 | The Poetical Works of Mr. William Pattison |  |
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AN EPISTLE TO HIS MAJESTY, King GEORGE II.
On his Accession to the Throne.
My Sacred Liege, if Sorrow cease to flow,
And reasoning Nature yield a Pause to Woe,
In the sad Silence of Ideal Gloom,
Whilst Death, triumphant, mocks the Monarch's Tomb,
Reflect, how Glory crouds Life's narrow Span!
And let the Prince recover from the Man.
And reasoning Nature yield a Pause to Woe,
In the sad Silence of Ideal Gloom,
Whilst Death, triumphant, mocks the Monarch's Tomb,
Reflect, how Glory crouds Life's narrow Span!
And let the Prince recover from the Man.
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Bend, then, auspicious o'er Thy filial Isle,
And with a Father's Eye her Grief beguile;
Joy, o'er her Tears, in gentle Smiles diffuse,
As rising Suns melt off the Morning Dews.
And with a Father's Eye her Grief beguile;
Joy, o'er her Tears, in gentle Smiles diffuse,
As rising Suns melt off the Morning Dews.
Beam'd on my Breast, how full Thy Glories shine!
Nor more by Lineage, than by Virtue Thine.
From Heaven deriv'd, in Pity to our Woes,
By Virtue, first, the Right to Rule arose:
What time Great Souls to tame the World began,
And broke the wild Barbarians into Man;
Then, stricter Laws their loose Desires restrain'd,
And thro' the Paths of Justice, wisely rein'd:
Aw'd then, destructive Rapine learn'd to cease,
And jarring Factions harmoniz'd in Peace.
Nor more by Lineage, than by Virtue Thine.
From Heaven deriv'd, in Pity to our Woes,
By Virtue, first, the Right to Rule arose:
What time Great Souls to tame the World began,
And broke the wild Barbarians into Man;
Then, stricter Laws their loose Desires restrain'd,
And thro' the Paths of Justice, wisely rein'd:
Aw'd then, destructive Rapine learn'd to cease,
And jarring Factions harmoniz'd in Peace.
As some pure Stream, the hurrying Tempest o'er,
Serenely winds along the Flowery Shore,
Progressive, paints the Borders as they rise;
And each still Scene with living Nature vies.
Calm'd thus for Thought, and actively refin'd,
Dawn'd fair Ideas on the forming Mind;
Hence, the fam'd ATHENS rich in Science grew,
And Arts still follow'd where ROME's Eagles flew;
Hence, too, victorious o'er the Powers of SPAIN,
Late Times shall own the Wonders of Thy Reign,
Reviv'd, those ancient Sons of Genius see,
And all their Godlike Patrons crown'd in THEE!
Serenely winds along the Flowery Shore,
Progressive, paints the Borders as they rise;
And each still Scene with living Nature vies.
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Dawn'd fair Ideas on the forming Mind;
Hence, the fam'd ATHENS rich in Science grew,
And Arts still follow'd where ROME's Eagles flew;
Hence, too, victorious o'er the Powers of SPAIN,
Late Times shall own the Wonders of Thy Reign,
Reviv'd, those ancient Sons of Genius see,
And all their Godlike Patrons crown'd in THEE!
Lost in the Vision of Futurity,
Slowly the Muse steals back her ravish'd Eye,
And nobly kindling at an earlier Aim,
Dates the bright Æra of Thy growing Fame.
Slowly the Muse steals back her ravish'd Eye,
And nobly kindling at an earlier Aim,
Dates the bright Æra of Thy growing Fame.
Nor shall the Pomp of the Slow-moving Train,
Charm to the Vulgar-Gaze! her Sight detain:
Poor were the Praise, on Themes like those to dwell,
Where Thornhill's Colours might the Verse excel!
Unnoted pass the wide Procession by ---
True Greatness strikes alone the mental Eye!
Shot thro' the Covert of a Court's Disguise,
That reads thy Soul; for there the Monarch lies!
And there, in every Attribute exprest,
As once on MOSES, sees the GOD confest.
Charm to the Vulgar-Gaze! her Sight detain:
Poor were the Praise, on Themes like those to dwell,
Where Thornhill's Colours might the Verse excel!
Unnoted pass the wide Procession by ---
True Greatness strikes alone the mental Eye!
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That reads thy Soul; for there the Monarch lies!
And there, in every Attribute exprest,
As once on MOSES, sees the GOD confest.
Thrice happy Hand of Power, to THEE assign'd,
To awe, to govern, and to bless Mankind!
To call forth humble Virtue into Fame,
To shade the Titled Villain o'er with Shame,
With Force to rescue where the Proud oppress,
And count a kind of Merit from Distress;
Or, when despairing in the Cave of Grief,
Surprize the sentenc'd Sinner back to Life,
And by the Favour of one Smile supply,
What gasping Monarchs would with Empires buy.
To awe, to govern, and to bless Mankind!
To call forth humble Virtue into Fame,
To shade the Titled Villain o'er with Shame,
With Force to rescue where the Proud oppress,
And count a kind of Merit from Distress;
Or, when despairing in the Cave of Grief,
Surprize the sentenc'd Sinner back to Life,
And by the Favour of one Smile supply,
What gasping Monarchs would with Empires buy.
How great these Acts!—but, since their Praise were poor,
Let me, at least, in Thought, indulge them o'er!
Confess the Pride would with my Wish agree,
And bend my Heart, O Power! to envy Thee!
Then Mercy! shouldst thou melt each harden'd Soul,
And Vice turn Virtue by thy soft Controul:
For Man by Nature is a doubtful Soil,
And wildly fertile asks the Tiller's Toil;
Yet the same Place, where the rank Venom grows,
Blushful, may blossom forth the fragrant Rose.
Let me, at least, in Thought, indulge them o'er!
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And bend my Heart, O Power! to envy Thee!
Then Mercy! shouldst thou melt each harden'd Soul,
And Vice turn Virtue by thy soft Controul:
For Man by Nature is a doubtful Soil,
And wildly fertile asks the Tiller's Toil;
Yet the same Place, where the rank Venom grows,
Blushful, may blossom forth the fragrant Rose.
Blest be the Prince, who thus his Power employs,
He moves in Smiles, and lives in circling Joys;
Superior to the Tyrant's savage Arts,
Founds his firm Empire on his Subjects Hearts;
From gentlest Virtues draws the noble Plan,
And proves the Monarch something more than Man.
He moves in Smiles, and lives in circling Joys;
Superior to the Tyrant's savage Arts,
Founds his firm Empire on his Subjects Hearts;
From gentlest Virtues draws the noble Plan,
And proves the Monarch something more than Man.
'Twas thus we saw Thee, lost in sweet Surprize,
Prelude AUGUSTUS to our ravish'd Eyes;
Delightful Prospects dawn'd on every Breast,
And All the glorious Interval confess'd!
Prelude AUGUSTUS to our ravish'd Eyes;
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And All the glorious Interval confess'd!
Nor dwell we distant on the backward Hour,
Urg'd by fresh Views enlarging on before;
Brightening down Ages, with progressive Shine,
They kindle Souls, in vain, to rival thine:
Whilst thro' the Mist of Time thy Fame appears,
The laurel'd Victress of ten thousand Years!
Urg'd by fresh Views enlarging on before;
Brightening down Ages, with progressive Shine,
They kindle Souls, in vain, to rival thine:
Whilst thro' the Mist of Time thy Fame appears,
The laurel'd Victress of ten thousand Years!
Yet wilt thou still the Course of Glory run,
Rise, height'ning into Lustre, like the Sun:
For generous Minds, tho' Miracles were wrought,
Mourn every Act below their towering Thought:
Thus, tho' our Eye stretch the long Landscape o'er
To the last Point, our Reason flies before.
Rise, height'ning into Lustre, like the Sun:
For generous Minds, tho' Miracles were wrought,
Mourn every Act below their towering Thought:
Thus, tho' our Eye stretch the long Landscape o'er
To the last Point, our Reason flies before.
As in full Circles of Delight we rove,
Ev'n Loyalty itself is lost in Love;
Whilst crowded Nations, gazing from the Heart,
With honest Nature mock the Muse's Art.
No more the Labourer mourns his empty Toil;
Nor foreign Weeds infect our happy Soil,
Joyful, we see our Stores on Stores increase,
The bounteous Growth of Liberty and Peace.
Ev'n Loyalty itself is lost in Love;
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With honest Nature mock the Muse's Art.
No more the Labourer mourns his empty Toil;
Nor foreign Weeds infect our happy Soil,
Joyful, we see our Stores on Stores increase,
The bounteous Growth of Liberty and Peace.
O, Fair BRITANNIA! Empress of the Main,
Fresh spring the Joys, an ever-blooming Train!
Steal them one Moment from thy downy Rest,
(For 'twas still thine to pity the distress'd;)
O'er thy wide Ocean cast thy gentle Eye,
There learn how Lands unciviliz'd may die;
And, as thou mourn'st their Happiness o'erthrown,
Nearly reflect, and learn to prize thy own:
Nor envy Nations that remotely run
To the full Influence of a warmer Sun,
When all the various Sweets their Products boast,
Transported, flourish on our happier Coast.
Fresh spring the Joys, an ever-blooming Train!
Steal them one Moment from thy downy Rest,
(For 'twas still thine to pity the distress'd;)
O'er thy wide Ocean cast thy gentle Eye,
There learn how Lands unciviliz'd may die;
And, as thou mourn'st their Happiness o'erthrown,
Nearly reflect, and learn to prize thy own:
Nor envy Nations that remotely run
To the full Influence of a warmer Sun,
When all the various Sweets their Products boast,
Transported, flourish on our happier Coast.
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Yet thy rich Plains with equal Bounty smile,
And all Elysium opens in thy Isle.
What yellowing Harvests o'er thy Mountains flow,
Wave down, and thicken all the Vale below!
How the glad Merchant views, with greedy Pride,
The World's Abundance pour in every Tide!
E'en Avarice, here, might sate her thirsty Eyes,
There, Famine feast, and into Plenty rise!
And all Elysium opens in thy Isle.
What yellowing Harvests o'er thy Mountains flow,
Wave down, and thicken all the Vale below!
How the glad Merchant views, with greedy Pride,
The World's Abundance pour in every Tide!
E'en Avarice, here, might sate her thirsty Eyes,
There, Famine feast, and into Plenty rise!
In this Profusion of increasing Joy,
Heaves e'er a Breast, or streams a tearful Eye!
Let grating Envy now alone deplore,
E'en injur'd Merit is a Crime no more!
Nor doom'd to watch a chearless Life away,
Like a dull Dial on a Winter's Day.
Heaves e'er a Breast, or streams a tearful Eye!
Let grating Envy now alone deplore,
E'en injur'd Merit is a Crime no more!
Nor doom'd to watch a chearless Life away,
Like a dull Dial on a Winter's Day.
Sinks there opprest, to Shades obscure confin'd,
The mournful Merits of a generous Mind;
To CAROLINA, breathe the modest Prayer,
Her gentle Soul can charm away Despair!
Her gentle Soul from Want's last Verge retriev'd,
And e'en the Shade of ancient Worth reliev'd:
The good Old Genius saw thy Gifts engage,
And mock'd the Malice of a grateless Age.
The mournful Merits of a generous Mind;
To CAROLINA, breathe the modest Prayer,
Her gentle Soul can charm away Despair!
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And e'en the Shade of ancient Worth reliev'd:
The good Old Genius saw thy Gifts engage,
And mock'd the Malice of a grateless Age.
How lost in sweet Surprize, the World admir'd,
When all the Woman to a Saint aspir'd;
What Time Religion's purer Flame out-shone
The dazzling Splendours of a German Throne!
Charm'd with the Prospect of thy future Isle,
Silent she bad thee every Wish beguile;
Sees Britain's Crown thy softer Power employ,
The glittering Earnest of immortal Joy!
When all the Woman to a Saint aspir'd;
What Time Religion's purer Flame out-shone
The dazzling Splendours of a German Throne!
Charm'd with the Prospect of thy future Isle,
Silent she bad thee every Wish beguile;
Sees Britain's Crown thy softer Power employ,
The glittering Earnest of immortal Joy!
Still then the Promise of our Hopes maintain;
Still dawn fresh Wonders for a future Reign;
And lo! advancing to maturer Years,
GREAT FREDERICK, Image of his Sire, appears!
Paternal Virtues all his Soul engage;
And blooming Youth divines a fruitful Age!
Still dawn fresh Wonders for a future Reign;
And lo! advancing to maturer Years,
GREAT FREDERICK, Image of his Sire, appears!
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And blooming Youth divines a fruitful Age!
So, on the yellowing Orange-Tree, appear,
The flowery Tokens of a golden Year;
Fair, o'er the falling Fruits, new Beauties rise,
And all the sweet Succession never dies.
The flowery Tokens of a golden Year;
Fair, o'er the falling Fruits, new Beauties rise,
And all the sweet Succession never dies.
| The Poetical Works of Mr. William Pattison | |