The Poetical Works of Henry Brooke ... In Four Volumes Octavo. Revised and corrected by the Original Manuscript With a Portrait of the Author, and His Life By Miss Brooke. The Third Edition |
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| VI. | BOOK VI. |
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 | The Poetical Works of Henry Brooke |  |
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BOOK VI.
“Ye human offsprings of distinguish'd birth,
“So justly substituted lords of earth;
“Who boast the seal of highest heaven impress'd,
“Thence with supremacy of reason bless'd,
“Attend the song, and vindicate your claim!
“Recall your ancestry of antique fame,
“Prime artizans of each sagacious craft,
“The curious model, or designing draft,
“All talents technical for each device,
“The skilful fabrick, and the texture nice!
“So justly substituted lords of earth;
“Who boast the seal of highest heaven impress'd,
“Thence with supremacy of reason bless'd,
“Attend the song, and vindicate your claim!
“Recall your ancestry of antique fame,
“Prime artizans of each sagacious craft,
“The curious model, or designing draft,
“All talents technical for each device,
“The skilful fabrick, and the texture nice!
“Or, if ye pride in science more refined,
“Judicial product of the studious mind,
“The scheme politic, or the moral plan,
“To form the conduct, or the heart of man;
“Attend the depth of maxims which ensue,
“More than e'er Solon, or great Cecil knew;
“The moral, with diviner precepts fraught,
“Than stories, or than eastern magi taught.”
“Judicial product of the studious mind,
“The scheme politic, or the moral plan,
“To form the conduct, or the heart of man;
115
“More than e'er Solon, or great Cecil knew;
“The moral, with diviner precepts fraught,
“Than stories, or than eastern magi taught.”
First let the botanist his art forego,
And o'er the mountain trace the Cretan Doe:
Behold the critic stand with curious mien,
And cull the virtues of the various green,
Secrete her foliage from the noxious weed,
And conscious of her skill securely feed!
And o'er the mountain trace the Cretan Doe:
Behold the critic stand with curious mien,
And cull the virtues of the various green,
Secrete her foliage from the noxious weed,
And conscious of her skill securely feed!
Where did this Sylvan Leach her lore acquire,
From Æsculapius, or his Radiant Sire?
When to her panting flank the weapon flies,
And deep within the feather'd mischief lies,
She seeks the well known medicine of the plain,
Nor yet despairs where human art were vain;
Mild thro' her frame the sovereign balsams glide,
And the keen shaft falls guiltless from her side.
From Æsculapius, or his Radiant Sire?
When to her panting flank the weapon flies,
And deep within the feather'd mischief lies,
She seeks the well known medicine of the plain,
Nor yet despairs where human art were vain;
Mild thro' her frame the sovereign balsams glide,
And the keen shaft falls guiltless from her side.
Ye wanderers of the faithless main! relate,
Whose science then averts impending fate,
When haply on the distant climate thrown,
Ye view strange objects, and a world unknown;
Each tree uncouth, with foreign fruitage crown'd,
And unacquainted plenty blooming round:
But who shall dare with rash adventurous hand,
To pluck the bane of a suspected land?
Half famish'd they devour with wistful eyes;
But fear dissuades to tempt the dangerous prize:
Yet should they spy, amid the fruitful brake,
The skilful trace of some luxurious beak,
With birds their elegant repast they share,
And bless the learn'd inhabitants of air.
Whose science then averts impending fate,
When haply on the distant climate thrown,
Ye view strange objects, and a world unknown;
Each tree uncouth, with foreign fruitage crown'd,
And unacquainted plenty blooming round:
116
To pluck the bane of a suspected land?
Half famish'd they devour with wistful eyes;
But fear dissuades to tempt the dangerous prize:
Yet should they spy, amid the fruitful brake,
The skilful trace of some luxurious beak,
With birds their elegant repast they share,
And bless the learn'd inhabitants of air.
Bear, bear my song, ye raptures of the mind!
Convey your bard thro' Nature unconfined,
Licentious in the search of wisdom range,
Plunge in the depth, and wanton in the change;
Waft me to Tempe, and her flowery dale,
Born on the wings of every tuneful gale;
Amid the wild profusions let me stray,
And share with Bees the virtues of the day.
Convey your bard thro' Nature unconfined,
Licentious in the search of wisdom range,
Plunge in the depth, and wanton in the change;
Waft me to Tempe, and her flowery dale,
Born on the wings of every tuneful gale;
Amid the wild profusions let me stray,
And share with Bees the virtues of the day.
Soon as the matin glory gilds the skies,
Behold the little Virtuosi rise!
Blithe for the task, they preen their early wing,
And forth to each appointed labour spring.
Now Nature boon exhales the morning steam,
And glows and opens to the welcome beam;
The vivid tribes amid the fragrance fly,
And every art, and every business ply.
Each chymist now his subtle trunk unsheathes,
Where, from the flower, the treasured odour breathes;
Here sip the liquid, here select the gum,
And o'er the bloom with quivering membrane hum.
Still with judicious scrutiny they pry,
Where lodg'd the prime essential juices lie;
Each luscious vegetation wide explore,
Plunder the spring of every vital store:
The dainty suckle, and the fragrant thyme,
By chymical reduction, they sublime;
Their sweets with bland attempering suction strain,
And, curious, thro' their neat alembicks drain;
Imbibed recluse, the pure secretions glide,
And vital warmth concocts the ambrosial tide.
Behold the little Virtuosi rise!
Blithe for the task, they preen their early wing,
And forth to each appointed labour spring.
Now Nature boon exhales the morning steam,
And glows and opens to the welcome beam;
The vivid tribes amid the fragrance fly,
And every art, and every business ply.
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Where, from the flower, the treasured odour breathes;
Here sip the liquid, here select the gum,
And o'er the bloom with quivering membrane hum.
Still with judicious scrutiny they pry,
Where lodg'd the prime essential juices lie;
Each luscious vegetation wide explore,
Plunder the spring of every vital store:
The dainty suckle, and the fragrant thyme,
By chymical reduction, they sublime;
Their sweets with bland attempering suction strain,
And, curious, thro' their neat alembicks drain;
Imbibed recluse, the pure secretions glide,
And vital warmth concocts the ambrosial tide.
Inimitable Art! do thou atone
The long lost labours of the Latent Stone;
Tho' the Five Principles so oft transpire,
Fined, and refined, amid the torturing fire.
Like issue should the daring chymist see,
Vain imitator of the curious Bee,
Nor arts improved thro' ages once produce
A single drachm of this delicious juice.
Your's then, industrious traders! is the toil,
And man's proud science is alone to spoil.
The long lost labours of the Latent Stone;
Tho' the Five Principles so oft transpire,
Fined, and refined, amid the torturing fire.
Like issue should the daring chymist see,
Vain imitator of the curious Bee,
Nor arts improved thro' ages once produce
A single drachm of this delicious juice.
Your's then, industrious traders! is the toil,
And man's proud science is alone to spoil.
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“Sweet's the repast where pains have spread the board,
“And deep the fund incessant labours hoard;
“A friendly arm makes every burden light;
“And weakness, knit by union, turns to might.”
“And deep the fund incessant labours hoard;
“A friendly arm makes every burden light;
“And weakness, knit by union, turns to might.”
Hail happy tribes! illustrious people hail!
Whose forms minute such sacred maxims veil;
In whose just conduct, framed by wondrous plan,
We read revers'd each polity of man.
Who first in council form'd your embryon state?
Who rose a patriot in the deep debate?
Greatly proposed to reconcile extremes,
And weave in unity opposing schemes?
From fears inferr'd just reason of defence,
And from self-interest rais'd a publick sense;
Then pois'd his project with transposing scale,
And from the publick, shew'd the private weal?
Whence aptly summ'd, these politicians draw
The trust of power, and sanctitude of law;
Power in dispensing benefits employ'd,
And healing laws, not suffer'd, but enjoy'd.
The members, hence unanimous, combine
To prop that throne, on which the laws recline;
The law's protected even for private ends,
Whereon each individual's right depends;
Each individual's right by union grows,
And one full tide for every member flows;
Each member as the whole communion great,
Back'd by the powers of a defending state;
The state by mutual benefits secure,
And in the might of every member sure!
Whose forms minute such sacred maxims veil;
In whose just conduct, framed by wondrous plan,
We read revers'd each polity of man.
Who first in council form'd your embryon state?
Who rose a patriot in the deep debate?
Greatly proposed to reconcile extremes,
And weave in unity opposing schemes?
From fears inferr'd just reason of defence,
And from self-interest rais'd a publick sense;
Then pois'd his project with transposing scale,
And from the publick, shew'd the private weal?
Whence aptly summ'd, these politicians draw
The trust of power, and sanctitude of law;
Power in dispensing benefits employ'd,
And healing laws, not suffer'd, but enjoy'd.
The members, hence unanimous, combine
To prop that throne, on which the laws recline;
The law's protected even for private ends,
Whereon each individual's right depends;
119
And one full tide for every member flows;
Each member as the whole communion great,
Back'd by the powers of a defending state;
The state by mutual benefits secure,
And in the might of every member sure!
The publick thus each private end pursues;
Each in the publick drowns all private views:
By social commerce and exchange they live,
Assist supported, and receiving give.
Each in the publick drowns all private views:
By social commerce and exchange they live,
Assist supported, and receiving give.
High on her throne, the bright Imperial Queen
Gives the prime movement to the state machine:
She, in the subject, sees the duteous child;
She, the true parent, as the regent mild,
With princely grace invested sits elate,
Informs their conduct, and directs the state.
Around, the drones who form her courtly train,
Bask in the rays of her auspicious reign;
Beneath, the sage consulting peers repair,
And breathe the virtues of their prince's care;
Debating, cultivate the publick cause,
And wide dispense the benefit of laws.
Gives the prime movement to the state machine:
She, in the subject, sees the duteous child;
She, the true parent, as the regent mild,
With princely grace invested sits elate,
Informs their conduct, and directs the state.
Around, the drones who form her courtly train,
Bask in the rays of her auspicious reign;
Beneath, the sage consulting peers repair,
And breathe the virtues of their prince's care;
Debating, cultivate the publick cause,
And wide dispense the benefit of laws.
So have I seen, when breathing organs blow,
One board sonorous fill the various row;
The pipes divide the unity of sound,
And spread the charms of symphony around.
One board sonorous fill the various row;
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And spread the charms of symphony around.
The clustering populace obsequious wait,
Or speed the different orders of the state;
Here greet the labourer on the toilsome way,
And to the load their friendly shoulder lay;
Or frequent at the busy gate arrive,
And fill with amber-sweets their fragrant hive;
Or seek repairs to close the fractured cell;
Or shut the waxen wombs where embryos dwell;
The caterers prompt, a frugal portion deal,
And give to diligence a hasty meal;
In each appointed province all proceed,
And neatest order weds the swiftest speed;
Dispatch flies various on ten thousand wings,
And joy throughout the gladsome region rings.
Or speed the different orders of the state;
Here greet the labourer on the toilsome way,
And to the load their friendly shoulder lay;
Or frequent at the busy gate arrive,
And fill with amber-sweets their fragrant hive;
Or seek repairs to close the fractured cell;
Or shut the waxen wombs where embryos dwell;
The caterers prompt, a frugal portion deal,
And give to diligence a hasty meal;
In each appointed province all proceed,
And neatest order weds the swiftest speed;
Dispatch flies various on ten thousand wings,
And joy throughout the gladsome region rings.
Distinctly canton'd is their spacious dome:
Here infants throb within the quickening comb;
Here vacant seats invite to sweet repose,
And here the tide of balmy nectar flows;
While here their frugal reservoirs remain,
And not one act of this republick's vain.
Here infants throb within the quickening comb;
Here vacant seats invite to sweet repose,
And here the tide of balmy nectar flows;
While here their frugal reservoirs remain,
And not one act of this republick's vain.
As oft the North, or Gallia's fruitful coast,
Poured forth their sons, a wide superfluous host!
To distant climes the banded legions stray'd,
And many a plan of future empire laid;
Like powers these wise prolifick people send,
And o'er the globe their colonies extend.
Poured forth their sons, a wide superfluous host!
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And many a plan of future empire laid;
Like powers these wise prolifick people send,
And o'er the globe their colonies extend.
When swarms tumultuous claim an ampler space,
And thro' the straitening citadel increase,
An edict issued in this grand extreme,
Proclaims the mandate of the power supreme.
Then exiled crouds abjure their native home,
And sad, in search of foreign mansions roam;
A youthful empress guides their airy clan,
And wheels and shoots illustrious from the van.
Fatigued at length, they wish some calm retreat,
The rural settlement, and peaceful state;
When man presents his hospitable snare,
And wins their confidence with traitorous care.
Suspicion ever flies a generous breast—
Betrayed, each enters an unwary guest;
Here every form of ancient maxim trace,
And emulate the glories of their race.
And thro' the straitening citadel increase,
An edict issued in this grand extreme,
Proclaims the mandate of the power supreme.
Then exiled crouds abjure their native home,
And sad, in search of foreign mansions roam;
A youthful empress guides their airy clan,
And wheels and shoots illustrious from the van.
Fatigued at length, they wish some calm retreat,
The rural settlement, and peaceful state;
When man presents his hospitable snare,
And wins their confidence with traitorous care.
Suspicion ever flies a generous breast—
Betrayed, each enters an unwary guest;
Here every form of ancient maxim trace,
And emulate the glories of their race.
As when from Tyre imperial Dido fled,
And o'er the main her future nation led;
Then staid her host on Afric's meted land,
And in strait bounds a mighty empire plann'd:
So works this rival of the Tyrian Queen;
So founds and models with assiduous mien;
Instructs with little to be truly great,
And in small limits forms a mighty state.
And o'er the main her future nation led;
Then staid her host on Afric's meted land,
And in strait bounds a mighty empire plann'd:
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So founds and models with assiduous mien;
Instructs with little to be truly great,
And in small limits forms a mighty state.
Intent, she wills her artists to attend,
And from the zenith bids her towers descend:
Nor like to man's, the aerial structures rise;
But point to earth, their base amid the skies.
And from the zenith bids her towers descend:
Nor like to man's, the aerial structures rise;
But point to earth, their base amid the skies.
Swift for the task the ready builders part,
Each band assigned to each peculiar art;
A troop of chymists scour the neighbouring field,
While servile tribes the cull'd materials wield,
With tempering feet the laboured cement tread,
And ductile now its waxen foliage spread.
The geometricians judge the deep design,
Direct the compass, and extend the line;
They sum their numbers, provident of space,
And suit each edifice with answering grace.
Each band assigned to each peculiar art;
A troop of chymists scour the neighbouring field,
While servile tribes the cull'd materials wield,
With tempering feet the laboured cement tread,
And ductile now its waxen foliage spread.
The geometricians judge the deep design,
Direct the compass, and extend the line;
They sum their numbers, provident of space,
And suit each edifice with answering grace.
Now first appears the rough proportion'd frame,
Rough in the draught, but perfect in the scheme;
When lo! each little Archimedes nigh,
Metes every angle with judicious eye;
Adjusts the centering cones with skill profound,
And forms the curious hexagon around.
Rough in the draught, but perfect in the scheme;
When lo! each little Archimedes nigh,
Metes every angle with judicious eye;
Adjusts the centering cones with skill profound,
And forms the curious hexagon around.
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The cells indors'd with double range adhere,
Knit on the sides, and guarded on the rear;
Nought of itself, with circling chambers bound,
Each cell is form'd, to form the cells around;
While each still gives what each alike demands,
And but supported by supporting stands;
Jointly transferring, and transferr'd exists;
And, as by magick union, all subsists.
Knit on the sides, and guarded on the rear;
Nought of itself, with circling chambers bound,
Each cell is form'd, to form the cells around;
While each still gives what each alike demands,
And but supported by supporting stands;
Jointly transferring, and transferr'd exists;
And, as by magick union, all subsists.
Amazing elegance! transcendent art!
Contrived at once to borrow, and impart;
In action notable, as council great,
Their fabricks rise, just emblems of their state.
Contrived at once to borrow, and impart;
In action notable, as council great,
Their fabricks rise, just emblems of their state.
Nor be the Wasp exclusive of our lays;
Tho' in a foe, still merit claims its praise,
Claims the revealing song, and claims the light,
Tho' long conceal'd in all obscuring night.
For deep these subterranean tribes retire,
Nor work like man, that mortals may admire;
In earth's dark womb their pompous structures rise,
Worthy the sight of Heaven's all-seeing Eyes;
While they recluse, o'er nether kingdoms reign,
And wrapt as in a little world remain.
Tho' in a foe, still merit claims its praise,
Claims the revealing song, and claims the light,
Tho' long conceal'd in all obscuring night.
For deep these subterranean tribes retire,
Nor work like man, that mortals may admire;
In earth's dark womb their pompous structures rise,
Worthy the sight of Heaven's all-seeing Eyes;
While they recluse, o'er nether kingdoms reign,
And wrapt as in a little world remain.
Around this world a waxen vault extends,
And wide like yon enfolding concave bends;
Magnifick cupola! on either hand,
Unfolded, two mysterious portals stand,
Emblems of human life, precarious state,
At entrance born, and dying in retreat.
Thousands within retiring taste repose;
Or thro' the streets the busy concourse flows:
Yet not as ours their costly pavements spread,
But high on terrasses and towers they tread,
With which not Roman aqueducts may vie,
Not the famed gardens pendant from the sky:
Here cities piled o'er cities may be seen,
And sumptuous intervals displayed between,
Where columns each proud architrave support,
And form the pomp of many an ample court;
The weight thro' ten successive stories bear,
And to the top the incumbent fabricks rear.
And wide like yon enfolding concave bends;
124
Unfolded, two mysterious portals stand,
Emblems of human life, precarious state,
At entrance born, and dying in retreat.
Thousands within retiring taste repose;
Or thro' the streets the busy concourse flows:
Yet not as ours their costly pavements spread,
But high on terrasses and towers they tread,
With which not Roman aqueducts may vie,
Not the famed gardens pendant from the sky:
Here cities piled o'er cities may be seen,
And sumptuous intervals displayed between,
Where columns each proud architrave support,
And form the pomp of many an ample court;
The weight thro' ten successive stories bear,
And to the top the incumbent fabricks rear.
So have I seen in all the pride of shew,
Some splendid theatre divide below,
With charms of gay machinery surprize,
Scenes over scenes, and stage on stage arise,
Lost in the glory of descending skies.
Some splendid theatre divide below,
With charms of gay machinery surprize,
Scenes over scenes, and stage on stage arise,
Lost in the glory of descending skies.
Not so the multipede Aurelias dwell,
But form, sole architects, the pensive cell;
Like Seers of old, they seek some lonely seat,
And from the vain the busy world retreat;
Here fondly form a structure of their own,
And bind the vault of solitary stone;
Or clay, or timber, oft attempering, mould,
And round their form the ductile mansion fold;
Or in peculiar occupations skill'd,
A wondrous dome of silken fabrick build:
No debt to foreign implements they owe,
But from themselves the mantling tissues flow;
Themselves the gorgeous canopy they spread,
Themselves the loom, the distaff, and the thread—
The thread as famed Arachne's texture fine,
When thwart the morn she darts her floating line,
Or spins the scheme of implicated wiles,
And o'er her great Newtonian rival smiles;
Reveals the deep ænigma of his trade,
And squares the circle in the vernal glade;
The sportive plans of matchless art displays,
While round, and round, the dexterous wanton plays.
But form, sole architects, the pensive cell;
Like Seers of old, they seek some lonely seat,
And from the vain the busy world retreat;
125
And bind the vault of solitary stone;
Or clay, or timber, oft attempering, mould,
And round their form the ductile mansion fold;
Or in peculiar occupations skill'd,
A wondrous dome of silken fabrick build:
No debt to foreign implements they owe,
But from themselves the mantling tissues flow;
Themselves the gorgeous canopy they spread,
Themselves the loom, the distaff, and the thread—
The thread as famed Arachne's texture fine,
When thwart the morn she darts her floating line,
Or spins the scheme of implicated wiles,
And o'er her great Newtonian rival smiles;
Reveals the deep ænigma of his trade,
And squares the circle in the vernal glade;
The sportive plans of matchless art displays,
While round, and round, the dexterous wanton plays.
How might the song with endless rapture pry,
Secluded deep where latent nations lie,
And scared from man, a mighty hunter, fly?
He follows panting with a savage joy,
Rapt in his favourite transport to destroy:
To man, even man becomes a mutual prey;
No gain can satiate, and no limits stay;
Down the dread depths his boundless lucre dives;
Warr'd on himself, with passion passion strives.
Fly him, ye rangers of the rolling flood!
Fly him, ye songsters of the warbling wood!
Ye dwellers subterrene, the tyrant fly!
And safe in your remote asylums lie,
Where mice, innoxious cottagers, remain,
Meek in the covert of the flowery plain;
Recluse, their cautious hermitage explore,
And treasure provident the wintery store.
With kindred crafts, deep-mining burroughs work,
And sunk amid Dædalean labyrinths lurk;
Their various habitation nightly change,
And thro' a length of mazed apartments range.
Secluded deep where latent nations lie,
And scared from man, a mighty hunter, fly?
He follows panting with a savage joy,
Rapt in his favourite transport to destroy:
To man, even man becomes a mutual prey;
No gain can satiate, and no limits stay;
126
Warr'd on himself, with passion passion strives.
Fly him, ye rangers of the rolling flood!
Fly him, ye songsters of the warbling wood!
Ye dwellers subterrene, the tyrant fly!
And safe in your remote asylums lie,
Where mice, innoxious cottagers, remain,
Meek in the covert of the flowery plain;
Recluse, their cautious hermitage explore,
And treasure provident the wintery store.
With kindred crafts, deep-mining burroughs work,
And sunk amid Dædalean labyrinths lurk;
Their various habitation nightly change,
And thro' a length of mazed apartments range.
The Beaver too, great architect! immured,
With his associate train retires secured;
Their wary mansion elegantly stands,
Where the smooth stream or smiling lake expands,
Whose gentle wave in friendly visit glides,
And swells the tenement with grateful tides.
Two posterns gape with deep deceit below,
And o'er the pass fair mantling waters flow;
Evasive whence, they scape the dangerous train,
Or wide expatiate on the yielding plain;
Thro' trading currents sail to distant shores,
Or homeward laden with returning stores.
Laborious here, they hew the sounding wood,
And lift the prize triumphant o'er the flood;
Here, lightly some vimineous burdens bear,
Or jointly here the ponderous rafter share;
Spread o'er their tails, they waft the temper'd clay,
And deep, and broad, their firm foundations lay;
Assign each chamber its commodious size,
Till rooms o'er rooms and trodden ceilings rise;
Their tail the trowel, as adorning train,
Their teeth the saw, the chissel, and the plane.
With his associate train retires secured;
Their wary mansion elegantly stands,
Where the smooth stream or smiling lake expands,
Whose gentle wave in friendly visit glides,
And swells the tenement with grateful tides.
Two posterns gape with deep deceit below,
And o'er the pass fair mantling waters flow;
Evasive whence, they scape the dangerous train,
Or wide expatiate on the yielding plain;
127
Or homeward laden with returning stores.
Laborious here, they hew the sounding wood,
And lift the prize triumphant o'er the flood;
Here, lightly some vimineous burdens bear,
Or jointly here the ponderous rafter share;
Spread o'er their tails, they waft the temper'd clay,
And deep, and broad, their firm foundations lay;
Assign each chamber its commodious size,
Till rooms o'er rooms and trodden ceilings rise;
Their tail the trowel, as adorning train,
Their teeth the saw, the chissel, and the plane.
While ardent Sirius shoots a thirsty ray,
And Autumn yet withholds retreating day,
They range at large, and gambol thro' the stream,
Frisk on the beach, or batten in the beam;
Or Nature's bounteous vegetation taste,
And opportune indulge the transient feast.
But when pale Phosphor points the morning gale,
Curls on the wave and chills along the vale,
Domestick cares their conscious breast employ;
The frolick hours and luscious banquets cloy;
Intent they furnish the prophetick hoard,
And pile the treasures of their homely board,
With friendship's charm beguile the sullen year,
And barter luxury for social cheer.
For them Astrea holds the impartial scale,
Her frugal hands unenvied portions deal;
Health quaffs satiety from Nature's bowl;
Peace gives the constant banquet of the soul;
High in the midst chaste Temperance is crown'd,
And Time leads on the smiling Hours around.
And Autumn yet withholds retreating day,
They range at large, and gambol thro' the stream,
Frisk on the beach, or batten in the beam;
Or Nature's bounteous vegetation taste,
And opportune indulge the transient feast.
But when pale Phosphor points the morning gale,
Curls on the wave and chills along the vale,
Domestick cares their conscious breast employ;
The frolick hours and luscious banquets cloy;
Intent they furnish the prophetick hoard,
And pile the treasures of their homely board,
128
And barter luxury for social cheer.
For them Astrea holds the impartial scale,
Her frugal hands unenvied portions deal;
Health quaffs satiety from Nature's bowl;
Peace gives the constant banquet of the soul;
High in the midst chaste Temperance is crown'd,
And Time leads on the smiling Hours around.
Thou awful Depth of Wisdom unexplored!
Thou Height, where never human fancy soared!
Supreme Irradiance! speed the distant ray,
Far speed the dawn of thy internal day;
And O! if such, inform the favourite line,
And be the praise as inspiration thine!
Thou Height, where never human fancy soared!
Supreme Irradiance! speed the distant ray,
Far speed the dawn of thy internal day;
And O! if such, inform the favourite line,
And be the praise as inspiration thine!
Say! when the nest thy little Halcyons form,
Brood on the wave, and mock the threatening storm;
Who quells the rage of thy reluctant main,
Or o'er thy winter throws a lordly rein?
Lulls the rock'd mansion on the slumbering tide,
And bids the care of guardian depths subside?
Till, volatile, the new fledg'd infants rise;
The surge mounts free, and breaks upon the skies.
Brood on the wave, and mock the threatening storm;
Who quells the rage of thy reluctant main,
Or o'er thy winter throws a lordly rein?
Lulls the rock'd mansion on the slumbering tide,
And bids the care of guardian depths subside?
Till, volatile, the new fledg'd infants rise;
The surge mounts free, and breaks upon the skies.
129
Eternal! thine is every round of time,
The circling season, and the varying clime;
Thine! every dictate of the conscious breast;
Thine! every texture of the genial nest,
The oval embryon, and the fostering ray;
And Thine the life that struggles into day!
The circling season, and the varying clime;
Thine! every dictate of the conscious breast;
Thine! every texture of the genial nest,
The oval embryon, and the fostering ray;
And Thine the life that struggles into day!
To Thee thy callow importuners cry,
Gracious thy Ear, and bounteous thy Supply;
Till the flown choirs the revel consort raise,
And hymn to Heaven the rhapsody of praise!
Gracious thy Ear, and bounteous thy Supply;
Till the flown choirs the revel consort raise,
And hymn to Heaven the rhapsody of praise!
Dispers'd thro' every copse, or marshy plain,
Where haunts the woodcock, or the annual crane,
Where else encamp'd the feather'd legions spread,
Or bathe incumbent on their oozy bed,
The brimming lake Thy Smiling Presence fills,
And waves the banners of a thousand hills.
Thou speed'st the summons of Thy Warning Voice;
Wing'd at Thy Word, the distant troops rejoice,
From every quarter scour the fields of air,
And to the general rendezvous repair:
Each from the mingled rout disparting turns,
And with the love of kindred plumage burns:
Thy Potent Will instinctive bosoms feel,
And here arranging semilunar, wheel;
Or marshall'd here the painted rhomb display,
Or point the wedge that cleaves the aerial way:
Uplifted on Thy Wafting Breath they rise;
Thou pavest the regions of the pathless skies,
Thro' boundless tracts support'st the journey'd host,
And point'st the voyage to the certain coast;
Thou the sure Compass, and the Sea they sail,
The Chart, the Port, the Steerage, and the Gale!
Where haunts the woodcock, or the annual crane,
Where else encamp'd the feather'd legions spread,
Or bathe incumbent on their oozy bed,
The brimming lake Thy Smiling Presence fills,
And waves the banners of a thousand hills.
Thou speed'st the summons of Thy Warning Voice;
Wing'd at Thy Word, the distant troops rejoice,
From every quarter scour the fields of air,
And to the general rendezvous repair:
Each from the mingled rout disparting turns,
And with the love of kindred plumage burns:
Thy Potent Will instinctive bosoms feel,
And here arranging semilunar, wheel;
130
Or point the wedge that cleaves the aerial way:
Uplifted on Thy Wafting Breath they rise;
Thou pavest the regions of the pathless skies,
Thro' boundless tracts support'st the journey'd host,
And point'st the voyage to the certain coast;
Thou the sure Compass, and the Sea they sail,
The Chart, the Port, the Steerage, and the Gale!
Thus thro' the maze of Thy Eternal Round,
Thro' yon steep heaven, and nether gulphs profound,
The dusky planet, and the lucid sphere,
Earth's ponderous ball, and soft enfolding air,
The fish who glance or tempest thro' the main,
The beasts who trip or thunder o'er the plain,
The reptile wreathing in the wanton ring,
The bird high wafted on the towering wing,
All, all from Thee, Sole Cause Essential! tend,
Thence flow effusive, thither centering end;
The bliss of Providential Vision share,
And the least atom claims peculiar care!
Thro' yon steep heaven, and nether gulphs profound,
The dusky planet, and the lucid sphere,
Earth's ponderous ball, and soft enfolding air,
The fish who glance or tempest thro' the main,
The beasts who trip or thunder o'er the plain,
The reptile wreathing in the wanton ring,
The bird high wafted on the towering wing,
All, all from Thee, Sole Cause Essential! tend,
Thence flow effusive, thither centering end;
The bliss of Providential Vision share,
And the least atom claims peculiar care!
131
Yet e'er material entity begun,
Or from the Vast this Universe was won;
While finitude e'erwhile was unconfined,
Nor space grew relative, to form assigned;
Thou didst thy own Eternal Now sustain,
And space was swallow'd in thy boundless main;
Thyself the filler of thy own abyss,
Thyself the Great Eternity of Bliss!
All When, and Where, in Thee imbosom'd lay,
The blaze of majesty, and self born day;
No void was found, where Endless Beauty beamed;
No darkness, where Essential Glory flamed;
No want, no solitude, where Thou wer't blest,
And in Thyself the unbounded whole possest.
Or from the Vast this Universe was won;
While finitude e'erwhile was unconfined,
Nor space grew relative, to form assigned;
Thou didst thy own Eternal Now sustain,
And space was swallow'd in thy boundless main;
Thyself the filler of thy own abyss,
Thyself the Great Eternity of Bliss!
All When, and Where, in Thee imbosom'd lay,
The blaze of majesty, and self born day;
No void was found, where Endless Beauty beamed;
No darkness, where Essential Glory flamed;
No want, no solitude, where Thou wer't blest,
And in Thyself the unbounded whole possest.
Of Reason Thou the co-eternal cause,
Thyself all Reason, and thy Will all Laws;
All-reasoning Will with powerful Wisdom fraught!
Thy Wisdom, one unchanging endless thought,
Where all potential natures were survey'd,
And even in pre-existence lay display'd—
All, all—things past—now present—yet to be,
Great Intellect! were present all to Thee;
While Thou sole Infinite Essential reign'd,
And of finites the Infinity contain'd,
Ideal entities in One Supreme,
Distinguish'd endless, yet with Thee the same,
Thy Power their essence, and thy Will their claim.
Whence—at Thy Word, worlds caught the potent sound,
And into being leapt this wondrous round.
Pois'd on Thy Will the universal hung;
Attraction to its Central Magnet clung;
Thy spacious grasp the mighty convex closed;
Soft on Thy Care incumbent worlds reposed:
Within, throughout, no Second Cause presides,
And One Sole Hand the mazed volution guides!
Hence Endless Good, hence Endless Order springs;
Hence that importance in minutest things;
And endless hence Dependence must endure,
Blest in his Will, and in his Power secure!
Thyself all Reason, and thy Will all Laws;
All-reasoning Will with powerful Wisdom fraught!
Thy Wisdom, one unchanging endless thought,
Where all potential natures were survey'd,
And even in pre-existence lay display'd—
All, all—things past—now present—yet to be,
Great Intellect! were present all to Thee;
While Thou sole Infinite Essential reign'd,
And of finites the Infinity contain'd,
132
Distinguish'd endless, yet with Thee the same,
Thy Power their essence, and thy Will their claim.
Whence—at Thy Word, worlds caught the potent sound,
And into being leapt this wondrous round.
Pois'd on Thy Will the universal hung;
Attraction to its Central Magnet clung;
Thy spacious grasp the mighty convex closed;
Soft on Thy Care incumbent worlds reposed:
Within, throughout, no Second Cause presides,
And One Sole Hand the mazed volution guides!
Hence Endless Good, hence Endless Order springs;
Hence that importance in minutest things;
And endless hence Dependence must endure,
Blest in his Will, and in his Power secure!
| The Poetical Works of Henry Brooke | |