 | Poetical essays on Several Occasions |  |
36
To Richard Champneys of Orchardly, Esq;
when in Danger of the Small-Pox, which raged in the Neighbourhood.
Quis non è timidis ægri contagia vitat,
Vicinum metuens ne trahat inde malum?
Perlege, nec mecum pariter mea verba relega;
Villa licet vestra versibus esse meis.
Ovid.
Vicinum metuens ne trahat inde malum?
Perlege, nec mecum pariter mea verba relega;
Villa licet vestra versibus esse meis.
Ovid.
While Blasts contagious taint the ambient Air,
And o'er each Mind diffuse a gloomy Care,
Amidst the public Loss I mourn my own,
And banish'd from your Seat, in Silence moan.
And o'er each Mind diffuse a gloomy Care,
Amidst the public Loss I mourn my own,
And banish'd from your Seat, in Silence moan.
37
Cruel Disease! whose subtle Poison flows
Unseen, and wafts Infection as it goes;
Thy Darts not only Death, and Vengeance spread,
But make the Living, Strangers like the Dead.
To live, is not in Solitude to dwell,
In Cloisters lock'd, or sleeping in a Cell:
'Tis not an idle Flux of useless Breath,
Perpetual Absence is a Sort of Death.
Unseen, and wafts Infection as it goes;
Thy Darts not only Death, and Vengeance spread,
But make the Living, Strangers like the Dead.
To live, is not in Solitude to dwell,
In Cloisters lock'd, or sleeping in a Cell:
'Tis not an idle Flux of useless Breath,
Perpetual Absence is a Sort of Death.
But tho' condemn'd an Exile from your Seat,
Permit the Muse to visit the Retreat,
Where once she lov'd in echoing Walks to play,
Sing to the Streams, and o'er the Gardens stray.
She no Infection in her Presence brings,
No dire Effluvia lurk beneath her Wings;
Or should you fear some Venom lies unseen,
She'll round the Air perform a Quarantine,
Above the cloudy Regions tow'ring rise,
In purer Climes, and unpolluted Skies,
Where no terrestrial Vapours ever soar,
Nor Thunders thro' the peaceful Æther roar,
No sickly Meteors there portentous play,
But Titan shines with an unsully'd Ray.
Permit the Muse to visit the Retreat,
Where once she lov'd in echoing Walks to play,
Sing to the Streams, and o'er the Gardens stray.
She no Infection in her Presence brings,
No dire Effluvia lurk beneath her Wings;
Or should you fear some Venom lies unseen,
She'll round the Air perform a Quarantine,
38
In purer Climes, and unpolluted Skies,
Where no terrestrial Vapours ever soar,
Nor Thunders thro' the peaceful Æther roar,
No sickly Meteors there portentous play,
But Titan shines with an unsully'd Ray.
But ah! how dull, how lifeless are these Lays!
Not like the Flame your Bounty us'd to raise,
When all the Sweets of Orchardly inspir'd,
And rich Champagne the languid Genius fir'd;
What now avail these visionary Lines,
That Seat which only in Description shines,
In Fancy round the fairy Scene to soar,
And dream of Pleasures which are now no more?
In vain I bring the vanish'd Pile to View,
And form a pictur'd Paradise anew:
Only faint Landskips skim before my Sight,
Departing Bow'rs, and Grottos wing'd for Flight:
In vain I bid the floating Prospects stay;
Alcoves, and Grots, and Forests fleet away;
As transient Shadows hurry o'er the Lawn,
And Vapors vanish at Aurora's Dawn:
Yet pleasant 'tis past Pleasures to revive,
And trace in Picture what was once alive.
Thus I each Charm of your Retreat survey,
Your Temper candid, generous, and gay:
A Lady blest with each endearing Grace,
Good Sense, and Softness smiling in her Face.
Such mild Complacence fills her gentle Mien,
One Look would Fury quell, and charm Chagrin;
The Muses listen when she strikes the Strings,
And Birds forget their Warbling while she sings.
Not like the Flame your Bounty us'd to raise,
When all the Sweets of Orchardly inspir'd,
And rich Champagne the languid Genius fir'd;
What now avail these visionary Lines,
That Seat which only in Description shines,
In Fancy round the fairy Scene to soar,
And dream of Pleasures which are now no more?
In vain I bring the vanish'd Pile to View,
And form a pictur'd Paradise anew:
Only faint Landskips skim before my Sight,
Departing Bow'rs, and Grottos wing'd for Flight:
39
Alcoves, and Grots, and Forests fleet away;
As transient Shadows hurry o'er the Lawn,
And Vapors vanish at Aurora's Dawn:
Yet pleasant 'tis past Pleasures to revive,
And trace in Picture what was once alive.
Thus I each Charm of your Retreat survey,
Your Temper candid, generous, and gay:
A Lady blest with each endearing Grace,
Good Sense, and Softness smiling in her Face.
Such mild Complacence fills her gentle Mien,
One Look would Fury quell, and charm Chagrin;
The Muses listen when she strikes the Strings,
And Birds forget their Warbling while she sings.
Would Time once more roll down the happy Day,
And let these Eyes again the Scene survey,
The Bow'rs more fair should bloom in ev'ry Line,
And ev'ry Beauty with new Lustre shine.
But all these Glories have their destin'd Doom,
And all Creation hurries to the Tomb;
Impending Fate hangs threat'ning o'er our Head,
Fly where we will, we're Neighbours to the Dead;
And tho' awhile we may elude the Foe,
'Twill soon, or late, strike home the fatal Blow.
And let these Eyes again the Scene survey,
The Bow'rs more fair should bloom in ev'ry Line,
And ev'ry Beauty with new Lustre shine.
40
And all Creation hurries to the Tomb;
Impending Fate hangs threat'ning o'er our Head,
Fly where we will, we're Neighbours to the Dead;
And tho' awhile we may elude the Foe,
'Twill soon, or late, strike home the fatal Blow.
| Poetical essays on Several Occasions | |