 | The Poetical Works of John Critchley Prince |  |
65
TO QUINTUS HORTENSIUS.
Quintus, my earliest intellectual friend,—The first who listened to my artless lay;
The first who had the courage to commend,
And teach me to expect a brighter day;—
This humble tribute to thy worth I pay;
Though brief and rude, it springeth from the heart.
Thy warmth of soul may lessen and decay,
But my first feelings cannot all depart.
Let us not break from Friendship's holy thrall;—
Canst thou forget thine ancient cordial greeting;—
Canst thou forget that joyous Sabbath meeting,
When poesy and music gladdened all?
Then did the light of mind adorn each brow,
And thou wert kind and true, as I would have thee now.
| The Poetical Works of John Critchley Prince | |