Familiar letters and poems on several occasions By Mary Masters |
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The various Pursuits of Mankind.
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 | Familiar letters and poems on several occasions |  |
The various Pursuits of Mankind.
Hor. B. i. Ode I.
To MÆCÆNAS.
Mæcænas of August descent,
My Patron and my Ornament!
One feels a Fervor in his Soul,
Swift o'er Olympian Plains to roll;
And if, as wild the Chariot runs,
The Goal with dext'rous Glance he shuns,
And wins the Palm's ennobling Prize,
Mortal no more, he gains the Skies.
My Patron and my Ornament!
One feels a Fervor in his Soul,
Swift o'er Olympian Plains to roll;
And if, as wild the Chariot runs,
The Goal with dext'rous Glance he shuns,
And wins the Palm's ennobling Prize,
Mortal no more, he gains the Skies.
175
Him if the fluctuating Crowd,
Admire, and shouts his Praise aloud:
Another, if he hoards the Stores,
Collected from the Lybian Floors;
Pleas'd with his brighten'd Shares to wound,
And labour his paternal Ground;
Not both the Indies could invite,
His parting with his dear Delight;
In a small Bark, in wild Dismay
O'er the rough Seas to plough his Way.
Admire, and shouts his Praise aloud:
Another, if he hoards the Stores,
Collected from the Lybian Floors;
Pleas'd with his brighten'd Shares to wound,
And labour his paternal Ground;
Not both the Indies could invite,
His parting with his dear Delight;
In a small Bark, in wild Dismay
O'er the rough Seas to plough his Way.
The Mariner, all pale with Fright,
When Whirlwinds mix in furious Fight,
With the chaf'd Deep, the safe Retreat
And Pleasures of a Country Seat
Applauds; but soon refits again
His shatter'd Bark, and dares the Main:
Such his insatiate Thirst of Gain!
When Whirlwinds mix in furious Fight,
With the chaf'd Deep, the safe Retreat
And Pleasures of a Country Seat
Applauds; but soon refits again
His shatter'd Bark, and dares the Main:
Such his insatiate Thirst of Gain!
176
Another of a diff'rent Cast,
With good old Wines regales his Taste;
Careless tho' he should drink away,
The choicest Hours that crown the Day,
Wrapt in some Arbor's verdant Shade,
Or by a tinkling Fountain laid.
With good old Wines regales his Taste;
Careless tho' he should drink away,
The choicest Hours that crown the Day,
Wrapt in some Arbor's verdant Shade,
Or by a tinkling Fountain laid.
Some choose the Camp, the Trump's alarms
That rouse the Soldier into Arms;
Fill all their Souls with fierce Delight,
While Nations tremble at the Sight.
That rouse the Soldier into Arms;
Fill all their Souls with fierce Delight,
While Nations tremble at the Sight.
The Huntsman, thoughtless of his Bride,
Will in the frosty Air abide;
With Hounds to hunt the flying Roe,
Or Boar that snapt his Net in two.
Will in the frosty Air abide;
With Hounds to hunt the flying Roe,
Or Boar that snapt his Net in two.
177
The Laurels which the Learn'd adorn,
Majestic on your Brows are worn;
Hence you the mortal Race despise,
And claim a Kindred with the Skies.
Majestic on your Brows are worn;
Hence you the mortal Race despise,
And claim a Kindred with the Skies.
I, cover'd with a cool Retreat,
Where Nymphs and Satyrs love to meet;
My Pleasures find, ev'n there preferr'd,
Sublimely o'er the vulgar Herd:
Should the kind Muses sacred Choir,
Breathe on my Lute, or tune my Lyre.
Where Nymphs and Satyrs love to meet;
My Pleasures find, ev'n there preferr'd,
Sublimely o'er the vulgar Herd:
Should the kind Muses sacred Choir,
Breathe on my Lute, or tune my Lyre.
Me with the Lyric Bards enrole,
My Fame shall spread from Pole to Pole.
My Fame shall spread from Pole to Pole.
G.
| Familiar letters and poems on several occasions | |