 
 
 To that fublime exemplar whence it ftole 
 
 Thofe animating charms. Thus beauty's palm 
 
 Betwixt them wavering hangs : applauding love 425 
 
 Doubts where to chufe : and mortal man afpires 
 
 To tempt creative praife. As when a cloud 
 
 Of gathering hail with limpid cruris of ice 
 
 Inclos'd and obvious to the beaming fun, 
 
 Colleds his large effulgence; ftrait the heavens 430 
 
 With equal flames prefent on either hand 
 
 The radiant vifage : Perfia ftands at gaze, 
 
 Appall'd ; and on the brink of Ganges doubts 
 
 The fnowy-vefted feer, in Mithra's name, 
 
 To which the fragrance of the fouth Ihall burn, 435 
 
 To which his warbled orlfons afcend. 
 
 Such various blifs the well-tun'd heart enjoys, 
 Favoured of heaven ! while plung'd in fordid cares, 
 The unfeeling vulgar mocks the boon divine : 
 And harfli aufterity, from whofe rebuke 440 
 
 Young love and fmiling wonder fhrink away 
 Abafli'd and chill of heart, with ftger frowns 
 
 Condemns
 
 I M AGIN A T I () N, B () O iv III. S; 
 
 Condemns the fiiir Incliantrncnt. On mv iliain. 
 
 Perhaps even now, fonic cold, faAidious judge 
 
 Cafts a difdalnful eye ; and calls my toil, 445 
 
 And calls the love and beauty which i fing, 
 
 The dream of folly. Thou, grave ccnfor ! fav. 
 
 Is beauty then a dream, becaufe the glooms 
 
 Of dulncfs hang too heavy on thy fenfe, 
 
 To let her fliine upon thee ? So the man 450 
 
 Whofe eye ne'er open'd on the light of heaven, 
 
 Might fmile with fcorn while raptur'd vlfion tells 
 
 Of the gay- colour 'd radiance fluOiing bright 
 
 O'er all creation. From the wife be far 
 
 Such grofs unhallow'd pride; nor needs my fong 455 
 
 Defcend fo low ; but rather now unfold, 
 
 If human thought could reach, or words unfold, 
 
 By what myllerious fabric of the mind, 
 
 The deep-felt joys and harmony of found 
 
 Refult from airy motion ; and from fliape 460 
 
 The lovely phantoms of fublime and fair. 
 
 By what line ties hath God conneded things 
 
 When prcfent in the mind, which in themlelves 
 
 Have no connedlion ? Sure the riling fun 
 
 O'er the c^erulean convex of the fea, 465 
 
 With equal brightnefs and with equal warmth 
 
 jNIight rowl his fiery orb ; nor yet the foul 
 
 Thus feel her frame expanded, and her powers 
 
 N Exulting
 
 90 THETLEASURESOF 
 
 Exulting in the fplendor jflie beholds ; 
 
 Like a young conqueror moving through the pomp 470 
 
 Cf fomc triumphal day. When join'd at eve, 
 
 Soft-murmuring ftrcams and gales of gentleft breath 
 
 JNIclodious Philomela's wakeful ftrain 
 
 Attemper, could not man's difcerning ear 
 
 Through all its tones the fympathy purfuc ; 475 
 
 Nor yet this breath divine of namelefs joy 
 
 Steal through his veins and fan the awaken'd heart. 
 
 Mild as the breeze, yet rapturous as the fong. 
 
 But were not nature ftill endowM at laro-e 
 With all which life requires, though unadorn'd 480 
 
 \Nith. fuch inchantment ? Wherefore then her form^ 
 So exquifitely fair? her breath perfum'd 
 With fuch aethereal fweetnefs ? whence her voice 
 Infoim'd at, will to raife or to deprefs 
 
 The impafiion'd foul ? and whence the robes of light 485 
 Which thus inveft her with more lovely pomp 
 1 han fancy can defcribe ? Whence but from thee,, 
 O fource divine of ever-flowing love, 
 And thy unmeafur'd goodnefs ? Not content; 
 With every food of life to nourifli man, 490. 
 
 By kind illufions of the wondering fenfe 
 Thou mak'H all nature beauty to his eye,. 
 Or mufic to his ear : vrell-pleas'd he fcans... 
 
 Tl 
 
 le.
 
 IMAGINATION. BOO K III. j, r 
 
 The goodly profpcft; and with inward finiles 
 
 Treads the gay verdure of the painted plain j 495 
 
 Beholds the azure canopy cf heavenj 
 
 And living lamps that: over-arch his head 
 
 With more than regal fplendor j bends his ear3 
 
 To the full choir of water, air, and earth; 
 
 Nor heeds the plcafing error of his thought, ^00 
 
 Nor doubts the painted green or azure arch, 
 
 Nor queftions more the mufic's minghng founds 
 
 Than fpacc, or motion, or eternal time ; 
 
 So fweet he feels their influence to attrad: 
 
 The fixed foul ; to brighten the dull glooms ^05 
 
 Of care, and make the dcftin'd road of Hfe 
 
 Delightful to his feet. So fables tell, 
 
 The adventurous heroe, bound on hard exploits^ 
 
 Beholds with glad furprife, by fecret fpells 
 
 Of fome kind fage, the patron of his toils, 510 
 
 A \'ifionary paradife difclos'd 
 
 Amid the dubious wild : with ftreams, and fhadcs. 
 
 And airy fongs, the enchanted landfcape fmiles, 
 
 Cheers his long labours and renews his frame. 
 
 What then is tafte, but thefe internal powers 515 
 
 Adive, and ftrong, and feelingly alive 
 To each fine impulfe ? a difcerning fenfe 
 Of decent and fublime, with quick difguft 
 
 N 2 From
 
 <,2 THETLEASURESOF 
 
 From things deform'd, or difarrang'd, or grofs 
 
 In fpccies? This, nor gems, nor ft ores of gold, 520 
 
 Nor purple Rate, nor culture can beilow ; 
 
 But God alone, when firft his aftive hand 
 
 Imprints the fecret byafs of the foul. 
 
 He, mighty p^frent ! wife and juft in all. 
 
 Free as the vital breeze or light of heaven, 525 
 
 Reveals the charms of nature. Afrc the fwaim 
 
 Who journeys homeward from a fummer day's 
 
 Long labour, why, forgetful of his toils 
 
 And due repofc, he loiters to behold 
 
 The funOiine gleaming as through amber clouds, 5 3^0 
 
 O'er all the weilern iky ; full foon, I ween, 
 
 His rude expreffion and untutor'd airs. 
 
 Beyond the power of language, will unfold 
 
 The form of beauty fmiling at his heart. 
 
 How lovely 1 how commanding ! But though heaven i^^'^ 
 
 III every breaft hath fown thefe early fteds 
 
 Of love and admiration, yet in vain,. 
 
 Vviihout fair culture's kind parental aid,. 
 
 Without inlivening funs, and genial fliov/ers, 
 
 And fl:ielter from the blaft, in vain we hope 540 
 
 The tender plant fliould rear its blooming head, 
 
 Or yield the harveft promis'd in its fpring. 
 
 Nor yet will every foil with equal ftores- 
 
 Repay the tiller's kbo.ur j or attend 
 
 His
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. ^ j 
 
 I-Iio will, obfcquious, whether to produce r^c 
 
 Tlij olive or the laurel. Different minds 
 
 Incline to different objects : one purfues 
 
 The vail alone, the wonderful, the wild ; 
 
 Another fighs for harmony, and grace, 
 
 And gentleft beauty. Hence when lightening fires 590 
 
 The arch of heaven, and thunders rock the ground, 
 
 When furious whirlwinds rend the howling air, 
 
 And ocean, groaning from his loweft bed. 
 
 Heaves his tempeftuous billows to the fky ; 
 
 Amid the mighty uproar,^ while below 555 
 
 The nations tremble, Shakefpeare looks abroad 
 
 From fome high cliff, fuperior, and enjoys 
 
 Tlie elemental v/ar. But Waller longs, 
 
 All on the margin of fome flowery ffream 
 
 To fpread his carelefs limbs amid the cool 560 
 
 Of plantane fliades, and to the liftcning deer. 
 
 Tlie talc of flighted vows and love's difdain 
 
 Refound foft-warbling all the live-long day : 
 
 Confenting Zephyr flghs ; the weeping rill. 
 
 Joins in his plaint, melodious; mute the groves;. c.6^^ 
 
 And hill and dale with all their echoes mourn. 
 
 Such and fo various are the taftes of men. 
 
 Oh ! blefl of heaven, whom not the lano-uid fcnjis 
 Cf luxurv, the Siren ! not the bribes 
 
 Of.
 
 54 T II r: PL E A S U R E S () 1' 
 
 Of fordid wealth, nor all the gaudy fpoils 5 70 
 
 Of pageant honour can feduce to leave 
 Thofe ever-blooming fwcets, which from the Hore 
 Of nature fair iinao-ination culls 
 
 To charm the inliven'd foul ! What though not all 
 Of mortal offspring can attain the heights 575 
 
 Of envied life ; though only few poflefs 
 Patrician treafures or imperial Hate ; 
 Yet nature's care, to all her children juft, 
 With richer treafures and an ampler Hate, 
 Indows at large whatever happy man 5 Ho 
 
 Will deign to ufe them. His the city's pomp, 
 The rural honors his. Whate'er adorns 
 The princely dome, the column and the arch, 
 The breathing marbles and the fculptur'd gold. 
 Beyond the proud poffefTor's narrow claim, 585 
 
 His tuneful breaft injoys. For him, the fpring 
 Diftills her dews, and from the filken gem 
 Its lucid leaves unfolds : for him, the hand 
 Of autumn tinges every fertile branch 
 
 With blooming gold and blufhes like the mcrn. 590 
 
 Each pafTrng hour fbeds tribute from her wings ; 
 And ftill new beauties meet his lonely walk, 
 And loves unfelt attra(9: him. Not a breeze 
 Flies o'er the meadow, not a cloud imbibes 
 The fetting fun's effulgence, not a ftrain 595 
 
 From
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. 95- 
 
 From all the tenants of the warbling fliade 
 
 Afccnds, but whence his bofom can partake 
 
 Frefh pleafure, unreprov'd. Nor thence pai takes 
 
 Frelli pleafure only : for the attentive mind, 
 
 By this harmonious adlion on her powers 6co 
 
 Becomes herfclf harmonious : wont {o oft 
 
 In outward thinc2:s to meditate the charm 
 
 Of facred order, foon fhe feeks at homa 
 
 To find a kindred order, to exert 
 
 V/ithin herfclf this elegance of love, 605 
 
 This fair-infpir'd delight : her temper'd powers^ 
 
 llefine at length, and every paflion wears 
 
 A chafter, milder, more attradive mien.. 
 
 But if to ampler profpeds, if to gaze 
 
 On nature's form, where, negligent of all 610 
 
 Thefe lefler graces, Ihe aflumes the port 
 
 Of that eternal majefty that weigh'd 
 
 The world's foundations, if to thefe the mind 
 
 Exalts her daring eye ; then mightier far 
 
 Will be the change, and nobler. Would the forms 615 
 
 Of fervile cuRom cramp her generous powers ? 
 
 Would fordid policies, the barbarous growth 
 
 01 ignorance and rapine, bow her down 
 
 To tame purfuits, to indolence and fear .^ 
 
 Lo ! Hie appeals to nature, to the winds » 620 
 
 And rowling waves, the fun's unwearied courfc^. 
 
 The:
 
 96 T II L P L E A S U R E S, S:c. 
 
 The elements and fcafons : all declare 
 
 For what the eternal maker has ordain'd 
 
 The powers of man : we feel within ourfelves 
 
 His energy divine: he tells the heart, 625 
 
 He meant, he made us to behold and love 
 
 What he beholds and loves, the general orb 
 
 Of life and being ; to be great like him, 
 
 Beneficent and active. Thus the men 
 
 Whom nature's works can charm, with God himfeif 630 
 
 Hold converfe ; grow familiar, day by day, 
 
 With his concqjtions, aft upon his plan ; 
 
 And form to his, the relifh of their fouls. 
 
 END OF BOOK III. 
 
 NOTES
 
 NOTES 
 
 O N T H E 
 
 THREE BOOKS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 PL E A S U R E S 
 
 O F 
 
 [ M A G I N A T I O N. 
 
 o
 
 [ 99 ] 
 
 NOTE 
 
 ON T II E 
 
 FIRST BOOK. 
 
 VEIL 151. Say, why ivas man, &c.] In apologizing for the frequent negligences 
 of the fublimcfl: authors of Greece, Tbofe god-like genhifes, fays LongimiSfivcreivell 
 affitrcd, that Nature had not intended man for a low-fpirited or ignoble bcimr : hut 
 bringing us into life and the midjl of this wide univerfe, as before a multitude ajfem- 
 bled atfome heroic folcmnity, that we might be fpcdators of all her magnificence, and 
 candidates high in emulation for the prize of glory ; foe has therefore implanted in our 
 fouls an inextinguifhable love of every thing great and exalted, of every thina which 
 appears divine beyond our comprehcnfion. Whence it comes to paf, that even the whole 
 world is not an obje6l fifficient for the depth and rapidity of human imagination, which 
 often failles forth beyond the limits of all that furrounds us. Let any man cajl his eve 
 through the whole circle of our exiflence, and confider how cfpecially it abounds in ex. 
 ccllent and grand objects, hewillfocn acknowledge for what irjoynients and purfuits 
 we were deflined. Thus by the very propenfity of nature we are led to admire, not 
 little fprings or fijallow rivulets, however clear and delicious, but the Nile, the Rhine, 
 the Danube, and, much more than all, the Ocean, Sec. Dionyf. Longin.de Sublira. 
 § xxiv. 
 
 Ver . 2 o : . The empyreal wafle.'] Ne fe pcut-il point qui "ly a un grand cfpace au dcJa 
 de la region dcs etoiles? ^e cefoitle del empyree, ou non, toujour s cet efpace immenft 
 qui environne toute cette region, pourra etre rempli de bonheur c£f dcgloire. II pour r a 
 (ire congu comme V ocean, oiife rendc7it lesflcuves de toutes Ics creatures bienheureufcs, 
 quand elles feront venues a Icur perfection dans Is fyfleme des etoiles. Leibnitz dans la 
 Theodicee, part. i. § 19. 
 
 Ver. 204. Whofe unfading light, kc] It was a notion of the great IVIr. Huygens, 
 that there may be fixed ftars at fuch a diflance from our folar fyflem, as that theii- 
 light fliould not have had time to reach us, even from the creation of the world to 
 this day. 
 
 , Ver. 234. the neiykn 
 
 Of all familiar profpcBs, &c.] It is here fai J, that in confequence of 
 the love of novelty, objefts which at firft were highly delightful to the mind, lofe 
 
 O 2 ilur
 
 100 
 
 N O T r. S O N T HE P L £ A S IT R !■ S 
 
 tliat cfll-fl by repeated attention to them. But the inftance of habit is oppofcd to 
 this obkTvanon ; for thac, objefls at firfl dilUdeful are in time rendered imircly 
 agreeable by repeated attention. 
 
 The difficulty in this cafe will be removed, if wcconfiJer, that, whenobjefls at 
 firfl agreeable, lofe tluu influence by frequently recurring, the mind is wholly 
 pajjive, and th^ perception involuntary ; but habit, on the other hand, generally 
 fuppofes f/jiizV^ and rtt7/vv// accompanying it: fo that the pleafure arifes here not 
 from the objei.% but from the mind's confcious determination of its own aftivity; 
 and confequcntly increafes in proportion to the frequency of that determination. 
 
 It will flill be urged perhaps, that a familiarity with difagrecable objefls renders 
 them at len'^th acceptable, even when there is no room for the mind to refohe 
 or a8 at all. hi this cafe, the appearance mufl be accounted for, one of thefe 
 ways. 
 
 The pleafure from habit may be merely negative. The objeft at firft gave iin- 
 callnefs : this uneafaiefs gradually wears off as the objecl grows familiar: and the 
 mind, finding it at lafl; intirely removed, reckons its fituation really pleafurablc, com- 
 pared with what it had experienced before. 
 
 The diflike conceived of the objeft at firfl;, might be owing to prejudice or want 
 of att^'ntion. Confequcntly the mind being neceflltated to review it often, may at 
 length perceive its own mifliake, and be reconciled to what it had looked on with 
 averfion. In which cafe, a fort of inflinftive jufl.ice naturally leads it to make 
 amends for the injury, by running toward the other extreme of fondnefs and at- 
 tachment. 
 
 Or laftly, though the objeft itfelf fliould always continue difagrceable, yet cir- 
 cumflances of plcafuro or good fortune may occur along with it. Thus an alFoci- 
 ation may arife in the mind, and the objeft never be remembered without thofe 
 plcafing circuraftances attending it ; by which means the difagrceable imprcfllot* 
 which it at firll occafioncd will in time be quite obliterated. 
 
 Ver. 240. • this dcfrre 
 
 Of objeSIs new and ftrange ] Thcfc two ideas are oft con- 
 founded; though it is evident the mere novelty of an object makes it agreeable, 
 even where the mind is not alFeftecl with the leaft defrrce of zvonJcr : whereas zcon- 
 dsr indeed always implies novelty, being never excited by common or well-known 
 appearances. But the pleafure in both cafes is explicable from the fame final caufe, 
 the acquifition of knowledge and inlargement of our views of nature : on this ac- 
 count, it is natural to treat of them together. 
 
 Ver. 374. Triitb and good are one, 
 
 And beauty dzcclls in tkem, &c.] Do you imagine, fa)'s Socrates ta 
 JriJIippus, thai ivbat is good is tiot beautiful ? Have you not obferved that thefe ap- 
 pearanees always coincide ? Virtue, for in fiance, in the fame refpcd: as to zvhich we 
 
 call
 
 OF IMAGINATION. B O O K I. lot 
 
 call it good, is ever acknowledged to be beautiful alfo. In the charaSIeys of men 'u.-e 
 always * join the two denominations together. The beauty of human bodies corytf ponds, 
 in like manner, with that (economy of parts which coii/litutes them good ; and in every 
 circwnjlance of life, the fame ohjed: is confiantly accounted both beautiful and good, 
 inafmuch as it anfwcrs the purpofcs for which it was defined. Xcnophotiti Mcmo- 
 rab. Socrat. 1. iii. c. 8. 
 
 This excellent obfcrvafion has been illuflratcd and extended by the noble reflorcr 
 of ancient philofophy 'jfe thcCharacleriJiicks,\o\. n. p. 3 39 and 422. and vol. ilL p.i 8 1 . 
 And another ingenious author has particularly Ihewn, that it holds in the general 
 laws of nature, in the works of art, and the conduft of the fcienccs. Inquiry into 
 the original of cur ideas of beauty and virtue, Treat, i. § 8. As to the connection be- 
 tween beauty and truth, there are two opinions concerning it. Some philofophcrs 
 affert an independent and invariable law in nature, in confequencce of which all ra- 
 tional beings mufl alike perceive beauty in fame certain proportions, and deformity in the 
 contrary. And this neceffity being fuppofcd the fame with that which commands 
 the aficnt or difllnt of the underftanding, it follows of courfe that beauty is founded 
 on the unlverfal and unchangeable law of truth. 
 
 But others there are, who belic\e beauty to be merely a relative and arbitrary 
 thing ; that indeed it was a benevolent provifion in nature to annex fo deligluful a 
 fenfation to thofe objefls which are befi and mojt perfed in themfelves^ that fo we 
 might be ingaged to the choice of them at once and without flaying to infer their 
 vfffulnefs from their flruflure and effefts ; but that it is not impoffible, in a phvfical 
 fcnfe, that two beings, of equal capacities for truth, fhould perceive, one of them 
 beauty, and the other deformity, in the fame proportions. And upon this fuppofi- 
 tion, by that truth which is always connefled with beauty, nothing more can be 
 meant than the conformity of any objeft to thofe proportions upon which, after 
 careful examination, the beauty of that fpecies is found to depend. Folyclctus, for 
 inftancc, a famous ancient fculptor, from an accurate menfuration of the feveral 
 parts of the moft perfeft hunrin bodies, deduced a canon or fyilem of proportions, 
 which was the rule of all fuccecding artills. Suppofe a flatue modelled according 
 to this : a man of mere natural tafte, upon looking at it, without entering into its 
 proportions, confefl'es and admires its beauty ; whereas a profeflbr of the art applies 
 his meafures to the head, the neck, or the hand, and, without attending to its beau- 
 ty, pronounces the workmanlliip to be jujl and true. 
 
 Ver. 492. As when Brutus rfc, 8cc.] Cicero himfclf dcfcribcs this fafl — Ccsfare 
 
 intcrfeclo Jlatini cruentum alte cxtollcns M. Brutus pugionem, Ciceronem ncminatim 
 
 cxchimavit, atque ei recuperatam liberlatan efl gratulatus. Cic. Philipp.ii. 12. 
 
 • This the Athtnlans did in a peculiar manner, by the word xaAsxaJafl!;, x»Xoxara9.'». 
 
 Vcr.
 
 102 
 
 NOTES ON THE PLEASURES 
 
 Ver. 548. Where virtue ri/ing from the awful depth 
 
 Of truth's myfierious bofom, &c.3 According to the opinion of thofc 
 who aflert moral obligation to be founded on an immutable and univerfal law, and that 
 which is ufually called the moral fcnfe, to be determined by the peculiar temper of 
 the imagination and the earlieft affociations of ideas. 
 
 Ver. 591. Lyceum.~\ The fchool of Arijiotlc. 
 
 Ver. 592. Academus.'} The fchool of Plato. 
 
 Ver. 594. Ilijfus.~\ One of the rivers on which Athens was fituated. Flato, In 
 fome of his finefl dialogues, lays the fccne of the converfation with Socrates on its 
 banks. 
 
 NOTES
 
 O F I M A G I N A T I O N. B O O K II. 103 
 
 NOTE 
 
 ON THE 
 
 SECOND BOOK. 
 
 VER. 19. Ai Idjl the mtifes rofc, he.'] About the age of Hugh Capet, founder of 
 the third race of French kings, the poets of Provence were in high reputation ; a 
 fort of ftroUing bards or rhapfodifls, who went about the courts of princes and no- 
 blemen, entertaining them at fcflivals with mufic and poetry. They attempted both 
 the epic, ode, and latire ; and abounded in a wild and fantaftic vein of fable, partly 
 allegorical, and partly founded on traditionary legends of the Saracen wars. Thefe 
 Were the rudiments of Italian poetry. But their taite and compofition mud have 
 been extremely barbarous, as we may judge by thofe who followed the turn of their, 
 fable in much politer times ; fueh as Boiardo, Bernardo Tajjh, Ariojloy &c. 
 
 Ver. 21. Valcliifa.'] The famous retreat of Francifo Fctrnrcha, the father oi Ita-. 
 Han poetr)', and his miftrefs Laura, a lady of Avignon-, 
 
 Ver. 22. Arno.~\ The river which runs hy Florence, the birth-place of Dante dSid. 
 Boccacio. 
 
 Ver. 23. Parthcnope.'] Or Naples, the birth-place of Sannazaro. The great 
 Torquato Fajfo was born at Sorrento in the kingdou^ of Naples. 
 
 Ibid. tl'C rage 
 
 Of dire ambition, &c.] This relates to the cruel wars among the re- 
 publics of Italy, and abominable politics of its little princes, about the fifteenth cen- 
 tury. Thefe at lad, in conjunflion with the papal power, intirely extinguillied the 
 fpirit of liberty in that country, and eftabliflied that abuic of the fine arts which 
 has been fince propagated over all F.urope. 
 
 Ver. 30. Fhus from their guar-dians torn, the tender arts, &c.] Nor were they 
 only lofers by the feparation. For philofophy itfelf, to ufc the words of a noble 
 philofopher, being thus fevered by the fprightly arts and fciences, miifl confcquently 
 grow droniflo, infipid, pedantic, tfelcfs, and direclly oppoftte to the real knoicledge and 
 pradiee of the zaorld. Infomuch that a gentleman, fays another excellent writer, 
 cannot cafily bring hinfelf to like fo auflcre and ungainly a form : fo greatly is it, 
 changed from what lieas once the delight of the finefl gentlemen of antiquity, and^ 
 their recreation after the hurry of public affairs .' From this condition it cannot be 
 
 rejovcrej
 
 104 
 
 NOTES ON THE PLEASURES 
 
 recovered but by unking it once more with the works of imagination ; and we have 
 hud the pleafure of obferving a very great progrcfs made towards their union in 
 England \yirhin thcfe few years. It is hardly pofublc to conceive them at a greater 
 diilance from each other than at the Revolution, when Locke flood at the head of 
 one party, and Diyden of the other. But the general fpirit of liberty, which has 
 ever fmce been growing, naturally invited our men of wit and genius to improve 
 that influence which the arts of pcrluafion gave them with the people, by applying 
 tbem to fubj.e^s of importance to fociety. Thus poetry and eloquence became con- 
 fiderable; and philofophy is now of courfe obliged to borrow of their embcUirn- 
 ments, in order even to gain audience with the public. 
 
 Vcr. 157. From pqjJlorJ's power alone, &c.] This very myfterious kind of plea- 
 fure, which is often found in the exercife of pafTions generally counted painful, has 
 been taken notice of by feveral authors. Lucretius refolves it into felf-love : 
 
 StuTvs tnayi magna, &c. lib. ii. i. 
 As if a man was never pleafed in being moved at the diftrefs of a tragedy, without 
 a cool refleftion that though thefe fiflitious. perfonages were io unhappy, yet he 
 himfelf was perfeftly at eafe and in fafety. The ingenious author of the Reflexions 
 critiques fur la.poefle & fltr la peinture,. accounts for it by the general delight which 
 the mind takes in its own aftivity, and the abhorrence it feels of an indolent and in- 
 attentive flate : and this, joined with the moral, approbation of its own temper, 
 which attends thefe emotions v.'hen natural and jufl:, is certainly the true foundation 
 of the pleafure,. which,, as it is the origin and bafis of tragedy and epic,.deferved a 
 very particular confideration in this poem. 
 
 Ver..304. Inhabiiant of earth,. 8cc.'] The account of the oeconomy of provi- 
 dence here introduced, as the moll: proper to calm and futisfy the mind when under 
 the compunction of private evils, feem.s to have come originally from the Pyt/jago- 
 rean fchool; but of the ancient philofophers, Plato has moft largely infifled upon 
 ir, has eftabliflicd it with all the flrength of his capacious underftanding, and en- 
 nobled it with all the magnificence of his divine imaginaiion. He has one paffage 
 fo full and clear on this head, that I .im perfuaded the reader will be pleafed to fee 
 it here, though fomewhat long. Addrefhng himfelf to fuch as are not fatisfied con- 
 cerning divine providence: The. Being %vho prcfuks over the lahole, fays he, has dif- 
 pofcd and complicated all things for the happinefs and virtue of the ivhole, every part of 
 which, according to the extent of its influence, does andfufl'ers tL'hat is Jit and proper, . 
 One of thcfe parts is yours, unhappy man, which though in itfelf mojt intonfiderahle 
 and minute, yet being connected with the univetfc, ever fecks to co-operate with that 
 fvpreme order. Ton in the mean time are ignorant of the very end for which all par- 
 ticular natures arc brovghtinio exijlcnce, that the all-comprehending nature of the. 
 whole may be perfect and happy ; exifling, as it does, not for your fake, hut the caufe 
 and reafon of your exiflence, which, at in the fymmeirj of every artificial work, inufl 
 
 of
 
 OF IMAGINATION. BOOK II. 
 
 105 
 
 of nccejjlty concur with the general defign of the artijl, and be fubfervknt to the whole 
 of ivbicb it is a part, fliir complaint therefore is ignorant and groiindlefs / Jince, 
 according to the various energy of creation, and the common laws of nature, there is a 
 
 covflcint prcvificn of that ivhich is hcjl at the fame time for you and for the whole 
 
 For the governing intel/igence clearly beholding all the anions of animated and fclf- 
 imving CI c.iturcs, and that mixture of good and evil which diverffes them, confulered 
 frjl of all by what difpofition of things, and by what fituation of each individual in the 
 general fyjlem, vice might be dcpreffed andfubdued, and virtue made fecure of viclory 
 and happincfs with the greatejl facility and in the highcjl degree poffiblc: In this manner 
 he ordered through the entire circle of being, the internal conjitution of every inind, 
 where fhould he its flationin the iiniverfal fabric , and through what variety of cir- 
 cumflances it foould proceed in the whole tenour of its exijlencc. He goes ou in his 
 fublime manner to affert a future flute of retribution, as well for thofe who, by the 
 exercife of good difpofitions bein(r harmonized and ajfimilated into the divine virtue, 
 are confequently removed to a place of unhlemiflied fan^ity and happinefs ; as of thofe 
 who by the ?noJl flagitious arts have rifenfrom contemptible beginnings to the greatejl 
 affluence and power, and whom you therefore look upon as unanfwerable injlances of neg- 
 ligence in the gods, becaufe you are ignorant of the purpofes to which they arefubfer- 
 vicnt, and in what maimer they contribute to thai fupreme intention of good to the 
 whole. Plato de Leg. x. 16. 
 
 This theory has been delivered of late, efpecially abroad, in a manner v/hicli 
 fubverts the freedom of human aftions ; whereas Flato appears very careful 10 pre- 
 ferve it, and has been in that refpeft imitated by the beft of his followers. 
 
 Ver. 321. one might rife, 
 
 One order, 8cc.] See the Meditations of Antoninus and the Cha- 
 
 raflerlRicks, paffim. 
 
 Ver. i^^. The hefl andfairejl, &€.] This opinion is fo old, that Timce-as Locrus 
 
 calls the fupreme being Japj^-^/of tw ^jAt/ov©-', the artificer of that which is bcjl ; 
 
 and reprefents him as refolving in the beginning to produce the mod excellent work, 
 
 and as copying the world mod: exaftjy from his own intelligible and effential idea; 
 fo that it yet remains, as it was at firjl, perfed in beauty, iviid will never Jland in 
 
 need of any correclion or improvement. There can be no room for a caution here, 
 
 to underftand the expreflions, not of any particular circumftances of human life fc- 
 
 parately confidered, but of the fum or univerfal fyflem of life and being. See alfo 
 
 the vifion at the end of the Theodicee of Leibnitz. 
 
 Ver. 350. As flame afcends, Sec] This opinion, though not held by Flatp nor any 
 
 of the ancients, is yet a very natural confequence of bis principles. But thcdifqui- 
 
 lition is too complex and extenfive to be entered upon here. 
 Ver. 755. Fhilip.'] The Macedonian. 
 
 P NOTES
 
 ro6 NOTES ON THE PLEASURES 
 
 NOTE 
 
 O N T H E 
 
 THIRD BOOK. 
 
 V E R . I ff . — — ' where the powers 
 
 Of fancy, &c.] The influence of the imagination on the condu(J^ of 
 life, is one of the mofl important points in moral philofophy. It were eafy by an 
 in<.lu£lie)n of fafts to prove that the imagination direfts almoit all the paflions, and 
 mixes with almoft every circumftance of aclion or pleafure. Let any man, even 
 of the coldeft head and fobereft induftry, analyfe the idea of what he calls his- 
 intereft ; he will find that it confifts chiefly of certain degrees^ of decency,. 
 beauty, and order, varioufly combined into one fyftem, the idol which he fecks to 
 enjoy by labour, hazard, and felf-denial. It is on this account of the lafl; confe- 
 qucnce to regulate thefe images by the fl;andard of nature and the general good j 
 otherwife the imagination, by heightening fome objecls beyond- their real excellence 
 and beauty, or by reprefenting others in a more odious or terrible fhape than they 
 defcrve, may of courfe engage us in purfuits utterly inconfiflent with the moral 
 order of things. 
 
 If it be objefled that this account of things fuppofes the paffions- to be merely 
 a.ccidental, whereas there appears in fome a natural and hereditary difpofitioa to 
 certain paflions prior to all circumflances of education or fortui>e ; it may be an- 
 fvvered, that though no man is born ambitious or a tnijhr, yet he may inherit from 
 his parents a peculiar temper or complexion of mind, which fliall render his imagi- 
 nation more liable to be fliruck with fome particular objecls, confequcntly difpofe 
 him to form opinions of good and ill, and entertain paflions of a particular turn. 
 Some men, for Inflance, by the original frame of their minds, are more delighted • 
 with the vafl: and magnificent, others on the contrary with the elegant and gentle 
 afpefts of nature. And it is very remarkable, that the difpofition of the moral 
 powers is always fimiiar to this of the imagination ; that thofe who are mofl: in- 
 clined to admire prodigious and fublime objefts in the phyfical world, are alfo moft 
 inclined to applaud examples of fortitude and heroic virtue in the moral. While 
 thofe who are charmed rather with the delicacy znd Juretne/s of colours,. and forms, 
 and fpun.ls, never fail in like manner to yield the preference to the fofter fcenes of 
 
 virtue
 
 OF IMAGINATION. BOOK HI. 107 
 
 virtue and the fympathics of a domeflic life. And this is fuflicicnt to account for 
 the objection. 
 
 Among the ancient philofophcrs, though we have feveral hints conceniing tlils 
 influence of the imagination upon morals among the remains of tho Socratic fcliool 
 yet the Stoics were the firll who paid it a due attention. Zcno, their founder, thought 
 it impollible to preferve any tolerable regularity in life, without frequently infpciPiing 
 thofe pictures or appearances of things, which the imagination offers to the mind 
 (Diog. Laerf, ! . vii.) The Meditations of M. Jure/ius, and the difcourfes of Epidetus, 
 are full of the fame fentiment ; infomuch that the latter makes the X^^o-zj oIk. M (px,/- 
 •xoiriM'j, or right management of the fancies^ the only thing for which we are accoun- 
 table to providence, and without which a man is no other than ftupid or frantic 
 Arnan. 1. i. c. i 2. & 1. ii. c. 22. Seealfo the Charaderijlics, vol. i. from p. 31 ?. to 
 321. where this Stoical doftrine is embellilhcd with all the elegance and graces of 
 Plato. 
 
 Yer. 75. ^ how folly'' s aukivai'd artSf &c.] Notwithftanding the general 
 
 influence of ridicule on private and civil life, as well as on learning and the fcienceSj 
 it has been almoft conftantly neglefted or mifreprefented, by divines efpecially. 'ITie 
 manner of treating thele fubjefts in the fcience of human nature, Ihould be precifely 
 the fame as in natural philofophy ; from particular fafts to inveftigate the dated order 
 in which they appear, and then apply the general law, thus difcovered, to the explica- 
 tion of other appearances and the improvement of ufeful arts. 
 
 Vcr. 84. Behold the foremofl band, &c.] The firfl: and moft general fource of 
 ridicule in the charafters of men, is vanity, or felf-applaufe for fome defirable qua- 
 lity or poffeffion which evidently does not belong to thofe who afTume it. 
 
 Ver. 121. Then comes the fccond order. Sec.'} Ridicule from the fame vanity, 
 where, though the poflTefllion be real, yet no merit can arife from it, becaufe of fome 
 particular circumftanccs, v/hlch, though obvious to the fpcftator, are yet overlooked 
 by the ridiculous character. 
 
 Ver. 152. Another tribe fuccccds, &c.] Ridicule from a notion of excellence in 
 particular objecls difproportioned to their intrinfic value, and inconfiftent with the 
 order of nature. 
 
 Yer. 191. But now ye gay, &C.3 R.idicule from a notion of exccHenee, when 
 the object is abfolutely odious or contemptible. This is the highcfl degree of the 
 ridiculous; as in the affeftation of difeafes or vices. 
 
 Ver. 207. Thus far triumphant, iccl Ridicule from falfe fhame or grotindlefs 
 fear. 
 
 Ver. 228. Lajl of the. Sec] Ridicule from the ignorance of fuch things as onr 
 circumllances require us to know. 
 
 Ver. 248. SuJJice it to have f aid, &c.] By comparing thefe general fources 
 
 ef ridicule with each other, and examining the ridiculous in other objefts, we may 
 
 1* 2 obtain
 
 io8 NOTES ON THE PLEASURES 
 
 obtain a general definition of it, equally applicable to every fpecies. The mofl: im- 
 portant circumftance of this definition is laid down in the lines referred to ; but 
 others more minute we fliall fubjoin here. Arijioile's account of the matter feems 
 both imperfeft and falfe; loya^ yiXoiw, fays he, Igh dya^iiiixM n ^ aiiryj^, u.uilw^v Jt « 
 (p9cii!iKm : tbe ridiculous is feme certain fault or turpitude ivitbout pain, and not dejlruc- 
 tive to its fubjed. (Poet. c. £.) For allowing it to be true, as it is nor, that the 
 ridiculous is never accompanied with pain, yet we might produce many inftances 
 of fuch a fault or turpitude which cannot with any tolerable propriety be called ri- 
 diculous. So that the definition docs not difliinguifli the thing defigned. Nay far- 
 ther ; even when we perceive the turpitude tending to the dcftruftion of its fubjeft, 
 we may Hill be fenfible of a ridiculous appearance, till the ruin become imminent, 
 and the keener fenfations of pity or terror banifli the ludicrous apprehenfion from 
 our minds. For the fenfation of ridicule is not a bare perception of the agreement 
 or difagreemcnt of ideas ; but a paflion or emotion of the mind confequcntial to 
 that perception. So that tlie mind may perceive the agreement or difagveementj 
 and yet not feel the ridiculous, becaufe it is engrofifed by a more violent emotion. 
 Thus it happens that fotne men think thofe objefts ridiculous, to which others can- 
 not endure to apply the name; becaufe in them tliey excite a much intenfer and 
 aiore important feeling. And this difference, among other caufes, has brought a 
 good deal of confufion into this qucftion. 
 
 T/jat which makes objeils ridiculous, is fome ground of admiration or cflcem con- 
 reeled with other more general circwnjlances comparatively ivortblefs or deformed; or 
 it is fome circumflance of turpitude or deformity connected 'with ivhat is in general ck- 
 cellent or beautiful : the inconfiflent properties exijling either in the objeds themfelvss, 
 »r in the apprehenfion of the perfon to whom they relate; belonging alivays to the 
 fame order or clefs of being ; implying fentUmnt or dcfign ; and exciting no acute or ix- 
 b.ement emotion of the heart. 
 
 To prove tlie feveral parts of this definition: The appaarance of excellence or beauty 
 ccnneBedwith a general condition comparatively fordid or deforined, is ridiculous: for 
 inftance, pompous pretenfions of wifdom joined with ignorance or folly in the 5c- 
 cratcs of Arijhphanes ; and the oftentations of military glory v/ilh cowas^dice and 
 HupidJty in the Thrafooi Terence. 
 
 Tbe appearance of deformity or turpitude in -conjunSion ivith what is in gencrel 
 excellent or venerable, is alfo ridiculous : for inftance, the perfonal weakneiTes .of a 
 magiftraie appearing in the folemn and public futi^lions of his ftation. . 
 
 The incongruous properties may either exift in the objeds thanfehes, or in apprehcn- 
 
 ftm of the perfon to whom they relate: in-the laft-meutioned inftance, they both exifl 
 
 in the objeifls; in the i n (lances from v^r//?(9/)/A7«fj and Terence, one of them is 
 
 objciftive and real, the other ordy founded in the apprehenfion of, tbe ridiculous 
 
 «haE»fter. 
 
 Tbs.
 
 O F I M A G I N A T I O N. BOOK III. 
 
 109 
 
 The inconjijicnt properties miijl belong to the fame order or clafs of being. A cox- 
 comb in fine cloaths, bedaubed by accident in foul weather, is a ridiculous object; 
 becaufc his general apprehenfion of excellence and cftecin is referred to the fplcn- 
 dour and expence of his drefs. A man of fenfc and merit, in the fame circum- 
 flances, is not counted ridiculous; becaufc the general ground of cxxellence and 
 cftecm in him is, both in fa£t and in his own apprehenfion, of a very dillcicnt 
 fpccies. 
 
 Every r'ulieulous object implies fentiment or defign. A column placed by an architeft 
 without a capital or bafc, is laughed at : the. fame column in a ruin caufes a very 
 dilTerent fenfation. 
 
 And laflly, the occurrenee muji excite no acute or vehement emotion cf the heart, 
 fach as terror, pity, or indignation ; for in that cafe, as was obfervcd above, the 
 mind is not at leillirc to contemplate the ridiculous. 
 
 Whether any appearance not ridiculous be involved in this dcfcription, and whe- 
 ther it comprehend every fpecies and form of the ridiculous, mud be determined by 
 repeated applications of it to particular inftances. • 
 
 Ver. 259. JJJiwe for what fair end, hc.~\ Since it is beyond all contradicTtion cviJent 
 that we have a jiatural fenfe or feeling of the ridiculous, and fince fo good a rcafcn 
 may be affigned to juQity the fupreme being for bcftowing it ; one cannot without ailo- 
 nifhment refleft on the conduft of thofe men who imagine it is for the fervicc of 
 true religion to vilify and blacken it without diftinftion, and endeavour to perfuude 
 us that it is never applied but in a bad caufe. Ridicule is not concerned with mere 
 fpcculative tnith or falfehood. It is not in abftraft propofitions or theorems, but in 
 aftions and paiTions, good arrd evil, beauty and deformity, that we find materials 
 for it ; ,and all. thefe terms are relative, implying approbation or blame. To ailc 
 them whether ridicule be a tcjl of truth, is, in other words, to aOc whether that 
 v.'hich is .ridiculous can be morally true, can be juft and becoming ; or whether 
 that which is juft and becoming, can be ridiculous. Aqueflion that docs not de- 
 ferve a ferlous anfwer. For it is moft evident, that, as in a metaphyfical propofitlon 
 oiFcred to the underftanding for its affent, the faculty of reafon examines the term, 
 of the propofition,. and finding one idea, which was fuppofed equal to another, to 
 be in faft unequal, of confequence rejefls the propofition as a falfehood; fo^ in 
 objeftsoifered to ilie mind for itsefteem or applaufe, the faculty of ridicule, finding 
 an incongruity in the claim, urges the mind to reject it with laughter and contempt. 
 When therefore we obferve fuch a claim obtruded upon mankind, and the incon- 
 fifiant circumftances carefully concealed from the eye of the public, it is our Lu- 
 finefs, if the matter be of importance to fociety, to drag out thofe latent circura- 
 flances, and, by fetting them in full view, to convince the world how ridiculous tlic 
 cUim is: and thr.s a double advantage is gained; for we both deteft xhs. morrJ 
 fiilfihood fooner than in the way cf fpcculative inquiry, and imprefs the minds of 
 
 men
 
 no NOTES ON THE PLEASURES 
 
 incii •with :i flrongcr fcnfc of the vanity and error of its authors. And this and no 
 more is meant by the apphcation of ridicule. 
 
 But it is faid, the praftice is dangerous, and may be incorifificnt with the regard 
 we owe to obje(ftsof real dignity and excellence. 1 anfwer, the praftice fairly ma- 
 naged can never be dangerous ; men may be diflioncft in obtruding circumllances 
 forei<^n to the objecl, and we may be inadvertent in allowing ihofe circumflances to 
 impofe upon us : but the fcnfe of ridicule always judges rii^hr. The Socrates of 
 Arijlopbanes is as iruly ridiculous a charafter as ever was drawn: — True; but it is 
 not the charafter of Socrates^ the divine moralifl and father of ancient wifdom. 
 What thenP did the ridicule of the poet hinder the philofopher from deteflingand 
 difclaiming ihofe foreign circumflances which he had falfely introduced into his 
 chara^ler, and thus rendered the fatirift doubly ridiculous in his turn ? No ; but it 
 nevcrthclefs had an ill influence on the minds of the people. And fo has the rea- 
 foning of S/'/wosrt made many atheifls : he has founded it indeed on fuppolitions 
 utterly falfe ; but allow him thefe, and his conclufions are unavoidably true. And if 
 we mud rejeft theufe of ridicule, becaufe, by the impofition of falle circumflances, 
 things may be made to fecm ridiculous, which are not fo in thcmfelves ; why we 
 ought not in the fame manner to reject the ule of reafon, becaufe, by proceeding on 
 falfe principles, conclufions will appear true which are impofliblc in nature, let the 
 vehement and obflinate declaimers againft ridicule determine. 
 
 Ver. 285. 'The inexprejjive femblance, &c.] This fimilitude is the foundation of 
 almofl all the ornaments of poetic didlion. 
 
 Ver. 326. Tzi'o faithful needles, &c.] See the elegant poem recited by Cardinal 
 Bcmbo'm the character of Lucretius ; Stracia Prohf. vi. Acadcm. 2. c. v. 
 
 Ver. 348. By thefe myjlerious ties, &c.] The aft of remembering feems almofl; 
 wholly to depend on the aflbciation of ideas. 
 
 Ver. 411. Into its proper vehicle, &C.3 This relates to the difTcrcnt forts of corpo- 
 real mediums, by which the ideas of the artifls are rendered palpable to the fenfes ; as 
 by founds, in mufic; by lines and fliadows, in painting; by diciion, in poetry, ££fc. 
 
 Ver. 547. One purfues 
 
 The vajl alone, &c.j See the note to ver. i3. of this book. 
 Ver. 5 J 8.. Waller longs, &c.] 
 
 ! hoiu I long Jiiy carelefs limbs to lay 
 Under the plantnne Jhade ; and all the tjlay 
 With amorous airs my fancy entertain, &c. 
 
 Waller, Battle of the Summer-Iflands, Canto I, 
 
 And again, 
 
 While in the park Ifng, the li/l'ning deer 
 Attend my pajfion, ami forget to fear, &:c. 
 
 At Pens'hurfl. 
 
 ■ Ver.
 
 G F I M A G I N y\ T r O N. B O O K III. 1 1 1 
 
 Vcr. 593. Not a breeze, &c.] That this account may not appear ratlicr 
 
 poetically extravagant than jufl in philofophy, it may be proper to produce the 
 fentiment of one of the greatefl:, wifefl, and beft of men on this head ; one fo 
 little to befufpefted of partiality in the cafe, that he reckons it among thofe favours 
 for which he was efpecially thankful to the goJs, that they had not fulTcred him to 
 make any great profiiiency in the arts of eloquence and poetry, left by that means 
 he fliould have been diverted from piu'fuits of more importance to his high Ration. 
 Speaking cf tlic beauty of univerfal nature, he obfcrves, that there is a pkafnig 
 and graceful afpeH in every objed ive perceive, when once we confider its connection 
 Avith that general order. He inftances in many things which at firft fight would be 
 thought rather deformities ; and then adds, that a man ivho enjoys a fenfibility cf 
 temper luitb a jiijl comprchcnfion of the univerfal order — ly/// difcern many amiable 
 things, not credible to every mind, but to thofe alone who have entered into an bofiourablf 
 Jamiliariry with nature and her works, M. Antonia. iii. 2. . 
 
 T:H E
 
 T H E . 
 
 PL EASURES 
 
 OFT HE; 
 
 I M A G IN A T I O N 
 
 E 
 
 O 
 
 E 
 
 M.
 
 I
 
 THE GENERAL ARGUMENT. 
 
 T'he p leaf ares of the imagin.itiofi proceed either from 7iatiiral 
 ohjcSis^ as from a fourlfuin'^ grove^ a char and miirjituring 
 fountain, a calm fea hy moon-light -^ or from works of art^ 
 fuch as a 720b le edifce, a mufical tiine^ a fatue^ a piSlure^ a 
 poem. In treating of thefe pleafures, ive mtfi begin mcith 
 the former clafs ; they being original to the other ; and no- 
 thing more being ^lecejfary^ in order to explain them^ than a 
 view of our natural inclination toward greatnefs and beauty., 
 and of thofe appearances, in the world around us, to which 
 that inclination is adapted. This is the fubje£l of the frf 
 hook of the following poem. 
 
 But the pleafures which we receive from the elega^it arts, frc?n 
 mufc,fculpture, paintifig, and poetry, are much ?nore va- 
 rious and co7npUcated. hi the^n (bejides greatnefs and beau- 
 ty, or forfns proper to the imagination] we find ijiterwoven 
 frcque?Jt reprefentations of truth, of virtue and vice, of 
 . circumfances proper to move us with laughter, or to excite in 
 us pity, fear, and the other paffions. 'Thefe moral and in- 
 telleSlual objecis are defcribed /;? the fecond book \ to which 
 the third properly belongs as ajz epifode, though too large to 
 have been included i?i it. 
 
 Q^ 2 TFitb
 
 ii5 THE GENERAL ARGUMENT. 
 
 With the above-mentioned coufcs of pleafure, which are univey- 
 
 fal in the courfe of human life and appei'tain to our higher 
 
 faculties^ many others do generally concur^ more limited in 
 
 their operation^ or of an inferior origin : fuch are the novelty 
 
 of objeBsf the affociation of ideas, affc8tio7is of the bodily 
 
 fejfes, influences of education,, national habits, xind the like. 
 
 "To illuflrate thefe, and frojn the whole to determiite the cha" 
 
 raBer of a perfeSi tafle, is the argument of the fourth book. 
 
 'Hitherto the pleafures of the imagination belo?tg to the human fpe- 
 cies in general. But there are certain particular men whofe 
 imagination is indowed with powers, and fufceptible of plea- 
 fures, which the generality of mankind never participate, 
 thefe are the me7i of genius, defined by jiature to excell in 
 one or other of the arts already mentioned. It is propofed 
 therefore, in the lafl place, to delineate that genius which in 
 fome degree appears co?mnon to them all', yet with a more 
 peculiar con f deration of poetty : inafmuch as poetry is the 
 mofl extenfive of thofe arts, the ?noft philofophical, and the 
 mofl ufeful. 
 
 THE
 
 THE 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 OF THE 
 
 IMAGINATION: 
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 MDCCLVIL
 
 THE A R G U M E N T. 
 
 The fuhjecl propofed. Declicatio?!. 'The ideas of the fiipreme 
 beings the exemplars of all things. The 'variety of confitu- 
 tion in the minds of men ; 'uoith its f'nal caufe. ihe geiieral 
 charaBer of a fine imagination. All the iin'aiediate pleafures of 
 the human imagination proceed either from greatnefs or beau- 
 ty in external ohjeSis. The pleafilre from greatnefs ; nsyith its 
 final caufe. The natural conneSiion of beauty with ^ truth 
 and good. The different orders of beauty in different objeEis. 
 The infinite and all^comprehending form of beauty , which be- 
 longs to the divine mind. The partial and artificial forms of 
 beauty^ which belo?ig to inferior intelle&ual bei7igs. The ori- 
 gin ayid general ccnduB of beauty in man. The fubordina- 
 tion of local beauties to the beauty of the univerfe, Con-- 
 cluficn. 
 
 ■* Truth is here taken, not in a logical, but in a mixed and popular fenfe, or for 
 "what has been called the truth of things ; denoting as well their natural and regu- 
 lar condition, as a proper eflimate or judgment concerning them, . 
 
 THE
 
 T II E 
 
 PLEASURE 
 
 OFT H K 
 
 IMAGINATION: 
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 W ITH what inchantment nature's goodly fcene 
 Attrads the lenfe of mortals ; how the mind 
 For its own eye doth objeds nobler ftill 
 Prepare ; liow men by various leflbns learn 
 To judge of beauty's praife ; what raptures fill 5 
 
 The breait with fancy's native arts indow'd 
 And what true culture oruidcs it to renown ; 
 My verfe unfolds. Ye gods, or godlike powers, 
 Ye guardians of the facred tafic, attend 
 
 Propitious. Hand in hand around your bard 10 
 
 Move in majcuic meafure?, leadino- on 
 His doubtful ftep through many a folemn path 
 Confcious of fccrets which to human lio-ht 
 Ye only can reveal. Be great in him : 
 
 And let your luvor make him wife to fpeak 15 
 
 Of
 
 j2<y THEPLEASURESOFTHE 
 
 Of all your wonderous empire ; with a voice 
 
 So temper'd to his theme, that thofc, who hear, 
 
 May yield perpetual homage to yourfelvcs. 
 
 Thou chief, o daughter of eternal Love, 
 
 Whate'er thy name ; or Mule, or Grace, ador'd 20 
 
 By Grecian prophets ; to the fons of heaven 
 
 Known, while with deep amazement thou dofl: there 
 
 The perfedt counfcls read, the ideas old, 
 
 Of thine omnifcient father ; known on earth 
 
 By the ftijl horror and the blifsful tear 25; 
 
 With which thou feizeft on the foul of man , 
 
 Thou chief, Poetic Spirit, from the banks. 
 
 Of Avon, whence thy holy fingers cull 
 
 Frefh flowers and dews to fprinkle on the turf 
 
 Where Shakefpear lies, be prefent. and with thee 30 
 
 Let Fi£lion come ; on her aerial wings 
 
 Wafting ten thoufand colors ; which in fport, 
 
 By the light glances of her magic eye, 
 
 She blends and; fhifts at will through countlefs forms, . 
 
 Her wild creation. Gcddefs of the lyre 25' 
 
 Whofe awful tones controul the moving fphere, 
 
 Wilt thou, eternal Harmony, clefcend, 
 
 And join this happy train ? for with thee comes 
 
 The guide, the guardian of their myllic rites, 
 
 Wife Order : and, where Order deigns tp come. 
 
 Her fifter, Liberty, will not be fir.
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K I. 12I 
 
 Be prefcnt all yc Genii, who conduct 
 
 Of youthful bards the lonely-wandering ftcp 
 
 New to your fprings and fliades ; who touch their car 
 
 With finer founds, and heighten to their eye 45 
 
 The pomp of nature, and before them place 
 
 The fairctl, loftiefb countenance of things. 
 
 Nor thou, my Dyfon, to the lay refufc 
 
 Thy wonted partial audience. What, though firft 
 
 In years iinfeafon'd, haply ere the fports 50 
 
 Of childhood yet were o'er, the adventurous lay 
 
 With many fplcndld profpeds, many charms, 
 
 Allur'd my heart, nor confcious whence they fprung, 
 
 Nor heedful of their end ? yet ferious truth 
 
 Her empire o'er the calm, fequefter'd theme ^^ 
 
 AlTerted foon ; while falfehood's evil brood, 
 
 Vice and deceitful pleafure, flie at once 
 
 Excluded, and my fancy's carclefs toil 
 
 Drew to the better caufe. Maturer aid 
 
 Thy friendfliip added, in the paths of life, 60 
 
 The bufy paths, my unaccuf^om'd feet 
 
 Preferving : nor to truth's reccfs divine, 
 
 Through this wide argument's unbeaten fpace, 
 
 Witholding furer guidance ; while by turns 
 
 "We trac'd the fages old, or while the queen 65 
 
 Of fciences (whom manners and the mind 
 
 R Acknowledge)
 
 „j T H E P L E A S U R E S O F T H E 
 
 Acknowledge) to my true companion's voice 
 
 Not unattentive, o'er the wintry lamp 
 
 Inclin'd her fcepter, favoring. Now the fates 
 
 Have other tafks impos'd. to thee, my friend, 70 
 
 The miniitry of freedom and the faith 
 
 Of popular decrees, in early youth, 
 
 Not vainly they committed, me they fent 
 
 To wait on pain ; and filent arts to urge, 
 
 Inglorious : not ignoble ; if my cares, 75 
 
 To fuch as languifli on a grievous bed, 
 
 Eafe and the fweet forgetfulnefs of ill 
 
 Conciliate: nor delightlefs; if the Mufe, 
 
 Her {hades to vifit and to tafte her fprings, 
 
 If fome diftino-uifli'd hours the bounteous Mufe 80 
 
 Impart, and grant (what fhe and Ihe alone 
 
 Can grant to mortals) that my hand thofe wreaths 
 
 Of fame and honeft favor, which the blefs'd 
 
 ¥/ear in Elyfium, and which never felt 
 
 The breath of envy or malignant tongues, 85 
 
 That thefe my hand for thee and for myfelf 
 
 May gather. Meanwhile, o my faithful friend,., 
 
 O early chofcn, ever found the fame, 
 
 And tiufted and belov'd ; once more the verfe 
 
 Long deftin'd, always obvious to thine ear,. 9*^ 
 
 Attend, indulgent, (o in lateffc years,. 
 
 When time, thy head with honors {Irall have cloth'd 
 
 Sacred'
 
 IMAGINATION. 13 O O K I. i... 
 
 
 
 Sacred to even virtue, may thy mind, 
 
 Amid the calm review of fcafons paft, 
 
 Fair offices of friendship or kind peace g^ 
 
 Or pubHc zeal, may then thy mind well plcas'd 
 
 Recall thcfe happy ftudies of our prime. 
 
 From heaven my flrains begin, from heaven defcends 
 The flame of genius to the chofen breaft, 
 And beauty with poetic wonder join'd, ico 
 
 And infpiration. Ere the rifing fun 
 Shone o'er the deep, or 'mid the vault of night 
 The moon her filver lamp fijfpended : ere 
 The vales with fprings were water'd, or with groves 
 Of oak or pine the ancient hills were crown'd ; 105 
 
 Then the great Ipirit, whom his works adore, 
 Within his own deep effence view'd the forms^ 
 The forms eternal of created things : 
 The radiant fun ; the moon's nocturnal lamp ; 
 The mountains and the ftreams ; the ample ftores 1 10 
 
 Of earth, of heaven, of nature. From the finl:. 
 On that full fcene his love divine he fix'dj 
 His admiration, till, in time compleat. 
 What he admir'd and lov'd his vital power 
 Unfolded into being. Hence the breath 115 
 
 Of life informing each organic frame: 
 Hence the green earth, and wild-refounding v/avcs : 
 
 R 2 Hence
 
 ,24 THE PLEASURES 01' THE 
 
 Hence light and fl:ade, alternate j warmth and cold ; 
 
 And bright autumnal fkies, and vernal fliowers, 
 
 And all the fliir variety of things. 120 
 
 But not alike to every mortal eye 
 Is this great fcene unveil'd. For while the claims 
 Of focial life to different labours urge 
 The adive powers of man, with wifeft care 
 Hath nature on the multitude of minds 125 
 
 Imprefs'd a various bias ; and to each 
 Decreed its province in the common toil. 
 To fome flie taught the fabric of the fphere,^ 
 The changeful moon, the circuit of the fiars. 
 The golden zo^ies of heaven, to fome £he gave 130 
 
 To fearch the ftory of eternal thought ; 
 Of fpace> and time; of fate's unbroken chain, 
 And will's quick movement, others by the hand 
 She led o'er vales and mountains, to explore 
 What healing virtue dwells in every vein 135 
 
 Of herbs or trees. But fome to nobler hopes 
 Were deftin'd : fome within a finer mould 
 She wrought, and temper'd with a purer flajiie.. 
 To thefe the fire omnipotent unfolds, 
 la fuller afpe«3:s and with fairer lights, 
 This pidure of the world.. Through every part 
 Xhey tiJ^cc; the. lofty fkctches of his hand : 
 
 In
 
 IMAGINATION. BO O K I. 125 
 
 In earthy or air, the meadow's flowery flore, 
 
 The moon's mild radiance, or the virgin's mien. 
 
 Drefs'd in attra£live fmile?, they fee portray'd. 14.P 
 
 (As far as mortal eyes the portrait fcan) 
 
 Thofe lineaments o{ beautv which deli2:ht 
 
 The mind fupreme. They alfo feel their force, 
 
 Inanior'd : they partake the eternal joy. 
 
 For as old Memnon's image long renowTi'd 150 
 
 Through fibling Egypt, at the genial touch 
 Of morning, from its inmoft frame fent fortli: 
 Spontaneous muflc ; io doth nature's hand,. 
 To certain attributes which matter claims, 
 Adapt the finer organs of the mind: 155 
 
 So the glad impulfe of thofe kindred powers 
 (Of form, of colour's cheerful pomp, of found 
 Melodious, or of motion aptly fped) 
 Detains the inliven'd fenfe \ till foon the foul 
 Feels the deep concord and aflents through all t,6o 
 
 ricr funclions. Then the charm by fate preparfd 
 DiiTufeth its inchantment. f ancy dreams,. 
 Rvipt into high difcourfe with prophets old. 
 And wandering through Elyfium, fancy, dreams; 
 Of iacred fountains,, of o'erfliadov/ing groves,, 1.65 
 
 "Whofe walks v/ith godlike harmony refound,: 
 Fountains, which. Homer vifits ; happy groves,, 
 
 Where.
 
 i:6 1 II r. PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 Where jSIlIton dwells, the hitcllcftual power, 
 
 On the mind's throne, fufpends his graver cares, 
 
 And finiles. the pallions, to divine rcpofe, 170 
 
 Perfuaded yield : and love and joy alone 
 
 Are waking : love and joy, fuch as await 
 
 An angel's meditation. O ! attend, 
 
 Whoe'er thou art whom thefe delights can touch ; 
 
 Whom nature's afpedt, nature's fimple garb 175 
 
 Can thus command"; o ! lillen to my fong ; 
 
 And i will guide thee to her blifsful walks. 
 
 And teach thy folitude her voice to hear. 
 
 And point her gracious features to thy view. 
 
 Know then, whate'er of the world's ancient flore, 180 
 
 Whate'er of mimic art's refleded fcenes, 
 With love and admiration thus infpire 
 Attentive fancy, her deliorhted fons 
 In two illuftrious orders comprehend, 
 
 Self-taught, from him whofe ruftic toil the lark 185 
 
 Cheers warbling, to the bard whofe daring thoughts 
 Range the full orb of being, ftill the form. 
 Which fancy worfliips, or fublime or fair 
 Her votaries proclaim. I fee them dawn : 
 I fee the radiant vifions where they rife, 190 
 
 More lovely than when Lucifer difplays 
 
 His
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK I. 1:7 
 
 His glittering forehead through the gates of morn, 
 To lead the train of Phoebus and the fpring. 
 
 Say, why was man fo eminently rais'd 
 Amid the vad creation ; why impower'd inr 
 
 Through life and death to dart his watchful eve,. 
 With thoughts beyond the limit of his frame ; 
 But that the omnipotent might fend him forth. 
 In fight of angels and immortal minds,. 
 
 As on an ample theatre to join 200 
 
 In contell with his equals, who fliall beft 
 The taflc atchieve, the courfe of noble toils. 
 By wifdom and by mercy preordained ? 
 Might fend him forth tlie fovran good to learn ; 
 To chace each meaner purpofe from his breaft ; 205 
 
 And through the mifts of pallion and of fenfe, 
 And through the pelting ftorms of chance and pain, 
 To hold flrait on with conllant heart and eye. 
 Still fix'd upon his everlalHng palm, 
 
 The approving fmile of heaven? Elfc wherefore burns 210 
 :In mortal bofoms this unquenched hope,. 
 That feeks from day to day fublimer ends ; 
 |Happy, though reillefs ? "Why departs the foul 
 Wide from the track and journey of her- times, 
 To grafp the good fhe knows not ? in the field 2 i 5 
 
 Of things which may be, in the fpacious field 
 
 Of
 
 1^-8 T n F r I. E A S U R r. S OF T 11 E 
 
 Of fckncc, potent arts, or dreadful arms, 
 
 To raifc up fcencs in which her own defires 
 
 Contented may repofe ; when things, which arc, 
 
 Pall en her temper, like a twice-told talc: 220 
 
 Her temper, flill demanding to be free; 
 
 Spurning the rude controul of willful might ; 
 
 Proud of her dangers brav'd, her griefs indur'd 
 
 Her llrength fevcrely prov'd ? To thefe high aims. 
 
 Which reafon and affedion prompt in man, 225 
 
 Not adverfe nor unapt hath nature fram'd 
 
 His bold imamnation. For, amid 
 
 The various forms which this full world prefects 
 
 Like rivals to his choice, what human breaft 
 
 E'er doubts, before the tranfient and minute, 230 
 
 To prize the vart, the flable, the fublime ? 
 
 Who, that from heights aerial fends his eye 
 
 Around a wild horizon, and furveys 
 
 Indus or GauQ-es roUino- his broad wave 
 
 Through mountains, plains, through fpacioils cities old, 235 
 
 And regions dark with woods ; will turn away 
 
 To mark the path of fome penurious rill 
 
 Which murmureth at his feet ? Where does the foul 
 
 Confent her foafing fancy to reftrain, 
 
 Which bears her up, as on an eagle's wings, 240 
 
 Deilin'd for higheft heaven; or which of fate's 
 
 Tremendous barriers fliall confine her fiipht 
 
 O 
 
 To
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K I, i^^ 
 
 To any humbler quany ? The rich earth 
 
 Cannot detain her ; nor the ambient air 
 
 With all its changes. For a while with jov 245 
 
 She hovers o'er the fun, and views the fmall 
 
 Attendant orbs, beneath his facred beam, 
 
 Emerging from the deep, like clufter'd illes 
 
 Whofe rocky fliores to the glad failor's eye 
 
 Reflect the gleams of morning: for a while 250 
 
 With pride fLe fees his firm, paternal fway 
 
 Bend the reludlant planets to move each 
 
 Round its perpetual year. But foon flic quits 
 
 That profpeft : meditating loftier views, 
 
 She" darts adventurous up the long career 255 
 
 Of comets ; through the conftellatlons holds 
 
 Her courfe, and now looks back on all the flars 
 
 Whofe blended flames as with a milky ftrcam 
 
 Part the blue region. Empyrean tradls, 
 
 Where happy fouls beyond this concave heaven 260 
 
 Abide, fhe then explores, whence purer light 
 
 For countlefs ages travels through the abyfs 
 
 Nor hath in fight of mortals yet arriv'd. 
 
 Upon the wide creation's utmoft lliore 
 
 At length flie Hands, and the dread fpace beyond 265 
 
 Contemplates, half- recoiling : nathlefs down 
 
 The gloomy void, ailonifh'd, yet unquell'd, 
 
 Sheplungethi down the unfathomable gulph 
 
 S Where
 
 130 THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 Where God alone hath being. There her hopes 
 
 Reft at the fated goal. For, from the birth 270 
 
 Of human kind, the fovran maker faid 
 
 That not in humble, nor in brief delight. 
 
 Not in the fleeting echos of renown,. 
 
 Pouter's purple robes, nor pleafure's flowery lap^ 
 
 The foul fliould find contentment; but, from thefe 275 
 
 Turning difdainful to an equal good. 
 
 Through nature's opening walks inlarge her aim. 
 
 Till every bound at length fliould difappear, 
 
 And infinite perfedion fill the fcene. 
 
 But lo, where beauty, drefs'd in gentler pomp,. 280. 
 
 With comely fteps advancing, claims the verfe 
 Her charms infpire. O beauty, fource of praife. 
 Of honour, even to mute and lifelefs things ; 
 O thou that kindleft in each human heart 
 Love, and the v/ifh of poets, when their tongue 285 
 
 Would teach to other bofoms what fo charms 
 Their own ; o child of nature and the foul, 
 In happieft hour brought forth; the doubtful garb 
 Of words, of earthly language, all too meaU;^ 
 Too lowly i account, in which to clothe 290 
 
 Thy form divine, for thee the mind alone 
 Beholds ; nor half thy brightnefs can reveal 
 Through thofe dim organs, whofe corporeal touch 
 
 O'er-
 
 IMAGINATION, B O O K I. i m 
 
 J ' 
 
 O'erfliadoweth thy pure cflence. Yet, my Mufe, 
 
 If fortune call thee to the tafk, wait thou 295 
 
 Thy favorable feafons : then, while fear 
 
 And doubt are abfent, through wide nature's bounds 
 
 Expatiate with glad ftcp, and choofe at will 
 
 Whate'er bright fpoils the florid earth contains, 
 
 Whatc'cr the waters, or the liquid air, 300 
 
 To manifcft unblemilli'd beauty's praife, 
 
 And o'er the breafls of mortals to extend 
 
 Her gracious empire. Wilt thou to the illes 
 
 Atlantic, to the rich FIcfperian clime. 
 
 Fly in the train of Autumn 5 and look on, 305 
 
 And learn from him ; while, as he roves around, 
 
 Where'er his fingers touch the fruitful grove. 
 
 The branches bloom with gold ; where'er his foot 
 
 Imprints the foil, the ripening clufters fwell, 
 
 Turning afide their foliage, and come forth 310 
 
 In purple lights, till every hilloc glows 
 
 As with the blufhes of an evening iky ? 
 
 Or wilt thou that ThefTalian landfcape trace, 
 
 Where flow Peneus his clear glafly tide 
 
 Draws fmooth along, between the winding clifFs 3 i 5 
 
 Of Ofla and the pathlefs woods unfliorn 
 
 That wave o'er huge Olympus ? Down the flream, 
 
 Look how the mountains with their double range 
 
 Imbrace the vale of Temps ; from each fide 
 
 S 2 Afcending
 
 ,32 THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 Afccnding ikep to heaven, a rocky mound 320 
 
 Cover'd with ivy and the laurel boughs 
 That crovvn'd young PhcEbus for the Python flain. 
 Fair Tempe ! on vvhofe primrofe banks the morn 
 Awoke moft fragrant, and the noon repos'd 
 In pomp of lights and fliadows moft fublime : ^26 
 
 Whofe lawns, whofe glades, ere human footflcps yet 
 Had trac'd an entrance, were the hallovv'd haunt 
 Of fylvan powers immortal : where they fate 
 Oft in the golden age, the Nymphs and Fauns, 
 Beneath fbme arbor branching o'er the flood, 3^30 
 
 And leaning round hung on the inftru(Stive lips: 
 Of hoary Pan, or o'er fome open dale 
 Danc'd in light meafures to his fevenfold pipc^ 
 "While Zephyr's wanton hand along their path 
 Flung lliowers of painted bloflbms, fertile dews^ 33.5- 
 
 And one perpetual fpring. But if our tafk 
 More lofty rites demand, with all good vows 
 Then let us haften to the rural haunt 
 Where young Melifl'a dwells. Nor thou refufe 
 The voice which calls thee from thy lov'd retreat, 34.0 
 
 But. hither, gentle maid, thy footfleps turn : 
 Here, to thy own unqueftionable theme, 
 O fair, o graceful, bend thy polifh'd brow, 
 All'enting ; and the gladnefs of thy eyes 
 
 Impart, to mcj like morning's vvifl:ied light 345 
 
 Seen
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K 1. 133 
 
 Seen through the vernal air. By yonder ftrcam. 
 
 Where beech and elm along the bordering mead 
 
 Send forth wild melody from every bough, 
 
 Together let us wander; where the hills. 
 
 Cover'd with fleeces to the lowing vale 350 
 
 Reply ; where tidings of content and peace 
 
 Each echo brings. Lo, how the weftern fun 
 
 O'er fields and floods, o'er every living foul, 
 
 DiiTufeth glad repofe ! There while i fpeak 
 
 Of beauty's honors, thou, Meliflii, thou ^^^ 
 
 Shalt hearken, not unconfcious. while i tell 
 
 How firft from heaven flie came : how after all 
 
 The works of life, the elemental fcenes. 
 
 The hours, the feafons, flie had oft explor'd, 
 
 At length her favorite manfion and her throne 360 
 
 She fix'd in woman's form : what pleafing ties 
 
 To virtue bind her ; what efl'edlual aid 
 
 They lend each other's power ; and how divine 
 
 Their union, fhould fome unambitious maid, 
 
 To all the inchantment of the Idalian queen,. 365 
 
 Add fandity and wifdom : while my tongue 
 
 Prolongs the tale, Melifia, thou may 'ft feign. 
 
 To wonder whence my rapture is infpir'd ; 
 
 But foon the fmile which dawns upon thy lip 
 
 Shall tell it, and the tenderer bloom o'er all 370 
 
 That fofc cheek fpringing to the marble neck,' 
 
 Which
 
 ,54 T II E r L E A S U II r S O F T II E 
 
 Which bends aficle in vain, revealing more 
 
 What it would thus keep filent, and in vain 
 
 The lenle of praile diflembling. I'hen my fong 
 
 Great nature's winning arts, which thus Inform 375 
 
 With joy and love the rugged breaft of man, 
 
 Should found in numbers worthy of fuch a theme : 
 
 While all whofe fouls have ever felt the force 
 
 Of thofe inchanting paffions, to my lyre 
 
 Should throng attentive, and receive once more 380 
 
 Their influence, unobfcur'd by any cloud 
 
 Of vulgar care, and purer than the hand 
 
 Of fortune can beftow : nor, to confirm 
 
 Their fwav, fliould awful contemplation fcorn 
 
 To join his didates to the genuine ftrain 385 
 
 Of pleafure's tongue ; nor yet fliould pleafure's ear 
 
 Be much averfe. Ye chiefly, gentle band 
 
 Of youths and virgins, who through many a vvifli 
 
 And many a fond purfuit, as in fome fcene 
 
 Of magic bright and fleeting, are allur'd 390 
 
 By various beauty ; if the pleaflng toil 
 
 Can yield a moment's refpite, hither turn 
 
 Your favorable ear, and truft my words. 
 
 I do not mean, on blefs'd religion's feat 
 
 Prefenting fuperftition's gloomy form, 395 
 
 To dafli your foothing hopes : i do not mean 
 
 To bid the jealous thunderer fire the heavens, 
 
 Or
 
 •IMAGINATION. B O O K I. »35 
 
 Or fliapes infernal rend the groaning earth, 
 
 And fcare you from your joys, my cheerful fong 
 
 With happier omens calls you to the field, 400 
 
 Pleas'd with your generous ardor in the chace. 
 
 And warm like you. Then tell me (for ye know) 
 
 Doth beauty ever deign to dwell where ufe 
 
 And aptitude are ftrangers ? is her praife 
 
 Gonfefs'd in aught whofe moft peculiar ends 405 
 
 Are lame and fruitlefs ? or did nature mean 
 
 This pleafing call the herald of a lye. 
 
 To hide the fhame of difcord and difeafe, 
 
 And win each fond admirer into fnares, 
 
 Foil'd, baffled? No. with better providence 41O 
 
 The general mother, confcious how infirm 
 
 Her offspring tread the paths of good and ill, 
 
 Thus, to the choice of credulous defire, 
 
 Doth objects the completeft of their tribe 
 
 Diffinguifli and commend. Yon flowery bank 415 
 
 Cloth'd in the foft magnificence of fpring, 
 
 Will not the flocks approve it ? will they afk 
 
 The reedy fen for pallure ? That clear rill 
 
 Which trickleth murmuring from th.e mofiy rock. 
 
 Yields it lefs wholcfome beveragre to the worn 420 
 
 And thirfty traveler, than the ftanding pool 
 
 With muddy weeds o'ergrown } Yon ragged vine 
 
 Whofe lean and fullen cluftcrs mourn the rage 
 
 Of
 
 I3< T HE r L E A S U II 1". S O F T II T 
 
 Of Hums, will the wine-prefs or the bowl 
 
 Report of her, as of the fwclllng grape 425 
 
 Which crhtters through the tendrils, like a g-em 
 
 When firft it meets the fun ? Or what are all 
 
 The various 'charms to life and fenfe adjoin'd ? 
 
 Are they not pledges of a ftate intirc, 
 
 Where native order reigns, with every part 430 
 
 In health, and every fundlion well perform'd ? 
 
 Thus then at firfl: was beauty fent from heaven, 
 The lovely miniftrefs of truth and good 
 In this dark, world, for truth and good are one ; 
 And beauty dwells in them, and they in her, 435 
 
 With like participation. Wherefore then, 
 O fons of earth, would ye diflblve the tie ? 
 O ! wherefore with a rafli and greedy aim 
 Seek ye to rove through every flattering fcene 
 Which beauty feems to deck, nor once inquire 440 
 
 Where is the fuffrage of eternal truth, 
 Or where the feal of undeceitful good, 
 To fave your fearch from folly ? Wanting thefe, 
 Lo, beauty withers in your void embrace ; 
 And with the glittering of an idiot's toy 445 
 
 Did fancy mock your vows. Nor yet let Iiope, 
 That kindlieft inmate of the youthful breatt, 
 Be hence appall'd j be turn'd to coward floth 
 
 Sittlno- 
 
 o
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K I. 137 
 
 Sitting in filence, with dejeded eyes 
 
 Incurious and with folded hands, far lefs 450 
 
 Let fcorn of wild fantaflic folly's dreams 
 
 Or hatred of the bigot's favage pride 
 
 Perfuadc you e'er that beauty, or the love 
 
 Which waits on beauty, may not brook to hear 
 
 The facred lore of undcceitful good 455 
 
 And truth eternal. From the vulg^ar croud 
 
 Though fuperftition, tyranncfs abhorr'd. 
 
 The reverence due to this majcllic pair 
 
 With threats and execration flill demands ; 
 
 Though the tame wretch, who afks of her the way 460 
 
 To their celcftial dwelling, llie conllrains 
 
 To quench or fet at nought the lamp of God 
 
 Within his frame; through many a cheerlefs wild 
 
 Though forth fhe leads him credulous and dark 
 
 And aw'd with dubious notion ; though at length 465 
 
 Haply flie plunge him into cloiller'd cells 
 
 And mansions unrelenting as the grave, 
 
 But void of quiet, there to watch the hours 
 
 Of midnight ; there, amid the fcreaming owl's 
 
 Dire fong, with fpedres or with guilty (liades 470 
 
 To talk of pangs and everlafxing woe ; 
 
 Yet be not ye difmay'd. a gentler ftar 
 
 Preiides o'er your adventure. From the bower 
 
 Where vvifdcm fate with her Athenian Ions, 
 
 T Could
 
 ,38 THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 Could but my happy hand intwine a wreath 475 
 
 Of Plato's olive with the Mantuan bay, 
 Then (for what need of cruel fear to you, 
 To you whom godlike love can well command ?) 
 Then fhould my powerful voice at once difpell 
 Thofe monkifh horrors ; fboiild in words divine 480 
 
 Relate how favor'd minds like you infpir'd. 
 And taught their infpiration to conduct 
 By ruling heaven's decree, through various walks 
 And profpe£ls various, but delightful all, 
 Move onward ; while now myrtle groves appear, 485 
 
 Now arms and radiant trophies,, now the rods 
 Of empire with the curule throne, or now 
 The domes of contemplation and the Mufe. 
 Led by that hope fublime, whofe cloudlefs eye 
 Through the fair toils and ornaments of earth 490 
 
 Difcerns the nobler life referv'd for heaven, 
 Favor'd alike they worfhip round the Ihrine 
 Where truth confpicuous with her fifler-twins. 
 The undivided partners of her fway, 
 
 With good and beauty reigns. O! let not us. 495 
 
 By pleafure's lying blandifhments detain'd. 
 Or crouching to the frowns of bigot rage, 
 O I let not us one moment paufe to join 
 That chofen band. And if the gracious power, 
 Who firil awaken'd my untutor'd long, 500 
 
 Will
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K 1. 139 
 
 Will to my invocation grant anew 
 
 The tuneful fpirit, then through all our paths 
 
 Ne'er fliall the found of this devoted Jyre 
 
 Be wanting ; whether on the rofy mead 
 
 When fummer fmiles, to M'arn the melting heart 505 
 
 Of luxury's allurement ; whether firm 
 
 Againll the torrent and the ilubborn hill 
 
 To urge free virtue's ftcps, and to her fide 
 
 Summon that ftrong divinity of foul 
 
 "Which conquers chance and fate; or on the height, 510 
 
 The goal ailign'd her, haply to proclaim 
 
 Her triumph ; on her brow to place the crovvn 
 
 Of uncorrupted praife ; through future worlds 
 
 To follow her interminated way, 
 
 And blefs heaven's image in the heart of man. 515 
 
 Such is the worth of beauty : fuch her power. 
 So blamelefs, fo rever'd. It now remains, 
 In juft gradation through the various ranks 
 Of being, to contemplate how her gifts 
 
 Rife in due meafure, watchful to attend 520 
 
 The fteps of rifing nature. Laft and lead, 
 In colors minMino; with a random blaze, 
 Doth beauty dwell. Then higher in the forms 
 Of fimpled, eafiell meafure ; in the bounds 
 Of circle, cube, or fphere. The third afcent 525 
 
 T 2 To
 
 140 T II E P L E A S U R E S O F T H E 
 
 To fymmetry adds color : thus the pearl 
 
 Shines in the concave of its purple bed, 
 
 And painted fiiells along fome winding (liore 
 
 Catch with indented folds the glancing fun. 
 
 Next, as we rife, appear the blooming tribes 530 
 
 Whicli clothe the fragrant earth ; which draw from her 
 
 Their own nutrition ; which are born and die ; 
 
 Yet, in their feed, immortal : fuch the flowers 
 
 With which young Maia pay^s the village- maids 
 
 That hail her natal morn ; and fuch the groves 535 
 
 Which blithe Pomona rears on Vaga's bank. 
 
 To feed the bowl of Ariconian fvvalns 
 
 Who quaft beneath her branches. Nobler ftill 
 
 Is beauty's name where, to the full confent 
 
 Of members an-d of features, to the pride 540 
 
 Of color, and the vital change of growth. 
 
 Life's holy flame with piercing fenfe is given^ 
 
 While active motion fpeaks the temper'd foul t 
 
 So moves the bird of Juno : fo the fteed 
 
 With rival fwiftnefs beats the dufty plain, 54.5 
 
 And faithful dogs with eager airs of joy 
 
 Salute their fellows. What fublimer pomp 
 
 Adorns the feat where virtue dwells on earthy 
 
 And truth's eternal day-light fhines around ; 
 
 Vv'hat palm belongs to man's imperial front, 550 
 
 And woman powerful with becoming fmiles. 
 
 Chief
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K I. X41 
 
 Chief of terreftrial natures ; need we now 
 
 Strive to inculcate ? Thus hath beauty there 
 
 Her moll confpicuous praife to matter lent, 
 
 Where moft confpicuous through that ihadovvy veil 555 
 
 Breaks forth the bright exprefilon of a mind : 
 
 By fteps directing our inraptur'd fearch 
 
 To him, the firfl of minds ; the chief; the fole ; 
 
 From whom, through this wide, complicated world,, 
 
 Did all her various lineaments begin; 560 
 
 To whom alone, confenting and intire. 
 
 At once their mutual influence all difplay. 
 
 He, God moil: high (bear witncfs, earth and heaven) 
 
 The living fountains in himfelf contains 
 
 Of beauteous and fublimc. with him inthron'd 565 
 
 Ere days or years trod their ethereal way^ 
 
 In his fupreme intelligence inthron'd. 
 
 The queen of love holds her unclouded ilate, 
 
 Urania. Thee, o father, this extent 
 
 Of matter; thee the fluggifh earth and tra£l 570 
 
 Of feas, the heavens and heavenly fplendors feel 
 
 Pervading, quickening, moving. From the depth 
 
 Of thy great eflence, forth did'll thou condudl 
 
 Eternal Form; and there, where Chaos reign'd, 
 
 Gav'fl: her dominion to ered; her feat, 575 
 
 And fandify the manflon. All her works 
 
 Well-pleas'd thou did'ft behold, the gloomy fires 
 
 or
 
 ^J^, THE PLEASURES OF T 11 E 
 
 Of Horm or earthquake, and the pureft light 
 
 Of lummcri foft Campania's new-born rofe 
 
 And the (low weed, which pines on RulTian hills, 580 
 
 Comely ahke to thy full vifion ftand : 
 
 To thy furrounding vifion, which unites 
 
 All effcnces and powers of the great world 
 
 In one fole order, fair alike they fland, 
 
 As features well confenting, and alike 585 
 
 Requir'd by nature ere fhe could attain 
 
 Her julT: refemblance to the perfe6t fliape 
 
 Of univcrfal beauty, which with thee 
 
 Dwelt from the firft. Thou alfo, ancient mind, 
 
 Whom love and free beneficence await 590 
 
 In all thy doings ; to inferior minds, 
 
 Thy offspring, and to man, thy youngeft fon, 
 
 Refufing no convenient gift nor good j 
 
 Their eyes did'ft open, in this earth, yon heaven, 
 
 Thofe flarry worlds, the countenance divine 595 
 
 Of beauty to behold. But not to them 
 
 Didft thou her awful magnitude reveal 
 
 Such as before thine own unbounded fight 
 
 She ftands, (for never fhall created foul 
 
 Conceive that objed) nor, to all their kinds, 600 
 
 The fame in (hape or features didft thou frame 
 
 Her image. Meafuring well their different fpheres 
 
 Of fenfe and adion, thy paternal hand 
 
 Hath
 
 I M A G I N A T I O N. B O O K I. 1^3 
 
 Hath for each race prepar'd a different tcft 
 Of beauty, own'd and reverenc'd as their guide 605 
 
 Mofl: apt, moil laithful. Thence inform'd, they fcaii 
 The objeds that furround them ; and fcle6l, 
 Since the great whole difclaims their fcanty view, 
 Each for himfelf felcds peculiar parts 
 
 Of nature; what the llandard fix'd by heaven 6jo 
 
 Within his breaft approves: acquiring thus 
 A partial beauty, which becomes his lot ; 
 A beauty which his eye may comprehend, 
 His hand may copy : leaving, o fupremc, 
 O thou whom none hath uttcr'd, leaving all 615 
 
 To thee that inhnite, confummate form, 
 Which the great powers, the gods around thy throne 
 And nearert to thy counfels, know with thee 
 For ever to have been ; but who flie is. 
 
 Or what her likenefs, knov/ not. Man furveys 620 
 
 A narrower fcene, where, by the mix'd efle6l 
 Of things corporeal on his pafiive mind. 
 He judgeth what is fair. Corporeal things 
 The mind of man Impell with various powers. 
 And various features to his eye difclofe. 62c 
 
 The powers which move his fenfe with inilant joy, 
 The features which attrad: his heart to love. 
 He marks, combines, repofits. other powers 
 And features of the felf-fame thing (unlefs 
 
 The
 
 144 THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 The beauteous form, the creature of his nilnd, 630 
 
 Rcqueil their clofe alliance) he o'erlooks 
 
 Forgotten ; or with felf-beguiling zeal, 
 
 AVhcne'cr his paflions mingle in the work, 
 
 Half alters, half difowns. The- tribes of men 
 
 Thus from their different fundions and the fliapes 635 
 
 pKniiliar to their eye, with art obtain, 
 
 Unconfcious of their purpofe, yet with art 
 
 Obtain the beauty fitting man to love : 
 
 Whofe proud defires from nature's homely toil 
 
 Oft turn awav, faflidious : afking flill 64.0 
 
 His mind's high aid, to purify the form 
 
 From matter's grofs communion ; to fecure 
 
 For ever, from the meddling hand of change 
 
 Or rude decay, her features ; and to add 
 
 "Whatever ornaments may fuit her mien, 645 
 
 Where'er he finds them fcattcr'd throucrh the paths 
 
 Of nature or of fortune. Then he feats 
 
 The accomplirh'd image deep within his brcaft, 
 
 Reviews it, and accounts it good and fair. 
 
 Thus the one beauty of the world intire, 650. j 
 
 The univerfal Venus, far beyond 
 The keenefl effort of created eyes. 
 And their mofl wide horizon, dwells inthron'd 
 In ancient filence. At her footflool ilands 
 
 An
 
 ^Vj 
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK!. 
 
 An altar burning with eternal fire Ocp 
 
 Unfullicd, uriconfum'd. Here every hour, 
 Here every moment, in their turns arrive 
 Her offspring ; an innumerable band 
 Of fillers, comely all ; but differing far 
 
 In age, in feature, and expreiiive mien, 66 o 
 
 More than bright Helen from her new-born babe. 
 To this maternal flirine in turns they come. 
 Each with her facred lamp ; that from the fource 
 Of living flame, which here immortal flows, 
 Their portions of its luftre they may dravv 665 
 
 For days, or months, or years ; for ages, fome ; 
 As their great parent's difcipline requires. 
 Then to their feveral maniions they depart, 
 In ftars, in planets, through the unknown lliores 
 Of yon ethereal ocean. Who can tell, 670 
 
 Even on the furface of this rowling earth, 
 How many make abode ? The fields, the groves^ 
 The winding rivers and the azure main. 
 Are render'd folemn by their frequent feet. 
 Their rites fublime. There each her deftin'd home 675 
 
 Informs with that pure radiance from the ikies 
 Brought dov;n, and ihines throughout her little fphere, 
 Exulting. Strait, as travellers by night 
 I'urn toward a diilant flame, fo fome fit eye, 
 Amono; the various tenants of the fcene, 680 
 
 U Difcerns
 
 ,^d T H E P L E A S U R E S O F T II E 
 
 Difcerns the heaven-born phantom feated there, 
 
 And owns her charms. Hence the wide unlverfe, 
 
 Throuo-h all the feafons of revolving worlds, 
 
 Bears witnefs with its people, gods and men, 
 
 To beauty's blifsful power, and with the voice 685 
 
 Of grateful admiration ftill refounds : 
 
 That voice, to which is beauty's frame divine 
 
 As is the cunning of the mailer's hand 
 
 To the fweet accent of the well-tun'd lyre.. 
 
 Genius of ancient Greece, whofe faithful Heps 69Q 
 
 Have led us to thefe awful folitudcs 
 Of nature and of fcience ; nurfe rever''d 
 Of generous counfels and heroic deeds ; 
 O ! let fome portion of thy matchlefs praife 
 Dwell in my breaft, and teach me to adorn €95-, 
 
 This unattempted theme. Nor be my thoughts. 
 Prefumptuous counted, if amid the calm 
 Which Hefper flieds along the vernal heaven,. 
 If i, from vulgar fuperllition's walk. 
 
 Impatient fleal, and from the unfeemly rites, 70Q 
 
 Of fplcndid adulation, to attend 
 V/ith hymns thy prefence in the fylvan fliade,. 
 By their malignant footfteps unprofan'd. 
 Come, o renowned power ; thy glowing mieui 
 5uch, and fo elevated all thy form,, 705- 
 
 A3.
 
 I M A G I N A T ION. BOO K I. 1^7 
 
 As when the great barbaric lord, again 
 
 And yet again diminifli'd, hid his face 
 
 Among the herd of fatraps and of kings ; 
 
 And, at the hghtning of thy Hfted fpcar, 
 
 Crouch'd like a flave. Bring all thy martial fpoil?, 710 
 
 Thy palms, thy laurels, thy triumphal fongs, 
 
 Thy fmiling band of arts, thy godlike fires 
 
 Of civil wifdom, thy unconquer'd vouth 
 
 After fomc glorious day rejoicing round 
 
 Their new-ercded trophy. Guide my feet 715 
 
 Through fair Lyceum's walk, the olive iliades 
 
 Of Academus, and the facred vale 
 
 Haunted by ileps divine, where once beneath 
 
 That ever-living platane's ample boughs 
 
 IhfTus, by Socratic founds dttain'd, 720 
 
 On his neglected urn attentive lay ; 
 
 While Boreas, lingering on the neighboring llecp 
 
 With beauteous Orithyia, his love-tale 
 
 In filent awe fufpended. There let me 
 
 With blamclefs hand, from thy unenvious fields, 725 
 
 Tranfplant fome living bloflbms, to adorn 
 
 My native clime : while, fir beyond the meed 
 
 Of fancy's toil afpiring, i unlock 
 
 The fprings of antient wifdom : while i add 
 
 (What cannot be disjoin'd from beauty's praife) 730 
 
 Thy name and native drefs, thy works bclov'd 
 
 U 2 And
 
 1^8 T H E P L E A S U R E S, &c. 
 
 And honor'd : while to my compatriot youth 
 I point the great example of thy Ibns, 
 And tune to Attic themes the Britifli lyre» 
 
 THE END OF BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 THE
 
 THE 
 
 F L E A S U R E S 
 
 OF THE 
 
 IMAGINATION 
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 MDCCLXV.
 
 THE ARGUMENT. 
 
 IntroduSlio?! to this more clijjicult part of the fnhjeSl. Of truth 
 and its three clajfesj matter offaB, expe?'imental orfcientifical 
 truths (coi2tradifinguiped from opinio?!) and iiniverfal truth : 
 uhich lafl is either metaphyfical or geometrical^ cither purely in- 
 tellcSlual or perfeBly ahflraSled. On the poiver of difcerning 
 truth depends that of aSling ivith the vieiv of an end ; a cir- 
 cumfance ejfential to virtue. Of virtue^ confdered in the 
 divine mind as a perpetual and univerfal henefcence. Of 
 human virtue^ confdered as a fyfem of particular fentitnents 
 and anions, fuitable to the defgn of providence and the con- 
 dition of man ; to whom it confiitutes the chief good and the 
 frfl beauty. Of vice and its origin. Of ridisule : its ge- 
 neral 7iatiire and final caufe. Of the paffions ; particularly 
 of thofe which relate to evil natural or moral, and which are 
 generally accoufited painful, though not ahvays unattended 
 with pleafure* 
 
 THE
 
 T II E 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 OF THE 
 
 IMAGINATION: 
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 1 HUS far of beauty and the pleafing forms 
 Which man's imtutor'd fancv, from the fcenes 
 Imperfc£l of this ever-changing world, 
 Creates ; and views, inamor'd. Now my fong 
 Severer themes demand : myfterious truth ; 
 And virtue, fovran good : the fpclls, the trains,, 
 The progeny of error : the dread fway 
 Of pailion ; and whatever hidden ftores 
 From her own lofty deeds and from herfelf 
 The mind acquires. Severer argument :. "hO 
 
 Not k'fs attra£tive ; nor defcrving lefs 
 A conftant ear. For what are all the forms. 
 Educ'd by fancy from corporeal things, 
 Greatnefs, or pomp,, or fymmetry of parts ?' 
 Not tending to the heart, foon feeble grows,, i'5 
 
 As
 
 J.: T II E P L E A S U RES O V THE 
 
 As the blunt arrow 'gainfl the knotty trunk, 
 
 Their impulfe on the fenfe : while the pall'd eye 
 
 Expcds in vain its tribute ; afi^s in vain, 
 
 Where are the ornaments it once adrair'd ? 
 
 Not fo the moral fpecies, nor the powers 20 
 
 Of paflion and of thought, the ambitious mind 
 
 With objeds boundlefs as her own defires 
 
 Can there converfe : by thefe unfading forms 
 
 Touch'd and awaken'd ftill, with eager ad 
 
 She bends each nerve, and meditates well-pleas'd 25 
 
 Her sifts, her godlike fortune. Such the fcenes 
 
 Now opening round us. May the deftin'd verfe 
 
 Maintain its equal tenor, though in tracts 
 
 Obfcure and arduous, may the fource of light 
 
 All-prcfent, all fuificient, guide our fteps 30 
 
 Through every maze : and whom in childifh years 
 
 From the loud throng, the beaten paths of wealth 
 
 And power, thou did'ft apart fend forth to fpcak 
 
 In tuneful words concerning higheft things. 
 
 Him ftill do thou, o father, at thofe hours 35 
 
 Of pcnfive freedom, when the human foul 
 
 Shuts out the rumour of the world, him ftill 
 
 Touch thou with fecret leflbns : call thou back 
 
 Each erring thought ; and let the yielding Itrains 
 
 From his full bofom, like a welcome rill 40 
 
 Spontaneous from its healthy fountain, flow. 
 
 But
 
 I M A (; I N A T I O N. BOOK II. 
 
 ^53 
 
 But from what name, what favorable fign, 
 What heavenly aufpice, rather flaall i date 
 My perilous excurfion, than from trutii, 
 
 That nearell inmate of the human foul ; 45 
 
 Eftrang'd from whom, the countenance divine 
 Of man disfigur'd and diflionor'd finks 
 Among inferior things ? For to the brutes 
 Perception and the tranfient boons of fenfe 
 Hath fate imparted : but to man alone ^o 
 
 Of fubl unary beings was it given 
 Each fleeting impulfe on the fenfual powers 
 At Icifure to review ; with equal eye 
 To fcan the paflion of the ftricken nerve 
 
 Or the vague objeft ftriking : to condudt 55 
 
 From fenfe, the portal turbulent and loud, 
 Into the mind's wide palace one by one 
 The frequent, prefling, fluduating forms, 
 And queflion and compare them. Thus he learns 
 Their birth and fortunes ; how allied they haunt 60 
 
 The avenues of fenfe ; what laws diredt 
 Their union ; and what various difcords rife, 
 Or fix'd or cafual : which when his clear thought 
 Retains and when his faithful u^ords exprcfs, 
 That living image of the external fcene, 65 
 
 As in a polifli'd mirror held to view, 
 
 X Is
 
 154 THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 Is truth : where'er it varies from the fliape 
 
 And hue of its exemplar, in that part 
 
 Dim error lurks. Moreover, from without 
 
 When oft the fame fociety of forms 70 
 
 In the fame order have approach'd his mind. 
 
 He deicrns no more their ftcps with curious heed 
 
 To trace ; no more their features or their garb 
 
 He now examines ; but of them and their 
 
 Condition, as with fome diviner's tongue, 75 
 
 Affirms v/hat heaven in every diftant place, 
 
 Through every future feafon, will decree. 
 
 This too is truth : where'er his prudent lips 
 
 Wait till experience diligent and flow 
 
 Has authoriz'd their fentence, this is truth ^ 80 
 
 A fecond, higher kind : the parent this 
 
 Of fcience ; or the lofty power herfelf, 
 
 Science herfelf: on whom the wants and cares, 
 
 Of focial life depend ; the fubftitute 
 
 Of God's own wifdom in this toilfome world ; 85 
 
 The providence of man. Yet oft in vain, 
 
 To earn her aid, with fix'd and anxious eye 
 
 He looks on nature's and on fortune's courfe :. 
 
 Too much in vain. His duller vifual ray 
 
 The {lillnefs and the perfevering ads * 90 
 
 Of nature -oft elude ; and fortune oft 
 
 With ftep fantaftic from her wonted walk 
 
 Turn&
 
 I M A G I N A T ION. BOOK It. 
 
 Turns into mazes dim. his figlit is foird ; 
 
 And the crude fentencc of h,is faltering tongue 
 
 Is but opinion's verdid:, half believ'd 95 
 
 And prone to change. Here thou, who feel'ft thine ear 
 
 Congenial to my lyre's profounder tone, 
 
 Paufe, and be watchful. Hitherto the ilores, 
 
 Wiiich feed thy mind and exercife her powers, 
 
 Partake the relifli of their native foil, ico 
 
 Their parent earth. But know, a nobler dower 
 
 Mer fire at birth decreed her ; purer gifts 
 
 From his own treafure ; forms which never deign'd 
 
 In eyes or ears to dv/cll, within the fenfe 
 
 Of earthly organs; but fublime were plac'd ^05 
 
 In his cflential reafon, leading there 
 
 That vaft ideal hoil which all his works 
 
 Throu'Mi endlefs ages never will reveal. 
 
 Thus then indow'd, the feeble creature man, 
 
 The flave of hunger and the prey of death, 1 10 
 
 Even now, even here, in earth's dim prifon bound. 
 
 The language of intelligence divine 
 
 Attains ; repeating oft concerning one 
 
 And many, pafs'd and prefent, parts and whole, 
 
 Thofe fovran didates which in fartheft heaven, 1 1 5 
 
 Where no orb rowls, eternity's fix'd ear 
 
 Hears from coeval truth, when chance nor change, 
 
 Nature's loud progeny, nor nature's felf 
 
 X 2 Dares
 
 156 THEPLEASURESOFTHE 
 
 Dares intermeddle or approach her throne. 
 
 Ere lono", o'er this corporeal world he learns 120 
 
 To extend her fvvay ; while calling from the deep. 
 
 From earth and air, their multitudes untold 
 
 Of ficrures and of motions round his walk, 
 
 For each wide family fome fingle birth 
 
 He fets in view, the impartial type of all 125 
 
 Its brethren ; fuffering it to claim, beyond 
 
 Their common heritage, no private gift, 
 
 No proper fortune. Then whate'er his eye 
 
 In this difcerns, his bold unerring tongue 
 
 Pronounceth of the kindred, without bound, 130 
 
 Without condition. Such the rife of forms 
 
 Sequefter'd fir from fenfe and every fpot 
 
 Peculiar in the realms of fpace or time : 
 
 Such is the throne which man for truth amid 
 
 The paths of" mutability hath built 135 
 
 Secure, unfhaken, fi:ill ; and whence he views, 
 
 In matter's mouldering fcruclures, the pure forms 
 
 Of triangle or circle, cube or cone, 
 
 ImpalTive all ; vvhofe attributes nor force 
 
 Nor fate can alter. There he firit conceives 140 
 
 True being, and an intelledual world 
 
 The fame this hour and ever. Thence he deems 
 
 Of his own lot ; above the painted fliapes 
 
 That fleeting move o'er this terreftrial fcenc 
 
 Looks
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK II. 157 
 
 Looks up; beyond the adamantine gates 14.5 
 
 Of death expatiates ; as his birthright claims 
 Inheritance in all the works of God ; 
 Prepares for endlefs time his plan of life, 
 And counts the univerfe itfelf his home. 
 
 Whence alfo but from truth, the light of minds, 150 
 
 Is human fortune gladdcn'd with the rays 
 Of virtue ? with the moral colors thrown 
 On every walk of this our focial fcene, 
 Adorning for the eye of gods and men 
 
 The pafTions, actions, habitudes of life, 155 
 
 And rendering earth, like heaven, a facred place 
 Where love and praife may take delight to dwell ? 
 Let none with heedlefs tongue from truth disjoin 
 The reign of virtue. Ere the dayfpring flow'd, 
 Like fillers link'd in concord's golden chain,, 1,60 
 
 They flood before the great eternal mind. 
 Their common parent; and by him were both 
 Sent forth among his creatures, hand in hand,, 
 Infeparably join'd : nor e'er did truth. 
 
 Find an apt ear to liften to her lore, 165 
 
 Which knew not virtue's voice; nor, fave where truth's 
 Majeflic words are heard and underilood, 
 Doth virtue deign to inhabit. Go, inquire . 
 Of nature : not among Tartarian rocks,. 
 
 Whither
 
 ,38 T 11 E P L E A S U U E S OF THE 
 
 Whither the hungry vulture with its prey 170 
 
 Returns : not where the Hon's fullen roar 
 
 At noon refounds along the lonely banks 
 
 Of ancient Tigris : but her gentler fcenes, 
 
 The dove-cote and the lliepherd's fold at n.orn, 
 
 Confult; or by the meadow's fragrant hedge, 175 
 
 In fpring-time when the woodlands firft are green. 
 
 Attend the linnet Tinging to his mate 
 
 Couch'd o'er their tender young. To this fond care 
 
 Thou doft not virtue's honorable name 
 
 Attribute: wherefore, fave that not one gleam 180 
 
 Of truth did e'er difcover to themfelves 
 
 Their little hearts, or teach them, by the eflecls 
 
 Of that parental love, the love itfelf 
 
 To judge, and meafure its ofhcious deeds ? 
 
 But man, whofe eyelids truth has fill'd with day, 185 
 
 Difcerns how fldlfully to bounteous ends 
 
 His wife affedions move ; with free accord 
 
 Adopts their guidance; yields himfelf fecure 
 
 To nature's prudent impulfe ; and converts 
 
 Inftind to duty and to facred law. 190 
 
 Hence right and fit on earth : while thus to man 
 
 The almighty leglflator hath explain'd 
 
 The fprings of adion fix'd within his breail ; 
 
 Hath given him pov/er to flacken or reilrain 
 
 Their effort; and hath (liewn him how they join 195 
 
 Their
 
 I M A G I N A T I O N. BOO K II. 159 
 
 Thc'ir partial movements with the maftcr wheel 
 Of the great world, and fcrve that facred end 
 Which he, the unerring realbn, keeps in view. 
 
 For (if a mortal tongue may fpeak of him 
 And his dread ways) even as his boundlefs eye, 2co 
 
 Conneding every form and every cliange, 
 Beholds the perfc6l beauty ; fo his will, 
 Through every iiour producing good to all 
 The family of creatures, is itfelf 
 
 The perfecSl virtue. Let the grateful fvvain 205 
 
 Remember this, as oft with joy and praife 
 He looks uDon the fallins: dews which clothe 
 His lawns with verdure, and the tender feed 
 Nourilli within his furrows : when between 
 Dead feas and burning flcies, where long unmov'd 210 
 
 The bark had languilli'd, now a ruftling gale 
 Lifts o'er the fickle waves her dancing prow. 
 Let the glad pilot, burfling out in thanks, 
 Remember this : left blind o'erweening pride 
 Pollute their ofFerings: left their fcliidi heart 215 
 
 Say to the heavenly ruler, " At our call 
 " Relents thy power : by us thy arm is mov'd," 
 Fools ! who of God as of each other deem : 
 Who his invariable a6ls deduce 
 
 From fudden counfels tranfient as their own ; 220 
 
 Nor
 
 i6o T II E P L E A S U R E S O F T II E 
 
 Nor fiirthcr of his bounty, than the event 
 
 \Mnch haply meets their loud and eager prayer, 
 
 Aeknowledge; nor, beyond the drop minute 
 
 Which haply they have tafted, heed the fource 
 
 That flows for all ; the fountain of his love 225 
 
 Which, from the fummit where he flts inthron'd. 
 
 Pours health and joy, unfailing llreams, throughout 
 
 The fpacious region flourifhing in view, 
 
 The goodly vv^ork of his eternal day, 
 
 His own fair univerfe ; on which alone 230 
 
 His counfels fix, and whence alone his will 
 
 AfTumes her flrone- dire6Lion. Such is now 
 
 His fovran purpofe : fuch it was before 
 
 All multitude of years. For his right arm 
 
 Was never idle : his bellowing love 235 
 
 Knew no beginning ; was not as a change 
 
 Of mood that woke at laft and ilarted up 
 
 After a deep and folitary floth 
 
 Of boundlefs ages. No : he now is good. 
 
 He ever was. The feet of hoary time 240 
 
 Through their eternal courfe have travell'd o'er 
 
 No fpeechlefs, lifelefs defart ; but through fcenes 
 
 Cheerful with bounty ftill ; among a pomp 
 
 Of worlds, for gladnefs round the maker's <thronc 
 
 Loud-fhouting, or, in many dialecls 245 
 
 Of hope and filial truft, imploring thencp 
 
 The
 
 .IMAGINATION. B O O K II. i(fl 
 
 The fortunes of their people : where fo fix'd 
 
 Were all the dates of being, fo difpos'd 
 
 To every living foul of every kind 
 
 The field of motion and the hour of rell, 2 "-o 
 
 That each the general happinefs might ferve j 
 
 And, by the difciplinc of laws divine 
 
 Convinc'd of folly or chafliz'd from guilt, 
 
 Each might at length be happy. What remains 
 
 Shall be like what is pafs'd ; but fairer flill, 255 
 
 And Itill increadng in the godlike gifts 
 
 Of life and truth. The fame paternal hand, 
 
 From the mute fhell-fifli gafping on the fliorc. 
 
 To men, to angels, to celeftial minds, 
 
 Will ever lead the generations on 260 
 
 Through higher fcenes of being : while, fupply'd 
 
 From day to day by his inlivening breath, 
 
 Inferior orders in fucceflion rife 
 
 To fill the void below. As flame afcends, 
 
 As vapors to the earth in fliowers return, 265 
 
 As the pols'd ocean toward the attracting moon 
 
 Swells, and the-ever-liflening planets charnVd 
 
 By the fun's call their onward pace incline, 
 
 So all things which have life afpire to God, 
 
 Exhauftlefs fount of intelledlual day, 270 
 
 Cjenter of fouls. Nor doth the maftering voice 
 
 Of nature ceafe within to prompt aright 
 
 Y Their
 
 t'62 T H E P L E A S U R E S O F T H E 
 
 Their ileps ; nor is the care of heaven witheld 
 
 From fending to the toil external aid ; 
 
 That in their ftations all may perfc^'ere 275 
 
 To climb the afcent of being, and approach 
 
 For ever nearer to the life divine. 
 
 But this eternal fibric was not rais'd 
 For man's infpe(5lion. Though to fome be given 
 To catch a tranfient vifionary glimpfe 280 
 
 Of that majeflic fcene which boundlefs power 
 Prepares for perfed goodnefs, yet in vain 
 Would human life her faculties expand 
 To imbofom fuch an objedl. Nor could e'er 
 Virtue or praife have touch'd the hearts of men, 285 
 
 Had not the fovran guide, through every ftage 
 Of this their various journey, pointed out 
 New hopes, new toils, which to their humble fphere 
 Of fight and flrength might fuch importance hold 
 As doth the wide creation to his own. 290 
 
 Hence all the little charities of life, 
 With all their duties : hence that fiivorite palm 
 Of human will, when duty is fuffic'd, 
 And ftill the liberal foul in ampler deeds 
 
 Would manifeft herfelf ; that facred fign 295 
 
 Of her rever'd affinity to him 
 Whofe bounties arc his own j to whom none faid 
 
 <' Create
 
 I M A G 1 N A T I O N. B O O K II. 163 
 
 " Create the wilcft, fulleft, falrcft world, 
 
 " And make its ofl'spring happy ;" who, intent 
 
 Some Hkcnefs of himfelf among his works 300 
 
 To view, hath pour'd into the human breaft 
 
 A ray of knowledge and of love, which guides 
 
 Earth's feeble race to a6l their maker's part. 
 
 Self-judging, fclf-oblig'd : while, from before 
 
 That godlike function, the gigantic power 305 
 
 Neceflity, though wont to curb the force 
 
 Of Chaos and the lavage elements, 
 
 Retires abafli'd, as from a fcene too high 
 
 For her brute tyranny, and with her bears 
 
 Her fcorned followers, terror, and bafe awe 310 
 
 "Who blinds herfelf, and that ill-fuited pair, 
 
 Obedience link'd with hatred. Then the foul 
 
 Arifes in her flrength ; and, looking round 
 
 Her bufy fphere, whatever work lire views, 
 
 Whatever counfel bearing any trace 315 
 
 Of her creator's likenefs, whether apt 
 
 To aid her fellows or preferve herfelf 
 
 In her fuperior funftions unimpair'd, 
 
 Thither fhe turns exulting : that flre claims 
 
 As her peculiar good: on that, through all 320 
 
 The fickle feafons of the day, {lie looks 
 
 With reverence ftill : to that, as to a fence 
 
 Againfl afHidion and the darts of pain, 
 
 Y 2 Her
 
 i(J4 T H E P L E A S U R E S O F T H E 
 
 Her drooping liopcs repair : and, once oppos'd 
 
 To that, all other pleafure, other wealth 325 
 
 Vile, as the drofs upon the molten gold, 
 
 Appears, and loath fome as the briny fea 
 
 To him who languillies with third and fighs 
 
 For fome known fountain pure. For what can ftrlvc 
 
 "With virtue? Which of nature's regions vaft 330 
 
 Can in fo many forms produce to fight 
 
 Such powerful beautv ? beautv, which the- eye 
 
 Of hatred cannot look upon fecure r 
 
 Which envy's felf contemplates, and is turned 
 
 Ere long to tendernefs, to infant fmiles, 335 
 
 Or- tears of humblefl: love. Is aught fo fair 
 
 In all the dewy landfcapes of the fpring. 
 
 The fummcr's noontide groves, the purple eve 
 
 At harveft-home, or in the frofty moon 
 
 Glittering on fome fmooth fea, is aught fo fair 3 ^o 
 
 As .virtuous friendfhip ? as the honor'd roof 
 
 V/ hither from higliell: heaven immortal Love 
 
 His torch ethereal and his golden bow 
 
 Propitious brings, and there a temple holds 
 
 To whofe unfpotted fervice gladly vow'd J4.5 
 
 The focial band of parent, brother, child, 
 
 M-^ith fmiles and fweet difcourfe and gentle deeds 
 
 Adore his pov/er ? What gift of richeft clime 
 
 E'er drew {iich eager eyes, or prompted fucli 
 
 Deep
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK 11.. 1^5 
 
 Deep willies, as the zeal that fnatchcth back 350 
 
 From flander's pollonous tooth a foe's renown ; 
 Or crofleth danger hi liis Hon walk, 
 A rival's life to refcue ? as the young 
 Athenian warrior fitting down in bonds, 
 
 That his great father's body might not want 355 
 
 A peaceful, humble tomb? tlie Roman wife 
 Teachins: her lord how harmlefs was the wound 
 Of death, how impotent tlie tyrant's rage,. 
 Who nothincT more could threaten to afflidb 
 Their faithful lov^e ? Or is there in the abyfs, 360 
 
 Is there, among the adamantine fpheres 
 Wheeling unHiaken through the boundlefs void, 
 Aught that with half fuch majefty can fill 
 The human bofom, as when Brutus rofe 
 
 Refulgent from the flroke of Casfar's fate 365 
 
 Amid the croud of patriots; and, his arm 
 Aloft extending like eternal Jove. 
 When guilt brings down the thunder, call'd aloud 
 On Tully's name,, and fhook the crimfon fword. 
 Of jurlice in his rapt aftonidi'd eye,. 370 
 
 And bade the father of his country hail,. 
 For lo the tyrant prollrate on the dud, 
 And Rome again is free? Thus, through the paths 
 Of human life, in. various pomp array'd 
 
 Wr^lks the wife daughter of the judge of heaven,. 375 
 
 Fair
 
 1^6 THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 Fair virtue ; from her fluhcr's throne lupreme 
 
 Sent down to utter laws, fuch as on earth 
 
 Molt apt he knew, moft powerful to promote 
 
 The weal of all his works, the gracious end 
 
 Of his dread empire. And though haply man's 380 
 
 Obfcurer fieht, fo far beyond himfelf 
 
 And the brief labors of his little home, 
 
 Extends not ; yet, by the bright prefence won 
 
 Of this divine inftrudrefs, to her fway 
 
 Pleas'd he afTcnts, nor heeds the diilant goal 3?^ 5 
 
 To which her voice conducts him. Thus hath God, 
 
 Still looking toward his own high purpofe, hx'd 
 
 The virtues of his creatures ; thus he rules 
 
 The parent's fondnefs and the patriot's zeal j 
 
 Thus the warm fenfe of honor and of fliame; 390 
 
 The vows of gratitude, the faith of love j 
 
 And all the comely intercourfe of praile, 
 
 The joy of human life, the earthly heaven. 
 
 How far unlike them muft the lot of suilt 
 Be found ! Or what terreftrial woe can match 395 
 
 The felf-convided bofom, which hath wrought 
 The bane of others or inflav'd itfelf 
 With fliacklcs vile ? Not poifon, nor fharp fire, 
 Nor the worft pangs that ever monkiili hate 
 Suggefted, or.defpotic rage impos'd,
 
 I M A G I N Y\ T 1 O N. BOO K II. 167 
 
 Were at that fcafon an unwidi'd exchano-e : 
 
 Wiicii the foul loaths hcrfclf": when, flying thence 
 
 To crouds, on every brow flie fees portray'cl 
 
 Fell demons, hate or fcorn, which drive her back. 
 
 To folitude, her judge's voice divine 40^ 
 
 To hear in fecret, haply founding througli 
 
 The troubled dreams of midnight, and fiiU, Hill 
 
 Demandino; for his violated laws 
 
 Fit recompcnce, or chargin^i" her own tongue 
 
 To fpeak the award of juftice on herfelf. 410 
 
 For well flic knows what faithful hints within 
 
 Were whifper'd, to beware the lying forms 
 
 Which turn'd her footfteps from the fafer way : 
 
 What cautions to fufpe£t their painted drefs, 
 
 And look with fteady eyelid on tlieir fmiles, 415 
 
 Their frowns, their tears. In vain, the dazzling hues 
 
 Of fancy, and opinion's eager voice, 
 
 Too much prcvail'd. For mortals tread the path 
 
 In which opinion fays they follow good 
 
 Or fly from evil: and opinion gives 420 
 
 Report of good or evil, as the fcene 
 
 Was drawn by fancy, pleaflng or deform'd : 
 
 Thus her report can never there be true 
 
 Where fancy cheats the intelledual eye 
 
 With elarino; colors and diflorted lines. 4^5 
 
 Is there a man to whom the name of death 
 
 Brings
 
 ^6^ T II i: PLEASURES OF T 11 E 
 
 Brings terror's ghaftly pagcanls conjur'd up 
 
 Before him, death- bed groans, and difmal vows, 
 
 And the frail foul plung'd headlong from the brink 
 
 Of life and daylight down the gloomy air, 430 
 
 An unknown depth, to gulphs of torturing fire 
 
 Unvifited bv mercy ? Then what hand 
 
 Can fnatch this dreamer from the fatal toils 
 
 Which fancy and opinion thus confpire 
 
 To twine around his heart ? or who fliall hufli 435 
 
 Their clamor, when they tell him that to die, 
 
 To ri{k thofc horrors, is a direr curfe 
 
 Than bafcll life can bring ? Though love with prayers 
 
 Moil tender, with afflidion's facred tears, 
 
 Befeech his aid ; though gratitude and faith 440 
 
 Condemn each ftep which loiters ; yet let none 
 
 Make anfwer for him that, if any frown 
 
 Of danger thwart his path, he will not flay, 
 
 Content, and be a wretch to be fecure. 
 
 Here vice begins then : at the gate of life, 445 
 
 Ere the young multitude to diverfe roads 
 
 Part, like fond pilgrims on a journey unknown, 
 
 Sits fancy, deep inchantrefs ; and to each 
 
 With kind maternal looks prefents her bowl, 
 
 A potent beverage. Heedlefs they comply : 45O 
 
 'Till the whole foul from that myftcrious draught 
 
 Is ting'd, and every tranfient thought imbibes 
 
 Of
 
 IMAGINATION. BOO K II. 1^9 
 
 Of "ladnefs or difeulL defire or fear. 
 
 One homebred color : which not all the lights 
 
 Of fciencc e'er fhall change ; not all the florms 455 
 
 Of adverfe fortune wa/h away, nor yet 
 
 The robe of purefl: virtue quite conceal. 
 
 Thence on they pafs, where meeting frequent fhapes 
 
 Of good and evil, cunning phantoms apt 
 
 To fire or freeze the breaft, with them they join 46 d 
 
 In dangerous parley ; lillening oft, and oft 
 
 Gazing with recklefs paillon, while its garb 
 
 The fpedre heightens, and its pom.pous tale 
 
 Repeats with fome new circumilance to fuit 
 
 That early tindure of the hearer's foul. 465 
 
 And fliould the guardian, reafon, but for one 
 
 Short moment vield to this illufive fcene 
 
 His ear and eye, the intoxicating charm 
 
 Involves him, till no longer he difcerns. 
 
 Or only guides to err. Then revel forth 470 
 
 A furious band that fpurn him from the throne, 
 
 And all is uproar. Hence ambition climbs 
 
 With Aiding feet and hands impure, to grafp 
 
 Thofe folemn toys which glitter in his view 
 
 On fortune's rugged Ikcp : hence pale revenge 475 
 
 Unfheaths her murderous dagger: rapine hence 
 
 And envious luft, by venal fraud upborne, 
 
 Surmount the reverend barrier of the laws 
 
 Z Wliich
 
 176 THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 Which kept them from their prey : hence all the ciimes. 
 That e'er defil'd the earth, and all the plagues 480 
 
 That follow them for vengeance, in the guife 
 Of honor, fafety, pleafure, eafe, or pomp. 
 Stole firil into the fond believing mind. 
 
 Yet not by fancy's witchcraft on the brain 
 Are always the tumultuous paflions driven 485 
 
 To guilty deeds, nor reafon bound in chains 
 That vice alone may lord it. Oft, adorn'd 
 With motley pageants, folly mounts his throne, 
 And plays her ideot antics, like a queen. 
 
 A thoufand garbs llie wears : a thouHmd ways 490 
 
 She whirls her giddy empire. Lo, thus far 
 With bold adventure to the Mantuan lyre 
 I (ing for contemplation link'd with lov^e 
 A penGve theme. Now haply fliould my fong 
 Unbend that ferious countenance, and learn 495 
 
 Thalia's tripping gait, her fhrill-ton'd voice,. 
 Her wiles familiar : whether fcorn flie darts 
 In wanton ambufh from her lip or eye. 
 Or whether with a fad difguife of care 
 
 O'ermantling her gay brow, fhe acts in fport 500 
 
 The deeds of follv, and from all fides round 
 Calls forth impetuous laughter's gay rebuke ; 
 Her province. But through every comic fcene 
 
 To
 
 IMAGINATION. BOO K II. X71 
 
 To lead my Mufc with her h'ght pencil arm'd ; 
 
 Through e\'ery fwift occafion which the hand 505 
 
 Of laughter points at, when the mirthful lling 
 
 Diftends her laboring fides and chokes her tongue; 
 
 Were endlefs as to found each grating note 
 
 With which the rooks, and chattering; daws, and crrave 
 
 Unwieldy inmates of the village pond, 5 1 o 
 
 The changing feafons of the flcy proclaim ; 
 
 Sun, cloud, or fliower. Suffice it to have faid, 
 
 Where'er the power of ridicule difplays 
 
 Her quaint ey'd vifage, fome incongruous form. 
 
 Some ftubborn diffonance of things combined, 515 
 
 Strikes on her quick perception : whether pomp, 
 
 Or praife, or beauty be dragg'd in and fhown 
 
 Where fordid fafhions, where ignoble deeds. 
 
 Where foul deformity is wont to dwell ; 
 
 Or whether thefc with fhrewd and wayward fpite 520 
 
 Invade refplendent pomp's imperious mien. 
 
 The charms of beauty, or the boafh of praife. 
 
 Afk we for what fair end the almighty fire 
 In mortal bofoms ftirs this gay contempt, 
 Thefe grateful pangs of laughter ; from difguft 525 
 
 Educing pleafure ? Wherefore, but to aid 
 The tardy fleps of reafon, and at once 
 By this prompt impulfe urge us to deprefs 
 
 Z 2 ^'ilcl
 
 1,2 THE PLEASURES OF T H E 
 
 Wild folly's aims ? For though the fober light 
 
 Of truth flow-dawning on the watchful mind 530 
 
 At length unfolds, through many a fubtile tie, 
 
 How thefe uncouth diforders end at lafl 
 
 In public evil ; yet benignant heaven, 
 
 Confcious how dim the dawn of truth appears 
 
 To thoufands, confcious what a fcanty paufe 535 
 
 From labor and from care the wider lot 
 
 Of humble life afiords for ftudious thought 
 
 To fcan the maze of nature, therefore ftamp'd 
 
 Thefe glaring fcenes with charaders of fcorn, 
 
 As broad, as obvious to the pafling cIowil 540 
 
 As to the lett-ei''d fage's curious eye. 
 
 But other evils o'er the fteps of man. 
 Through all his walks impend ; againft whofe might 
 The flender darts of laughter nouQ-ht avail : 
 A trivial warfare. Some, Hke cruel guards,. 545 
 
 On nature's ever-moving throne attend ; 
 With mifchief arm'd for him whoe'er fliall thwart 
 The path of her- inexorable wheels. 
 While flie purfues the v/ork that muft be done 
 Through ocean, earthy and air. Hence frequent forms 550 
 Of woe ; the merchant, with his wealthy bark, 
 Bury'd by dafhing waves ; the traveller- 
 Pierc'd by the pointed lightening in his hafte ; 
 
 And
 
 I M A G I N A T I O N. BOOK II. 173 
 
 And the poor hufbandman, with folded arms, 
 
 Surveying his loft labors, and a heap 555 
 
 Of blafted chaff the product of the field 
 
 Whence he expeded bread. But worfe than thefe 
 
 I deem, far worfe, that other race of ills 
 
 Which human kind rear up among themfelvcs ; , 
 
 That horrid offspring which mifgovern'd will. 560 
 
 Bears to fantaftic error ; vices, crimes, . 
 
 Furies that curfe the earth, and make the blows, 
 
 The heavieft blows, of. nature's innocent hand 
 
 Seem fport : which arc indeed but as the care 
 
 Of. a wife parent, who follicits good 565 
 
 To all her hoiife, though haply at the price- 
 
 Of tears and frovvard wailing and reproach 
 
 From fome unthinking child, whom not the Icls. 
 
 Its mother deftines to be happy ftill. . 
 
 Thefe fources then of pain, this double lot . 570 
 
 Of evil in the inheritance of man, 
 
 Requir'd for his protection no flight force, , 
 
 No carelefs watch, and therefore was his breaft 
 
 Fenc'd. round with paffions quick to be alarm'd,^ 
 
 Or Itubborn to oppofe ; with fear, more fwift 5^"^ 
 
 Than beacons catching flame from hill to hill, , 
 
 Where armies land ; with anger, uncontroul'd 
 
 As the young lion bounding on his prey; 
 
 With
 
 174 '^' 11 ^^ 1' L K A S U R i: S OF T II E 
 
 With foriow, that locks up the ftruggling heart, 
 
 And ihame, that ovcrcaib the drooping eye 580 
 
 As with a cloud of lightening. Thefe the part 
 
 Perform of eager monitors, and goad 
 
 The foul more iharply than with points of fleel, 
 
 Her enemies to iliun or to relill. 
 
 And as thofe paffions, that converfe with good, 585 
 
 Are good themfelves ; as hope and love and joy, 
 
 Among the fairefl: and the fweetell boons 
 
 Of life, we rightly count; fo thefe, which guard 
 
 Againft invading evil, ftill excite 
 
 Some pain, fome tumult : thefe, within the mind 590 
 
 Too oft admitted or too lono; retain'd, 
 
 shock their frail feat, and by their uncurb'd rage 
 
 'To favages more fell than Libya breeds 
 
 Transform themfelves: till human thought becomes 
 
 A gloomy ruin, haunt of fhapes unblefs'd, 595 
 
 Of felf-tormenting fiends ; horror, defpair, 
 
 Hatred, and wicked envy : foes to all 
 
 The works of nature and the orifts of heaven. 
 
 tD' 
 
 But when through blamelefs paths to righteous ends 
 Thofe keener paffions urge the awaken'd foul, 600 
 
 I would not, as ungracious violence. 
 Their fvvay defcribe, nor from their free career 
 The fellowflilp of pleafure quite exclude. 
 
 For
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K II. 175 
 
 For what can render, to the fclf-approv'd, 
 
 Their temper void of comfort, though in pain .? 605 
 
 Who knows not with what majefty divine 
 
 The forms of truth and juftice to the mind 
 
 Appear, ennobling oft the fliarpeft woe 
 
 AVith triumph and rejoicing .? Who, that bears 
 
 A human bofom, hath not often felt 610 
 
 How dear are all thofe ties which bind our race 
 
 In "-i^ntlenefs too;ether, and how fweet 
 
 Their force, let fortune's wayward hand the while 
 
 Be kind or cruel ? Afk the faithful youth 
 
 Why the cold urn, of her v/hom long he lov'd, 615 
 
 So often fills his arms ; fo often draws 
 
 His lonely footfleps, filcnt and unfeen, 
 
 To pay the mournful tribute of his tears ? 
 
 O ! he will tell thee that the wealth of worlds 
 
 Should ne'er feduce his bofom to forego 620 
 
 Thofe facred hours when, ftealing from the noife 
 
 Of care and envy, fweet remembrance fooths 
 
 With virtue's kindeft looks his aking breaft, 
 
 And turns his tears to rapture } Afk the croud,, 
 
 Which flies impatient from the village walk 625 
 
 To climb the neighbouring clifl:'s, when far below 
 
 The favage winds have hurl'd upon the coaft 
 
 Some helplefs bark ; while holy pity melts 
 
 The general eye, or terror's icy hand 
 
 Smites
 
 175 T HE PL i: A S XI R K S O F T II E 
 
 Smites their diflorted limbs and horrent hair; 630 
 
 While every mother clofer to her breaft 
 
 Catcheth her child, and, pointing where the waves 
 
 Foam through the fliatter'd vellel, flirieks aloud 
 
 As one poor wretch, who fprcads his piteous arms 
 
 For fuccour, fwallow'd by the roaring furge, 635 
 
 As now another, dafli'd againfl: the rock, 
 
 Drops lifelefs down, o I deemeft thou indeed 
 
 No pleafing influence here by nature given 
 
 To mutual terror and compafiion's tears ? 
 
 No tender charm myfterious, which attracts 640 
 
 O'er all that edge of pain the Ibcial powers 
 
 To this their proper aftion and their end ? 
 
 Afk thy own heart ; when, at the midnight hour, 
 
 Slow through that penflve gloom thy paufing eye, 
 
 Led by the glimmering taper, moves around 645 
 
 The reverend volumes of the dead, the fongs 
 
 Of Grecian bards, and records writ by fame 
 
 For Grecian heroes, where the fovran power 
 
 Of heaven and earth furveys the immortal page 
 
 Even as a father meditating all 650 
 
 The praifes of his fon, and bids the reft 
 
 Of mankind there the faireit model learn 
 
 Of their own nature, and the nobleil deeds 
 
 Which yet the world hath feen. If then thy foul 
 
 Join in the lot of thofe diviner men ;
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K II. 177 
 
 Say, when the profpe^t darkens on thy view ; 
 
 When, funk by many a wound, heroic ftates 
 
 Mourn hi the dull and tremble at the frown 
 
 Of hard ambition ; when the generous band 
 
 Of youths who fought for freedom and their fires 660 
 
 Lie fide by fide in death ; when brutal force 
 
 Ufurps the throne of juflice, turns the pomp 
 
 Of guardian power, the majcfly of rule, 
 
 The fword, the laurel, and the purple robe, 
 
 To poor dlflioneft pageants, to adorn. 665 
 
 A robber's walk, and glitter in the eyes 
 
 Of fuch as bow the knee ; when beauteous works, 
 
 Rewards of virtue, fculptur'd forms which deck'd 
 
 With more than human grace the warrior's arch 
 
 Or patriot's tomb, now vi6tims to appeafe 670 
 
 Tyrannic envy, ftrew the common path- 
 
 With awful ruins ; when the Mufe's haunt. 
 
 The marble porch where wifdom wont to talk 
 
 With Socrates or Tully, hears no more 
 
 Save the hoarfe jargon of contentious monks,, 675 
 
 Or female fuperftition's midnight prayer ; 
 
 When ruthlefs havoc from the hand of time 
 
 Tears the deftroying fcythe, with furer ftroke 
 
 To mow the monuments of glory down ; 
 
 Till defolation o'er the grafs-grown ftreet 680 
 
 Expands her raven wings, and, from the gate 
 
 A a Where
 
 i^^ T II E P L i: A S U n E S, Stc. 
 
 Where fenates once the we:il of nations planned, 
 
 Hifkth the midino; fnake through hoary weeds 
 
 That clafp the mouldering column: thus when all 
 
 The widely- mournful fcene is frx'd v/ithin 685 
 
 Thy throbbing bofom ; when the patriot's tear 
 
 Starts from thine eye, and thy extended arm 
 
 In fancy hurls the thunderbolt of Jove 
 
 To fire the impious wreath on Philip's brow, 
 
 Or dafli OiStavius from the trophied car ; 6<jo 
 
 Say, doth thy fecret foul repine to tafle 
 
 The bis: diftrefs ? or wouldft thou then exehan<>:e 
 
 Thofe heart-ennobling forrows lor the lot 
 
 Of him who fits amid the s^^udv herd 
 
 Of filent flatterers bending to his nod, 695 
 
 And o'er them, like a giant, cafts his eye, 
 
 And fays within himfelf, " I am a king, 
 
 *' And wherefore fliculd the clamorous voice of woe 
 
 " Intrude upon mine ear ?" The dregs corrupt 
 
 Of barbarous ages, that Circo^an draught 700 
 
 Of fervitude and folly, have not yet, 
 
 Blefs'd be the eternal ruler of the world ! 
 
 Yet have not fo diflionor'd, fo deform'd 
 
 The native judgement of the human foul, 
 
 Nor fo effac'd the image of her fire. 705 
 
 THE END OF BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 The
 
 THE 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 O F T H E 
 
 I M A G I N A T I O N: 
 
 BOOK THE THIRD. 
 
 MDCCLXX.. 
 
 Aa 2 THE
 
 T H E 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 O F T H E 
 
 IMAGINATION: 
 
 BOOK THE THIRD. 
 
 W HAT tongue then may explain the various fate 
 Which reigns o'er earth ? or who to mortal eyes 
 Illuftrate this perplexing labyrinth 
 Of joy and woe through which the feet of man 
 Are doom'd to wander ? That eternal mind 5 
 
 From paflions, wants and envy far efhrang'd. 
 Who built the fpacious univerfe, and deck'd 
 Each part fo richly with whate'er pertains 
 To life, to health, to pleafure ; why bade he 
 The viper Evil, creeping in, pollute 10 
 
 The goodly fcene, and with inlidious rage, 
 While the poor inmate looks around and fmiles, 
 Dart her fell fting with poifon to his foul? 
 Hard is the queftion, and from ancient days 
 Hath flill opprefs'd with care the fage's thought ; i 5 
 
 Hath
 
 ,8» THEPLEASURESOFTHE 
 
 Hath drawn forth accents from the poet's lyre 
 
 Too fad, too deeply plaintive : nor did e'er 
 
 Thofe chiefs of human kind, from whom the light 
 
 Of heavenlv truth lirll gleam'd on barbarous lands, 
 
 Forget this dreadful fccret when they told 20 
 
 What wonderous things had to their favor'd eyes 
 
 And ears on cloudy mountain been reveal'd. 
 
 Or In deep cave by nymph or power divine, 
 
 Portentous oft and wild. Yet one i know, 
 
 Could i the fpeech of lawgivers afiume, 2^ 
 
 One old and fplendid tale i would record 
 
 With which the Mufe of Solon in fweet flrains 
 
 Adorn'd this theme profound, and render'd all 
 
 Its darknefs, all its terrors, bright as noon. 
 
 Or gentle as the golden ftar of eve. 30 
 
 Wnio knov/3 not Solon ? laft, and v/ifefh far, 
 
 Of thole whom Greece triumphant in the height 
 
 Of glory, ftyl'd her fathers ? him whofe voice 
 
 Through Athens hufli'd the florm of civil wrath ; 
 
 Taught envious want and cruel wealth to join 2S 
 
 In friendiliip ; and, with fweet compulfion, tam'd. 
 
 Minerva's eager people to his laws, 
 
 Which their ov/n goddefs in his brcaft infpir'd ?; 
 
 'Twas now the time when his heroic tafk 
 Seem'd but perform'd in vain : when footh'd by years 4Q» 
 
 Of
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK HI. 183. 
 
 Of flattering fervicc, tlic fond multitude 
 Hung with their fudden counfels on the breath 
 Of great Pififtratus : that chief renown'd, 
 V/hoin Hermes and the IdaHan queen had train'd 
 Even from his birth to every powerful art 45 
 
 Of pleafing and perfuading: from whofe lips 
 Flovv'd eloquence which like the vows of love 
 Could fteal away fufpicion from the hearts 
 Of all who lillen'd. Thus from day to day 
 He won the general fuffrage, and beheld 50 
 
 Each rival overfliadow'd and dcprefs'd 
 Beneath his ampler Ihrte : yet oft complain'd, 
 As one lefs kindly treated, who had hop'd 
 To merit flivor, but fubmits perforce 
 
 To find another's fervices preferr'd, 55 
 
 Nor yet relaxeth aught of faith or zeal. 
 Then tales were fcatter'd of his envious foes, 
 Of fnares that vvatch'd his fame, of daggers aim'd 
 Againft his life. At laft with trembling limbs, 
 His hair diffus'd and wild, his garments loofc, 60 
 
 And ftain'd with blood from felf-infli6led wounds, 
 He burft into the public place, as there. 
 There only, were his refuge ; and declar'd 
 In broken words, with fighs of deep regret, 
 The mortal danger he had fcarce repeU'd. 65 
 
 Fir'd with his tragic talc, the indignant croud, 
 
 10
 
 i84 THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 To o-uard his ftcps, forthwith a menial band, 
 
 Array'd beneath his eye for deeds of war, 
 
 Decree. O ftill too liberal of their truft, 
 
 And oft betray 'd by over-grateful love, 70 
 
 The generous people ! Now behold him fenc'd 
 
 By mercenary weapons, like a king, 
 
 Forth iffuing from the city gate at eve 
 
 To feek his rural manfion, and with pomp 
 
 Crouding the public road, the fwain flops lliort, 75, 
 
 And fighs : the officious townsmen ftand at gaze 
 
 And flirinking give the fuUen pageant room. 
 
 Yet not the lefs obfequious was his brow ;; 
 
 Nor lefs profufe of courteous words his tongue, 
 
 Of gracious gifts his hand : the while by Health, 80 
 
 Like a fmall torrent fed with evening fliowers, 
 
 His train increased, till, at that fatal time 
 
 Juft as the public eye, with doubt and fliame. 
 
 Startled, began to queftion what it faw, 
 
 Swift as the foimd of earthquakes rufh'd a voice 85 
 
 Through Athens, that Pififtratus had fill'd 
 
 The rocky citadel with hoftile arms. 
 
 Had barr'd the fteep afcent, and fate within 
 
 Amid his hirelings, meditating death 
 
 To all whofe ftubborn necks his yoke refus'd.. go 
 
 Where then was Solon ? After ten long years 
 
 Of abfcnce, full of halle from foreign fhores 
 
 The
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK l\U its 
 
 The fagc, the lawgiver had now arriv'd : 
 
 Arriv'd, alafs, to fee tliat Athens, that 
 
 Fair temple rais'd by him and facred call'd 95 
 
 To hberty and concord, now profan'd 
 
 By favage hate, or funk into a den 
 
 Of flaves who crouch beneath the mafler's Icourgc, 
 
 And deprecate his wrath and court his chains. 
 
 Yet did not the wife patriot's grief impede 100 
 
 His virtuous will, nor was his heart inclin'd 
 
 One moment with fuch woman- like dillrefs 
 
 To view the tranficnt ftorms of civil war, 
 
 As thence to yield his country and her hopes 
 
 To all-devouring bondage. His bright helm, 105 
 
 Even while the traitor's impious ad is told, 
 
 He buckles on his hoary head : he girds 
 
 With mail his ftooping breafl: : the fhield, the fpeai' 
 
 He fnatchcth ; and with fwift indignant ftrides 
 
 The afi'embled people feeks : proclaims aloud 110 
 
 It was no time for counfel : in their fpears 
 
 Lay all their prudence now : the tyrant yet 
 
 Was not fo firmly feated on his throne. 
 
 But that one iliock of their united force 
 
 Would dafli him from the fummit of his pride 115 
 
 Headlong and orovcling in the duft. What elfe 
 
 Can re-afiert the loft Athenian name 
 
 So cheaply to the laughter of the world 
 
 B b B«:tray'd ;
 
 186 T H E P L E A S U R E S O F T H E 
 
 Betray *d ; by guile beneath an Infant's faith 
 
 So mock'd and fcorn'd ? Away then : freedom now 120 
 
 And fafety dwell not but with fame in arms : 
 
 Myfelf will ihew you where their manfion lies, 
 
 And through the walks of danger or of death 
 
 Condud you to them. "While he fpake, through all 
 
 Their crouded ranks his quick fagacious eye 125 
 
 He darted ; where no cheerful voice was heard 
 
 Of focial darino; ; no flretch'd arm was {Q(in 
 
 Hafiening their common tafk : but pale miftrufl 
 
 Wrinkled each brow : tliey fhook their heads, and down 
 
 Their flack hands hung: cold fighs and whifper'd doubts 130 
 
 From breath to breatli ftole round. The {age mean time 
 
 Look'd fpeechlefs on, while his big bofom heav'd 
 
 Struggling with fhame and forrow : till at laft 
 
 A tear broke forth ; and, O immortal (hades,. fl 
 
 O Thefeus, he exclaim'd,, o Codrus, where, 135 
 
 Where are ye now ? behold for what ye toil'd" 
 
 Through life ? behold for whom ye chofe to die. 
 
 No more he added ; but with lonely fteps. 
 
 Weary and flow, his filver beard deprefs'd, 
 
 And his ftern eyes bent heedlefs on the ground, 140 
 
 Back to his filent dwelling he repair'd. 
 
 There o'er the gate,,, his armor, as a man 
 
 Whom from the fervice of the war his chief 
 
 Difmillcth after no inglorious toil. 
 
 He
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K III. i3-/ 
 
 He fix'd in general view. One wifliful look r^e 
 
 He lent, iinconfcious, toward the public place 
 At parting : then beneath his quiet roof 
 \^^ithout a word, without a figh, retir'd. 
 
 Scarce had the morrow's fun his golden raya 
 From fweet Hymcttus darted o'er the fanes tco 
 
 Of Cecrops to the Salaminian fliores, 
 When, lo, on Solon's thrcfliold met the feet 
 Of four Athenians by the fame fad care 
 Conduced all : than whom the ilate beheld 
 None nobler. Firft came Megacles, the fon 155 
 
 Of great Alcmaeon, whom the Lydian king 
 The mild, unhappy Croefus, in his days 
 Of glory had with coftly gifts adorn'd, 
 Fair vefTels, fplendid garments, tindlur'd webs 
 And heaps of treafur'd gold beyond the lot j6o 
 
 Of many fovrans; thus requiting well 
 That hofpitable favor which erewhile 
 Alcma^on to his mefl'engers had fhewn. 
 Whom he with offerings worthy of the God 
 Sent from his throne in Sardis to revere 165 
 
 Apollo's Delphic llirine. With Megacles 
 Approach'd his fon, whom Agariila bore. 
 The virtuous child of Cliflhenes whofe hand 
 Of Grecian fccpters the mofl ancient far 
 
 B b 2 In
 
 i88 THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 Id SIcyon fway'd : but greater flime he drew 170 
 
 From arms controul'd by jufticc, from the love 
 
 Of the wife jNIufes, and the unenvied wreath 
 
 \Vhich glad Olympia gave. For thither once 
 
 His warlike fteeds the heroe led, and there 
 
 Contended through the tumult of the courfe 175 
 
 M''kh fklllful wheels. Then vidlor at the goal^ 
 
 Amid the applaufes of afiembled Greece, 
 
 High on his car he ilood and wav*d his arm. 
 
 Silence infu'd : when flrait the herald's voice 
 
 Was heard,, inviting every Grecian youth, 180 
 
 Whom Clifthenes content might call his fon,. 
 
 To vifit, ere twice thirty days were pafs'd,. 
 
 The towers of Sicyon.. there the chief decreed,. 
 
 Within the circuit of the followino; vear, 
 
 To join at Hymen's altar, hand in hand 185 
 
 With his fair daughter^ him among the guefcs. 
 Whom worthieft he (hould deem. Forthwith from all 
 The bounds of Greece the ambitious wooers came :. 
 From rich Hefperia ; from the Illyrian.fhore 
 Where Epidamnus over Adria's furge- 19Q 
 
 Looks on the fetting fun ; from thofe brave tribes 
 Chaonian or Molofiian wliom the race 
 Of great Achilles governs, glorying ftill 
 in Troy overthrown ; from rough ^tolia^ nnrfe : 
 Qf. men, who firll among the. Greeks tlirew. off" 1^95 
 
 The
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. 189 
 
 The yoke of kings, to commerce and to arms 
 
 Devoted y from Thcfl'alia's fertile meads^ 
 
 Where flows Peneiis near the lofty walls 
 
 Oi Cranon old j from ftrong Eretria, queen 
 
 Of all Euboean cities, who, fublime 200 
 
 On the flecp margin of Euripus, views 
 
 Acrofs the tide the Marathonian plain, 
 
 Not yet the haunt of glory. Athens too, 
 
 Minerva's care, amonii her Q;raceful fons. 
 
 Found equal lovers for the princely maid: 205 
 
 Nor was proud Argos wanting ; nor the domes 
 
 Of facred Elis; nor the Arcadian groves 
 
 That overihade Alphcus, echoing oft 
 
 Some fliepherd's fong. But through the illulbious band 
 
 Was none who might with Megacles compare 210 
 
 In all the honors of unblemilh'd youth. 
 
 His was the beauteous bride : and now their fon 
 
 Young Clifthenes, betinies, at Solon's gate 
 
 Stood anxious; leaning forward on the arm 
 
 Of his great Are, with earnefl: eyes that afk'd 215 
 
 When the flow hinge would turn, with relllefs feet^ 
 
 And cheeks now pale, now glowing : for his heart 
 
 Throbb'd, full of burfling paflions, anger, grief. 
 
 With fcorn imbitter'd, by the generous boy 
 
 Scarce underflood, but which, like noble feeds,., 220 
 
 Are deflin'd for liis country and hinifelf. 
 
 In
 
 rjc,o THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 In riper vears to bring forth fruits divine 
 
 Of liberty and glory. Next appenr'd 
 
 Two brave companions ^yhom one mother bore 
 
 To different lords; but whom the better tics 225 
 
 Of firm efteem and friendfliip rendered more 
 
 Than brothers : lirft Miltiades, who drew 
 
 .From godlike ^Eacus his ancient line ; 
 
 That ^acus whofe unimpeach'd renov.'n 
 
 For fandity and juftice won the lyre 230 
 
 Of elder bards to celebrate him thron'd 
 
 In Hades o'er the dead, where his decrees 
 
 The o-uikv foul within the burnino; gates 
 
 Of Tartarus compel, or fend the good 
 
 To inhabit with eternal health and peace 235 
 
 The vallies of Elvfium. From a flem 
 
 So facred, ne'er could worthier fcyon Ipring 
 
 Than this Miltiades ; whofe aid erelong 
 
 The chiefs of Thrace, already on their ways 
 
 Sent by the infpir'd foreknowing maid who fits 240 
 
 Upon the Delphic tripod, fhall implore 
 
 To wield their fceptre, and the rural wealth 
 
 Of fruitful Cherfonefus to protedl 
 
 With arms and laws. But, nothing careful now 
 
 Save for his injur'd country, here he ftands 245 
 
 In deep follicitude with Cymon join'd : 
 
 Unconfcious both what widely-different lots 
 
 Await
 
 IMAGINATION, B O O IC III. 19c 
 
 Await them, taught by nature as they are 
 
 To know one common good, one common ill. 
 
 For Cimon not his valor, not his birth 250 
 
 Dcriv'd from Codrus, not a thoufand gifts 
 
 Dealt round him with a wife, benignant hand,. 
 
 No, not the Olympic olive by himfelf 
 
 From his own brow transferred to footh the mind 
 
 Of this Piliflratus, can long preferve 255 
 
 From the fell envy of the tyrant's fons, 
 
 And their affaflin da^Sfer. But if death; 
 
 Obfcure upon his gentle fteps attend. 
 
 Yet fate an ample rccompenfe prepares 
 
 In his victorious fon, that other great 260 
 
 Miltiades, who o'er the very throne 
 
 Of glory fliall with Time's alliduous hand 
 
 In adamantine charafters ingrave 
 
 The name of Athens ; and, by freedom arm'd 
 
 'Gainft the gigantic pride of Afia's king, 265 
 
 Shall all the achievements of the heroes old; 
 
 Surmount, of Hercules, of all who fail'd, 
 
 From Theflaly with Jafon, all who fought' 
 
 For empire or for fame at Thebes or Troy. 
 
 Such were the patriots v/ho within the porch 
 Of Solon had alTembled. But the gate 
 Now opens, and acrofs the ample floor 
 
 270 
 
 Strait
 
 ,92 T H E r L E A S U R E S O F T 11 F. 
 
 Strait they proceed into an open fpace 
 
 Bri^'-ht with the beams of morn: a verdant fpot. 
 
 Where ftands a rural altar, pil'd with fods 275 
 
 Cut from the graffy turf and girt with wreaths 
 
 Of branching pahn. Here Solon's felf they found 
 
 Clad in a robe of purple pure, and dcck'd 
 
 With leaves of olive on his reverend brow. 
 
 He bow'd before the altar, and o'er cakes 280 
 
 Of barley from two earthen veiTels pour'd 
 
 Of honey and of milk a plenteous llream ; 
 
 Calling meantime the Mufes to accept 
 
 His fimple offering, by no vidim ting'd 
 
 With blood, nor fullied by deftroying fire, 285 
 
 But fuch as for himfelf Apollo claims 
 
 In his own Delos, where his favorite haunt 
 
 Is thence the Altar of the Pious nam'd. 
 
 Unfeen the guefts drew near, and filent view'd 
 
 That worfliip ; till the heroe prieft his eye 290 
 
 Turn'd toward a feat on which prepar'd there lay 
 
 A branch of laurel. Then his friends confefs'd 
 
 Before him flood. Backward his ftep he drew, 
 
 As loth that care or tumult fiiould approach 
 
 Thofe early rites divine : but foon their looks, 295 
 
 So anxious, and their hands, held forth with fuch 
 
 Defponding geilure, bring him on perforce 
 
 To fpeak to their afflidion. Are ye come, 
 
 He
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. ipj 
 
 He cried, to mourn with me this common fhame ? 
 Or afk ye feme new effort which may break. 300 
 
 Our fetters ? Know then, of the public caufe 
 Not for yon traitor's cunning or his might 
 Do i defpair : nor could i wiih from Jove 
 Aught dearer, than at this late hour of life, 
 As once by laws, fo now by ilrenuous arms, 30^ 
 
 From impious violation to affert 
 The rights our fathers left us. But, alas ! 
 What arms ? or who fliall wield them ? Ye beheld 
 The Athenian people. Many bitter days 
 Muft pafs, and many wounds from cruel pride 310 
 
 Be felt, ere yet their partial hearts find room 
 For juil refentment, or their hands indure 
 To fmite this tyrant brood, fo near to all 
 Their hopes, fo oft admir'd, fo long belov'd. 
 That time will come, however. Be it yours 315 
 
 To watch its fair approach, and urge it on 
 With honeft prudence : me it ill befeems 
 Again to fupplicate the unwilling croud 
 To refcue from a vile deceiver's hold 
 
 That envied power which once with eager zeal 320 
 
 They offer'd to myfelf ; nor can i plunge 
 In counfels deep and various, nor prepare 
 For diftant wars, thus faultering as i tread 
 On life's lalt verge, erelong, to join the {l:iades 
 
 Cc Of
 
 ,94 THE PLEASURES O F T II E 
 
 Of Minos and L)-curgus. But behold 325 
 
 What care imploys me now. My vows i pay 
 
 To the fweet Mufcs, teachers of my youth 
 
 And folace of my age. If right i deem 
 
 Of the ftill voice that whifpers at my heart, 
 
 The immortal fiikrs have not quite withdrawn 330 
 
 Their old harmonious influence. Let your tongues 
 
 With facred filence favor what i fpeak, 
 
 And haply lliall my faithful lips be taught 
 
 To unfold celeftial counfels, which may arm 
 
 As with impenetrable fteel your breaih 335 
 
 For the long ftrife before you, and repel 
 
 The darts of adverfe fate. He faid, and fnatch'd 
 
 The laurel bough, and fate in (ilence down, 
 
 Fix'd, wrapp'd in folemn mufing, full before 
 
 The fun, who now from all his radiant orb 340 
 
 Drove the gray clouds, and pour'd his genial light 
 
 Upon the breaft of Solon. Solon rais'd 
 
 Aloft the leafy rod, and thus began. 
 
 Ye beauteous offspring of Olympian Jove 
 And Memory divine, Pierian maids, 345 
 
 Hear me, propitious. In the morn of life, 
 When hope fhone bright and all the profpedl Hiiil'd,, 
 To your fequefter'd manfion oft my ileps 
 
 Were
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. ic>5 
 
 Were turn'd, o Mufes, and within your gate 
 My offerings paid. Ye taught me then vvith ftrains 350 
 
 Of flowing harmony to foftcn war's 
 Dire voice, or in fair colors, tliat might charm 
 The pubUc eye, to clothe the form aullere 
 Of civil counfcl. Now my feeble age 
 
 Negleded, and fupplantcd of the hope ' 35^ 
 
 On which it lean'd, yet flnks not, but to you, 
 To your mild wifJom flies, refuge belov'd 
 Of folitude and fllence. Ye can teach 
 The viflons of my bed whate'er the gods 
 
 In the rude ages of the world infpir'd, 360 
 
 Or the fir ft heroes aded : ye can make 
 The morning light more gladfome to my fenfe 
 Than ever it appear'd to afl:i^'e youth 
 Purfuing carelefs pleafure; ye can give 
 
 To this long lelfure, thefe unheeded hours, 365 
 
 A labor as fublimc, as when the fons 
 Of Athens throng'd and fpcechlefs round me ilood 
 To hear pronounc'd for all their future deeds 
 The bounds of right and wrong. Celellial powers, 
 I feel that ye are near me : and behold, 370 
 
 To meet your energy divine, i bring 
 A high and facred theme ; not lefs than thofe 
 Which to the eternal cuftody of fame 
 
 Your lips intrufled, when of old ye deign'd • 
 
 C c 2 ^^'ith
 
 196 THE PLEASURES OF THE 
 
 With Orpheus or with Homer to frequent 375 
 
 The proves of Haemus or the Chiaii fhore. 
 
 o 
 
 Ye know, harmonious maids, (for what of all 
 My various life was e'er from you eftrang'd ?) 
 Oft hath my folitary fong to you 
 
 Reveal'd that duteous pride which turn'd my ftcps 380 
 
 To willing exile ; earneft to withdraw 
 From envy and the difappointed third 
 Of lucre, left the bold familiar firife, 
 Which in the eye of Athens they upheld 
 
 Againft her legiflator, lliould impair 385 
 
 With trivial doubt the reverence of his laws. 
 To Egypt therefore through the ^^gcan ifles 
 My courfe i fteer'd, and by the banks of Nile 
 Dwelt in Canopus. Thence the hallow'd domes 
 Of Sais, and the rites to Ifis paid, 390 
 
 I fought, and in her temple's filent courts, 
 Through many changing moons, attentive heard 
 The venerable Sonchis, while his tongue 
 A.t morn or midnight the deep ftory told 
 Of her who reprefents whate'er has been, 395 
 
 Or is, or (hall be j v/hofe myfterious veil. 
 No mortal hand hath ever yet remov'd. 
 By him exhorted, fouthward to the walls 
 Of On i pafs'd, the city of the fun,. 
 
 The
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. 197 
 
 The ever-youthful god. 'Twas there amid 400 
 
 His pricfls and facrcs, who the hve-lon<i nioht 
 Watch the dread movements of the ftarry fphcre, 
 Or who in wonderous fables half difclofe 
 The fecrets of the elements, 'twas there 
 
 I'hat great Pfenophis taught my raptur'd ears 405 
 
 The fame of old Atlantis, of her chiefs, 
 And her pure laws, the firfl: which earth obcy'd. 
 Deep in my bofom funk the noble tale ; 
 And often, while i lirien'd, did my mind 
 
 Foretell with what delight her own free lyre 410 
 
 Should fometime for an Attic audience raife 
 Anew that lofty fcene, and from their tombs 
 Call forth thofe ancient demigods to fpeak. 
 Of juftice and the hidden providence 
 
 That walks among mankind. But yet meantime 415 
 
 The my flic pomp of Ammon's gloomy fons 
 Became lefs pleafing. With contempt i gaz'd 
 On that tame garb and thofe unvarying paths 
 To which the double yoke of king and pried 
 Had cramp'd the fullen race. At laft with hymns- 420 
 
 Invoking our own Pallas and the gods 
 Of cheerful Greece, a glad farewell i gave 
 To Egypt, and before the fouthern wind 
 Spread my full fails. What climes i then furvey'd, 
 What fortunes i Incounter'd in the realm ,425 
 
 Of
 
 ,j,8 T II i: 1' L i: A S U II F. S OF T U E 
 
 Of Crcefus or upon the Cvprlan fliore, 
 
 The Mufc, who prompts my bofom, doth not now 
 
 Confent that i rev^eal But when at length 
 
 Ten times the lun returning from the fouth 
 
 Had ftrow'd with flowers the verdant earth and filFd 
 
 Tli€ groves v/lth mufic, pleas'd i then beheld 
 
 The term of thofe long errors drawing nigh. 
 
 Nor yet, i faid, will i fit down within 
 
 The walls of Athens, till my feet have trod 
 
 The Cretan foil, have pierc'd thofe reverend haunts 
 
 -Whence law and civil concord iflued forth 
 
 As from their ancient home, and ftill to Greece 
 
 Their wlfcfl:, loftieft dlfcipline proclaim. 
 
 Strait where Amnifus, mart of wealthy fhips, 
 
 Appears beneath fam'd Cnoflus and her towers 
 
 Like the fair handmaid of a ftately queen, 
 
 1 check'd my prow, and thence with eager fleps 
 
 The city of Minos enter'd. O ye gods, 
 
 Who taught the leaders of the fimpler time 
 
 By written words to curb the untoward will 
 
 OF mortals, how within that generous ifle 
 
 Have ye the triumphs of your power difplay'd 
 
 Munificent ! Thofe fplendid merchants, lords 
 
 Of traffic and the fea, with what delight 
 
 I faw them at their public meal, like fons 
 
 Of the fame houfehold, join the plainer fort 
 
 430 
 
 435 
 
 44.0 
 
 445 
 
 450 
 
 Whofe
 
 IMAGINATION, BOO K III. ij,^, 
 
 Whofe wealth v/as o:ily freedom 1 whence to thefe 
 
 Vile envy, and to thole fantaftic pride, 
 
 Alike v/as ft range ; but noble concord ilill 
 
 Cherilh'd the llrength untam'd, the ruftic faith, 455 
 
 Of their firft fathers. Then the growing race, 
 
 How plealing to behold them in their fchools, 
 
 Their fports, their labors, ever plac'd within, 
 
 O iliade of Minos, thy controuling eye ! 
 
 Here was a docile band in tuneful tones 460 
 
 Thy laws pronouncing, or with lofty hymns 
 
 Praifing the bounteous gods, or, to preferve 
 
 Their country's, heroes from oblivious night, 
 
 Refounding what the Mufe infpir'd of old ; 
 
 There, on the verge of manhood, others met, 465 
 
 In heavy armor through the heats of noon 
 
 To march, the rugged mountains height to climb 
 
 With meafur'd fwiftnefs, from the hard-bent bow 
 
 To fend refiiUefs arrows to their mark, 
 
 Or for the fame of prowefs to contend, 470 
 
 Now wreftling, now with fills and ftaves oppos'd, 
 
 Now with the biting falchion, and the fence 
 
 Of brazen fliields ; while ftiii the warbling flute 
 
 Prelided o'er the combat, breathing flrains 
 
 Grave, folemn, foft; and changing headlong fpite. 475 
 
 To thoucrhtful refolution cool and clear. 
 
 Such i beheld thofc iilanders rcnown'd. 
 
 So
 
 ;co T II E P L r. A S U R i: S OF T II E 
 
 So tutor'd from their birth to meet in war 
 
 Each bold invader, and in peace to guard 
 
 That living flame of reverence for their laws 480 
 
 Which nor the-ftorms of fortune, nor the flood 
 
 Of foreign wealth difl^us'd o'er all the land. 
 
 Could quench orflacken. Firft of human names 
 
 In every Cretan's heart was Minos ftill ; 485 
 
 And holieil far, of what the fun furveys 
 
 Through his whole courfe, were thofe primeval feats 
 
 Which with religious footfteps he had taught 
 
 Their fires to approach ; the wild Di6ta:an cave 
 
 Where Jove was born ; the ever-verdant meads 490 
 
 Of Ida, and the fpacious grotto, where 
 
 His a(9:ive youth lie pafs'd, and where his throne 
 
 Yet Rands myflerious ; whither Minos came 
 
 Each ninth returning year, the king of gods 
 
 And mortals there in fecret to confult 495 
 
 On juflice, and the tables of his law 
 
 To infcribe anew. Oft alfo with like zeal 
 
 Great Rhea's manfion from the Cnoflian gates 
 
 Men vifit ; nor lefs oft the antique fane 
 
 JBuilt on that facred fpot, along the 'oanks 500 
 
 Of fliady Theron, where benignant Jove 
 
 And his majcdic confort join'd their hands 
 
 And fpoke their nuptial vows. Alafs, 'twas there 
 
 That the dire fame of Athens funk in bonds 
 
 Ifirft
 
 IMAGINATION. BOOK III. 201 
 
 I firft receiv'd ; what time an annual feafl: 505 
 
 Had fummon'd all the genial country round, 
 By facrificc and pomp to bring to mind 
 Tliat firfl great fpoufal j while the inamor'd youths 
 And virgins, with the pricft before the fhrine, 
 Obferve the fame pure ritual and invoke 510 
 
 The fame glad omens. There, among the croud 
 Of ftrangers from thofe- naval cities drawn 
 Which deck, like gems, the ifland's northern fliorc, 
 A merchant of iEgina i defcried. 
 
 My ancient hofh. but, forward as i fprung 515 
 
 To meet him, he, with dark deje6led brow, 
 Stopp'd half-averfe ; and, O Athenian gueft, 
 He faid, art thou in Crete , thefe joyful rites 
 Partaking ? Know thy laws are blotted out : 
 Thy country kneels before a tyrant's throne. 520 
 
 He added names of men, \vith h'oflile deeds 
 Difaftrous ; which obfcure and indilHndt 
 I heard : for, while lie fpakc, my heart grew cold 
 And my eyes dim : the altars and their train 
 No more were prcfent to me: how i far'd, 525 
 
 Or whither turn'd, i know not ; nor recall 
 Auo;ht of thofe moments other than the fenfe 
 Of one who flruggles in opprelUve fleep 
 And, from the toils of fome diflrefsful dream 
 To break awav, with palpitating heart, 530 
 
 D d Weak
 
 201 T n E PLEASURE S, Sec. 
 
 Weak limbs, and temples bath'd in deadi-like dew, 
 
 Makes many a painful efFort. When at lail 
 
 The fun and nature's face again appear'd, 
 
 Not far I found me ; where the public path, 
 
 Winding through cyprefs groves and fwelling meads, 535 
 
 From CnofTus to the cave of Jove afcends. 
 
 Heedlefs i follow'd on ; till foon the fkirts 
 
 Of Ida rofe before me, and the vault 
 
 Wide-opening pierc'd the mountain's rocky fide. 
 
 Entering within the threfliold, on the ground 54.0 
 
 I flung me, fad, faint, overworn with toil, 
 
 ******** 
 
 THE
 
 THE BEGINNING 
 
 OF THE 
 
 FOURTH BOOK 
 
 O F T H E 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 O F T H E 
 
 IMAGINATION: 
 
 MDCCLXX. 
 
 Dd 2 
 
 THE
 
 THE 
 
 PLEASURES 
 
 O F T H E 
 
 IMAGINATION: 
 
 BOOK THE FOURTH. 
 
 WNE effort more, one cheerful fally more. 
 Our deftin'd courfe will finifli. and in peace 
 Then, for an offering facred to the powers 
 Who lent us gracious guidance, we will then 
 Infcribe a monument of deathlefs praife, e 
 
 O my adventurous fong. With fleady fpeed 
 Long hair thou, on an untried voyage bound, 
 SaiTd between earth and heaven : haft now furvey'd. 
 Stretched out beneath thee, all the mazy trads 
 Of paffion and opinion ; like a wafte lO 
 
 Of fands and flowery lawns and tangling woods. 
 Where mortals roam bewilder'd : and haft now 
 Hxijliintr foar'd amoi:)Li the worlds above. 
 Or liovciM near the eternal gates of heaven, 
 If haplv tl:e diicourfes of the Gods, 15 
 
 A curious
 
 .o6 THEPLEASURESOFTIIE 
 
 A curious, but an unprefuming gucft, 
 
 Thou might'll partake, and carry back feme llrain 
 
 Of divine wlfdom, lawful to repeat, 
 
 And apt to be.conceiv'd ofi man belovv^ 
 
 A different tafk remains ; the fecret paths 
 
 Of early genius to explore : to trace 
 
 Thofe haunts where Fancy her predeftin'd fons, 
 
 Like to the Demigods of old, doth nurfe 
 
 Remote from eyes profane. Ye happy fouls 
 
 Who now her tender difcipline obey, 
 
 Where dwell ye ? What wild river's brink at eve 
 
 Imprint your fteps ? What folemn groves at noon 
 
 Ufe ye to vhit, often breaking forth 
 
 In rapture 'raid your dilatory walk, 
 
 Or mufing, as in {lumber, on the green ? 
 
 — Would i again were with you ! — O ye dales 
 
 Of Tyne, and ye moft ancient woodlands ; where 
 
 Oft as the giant flood obliquely ftrides, 
 
 And his banks open, and his lawns extend. 
 
 Stops fhort the pleafed traveller to view 
 
 Prefiding o'er the fcene fome rul^ic tower 
 
 Founded by Norman or by Saxon hands : 
 
 G ye Northumbrian fhades, which overlook 
 
 The rocky pavement and the moffy falls 
 
 Of folitary Wenfbeck's limpid ftream ; 
 
 How gladly i recall your well-known feats 
 
 20 
 
 25 
 
 30 
 
 35 
 
 40 
 Belov'd
 
 IMAGINATION. B O O K IV. 207 
 
 Belov'd of old, and that delightful time 
 
 When all alone, for many a fummer's day, 
 
 I wander'd through your calm recefles, led 
 
 In filence by fome powerful hand unfeen. 45 
 
 Nor will i e'er forget you. nor fhall e'er 
 The graver tafks of manhood, or the advice 
 Of vulgar wifdom, move me to difclaim 
 Thofe lludies which pofltiVd me in the dawn 
 Of life, and fix'd the color of my mind 50 
 
 For every future year : whence even now 
 From fleep i refcue the clear hours of morn, 
 And, while the world around lies overwhelm'd 
 In idle darknefs, am alive to thoughts 
 
 Of honourable fame, of truth divine 5^ 
 
 Or moral, and of minds to virtue won 
 By the fwcet magic of harmonious verfe ; 
 The themes which now expcd us. For thus far 
 On general habits, and on arts which grow 
 Spontaneous in the minds of all mankind, 60 
 
 Hath dwelt our argument ; and how felf-taught. 
 Though feldom confcious of their own imploy, 
 In nature's or in fortune's chans'eful fcene 
 Men learn to judge of beauty, and acquire 
 Thofe forms fet up, as idols in the foul 65 
 
 For love and zealous praife. Yet indiftin6l, 
 
 In
 
 208 THEPLEASURESOFTIIE 
 
 In vulgar bofoms, and iinnotlc'd lie 
 
 Thefe plcafing ftores, iinlcfs the cafual force 
 
 Of things external prompt the hccdlefs mind 
 
 To recognize her wealth. But fome there are 70 
 
 Confcious of nature, and the rule which man 
 
 O'er nature holds : fome who, within themfelvcs 
 
 Retiring from the trivial fcenes of chance 
 
 And momentary paflion, can at will 
 
 Call up thefe fair exemplars of the mind ; 75; 
 
 Review their features ; fcan the fecret laws 
 
 Which bind them to each other: and difplay 
 
 By forms, or founds, or colours, to the fenfe. 
 
 Of all the world their latent charms difplay ; 
 
 Even as in nature's frame (if fuch a word, 80 
 
 If fuch a word, fo bold,^ may from the lips. 
 
 Of man proceed) as in this outward framQ 
 
 Of things, the great artificer pourtrays 
 
 His own immenfe idea. Various names 
 
 Thefe among mortals bear, as various figns 85 
 
 They ufe, and by peculiar organs fpeak 
 
 To human fenfe. There are who by the flight 
 
 Of air through tubes with moving flops diftin£t, 
 
 Or by extended chords in meafure taught 
 
 To vibrate, can aflemble powerful founds fO 
 
 Exprefling every temper of the mind 
 
 From every caufe, and charming all the foul 
 
 With
 
 I M AGIN A T I O N. BOOK IV. 2C^ 
 
 With paffion void of care. Others mean time 
 
 The rugged mafs of metal, wood, or flone 
 
 Patiently taming; or with eafier hand 95 
 
 Defcribing lines, and with more ample fcopc 
 
 Uniting colors ; can to general fight 
 
 Produce thole permanent and perfedl forms,. 
 
 Thole chara(Sters of heroes and of gods. 
 
 Which from the crude materials of the world ico 
 
 Their own high minds created. But the chief 
 
 Are poets ; eloquent men, who dwell on earth 
 
 To clothe whate'er the foul admires or loves 
 
 With language and with numbers. Hence to thefe 
 
 A field is opcn'd wide as nature's fphere ; 105 
 
 Nav, wider : various as the fudden a6ls 
 
 Of human wit, and vaft as the demands 
 
 Of human will. The bard nor length, nor depth. 
 
 Nor place, nor form controuls. To eyes, to ears, 
 
 To every organ of the copious mind, 110 
 
 He oifereth all its treafures. Him the hours, 
 
 yhe feafons him obey : and changeful Time 
 
 Sees him at will keep meafure with his flight, . 
 
 At will outlirlp it. To enhance his toil. 
 
 He fummoneth from the uttermoft extent 115 
 
 Of things which God hath taught him, every form 
 
 Auxiliar, every power ; and all befide 
 
 Excludes imperious. His prevailing hand 
 
 E e. Gives,
 
 ■tio THE PLEASURES &c. 
 
 Gives, to corporeal effence, life and fenfe 
 
 And every ftately funiELion of the foul, 120 
 
 The foul itfelf to him obfequious lies. 
 
 Like matter's pallive heap ; and as he wills, 
 
 To rcafon and afFedion he alligns 
 
 Their jult alliances, their juft degrees : 
 
 Whence his peculiar honors ; whence the race 
 
 Of men who people his delightful world. 
 
 Men genuine and according to themfelves, 
 
 Tranfcend as far the uncertain fons of earth, 
 
 As earth itfelf to his delightful world 
 
 The palm of fpotlefs beauty doth refign. 130 
 
 ******* « 
 
 ODES,
 
 o 
 
 D 
 
 E 
 
 O N 
 
 SEVERAL SUBJECTS. 
 
 IN TWO BOOKS. 
 
 E.e 2 
 
 ODES,
 
 ODES, BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 O D E I. 
 
 PREFACE, 
 
 t 
 
 V-/ N yonder verdant hilloc laid, 
 AVhcre oaks and elms, a friendly fliade, 
 
 G'erlook the falling ftream, 
 O mafter of the Latin lyre, 
 Awhile with thee will i retire 
 
 From fummer's noontide beam. 
 
 II. 
 
 And, lo, within my lonely bower, 
 The induftrioiis bee from many a flower 
 
 Colledbs her balmy dews : 
 *' For me," fbc fings, " the gems ^te born, 
 ** For me their filken robe adorn. 
 
 " Their frag-rant breath diffufe." 
 
 £7 
 
 III. Sweet
 
 314 
 
 G D E S, 
 
 III. 
 
 Sweet murmurer ! may no rude jftorm 
 This hofpitable fcene deform, 
 
 Nor check thy gladfome toils ; 
 Still may the buds unfullied fpring. 
 Still fliowers and funfhine court thy wing 
 
 To thefe ambrofial fpoils. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Nor fhall my Mufe hereafter fail 
 Her fellow-labourer thee to hail ; 
 
 And lucky be the ftrains ! 
 For long ago did nature frame 
 Your feafons and your arts the fame^ 
 
 Your pleafures and your pains.. 
 
 V. 
 
 Like thee, in lowly, fylvan fcenes,. 
 On river-banks and flowery greens 
 
 My Mufe delighted plays ; 
 Nor through the defart of the air. 
 Though fwans or eagles triumph there,. 
 
 With fond ambition flrays. 
 
 VI. Nor
 
 B O O K T II E F I R S T. ^i^ 
 
 VI. 
 
 Nor where the boding raven chaunts, 
 Nor near the owl's unhallow'd haunts 
 
 Will fhe her cares imploy ; 
 But flies from ruins and from tombs, 
 From fuperftitlon's horrid glooms, 
 
 To day-light and to joy. 
 
 VII. 
 
 Nor will fhe tempt the barren wafte ; 
 Nor deigns the lurking llrength to tafte 
 
 Of any noxious thing ; 
 But leaves with fcorn to envy's ufe 
 The infipid nightfliade's baneful juicCj 
 
 The nettle's fordid fting. 
 
 viir. 
 
 From all Vv'hich nature faireft knows, 
 The vernal blooms, the fummer rofe, 
 
 She draws her blamelefs wealth ; 
 And, when the generous talk is done, 
 She confecrates a double boon, 
 
 To pleafure and to health. 
 
 ODE
 
 2i6 O D £ S, 
 
 ODE II. 
 
 ON THE WINTER-SOLSTICE, 
 
 M.D.CC.XL. 
 I. 
 
 J. H E radiant ruler cf the year 
 At length his wintry goal attains ; 
 Soon to reverfe the long career. 
 And northward bend his fteady reins* 
 Now, piercing half Potofi's height, 
 Prone rufli the fiery floods of light 
 Ripening the mountain's lilver Itores : 
 While, in fome cavern's horrid fhade, 
 The panting Indian hides his head, 
 And oft the approach of eve implores.. 
 
 II. 
 
 But lo, on this deferted coaft 
 How pale the fun ! how thick the air ! 
 Muftering his ftorms, a fordid hoft, 
 ho, winter defolates the year. 
 
 The.
 
 15 O O K THE FIRS T. 217 
 
 The fields refign tlieir latcfl: bloom i 
 No more the breezes waft perfume, 
 No more the ftreams in mufic roll : 
 But fnows fall dark, or rains refound ; 
 And, while great nature mourns around, 
 Her griefs infefl: the human foul. 
 
 III. 
 
 Hence the loud city's bufy throngs 
 Urge the warm bowl and fplendid fire : 
 Harmonious dances, feflive fonp-s 
 Againfl: the fpiteful heaven confpire. 
 Meantime perhaps with tender fears 
 Some village-dame the curfew hears, 
 While round the hearth her children play : 
 At morn their father went abroad ; 
 The moon is funk and deep the road ; 
 She fighs, and wonders at his i\ay. 
 
 IV. 
 
 But thou, my lyre, awake, arife, 
 And hail the fun's returnins; force : 
 Even now he climbs the northern fkics. 
 And health and hope attend his courfc. 
 Then louder howl the aerial wafte, 
 Be earth with keener cold imbrac'd, 
 
 F f Vet
 
 ti$ ODES, 
 
 Yet gCLtle hours adrance their wing ; 
 AtA ii.ncr, mocking winter's miglit. 
 With flowers and dews and fhreaming li2:ht 
 Alreadv decks the newbom ij;-—- 
 
 V. 
 
 O fountain of the golden day. 
 
 Could mortal tows promote thj fpeed. 
 
 How Toon before thv verr.al rav 
 
 Should each unkindly damp recede ! 
 
 How foon each hovering tempeil fly, 
 
 Whofe ftores for mifchief arm the iky, 
 
 Prompt on our heads to bunt amain. 
 
 To rend the forefi: from the lieep, 
 
 Or, thundering o'er the Baltic deep, 
 
 To whelm the merchant's hopes ot gain I 
 
 VI. 
 
 But let not man's unecual views 
 Prefume oer nature and her laws: 
 'Tis his with grateful ioy to ufe 
 The indulgence of the fovran caufe ; 
 Secure that health and beauts* fprings 
 Through this majeftic frame of things, 
 
 Bevond
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 Bevond what he can reach to know ; 
 And that heaven's all-fubduing will, 
 With good the progeny of ill, 
 Attempereth every ftate below, 
 
 VIL 
 
 How plealing wears the wintry night. 
 Spent with the old illuftrious dead ! 
 While, by the taper's trembling light, 
 I feem thofe awful fcenes to tread 
 Where chiefs or legiflators lie, 
 Whofe triumphs move before my eye 
 In arms and antique pomp array'd ; 
 'While now i tafte the Ionian fong, 
 Now bend to Plato's godlike tongue 
 Refoundino; throuo-h the olive fhade. 
 
 VIIL 
 
 But fliould fome cheerful, equal friend 
 Bid leave the fludious page av\diile, 
 Let mirth on wifdom then attend, 
 And focial eafe on learned toil. 
 Then while, at love's uncareful flirine, 
 Each didates to the (2:od cf wine 
 
 219 
 
 F f 2 Ilcr
 
 ?;o ODE S, 
 
 Her name whom all his hopes obey, 
 What flattering dreams each bofom warm. 
 While abfence, heightening every charm, 
 Invokes the flow-returning May ! 
 
 IX. 
 
 May, thou delight of heaven and earth, 
 
 When will thy genial ftar arife ? 
 
 The aufpicious morn, which gives thee birth. 
 
 Shall bring Eudora to my eyes. 
 
 AVithin her fylvan haunt behold, 
 
 As in the happy garden old, 
 
 She moves like that primeval fair : 
 
 Thither, ye filver- founding lyres, 
 
 Ye tender fmiles, ye chafte deflres. 
 
 Fond hope and mutual faith, repair. 
 
 X. 
 
 And if believing love can read 
 
 His better omens in her eye, 
 
 Then fhall my fears, o charming maid, 
 
 And every pain of abfence die : 
 
 Then fliall my jocund harp, attun'd 
 
 To thy true ear, with fweeter found 
 
 Purfuc
 
 BOOK THE FIRS T; m 
 
 Purfue the free Horatian fong : 
 Old Tyne fhall liften to my tale. 
 And echo, down the bordering vale, 
 The liquid melody prolong. 
 
 O D E III. 
 
 XO A FRIEND, UNSUCCESSFUL IN LOVE. 
 
 L 
 
 xN DEED,, my Phcedria, if to find 
 That wealth can female wifhes gain 
 Had e'er diilurb'd vour thoughtful mind, , 
 Or coll: one ferious moment's pain, 
 I Ihould have faid that all the rules, 
 You learn'd of moralills and fchools, , 
 Were very ufelefs, very vain. . 
 
 II. Yet
 
 O D K S, 
 
 II. 
 
 Tet 1 perhaps miftake the cafe — 
 
 Say, though with this heroic air, 
 
 Like one that holds a nobler chace, 
 
 You try the tender lofs to bear, 
 
 Does not your heart renounce your tongue ? 
 
 Seems not my cenfure ftrangely wrong 
 
 To count it fuch a flight affair ? 
 
 III. 
 
 When Hefper gilds the fhaded fky, 
 Oft as you feek the well-known grove, 
 Methinks i fee you caft your eye 
 Back to the morning fcenes of love : 
 Each pleafing word you heard her fay, 
 Her gentle look, her graceful way, 
 Again your ftruggling fancy move. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Then tell me, is your foul intire ? 
 
 Does wifdom calmly hold her throne ? 
 
 Then can you quelHon each defire, 
 
 Bid this remain, and that begone ? 
 
 No tear half-ftarting from your eye ? 
 
 No kindling blufh you know not why ? 
 
 No flealing figh, nor flifled groan ? 
 
 V. Away
 
 BOOK T HE FIRS T. 223. 
 
 V. 
 
 Away with this unmanly mood \ 
 See. where the hoary churl appears, 
 Whofe hand hath feiz'd the favorite good 
 Which you referv'd for happier years : 
 While, fide by fide, the bluHiing maid 
 Shrinks from his vifige, half-afraid, 
 Spite of the lickly joy Ihe wears. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Ye guardian powers of love and fame,. 
 This chafte, harmonious pair behold ; 
 And thus reward the generous flame 
 Of all who barter vows for gold. 
 O bloom of youth, o tender charms , 
 Well-buried in a dotard's arms ! 
 O equal price of beauty fold ! . 
 
 vir. 
 
 Geafe then to g:aze with looks of love %-. 
 
 Bid her adieu, the venal fair : 
 
 Unworthy fhe your blifs to prove ; 
 
 Then wherefore fhould flie prove your care .f* 
 
 No : lay your myrtle garland down ; , 
 
 And let av/hile the willow's crown 
 
 With luckier omens bind your hair. 
 
 Vnr. Ojuft
 
 2'-4 
 
 O D E S, 
 
 viir. 
 
 '"O juft efcap'd the faithlefs main, 
 Though driven unwilling on the land ; 
 To guide your favor'd fteps again, 
 Behold your better genius ftand : 
 Where truth revolves her page divine, 
 Where virtue leads to honor's (hrine, 
 Behold, he lifts his awful hand. 
 
 IX. 
 
 Fix but on thefe your ruling aim, 
 And time, the fire of manly care, 
 Will fancy's dazzling colors tame 
 A foberer drefs will beauty wear : 
 Then fhall efteem by knowledge led 
 Inthrone within your heart and head 
 Some happier love, fome truer fair. 
 
 ODE
 
 BOOKTHEFIRST. 225 
 
 O D E IV. 
 
 AFFECTED INDIFFERENCE. 
 
 TO THE SAM E. 
 
 I. 
 
 X E S : you contemn the perjur'd maid 
 "Who all your favorite hopes betray'd : 
 Nor, though her heart (hould home return, 
 Her tuneful tongue it's falfehood mourn, 
 Her winning eyes your faith implore, 
 Would you her hand receive again, 
 Or once diflemble vour difdain. 
 Or liften to the fyren's theme, 
 Or ftoop to love : fince now efteem 
 And confidence, and friendfhip, is no more. 
 
 II. 
 
 Yet tell me, Pha,'dria, tell me why. 
 When fummoning your pride you try 
 To meet her looks with cool negledb, 
 Or crofs her walk with flight refpe6t, 
 
 G g (For
 
 2z6 ODES, 
 
 (For fo is falfehood beft repaid) 
 Whence do your cheeks indignant glow ? 
 Why is your ftruggUng tongue Co flow ? 
 What means that darknefs on your brow ? 
 As if with all her broken vow 
 You meant the fair apoftate to upbraid ? 
 
 O D E V. 
 
 AGAINST SUSPICION. 
 
 I. 
 
 yj H fly ! 'tis dire Sufpicion's mien ; 
 And, meditating plagues unfeen, 
 
 The forcerefs hither bends : 
 Behold her torch in gall imbrued : 
 Behold her garment drops with blood 
 
 Of lovers and of friends. 
 
 II. Fly
 
 BOOK THE FIRS T. 127 
 
 II. 
 
 Fly far ! Already in your eyes 
 I fee a pale fuiTufion rife ; 
 
 And foon through every vein, 
 Soon will her fecret venom fpread, 
 And all your heart and all your head 
 
 Imbibe the potent ftain. 
 
 III. 
 
 Then many a demon will flie raife 
 
 To vex your fleep, to haunt your ways ; 
 
 While lileams of loft delight 
 Raife the dark tempeft of the brain, 
 As lightning fliines acrofs the main 
 
 Through whirlwinds and through night. 
 
 IV. 
 
 No more can faith or candor move ; 
 But each ingenuous deed of love, 
 
 Which reafon would applaud, 
 Now, fmiling o'er her dark diftref?, 
 Fancy malignant drives to drcfs 
 
 Like injury and fraud. 
 
 G f^ 2 V. Farewell 
 
 t3
 
 228 ODES, 
 
 V. 
 
 Farewell to virtue's peaceful times : 
 Soon will you ftoop to adl the crimes 
 
 Which thus you ftoop to fear : 
 Guilt follows guilt : and where the traia 
 Begins with wrongs of fuch a ftain, 
 
 What horrors form the rear I 
 
 VI. 
 
 'Tis thus to work her baleful power, 
 Sufpicion waits the fullen hour 
 
 Of fretfulnefs and ftrife. 
 When care the infirmer bofom wrings, 
 Or Eurus waves his murky wings 
 
 To damp the feats of life. 
 
 VII. 
 
 But come, forfake the fcene unblefs'd 
 Which firft beheld your faithful breaft 
 
 To groundlefs fears a prey : 
 Come, where with my prevailing lyre 
 The fkies, the ftreams, the groves confpire 
 
 To charm your doubts away. 
 
 VIII. Thron'd
 
 BOOKTHEFIRST. 229 
 
 VIII. 
 
 Thron'd In the fun's defcending car, 
 What power unfcen difFufeth far 
 
 This tendernefs of mind ? 
 What genius fmiles on yonder flood ? 
 What god, in whifpers from the wood, 
 
 Bids every thought be kind ? 
 
 IX. 
 
 O thou, whate'er thy awful name, 
 Whofe wifdom our untoward frame 
 
 With focial love reftrains ; 
 Thou, who by fair affe<5lion's ties 
 Giv'ft us to double all our joys 
 
 And half difarm our pains; 
 
 X. 
 
 Let univerfal candor flill, 
 
 Clear as yon heaven-refleding rill, 
 
 Preferve my open mind ; 
 Nor this nor that man's crooked ways 
 One fordid doubt within me raife. 
 
 To injure human kind. 
 
 ODE
 
 2.0 ODES, 
 
 ODE YL 
 
 HYMN I'O CHEERFULNESS. 
 
 ±1 W thick the fhades of evening clofe I 
 How pale the fky with weight of fnows ! 
 Hafte, hght the tapers, urge the fire, 
 And bid the joylefs day retire. 
 
 Alas, in vain i try within 
 
 To brighten the dejeded fcene. 
 While rouz'd by grief thefe fiery pains 
 Tear the frail texture of my veins ; 
 While winter's voice, that ftorms around, 
 And yon deep death -bell's groaning found 
 Renew my mind's oppreflive gloom, 
 Till llarting horror lliakes the room. 
 
 Is there in nature no kind power 
 To footh afilidion's lonely hour ? 
 To blunt the edge of dire difeafe. 
 And teach thefe wintry lliades to pleafe ? 
 Come, Cheerfulnefs, triumphant fair, 
 Shine throun;h the hoverin"; cloud of care : 
 
 O fwcct
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 231 
 
 O Tweet of language, mild of mien, 
 O virtue's friend and pleafure's queen, 
 AfTwage the flames that burn my breafl, 
 Compofe my jarring thoughts to reft ; 
 And while thy "racious mfts i feel, 
 Mj fong fhall all thy praife reveal. 
 
 As once ('twas in Aftraea's reign) 
 The vernal powers renew'd their train, 
 It happen'd that immortal Love 
 Was ranging through the fpheres above, 
 And downward hither caft his eye 
 The year's returning pomp to fpy. 
 He faw the radiant god of day, 
 Waft In his car the rofy May ; 
 The fragrant Airs and genial Hours 
 Were iliedding round him dews and flowers ; 
 Before his wheels Aurora pafs'd. 
 And Hefper's golden lamp was laft. 
 But, faireft of the blooming throng, 
 When Health majeftlc mov'd along, 
 Delighted to furvey below 
 The joys which from her prefence flow, 
 While earth enliven'd hears her voice, 
 And fwains, and flocks, and fields rejoice ; 
 Then mighty Love her charms confefs'd, 
 And foon his vows inclin'd her breaft, 
 
 'And
 
 ,.; ODE S, 
 
 And, known from that aufpicious morn, 
 The pleafing Cheerfulnefs was born. 
 
 Thou, Cheerfulnefs, by heaven defign'd 
 To fway the movements of the mind, 
 Whatever fretful paflion fprings. 
 Whatever wayward fortune brings 
 To difarrange the power within, 
 And ftrain the mufical machine; 
 Thou, Goddefs, thy attempering hand 
 Doth each difcordant firing command. 
 Refines the foft, and fwells the ftrong ; 
 And, joining nature's general fong, 
 Through many a varying tone unfolds 
 The harmony of human fouls. 
 
 Fair guardian of domeftic life, 
 Kind banifher of homebred ftrife, 
 Nor fuUen lip, nor taunting eye 
 Deforms the fcene where thou art by : 
 No fickening hufband damns the hour 
 Which bound his joys to female power ; 
 No pining mother weeps the cares 
 Which parents wafte on thanklefs heirs : 
 The officious daughters pleas'd attend ; 
 The brotl^kcr adds the name of friend : 
 
 B}
 
 B O O K T n E F I R S T. i^i 
 
 By thee with flowers their board is crown'd, 
 With fongs from thee their walks refound; 
 And morn with welcome lullre fliines, 
 And evening unperceiv'd declines. 
 
 Is there a youth, whofe anxious heart 
 Labors with love's unpitied fmart ? 
 Though now he ftray by rills and bowers, 
 And weeping wafte the lonely hours. 
 Or if the nymph her audience deign, 
 Debafe the ftory of his pain 
 With flavifli looks, difcolor'd eyes, 
 And accents faltering into flghs ; 
 Yet thou, aufpicious power, with eafc 
 Can'ft yield him happier arts to pleafe, 
 Inform his mien with manlier charms, 
 Inftrud his tongue with nobler arms, 
 With more commanding paflion move, 
 And teach the dignity of love. 
 
 Friend to the Mufe and all her train, 
 For thee i court the Mufe again : 
 The Mufe for thee may well exert 
 Her pomp, her charms, her fondeft art. 
 Who owes to thee that pleaflng fway 
 Which earth and peopled heaven obey. 
 
 Hh Let
 
 »34 ODE S, 
 
 Let melancholy's plaintive tongue 
 Repeat what later bards have fung ; 
 But thine was Homer's ancient might, 
 And thine vidtorious Pindar's flight : 
 Thy hand each Lefbian wreathe attir'd : 
 Thy lip Sicilian reeds infpir'd : 
 Thy fpirit lent the glad perfume 
 Whence yet the flowers of Teos bloom ; 
 Whence yet from Tibur's Sabine vale 
 Delicious blows the inlivening gale, 
 While Horace calls thy fportive choir. 
 Heroes and nymphs, around his lyre. 
 
 But fee where yonder penfive fage 
 (A prey perhaps to fortune's rage. 
 Perhaps by tender griefs opprefsM, 
 Or glooms congenial to his breaft) 
 Retires in defart fcenes to dwell, 
 And bids the joylefs world farewell. 
 Alone he treads the autumnal fliade, 
 Alone beneath the mountain laid 
 He fees the nightly damps afcend. 
 And gathering ftorms aloft impend; 
 He hears the neighbouring furges roll. 
 And raging thunders fliake the pole : 
 Then, ftruck by every object round. 
 And ftunn'd by every horrid found, • 
 
 He
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 325 
 
 He afks a clue for nature's ways ; 
 But evil haunts him through the maze i 
 He fees ten thoufand demons rife 
 To wield the empire of the /kies. 
 And chance and fate alTume the rod, 
 And malice blot the throne of God. 
 — O thou, whofe pleafing power i fing, 
 Thy lenient influence hither bring; 
 Compofe the ftorm, difpell the gloom, 
 Till nature wear her wonted bloom, 
 Till fields and ihades their fv/eets exhale. 
 And mufic fwell each opening gale : 
 Then o'er his breaft thy foftnefs pour. 
 And let him learn the timely hour 
 To trace the world's benignant laws. 
 And judge of that prefiding caufe 
 AVho founds on difcord beauty's reign, 
 Converts to pleafure every pain. 
 Subdues each hoflilc form to reft, 
 And bids the univerfe be blefs'd. 
 
 O thou, whofe pleafing power i fing, 
 If right i touch the votive ftring, 
 If equal pralfe i yield thy name, 
 Still govern thou thy poet's flame ; 
 Still with the Mufe my bofom (hare, 
 And foolh to peace intruding care. 
 
 H h 2 But
 
 i^6 ODE S, 
 
 But moft exert thy pleafing power 
 On friendfhip's confecrated hour ; 
 And while my Sophron points the road 
 To ffodHke vvifdom's calm abode, 
 Or warm in freedom's ancient caufe 
 Traceth the fource of Albion's laws, 
 Add thou o'er all the generous toil 
 The light of thy unclouded fmile. 
 But, if by fortune's ftubborn fway 
 From him and friendfhip torn away> 
 I court the Mufe's healing fpell 
 For griefs that frill with abfence dwells 
 Do thou condudl my fancy's dreams 
 To fuch indulgent placid themes, 
 As juft the llruggling breaft may cheer 
 And juft fufpend the flarting tear. 
 Yet leave that facred fenfe of woe 
 Which none but friends and lovers know".. 
 
 O D E
 
 B K T H E F 1 R S T. tit 
 
 ODE VII. 
 
 ON THE USE OF POETRY. 
 
 IN O T for themfelves did human kind 
 Contrive the parts by heaven affign'd 
 
 On life's wide fcene to play : 
 Not Scipio's force, nor Ca^far's fkill 
 Can conquer glory's arduous hill, 
 
 If fortune clofe the way. 
 
 If. 
 
 Yet ftill the felf-depending foul, 
 Though lafl and leafl: in fortune's roll, 
 
 His proper fphere commands ; 
 And knows what nature's feal beilow'd,.. 
 And fees, before the throne of God, 
 
 The rank in which he ftands. 
 
 m: Who
 
 93' 
 
 ODES, 
 
 III. 
 
 Who train'd by laws the future age. 
 Who refcu'd nations from the rage 
 
 Of partial, fadious power, 
 My heart with diftant homage views; 
 Content if thou, celeftial Mufe, 
 
 Did'ft rule my natal hour. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Nor far beneath the hero's feet. 
 Nor from the legillator's feat 
 
 Stands far remote the bard. 
 Though not with public terrors crown'd. 
 Yet wider fhall his rule be found, 
 
 More lafting his award. 
 
 V. 
 
 Lycurgus fafhion'd Sparta's fame. 
 And Pompey to the Roman name 
 
 Gave univerfal fway : 
 Where are they ? — Homer's reverend page 
 Holds empire to the thirtieth age, 
 
 And tongues and climes obey. 
 
 VI. And
 
 B O O K T II E F I R S T, jjj 
 
 VI. 
 
 And tlius when William's a£ts divine 
 No longer fliall from Bourbon's line 
 
 Draw one vindictive vow ; 
 When Sidney fliall with Cato refl-, 
 And Ruflel move the patriot's bread 
 
 No more than Brutus now j 
 
 VII. 
 
 Yet then fliall Shakefpeare's powerful art 
 O'er every paflion, every heart, 
 
 Confirm his awful throne : 
 Tyrants fliall bow before his laws ; 
 And freedom's, glory's, virtue's caufe, 
 
 Their dread aflertor own. 
 
 ODE
 
 140 ODE S, 
 
 ODE VIIL 
 
 ON LEAVING HOLLAND. 
 
 L I. 
 
 X^AREWELL to Leyden's lonely bound, 
 The Belgian Mufe's fober feat ; 
 Where dealing frugal gifts around 
 To all the favorites at her feet, 
 She trains the body's bulky frame 
 For pafllve, perfevering toils ; 
 And left, from any prouder aim, 
 The daring mind fliould fcorn her homely fpoils. 
 She breathes maternal fogs to damp its reftlefs flame. 
 
 I. 2. 
 
 Farewell the grave, pacific air. 
 
 Where never mountain zephyr blew : 
 
 The marfhy levels lank and bare, 
 
 Which Pan, which Ceres never knew : 
 
 The
 
 B O O K T II E F I R S T. 141 
 
 The Naiads, with obfcene attire, 
 Urging in vain their urns to flow ; 
 While round them chaunt the croking choir, 
 And haply footh fome lover's prudent woe, 
 Or prompt fome refiive bard and modulate his lyre. 
 
 I '^ 
 
 1. J. 
 
 Farewell, ye nymphs, whom fober care of gain 
 Snatch'd in your cradles from the god of love : 
 She rendered all his boafted arrows vain ; 
 And all his gifts did he in fpite remove. 
 Ye too, the (low-ey'd fathers of the land, 
 With whom dominion Heals from hand to hand, 
 Unown'd, undignify'd by public choice, 
 I go where liberty to all is known, 
 
 And tells a monarch on his throne, 
 He reigns not but by her preferving voice. 
 
 II. I. 
 
 O my lov'd England, when with thee 
 
 Shall i lit down, to part no more ? 
 
 Far from this pale, difcolor'd lea, 
 
 That llccps upon the reedy ihorc, 
 
 When fhall i plough thy azure tide ? 
 
 When on thy hills the flocks admire, 
 
 Like mountain fnows ; till down their lidc 
 I trace the village and the facred fpire, 
 While bowers and copfes green the golden Hope divide ? 
 
 I i II. 2. Ye
 
 M2 ODES, 
 
 II. 2. 
 
 Ye nymphs who guard the pathlefs grove, 
 Ye blue-ey'd fillers of the ilreams, 
 With whom i wont at morn to rove, 
 With v/hom at noon i talk'd in dreams ; 
 O ! take me to vour haunts aa;ain, 
 The rocky fpring, the greenwood glade ; 
 To guide my lonely footfleps deign, 
 To prompt my flumbers in the murmuring {hade, 
 And footh my vacant car with many an airy flrain. 
 
 II. 3. 
 
 And thou, my faithful harp, no longer mourn 
 Thy drooping raafler's inaufpicious hand : 
 Now brighter fkies and freflier gales return. 
 Now fairer maids thy melody demand. 
 Daughters of Albion, llftcn to my lyre I 
 O Phcebus, guardian of the Aonian choir, 
 Why founds not mine harmonious as thy own, 
 "When all the virgin deities above 
 
 With Venus and with Juno move 
 In concert round the Olympian father's throne ? 
 
 III. I. 
 Thee too, protedrefs of my lays, 
 Elate with whofe majeftic call 
 Above degenerate Latium's praife, 
 Above the flavifh boaft of Gaul, 
 
 I dare
 
 fi O O K T H E F I R S T. i^j 
 
 I dare from impious thrones reclaim, 
 And wanton floth's ignoble charms. 
 The honors of a poet's name 
 To Somers' counfels, or to Hamden's arms, 
 Thee, freedom, I rejoin, and blefs thy genuine flame, 
 
 III. 2. 
 
 Great citizen of Albion. Thee 
 
 Heroic valour ftill attends, 
 
 And ufeful fcience pleas'd to fee 
 
 How art her ftudious toil extends. 
 
 While truth, diffufing from on high 
 
 A luttre unconfin'd as day. 
 
 Fills and commands the public eye ; 
 Till, pierc'd and {inking by her powerful ray, 
 Tame faith and monkifli awe, like nightly demons, fly. 
 
 III. 3. 
 Hence the whole land the patriot's ardour fliares i 
 Hence dread religion dwells with focial joy; 
 And holy paflions and unfullied cares, 
 In youth, in age, domeftic life imploy. 
 O fair Britannia, hail ! — With partial love 
 The tribes of men their native feats approve, 
 Unjuft and hoflile to each foreign fame : . , 
 
 But when for generous minds and manly laws ' 
 
 A nation holds her prime applaufe, 
 There public zeal fhail all reproof difcklm. 
 
 I i 2 ODE
 
 2^4 
 
 ODES, 
 
 ODE IX. 
 
 TO CURIO. 
 
 M D C C X L I V, 
 
 I. 
 
 1 HRICE hath the fpring beheld thy faded fame 
 Since i exulting grafp'd the tuneful (hell : 
 Eager through endlefs years to found thy name, 
 Proud that my memory with thine fliould dwell. 
 How haft thou ftain'd the fplendor of my choice ! 
 Thofe orodlike forms which hover'd round thy voice, 
 Laws, freedom, glory, whither are they flown ? 
 AVhat can I now of thee to time report, 
 Save thy fond country made thy impious fport. 
 Her fortune and her hope the victims of thy own ? 
 
 II. 
 There are with eyes unmov'd and recklcfs heart 
 AVho faw thee from thy fummit fall thus low, 
 Who deem'd thy arm extended but to dart 
 The public vengeance on thy private foe. 
 But, fpite of every glofs of envious minds. 
 The owl-ey'd race whom virtue's luftre blinds. 
 
 Who
 
 B O O K T H E F I R S T. 245 
 
 Who fagely prove that each man hath his price, 
 I ftill behev'd thy aim from blemifh free, 
 I yet, even yet, beheve it, fpite of thee 
 And all thy painted pleas to greatnefs and to vice. 
 
 III. 
 " Thou didfi: not dream of liberty decay 'd, 
 " Nor wifli to make her guardian laws more ilrong : 
 " But the rafli many, firft by thee milled, 
 " Bore thee at length unwillingly along." 
 Rife from your fad abodes, ye curfl of old 
 For faith deferted or for cities fold, 
 Own here one untry'd, unexampled, deed ; 
 One myftery of fhame from Curio learn, 
 To beg the infamy he did not earn, 
 And fcape in suilt's difguife from virtue's ofFcr'd meed. 
 
 IV. 
 For faw we not that dangerous power avovv'd 
 Whom freedom oft hath found her mortal banc, 
 Whom public wifdom ever flrove to exclude. 
 And but with bludies fuffereth in her train ? 
 Corruption vaunted her bewitching fpoils. 
 O'er court, o'er fenate, fpread in pomp her toils, 
 , And called herft-lf the ftates direding foul : 
 Till Curio, like a good magician, try'd 
 With eloquence and reafon at his fide. 
 By flrcngth of holier fpells the inchantrefs to controul. 
 
 V. Soon
 
 i^6 ODE S, 
 
 V. 
 
 Soon with thy country's hope thy fame extends s 
 The refcu'd merchant oft thy words refounds : 
 Thee and thy caufe the rural hearth defends : 
 His bowl to thee the orrateful failor crowns : 
 The learn'd reclufe, with awful zeal who read 
 Of Grecian heroes, Roman patriots dead, 
 Now with like awe doth living merit fcan : 
 "While he, whom virtue in his bleft retreat 
 Bade facial eafe and public paffions meet, 
 
 Afcends the civil fcene, and knows to be a man* 
 
 VI. 
 At length in view the glorious end appeared : 
 We faw thy fpirit thro' the fenate reign ; 
 And freedom's friends thy inftant omen heard 
 Of laws for which their fathers bled in vain. 
 Wak'd in the flrife the public Genius rofe 
 More keen, more ardent from his long repofe : 
 Deep through her bounds the city felt his call : 
 Each crouded haunt was ftirr'd btneath his power, 
 And murmuring challeng'd the deciding hour 
 
 Of that too vail event, the hope and dread of all. 
 
 VII. 
 O ye good powers who look on human kind, 
 Iniirudl the mighty moments as they rowl ; 
 And watch the fleeting n:inpes in Curio's mind, 
 And fleer his pafHons fteady to the goal. 
 
 O Alfred,
 
 B O K T II E F I R S T. 247 
 
 O Alfred, father of the Englifh name, 
 O valiant Edward, firft in civil fame, 
 O William, height of public virtue pure, 
 Bend from your radiant feats a joyful eye 
 Behold the fum of all your labors nigh, 
 Your plans of law complete, your ends of rule fecure. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 'Twas then — O iliame I O foul from faith eilrang'd I 
 O Albion oft to flattering vows a prey I 
 'Twas then — Thy thought what fudden frenzy chang'd? 
 What rudiing palfy took thy ftrength away ? 
 Is this the man in freedom's caufe approv'd ? 
 The man fo great, fo honoured, fo belov'd? 
 Whom the dead envy'd and the living blefs'd ? 
 This patient flave by tinfel bonds allur'd ? 
 This wretched fuitor for a boon abjur'd? 
 Whom thofe that fear'd him, fcorn; that trufted him, deteft? 
 
 IX. 
 
 O loft alike to a6tion and repofe ! 
 
 With all that habit of familiar fame, 
 
 Sold tg the mockery of relentlefs foes, 
 
 And doom'd to exhauft the dregs of life in fliame. 
 
 To a6l with burning brow and throbbing heart 
 
 A poor defertcr's dull exploded part, 
 
 To
 
 243 ODE S, 
 
 To flight the favor thou canft hope no morCy 
 Renounce the giddy croud, the vulgar wind, 
 Charge thy own hghtnefs on thy country's mind, 
 
 And from her voice appeal to each tame foreign fhorc. 
 
 X. 
 But England's fons, to purchafe thence applaufe, 
 Shall ne'er the loyalty of flaves pretend. 
 By courtly paflions try the public caufe ; 
 Nor to the forms of rule betray the end. 
 O race eredl ! by manlieil paflions mov'd. 
 The labors which to virtue ftand approv'd. 
 Prompt with a lover's fondnefs to furvcv ; 
 Yet, where injuflice works her wilful claim, 
 Fierce as the flight of Jove's deflroying flame. 
 
 Impatient to confront, and dreadful to repay. 
 
 XT. 
 Thefe thy heart owns no longer. In their room 
 See the grave queen of pageants. Honor, dwell 
 Couch'd in thy bofom's deep tempefluous gloom 
 Like fome grim idol in a forcerer's cell. 
 Before her rites thy flckening reafon flew, 
 Divine perfualion from thy tongue withdrew, 
 While laughter mock'd, or pity ftole a figh : 
 Can wit her tender movements rightly frame 
 Where the prime fun£tion of the foul is lame ? 
 
 Can fancy's feeble fprings the force of truth fupply ? 
 
 XII. But
 
 B O O K T n E F I R S T. t^ 
 
 XII. 
 
 But come : 'tis time : flrong deftlny impends 
 To lliut thee from the joys thou had betray 'd : 
 With princes fill'd, the folemn fane afcends, 
 By Infamy, the mindful demon fvvay'd. 
 There vengeful vows for guardian laws effac'd, 
 From nations fetter'd, and from towns laid wade, 
 For ever through the fpacious courts rcfound : 
 There long poderity's united groan 
 And the fad charge of horrors not their own, 
 
 Affail the giant chiefs, and prefs them to the ground. 
 
 XIII, 
 In fight old Time, imperious judge, awaits:: 
 Above revenge, or fear, or pity, juft, 
 He urgeth onward to thofe guilty gates 
 The Great, the Sage, the Happy, and Augull, . 
 And ftill he aflcs them of the hidden plan 
 Whence every treaty, every war began. 
 Evolves their fecrets and their guilt proclaims : 
 And dill his hands defpoil them on the road 
 Of each vain wreath by lying bards bedow'd. 
 
 And crudi their trophies huge, and rafe their fculptur'd names. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 Ye mighty fliades, arife, give place, attend: 
 Here his eternal manfion Curio feeks : 
 — Low doth proud Wentworth to the dranger bend, 
 And his dire welcome hardy Clifford fpeaks : 
 
 K k " He
 
 25© ODE S, 
 
 *' He comes, whom fate with furer arts prepar'd 
 *' To accomplifli all which we but vainly dar'd ; 
 *' Whom o'er the ftubborn herd fhe taught to reign: 
 " Who footh'd with gaudy dreams their raging power 
 " Even to it's lafl: irrevocable hour ; 
 
 *' Then baffled their rude ftrength, and broke them to the chain," 
 
 XV. 
 But ye, M'hom yet wife liberty infpires, 
 Whom for her champions o'er the world flie claims, 
 (That houfehold godhead whom of old your fires 
 Sought in the woods of Elbe and bore to Thames) 
 Drive ye this hoftile omen far away ; 
 Their own fell efforts on her foes repay ; 
 Your wealth, your arts, your fame, be her's alone : 
 Still gird your fwords to combat on her fide ; 
 Still frame your laws her generous teft to abide j 
 
 And win to her defence the altar and the throne. 
 
 XVI. 
 Proteft her from yourfelves, ere yet the flood 
 Of golden luxury, which commerce pours, 
 Hath fpread that felfifh fiercenefs through your blood. 
 Which not her lighteft difcipline indures: 
 Snatch from fantaftic demagoo-ues her caufe : 
 Dream not of Numa's manners, Plato's laws : 
 A wifer founder, and a nobler plan, 
 O fons of Alfred, were for vou alli<in'd : 
 
 ' JO 
 
 Bring to that birthright but an equal mind, 
 
 And no fublimer lot will fate referve for man, 
 
 ODE
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 251 
 
 O D E X- 
 
 TO THE M USE. 
 
 I. 
 
 \yLJEEN of my fongs, harmonious maid, 
 Ah why haft thou withdrawn ihy aid? 
 Ah why forfaken thus my breaft 
 With inaufpicious damps opprefs'd ? 
 Where is the dread prophetic heat, 
 With which my bofom wont to beat ? 
 Where all the bright myfterious dreams 
 Of haunted groves and tuneful ftreams, 
 That woo'd my genius to divineft themes ? 
 
 IT. 
 
 Say, goddefs, can the feilal board. 
 Or young Olympia's form ador'd ; 
 Say, can the pomp of promis'd fame 
 Relume thy faint, thy dying flame ? 
 
 Kk 2 Or
 
 251 ODES, 
 
 Or have melodious airs the power 
 To give one free, poetic hour ? 
 Or, from amid the Elyfian train, 
 The foul of Milton fliall i gain. 
 To win thee back with fome celeflial flrain ? 
 
 III. 
 
 powerful flrain ! o facred foul ! 
 His numbers every fenfe controul : 
 And now again my bofom burns ; 
 The Mufe, the Mufe herfelf returns. 
 Such on the banks of Tyne, confefs'd, 
 
 1 hall'd the fair immortal gueft, 
 When firft fhe feal'd me for her own. 
 Made all her blifsful treafures known, 
 
 And bade me fwear to follow Her alone. 
 
 ODE
 
 B O O K T H E F I R S T. .53 
 
 ODE XL 
 
 ON LOVE, TO A FRIEND. 
 
 I. 
 
 iN Oj foolirh youth — To virtuous fame 
 If now thy early hopes be vow'd, 
 If true ambition's nobler flame 
 Command thy footfteps from the croud. 
 Lean not to love's inchanting fnare ; 
 His fongs, his words, his looks beware, 
 Nor join his votaries, the young and fair. 
 
 IL 
 
 By thought, by dangers, and by toils, 
 The wreath of jult renown is worn; 
 Nor will ambition's awful fpolls 
 The flowery pomp of eafe adorn : 
 But love unbends the force of thought; 
 By love unmanly fears are taught ; 
 And love's reward with gaudy floth is bought, 
 
 III. Yet
 
 454 ODE S, 
 
 III. 
 
 Yet tKou haft read in tuneful lays, 
 And heard from many a zealous breaft, 
 The .pleafing tale of beauty's praife 
 In wifdom's lofty language drefs'd ; 
 Of beauty powerful to impart 
 Each finer fenfe, each comelier art, 
 And footh and polifh man's ungentle heart. 
 
 IV. 
 
 If then, from love's deceit fecure. 
 Thus far alone thy wilhes tend, 
 Go ; fee the white-wlno-'d evenino; hour 
 On Delia's vernal walk defcend : 
 Go, while the golden light ferene, 
 The grove, the lawn, the foften'd fcene 
 Becomes the prefence of the rural queen. , 
 
 V. 
 
 Attend, while that harmonious tongue 
 Each bofom, each defire commands : 
 Apollo's lute by Hermes ftrung 
 And touch'd by chafte Minerva's hands, 
 Attend, I feel a force divine, 
 O Delia, win my thoughts to thine ; 
 Tliat half tlie color of thy life is mine. 
 
 VI. Yet
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Yet confcious of the dangerous charm. 
 Soon would i turn my fteps away ; 
 Nor oft provoke the lovely harm, 
 Nor lull my reafon's watchful fway. 
 But thou, my friend — i hear thy fighs j 
 Alafs, i read thy dov/ncaft eyes ; 
 And thy tongue falters ; and thy color flie^. 
 
 vir. 
 
 So foon again to meet the fair ? 
 So penfive all this abfent hour ? 
 — O yet, unlucky youth, beware, 
 While yet to think is in thy power. 
 In vain with friendlliip's flattering name 
 Thy paflion veils its inward fliame ; 
 Friendfhip, the treachQro.us ,fuel of thy flame I 
 
 Vllf. 
 
 Once, i remember, new to love. 
 And dreading his tyrannic chain, 
 I fought a gentle maid to prove 
 What peaceful joys in friendfliip reign : 
 Whence we forfooth might fafely fland, 
 And pitying view the loveflck band. 
 And mock the winged boy's malicious hand. 
 
 ^S$ 
 
 IX. Thus
 
 %S6 ODE 9, 
 
 IX. 
 
 Thus frequent pafs'd the cloudlefs day, 
 To fmiles and fweet difcourfe refign'd ; 
 While i exulted to furvey 
 One generous woman's real mind : 
 Till friendfliip foon my languid breaft 
 Each night with unknown cares poflefs'd, 
 Dafh'd my coy {lumbers, or ray dreams diftrefs'd. 
 
 X. 
 
 Fool that 1 was And now, even now 
 
 While thus i preach the Stoic ftrain, 
 Unlefs i fliun Olympiads view. 
 An hour unfays it all again. 
 O friend I — when love direds her eyes 
 To pierce where every paffion lies. 
 Where is the firm, the cautious, or the wife ? 
 
 ODE
 
 B O O K T H E F I R S T. 557 
 
 ODE XII. 
 
 TO SIR FRANCIS HENRY DRAKE, BARONET. 
 
 I. 
 
 13 E HOLD ; the Balance in the fky 
 Swift on the wintry fcale inclines : 
 To earthy caves the Dryads fly, 
 And the bare paftures Pan refigns. 
 Late did the farmer's fork o'erfpread 
 With recent foil the twice-mown mead, 
 Tainting the bloom which autumn knows : 
 He whets the rufty coulter now. 
 He binds his oxen to the plough, 
 And wide his future harveft throws, 
 
 IL 
 Now, London's bufy confines round, 
 By Kenfington's imperial towers. 
 From Highgate's rough defcent profound, 
 EfTexian heaths, or Kentifli bowers, 
 Where'er i pafs, i fee approach 
 Some rural ftatefman's eager coach 
 
 L 1 Hurried
 
 25? ODE S, 
 
 Hurried by fcnatorlal cares : 
 While rural nymphs (alike, within, 
 Afpiring courtly praife to win) 
 Debate their drefs, reform their airs. 
 
 III. 
 Say, what can now the country boaft, 
 
 Drake, thy footfteps to detain. 
 When peevifli winds and gloomy froft 
 The funfhine of the temper ftain ? 
 Say, are the priefts of Devon grown 
 Friends to this tolerating throne, 
 Champions for George's legal right ? 
 Have general freedom, equal law. 
 Won to the gl-^ry of Naflau 
 
 Each bold Wefiexian fquire and knight ? 
 
 IV. 
 
 1 doubt it much ; and guefs at lead 
 That when the day, which made us free, 
 Shall next return, that facred feaft 
 Thou better may'ft obferve with me. 
 With me the fulphurous treafon old 
 
 A faF inferior part iliall hold 
 In that glad day's triumphal ftrain ; 
 And generous William be rever'd. 
 Nor one untimely accent heard 
 Of James or his ignoble reign. 
 
 V. Then,
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 259 
 
 V. 
 
 Then, while the Gafcon's fragrant whie 
 AVith modeft cups our joy fupplies, 
 AVe'U truly thank the power divine 
 Who bade the chief, the patriot rife ; 
 Rife from heroic eafe (the fpoil 
 Due, for his youth's Herculean toil. 
 From Belgium to her favior fon) 
 Rife with the fame unconquer'd zeal 
 For our Britannia's injur'd weal. 
 Her laws defac'd, her fhrines o'erthrown. 
 
 VI. - 
 
 He came. The tyrant from our fliore, 
 Like a forbidden demon, fled ; 
 And to eternal exile bore 
 Pontific rage and vafTal dread. 
 There funk the mouldering Gothic reij^n : 
 New years came forth, a liberal train, 
 Call'd by the people's great decree. 
 That day, my friend, let bleflings crown : 
 — Fill, to the demigod's renown 
 From whom thou haft that thou art free. 
 
 vn. 
 
 Then, Drake, (for wherefore fhould we part 
 The public and the private weal ?) 
 In vows to her who fways thy heart, 
 Fair health, glad fortune, will we djeal. 
 
 L 1 2 Whether
 
 z6o ODE S, 
 
 Whether Aglaia's blooming cheek, 
 Or the foft ornaments that fpeak 
 So eloquent m Daphne's fmile, 
 Whether the piercing lights that fly 
 From the dark heaven of Myrto's eye, 
 Haply thy fancy then beguile. 
 
 viir. 
 
 For fo it is. thy ftubborn breaft, 
 
 Though touch'd by many a (lighter wound^ 
 
 Hath no full conqueft yet confefs'd, 
 
 Nor the one fatal charmer found. 
 
 While i, a true and loyal fwain,, 
 
 My fair Olympia's gentle reign 
 
 Through all the varying feafons own* 
 
 Her genius ftlU my bofom warms : 
 
 No other maid for me hath charms, 
 
 Or i have eyes for her alone. 
 
 ODE
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 261- 
 
 ODE XIII. 
 
 ON LYRIC POETRY. 
 
 I. I. 
 
 kJ N C E more i join the Thefplan choir, 
 And tafte the infpiring fount again : 
 
 parent of the Grecian lyre, 
 Admit me to thy powerful flrain — 
 And lo, with eafe my ftep invades 
 The pathlefs vale and opening fhades, 
 Till now i fpy her verdant feat ; 
 And now at large i drink the found, 
 While thefe her offspring, liftening round. 
 By turns her melody repeat. 
 
 I. 2. 
 
 1 fee Anacreon fmile and fing, 
 His filver treffes breathe perfume ; 
 His cheek difplays a fecond fpring 
 Of rofes taught by wine to bloom. 
 Away, deceitful cares, away, 
 And let me liflen to his lay ; 
 
 Let
 
 i6i ODE S, 
 
 Let me the wanton pomp Injoy, 
 \\'hilc in fmooth dance the liglit-vving'd Hours 
 Lead round his Ivre it's patron powers, 
 Kind lauglitcr and convivial joy. 
 
 I. 3. 
 
 Broke from the fetters of his native land, 
 
 Devolino- lliamc and vengeance to her lords, 
 Witli louder impulfe and a threatening hand 
 'J'he * Lefbian patriot fmitcs the founding chords.: 
 Yc wretches, ye perfidious train, 
 Ye curs'd of gods and freeborn .men, 
 
 Ye murderers of the laws. 
 Though now ye glory in your lufl;, 
 Thoutrh now ve tread the feeble neck in duft, 
 Yjet Time and righteous Jove will judge your dreadful caufe. 
 
 n. I. 
 
 But lo, to Sappho's melting airs 
 Defcends the radiant queen of love : 
 She fmiles, and afks what fonder cares 
 Her fuppliant's plaintive meafures move : 
 Why is my faithful maid diftrefs'd ? 
 Who, Sappho, wounds thy tender breait ? 
 Say, flies he ? — Soon he fhall purfue:: 
 Siiuns he thy gifts — He foon fliall give: 
 Slights he thy forrows ? — He fhall grieve. 
 And foon to all thy wiflies bow. 
 
 * Alca?us. ^^' 2. But,
 
 B O O K T H E F I R 3 T. 2^3 
 
 II. 2. 
 
 But, o Melpomene, for whom 
 Awakes thy golden (hell again ? 
 What mortal breath fliall e'er prefume 
 To echo that unbounded ftrain ? 
 Majeftic in the frown of years, 
 Behold, the * man of Thebes appears : 
 For fome there are, whofe mighty frame 
 The hand of Jove at birth indow'd 
 With hopes that mock, the gazing crowd ; 
 As eagles drink the noontide flame, 
 
 II. 3. 
 
 While the dim raven beats her weary wings, 
 And clamours far below. — Propitious Mufe, 
 While i fo late unlock thy purer fprings, 
 And breathe whate'er thy ancient airs infufe. 
 Wilt thou for Albion's fons around 
 (Ne'er had'ft thou audience more renown'd) 
 
 Thy charming arts imploy. 
 As when the winds from fhore to fhore 
 Through Greece thy lyre's perfuafive language bore, 
 Till towns and ifles and feas return'd the vocal joy ? 
 
 III. I. 
 
 Yet then did pleafure's lawlefs throng, 
 Oft rufhing forth in loofe attire. 
 Thy virgin dance, thy graceful fong 
 Pollute with impious revels dire. 
 
 * Pindar. O fair.
 
 264 ODES, 
 
 O fair, o chafle, thy echoing fhade 
 
 JNIay no foul difcord here invade : 
 
 Kor let thy firings one accent move, 
 
 Except what earth's untroubled ear 
 
 'Mid all her focial tribes may hear. 
 
 And heaven's unerring throne approve. 
 
 III. 2. 
 
 Qiieen of the lyre, in thy retreat 
 
 The faireft flowers of Pindus glow; 
 
 The vine afpires to crown thy feat, 
 
 And myrtles round thy laurel grow. 
 
 Thy firings adapt their varied flrain 
 
 To every pleafure, every pain, 
 
 Which mortal tribes were born to prove ; 
 
 And flrait our pafTions rife or fall, 
 
 As at the wind's imperious call 
 
 The ocean fwells, the billows move. 
 
 HI. 3. 
 When midnight liftcns o'er the flumbering earth, 
 Let me, o Mufe, thy folemn whifpers hear: 
 When morning fends her fragrant breezes forth, 
 With airy murmurs touch my opening ear. 
 
 And ever watchful at thy fide, , 
 
 Let wifdom's awful fuffrag-e o-uide 
 The tenor of thy lay : 
 
 To her of old by Jove was given | 
 
 To judge the various deeds of earth and heaven ; 
 
 'Tvvas thine by gentle arts to vv'in us to her fway. 
 
 IV. I. Oft
 
 B O O K T H E F I II S T. «<f5 
 
 IV. I. 
 
 Oft as, to well-earn'd eafe refign'd, 
 I quit the maze where fcience toils, 
 Do thou refrefh my yielding mind 
 With all thy gay, delufive fpoils. 
 But, o indulgent, come not nigh 
 The bufy fteps, the jealous eye 
 Of wealthy care or gainful age ; 
 Whofe barren fouls thy joys difdain, 
 And hold as foes to reafon's reign 
 Whome'er thy lovely works ingage. 
 
 IV. 2. 
 
 When friendfliip and when letter'd mirth 
 
 Haply partake my fimple board. 
 
 Then let thy blamelefs hand call forth 
 
 The mufic of the Teian chord. 
 
 Or if invok'd at fofter hours, 
 
 O ! fcek with me the happy bowers 
 
 That hear Olympia's gentle tongue; 
 
 To beauty link'd with virtue's train. 
 
 To love devoid of jealous pain. 
 
 There let the Sapphic lute be ftrung. 
 
 IV. 3. 
 But when from envy and from death to claim 
 A hero bleeding for his native land ; 
 When to throw incenfe on the veftal flame 
 Of liberty my genius gives command, 
 
 M m Nor
 
 i66 ODES, 
 
 Nor Thcban voice nor Lefbian lyre 
 From thee, o Mufe, do i require ; 
 
 While my prefaging mind, 
 Confcious of powers flie never knew, 
 Aftonifli'd grafps at things beyond her view» 
 Kor by another's fate fubmits to be confin'd. 
 
 ODE XIV, 
 
 TO THE HONOURABLE CHARLES TOWNSHEND t 
 
 FROM THE COUNTRY. 
 
 OAY, Townfliend, what can London boaft 
 To pay thee for the pleafures loft, 
 
 The health to-day refign'd, 
 When fpring from this her favorite feat 
 Bade winter haften his retreat. 
 
 And met the weftern wind. 
 
 n. Oh
 
 B O O K T H E F I R S T. 167 
 
 II. 
 
 Oh knew'ft thou how the balmy air. 
 The fun, the azure heavens prepare 
 
 To heal thy languid frame, 
 No more would noify courts ingage ; 
 In vain would lying faction's rage 
 
 Thy facred leifure claim. 
 
 III. 
 
 Oft i look'd forth, and oft admir'd ; 
 Till with the ftudious volume tir'd 
 
 1 fought the open day ; 
 And, fure, i cry'd, the rural gods 
 Exped me in their green abodes. 
 
 And chide my tardy lay, 
 
 IV. 
 
 But ah in vain my reftlefs feet 
 Trac'd every filent fhady feat 
 
 Which knew their forms of old : 
 Nor Naiad by her fountain laid, 
 Nor Wood-nymph tripping through her glade, 
 
 Did now their rites unfold ; 
 
 M m 2 V. Whether
 
 !<J8 ODES, 
 
 V. 
 
 AVhether to nurfe fome infant oak 
 They turn the flowJy-thikHng brook 
 
 And catch the pearly fliowers, 
 Or brufti the mildew from the woods. 
 Or paint with noontide beams the buds> 
 
 Or breathe on opening flowers. 
 
 VI. 
 
 Such rites, whieh they with fpring renew^ 
 The eyes of care can never view ; 
 
 And care hath long been mine : 
 And hence offended with their gueft, • 
 Since grief of love my foul opprefs'd. 
 
 They hide their toils divine. 
 
 VII. 
 
 But foon fhall thy inlivening tongue 
 This heart, by dear afflidion wrung, 
 
 With noble hope infpire ; 
 Then will the fylvan powers again 
 Receive me in their genial train. 
 
 And liflen to my lyre. 
 
 VIII. Beneath
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. ^6^ 
 
 viir. 
 
 Beneath yon Dryad's lonely fliade 
 A ruftic altar fhall be paid. 
 
 Of turf with laurel fram'd : 
 And thou the infcription wilt approve ; 
 '* This for the peace which, loft by lovCj 
 
 " Vi^ friendship was reclaim'd." 
 
 ODE XV. 
 
 TO THE E V E N I N G - S T A R. 
 
 I. 
 
 X O -NIG FIT retir'd the queen of heaven 
 
 With young Endymion ftays : 
 And now to Hefper is it given 
 Awhile to rule the vacant jfky,. 
 Till fhe fljall to her lamp fupply 
 
 A ftream of brighter rays. 
 
 11. O Hefper,
 
 270 ODE S, 
 
 II. 
 
 O Hcfper, while the flarry throng 
 Wiih awe thy path furrounds, 
 
 Oh Hften to my fuppHant fong, 
 
 If haply now the vocal fphere 
 
 Can fuffer thy delighted ear 
 To floop to mortal founds. 
 
 III. 
 
 So may the bridegroom's genial flrain 
 
 Thee ftill invoke to fhine ; 
 So may the bride's unmarried train 
 To Hymen chaunt their flattering vow. 
 Still that his lucky torch may glow 
 With luftre pure as thine. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Far other vows muft i prefer 
 
 To thy indulgent power. 
 Alafs, but now i paid my tear 
 On fair Olympia's virgin tomb : 
 And lo, from thence, in queft i roam 
 
 Of Philomela's bower. 
 
 V. Propitious
 
 B O O K T n E F I R S T. 271 
 
 V. 
 
 Propitious fend thy golden ray, 
 
 Thou pureft light above r ' 
 
 Let no falfe flame feduce to ftray 
 Where gulph or fleep lie hid for harm : 
 But lead where mufic's healins: charm 
 
 May footh afflided love» 
 
 VL 
 
 To them, by many a grateful fong 
 
 In happier feafons vow'd, 
 Thefe lawns, Olympia's haunt, belong:. 
 Oft by yon filver ftream we walk'd, 
 Or fix'd, while Philomela talk'd,, 
 
 Beneath yon copfes flood. 
 
 vrr. 
 
 Nor feldom, where the beachen boughs 
 
 That rooflefs tower invade. 
 We came while her inchanting Mufe 
 The radiant moon above us held : 
 Till by a clamorous owl compell'd. 
 
 She fled the folemn fliade^ 
 
 vm, Buc
 
 • 72 ODE S, 
 
 VIII. 
 
 But liark ; 1 hear her liquid tone. 
 
 Now, Hefper, guide my feet 
 Down the red marie with mofs o'ergrown, 
 Through yon wild thicket next the plain, 
 Whofe ha^vthorns choke the windino; lane 
 
 Which leads to her retreat. 
 
 IX. 
 
 See the green fpace : on either hand 
 
 Inlarg'd it fpreads around : 
 See, in the midlt fhe takes her ftand, 
 "Where one old oak his awful fhade 
 Extends o'er half the level mead 
 
 Inclos'd in woods profound. 
 
 X. 
 
 Hark, how through many a melting note 
 
 fShe now prolongs her lays ; 
 'How fweetly down the void they float ! 
 The breeze their magic path attends : 
 The ftars fhine out: the foreft bends : 
 
 The wakeful heifers gaze. 
 
 XI. Whoe'er
 
 BOOKTHEFIRST. 27j 
 
 XI. 
 
 Whoe'er thou art whom chance may bring 
 
 To this fequefter'd fpot, 
 If then the plaintive Syren fing, 
 Oh foftly tread beneath her bower, 
 And think of heaven's difpofing power, 
 
 Of man's uncertain lot. 
 
 XII. 
 
 Oh think, o'er all this mortal ftage, 
 
 What mournful fcenes arife : 
 What ruin waits on kingly rage : 
 How often virtue dwells with woe : 
 How many griefs from knowledge flow : 
 
 How fwiftly pleafure flies. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 O facred bird, let me at eve. 
 
 Thus wandering all alone. 
 Thy tender counfel oft receive, 
 Bear witnefs to thy penfive airs, 
 And pity nature's common cares 
 
 Till i forget my own. 
 
 Nn ODE
 
 274 
 
 ODES, 
 
 ODE XVI. 
 
 TO CALEB HARDING E, M. D. 
 
 I. 
 
 "W^ITH fordid floods the wintry * Urn 
 Hath ftain'd fair Richmond's level green : 
 Her naked hill the Dryads mourn. 
 No longer a poetic fcene. 
 No longer there thy raptur'd eye 
 The beauteous forms of earth or ^y 
 Surveys as in their Author's mind : 
 And London fhelters from the year 
 Thofe whom thy focial hours to fliare 
 The Attic Mufe defign'd. 
 
 IL 
 From Hampflead's airy fummit me 
 
 Her gueft the city iliall behold, 
 
 What day the people's ftern decree 
 
 To unbelieving kings is told, 
 
 When common men (the dread of fame) 
 
 Adjudg'd as one of evil name, 
 
 * Aquarius. i>eiore
 
 BOOK THE FIRST, «75 
 
 Before the fun, the anointed head. 
 Then feek thou too the pious town, 
 With no unworthy cares to crown 
 That evening's awful fhade. 
 
 iir. 
 
 Deem not i call thee to deplore 
 The facred martyr of the day. 
 By faft and penitential lore 
 To purge our ancient guilt away. 
 For this, on humble faith i reft 
 That ftill our advocate, the prieft, 
 From heavenly wi:ath will fave the land ; 
 Nor afk what rites our pardon gain, 
 Nor how his potent founds reftrain 
 
 The thunderer's Hfted hand. 
 
 IV. 
 No, Hardinge : peace to church and ftate ! 
 That evening, let the Mufe give law : 
 While i anew the theme relate 
 Which my iirft youth inamor'd {aw. 
 Then will i oft explore thy thought, 
 What to reje£t which Locke hath taught, 
 What to purfue in Virgil's lay : 
 Till hope afcends to loftieft things. 
 Nor envies demagogues or kings 
 
 Their frail and vulgar fway. 
 
 N n 2 V. O vers'd
 
 «7i ODES, 
 
 V. 
 
 O vers'd in all the human frame. 
 Lead thou where'er my labor lies. 
 And Englifli fancy's eager flame 
 To Grecian purity chaftize : 
 While hand in hand, at wifdom's (hrine. 
 Beauty with truth i ftrive to join, 
 And grave aflent with glad applaufe ; 
 To paint the ftory of the foul, 
 And Plato's viflons to controul 
 By * Verulamian laws. 
 
 * Verulam gave one of his titles to Francis Bacon, author of the Navum Organum. 
 
 ODE XVII. 
 
 ON A SERMON AGAINST GLORY. 
 
 MDCCXLVII. 
 
 L 
 
 V><OME then, tell me, fage divine, 
 Is it an offence to ow^n 
 That our bofoms e'er incline 
 Toward immortal glory's throne ? 
 
 For
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 For with me nor pomp, nor pleafure, 
 Bourbon's might, Braganza's treafure. 
 So can fancy's dream rejoice. 
 So concihate reafon's choice. 
 As one approving word of her impartial voice. 
 
 II. 
 
 If to fpurn at noble praife 
 Be the pafs-port to thy heaven, 
 Follow thou thofe gloomy ways ; 
 No fuch law to me was given. 
 Nor, i truft, Ihall i deplore me 
 Faring like my friends before me ; 
 Nor an holier place defire 
 Than Timoleon's arms acquire. 
 And TuUy's curule chair, and Milton's golden lyre. 
 
 877 
 
 ODE
 
 «7S ODE S, 
 
 ODE XVIIL 
 
 TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE 
 
 FRANCIS EARL OF HUNTINGDON. 
 
 M D C C X L V I I. 
 
 L r. 
 
 ± HE wife and great of every clime, 
 Through all the fpacious walks of Time, 
 Where'er the Mufe her power difplay'd, 
 With joy have lifien'd and obey'd. 
 For taught of heaven, the facred Nine 
 Perfuafive numbers, forms divine, 
 
 To mortal fenfe impart : 
 They beft the foul with glory fire ; 
 They nobleft counfels, boldell deeds infpire ; 
 And high o'er Fortune's ragre inthrone the fixed heart. 
 
 1. 2. 
 
 Nor lefs prevailing is their charm 
 
 The vengeful bofom to difarm ; 
 
 To melt the proud with human woe, 
 
 And prompt unwilling tears to flow. 
 
 Can
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 Can wealth a power like this afford ? 
 
 Can CromwelFs arts, or Marlborough's fword. 
 
 An equal empire claim ? 
 No, Haftings. Thou my words wilt own : 
 Thy breaft the gifts of every Mufe hath known ; 
 Nor iliall the giver^s love difgrace thy noble name, 
 
 I. 3. 
 
 The Mufe's awful art. 
 
 And the bleft function of the poet's tongue. 
 Ne'er fhalt thou blufli to honour ; to aflert 
 From all that fcorned vice or flavilh fear hath fung. 
 Nor fliall the blandifliment of Tufcan firings 
 Warbling at will in pleafure's myrtle bower ; 
 Nor fhall the fervile notes to Celtic kines 
 By flattering minftrels paid in evil hour, 
 Move thee to fpurn the heavenly Mufe's reign* 
 A different ftrain. 
 And other themes 
 From her prophetic (hades and hallow'd ftreams 
 (Thou well can'fl: witnefs) meet the purged ear : 
 Such, as when Greece to her immortal fliell 
 Rejoicing liften'd, godlike founds to hear j 
 To hear the fweet inflruftrefs tell 
 (While men and heroes throng'd around) 
 How life its nobleft ufb may find, 
 How well for freedom be refign'd ; 
 And how, by glory, virtue fhall be crown'd'. 
 
 279 
 
 II. I, Sud 
 
 ^UCtl
 
 s«3 ODES, 
 
 II. I. 
 
 Such was the Chian father's Ihaln 
 To many a kind domefllc train, 
 Whofe pious hearth and geniaJ bowl 
 Had <:hear'd the reverend pilgrim's foul : 
 When, every hofpitable rite 
 With equal bounty to requite, 
 
 He ftruck his magic firings ; 
 And pour'd fpontaneous numbers forth, 
 And feiz'd their ears with tales of ancient worth, 
 And fiU'd their mufing hearts with vaft heroic things. 
 
 II. 2. 
 
 Now oft, where happy fpirits dwell, 
 W^here yet he tunes his charming fhell, 
 Oft near him, with applauding hands, 
 The genius of his country ftands. 
 To liftening gods he makes him known. 
 That man divine, by whom were fown 
 
 The feeds of Grecian fame : 
 Who firfi the race with freedom fir'd ; 
 From whom Lycurgus Sparta's fons infpir'd ; 
 From whom Plataean palms and Cyprian trophies came. 
 
 II. 3. 
 
 O nobleil, happieft age ! 
 When Ariftides rul'd, and Cimon fought ; 
 When all the generous fruits of Homer's page 
 Exulting Pindar faw to full perfedlion bought. 
 
 O Pindar,
 
 ■BOOK THE FIRS T, ' 281 
 
 O Pindar, oft flialt thou be hail'd of me : 
 Not that Apollo fed thee from his fhrine ; 
 Not that thy lips drank fweetnefs from the bee ; 
 Nor yet that, fludious of thy notes divine, 
 Pan danc'd their meafure with the lylvan throng-: 
 But that thy fong 
 Was proud to unfold 
 What thy bafe rulers trembled to behold ; 
 Amid corrupted Thebes was proud to tell 
 The deeds of Athens and the Perfian fhame : 
 Hence on thy head their impious vengeance fell. 
 
 But thou, o faithful to thy fame, 
 
 The Mufe's la\T did'fl; rightly know ^ 
 
 That who would animate his lays, 
 
 And other minds to virtue raife, 
 Muft feel his own with all her fpirit glov/. 
 
 ni. I. 
 
 Are there, approv'd of later times, 
 Whofe verfe adorn'd a * tyrant's crimes ? 
 Who faw majeftic Rome betray'd. 
 And lent the imperial ruffian aid ? 
 Alas I not one polluted bard. 
 No, not the flrains that Mincius heard, 
 
 Or Tibur's hills reply'd, 
 Dare to the Mufe's ear afpire ; 
 Save that, inftruded by the Grecian lyre, 
 With freedom's ancient notes their fhameful tafk they hide. 
 
 * 0<ftavianus Cccfar. 
 
 O o HI. 2. Mark
 
 282 ODES, 
 
 III. 2. 
 
 Mark, how the dread Pantheon flands, 
 Amid the domes of modern hands : 
 Amid the toys of idle ftate, 
 How fimply, how feverely great ! 
 Then turn, and, while each weftern clime 
 Prefents her tuneful fons to Time, 
 So mark thou Milton's name ; 
 And add, " Thus differs from the throng 
 ** The fpirit which inform'd thy awful fong, 
 ** Which bade thy potent voice proted: thy country's fame.''' 
 
 III. 3. 
 
 Yet hence barbaric zeal 
 His memory with unholy rage purfues ; 
 While from thefe arduous cares of public weal 
 She bids each bard begone, and reft him with his Mufe. 
 O fool ! to think the man, whofe ample mind 
 Mull grafp at all that yonder ftars furvey ; 
 Muft join the nobleft forms of every kind, 
 The world's moft perfedl image to difplay. 
 Can e'er his country's majefty behold, 
 Uniiiov'd or cold ! 
 O fool ! to deem 
 That he, whofe thought mufl: vifit every theme, 
 
 Whofe
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. aBj 
 
 Whofe heart muft every ftrong emotion know 
 Infpir'd by nature, or by fortune taught ; 
 That he, if haply feme prefumptuous foe, 
 
 With falfe ig-noble fcience frauo-ht. 
 
 Shall fpurn at freedom's faithful band ; 
 
 That he their dear defence will fl:iun. 
 
 Or hide their glories from the fun, 
 Or deal their vengeance with a woman's hand ! 
 
 IV. I. 
 
 , I care not that in Arno's plain. 
 Or on the fportive banks of Seine, 
 From public themes the Mufe's quire 
 Content with poliili'd eafe retire. 
 Where priefts the ftudious head command, 
 Where tyrants bow the warlike hand 
 
 To vile ambition's aim, 
 Say, what can public themes afford, 
 Save venal honors to an hateful lord, 
 Referv'd for angry heaven and fcorn'd of honeft fame ? 
 
 IV. 2. 
 
 But here, where freedom's equal throne 
 To all her valiant fons is known ; 
 Where all are confcious of her cares. 
 And each the power, that rules him, fliares ; 
 
 O o 2 Here
 
 a84 ODE S, 
 
 Here let the band, whofe daftard tongue 
 Leaves public arguments unfung, 
 
 Bid public praife farewell : 
 Let him to fitter climes remove, 
 Far from the hero's and the patriot's love. 
 And lull myfterious monks to flumber in their celh 
 
 IV. 3. 
 O Haftings, not to all 
 Can ruling heaven the fame endowments lend :. 
 Yet ftill doth nature to her offspring call,. 
 That to one general weal their different powers they bendj, 
 Unenvlous. Thus alone, though ftrains divine 
 Inform the bofonx of the. Mufe's fon ;. 
 Though with new honors the patrician's line 
 Advance frojii age to age ; yet thus alone 
 They win the fuffrage of impartial fame.. 
 The poet's name 
 He belt fliall prove,, 
 Whofe lays the foul with nobleft paflions move. 
 But tliee, o progeny of heroes old, 
 Thee to feverer toils thy fate requires : 
 The fate which form'd thee in a chofen mould, 
 The grateful country of thy fires,, 
 Thee to fublimcr paths demand ; 
 Sublimer than thy fires could trace,. 
 Or thy own Edward teach his race. 
 Though Gaul's proud genius fank beneath his hand. 
 
 V. I. From
 
 BOOKTHEFIRST. 485 
 
 V. I. 
 
 From rich domains and fubjed: farms, 
 They led the ruftic youth to arms ; 
 And kings their ftern atchievements fear'd ;. 
 While private ftrife their banners rear'd. 
 But loftier fcenes to thee are fhown, 
 Where empire's wide-eftablifh'd throne. 
 
 No private mafter fills :, 
 Where, long foretold, the People reigns :■ 
 Where each a vafial's humble heart difdains ; 
 And judgeth what he fees j and, as he judgeth, wills.. 
 
 V. 2. 
 Mere be it thine to calm and guide 
 The fwelling democratic tide ; 
 To watch the ftate's uncertain frame^. 
 And baffle faction's partial aim : 
 But chiefly, with determin'd zeal, 
 To quell that fervile band, who kneel; 
 
 To freedom's banifli'd foes ; 
 That monfter, which is daily found 
 Expert and bold thy country's peace to wound ; 
 Yet dreads to handle arms,, nor manly counfel knows,.. 
 
 V. 3. 'Tis
 
 236 ODE S, ^ 
 
 V. 3. 
 
 'Tis hlglipft heaven's command, 
 That guilty aims iliouid fordid paths purfue ; 
 That what enfnaies the heart fliould maim the hand, 
 And virtue's worthlefs foes be falfe to glory too. 
 But look on freedom, fee, through every age, 
 What labours, perils, griefs, hath flie difdain'd ! 
 What arms, what regal pride, what prieftly rage, 
 Have her dread offspring conquer'd or fuftain'd I 
 For Albion well have conquer'd. Let the ftrains 
 Of happy fwains. 
 Which now refound 
 Where Scarfdale's cliffs the fwelling paftures bound, 
 Bear witnefs. there, oft let the farmer hail 
 The facred orchard which imbowers his gate, 
 And fliew to ftrangers paffing down the vale, 
 Where Candifli, Booth, and Ofborne fate ; 
 W^hen burlHng from their country's chain, ' 
 
 Even in the midft of deadly harms. 
 Of papal fnares and lawlefs arms. 
 They plann'd for freedom this her noblefl: reign. 
 
 VI. 2. 
 
 This reign, thefe laws, this public care, 
 Which Naffau gave us all to fliare, 
 Had ne'er adorn'd the Englifh name. 
 Could fear have filenc'd freedom's claim. 
 
 But
 
 B O O K T H E FIRST. ie? 
 
 But fear in vain attempts to bind 
 Thofe lofty efforts of the mind 
 
 Which focial good infpires ; 
 Where men, for this, aflault a throne. 
 Each adds the common welfare to his own ; 
 And each unconquer'd heart the ftrength of all acquires* 
 
 VI. 2. 
 
 Say, was it thus, when late we view'd 
 Our fields in civil blood imbru'd ? 
 When fortune crown'd the barbarous hoft» 
 And half the aftoni(h'd ifle was loft ? 
 Did one of all that vaunting train, 
 Who dare affront a peaceful reign, 
 
 Durft one in arms appear ? 
 Durft cne in counfels pledge his life? 
 Stake his luxurious fortunes in the ftrife ? ; >.' 
 
 Or lend his boafted name his vagrant friends to chear ? 
 
 VI. 3. 
 
 Yet, Haftings, thefe are they 
 Who challenge to themfelves thy country's love ;. 
 The true ; the conftant : v^^ho alone can weigh, 
 What glory Iiiould demand, or liberty approve ! 
 
 But let their v/orks declare them. Thy free powers, 
 The generous pov/eis of thy prevailing mind, 
 Not for the tafrcs of their confederate hours. 
 Lewd brav/ls and lurking flander, were defisin'd. 
 
 Be
 
 2^8 ODE S. 
 
 Be thou thy own approver. Honeft praife 
 Oft nobly fways 
 Ingenuous youth : 
 But, fought from cowards and the lying mouth, 
 Praife is reproach. Eternal God alone 
 For mortals fixeth that fublime award. 
 He, from the faithful records of his throne. 
 
 Bids the hiftorian and the bard 
 
 Difpofe of honor and of fcorn ; 
 
 Difcern the patriot from the flave ; 
 
 And write the good, the wife, the brave. 
 Per leiTons to the multitude unborru 
 
 THE END OF BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 ODES,
 
 ODES, BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 O D E I. 
 
 THE REMONSTRANCE OF SHAKESPEARE: 
 
 Suppofed to have been fpoken at the Theatre Royal, while the 
 French Comedians were a£ting by Subfcription. 
 
 M D C C X L I X. 
 
 IF, yet regardful of your native land, 
 
 Old Shakefpeare's tongue you deign to underftand, 
 
 Lo, from the blifsful bowers where heaven rewards 
 
 Inftrudlive fages and unblemifh'd bards, 
 
 I come, the ancient founder of the ftage, 
 
 Intent to learn, in this difcerning age. 
 
 What form of wit your fancies have imbrac'd, 
 
 And whither tends your elegance of tafte. 
 
 That thus at length our homely toils you fpurn, 
 
 That thus to foreign fceiies you proudly turn, 
 
 P p That
 
 290 ODES, 
 
 That from my brow the laurel wreath you claim 
 To crown the rivals of your country's fame. 
 
 What, though the footfteps of my devious Mufe 
 The meafur'd walks of Grecian art refufe ? 
 Or though the franknefs of my hardy flyle 
 Mock the nice touches of the critic's file ? 
 Yet, what my age and climate held to view. 
 Impartial i furvey'd and fearlefs drew. 
 And fay, ye fkillful in the human heart, 
 Who know to prize a poet's nobleft part, 
 What age, what clime, could e'er an ampler field 
 For lofty thought, for daring fancy, yield ? 
 I faw this England break the fliameful bands 
 Forg'd for the fouls of men by facred hands : 
 I favv each groaning realm her aid implore ; 
 Her fons the heroes of each warlike lliore ; 
 Her naval ftandard (the dire Spaniard's bane) 
 Obey'd through all the circuit of the main. 
 Then too great commerce, for a late-found world. 
 Around your coatt her eager fails unfurl'd : 
 Nev/ hopes, new paflions, thence the bofom fir'd ; 
 New plans, new arts, the genius thence infpir'd ; 
 Thence every fcene, which private fortune knows, 
 la flronger life, with bolder fpirit, rofe. 
 
 Difo-rac'd 
 
 o
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 Difgrac'd 1 this full profped which i drew ? 
 My colours languid, or my ftrokes untrue ? 
 Have not your fages, warriors, fwains, and kings, 
 Confefs'd the living draught of men and things ? 
 What other bard in any clime appears 
 Alike the mafter of your fmiles and tears ? 
 Yet have i deign'd your audience to intice 
 With wretched bribes to luxury and vice? 
 Or have ray various icenes a purpofe known 
 Which freedom, virtue, glory, might not own ? 
 
 Such from the firft was my dramatic plan ; 
 It fhould be your's to crown what i began : 
 And now that England fpurns her Gothic chain, 
 And equal laws and fecial fcience reign, 
 I thought, Now furely fliall my zealous eyes 
 View nobler bards and jufter critics rife, 
 Intent with learned labour to refine 
 The copious ore of Albion's native mine, 
 Our ftately Mufe more graceful airs to teachj 
 And form her tongue to more attradive fpeech, 
 Till rival nations liften at her feet, 
 And own her polifh'd as they own'd her great* 
 
 But do you thus my favorite hopes fullfil ? 
 Is France at laft the ftandard of your fkill ? 
 
 Pp 2 
 
 2^1 
 
 Air 
 
 as
 
 2^2 
 
 ODES, 
 
 Alas for you ! that fo betray a mind 
 
 Of art unconfcious and to beauty blind. 
 
 Say ; does her language your ambition raife. 
 
 Her barren, trivial, unharmonious phrafe, 
 
 Which fetters eloquence to fcantieft bounds, 
 
 And maims the cadence of poetic founds ? 
 
 Say ; does your humble admiration chufe 
 
 The gentle prattle of her Comic Mufe, 
 
 While wits, plain-dealers, fops, and fools appear, 
 
 Charg'd to fay nought but what the king may hear ? 
 
 Or rather melt your fympathizing hearts 
 
 Won by her tragic fcene's romantic arts, 
 
 Where old and young declaim on foft defire. 
 
 And heroes never, but for love, expire ? 
 
 No. Though the charms of novelty, awhile, 
 Perhaps too fondly win your thoughtlefs fmile, 
 Yet not for you defign'd indulgent fate 
 The modes or manners of the Bourbon ftate. 
 And ill your minds my partial judgment reads, 
 And many an augury my hope mifleads, 
 If the fair maids of yonder blooming train 
 To their light courtiliip would an audience deign. 
 Or thofe chafte matrons a Parifian wife 
 Chufe for the model of domeftic life ; 
 
 Or
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 Or If one youth of all that generous band, 
 The ftrength and fplendor of their native land, 
 Would yield his portion of his country's fame, 
 And quit old freedom's patrimonial claim. 
 With lying fmiles oppreffion's pomp to fee,, 
 And judge of glory by a king's decree; 
 
 O blefl: at home with juftly- envied laws, 
 O long the chiefs of Europe's general caufe, 
 Whom heaven hath chofen at each danfrerous hour 
 To check the inroads of barbaric power, 
 The rights of trampled nations to reclaim, 
 And guard the focial world from bonds and fliame ;, 
 Oh let not luxury's fantaftic charms 
 Thus give the lye to your heroic arms : 
 Nor for the ornaments of life imbrace 
 Diflionefl lefibns from that vaunting race, 
 
 Whom fate's dread laws (for, in eternal fate 
 Defpotic rule was heir to freedom's hate) 
 Whom in each warlike, each commercial part, 
 In civil counfel, and in pleafing art. 
 The judge of earth predeftin'd for your foe£j 
 And made it fame and virtue to oppofe. 
 
 293 
 
 ODE
 
 jp4 ODES, 
 
 ODE II. 
 
 TO SLEEP. 
 
 I. 
 
 jL HOU filent power, whofe welcome fway 
 Charms every anxious thought away ; 
 In whofe divine oblivion drown'd, 
 Sore pain and weary toil grow mild, 
 Love is with kinder looks beguil'd, 
 
 And grief forgets her fondly-cherifli'd wound ; 
 
 Oh whither haft thou flown, indulgent god ? 
 
 God of kind fhadows and of healing dews, 
 
 Whom doft thou touch with thy Letha^an rod ? 
 Around w^hofe temples now thy opiate airs diffufe ? 
 
 IL 
 
 Lo, midnight from her flarry reign 
 Looks awful down on earth and main. 
 The tuneful birds lie hufh'd in fleep, 
 With all that crop the verdant food, 
 With all that fkim the cryftal flood, 
 
 Or haunt the caverns of the rocky fteep. 
 
 No rufliing winds difturb the tufted bowers ; 
 
 No wakeful found the moon-light valley knows, 
 
 Save where the brook its liquid murmur pours, 
 And lulls the waving fcene to more profound repofe, 
 
 III, Oh
 
 B O O K T H E S E C O N D. 295 
 
 III. 
 
 Oh let not me alone complain, 
 
 Alone invoke thy power in vain ! 
 
 Defcend, propitious, on my eyes ; 
 
 Not from the couch that bears a crown, . 
 
 Not from the courtly ftatefman's down, 
 Nor where the mifer and his treafure lies : 
 Bring not the iliapes that break the murderer's refl-. 
 Nor thofe the hireling foldier loves to fee, 
 Nor thofe which haunt the bigot's gloomy breaft : 
 Far be their guilty nights, and far their dreams from me ! 
 
 IV. 
 
 Nor yet thofe awful forms prefent, 
 
 For chiefs and heroes only meant : 
 
 The figur'd brafs, the choral fong, 
 
 The refcued people's glad applaufe. 
 
 The listening fenate, and the laws 
 Fix'd by the counfels of * Timoleon's tongue. 
 Are fcenes too grand for fortune's private ways ; 
 And though they fhine in youth's Ingenuous view. 
 The fober gainful arts of modern days 
 To fuch romantic thoughts have bid a long adieu. 
 
 * After Timoleon had delivered Syracufe from the tyranny of Dionyfius, the 
 people on every important deliberation fent for him into the public affemblyj aJked 
 bis advice, and voted according to it. Plutarch. 
 
 V. I
 
 296 ODES, 
 
 V. 
 
 I afk not, god of dreams, thy care 
 To baniOi Love's prefentments fair : 
 Nor rofv cheek nor radiant eye 
 Can arm him with fuch flrong command 
 That the vounnr forcerer's fatal hand 
 should round my foul his plcafmg fetters tie. 
 Nor yet the courtier's hope, the giving fmile 
 (A lighter phantom, and a bafer chain) 
 Did e'er in ilumber my proud lyre beguile 
 To lend the pomp of thrones her ill-according ftrain. 
 
 VI. 
 
 But, Morpheus, on thy balmy wing 
 Such honorable vifions bring, 
 As footh'd great Milton's injur'd age, 
 When in prophetic dreams he faw 
 The race unborn with pious awe 
 Imbibe each virtue from his heavenly page : 
 Or fuch as Mead's benignant fancy knows 
 When health's deep treafures, by his art explor'd, 
 Have fav'd the infant from an orphan's woes, 
 Or to the trembling fire his age's hope reltor'd. 
 
 ODE
 
 BOOKTHESECOND. t^j 
 
 ODE IIL 
 
 TO THE CUCKOW. 
 
 I. 
 
 v-/ ruftic herald of the Tpring, 
 At length in yonder woody vale 
 Faft by the brook i hear thee fing ; 
 And, ftudious of thy homely tale, 
 Amid the vefpers of the grove, 
 Amid the chaunting choir of love, 
 
 Thy fage refponfes hail. 
 II. 
 The time has been when i have frown'd 
 To hear thy voice the woods invade ; 
 And while thy folemn accent drown'd 
 Some fweeter poet of the fhade, 
 Thus, thought i, thus the fons of care 
 Some conftant youth or generous fair 
 
 With dull advice upbraid. 
 
 Q q III. I fald,
 
 298. ODES, 
 
 III. 
 
 I fald, " While Philomela's fong 
 ** Proclaims the pallion of the grove, 
 " It ill befeems a cuckow's tongue 
 " Her charming language to reprove" — 
 Alas, how much a lover's ear 
 Plates all the fober truth to hear, 
 The fober truth of love I 
 IV. 
 When hearts are in each other blefs'd, 
 When nought but lofty faith can rule 
 The nymph's and fwain's confenting breaft. 
 How cuckow-like in Cupid's fchool, 
 With flore of grave prudential faws 
 On fortune's power and cuftom's laws, 
 Appears each friendly fool 1 
 V. 
 Yet think betimes, ye gentle train 
 Whom love and hope and fancy fway. 
 Who every harfher care difdain, 
 Who by the morning judge the day, 
 Think that, in April's faireft hours, 
 To warbling fliades and painted flowers 
 The cuckow joins his lay. 
 
 ODE
 
 B O O K T H E S E C O N D. - z<)9 
 
 ODE IV. 
 
 T O 
 
 THE HONOURABLE CHARLES TOWNSHEND 
 
 I N T H E C O U N T R Y. 
 
 M D C C L. 
 
 L I. 
 
 Xl O W oft iLall i furvey 
 This humble roof, the lawn, the greenwood fhade, 
 
 The vale with fheaves o'erfpread. 
 The glafiy brook, the flocks which round thee flray ? 
 
 When will thy cheerful mind 
 Of thefe have utter' d all her dear efteem ? 
 
 Or, tell me, doft thou deem 
 No more to join in glory's toilfome race. 
 
 But here content imbrace 
 That happy leifure which thou had'ft reflgn'd ? 
 
 L 2. 
 
 Alas, ye happy hours, 
 When books and youthful fport the foul could fliare, 
 
 Ere one ambitious care 
 Of civil life had aw'd her fimpler powers ; 
 
 Oft as your winged train 
 Revifit here my friend in white array, 
 
 Oh fail not to difplay 
 
 Q q 2 Each
 
 -(JO ODE S, 
 
 Each fairer fcene where i perchance had part, 
 
 That fo his generous heart 
 The abode of even friendfhip may remain. 
 
 I. 3. 
 For not imprudent of my lofs to come, 
 
 I faw from contemplation's quiet cell 
 
 His feet afcending to another home 
 
 Where public praife and envied greatnefs dwell. 
 
 But rhall we therefore, o my lyre 
 
 Reprove ambition's beft defire ? 
 
 Extinguilh glory's flame ? 
 
 Far other was the tafk injoin'd 
 
 When to my hand thy firings were firfl: aflign'd : 
 
 Far other faith belongs to friendfliip's honor'd name 
 
 II. I. 
 
 Thee, Townihend, not the arms 
 Of flumbering eafe, nor pleafure's rofy chain. 
 
 Were deftinM to detain : 
 No, nor bright fcience, nor the Mufe's charms. 
 
 For them high heaven prepares 
 Their proper votaries, an humbler band : 
 
 And ne'er would Spenfer's hand 
 Have deign'd to ftrike the warbling Tufcan lliell;^ 
 
 Nor Harrington to tell 
 What habit an immoital city v/ears, 
 
 II. 2. Had
 
 BOOKTHESECOND. 301 
 
 II. 2. 
 
 Had tKis been born to fhleld 
 The caufe which Cromwell's impious hand betray'd, 
 
 Or that, like Vere, difplay'd 
 His redcrofs banner o'er the Belgian field. 
 
 Yet where the will divine 
 Hath fliut thofe loftieft paths, it next remains, 
 
 With reafon clad in ftrains 
 Of harmony, felefted minds to infpire. 
 
 And virtue's living iire 
 To feed and eternize in hearts like thine. 
 
 n. 3. 
 
 For never fliall the herd, whom envy fways, 
 So quell my purpofe or my tongue controul, 
 That i Ihould fear illuftrious worth to praife, 
 Becaufe it's mailer's friendfliip mov'd my foul. 
 
 Yet, if this undifiembling ftrain 
 
 Should now perhaps thine ear detain 
 With any plealing found, 
 
 Remember thou that righteous fame 
 From hoary age a ftrid account v/ill claim 
 Of each aufpicious palm with which thy youth was crown'd. 
 
 IIL I. Nor
 
 02 ODES, 
 
 III. I. 
 
 Nor ob\'ions is the way 
 Where heaven expeds thee, nor the traveller leads, 
 
 Through flowers or fragrant meads, 
 Or groves that hark to Philomela's lay. 
 
 The impartial laws of fate 
 To nobler virtues wed feverer cares. 
 
 Is there a man who (hares 
 The fummlt next where heavenly natures dv/ell ? 
 
 Afk him (for he can tell 
 What florms beat round that rough laborious height. 
 
 III. 2. 
 
 Ye heroes, who of old 
 Did orenerous England freedom's throne ordain : 
 
 From Alfred's' parent reign 
 To Naflau, great deliverer, wife and bold ; 
 
 I know your perils hard, 
 Your wounds, your painful marches, wintry feas, 
 
 The night eftrang'd from eafe, 
 The day by cowardice and falfehood vex'd. 
 
 The head with doubt perplex'd, 
 The indignant heart difdaining the reward 
 
 III. 3. Which
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 III. 3. 
 
 Which envy hardly grants. But, o renown, 
 O praife from judging heaven and virtuous men, 
 If thus they purchas'd thy divineft crown, 
 Say, who fliall hefitate ? or who complain ? 
 And now they fit on thrones above : 
 And when among the gods they move 
 
 Before the fovran mind, 
 " Lo, thefe," he faith, " lo, thefe are they 
 ** Who to the laws of mine eternal fway 
 " From violence and fear aflerted human kind." 
 
 IV. I. 
 
 Thus honor'd while the train 
 Of Icgiflators in his prefence dwell ; 
 
 If i may aught foretell. 
 The ftatefman fhall the fecond palm obtain. 
 
 For dreadful deeds of arms 
 Let vulgar bards, with undifcerning praife, 
 
 More ghttering trophies raife : 
 But wifeft heaven what deeds may chiefly move 
 
 To favor and to love ? 
 What, fave wide bleflings, or averted harms ? 
 
 5°3 
 
 IV. 2. Noi
 
 304 ODES, 
 
 IV. 2. 
 
 Nor to the imbattled field 
 Shall thefe achievements of the peaceful gown 
 
 The ereen immortal crown 
 of valor, or the fongs of conqueft, yield. 
 
 Not Fairfax vi^ildly bold, 
 "While bare of creft he hew'd his fatal way, 
 
 Through Nafefby's firm array, 
 To heavier dangers did his breaft oppofe 
 
 Than Pvm's free virtue chofe. 
 When the proud force of Strafford he controulM. 
 
 IV. 3. 
 
 But what is man at enmity with truth ? 
 What were the fruits of Wentworth's copious mind 
 When (blighted all the promife of his youth) 
 The patriot in a tyrant's league had join'd ? 
 Let Ireland's loud-lamenting plains. 
 Let Tyne's and Humber's trampled fwaiH 
 
 Let menac'd London tell 
 How impious guile made wifdom bafe ; 
 How generous zeal to cruel rage gave place ; 
 And how unblefs'd he liv'd and how dilhonor'd fell. 
 
 V. I. Thence
 
 B O O K T H E S E C O N D. 305 
 
 V. I. 
 
 Thence never hath the Mufc 
 Around his tomb Pierian rofes fluno; : 
 
 Nor fliall one poet's tongue 
 His name for mufic's pleafing labor chufe. 
 
 And fure, when nature kind 
 Hath deck'd fome favor'd breaft above the throng, 
 
 That man with grievous wrono; 
 Affronts and wounds his genius, if he bends 
 
 To guilt's ignoble ends 
 The fundions of his ill-fubmitting mind. 
 
 V. 2. 
 
 For worthy of the wife 
 Nothing can feem but virtue ; nor earth yield 
 
 Their fame an equal field, 
 Save where impartial freedom gives the prize. 
 
 There Somers fix'd his name, 
 Inroird the next to William, there fliall Time 
 
 To every wondering clime 
 Point out that Somers, who from faction's croud, 
 
 The ilanderous and the loud, 
 Could filr aflent and modefl reverence claim. 
 
 R r V. 3. Kor
 
 3o6 ODES, 
 
 V. 3. 
 
 Nor aught did laws or focial arts acquire, 
 Nor this majeftic weal of Albion's land 
 Did aught accomplifh, or to aught afpire, 
 Without his guidance, his fuperior hand. 
 And rightly fhall the Mafe's care 
 Wreaths like her own for him prepare, 
 
 Whofe mind's inamor'd aim 
 Could forms of civil beauty draw 
 Sublime as ever fage or poet faw, 
 Yet ftill to life's rude fcene the proud ideas tame. 
 
 VI. I. 
 
 Let none profane be near ! 
 The Mufe was never foreign to his breaft t 
 
 On power's grave feat confefs'd, 
 Still to her voice he bent a lover's ear. 
 
 And if the blefled know 
 Their ancient cares, even now the unfading groves^ 
 
 Where haply Milton roves 
 With Spenfer, hear the inchanted echos round 
 
 Through fartheft heaven refound 
 Wife Somers, guardian of their fame below. 
 
 VI. 3. He
 
 BOOKTHESEGOND. 307 
 
 VI. 2. 
 
 He knew, the patriot knew, 
 That letters and the Mufes powerful art 
 
 Exalt the Ingenuous heart. 
 And brighten every form of juft and true. 
 
 They lend a nobler fway 
 To civil wifdom, than corruption's lure 
 
 Could ever yet procure : 
 They too from envy's pale malignant light 
 
 Condu6l her forth to fig-ht 
 Cloath'd in the faireft colors of the day. 
 
 VI. 3. 
 
 O Townflicnd, thus may Time, the judge fevere, 
 Inftrudt my happy tongue of thee to tell : 
 And when i fpeak of one to freedom dear 
 For planning wifely and for ading well, 
 
 Of one whom glory loves to own, 
 
 Who ftill by liberal means alone 
 Hath liberal ends purfa'd ; 
 
 Then, for the guerdon of my lay, 
 " This man with faithful friendiliip," will i fay, 
 " From youth to honor'd age my arts and me hath view'd." 
 
 :• R r 2 ODE
 
 3o8 ODES, 
 
 O D E V. 
 
 ON LOVE OF PRAISE. 
 
 I. 
 
 yj F all the fprings within the mind 
 
 Which prompt her fteps in fortune's maze, 
 
 From none more pleafing aid we find 
 Than from the genuine love of praife. 
 
 II. 
 
 Nor any partial, private end 
 
 Such reverence to the public bears ; 
 Nor any paffion, virtue's friend, 
 
 So like to virtue's felf appears. 
 
 III. 
 
 For who in glory can delight 
 
 Without delight in glorious deeds ? 
 What man a charming voice can flight. 
 
 Who courts the echo that fucceeds ? 
 
 IV. But
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 IV. 
 
 But not the echo on the voice 
 
 More, than on virtue praife, depends ; 
 
 To which, of courfe, it's real price 
 The judgment of the praifer lends. 
 
 V. 
 
 If praife then with religious awe 
 
 From the fole perfedl judge be fought, 
 
 A nobler aim, a purer law 
 
 Nor prieft, nor bard, nor fage hath taught. 
 
 VI. 
 
 With which in charafter the fame 
 Tho' in an humbler fphere it lies, 
 
 I count that foul of human fame, 
 The fuffrajTe of the good and wife. 
 
 309 
 
 ODE
 
 310 
 
 ODES, 
 
 ODE VL 
 
 TO WILLIAM HALL, ESQUIRE 
 
 WITH THE WORKS OF CHAULIEU. 
 
 I. 
 
 Attend to Chaulleu's wanton lyre; 
 While, fluent as the fky-lark fings 
 When firft the morn allures it's wings, 
 The epicure his theme purfues : 
 And tell me if, among the choir 
 Whofe mufic charms the banks of Seine, 
 So full, fo free, fo rich a ftrain 
 E'er didated the warbling Mufe. 
 
 II. 
 
 Yet, Hall, while thy judicious ear 
 Admires the well-diflcmbled art 
 That can fuch harmony impart 
 To the lame pace of Gallic rhymes; 
 
 While
 
 B O O K T H E S E C O N D. 311 
 
 While wit from 'affeftation clear, 
 Bright images, and paffions true, 
 Recall to thy aflenting view 
 The envied bards of nobler times ; ; 
 
 HI. 
 
 Say, is not oft his dodrine wrong ? 
 This prieft of pleafure, who afpires. 
 To lead us to her facred fires, 
 Knows he the ritual of her fhrine ? 
 Say (her fweet influence to thy fong 
 So may the goddefs ftill afford) 
 Doth (he conlent to be ador'd 
 With fliamelefs love and frantic wine ? 
 
 IV. 
 
 Nor Cato, nor Chryfippus here 
 Need we in high indignant phrafe 
 From their Elyfian quiet raife ; 
 But pleafure's oracle alone 
 Confult ; attentive, not fevere. 
 O pleafure, we blafpheme not thee ; 
 Nor emulate the rigid knee 
 Which bends but at the Stoic throne. 
 
 ¥. We
 
 3 
 
 12 ODES, 
 
 V. 
 
 We own had fate to man aflign'd 
 Nor fenfe, nor wifli but what obey 
 Or Venus foft or Bacchus gay, 
 Then might our bard's voluptuous creed 
 Moft aptly govern human kind : 
 Unlefs perchance what he hath fung 
 Of tortur'd joints and nerves unftrung. 
 Some wrangling heretic fliould plead. 
 
 VI. 
 
 But now with all thefe proud defires 
 For dauntlefs truth and and honeft fame ; 
 With that ftrong mafter of our frame, 
 The inexorable judge within, 
 What can be done ? Alas, ye fires 
 Of love ; alas, ye rofy fmiles, 
 Ye nedlar'd cups from happier foils, 
 — Ye have no bribe his grace to win. 
 
 ODE
 
 B O O K T H E S E C O N D. 3,3 
 
 ODE VII. 
 
 TO THE RIGHT REVEREND 
 
 BENJAMIN LORD BISHOP OF WINCHESTER. 
 
 M D C C L I V. 
 
 I. I. 
 
 X^ O R toils which patriots have endur'd, 
 For treafon quell'd and laws fecur'd^ 
 In every nation Time difplays 
 The palm of honourable praife. 
 Envy may rail ; and fad^ion fierce 
 May ftrive : but what, alas, can thofe 
 (Though bold, yet blind and fordid foes) 
 To gratitude and love oppofe. 
 To faithful ftory and perfuafive verfe ? 
 
 I. 2. 
 
 O nurfe of freedom, Albion, fay,. 
 Thou tamer of defpotic fvvay, 
 What man, among thy fons around, 
 Thus heir to glory haft thou found ? 
 What page, in all thy annals bright, 
 Haft thou with purer joy furvey'd 
 
 S s Thaa
 
 314 ODE S, 
 
 Than that where truth, by Hoadly's aid, 
 
 Shines through impofture's folemn fliade, 
 
 Through kingly and through faccrdotal night ? 
 
 I. 3. 
 
 To him the Teacher blefs'd, 
 
 Who fent reHgion, from the palmy field 
 
 By Jordan, like the morn to cheer the well, 
 And lifted up the veil which heaven from earth conceal'd, 
 
 To Hoadly thus his mandate he addrefs'd : 
 
 *' Go thou, and refcue my diilionor'd law 
 
 " From hands rapacious and from tongues impure : 
 
 *' Let not my peaceful name be made a lure 
 
 *' Fell perfecution's mortal fnares to aid : 
 
 *' Let not my words be impious chains to draw 
 
 *' The freeborn foul in more than brutal awe, 
 
 *' To faith without afTent, allegiance unrepaid." 
 
 IL I. 
 
 No cold or unperforming hand 
 Was arm'd by heaven with this command. 
 The world foon felt it : and, on high, 
 To William's ear with welcome joy 
 Did Locke amono; the blell unfold 
 The rifing hope of Hoadly's name, 
 Godolphin then confirm'd the fame ; 
 And Somers, when from earth he came. 
 And generous Stanhope the fair fequel told. 
 
 IL 2. Then
 
 BOOKTHESECOND. 315 
 
 II. 2. 
 Then drew the lawgivers around, 
 (Sires of the Grecian name renown'd) 
 And liftening afk'd, and wondering knew, 
 What private force could thus fubdue 
 The vulgar and the great combin'd ; 
 Could war. with facred folly wage ; 
 Could a whole nation difengage 
 From the dread bonds of many an age, 
 And to new habits mould the public mind. 
 
 II. 3. 
 For not a conqueror's fword, 
 Nor the ftrong powers to civil founders known. 
 Were his : but truth by faithful fearch explored, 
 And focial fenfe, like feed, in genial plenty fown. 
 Wherever it took root, the foul (reftor'd 
 To freedom) freedom too for others fought. 
 Not monkifh craft the tyrant's claim divine, 
 Not regal zeal the bigot's cruel flirine 
 Could longer guard from reafon's warfare fage ; 
 Not the wild rabble to fedition wrought, 
 Nor fynods by the papal Genius taught, 
 Nor St. John's fpirit loofe, nor Atterbury's rage. 
 
 S s 2 11. I. But
 
 ^•16 ODES, 
 
 III. I. 
 
 But where Hiall recompcnce be found ? 
 Or how fuch arduous merit crown'd ? 
 For look on hfe's laborious fcene : 
 What rugged fpaces lie between 
 Adventurous virtue's early toils 
 And her triumphal throne ! The fhade 
 Of death, mean time, does oft invade 
 Her progrefs ; nor, to us difplay'd, 
 AVears the bright heroine her expeded fpoils. 
 
 III. 2. 
 
 Yet born to conquer is her power : 
 — O Hoadly, if that favourite hour 
 On earth arrive, with thankful awe 
 AVe own juft heaven's indulgent law, 
 And proudly thy fuccefs behold ; 
 We attend thy reverend length of days 
 With benedi6lion and with praife. 
 And hail Thee in our public ways 
 Like fome great fpirit fam'd in ages old. 
 
 III. 3. 
 
 While thus our vows prolong 
 Thy fteps on earth, and when by us refign'd 
 Thou join'ft thy feniors, that heroic throng 
 Who refcu'd or preferv'd the rights of human kind, 
 O ! not unworthy may thy Albion's tongue 
 
 Thee
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 317 
 
 Thee ftill, her friend and benefadlor, name : 
 O ! never, Hoadly, in thy country's eyes, 
 May impious gold, or pleafure's gaudy prize, 
 Make pubHc virtue, public freedom, vile ; 
 Nor our own manners tempt us to difclaim 
 That heritage, our noblefl: wealth and fame. 
 Which Thou haft kept intire from force and fadious guile. 
 
 ODE VIII. 
 
 I. 
 
 i F rightly tuneful bards decide, 
 If it be fix'd in love's decrees. 
 
 That beauty ought not to be tried 
 But by its native pov^er to pleafe, 
 
 Then tell me, youths and lovers, tell, 
 
 What fair can Amoret excell ? 
 
 II. 
 
 Behold that brio-ht unfuUied fmile. 
 And wifdom fpeaking in her mien : 
 
 Yet ({he fo artlefs all the while, 
 So little Itudious to be feen) 
 
 We
 
 3i8 ODE S, 
 
 We nought but inftant gladnefs know, 
 Nor think to whom the gift we owe, 
 
 III. 
 
 But neither mufic, nor the powers 
 
 Of youth and mirth and frolick cheer. 
 
 Add half that funfhine to the hours, 
 Or make life's profped: half fo clear, 
 
 As memory brings it to the eye 
 
 From fcenes where Amoret was by. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Yet not a fatirift could there 
 Or fault or indifcretion find j 
 
 Nor any prouder fage declare 
 
 One virtue, pid:ur'd in his mind, 
 
 Whofe form with lovelier colours glows 
 
 Than Amoret's demeanor fhows, 
 
 V. 
 
 This fure is beauty's happieft part : 
 This gives the moft unbounded fway : 
 
 This fhall inchant the fubjed heart 
 When rofe and lily fade away j 
 
 And (he be ftill, in fpite of time. 
 
 Sweet Amoret in all her prime. 
 
 ODE
 
 BOOKTHESECOND. 319 
 
 O D E IX, 
 
 AT STUDY. 
 
 I. 
 
 "W"hITHER did my fancy ftray ? 
 By what magic drawn away 
 
 Have 1 left my ftudious theme ? 
 From this philofophic page, 
 From the problems of the fage, 
 
 Wandering thro' a pleaGng dream ? 
 
 II. 
 
 'Tis in vain alas I i find, 
 
 Much in vain, my zealous mind 
 
 Would to learned wifdom's throne 
 Dedicate each thougfhtful hour : 
 Nature bids a fofter power 
 
 Claim fome minutes for his own. 
 
 Lei
 
 3=0 ODE S, 
 
 III. 
 
 Let the bufy or the wife 
 
 View him with contemptuous eyes ; 
 
 Love is native to the heart : 
 Guide its wifhes as you will ; 
 Without Love you'll find it ftill 
 
 Void in one eflential part. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Me though no peculiar fair 
 Touches with a lover's care ; 
 
 Though the pride of my defire 
 Afks immortal friendfhip's name, 
 Afks the palm of honeft fame. 
 
 And the old heroic lyre ; 
 
 IV. 
 
 Though the day have fmoothly gone. 
 Or to letter'd leifure known. 
 
 Or in focial duty fpent ; 
 Yet at eve my lonely breaft 
 Seeks in vain for perfed reft ; 
 
 Languifhes for true content. 
 
 ODE
 
 BOOKTHESECOND. 31, 
 
 ODE X. 
 
 T O 
 
 THOMAS EDWARDS, ESQUIRE: 
 
 ON THE LATE EDITION OF 
 
 MR. POPE'S WORKS. 
 
 M D C C L I. 
 
 I. 
 
 X> EL I EVE me, Edwards, to reftrain 
 The licence of a railer's tongue 
 Is what but feldom men obtain 
 By fenfe or wit, by profe or fong : 
 A tafk for more Herculean powers, 
 Nor fuited to the facred hours 
 Of leifure in the Mufe's bowers. 
 
 II. 
 
 In bowers where laurel weds with palm, 
 The Mufe, the blamelefs queen, refides : 
 Fair fame attends, and wifdom calm 
 Her eloquence harmonious guides : 
 While, fhut for ever from her gate, 
 Oft trying, ftill repining, wait 
 Fierce envy and calumnious hate. 
 
 Tt ni. Who
 
 322 ODE S, 
 
 III. 
 
 Who then from her delightful bounds 
 Would ftep one moment forth to heed 
 What impotent and favage founds 
 From their unhappy mouths proceed ? 
 No : rather Spenfer's lyre again 
 Prepare, and let thy pious {train 
 For Pope's difl^onor'd fhade complain. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Tell how difpleas'd was every bard. 
 When lately in the Elyfian grove 
 They of his Mufe's guardian heard, 
 His delegate to fame above ; 
 And what with one accord they faid 
 Of wit in drooping age milled, 
 And Warburton's officious aid : 
 
 V. 
 
 How Virgil mourn'd the fordid fate 
 
 To that melodious lyre affign'd 
 
 Beneath a tutor who fo late 
 
 W^ith Midas and his rout combin'd 
 
 By fplteful clamor to confound 
 
 That very lyre's enchanting found, 
 
 Though lillening realms admir'd around 
 
 VI. How
 
 325 
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 VI. 
 
 How Horace own'd he thought the fire 
 Of his friend Pope's fatiric line 
 Did farther fuel fcarce require 
 From fuch a militant divine : 
 How Milton fcorn'd the fophift vain 
 Who durft approach his hallow'd ftrain 
 With unwafh'd hands and lips profane. 
 
 VII. 
 
 Then Shakefpear debonnair and mild 
 Brought that ftrange comment forth to view ; 
 Conceits more deep, he faid and fmil'd. 
 Than his own fools or madmen knew : 
 But thank'd a generous friend above, 
 Who did with free adventurous love 
 Such pageants from his tomb remove. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 And if to Pope, in equal need, 
 The fame kind office thou would'ft pay, 
 Then, Edwards, all the band decreed 
 That future bards with frequent lay- 
 Should call on thy aufpicious name. 
 From each abfurd intruder's claim 
 To keep inviolate their fame. 
 
 T t 2 ODE
 
 y.jj D E S, 
 
 ODE XI. 
 
 T O T H E 
 
 COUNTRY GENTLEMEN 
 OF ENGLAND. 
 
 MDCCLVIII. 
 
 I. 
 
 Wh I T H E R is Europe's ancient fpirit fled ? 
 Where are thole valiant tenants of her iliore, 
 Who from the warrior bow the ftrong dart fped, 
 Or with firm hand the rapid pole-ax bore ? 
 Freeman and foldier was their common name. 
 Who late with reapers to the furrow came, 
 Now in the front of battle charg'd the foe : 
 Who taught the fleer the wintry plough to indure, 
 Now in full councils check'd incroaching power, 
 And gave the guardian laws their majefty to know. 
 
 IL But
 
 BOOKTHESECOND. 325 
 
 If. 
 
 But who are ye ? from Ebro's loitering fons 
 To Tiber's pageants, to the fports of Seine ; 
 From Rhine's frail palaces to Danube's thrones 
 And cities looking on the Cimbric main, 
 Ye loft, ye felf-deferted ? whofe proud lords 
 Have baffled your tame hands, and given your fwords 
 To flavifli ruffians, hir'd for their command : 
 Thefe, at fome greedy monk's or harlot's nod, 
 See rifled nations crouch beneath their rod : 
 Thefe are the public will, the reafon of the land. 
 
 IIL 
 
 Thou, Heedlefs Albion, what, alas, the while 
 Doll thou prefume ? O inexpert in arms,. 
 Yet vain of freedom, how doft thou beguile, 
 With dreams of hope, thefe near and loud alarms ? 
 Thy fplendid home, thy plan of laws renown'd, 
 The praife and envy of the nations round, 
 What care haft thou to guard from fortune's fway ?. 
 Amid the ftorms of war, how foon may all 
 The lofty pile from its foundations fall, 
 Of ages the proud toil, the ruin of a day !. 
 
 IV. No:
 
 326 ODES, 
 
 IV. 
 
 No : thou art rich, thy ftreams and fertile vales 
 Add induflry's wife gifts to nature's ftore : 
 And every port is crouded with thy fails, 
 And every wave throws treafure on thy fhore. 
 What boots it ? If luxurious plenty charm 
 Thy felfifh heart from glory, if thy arm 
 Shrink at the frowns of danger and of pain, 
 Thofe gifts, that treafure is no longer thine. 
 Oh rather far be poor. Thy gold will fhine 
 Tempting the eye of force, and deck thee to thy bane. 
 
 V. 
 
 But what hath force or war to do with thee ? 
 Girt by the azure tide and thron'd fublime 
 Amid thy floating bulwarks, thou canft fee, 
 With fcorn, the fury of each hoftile clime 
 Dafli'd ere it reach thee. Sacred from the foe 
 Are thy fair fields, athwart thy guardian prow 
 No bold invader's foot fliall tempt the llrand — 
 Yet fay, my country, will the waves and wind 
 Obey thee ? Haft thou all thy hopes refign'd 
 To the fky's fickle faith? the pilot's waveilng hand ? 
 
 VI. For
 
 BOOKTHESECOND. 327 
 
 VI. 
 
 For oh may neither fear nor ftronger love 
 (Love, by thy virtuous princes nobly won) 
 Thee, laft of many wretched nations, move. 
 With mighty armies ftation'd round the throne 
 To truft thy fafety. Then, farewell the claims 
 Of freedom ! Her proud records to the flames 
 Then bear, an offering at ambition's fhrine ; 
 Whate'er thy ancient patriots dar'd demand 
 From furious John's, or faithlefs Charles's hand, 
 Or what great William feal'd for his adopted line. 
 
 VII. 
 
 But if thy fons be worthy of their name, 
 If liberal laws with liberal hearts they prize, 
 Let them from conqueft, and from fervile fliame 
 In war's glad fchool their own protedtors rife. 
 Ye chiefly, heirs of Albion's cultur'd plains, 
 Ye leaders of her bold and faithful fwains. 
 Now not unequal to your birth be found : 
 The public voice bids arm your rural (late,. 
 Paternal hamlets for your enfigns wait, 
 And grange and fold prepare to pour their youth around. 
 
 VIII. Why
 
 22« ODE S, 
 
 VIII. 
 
 "Why are ye tardy ? what inglorious care 
 Detains you from their head, your native poft ? 
 
 m 
 
 Who moft their country's fame and fortune fhare, 
 'Tis -theirs to fhare her toils, her perils moft. 
 Each man his tafk in fecial life fuftains. 
 AVith partial labours, with domeftic gains 
 Let others dwell : to you indulgent heaven 
 By counfel and by arms the public caufe 
 To ferve for public love and love's applaufe. 
 The firft imployment far, the nobleft hire, hath given. 
 
 IX. 
 
 Have ye not heard of Lacedaemon's fame ?j 
 Of Attic chiefs in freedom's war divine ? 
 Of Rome's dread generals ? the Valerian name ? 
 The Fabian fons ? the Scipios, matchlefs line ? 
 Your lot was theirs, the farmer and the fvvain 
 Met his lov'd patron's fummons from the plain ; 
 The legions gather'd ; the bright eagles flew : 
 Barbarian monarchs in the triumph mourn'd ; 
 The conquerors to their houfhold gods returned, 
 And fed Calabrian flocks, and fteer'd the Sabine plough. 
 
 X. Shall
 
 B O O K T H E S. E C O N D. 32^ 
 
 X. 
 
 Shall then this glory of the antique age, 
 This pride of men, be loft among mankind ? 
 Shall war's heroic arts no more ingage 
 The unboiight hand, the unfubjedled mind ? 
 Doth valour to the race no more belong ? 
 No more with fcorn of violence and wrong 
 Doth forming nature now her fons infpire, 
 That, like fome myftery to few reveal'd, 
 The fkill of arms abafh'd and aw'd they yield, 
 And from their own defence with hopelefs hearts retire ? 
 
 XI. 
 
 O (hame to human life, to human laws ! 
 The loofe adventurer, hireling of a day. 
 Who his fell fword without affedion draws, 
 Whofe God, whofe country, is a tyrant's pay. 
 This man the leflbns of the field can learn ; 
 Can every palm, which decks a warrior, earn. 
 And every pledge of conqueft : while in vain, 
 To- guard your altars, your paternal lands, 
 Are focial arms held out to your free hands : 
 Too arduous is the lore ; too irkfome were the pain^. 
 
 U u XII. Meantime
 
 330 ODE S, 
 
 XII. 
 
 Meantime by pleafure's lying tales allur'd, 
 From the bright fun and living breeze ye ftray ; 
 And deep in London's gloomy haunts immur'd. 
 Brood o'er your fortune's, freedom's, health's decay. 
 O blind of choice and to yourfelves untrue ! 
 The young grove flioots, their bloom the fields renew, 
 The manfion afks its lord, the fwains their friend ; 
 While he doth riot's orgies haply fliare, 
 Or tempt the gamefter's dark, deftroying fnare, 
 Or at fome courtly flirine with flavifh incenfe bend. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 And yet full oft your anxious tongues compkin 
 That lawlefs tumult prompts the ruftic throng ; 
 That the rude village-inmates now difdaln 
 Thofe homely ties which rul'd their fathers long. 
 Alas, your fathers did by other arts 
 Draw thofe kind ties around their fimple hearts, 
 
 And led in other paths their ductile will ; 
 
 By fuccour, faithful counfel, courteous cheer, 
 
 Won them the ancient manners to revere, 
 To prize their country's peace and heaven's due rites fulfill. 
 
 XIV. But
 
 BOOKTHESECOND. 331 
 
 XIV. 
 
 But mark rhe judgement of experienc'd Time, 
 Tutor of nations. Doth light difcord tear 
 A ftate ? and impotent fedition's crime ? 
 The powers of warlike prudence dwell not there ; 
 The powers who to command and to obey, 
 Inftrud the valiant. There would civil fway 
 The rifing race to manly concord tame ? 
 Oft let the marfhal'd field their fteps unite. 
 And in glad fplendor bring before their fight 
 One common caufe and one hereditary fame. 
 
 XV. 
 
 Nor yet be aw'd, nor yet your tafk difown, 
 Though war's proud votaries look on fevere ; 
 Though fecrets, taught erewhile to them alone, 
 They deem profan'd by your intruding ear. 
 Let them in vain, your martial hope to quelle 
 Of new refinements, fiercer weapons tell. 
 And mock the old fimplicity, in vain : 
 To the time's warfare, fimple or refin'd. 
 The time itfelf adapts the warrior's mind ; 
 And equal prowefs ftill fliall equal palms obtain. 
 
 U u 2 XVf. Say
 
 3J2 ODES, 
 
 XVI. 
 Say then ; if England's youth, in earlier days, 
 On glory's field with well-train'd armies vy'd, 
 Why fhall they now renounce that generous praife ? 
 Why dread the foreign mercenary's pride ? 
 Though Valois brav'd young Edward's gentle hand. 
 And Albret rufh'd on Henry's way-worn band, 
 With Europe's chofen fons in arms renown'd. 
 Yet not on Vere's bold archers long they look'd, 
 Nor Audley's fquires nor Mowbray's yeomen brook 'd : 
 They faw their ftandard fall, and left their monarch bound. 
 
 XVIL 
 
 Such were the laurels which your fathers won ; 
 Such gloiy's didates in their dauntlefs breaft : 
 — Is there no voice that fpeaks to every fon ? 
 No nobler, holier call to You addrefs'd ? 
 O ! by majelHc freedom, righteous laws, 
 By heavenly truth's, by manly reafon's caufc, 
 Awake ; attend ; be indolent no more : 
 By friendship, focial peace, domeftic love. 
 Rife; arm; your country's living fafety prove ; 
 And train her valiant youth, and watch around her fhore. 
 
 ODE
 
 BOOKTHESECOND. gjj 
 
 a 
 
 ODE XII. 
 
 ON RECOVERING FROM A FIT OF SICKNESS 
 
 I 
 
 IN THE COUNTRY. 
 
 M D C C L V I I I. 
 
 I. 
 
 J- HY verdant fcenes, O Goulder's hilJ, 
 Once more i feek, a languid gueft: 
 With throbbing temples and with burden'd breafl 
 Once more i climb thy fteep aerial way. 
 O faithful cure of oft-returning ill, 
 Now call thy fprightly breezes round, 
 Diffolve this rigid cough profound. 
 And bid the Springs of life with gentler movement play. 
 
 II. 
 
 How gladly 'mid the dews of dawn 
 My weary lungs thy healing gale, 
 The balmy weft or the frefh north, inhale ! 
 How gladly, while my muling footfteps rove 
 Round the cool orchard or the funny lawn, 
 Awak'd i flop, and look to find 
 What flirub perfumes the plcafant wind, 
 Or what wild fongfter charms the Dryads of the grove. 
 
 III. Now,
 
 334 ODE S, 
 
 III. 
 
 Now, ere the morning walk is done, 
 
 The diftant voice of health i hear 
 Welcome as beauty's to the lover's ear. 
 *' Droop not, nor doubt of my return," fhe cries; 
 " Here v/ill i, 'mid the radiant calm of noon, 
 
 *' Meet thee beneath yon chefnut bower, 
 
 " And lenient on thy bofom pour 
 " That indolence divine which lulls the earth and fkies.'* 
 
 IV. 
 
 The goddefs promls'd not in vain. 
 
 I found her at my favorite time. 
 Nor willi'd to breathe in any fofter clime, 
 While (half-reclin'd, half-flumbering as i lay) 
 She hover'd o'er me. Then, among her train 
 
 Of nymphs and zephyrs, to my vievsr 
 
 Thy gracious form appear'd anew, 
 Then firft, o heavenly Mufe, unfeen for many a day. 
 
 V. 
 
 In that foft pomp the tuneful maid 
 Shone like the golden ftar of love. 
 I faw her hand in carelefs meafures move; 
 I heard fvveet preludes dancing on her lyre, 
 While my whole frame the facred found obey'd. 
 New funfhine o'er my fancy fprings, 
 New colours clothe external things. 
 And the laft glooms of pain and fickly plaint retire. 
 
 VI. O
 
 B O O K T H E S E C O N D. 335 
 
 VI. 
 
 O Goulder's hill, by thee reftor'd 
 
 Once more to this inliven'd hand, 
 
 My harp, which late refounded o'er the land 
 
 The voice of glory, folemn and fevere. 
 
 My Dorian harp fhall now with mild accord 
 
 To thee her joyful tribute pay. 
 
 And fend a lefs- ambitious lay 
 
 Of friendfhip and of love to greet thy mailer's ear. 
 
 VII. 
 
 For when within thy fhady feat 
 
 Firft from the fultry town he chofe, 
 
 And the tir'd fenate's cares, his wifli'd repofe, 
 
 Then waft thou mine ; to me a happier home 
 
 For focial leifure : where my welcome feet, 
 
 Eftrang'd from all the intangling ways 
 
 In which the reftlefs vulgar ftrays, 
 
 Through nature's fimple paths with ancient fiith might roam. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 And while around his fylvan fcenc 
 
 My Dyfon led the white-wing'd hours. 
 
 Oft from the Athenian Academic bowers 
 
 Their fagcs came : oft heard our lingering walk 
 
 The Mantuan mufic warbling o'er the green : 
 
 And oft did Tully's reverend iliade, 
 
 Though much for liberty afraid, 
 
 With us of letter'd eafe or virtuous glory talk, 
 
 IX. But
 
 336 ODES, 
 
 IX. 
 
 But other guefts were on their way, 
 
 And reach'd erelong this favor'd grove ; 
 Even the celeftial progeny of Jove, 
 Bright Venus, with her all-fubduing fon, 
 Whofe golden fhaft moft willingly obey 
 
 The beft and wifeft. As they came, 
 
 Glad Hymen wav'd his genial flame. 
 And fang their happy gifts, and prais'd their Ipotlefs throne^ 
 
 X. 
 
 I faw when through yon feftive gate 
 
 He led along his chofen maid. 
 And to ray friend with fmiles prefenting faid; 
 " Receive that faireft wealth which heaven aflign'd 
 ** To human fortune. Did thy lonely ftate 
 
 " One wifli, one utmofl: hope confefs ? 
 
 " Behold, fhe comes, to adorn and blefs : 
 ** Comes, worthy of thy heart, and equal to thy raiad«'^ 
 
 I 
 
 ODE
 
 BOOK THE SEGONDo 
 
 3J7 
 
 ODE XIIL 
 
 TO THE AUTHOR OF MEMOIRS OF THE HOUSE 
 
 OF BRANDENBURGH : 
 
 M D C C L L 
 
 I. 
 
 A H E men renown'd as chiefs of human race^ 
 And born to lead in counfels or in arms, 
 Have feldom turn'd their feet from glory's chace 
 To dwell with books or court the Mufe's charms^ 
 Yet, to our eyes if haply time hath brought 
 Some genuine tranfcript of their calmer thought, 
 There ftill we own the wife, the great, or good ; 
 And Casfar there and Xenophon are feen, 
 As clear in fpirit and fublime of mien. 
 As on Pharfalian plains, or by the Aflyrian flood. 
 
 II. 
 
 Say thou too, Frederic, was not this thy aim ? 
 Thy vigils could the lludent's lamp ingage, 
 Except for this ? except that future fame 
 Might read thy genius in the faithful page ? 
 
 Xx That
 
 338 0-D E S, 
 
 That If hereafter envy fliall prefume 
 With words irreverent to infcribe thy tomb, 
 And bafer weeds upon thy palms to fling, 
 That hence pofterity may try thy reign, 
 Aflert thy treaties, and thy wars explain, 
 And view in native lights the hero and the king. 
 
 rir. 
 
 O evil fbrefight and pernicious care f 
 Wilt thou indeed abide by this appeal ? 
 Shall we the leflbns of thy pen compare 
 With private honor or with public zeal ? 
 Whence then at things divine thofe darts of fcorn ?" 
 Why are the woes, which virtuous men have borne: 
 For facred truth, a prey to laughter given ? 
 What fiend, what foe of nature urg'd thy arm. 
 The Almighty of his fcepter to difarm ? 
 To pufh this earth adrift and leave it loofe from heaven ?; 
 
 IV. 
 
 Ye godlike (hades of leglflators old, 
 Ye who made Rome viftorious, Athens wife 
 Ye firft of mortals with the blefs'd inroU'd, 
 Say did not horror in your bofoms rife, 
 When thus by impious vanity impell'd 
 A magiftrate, a monarch, ye beheld 
 
 > 
 
 Affronting
 
 B O O K T H E S E C O N D. 339 
 
 Affronting civil order's holleft bands ? 
 Thofe bands which ye fo labor'd to improve ? 
 Thofe hopes and fears of juftice from above, 
 Which tam'd the lavage world to your divine commands ? 
 
 ODE XIV. 
 
 THE C O M P L x\ I N T. 
 
 I. 
 
 A WAY! Away! 
 Tempt me no more, infidious love i 
 
 Thy foothing fway 
 Long did my youthful bofom prove : 
 At length thy treafon is difcern'd, 
 At length fome dear-bought caution earn'd : 
 Away ! nor hope my riper age to move. 
 
 II. 
 
 1 know, i fee 
 Her merit. Needs it now be (lievvn, 
 
 . Alas, to me ? 
 How often, to myfelf unknown, 
 The graceful, gentle, virtuous maid 
 Have i admir'd ! How often faid. 
 What joy to call a heart like her's one's own ! 
 
 X X 2 III. But,
 
 340 ODES, 
 
 III. 
 
 But, flattering god, 
 O fquanderer of content and eafe, 
 
 In thy abode 
 Will care's rude leflbn learn to pleafe F 
 O fay, deceiver, haft thou won, 
 Proud fortune to attend thy throne, 
 Or plac'd thy friends above her ftern decrees ?; 
 
 O D E XV. 
 
 ON DOMESTIC MANNERS^ 
 [U N F I N I S H. E D.J 
 
 r. 
 
 JVlEEK honor, female Ihame, 
 O ! whither, fweeteft offspring of the fky,. 
 
 From Albion doft thou fly ; 
 Of Albiion's daughters once the favorite fame ?■ 
 
 O beauty's only friend, 
 Who giv'ft her pleafing reverence to' inlpire ; 
 
 Who felfifh, bold defire 
 Doft to efteem and dear affecSlion turn ; 
 
 Alas, of thee forlorn 
 What joy, what praife, what hope can life pretend ? 
 
 II. Behold;
 
 BOOK THE SECOND. 34E 
 
 Behold ; our youths in vam 
 Concerning nuptial happinefs inquire : 
 
 Our maids no more afpire ''" '■'^" 
 The arts of bafliful Hymen to attain j 
 
 But with triumphant eyes 
 And cheeks impaffive, as they move along, 
 
 Afk homage of the throng. 
 The lover fvt'ears that in a harlot's arms 
 
 Are found the felf-fame charms^ 
 And worthlefs and deferted lives and dies. 
 
 Behold ; unblefs'd at home. 
 The father of the cheerlefs houfehold mourns : 
 
 The night in vain returns, 
 For love and glad content at diftance rQami^M,... 
 
 While fhe, in vi^hom his mind 
 Seeks refuge from the day's dull talk of cares, 
 
 To meet him fhe prepares, .70 f^'^nr/s^ 
 Through noife and fpleen and a^.the-gamefter's art, 
 
 A liftlefs, harrafs'd heart, 
 Where. not one tender thought can welcome find. 
 
 IV.-'Tvvasr
 
 3-11 
 
 ODES. 
 
 IV, 
 
 'Tvvas thus, along the fliore 
 Of Thames, Britannia's guardian Genius heard, 
 
 From many a tongue preferr'd, 
 Of ftrife and grief the fond invedive lore : 
 
 At which the queen divine 
 Indignant, with her adamantine fpear 
 
 Like thunder founding near, 
 Smote the red crofs upon her (liver fliield, 
 
 And thus her wrath reveal'd. 
 (I watch'd her awful words and made them mine.) 
 
 # ' * * * # 
 
 THE END OF BOOK THE SECOND. 
 
 NOTES
 
 C 343 3 
 
 NOTE 
 
 ON THE 
 
 TWO BOOKS OF ODES. 
 
 B.I. Ode XVin. Stanza 11. 2.] Lycurgus the Lacedcemonian lawgiver brought 
 into Greece from Afia Minor the firft complete copy of Homer's works. — At Plataa 
 was fought the decifive battle between the Perfian army and the united militia of 
 Greece under Paufanias and Arijlides. — Cimon the Athenian erefled a trophy in Cyprus 
 for two great viftories gained on the fame day over the Pcr/ians by fea and land. 
 Diodorus Sicuhis has preferved the infcription which the Athenians affixed to the con- 
 fecrated fpoils, after this great fuccefs ; in which it is very remarkable, that the 
 greatnefs of the occaGon has raifed the manner of expreffion above the ufual fun- 
 glicity and modefty of all other ancient infcriptions. It is this : 
 
 EH. OT. r'. ETPnnHN. AZIAX. ATXA. nONTOX. ENEIME. 
 
 KAI.. nOAEAS. ©NHTHN. 0OTPOS.. APHi:. EDEXEI. 
 OTAEN. nn. TOIOTTON.EniXGONinN. TENET'. ANAPHN. 
 
 EPTON. EN. HriEIPai. KAI. KATA. RONTON. AMA. 
 OIAE. TAP. EN. KTnPni. MHAOTS. ROAAOTS. OAE2ANTEZ. 
 
 tpOINIKHN. EKATON. NATS. EAON. EN. DEAATEI. 
 ANAPHN. nAHGOTSAS. META. A'. E2TENEN. ASIS. Tff. ATTHN. 
 
 niiHTEIS'. AIVW'OTEPAIS. XEPSI. KPATEI. nOAEMOT.. 
 
 The following tranflation is almoft literal : 
 
 Since fird the fea from AJia's hoftile coall 
 
 Divided Europe, and the god of v/ar 
 
 Afiail'd imperious cities; never yet,. 
 
 At once among the waves and on the (hore. 
 
 Hath fuch a labour been aichicv'd by men 
 
 Who earth inhabit. They, whofe arms the Males 
 
 In Cyprus felt pernicious, they, the fame. 
 
 Have won from l]<Ilful Tyre an .hundred (hips 
 
 Grouded with warriors. A^fia groans, in both- 
 
 Her, hands fore fmitten, by the, might of war.
 
 .'^:14 NOTES ON THE TWO BOOKS OF ODES. 
 
 Stanza II. g.] Pindar was cotemporary with Arijlides and Cimon, in whom the 
 ,F;lory of ancient Greece was at its height. When Xerxes invaded Greece, Pindar 
 was true to the common interefl of his country ; though his fejiow citizens, the 
 Thebans, had fold themfelves to the Perfian king. In one of his odes he exprefles 
 the great diflrefs and anxiety of his mind, occafioned by the vafl preparations of 
 X(rxes againfl Greece. {IJlkm. 8.) In another he celebrates the victories of Salarnis, 
 P/ahva, and Ilimera. (Pyih. i.) It ^vill be neceffary to add two or three other par- 
 ticulars of his life, real or fabulous, in order to esplain what follows in the text 
 concerning him. Firft then, he was thouglit to be fo great a favourite of Jpollo, 
 that che pricfls of that deity allotted him a conftant (hare of their offerings. It was 
 f^iid of him, as of fome other illuftrious men, that at his birth a fwarm of bees 
 lighted on his lips, and fed him with their honey. It was alfo a tradition concerning 
 him, that Pan was heard to recite his poetry, and feen dancing to one of his hymns 
 on the mountains near Thebes. But a real hiftorical faft in his life is, that the 
 Thebans impofed a large fine upon him on account of the veneration which he ex- 
 preffed in his poenT) for that heroic fpirit, fliewn by the people o^ Athens m defence 
 of the common liberty, which his own fellow citizens had fliamefully betrayed. 
 And, as the argument of this ode implies, t\i:ii great poetical talents, and high fen- 
 timents of liberty, do reciprocally produce and ajpji each other, fo P/W^r is perhaps 
 the mod exemplary proof of this connection, which occurs in hiftory. The Thebans 
 were remarkable, in general, for a flavifli difpofition through all the fortunes of 
 their common- wealth ; at the time of its ruin hy Philip; and even in its befl; ftate, 
 under the adiuinidration of Pclopidas and Epaminandas : and every one knows, they 
 were no lefs remarkable for great dullnefs, and want of all genius. That Pindar 
 fliould have equally diflinguiflied himfelf from the reft of his fellow citizens in both 
 thcfe refpefls, fcems fomewhat extraordinary, and is fcarce to be accounted for but 
 by the preceding obfcrvation. 
 
 Stanza HI. 3.] Alluding to his Defence of the people of England againft Salmajius. 
 See particularly the manner in which he himfelf fpeaks of that undertaking, in the 
 introduftion to his reply to Alorus. 
 
 Stanza I\^ 3.] £<f-7twt/ the Third ; from whom dcfcended //f wry H(7/?/w^/, third 
 F.arl of Huntingdon, by the daughter of the Duke of Clarence, brother to Edward 
 the Fourth. 
 
 Stanza V. 3.] At Whittington, a village on the edge of Scarfdale in Derhyfliire^ 
 the Earls of Dcvonfhire and Danby, with the Lord Dclamerc, privately concerted 
 the plan of the Revolution. The houfe in which they met is at prefent a farm- 
 houfe, and the country people diftinguilh the room where they fat, by the name of 
 the plotting parlour. 
 
 B. II. Ode VII. Stanza II. i.] Mr. Lcf/^^ died in 1704, when Mr. HoadJy vm 
 beginning to diftinguifli himfelf in the caufe of civil and religious liberty : Lord 
 
 GodclphiH
 
 NOTES ON THE TWO BOOKS OF ODES. 345 
 
 Godolphin in 1 712, when the doftrines of the Jacobite faftion were chiefly favoured 
 by thofein power: Lord Scmers in 17 16, amid the praftices of the nonjuring cler- 
 gy againft the proteflant eftabhfliment; and Lord 5/rt«/;o/'f in 1721, during thecon- 
 troverfy with the lower houfe of convocation. 
 
 B. n. Ode X. Stanza V.] During Mr. Pope's war with Iheobaldy Concancn, and 
 the reft of their tribe, Mr. Warburton, the prefent Lord Biftiop of Glouceftcr, did 
 with great zeal cultivate their friendfhip ; having been introduced, forfootb, at the 
 meetings of that refpeftable confederacy :,k favour which he afterwards fpoke of 
 in very high terms of complacency and thankfulnefs. At the fame time in his inter- 
 courfe with them he treated Mr. 'Pope in a moft contemptuous manner, and as a 
 writer without genius. Of the truth of thefe affertions his Lordlhip can have no 
 doubt, if he recollefts his own correfpondence with Concanen ; a part of which is 
 flill in being, and will probably be remembered as long as any of this prelate's 
 writings. 
 
 B. IL Ode XIII.] In the year 1 751 appeared a very fplendid edition, in quarto, 
 of Memoires pourfervir a I'HiJioire de la Mai/on de Brmidebourg, a BerVm & d /a 
 Haye \ with a privilege fignedpEDERic ; the fame being engraved in imitation of 
 hand-writing. In this edition, among other extraordinary paflages, are the two 
 following, to which the third ftanza of this ode more particularly refers : 
 
 Page 163.] II fe ft tine migration (the author is fpeaking of what happened on 
 the revocation of the edift of Nantes) dont on n'avolt gucre vu d'exemples dans I'hif- 
 toire : un peuple entier fortit du royaume par I'efprit de parti en baine du pape, & pour 
 recevoir fous un autre del la communion fous les deux efpeces : quatre cens mille ames 
 f'expatrierent ainfi iS abandonnerent tons leitr biens pour detonner dans d'aiitres temples 
 les vieux pfeaumes de Clement Marot. 
 
 Page 242.] La crainte donna le jour a la credulite, ^ P amour propre inter ejfa 
 bientot U del au dejiin des hommes. 
 
 Y^ HYMN
 
 H 
 
 M 
 
 N 
 
 T O T H E 
 
 NAIADS. 
 
 M D C C X L V I. 
 
 Yy 2
 
 ARGUMENT. 
 
 The Njf?iphs, ijoho prefide over fpr'ings and rivulets^ are ad- 
 drejfed at day -breaks in honor of their fever al funSlionSy 
 and of the relations which they bear to the natural and to 
 the moral world. Their origi?i is deduced fro?n the firft al- 
 legorical deities, or powers of nature ; according to the doBrine 
 of the old mythological poets, concerning the generation of 
 the gods and the rife of things. They are then fuccefftvely 
 confderedy as giving motion to the air and exciting fummer- 
 breezes ; as nourifhing and beautifying the vegetable creation \ 
 as contributi?ig to the fullnefs of navigable rivers, and con- 
 fequently to the maintenance of commerce ; and by that meanSy 
 to the maritime part of military power. Next is reprefented 
 their favourable influence upon health, when ajjifled by rural 
 exercife : which introduces their con?teSlion with the art of 
 phyfc, and the happy effeSis of mineral medicinal fprings.. 
 Laflly, they are celebrated for the friendfhip which the Mtfes 
 bear them, and for the true infpiration which temperance 
 only can receive : in oppofttion to the enthufafm of the more 
 licentious poets. 
 
 H Y M K
 
 HYMN 
 
 T O T H E 
 
 N A I A D 
 
 vJ ' E R yonder eaftern hill the twilight pale 
 
 Walks forth from darknefs ; and the God of day, 
 
 With bright Aftraea feated by his fide, 
 
 Waits yet to leave the ocean. Tarry, Nymphs, 
 
 Ye Nymphs, ye blue-ey'd progeny of Thames, 
 
 "Who now the mazes of this rugged heath 
 
 Trace with your fleeting fteps ; who all night long 
 
 Repeat, amid the cool and tranquil air, 
 
 Your lonely murmurs, tarry ; and receive 
 
 My offer'd lay. To pay you homage due, 
 
 I leave the gates of fleep ; nor iLall my lyre 
 
 Too far into the fplendid hours of morn 
 
 Ingage your audience : my obfervant hand 
 
 Shall clofe the ftrain qre any fiiltry beani 
 
 ».^'» 
 
 Approach
 
 353 HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 
 
 Approach you. To your fubterranean haunts 
 Ye then may timely fteal ; to pace with care 
 The humid fands ; to loofcn from the foil 
 The bubbHng fources ; to dired the rills 
 To meet in wider channels ; or beneath 
 Some grotto's dripping arch, at height of noon 
 To flumber, flielter'd from the burning heaven. 
 
 Where fliall my fong begin, ye Nymphs ? or end ? 
 Wide is your praife and copious — Firft of things, 
 Firft of the lonely powers, ere Time arofe, 
 Were Love and Chaos. Love, the fire of Fate ; 
 Elder than Chaos. Born of Fate was Time, 
 Who many fons and many comely births 
 Devour'd, relentlefs father : 'till the child 
 Of Rhea drove him from the upper fky, 
 And quell'd his deadly might. Then fecial reign'd 
 The kindred powers, Tethys, and reverend Ops, 
 And fpotlefs Vefta ; while fupreme of fvvay 
 Remain'd the cloud-compeller. From the couch 
 Of Tethys fprang the fedgy-crowned race, 
 Who from a thoufand urns, o'er every clime, 
 Send tribute to their parent ; and from them 
 Are ye, o Naiads : Arethufa fair, 
 And tuneful Aganippe ; that fweet name, 
 Bandufia j that foft family which dwelt 
 
 With
 
 HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 351 
 
 With Syrua Daphne ; and the honour'd tribes 
 Belov'd of Pteon. Lilten to my ftrain, 
 Daughters of Tethys : Hften to your praife. 
 
 You, Nymphs, the winged offspring, which of old 
 Aurora to divine Afhraeus bore, 
 Owns ; and your aid befeecheth. When the might 
 Of Hyperion, from his noontide throne, 
 Unbends their languid pinions, aid from you 
 They afk : Favonius and the mild South-weft 
 From you relief implore. Your fallying ftreams 
 Frefh vigour to their weary wings impart. 
 Again they fly, difporting ; from the mead 
 Half ripen'd and the tender blades of corn. 
 To fweep the noxious mildew ; or difpel 
 Contagious fleams, which oft the parched earth 
 Breathes on her fainting fons. From noon to eve, 
 Along the river and the paved brook, 
 Afcend the cheerful breezes : hail'd of bards 
 Who, fafi: by learned Cam, the ^olian lyre 
 Sollicit ; nor unwelcome to the youth 
 Who on the heights of Tibur, all inchn'd 
 O'er rufhing Anio, with a pious hand 
 The reverend fcene delineates, broken fanes. 
 Or tombs, or pillar'd aquedudls, the pomp 
 Of ancient Time j and haply, while he fcans 
 
 The
 
 •^5: HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 
 
 The ruins, wiih a filent tear revolves 
 The fame and fortune of imperious Rome. 
 
 You too, o Nymphs, and your unenvious aid 
 The rural powers confefs ; and ftill prepare 
 For you their choiccfl: trcafurcs. Pan commands, 
 Oft as the Dehan king with Sirius holds 
 The central heavens, the fluher of the grove 
 Commands his Dryads over your abodes 
 To fpread their deepeft umbrage, well the god 
 Remembereth how indulgent y^e fupplied 
 Your genial dews to nurfe them in their prime. 
 
 Pales, the pafture's queen, where'er ye ftray, 
 Purfues your fteps, delighted ; and the path 
 With living verdure clothes. Around your haunts 
 The laughing Chloris, with profufeft hand, 
 Throws wide her blooms, her odors. Still with you 
 Pomona feeks to dwell : Ihd o'er the lawns, 
 And o'er the vale of Richmond, where with Thames 
 Ye love to wander, Amalthea pours 
 Well-pleas'd the wealth of that Ammonian horn, 
 Her dower ; unmindful of the fragrant ifles 
 Nyfaean or Atlantic. Nor can'ft thou, 
 (Albeit oft, ungrateful, thou doft mock 
 The beverage of the fober Naiad's urn, 
 O Bromius, o Lenzean) nor can'ft thou 
 
 Difown
 
 HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 
 
 353 
 
 Dlfown the powers wliofe bounty, ill repaid, 
 With nedar feeds thy tendrils. Yet from mc, 
 Yet, blamelefs Nymphs, from my delighted lyre, 
 Accept the rites your bounty well may claim ; 
 Nor heed the fcoffings of the Edonian band. 
 
 For better praife awaits you. Thames, your fire, 
 As down the verdant flope your duteous rills 
 Defcend, the tribute ftately Thames receives, 
 Delighted ; and your piety applauds ; 
 And bids his copious tide roll on fecure. 
 For faithful are his daughters ; and with words 
 Aufpicious gratulates the bark which, now 
 His banks forfaking, her adventurous wings 
 Yields to the breeze, with Albion's happy gifts 
 Extremeft ifles to blefs. And oft at morn, 
 When Hermes, from Olympus bent o'er earth 
 To bear the words of Jove, on yonder hill 
 Stoops lightly-failing ; oft intent your fprings 
 He views : and waving o'er fome new-born ftream 
 His bleft pacific wand, " And yet," he cries, 
 " Yet," cries the fon of Maia, " though reclufe 
 " And filent be your ftores, from you, fair Nymphsj 
 " Flows wealth and kind fociety to men. 
 " By you my fundion and my honot'd name 
 ** Do i poffefs ; while o'er the Bcetic vale, 
 
 Z z "Or
 
 (( 
 
 -4 HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 
 
 " Or througli the towers of Memphis, or the pahns 
 " By liicred Ganges water'd, i conduft 
 *' The Endifli merchant : with the buxom fleece 
 *' Of fertile Ariconium while i clothe 
 " Sarmatian kings ; or to the houfehold gods 
 Of Syria, from the bleak Cornubian fhore, 
 Difpenfe the mineral treafure which of old 
 Sidonian pilots fought, when this fair land 
 *' Was yet unconfcious of thofe generous arts 
 " Which wife Phoenicia from their native clime 
 ** Tranfplanted to a more indulgent heaven." 
 
 Such are the words of Hermes ; fuch the praife, 
 O Naiads, which from tongues cceleftial waits 
 Your bounteous deeds. From bounty iflueth power : 
 And thofe who, fedulous in prudent works, 
 Relieve the wants of nature, Jove repays 
 With noble wealth, and his own feat on earth, 
 Fit judgements to pronounce, and curb the might 
 Of wicked men. Your kind unfailing urns 
 Not vainly to the hofpitable arts 
 Of Hermes yield their ftore. For, o ye Nymphs, 
 Hath he not won the unconquerable queen 
 Of arms to court your friendfhip ? You flie owns 
 The fair affociates who extend her fway 
 Wide o'er the mighty deep j and grateful things 
 
 Of
 
 3S5 
 
 HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 
 
 Of you flie uttereth, oft as from the fliore 
 
 Of Thames, or Medway's vale, or the green banks 
 
 Of Veda, ilie her thundering navy leads 
 
 To Calpe's foaming channel, or the roucrh 
 
 Cantabrian furge ; her aufpices divine 
 
 Imparting to the fenate and the prince 
 
 Of Albion, to difmay barbaric kings, 
 
 The Iberian, or the Celt. The pride of kings 
 
 Was ever fcorn'd by Pallas : and of old 
 
 Rejoic'd the virgin, from the brazen prow 
 
 Of Athens o'er iEgina's gloomy furge, 
 
 To drive her clouds and ftorms ; o'erwhelming all 
 
 The Perfian's promis'd glory, when the realms 
 
 Of Indus and the foft Ionian clime. 
 
 When Libya's torrid champain and the rocks 
 
 Of cold Imaiis join'd their fervile bands, 
 
 To fweep the fons of liberty from earth. 
 
 In vain : Minerva on the bounding prow 
 
 Of Athens flood,, and with the thunder's voice 
 
 Denounc'd her terrors on their impious heads, 
 
 And fhook her burning segis. Xerxes faw : 
 
 From Heraclcum, on the mountain's height 
 
 Thron'd in his golden car, he knew the fign 
 
 Coeleftial ; felt unrighteous hope forfake 
 
 His faultering heartj and turn'd his face with iliame. 
 
 Z z 2 Hail,
 
 35<J H Y M N T O T H E N A I A D S. 
 
 Hail, ye who fhare the ftern Minerva's power ; 
 Who arm the hand of Hberty for war : 
 And eive to the renown'd Britannic name 
 To awe contending monarchs : yet benign, 
 Yet mild of nature : to the works of peace 
 More prone, and lenient of the many ills 
 Which wait on human life. Your gentle aid 
 Hygeia well can witnefs ; flie who faves, 
 From poifonous cates and cups of pleaiing bane, 
 The wretch devoted to the intangling fnares 
 Of Bacchus and of Comus. Him fhe leads 
 To Cynthia's lonely haunts. To fpread the toils. 
 To beat the coverts, with the jovial horn 
 At dawn of day to fummon the loud hounds, 
 She calls the lingering fluggard from his dreams : 
 And vv^here his breaft may drink the mountain breeze, 
 And where the fervor of the funny vale 
 May beat upon his brow, through devious paths 
 Beckons his rapid courfer. Nor when eafe, 
 Cool eafe and welcome {lumbers have becalm'd 
 His eager bofom, does the queen of health 
 Her pleafing care withhold. His decent board 
 She guards, prefiding ; and the frugal powers 
 With joy fedate leads in : and while the brown 
 Ennsean dame with Pan prefents her ftorcs j 
 
 While
 
 HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 
 
 While changing ftill, and comely in the change, 
 
 Vertumnus and the Hours before him fpread 
 
 The garden's banquet ; you to crown his feafl-, 
 
 To crown his feaft, o Naiads, you the fair 
 
 Hygeia calls : and from your fhelving feats, 
 
 And groves of poplar, plenteous cups ye bring, 
 
 To flake his veins : 'till foon a purer tide 
 
 Flows down thofe loaded channels ; waflieth off 
 
 The dregs of luxury, the lurking feeds 
 
 Of crude difeafe ; and through the abodes of life 
 
 Sends vigour, fends repofe. Hail, Naiads : hail, 
 
 Who give, to labour, health ; to {looping age, 
 
 The joys which youth had fquander'd. Oft your urns 
 
 Will i invoke ; and frequent in your praife, 
 
 Abafli the frantic Thyrfus with my fong. 
 
 For not eftrang'd from your benignant arts 
 Is he, the god, to whofe myfterious fhrine 
 My youth was facred, and my votive cares 
 Belong ; the learned Pa^on. Oft when all 
 His cordial treafures he hath fearch'd in vain ; 
 When herbs, and potent trees, and drops of balm 
 Rich with the o-enial influence of the fun, 
 (To roufe dark fancy from her plantive dreams, 
 To brace the neryelefs arm, with food to wia 
 Sick appetite, or hufli the unquiet breafl 
 
 357 
 
 Which
 
 ^.jS II V M N T O T H E N A I A D S. 
 
 Which pines with filent paflion) he in vain 
 
 Hath prov'd ; to your deep manfions he defcends. 
 
 Your gates of humid rock, your dim arcades, 
 
 He entereth ; where impurpled veins of ore 
 
 Gleam on the roof; where through the rigid mine 
 
 Your trickling rills infinuate. There the god 
 
 From your indulgent hands the ftreaming bowl 
 
 Wafts to his pale-ey'd fuppliants ; wafts the feeds 
 
 Metallic and the elemental falts 
 
 AVafli'd from the pregnant glebe. They drink : and foon 
 
 Flies pain ; flies inaufpicious care : and foon 
 
 The focial haunt or unfrequented fhade 
 
 Hears lo, lo Psan ; as of old, 
 
 When Python fell. And, o propitious Nymphs, 
 
 Oft as for haplefs mortals i implore 
 
 Your falutary fprings, through every urn 
 
 Oh {hed your healing treafures. With the firft 
 
 And fineft breath, which from the genial Ibife 
 
 Of mineral fermentation fprings, like light 
 
 O'er the frefh morning's vapours, luftrate then 
 
 The fountain, and inform the riling wave. 
 
 My lyre fhall pay your bounty. Scorn not ye 
 
 That humble tribute. Though a mortal hand 
 
 Excite the ftrings to utterance, yet for themes 
 
 Not unregarded of cceleftial powers, 
 
 I frame
 
 H Y INI N T O T H E N A I A D S, 359 
 
 I frame their language ; and the Mufes deign 
 
 To guide the pious tenor of my lay. 
 
 The Mufes (facred be their gifts divine) 
 
 In early days did to my wondering fenfe 
 
 Their fecrets oft reveal : oft my rais'd ear 
 
 In {lumber felt their mudc : oft at noon 
 
 Or hour of funfet, by fome lonely ftream. 
 
 In field or fliady grove, they taught me words 
 
 Of power from death and envy to prelerve 
 
 The good man's name, whence yet with grateful mind, 
 
 And offerings unprofan'd by ruder eye, 
 
 My vows i fend, my homage, to the feats 
 
 Of rocky Cirrha, where with you they dwell : 
 
 Where you their chafte companions they admit 
 
 Through all the hallow'd fcene : where oft intent, 
 
 And leaning o'er Caflalia's mofly verge, 
 
 They mark the cadence of your confluent urns. 
 
 How tuneful, yielding gratefullefi: repofe 
 
 To their conforted meafure : 'till again,. 
 
 With emulation all the founding choir, 
 
 And bright Apollo, leader of the fong, 
 
 Their voices through the liquid air exalt. 
 
 And fweep their lofty firings : thofe powerful firings 
 
 That charm the mind of gods : that fill die courts 
 
 Of wide Olympus with oblivion fweet 
 
 Of
 
 26s H Y M N T O THE NAIADS. 
 
 Of evils, wlih immortal reft from cares ; 
 Affuage the terrors of the throne of Jove ; 
 And quench the formidable thunderbolt 
 Of unrelenting fire. With Hacken'd wings, 
 While now the folemn concert breathes around, 
 Incumbent o'er the fceptre of his lord 
 Sleeps the ftern eagle ; by the number'd notes, 
 Poilefs'd J and fatiate with the melting tone : 
 Sovereign of birds. The furious god of war, 
 His darts forgetting, and the winged wheels 
 That bear him vengeful o'er the embattled plain, 
 Relents, and fooths his own fierce heart to cafe, 
 Moft welcome eafe. The fire of gods and men, 
 In that great moment of divine delight. 
 Looks down on all that live ; and whatfoe'er 
 He loves not, o'er the peopled earth and o'er 
 The interminated ocean, he beholds 
 Curs'd with abhorrence by his doom fevere, 
 And troubled at the found. Ye, Naiads, ye 
 With ravi(h'd ears the meloay attend 
 Worthy of facred filence. But the flaves 
 Of Bacchus with tempeftuous clamours ftrlve 
 To drown the heavenly ftrains ; of highell Jove, 
 Irreverent ; and by mad prefumption fir'd 
 Their own difcordant raptures to advance 
 
 With
 
 HYMNTOTHENAIADS. 3^, 
 
 With hoftile emulation. Down they rufli 
 
 From Nyfa's vine-impurpled cliff, the dames 
 
 Of Thrace, the Satyrs, and the unruly Fauns, 
 
 With old Silenus, reeling through the crowd 
 
 Which gambols round him, in convullions wild 
 
 Tofling their limbs, and brandifhing in air 
 
 The ivy- mantled thyrfus, or the torch 
 
 Through black fmoke flaming, to the Phrygian pipe's 
 
 Shrill voice, and to the clafliing cymbals, mix'd 
 
 With flirieks and frantic uproar. May the gods 
 
 From every unpolluted ear avert 
 
 Their orgies ! If within the feats of men, 
 
 Within the walls, the gates, where Pallas holds 
 
 The guardian key, if haply there be found 
 
 Who loves to mingle with the revel-band 
 
 And hearken to their accents ; who afpires 
 
 From fuch inftrudlers to inform his breaft 
 
 With verfe j let him, fit votarift, implore 
 
 Their infpiration. He perchance the gifts 
 
 Of young Lyseus, and the dread exploits^ 
 
 May ling in apteft numbers : he the fate 
 
 Of fober Pentheus, he the Paphian rites, 
 
 And naked Mars with Cytherea chain'd, 
 
 And ftrong Alcides in the fpinfter's robes, 
 
 May celebrate, applauded.. But with you, 
 
 A a a O Naiads,
 
 36z II Y M N T O T H E N A I A D S. 
 
 O Naiads, far from that unhallow'd rout, 
 
 Muft dwell the man whoe'er to praifed themes 
 
 Invokes the immortal Mufe. the immortal Mufe 
 
 To your calm habitations, to the cave 
 
 Corycian or the Delphic mount, will guide 
 
 His footfteps ; and with your unfuUied ftreams 
 
 His lips will bathe : whether the eternal lore 
 
 Of Themis, or the majefty of Jove, 
 
 To mortals he reveal ; or teach his lyre 
 
 The unenvled guerdon of the patriot's toils, 
 
 In thofe unfading iflands of the blefs'd, 
 
 Where facred bards abide. Hail, honor'd Nymphs ; 
 
 Thrice hail, for You the Cyrena'ic fhell 
 
 Behold, i touch, revering. To my fongs 
 
 Be prefent ye with favorable feet, 
 
 And all profaner audience far remove. 
 
 NOTES
 
 L 5^3 ] 
 
 NOTE 
 
 ON THE 
 
 HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 
 
 ' Page 350^ 1. IK — Lcve — 
 
 E filer than Chaos,'] Hefwd, in his Thcogony, gives a different account, 
 and maices Cliaos the eldeft of beings ; thougla he affigns to Love neither fa- 
 ther nor fuperior; which circumftance is particularly mentioned by Flmdms, in 
 Flato^s Banquet^ as being obfervable not only in Hefwd, but in all other writers 
 both of verfe and profe : and on the fame occafion he cites a line from Parmcnides, 
 in which Love is exprefsly ftiled the eldeft of all the gods. Yet Arijlop banes, in 
 The Birds, affirms, that " Chaos, and Night, and Erebus, and Tartarus, were 
 *' firft ;: and that Love was produced from an egg, which the fable-winged night de- 
 " pofited in the immenfe bofom of Erebus." But it muft be obferved, that the 
 Love defigned by this comic poet was always diftinguiflied from the other, from that 
 original and felf-exiftent being ihe TO ON or ATAQON of Blato, and meant only 
 the AHMIOTPrOS or fecond perfon of the old Gnecian trinity ; to whom is infcribed 
 an hymn among thofe which pafs under the name of Orpheus, where he is called 
 ■Frotogotios, or the firft-begotten, is faid to have been born of an egg, and is repre- 
 Xented as the principal or origin of all thefe external appearances of nature. In the 
 fragments of Orpheus, colledled by He7iry Slephens, he is named Pbancs, the difco- 
 Terer or difclofer; who unfolded the ideas of the fupreme intelligence, and ex- 
 pofed them to the perception of inferior beings in this viGble frame of the world ; 
 ks Maerobius, and Frocks,. ^.vA Athcnapras all agree to interpret the feveral paffages 
 of Orpheus which they have preferved. 
 
 But the Love defigned in our text, is the one felf-e^-iftent and infinite mind, whom 
 if the generality of ancient mythologifts have not introduced or truly defcribcd in 
 accounting for the production of the world and its appearances; yet, to a modern 
 poet, it can be no objedlion that he hath ventured to differ from them in this par- 
 ticular; though, in other refpecis, he profeffeth to imitate their manner and con- 
 form to their opinions. For, in thefe great points of natural theology, they diffec 
 no lefs remarkably among themfelves ; and are perpetually confounding the philo? 
 fophical relations of things with die traditionary circumilances of mythic hiftory : 
 
 A a a 2 «ron
 
 3^4 NOTES ON THE HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 
 
 upon which very account, Callimackus, in his hymn xo Jupiter, declareth his diflent 
 from them concerning even an article of the national creed ; adding, that the an* 
 cient bards were by no means to be depended on. And yet in the exordium of 
 the old Argonautic poem, afcribed to Orpheus, it is faid, that '* Love, whom mortals 
 " in later times call Phanes, was the father of the eternally-begotten Night;" who 
 is generally reprefented by thefe mythological poets, as being herfelf the parent of 
 all things ; and who, in the Iiidigit(ime7ita, or Orphic Hymns, is faid to be the fame 
 with Cypris, or Love itfelf. Moreover, in the body of this Argonautic poem, where 
 the perfonated Orpheus introduceth himfelf finging to his lyre in reply to C/j;Vo«, he 
 cclebrateth " the obfcure memory of Chaos, and the natures which it contained 
 •* within itfelf in a flate of perpetual vicifTirude ; how the heaven had its boundary 
 " determined ; the generation of the earth ; the depth of the ocean ; and alfo the 
 ■** fapient Love, the moft ancient, the felf-fufficient ; with all the beings which he 
 " produced when he feparated one thing from another." Which noble paf- 
 fage is more dircftly to Arijiotle's purpofe in the firfl book of his metaphyfics 
 than any of thofe which he has there quoted, to (hew that the ancient poets 
 and mythologifts agreed with Empedocles, A/iaxagoras, and the other more fober 
 philofophers, in that natural anncipation and common notion of mankind con- 
 cerning the neceffity of mind and reafon to account for the connexion, motion, and 
 good order of the world. For, though neither this poem, nor the hymns which 
 pafs under the fame name, are, it fhould feem, the work of the real Orpheus; yet 
 beyond ail queflion, they are very ancient. The hymns, more particularly, are al- 
 lowed to be older than the invafion of Greece by Xerxes ; and were probably a fett 
 of public and folemn forms of devotion : as appears by a paffage in one of them, 
 which Demojihenes hath almoft literally cited in his firft oratiop againfh Arijlogito?!, 
 as the faying of Orpheus, the founder of their moft holy myfteries. On this ac- 
 count, they are of higher authority than any other mythological work now extant, 
 the Theogony of He/tod himfelf not excepted. The poetry of them is often ex- 
 tremely noble ; and the myfterious air which prevails in them, together with its 
 delightful imprellion upon the mind, cannot be better expreffed than in that re- 
 markable defcription with which they infpired the German cdkox E/chenbijch, when 
 he accidentally met with them at Leipfic : •< Thefaurum me reperiffe credidi, fays he^ 
 & profefto thefaurum reperi. Incredibile diftu quo me facro horrore afflaverint in- 
 digitamenta iltadeorum : nam et tempus ad illorum le(flionem eligere cogebar, quod 
 vel folum horrorcm incutere animo poteft, noflurnum ; cum enira totamdiem con* 
 fumferim in contemplando urbis fplendore, & in adcundis, quibus fcatet urbs ilia, 
 viris do£lis ; fola nox feftabat, quam Orpheo confecrare potui. In abyiHun quendam 
 myfteriorum venerandx antiquitatis defcendere videbar, quotiefcunque filente mun- 
 <lo, fttljs vigilantibus aftris et luna, [jt^T^xvYipuTai iflos hymnos ad manus fumfi." 
 
 1. II, Chaos.
 
 NOTES ON THE HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 3^5 
 
 1. ir. Chaos.'] The unformed, undigefled mafs of Mo/cs and Plato: which 
 Milton calls 
 
 " The womb of nature." 
 1. I r. Love, the fire of FateJ] Fate is the univerfal fyrtem of natural caufes ; the 
 ■work of the Omnipotent Mind, or of Love : fo Minucius Felix : " quid enim aliud eft 
 fatum, quam quod de unoquoque noftrum deus fatus eft." So alfo Cicero, in The 
 Firft Book on Divination ; " Fatum autem id appello, quod Graci EIPMAPMENHN ; 
 id eft, ordinem feriemque caufarum, cum caufa caufa; nexa rem ex fe gignat — ex 
 quo intelligitur, ut fatum fit non id quod fuperftitiofe, fed id quod phyfice dicitur 
 caufa aeterna rerum." To the fame purpofe is the dodtrine of Hierocles, in that ex- 
 cellent fragment concerning Providence and Deftiny. As to the three Fates, or De- 
 ftinies of the poets, they reprefented that part of the general fyftem of natural 
 caufes which relates to man, and to other mortal beings : for fo we are told in the 
 hymn addrefled to them among the Orphic Indigil anient a, where they are called the 
 daughters of Night (or Love), and, contrary to the vulgar notion, are diftinguiflicd 
 by the epithets of gentle, and tender-hearted. According to Hefwd, Theog. ven 904, 
 they were the daughters of Jupiter and Themis : but in the Orphic Hymn to Venus, 
 or Love, that Goddefs is directly ftiled the mother of Necefiity, and is reprefented, 
 immediately after, as governing the three Deftinies, and conducting the whole fyftein 
 of natural caufes. 
 
 1.12. Born of Fate Ti'as Time.'} Cronos, Saturn, or Time, was, according to J/oA 
 lodorus, the fon of Cahm and Tellus, But the author of the hymns gives it quite 
 undifguifed by mythological language, and calls him plainly the offspring of the 
 earth and the ftarry heaven ; that is, of Fate, as explained in the preceding note. 
 
 \. 13. Who many fans ■devour'' d.] The known fable of Saturn devouring his chiU 
 dren was certainly meant to imply the diflblution of natural bodies 5 which are pro* 
 duced and deftroyed by Time6 
 
 1. 14, 15. The child of Rhea.'] Jupiter, (o czWed by Pindar. 
 1. 15. Drove him from the upper Jky.] That Jupiter dethroned hi^ father Saturn^ 
 is recorded by all the mythologifts. Phurnutiis, or Cornutus, the author of a little 
 Greek treatife on the nature of the gods, informs us, that by Jupiter was meant the 
 vegetable foul of the world, which rcftrained and prevented thofe uncertain alte- 
 rations which Saturn, or Time, iifed formerly to caufe in the mundane fyftem. 
 
 I. 16. Then facial reign'd.] Our mythology here fuppofeth, that before the 
 eftablifliment of the vital, vegetative, plaftic nature (reprefented by Jupiter), the 
 four elements were in a variable and unfettlcd condition ; but afterwards, well- 
 difpofed and at peace among themfelves. Tethys was the wife of the Ocean ; Ops, 
 or Rhea, the Earth ; Vejla, the eldeft daughter of Saturn, Fire ; and the cloud- 
 compeller, or Zivi vil'sKnysp'iT^i, the Air: though he alfo reprefented the plaftic 
 principle of nature, as may be feen in the Orphic hymn inf.;ribed to him, 
 
 !. 20.
 
 366 NOTES ON THE HYMN TO T H E N A I A D S. 
 
 1 1. 20. The fedgx-crcnuned race.'] I'he river-gods; who, according to Hcftod's 
 Theogony, were the fons of Oceanus and Tetbys. 
 
 1. 2Z, 23. From them, are ye, Numh.'] The defceiu of the Naiads is lefs certain 
 than moll: points of the Gr^f^ mythology. Hcmcr, Odyff'. xiii. jt?p«/ A/oj. Virgil, 
 in The Eighth Book of the JEneid, fpeaks as if the Nymphs, or Naiads, were tlie 
 parents of the rivers : but in this he contradifts the teilimony of Heftod, and evi- 
 dently departs from the orthodox fyftem, which reprefenteth feveral nymphs as 
 retaining to every fingle river. On the other hand, Calllinachus, who was very 
 learned in all the fchool-divinity of ihofe times, in his hymn to Delos, maketh Pc- 
 Tieus, the great The(falian river-god, the father of his nymphs : and Ovid, in Tlie 
 Fourteenth Book of his Met amor phofes, mentions the Naiads of Laiiuin as the imme- 
 diate daughters of the neighbouring river-gods. Accordingly, the Naiads of par- 
 ticular rivers are occafionally, both by Oiid and Statins, called by a patronymic, 
 from the name of the river to which they belong. 
 
 P. 351. 1. I. Syrian Daphne.'] The grove of Daphne in Syria, near Antioch^ 
 -was famous for its delightful fountains. 
 
 1. 1,2. The tribes belov'd by Faoti.] Mineral and medicinal fprings. Paon was the 
 phyfician of the gods. 
 
 I. 4. The winged offspring."} The Winds ; who, according to Hefwd and Apollo- 
 doriis, were the fons of JJlraus and Aurora. 
 
 1. 7. Hyperion.] A fon of Ccelwn and Tellus, and father of the Sun, who is 
 thence called, by Pindar, Hyperionides. Bm Hyperion \s put by Homer m the hme 
 manner as here, for the Sun himfelf. 
 
 1. 10. 7'otir faUying Jlreams.] The flate of the atmofphere with refpe^l to reft 
 and motion is, in feveral ways, affefted by rivers and running ft reams ; and that more 
 bfpecially in hot feafons : firft, they deflroy its equilibrium, by coohng thofe parts 
 of it with which they are in contaft; and fecondly, they communicate their own 
 motion : and the air which is thus moved by them, being left heated, is of confe- 
 quence more elaftic than other parts of the atmofphere, and therefore fitter to pre- 
 feryeand to propagate that motion. 
 
 P. 352. \. 6. Delian king.] One of the epithets of Apollo, or the Sun, in the' 
 Orphic hymn infcribed to him. 
 
 1. 15, Chloris.] The ancient Greek name for Flora. 
 ■ 1. 19. Amalthea.] The mother of the firll Bacchus, whofe birth and education 
 was written, as Diodorus Siculus informs us, in the old Pelafgic charadler, by Thy- 
 fnastes, grandfon to Laomedon, and contemporary with Orpheus. Tl:ymcetes had 
 travelled over Libya to the country which borders on the weftern ocean ; there 
 he faw the ifland -of ^yfa, and learned from the inhabitants, that " Amvion, king 
 " of Libya', Was married in former ages to Rhea, ftfler of Saturn and the Titans : 
 ** that he afterwards fell in love with a beautiful virgin v^hofe name was Amalthea ; 
 
 « had
 
 NOTES ON THE HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 367 
 
 " had by her a fon, and gave her poflefGon of a neighbouring tradl of land, won- 
 " derfully fertile; which in (hape nearly refembling the horn of an ox, was thence 
 " called the liefperian horn, and afterwards the horn of Amallhca : that fearing 
 " the jealoufy of Khea, he concealed the young Bacchus, with his mother, in the 
 " ifland of Nyfa ;" the beauty of which, Diodorus defcribes with great dignity and 
 pomp of (tyle. This fable is one of the noblefl: in all the ancient mythology, and 
 feems to have made a particular impreffion on the imagination of Milton ; the only 
 modem poet (unlefs perhaps it be neceffary to except Spenfcr) who, in thefe my- 
 flerious traditions of the poetic ftory, had a heart to feel, and words to exprefs, 
 the fimple and folitary genius of antiquity. To raife the idea of his Paradifc, he 
 prefers it even to 
 
 " that N)fea}i ifle 
 
 Girt by the river Triton, where old Cham, 
 
 (Whom Gentiles Ammon call, and Libyan jove) 
 , Hid Amahhea, and her florid fon, 
 
 Young Bacchus, from his ftepdame Rhea^s eye." 
 P. 353. 1. 5. Edonian band.'] The prieftefles and other miniflers of Bacchus-, fo 
 called from Edonus, a mountain of Thrace, where his rites were celebrated. 
 
 1.16. When Hermes.'\ Hermes, or Mercury, was the patron of commerce; in 
 which benevolent character he is addrefled by the author of the Indigitamenta, ia 
 thefe beautiful lines : 
 
 ^Oj •x.Mp'io-Stv s'x^S ^pWiS tTrAov ufj^jj-'Psc. 
 
 P. 354. 1. 7. T)ifpenfe the mineral trcafure.'] The merchants of Sidon and Tyre 
 made frequent voyages to the coall of Cornzuall, from whence they carried home 
 great quantities of tin. 
 
 . 1.2 2. Hath he not won.'] Mercury, the patron of commerce, being fo greatly de- 
 pendent on the good offices of the Naiads, in return obtains for them the friendfliip 
 of Mnerva, the goddefs of war : for military power, at lead the naval part of it, 
 hath conftantly followed the eftablifhraent of trade ; which exemplifies the preceding 
 obfervation, that " from bounty ifl'ueth power." 
 
 P. 355. 1. 4, 5. Calpe—Cantabrian/urgc.] Gibraltar ^ni The Bay of Bifcay. 
 
 1. II. yEgiiia's gloomy /urge.] Near this ifland, the Athenians obtained the vic- 
 tory of Salamis, over the Perfian navy. 
 
 1. 21. Xerxes faw.] This circumflance is recorded in that pafllige, perhaps the 
 moft fplendid among all the remains of ancient hiflory, where Vlularch, in his tife 
 of ThetniJIoclcs, dekr'ihes the k^-Gghis of Artemijium znd Salamis. 
 
 P- 357- J- 1, 5- Thyrfus.] A flaff", or fpeur, wreathed round with Ivy: of con-" 
 ftant ufe in the bacchanalian myftcries, 
 
 P. 358",
 
 563 NOTES ON THE HYMN TO THE NAIADS. 
 
 P. 358. 1.13. h, Paan.'] An exclamation of victory and triumph, derived from 
 Apollo's encounter with Python. 
 
 P. 359. 1. 13. Cirrha.'] One of the fummits of Paniqffus, and facred to Jpollo. 
 Near it were feveral fountains, faid to be frequented by the Mufes. Ny/a, the 
 other eminence of the fame mountain, was dedicated to Bacchus. 
 
 1. 24. Charm the mind of gods.'] This whole paffage, concerning the effefts of 
 facred mufic among the gods, is taken from Pindar's firft Pythian ode. 
 
 P. 361. 1. 8. Phrygian pipe's.'] The Phrygian mufic was fantaftic and turbulent, 
 and fit to excite diforderly pafiions. 
 
 1. 13, 14. The gates where Pallas holds 
 
 The guardian key.] It was the office of Minerva to be the guardian 
 of walled cities ; whence (he was named IIOAIAS & nOAIOTXOS, and had her 
 ftatues placed in their gates, being fuppofed to keep the keys ; and on that account 
 ftiled KAHA0TX02. 
 
 1. 21, 22. Fate offober Pentheus.] Pentheus was torn in pieces by the bacchanalian 
 priefts and women, for defpifing their myfteries. 
 
 P. 362. 1. 4, 5. The cave Corycian.] Of this cave Paufanias, in \vi%Tenth Bookf 
 gives the following defcription : " Between Delphi and the eminences of Parnajfusy 
 •' is a road to the grotto of Corycium, which has its name from the nymph Corycia^ 
 " and is by far the moft remarkable which I have feen. One may walk a great way 
 *' into it without a torch. 'Tis of a confiderable height, and hath feveral fprings 
 " within it ; and yet a much greater quantity of water dillills from the (hell and 
 " roof, fo as to be continually dropping on the ground. The people round Par^ 
 " najfus hold it facred to the Corycian nymphs and to Pan" 
 
 1. 5. Delphic mount.] Delphi, the feat and oracle of Apollo, had a mountainous 
 and rocky fituation, on the fkirts of Parnajfus. 
 
 1. 13. Cyrcna'ic Jhelt.] Cyrene v/as the native country of Callimachus, whofe 
 hymns are the mofi: remarkable example of that mythological paffion which is 
 afl'umed in the preceding poem, and have always afforded particular pleafure to the 
 author of it, by reafon of the myfterious folemnity with which they affeft the mind. 
 On this account he was induced to attempt fomewhat in the fame manner ; folely by 
 way of exercife : the manner itfelf being now almoft intirely abandoned in poetry. 
 And as the meer genealogy, or the perfonal adventures of heathen gods, could 
 have been but little interefling to a modern reader ; it was therefore thought proper 
 to feleft fome convenient part of the hiftory of nature, and to employ thefe ancient 
 divinities as it is probable they were firft employed ; to wit, in perfonifying natural 
 caufes, and in reprefenting the mutu?.l agreement or oppofition of the corporeal and 
 moral powers of the world : tvhich hath been accounted the very higheft office of 
 poetry. 
 
 I N S C R I P-
 
 INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 Bbb
 
 INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 I. 
 
 FOR A GROTTO. 
 
 X O me, whom in their lays the fhepherds call 
 Aftasa, daughter of the neighbouring ftream, 
 This cave belongs. The fig-tree and the vine, 
 Which o'er the rocky entrance downward flioot, 
 Were plac'd by Glycon. He v/ith covvflips pale, 
 Primrofe, and purple lychnis, deck'd the green 
 Before my threfhold, and my fhelving walls 
 With honey fuckle cover'd. Here at noon, 
 Lull'd by the murmur of my rifing fount, 
 I {lumber: here my cluftering fruits i tend ; 
 Or from the humid flowers, at break of day, 
 Frefh garlands weave, and chace from all my bounds 
 Each thing impure or noxious. Enter-in, 
 O ftranorer, undifmav'd. nor bat, nor toad 
 Here lurks : and if thy breaft of blamelefs thoughts 
 Approve thee, not unwelcome fhalt thou tread 
 My quiet manfion : chiefly, if thy name 
 Wife Pallas and the immortal mufes own. 
 
 B b 2 II.
 
 572 INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 11. 
 
 FOR A STATUE OF CHAUCER 
 AT WOODSTOCK. 
 
 O U C H was old Chaucer, fuch the placid mien 
 Of him who firft with harmony inform'd 
 The language of our fathers. Here he dwelt 
 For many a cheerful day. thefe ancient walls 
 Have often heard him, while his legends blithe 
 He fang ; of love, or knighthood, or the wiles 
 Of homely Ufe : through each eftate and age, 
 The falhions and the follies of the world 
 With cunning hand portraying. Though perchance 
 From Blenheim's towers, o ftranger, thou art come 
 Glowing with Churchill's trophies ; yet in vain 
 Doft thou applaud them, if thy breaft be cold 
 To him, this other hero ; who, in times 
 Dark and untaught, began with charming verfe 
 To tame the rudenefs of his native land. 
 
 111. WHO-
 
 INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 m 
 
 III. 
 
 W H O E' E R thou art whofe path in fummer lies 
 Through yonder village, turn thee where the grove 
 Of branching oaks a rural palace old 
 Imbofoms. there dwells Albert, generous lord 
 Of all the harveft round, and onward thence 
 A low plain chapel fronts the morning light 
 Faft by a filent riv'let. Humbly walk, 
 O ftranger, o'er the confecrated ground ; 
 And on that verdant hilloc, which thou fee'ft 
 Befet with ofiers, let thy pious hand 
 Sprinkle frefli water from the brook and ftrew 
 Sweet-fmelling flowers, for there doth Edmund ref}, 
 The learned fhepherd ; for each rural art 
 
 Fam'd, and for fongs harmonious, and the woes 
 
 « 
 
 Of ill-requited love. The faithlefs pride 
 Of fair Matilda fank him to the grrave 
 
 O 
 
 In manhood's prime. But foon did righteous heaven 
 With tears, with fliarp remorfe, and pining care. 
 Avenge her fahhood. nor could all the gold 
 And nuptial pomp, which lur'd her plighted fiith 
 
 From
 
 374 inscriptions: 
 
 From Edmund to a loftier hufband's home, 
 Relieve her breaking heart, or turn afide 
 The ftrokes of death. Go, traveller; relate 
 The mournful Ilory. haply fome fair maid 
 May hold it in remembrance, and be taught 
 That riches cannot pay for truth- or love. 
 
 nr. 
 
 \J YOUTHS and virgins : o declining eld':- 
 O pale misfortune's flaves : o ye who dwell 
 Unknown with humble quiet ; ye who wait 
 In courts, or fill the golden feat of kings : 
 O fons of fport and pleafure : o thou wretch 
 That weep'ft for jealous love, or the fore wounds 
 Of confcious guilt, or death's rapacious hand 
 Which left thee void of hope : o ye who roam 
 In exile ; ye who through the embattled field 
 Seek bright renown ; or who for nobler palms 
 Contend, the leaders of a public caufe ; 
 Approach : behold this marble. Know ye not 
 
 The
 
 t N S C R IP T I O N S. 
 The features ? Hath not oft his faithful tongue 
 Told you the fafliion of your own eftate, 
 The fecrets of your bofom ? Here then, round 
 His monument with reverence while ye ftand. 
 Say to each other : " This was Shakefpear's form ; 
 " Who walk'd in every path of human life, 
 *' Felt every paflion ; and to all mankind 
 " Doth now, will ever, that experience yield 
 ^' Which his own genius only could acquire." 
 
 375 
 
 v.. 
 
 GVLIELMVS III. FORTIS, PIVS, LIBERATOR, CVM INEVNTE AETATE 
 PATRIAE LABENTI ADFVISSET SALVS IPSE VNICA ; CVM MOX 
 ITIDEM REIPVBLICAE BRITANNICAE VINDEX RENVNCIATVS ESSET 
 ATQ3^E STATOR; TVM DENiqVE AD ID SE NATVM RECOGNOVIT 
 ET REGEM FACTVM, VT CVRARET NE DOMINO IMPOTENTI 
 CEDERENT PAX, FIDES, FORTVNA, GENERIS HVMANI. 
 AVCTORI PVBLICAE FELICITATIS P. G. A. M. A, 
 
 VI. FOR
 
 37< INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 VI. 
 FOR A COLUMN AT RUNNYMEDE. 
 
 X H O U, who the verdant plain doft traverfe here. 
 While Thames among his willows from thy view 
 Retires ; o flranger, flay thee, and the fcene 
 Around contemplate well. This is the place 
 Where England's ancient barons, clad in arms 
 And ftern with conqueft, from their tyrant king 
 (Then render'd tame] did challenge and fecure 
 The charter of thy freedom. Pafs not on 
 Till thou hall blefs'd their memory, and paid 
 Thofe thanks which God appointed the reward 
 Of public virtue, and if chance thy home 
 Salute thee with a father's honour'd name, 
 Go, call thy fons : inftruft them what a debt 
 They owe their anceftors ; and make them fwear 
 To pay it, by tranfmitting down intire 
 Thofe facred rights to which themfelves were born. 
 
 VII. THE
 
 377 
 
 INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 VII. 
 THE WOOD NYMPH. 
 
 A PPROACH In filence. 'tis no vulgar tale 
 
 Which i, the Dryad of this hoary oak, 
 
 Pronounce to mortal ears. The fecond age 
 
 Now hafteneth to its period, fince i rofe 
 
 On this fair lawn. The groves of yonder vale 
 
 Are, all, my offspring : and each Nymph, who guards 
 
 The copfes and the furrovv'd fields beyond, 
 
 Obeys, me. Many changes have i feen 
 
 In human things, and many awful deeds 
 
 Of juftice, when the ruling hand of Jove 
 
 Againft the tyrants of the land, againft 
 
 The unhallow'd fons of luxury and guile, 
 
 Was arm'd for retribution. Thus at length 
 
 Expert in laws divine, i knov/ the paths 
 
 Of wifdom, and erroneous folly's end 
 
 Have oft prefag'd : and now well-pleas'd i wait 
 
 Each evening till a noble youth, who loves 
 
 My fhade, awhile releas'd from public cares. 
 
 Yon peaceful gate fliall enter, and fit down 
 
 Beneath my branches. Then his mufing mind 
 
 I prompt, unfeen , and place before his view 
 
 C c c Sinccreft
 
 37^ I N S C K I P T I O N S. 
 
 Slncereft forms of good ; and move his heart 
 
 With the dread bounties of the fire fupreme 
 
 Of gods and men, with freedom's generous deeds, 
 
 The lofty voice of glory and the feith 
 
 Of facred friendfliip. Stranger, i have told 
 
 My fundion. If within thy bofom dwell 
 
 Aught which may challenge praife, thou wilt not leave 
 
 Unhonor'd my abode, npr (hall i hear 
 
 A fparing benedidion from thy tongue. 
 
 VIIL 
 
 X E powers unfeen, to whom, the bards of Greece 
 Ereded altars ; ye who to the mind 
 More lofty views unfold, and prompt the heart 
 With more divine emotions ; if erewhile 
 Not quite unplealing have my votive rites 
 Of you been deem'd when oft this lonely feat 
 To you i confccrated ; then vouchfafe 
 Here with your inftant energy to crown 
 My happy folitude. It is the hour 
 When moft i love to invoke you, and have felt 
 Mofl frequent your glad miniftry divine. 
 The air is calm : the fun's unveiled orb 
 
 Shines
 
 INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 Shines in the middle heaven, the harveft round 
 Stands quiet, and among the golden fheaves 
 The reapers lie reclin'd. the neighbouring groves 
 Are mute ; nor even a linnet's random ftrain 
 Echoeth amid the filence. Let me feel 
 Your influence, ye kind powers. Aloft in heaven. 
 Abide ye ? or on thofe tranfparent clouds 
 Pafs, ye from hill to hill ? or on the Ihades 
 Which yonder elms caft o'er the lake below 
 Do you converfe retir'd ? From what lov'd haunt 
 Shall i expert you ? Let ine once more feel 
 Your influence, o ye kind infpiring powers : 
 And i will guard it well, nor fhall a thought 
 Rife in my mind, nor fhall a paffion move 
 Acrofs my bofom unobferv'd, unftor'd 
 By faithful memory ► and then at fome 
 More adive moment,' will i call them forth 
 Anew J and join* them in majeftic forms. 
 And give them utterance in harmonious ftrains ; 
 That all mankind fliall wonder at your fvvay. 
 
 119 
 
 \X. Me
 
 38o INSCRIPTIONS. 
 
 IX. 
 
 IVl E tlio' in life's fequefter'd vale 
 The Almighty fire ordain'd to dwell, 
 Remote from glory's toilfome ways, 
 And the great fcenes of public praife ; 
 Yet let me ftill with grateful pride 
 Remember how my infant frame 
 He temper'd with prophetic flame. 
 And early muiic to my tongue fupply'd. 
 
 'Twas then my future fate he weigh'd. 
 And, This be thy concern, he faid, 
 At once with Paflion's keen alarms, 
 And Beauty's pleafurable charms. 
 And facred Truth's eternal light, 
 To move the various mind of Man ; 
 Till under one unblemifh'd plan. 
 His Reafon, Fancy, and his Heart unite. 
 
 T HE END.
 
 
 
 
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