vc 
 
 n
 
 B7 
 
 
 ^'
 
 A 
 
 PROSPECX^'''^^^ 
 
 o» 
 
 POET 
 
 WITH OTHER POEMS, 
 
 BV THE 
 
 MEV. JAMES 'JDEILACOUU. 
 
 a EXTINCTD3 AMABITUK IDEM> 
 
 CORKt 
 
 PRINTED BV JOHN HARRIS, CASTLB-STREET, 
 •••••••I* 
 
 1807,
 
 Q- 
 
 FJROSFECT OF FOETIRY. 
 
 TO THE 
 
 EARL OF CORKE AND ORRERY. 
 
 Wi 
 
 HAT various ftyles to difPrent ftrains belong, 
 What time to rife or when to fink in fong j 
 To thee, beft judge of this refin'd delight, 
 O! born to genius, lo! the mufes write; 
 *Tis yours, my Lord, to bid each art excel. 
 And fmile on merit which you grace fo well; 
 To make mankind a nobler Brogliill fee, .-d 
 And find their long-loft Halifax in thee: 
 Few now remain to fay who fung before, 
 
 Parnel is dead and Addifon no more ! 
 
 The few remaining time will fweep away, 
 And Pope and Swift muft fhortly follow Gay ; 
 Thefe only left of all the tuneful quire, 
 Garth, Steele, Rowe, Congrevc, Wychcrly and Prior; 
 
 B Thefe
 
 S A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 Thefe only left, the world's great lofs declare. 
 And ferve to fhew us what thefe wonders were^ 
 To you, my Lord, the mufes turn their eyes. 
 On Orrery the letter'd world relies; 
 Their antient honours let a Boyle reilore, 
 And be whate'er was Orrery before: 
 O ! chief in courts to lay the peer afide. 
 Weed vice from dignity, from titles pride. 
 Great without grandeur, generous without viewSj 
 For ever bounteous and yet ne'er profufe: 
 No lefs by nature noble than by name. 
 The bloom of breeding and the fiow'r of fame: 
 Approv'd a patron at thy natal hour; 
 Thiiik'ft thou to 'fcape the praifes in their pow'r? 
 Tho' from Britannia's ftrains and Albion's fliore, 
 You flee to dcferts* but to blaze the more; 
 They'll fearch you out, difcover where you fhine, 
 Publifa your worth, and frultrate your defign. 
 
 So in the gloom the diamond darts its light, 
 Tho' thick encircl'd v/ith furrounding night; 
 The kindling darknefs breaks before the ray. 
 And on the eye-ball burfts the brilliant day. 
 
 Sage Temple writes a fpark of native fire. 
 Excels whatever Icai-ning can acquire ;f 
 In poetry this obfervation's true, 
 Without fome genius fame will ne'er enfue; 
 
 Sueli 
 
 * His Lordlhip coming into Ireland. 
 f Sir William Temple.
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. » 
 
 Such for a while may climb againft the hill. 
 
 But then like Syfiphus are falling ftill: 
 
 I own by reading we may feed the flame, 
 
 Bat firft mull have that heat from whence it came; 
 
 Elfe like diy pumps whofe fprings their moifture mourn. 
 
 We may pour in but will have no return; 
 
 To fuch, indeed, thofe rules are ill apply'd, 
 
 For fuch were never on the mufes fide. 
 
 Come then my friends, who like with me to rovej 
 The flow'ry mountain and the laurel grove, 
 Where god Apollo guards the limpid fount, 
 And the glad mufes climb the vocal mount; 
 You whom the voice invites to tafte their charms, 
 Whom verfe tranfports and tuneful fancy warms; 
 Before you prefs the fyrens to your heart, 
 Attend awhile the precepts I impart. 
 
 Firft let your judgment for your fancy chufc," 
 Of all the nine the moft unblemifli'd mufej 
 Soft yet fublime, in love yet ftriclly coy, 
 Prone to be grave, yet not averfe to joy; 
 Where tafte and candour, wit and manners meet. 
 Bold without bombaft, daring but difcreet ; 
 'Correft with fpirit, muiical with fenfe. 
 Not apt to give, nor flow to take offence: 
 Firft to commend when others thoughts are fiiown, 
 But always laft deliglit'd with her own. 
 
 When this is done, let nature be your guide. 
 Rife in the fpring, or in thi river glide j 
 
 L 2 In
 
 4 . A PROSPECT OF POETRY, 
 
 In every line confult her as you run. 
 
 And let her Naiades roll the river on: 
 
 Unlefs to pleafe our nice corrupted fenfe, 
 
 Art be called in and join'd with vaft expenfe^ 
 
 Then rivers wonder thro' the vale no more, 
 
 But boil in pipes or fpout thro' figur'd ore; 
 
 The neighb'ring brooks their empty channels mourn; 
 
 That now enrich feme artificial urn. 
 
 Thus ever fuit your numbers to your theme^ 
 And tune their cadence to the falling ftream; 
 Or fliould the falling ftream incline to love. 
 Let the words Aide and like its murmurs move; 
 Poor were the praife to paint the purling rill, 
 To make it mufic is the mufe's fliill; 
 Without her voice the fpring runs filent by, 
 Dumb are the waters and the verfes dry; 
 While chill'd with ice the cool waves creep alon^. 
 And all the fountain freezes in the fong. 
 
 But if a ftorm muft rattle thro' the ftrain. 
 Then let your lines grow black with gath'ring rain; 
 Thro' Jove's asrial hall loud thunders found, 
 And the big bolt roar thro' the dark profounds 
 But fhou'd the welkin brighten to the view, 
 The fun breaks out and gilds the ftyle anew; 
 Colour your clouds with a vermillion dye. 
 And let warm bluflies ftreak the weftern fliy; 
 •'Till evening {huts its fober fuited grey, 
 And draws her dappl'd curtains o'er the day.
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. ■? 
 
 Let Vefper then purfue the purple light, 
 And lead the tvvLikling glories of the night ; 
 The moon mult rife in filver o'er the (hades, 
 Stream thro' your pen and glance along the meads : 
 While Zephyr foftly whifpers in the lines, 
 And pearly dew In bright defcription (hiues; 
 The little warblers to the trees repair. 
 Sing in their fleep and dream away their care; 
 While clofing flow'rets nod their painted heads, 
 And fold themfelves to reft upon their rufy beds. 
 
 But if Aurora's fingers ftain tixe lay. 
 Let fancy wahen wilh the rifing day; 
 Let Sul's fierce courfers whirl the fiery tean-:, 
 And from their noftrils blow a flood of flame; 
 Be fultry noon in brighter yellow drefl, 
 And bend a rain-bow on her burning breaft ; 
 Let the rich dyes in changing colours flow, 
 And lofe themfelves in one poetic glow. 
 
 So the fair Indian crown its glofs aCumes, 
 Difpos'd in tufts of party-coluui'd plumes; 
 The tranfient tindlure drinks the neighb'ring hue, 
 As if from each the alternate colours grew, 
 Where ev'ry beauty's Ly a former made. 
 And lends a luftre to the following fliade. 
 
 Thus may a fimile come in with grace, ' 
 And add new fpleadors to the fhow'ry piece; 
 Paint the proud arch fo lively to the fig1ii:> 
 That ev'r/ line refic6t5 a wat'ry light. 
 
 Hcr.cc
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 Hence to the garden fhould your fancy fly. 
 Let the tall tulip with your Iris vie ; 
 With a mixt glory crown its radiant head, 
 The brighteft yellow ting'd with ftreams of red: 
 Next let the lilly in your numbers blow, 
 And o'er its fweetnefs fiiake the downy fnow. 
 In the white garb of virtue let it rife. 
 And wave in verfe before the virgin's eyes ; 
 On tuneful feet let languid ivy crawl, 
 And in poetic meafure fcale the wallj 
 While the fharp fheers return a clipping found. 
 And the green leaves fall quiv'ring to the ground. 
 
 Here in the bow'r of beauty newly (horn, 
 Let fancy fit and fing how love was born ; 
 Wrapt up in rofes Zephyr found the child, 
 In Flora's cheek when firll the goddefs fmil'd ; 
 Nurft on the bofom of the beauteous fpring, 
 O'er her white breaft he fpread his purple iving. 
 On kiffes fed, and filver drops of dew, 
 The little wanton into Cupid grew ; 
 Then arm'd his hand with glitt'ring fparks of fire, 
 Aiid tipt his fhining' arrows with defire: 
 Hence joy arofe upon the wings of wind. 
 And hope prefents the lover always kind; 
 Defpair creates a rival for our fears, 
 And tender pity foftens into tears. 
 
 Obfervr
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 Obferve how Sappho paints the lover's pain,* 
 What various paflions animate her ftrain ! 
 Her colour fades, flie faints in tender lays, 
 Her pulfe beats languid and her fenfe decays; 
 Then in a rapid tide of paflions toft, 
 Her weak tongue faulters and her voice is loflj 
 Again her foul revives, her breath returns, 
 Again (he Olivers, and again fhe burns : 
 Each reader's bofom feels her various care, 
 Warm'd by her flame or cliill'd by her defpair. 
 
 Toll as the fea, by paflions let the foul, 
 Like the brine fparkle, like the billows roll; 
 Then anger kindles in the warriors eyes. 
 And earth ufurps the thunder of the flcies; 
 See how they mount upon the groaning car. 
 Shake the long lance and o'ertake the war; 
 Aloft in air refounds the whirling thong, 
 The horfes fly, the chariot fmokes along; 
 The foaming courfers prefs upon their heels, 
 Back run the lines beneath the whirling wheels; 
 Fleeter than light they flafli along the fields, 
 And funs by thoufands blaze upon their fliields; 
 The twilled ferpents round their helmets roll'd, 
 Muft hifs in verfe and bite in buruifh'd gold: 
 
 The 
 
 • This lady, more remarkable for wit than beauty, was miftrefs 
 to Alcseus, yet fo cruel to her lover, that one day upon his faying 
 he had fomething to fay to her, but was afhamed to fpcak it, fiic 
 replied, that if it was fit for her to hear he would not be fo tedious 
 about it; they both flouriHied about the 44th Olyjrjpiad. 
 
 Mr. tltanyaii's liifLory of Greece.
 
 ■< A PROSPECT OF POETRY, 
 
 The war brea^.s in — now millions are no more, 
 And a long groan purfues the gufhing gore: 
 Spears, darts and jav'lins launch along the iky. 
 Plunge into blood, or into rnivers fly: 
 Thus let your heroes rage, by Mars pofleft. 
 And feel an Iliad rifing in thy breaft; 
 But foon cement thofe wounds, let difcord ceafei 
 And warring worlds unite in friendly peace. 
 
 Hence founds in fofter notes muft learn to movej 
 And melting muhc rife the voice of love! 
 Let Tubai's lute in fl-nlful hands appear. 
 And pour new numbers on the lift'ning earj 
 "With the full organ let them fweetly fwell. 
 With the loud trumpet languifhingly fhrill: 
 Or in foft concord let the concert fuit, 
 The fprightly clarion with the Dorian flute: 
 Then wake to vocal airs the warbling wire. 
 Let the firings run beneath the poet's fu"e; 
 While forrow fighs, ah ! never let them cool. 
 But melt melodious on the foften'd foul: 
 So may the paffions wait upon your hand. 
 Move as you move, and aft as you command. 
 
 And here Arion's harp may fwell the ftrain. 
 Or fmooth your numbers as it fmooth'd the main j 
 When wond'ring firens to its founds advanc'd. 
 And bounding dolphins o'er the billows danc'd; 
 Admiring Tritons round the mufic play. 
 And angry feas in meafure roll a^i'ay: 
 
 A tide
 
 A PROSPECT OF FOETRY. 3 
 
 A tide of rapture rofe as he requir'd. 
 White work'd the waves and foam'd as he infpir'J| 
 The billows beat upon the founding ftring. 
 And thro* the hollow harp the waters ring. 
 
 As on a moon-light night when Neptune calls, 
 His finny courfers from their coral Halls j 
 Prom fome white clift whofe brow reflects the dcepj 
 He leads them forth and bids the billows ileep; 
 The waves obey : fo ftill a filence reigns, 
 That not a wrinkle curls the wat'ry plains; 
 Xiike floating Mercury the waves appear, 
 And the fea whitens with a heav'n fo clear: 
 Before him Triton blows his twiil'd fhell. 
 And diHant fea-nymphs know the fignal well; 
 In long procefFion the Caerulean train. 
 With joy confefs the fov'reign of the main: 
 Such were the raptures of the fea-green race. 
 When fweet Arion crofs'd the wat'ry fpace; 
 When firft his fingers felt the mufic rife. 
 And mix'd in melody the feas and flcies. 
 
 On land Amphion fwells the magic fong, 
 And round his fingers moving mountains thron<y; 
 At ev'ry fh-oke he fees fair Thebes afpire. 
 Walls rife on walls and temples foaring higher: 
 At ev'ry flroke new wonders deck the ftrain. 
 The big creation of a poet's brain i 
 
 Hear how Tiraotheus wraps the foul in founds, 
 And drops the notes like balm upon her wounds; 
 
 C * The
 
 !0 A PROSPECT OF POETRY: 
 
 The moulded meafures querulous decay, 
 
 'Till a fwift tremor fweeps the founds away; 
 
 By fweet degrees again they gather near. 
 
 Recover fafc and thunder on the ear; 
 
 Down the broad brafs his bold hands brufh the tone?> 
 
 The long ftring leaps and vibrates into groans j 
 
 JLet furious Saul be figur'd to thy mind. 
 
 So mad — as not to be by verfe corifin'd; 
 
 With mufic arm'd the fweet mufician Hands, 
 
 And o'er the golden cordage fpreads his hands j 
 
 The monarch's looks are fix'd upon the firings, 
 
 And his eyes languifh as young David fings; 
 
 His fury falls as that begins to rife. 
 
 And all his foul feems ftarting from his eyes I 
 
 But chief the mufic of the fpheres mull pleafe. 
 
 If founds celeilial warble in thy lays; 
 
 When the three Parc^, fate's fair offspring bom. 
 
 The world's great fpindle at its axle turn ; 
 
 Round which eight fpheres in beauteous order run> 
 
 And as they turn revolving time Is fpun; 
 
 Whofe motions all things upon earth ordain, 
 
 V/hence revolutions date their fickle reign ; 
 
 Thefe rob'd in white at equal diftance thron'd. 
 
 Sit o'er the fpheres and twirl the fpindle round, 
 
 On each of which a Siren loudly fings, 
 
 As from the wheel the fatal trhead fhe flings ; 
 
 The Parcae anfwer, in the quire agree, 
 
 And all thofe voices make one harmony.* 
 
 To 
 
 * This is an excellent allegory of Plato's, who would hereby 
 intimate that all things obey the divine law, and concur to pro- 
 duce thofc effeils which are coufeciuences of th« cayfcs God hz^ 
 eftabliiUed. *
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. ft 
 
 To Titian turn, to Raphael praifes give. 
 Hence pifture rofe and (hadows feem to live; 
 On Guide look, to Rubens rear thine eye. 
 Where each bold figure feems a llander by ; 
 Trophies and triumphs by Mantegna's hand* 
 In martial order on the canvas ftand ; 
 With hints of glory fire the warlike foul. 
 And bid like motions in our bofoms roll; 
 Here Verrio's colours glow expos'd to fight. 
 And flcy-dipt pencils ftream with liquid light; 
 Thy art, O KneUer! aflis a filler's praife. 
 So may thy paintings beautify my lays; 
 Whether young blufhes ripen in thy lines. 
 Or verdant landllcips wave in green defigas. 
 Thro* which the fun emerging from the main, 
 In floods of purple drowns the leafy fcene; 
 A mimic vifto flretches wide between, 
 Where gold appears diverfify'd with green ; 
 Shades rife on fiiades, on colours colours flow, 
 And tranfient fliadows undulate below. 
 
 So ,when Aurora mounts the rofy eaft. 
 And light's warm blufhes redden o'er her breafl; 
 A thoufand funs her orient rays unfold. 
 And ev'ry leaf is fprinki'd o'er withhold; 
 The glitt'ring fpangles burn the woodland fliade, 
 Tree, flreamand bufn in nature's gold array'd: 
 
 C 2 The 
 
 * Andrea Mintegna, born at Padua, cnno. 143 1, was admi- 
 rable for Hiftory-'jjainting and Pcrfpcdivc: the beft of hispicc?» 
 are thj triumphs of Julius Cwfar now at Hajf.pton-Couit,
 
 yz A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 The burniHi'd rills in fofter filver fiiow. 
 Arid dafh'd with purple glance their waves belowj 
 Ten thoufand rtiadows ficim the colour'd ftreamj 
 And o'er the filver flioots the crimfon gleamo 
 
 Next let Prometheus boaft his godlike art. 
 And let a wonder from his fingers ftart ; 
 An angel form! by ev'ry poet fung, 
 Love in her looks and mufic in her tongue.* 
 
 So when the fun with all enhv'ning ray. 
 On Memnon's lips hi ft ftrikes the golden dayj 
 The hard flint utters melancholy founds, 
 And from the ftone f'A^ect harinony rebounds.f 
 
 Before Lycippus' couvfer neighs the ileed, 
 And fond Pj'gmalion clafps his iv'ry maidj 
 Where Niobe, in beauteous forrow fiiown. 
 Melts into tears and hardens into ftone: 
 Befide his chiflel let mount Athos ftand,+ 
 Heave into form and groan beneath his handj 
 
 While 
 
 * I mufl; beg leave here to diffent from the general opinion of 
 commentators, that it was a man Prometheus formed, for it was 
 undoubtedly a woman, in order to propagate his fpecies for the 
 future in a natural way. 
 
 f The ftatue of Memnon, fwi of Aurora, according to Hero- 
 dotus, was made of fione and not of brafs. 
 
 \ It was propofsd to Alexander the Great to turn mount Athos 
 into a ftatue of this monarch, with the ocean, in a bafon in one 
 band, asd a large city in the other.
 
 A ?ROSPECT OF POETRt. IS 
 
 Wliile on one fpacicus palm he pours the fea, 
 And his broad fingers form an ample bay ; 
 The other grafps a wide extended town, 
 Whofe regal walls un-number'd tuiTets crown : 
 Thus was the fon of earth fuppos'd to rife, 
 O'er-look the globe, and climb into the flcies. 
 To fcare the gods with his enormous height, 
 A fecond Titan foaring out of fight! 
 
 So near proud Rhodes, acrofs the founding maliij 
 The world's juft wonder brav'd the winds and rain. 
 While round his head the rattling tempells blow. 
 And wat'ry mountains break in foam below; 
 On Neptune's back the round Coloffus rides, 
 Deaf to the roarings of the wind and tides. 
 
 There Phidias bids the breathing ftatue move, 
 In living fculpture not unworthy Jove ; 
 From age to age Cleomenes fhall charm. 
 And his carv'd Venus future warriors warm,* 
 In fair proportion from beholders turn. 
 And o'er her cheek the blufhing marble burn. 
 
 See with Silenus youthful Bacchus vie. 
 And the flint fparkling in his jovial eye ; 
 Round his full temples grapes luxuriant fpread. 
 Vine-leaves and clufters dangle o'er his head: 
 On a tame tiger, taught his load to bear, 
 Ke rides in rock and lliakes his ivy fpear. 
 
 There 
 
 ' The Venus of Mcdicis.
 
 a A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 There good Aurelius almoll looks a groan? 
 And thunderbolts defcend in figur'd ftone;* 
 Great Alexander weeps his enfigns furl*d. 
 And bids his fire create another world. 
 
 Here let thy graver thro' rock diamond run,f 
 The heav'n-hued fapphire fparkle in the funj 
 The wounded ruby ope its bleeding vein. 
 And the red ftreams the virgin paper ftain; 
 Here link your jewels in a blazing Ilring, 
 Let the green em'rald look like fmiling fpring. 
 The yellow topaz boall a golden hue, 
 And flipp'ry agate fhine in veins of blue; 
 Let thefe in chryftal cafkets charm the light, 
 Terreftrial liars and children of the light ! 
 Like the rich bow athwart th' aetherial plain, 
 That burns in Ihow'rs and lire imbibes from rain» 
 
 Now let your mufe to architefture change. 
 Plunge in the bath or thro' the palace range. 
 Heave the huge mole or bid the column rife, 
 Or point the obelilk to pierce the llcies; 
 
 Palladio 
 
 * This curious piece of fculpture is on the pillar of the Em- 
 peror Antonine, one of the nobleft defigns in the world: it is the 
 iigure of Jupiter Piuvius raining on the fainting army of Marcus 
 Aurelius and thundering on that of his enemies: it was on this 
 cccafion that the Chriftian religion got the name of Fulminatrix. 
 
 f Thefe lines are to be underflood of antiques, arms and cy- 
 phers cut in precious {tones; Pyrgoteles a famous fculftoJ: hardly 
 graved on any thing elfe but je\Yels.
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRV. IS 
 
 Palladio here maft think in ev'ry line, 
 And deep Vitruvius fcan the whole defign; 
 The works of Solomon and him of Tyre,* 
 Direft the plan and all your tafle infpire: 
 In due proportion ev'ry pillar rear, 
 Nor let the orders be confounded there ; 
 Where the Corinthian {lands in fiut'd rows, 
 Let not the martial Doric interpofe } 
 Nor where the Tufcan lifts th' imperial urn,+ 
 Suffer the next Ionic ihaft to tiirn;:{: 
 But chief that chaos called Conipofite (hun, 
 Which begs from all and yet belongs to none. 
 
 So Babel's battlements began to rife. 
 Left earth below and labcur'd up the Trciesj 
 The mip^hty bulwark threaten'd heav'n's abode, 
 And bid the mounting world afcend to God : 
 And they had now been there- — but heav'n look'd down, 
 Their fltill's confounded and their tow'r o'erthrown ; 
 Tongues, pillars, orders to confufion turn, 
 And difappolnted mankind feem'd to mourn. 
 
 Here 
 
 • Hiram. 
 
 I Trajan's pillar at Rome was the fiift of tnis order, the fpirc 
 cf which was appointed for the Emperor's aflies ; on this occaCon 
 the Romans difdaiaing to borrov/ from the Grecians invented 
 one of their own, from thence called the Tufcan or Rrman ordcf« 
 Evelin of Achi. 
 
 \ The famous Temple of Diana, at Ephefus, which toot up 
 aoo years in building, Vfn of this order. Vid. Pall-idioi
 
 U A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 Here Egypt's pyramids muft heave fublimej 
 And blunt the teeth of all decaying time ; 
 Beneath vvhofe weight the burden'd earth muft groar*; 
 A pond'rous pile of monumental ftone : 
 Strong bars of adamant the marble lock. 
 And links of iron chain the folid rock ; 
 Beneath whofe fummit tow'ring eagles fly, 
 A pointed mountain ending in the fky. 
 
 Proud Babylon with brazen gates behold, 
 And proud Euphrates in her bofom roll'd; 
 Walls which Scmiramis with turrets crown'd. 
 And coloured brick with black bitumen bound ; 
 A fecond Eden here Nitrocris trod. 
 In penfile gardens worthy of a God ; 
 So grand the coftly ftrufture hung in air. 
 It feem'd not built, but firft created there: 
 Here trees and flow'rs in wat'ry figures rife. 
 And fruitage ripen nearer to the fliies ; 
 Fair fountains fall in filver ftreaming floods, 
 And artificial rainbows paint the clouds; 
 With various-colour'd light the water burn'd, 
 Againft the fun in artful arches turn'd ; 
 Nor were the golden pipes by Sirius dry'd. 
 The river ilill the water-works fupply'd. 
 
 Here let the boafter fall from man to beaft. 
 Eat grafs with brutes or on rude acorns feafl, 
 Driv'n from his throne in dens to pafa the day, 
 ■To herd with wolves and howl the night away. 
 
 Sq
 
 Jl prospect of poetry. t? 
 
 So wild Lycaon fled his own abode,* 
 Chang'd by the vengeance of an angry God, 
 On ftiaggy feet ran howling thro' the plain, 
 And mingl'd nightly with the prowling train. 
 
 Here let the mufe awhile delighted reft, 
 Plcas'd with the profpeft op'ning in her bieaft, 
 The wide horizon and the world furvey. 
 As thro' the walks her fancy loves to ftray. 
 
 Invention! ah how beautiful art thou! 
 I feel thy fudden infpiration now; 
 Thy whifpers prompt me, and the pleafing ftrife, 
 Of infant thought juft ftrug'ling into life; 
 The new-born offspring longs to try its feet. 
 And run thro' vcrfe with voluntary heat; 
 This was the nymph that did wife Numa plcaf.^ f- 
 And this the genius of great Socrates. 
 
 Like fome fmooth miiTor fee Euphrates glide, 
 Thro' Duras' plains and fpread his bofom wide; 
 On whofe broad furface wat'ry landflcips lie. 
 And bending willows fhade the downivard Hey; 
 
 D There 
 
 * The ftory of Lycaon may pofiibly be taken from Nebuchad- 
 nezzar, for priding hiiufclf in the grandeur of thofe gardens which 
 he caufed to be built for his Queen, who loved the profpe(5ls of 
 Media, he was in the fame place and moment changed into a 
 wild bead. 
 
 f iEgtria,
 
 IS A PROSPECT OF POETRY, 
 
 There floating forefls mixt with meadows move. 
 
 And the green glafs reflefts the flow'rs above j 
 
 Shepherds and fheep along the picture ftray, 
 
 And with the water feem to Aide away; 
 
 In the blue gleam the park and walls appear. 
 
 And gilded barges mixt with grazing deer; 
 
 The huntfman founds — the frighted fhadow flies. 
 
 Thro* flocks, greens, fhepherds, barges, hounds and fldefs 
 
 Thus in a room where light can only pafs. 
 Thro' the fmall circle of a convex glafs; 
 O'er the ftain'd flieet amufing fhadows Aide, 
 Clouds float in air and fiiips along the tide: 
 In rural poilure fields and oxen fhow. 
 Trees wave, ftreams run, and colour'd bloflbms glow. 
 
 'Tis thus when fpring's foft vernal blooms appear. 
 And throw a. glory round a youthful year; 
 Or fummer blazing o'er the heav'nly blue, 
 "When fwarming infefts dip their wings in dew: 
 In autumn too the fame mild fcene delights. 
 To view the vt'ater and enjoy the nights; 
 Nor lefs loud winter wilder blifs denies. 
 When Boreas bids the broad Euphrates rife ; 
 Then peaceful images amufe no more. 
 But thro' the bridge the founding furges roar, 
 Wide dafhing, foaming high, and tumbling to the fhore, 
 The diftant billow feems the heav'ns to lave, 
 And the horizon ftoops to drink the v/ave. 
 
 So
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 1» 
 
 So the loud Euxine, whofe compulfive fway. 
 Ne'er yet knew ebb or fwift reflux of fea, 
 Rolls on eternal and direftly beats, 
 Againft black Bofphorus' tempeftuous ftreights; 
 The Dardanelles behold its low'ring front, 
 Gloom the Fropontis and the Heliefpont. 
 
 Now fwell your ftyle and let the flood conform. 
 To the rous'd tempeft; and the roaring ftorm ; 
 In verfe as rough let ev'ry torrent move, 
 Froth the vest waves and curl their heads above; 
 L.et the green tide turn white with abrupt fliock. 
 And break the fait furge on the rugged rock: 
 Not fo where mazy rills meand'ring fhine, 
 The running filver trickles thro* the line ; 
 In fmoother notes the whifp'ring waters purl. 
 The brook falls tuneful and the waves uncurl; 
 Hence images of difF'rent kinds abound. 
 In all the volubility of found, 
 Apply'd to fubjedls correfponding flow, 
 Some loudly rough and others fweetly low. 
 Hence various ftyles appear in war and peace. 
 And ev'ry ft.yle has its peculiar grace; 
 In ep cs here a hero ftrides away. 
 And there Amintor tunes his oaten lay; 
 While o'er the lawn the lambkins frifl< along, 
 And with their bleatings fill the rural fong; 
 Or when ftill cv'ning reddens o'er the flcy, 
 It bids her bluflies round the welkin fly; 
 In each foft cloud fome colour is exprefl:, 
 'Till with united glories burns the weft : 
 
 D 2 Then
 
 2t! A PROSPECT OF PGETRY. 
 
 Then fvvarm the flies, the tinfel'd people ruiij 
 
 To bid adieu to the departing fun; 
 
 "With airy mufic fip the milky fteams, 
 
 And gild their coats in light's dedining beamsj 
 
 Add that at eve cool Zephyr wakes the breeze, 
 
 And fits in fighs upon the fhiv'ring trees; 
 
 Add that at eve Etelian breezes wake, 
 
 With coming gales the leaves are feen to fhake. 
 
 Still trembling onward with th' approaching blaftj 
 
 'Till on the dimply pool it breathes at lafl. 
 
 Before the wind the water curls in rings. 
 
 And the fann'd ocean frowns beneath his wings: 
 
 Hence Lyrics make the fields and fwains rejoice, 
 
 Or elegy lifts up her mournful voice; 
 
 The buflcin'd hero treads the crowded ftage^ 
 
 Or comic humour fmiles along the page; 
 
 There Athens friend, Themiftocles, appears,* 
 
 And Cato glorious in his countiy's tears; 
 
 Thy lips Timoleon feal thy brother's doom. 
 
 And Brutus bleeds in both his fons for Rome; 
 
 Varanes there admires the bloody fign 
 
 Hung o'er the head of kneeling Conftantine; 
 
 On Cannce's field fee Paulus bath'd in gore,t 
 
 And Caefar pais the Rubicon once more. 
 
 Thus 
 
 • Themifiocles autem quem virtus fua vidorem, injuria patriae 
 imperatorem Pcrfarum fecerat; ut fe ab ea oppugnanda abftine- 
 ret, inllituto facrificio, exceptum patera, tauri fanguinem haufit, 
 & ante ipfam aram quafi quxdam pietatis clara vi(Stima concidifc 
 Valer. Max. de pietate erga patriam. 
 
 f Paulus Emilias.
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. fi» 
 
 Thus he to whom the tuneful charms belong, 
 Of facred numbers and harmonious fong; 
 Whom Faean's art did at his birth infpire. 
 With a fweet finger for the mufes lyre ; 
 To whom the gift of genius fate had giv'n. 
 That golden bleffing of indulgent heav'n ! 
 Muft ftudy mufic to improve his art. 
 And thro' the ear find entrance to the heart j 
 While art and nature equally unite, 
 Sound fmooth the fenfe, and grace make wit polite; 
 His eafy lines unlabour'd feem to flow, 
 Yet fuch that eafe as pains alone beftow : 
 While the fond reader charm'd with ev'ry ftraln. 
 Snatches a quill to imitate in vain. 
 
 Next it were fit that picture claim'd his care, 
 A well bred man (hould every fcience fiiare: 
 From hence what beauties may not poets take ? 
 Hence learn in verfe to paint the rat'iing fnake; 
 Thro' the gilt page he twills in colour'd lines. 
 And round the leaf in curling volumes twines; 
 The reader thinks he fees the ferpent fiide. 
 And almoft feels him thro' his fingers glide. 
 
 Let Helen's beauty kindle fweet defire. 
 In Zeuxis' colours and with Homer's fire;* 
 
 Compare 
 
 • Zeuxis from the choice of five naked virgins drew th:.t won- 
 derful picture of Helen, which Cicero, in his book De Oratore, 
 fets before us as the mod perfedl example of beauty ; and Julio 
 Romano formi:d his tallc and ccoipl'.teJ his Gufto by riadir.g: 
 Homer.
 
 22 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 Comp?.re them both and mifs no fingle charm. 
 But let each blufli with equal fpiiit warm: 
 The fine complexion let the graces fpread, 
 And Pssftan rofes paint her cheeks with redj 
 While Venus bids her airs around her play, 
 And Phcebus fills her eyes with tender day. 
 
 But Thornhill's draughts (hall future hints fupply^ 
 As long as Kenfington with Greenwich vie;* 
 Where round her roof a thoufand colours glow. 
 And Britain's rivers round the ceihng flov/. 
 Here bold defcription with her pencil ftands, 
 To roll the billows over fhining fands ; 
 Strong on the eye th* inverted figures fall, 
 And the rich cornice fets on fire the wall: 
 Thame on his anchor here fupports his head, 
 And Humber heavy with his pigs of lead; 
 While Avon's v/aters into Severn roll. 
 And the Tine tumbles out her mines of coal; 
 There in green gold the Medway feems to burn. 
 And pour down fiflies from her foaming urn; 
 While filver Ifis joins her hufband Thame, 
 And in each other locfe their ancient name. 
 
 In fculpture too proportion learns to pleafe. 
 When ev'ry beauty fwells by nice degrees; 
 Where by the clufTel's meant the poets pen. 
 That files and polifhes the works of men; 
 
 Softens 
 
 • See this famous Ceiling in the great Hall of Greenwich 
 liofpital, painted by Sir James Thorchill,
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. St 
 
 Softens the rugged furface of the fong. 
 Yet turns the features regular and ftrotig ; 
 Commands the Hnbi in attitude to rife, 
 And live and walk before the reader's eyes. 
 
 Beneath her palm hence fun-burnt Egypt's feen. 
 The rough'n'd fret-work fuits the matron's main : 
 In molten ore Minerva lends her aid. 
 And lifts to hfe the rude unleLter'd maid; 
 Rais'd by her hand Nile's daughter quits the ground, 
 Hardens her mummies, hears her cyilram found, 
 Tow'rs hke her pyramids fubhmely bold. 
 And almoll rifes half her height in gold. 
 
 So the flack rope the dext'rous dancer tries, 
 Poiz'd on a pole betwixt air, earth and fkies. 
 Walks o'er the waves of heads that roll below, 
 His limbs look fupple and his fteps tread flov/: 
 Beneath his foot tiie fturdy cable bends, 
 Mounts as he moves and drops as he defcends: 
 Back ftart the crowd — he, glorying in his ftrength, 
 Springs on his feet and rifes half his length. 
 
 By archite6lure laft he lays the fcheme,* 
 And by feme model bids his genius flame: 
 Works up the whole and fees the building fiiinc, 
 In all its parts with condu6l and defign: 
 
 ihe 
 
 • Palladio lays down tut five orders of archite(?turc, and Lon« 
 gir.us but five fountains i<jt the fubllmc.
 
 54 A PROSPECT OF POETRY, 
 
 The poem rais'd upon fo fine a plan, 
 The teft, the wonder, and deHght of man, 
 Will ftand the fliocks and injuries of time, 
 Built upon uature and the true fublime. 
 
 Thus life-refembhng allegory lies, 
 Behind a veil remote from vulgar eyes: 
 Tranfparent veil ! in hieroglyphicks vsrrought, 
 "Which only covers not obfcures the thought j 
 Where filver urns exprefs the figur'd flood. 
 And more is meant than fi^rft is underftood. 
 Old age and time in hoary forms appear. 
 And proper emblems reprefent the year; 
 There oft blue Neptune for the fea is feen, 
 And rivers rifing from their beds in green j 
 In golden lines th' autumnal feafon glows, 
 Ar.d winter thro' a bluft'ring period blows. 
 Here brother-twins unbar rude fancy's gate, 
 Drefs her wild dreams ! and on the goddefs wait, 
 Romantic dreams! from fuperftition fprung, 
 Which Arillo taught and Spencer fung. 
 Then ev'ry grotto in its genius fpoke, 
 And Hamadryads from each hollow oak; 
 Ev'n Eccho learn'd to anfwer to her name. 
 And babbl'd louder than the babbling ftream. 
 
 Now wlien Tome rival poem you perufe, 
 O let not envy blind the partial mufe! 
 Where mer t is efteem it as your own, 
 And in its triujnph let your lighi. be fhown; 
 
 Let
 
 A 1»R0SPECT OF POETRV. ^^ 
 
 Le^ Albion aflc from whence an author came, 
 And judge according to the writer's name ; 
 Scotch, EngHfh, Irilh, be aUke to you, 
 And gladly give an infidel his due : 
 Sqom that mean artifice of unjuft praife. 
 Nor think to flatter is to gain the bays ; 
 Thefe two extremes the worthy well defplfe, 
 TVho hate with reafon and with reafon pi-ize. 
 
 And yet to malice fure I g'm much oblig'd. 
 On ev'ry fide by calumny befieg'd, 
 To critics mKch I owe who make me mend, 
 And envy I cou'd almoft call my friend : 
 Thefe taught my youthful fteps an early care, 
 To ti^read with caution and proceed with feaj-; 
 Oft in my mind their black afpei-fions came, • 
 And made me tremble at the love of fame; 
 Ev'n now I dread their jealoufy and fpite. 
 And faint in fancy cv'iy line I write. 
 
 How long before the mufes can fuccecd ; 
 To pleafe the world is now a taflc indeed! 
 All former methods vainly we purfuc. 
 The world is old aad calls for fomcthing new. 
 Nothing will take with this judicious age^ 
 But lines v/ell-labour'd and a ftudi'd page : 
 Where rich variety relieves the minfl, 
 And beams cf fancy ftrike the ciitic blind; 
 Exalted notions which great fouls contain, 
 Thoughts big with lif: and buidirig from tli3 brain ; 
 
 E SurprJfuig
 
 26 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 Surprifing novelties that never tire, 
 But load the reader on from fire to fire. 
 
 Avoid the harfhnefs of difcordant chime, 
 Senfe ill atones for violated rhime; 
 RR's jar untuneful o'er the quiv'ring tongue. 
 And ferpent S with hifling fpoils the fong : 
 When triplets Hke the furies join their hands, 
 Unloclc their folds and break their lawlefs bands; 
 Elfe Cerb'rus like the threefold monfter ftands. 
 'Tis true a triplet might fucceed by chance. 
 And even twelve feet judicioufly advance; 
 Bat thofe experiments are fatal found, 
 And feldom us'd but when we call for found;* 
 All Alexandrines from the page expunge. 
 That o'er the paper take a long unwieldy lounge. 
 
 Compounded epithets had need be few. 
 But thofe famihar and uncommon too; 
 Som.e oft like Janus wear a double face, 
 A mongrel-mixture and a motley race; 
 With thofe the mountains mull be always bleak. 
 And no kind north wind ftir the fleeping lake ; 
 But ever fanning breezes cool the morn. 
 And funs red-rifing the gray dawn adorn. 
 
 Others 
 
 * For inflance in Mr. Pope's Homer, where the blood is made 
 to trickle down the leg, through the length of an Alexandrian 
 verfe. 
 
 " And down his fnowy thigh diftill'd the flreaming flood." 
 
 Pope's HoftiER.
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. tri\ 
 
 Others to wild defcription turn tlieir flyle, 
 Make llorms blow gently and black whirlwinds fmilc; 
 From each dark point the fcatt'ring clouds difperfc. 
 And gleams of golden fun-fhine gild the verfe : 
 Without Appollo's necelTar}' aid, 
 What is defcription? an eternal fliade. 
 Weak eyes and judgments glaring objefts ftrike; 
 Both are but dazzl'd and deceiv'd alike. 
 
 But above all avoid that firen fea, 
 Where men of wit are often caft away; 
 A tempting vice long mention'd in the fchobli. 
 The pride of coxcombs and the food of fools: 
 Here vanity holds forth her flatt'ring glafs, 
 And felf-conceit adores her fvvelling face; 
 Where rival worth in vain pretends to vie, 
 And ev'ry virtue Icffens in her eye, 
 With their own lightnings oft the faif fhe warms. 
 And melts the heart of beauty by its charms; 
 The dart diredled at the man of wit, 
 FHes wing'd with quills with which his genius writ; 
 The fhaft that's pointed at the bread of beaux. 
 Is fledg'd with feathers or brocaded clothes; 
 And ftatefmen who, like me, are Icall afraid, 
 Are caught in nets which they themfclves have kiid. 
 
 To charge with gen'rous thouglits the cleareft head, 
 Confult the living and read o'er the dead; 
 Where ancient wifdom grows more wife with afe, , 
 And hoary feniors dignify the page; 
 
 E 2 Time's
 
 S* A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 Time's eldefl; born! fires gray to us in farae!* 
 The ancient^s glory but the modern '"s fhame^ 
 Supreme of thofe infpir'd Plato 'fee, 
 A name rever'd by all antiquity: 
 Pride of his feft and honour of his kind, 
 A worthy heathen with a chriftian mind; 
 AVhofe ftyle and manner moderns like fo well, 
 'J'hat he alone Delany* cou'd excel. 
 
 In thofe fam'd days of literature and tafte, 
 Liv'd Porphry's tutor and Zenobia's gueftl 
 Aurelian's tlread! endow'd with ev'ry art, 
 In which the two Minerva's claim a part; 
 Whofe charadler furvives in the fublime. 
 As the belt judge and critic of his time.+ 
 
 How courtier like gay Horace ridicules. 
 While he refines^ on Ariftotle's rules; 
 By Pindar taught to tune th' Aufonian lyre, 
 "With Grecian elegance and Roman fire: 
 In him Alcteus thunders once again, 
 Tempei'd by Sappho's more harmonious ftrain; 
 While in thick fits her fofter hghtnings play, 
 Flafh thro' the lines' and doubly gild the day. 
 
 Read Cicero ; confider Plutarch well,:j; 
 What man he was let Chgsronea t-ell: 
 
 In> 
 
 * The grealefl of Divines. — See his Revelation examined witk 
 « ardour, and the life of King CaviO. 
 
 •f Longinus. ^ Plutarch, of reading the poet*
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 2» 
 
 In Arne long this patriot pafs'd his days, 
 Nor could boation climes obfcure his praife ; 
 To him the nobleft heroes lives were known, 
 Who iludi'd others to improve his own. 
 
 The Mantuan fwan on Mincio's margin fuigs. 
 Or o'er Cremona claps his mourning wings. 
 To Tyber's banks and folitudes retires. 
 And mid his poplars feels poetic fires; 
 Courts the cool cfier's green refrefhing bed. 
 Or thro' the willows fliows his filver head; 
 Or fails with tranfport down the tuneful tide, 
 Sweet-warbling Vida fwimming by his fide: 
 At Naples too they tell thofe birds are feen, 
 To keep together on the haunted green ; 
 Brundufium oft with fudden fong furprife, 
 And warbie as they journey thro' the fides; 
 To mild Parthenope's delightful fhore, 
 And lands belov'd by Vir'ril lon^ before. 
 
 See heav'n defcend in Homer's awful lines. 
 Where all the god and all the hero fhines; 
 Eeliind Achilles lags devouring death, 
 And the lines run the reader out of breath* 
 Thunders and lightnings blaze before his eyes. 
 Blue ftrcams the fulphur from poetic flcies! 
 Line after line the flood of Hglit rolls on. 
 Foams to a fire, and brightens to a fa:i! 
 
 Thefe are the oracles of learning no\r, 
 Confult thefe books, and to thoL- Sibyls bow; 
 
 TkC 
 
 c
 
 80 I A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 Thefe are the lights that call good aftions forth, 
 Revire their value and emblaze their worth ; 
 By thofe great fouls fliall Regulus be tri'd. 
 And the brave Decii who for freedom di'd. " 
 
 And is there not with whom you may advife ? 
 A friend to reliili and to criticife ; 
 One who has prov'd how hard it is to pleafe. 
 Not firil to blame nor yet the laft to pi-aife; 
 With whofe good fenfe an author might be free. 
 And whofe good nature ne'er was flatt'ry : 
 V/hen fuch the character, and fuch that fliines. 
 The name of Lawfon* need not end thofe lines; 
 Such late was Parael — oh! too flightly mourn'd. 
 With ev'ry grace, with ev'ry mufe adorn'd! 
 By Swift belov'd, by Pope lamented moll. 
 Loft to the world — to wit and friendfhip loil — 
 Yet fhall he live while tafte is kept alive, 
 And his lov'd Plato in his verfe revive; 
 Yet fhall he live as long as truth fliall charm 
 In myftick fable, or fair virtue warm ; 
 The firft remember'd in our weak effays, 
 With honour mention'd, dignifi'd with praife. 
 
 Ncr let proud Albion thus her neighbours fcorn. 
 As if her fons alone were poets born ; 
 We too may hoaft ourfelves the fons of fame. 
 Nor are v.e foreign t,o that facred name : 
 
 Juverna's 
 
 * Dodlor John Lawfon. — See hjs^haradler by Mr. Coyn, m 
 his tranfluticn of TaHo's Jtrufarem,
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. ^IJ 
 
 Juverna's genius yet {hall wear the bay. 
 And driak as deep of Helicon as they; 
 In fpite of all our hopeful foes abroad. 
 Prevail at lad and foar into a god ; 
 The Dimeiad comes, fure omen of theif fate. 
 And Ireland yet may be the mufes feat. 
 
 O! cou'd I live to fee my country fhiae. 
 Our fable clifts invite the tuneful nine; 
 Thofe barren rocks with bays immortal fuiile, 
 And Phoebus blefs his once-beloved iQe: 
 O ! gladly then with life itfeif I'd part. 
 My country's glories throbbing at my heart ! 
 
 What's to be done in this augull alFair? 
 Firfl let us banifli all our foreign ware ; 
 Our fooliPa fondnefa for Italian lays. 
 And look at home for bards and better days: 
 Rofcommon, Parnel-^both alas are loil! 
 And few, indeed, the prefent times can boafl: 
 Yet let thofe few be valued as they Lou'd, 
 Here {hew your talle and judgment to be good; 
 Judgment! that touch-flone that direi^s our thoughts. 
 That fliews us all our beauties with cur faults; 
 
 s 
 
 Sound judgment will direft us what to do. 
 
 And how to think of men and manners too; 
 
 V/it join'd with judgment gilds good fenfe with light. 
 
 As diamond folid, and as diamond bright! 
 
 Thus far a youthful, ipufe prcfum'd to Ung, 
 To growing bards upon a Ycnt'rous v/ing ; 
 
 In
 
 S2 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 In cloiftcr'd fliades and academic groves, 
 
 Whofe peaceful glooms a mufing fancy loves ; 
 
 Where learn'd Ufher blefs'd the reverend pile. 
 
 And Alma's glories in her Berkley fmile; 
 
 Where mitred Brown* indulg'd the thoughtful hour!?, 
 
 In fage recefles and Athenian bow^'rs ; 
 
 Where Parnel wak'd tlie long forgotten ftrain. 
 
 And old lerne firings her harp again: 
 
 Here pleas'd to liften to the well-known found, 
 
 A nd hail our mother riling from the ground ; 
 
 5hakc off the dull that foil'd the filent wire. 
 
 And tune once more her venerable lyre. 
 
 While green with ivy grow her awful walls. 
 
 And from her face, the Druid's mantle falls ; 
 
 Along the park beneath the quiv'ring trees, 
 
 I walk retir'd and court the cooling breeze, 
 
 Where the tall elms projeft the browneft fnade. 
 
 There oft the mufes wander thro' the glade; 
 
 There oft I follow beauty with furprife, 
 
 And drink fwcet numbers from infpiring eyes; 
 
 With eager fleps I crofs the verdant ftage, 
 
 And foon tvanfplant 'em to my borrow'd page ; 
 
 Each maid I meet I fet her graces down. 
 
 Hence critics fay thofe thoughts are not my own. 
 
 Fine is the fecret, delicate the part. 
 To praife with prudence and addrefs with art ; 
 
 Encomium 
 
 * Dodor Peter Erov^-r,, decer.fed, bifhop ol Ccik. anu formeily 
 piovoft of T. C. D. — Sis his fsrmons.
 
 A PROSPECT OF POETRY. CS 
 
 Encomium chiefly is that kind of wit, 
 
 ^^Tiere comphments fhould indiredlly hit j 
 
 From difPrent fubjeds take their fuddpn rife. 
 
 And leaft expelled caufe the more furprife: 
 
 «' For none have been with admiration read, 
 
 «< But who befide their learning were well bred."* 
 
 Such fuit all taftes, on ev'ry tongue remain. 
 
 Forbid our bluflies and prevent our pain ; 
 
 Such fubjefts befl a Boyle might underftand, 
 
 Thefe call, my Lord, for an uncommon hand ; 
 
 To turn the finer features of the foul, 
 
 To paint the paflions fparkling as they roll; 
 
 The pow'r of numbers, the fuperior art, 
 
 To wind the fprings that move the beating heart ; 
 
 With living words to fire the blood to rage, 
 
 Or pour quick fancy on the glowing page : 
 
 This be thy praife, nor thou this praife refufe. 
 
 From no unworthy, nor ungrateful mufe ; 
 
 A mufe as yet unblemifli'd as unknown, 
 
 Wlio fcorns all flatt'iy and who envies none : 
 
 Of wrongs forgetful, negligent of fame, 
 
 Who found no patron, and who loll no name ; 
 
 IndifF'rent what the world may think her due, 
 
 Whofe friends are many, the' her years are few. 
 
 LETTERS 
 
 Effay on tranilatcd verfe, by the Earl of Rofcommon.
 
 I.'ETTBIIE ^ FOEMS. 
 
 TO 
 
 MR. DELACOUR, 
 
 ON THE PRECEDING SUBJECT
 
 /
 
 i^«^g» M-i J LL ju- n .iMjii- i uum t mjm^ EjjMiuiim«iiiUUW^4a' "" ii-munnN 
 
 ON THE 
 
 FMOSFECT OF FOETRY. 
 
 1. ROM rural fcenes where fame deteils to ftayj 
 
 Or if ftie comes is hurrying ftill away ; 
 
 Where once an age your Phcebus will come down, 
 
 To do us honour in a country town ; 
 
 Accept a gen'rcus, but a poor return* 
 
 From broken fortunes and a life forlorn. 
 
 'Tis now fome years, and age may tell the truthj 
 Since firft I trod this fairy land of youth ; 
 That fire I found misfortunes could remove, 
 And ail my verfes vanifh'd with my love : 
 I view'd green fields as unregarded things, 
 And taik'd like other folks of groves and fprings ; 
 Cou'd fmell a rofe, and dream not of the fair, 
 Or pralfe a fnow-drop, tho' the nymph was there : 
 At length I met your unafFeflcd flrain, 
 My foul diflolv'd, and I grew young again. 
 
 01 ever friendly, ever worthy praifc! 
 Lov'd for thyfelf and lov'd for all thy lays! 
 Add that behaviour that cndear'd thee long, 
 AJd thy own tempi^r fv.'ccter tfean thy fong; 
 
 Thofe
 
 38 ON THE PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 Thofe manners flill that make thee more belov'dj. 
 Yet ev'n thofe virtues pafs not unreprov'd; 
 For this thy foul in bitternefs repines. 
 Or fmiles indignant at the world's defigns» 
 
 On Cupid's pinions fare thy fancy flew! 
 Ev'n beauty palls when not defcrib'd by you ; 
 Picture invites the touches of thy pen. 
 And look Apelles' Venus lives again;* 
 The graces work upon the unfinifh'd piece. 
 And put the lall hand to the pride of Greece.^ 
 
 Nor cou'd Apelles paint a piece fo true- 
 In filent colours ilill his pencil drew; 
 But you add words, and all at once exprefs, 
 Mufic and painting by a vocal drefs : 
 There piftur'd life in all its motions ftlrs, 
 And fpeaking piflure with the eye confers ; 
 The fluid founds fwell out v/ith ev'ry tide. 
 The full notes fiudluate and the waves divide. 
 The verfe becomes a channel to the main, 
 And the ftrong current fills the ftronger ftrain. 
 
 Still from the fingers let new graces ipring. 
 Still ftiake more mufic from the founding ftring, 
 Swan-hke continue wafbhng to the lafl:. 
 And foi* the future pleafe as in the paft ; 
 
 That 
 
 " The portrait of Venas iHTcrlfeed ta herfelf, by J. D. L. C,
 
 ON THE PROSPECT OF POETRY. S4 
 
 That all mankind may help to make thee bleft. 
 And thy own virtue far above the reft; 
 Prevailing goodnefs prove fo much thy friend. 
 And fo much honefty thy heart attend, 
 The world mull own, \iwth anger envy fee, 
 How good men love to praife themfelves in thee. 
 
 W. Vv^ALSH. 
 
 County ef Clare, in JrelarJ. 
 
 ♦ >
 
 ON THE 
 
 FMOSFECT OF POETMY^ 
 
 J\s fome lone trav'ller thro* the penfive Ihade, 
 Miffing his way uncertain where to tread, 
 Affrighted turns, and if by chance he fpies 
 Sulphurous flames from diftant niarfhes rife ; 
 To them with lengthen'd ftrides in tranfport haftcsji 
 But as he comes the bright delufion waftes : 
 Thus mock'd by vifion, and by labour worn. 
 Sits down and waits the cheerful day's return. 
 
 So were we wand'ring in an age of night, 
 Led by falfe fplendours and a ghmm'ring light, 
 'Till you at length arofe to charm the heart, 
 With moving nature and with matchlefs art; 
 From a wild chaos of eternal night, 
 Gather'd the fcatter'd feeds of dubious light. 
 And with wife care digefting all in one, 
 Compos'd this glorious, this enliv'ning fun ; 
 Whofe vig'rous luftre and convincing ray. 
 Gives the whole truth's indubitable day. 
 Nq more let Rome or elder Greece appear 
 The objcfts of our (ludy, praife and carej 
 
 SiniS
 
 ©N THE PROSPECT OF POETRY. -^l 
 
 Since here a train of precepts we furvey. 
 
 As greatly good, and as corrc6l as they : 
 
 Thy thoughts from the grand body feem to grow, 
 
 Like verdant leaves that fliade the parent bough; 
 
 Perfuaflve eloquence her aid bellows. 
 
 And each harmonious line with mufic flows. 
 
 O gen'rous youth purfue the grand defign. 
 
 And be a Mofes to thy darHng nine. 
 
 See ! learning ope her deep unfathom'd fra, 
 
 Confefs thy miffion and admit thy way ; 
 
 Then urge it on, reftore with grateful toil. 
 
 The banifh'd mufes to their native foil. 
 
 Thy Siren lays ftiU form a pleafnig clieat, 
 And on my fenfe impofe the dear deceit ; 
 In them we view'd the ftream, the wood, the lawn> 
 So Uvely there the painted landfcape's drawn! 
 That loft in rapture we deceive our ear, 
 And ilill the floating mirror murmurs here : 
 Their endlefs verdure by no ftorms fliall fade. 
 While your fmooth lines afford a grateful fliade. 
 
 The bright perfedions of the female kind 
 By you defcrib'd leave nature far behind! 
 From charm to charm my eyes inceffant roll. 
 Devour thy, beauties, and admire thy foul. 
 That cou'd defcribe the fair fo many ways. 
 And in variety of beauty pleafe.* 
 
 G So 
 
 * The Pi-pgrefi of Beauty.
 
 -43 ON THE PROSPF.CT OF POETRV- 
 
 So when the moon leads on her radiant train,' 
 A thoufand fires adorn the gloomy fcene : 
 The mingl'd glories cheer the ev'ning fl<y. 
 And pour their fplendours on the ravifh'd eye- 
 Forgive the mufe, that in advent'rous verfe, 
 Wou'd all tlie beauties of thy foul rehearfe; 
 Content in hours of leifure thus to fmg. 
 And load with mufic time's unwearied wing; 
 Nor think becaufe that Pope approv'd thy lays. 
 That 1 Ihou'd therefore be induc'd to praife : 
 'Tis friendfhip bids me now thofe numbers choofe, 
 And love the man abftrafted from the mufe : 
 Well-pleaf'd alike with you my hours to fpend> 
 Whether I choofe the author or the friend. 
 
 Too foon that fwect fociety decays. 
 And we muft both forfake thofe golden days; 
 No more, alas! to tafte thofe joys again. 
 And friendfhip cherifhed here for years in vain, 
 Dejefted thought ! that thofe whom Alma bred. 
 One dome protefted and one table fed, 
 Whofe comfortable minutes danc'd away. 
 Like the calm evening of a fummer's day, 
 W'heu fortune calls them into fep'rate climes, 
 Shou'd never meet to tell of happier times; 
 Never to meet again ordain'd by fate. 
 Far from each other— —and the mufes feat. 
 
 C. WHITE, A. B* 
 
 *TrimfyCollege^ Dublsn,
 
 OS THE 
 
 FMOSFECT OF FOETRl 
 
 r- 
 
 XJ.OW many vain attempts hav^e been defign'd? 
 As well to pleafe as to improve the mind! 
 Both which in thee moft happily unite ; 
 Strange that inftruclion (hould fo much delight. 
 
 So in Hefperia's ever blifsful foil. 
 Autumn and fpring alone are feen to fniilej 
 At once the fruit difplays its golden hues, 
 And opening buds their od'rous fweets difFufu*. 
 
 Lur'd by thy precepts and enchanting tongue, 
 As if by magic, I too tempt the fong; 
 While Orpheus' wonders are reviv'd by you. 
 And now, if ever, ancient fable's true; 
 Subhm'd by mufic, here the rough rocks rife 
 A growing pile! behold it greets the fides! 
 Or fhould the lov/'ring north impregn'd with rain, 
 Pour forth its ftorms to tempell up the main ; 
 Breathe thy foft numbers ! — and th' unruly fea 
 Smooths its broad face, and bears its rage awr.y. 
 Nor with lefs glory in thy glowing lines 
 Tiaao ip hi? eaft the radiant planet flii nes ; 
 
 G % Ho\y
 
 44 ON THE PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 How mild with lucid glances flows his ray. 
 When firft he rifes o'er the vernal day! 
 How noon-tide fires blaze o'er the heav'nly plains. 
 Gild the green villas and adorn the fcenes! 
 
 Long dead to mufic and the Druid's flame, 
 Our ifle ftood hindmofl in the lifts of fame; 
 'Till Parnel rofe to charm the filent glade. 
 Then raptur'd nature fmil'd thro' every mead; 
 But fince fell death untimely ftopt his tongue, 
 Hufli'd his gay notes, his filver lyre unftrung; 
 Well pleas'd we view him breathe again in thee, 
 Heir to his numbers and his harmony. 
 
 So when once Atlas left the blefl abodes, 
 Down heav'n had fall'n commix'd with all its gods; 
 If great Alcides, partner of their cares, 
 With ftrength enormous had not propp'd the fpheres, 
 Content the gods thread o'er the ftar pav'd plain, 
 Nor thus fecure wifli Atlas back again. 
 
 R. LLOYD, A. B. 
 
 Fanjicivn, near CharUvltli, 
 
 t^
 
 -^ ' *i -M ^ M t tB t m g i«f ■Sa gMJ tg g m.Jji - .J t^ tP^" n I BWii >^ y - ts twrn 
 
 IW 
 
 PROSPECTUM POESEOS. 
 
 Re'ff^rendo amico Jacobo Delacocr, A. B. 
 
 XVjLUSARUM imperiura, lateq; patentia regna, 
 Celfus ab Aopio dum vertice, lumine Phoebi 
 SufFufus luftras; quse te, Delacourte', perenni 
 Ardua pertlngent vatum tentamina fama ! 
 
 Jam nunc, ecce, parat quondam vocalis lerns 
 (A te dum recipit Phcebi mandata parentis) 
 Gentilem reparare l}fram, cnntufq; ciere; 
 Occulta quamvis torperet fixa dolore 
 Diva diu, vocemq; premens fufpiria miiit. 
 Tu quascunq; facro dignaris tangere verfu, 
 Gratior effingi paflim natura videtur. 
 Rem, non verba, videt, mira qui illuditur arte 
 Leftor, & abfentem praefentit imagine formam. 
 Si leni zephyrus fylvas perfibilet aura, 
 Ille fimul ta6lus vento i'^creatur inani : 
 Jam jam, parte alia fi carminis, ardua rupes 
 Horrifono pelagi raucefcat pulfa fragore, 
 lUi perculfas idem circumtonnt aures* 
 
 Dum
 
 46 ON THE PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 Dum pulchram rerum feriem tua pagina volvit, 
 Continuo miri Iplendores ordine currunt: 
 Sic ftelis ftellas, & figna fequentia figna, 
 Affurgunt oculis rapidi vertigine mundi, 
 Nee humile interea quidquam, parvumve tuemurj 
 Ardua fed toto fulgent miracula ccelo. 
 
 O Tantas cui mentis opes e£Fudit Apollo I 
 Te mufae patriaeq; decus, memor efto, debere; 
 Immerito miferuin comitatur copia Parcum, 
 Tu cum fis dives, fac ut videare benignus. 
 
 EDMUNDUS MURPHY, A. M. 
 
 ESITOR SELECTO&UM LUCIAKX SIAL0C0K17M. 
 
 c:<
 
 ■ J ■ -■■ IM — B 
 
 ON THE 
 
 FHOSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 H, 
 
 .AIL happy darling of the nine! 
 Parnaflus now is wholly thine; 
 Let others round its bottom creep, 
 While you triumphant mount the fteepj 
 And from its lofty tops look down, 
 On the poetic world, your own, 
 'Tis true the rich may poorly boall 
 Of large eftates on fome fair coaft. 
 But happier thou, and richer ftill. 
 You're fovereign of this facred hill. 
 
 JAMES COxVOLLY. 
 
 TO
 
 J. ,»..ja.»w<mij,\iiuiia meBmBmima^m3^ ^imiMmJiiM mmm^^m^mwa^mKsa!!ig 
 
 TO 
 
 MM. JAMES BEILACOUM, 
 
 IN IRELAND. 
 
 OM HIS 
 
 PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 JriAIL gently warbling Delacour, v/h,ofe fame^ 
 
 Spurning Hibernia's folitary coaft, 
 
 Where fmall rewards attend the tuneful throngs 
 
 Pervades Britannia's well difcerning ifle; 
 
 In fpite of all the gloomy minded tribe 
 
 That would eclipfe thy merit— fhall the mufe 
 
 High foaring o'er the tall Parnaffian mount. 
 
 With fpreading pinions fing thy wond'rous praife. 
 
 In {trains attun'd to the feraphic lyre, 
 
 Sing unappall'd, tho' mighty be the theme? 
 
 O ! cou'd fhe in thy own harmonious ilrain. 
 
 Where foftell numbers fmoothly flowing glide 
 
 In trickling cadence ; where the milky maze 
 
 Devolves in filencc ; by the liarflier found 
 
 Of hoarfer periods ftill unrufil'd, cou'd 
 
 Pier lines but like thine own Euphrates flow? 
 
 fhsn might fl\e fing in numbers worthy thee. 
 
 BAlt
 
 ON THE PROSPECT OF POETRY, <& 
 
 But what can language do, when fancy finds 
 Herfelf unequal to the lovely tafli ? 
 Can feeble words thy vivid colours paint, 
 Or fhew the fweets which inexhauftive flow ? 
 
 Hearken ye woods, and long refounding groves> 
 Liften ye ftreams foft purling thro' the meads, 
 And hymning horrid, all ye tempefts roar. 
 Awake ye woodlands, fing ye warbling larks 
 In wildly lufcious notes; but moft of all 
 Attend you grateful fail*, attend the youth 
 Who fiveetly fings of nature and of you: 
 From you alone his confcious breaft expefts 
 Its foft rewards, by fordid love of gaia 
 Unbiafs'd, undebas'd ; to meaner minds 
 Belong fuch narrow views, his nobler foul 
 Tranfported with a gen'rous third of famCj 
 Sublimely rifes with expanded wings, 
 And thro' the lucid Empyrean foars. 
 So the young eagle wings its rapid way 
 Thro' heav'ns broad azure; fometimes fpiings aloft, 
 Now drops, now cleaves with even-waving wings 
 The yielding air, nor feas nor mountains flop 
 Its flight impetuous, gazing at the fun 
 With irretortcd eyes, whilft he pervades 
 A tracklefs void, and unexplor'd before. 
 
 Long had the curious trav'Uer ftrove to find 
 Ths ruins of afpiring Babylon 
 
 H ■ la
 
 is «N Tt^E PROSPECT OF POElRY. 
 
 In vain — for nought the niceft eye oould trace; 
 
 Save one wide wat'ryundlllinguifli'd wafte. 
 
 But you with more than magic art have rais'd 
 
 Semiramis' city from its grave ; 
 
 You have revers'd the fcripture curfe which faid, 
 
 Dragous fhall here inhabit; in your page 
 
 We view the rifing fpires, the hurried eye 
 
 Diftra£led wanders thro* the verdant maze; 
 
 In middle air the pendent gardens hang, 
 
 Tremendous cieling ! — whilil no folar beam 
 
 Falls on the lengthen'd gloom beneath; the woocJs 
 
 Projedl above a fleep alluring (hade 5 
 
 The finifh'd garden opens to the view 
 
 Wide ftretching villa's, while the whifp'ring wind 
 
 Dimples along the breezy ruffled lake. 
 
 Now every tree irregular, and bufii 
 
 Are prodigal of harmony, the birds 
 
 Frequent the serial woods, and nature bluflies 
 
 Afham'd to find herfelf outdone by art: 
 
 Thefe and a thoufand beauties cou*d I fing, 
 
 CoUefting like the ever-toiling bee 
 
 From yonder mingled wildernefs of flowers 
 
 The aromatic fweets; while you great youth, 
 
 O'er thy decaying country chief prefide; 
 
 Be thou her genjus cali'd, infpire her youth 
 
 With noble emulation to an-ive 
 
 At Helicon's fair font, which few, alas! 
 
 Save you, have tailed, of Hibernian youth. 
 
 Thy country, tho' corrupted brought thee forth 
 
 And
 
 ON THE PROSPECT OF POETRY. £1 
 
 And deem'd her greatcft ornament ; and now 
 
 Regards thee as her brighteft northern ftar. 
 
 Long may you reign as fuch, and fliou'd grim time 
 
 With iron teeth deprive us of our Pope, 
 
 Then we'll tranfplant thy blooming laurels frefli 
 
 From your blejik Ihore to Albion's happier coall- 
 
 J. THOMSONS 
 
 AUTHOR Ot TUE SEASONS. 
 
 Hz Tft
 
 TO 
 
 M]R. BEJLACOUJRo 
 
 Marjlo-wn, December 1$, 1733= 
 SIR, 
 
 JL WAS refolved to be fo early in my acknowledgments, that 
 1 had only allowed myfelf time curforily to read over a Poem 
 infcribed to me, which a few hours ago reached this place,* where 
 I live the world forgetting, and I was in hopes by the world for- 
 got. It was great pleafure to me when I was in Ireland to find 
 the fpirit of poetry arifing there with frefh vigour: here it is 
 finking apace, and feems only kept up by Mr. Pope; but indeed 
 he alone is fufficient to maintain it in its utmoft fplendour, for 
 which reafon I think we ought to wifli him immortal in every 
 fenfe. 
 
 I will not defpair of returning you my thanks within thefe 
 few months, in a country to which I fhould be very ungrateful 
 if fhe did not poffefs the warmeft wifhes of my heart. In the 
 mean time. Sir, though you are happy in many friends already, 
 1 hope you will do me the juftice to add to them the name of 
 
 Your mofl obedient Servant, 
 
 ORRERY. 
 
 TO 
 
 * Somerfetlhire.
 
 | .HWi <| .Hii » W M M I I - ■!■! IIWI II II • ' I H I. 
 
 TO 
 
 TIIJE AUTIIOPi., 
 
 London^ Ei-piemher 10, I734' 
 
 JLt Is with the utmoll pleafure that 1 begin a correfpondencc 
 with my dear nephew, on the fubjefl: of wilhing you jcy of 
 your happy genixis. The Prospect of Poetry introduces you 
 to many, and I heartily wilh you may liave a grateful reward 
 for your pretty labours from fome generous reader; Indeed it is 
 wrong to call fo much beauty labour, but its pardonable in my 
 fex to want proper language. 
 
 1 ftiall hope to fee you grace a pair of lawn fleeves in my time, 
 and be affured that every advantage in life, that fortune can blefs 
 you with, fhall always be a very great addition to my fatisfaclion. 
 
 1 will not tire you longer; 1 wifh you perfect happinefs, and am 
 my dear, 
 
 Your alTedionate humble Servant, 
 
 ELIZA. WALSH. 
 
 To
 
 TO 
 
 MM. IDEJLACOUJR. 
 
 DEAR COUSIN, 
 
 JIf I had not feen thofe juft encomiums oji tlie Prospect o» 
 Poetry, I might have been tempted in humble profe to have 
 aimed at fomething of this fort; but as it is difficult to praife juftly 
 ■without being thought guilty of flattery, I am glad thofe gen- 
 tlemen have eafed me of the fear of offending either on the one 
 hand or. the other: though I flatter niyfelf that I feel all the le- 
 veral emotions of heart that thofe gentlemen do, in the variety 
 of your ftyle and beauty of expreflion, yet I am more ftruck with 
 the judgment, learning and politenefs of the author, which are. 
 the caufe of thefe mafterly fl;rokcs of poetry, than with the ef- 
 feds; though at the fame time I mufl. aflure you that on account, 
 cf its own merit, excluiive of any other confideration. 
 
 Tale tuum carmen nobis, divine poeta; 
 
 Quale fopor feflis in gramine, quale per jeftum 
 
 Dukis aquc; faliente Gtim reftinguere rivo: 
 
 , Nam n'eque me tantuni venientis fibilus aufl;ri, 
 
 Nee percuffa juvant fludtu tam httora, nee quas 
 
 Saxofas inter decurrunt flumina -valles. 
 
 Vjrg. Ecl. 5. 
 
 My mother is in high raptures when fiie hears your perfor- 
 mance; and thit ycu may lay as much ftrefc upon her recom- 
 
 oiendatlos-
 
 tN tHE PROSPECT OF POETRY. . 5S 
 
 fnendatlon as It really deferves, 1 mufl do her the juftice to fay 
 that, (though fhc is a very sjreat enemy to lighting) yet upon my 
 reading aloud the account of the death of Patroclus, out of the 
 l6th book of Pope's tranllation of the Illiad, fhe told me it was 
 very fine. I wUl not fay how much you will oblige me, if you 
 ■will endeavour to fend me the Progrefs of Beauty, and any other 
 of your offspring that are either elder or younger than this. • 
 
 I ha^e enclofed a criticifm on our favourite Thomfon, v/hich 
 I am the rather induced to do as it agrees with your rules on 
 that fubjedl; the gentleman who wrote it is a particular friend 
 of mine, in whofe company I have pafll'd many agreeable hours 
 when I was in Warwicklhire, he is going to oblige the world 
 with a poem upon hunting in blank verfe, called the Chafe, all 
 the news I can pick up from the poetic world is, that we expect 
 to fee another performance of Mr. Thomfon's this* winter, and 
 an elegant tranflation of Anacreon by an unknown hand, as to 
 the two laft works I know them only by charader, I have a 
 more intimate acquaintance with the former, and will venture to 
 fay that it will bring you over to be fond of that fort of poetry. 
 
 I know not Tiow to fay a more affectionate thing to you, and 
 the reft of mankind,, than to wifh you fuch a fituation of life 
 as will be fuitable to your merit, in doing which I am fure I pay • 
 full as great a compliment to thofe with whom you Ihall reSde, 
 as I do to you. Be affured that there is not, nor ever Ihall be, in 
 this place, any perfon who can have a greater inclination to ferve 
 you than, 
 
 Your moft affeclionate kinfman. 
 
 And obedient humble Servant, 
 
 CROSSE OUTING. 
 
 P. S. I fuppofc you have feen Mr. Pope's laft fatire, were I to 
 give try opinion of It I &»yld fay it v/a* the firft thing he evt-r 
 
 writ,
 
 55 GN THE PROSPECT OF POETRY. 
 
 writ, thougli I am ready to ov.'n It has many charms, yet I be-, 
 licve were the faults plac d in th>j oppofite fcale, they would draw 
 down the balance. I am tl. inking that if thefe fatires laft 'tiil 
 the next age, the joke will ce7fc, when the perfons are no more, 
 and pofherity will have but an indifferent opinion of the author's 
 humanity ; for my own part I Ihall always believe that one ounce 
 of good nature is worth a pound of wit. 
 
 London, Aug'f 2?, 1 734- 
 
 ABELARJD
 
 ABEJLAMI]) TO EJLOISAo 
 
 JN ANSWER TO 
 
 MR. POPE'S 
 
 MJLOISA TO ABE1L.1RJD. 
 
 WRITTEN IN THE YEAR 1729, 
 
 at ilia 
 Flet nocletn, ramoq; fedens mifcrabile carmen 
 Integrat, & moeftibus late loca qneftibus implet. 
 
 ViRG. Geor. W, 
 
 But flie fupplics the night with mournful ftrains, 
 And melancholy mufic fills the plains. 
 
 Pr.VDEN,
 
 F M E F A € E, 
 
 Jl DOUBT not in the leaft, but fome will think it abfurd to 
 write a preface to fo fmall a piece as this letter fliews itfclf to be ; 
 I confefs they may be fo far right ; but, however, I mufl make my- 
 felf underftood fo as to avoid thofe cenfures that may other wife 
 be thrown on me for writing it. In the firft place, it was not 
 publilhed with a defign to rival any thing of this nature that went 
 before it: every perfon that has read Mr. Pope's juftly admired 
 piece, are convinced that it has beauties fcarce to be imitated, 
 much lefs tranfcended: it is built upon a ftory undoubtedly true, 
 the circumftances happening in the twelfth century, and delivered 
 down to us by writers of undoubted veracity: all that have heard 
 them join in pity to deplore fo moving a relation. Abelard and 
 Elolfa by all accounts were two of the moft diflinguiflied perfons 
 in the age they lived in for natural and refined parts, early they 
 tailed the forbidden fruit and as early fuffered for it. He was 
 pitched upon by her uncle, an abbot in France, to be her precep- 
 tor in philofophy; by which means this unlucky paflion firft took 
 its rife that was to coft them fo many tears afterwards. The li- 
 berties of an unconfined converfation fervcd only to blow it higiier: 
 two of the moft beautiful perfons in that age could not behold 
 each other long with the eyes of infenfibility; they loved, and in- 
 dulged their mutual wilhes, and one evening, when they thought 
 all was fafe, all private and fecure, the abbot, who had fufpecflcd 
 them a good while before, bounced into the room and feized them 
 in the very faifl. O! who can dcfcrlbe the furprife in each of 
 their faces, Eloifa was hurried away that inflant from his fight, 
 sever to fee her more but in a convent; and the unhappy Abe- 
 
 I 2 hnd
 
 60 PREFACE. 
 
 lard was forcibly deprived of the means of ever tafling thofe joys 
 again by the hands of ruffians. Thus did thofe faithful lovers re- 
 tire betimes from the vanities of a treacherous world, they went 
 to feparate convents and confecrated the remainder of their days 
 io religion. Long after this a letter falling by chance into Eloi- 
 fa's hands, that was written by Abelard to fame of his friends, in 
 which he gives them an account of his unheard of calamities and 
 afflictions : this awakened all her tendernefs, and occafioned thofe 
 celebrated tetters which Mr. Pope and all the world will fay, do 
 give the moft lively defcription of the ftruggles of nature, virtue 
 ■and paflion. They died after this and were buried in the monaf- 
 tery called the Paroclete, in the fame tomb, or in monuments 
 adjoining. 
 
 I have read ]Mr. Pope's letter, and do think it impoflible for 
 futurity to produce, in our language, any thing fofter in its kind 
 than that celebrated epiftle. The many gloomy horrors and 
 mournful images worked up here and there, and foftened with his 
 all-tender csprefTions, reader it a mafter-piece for fucceeding ages. 
 As I read him with the pieafure of an admirer, fo I hope I have 
 not wanted care to imitate him: Lf I fall, I greatly fall, my am- 
 bition leading me to imitate one of the fineft pieces of the kind 
 row extant; nay, if I may have leave to fay fo, I think it even 
 excels Mr. Prior's Henry to Emma, which charmed the fineft 
 faftcs abroad and at heme. How 1 have ftudied Mr. Pope's ftyle, 
 1 leave to the ladies, who are much the prcpereft judges in fiij:h 
 affairs, and for whom it was chieHy defigned. — If I am fo happy 
 as to be approved of by them, let the reft of the world cenfure 
 as ihcy pleaft, I Ihall remain ftiJl their humble Servant, 
 
 JAMES DELACOUR. 
 
 ABELAJR.D
 
 tJ.uu.i.iai. i. ! 
 
 .^EEL.4MI} TO EJLOISA. 
 
 A R O M fhades as deep and gloomy as the bow*rs, 
 
 Where Eloifa fpends her thoughtful hours. 
 
 This melancholy paper hades away 
 
 From Abelard — far plung'd from painful day, 
 
 Darkling he mourns the fate h? could not fhun. 
 
 And grieves to find fuch faithful fouls undone. 
 
 Can Eloifa yet difturb a bread? 
 Refign'd for ever to eternal roll. 
 Forbid to harbour any glimpfe of love. 
 But what this convent dii^lates from above; 
 Yes, virtue bad me write her name and laiou-, 
 Virtue and paflion both will have it fj. 
 
 Harmonious name! dill mufical in grief. 
 Dear favo'rite found! to foolh a (hort relief. 
 How hard it is, pronounce it O my tongue. 
 The balmy accent thou haft; often wrung. 
 When happier times made Eloifa kind, 
 And melting wiflies tun'd us to one mind. 
 Now cloifter'd up in folitude flie dwells, 
 Trims her pale lamp, and wakes to midnight btlis, 
 Penfive fhe fits on the relentlefs ftonc, 
 For ever mufing, thoughtful and alone; 
 
 Whcr>
 
 62 ABELARD TO ELOISA. 
 
 Where awful darknefs aids the fears of nightj. 
 And the blue taper calls a gloomy light ; 
 Where folcmn objefts lift the rifing foul, 
 Teem into thought, and aduate the whole ; 
 Where fancy makes the big ideas ftrong, 
 And forms imperfeft glide away in fong ; 
 Such odd impreffions v.'ill the mind receive 
 When drench'd in melancholy's fable wave ; 
 MoiTy and old the ruin'd dome appears 
 Amid the vale of mifeiy and tears. 
 
 Ye filent walks! ye ever lonely walls! 
 Deaf to a lover, and to nature's calls j 
 Ye facred cells! ye venerable ftones! 
 Where Abelard in time muft lay his bones; 
 Thro' whofe dark cloifters never wander'd light. 
 Where Owlets fcream the moments of the night j 
 Long founding ifles! in which devotion lies, 
 In thought conceal'd from all but hermit's eyes; 
 Can love, that tender paffion, enter here? 
 Where phantoms frown, and angels learn to fear j 
 O ! never, never, but in fouls like ours, 
 Form'd for this by love's efpecial pow'rs. 
 
 And doft tbou love ? yet burns that fatal flame ? 
 Or wilt thou afk from whence this lettei'came? 
 It comes not from the dead to gain belief. 
 To footh tliy woes, or mitigate thy griefj 
 Ko Eloifa ! • 
 
 Fram
 
 ABELARD TO ELOISA. 6S 
 
 From Abelard it comes, a mournful gueft. 
 That wants a lodging in a troubled breafl ; 
 It will not hurt thee, it will fympathife, 
 Fall with thy bofom, with thy bofom rife; 
 Sad as its author let it tell its tale, 
 And when you hear it pity will prevail. 
 
 When the feas rage, and wintry blafts complain, 
 When rattling Euru5 blows a hurricane. 
 In midnight cell 1 ftretch without a bed, 
 Ten thoufand thoughts revolving in my head; 
 One while the dangers of the ftormy deep, 
 Tho' fafc at land, have kept my eyes from fleep ; 
 Now gentle pity iteals upon the mind, 
 To think of thofe opprefs'd by fea and wind ; 
 Oft have I wonder'd while the hinges crake, 
 And trees around the monaftery fiiake; 
 What fwcrt temptation or what bofom wife, 
 Could tempt the merchant to this kind of life ; 
 Now morahfe upon the fhipwrcck'd dead. 
 And view the emblem of that hfe we fled. 
 My weary eye-balls o'er the ocean caft, 
 Strain at the horrors of the wat'ry waftc ; 
 Sigh to the whillHng winds, and tune my woe 
 To the hoarfe murmurs of the furge below ; 
 Then from my foul a train of griefs arife, 
 And the big tears ftand trembling in my eyes; 
 From woe to woe, with wild dittraftion toft, 
 I mourn my Eloifa — ever loft.
 
 54 ABELARD TO ELOlSA. 
 
 Why wilt thou then my Eloifa fav ? 
 " Can'ft thou forget that fad that folemn day?'* 
 Why with fuch doubts upbraid a vellal flame, 
 And think thy Abelard but thine in name ? 
 O wert tliou here ! whidi cruel fate denies. 
 To read that mournful foftncfs in thofe eyes, 
 To fearch t.hofe looks and all the features trace. 
 Of that once known but now much alter'd face; 
 Soon would'ft thou find tbo' alter'd in his frame, 
 The heart of Abelard was ftill the fame. 
 Yes — thou would fee it breaking with defpair, 
 And thou, not God, my Elcifa there. 
 
 How chang'd thy Abelard? how wan his looks? 
 Pale with Continual turning over books ; 
 The night now feems a deeper black to wear. 
 And found more faintly tingles in my ear ; 
 The day looks dull, for 'tis no day to mc, 
 Depriv'd of all ray foul held dear in thee; 
 Rcftlefs I rove — no Eloifa here. 
 To charm my grief, or drink the falling tear ; 
 Hufli like a child my beating heart to reft. 
 And lull me on the pillow of her breaft. 
 
 No! — far from hence fad Eloifa walk.s, 
 With mimic grief to fportive Echo talks; 
 In confecrated fiiades forgets her bloom. 
 And flies the palace for the kinder tomb ; 
 Pleas'd with the gloomy horror of the place, 
 A charming fadncfs fits upon he;' face; 
 
 She
 
 1-5 
 
 =* 
 
 ABELARD TO ELOISA. °^ 
 
 She eyes the walls intent upon her fate, 
 And fmooths the rugged rocks of Paraclete ; 
 Methinks I fee the beauteous mourner grow 
 In love with grief, tranfported with her woej 
 Her fteps (lie counts, her bended head reclin'd 
 Shews her diftemper'd fynlpathy of mind. 
 Full of herfelf, in folemn pace fhe moves, 
 Buried in thought thro' folitary groves. 
 
 Now paradife afcends beneath her feet, 
 Fields ever frefli, and flow'rs for ever fweet, 
 Angels defcend, divine Cecelia fmgs, 
 And feraphs fan her with their filken wings^ 
 She dies away in fweet oblivious thought, 
 And even her Abelard is now forgot. 
 Ah no ! fhe wakes, again (he fighs, fhe mourns. 
 And the fame round of endlefs grief returns ; 
 From her fine eyes the big round drops defcend^ 
 Form'd by thofe funs in wat'ry diamonds end, 
 With fragrant dew enrich the facred ground, 
 Perfume her robe and wet the fane around. 
 
 Oh Eloifa thou eternal charm! 
 Soft as thyfelf, and as thy perfon 'fi'arm ; 
 "Tis thine to come to Abelard by right 
 To footh his ravings and difpel the night, 
 Wiiifper the world of cordials to his mind, 
 But Eloifa is no longer kind. 
 No longer the kind goddefs of thofe houn 
 That danc'd away in foft Lutetian bow'rs? 
 
 K Ah
 
 65 ABELARD to EL0I8A. 
 
 Ah fatal congrefs! tragically fweet! 
 Where days were hours at Eloifa's feet ; 
 
 Thefe days were once but now no more in love. 
 
 Change Abelard this heaven for that above. 
 
 Wou'd heaven confent ! we fliou'd together be 
 To figh in concert, grieve in harmony, 
 Then fhou'd thy eyes all-red my paflions move, 
 Teach mine to weep, as once they thought to love; 
 Then fliou'd we learn that fad, that moving air. 
 More eloquent than words to tell our fond defpair ; 
 Then gluttou'-like, devour each others grief. 
 No envious witnefs by to lend relief; 
 There clafp, indulge in luxury of woe, 
 'Till face to face inanimate we grow. 
 
 Delufive thought! oh vanity in me I 
 To wi{h for things impofiible to be; 
 
 No Eloifa think of former times. 
 
 Of dear, fad, fleeting, inoffenfive crimes. 
 Crimes that drew down this vengeance from above 
 Unknown to us all innocent in love! 
 Sweetly we ran oUr then appointed race. 
 In ways of pleafure and in paths of peace; 
 
 I wou'd not mention but alas you'll fay, 
 
 My Abelard is far lefs kind than they : 
 Then hear and tremble at this fad decree, 
 'Tis heaven that fpeaks in Abelard to thee. 
 
 Long
 
 ABELARD TO ELOISA. «T 
 
 Long waftes, deep wilds, an unfrequented fpace. 
 Forbid us e'er to fee each others face ! 
 And did there not, th' Almighty Hands between. 
 With double vengeance paints the frightful fcenej 
 An uncle's blood the' drank by thirlty laws, 
 Cries out for vengeance on the guilty caufe : 
 Who tho' he merited the lofs of breath, 
 Yet 'twas our crimes condudled him to death; 
 He fell, and falling by a common hand,* 
 Declar'd we help'd to fpill his vital fand. 
 And fee a lover bound and bleeding lies, 
 ** To ftain thy foul, and wanton in thy eyes." 
 Say Eloifa can no taught moleft 
 The dull tranquillity within thy bread? 
 Say don't the black remembrance ftab thy heart, 
 And drive my image from that tender part. 
 Oh fpeak! does not this tragedy divine? 
 That Eloifa can be never mine; 
 It does, it does, too fenfibly I fear, 
 To leave us any hopes beyond defpair. 
 
 And thou fair penitent I thou mourning bride 
 Loft to thyfelf, and all the world befide ; 
 Say did I once one agony im.part. 
 Say could you feel the motions of my heart ? 
 
 K 2 Even 
 
 • He wa« executed at Paris by the common hangman, for hi» 
 oruelties on Abelard whom he caufed to be diljnembered. 
 
 Sec £oth.cir,
 
 68 AEELARD TO ELOISA. 
 
 Even in that fad, that folemn hour of grief,* 
 
 When Eloifa wanted moll relief; 
 
 When the foft mufick mourn'd in drain divine^ 
 
 And Eloifa was no longer mine. 
 
 Sad as thou wert, all beautifully gay, 
 
 Dreft for the fatal bufinefs of the day ; 
 
 I found fome confolation in my breaft, 
 
 That both were going to eternal reft ; 
 
 When floods of glory burft upon our eyes. 
 
 And open'd all the pomp of facrifice. 
 
 With irrefiftible devotion fir'd. 
 
 How was rfly foul harmonioufly infpir'd! 
 
 When thro' the throng by ev'ry foul belov'd. 
 
 Thou urg'd thy way, thyfelf alone unmov'd, 
 
 What lighs were heard! what forrows did not flow. 
 
 To fee fo young a facrifice to woe: 
 
 When heav'n, above, below was in my eye, 
 
 A thoufand times that hour I wifli'd to die ; 
 
 So abfolutely had my foul forgot 
 
 Thofe vanities we both fo dearly bought; 
 
 But oh ! when once we came to feparate. 
 
 There lay the blow, the deadly blow of fate j 
 
 With eafe I bad delufive friends adieu. 
 
 Could part with all, with all the world but you: 
 
 Yet even this thy Abelard at laft 
 
 Was forc'd to prove, to finifh the repaft. 
 
 Confummate 
 
 * At her receiving the veil.
 
 ABEL ART) TO EL0I3A. 69 
 
 Confummate drought! O dregs of" bitter care! 
 Drain'd to the bottom, muddy with defpair, 
 So thick that Abelard may well fuppofe, 
 They were the very grounds of all his woes; 
 Yet ftill he writes, endeavours ftili to join 
 Tale to fad tale, nor fhall it all be thine, 
 A little forrow Abelard mull have 
 To lay him gently in the filent grave: 
 That port of calms, that pallet of the bleft. 
 Where the poor labo'rer lays him down to reft| 
 Here is no hurry, virgins feldom fear. 
 The lofs of man or reputation here. 
 
 No broken faith, no vows, no fears, no groans, 
 Diflurb the awful quiet of thofe bones; 
 In peace they reft, here wait their final doom, 
 And look for day-light in a world to come. 
 Inchanting ftatel where folitiide can pleafe 
 Even in the du(l, and all the world at cafe; 
 Where wretched lovers after troubles meet. 
 And dream of nothing in a winding-lheet; 
 Tho' hard the bed is, found they ilumber there^ 
 Weary of life, and jaded out with care. 
 
 Oh Eloifa! fweet as Sharon's rofe! 
 How fatal have I been to thy rcpofe. 
 Unhappy Abelard thy hand rellrain. 
 Nor write what may give Eloifa pain. 
 This, even this, tho' flight, for ought you know, 
 May caufe thofe tears, thofe precious tears to flow; 
 
 The
 
 7© ABEJLARD TO ELOISA. 
 
 The foft remembrance may difturb that breaft, 
 Where thou haft dwelt a long, a ftubborn gueft ; 
 Then why would'ft thou awake the flumb'ring mind, 
 To think of moments cruelly unkind ? 
 Why would'ft thou fiicli ungen'rous a6ls purfue 
 As grieving her that figh'd fo long for you. 
 'Tis time to reft! ah give her that repofe. 
 And let oblivion reft upon her woes.
 
 THE COURTSHIP OP 
 
 E F H "Y R U S 
 
 AKB 
 
 FJLORA, 
 
 WRITTEN AS AN EPITHALAMIUM 024 TH£ MARP.IAdE OF 
 
 LADY GRACE BOYLE 
 
 WITH 
 
 THE EARL OF MTDDLE.^EK".
 
 iZEFH"Y]RUS 
 
 AND 
 
 FJLO R^. 
 
 A O U whofe mild looks by far excel the fpring. 
 And all the fweets which Flora's prefence bring ; 
 "VVhofe beauty calls upon her Have fo long, 
 With fuch a fmile he can't refufe a Tons': 
 Now when melodious warblings fill the grove, 
 And ev'ry turtl^tells his tale of love, 
 Vouchfafe fair maid to liflen to the mufe, 
 And hear a voice which you are pleas'd to choofe. 
 With my fond palTion for a while comply, 
 Thou fhalt be Flora and your Zephyr I. 
 
 Hear how the lark begins her early {trains. 
 And wakes the wild muficians of the plains ; 
 Th' embroider'd faring in green array appears, 
 And every rofe-leaf wet with pearly tears; 
 The birds are pair'd ; to-morrow Flora yields 
 And weds young Zophyr in his native fields; 
 Hafte, ftick with blofToms ev'ry orange bow'r, 
 Tip the green myrtle with a whiter How'r; 
 
 L 'Tis
 
 74 ZEPHYRUS AND FLORA. 
 
 'Tis Venus' plant, in Paphos firft it grew. 
 When o'er the fields its wanton odours flew ; 
 A fpring eternal on its leaves is feen, 
 And love's fweet kifs perfum'd the tender green. 
 Soon will fhe come; ye graces drefs the bed, 
 And fmiling lay the pillow for her head. 
 Soft let it fink in green and leafy fweets, 
 Soft as her bofom which his bofom meets ; 
 With vernal gales he'll cool her rifmg fires, 
 And blow delightful as her fan infpires; 
 O'r all her breaft and lips the lover flies. 
 And with her hand flie bids the breezes rife. 
 Let beauty fcorn no more to be a bride, 
 Since Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd. 
 
 From Venus's lips, for fo the mufes fung, 
 Born in a figh the fweet Favonius fprung, 
 That day Adonis prefs'd the rofy vale. 
 When frantick beauty heard her fadd'ning tale; 
 Then Cupid firft was known to fob and cry, 
 And with his bandage wipe his little eye, 
 Bewail'd his brother, as he call'd the boy. 
 His own companion, and his mother's joy: 
 His horn no more thy infant hands fliall wield, 
 Nor kifs the hounds returning from the field, 
 Or ftrive to wind it hanging by his fide, 
 Pleas'd with the verdant belt's negledled pride: 
 Sleep, fleep in peace, ye monfters of the wood, 
 For his own beagles lap their mafter's blood. 
 Let beauty fcorn no more to be a bride, 
 Since Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd. 
 
 See
 
 ZEPHYRUS AND FLORA. 75 
 
 See where he fwims upon that purling flream, 
 And in the water ftrives to cool his flame; 
 The ruffled brook beneath his bofom flows. 
 Its chiyftal furface curhng as he blows ; 
 Warm Flora too upon its margin refts. 
 And to the gale prefents her glowing breafls. 
 Or in the mirror decks with flovv'rs her hair. 
 And fees another Flora dancing there j 
 Nor minds, intent on her refleft'd fhade. 
 Into what kifTes fhe has been betray'd. 
 Let beauty fcorn no more to be a bride. 
 Since Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd. 
 
 From yonder arbour rife the purple hours. 
 And on their fingers baflcets fiU'd with flow'rs; 
 Gay Hymen too (lands naked in the porch. 
 And in his hand flames out the nuptual torch. 
 The Loves and Graces there a fmiling train, 
 In gay proceflion crowd the grafly plain ; 
 Impatient 'till their fav'rite taflc is done. 
 And flie and Zephyr fix'd for ever one. 
 Let beauty fcorn no more to be a bride. 
 Since Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd. 
 
 With ftudded flow'rs flie fprinklcs all the fcene. 
 Embalms their leaves, and gives the groves to green : 
 She ftains their coats, and bids their colours rife. 
 Unfolds their glories, and augments their dyes: 
 Where beauty bluflics in her finell freaks, 
 And light indulges in her gayeft llreaks; 
 
 L 2 A garniture
 
 76 ZEPHYRUS AND FLORA. 
 
 A garniture compofed of different hues, 
 Whofe fine complexion the young graces ufe; 
 From whence Dione oft extrafts a blufti. 
 And pulls the province-rofe from every bulh^ 
 Again the garden in her afpeft glows. 
 And on her hp the fweet carnation blows. 
 Let beauty fcorn no more to be a bride. 
 Since Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd. 
 
 Where Arethufa fhews her filver breaft. 
 And Enna's vale prefers above the reft ; 
 The queen of flow'rs unfolds her gaudy pride. 
 And at her feet the fpreading waters glide ; 
 Here little Loves Pomona's prefents bear. 
 The purple product of the early year. 
 Even on his head a china vafe receives. 
 And hunts for ftrawberries hid beneath the leaves i 
 Delicious fruitage ! breathing foft perfume, 
 That wafts a coohng fragrance thro' the room ; 
 And gather'd frefh, when ev'ning fans the air. 
 On the green leaf allures the fmiling fair; 
 Her fnowy fingers take a blufhing hue, 
 Stain'd with the fruit, and redd'ning to the view j 
 Her purple hps are ting'd with nature's dye. 
 And honey-fuckles breath in every figh. 
 Let beauty fcorn no more to be a bride. 
 Since Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd. 
 
 Now chirping grafshoppers their nuptials fing, 
 Purfued by Cupids on the fwifteft wingj 
 
 Shook
 
 ZEPHYRUS AND FLORA, 77 
 
 Shook from the grafs o'er blufhing meadows rove. 
 Or fly for {helter to the flow'ry grove ; 
 When chattering fwallows fweep along the fkies, 
 Or haunt the fhaded walks for butterflys, 
 Thro' the long lane now fwiftly (hoot away. 
 Or o'er the bufhcs hang in airy play; 
 The wary fly obferves his hov'ring foe, 
 And fits conceal'd beneath the leaves below; 
 There ftigks unmov'd, while Progne plies in fight, 
 Nor opes his fcarlet pinions to the light. 
 Let beauty fcorn no more to be a bride. 
 Since Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd. 
 
 To yonder fummer-houfe the goddefs flies. 
 To cool the fervour of meridian flcies. 
 Where jeflamine wove with flow'ry philerea. 
 Darkens the v/indows, and fliuts out the day; 
 There throws herfclf upon a couch of flow'rs, 
 ^nd in foft flumbers walles the fultry hours; 
 While Zephyr thro' the greens regales the place. 
 And breathes the fragrance full upon her face ; 
 The hfted fafli allows him room to peep. 
 And in her lap a lamb lies fad afleep, 
 Whofe milky neck the cirling ribband flains. 
 And holds the little innocence in chains; 
 Small filver bells beneath the collar ring, 
 
 By Flora's finger faftcn'd to the firing: 
 
 On the clean hearth green pots of flow'rs afcend, 
 
 And the broad flags beneath the chimney bend. 
 X.ct beauty fcorn no. more to be a bride, 
 
 Smcc Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd.
 
 IS ZEPHYRUS AND FLORA. 
 
 Here build the fwallows, here fhrill Progne cling?> 
 And fans her miftrefs with expanded wings; 
 As round the roof the feather'd people play» 
 And twitter wild their vernal life away; 
 Beneath the ceiling ever turning fly, 
 And fill the green-houfe with difcordant cry : 
 In pleaiing profpeft long canals appear, . 
 
 And failing fwans in various poftures fteer. 
 Some to the gale their fnowy plumage fpread. 
 Or in the cirling waters plunge their head; 
 While from the windows Flora feeds the fowl. 
 And broken bloffoms on the waters roll. 
 Let beauty fcom no more to be a bride, 
 Since Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd. 
 
 And now the breeze invites the fair to bed, 
 Where bloflbm'd beans foft waving hang the head; 
 Here wrapp'd in fweets Favonius weds the fair, 
 Whofe very figh perfumes the balmy air; 
 O'er her fair face the fragrant bloflbms flow'r. 
 Bend to her lips, and on her bofom fliow'r; 
 Round her white neck the falling foliage rife. 
 And draw a (ilken curt«iin o'er her eyes. 
 Let beauty fcom no more to be a bride, 
 Since Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd. 
 
 In founding millions hither fwarm the bces,^ 
 And in fwect murmurs hum about the trees; 
 Sit on the flow'rs, and every fragrance fip. 
 From Maid's bofom to Favonia's lip ; 
 
 Favonia's.
 
 feE^'HYRUS AND FLORA. 7! 
 
 Tavonia's lip witli fprlng's ripe moillure ftiew'd, 
 Beneath the red impreflion fwell'd and gltnv'd; 
 Stung with the kifs, her fmall mouth poifon'd fliows, 
 And looks diforder'd Hke a rumpl'd rofe. 
 Let beauty fcorn no more to be a bride. 
 Since Flora has uith Zephyrus comply 'di 
 
 How long the primrofe lags behind the year. 
 And when fhall I the charming cuckoo hear, 
 
 Stay gentle bird or after thee I run. 
 
 Nor, giddy, mind if yet my fong be done: 
 She heeds me not, from bough to bough (he flies, 
 And following fail my infpiration dies; 
 No more I fing, my wit, my fancy's flown, 
 And all my genius with the cuckoo gone. 
 With her my mirth, my love, my rapture flay. 
 But when Are goes, fhe carries all away. 
 Let beauty fcorn no more to be a bride. 
 Since Flora has with Zephyrus comply'd. 
 
 TO
 
 TO 
 
 MM3 THOMSON, 
 
 ON 
 
 MIS SEASOJVS. 
 
 Jf R O M funlefs worlds, where Phoebus feldom fhilles, 
 But with his ev'ning wheels hangs o'er our ifles j 
 A wellem raufe to worth this tribute pays, 
 From regions bord'ring on the Hebrides : 
 For thee the Irifh harp new-ftrung once more, 
 Greens our rough rocks and bleak Hibernian fliore: 
 Thou Thomfon, bid my fingers wake the firings. 
 And with thy praifc the wild wood hollow rings; 
 The (hades of rev'rend Druids hover round. 
 And bend tranfported o'er the brazen found. 
 
 So the wiog'd bees that idly rove along, 
 (Renown'd alike for fweets as thofe for fongj) 
 If the fhrill brafs invite them from the llcy, 
 In dully cluflers round the mufick fly. 
 
 Bleft bard t with what new luftre doft thou rife. 
 Soft as the feafon o'er the fummer llcies ; 
 
 M Thy
 
 82 TO MR. THOMSON, 
 
 Thy works a little world new found appear. 
 And thou the Phoebus of a heav'n fo fair; 
 Thee their bright fov'reign all the figns allow. 
 And Thomfon is another name for nature now: 
 Thou firft coud'ft drive the courfers of the day. 
 Nor thro' the dazzling glories loft thy way. 
 Thy fteeds red hoofs ftill trod th' eternal round. 
 Nor flung the burning chariot to the ground. 
 
 So round lulus' temples, blazing bright! 
 In locks diflievell'd ftream'd a length of light; 
 The prince unarm'd beheld the fparkles fpread, 
 N(?r fhook the fhining honours from his head. 
 
 Beneath thy touch defcription paints anew. 
 And the fliies brighten to a purer blue; 
 Spring owes thy pencil her peculiar green. 
 And drown'd in redder rofes fummer's feen; 
 While hoary winter whitens into cold. 
 And autumn bends beneath her bearded gold. 
 
 In various drap'ry fee the rowling year. 
 And the wild walle in fable fpots appear; 
 O'er the black bog the bittern ftalks alone. 
 And to the naked marfhcs makes his moan; 
 Where Lapwing Tereus fkims the wat'ry foenes, 
 And to the Glin of Itys' change complains.* 
 
 But 
 
 * The Plover's voice naturally kcms to call Itys, who was turned 
 into a Phcafant, as Tereus iiito a Lapwing by Ovid.
 
 ON HIS SEASONS. 88 
 
 But chief the fweeteft pallion beft you fing, 
 The groves foft theme, and fymphony of fpring; 
 How brindi'd lions roar with fierce defire, 
 And in the waters Phocae feels the fire; 
 There large Leviathan unwieldy raves, 
 And burns tho' circled round with ail his waves. 
 But higher ftill thofe wonders muft give place, 
 To the new tranfports of a beauteous ffice! 
 Its force on man — the touch — the glowing glance, 
 The tempting bofom, and the tender trance ! 
 In thofe how ftrongly doil thou paint our care. 
 And all the darhng weaknefs of the fair; 
 What thanks muft beauty give in yielding hour, 
 To warm them from us in the rofy bow'r? 
 
 A fudden flafh of lightning turns my eye, 
 To thunder rumblincr in the fumraer /ley! 
 Beneath thy hand the flaming fheet is fpread, 
 O'er heav'ns wide face, and wraps it round v.-illi red; 
 With the broad blaze the kindhng lines grow bright, 
 And all the glowing page is fill'd with light; 
 Thro' the rough verfe the thunder hoarfely roars. 
 And on red wings the nimble light'ning foars: 
 Here thy Amelia ftarts, and chill'd with fears. 
 At ev'ry flafn her eye-lid fwims in tears ; 
 What heart but beats for fo divine a form. 
 Pale as a lilly finking in a ftorm ? 
 What maid fo cold to take a lover's part, 
 But pities Celadon with all her heart. 
 
 M 2 II 
 
 o\v
 
 84 TO MR. THOMPSON, 
 
 How precious gems enrich each fparkling line. 
 Add fun to fun, and from thy fancy fhine ! 
 Here rocks of diamonds blaze in broken ray, 
 Andfanguine rubies fhed a bUifhing day; 
 Blue fliining Sapphires a gay heav'n unfold, 
 And Topaz lightens like tranfparent gold j 
 Of ev'ning tinft pale Amethyfts are feen. 
 And Em'ralds paint their languid beams with green j 
 While the clear Opal courts the reader's fight, 
 And rains a fliow'r of many colour'd light: 
 Your fky dipt pencil adds the proper glow, 
 Stains each bright ftone, and lets their luftre flow, 
 Tempers the colours fhifting from each beam, 
 And bids them fiafh in one continued llreara. 
 
 So have I feen the florid rain-bow rife, 
 In bredcd colours o'er the wat'ry {kies. 
 Where drops of light alternate fall away. 
 And fainting gleams in gradual dyes decay ; 
 But thrown together the broad arch difplays. 
 One tide of glory, one collefled blaze ! 
 
 Where may thofe nun'lbers find you now retir'd, 
 \Vhat lawn or grove is by the mufe admir'd; 
 Doil thou in Stowe's delightful gardens flray,* 
 Or in the glooms of Dcddington delay j 
 There fweet embower'd fome fav'rite author read, 
 Or breathe the breezes of thy native Tweed j 
 
 On 
 
 * A feat 0/ the Lord Cobbam's.
 
 ON His SEASONS. 95 
 
 On her tfool border reft reclia'd awhile, 
 Mindful of Forbes, and thy own Argyle ? 
 O ! thou that only in this garb could pleale. 
 And bring me over to commend thy lays; 
 Where rhyme is wanting, but where fancy fliines. 
 And burfts like ripen'd ore above the mines : 
 Enjoy thy genius! glory in thy choice! 
 Whofe Roman freedom has Rofcommon's voice. 
 
 ON
 
 ON FOESY, 
 
 OR 
 
 THE FIJVE .1RTS» 
 
 AN EPISTLE TO THE 
 
 RT. HON. RICHARD EARL OF SHANNON, 
 
 ON TUE ADVANCEMENT OF LITERATURE. 
 
 Druids and bards their once loud harp"! unftrung, 
 And youths that died to be by poets fung. 
 
 Pope's tkmple oe vauz. 
 
 w. 
 
 H O would not write when queens vouclifafe to 
 read, * 
 Kings vifit bards, and princes praife the dead? 
 This ftuck the harp of Orpheus in the fliy. 
 And mortals rais'd to immortahty, 
 This dubb'd them fav'rites to " oyal fair, 
 Who judg'd not by the eye, but by the ear; 
 In trifles fpent not her inglorious time, 
 But from the ball retir'd to books and rhime; 
 
 Where 
 
 ♦ Mary, Queen of Scots, Caroline, Queen of England, and 
 Chrifliana of Sweden, great patroneflts of talents and^ polite 
 learning.
 
 88 ON POESY, OR THE FINE ARTS. 
 
 Where Britain's genius entertain'd her queen, 
 And Merlin's image haunts fair Richmond's green:* 
 Fired by the praife of Sundon and of kings, 
 There Duck will dabble, ev'n Cibber fings. 
 
 Bat I'm condemn'd to wade away my hours } 
 
 Far from the great and all poetic pow'rs. 
 
 Far from all tafte, from wit and breeding far. 
 
 The blood of Incn.iquin, thy rank Kildare : 
 
 From Lyttleton, infpircr of parts. 
 
 And Pulteney parent of the orphan arts ; 
 
 From Doddington, the friend of ev'ry worth. 
 
 And Grenville prompt to hand the virtues forth ; 
 
 From Chefterfieid a name that Phoebus loves, 
 
 Beyond each" name, that ev'ry page improves, 
 
 Dropp'd on the farthefl ifle of all the weft. 
 
 The punnian end of Europe at the beft, 
 
 "Where Boyles but few our riling Popes infpire, 
 
 Where but one Mann ftirs up the tuneful fire, 
 
 Where Browne, where Berkley deign fcarce to refide^ 
 
 And flueld young merit from the foot of pride, 
 
 Where no encouragement attends the mufe. 
 
 Such as of old imperial patrons ufe. 
 
 When pens unflatt'ring royaUz'd regard. 
 
 And met a province for their jufl. reward. f 
 
 I'oefy 
 
 * Merlin was a Welfli bard, and flouriflied in the 6th century, 
 ^iis cave at Richmond was the Queen's fludy. 
 
 f Carhre niufe, an old Hibernian bard who prefented a poem 
 to Oliol Ollum, King cf Miinf:er, and was rewarded with the 
 baroiiv of Carbre fu called from him.
 
 ON POESY, OR THE FINE ARTS. 3^ 
 
 Poefy figh'd flie found lier labaur vain, 
 Where is the tribute now and golden cliain :* 
 Imperial penfion that a Virgil warms. 
 Poets expiring in an emp'ror's arms?t 
 Alas! they're all with Carolina fled,|' 
 With Adrian vanifli'd, with Auguftus dead. 
 
 O Ignorance! thou goddefs brazen bright, 
 Profufe of jibes and fhallow with delight. 
 Eternal laughters in thy prefence reign, 
 And fmiling cenfure loads thy empty train, 
 Eas'd of her load, ev'n dulnefs grows more light. 
 And impudence conceited in thy fight: 
 Thou mak'fl the awkward face of folly gay, 
 Gives front affurance, modefty difmay, • 
 
 Thee, goddefs, thee, the mob adore algne. 
 In fortune's tinfel dreft and Briftol Itone; 
 While few difcern the riches of the mind. 
 Or underftand the jewels of mankind. 
 
 Lives there a race beneath the mortal lilies, 
 Who facred honours to the bard denies ; 
 Behold Demodicus on high is placed, 
 By Greece and with the choic«ft viands grac'd: 
 
 N Lightning 
 
 * A gold chain bellowed upon Peter Aretine the fatirift. 
 
 f Francis the Firft, 
 
 f_ Alluding to a medal of the late queen reprefcnting her ma- 
 jcfty watering the arts and fciences which adorn empire with tlia 
 motto, *' Caroline proteding."
 
 90 ON POESY, OR THE FINE ARTS. 
 
 Lightning itfeif the laurel will revere, 
 Nor blafts the bay, becaufe its Pieans wear. 
 
 Let learned Gaul in any fcience fhew, 
 Books more antique than Homer, Hefiod knew, 
 Let poetry trace ancient Linus higher, 
 Father of fancy and of fenfe the fire ; 
 Italy Eimius, Gower England quote, 
 And Ethiopia Liquanus for thought. 
 
 Philofophy itfeif durft not appear, 
 Firft to the world but in the mufe^. fphere. 
 Thus Thales wrote, Parmenides afpir'd. 
 And nature in Lucretius is admir'd : 
 And thus the fage Pytliagoras of old, 
 From iron anvil hammer'd verfe of gold ; 
 Manilius fhines in aftrononiic lays. 
 And mathematics to a Halley's praife.* 
 
 See hiftoiy Herodotus's theme, 
 Chriftens her books by each a mufe's name: 
 Divinity herfelf here gives her vote, 
 When Paul and Atterbmy poets quote ; 
 Nor will this client oratoiy quit, 
 \n this caufe Tully pleads for banifli'd wit : 
 What Cato wanted, ftrove, but ftrove in vain, 
 V»'hat Ammon wiili'd, what Lewis fcarce could drain. 
 
 Is 
 
 ^ FonlencUe writes that Mr. Halley wrote a fine Latin poeni 
 in praife of Sir Ifacc Newton's Pric^ipia.
 
 ON POESY, OR THE FINE ARTS. 91 
 
 la not methinks a frivolous defire, 
 
 ^Vhich popes profefs'd and priuceHcs admire.* 
 
 Mazerine and Richlieu both indulg'd tliis rage, 
 The greateft ftatefmen of then- fev'ral age. 
 And thought it policy to aid thofe arts, 
 Which made their mailers rule a nation's hearts. 
 
 By this fweet art Arion galn'd his ftore, 
 And charm'd mute fifli to liften to his lore: 
 A dolphin drawn by his harmonious hand, 
 Rcceiv'd him on his back and bore to land. 
 He on hir. crouching creft fits all at eafe, 
 And with his harp calms th' infulting feas, 
 Thus the divine mufician fail'd along, 
 And paid his pafTage with a fmoother fong. 
 
 Let mufic tell how Orpheus drew wild beails, 
 While Thrace the bard tore, emblem of bad taftes, 
 Then ev'n rude Rhodope fweet echoes heard. 
 And caught the voice of the expiring bard, 
 Yet tho' the Thracians puU'd him limb from limb, 
 To fee him fountains rofe above their brim. 
 The rivers ran and left their channels diy. 
 The rocks feemed fmitten with his harmony. 
 Trees gathered round him, join'd the gazing crowd. 
 And as he pafled, the woods refpeclful bow'd. 
 
 N 2 Ev'n 
 
 * The princtfs royal of Poland wrote a Latin poem on the con- 
 verf;on of St. Augullhi;, and was admitted a member of the aca* 
 demy at Rome.
 
 5i ON POESY, OR THE FINE ARTS. 
 
 Ev'n hell was plcas'd all but the beaft call*d raaH, 
 
 Brutes may be tam'd — » but blockheads never can. 
 
 Edward and Alfred pay'd refpeft to bards, 
 Old Spencer, queen Elizabeth rewards; 
 Henry the eighth indulg'd the tuneful quire, 
 And even that age a Skelton could admire; 
 Chaucer had patrons, yea the pfalmift Brady, 
 Protefted was, and cherifh'd by queen Mary. 
 The hero William, and the martyr Charles, 
 |One knighted Blackmore, th' other penfioned Ouarles. 
 ■- Garth by king George, and Eufeden by queen Ann, 
 One dubb'd a knight, one led the laurel van. 
 Ev'n Milton's daughter liv'd on Milton's lays, 
 And Steel a knighthood gain'd by arts like thefe. 
 
 Polnitz behold a Prufiia's king admire. 
 And Voltaire famous for Apollo's lyre; 
 Loaded with medals, lo! returns the bard. 
 And royal gifts a D'Argen's pains reward;* 
 Thefe lift this monarch to imperial fway. 
 Of princes prime, whom arms and arts obey. 
 
 Oxford on wit confers a grand degree. 
 And every college but cool Trinity. 
 Sorbonne her Rolin boafts, and Oxford Spence, 
 Cambridge her Trap for belles-lettres and fenfe: 
 
 But 
 
 * Author of the Jewiili letters, and chamberlain to the king 
 of Prufiia, a butterfly in learning-, and much lefs a fcholar than 
 Voltaire.
 
 ON POESY, OR THE FINE ARTS. 9S 
 
 But finCe fchools fell, oo vermin loft its breath. 
 No rat or knave, dread fatire rhimes to death;* 
 Difeafe, misfortune, are not charm'd away. 
 Nor licknefs flies before th' enchanting lay. 
 
 Poets in Ireland nowr are rarely priz'd. 
 As learned men in Turkey are defpis'rl; 
 Dulnefc the beaten road, the general rule, 
 Which if you quit, they point you out a fool. 
 Nor is it ftrange, where folly rules the roaft. 
 Wit fhould be little priz'd and nonfenfe moft. . 
 
 Yet genius ev'n in Ireland is enhanc'd, 
 Clancy is penfion'd, Cavthy is advanc'd ; 
 Dunkin, the king of fchoolmafters is grown, 
 And Francis among ftrangers meets renown; 
 Then let it not be faid, prophets at home. 
 Are not unhonour'd but in Munfter's dome. 
 
 The man that hath no mufic in his foul. 
 
 Why rattle dice or call a vole, 
 
 Nor is not mov'd with concord of fvveet founds, 
 
 This man is fit not for a pack of hounds. 
 
 He's fit for treafons, ftratagcms and fpoils, 
 
 For mid-day quarrels, and for mid-night broils; 
 
 The motions of his mind are full of fpite. 
 
 He's dull as Erebus and dark as night; 
 
 Let 
 
 • Sir Philip Sidney relates furprifiTig inftances of the power of 
 ancient })Ocfy in Ireland, fuch as expelling rats, or rhyming peo- 
 ple to death, and confeffes tliat though learningwas then vcrybare 
 in the kingdom, yet the posts were held in gresit veneration.
 
 94 ON POESY, OR THE FINE ARTS. 
 
 Let no fuch man be trufled, Sliakfpeare faith. 
 For yew-like, he flieds round him baneful death ; 
 Whereas whoever adls what's worthy praife, 
 Admires the mufes and adorns their lays. 
 
 Wits by pert pedants only are defpis'd. 
 As your tame birds by thofe unciviliz'd ; 
 Like common fenfe could genius be acquired. 
 Thy parts, O Stanhope, wculd be lefs admir'd! 
 Great wits like comets do not oft appear, 
 And their price rifes from their being rare; 
 But fools appear in multitudes and throngs. 
 And like the pendulums of clocks their tongues. 
 Tho' would you hear what you may chance to lik^, 
 One muft wait the hour before^they firike : 
 Thofe human infedls which in buz alarm, 
 And round tlie wit, as round the taper fwarm, 
 Tho' in his face they fly, refolv'd to wound. 
 Yet by the blow are tumbl'd to the ground, 
 Thofe fons of twilight hate the light of morn, 
 Sightlefs they fly, and to their dung return. 
 Taken for bees by undifceniing eyes, 
 'i"he wifer find them beetles and defpife. 
 
 Poor is an epithet to poets given. 
 Yet David was a bard and lov'd by heav'n. 
 Where's the foundation? for pad times explore. 
 You'll furely find the lefler number poor; 
 Great Mavo, Flaccus, Lucan, Ovid rich. 
 And tho' uRtitl'd, of no vulg*ar pitch j 
 
 Nay
 
 ON POESY, OR THE FINE ARTS. 9S 
 
 Nay our own times examples may afford 
 
 Of genius meeting in a duke or lord ! 
 
 Fam'd Dorfet, Surrey, Halifax were earls, 
 
 And Orrery and Chefterfield are pearls: 
 
 Hear Rochefter, Rofcommon, Landfdown fing, 
 
 Bright Buckingham and Falkland touch the ftring, 
 
 Soft Sedley, Denham, Butler, Steel were knights. 
 
 And Addifon tho' fecretary writes! 
 
 His excellency Prior tun'd the lyre, 
 
 And Congreve tho' commiffioner had fire; 
 
 Lo! Pope and Swift, the wonder of our days. 
 
 Were far from poor and yet they dealt in bays. 
 
 Williams ambafTador to Berlin fent, 
 
 A royal authors ear to compliment. 
 
 See Wyclierly by Cleveland's grace admir'd, 
 By Charles courted, Drogheda dcfired ; 
 See Addifon to Warwick's arms confin'd, 
 Charm'd by his head and harmony of mind; 
 Mallet and Glover, Marlbro's choice approv'd. 
 With her laft breath whofe merit Montrofe lov'd. 
 To be approv'd by wit and fenfe is more. 
 Than if the lords and commons thank'd you o'er and o'er. 
 
 Behold great Bourbon Bolingbroke commands, 
 To take the royal fignet fiom his hands; 
 Lo ! Savoy's watch, and Eugene's box of gold. 
 Pope and Ccntlivre as a premium hold. 
 See Boyle's hand honour'd by a Sheffield's ring. 
 The mufe's gift by daughter of a king; 
 
 Churchill's
 
 96 ON POESY, OR TftE FINE ARTS. 
 
 Churchill's beft jewel Cheflerficld adorns, 
 It well becomes him who all flatt'ry fcorns ; 
 Yet tho* none merit or good fenfe regard, 
 Defert hke virtue is its own reward, 
 And tho' but few to worth their tribute bring, 
 Tlie mind's complacence is a diamond ring; 
 As the rich brilliants the fair fingers grace. 
 So fortune fpai-kles upon wifdom's face, 
 Whereas rich gems expofe the dunce they deck. 
 Like a gold chain about a lord-mayor's neck. 
 
 Alas ! 'tis wit itfelf has given the flur. 
 And bards too often aQ. the cabbin-cur; 
 Thus wits to coxcombs (till new weapons fend. 
 Who beat us with the very flicks we lend. 
 Strange each profeflion to itfelf adheres. 
 Fools herd together, foplings walk in pairs, 
 But wits Hill ftraggling fcatter at this rate. 
 By congregated fools are eafy beat ; 
 Some have of v/it, and fome of wealth have florc. 
 But xnvied by the ideot and the poor, 
 'Twixt wit and folly there's eternal war. 
 As heat and cold caufe thunder in the air. 
 
 Behold the pride of Languedoc (Tonloufe) 
 Vain of its wit, which ev'n the women ufe. 
 Bred in French forms each belle's a fonnetteer, 
 'And ev'ry nymph apes Mazerine andDacier, 
 Ballad and fong, the product of the foil. 
 And proud VerfaiUes is ev'n to them a foil. 
 
 Yet
 
 ON POESY, Ok THE FINE ARTS. 97 
 
 Yet ev'n here Cambray hath his Meaux, 
 And Perrault pafquinadcs the great Boileau ; 
 A Polnitz envies Voltaire's happy vein, 
 Tho' he commends a Corneille or Racine. 
 
 Envy's the common confetjuence of praifcj 
 And calumny ft ill grows upon the bays. 
 So Pope, Gay, Dryden, Horace, Virgil found, 
 Who bids the bard have brows with ivy bound ; 
 Left the mufe fall on Milton's evil tongues, 
 Thus Homer Zoilus, Ovid Cinna wrongs. 
 Then why fliould I who claim not half their due, 
 Complain becaufe I have my Codrus too? 
 Rail on Demetrius, Tigellius bite, 
 Plotius and Varus read what'er I write, 
 Shall flea Pantilius, bug Hermogenes, 
 Make me uneafy, or difturb my peace ? 
 No, my Maecenas, you my lines commend. 
 And while you like my labours have an end. 
 
 THE
 
 THE FAREWEJLJL. 
 
 TO ALAJ)Y ON HER LEAVING IRELAND. 
 
 JWXAY guardian angels on thy journey wait, 
 And love prote£l thee from all hoftile hate, 
 'Till thole fond eyes again behold thy charms, 
 Apd joy reftore thee to Adonis' arms. 
 
 For thee fhall Flora paint the rural bow*r, 
 Blufli in the rofe and fmile in ev'ry flow'r. 
 For,thee the rivers run, the woodbines creep, 
 The Naiades warble and the waters weep, 
 The laughing meadows and loquacious riH's, 
 The vocal vallies and the anfw'ring hills ; 
 Thy praife the woods, the groves, the rocks fliall ring, 
 The blackbirds whiftle and the trufhes fing; 
 With thee fhall Zephyr figh along the dale. 
 Sob in the breeze or murmur in the gale ; 
 At thy hard hap fhall mournful Eccho tell. 
 In the lone grot or foiitary cell: 
 There (hall the defert nymph thy ftcps attend. 
 Worn out with grief, the lover's only friend; 
 Loft in the filent walk or folcmn fliade. 
 The wretched meet the melancholy maid, 
 
 2 Heat
 
 100 THE FAREV/ELL. 
 
 Hear her wild voice another*s woes bemoan. 
 And pity forrows once fo like her own. 
 
 In diftant fcencs may abfent thoughts intrude. 
 Haunt thy retreat or footli thy folitude, 
 In ev'ry fhadow let my image play, 
 And bring to mind fome dear departed day; 
 When fweet content becalm'd the happy hours, 
 And all the grove and all the day was ours. 
 Then fpring was weloome and the vernal plain, 
 And once the golden age return'd again. 
 But now the ficies are drefs'd no more in blue. 
 And fuUen ev'ning wears a wintry hue j 
 Retirement takes a fedentary look, 
 And lamentation ti\aes the purling brook. 
 
 In fome cool arbour on the velvet ground, 
 Where violets blow and jafmine breathes around, 
 'Till fun-fet fit or lie long nights awake, 
 While the (hrill rails in rural concert creak j 
 Then hgh to think of fweeter ferenades 
 And curfe the mufic of thofe hateful fhades. 
 
 Here health refides upon the m.ountain brow. 
 And earth prefents her bofom to the plough. 
 That gilds with harveft the brown field unfliorn. 
 And fpreads the vallies with a tide of corn: 
 Her yellow locks fee Ceres wide unfold, 
 Tinge the green ear and fhake the founding gold ; 
 Beneath, bleft tenant of the bearded grove. 
 The quail refponflve wooes his harmlef^ love, 
 
 Whofe
 
 THE FAREWELL. lOl 
 
 Whofe tender call direfts his ev'ning ways, 
 And leads her lover thro' the tangl'd maze. 
 Ah thus may we in tranfport meet at laft, 
 Doubt being dead, and ev 'ry danger paft. 
 May no deceiver turn thy feet afide, 
 Or lead thy lover from his deftin'd bride. 
 In the world's \nlde:-ncfs thy friendly voice. 
 Still ftrike ray ear and bid young hope rejoicej 
 A little longer let that mufic hve, 
 And that Hiall Venus to Adcnis ^ive. 
 
 TO
 
 TO A JLABY, 
 
 WITH MRS. ROWE'S LETTERS FROM 
 
 TH£ 
 
 DEAD TO THE LIVING, 
 
 STILED 
 
 FRIENDSHIP IN DEA'^fH. 
 
 X H E S E curious works their happy author tell, 
 How far your fex can if they pleafe excel ; 
 In thofe foft thoughts her fofteft foul explore, 
 A nd read what woman never writ before ! 
 Profpefts fo novel will not fail to charm. 
 Where florid profe in glowing numbers warm ; 
 Where godhke friendfhip wears a fadelefs bloom, 
 Lives after death and triumphs o'er the tomb. 
 
 Where cou'd fhe find fo ravi/hing a theme i 
 She faw it fure in fome delightful dream ; 
 When heav'nly mufic luli'd her pow'rs to reft, 
 And only love lay waking in her breaft ; 
 When virtue's felf defcended from the fky, 
 To paint Elyfium on her clo(ing eye. 
 To prompt v.nth vifions the romantic maid, 
 On beds of liliss langviifhingly laid. 
 
 From
 
 104 TO A LADY. 
 
 From hence thefe pages boaft her wondrous wit, 
 Where under art dull mortals eafy fit : 
 Let the gay hbertine perufe them thro' 
 He'll find both profit and amufement too ; 
 The man of fenfe fhall doat upon their deeds. 
 And the foft maid grow fofter as flie reads ; 
 A figh and tear at ev'r)'- letter rife. 
 Steal from her heart and tremble in her eyes. 
 
 But you my fair, whofe foul is tun'd to love, 
 Whofe tafle and judgment all the nine approve; 
 Receive a mufe of the fublimer fort, 
 Sing her, the Sappho df Brittannia's coaft: 
 In fome dull humour, after evening tea. 
 Your fpleen and vapours (he may chafe away; 
 Difpel the clouds that o'er good nature low'r, 
 And fo improve a folitary hour. 
 "When other nymphs are dying with the clime. 
 And at a lofs to murder idle time. 
 
 In gardens now beneatli the gloomy grove, 
 Oft fnall thou mufe and range this heav'n of love ; 
 Where forms departed fport in fields of air, 
 And purer beauties bloom for ever fair; 
 Thefe happy meadows want n6 genial fhow'rs, 
 But genr.s unbidden blow inftead cf flowers; 
 For violet beds young aoiethyfts are feen. 
 And living em'ralds filed immortal green! 
 On liquid chryftai fwans fail imoothly by. 
 
 For ever finging and yet never die, 
 
 Thefe
 
 TO A LADY. 105 
 
 Thefe are tlie manfions detlin'd for the bit ft. 
 Where failhful lovers from their labov.r3 rtft; 
 Each dove-like pair for conilancy renown'd, 
 With fragrant myrtle and with rofcs crowivd; 
 Shall here enjoy the ever youthful hours, 
 In golden groves and amaranthine bow'rs. 
 
 There too, in time, perhaps thy fecial fhapc. 
 May meet with mine and wander o'er the mead; 
 Together walk, together ages waftc. 
 And talk of nothing but amufcments pad: 
 
 No rival there not even death to fear, 
 
 But love be all the language we fnall hear; 
 Smfell chancre then needs that alaoafter brow. 
 You want but wings to be an angel no-,v. 
 
 p ro
 
 TO 3IR. FAMKEM, 
 
 ON A 
 
 SEA PIECE OF HIS PAINTING, 
 
 »T THE 
 
 Rev. Mr. J, Delacour, 
 
 OO ftrikes the windows that beguiles the eye. 
 
 The mimic flipper, or di{rem,bl'd fly; 
 
 So veils Timanthes Agamemnon's air. 
 
 And Ariftides paints a mother's care; 
 
 So look'd the fheet Parafius' drap'ry wove, 
 
 Apelles' Venus or Euphranor's Jove. 
 
 Thus was the mare's mouth froth'd 
 To whom beafts neigh'd, 
 Portogeceffe's dog, Mealces' fleed; 
 So Lorreign landfcapes, Vandervelde fights feign'd, 
 Zeuxis' limn'd fruits and flow'rs, a Baptiil ftain'd ; 
 So flame reflefted, as the boy coals blew, 
 Phalcrion, Scylla, Nile a Coypel drew; 
 So Titian colour'd, Raphael flvctch'd his plan, 
 Man may mock birds, but you dcceJV£ a man. 
 
 P 2 'Tis
 
 108. To MR. PARKER. 
 
 'Tis hard to fay which moft I muft admire, 
 In this juft piece, thy judgment or thy fire ; 
 So warm with hfe the llrongeil figures rife, 
 The rough fea roars, and fwells to meet my eyes ! 
 The vocal paint, work'd up in louder ftorms. 
 Speaks out in thunder and the deep deforms. 
 Clouds roU'd on clouds, in darker fhades increafcj 
 The wild waves foam and whiten all the piece. 
 The fcatter'd light'ning mixesf wdth the main. 
 And dolphins bound along the moving plain : 
 The ready pencil here a fhip commands. 
 To ftrike a rock, or bulge againft the fands j 
 With pity we furvey its Ihatter'd ftde. 
 While planks and men he mingl'd in the tide 
 Aloft the crew-curft Petterel is borne, 
 With wet-wing'd Notus, raining from his urn. 
 Or fliould old Ocean toil himfcif to reft, 
 Thy piAur'd Halcyojis brood upon his breaft. 
 Soft Aide the v/aves, the furge is fmoother feen. 
 And from thy pencil fiows a wat'ry green ; , 
 Or would we view the treafures of the deep. 
 Where beds of oyfters, well difiembrd, deep; 
 Here heaps of ambergreafe lie foil'd with weedsj 
 And thro' the ooze the branching coral bleeds. 
 Dark on the rocks the fea-wreck nods above, 
 And in the floating canvas feems to move. 
 
 Th^fe are the charms that wait upon thy hand? 
 
 Here nature works, and here her graces ftand! 
 
 To ftrike the foul, O Parker, be thy part. 
 
 And let thy touches fink into the heart! 
 
 ' Painting
 
 TO MR. PARKER. 109 
 
 Painting and poetry in thee unite, 
 And on each other caft a friendly light. 
 Fond to refledl the beauties of a mind. 
 Where fifter-arts are in perfeftioh join'd. 
 
 Still in thy curious labours let me (hare. 
 New-mix the colours, and the tints prepare j 
 Or from the fullied pencil wipe the ftain, 
 Or ftretch the canvas for the future fcene; 
 There (hall thy fancy with thy finger move. 
 And ev'ry ftroke a Chilcot's leg improve. 
 There let me watch with thee each dawning line. 
 And from the progrefs guefs the foft defign ; 
 Whether the drop, unpolifli'd as it lies, 
 May form an angel's, or a Conran's eyes. 
 Or if that lake muft Lyfaght's lips adorn. 
 Or rife in blufhcs to defcribe the mom. 
 
 Thefe are amuXements innocent and bright, 
 Refults of genius, and a tafte polite; 
 Thefe meet in thee, and mingle in thy mind. 
 And fpeak a manner finifh'd and refin'd; 
 Jience the big thoughts that in thy fancy roll! 
 Hence all thofe beauties, tranfcripts of thy foul I 
 Where, if thy colours glow in Gunning's cheeks,* 
 It is thy foul, and not thy pencil fpeaks. 
 Thefe want not words to praife his pow'rful hand, 
 Who can the pafTions like the winds command. 
 
 Yet 
 
 ^^m~^^^m II.. — - .-■■_.-., ■ -I ■ ^ 
 
 • Lady Coventry.
 
 210' TO MR. I>ARKiR. 
 
 Yet few, how few ! when all our pains are paft» 
 Are born with ears and eyes to jud^e at laft! 
 How few can tafte the mufe's art, or thine i 
 How few can tafte thy harmony, or mine ! 
 Ere fhort-liv'd artifts fee their glory rife. 
 Their colours vanifti and their mufic dies ; 
 Such is the poet's, fuch the painter's fate, 
 Too focn 'tis envi'd, and efteem'd too late. 
 
 Ire/and, 
 
 TO
 
 ^<i»^wanritiL»'— ■riKi hijiubh 
 
 TO 
 
 mm.. WBAYEM, 
 
 PORTRAIT PAINTER. FROM BATH, 
 
 ON HIS 
 
 EXQUISITE MADONA AND OTHER PICTURES. 
 
 
 X H I S penfive pofture fee, fpeftators call 
 To view devotion fervent, warm to all, 
 A Titian's manner, join'd to Leiy's art, 
 Maratti's ftyle, with hand upon her heart ; 
 There Contemplation fpeaks in thought profound, 
 With flaxen hair, her eye upon the ground. 
 Which feems to fay in meditation mute, 
 Praxiteles with Wettver can't difpute ! 
 Here true refemblance (trikes in ev'ry line, 
 Like Zeuxis' grapes, on which the bird'3 would diue. 
 Where modefty is painted in the face, 
 A matron's raeeknefs, and rehgion's grace ; 
 Thefe lips difcourfe, as elegance might fay, 
 And ah how foft, how rubicund they pray ! 
 The gr&t of glory they might image well. 
 Or humble fybil, in feme facred cell. 
 
 L.orrairi's
 
 112 TO MR. WEAVER. 
 
 Lorrain's warm fun upon thy landfcape fhines, 
 A Rubens' colours, with Vandyke's defigns; 
 While Raphael's women with a Guido's air, 
 Wainfcot thy room, and thro' thy windows flare; 
 Where the blood feems to circulate mod high, 
 Blufh in each cheek and fparkle in each eye ; 
 No wonder that a Weaver thofe ftiould fhade, 
 When Love a Black-Smith an Apclles made. 
 
 IN
 
 IN LAUDEM 
 
 iE T H I O P I S S .^^, 
 
 JlLST mihi (fiqua mihi eft) fine fuco, fraude, vel arte, 
 
 Nefcia mutari forma, fuique tenax : 
 
 Unguentis utor nuilis, medicamine nullo, 
 
 Quid juvet, ignore, regia mellis aqua ; 
 
 Nee maculis itellata, hie interfpergor, et illic, 
 
 Non equidem nigra nigrior effe velim ; 
 
 XiOtio fola mihi eft de pura et fimplice lympha, 
 
 Et vereor quam fit vanus et ifte labor. 
 
 At nivei mihi funt, poeti fine pulvere dentcs, 
 
 Quale ncc Indorura purius albet ebur ; 
 
 Sideribus fimiles fulgere videtis ocellos, 
 
 Angliacam poflint qui decorare nurum. 
 
 MoUitiem talpas fuperant mea labra, quis, ecquie 
 
 Libabit— — — — quam funt ofcula moUicula ? 
 
 Sin minus obleftem tot flammas inter et ignee, 
 
 (Ufque adeo eft noftrae lux inimica cuti) 
 
 Si placet exlingui tantum mandate lucernas, 
 
 Protenus in tenebris altera Thais, ero. 
 
 Q THUS
 
 THUS TRANSLATED FROM THE FOREGOING. 
 
 IN PRAISE OF ANEGRESS. 
 
 vV HAT fliape I have, that form is all my own, 
 To art a ftranger, and to modes unknown : 
 To paint oi patches, perfum'd fraud no friend. 
 Nor now what ftays o.- honey-water mend ; 
 No fpotted moons deform my jetty face, 
 I would be blacker than that fpeckl'd race ! 
 My fimple lotion is the purer rain, 
 And e'en that wafh is labour took in vain. 
 But my pearl teeth, without tobacco's aid, 
 On fnow or Indian iv'ry caft a Ihade ! 
 My eyes ecHpfe the liars in all their flame, 
 Such as may not e'en Albion's daughter (hame, 
 My foftcr fl<in with the mole's velvet vies, 
 Ah ! who will on thofe altars facrifice ? 
 But if I pleafe lefs in the fultry day. 
 My colour with the candles dies away : 
 Since to our hue the light is deemed a foe. 
 Night will a Thais in my charms bellow. 
 
 ON
 
 OM SEEIJVG A LAJDlt 
 
 AT AN OPPOSITE WINDOW. 
 
 r 
 
 I. 
 
 w. 
 
 HILST on forbidden fruit I gaze, 
 And look my heart away. 
 Behold my ftar of Venus blaze. 
 And fmile upon the day. 
 
 II. 
 
 Fair as the purple blufhing hours, 
 That paint the morning's eye ; 
 
 Or cheek of evening after fhow'rs, 
 That frefh the wetlern flcy. 
 
 III. 
 I fend a figh with every glance, 
 
 Or drop a fofter tear ; 
 Hard fate iio further to advance, 
 
 And yet to be fo near. 
 
 IV. 
 
 So Mofes from fair Pyfga's height, 
 
 The land of promife cy'd, 
 Surveyed the region of delight, 
 
 He faw, came down, and di'd. 
 
 Q 2 IPITAP.M
 
 EPITAPH ON MR. THOMSON. 
 
 jLxNDdieth Thomfon as the fool mu(l die, 
 Whofe thoughts all perifh mth his memory. 
 No ! death reveres the fcribe's immortal mind, 
 His wit, tho' dead, yet lives to all mankind, 
 Which hymn'd the feafons with its angel tongue, 
 And with the morning ftar in concert fung, 
 Here liberty time waits on to the laft, 
 And fame over genius blows a funeral blaft. 
 There doleful tragedy delights to mourn, 
 Ev'n indolence with tears attends the urn ; 
 The world of fenfe for worth departed fighs, 
 And wifdom weeps, when underftanding dies. 
 
 ON A HUSBAND BEATING HIS WIFE. 
 
 OAY doth not fatin raife this ftrife, 
 
 When man beats his own flefii in wife ? 
 
 Surely he doth as once in Eve, 
 
 Yet Adam his fpoufe did not grieve, j 
 
 But envy in a ferpent's form, (j^ 
 
 Brew'd ev'n in paradife this Ilorm,
 
 AJV EFIT^FM 
 
 ox 
 
 MR. EDWARD STOCKDALE, 
 
 AN BMINENT TALLOW CHANDLER, 
 
 H, 
 
 .ERE lies Ned Stockdale, honeft fellow, 
 
 Who died by fat and liv'd by tallow, 
 
 His light before men always fhone. 
 
 His mould is underneath this ftone ; 
 
 Then taking things by the right handle. 
 
 Is not this life a farthing candle ; 
 
 The longeft age but a watch taper, 
 
 A torch blown out by ev'ry vapour. 
 
 To-day will burn, to-morrow blink. 
 
 And end as mortals in a ftink. 
 
 If this be true then worthy Ned, 
 
 Is a wax-light among the dead ; 
 
 His fluted form ftill flieds perfume. 
 
 And fcatters luflre round his tomb. 
 
 Then what is mortal life, why tnfh. 
 
 This mortal life's not worth a rufh. 
 
 ON
 
 ON THE 
 
 AUTMOMS J^ATIVITY. 
 
 I. 
 
 In March began my race of life, 
 
 Rough tempefts toft the feas, 
 An emblem of that care and ftrife, 
 That now ecHpfe my days. 
 
 II. 
 
 The wind was louder than my cries. 
 The rain out.drop'd my tears ; 
 
 Sickly the fun was feen to rife. 
 Upon my infant years. 
 
 III. 
 
 My native month grew bleak and cold. 
 In whirlwinds I was born ; 
 
 The day, tho' new, to me louk'd old, 
 And night ufurped the morn, 
 
 IV. 
 
 In florms life's voyage I began, 
 With many a bitter qualm ; 
 
 O ! may March change to April foon. 
 And bring a vernal calm. 
 
 VERSES
 
 VERSES ON A 
 
 X. INE as her taper fingers flow my ftrains, 
 
 Soft as her hand, and fhining as her veins, 
 
 Turn'd as her wrift the lines, and fmooth as filk, ^ 
 
 Feel like her palm, where rofes fwim in milk ; % 
 
 Thefe o'er my verfe a warmer fiiadow fbed, 
 
 And tip her fingers with a painted red ; 
 
 Thro' the blue veins in riper moifture flow. 
 
 And feem to melt with heat the neighb'ring fnow; 
 
 The neighb'ring fnow diflblv'd in rofes blends, 
 
 And with carnation decks her fingers ends : 
 
 Between the leaves the flakes of fnow look bright, 
 
 And daifjr-Hke are dafli'd with red and white : 
 
 Think with what luAre on her lap it lay. 
 
 And o'er her apron drew the milky way ; 
 
 Coarfe look'd the cambrick to a hand fo fine. 
 
 And (hades of lawn are net-work to her ikin, 
 
 On her fair fingers briiliant diamonds glow, 
 
 And burn like ^tna, between hills of fnow. 
 
 FINIS.
 
 
 f 
 
 ^7 ./*
 
 L 005 487 142 1 
 
 ,,'/C SOUTHERN REGIOMAL LIBRARY FACILITY 
 
 AA 000 368 021