Madmoments: or First Verseattempts By a Bornnatural. Addressed to the Lightheaded of Society at Large, by Henry Ellison |
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ON A FRIEND ASKING IF HE DISTURBED ME WHEN WRITIN. |
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 | Madmoments: or First Verseattempts |  |
ON A FRIEND ASKING IF HE DISTURBED ME WHEN WRITIN.
1.
Oh! think not that thou interruptest me;A warm Shake of the Hand, a kindly Look,
Inspire me more, far more than this dead Book,
Which quickens not, by divine Sympathy,
Those genial Affections which must be
Cherished by daily Intercourse: I brook
The simplest Sheepherd's Converse, who of Crook
And Dog talks naively, better than to see
That cold, dumb Oracle, Philosophy!
I like to hear the Feelings of the Heart
Speak, not in formal Phrases clipped by Art,
But with the natural Eloquence of Eye
And Voice, and Gest, which better can impart
Wisdom than all the Books beneath the Sky.
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In the pure Light of Things I love to stand,To see them as they are, nor more nor less;
I need no spectacles of books t'impress
Or magnify the wonders of God's hand.
I with my natural sight have ever scanned
His Volume, comprehended it far more
By my own Heart's plain Comment, and the Lore
Of pure delight, than by all that the band
Of Pedants and of Sages ever penned!
Then fear not that thy voice disturbs me, Friend;
It tunes my thoughts, like pleasant chimes they fall
In order, and a healthy glow thereby
My cold Abstractions warms: and after all,
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And Life the highest Poesy I call!
| Madmoments: or First Verseattempts | |