 | Poems |  |
196
THE LETTER OF THE LAW.
Tho' the Law's potent letter Ability puzzles,We all know too well that it Innocence muzzles;
Like Loretto's old fane, it yields varlets a living,
And fools give it wealth, for the sake of the giving;
The Inns of Court tenants at random abuse it,
And turn it and twist it whenever they use it;
As children at fairs use their gingerbread breeches,
They lick off its gilding, and bite off its riches;
Its frame wants a head, like John Lade or the torso,
'Tis so hideous no effort can e'er make it more so;
'Tis the birdlime of reason to fasten our senses,
'Tis an engine to punish our moral offences;
Tho' 'tis cover'd with filth like the stairs of St. Peter's,
The senate are daily encrusting its features:
Tho' Wisdom and Worth bade gaunt Exigence send it,
Yet the more we survey it, the less comprehend it;
It is crooked, 'tis straight, it is square, it is round,
Like Gibbons' odd visage, or Salisbury pound:
'Tis a thing which rewards not the beings who find it,
And Hope and Despair play at bo-peep behind it:
'Tis more difficult far to be right ascertain'd,
Than the murrane inscription which Daniel explain'd:
Some tell you 'tis sable, and some swear 'tis white,
Some aver 'tis polluted, some big with delight;
But Truth owns it wond'rously guts every purse,
And proves Knavery's comfort, and Equity's curse.
| Poems | |