Fruits of Retirement Or, Miscellaneous Poems, Moral and Divine. Being Some Contemplations, Letters, &c. Written on a Variety of Subjects and Occasions. By Mary Mollineux ... To which is Prefixed, Some Account of the Author |
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An Epistle to Cousin E. S.
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 | Fruits of Retirement |  |
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An Epistle to Cousin E. S.
When I remember thee (dear Friend) I findMy Heart thus to advise thee, is inclin'd;
If thou canst hear in Calmness, and subdue
All peevish Passion, which in open view
Of sober Persons, justly merits Blame,
And manifests the Ground from whence it came:
Then let this Counsel find a place in thee;
Stoop low to Truth, and learn Humility:
This thou wast once acquainted with; beware,
Lest Strangeness interpose, and learn to fear.
Know'st thou not what true Wisdom said of old,
Man's greatest Foes are of his own Houshold?
And true it is, not outwardly alone,
But inwardly; for greater there is none,
Than these, we can encounter with; for they
Lurk close within, and secretly betray.
Therefore take heed, for tho' there do appear
Bad Precedents, and Ill Examples near,
They'll not so soon infect a solid Mind,
Which unto Watchfulness is still inclin'd:
And then, though Trials frequently attend,
There is an Arm of Love that will defend
From all Assaults of Man's grand Enemy,
As it is lean'd to, in Simplicity.
O let's remember this, lest we should prove
Unmindful of our First, our Chiefest Love!
Or lest a Second Love should so engage
Our Hearts and Minds, in this Infectious Age,
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Us to a treacherous, fawning Delilah,
A subtil Bosom Traytor; such prevail'd
O'er one, whose Strength and Valour never fail'd,
Until he doted on a Stranger's Love.
O may such false Enticements never move
Our Hearts to turn aside, lest we may lose
Our Strength and Stay, and frequently expose
Our selves to Snares and Dangers! Surely we
Are always bound to wait in fear, to be
Kept near that Living Vertue, that doth favour
Thoughts, Words, & Actions, and that keeps in favour
With our First Love; that we may live and rest
With Sion's holy King, for ever bless'd.
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