A Collection of Poems on Various Subjects By Sir Richard Blackmore |
 | 1. |
|
|
| I. |
| II. |
| III. |
| 2. |
THE Safety of a Low State.
|
|
| I. |
| II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
| V. |
| VI. |
| VII. |
| VIII. |
| IX. |
|
 | A Collection of Poems on Various Subjects |  |
311
THE Safety of a Low State.
The treach'rous Fortune of a Royal Crown,
Places whatever's Rich and Great,
On a steep and slipp'ry Seat;
Whence with an easy Blast all tumbles down.
Proud Monarchs can't command soft Peace and Rest,
Nor chase uneasy Fears away,
They know no safe and happy Day,
But painful Cares their Greatness still molest.
Places whatever's Rich and Great,
On a steep and slipp'ry Seat;
Whence with an easy Blast all tumbles down.
Proud Monarchs can't command soft Peace and Rest,
Nor chase uneasy Fears away,
They know no safe and happy Day,
But painful Cares their Greatness still molest.
312
The Lybian Sea ne'er with such Fury raves,
When new collected Hills of Sand
Heap'd up by Tempests tott'ring stand,
And interrupt the loud impetuous Waves.
Euxinus, Neighbour to the Snowy Pole,
Where the bright Carman by the Main
Untouch'd drives round his shining Wain,
Can't with such Force his troubled Waters roll;
When new collected Hills of Sand
Heap'd up by Tempests tott'ring stand,
And interrupt the loud impetuous Waves.
Euxinus, Neighbour to the Snowy Pole,
Where the bright Carman by the Main
Untouch'd drives round his shining Wain,
Can't with such Force his troubled Waters roll;
As when Kings fall, turn'd round by rapid Fate,
Kings, whose Desire is to appear
Awful to move their Subjects Fear,
Which Fear must in themselves the like create.
The Night, to hide them safe, do's Darkness want,
Soft Sleep, by which a troubled Breast
Is sooth'd, and lies dissolv'd in Rest,
Can't charm the anxious Cares, that Princes haunt.
Kings, whose Desire is to appear
Awful to move their Subjects Fear,
Which Fear must in themselves the like create.
The Night, to hide them safe, do's Darkness want,
Soft Sleep, by which a troubled Breast
Is sooth'd, and lies dissolv'd in Rest,
Can't charm the anxious Cares, that Princes haunt.
313
The Men, who born by too kind Fortune rise,
Soon sink and fall down from their Height,
Prest by their own unequal Weight,
Whom those, who envy'd them, as much despise.
Great Fortunes can't their own vast Burden bear,
So the swift Ship's expanded Sails,
Swol'n out with too indulgent Gales,
The Winds, they wish'd before, begin to fear.
Soon sink and fall down from their Height,
Prest by their own unequal Weight,
Whom those, who envy'd them, as much despise.
Great Fortunes can't their own vast Burden bear,
So the swift Ship's expanded Sails,
Swol'n out with too indulgent Gales,
The Winds, they wish'd before, begin to fear.
So a proud Tow'r thrusts his aspiring Head
Among the flying Clouds, but finds
Th' uneasy Neighbourhood of Winds,
And Thunder-Claps, that are around him bred.
So the rude Storms that shake the bending Wood,
Design an envious, fatal Stroke
At the ancient well-spread Oak,
The Grove's Defence and Glory, while it stood.
Among the flying Clouds, but finds
Th' uneasy Neighbourhood of Winds,
And Thunder-Claps, that are around him bred.
So the rude Storms that shake the bending Wood,
Design an envious, fatal Stroke
At the ancient well-spread Oak,
The Grove's Defence and Glory, while it stood.
314
High Hills, the fairest Mark for Thunder stand,
Great Bodies are but seldom sound,
Such have most room to take a Wound,
And the fat Deer invites the Huntsman's Hand.
What fickle Fortune do's this Day advance,
It throws down with a greater Fall;
Estates, that are but low and small,
Last a long quiet Age secure from Chance.
Great Bodies are but seldom sound,
Such have most room to take a Wound,
And the fat Deer invites the Huntsman's Hand.
What fickle Fortune do's this Day advance,
It throws down with a greater Fall;
Estates, that are but low and small,
Last a long quiet Age secure from Chance.
He's only happy, who of meaner Rank,
Will ne'er his humble State resent,
But always in his Fate content,
With a safe Wind sails by the Neighb'ring Bank;
Whose wary Boat, that dares not trust the Oar
To the rough Usage of the Wind,
And the wide Ocean seldom kind,
Keeps still in prospect of the safer Shore.
Will ne'er his humble State resent,
But always in his Fate content,
With a safe Wind sails by the Neighb'ring Bank;
Whose wary Boat, that dares not trust the Oar
To the rough Usage of the Wind,
And the wide Ocean seldom kind,
Keeps still in prospect of the safer Shore.
| A Collection of Poems on Various Subjects | |