Poems on different occasions [by Cuthbert Shaw] |
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| [I]. |
| II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
| V. |
| VI. |
| VII. |
| VIII. |
| IX. | ODE IX.
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| X. |
| XI. |
| XII. |
| XIII. |
| XIV. |
| XV. |
| XVI. |
 | Poems on different occasions |  |
81
ODE IX.
[O thou, whose steps thy fates ordain]
O thou, whose steps thy fates ordain
That life's low vale shall still retain,
Spare not thy virtues to display
Where fate has mark'd thy humbler way.
That life's low vale shall still retain,
Spare not thy virtues to display
Where fate has mark'd thy humbler way.
Blooms the fresh rose with hues less fair,
Or less perfumes its breath the air,
That in the depth of lonely vales
It gives its fragrance to the gales?
Or less perfumes its breath the air,
That in the depth of lonely vales
It gives its fragrance to the gales?
82
Not the vain eyes of men behold
The lovely flower its leaf unfold;
Not the mixt voice of youths and maids
Conspires to praise it in the shades.
The lovely flower its leaf unfold;
Not the mixt voice of youths and maids
Conspires to praise it in the shades.
But with its bloom it chears the dale,
Its fragrance rises with the gale
Sweet to the skies, and heav'n's bright eye
Delights the secret flower to spy.
Its fragrance rises with the gale
Sweet to the skies, and heav'n's bright eye
Delights the secret flower to spy.
| Poems on different occasions | |