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123
LINES Addressed to a young couple on the celebration of their nuptials.
Why doth the rose its blooming front display?
Why flaunts it on the genial breath of May,
Diffusing odours round?
Why does the lily boast its milky hue,
And, spangled with the early matin dew,
Bedeck the verdant ground?
Why flaunts it on the genial breath of May,
Diffusing odours round?
Why does the lily boast its milky hue,
And, spangled with the early matin dew,
Bedeck the verdant ground?
The vermil tint and fragrance of the rose,
And lily's purity, at once disclose
A spotless virgin's mien:
The willow, waving graceful o'er the flood,
The spiral poplar, that o'ersteps the wood,
Compare with beauty's queen.
And lily's purity, at once disclose
A spotless virgin's mien:
The willow, waving graceful o'er the flood,
The spiral poplar, that o'ersteps the wood,
Compare with beauty's queen.
124
If such perfections in one maid combin'd,
And Heaven had stamp'd its image on her mind,
What were the virgin's due?
The world's applause, and bliss without alloy;
A youth, whose bright perfections claim'd the joy;
A lover kind and true.
And Heaven had stamp'd its image on her mind,
What were the virgin's due?
The world's applause, and bliss without alloy;
A youth, whose bright perfections claim'd the joy;
A lover kind and true.
Then such is thine, sweet maid! thou claim'st the youth
Whose soul is fram'd for virtue, love, and truth;
Whose heart avows thy charms.
May time, with rosy pinions, wing his way!
May bliss unclouded mark each dawning day!
When folded in love's arms.
Whose soul is fram'd for virtue, love, and truth;
Whose heart avows thy charms.
May time, with rosy pinions, wing his way!
May bliss unclouded mark each dawning day!
When folded in love's arms.
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