University of Virginia Library

SOLILOQUY XIII.

Ye happy minds, that free from mortal chains,
Possess the realms where boundless pleasure reigns,
That feel the force of those immortal fires,
And reach the bliss, to which my soul aspires;
Who meet, unveil'd, that radiant majesty,
Of which, to gain one transient glance, I'd die;
I charge you, by the boundless joys you feel,
My tender cares to my beloved tell;
Make all th' aspiring inclination known,
In such high strains as you describe your own;
In such exalted numbers as explain
The sacred flames which in your bosoms reign;
When all the heights of ecstasy you prove,
And breathe the raptures of immortal love.
O tell the glorious object, whom I prize
Beyond the chearful light that meets mine eyes,
Beyond my friend, or any dearer name,
Beyond the breath that feeds this vital frame,
Beyond whate'er is charming here below,
Beyond the brightest joys that mortals know,
Beyond all these, O tell him that I love!
Tell him what anguish for his sake I prove;
Tell him how long the hours of his delay,
And what I suffer by this tedious stay;
Tell him his absence robs my soul of rest,
While cruel jealousy torments my breast.
O let him know that my distracted mind
No real joy, while he withdraws, can find;
That all my hopes are center'd in his love,
How lost without it, how undone I prove!
Tell him that nothing can that loss repair,
Nor help the soul that dismal stroke to bear,
Nothing ensues but grief, and black despair:
Nothing beyond my soul could undergo;
'Tis death! 'tis hell! 'tis all unmingled woe!