Madmoments: or First Verseattempts By a Bornnatural. Addressed to the Lightheaded of Society at Large, by Henry Ellison |
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THE SPANISH ARMADA,
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 | Madmoments: or First Verseattempts |  |
THE SPANISH ARMADA,
A FANCYSKETCH WRITTEN IN PARTS OF TWO DAYS.
August 1831.
1
Thou Sea! give up the Dead from all thy caves,Oblivion! forget thyself, and ye
Winds, long died out, breathe lightly o 'er the waves
As erst, which Lisbon's haughty Towers see;
Ye Elements, take Shape, and once more be
Moulded by Fancy to forgotten Forms,
Let Hearts, long, long since Dust, beat bold and free.
And then will I invoke longvanished storms,
To scatter once again these Puppets to the worms!
2
For am not I a Conjuror? have INot Fancy's Wand and Magiccircle still,
And all her wondrous Laboràtory?
Are Nature's laws not his who has the skill
To cast with them in her own mould, and fill
The Void of Space with Forms like Life? come then,
Come step into the circle, and I will
Call up a bygone world of bygone Men,
And all my Magic is a few Strokes with a Pen!
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3
But thou must aid me Reader, thou must beA willing Dupe, else all my skill is vain,
And when I cry, «behold»—lo! thou must see
The Glories of forgotten Days again,
The silver Tagus rolling to the Main
With countless Barks at anchor on his Tide,
Loud Note of war, and many a martial Strain
In Snatches caught, and rumours whispered wide
Of golden Harvests, mighty Plans! oft blown aside,
4
As easy as Airbubbles, by the BreathOf fickle Chance; and if thou hast an Eye
Of ample Power, thou shalt see beneath
The Surfaces of Things, and learn how by
The Graspings of Ambition the Most High
Works out far other Ends than those which Man
Intended, or than Statesmen prophecy,
Who thro' a Microscope the Future scan,
And see but their Moleways, not Heaven's sublime Plan!
5
But Ocean still rolls on, tho' these be past,These fleeting Shows of Time, and there alone
Th' Eternal's Image, as of old, is glassed
In its Unchangeableness! the Sun has shone
On many a generation since that one
Which toiled and sweated in its little Day;
The loud and noisy Hopes and Wars are gone,
Faded in Distance like a Dream for aye,
And new and not less loud have passed since then away!
6
Thus rolls the mighty wheel fixed firmly onThe Axle of eternal Truth: Realms rise
And fall, but as a little Dust that's blown
By Fate's rude Breath from it, as on it flies,
Resolving Problems which Man's Faculties
Are allunequal to; they only aid
The mighty Ends for which its Task it plies,
Who move concentric with it, and thus made
As Spokes thereof, are still by one same Impulse sway 'd!
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7
Behold the Monarch of an Ironmould,Less Man than a Machine, Automaton
Wound up by Superstition and by cold
Statecraft: as bloody and as stern a one
As if in his Heartsstead had been a Stone.
Behold him! this is he who' neath the Mask
Of Christ's Religion would shed even on
His altar Blood, yea! e'en in his Name ask
A Hecatomb of Lives, and take himself to task
8
For slack Devotion if found wanting inSeverity to Heretics: and these
Were but so many as might chance to sin
Against his creed, a Matter full of Ease,
Since a king's creed is just what he may please,
A Procrustean Bed to lop and stretch.
Thus stood he, while the Tagus and the Sea's
Far blue Expanse, each blending into each,
Lay, like a Magicglass, God's hidden Things to teach!
9
He looked! the Ocean lay before his Feet,The Minister of his deep vengeance, for
He thought not of an higher while that Fleet
Before him in its Pomp and Pride he saw:
Each Bark a wingëd Thunderbolt of war,
To be launched at his Bidding — he could see
In all the mighty Plan of Wrath no Flaw:
The Ocean was but as the Steed, which he,
Its haughty Rider, spurred to certain Victory!
10
The fickle Elements but slaves to doHis Bidding! undeceiving, Ocean lay
As if his myriad waves were hushed unto
The Monarch's Voice: he saw it stretch away,
Calm as a sunny lake on Summerday,
In boundless Distance; he marked not upon
The far off wave the future Tempest's way,
Nor his proud Vessels, like to Bubbles, blown
From Ocean by the Breath of the avenging One!
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11
Nor Wonder! he himself was as the GodOf all he looked on, the creating Mind!
And on Men's uncomplaining Necks he trod:
The wildest Plans Ambition had designed,
By its own Splendor dazzled and made blind,
Were the great Child's vast Playthings, and for these
He found Means in the Folly of Mankind:
And as he ruled them, so with equal Ease
He thought to sway the winds, and bind in chains the seas!
12
And yet, methinks, when he looked on that DeepCalm as it was, yea! for that Reason more,
Receding in its unembracëd Sweep,
Like a Futurity, for aye before
The trancëd Eye, drawn ever gently o 'er
The vast Expanse, as towards Eternity:
Methinks it might have waked Thoughts of a Power
Revealed in other Forms than those whereby
The baseless Pride of Man would ape Infinity!
13
But in the mighty Mirror he beheldNot the Eternal's Image, then most there
When it is stillest and by Storms least swelled,
For in the Troubled his calm Spirit ne'er
Reveals itself: his Eye was not half clear
Enough or ample to behold that Form,
He saw the Image of the Mortal here
Alone, exalted 'bove his kindred Worm,
And in the Armada's strength he laughed to scorn the storm!
14
But Vengeance is the Lord's, and he who daresTo snatch the Thunder from his Hand must pay
The Forfeit of such Rashness: he first shares
The Ills which he on others' Heads would lay:
Who with the Winds and Elements would play,
And call on them as Ministers of Hate
And Vengeance, first should tame them to his Sway:
And he who rashly throws the Net of Fate,
Will find himself immeshed therein when 'tis too late!
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Blow, blow, ye Winds, and from the Monarch's SightWaft the proud Fleet and leave him in his Dream,
His Day dream! 'till he wake and see aright,
For those Fools dream at Night less idle seem!
Thou Time and Ocean, with conjoinëd Stream
Sweep onward to the Issue, for thou now
With the eternal waves which fleeting gleam,
Instead of thy own Sands, dost count the Flow
And Ebb of human Things, and lay'st Man 's Greatness low!
16
Now moves the Panorama—take thy fill,Reader, for not once in a hundred years
May Eye behold such Sight: the Tagus still
Flows on, but not one single voice he hears
Of all those many thousands whose loud Cheers
Now echo from his shores. Dome, Tower, Spire,
And vineclad Hill recede: the Sea appears,
Vast, boundless, as the Soul's own vague Desire,
An Emblem in its Calmness of a calm still higher!
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Oh lovely Vision! see how still it liesBurning in Sunset's unconsuming Blaze,
Reflecting back the rainbowtinted Skies,
Whose Clouds, empurpled with the Eveningrays,
By Fancy's Breath are piled, as if this Day's
Forgotten Wonders had not passed away!
Her divine Eye the very Forms can trace
As Bark on Bark gleams in the mellow Ray,
Floating on Seas which keep no Image of that Day!
18
How like a Fairytale is Life! now weAre here, then in a Moment we are gone,
Like Beings of a Dream, or those we see
In a Phantasmagoria: upon
Our Grave the Flower springs, the Sun which shone
On us lights others to the selfsame Goal:
The Spiderweb each busy Brain had spun
Is rent, and like an hieroglyphic Scroll
Still undecy phered, each bears off with him his soul!
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'Tis well to feel the Wonderful—to beTruly the Spirit which lives in us, thro'
Which we partake of God's Infinity:
We should hold up the glass of Fancy to
The coarse, hard Forms of Life, and there in new
And lovelier Combinations bid them rise:
Does not God himself o'er the Mountains strew
Aerial Tints and rainbowpaint the skies?
Then like him use that godliest of Faculties,
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Divine Imagination! clip thou notHer wings, nor cage her to this dull Round here,
But let her soar, far, far from this dim Spot,
And she shall bring thee all the Joys that e'er
Man crowded 'twixt the Cradle and the Bier.
And some beyond with Flavour not of Earth!
She shall strike off the chains of Doubt and Fear,
Fill thee with Consciousness of thy own worth,
And mix Life's Goblet so that it shall know no Dearth.
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Think then thou seest each distancelessened ProwMelting in Twilight to a Speck away,
And like huge Wings the white Sails fainter grow,
Preybirds of Ocean, soon to be a Prey
Themselves to Powers mightier than they:
Think that thou hear'st the seasongs die upon
The quiet Waters which in Sparkles play
Around each Bark, whose keel leaves burning on
Their Breast a Firewake, now here, now there, nowgone!
22
And they are passed away, yet which is mostA Dream, this or the bare Reality,
Which save for History were long since lost?
One is just as real as the other—why?
Since each an Effort is of Phantasy
To recreate the Past: th' historic Page,
And the Scene offered now to Fancy's Eye
Exist alike, the Actors and the Stage
Are here, they move and brea the in Spite of Time and Age!
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23
Where are the Winds that stir yon' lessening Sails?Where are the Waves, the Hearts, the Hopes, the Fears?
Exist they nowhere? even Wonder fai!s
To grasp the Thought: so dreamlike it appears
That we cry out to see if we have Ears
And Sense and live, or be ourselves a Dream!
It is the Life within a Life which rears
Its wondrous Outline in the Magicgleam
Of Suns long, long since set, thus mirrored in the Stream
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Of Time, on which yon' Fleet now floats awayInto Oblivion, as still as Thought!
Star sets on Star, Ray fades on fading Ray,
Those winds and waves eternal Rest have sought,
And of the Vision now remaineth naught!
We rub our Eyes and look, and look again,
And see things by the passing Hour wrought
Around us, yet our Dream is not in vain,
The Cause may be unreal, the Pleasure is real Gain!
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Now for a Wonder—thou shalt traverse spaceSwifter than he of Fairymemory,
Who on the Carpet moved from Place to Place:
How longed I in my Childhood to sit by
The Voyager, and thro' the Eveningsky
Float with the purple clouds towards the West,
That fair sunclime, where dreaming Poesy
Fables the Dwellings of the Everblest,
But wiser now I seek that Land in mine own Breast!
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Better I know Man's Powers and the GiftsOf Heaven than to longer envy those
Which are but fabled: if a Wing that lifts
E'en to God's Throne the soul do not enclose
In its sole self a Cure for all Life's woes,
Then am I wrong: or think ye that He who
Formed this so wondrous outward Eyesight, knows
Not how in his Infinity unto
The inward Eye to give a Sense more clear and true?
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Our Voyage is o'er—what seest thou? a fair Isle,Like to an Exhalation from the sea
Uprisen, touched by Fancy 's wand, meanwhile,
It seems the very Cradle of the free,
Or such by Heaven's will was framed to be,
Clouds rest upon its white Cliffs, by the Spray
Baptized in Freedom's Name eternally!
And as the Mists of Morning roll away
Woods, Streams, green Fields, and gleaming Spires greet the Day.
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And Seasidecities scattered round the Land,Shipteeming Ports, the Haunts of Commerce, tho'
As yet an Infant, fostered 'neath the Hand
Of that wise Maidenqueen who bade it grow:
Manhearted, as her Foes soon learnt to know,
In Danger and in Difficulty: for
She knew from whence the Tempestwind would blow
And in its Seed the Giantill foresaw,
And thus in Peace prepared the Nerves of future War
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Around her rockgirt Isle she bade ariseProud Commerce, to enrich it and defend,
And linked therewith her Country's Destinies,
In Peace and War she followed out this End,
The Winds her Ministers, the Sea her Friend
And from his Oceancradle soon she saw
The Giant, Commerce, towering ascend,
O'er Field and City strewing Wealth, in War
Snatching the Prey from out the spanish Lion's Maw!
30
The Land is like a Hive at Swarmingtime,Forge answers Forge, and Eye enkindles Eye,
Heart blends with Heart to form the living Rhyme
Which sounds thus, uttered-«Death or Liberty,
In Death we live on still, in Chains we die!»
The very Breath of weekday Life is as
An Inspiration, for the Foe is nigh,
Such to the Brave it ever is and was,
And in his Country's Cause who for aught else would pass?
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And when a Woman leads?-the Daughter sheOf her dear Country, and most truly so,
Its mighty Womb produced her spiritually:
Full of its Spirit too, which then did glow
Not manlier in the Warrior's Breast below
The swordproof Steel. But come, stand now on yon'
White Cliffs which frown on envious France, and lo!
What glorious vision is that floating on
The azurebosomed Main, sight unique and alone!
32
Imagination! what less than thine EyeCan take it in, or from what lesser Height
Than that to which thou soar 'st, could we descry
The mightiest Panorama ever sight
Of Man was blessed with? far off in Sunlight,
Like a seacradled City, it floats on,
And the blue Waves that sink before its Might
Seem to do Homage, as one after one,
Like wingëd Oceansteeds, each Bark distinct is shown!
33
Oh! Man how wondrous are thy Works: thy skillHow infinite, thy Mind how daring: how
Grasping thy Thoughts, if as thou thus canst will,
Thou also couldst thus execute, if no
Wise Providence marked how far thou shouldst go!
And oh! how wonderful must he be then
Who framed thee, who thus lays thy proud Plans low
With his least Breath! Greatest to greatest Men,
The first to yield him Homage still of Heart and Pen!
34
Little but unto those who themselves areImmeasurably less than little: who
Lost in their Littleness see not so far
As the blind Mole, that working upward to
The Light, is still to his Lifespirit true:
But these tho' in the blessed Light see by
It not, all that they can with Reason do,
Is, like the Child applying to his Eye
Th' inverted Telescope, to lessen the most High!
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35
Put up your Swords—a mightier than yeWill bring this cause unto an Issue!—hear,
Ye warriors! the Lord of Hosts, 'tis he!
The cause is his, the cause of Truth is dear
To Him, but he works not by Sword and Spear.
At Times more clearly than at others, thro'
The Storm his aweful Presence doth appear,
The Clouds are pushed aside, and to Man's view
His Rightarm is revealed, still to its office true!
36
Shall he who rules the Thunders and the WindsWant Ministers? shall he who framed the Eye
Not see thro' that which human Wisdom blinds?
Shall he who is Himself Infinity
Be at a Loss for Instruments whereby
To work out what he wills? no, surely, no!
The Machinations of his Enemy
Help on his mighty Plan: the seed they sow,
But he alone decide what shall or shall not grow!
37
Glory unto Him! holy be his name,For wondrous are his works—what is there here
May stand before Him and not come to shame?
The mighty Ones of Earth he withers sere
As Leaves—He breathes upon their Hosts, and Fear
Falls on them, and their strength is made as naught!
With viewless arm he breaks the Bow and Spear,
Yet by a Child's least Prayer he may be wrought
To Mercy, and by Love his Oracles are taught!
38
Rise up, ye everlasting Waves! the HourOf Vengeance is at Hand: 'tis Liberty
Invokes your Aid—the Lord has given Power
Of Life and Death, for her Defence, to ye!
Awake ye Winds, and speak unto the Sea!
Thunder call upon Thunder, and thou Day
Be turned to sudden Night, that none may flee
Thus from the wrath to come: ye Lightnings play
On Desolation 's Track, and guide them on their way!
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'Tis done!—thick Darkness wraps them as it wereWith a Deathshroud, fastsweeping them away
To their dread Saltseagrave, and Horror there,
Throned on each Prow, looms thro' the Lightningsray:
While the surfthundering Rocks bestrew their way,
And the fierce Watercolumns, towering high
As with a Wildbeastsspring, above them play;
One Moment, one Deathstruggle, one wild Cry,
And Man's frail Voice is lost in the Wind's Mockery!
40
Thou mighty Ocean! thou wild Bacchanal!Tossing and tumbling with thy streaming Hair,
And laughing as the pealing Thunders call
Eachother to the Onset, dost thou bear
No Respéct to the Will of Monarchs? are
Their Frowns then in thy Estimation naught?
Must the Invincible Armada share,
Tho' baptized by a King, a Fate so fraught
With Wretchedness, so different from that it sought?
41
Where, haughty Philip, where now is that EyeWhich looked down in such Pride on Tagus-Stream,
Reflecting in its broad Glass thy most high
And palmy Glory? didst thou not then deem,
In Man's vain Confidence, that Wakingdream
An Earnest and a Revelation clear
Of coming Triomphs? the first Dawningbeam
Of that great Day which was to see thy Sphere,
Thy bright Horizon spread o'er Empires far and near?
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Where is the Bubble by thy proud Breath blown,And which, as it receded from thine Eye
Vaster and brighter in the Distance grown,
Seemed then most sure when bursting momently?
Where are the countless Barks which rose as thy
Mere Word had Power to create them? where
The Hosts who bowed in brute Idolatry
Before thee? go, go, ask thou of Despair,
He only knows the Tale, he best the news may bear!
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Like a sad Widow mourned entire SpainAmid her desolate Streets, for many a dear
One came not to the Householdhearth again;
Gloom sat on every Brow, the bitter Tear
In many an Eye, and many a Home was drear.
But he, whose mad Ambition caused the Woe,
Composed his Ironlineaments to hear
The News unmoved, he could not brook to show
The writhings of the Heart, the serpent chained below!
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Once more he saw the Ocean, and it laySublimely calm as erst: the Sunsetslight
Empurpled it, and of the bygone Day
The very Fellow faded on his Sight;
There lay the Waves, which from his dreamy Height
Had hurled him, gentle as a Child at Play;
And scarcely knowing if he saw aright
The Monarch gazed, then turned in Wrath away,
To think a greater than himself those Waves should sway!
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But no proud Fleet was there! naught save a fewPoor Fishingboats and Merchantvessels; so
Nature maintains the Needful and the True
Alone, which from Man's during Being flow;
While his vain Dreams the passing Wind doth blow
Back into Nothing! Nature cares far more
For the least Flower which by the Way doth grow
Than all Man's mad Ambitions: as before
She holds her quiet Course, nor heeds the vain Uproar!
| Madmoments: or First Verseattempts | |