The Poetical Works of The Rev. Samuel Bishop ... To Which are Prefixed, Memoirs of the Life of the Author By the Rev. Thomas Clare |
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 | The Poetical Works of The Rev. Samuel Bishop |  |
EPIGRAM LXII.
[When once, Voltaire, with jealous rage]
Κρυσεα χαλκειων.
When once, Voltaire, with jealous rage,
Attack'd our Shakespeare's glorious page,
To give abuse a gloss,
In French translation's awkward mould,
He first debas'd the genuine Gold,
Then judg'd it by his dross.
Attack'd our Shakespeare's glorious page,
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In French translation's awkward mould,
He first debas'd the genuine Gold,
Then judg'd it by his dross.
Vain impotence of critic spite!
Shakespeare's old sterling, solid, bright,
All tastes and times will suit:—
While the pert Frenchman's baser mass,
If rank'd at all, will rank with brass;—
And worthless brass, to boot.
Shakespeare's old sterling, solid, bright,
All tastes and times will suit:—
While the pert Frenchman's baser mass,
If rank'd at all, will rank with brass;—
And worthless brass, to boot.
| The Poetical Works of The Rev. Samuel Bishop | |