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Poems of Phillis Wheatley

Revised and Enlarged Edition

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ODE TO NEPTUNE.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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84

ODE TO NEPTUNE.

On Mrs. W---'s Voyage to England.

I

WHILE raging tempests shake the shore,
While Æ'lus' thunders round us roar,
And sweep impetuous o'er the plain
Be still, O tyrant of the main;
Nor let thy brow contracted frowns betray,
While my Susannah skims the wat'ry way.

II

The Pow'r propitious hears the lay,
The blue-ey'd daughters of the sea
With sweeter cadence glide along,
And Thames responsive joins the song.
Pleas'd with their notes Sol sheds benign his ray,
And double radiance decks the face of day.

III

To court thee to Britannia's arms
Serene the climes and mild the sky,
Her region boasts unnumber'd charms,
Thy welcome smiles in ev'ry eye.
Thy promise, Neptune keep, record my pray'r,
Nor give my wishes to the empty air.
Boston, October 10 1772.