Protestant popery or, the convocation. A poem. In Five Cantos [by Nicholas Amhurst] |
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5
THE CONVOCATION.
A POEM.
CANTO I.
A Priestly-War I sing, and bloodless Field,
And pious Chiefs, in Paper Warfare skill'd;
Chiefs, that full oft have quarrell'd for their God,
And all the Mazes of the Schools have trod;
Profoundly skill'd to lead the World astray;
Skill'd to explain or gloss a Text away,
Unlimited Positions to restrain,
And, for a Turn, to hedge them in again:
Such Chiefs I sing, Religion's Reverend Sires,
Whom Conscience actuates, and the Church inspires.
And pious Chiefs, in Paper Warfare skill'd;
Chiefs, that full oft have quarrell'd for their God,
And all the Mazes of the Schools have trod;
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Skill'd to explain or gloss a Text away,
Unlimited Positions to restrain,
And, for a Turn, to hedge them in again:
Such Chiefs I sing, Religion's Reverend Sires,
Whom Conscience actuates, and the Church inspires.
Let others, venal Bards, in impious Lays,
Pamper Ambition, with immortal Praise;
In mournful Dirge let softer Coxcombs whine,
And idolize the Fair in ev'ry Line;
Let gentle Gay describe the Pastures green,
Or club with Arburthnott a luscious Scene;
Mine be the bolder Province, to engage
A vicious Priesthood, and degen'rate Age;
The furious English-Papist to chastise,
And strip him of his Protestant Disguise;
To tell what Heights ambitious Synods tow'r,
How o'er the Soul they claim a lawless Pow'r;
How the staunch Church-man would his Faith betray,
And quite refine the Protestant away;
And how to Glory and immortal Fame
Unweary'd Hoadly consecrates his Name.
Pamper Ambition, with immortal Praise;
In mournful Dirge let softer Coxcombs whine,
And idolize the Fair in ev'ry Line;
Let gentle Gay describe the Pastures green,
Or club with Arburthnott a luscious Scene;
Mine be the bolder Province, to engage
A vicious Priesthood, and degen'rate Age;
The furious English-Papist to chastise,
And strip him of his Protestant Disguise;
To tell what Heights ambitious Synods tow'r,
How o'er the Soul they claim a lawless Pow'r;
7
And quite refine the Protestant away;
And how to Glory and immortal Fame
Unweary'd Hoadly consecrates his Name.
While I, my Lord, this pleasing Task persue,
And give to Merit its much-envy'd Due;
Do you, to whom this humble Verse is paid,
Into my Breast infuse your pow'rful Aid,
That, unacquainted with the Poet's Stream,
New to the Bays, nor equal to my Theme,
Rais'd by your Smiles, I may be taught to sing,
And soar advent'rous on no vulgar Wing.
And give to Merit its much-envy'd Due;
Do you, to whom this humble Verse is paid,
Into my Breast infuse your pow'rful Aid,
That, unacquainted with the Poet's Stream,
New to the Bays, nor equal to my Theme,
Rais'd by your Smiles, I may be taught to sing,
And soar advent'rous on no vulgar Wing.
Fain would I trace, while you my Footsteps guide,
The secret Source of Sacerdotal Pride;
Fain would I tell how Gospel-Candour fails,
And the old Laudean Leven still prevails;
How Fraud and Priest-craft have debauch'd the Times,
And Romish Bigots swarm in British Climes.
The secret Source of Sacerdotal Pride;
Fain would I tell how Gospel-Candour fails,
And the old Laudean Leven still prevails;
8
And Romish Bigots swarm in British Climes.
Say, Muse, what Pow'r inspir'd the fierce Debate,
And sow'd in Heav'nly Breasts the Seeds of Hate;
To latest Times transmit the wordy Fray,
And set the learned Hosts in just Array,
Their Names, their Order, and their Numbers sing,
And rise undaunted on an Eagle's Wing.
And sow'd in Heav'nly Breasts the Seeds of Hate;
To latest Times transmit the wordy Fray,
And set the learned Hosts in just Array,
Their Names, their Order, and their Numbers sing,
And rise undaunted on an Eagle's Wing.
Long set the glorious Sun of Gospel-Light,
Involv'd in blackest Clouds of Romish Night;
The sov'reign Priest aspir'd into a God,
And on the Necks of the tame Lay-men trod:
From vulgar Eyes remov'd, and prying Day,
The sacred Page obscure in Cobwebs lay:
Voracious Wolves o'er-leap'd the hallow'd Mound,
And with religious Slaughter strew'd the Ground:
The Papal Chair was fill'd with Sloth and Pride,
And ductile Conscience own'd th'unerring Guide:
Indulgences and Pardons were retail'd,
And Sainted Murders thro' the World prevail'd:
Salvation pass'd like Stocks and current Gold,
And Heav'n was, in Reversion, bought and sold:
The Idol triumph'd o'er th'exploded God,
And Persecution shook her Iron Rod;
O'er-grown with Empire, and enormous Pow'rs,
The Tyrant Church-man Civil Rights devours:
From hence, Contention, Feud, and Civil Broil;
And Pagan Weeds o'er-run the Christian Soil;
Ten thousand pageant Fopperies succeed,
And Superstition grows a Point of Creed;
Such carnal Principles become in Vogue,
That Church and Priest are grown mere Whore and Rogue;
Of ev'ry Grace and genuine Charm bereft,
Scarce is the Shadow of a Christian left.
Involv'd in blackest Clouds of Romish Night;
The sov'reign Priest aspir'd into a God,
And on the Necks of the tame Lay-men trod:
From vulgar Eyes remov'd, and prying Day,
The sacred Page obscure in Cobwebs lay:
Voracious Wolves o'er-leap'd the hallow'd Mound,
And with religious Slaughter strew'd the Ground:
9
And ductile Conscience own'd th'unerring Guide:
Indulgences and Pardons were retail'd,
And Sainted Murders thro' the World prevail'd:
Salvation pass'd like Stocks and current Gold,
And Heav'n was, in Reversion, bought and sold:
The Idol triumph'd o'er th'exploded God,
And Persecution shook her Iron Rod;
O'er-grown with Empire, and enormous Pow'rs,
The Tyrant Church-man Civil Rights devours:
From hence, Contention, Feud, and Civil Broil;
And Pagan Weeds o'er-run the Christian Soil;
Ten thousand pageant Fopperies succeed,
And Superstition grows a Point of Creed;
Such carnal Principles become in Vogue,
That Church and Priest are grown mere Whore and Rogue;
Of ev'ry Grace and genuine Charm bereft,
Scarce is the Shadow of a Christian left.
10
Now first in Arms our Warriour-Mother shone,
And o'er the World usurp'd a Ghostly Throne:
Now first she laid frail Argument aside,
And learn'd by surer Methods to decide;
By penal Arts to propagate the Word,
And blend Religion with the Civil Sword;
Gibbets become the Engines of Dispute,
And Racks and Flames the Heretick confute;
(For oft, what proves unable to convince
Imperial Reason, shakes the Coward Sense;)
While Armies, whom pathetic Torments bend,
To holy Mother, as their Center, tend.
And o'er the World usurp'd a Ghostly Throne:
Now first she laid frail Argument aside,
And learn'd by surer Methods to decide;
By penal Arts to propagate the Word,
And blend Religion with the Civil Sword;
Gibbets become the Engines of Dispute,
And Racks and Flames the Heretick confute;
(For oft, what proves unable to convince
Imperial Reason, shakes the Coward Sense;)
While Armies, whom pathetic Torments bend,
To holy Mother, as their Center, tend.
Not so our Lord and his Apostles taught,
Nor by such Arts religious Converts wrought;
Candour and Love shone out in ev'ry Deed,
Nor did the stubborn Unbeliever bleed.
Nor by such Arts religious Converts wrought;
Candour and Love shone out in ev'ry Deed,
Nor did the stubborn Unbeliever bleed.
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Thus lay the Christian Faith in Errour drown'd,
And holy Pride and Ignorance profound,
'Till our Reformers broke the rushing Flood,
And in the fatal Breach unshaken stood;
Inspir'd from Heav'n, they met Rome's keenest Rage,
The Fleetwoods and the Hoadlys of the Age
Nor fear'd to die in the unequal Strife,
But for each darling Truth they paid a Life:
Inly they wept, a firm and virtuous Few,
To see their Saviour crucify'd a-new;
To see their holy Mother pierc'd with Wounds,
While sacred Tyranny enlarg'd her Bounds;
Oppress'd with Fetters, and in Dungeons hurl'd,
Boldly they struggled with a carnal World;
Shame, Want, and Pain, for their Redeemer's Sake
They bore, and smiling met the greedy Stake.
And holy Pride and Ignorance profound,
'Till our Reformers broke the rushing Flood,
And in the fatal Breach unshaken stood;
Inspir'd from Heav'n, they met Rome's keenest Rage,
The Fleetwoods and the Hoadlys of the Age
Nor fear'd to die in the unequal Strife,
But for each darling Truth they paid a Life:
Inly they wept, a firm and virtuous Few,
To see their Saviour crucify'd a-new;
To see their holy Mother pierc'd with Wounds,
While sacred Tyranny enlarg'd her Bounds;
Oppress'd with Fetters, and in Dungeons hurl'd,
Boldly they struggled with a carnal World;
Shame, Want, and Pain, for their Redeemer's Sake
They bore, and smiling met the greedy Stake.
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At length the glorious Cause of Heaven prevail'd,
And Hell and Rome their ruin'd Arts bewail'd;
They saw the Glories of the op'ning Age;
They saw, and kindled into fiercest Rage:
Oppression shook, disarm'd her broken Chain,
And Inquisition gnash'd her vengeful Teeth in vain;
The Church once more put on her native Light,
And shone in ev'ry Charm divinely bright;
From Shade and Errour Gospel-Truth reviv'd,
And on the Earth once more th'Apostles liv'd.
And Hell and Rome their ruin'd Arts bewail'd;
They saw the Glories of the op'ning Age;
They saw, and kindled into fiercest Rage:
Oppression shook, disarm'd her broken Chain,
And Inquisition gnash'd her vengeful Teeth in vain;
The Church once more put on her native Light,
And shone in ev'ry Charm divinely bright;
From Shade and Errour Gospel-Truth reviv'd,
And on the Earth once more th'Apostles liv'd.
Abroad we conquer'd our Apostate Foes:
But see! at Home a Race more fierce than those,
Who plead to Tyranny a Right Divine,
And trace it back in one unbroken Line:
A Race, that loath th'old-fashion'd Gospel-Light,
New Doctrines coin, and foreign Gods invite,
The passive Text has so o'erturn'd their Brains,
They laugh at Freedom, and contend for Chains;
Each Sermon teems with their industrious Fears,
And wins, with artful Cant, the vulgar Ears;
The CHURCH is falling, falling is the STATE.
And they preach Dangers—which themselves create.
But see! at Home a Race more fierce than those,
Who plead to Tyranny a Right Divine,
And trace it back in one unbroken Line:
A Race, that loath th'old-fashion'd Gospel-Light,
New Doctrines coin, and foreign Gods invite,
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They laugh at Freedom, and contend for Chains;
Each Sermon teems with their industrious Fears,
And wins, with artful Cant, the vulgar Ears;
The CHURCH is falling, falling is the STATE.
And they preach Dangers—which themselves create.
Still in our Albion Popery remains;
The Name proscrib'd, the Spirit still obtains:
Again we lust for superstitious Rome,
And strive once more to bring her Errors Home.
By Turns we leave each other in the Lurch;
By Turns unchristen, and by Turns unchurch.
Th'ambitious, upstart, sacrificing Priest
Reigns absolute, and lords it o'er his Christ;
On a new Foot projects the sov'reign Scheme,
His Prince a Subject, and himself Supreme;
He pardons Sins, o'er-rules Divine Decrees,
And pleads a saucy Birth-right to the Keys;
While from the Press Anathemas abound,
And Pulpits lavish their Damnations round.
Fain would the Church her quondam Pow'rs resume;
And all's Geneva that dissents from Rome.
The Name proscrib'd, the Spirit still obtains:
Again we lust for superstitious Rome,
And strive once more to bring her Errors Home.
By Turns we leave each other in the Lurch;
By Turns unchristen, and by Turns unchurch.
Th'ambitious, upstart, sacrificing Priest
Reigns absolute, and lords it o'er his Christ;
On a new Foot projects the sov'reign Scheme,
His Prince a Subject, and himself Supreme;
He pardons Sins, o'er-rules Divine Decrees,
And pleads a saucy Birth-right to the Keys;
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And Pulpits lavish their Damnations round.
Fain would the Church her quondam Pow'rs resume;
And all's Geneva that dissents from Rome.
Was it for this, Divisions rent the Age,
And Inquisition stalk'd with ten-fold Rage?
For this, with brain-sick Jealousies possess'd,
Did pious Thousands stand the fiery Test?
For this, did Councils wage religious War,
Creeds rival Creeds; with Altars, Altars jar?
Is there in Popery nothing but the Name,
A bugbear Word to set the World in Flame?
What have we labour'd then so many Years,
If vain our Doubts, and groundless are our Fears?
Why did we tremble so, if all was right;
Or why did Cranmer burn, or Nassau fight?
And Inquisition stalk'd with ten-fold Rage?
For this, with brain-sick Jealousies possess'd,
Did pious Thousands stand the fiery Test?
For this, did Councils wage religious War,
Creeds rival Creeds; with Altars, Altars jar?
Is there in Popery nothing but the Name,
A bugbear Word to set the World in Flame?
What have we labour'd then so many Years,
If vain our Doubts, and groundless are our Fears?
Why did we tremble so, if all was right;
Or why did Cranmer burn, or Nassau fight?
15
Sorrow and Rage possess my Soul by Turns,
And all the Protestant within me burns:
My honest Heart with Indignation glows,
And in full Tides my boiling Choler flows:
To my big Thought great Burnett's Shade appears,
And Tillotson his rev'rend Image rears;
Reforming Confessors, as Seraphs bright,
Stand forth in Glory to my ravish'd Sight,
And urge me onward to the promis'd Flight.
And all the Protestant within me burns:
My honest Heart with Indignation glows,
And in full Tides my boiling Choler flows:
To my big Thought great Burnett's Shade appears,
And Tillotson his rev'rend Image rears;
Reforming Confessors, as Seraphs bright,
Stand forth in Glory to my ravish'd Sight,
And urge me onward to the promis'd Flight.
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CANTO II.
Whither, oh! whither must the Christian turn?
From whom in this momentous Crisis learn?
When shall the Church from worldly Pomps be freed?
What Champion equal to the Godlike Deed?
Oh! when shall we shake off the Papal Chain,
If William fought, and Smithfield blaz'd in vain?
From whom in this momentous Crisis learn?
When shall the Church from worldly Pomps be freed?
What Champion equal to the Godlike Deed?
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If William fought, and Smithfield blaz'd in vain?
On you, my Lord, we fix our ardent Eyes,
And Christendom to you for Succour flies;
To you the Church Her tow'ry Head inclines,
And begs Protection from your nervous Lines:
Fondly she glories in so warm a Son,
While half her Tribe to Idol-Altars run;
With Christian Zeal You lop the Hydra-Beast,
And from the Church divide the Selfish Priest:
Firm in Her Cause sustain Herculean Toils,
And save Her from Her own intestine Broils:
By GEORGE and You with silent Joy she sees,
Her Turrets thicken, and Her Foes decrease;
Alike all hostile Cunning she disdains,
Whilst or a Hoadly writes, or Brunswick Reigns.
And Christendom to you for Succour flies;
To you the Church Her tow'ry Head inclines,
And begs Protection from your nervous Lines:
Fondly she glories in so warm a Son,
While half her Tribe to Idol-Altars run;
With Christian Zeal You lop the Hydra-Beast,
And from the Church divide the Selfish Priest:
Firm in Her Cause sustain Herculean Toils,
And save Her from Her own intestine Broils:
By GEORGE and You with silent Joy she sees,
Her Turrets thicken, and Her Foes decrease;
Alike all hostile Cunning she disdains,
Whilst or a Hoadly writes, or Brunswick Reigns.
The stiff Nonjuror in thy Mirrour Page,
Surveys His Image with impatient Rage,
Whose pious Outside, sanctify'd with Art,
Conceals the lurking Viper at His Heart;
Good-Will to all, the Villain-Saint pretends,
While ranc'rous Hate His vengeful Bosom rends.
Swoln and elated with Religious Pride,
He views as Atheists all the World beside:
His ostentatious Conscience he displays,
He fasts in Publick, and in Publick prays;
He bears a secret Grudge to human Race,
And insolently scants unmeasur'd Grace:
His Laymen-Victims in such Numbers fall,
Scarce Hell's wide Dungeons will contain them all.
Surveys His Image with impatient Rage,
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Conceals the lurking Viper at His Heart;
Good-Will to all, the Villain-Saint pretends,
While ranc'rous Hate His vengeful Bosom rends.
Swoln and elated with Religious Pride,
He views as Atheists all the World beside:
His ostentatious Conscience he displays,
He fasts in Publick, and in Publick prays;
He bears a secret Grudge to human Race,
And insolently scants unmeasur'd Grace:
His Laymen-Victims in such Numbers fall,
Scarce Hell's wide Dungeons will contain them all.
The Wretch our fulsome Liberty disdains,
And swaggers in Hereditary Chains;
Demure of Aspect, with uplifted Hand,
He calls down Vengeance on his Native Land;
The Thought of Brunswick sets his Soul on Flame,
And his Breast swells with Madness at the Name.
And swaggers in Hereditary Chains;
Demure of Aspect, with uplifted Hand,
He calls down Vengeance on his Native Land;
The Thought of Brunswick sets his Soul on Flame,
And his Breast swells with Madness at the Name.
20
Well didst thou, Cibber, show him on the Stage,
A Traytor, lustful, impotent of Rage,
Whom not one real Virtue does commend,
False to his Prince, ungrateful to his Friend;
The Specious Veil of Conscience you withdrew,
And sent the Monster forth to Publick View.
A Traytor, lustful, impotent of Rage,
Whom not one real Virtue does commend,
False to his Prince, ungrateful to his Friend;
The Specious Veil of Conscience you withdrew,
And sent the Monster forth to Publick View.
See! the rouz'd Genius of the Church arise!
See! Vengeance quicken in her glaring Eyes!
Around her Head she throws the twisting Snakes,
Her Welsh Blood kindles, and her Soul awakes,
Malignant Poison swells her Vip'rous Breast,
And all the Sacred Fury stands confess'd.
See! Vengeance quicken in her glaring Eyes!
Around her Head she throws the twisting Snakes,
Her Welsh Blood kindles, and her Soul awakes,
Malignant Poison swells her Vip'rous Breast,
And all the Sacred Fury stands confess'd.
Across the Main in that Elysian Soil,
Where lavish Nature crowns the Farmer's Toil,
Where tow'ring Alps and Appennines are seen;
And Iusty Verdure cloaths the Plains between;
Deep in the silent Womb of Ancient Night,
Unknown for ever to the Dawn of Light;
The Goddess Priestcraft rules in Purple State,
And to the Neighb'ring Realms awards their Fate:
Sublime she sits upon a Throne of Gold,
And Reigns an Holy Tyrant uncontroul'd;
The Regal Scepter in one Hand she bears,
In one a pompous wavy Scroll appears;
Where Subject-Princes their Allegiance plight,
And Trent in Golden Cyphers greets the Sight;
From down her Shoulders to her Rev'rend Feet,
A Length of Consecrated Vestments meet:
Her Brow is Circled with a Triple Crown,
Kings court her Smile, and Europe dreads her Frown.
Where lavish Nature crowns the Farmer's Toil,
Where tow'ring Alps and Appennines are seen;
And Iusty Verdure cloaths the Plains between;
Deep in the silent Womb of Ancient Night,
Unknown for ever to the Dawn of Light;
21
And to the Neighb'ring Realms awards their Fate:
Sublime she sits upon a Throne of Gold,
And Reigns an Holy Tyrant uncontroul'd;
The Regal Scepter in one Hand she bears,
In one a pompous wavy Scroll appears;
Where Subject-Princes their Allegiance plight,
And Trent in Golden Cyphers greets the Sight;
From down her Shoulders to her Rev'rend Feet,
A Length of Consecrated Vestments meet:
Her Brow is Circled with a Triple Crown,
Kings court her Smile, and Europe dreads her Frown.
Around the Goddess waits a num'rous Band
Of bloody Fiends, and haste on each Command.
Of bloody Fiends, and haste on each Command.
Here Inquisition sits, of monstrous Size,
And darts around her Pestilential Eyes;
With her foul Breath she taints the Sick'ning Air,
And wreaths in noisome Curls her Snaky Hair.
Her op'ning Jaws, arrang'd in Iron Rows,
A frightful Armory of Teeth disclose:
Her Robe is colour'd with a Crimson Flood,
And her huge Belly swags with Christian Blood;
Daggers and Whips her impious Hands sustain,
And all th'ingenious Instruments of Pain:
With Unity the Vocal Walls resound,
And Heresy lies grov'ling on the Ground.
And darts around her Pestilential Eyes;
With her foul Breath she taints the Sick'ning Air,
And wreaths in noisome Curls her Snaky Hair.
22
A frightful Armory of Teeth disclose:
Her Robe is colour'd with a Crimson Flood,
And her huge Belly swags with Christian Blood;
Daggers and Whips her impious Hands sustain,
And all th'ingenious Instruments of Pain:
With Unity the Vocal Walls resound,
And Heresy lies grov'ling on the Ground.
Nearest to Her in all the spacious Cell,
Sits Bigotry, the Second-born of Hell;
Her Breast with a distemper'd Zeal is rent,
And rooted Pride, and pining Discontent:
Her scanty, narrow Soul disdains to see
Our Wills like our Complexions disagree;
In the same Track of Thought would goad Mankind,
And on the World impose one common Mind:
Wrapt in herself, and drunk with fond Conceit,
Nor knowing from Opinion to retreat.
To Argument she shuts her partial Sight,
And Demonstration sheds too dim a Light:
No Reason can her darkling Mind controul,
And intellectual Error shades her Soul.
Sits Bigotry, the Second-born of Hell;
Her Breast with a distemper'd Zeal is rent,
And rooted Pride, and pining Discontent:
Her scanty, narrow Soul disdains to see
Our Wills like our Complexions disagree;
In the same Track of Thought would goad Mankind,
And on the World impose one common Mind:
Wrapt in herself, and drunk with fond Conceit,
Nor knowing from Opinion to retreat.
To Argument she shuts her partial Sight,
And Demonstration sheds too dim a Light:
23
And intellectual Error shades her Soul.
Here Superstition, deck'd with gaudy Pride,
Attends the Goddess, like an Eastern Bride.
Her Robes with gorgeous Pageantry are wrought;
But fancy'd Terrors haunt her boding Thought.
Sham Miracles beyond what Poets feign;
And legendary Fables crowd her Brain.
Fantastick Visions rise before her Sight,
And all the empty Phantoms of the Night.
On meritorious Baubles she depends,
Of Sainted Ruffians, and departed Friends.
To Idol-Saints she lifts her earnest Eyes,
And on Ten Thousand Advocates relies.
Attends the Goddess, like an Eastern Bride.
Her Robes with gorgeous Pageantry are wrought;
But fancy'd Terrors haunt her boding Thought.
Sham Miracles beyond what Poets feign;
And legendary Fables crowd her Brain.
Fantastick Visions rise before her Sight,
And all the empty Phantoms of the Night.
On meritorious Baubles she depends,
Of Sainted Ruffians, and departed Friends.
To Idol-Saints she lifts her earnest Eyes,
And on Ten Thousand Advocates relies.
Next in her Place Implicit Faith attends,
And solemnly before the Goddess bends.
Devoid of Eyes the monster-Fiend appears;
But well is that Defect supply'd with Thousand Ears:
To them she trusts with sanguine Confidence,
And yields to them each other passive Sense.
Absurdities for Gospel she receives,
And ev'n Impossibilities believes.
And solemnly before the Goddess bends.
Devoid of Eyes the monster-Fiend appears;
But well is that Defect supply'd with Thousand Ears:
24
And yields to them each other passive Sense.
Absurdities for Gospel she receives,
And ev'n Impossibilities believes.
Hard by, her Sister Ignorance is seen,
With stupid Gaze, and indolent of Mien:
Her hoodwink'd Eyes are veil'd with solid Night,
And her Blood boils with Rancour and with Spight.
The greasy Beads she plies with restless Hands,
And mutters what herself not understands:
With stupid Gaze, and indolent of Mien:
Her hoodwink'd Eyes are veil'd with solid Night,
And her Blood boils with Rancour and with Spight.
The greasy Beads she plies with restless Hands,
And mutters what herself not understands:
These, and a Thousand more of various Mien,
And various Aspect, wait the Fury QUEEN:
Hypocrisy assumes her awkard Guise,
She smites her Breast, and rolls her Saintly Eyes:
Pride, Avarice, Ambition, Rage, Deceit,
And tame Submission crouch beneath her Feet.
The Goddess casts around her haughty Look,
And on her Head the hissing Vipers shook:
Then thus began, in a distemper'd Tone,
Most venerably rising from her Throne.
And various Aspect, wait the Fury QUEEN:
Hypocrisy assumes her awkard Guise,
She smites her Breast, and rolls her Saintly Eyes:
Pride, Avarice, Ambition, Rage, Deceit,
And tame Submission crouch beneath her Feet.
The Goddess casts around her haughty Look,
And on her Head the hissing Vipers shook:
25
Most venerably rising from her Throne.
“Still shall this Northern Heresy succeed,
“Nor Sword, nor Poison kill the baleful Weed?
“Still shall the hated Hoadly rise in Fame,
“And propagate his Doctrines with his Name?
“Still shall he Lord it with victorious Pride,
“And still in Triumph o'er our Barriers ride?
“Unpunish'd still shall he molest our Reign;
“Shall Hickes and Howell join their Force in vain:
“In vain shall Brett assert our dying Laws;
“In vain shall Johnson labour in our Cause?
“Johnson for us each human Cunning tries,
“Dispenses Oaths, and breaks thro' strongest Ties?
“English his Habit, but his Heart is mine;
“A Catholick and Orthodox Divine.
“Nor these alone in Albion's Isle confess
“Our ghostly Throne from Pulpit and the Press
“Unnumber'd Chieftains, at the Signal Word,
“Will shine in Armour, and unsheath the Sword:
“From the remotest Distances will come,
“To curb this haughty Prelate, Foe to Rome.
“Nor Sword, nor Poison kill the baleful Weed?
“Still shall the hated Hoadly rise in Fame,
“And propagate his Doctrines with his Name?
“Still shall he Lord it with victorious Pride,
“And still in Triumph o'er our Barriers ride?
“Unpunish'd still shall he molest our Reign;
“Shall Hickes and Howell join their Force in vain:
“In vain shall Brett assert our dying Laws;
“In vain shall Johnson labour in our Cause?
“Johnson for us each human Cunning tries,
“Dispenses Oaths, and breaks thro' strongest Ties?
“English his Habit, but his Heart is mine;
“A Catholick and Orthodox Divine.
“Nor these alone in Albion's Isle confess
“Our ghostly Throne from Pulpit and the Press
“Unnumber'd Chieftains, at the Signal Word,
“Will shine in Armour, and unsheath the Sword:
26
“To curb this haughty Prelate, Foe to Rome.
“Soon as To-Morrow's Dawn restores the Light,
“The English Synod summon all their Might;
“In close Debate to spend th'important Hours,
“And vindicate their sacred injur'd Powers.
“Thus then I purpose;—at Return of Day,
“Er'e the full Light has chas'd the Shades away,
“A chosen Spirit, turbulent, and loud,
“Shall wait and mingle in the Learned Crowd;
“Inflame their Councils with revengeful Ire,
“And with the Danger of the Church inspire.
“This Task, O Inquisition! shall be thine,
“The glorious Province I to thee assign:
“In the warm Junto bear no vulgar Part,
“Breath Rancour and Revenge in ev'ry Heart.
“Against the Prelate, with uncommon Zeal,
“Go bawl and thunder out the Sacred Weal;
“Awake to Vengeance each attentive Seer,
“And check his bold exorbitant Career:
“Call forth to Mind their glorious Actions past,
“When Laud or Bonner at the Helm were plac'd:
“Say how their ancient Liberties decay,
“Their Absolute Command and Priestly-Sway:
“Say how a Bishop has attack'd their Rights,
“And in his SAVIOUR's Cause unpunish'd fights;
“The Sov'reign Empire of the Keys reviles,
“And at their Charter of Damnation smiles:
“And how the contumacious Layman-Elf,
“Usurps a Power of Judging for himself.
“The English Synod summon all their Might;
“In close Debate to spend th'important Hours,
“And vindicate their sacred injur'd Powers.
“Thus then I purpose;—at Return of Day,
“Er'e the full Light has chas'd the Shades away,
“A chosen Spirit, turbulent, and loud,
“Shall wait and mingle in the Learned Crowd;
“Inflame their Councils with revengeful Ire,
“And with the Danger of the Church inspire.
“This Task, O Inquisition! shall be thine,
“The glorious Province I to thee assign:
“In the warm Junto bear no vulgar Part,
“Breath Rancour and Revenge in ev'ry Heart.
“Against the Prelate, with uncommon Zeal,
“Go bawl and thunder out the Sacred Weal;
“Awake to Vengeance each attentive Seer,
“And check his bold exorbitant Career:
27
“When Laud or Bonner at the Helm were plac'd:
“Say how their ancient Liberties decay,
“Their Absolute Command and Priestly-Sway:
“Say how a Bishop has attack'd their Rights,
“And in his SAVIOUR's Cause unpunish'd fights;
“The Sov'reign Empire of the Keys reviles,
“And at their Charter of Damnation smiles:
“And how the contumacious Layman-Elf,
“Usurps a Power of Judging for himself.
“If Reason fail, let Censures be apply'd,
“And let him feel those Powers he half decry'd:
“Strike boldly, and with one decisive Blow,
“The Popular Arch-Heretick o'erthrow;
“But strike with Caution, and dissembled Love,
“And change awhile the Scorpion for the Dove.
“Alone his vicious Principles arraign,
“Respect and Honour for his Person feign:
“With seeming Grief the fatal Cause bewail;
“And, surer to betray, first Kiss and Hail.
“Stripp'd of his Lawn, in vain shall he relent,
“And of his Daring, when too late, repent.
“And let him feel those Powers he half decry'd:
“Strike boldly, and with one decisive Blow,
“The Popular Arch-Heretick o'erthrow;
“But strike with Caution, and dissembled Love,
“And change awhile the Scorpion for the Dove.
“Alone his vicious Principles arraign,
“Respect and Honour for his Person feign:
“With seeming Grief the fatal Cause bewail;
“And, surer to betray, first Kiss and Hail.
28
“And of his Daring, when too late, repent.
She spoke; and smiling like old Chaos seem'd,
When the first Spark thro' sullen Darkness gleam'd:
The future Mischief sparkles in her Eyes,
And savage Transports in her Breast arise:
When Inquisition rose, with Vengeance stung,
The Snakes in Curls a-down her Shoulders hung:
On Dæmon-Wings she reach'd the Coasts of Day,
And shap'd to Albion's chalky Cliffs her Way.
When the first Spark thro' sullen Darkness gleam'd:
The future Mischief sparkles in her Eyes,
And savage Transports in her Breast arise:
When Inquisition rose, with Vengeance stung,
The Snakes in Curls a-down her Shoulders hung:
On Dæmon-Wings she reach'd the Coasts of Day,
And shap'd to Albion's chalky Cliffs her Way.
29
CANTO III.
Meanwhile at the declining Noon of Night,
When gentle Sleep had veil'd each Mortal's Sight;
With balmy Dews the smiling Pastures weep,
Torrents are hush'd, and drowsy Whirlwinds sleep;
The Cattel slumber on the spacious Plain,
And Darkness rules o'er Earth, and Skies, and Main:
Fatigu'd with public Cares and Toils of State,
(His Thoughts still anxious for Britannia's Fate,)
Ev'n mighty BRUNSWICK had resign'd to Rest,
The golden Slumber springing to His Breast;
When see, the Genius of our Isle appears,
And gently whispers in the Monarch's Ears:
The Guardian-Form all clad in bloomy Light,
And seems a youthful Cherub to the Sight;
A golden Circlet binds his shining Hair,
Which from his Shoulders falls with wanton Air:
For ever watchful o'er the Godlike Man,
He spread his beaming Wings and thus began:
When gentle Sleep had veil'd each Mortal's Sight;
With balmy Dews the smiling Pastures weep,
Torrents are hush'd, and drowsy Whirlwinds sleep;
30
And Darkness rules o'er Earth, and Skies, and Main:
Fatigu'd with public Cares and Toils of State,
(His Thoughts still anxious for Britannia's Fate,)
Ev'n mighty BRUNSWICK had resign'd to Rest,
The golden Slumber springing to His Breast;
When see, the Genius of our Isle appears,
And gently whispers in the Monarch's Ears:
The Guardian-Form all clad in bloomy Light,
And seems a youthful Cherub to the Sight;
A golden Circlet binds his shining Hair,
Which from his Shoulders falls with wanton Air:
For ever watchful o'er the Godlike Man,
He spread his beaming Wings and thus began:
“Beware, O PRINCE, forewarn'd by Heav'n, beware
“Approaching Danger, and elude the Snare:
“No foreign Sword invades thy dreaded Reign,
“Nor calls Thee forth into the dusty Plain.
“Urbino's Bankrupt-Youth, a warless Knight,
“Declines his boasted Claim and Lineal Right:
“No more of Conquest and of Empire dreams,
“And plots no longer his ill-fated Schemes.
“Ev'n Sweden's King, for warlike Daring known,
“Repents his Rashness on the British Throne:
“The distant Realms to thy Decisions yield,
“And warring Kingdoms take or leave the Field.
“The Turk and Austrian wait for thy Command,
“And Europe trusts the Balance to thy Hand.
“Approaching Danger, and elude the Snare:
31
“Nor calls Thee forth into the dusty Plain.
“Urbino's Bankrupt-Youth, a warless Knight,
“Declines his boasted Claim and Lineal Right:
“No more of Conquest and of Empire dreams,
“And plots no longer his ill-fated Schemes.
“Ev'n Sweden's King, for warlike Daring known,
“Repents his Rashness on the British Throne:
“The distant Realms to thy Decisions yield,
“And warring Kingdoms take or leave the Field.
“The Turk and Austrian wait for thy Command,
“And Europe trusts the Balance to thy Hand.
“But arm at Home against the threat'ned Blow,
“And in th'aspiring Churchman see the Foe;
“Who domineers it in a Christian Way,
“And on the Gospel grafts Tyrannic Sway:
“The rising Sun beholds the op'ning War;
“The summon'd Chiefs assembling from afar.
“The Brazen Roof shall eccho to the Sound,
“When the bold Zealot with Applause is crown'd.
“But Thou, O PRINCE, assert the Christian Cause,
“And rescue from the Traytor-Priest her Laws:
“Consult the Welfare of the Church and State,
“And silence the fierce Strivings of Debate.
“And in th'aspiring Churchman see the Foe;
“Who domineers it in a Christian Way,
“And on the Gospel grafts Tyrannic Sway:
“The rising Sun beholds the op'ning War;
“The summon'd Chiefs assembling from afar.
32
“When the bold Zealot with Applause is crown'd.
“But Thou, O PRINCE, assert the Christian Cause,
“And rescue from the Traytor-Priest her Laws:
“Consult the Welfare of the Church and State,
“And silence the fierce Strivings of Debate.
“Nor yet despair amongst the rest to find
“Some Rev'rend Pastors of unspotted Mind:
“Hoadly, by no sinister Arts controul'd,
“Amongst the Shepherds of the Christian Fold,
“Th'immortal Hoadly shines with strongest Light,
“Scarce the Sun more diffusive or more bright:
“His boundless Love thro' all Mankind extends,
“And his worst Foes are treated as his Friends:
“Nor yet alone his Christian Virtues shine,
“The ablest Scholar, as the best Divine:
“In Danger unappal'd he takes the Field,
“The Gospel both his Weapon and his Shield:
“With that alone he scorns all Hostile Blows,
“And singly triumphs o'er Ten thousand Foes.
“Some Rev'rend Pastors of unspotted Mind:
“Hoadly, by no sinister Arts controul'd,
“Amongst the Shepherds of the Christian Fold,
“Th'immortal Hoadly shines with strongest Light,
“Scarce the Sun more diffusive or more bright:
“His boundless Love thro' all Mankind extends,
“And his worst Foes are treated as his Friends:
“Nor yet alone his Christian Virtues shine,
“The ablest Scholar, as the best Divine:
“In Danger unappal'd he takes the Field,
“The Gospel both his Weapon and his Shield:
33
“And singly triumphs o'er Ten thousand Foes.
“At him the Belial Priesthood aim their Rage,
“And into Factions rend th'uniting Age:
“In various Shapes, as Proteus ever knew,
“Their vow'd Revenge relentless they persue:
“A like the Christian and the Man they blame,
“And censure both his Doctrines and his Fame;
“The keen Resentment rankles in each Heart,
“And Emulation points the venom'd Dart.
“And into Factions rend th'uniting Age:
“In various Shapes, as Proteus ever knew,
“Their vow'd Revenge relentless they persue:
“A like the Christian and the Man they blame,
“And censure both his Doctrines and his Fame;
“The keen Resentment rankles in each Heart,
“And Emulation points the venom'd Dart.
“Fleetwood, untouch'd with Pontificial Pride,
“Refers each Christian to his Conscience-Guide:
“Nor studious the Believer to enslave,
“Rejects all Pow'r, but what his Master gave.
“Trimnel and Talbot, Two immortal Names,
“Of Tyranny disown the spurious Claims.
“For all Mankind the gen'rous Kennet lives;
“And Chillingworth in Pillonniere revives.
“Refers each Christian to his Conscience-Guide:
“Nor studious the Believer to enslave,
“Rejects all Pow'r, but what his Master gave.
“Trimnel and Talbot, Two immortal Names,
“Of Tyranny disown the spurious Claims.
“For all Mankind the gen'rous Kennet lives;
“And Chillingworth in Pillonniere revives.
34
“Beware, O PRINCE, forewarn'd by Heav'n, beware
“Approaching Danger, and elude the Snare:
“From forth thy Bosom turn the Viper-Guest,
“Or, e'er he bite thee, crush him at thy Breast;
“With timely Care th'impending Ill avert,
“Their Pride defeat, their Councils disconcert:
“Awake, and heal Religion's bleeding Veins,
“So shall the World confess a Brunswick reigns.
“Approaching Danger, and elude the Snare:
“From forth thy Bosom turn the Viper-Guest,
“Or, e'er he bite thee, crush him at thy Breast;
“With timely Care th'impending Ill avert,
“Their Pride defeat, their Councils disconcert:
“Awake, and heal Religion's bleeding Veins,
“So shall the World confess a Brunswick reigns.
Thus having said, he vanish'd from his Eyes,
And in a sudden Blaze resum'd the Skies.
Straitway the Monarch woke to dawning Light,
And in his Mind revolv'd the Vision of the Night.
And in a sudden Blaze resum'd the Skies.
Straitway the Monarch woke to dawning Light,
And in his Mind revolv'd the Vision of the Night.
The Morn, now clad in Robes of various Dye,
Serenely blush'd along the op'ning Sky;
Whose setting Light decides Britannia's Doom,
And carries in Event the Fate of Rome.
Serenely blush'd along the op'ning Sky;
Whose setting Light decides Britannia's Doom,
And carries in Event the Fate of Rome.
35
Near to that Place, where Justice lifts the Scale,
While Orphan-Right and Equity prevail:
Where the fam'd Cowper pleads the Widow's Cause,
And blunts the Edge of the too rigid Laws:
Where King and Parker rose to early Fame,
And learned Jekyll gain'd a deathless Name:
In the adjacent Abbey of Renown,
Full in the Western Canton of the Town,
The Synod is conven'd: His proper Place
Each trusty Member fills with rev'rend Grace;
Immur'd they sit within the brazen Wall,
And teach the Christian Stocks to rise or fall:
They fix the Layman's Faith, intent of Thought,
And stamp each Doctrine Orthodox by Vote;
The Gospel is declar'd an useless Guide,
And passive Crowds believe as they decide.
While Orphan-Right and Equity prevail:
Where the fam'd Cowper pleads the Widow's Cause,
And blunts the Edge of the too rigid Laws:
Where King and Parker rose to early Fame,
And learned Jekyll gain'd a deathless Name:
In the adjacent Abbey of Renown,
Full in the Western Canton of the Town,
The Synod is conven'd: His proper Place
Each trusty Member fills with rev'rend Grace;
Immur'd they sit within the brazen Wall,
And teach the Christian Stocks to rise or fall:
They fix the Layman's Faith, intent of Thought,
And stamp each Doctrine Orthodox by Vote;
The Gospel is declar'd an useless Guide,
And passive Crowds believe as they decide.
Now had the Fury reach'd the British Shore,
And just alighted at the Council Door:
Musing she paus'd a while; then entring took
Dawson's sleek Aspect and unthinking look;
Like him she sails aloft, of bulky Size,
And lazy Mists suffuse her batt'ning Eyes;
Her goodly Presence and Majestick Height,
With Veneration fill the obvious Sight;
Her ample Chin, full rev'rend to behold,
Voluminous descends in many a Fold.
The Churchman-Hag review'd her sage Compeers,
And hemming, thus bespoke the list'ning Seers.
And just alighted at the Council Door:
36
Dawson's sleek Aspect and unthinking look;
Like him she sails aloft, of bulky Size,
And lazy Mists suffuse her batt'ning Eyes;
Her goodly Presence and Majestick Height,
With Veneration fill the obvious Sight;
Her ample Chin, full rev'rend to behold,
Voluminous descends in many a Fold.
The Churchman-Hag review'd her sage Compeers,
And hemming, thus bespoke the list'ning Seers.
“And shall unmark'd the daring Hoadly write,
“And scoff at our Decisions in despight?
“For Toleration publickly declare,
“And shall we, passive as we are, forbear?
“Was't not enough, with sacrilegious Hands,
“That the Eighth Henry spoil'd us of our Lands?
“(Ev'n whilst I speak, transported with Delight,
“The ravish'd Manors swim before my Sight.)
“Was't not enough, that our Revenues lost,
“And every pleasing View of Empire crost;
“That of all former worldly Goods bereft,
“The Tenths alone are to the Clergy left?
“That, like th'Apostles, an abandon'd Race,
“We boast alone a double Share of Grace?
“That we alike with them, from whom we claim,
“Are grown a meer unformidable Name;
“And heir in one uninterrupted Line,
“Their Poverty, as well as Gifts Divine?
“But shall this Devil, to compleat our Shame,
“(With all due Rev'rence to so great a Name,)
“Shall he, observant of the fatal Hour,
“Despoil us of our Sacerdotal Power?
“Perfidious Wretch! that to advance his Cause,
“Durst boldly trample on our Sacred Laws;
“And soundly studious of the Layman's Praise,
“Himself, his Brethren, and --- the Church betrays.
“And scoff at our Decisions in despight?
“For Toleration publickly declare,
“And shall we, passive as we are, forbear?
“Was't not enough, with sacrilegious Hands,
“That the Eighth Henry spoil'd us of our Lands?
“(Ev'n whilst I speak, transported with Delight,
“The ravish'd Manors swim before my Sight.)
“Was't not enough, that our Revenues lost,
“And every pleasing View of Empire crost;
37
“The Tenths alone are to the Clergy left?
“That, like th'Apostles, an abandon'd Race,
“We boast alone a double Share of Grace?
“That we alike with them, from whom we claim,
“Are grown a meer unformidable Name;
“And heir in one uninterrupted Line,
“Their Poverty, as well as Gifts Divine?
“But shall this Devil, to compleat our Shame,
“(With all due Rev'rence to so great a Name,)
“Shall he, observant of the fatal Hour,
“Despoil us of our Sacerdotal Power?
“Perfidious Wretch! that to advance his Cause,
“Durst boldly trample on our Sacred Laws;
“And soundly studious of the Layman's Praise,
“Himself, his Brethren, and --- the Church betrays.
“Soon as the Church was nam'd, with Grief oppress'd,
“A deep-fetch'd Murmur bursts from ev'ry Breast;
“The Hag, her Fraud the better to conceal,
“Devoutly Sobbing with extatick Zeal,
“Stop'd short a while; and thus resum'd Discourse.
“Why therefore use we not Religious Force?
“As yet at Ieast 'tis giv'n us to controul
“His headstrong Neck, and tame his vaunting Soul;
“Let us at length exert our dormant Pow'rs,
“His is the wrangling Talent, and not ours;
“Each latent Fraud unerring, he descries,
“And points it out to less sagacious Eyes;
“Reason no longer will our Cause support,
“And Sophistry hath made her last Effort:
“'Tis time at length Authority awake,
“And from her Limbs the drowsy Slumber shake;
“We still, tho' routed on the listed Plain,
“The Fastness of Authority retain:
“Let then Authority confirm our Zeal,
“And who shall from Authority appeal?
“Justice and Honour calls us; for 'tis fit
“We boldly Censure what he boldly Writ.
“But first, if I foresee aright, 'tis best
“That formally their Lordships be address'd;
“Our Miter'd Fathers with indulgent Care,
“No doubt will listen to our filial Pray'r;
“If they refuse to grant what we implore,
“We'll vote them useless as we've done before;
“And by our selves in this Affair proceed,
“While each true Churchman shall applaud the Deed.
“A deep-fetch'd Murmur bursts from ev'ry Breast;
38
“Devoutly Sobbing with extatick Zeal,
“Stop'd short a while; and thus resum'd Discourse.
“Why therefore use we not Religious Force?
“As yet at Ieast 'tis giv'n us to controul
“His headstrong Neck, and tame his vaunting Soul;
“Let us at length exert our dormant Pow'rs,
“His is the wrangling Talent, and not ours;
“Each latent Fraud unerring, he descries,
“And points it out to less sagacious Eyes;
“Reason no longer will our Cause support,
“And Sophistry hath made her last Effort:
“'Tis time at length Authority awake,
“And from her Limbs the drowsy Slumber shake;
“We still, tho' routed on the listed Plain,
“The Fastness of Authority retain:
“Let then Authority confirm our Zeal,
“And who shall from Authority appeal?
“Justice and Honour calls us; for 'tis fit
“We boldly Censure what he boldly Writ.
39
“That formally their Lordships be address'd;
“Our Miter'd Fathers with indulgent Care,
“No doubt will listen to our filial Pray'r;
“If they refuse to grant what we implore,
“We'll vote them useless as we've done before;
“And by our selves in this Affair proceed,
“While each true Churchman shall applaud the Deed.
She spoke, and lowring sate. When Bisse began,
A florid Pulpiteer and rev'rend Man.
A florid Pulpiteer and rev'rend Man.
“What you advise, O! Brother, I approve,
“With Speed their Lordships and his Grace to move;
“Just are your Fears, and your Resentments just,
“Of the bold Prelate, that betrays his Trust;
“Who under Covert of the Publick Good,
“Imbrues his Fingers in his Mother's Blood.
“And over-weaning of his reas'ning Strain,
“Does our whole Church-Oeconomy arraign,
“Exhorts the Layman, in his wonted Pride,
“Her Articles and Canons to deride;
“To laugh at Outcries of all human Fear,
“And to be happy bids him be sincere:
“To Christ alone he has the Pow'r confin'd,
“To sway the Conscience, and to rule the Mind;
“To Christ alone all lawful Pow'r is giv'n,
“To treat with Sinners, and dispose of Heav'n.
“With Speed their Lordships and his Grace to move;
“Just are your Fears, and your Resentments just,
“Of the bold Prelate, that betrays his Trust;
“Who under Covert of the Publick Good,
“Imbrues his Fingers in his Mother's Blood.
“And over-weaning of his reas'ning Strain,
“Does our whole Church-Oeconomy arraign,
40
“Her Articles and Canons to deride;
“To laugh at Outcries of all human Fear,
“And to be happy bids him be sincere:
“To Christ alone he has the Pow'r confin'd,
“To sway the Conscience, and to rule the Mind;
“To Christ alone all lawful Pow'r is giv'n,
“To treat with Sinners, and dispose of Heav'n.
“With Grief unfeign'd, and deep Concern of Heart,
“I bear in this Consistory a Part.
“The Church alone extorts these Throws of Zeal,
“My latest Hours devoted to her Weal:
“Ev'n now, methinks, I see her tott'ring Wall,
“Which nodding seems to bode her sudden Fall:
“To ev'ry Sect her Portals are thrown wide,
“And Danger threatens her on every Side:
“Long has she stood the Shock of civil Blows,
“From daring Atheists and Socinian-Foes:
“In vain have Sectaries conspired her Doom;
“In vain have foreign Arms and Feuds at Home:
“At length the Christian Vineyard to deface,
“And leave without a Fence the hallow'd Space,
“A Bishop undertakes, with monstrous Hands;
“And saps himself the Ground on which he stands;
“Resolv'd at once the Priesthood to dethrone,
“And to his Saviour King submit alone.
“I bear in this Consistory a Part.
“The Church alone extorts these Throws of Zeal,
“My latest Hours devoted to her Weal:
“Ev'n now, methinks, I see her tott'ring Wall,
“Which nodding seems to bode her sudden Fall:
“To ev'ry Sect her Portals are thrown wide,
“And Danger threatens her on every Side:
“Long has she stood the Shock of civil Blows,
“From daring Atheists and Socinian-Foes:
“In vain have Sectaries conspired her Doom;
“In vain have foreign Arms and Feuds at Home:
41
“And leave without a Fence the hallow'd Space,
“A Bishop undertakes, with monstrous Hands;
“And saps himself the Ground on which he stands;
“Resolv'd at once the Priesthood to dethrone,
“And to his Saviour King submit alone.
No more the Sage each Danger could repeat,
But deeply groan'd and sunk into his Seat:
When Proteus thus harangu'd the rev'rend Crowd,
And utter'd these ill-omen'd Words aloud.
But deeply groan'd and sunk into his Seat:
When Proteus thus harangu'd the rev'rend Crowd,
And utter'd these ill-omen'd Words aloud.
“What then remains, but that with one Accord,
“In our Defence we draw the Sacred Sword?
“Her Freedom still shall wayward Conscience boast,
“In her own giddy Wilds of Error lost?
“A Curse on latest Ages to derive,
“Still authoriz'd shall Heresy survive?
“Still shall the Panther wear her spotted Hide,
“And the strict Union of the Church divide?
“Nor shall the Civil Arm avenge our Cause,
“And force Obedience to the Christian Laws?
“In wordy Parle, devoid of binding Pow'rs,
“What boots it to protract the tedious Hours?
“Or what avails the Crosier and the Lawn,
“If worldly Sanctions hap'ly be withdrawn?
“Rise, Brethren, rise; with the vindictive Rod,
“Protect your Altars and assert your God.
“In our Defence we draw the Sacred Sword?
“Her Freedom still shall wayward Conscience boast,
“In her own giddy Wilds of Error lost?
“A Curse on latest Ages to derive,
“Still authoriz'd shall Heresy survive?
“Still shall the Panther wear her spotted Hide,
“And the strict Union of the Church divide?
42
“And force Obedience to the Christian Laws?
“In wordy Parle, devoid of binding Pow'rs,
“What boots it to protract the tedious Hours?
“Or what avails the Crosier and the Lawn,
“If worldly Sanctions hap'ly be withdrawn?
“Rise, Brethren, rise; with the vindictive Rod,
“Protect your Altars and assert your God.
O Mortal, rash of Soul, with Zeal o'ercast,
Blind to the future, thoughtless of the past!
With ill tim'd Rage whilst Hoadly you accuse,
Know the same Vengeance the same Guilt persues:
Too late, alas! you'll curse the luckless Hour,
And wish again the Minutes in your Pow'r:
Nor labour'd Darkness shall conceal your Shame,
Nor all the Flow'rs of Speech repair your Fame.
Blind to the future, thoughtless of the past!
With ill tim'd Rage whilst Hoadly you accuse,
Know the same Vengeance the same Guilt persues:
Too late, alas! you'll curse the luckless Hour,
And wish again the Minutes in your Pow'r:
Nor labour'd Darkness shall conceal your Shame,
Nor all the Flow'rs of Speech repair your Fame.
Now the fam'd Busby's Successor arose,
And snuffled his Suspicions thro' his Nose:
Then Cannon herding in the common Cry,
Condemns he knows not what, he knows not why.
A num'rous Party the same Fears confess,
With equal Sorrow, and Concern no less;
Their raging Veins with Floods of Spleen ferment,
And beat impatient for the great Event.
And snuffled his Suspicions thro' his Nose:
43
Condemns he knows not what, he knows not why.
A num'rous Party the same Fears confess,
With equal Sorrow, and Concern no less;
Their raging Veins with Floods of Spleen ferment,
And beat impatient for the great Event.
When Stanhope thus address'd them from the Chair:
“Well does a falling Church deserve your Care;
“Our sinking Altars call aloud for Aid;
“Our Temples shaken, and our Rights betray'd.
“You see, my Brethren, with what boastful Pride,
“Our regular Succession is decry'd:
“What dang'rous Tenets to the World are taught,
“Our Pow'rs Ecclesiastic set at nought.
“With you the fatal Juncture I deplore,
“And dread his Doctrines much, his Influence more.
“Wherefore some Cure must be apply'd with Speed,
“(Heav'n grant our joint Endeavours may succeed.)
“In lukewarm Counsels we debate in vain,
“The scoffing Prelate mocks our idle Reign.
“Forthwith then a Committee be assign'd,
“In ample Form to represent our Mind;
“In soothing Words to dress our pious Fears,
“And ask Redress from our paternal Seers.
“With utmost Care select the trusty Band,
“Prompt for the Church to act as we command;
“Of known Attachment to her drooping Laws,
“And zealous to promote the dying Cause.
“Nor let this Opportunity be lost,
“And each consenting kind Concurrence cross'd:
“The lucky Minutes, as they hast away,
“Seem to upbraid us for this short Delay:
“All Hardships and Reproaches we defy;
“Our Church demands it, and we must comply.
“Well does a falling Church deserve your Care;
“Our sinking Altars call aloud for Aid;
“Our Temples shaken, and our Rights betray'd.
“You see, my Brethren, with what boastful Pride,
“Our regular Succession is decry'd:
“What dang'rous Tenets to the World are taught,
“Our Pow'rs Ecclesiastic set at nought.
“With you the fatal Juncture I deplore,
“And dread his Doctrines much, his Influence more.
“Wherefore some Cure must be apply'd with Speed,
“(Heav'n grant our joint Endeavours may succeed.)
44
“The scoffing Prelate mocks our idle Reign.
“Forthwith then a Committee be assign'd,
“In ample Form to represent our Mind;
“In soothing Words to dress our pious Fears,
“And ask Redress from our paternal Seers.
“With utmost Care select the trusty Band,
“Prompt for the Church to act as we command;
“Of known Attachment to her drooping Laws,
“And zealous to promote the dying Cause.
“Nor let this Opportunity be lost,
“And each consenting kind Concurrence cross'd:
“The lucky Minutes, as they hast away,
“Seem to upbraid us for this short Delay:
“All Hardships and Reproaches we defy;
“Our Church demands it, and we must comply.
He sate; when straitway the deputed Nine
Retiring enter on the great Design:
Unquestion'd Churchmen all, a sturdy Band,
And strongly charm'd with absolute Command.
In solemn Conclave now the Clan engage,
And squeeze out Heresy from ev'ry Page:
From each ambiguous Word they wrest Offence,
By puzzling Grammar, and perplexing Sense;
To fix the grievous Charge they toil all Night,
And scarce their Counsels end with Morning Light.
Retiring enter on the great Design:
Unquestion'd Churchmen all, a sturdy Band,
And strongly charm'd with absolute Command.
45
And squeeze out Heresy from ev'ry Page:
From each ambiguous Word they wrest Offence,
By puzzling Grammar, and perplexing Sense;
To fix the grievous Charge they toil all Night,
And scarce their Counsels end with Morning Light.
Soon as the rising Sun had left the Main,
In Synod meet the zealous Seers again:
When now the grave Committee-Men appear,
And shake the learned Scroll with scornful Leer.
The poignant Words are read; th'applauding Court
Joyful receive and enter the Report:
When nought remain'd but that with their Request
The Mitre'd Fathers straitway be address'd.
In Synod meet the zealous Seers again:
When now the grave Committee-Men appear,
And shake the learned Scroll with scornful Leer.
The poignant Words are read; th'applauding Court
Joyful receive and enter the Report:
When nought remain'd but that with their Request
The Mitre'd Fathers straitway be address'd.
But see, alas! how mortal Man may fail,
Nor will his finest Policies avail;
What various Chances wait the surest Blow?
And how precarious are all Things below?
Just as with hasty Steps the Dome they sought,
Their utmost Wishes to a Crisis brought;
Just as they enter'd with their smart Appeal,
The Royal Mandate intercepts their Zeal.
Nor will his finest Policies avail;
What various Chances wait the surest Blow?
And how precarious are all Things below?
46
Their utmost Wishes to a Crisis brought;
Just as they enter'd with their smart Appeal,
The Royal Mandate intercepts their Zeal.
Say, Muse, what Wonder through the Dome appear'd,
When first the fatal word Prorogu'd was heard;
What sudden Sorrows and Laments arose,
What Jealousy of Friends, and Dread of Foes:
Their Bosoms burn with disappointed Rage,
And pale Confusion marks each gaping Sage;
Her borrow'd Form the Fury laid aside,
And crost on Wings of Wind the briny Tide.
The gnashing Seers, unknowing whom to blame,
Retire oppress'd with Madness and with Shame,
Alike from Synod and the Town retire,
To dine each Sunday with the neighbr'ing 'Squire.
When first the fatal word Prorogu'd was heard;
What sudden Sorrows and Laments arose,
What Jealousy of Friends, and Dread of Foes:
Their Bosoms burn with disappointed Rage,
And pale Confusion marks each gaping Sage;
Her borrow'd Form the Fury laid aside,
And crost on Wings of Wind the briny Tide.
The gnashing Seers, unknowing whom to blame,
Retire oppress'd with Madness and with Shame,
Alike from Synod and the Town retire,
To dine each Sunday with the neighbr'ing 'Squire.
47
So when of late on Scotia's barren Plain,
The Rebel Clans despis'd their Sov'raign's Reign,
A while they bluster'd, terrible in Arms,
And scar'd the Loyal Swain with dire Alarms:
But soon as Brunswick's Thunder once was heard,
The passive Warriors sudden disappear'd;
Content amongst their Native Rocks to dwell,
And plot their Treasons in the Highland-Cell.
The Rebel Clans despis'd their Sov'raign's Reign,
A while they bluster'd, terrible in Arms,
And scar'd the Loyal Swain with dire Alarms:
But soon as Brunswick's Thunder once was heard,
The passive Warriors sudden disappear'd;
Content amongst their Native Rocks to dwell,
And plot their Treasons in the Highland-Cell.
49
CANTO IV.
The Worldling Churchman, raging with Defeat,
Renews his Hate, and burns with double Heat.
Tho' foil'd in Synod, he laments the Day
That snatch'd his Pow'rs, his darling Pow'rs away;
Tho' spoil'd of all Authority Supreme,
He sees his Empire vanish like a Dream.
The free-born Tongue not Monarchs can restrain;
And still the Pulpit and the Press remain:
Still 'tis allow'd him in Scholastick Fight,
To plead his Ghostly Pow'rs and injur'd Right.
Renews his Hate, and burns with double Heat.
Tho' foil'd in Synod, he laments the Day
That snatch'd his Pow'rs, his darling Pow'rs away;
50
He sees his Empire vanish like a Dream.
The free-born Tongue not Monarchs can restrain;
And still the Pulpit and the Press remain:
Still 'tis allow'd him in Scholastick Fight,
To plead his Ghostly Pow'rs and injur'd Right.
The Paper-War succeeds: From ev'ry Part
The scribbling Chiefs are clad in Terms of Art;
Each rising Sun renews the Pamphlet Fight;
(The lurking Jesuit gladd'ning at the Sight,)
His Warlike Pen the Bigot-Churchman draws,
And Hoadly combats in the Christian Cause;
Each saucy Priestling to the Battel flies,
And in the Sacred Lists with Bangor vies;
All, Sanguine, promise to themselves Success,
And Reams of Martial Learning crowd the Press.
The scribbling Chiefs are clad in Terms of Art;
Each rising Sun renews the Pamphlet Fight;
(The lurking Jesuit gladd'ning at the Sight,)
His Warlike Pen the Bigot-Churchman draws,
And Hoadly combats in the Christian Cause;
Each saucy Priestling to the Battel flies,
And in the Sacred Lists with Bangor vies;
All, Sanguine, promise to themselves Success,
And Reams of Martial Learning crowd the Press.
Do thou, O Muse, the warring Priests rehearse,
And swell with Pamphlet-Combatants thy Verse:
Say what unnumber'd Champions of Renown,
Stewards of Peace, and Worthies of the Gown,
Alike both Brunswick and their Saviour hate;
Alike the Freedom of our Church and State:
And who, on either to compleat their Rage,
Attack the strongest Bulwark of the Age.
Let no Compassion on the Traytors fall,
Loose all thy Satire, and exhaust thy Gall.
And swell with Pamphlet-Combatants thy Verse:
51
Stewards of Peace, and Worthies of the Gown,
Alike both Brunswick and their Saviour hate;
Alike the Freedom of our Church and State:
And who, on either to compleat their Rage,
Attack the strongest Bulwark of the Age.
Let no Compassion on the Traytors fall,
Loose all thy Satire, and exhaust thy Gall.
First, stern Orbilius in the Lists appears,
Debauch'd in Faction from his Infant Years;
A graceless Miscreant, that long since o'ercame
The virtuous Glowings, and the Pangs of Shame:
God sent him forth in Wrath to curse the Earth;
His Principles more sordid than his Birth,
To wage eternal War with spotless Truth,
And sow Sedition in the tender Youth.
Debauch'd in Faction from his Infant Years;
A graceless Miscreant, that long since o'ercame
The virtuous Glowings, and the Pangs of Shame:
God sent him forth in Wrath to curse the Earth;
His Principles more sordid than his Birth,
To wage eternal War with spotless Truth,
And sow Sedition in the tender Youth.
When Pedagogues in Controversy deal,
What Conflicts must an Adversary feel?
Pride and Ill-Nature seasons all his Stile,
Each Paragraph o'erflows with Pedant-Bile:
His ev'ry Period crabbed and severe,
Smells of the Birch and terrifies the Ear.
What Conflicts must an Adversary feel?
52
Each Paragraph o'erflows with Pedant-Bile:
His ev'ry Period crabbed and severe,
Smells of the Birch and terrifies the Ear.
Touch'd by his Pen, Religion fades away,
And all Her lovely Oracles decay:
The Christian Truths with fainter Glory shine,
And dwindle into Priestcraft through each Line.
Sprung from the Anvil, and inur'd to Flame,
For Fervency the Champion he became:
Devotion, so he thinks, consists in Sweat,
In Agonies, in Calentures, and Heat.
Ignatius thus met Heav'n half way in Air,
Wrapp'd in a furious Hurricane of Pray'r.
The Worldly Church in his Affections Reigns,
As some Men court the Heiress for her Gains:
Charm'd he beholds her absolute Command,
And wrests the Scepter from his Saviour's Hand.
And all Her lovely Oracles decay:
The Christian Truths with fainter Glory shine,
And dwindle into Priestcraft through each Line.
Sprung from the Anvil, and inur'd to Flame,
For Fervency the Champion he became:
Devotion, so he thinks, consists in Sweat,
In Agonies, in Calentures, and Heat.
Ignatius thus met Heav'n half way in Air,
Wrapp'd in a furious Hurricane of Pray'r.
The Worldly Church in his Affections Reigns,
As some Men court the Heiress for her Gains:
Charm'd he beholds her absolute Command,
And wrests the Scepter from his Saviour's Hand.
53
In sacred Chivalry no bolder Knight
Thro' Albion's Isle provokes the Pamphlet-Fight;
With dauntless Prowess he attacks the Foe;
His throbbing Veins with martial Ardors glow.
Like the fam'd Swiss he thrives in Venal Fray,
And takes the Lists for Convocation-Pay:
With labour'd Frauds he stuffs his shining Page,
And prostitutes his Conscience to his Rage:
His Malice to no Parties is confin'd,
But hates alike all Protestant Mankind.
Thro' Albion's Isle provokes the Pamphlet-Fight;
With dauntless Prowess he attacks the Foe;
His throbbing Veins with martial Ardors glow.
Like the fam'd Swiss he thrives in Venal Fray,
And takes the Lists for Convocation-Pay:
With labour'd Frauds he stuffs his shining Page,
And prostitutes his Conscience to his Rage:
His Malice to no Parties is confin'd,
But hates alike all Protestant Mankind.
No more, ye Sages most profoundly wise,
That live beneath the European Skies,
In search of Antichrist disturb our Peace;
Your grave Disputes, and your Enquiries cease:
In vain the sever'd World you traverse o'er,
Behold the Monster on the British Shore.
That live beneath the European Skies,
In search of Antichrist disturb our Peace;
Your grave Disputes, and your Enquiries cease:
In vain the sever'd World you traverse o'er,
Behold the Monster on the British Shore.
Next, Proteus, churlish shuffling Dean, appears,
And shows to publick View his Phrygian Ears:
Hamper'd by Sykes, confounded and perplext,
Ten Thousand Ways he racks the stubborn Text;
The stubborn Text elastic Force retains,
And by its self alone its self explains:
A Wight so inconsistent in each Deed,
As Contradiction were his darling Creed.
Prompt to unsheath, despis'd by righteous Men,
His self-vexatious, self-condemning-Pen:
Skill'd to extract a Meaning; and refine
On plainest Words, a Gentleman-Divine.
With Coxcombs most his flashy Parts excel,
He reasons poorly—but he rallies well.
Reveal'd alone to the uncommon wise,
His Argument retires in dark Disguise,
With luscious Ornaments of Wit laid thick,
Hard-labour'd Flights, and Strains of Rhetorick:
Thro' endless, puzzling Mazes led around,
The Reader thinks himself on Fairy Ground;
No faithful Clue directs his wand'ring Feet,
While to the View unnumber'd Windings meet:
With painful Steps from Path to Path he strays,
And wanders on, bewilder'd in the Maze.
And shows to publick View his Phrygian Ears:
54
Ten Thousand Ways he racks the stubborn Text;
The stubborn Text elastic Force retains,
And by its self alone its self explains:
A Wight so inconsistent in each Deed,
As Contradiction were his darling Creed.
Prompt to unsheath, despis'd by righteous Men,
His self-vexatious, self-condemning-Pen:
Skill'd to extract a Meaning; and refine
On plainest Words, a Gentleman-Divine.
With Coxcombs most his flashy Parts excel,
He reasons poorly—but he rallies well.
Reveal'd alone to the uncommon wise,
His Argument retires in dark Disguise,
With luscious Ornaments of Wit laid thick,
Hard-labour'd Flights, and Strains of Rhetorick:
Thro' endless, puzzling Mazes led around,
The Reader thinks himself on Fairy Ground;
No faithful Clue directs his wand'ring Feet,
While to the View unnumber'd Windings meet:
55
And wanders on, bewilder'd in the Maze.
But see! a Sermonizing Bard steps forth,
And vents his Rancour on distinguish'd Worth;
His gloomy Aspect writhen with Grimace,
And not a Beam of Sunshine gilds his Face:
Each Feature speaks him ravish'd from the Plow,
And torpid Dulness slumbers o'er his Brow:
In whom Two Faculties united shine,
A Motley-Piece, half Poet, half Divine.
Here in soft Accents whining Abra plains;
Here modern Peace-Wrights swell his fustian Strains:
If in the Pulpit he the Preacher ape,
The list'ning Vulgar for Sedition gape.
How oft, O Oxford, have thy Pupil-Throng
Catch'd the dry Precept strugling from his Tongue?
In vain, the Muse disdains Mechanic Rules,
And shuns the Commerce of Pedantick Schools.
And vents his Rancour on distinguish'd Worth;
His gloomy Aspect writhen with Grimace,
And not a Beam of Sunshine gilds his Face:
Each Feature speaks him ravish'd from the Plow,
And torpid Dulness slumbers o'er his Brow:
In whom Two Faculties united shine,
A Motley-Piece, half Poet, half Divine.
Here in soft Accents whining Abra plains;
Here modern Peace-Wrights swell his fustian Strains:
If in the Pulpit he the Preacher ape,
The list'ning Vulgar for Sedition gape.
How oft, O Oxford, have thy Pupil-Throng
Catch'd the dry Precept strugling from his Tongue?
In vain, the Muse disdains Mechanic Rules,
And shuns the Commerce of Pedantick Schools.
56
But say, vain Wretch, what Madness thee excites,
Thee to correct what Hoadly better writes?
Say, after Dryden, how durst thou translate?
And fear'st thou not, presumptuous, Milbourn's Fate?
By what blind Folly led, durst thou oppose,
Thy Pygmy Sense against such matchless Foes;
Thy Verse so languid, and so dull thy Prose?
Better for thee, egregious Pulpiteer,
To preach Damnation to the startled Ear:
Better for thee, amidst thy fav'rite Crowd,
To belch the Dangers of the Church aloud;
Than to the Press commit thy hasty Zeal,
And to the Layman's common Sense appeal:
Better, than thus awake Fanatick Rage,
And tempt the Fury of a Whiggish Age.
Thee to correct what Hoadly better writes?
Say, after Dryden, how durst thou translate?
And fear'st thou not, presumptuous, Milbourn's Fate?
By what blind Folly led, durst thou oppose,
Thy Pygmy Sense against such matchless Foes;
Thy Verse so languid, and so dull thy Prose?
Better for thee, egregious Pulpiteer,
To preach Damnation to the startled Ear:
Better for thee, amidst thy fav'rite Crowd,
To belch the Dangers of the Church aloud;
Than to the Press commit thy hasty Zeal,
And to the Layman's common Sense appeal:
Better, than thus awake Fanatick Rage,
And tempt the Fury of a Whiggish Age.
Nonjuring Magus next the War sustains,
And Sermon and Preservative arraigns:
Than him none better pleads in Paper-Fight
The Priest's Successive Apostolic Right:
None cramps the Conscience more in penal Ties,
Nor Protestant Sincerity decries;
Than Magus none in stronger Terms confess'd,
Asserts a blind Submission to the Priest:
But most he labours to th'indocile Brain,
A regular Succession to explain;
Profoundly skill'd in Heraldry Divine,
He searches their Hereditary Line:
Uninterrupted thro' a Chain of Years,
Their Sacerdotal Pedigree appears.
Not more exactly down from Noah's Flood,
The Welshman traces his descending Blood;
With Scorn our upstart, English Race disdains,
And boasts the antient Patriarch in his Veins.
And Sermon and Preservative arraigns:
57
The Priest's Successive Apostolic Right:
None cramps the Conscience more in penal Ties,
Nor Protestant Sincerity decries;
Than Magus none in stronger Terms confess'd,
Asserts a blind Submission to the Priest:
But most he labours to th'indocile Brain,
A regular Succession to explain;
Profoundly skill'd in Heraldry Divine,
He searches their Hereditary Line:
Uninterrupted thro' a Chain of Years,
Their Sacerdotal Pedigree appears.
Not more exactly down from Noah's Flood,
The Welshman traces his descending Blood;
With Scorn our upstart, English Race disdains,
And boasts the antient Patriarch in his Veins.
Majestick Mammon now maintains the Cause,
And for the Church his pointless Weapon draws;
For Mother Church full zealously he groans,
And from the Press pours forth Religious Moans;
His mournful Pages swell with bursting Sighs,
And Tears suborn'd gush from his streaming Eyes:
A worthless Wretch, so far beneath our Lays,
That ev'n to mention is almost to praise;
His Forehead unsusceptible of Shame,
He borrows from his Infamy his Fame;
Secure he laughs at the Satyrick Muse,
And still unhurt his wonted Arts persues.
In vain we lavish all our boasted Art,
Nor will our keenest Arrows touch his Heart.
And for the Church his pointless Weapon draws;
For Mother Church full zealously he groans,
And from the Press pours forth Religious Moans;
58
And Tears suborn'd gush from his streaming Eyes:
A worthless Wretch, so far beneath our Lays,
That ev'n to mention is almost to praise;
His Forehead unsusceptible of Shame,
He borrows from his Infamy his Fame;
Secure he laughs at the Satyrick Muse,
And still unhurt his wonted Arts persues.
In vain we lavish all our boasted Art,
Nor will our keenest Arrows touch his Heart.
To form a Venus once, as Authors tell,
The Painter summon'd many a shining Belle,
Scarce all th'assembled Toasts of ancient Greece,
In all their Charms could furnish out the faultless Piece:
And such Deformities in Mammon meet,
To make the Monster and the Fiend compleat;
That to describe him in these impious Times,
The puzzled Bard must club a Nation's Crimes:
The empty Minion of a restless Crowd,
Rich, haughty, lazy, ignorant, and proud;
A bold Asserter of the Priestly Reign,
As Lewis and S---l, impudent and vain.
The Painter summon'd many a shining Belle,
Scarce all th'assembled Toasts of ancient Greece,
In all their Charms could furnish out the faultless Piece:
And such Deformities in Mammon meet,
To make the Monster and the Fiend compleat;
That to describe him in these impious Times,
The puzzled Bard must club a Nation's Crimes:
59
Rich, haughty, lazy, ignorant, and proud;
A bold Asserter of the Priestly Reign,
As Lewis and S---l, impudent and vain.
Archdeacon Momus with dead-doing Hands
Condemns by Wholesale, and with Censure brands:
Against each Sentence he exerts his Rage,
And all Hell breathes thro' his licentious Page:
A Grave and Theological Buffoon,
He feasts his Reader with divine Lampoon;
And strongly touch'd with the Religious Spleen,
Outvies the Pedant-Doctor, and the Dean.
Nor Hoadly feels alone of earthly Men,
The keen, Iambick Rancour of his Pen:
He calls the wisest King the worst of Fools,
As ignorant of Laws, by which he rules.
Ev'n the World's Saviour, undisguis'd of Heart,
Is charg'd with vile prevaricating Art:
And rather than his wicked Claims deny,
The spotless Jesus must return a Lye.
The Liege-Man with the Christian well agrees,
Against both human and divine Decrees.
Condemns by Wholesale, and with Censure brands:
Against each Sentence he exerts his Rage,
And all Hell breathes thro' his licentious Page:
A Grave and Theological Buffoon,
He feasts his Reader with divine Lampoon;
And strongly touch'd with the Religious Spleen,
Outvies the Pedant-Doctor, and the Dean.
Nor Hoadly feels alone of earthly Men,
The keen, Iambick Rancour of his Pen:
He calls the wisest King the worst of Fools,
As ignorant of Laws, by which he rules.
Ev'n the World's Saviour, undisguis'd of Heart,
Is charg'd with vile prevaricating Art:
60
The spotless Jesus must return a Lye.
The Liege-Man with the Christian well agrees,
Against both human and divine Decrees.
The Prolocutor now his Strength essays,
And stalks sublime in Magisterial Phrase:
Dislodg'd from Pow'r, the Patriarch boils with Rage,
And breaths Authority in ev'ry Page.
While cloudy C---n wraps his Thoughts in Night,
And throws a Veil before the Readers Sight.
And stalks sublime in Magisterial Phrase:
Dislodg'd from Pow'r, the Patriarch boils with Rage,
And breaths Authority in ev'ry Page.
While cloudy C---n wraps his Thoughts in Night,
And throws a Veil before the Readers Sight.
When now in dread Array a bloody Train
From Grubstreet rush, and crowd the peopled Plain:
Unnumber'd Libels from the Press are sped,
To satiate Malice, and for daily Bread;
S---th, L---w---s, H---ly, J---n*s, C---b---n write,
And H---ll---d bursts his Gall to wreak his Spite:
Two martial Bards advance, with Thirst of Praise,
And fight the Church's Cause in Dogrel Lays;
Pulpit and Press fictitious Ills engage,
And combat Windmills with Quixotic Rage:
Tumultuous Din and Clangor shakes the Sky,
And each vile Scribbler waves his Banners high.
From Grubstreet rush, and crowd the peopled Plain:
Unnumber'd Libels from the Press are sped,
To satiate Malice, and for daily Bread;
S---th, L---w---s, H---ly, J---n*s, C---b---n write,
And H---ll---d bursts his Gall to wreak his Spite:
Two martial Bards advance, with Thirst of Praise,
And fight the Church's Cause in Dogrel Lays;
61
And combat Windmills with Quixotic Rage:
Tumultuous Din and Clangor shakes the Sky,
And each vile Scribbler waves his Banners high.
In vain ye labour, O ye Sons of Rome,
In vain of Protestants conspire the Doom;
The watchful Hoadly, with unsleeping Eyes,
Guards from rapacious Hands the golden Prize:
While Whitby, strong as an Apostle writes,
And Burnet in the gen'rous Work unites,
Burnet, whose Deeds to early Fame aspire,
Who treads the Footsteps of his Learned Sire:
While Tenison, by virtuous Motives sway'd,
Protests against you, nor vouchsafes his Aid:
While Sykes, immortal Sykes, and Pillonniere,
And Kennet, Hughes, and Prat, and Pyle adhere:
Your subtlest Labours and Designs shall fail,
Nor all the Cunning of the Schools prevail:
Sooner shall gross Absurdities agree,
And Lawyers and the Leech refuse their Fee:
Sooner Old Age shall be restor'd to Youth,
And Contradictions soften into Truth:
The clust'ring Vine shall thrive on barren Ground,
And Oxford with staunch Loyalists abound:
Sooner shall Traytors mourn expiring Laws,
Ambitious Synods plead Religion's Cause:
Earth's Rebel Sons once more shall Heav'n defy,
And Stuart's Bastard Race with Brunswick vye.
In vain of Protestants conspire the Doom;
The watchful Hoadly, with unsleeping Eyes,
Guards from rapacious Hands the golden Prize:
While Whitby, strong as an Apostle writes,
And Burnet in the gen'rous Work unites,
Burnet, whose Deeds to early Fame aspire,
Who treads the Footsteps of his Learned Sire:
While Tenison, by virtuous Motives sway'd,
Protests against you, nor vouchsafes his Aid:
While Sykes, immortal Sykes, and Pillonniere,
And Kennet, Hughes, and Prat, and Pyle adhere:
Your subtlest Labours and Designs shall fail,
Nor all the Cunning of the Schools prevail:
Sooner shall gross Absurdities agree,
And Lawyers and the Leech refuse their Fee:
62
And Contradictions soften into Truth:
The clust'ring Vine shall thrive on barren Ground,
And Oxford with staunch Loyalists abound:
Sooner shall Traytors mourn expiring Laws,
Ambitious Synods plead Religion's Cause:
Earth's Rebel Sons once more shall Heav'n defy,
And Stuart's Bastard Race with Brunswick vye.
63
CANTO V.
While the fierce Contest rages from afar,
And hostile Pamphlets breathe alternate War:
The carnal Priests at ev'ry Shock o'erthrown,
Now trust to pungent Calumny alone:
Repuls'd in mad Confusion they retreat,
And rallying still th'unequal Fight repeat.
Ceaseless they labour by insidious Arts,
To taint and prepossess the People's Hearts:
The strongest Ties of Conscience they forego,
And load with Slander the victorious Foe.
And hostile Pamphlets breathe alternate War:
The carnal Priests at ev'ry Shock o'erthrown,
Now trust to pungent Calumny alone:
Repuls'd in mad Confusion they retreat,
And rallying still th'unequal Fight repeat.
64
To taint and prepossess the People's Hearts:
The strongest Ties of Conscience they forego,
And load with Slander the victorious Foe.
As S---pe involv'd in thoughtful Malice lay,
Thro' all the Wilds of Vision snatch'd away,
A gloomy Form stood present to his Sight,
Of black Tartarean Hue, that Scandal hight;
A Monstrous Fiend, of such prodigious Size,
Her Feet on Earth, her Head was hid in Skies:
On thousand Wings up-born she soars sublime,
From Pole to Pole, and ev'ry distant Clime:
With Thousand searching Eyes and list'ning Ears,
All secret Slanders she both sees and hears;
And what she sees and hears, each blasting Sound
She trumpets with a thousand Tongues around.
Her sallow Cheeks ne'er felt the circling Blood,
And on her Head the Snakes erected stood:
The circling Blood her shrivel'd Veins forsook,
And all the Fury open'd in her Look:
Distorted was her Brow, and in her Hand
She wav'd aloft to Sight a flaming Brand:
Thrice with the burning Torch she gently press'd,
And sped the livid Poison to his Breast.
Thro' all the Wilds of Vision snatch'd away,
A gloomy Form stood present to his Sight,
Of black Tartarean Hue, that Scandal hight;
A Monstrous Fiend, of such prodigious Size,
Her Feet on Earth, her Head was hid in Skies:
On thousand Wings up-born she soars sublime,
From Pole to Pole, and ev'ry distant Clime:
With Thousand searching Eyes and list'ning Ears,
All secret Slanders she both sees and hears;
And what she sees and hears, each blasting Sound
She trumpets with a thousand Tongues around.
Her sallow Cheeks ne'er felt the circling Blood,
And on her Head the Snakes erected stood:
The circling Blood her shrivel'd Veins forsook,
And all the Fury open'd in her Look:
65
She wav'd aloft to Sight a flaming Brand:
Thrice with the burning Torch she gently press'd,
And sped the livid Poison to his Breast.
The wrathful Priest indulg'd the pleasing Scene,
And waking burn'd with more than native Spleen:
Invention quicken'd in his Gothick Brain,
And Lies spontaneous crown'd his fruitful Pain;
His throbbing Veins with double Fury swell,
And rose in all the Energy of Hell.
And waking burn'd with more than native Spleen:
Invention quicken'd in his Gothick Brain,
And Lies spontaneous crown'd his fruitful Pain;
His throbbing Veins with double Fury swell,
And rose in all the Energy of Hell.
And now he meditates the fatal Blow,
And clad in Scandal-Armour meets the Foe;
No more his Doctrines, but his Person wounds,
And with decisive Calumny confounds:
With frequent Disappointments sorely pain'd,
Impatient to revenge and unrestrain'd,
He guides his Weapon to the tend'rest Part,
And with Detraction stabs him to the Heart:
The tedious Work of Argument lays down,
And dubs himself the Pasquin of the Town,
From Coffee-House to Coffee-House he flies,
Unwearied in the Search of solemn Lies;
With Hear-say Calumnies he fills the Scale,
With Trash of School-Boys and a Gossip's Tale;
Trepans each heedless Passenger he meets,
And violent arrests him in the Streets:
In private Talk th'unwary Tongue insnares,
While each rash Accent his own Comment bears.
And clad in Scandal-Armour meets the Foe;
No more his Doctrines, but his Person wounds,
And with decisive Calumny confounds:
With frequent Disappointments sorely pain'd,
Impatient to revenge and unrestrain'd,
He guides his Weapon to the tend'rest Part,
And with Detraction stabs him to the Heart:
66
And dubs himself the Pasquin of the Town,
From Coffee-House to Coffee-House he flies,
Unwearied in the Search of solemn Lies;
With Hear-say Calumnies he fills the Scale,
With Trash of School-Boys and a Gossip's Tale;
Trepans each heedless Passenger he meets,
And violent arrests him in the Streets:
In private Talk th'unwary Tongue insnares,
While each rash Accent his own Comment bears.
The Press malignant breathes obdurate Hate,
And groans with controversial Billingsgate.
Ev'n Bangor proves a Jesuit in Disguise;
Such mighty Force in bare-fac'd Scandal lies.
Bangor, the Champion of the Whiggish Cause,
So oft with Conquest crown'd, and with Applause;
Bangor, the boasted Protestant Divine,
Whose Triumphs in recording Annals shine.
Immortal Snape the great Discovery made,
And to the World the subtle Cheat betray'd:
Nor flatter'd him in Words of modern Vogue,
But spoke his Mind—My Lord, you are a Rogue,
A cunning, canting Traytor, void of Grace;
And call'd him perjur'd Rascal to his Face.
And groans with controversial Billingsgate.
Ev'n Bangor proves a Jesuit in Disguise;
Such mighty Force in bare-fac'd Scandal lies.
Bangor, the Champion of the Whiggish Cause,
So oft with Conquest crown'd, and with Applause;
Bangor, the boasted Protestant Divine,
Whose Triumphs in recording Annals shine.
67
And to the World the subtle Cheat betray'd:
Nor flatter'd him in Words of modern Vogue,
But spoke his Mind—My Lord, you are a Rogue,
A cunning, canting Traytor, void of Grace;
And call'd him perjur'd Rascal to his Face.
Vain, impious Wish! to taint such spotless Fame,
And stop the useful Influence of his Name!
What Fiend, what Devil has inspir'd thy Mind,
To laugh at all the Ties of Human Kind;
Each strong Impulse of Nature to deny,
And give thy Conscience and thy God the Lie?
And stop the useful Influence of his Name!
What Fiend, what Devil has inspir'd thy Mind,
To laugh at all the Ties of Human Kind;
Each strong Impulse of Nature to deny,
And give thy Conscience and thy God the Lie?
The injur'd Prelate, of unbounded Love,
Wise as the Serpent, harmless as the Dove,
Undaunted rises in his just Defence,
And to the World appeals for Innocence:
To God and Man submitting ev'ry Part;
To Man his Actions, and to God his Heart.
He looks with Scorn on a censorious Age,
And pities each mad Sally of their Rage;
Ungovern'd, envious Tongues conspire in vain;
His shining Virtues mock their impious Pain;
Thro' a whole Series of deserving Years,
No Stain, no Blemish in his Fame appears:
The Tenor of his Life all glorious Bright,
Pure and unspotted as the Morning Light.
The Mists of Slander fly before his Name,
And serve to brighten, not obscure his Fame.
Wise as the Serpent, harmless as the Dove,
Undaunted rises in his just Defence,
And to the World appeals for Innocence:
68
To Man his Actions, and to God his Heart.
He looks with Scorn on a censorious Age,
And pities each mad Sally of their Rage;
Ungovern'd, envious Tongues conspire in vain;
His shining Virtues mock their impious Pain;
Thro' a whole Series of deserving Years,
No Stain, no Blemish in his Fame appears:
The Tenor of his Life all glorious Bright,
Pure and unspotted as the Morning Light.
The Mists of Slander fly before his Name,
And serve to brighten, not obscure his Fame.
O! Nicholson, by what blind Passions led,
What wild Capricio's hurry'd round thy Head?—
But curb thy Satire, Muse, nor dare reprove,
Whom Brunswick and whom Hoadly deign to love.
O! stop, rash Muse, the too ill-natur'd Tale,
And o'er this Blemish cast a friendly Veil.
He err'd, by disingenuous Arts betray'd,
And undesigning from his Conscience stray'd:
Nor let this Failing blast his better Days,
And stop the Progress of his future Praise:
Long live to latest Times his deathless Fame,
Long live the Honours that adorn'd his Name,
When whilom he espous'd his Sov'reign's Cause,
And labour'd for our Liberties and Laws:
Bangor and Kennet in his Favour plead;
Bangor and Kennet have forgiv'n the Deed.
What wild Capricio's hurry'd round thy Head?—
But curb thy Satire, Muse, nor dare reprove,
Whom Brunswick and whom Hoadly deign to love.
O! stop, rash Muse, the too ill-natur'd Tale,
And o'er this Blemish cast a friendly Veil.
69
And undesigning from his Conscience stray'd:
Nor let this Failing blast his better Days,
And stop the Progress of his future Praise:
Long live to latest Times his deathless Fame,
Long live the Honours that adorn'd his Name,
When whilom he espous'd his Sov'reign's Cause,
And labour'd for our Liberties and Laws:
Bangor and Kennet in his Favour plead;
Bangor and Kennet have forgiv'n the Deed.
Here close, my faithful Muse, the shocking Scene,
Here cease thy Labours and suppress thy Spleen,
Nor tell how Proteus still new Shapes puts on,
And labours to compleat what Snape begun:
The tedious Clue of Calumny lay down,
Nor wade through all the Kennels of the Town:
Triumphant o'er the vanquish'd Foe rejoice,
And to the Victor lift thy grateful Voice.
Here cease thy Labours and suppress thy Spleen,
Nor tell how Proteus still new Shapes puts on,
And labours to compleat what Snape begun:
The tedious Clue of Calumny lay down,
Nor wade through all the Kennels of the Town:
Triumphant o'er the vanquish'd Foe rejoice,
And to the Victor lift thy grateful Voice.
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Hail! great Supporter of your Countrey's Laws!
Hail! great Supporter of the Christian Cause!
Whose Zeal alike to Church and State shines forth,
And speaks the Prelate's and the Patriot's Worth;
To thee th'officious Muse directs her Flight,
And tow'rs ambitious the un-bounded Height.
The British Muse no Dangers can dismay,
If Justice prompt, and You inspire the Lay.
Hail! great Supporter of the Christian Cause!
Whose Zeal alike to Church and State shines forth,
And speaks the Prelate's and the Patriot's Worth;
To thee th'officious Muse directs her Flight,
And tow'rs ambitious the un-bounded Height.
The British Muse no Dangers can dismay,
If Justice prompt, and You inspire the Lay.
Thus would I tell to future Worlds your Fame,
How from Reproach you save your envy'd Name:
From ev'ry Part ward off redoubled Blows,
Whole Hosts repelling of invidious Foes,
Who view you posted in an Orb too bright,
Turn pale and sicken with superior Light:
Distinguish'd Worth ferments their jaundic'd Blood,
And Emulation rolls the spleenful Flood.
Calm and serene you see the Tempest rise,
Nor dread the ruffled Deeps and angry Skies:
In your own artless Innocence secure,
You teach us what a Christian can endure;
Wrongs unprovok'd with Candor you requite,
And in the midst of Wars in Peace delight.
How from Reproach you save your envy'd Name:
From ev'ry Part ward off redoubled Blows,
Whole Hosts repelling of invidious Foes,
Who view you posted in an Orb too bright,
Turn pale and sicken with superior Light:
Distinguish'd Worth ferments their jaundic'd Blood,
And Emulation rolls the spleenful Flood.
Calm and serene you see the Tempest rise,
Nor dread the ruffled Deeps and angry Skies:
71
You teach us what a Christian can endure;
Wrongs unprovok'd with Candor you requite,
And in the midst of Wars in Peace delight.
Thus the great Founder of the Christian Name,
Subdu'd his Foes, and stubborn Crowds o'ercame:
Unmov'd himself, their thickest Darts re-press'd,
The bitter Taunt, and the licentious Jest.
Benevolence and Love each Action sway'd,
And Virulence with Meekness he repaid.
Subdu'd his Foes, and stubborn Crowds o'ercame:
Unmov'd himself, their thickest Darts re-press'd,
The bitter Taunt, and the licentious Jest.
Benevolence and Love each Action sway'd,
And Virulence with Meekness he repaid.
Thro' many a shining Year I trace thy Name,
To the first glorious Dawnings of thy Fame:
Wrestling with Error from thy early Youth,
And crown'd with Lawrels in the Wars of Truth.
From impious Pens you vindicate the Word,
And rescue Conscience from the Penal Sword;
Thro' ev'ry Page what lovely Truths appear,
Thy Reas'nings strong, and thy Expressions clear?
From human Creeds you free the Christian Mind,
And gain the publick Thanks of Lay-Mankind.
To the first glorious Dawnings of thy Fame:
Wrestling with Error from thy early Youth,
And crown'd with Lawrels in the Wars of Truth.
From impious Pens you vindicate the Word,
And rescue Conscience from the Penal Sword;
Thro' ev'ry Page what lovely Truths appear,
Thy Reas'nings strong, and thy Expressions clear?
72
And gain the publick Thanks of Lay-Mankind.
The Protestant is written in thy Face,
And Candor opens with an honest Grace;
Thy Aspect speaks abundant in thy Praise,
And still we love the more, the more we gaze.
Wrapt in thy Name, my Heart in Triumph beats,
And my warm Pulse exults with living Heats.
Transports divine within my Bosom roll,
And in each Line I pour out half my Soul.
And Candor opens with an honest Grace;
Thy Aspect speaks abundant in thy Praise,
And still we love the more, the more we gaze.
Wrapt in thy Name, my Heart in Triumph beats,
And my warm Pulse exults with living Heats.
Transports divine within my Bosom roll,
And in each Line I pour out half my Soul.
Late, very late may'st thou from Earth remove
To those eternal blissful Scenes above,
Where choral Angels sing their Maker's Praise,
And Tenison breaks forth in heav'nly Lays:
O! late may'st thou partake the Joys Divine,
And with thy kindred Stars in Glory shine.
To those eternal blissful Scenes above,
Where choral Angels sing their Maker's Praise,
And Tenison breaks forth in heav'nly Lays:
O! late may'st thou partake the Joys Divine,
And with thy kindred Stars in Glory shine.
73
Meanwhile, my Lord, persue this glorious Cause,
And save whole Nations from Tyrannic Laws:
Dispel each Cloud of superstitious Fears,
And with the Sound of Freedom charm our Ears:
Remotest Christendom shall hear your Fame,
And future Tyrants tremble at your Name.
See! on his Hoadly from yon' Worlds of Light,
The mighty Nassau bends his grateful Sight!
Ev'n Brunswick owes his Sceptre to thy Hand,
And rules a restless discontented Land.
For see! the Jacobite, to Madness wrought,
Plans the gross Treason in his murd'rous Thought;
Full gallantly he plays the Traytor's Part,
And dies with Royal Bloodshed at his Heart:
Madding he bids each sanguine Hope good-night,
And disappointed, hangs for very Spight:
Bursting with Envy he resigns his Breath,
And mutters Treason in the Pangs of Death.
And save whole Nations from Tyrannic Laws:
Dispel each Cloud of superstitious Fears,
And with the Sound of Freedom charm our Ears:
Remotest Christendom shall hear your Fame,
And future Tyrants tremble at your Name.
See! on his Hoadly from yon' Worlds of Light,
The mighty Nassau bends his grateful Sight!
Ev'n Brunswick owes his Sceptre to thy Hand,
And rules a restless discontented Land.
For see! the Jacobite, to Madness wrought,
Plans the gross Treason in his murd'rous Thought;
Full gallantly he plays the Traytor's Part,
And dies with Royal Bloodshed at his Heart:
Madding he bids each sanguine Hope good-night,
And disappointed, hangs for very Spight:
Bursting with Envy he resigns his Breath,
And mutters Treason in the Pangs of Death.
74
Accept, my Lord, this tributary Praise,
And deign to pardon my presumptuous Lays:
In your own Works you Live, secure of Fame,
And through all Ages shall descend your Name,
'Till Nature and her Elements decay,
And all the frail Creation fades away.
And deign to pardon my presumptuous Lays:
In your own Works you Live, secure of Fame,
And through all Ages shall descend your Name,
'Till Nature and her Elements decay,
And all the frail Creation fades away.
FINIS.
| Protestant popery | |