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Poems on several subjects

Nicol, Alexander

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TO THE HONOURABLE JAMES HALYBURTON of Pitcur, Esq; Member of Parliament of Orkney and Shetland, and Colonel of the Third Regiment of Foot-Guards, &c.
  
PREFACE.
  
To the Author, on his Collection of Miscellany Poems.
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NATURE without ART.
  
An Account of the Author, being an Epistle to the Right Honourable Susanna Countess of Strathmore, in the Year 1727; but newly revised and corrected, with some Circumstances then omitted.
  
An Introduction to a Wedding SONG. To the Right Honourable the Lord ------.
  
The ODE.
  
A POEM, inscribed to the Right Honourable the Earl of Morton, on his accepting the former Ode, &c.
  
The DREAM.
  
On the Death of the Honourable Henry Crawfoord of Monorgan, who died March 1731.
  
The young Man's Litany.
  
The young Woman's Litany in Choice of an Husband.
  
To the Right Honourable, the Lord Gray, upon his sending me Mr Ramsay's Poems.
  
To two GENTLEWOMEN.
  
An ACROSTIC.
  
Another ACROSTIC.
  
LOVE's CURE.
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A Collection of Scots Songs, being new Words adapted to old Tunes.
 I. 
SONG I.
 II. 
SONG II.
 III. 
SONG III. TIMBER STAIRS.
 IV. 
SONG IV. The poor Prentice.
 V. 
SONG V. Few good Fellows when Jamie's awa'.
 VI. 
SONG VI. The Pease Straw.
 VII. 
SONG VII. My Love she is the Ring-leader
 VIII. 
SONG VIII. The Summer Evening.
 IX. 
SONG IX.
 X. 
SONG X. O'er the Muir to Meggy.
 XI. 
SONG XI. The Leacher's Lament.
 XII. 
SONG XII. The amorous Shepherd.
 XIII. 
SONG XIII. The ADMIRATION.
 XIV. 
SONG XIV. The COMMENDATION.
 XV. 
SONG XV.
 XVI. 
SONG XVI. The COMPLAINT.
 XVII. 
SONG XVII. The Auld Goodman.
 XVIII. 
SONG XVIII. The FIDELITY.
 XIX. 
SONG XIX. The forlorn MAID.
 XX. 
SONG XX. The BANKS of TAY.
  
An Epitaph on that puissant Duke of Berwick, Great Marshal of France, who, at the siege of Phillipsburgh, viewing the trenches, had his head shot off by a cannon ball, in the year 1734.
  
CHRIST's KIRK on the GREEN.
  
An Epistle to Mr P---, one of his Majesty's Officers of Excise, on his ridiculing my Verses.
  
A Letter to J--- B--- an old Batchelor, persuading him to marry.
  
Written by a Gentleman upon seeing some of my Verses.
  
My ANSWER.
  
An Epistle to Mr Allan Ramsay.
  
Said on WRITING.
  
An Epistle to a Friend newly married, against the will of his Wife's Friends.
  
To the Laird of ABERCAIRNIE.
  
Upon our jolly Change-Keeper leaving the place.
  
A Tale of two Brothers, and their Posterity.
  
The AUTHOR's Wish.
  
On FORTUNE.
  
Upon the fair Sex.
  
PROVERBS, Chap. xxxi. Verse 10.
  
The honest Country-man's Meditation, as he was humming it over alone in Words at Resting-time.
  
Thirty Riddles, with their Expositions.
  
A POEM, shewing the Original, Antiquity, Beauty, and Glory of Masonry; also its Progress, Improvements, and Usefulness; with a Description of the Mason's Lodge. All which is concluded with an Ode, sung to the tune of, The free and accepted Mason. To which is prefixed, instead of a Preface, a Poem on the printed Pamphlet.
  
A POEM on Masonry.
  
The Masons Lodge.
  
The ODE.
  
On receiving a Compliment from the Right Honourable the Lord Kinnaird.
  
An ELEGY on auld Use and Wont
  
An ELEGY on Johnie Galla'.
  
An EPISTLE, from Mr D--- L--- Schoolmaster at Kinnaird, to Alexander Nicol Schoolmaster at Collace, February 3d 1749; on seeing my last book, called Nature without Art.
  
Alexander Nicol's Answer to the foregoing Epistle, February 6th 1749.
  
James Ratcliff's Retreat from the Prison of Edinburgh, Monday 23d of July 1739, he being to be hanged the Wednesday after:
  
A SAPPHIC ODE.
  
A SONG, Tune Allan Water.
  
A POEM on R--- H--- of South-Ballo.
  
ACROSTIC.
  
A Remark on the Poverty of Poets.
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The Complaint of a Lark directed to a great Lion: A Fable; occasioned by another Lion being influenced by some evil Speaker, to suspect the honesty of the Lark.
  
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The MORAL.
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The Cat and the Ape. A Fable.
  
[section]
  
The MORAL.
  
On seeing Smith and Craig's bantering Poems, anent the building of a School-house at Glenshie.
  
An EPISTLE to Mr Robert Smith Schoolmaster at Kinnaird, upon his saying he would not stay in the Place.
  
Mr Smith's ANSWER.
  
Another EPISTLE to Mr Robert Smith.
  
The PETITION of Alexander Nicol. Schoolmaster at Collace, to the Honourable Sir William Nairn of Dunsinnan Baronet.
  
An EPITAPH on Alexander Robertson of Struan.
  
An ACROSTICK.
  
To the Memory of the Honourable George Hay of Leys, Esq
  
On Captain Balnave's being dangerously sick of a Fever at the time he should have been married; inscribed to his Lady afterwards.
  
On the City of DUNDEE.
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The BROKEN LAIRD REPAIR'D; OR, The DYVOUR turn'd a THRIVER:
 I. 
CANTO I.
 II. 
CANTO II.
 III. 
CANTO III.
 IV. 
CANTO IV.
 V. 
CANTO V.
  
Sung by Miss JENNY.
  
On FORTUNE.
  
A PASTORAL between Colin, Willie, and Deavy, upon Baledgarno's Marriage.
  
VENUS's JOURNEY. A POEM inscribed to Mr Ogilvie of Inchmartine, on his Marriage.
  
On Mrs Ogilvie's Chariot-wheel sinking on the Brink of the River Spey.
  
To the Right Honourable the Lord Kinnaird, on his commencing Master of Masons, &c.
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NATURE without ART.
  
An Invocation to the heavenly Muse.
  
Forty five Wonders; or, an Imitation of a Pamphlet of moral sayings, called, A Book of Fives, or five and forty Wonders.
  
Alphabetical Verses on the Life of MAN, being eight Verses annexed to each Letter.
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The four Seasons of the Year compared to the four Ages of Man's Life, viz. Infancy, Childhood or Youth, Manhood, and old Age.
 I. 
I. WINTER.
 II. 
II. SPRING.
 III. 
III. SUMMER.
 IV. 
IV. Autumn, or Harvest.
  
A Meditation at the Communion-table.
  
On the Fall of Man.
  
To the holy Trinity, on the Redemption of Man.
  
A Meditation for a Traveller.
  
Upon the WORLD.
  
A Meditation for a Fast-day before the Communion.
  
A Lamentation, &c.
  
The contented Christian, or the Christian's Content.
  
A Soliloquy for an unregenerate Sinner.
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A BUNDLE OF FLOWERS FOR CHILDREN:
  
To my young Reader.
  
The First Chapter of Genesis.
  
A Meditation on the Second Chapter of Genesis.
  
VERSES upon the most remarkable Men and Women mentioned in the BIBLE.
  
[Methuselah liv'd to the greatest age]
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REMARKS.
 I. 
[I.]
 II. 
II.
 III. 
III.
 IV. 
IV.
 V. 
V.
  
Fifty Golden Verses.
  
An ACROSTIC.
  
An ACROSTIC.
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An Epistle, or New-year's Gift, to a young Merchant in Perth, January 1st 1751.
  
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POSTSCRIPT.
  
The Brevity of Human Life.
  
The Eighth Chapter of Solomon's Proverbs.
  
The Love of Christ, An Hymn.
  
An Hymn on Death.
  
Hymn for a Fellowship Meeting.
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THE CHILD's COMPANION; IN A NATURAL DIALOGUE BETWIXT A Child and One of riper Years: Useful for Young Ones.
  
To my young Reader.
  
An Advice to Children. By another Hand.
  
The CHILD's COMPANION, &c.
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KING SOLOMON's BOOK OF ECCLESIASTES, IN METRE.
  
On the BOOK.
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King Solomon's Book of Ecclesiastes, in Verse.
 I. 
CHAP. I.
 II. 
CHAP. II.
 III. 
CHAP. III.
 IV. 
CHAP. IV.
 V. 
CHAP. V.
 VI. 
CHAP. VI.
 VII. 
CHAP. VII.
 VIII. 
CHAP. VIII.
 IX. 
CHAP. IX.
 X. 
CHAP. X.
 XI. 
CHAP. XI.
 XII. 
CHAP. XII.

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CHAP. VIII.

[1]

As the wise man, who can such knowledge bring
For plain interpretation of a thing?
A man's own wisdom makes his face to shine;
But time will make his strength and face decline.

2

I counsel thee to keep the king's command,
The oath of God you ought to understand.

3

Make no great haste out of his sight to go;
Shun evil things, for what he wills he'll do.

4

Where a king's word is, there his pow'r doth shew:
And who can say to him, Sir, what dost thou?

5

Whoe'er he be keeps the commandement,
No evil thing shall cause his discontent:
A wise man's heart will easily discern,
And also time and judgment both will learn.

6

Since to each purpose time and judgment be;
Therefore sure great is mortals misery.

7

For he knows nothing of futurity:
For who can tell him when, or how 'twill be?

8

No man hath pow'r the spirit to retain;
Nor hath he pow'r from dying to refrain:
There's no discharge of that warfare; nor can
A wicked life preserve a wicked man.

9

All this I've seen; and did my heart apply
To ev'ry work done here beneath the sky.
There is a time wherein a man doth bear
Rule over others, to his hurt full dear.

10

And so I saw the wicked buried, who
Did from the church oft-times both come and go;
And in the city quite forgot were they,
Where they so did: this is a vanity.

11

Because against an evil work sentence
Doth not on sinners presently commence;
329

Therefore the hearts of mortal men are still
Set in them always fully to do ill.

12

Altho' a sinner should an hundred times
Prolong his days, and multiply his crimes;
Yet sure I am it shall be well with them
That fear the Lord, and reverence his name.

13

But with the wicked well it shall not be,
Nor yet protract his lease of life shall he;
For as a shadow hath he here abode;
For why? because he never feareth God.

14

Here on the earth is done a vanity:
The just mens lot like wicked workers be,
The wicked's lot as they wrought righteously;
I said this also is a vanity.

15

Then I commended mirth; because a man
Hath nothing better here below the sun,
Than that he eat, and drink, and merry be;
For that abides of all his industry,
With him the days of his frail life alone,
Which God doth give him here below the sun.

16

Wisdom when I apply'd mine heart to know,
To see the bus'ness done on earth below;
(For there is that yea neither day nor night
Lets sleep once dim the optics of his sight.)

17

Then I beheld the work of God, that none
Can find out what is wrought below the sun:
Because though man should labour seeking it,
Yea though a wise man should employ his wit,
Thinking to know it; yet he grasps the wind,
And never shall attain the same to find.
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