 | Paulina |  |
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PAULINA;
OR, THE RUSSIAN DAUGHTER.
BOOK I.
Where o'er the Russian plain the star of day
Sends 'midst long-ling'ring frost a feeble ray,
And scarce the peasant's ceaseless toil can find
A doubtful shelter from th' inclement wind;
Where hungry babes in dreary caverns weep,
And mirth is drunkenness, and bliss is sleep;
Where prowling wolves on icy desarts roar,
Or in starv'd troops surround the wretch's door;
And nought is heard at Winter's midnight hour,
But the sharp patt'ring of the hail-stone show'r,
Or some lost trav'ller shrieking from afar,
Or the fleet hurricane's tumultuous war;
While o'er the scene incumbent Horror flings
The hov'ring darkness of his dragon wings:
There, amongst uncouth wilds and cheerless snows,
An ancient, solitary mansion rose,
Remote from Petersburg, where lux'ry reigns,
And far from stately Moscow's num'rous fanes.
Severe with threat'ning battlements it frown'd,
The pride, the terror of the country round;
Beside the ruin'd gate, that sadly sung
In ev'ry passing gale with iron tongue,
A grisly wolf-dog, furious as the pard,
To seize the beggar stood, a dreadful guard.
Here no society with converse gay
Beguil'd the tardy Winter's mournful day,
But in dun robes, and wreath funereal drest,
Eye-sunken Melancholy smote her breast.
Near the breach'd wall that seem'd a garden's bound,
No woven bow'r, nor od'rous shrub was found,
But all was waste, and desolate, and drear,
And famine scowl'd, and sorrow triumph'd here:
Far from these time-worn tow'rs, with scornful eye
Warm Hospitality was forc'd to fly,
Fond to bestow beneath some humble shed,
The scanty morsel, and the stony bed.
Sends 'midst long-ling'ring frost a feeble ray,
And scarce the peasant's ceaseless toil can find
A doubtful shelter from th' inclement wind;
Where hungry babes in dreary caverns weep,
And mirth is drunkenness, and bliss is sleep;
Where prowling wolves on icy desarts roar,
Or in starv'd troops surround the wretch's door;
2
But the sharp patt'ring of the hail-stone show'r,
Or some lost trav'ller shrieking from afar,
Or the fleet hurricane's tumultuous war;
While o'er the scene incumbent Horror flings
The hov'ring darkness of his dragon wings:
There, amongst uncouth wilds and cheerless snows,
An ancient, solitary mansion rose,
Remote from Petersburg, where lux'ry reigns,
And far from stately Moscow's num'rous fanes.
Severe with threat'ning battlements it frown'd,
The pride, the terror of the country round;
Beside the ruin'd gate, that sadly sung
In ev'ry passing gale with iron tongue,
A grisly wolf-dog, furious as the pard,
To seize the beggar stood, a dreadful guard.
Here no society with converse gay
Beguil'd the tardy Winter's mournful day,
But in dun robes, and wreath funereal drest,
Eye-sunken Melancholy smote her breast.
3
No woven bow'r, nor od'rous shrub was found,
But all was waste, and desolate, and drear,
And famine scowl'd, and sorrow triumph'd here:
Far from these time-worn tow'rs, with scornful eye
Warm Hospitality was forc'd to fly,
Fond to bestow beneath some humble shed,
The scanty morsel, and the stony bed.
Here dwelt in haughty wretchedness a Lord,
Whose rage was justice, and whose law his word,
Whose wealth enormous swell'd from day to day,
Scourge of the poor, his mind more poor than they;
He saw, unmov'd, the vassal perish near,
The widow's anguish, and the orphan's tear;
Insensible to pity stern he stood,
Like some rude rock amid the Caspian flood,
Where shipwreck'd sailors unassisted lie,
And as they curse its barren bosom, die.
For baffled once when mad ambition fir'd,
Hither in shame, and sullen grief retir'd,
He strove by tyrant vengeance to assuage
The secret tortures of unsated rage.
Whose rage was justice, and whose law his word,
Whose wealth enormous swell'd from day to day,
Scourge of the poor, his mind more poor than they;
He saw, unmov'd, the vassal perish near,
The widow's anguish, and the orphan's tear;
Insensible to pity stern he stood,
Like some rude rock amid the Caspian flood,
Where shipwreck'd sailors unassisted lie,
And as they curse its barren bosom, die.
4
Hither in shame, and sullen grief retir'd,
He strove by tyrant vengeance to assuage
The secret tortures of unsated rage.
One beauteous daughter crown'd his youthful flame,
Sole nuptial pledge, Paulina was her name;
Bright as the rising morn that proudly shows
Tresses of wavy fire, and lips of rose;
Yes—she was fair beyond th' enchanting grace
That ancient poets feign of Helen's face;
Like Guido's angel beaming on the eye,
She seemed a meek descendant of the sky,
And her delicious forehead's narrow bound
Soft ringlets cast a playful shade around,
While oft her locks, too carelessly confin'd,
Loos'd by the wanton fury of the wind,
Would fall luxuriant o'er her milk-white vest,
Like Jove in golden show'r on Danae's breast.
Where'er she turn'd her soul-subduing gaze,
Th' observer faulter'd, but he faulter'd praise;
Her form was perfect as the finish'd piece,
The boast of Florence now, as once of Greece:
Each charm resistless innocence supplied,
No mock humility had she, nor pride,
No smiles affected, and no well-feign'd fears,
No fabricated sighs, fictitious tears;
But warm simplicity's unconscious glow
Ting'd her fresh cheek amid contrasting snow.
In scenes of splendor was Paulina rear'd,
Her infant days maternal fondness cheer'd;
For twice nine summers had the matron's care,
To ev'ry virtue train'd the pliant fair;
Taught her each gentle mystery to please
The songster's magic, and the dancer's ease,
T' enrich the canvass with the bold design,
And touch the mellow harp with force divine;
These by parental tenderness were given,
But sense and feeling she receiv'd from heaven.
Alas! twelve moons had sadly waned away,
Since in the tomb that friend, that mother lay;
While time, that brings to mem'ry's pangs relief,
Had only temper'd, not subdued her grief.
Nor felt the maid her private woes alone,
But ev'ry other's suff'rings were her own;
Whene'er she view'd th' imploring train around,
Moist on her breast the lucid tear was found;
As from the weeping willow dew-drops flow
Upon the lily of the wave below.
And still her bounty cheer'd the dull abode,
Where sickness sunk beneath affliction's load;
She bade mute anguish smiles of transport wear,
And rous'd to hope the slumber of despair.
What tho' she seem'd, if wand'ring on the plain,
A guardian Genius of some happier reign,
Or blue-ey'd Peace, 'midst olive groves of France
When hand in hand with Spring she leads the dance;
Yet far from social scenes condemn'd to stray,
And waste the sweetness of life's vernal day,
Known chiefly to the sad, Paulina sigh'd,
Her grief unmark'd, and lost her beauty's pride.
So the lone nightingale at twilight's close,
From mournful spray the luring measure throws,
But what avails the plaintive song, if near
No am'rous shepherd stop awhile to hear?
The class superior too was form'd of those,
Whose hearts were frigid as their native snows,
Who never sought to meet the fragrant gale,
While short-liv'd Summer sooth'd the weeping dale;
Nor prov'd the bliss that lulls Italia's breast,
When red-brow'd Evening calmly sinks to rest;
They ne'er had sported in the wanton bow'r,
That leering Mirth bedecks with many a flow'r,
In painted halls had never pass'd the day,
Amid the pleasures of the great and gay;
Nor in convivial elegance combin'd
By glowing sentiment t'exalt the mind,
Known not the rapture virtuous love bestows,
Nor caught the silent sympathy of woes;
But as the pines on some bleak mountain's height,
Which long have stood the Winter's stormy night,
Frown o'er the verdure of the cultur'd heath,
Nor bend before the Zephyr's balmy breath,
Such was the brutal band whom fate severe
Had doom'd to dwell in native exile here:
For as the unrelenting seasons roll,
The frozen influence chill'd their shrinking soul.
But when intoxication's furyfir'd
Their fev'rish veins, and desp'rate lust inspir'd,
They to the peasants dark abode would roam,
And bear the shrieking virgins to their home,
By forc'd embraces savage joy to prove,
And deem the russian violation love.
Sole nuptial pledge, Paulina was her name;
Bright as the rising morn that proudly shows
Tresses of wavy fire, and lips of rose;
Yes—she was fair beyond th' enchanting grace
That ancient poets feign of Helen's face;
Like Guido's angel beaming on the eye,
She seemed a meek descendant of the sky,
And her delicious forehead's narrow bound
Soft ringlets cast a playful shade around,
While oft her locks, too carelessly confin'd,
Loos'd by the wanton fury of the wind,
Would fall luxuriant o'er her milk-white vest,
Like Jove in golden show'r on Danae's breast.
5
Th' observer faulter'd, but he faulter'd praise;
Her form was perfect as the finish'd piece,
The boast of Florence now, as once of Greece:
Each charm resistless innocence supplied,
No mock humility had she, nor pride,
No smiles affected, and no well-feign'd fears,
No fabricated sighs, fictitious tears;
But warm simplicity's unconscious glow
Ting'd her fresh cheek amid contrasting snow.
In scenes of splendor was Paulina rear'd,
Her infant days maternal fondness cheer'd;
For twice nine summers had the matron's care,
To ev'ry virtue train'd the pliant fair;
Taught her each gentle mystery to please
The songster's magic, and the dancer's ease,
6
And touch the mellow harp with force divine;
These by parental tenderness were given,
But sense and feeling she receiv'd from heaven.
Alas! twelve moons had sadly waned away,
Since in the tomb that friend, that mother lay;
While time, that brings to mem'ry's pangs relief,
Had only temper'd, not subdued her grief.
Nor felt the maid her private woes alone,
But ev'ry other's suff'rings were her own;
Whene'er she view'd th' imploring train around,
Moist on her breast the lucid tear was found;
As from the weeping willow dew-drops flow
Upon the lily of the wave below.
And still her bounty cheer'd the dull abode,
Where sickness sunk beneath affliction's load;
She bade mute anguish smiles of transport wear,
And rous'd to hope the slumber of despair.
What tho' she seem'd, if wand'ring on the plain,
A guardian Genius of some happier reign,
7
When hand in hand with Spring she leads the dance;
Yet far from social scenes condemn'd to stray,
And waste the sweetness of life's vernal day,
Known chiefly to the sad, Paulina sigh'd,
Her grief unmark'd, and lost her beauty's pride.
So the lone nightingale at twilight's close,
From mournful spray the luring measure throws,
But what avails the plaintive song, if near
No am'rous shepherd stop awhile to hear?
The class superior too was form'd of those,
Whose hearts were frigid as their native snows,
Who never sought to meet the fragrant gale,
While short-liv'd Summer sooth'd the weeping dale;
Nor prov'd the bliss that lulls Italia's breast,
When red-brow'd Evening calmly sinks to rest;
They ne'er had sported in the wanton bow'r,
That leering Mirth bedecks with many a flow'r,
In painted halls had never pass'd the day,
Amid the pleasures of the great and gay;
8
By glowing sentiment t'exalt the mind,
Known not the rapture virtuous love bestows,
Nor caught the silent sympathy of woes;
But as the pines on some bleak mountain's height,
Which long have stood the Winter's stormy night,
Frown o'er the verdure of the cultur'd heath,
Nor bend before the Zephyr's balmy breath,
Such was the brutal band whom fate severe
Had doom'd to dwell in native exile here:
For as the unrelenting seasons roll,
The frozen influence chill'd their shrinking soul.
But when intoxication's furyfir'd
Their fev'rish veins, and desp'rate lust inspir'd,
They to the peasants dark abode would roam,
And bear the shrieking virgins to their home,
By forc'd embraces savage joy to prove,
And deem the russian violation love.
Mid such a race Paulina's bosom heav'd,
Mid such a race she trembled while she griev'd,
And shunn'd the fearful narratives to hear,
That on her warm cheek caus'd the useless tear,
But sought for refuge in her chamber rude,
Where the dull hour-bell mark'd her solitude;
No female friend had she, with converse kind,
To hush the doleful howling of the wind;
To cheer her heart amid the lonely night,
And combat sorrow by describ'd delight;
No female servant with assiduous care
The secret sufferings of her soul to share;
No tender parent now with asking eye,
Watch'd the weak heaving of th' unfinished sigh;
But sad she sunk, unable to sustain
The hopeless burthen of her daily pain.
E'en so some timid rose on Alpine height,
That faintly blushes 'midst a world of white,
By many a chilling blast its honors torn,
Slow-drooping withers on its inmate thorn.
Mid such a race she trembled while she griev'd,
9
That on her warm cheek caus'd the useless tear,
But sought for refuge in her chamber rude,
Where the dull hour-bell mark'd her solitude;
No female friend had she, with converse kind,
To hush the doleful howling of the wind;
To cheer her heart amid the lonely night,
And combat sorrow by describ'd delight;
No female servant with assiduous care
The secret sufferings of her soul to share;
No tender parent now with asking eye,
Watch'd the weak heaving of th' unfinished sigh;
But sad she sunk, unable to sustain
The hopeless burthen of her daily pain.
E'en so some timid rose on Alpine height,
That faintly blushes 'midst a world of white,
By many a chilling blast its honors torn,
Slow-drooping withers on its inmate thorn.
Whene'er she meekly courts her father's gaze,
No welcome word her filial warmth repays;
But oft he mocks her with insulting smiles,
And tells with shrewd remark of maiden wiles,
Enquires if fate has doom'd her yet to prove
The keen commotion of tyrannic love,
If much she dread, but more desire the day,
When nuptial bliss shall all her cares repay,
And some fond youth caressing and carest,
Shall strain her yielding to his raptur'd breast?
Then with ironic caution bids her show,
To mask each passion'd wish, a seeming woe.
Back to her couch Paulina would repair,
T'indulge the solemn luxury of despair,
To list the raven flap her fun'ral wing,
And round his boding notes the Kwakwa fling,
Or on the mountain's summit far away,
Hear the loud wolf exulting seize his prey.
No welcome word her filial warmth repays;
10
And tells with shrewd remark of maiden wiles,
Enquires if fate has doom'd her yet to prove
The keen commotion of tyrannic love,
If much she dread, but more desire the day,
When nuptial bliss shall all her cares repay,
And some fond youth caressing and carest,
Shall strain her yielding to his raptur'd breast?
Then with ironic caution bids her show,
To mask each passion'd wish, a seeming woe.
Back to her couch Paulina would repair,
T'indulge the solemn luxury of despair,
To list the raven flap her fun'ral wing,
And round his boding notes the Kwakwa fling,
Or on the mountain's summit far away,
Hear the loud wolf exulting seize his prey.
11
It chanc'd one eve ere slow-pac'd Spring appear'd,
Or softer gales relenting nature cheer'd,
The clouds before the driving north-wind flew,
And the sky brightened with expansive blue;
To view the wan moon lose her languid ray
Where whiter still th'extending desarts lay,
To view the stars their mingling beams bestow,
And muse on other worlds, perhaps of woe,
Awhile the maiden at her terrace stood,
Fair as the fabled daughter of the flood.
And now in wild amaze she starts to hear
A plaintive song, that prov'd the songster near,
From manly voice th' expressive numbers rose,
And thus the sorrows tremulantly close,
“Alas! why sink'st thou blooming maid to rest,
“While here thy lover comes with care opprest,
“Yet sure for thee 'tis solace to complain,
“Tho' Hope refuse to animate the strain.
“Long have I wander'd and pour'd forth my woes
“To dark'ning forests, and surrounding snows,
“To sandy wastes, and the tempestuous sea,
“In distant regions, still unheard by thee.
“Thou, thou, bright gem of Nature! wast alone
“Free from the pathos of my constant moan.
“Then come my fair! and as the rising day
“Drives from the smoky lawn the mists away,
“When bashful April breathes her parting gale,
“And Winter loiters in the plashy vale;
“So shalt thou bid these mental clouds depart,
“And pour a dazzling transport on my heart.
Or softer gales relenting nature cheer'd,
The clouds before the driving north-wind flew,
And the sky brightened with expansive blue;
To view the wan moon lose her languid ray
Where whiter still th'extending desarts lay,
To view the stars their mingling beams bestow,
And muse on other worlds, perhaps of woe,
Awhile the maiden at her terrace stood,
Fair as the fabled daughter of the flood.
And now in wild amaze she starts to hear
A plaintive song, that prov'd the songster near,
From manly voice th' expressive numbers rose,
And thus the sorrows tremulantly close,
“Alas! why sink'st thou blooming maid to rest,
“While here thy lover comes with care opprest,
“Yet sure for thee 'tis solace to complain,
“Tho' Hope refuse to animate the strain.
“Long have I wander'd and pour'd forth my woes
“To dark'ning forests, and surrounding snows,
12
“In distant regions, still unheard by thee.
“Thou, thou, bright gem of Nature! wast alone
“Free from the pathos of my constant moan.
“Then come my fair! and as the rising day
“Drives from the smoky lawn the mists away,
“When bashful April breathes her parting gale,
“And Winter loiters in the plashy vale;
“So shalt thou bid these mental clouds depart,
“And pour a dazzling transport on my heart.
Paulina heard the suppliant accents rise,
With all the sweet disorder of surprize;
When from an aged tower's adjoining shade,
The youth advanc'd before th' astonish'd maid;
Around his limbs no wintry robe was cast,
T' oppose the fury of the searching blast,
But in despite of cold, his bosom bare
Betray'd a careless desolation there.
Tall was his stature, and his air was bold,
Erect of form, and graceful to behold,
Strong as the bounding elk he seem'd to move,
And ev'ry gesture spoke the force of love.
Such was the youth who met Paulina's sight,
Thro' the weak lustre of the lunar light,
Such when more near, her chamber tapers show,
As soft they shed the quiv'ring beam below.
With all the sweet disorder of surprize;
When from an aged tower's adjoining shade,
The youth advanc'd before th' astonish'd maid;
Around his limbs no wintry robe was cast,
T' oppose the fury of the searching blast,
But in despite of cold, his bosom bare
Betray'd a careless desolation there.
13
Erect of form, and graceful to behold,
Strong as the bounding elk he seem'd to move,
And ev'ry gesture spoke the force of love.
Such was the youth who met Paulina's sight,
Thro' the weak lustre of the lunar light,
Such when more near, her chamber tapers show,
As soft they shed the quiv'ring beam below.
Again he cries, “My best belov'd appear,
“And rouse to joy the melancholy year,
“At thy approach dissolving streams shall creep,
“And vegetation quit her frozen sleep;
“Where'er thy devious steps may chance to go,
“Shall lillies open, and shall roses blow,
“The struggling grass shall shoot the blade around,
“And the brown throstle trill a softer sound,
“While the rathe cuckow, unconnected bird!
“Shall in the concert of the groves be heard;
“Each wilderness shall smile to mark thy range,
“And ev'ry sadness, with my own, shall change.
“But sure, tis thou, who smiling com'st to hear
“The genuine sorrows of a heart sincere;
“O! may my tongue at least have pow'r to prove
“How much I suffer, and how much I love.
“And rouse to joy the melancholy year,
“At thy approach dissolving streams shall creep,
“And vegetation quit her frozen sleep;
“Where'er thy devious steps may chance to go,
“Shall lillies open, and shall roses blow,
“The struggling grass shall shoot the blade around,
“And the brown throstle trill a softer sound,
“While the rathe cuckow, unconnected bird!
“Shall in the concert of the groves be heard;
14
“And ev'ry sadness, with my own, shall change.
“But sure, tis thou, who smiling com'st to hear
“The genuine sorrows of a heart sincere;
“O! may my tongue at least have pow'r to prove
“How much I suffer, and how much I love.
“Cease, cease, sad youth unknown! thy piteous strain,
(The maid replied) “for here all hope is vain;
“Here pale Suspicion keeps her watchful court,
“Of rage and misery, the fix'd resort;
“And far the tim'rous loves and graces fly,
“Where silent suff'rance lifts the streaming eye.
“But could this land become the liv'liest scene,
“Where Nature smil'd in all her tints of green;
“Should liberal Spring her flow'ry vest display,
“In bright diversity of mingled ray
“Should azure rivers, curl'd by fresh'ning gales,
“Steal winding on thro' odour-breathing vales;
“Tho' sportive youths and maidens on the plain
“Danc'd to the piping shepherd's jovial strain,
“This Castle chang'd into the fair abode,
“Where pleasure wanton'd, and where freedom glow'd:
“Tho' the gay young with polish'd arts combin'd,
“And rival flatt'ry to subdue my mind,
“Yet would I still refuse each lover's pray'r,
“Save one, my faithful bosom's constant care;
“But he to chance of happier fortune known,
“Far distant roams, from me for ever gone;
“Nor thinks that here in solitude I weep,
“Recall his image at the hour of sleep!
“No—Markoff's son, in pow'r and wealth array'd,
“Forgets the fondness of a rural Maid.
“But why reproach?—I know not of his fate,
“Why dost thou, Love, usurp a seeming hate?
“Perhaps e'en now the fainting youth may stray
“Where with'ring suns dart fierce th' unslanting ray;
“Or, 'midst the horrors of some tangled wood,
“Meet the gaunt tyger keen for human blood;
“Or tug with weary toil the slavish oar
“Thro' the hot waves that beat on Afric's shore;
“Or else, more worthy of his gallant soul,
“Where ruthless battle's smoky volumes roll,
“He leads with valiant step his troops along,
“Himself the boast, the bravest of the throng
“But Oh! perhaps the leaden stroke is o'er,
“And I shall never, never see him more.
“Then why reproach?—go, rather go my sighs,
“Pant on his cheek, and sooth him ere he dies;
“Tell him, ye winds, this pitying show'r I shed,
“T' embalm his mem'ry, and to mourn him dead!
“Ah whither roves my troubled fancy's course,
“To real evils still connecting worse,
“While thou, lamented stranger, wait'st to find
“The soft condolence of a love-sick mind?
“Alas! no soft condolence I bestow,
“For sole Alexis can my bosom glow;
“Alike regardless of the world beside,
“My earliest hope shall be my latest pride.”
(The maid replied) “for here all hope is vain;
“Here pale Suspicion keeps her watchful court,
“Of rage and misery, the fix'd resort;
“And far the tim'rous loves and graces fly,
“Where silent suff'rance lifts the streaming eye.
“But could this land become the liv'liest scene,
“Where Nature smil'd in all her tints of green;
“Should liberal Spring her flow'ry vest display,
“In bright diversity of mingled ray
“Should azure rivers, curl'd by fresh'ning gales,
“Steal winding on thro' odour-breathing vales;
“Tho' sportive youths and maidens on the plain
“Danc'd to the piping shepherd's jovial strain,
15
“Where pleasure wanton'd, and where freedom glow'd:
“Tho' the gay young with polish'd arts combin'd,
“And rival flatt'ry to subdue my mind,
“Yet would I still refuse each lover's pray'r,
“Save one, my faithful bosom's constant care;
“But he to chance of happier fortune known,
“Far distant roams, from me for ever gone;
“Nor thinks that here in solitude I weep,
“Recall his image at the hour of sleep!
“No—Markoff's son, in pow'r and wealth array'd,
“Forgets the fondness of a rural Maid.
“But why reproach?—I know not of his fate,
“Why dost thou, Love, usurp a seeming hate?
“Perhaps e'en now the fainting youth may stray
“Where with'ring suns dart fierce th' unslanting ray;
“Or, 'midst the horrors of some tangled wood,
“Meet the gaunt tyger keen for human blood;
“Or tug with weary toil the slavish oar
“Thro' the hot waves that beat on Afric's shore;
16
“Where ruthless battle's smoky volumes roll,
“He leads with valiant step his troops along,
“Himself the boast, the bravest of the throng
“But Oh! perhaps the leaden stroke is o'er,
“And I shall never, never see him more.
“Then why reproach?—go, rather go my sighs,
“Pant on his cheek, and sooth him ere he dies;
“Tell him, ye winds, this pitying show'r I shed,
“T' embalm his mem'ry, and to mourn him dead!
“Ah whither roves my troubled fancy's course,
“To real evils still connecting worse,
“While thou, lamented stranger, wait'st to find
“The soft condolence of a love-sick mind?
“Alas! no soft condolence I bestow,
“For sole Alexis can my bosom glow;
“Alike regardless of the world beside,
“My earliest hope shall be my latest pride.”
“Blest be that found” returns th' exulting youth,
“Those radiant eyes that throw the glance of truth;
“For blest are all who view thy peerless charms,
“Most blest am I whom most thy beauty warms:
“But know, sweet Maid, and banish ev'ry fear,
“It is thy faithful lover lingers here;
“Yes, 'tis thine own Alexis, Markoff's son,
“Long since by fair Paulina's merit won,
“Comes here to languish, here to breathe his pain,
“And tread with amorous step this joyless plain.”
“Those radiant eyes that throw the glance of truth;
17
“Most blest am I whom most thy beauty warms:
“But know, sweet Maid, and banish ev'ry fear,
“It is thy faithful lover lingers here;
“Yes, 'tis thine own Alexis, Markoff's son,
“Long since by fair Paulina's merit won,
“Comes here to languish, here to breathe his pain,
“And tread with amorous step this joyless plain.”
Thrice had he seen th' increasing orb of night
Dart thro' the opening clouds its casual light;
And thrice with blunted horns perceiv'd it fade,
Lost in the thickness of impervious shade,
While he with watchings had outmatch'd the bear,
And told the Northern gust his bosom's care.
For her he left proud Moscow's glitt'ring tow'rs,
The festive theatres and social hours;
Unfit the loud, the frantic race to join,
Who drain the poison of misused wine;
True to his cherish'd vow he scorn'd to rove
The wanton bow'rs of prostituted love,
Where the deep heart-ach is conceal'd by smiles,
And keen abhorrence hid in wanton wiles.
Far other thoughts his cheerless soul employ,
Than the gay goblet, or the purchas'd joy;
Still mindful of the day when first at pray'r,
In solemn dome, he saw th' enchanting fair,
Observ'd the pious pleading of her eye,
And fervent rapture of the guiltless sigh:
O then he felt th' insinuating smart
Steal with mute transport o'er his vanquish'd heart;
While each successive day the passion grew,
Whene'er her conscious blushes met his view.
Yet soon, alas! his beating bosom found
The cruel anguish of th' inflicted wound,
The rage of doubt, the mis'ry of delay,
The splendor hated of the garish day,
The pangs of jealousy that madly move,
And all the bitter agony of love.
But when the Maid had smil'd his soul to peace,
And answ'ring glances bade each trouble cease,
As chance he stray'd beside the branching wood,
That join'd the garden where her palace stood,
What time the Summer sun-beam gilt the brow
Of Moscow's turrets, with departing glow;
To mark meek Twilight spread her pinions gray,
And draw the curtains of the tent of day,
T' escape the tumult that each city knows,
And taste the pleasure of the mind's repose;
Paulina came, O how supremely fair,
How soft her eye, how innocent her air!
'Twas then with melting sympathy they swore,
Thro' time and absence but to love the more,
Till the wish'd hour, too long by fate deny'd,
When fond Alexis might demand his bride:
But soon, alas! her disappointed Sire,
Chose from the court imperial to retire.
Far from her sight no lenient could he find,
T' appease the sickness of his widow'd mind,
But vainly then by foreign toils he strove,
And other cares, to combat those of love.
For twice twelve months he fought the turban'd foe,
Where the broad Danube's hast'ning waters flow;
Each rolling month but more confirm'd his grief,
For Death, tho' courted, still refus'd relief.
At length fatigu'd with war, and fruitless toil,
He sought the solace of his native soil;
Convinc'd no difference of time or place
Can rooted passion from the mind efface;
And since the flame with added vigour burn'd,
Or to possess her, or to die return'd:
So the dejected bird when sadly torn
By the sharp anguish of some fest'ring thorn,
Flies to the distant groves in search of rest,
But hastens back to perish on her nest.
For not emphatic beauty's thrilling pow'r,
The breast of lily, fairer than the flow'r,
The stedfast eye, by Nature newly taught
To throw the sultry ray of amorous thought,
The wild enchantment of each motion's grace,
Nor all the wond'rous glories of the face,
Could e'er awhile his settled with controul,
To stray from her the mistress of his soul.
Soon as Paulina heard his well-known name,
Her bosom redden'd with a sudden flame,
Surprize awhile restrained her passion's force,
While thus the youth pursued the fond discourse.
Dart thro' the opening clouds its casual light;
And thrice with blunted horns perceiv'd it fade,
Lost in the thickness of impervious shade,
While he with watchings had outmatch'd the bear,
And told the Northern gust his bosom's care.
For her he left proud Moscow's glitt'ring tow'rs,
The festive theatres and social hours;
Unfit the loud, the frantic race to join,
Who drain the poison of misused wine;
18
The wanton bow'rs of prostituted love,
Where the deep heart-ach is conceal'd by smiles,
And keen abhorrence hid in wanton wiles.
Far other thoughts his cheerless soul employ,
Than the gay goblet, or the purchas'd joy;
Still mindful of the day when first at pray'r,
In solemn dome, he saw th' enchanting fair,
Observ'd the pious pleading of her eye,
And fervent rapture of the guiltless sigh:
O then he felt th' insinuating smart
Steal with mute transport o'er his vanquish'd heart;
While each successive day the passion grew,
Whene'er her conscious blushes met his view.
Yet soon, alas! his beating bosom found
The cruel anguish of th' inflicted wound,
The rage of doubt, the mis'ry of delay,
The splendor hated of the garish day,
The pangs of jealousy that madly move,
And all the bitter agony of love.
19
And answ'ring glances bade each trouble cease,
As chance he stray'd beside the branching wood,
That join'd the garden where her palace stood,
What time the Summer sun-beam gilt the brow
Of Moscow's turrets, with departing glow;
To mark meek Twilight spread her pinions gray,
And draw the curtains of the tent of day,
T' escape the tumult that each city knows,
And taste the pleasure of the mind's repose;
Paulina came, O how supremely fair,
How soft her eye, how innocent her air!
'Twas then with melting sympathy they swore,
Thro' time and absence but to love the more,
Till the wish'd hour, too long by fate deny'd,
When fond Alexis might demand his bride:
But soon, alas! her disappointed Sire,
Chose from the court imperial to retire.
Far from her sight no lenient could he find,
T' appease the sickness of his widow'd mind,
20
And other cares, to combat those of love.
For twice twelve months he fought the turban'd foe,
Where the broad Danube's hast'ning waters flow;
Each rolling month but more confirm'd his grief,
For Death, tho' courted, still refus'd relief.
At length fatigu'd with war, and fruitless toil,
He sought the solace of his native soil;
Convinc'd no difference of time or place
Can rooted passion from the mind efface;
And since the flame with added vigour burn'd,
Or to possess her, or to die return'd:
So the dejected bird when sadly torn
By the sharp anguish of some fest'ring thorn,
Flies to the distant groves in search of rest,
But hastens back to perish on her nest.
For not emphatic beauty's thrilling pow'r,
The breast of lily, fairer than the flow'r,
The stedfast eye, by Nature newly taught
To throw the sultry ray of amorous thought,
21
Nor all the wond'rous glories of the face,
Could e'er awhile his settled with controul,
To stray from her the mistress of his soul.
Soon as Paulina heard his well-known name,
Her bosom redden'd with a sudden flame,
Surprize awhile restrained her passion's force,
While thus the youth pursued the fond discourse.
“Since I have prov'd all other hope is vain,
“I come to woo thee on this doleful plain,
“With caution woo thee, for thy father's ire
“Is chiefly kindled 'gainst my honor'd sire,
“Successful rival of his pow'r and fame,
“He scorns our house and e'en abhors our name.
“What then awaits my duly-proffer'd hand?
“For me refusal, and for thee command.
“This to avoid, O let us quickly fly
“To happier regions, and a social sky,
“Where the grave priest, in sacred robe array'd,
“Shall join Alexis to his darling maid;
“So shall Alexis leave the cavern drear,
“Where he has sigh'd a portion of the year,
“So shall Paulina quit this mansion dread,
“Her sorrows vanish, and her fears be fled.
“And my fleet rein-deer's eager steps shall haste
“O'er the bright surface of the frozen waste,
“Secure from ev'ry harm my snow-car glide,
“For Love shall be our guardian, and our guide.
“I come to woo thee on this doleful plain,
“With caution woo thee, for thy father's ire
“Is chiefly kindled 'gainst my honor'd sire,
“Successful rival of his pow'r and fame,
“He scorns our house and e'en abhors our name.
“What then awaits my duly-proffer'd hand?
“For me refusal, and for thee command.
“This to avoid, O let us quickly fly
“To happier regions, and a social sky,
22
“Shall join Alexis to his darling maid;
“So shall Alexis leave the cavern drear,
“Where he has sigh'd a portion of the year,
“So shall Paulina quit this mansion dread,
“Her sorrows vanish, and her fears be fled.
“And my fleet rein-deer's eager steps shall haste
“O'er the bright surface of the frozen waste,
“Secure from ev'ry harm my snow-car glide,
“For Love shall be our guardian, and our guide.
“O gen'rous youth,” the blushing maid replies,
While grateful pleasure sparkles in her eyes,
“All that thy heart has felt, I too shall feel,
“Till death's oblivion o'er my senses steal;
“No chance can alter, time subdue the flame,
“And e'en when life shall cease 'twill glow the same,
“For since my soul's immortal, love shall be
“Its fix'd companion for eternity.
“And sure Alexis! sure thy voice has pow'r
“To charm the songsters of the woodland bow'r,
“T'attract with potent spell yon lamp on high,
“That hangs majestic in the vaulted sky,
“As Lapland witches, who by hidden force
“Of storied magic, check its gradual course.
“What tho enraptured, I could linger long,
“Gaze on thy form, and listen to thy tongue,
“Yet O reflect, more fierce than beasts of prey
“Which keep their vigils in the lunar ray,
“That thou ador'd Alexis! hast to fear
“The dreadful vengeance of my sire severe.
“Who, when corroding dreams disturb his rest,
“Comes here to vent the torture of his breast.
“Then hence awhile, but when to-morrow's sun
“With west'ring wheel shall down th'Horizon run,
“Soon as the evening star shall glimmering shed
“A paly glow on yonder mountain's head;
“Thy careful guidance shall direct my feet,
“To quit for e'er this desolate retreat.
While grateful pleasure sparkles in her eyes,
“All that thy heart has felt, I too shall feel,
“Till death's oblivion o'er my senses steal;
“No chance can alter, time subdue the flame,
“And e'en when life shall cease 'twill glow the same,
23
“Its fix'd companion for eternity.
“And sure Alexis! sure thy voice has pow'r
“To charm the songsters of the woodland bow'r,
“T'attract with potent spell yon lamp on high,
“That hangs majestic in the vaulted sky,
“As Lapland witches, who by hidden force
“Of storied magic, check its gradual course.
“What tho enraptured, I could linger long,
“Gaze on thy form, and listen to thy tongue,
“Yet O reflect, more fierce than beasts of prey
“Which keep their vigils in the lunar ray,
“That thou ador'd Alexis! hast to fear
“The dreadful vengeance of my sire severe.
“Who, when corroding dreams disturb his rest,
“Comes here to vent the torture of his breast.
“Then hence awhile, but when to-morrow's sun
“With west'ring wheel shall down th'Horizon run,
“Soon as the evening star shall glimmering shed
“A paly glow on yonder mountain's head;
24
“To quit for e'er this desolate retreat.
While thus she speaks the argent moon retires,
And in a cloud collects her mimic fires,
Confusion reigns, and Terror's monster form
Stalks in the uproar of the coming storm,
His arrowy sleet the Genius of the pole
Shoots furious forth, and mutt'ring thunders roll,
While with red glance his eye-balls flash around;
And the broad lustre glows upon the ground;
The forest groans, and every beast of prey
Hies to his wonted covert far away;
The startled peasant shudd'ring in his bed,
Doubts the weak structure of th' uncertain shed,
Fears for the sole-left solace of his life,
His helpless infants, and his faithful wife.
But calm Alexis stands, for what can move
The heart of him who only lives to love?
Love, if the muse sing true, absorbs the mind,
And scatters gen'ral suff'rings to the wind,
Alike leads careless on his vot'ries, where
The speedy tempest rends the fields of air,
Or wide-consuming War, in sanguin'd vest,
Points the fell cannon at their fearless breast;
Beneath the line, or in the polar breeze,
The wand'ring lovers neither faint, nor freeze,
To them the same, as are the temp'rate skies,
Where beck'ning Pleasure rolls her wanton eyes.
And in a cloud collects her mimic fires,
Confusion reigns, and Terror's monster form
Stalks in the uproar of the coming storm,
His arrowy sleet the Genius of the pole
Shoots furious forth, and mutt'ring thunders roll,
While with red glance his eye-balls flash around;
And the broad lustre glows upon the ground;
The forest groans, and every beast of prey
Hies to his wonted covert far away;
The startled peasant shudd'ring in his bed,
Doubts the weak structure of th' uncertain shed,
Fears for the sole-left solace of his life,
His helpless infants, and his faithful wife.
But calm Alexis stands, for what can move
The heart of him who only lives to love?
25
And scatters gen'ral suff'rings to the wind,
Alike leads careless on his vot'ries, where
The speedy tempest rends the fields of air,
Or wide-consuming War, in sanguin'd vest,
Points the fell cannon at their fearless breast;
Beneath the line, or in the polar breeze,
The wand'ring lovers neither faint, nor freeze,
To them the same, as are the temp'rate skies,
Where beck'ning Pleasure rolls her wanton eyes.
Now o'er the pale Paulina's alter'd cheeks
Descends the glist'ning tear, and thus she speaks.
“O haste beloved youth! thyself to save
“From this rough season in yon cov'ring cave—
“—Ah no! in yonder cave perchance is found
“The writhing snake that gives the venom'd wound,
“Nor there the viper, man's imagin'd friend,
“Shall from the fatal sting thy limbs defend.
“And some ferocious beast may haunt the place
“In lurking rage, to seize the houseless race.
“Then seek, in pity to a maiden's fear,
“Seek, if thou canst, a welcome shelter here,
“Nor shall to-night my father's steps invade
“The sacred transport of a faithful maid;
“Tir'd with a sportsman's toil amid the snows,
“He early sought refreshment from repose,
“And far, his chamber on the southern side,
“From mine long passages, and halls divide:
“Nor is the terrace high, and Love has wings,
“O'er ev'ry human boundary he springs,
“When 'cross the Hellespont th' enamour'd boy
“Swam to the bow'r of Hero, and of joy,
“'Twas Love sustain'd him on the dang'rous wave,
“And bad th' obedient billows cease to rave,
“But when his wav'ring breast more faintly sigh'd,
“The God forsook him, and the Lover dy'd.
“Then come—to reach this proffer'd shelter strive,
“And at my glowing hearth thy limbs revive;
“I'll wipe the frozen chrystal from thy brow,
“And kiss each drop might modesty allow,
“Chaff thy chill temples with the tend'rest care,
“And press the moisture from thy shining hair;
“Or while thy tongue each wand'ring toil shall tell,
“My ready eye shall stream, my bosom swell.”
It chanc'd a spreading fir that many a year
Had shed its shatter'd cones neglected here,
Around her terrace melancholy throws
Its green arms bending with a weight of snows.
Like circling ivy up the trunk he twines,
Mounts the firm branch that tow'rds the Maid inclines,
And as the Chamois from the icy brow,
Where bleak Helvetia shows th' abyss below,
Leaps o'er the gulph, and gains the dang'rous side,
To join his fav'rite female's airy pride:
The nimble Lover thus with measur'd bound,
Springs to Paulina's arms, and clasps her round,
Sooths with a fond respect her wak'ning fears,
And on her white hand melts in rapt'rous tears,
Tells of the long-felt pangs that tore his breast,
Days mark'd with woe, and nights unknown to rest;
His eyes o'er all her timid beauties rove
In sweet delirium of extatic love;
His plighted faith with solemn oaths he gives,
As solemn she his plighted faith receives.
In whisp'ring joy the rapid moments glide,
He looks the husband, and she smiles the bride;
To happier scenes their active fancies stray,
The hop'd Elysium of a future day.
Descends the glist'ning tear, and thus she speaks.
“O haste beloved youth! thyself to save
“From this rough season in yon cov'ring cave—
“—Ah no! in yonder cave perchance is found
“The writhing snake that gives the venom'd wound,
“Nor there the viper, man's imagin'd friend,
“Shall from the fatal sting thy limbs defend.
26
“In lurking rage, to seize the houseless race.
“Then seek, in pity to a maiden's fear,
“Seek, if thou canst, a welcome shelter here,
“Nor shall to-night my father's steps invade
“The sacred transport of a faithful maid;
“Tir'd with a sportsman's toil amid the snows,
“He early sought refreshment from repose,
“And far, his chamber on the southern side,
“From mine long passages, and halls divide:
“Nor is the terrace high, and Love has wings,
“O'er ev'ry human boundary he springs,
“When 'cross the Hellespont th' enamour'd boy
“Swam to the bow'r of Hero, and of joy,
“'Twas Love sustain'd him on the dang'rous wave,
“And bad th' obedient billows cease to rave,
27
“The God forsook him, and the Lover dy'd.
“Then come—to reach this proffer'd shelter strive,
“And at my glowing hearth thy limbs revive;
“I'll wipe the frozen chrystal from thy brow,
“And kiss each drop might modesty allow,
“Chaff thy chill temples with the tend'rest care,
“And press the moisture from thy shining hair;
“Or while thy tongue each wand'ring toil shall tell,
“My ready eye shall stream, my bosom swell.”
It chanc'd a spreading fir that many a year
Had shed its shatter'd cones neglected here,
Around her terrace melancholy throws
Its green arms bending with a weight of snows.
Like circling ivy up the trunk he twines,
Mounts the firm branch that tow'rds the Maid inclines,
And as the Chamois from the icy brow,
Where bleak Helvetia shows th' abyss below,
28
To join his fav'rite female's airy pride:
The nimble Lover thus with measur'd bound,
Springs to Paulina's arms, and clasps her round,
Sooths with a fond respect her wak'ning fears,
And on her white hand melts in rapt'rous tears,
Tells of the long-felt pangs that tore his breast,
Days mark'd with woe, and nights unknown to rest;
His eyes o'er all her timid beauties rove
In sweet delirium of extatic love;
His plighted faith with solemn oaths he gives,
As solemn she his plighted faith receives.
In whisp'ring joy the rapid moments glide,
He looks the husband, and she smiles the bride;
To happier scenes their active fancies stray,
The hop'd Elysium of a future day.
It may perhaps be almost needless to observe, that this passage alludes to that inimitable Grecian statue called the Venus of Medicis, which was discovered at Tivoli, and formerly stood in the Medici Palace on Mount Pincio at Rome; on which account it received its present name. It was brought to Florence by order of Cosmo III. Great Duke of Tuscany.
The Night-crow, Le Corbeau de Nuit, Ardea Nycticorax, is called in the Russian language Kwakwa, and that name says a French writer, well expresses the disagreeable cry of the bird, which is such, “qu'on croit entendre un homme qui vomit.” It is also supposed to be ominous.
The Snow-car, Traineau, or Sledge, in which the Inhabitants of most Northern nations traverse the snows, is drawn by Rein-deer throughout Lapland, and in some parts of Russia.
In some parts of Russia the viper is supposed to understand the language of men, and to prevent serpents from hurting the country people who may sleep in the open air.
Les Morduans de ces contrées se sont fait des idées tres-singuliéres de la Vipere ordinaire, Coluber Natrix, qui est assez commune dans ce pays; ils se font le plus grand scrupule de tuer un de ces animaux, & croyent qu'ils entendent le language humain, & empechent les autres serpens de nuire aux gens de la campagne, qui s'endorment en plein champ.
See Histoire des Decouvertes faites par divers savans voyageurs, dans plusieurs contrèes de la Russie & de la Perse. Vol. 1. page 149.Des précipices, parmi lesquels le plus hardi montagnard n'erre qu'en tremblant, sont la patrie du Chamois; il parcourt légérement leurs hauteurs et leurs abîmes, que l'homme ose à peine mesurer des yeux; l'animal a la plus juste idée des distances. Mr. Ramond Translator of the Letters of Mr. Coxe from Switzerland, vol. 1, page 272.
29
BOOK II.
Ye British fair who tread the blissful plains,
Where Virtue triumphs, and where freedom reigns,
Who oft at eve the Thames' green banks along
Wander to hear the Attic warbler's song,
Or see the pale-cheek'd moon expand her beam,
And bathe her silv'ry curls amid the stream,
List the blithe milkmaid's sweetly carrol'd tale,
That charms the plodding plowman of the vale:
Yes, ye who pass in social joys the day,
Careless and jocund as the roving May,
When first she blushes on the varied scene,
And decks with pearly brede her mantle green,
Who scorn each hidden vice, each low disguise,
Lovely as light, and open as the skies!
Deem not amiss that Russia's hapless maid,
By pity soften'd, and by passion sway'd,
Shelter'd the gen'rous youth she most ador'd,
When rush'd the fire-bolt, and the tempest roar'd.
And O reflect that unsuspecting love,
Can narrow prudence from the mind remove,
With flow'ry wreath obscure the virgin's eyes,
And mock the tenets of the grave and wise.
Where Virtue triumphs, and where freedom reigns,
Who oft at eve the Thames' green banks along
Wander to hear the Attic warbler's song,
Or see the pale-cheek'd moon expand her beam,
And bathe her silv'ry curls amid the stream,
List the blithe milkmaid's sweetly carrol'd tale,
That charms the plodding plowman of the vale:
Yes, ye who pass in social joys the day,
Careless and jocund as the roving May,
30
And decks with pearly brede her mantle green,
Who scorn each hidden vice, each low disguise,
Lovely as light, and open as the skies!
Deem not amiss that Russia's hapless maid,
By pity soften'd, and by passion sway'd,
Shelter'd the gen'rous youth she most ador'd,
When rush'd the fire-bolt, and the tempest roar'd.
And O reflect that unsuspecting love,
Can narrow prudence from the mind remove,
With flow'ry wreath obscure the virgin's eyes,
And mock the tenets of the grave and wise.
Ye too, fond youths! whose raptur'd souls have prov'd
The unresisted pleasure to be lov'd,
Th' exalting madness of the joys that flow
When closing eyelids point the breast of snow,
When on the cheek, abash'd with praises, glows
The downy crimson of the infant rose,
Have seen the dark eye shoot the vivid dart,
That sinks oppressive in the forceless heart,
The even teeth with lust'rous iv'ry grace
The moist cornelians of their living case,
The glossy texture of the copious hair,
And all th' extatic beauties of the fair:
Ye for Paulina's griefs shall sigh sincere
And drop with me an unavailing tear.
The unresisted pleasure to be lov'd,
Th' exalting madness of the joys that flow
When closing eyelids point the breast of snow,
When on the cheek, abash'd with praises, glows
The downy crimson of the infant rose,
31
That sinks oppressive in the forceless heart,
The even teeth with lust'rous iv'ry grace
The moist cornelians of their living case,
The glossy texture of the copious hair,
And all th' extatic beauties of the fair:
Ye for Paulina's griefs shall sigh sincere
And drop with me an unavailing tear.
Now the soft moments roseate love beguiles,
While warm affection wakes her winning smiles,
Alexis tells of dang'rous scenes of war,
When carnage stalk'd on Turkey's plains afar;
Yet no vain vaunt his genuine tongue can raise,
No modest seeming of self-giving praise,
But truth and valour's noblest pride imparts,
The scorn of fiction, and the boaster's arts.
The maid describes each agonizing care,
Of hopeless passion, parent of despair.
The rude emotions of her father's rage,
That tears can neither alter, nor assuage.
While warm affection wakes her winning smiles,
Alexis tells of dang'rous scenes of war,
When carnage stalk'd on Turkey's plains afar;
Yet no vain vaunt his genuine tongue can raise,
No modest seeming of self-giving praise,
But truth and valour's noblest pride imparts,
The scorn of fiction, and the boaster's arts.
The maid describes each agonizing care,
Of hopeless passion, parent of despair.
32
That tears can neither alter, nor assuage.
As thus she speaks, oft flows the silent show'r
In sad remembrance of each painful hour,
But soon her lov'd Alexis' soothing voice
Chased the dull woe, and bade her heart rejoice;
Slow-rising hopes her humid cheeks adorn,
Like sun-beams glittering thro' a vap'rous morn.
But O what horror seiz'd her quiv'ring heart,
What unprov'd anguish of distressful smart,
When on the steps that to her chamber lead,
She starting listens to her father's tread;
With out-stretch'd arm, and terror-rolling eye,
Perceives his steady pace still winding nigh,
And destitute of ev'ry wish'd relief,
She stands a marble monument of grief;
Mean time Alexis' more attentive care,
Observ'd a chest that time was mould'ring there,
Within the stifling void his limbs he threw,
And ere it clos'd sigh'd forth one deep adieu.
In sad remembrance of each painful hour,
But soon her lov'd Alexis' soothing voice
Chased the dull woe, and bade her heart rejoice;
Slow-rising hopes her humid cheeks adorn,
Like sun-beams glittering thro' a vap'rous morn.
But O what horror seiz'd her quiv'ring heart,
What unprov'd anguish of distressful smart,
When on the steps that to her chamber lead,
She starting listens to her father's tread;
With out-stretch'd arm, and terror-rolling eye,
Perceives his steady pace still winding nigh,
And destitute of ev'ry wish'd relief,
She stands a marble monument of grief;
Mean time Alexis' more attentive care,
Observ'd a chest that time was mould'ring there,
33
And ere it clos'd sigh'd forth one deep adieu.
Now comes her Sire with brow in anger drest,
While hard-drawn breathing tears his lab'ring breast.
Then thus exclaims, “Thou torment of my life,
“Thou living semblance of my hated wife,
“Why thus, disturb'd at midnight's peaceful hour,
“Shun'st thou oblivious sleep's consoling pow'r?
“If, as thou say'st, and as thy tears betray,
“All comfortless is pass'd th' unsocial day;
“At least when night extends her sable veil,
“And the gall'd captive ceases to bewail;
“When the throng'd Shepherds, midst the falling snow,
“Enwrapt in furry coats their cares forego,
“While the burnt bush defends them from the cold,
“And scares the savage spoiler of the fold;
“O then, at least, restrain th' impatient sigh,
“And with soft slumber seal thy roving eye.
“But thou, when all the living mock the dead,
“Measur'st thy chamber with unquiet tread,
“And scorn'st to calm thy vain romantic woes
“With offer'd solace of benign repose:
“Perhaps some lawless flame usurps thy breast,
“Some youth tho' absent still disturbs thy rest;
“Tho' absent, say I? or perchance not so,
“With folded arms he now may watch below;
“Nay, such are female arts, this chest may hold
“Some base seducer, some advent'rer bold.
“But know, insidious Girl, if e'er I find
“That shallow love subdue thy narrow mind,
“Or vagrant Striplings haunt th' adjacent plains
“To throw the glance, or wake the wanton strains;
“And that thou view'st them with the practis'd smile,
“Design'd alike to comfort and beguile;
“By heav'ns eternal Majesty I swear,
“Thy life is doom'd to solitary care;
“To long succession of increasing pain,
“To sigh neglected, and to hope in vain!
“Nay do not weep, nor strive in me to move
“Th' unmanly weakness of paternal love;
“But rather on thy bed, in slumber laid,
“Call fancy's hov'ring visions to thine aid.
“Fancy may lead thee to some murm'ring stream,
“Bring the wish'd lover in extatic dream,
“May show thee gardens rich with fragrant flow'rs,
“Where flutt'ring youth consumes the sportive hours;
“Paint the proud festival, the banquet gay,
“And scatter myrtles on thy bridal day.
“So shall fictitious joys thy pangs subdue—
Then stern he frown'd, and hasten'd from her view.
While hard-drawn breathing tears his lab'ring breast.
Then thus exclaims, “Thou torment of my life,
“Thou living semblance of my hated wife,
“Why thus, disturb'd at midnight's peaceful hour,
“Shun'st thou oblivious sleep's consoling pow'r?
“If, as thou say'st, and as thy tears betray,
“All comfortless is pass'd th' unsocial day;
“At least when night extends her sable veil,
“And the gall'd captive ceases to bewail;
“When the throng'd Shepherds, midst the falling snow,
“Enwrapt in furry coats their cares forego,
“While the burnt bush defends them from the cold,
“And scares the savage spoiler of the fold;
“O then, at least, restrain th' impatient sigh,
“And with soft slumber seal thy roving eye.
34
“Measur'st thy chamber with unquiet tread,
“And scorn'st to calm thy vain romantic woes
“With offer'd solace of benign repose:
“Perhaps some lawless flame usurps thy breast,
“Some youth tho' absent still disturbs thy rest;
“Tho' absent, say I? or perchance not so,
“With folded arms he now may watch below;
“Nay, such are female arts, this chest may hold
“Some base seducer, some advent'rer bold.
“But know, insidious Girl, if e'er I find
“That shallow love subdue thy narrow mind,
“Or vagrant Striplings haunt th' adjacent plains
“To throw the glance, or wake the wanton strains;
“And that thou view'st them with the practis'd smile,
“Design'd alike to comfort and beguile;
“By heav'ns eternal Majesty I swear,
“Thy life is doom'd to solitary care;
“To long succession of increasing pain,
“To sigh neglected, and to hope in vain!
35
“Th' unmanly weakness of paternal love;
“But rather on thy bed, in slumber laid,
“Call fancy's hov'ring visions to thine aid.
“Fancy may lead thee to some murm'ring stream,
“Bring the wish'd lover in extatic dream,
“May show thee gardens rich with fragrant flow'rs,
“Where flutt'ring youth consumes the sportive hours;
“Paint the proud festival, the banquet gay,
“And scatter myrtles on thy bridal day.
“So shall fictitious joys thy pangs subdue—
Then stern he frown'd, and hasten'd from her view.
Come now distracted Muse! whose tresses flow
In desolation of severest woe,
Who lov'st to haunt the promontory's height,
Where Ocean struggles with the storms of night.
When oft as Eurus checks his frantic rage,
Gives the short pause a fiercer war to wage,
Shrilly is heard upon the wild waves tost
The last sad sea-cry ere the vessel's lost;
While the lone cannon groans upon the air,
And seems the dying Echo of despair;
Yes thou! who strik'st thy lyre with pathos deep,
When all the sons of toil are sunk in sleep,
And 'midst the Gothic minster's solemn gloom,
Welcom'st the pale ghost issuing from the tomb:
Or warn'st the western isles with doleful strain
Of the near coming of the hurricane:
Who awful wak'st the melancholy dirge,
When Pestilence appears with venom'd scourge,
And the sad city's hopeless thousands rave,
And youth and beauty gorge the hungry grave:
Whose song was heard amid the dismal yell,
When shook Calabria, and Messina fell!
Inspire my sorr'wing verse, which strives to show
The start of anguish, and the shriek of woe,
The pray'r half utter'd, and the tear half shed,
When first Paulina found her lover dead.
For ruthless fate had seal'd th' eternal doom,
And changed his place of refuge to a tomb.
With such an air and such a desp'rate mien,
Beside Adonis stood the Cyprian queen,
When the boar-lacerated boy she found,
And latest life was gushing from the wound.
Ah who can tell the pangs the maiden prov'd
For lost Alexis, whom alone she lov'd!
She saw the rose grown livid on his cheek,
Yet strove with tone familiar still to speak;
Nor would she think it true, but ask'd him why
So cold his hand and so unmov'd his eye?
Said that the bitter tempest now was o'er,
Her father gone, and he need sleep no more.
But soon returning reason bade her know
The wide-embracing agony of woe;
Her bosom rose convulsive, the thick sigh
Stuck in her throat with passion'd extacy;
“And is,” she cried, “that noble spirit fled?—
“O let me also join the sacred dead!”
Then sudden sunk to momentary rest,
Cold on her dear Alexis' colder breast.
Alas! reviving sense awak'd her care
To deeper horrors of sublime despair;
To dire perfection of excessive pain,
To weep, to pray, to think, to feel in vain.
One while she melts, then stiffens into stone,
Now mingles laughter with her maniac moan;
Now on her terrace wildly rushing forth
To court the icy fury of the North,
Her fev'rish bosom only seems to find
A burning torrent in each passing wind:
Oft to Alexis, with imagin'd bliss,
She madly kneels, and gives th' unanswer'd kiss;
Awhile unsettled, and awhile serene,
She doubts, she loves, she hopes, and faints between.
In desolation of severest woe,
Who lov'st to haunt the promontory's height,
Where Ocean struggles with the storms of night.
When oft as Eurus checks his frantic rage,
Gives the short pause a fiercer war to wage,
36
The last sad sea-cry ere the vessel's lost;
While the lone cannon groans upon the air,
And seems the dying Echo of despair;
Yes thou! who strik'st thy lyre with pathos deep,
When all the sons of toil are sunk in sleep,
And 'midst the Gothic minster's solemn gloom,
Welcom'st the pale ghost issuing from the tomb:
Or warn'st the western isles with doleful strain
Of the near coming of the hurricane:
Who awful wak'st the melancholy dirge,
When Pestilence appears with venom'd scourge,
And the sad city's hopeless thousands rave,
And youth and beauty gorge the hungry grave:
Whose song was heard amid the dismal yell,
When shook Calabria, and Messina fell!
37
The start of anguish, and the shriek of woe,
The pray'r half utter'd, and the tear half shed,
When first Paulina found her lover dead.
For ruthless fate had seal'd th' eternal doom,
And changed his place of refuge to a tomb.
With such an air and such a desp'rate mien,
Beside Adonis stood the Cyprian queen,
When the boar-lacerated boy she found,
And latest life was gushing from the wound.
Ah who can tell the pangs the maiden prov'd
For lost Alexis, whom alone she lov'd!
She saw the rose grown livid on his cheek,
Yet strove with tone familiar still to speak;
Nor would she think it true, but ask'd him why
So cold his hand and so unmov'd his eye?
Said that the bitter tempest now was o'er,
Her father gone, and he need sleep no more.
But soon returning reason bade her know
The wide-embracing agony of woe;
38
Stuck in her throat with passion'd extacy;
“And is,” she cried, “that noble spirit fled?—
“O let me also join the sacred dead!”
Then sudden sunk to momentary rest,
Cold on her dear Alexis' colder breast.
Alas! reviving sense awak'd her care
To deeper horrors of sublime despair;
To dire perfection of excessive pain,
To weep, to pray, to think, to feel in vain.
One while she melts, then stiffens into stone,
Now mingles laughter with her maniac moan;
Now on her terrace wildly rushing forth
To court the icy fury of the North,
Her fev'rish bosom only seems to find
A burning torrent in each passing wind:
Oft to Alexis, with imagin'd bliss,
She madly kneels, and gives th' unanswer'd kiss;
Awhile unsettled, and awhile serene,
She doubts, she loves, she hopes, and faints between.
39
Ere on the Eastern hills the dawning day
Mark'd with weak eye the dun Night's sad array,
That slowly urges tow'rds the west afar
The gradual progress of her sable car,
New-rising terrors for a Father's ire
More prudent grief, and cautious thoughts inspire.
To bear the body thence she now must try,
Avoid imputed guilt, retire, and die.
With anxious step the trembling maiden goes
Where sinks the mansion's Porter in repose,
Whose daily care was in the porch to stand,
Well pleas'd to execute his Lord's command,
And sternly banish from th' unfriendly door,
The fainting trav'ler, and th' imploring poor.
Dark was his brow, and not one gleam of grace
Play'd on the surly features of his face;
His pallid eye-balls shot a villain's gaze,
Mingled with abject cunning's hateful rays;
Nor o'er his brows were Time's white honours shed,
But half-form'd gray usurp'd a sallow red;
No pleasing accents glided from his tongue,
Like age he seem'd that never had been young;
Yet oft his eye would send unholy fires,
That low lasciviousness alone inspires;
For when he saw Paulina's form appear,
He turn'd away, yet as he turn'd would leer,
And by the fiery glance too plainly show'd,
That brutal Passion in his bosom glow'd.
But most cold Avarice his thoughts confin'd,
And stifled ev'ry virtue in his mind.
Of him Paulina now implores relief,
With all the potent eloquence of grief;
Tells her sad tale, while at each word opprest,
The tear-drop falls a pearl upon her breast;
Paints the fell scene of anguish, to engage
His aid to screen her from a father's rage.
“O bear, she cries, those clay-cold limbs away,
“Close the fond eyes that late outshone the day;
“Hide, hide in earth that form, which Nature made
“Lovely as Summer when she cheers the glade,
“And from her verdant lap profusely throws]
“The sweets that Zephyr borrows from the rose.
“But now his beauty's o'er, his sense is gone,
“His love is vanish'd, and myself undone:
“Hush'd is that tuneful voice, which but to hear,
“Would check wild discord in her mid career,
“And lost the strong expression that could gain
“The ear of Pity for the plaint of Pain.
“No more he charms with unaffected grace,
“Nor shows an Eden blooming on his face.
“Outstretch'd he lies, nor feels a care for me,
“Who mourn his fate with helpless agony.
“Then roar ye blust'ring winds, ye storms descend,
“Come death and bid this thinking substance end;
“To join Alexis' let my spirit go,
“Escape a parent's rage, nor longer feel a woe.
Mark'd with weak eye the dun Night's sad array,
That slowly urges tow'rds the west afar
The gradual progress of her sable car,
New-rising terrors for a Father's ire
More prudent grief, and cautious thoughts inspire.
To bear the body thence she now must try,
Avoid imputed guilt, retire, and die.
With anxious step the trembling maiden goes
Where sinks the mansion's Porter in repose,
Whose daily care was in the porch to stand,
Well pleas'd to execute his Lord's command,
And sternly banish from th' unfriendly door,
The fainting trav'ler, and th' imploring poor.
Dark was his brow, and not one gleam of grace
Play'd on the surly features of his face;
His pallid eye-balls shot a villain's gaze,
Mingled with abject cunning's hateful rays;
Nor o'er his brows were Time's white honours shed,
But half-form'd gray usurp'd a sallow red;
40
Like age he seem'd that never had been young;
Yet oft his eye would send unholy fires,
That low lasciviousness alone inspires;
For when he saw Paulina's form appear,
He turn'd away, yet as he turn'd would leer,
And by the fiery glance too plainly show'd,
That brutal Passion in his bosom glow'd.
But most cold Avarice his thoughts confin'd,
And stifled ev'ry virtue in his mind.
Of him Paulina now implores relief,
With all the potent eloquence of grief;
Tells her sad tale, while at each word opprest,
The tear-drop falls a pearl upon her breast;
Paints the fell scene of anguish, to engage
His aid to screen her from a father's rage.
“O bear, she cries, those clay-cold limbs away,
“Close the fond eyes that late outshone the day;
“Hide, hide in earth that form, which Nature made
“Lovely as Summer when she cheers the glade,
41
“The sweets that Zephyr borrows from the rose.
“But now his beauty's o'er, his sense is gone,
“His love is vanish'd, and myself undone:
“Hush'd is that tuneful voice, which but to hear,
“Would check wild discord in her mid career,
“And lost the strong expression that could gain
“The ear of Pity for the plaint of Pain.
“No more he charms with unaffected grace,
“Nor shows an Eden blooming on his face.
“Outstretch'd he lies, nor feels a care for me,
“Who mourn his fate with helpless agony.
“Then roar ye blust'ring winds, ye storms descend,
“Come death and bid this thinking substance end;
“To join Alexis' let my spirit go,
“Escape a parent's rage, nor longer feel a woe.
Here ceas'd the fair, but in the Porter's heart,
No mild compassion rose to ease her smart;
He, all unused to the melting mood,
Like the fierce Panther of the desert stood,
And view'd with secret bliss his destin'd prize,
Enjoy'd her pangs, and feasted on her sighs,
Delighted saw each struggling passion tear,
The agonizing tumult of despair,
The winning bend of undulating woe,
The cheeks that redden'd with distraction's glow,
Her azure eyes that pour'd a lucid beam,
Thro' the clear medium of a crystal stream,
And all the nameless, all the countless charms,
That beauty shows when sunk in sorrow's arms:
For as his harden'd soul had never caught
The soothing softness of the tender thought,
No other taste of happiness had he,
But dark debauch, and sensuality.
And now he proves the quickly-rising fire,
The hell-born eagerness of hot desire;
Yet ere his vile intention he betray'd,
Thus with an angry look address'd the maid:
“O come not base dissembler! come not here,
“To melt by grief, and soften with a tear,
“To wind thy flagrant mis'ry round my heart,
“And of the trespass throw on me a part!
“Shall I my duty to thy Sire betray,
“And bear thy Lover's abject corse away?
“Whom Heaven, just judgment of his crimes, in ire
“Has hurl'd to death with quick-avenging fire.
“Sooner the tim'rous dove amid the skies
“Shall move the pouncing falcon by her cries;
“Or op'ning buds of th' early season find
“A fost'ring pity in the frozen wind,
“Than thou shalt e'er, to mitigate thy pain,
“In me a treacherous accomplice gain.
“No, I will seek thy sullen Father's room,
“Exalt thy guilt, and aggravate thy doom,
“By the keen sarcasm's pointed force engage
“To wake the vengeance of well-founded rage.
“One sole resource for thee will I bestow
“T' escape the horrors of impending woe—
“Nay hold me not, by gloomy night I swear,
“Unless thou willing com'st my bed to share,
“Unless thou yield'st the treasure of thy charms
“To the warm transport of these longing arms,
“Thy vile deceits shall reach the gen'ral ear,
“And thou shalt prove a father's wrath severe.”
Wild look'd the shudd'ring maid and spoke no more,
But sunk entranc'd upon the stony floor,
While the hot villain rais'd her senseless head,
And bore the hapless victim to his bed.
So the stray lamb that vainly seeks the mead,
Where shepherds guard, and flocks securely feed,
If the far-ranging wolf she chance to meet,
And claims his aid by many a plaintive bleat,
Seiz'd as his prey she lifts her hopeless eyes,
Perceives her sad mistake too late, and dies.
No mild compassion rose to ease her smart;
42
Like the fierce Panther of the desert stood,
And view'd with secret bliss his destin'd prize,
Enjoy'd her pangs, and feasted on her sighs,
Delighted saw each struggling passion tear,
The agonizing tumult of despair,
The winning bend of undulating woe,
The cheeks that redden'd with distraction's glow,
Her azure eyes that pour'd a lucid beam,
Thro' the clear medium of a crystal stream,
And all the nameless, all the countless charms,
That beauty shows when sunk in sorrow's arms:
For as his harden'd soul had never caught
The soothing softness of the tender thought,
No other taste of happiness had he,
But dark debauch, and sensuality.
And now he proves the quickly-rising fire,
The hell-born eagerness of hot desire;
Yet ere his vile intention he betray'd,
Thus with an angry look address'd the maid:
43
“To melt by grief, and soften with a tear,
“To wind thy flagrant mis'ry round my heart,
“And of the trespass throw on me a part!
“Shall I my duty to thy Sire betray,
“And bear thy Lover's abject corse away?
“Whom Heaven, just judgment of his crimes, in ire
“Has hurl'd to death with quick-avenging fire.
“Sooner the tim'rous dove amid the skies
“Shall move the pouncing falcon by her cries;
“Or op'ning buds of th' early season find
“A fost'ring pity in the frozen wind,
“Than thou shalt e'er, to mitigate thy pain,
“In me a treacherous accomplice gain.
“No, I will seek thy sullen Father's room,
“Exalt thy guilt, and aggravate thy doom,
“By the keen sarcasm's pointed force engage
“To wake the vengeance of well-founded rage.
“One sole resource for thee will I bestow
“T' escape the horrors of impending woe—
44
“Unless thou willing com'st my bed to share,
“Unless thou yield'st the treasure of thy charms
“To the warm transport of these longing arms,
“Thy vile deceits shall reach the gen'ral ear,
“And thou shalt prove a father's wrath severe.”
Wild look'd the shudd'ring maid and spoke no more,
But sunk entranc'd upon the stony floor,
While the hot villain rais'd her senseless head,
And bore the hapless victim to his bed.
So the stray lamb that vainly seeks the mead,
Where shepherds guard, and flocks securely feed,
If the far-ranging wolf she chance to meet,
And claims his aid by many a plaintive bleat,
Seiz'd as his prey she lifts her hopeless eyes,
Perceives her sad mistake too late, and dies.
Alas! what rending tortures wait the maid,
To that fierce wretch by circumstance betray'd!
Yes, 'twas for him kind Nature bade her eye
Outglow the fulgent stars that gem the sky;
Yes, yes, for him her hair's redundant gold
O'er her white crest in silken bounty roll'd,
And her soft bosom's heavenly seat of joy,
For him with russian rudeness to destroy:
O night accurst, when vice exulting reign'd,
And virtue sunk, and innocence was stain'd!
Long shall each feeling Bard that night bewail,
And with sad cadence fill the panting gale,
And all shall find a ready sorrow flow,
Who taught to suffer, learn to pity woe.
Sweet hapless Girl! the gentle, and the kind,
The true of sentiment, the pure of mind,
The virgin band who tread the dewy lawn,
And drink the fragrance of the breezy dawn,
Whose hearts are tender as the yielding grass
That marks their step's light pressure as they pass,
Each pensive youth who in the silent groves
Laments the absence of the maid he loves,
The brave, the just, the gen'rous, and the great,
Thy faults shall pardon, and shall mourn thy fate.
To that fierce wretch by circumstance betray'd!
45
Outglow the fulgent stars that gem the sky;
Yes, yes, for him her hair's redundant gold
O'er her white crest in silken bounty roll'd,
And her soft bosom's heavenly seat of joy,
For him with russian rudeness to destroy:
O night accurst, when vice exulting reign'd,
And virtue sunk, and innocence was stain'd!
Long shall each feeling Bard that night bewail,
And with sad cadence fill the panting gale,
And all shall find a ready sorrow flow,
Who taught to suffer, learn to pity woe.
Sweet hapless Girl! the gentle, and the kind,
The true of sentiment, the pure of mind,
The virgin band who tread the dewy lawn,
And drink the fragrance of the breezy dawn,
Whose hearts are tender as the yielding grass
That marks their step's light pressure as they pass,
Each pensive youth who in the silent groves
Laments the absence of the maid he loves,
46
Thy faults shall pardon, and shall mourn thy fate.
The sated villain now Paulina left,
O'ercome with rage, and of all hope bereft,
Then bore Alexis to a neighb'ring wood,
Stab'd his cold heart, and stain'd the wound with blood,
There welt'ring in the wind the youth he laid,
To meet some casual trav'ler's fun'ral aid;
And sure the vent'rous Poet's song may say,
That circling Dryads wept upon his clay;
The Hamadryads stood attentive there,
And Pan's wild ditty warbled thro' the air:
That meek Diana check'd the jocund chase,
And with her flocking nymphs adorn'd the place;
With folded arms she stood, and drooping head,
As she had seen her own Endymion dead:
And there the feather'd tribe of various wing
Brought the pale primrose, herald of the spring;
While near the snow drop's silken cups reclin'd,
And the fresh vi'let breathing odours join'd.
O'ercome with rage, and of all hope bereft,
Then bore Alexis to a neighb'ring wood,
Stab'd his cold heart, and stain'd the wound with blood,
There welt'ring in the wind the youth he laid,
To meet some casual trav'ler's fun'ral aid;
And sure the vent'rous Poet's song may say,
That circling Dryads wept upon his clay;
The Hamadryads stood attentive there,
And Pan's wild ditty warbled thro' the air:
That meek Diana check'd the jocund chase,
And with her flocking nymphs adorn'd the place;
With folded arms she stood, and drooping head,
As she had seen her own Endymion dead:
And there the feather'd tribe of various wing
Brought the pale primrose, herald of the spring;
47
And the fresh vi'let breathing odours join'd.
Th' inhuman Porter now a tyrant grown,
Smiles at Paulina's rage, and mocks her moan;
Whene'er he calls, the unassisted fair
Is doom'd his execrable bed to share,
Meet the lewd terrors of his dire embrace,
And yield th' insulting spoiler ev'ry grace,
Till oft repeated pleasures pall'd his sense,
And int'rest fought for other recompense.
Poor luckless Girl! and wast thou forc'd to feel
Such pangs as modesty could ne'er reveal;
And, like the rose of some unshelter'd dale,
Scatter thy sweets to ev'ry rifling gale;
To each low-minded boor whose wealth could buy,
Submissive come in poignant misery?
Smiles at Paulina's rage, and mocks her moan;
Whene'er he calls, the unassisted fair
Is doom'd his execrable bed to share,
Meet the lewd terrors of his dire embrace,
And yield th' insulting spoiler ev'ry grace,
Till oft repeated pleasures pall'd his sense,
And int'rest fought for other recompense.
Poor luckless Girl! and wast thou forc'd to feel
Such pangs as modesty could ne'er reveal;
And, like the rose of some unshelter'd dale,
Scatter thy sweets to ev'ry rifling gale;
To each low-minded boor whose wealth could buy,
Submissive come in poignant misery?
Soon as dull night a murky mantle spread
O'er the dim plain, and mountain's misty head,
Some sordid lovers to her couch repair,
And press the beauties of th' abhorrent fair;
The young, the vain, the hideous, and the old,
Bought the reluctant extacy with gold.
Poor luckless Girl!—in vain the rising Day
Sent from the purpled East his cheering ray:
To her the Sun in dazzling glory bright,
Was all as sad and gloomy as the night;
For keenest torments prey'd upon her soul,
While each requir'd redress her fears controul.
The brutal Porter's threats repeated still
Subdu'd with tyrant force her female will;
In desolate dismay her moments pass'd,
While still she wish'd each moment were her last.
With mind more pure than are th' unsullied snows,
Where no warm beam its lustre ever throws,
She meets her hard, her prostituted doom,
And fancies lust the prelude of the tomb.
Forc'd like some wounded deer that sadly strays
Thro' thorny paths, and many mingling ways,
To drop, in lone retreat, the fruitless tear,
And find no rest nor consolation near.
The Sun's bright orb had travers'd now two signs,
Where the broad Zodiac's circling belt inclines,
When mild Paulina at the close of eve
Sought her drear chamber, unobserv'd to grieve;
And hop'd awhile to find in soft repose
A sweet oblivious respite of her woes;
To pass one night to hateful vice unknown,
Uninjured, unmolested, and alone.
'Cross her cold couch in piteous sort she lay,
While wistful Mem'ry mark'd her happier day;
When late, unruffled as the placid meer,
Whose surface shows th' inverted landscape there,
She prest her own Alexis to her heart,
Source of short bliss, but never-ending smart;
And as she still recall'd him to her view,
Sigh'd for the virtuous love that once she knew:
Her mournful thoughts dwell on his fatal end,
And from her eyes the frequent tears descend;
While oft to heav'n she pours the fervent prayer,
To ease her pains, and let her perish there.
O'er the dim plain, and mountain's misty head,
48
And press the beauties of th' abhorrent fair;
The young, the vain, the hideous, and the old,
Bought the reluctant extacy with gold.
Poor luckless Girl!—in vain the rising Day
Sent from the purpled East his cheering ray:
To her the Sun in dazzling glory bright,
Was all as sad and gloomy as the night;
For keenest torments prey'd upon her soul,
While each requir'd redress her fears controul.
The brutal Porter's threats repeated still
Subdu'd with tyrant force her female will;
In desolate dismay her moments pass'd,
While still she wish'd each moment were her last.
With mind more pure than are th' unsullied snows,
Where no warm beam its lustre ever throws,
She meets her hard, her prostituted doom,
And fancies lust the prelude of the tomb.
Forc'd like some wounded deer that sadly strays
Thro' thorny paths, and many mingling ways,
49
And find no rest nor consolation near.
The Sun's bright orb had travers'd now two signs,
Where the broad Zodiac's circling belt inclines,
When mild Paulina at the close of eve
Sought her drear chamber, unobserv'd to grieve;
And hop'd awhile to find in soft repose
A sweet oblivious respite of her woes;
To pass one night to hateful vice unknown,
Uninjured, unmolested, and alone.
'Cross her cold couch in piteous sort she lay,
While wistful Mem'ry mark'd her happier day;
When late, unruffled as the placid meer,
Whose surface shows th' inverted landscape there,
She prest her own Alexis to her heart,
Source of short bliss, but never-ending smart;
And as she still recall'd him to her view,
Sigh'd for the virtuous love that once she knew:
Her mournful thoughts dwell on his fatal end,
And from her eyes the frequent tears descend;
50
To ease her pains, and let her perish there.
As thus she melancholy lay reclin'd,
Nor wearied sorrow slumber'd in her mind,
Again the Porter claims his vanquish'd prey,
And leads her footsteps o'er the lonely way,
Until they reach a dissolute abode,
Whose num'rous lights th' internal concourse show'd,
Where twelve mean wretches drain'd the frantic bowl,
Of manners rude, and infamous of soul,
Rough as Mount-Cenis' cloud-encircled brow,
That angry low'rs on Piedmont's vale below,
Barren of sentiment and feeling too,
Sons of severe debauch, a baleful crew;
To such as these the meek Paulina borne,
With eyes that stream'd like April's humid morn,
Sustain'd the savage wrongs of brutal fire,
Their mingled insults, and their causeless ire;
'Till as the sense-dispelling liquor flows,
Each the dark madness of his bosom shows;
Some, proud of infamy, avow their crimes,
The fault'ring Porter tells of former times;
Rage swells on rage, on tumult tumults rise,
'Till recollection sinks, and reason flies,
And drunkenness, than death more dire to view,
Wraps in oblivious veil th' inhuman crew.
Meantime Paulina who with folded arms
Sate silent by, and brooded o'er her harms,
Observ'd th' occasion, while within her breast
Revenge awoke for modesty opprest;
She saw weak hope expand a twilight ray,
That offer'd rest to calm her future day:
So the poor sailor on the broken mast,
Driv'n o'er the turgid wave by every blast,
Amid the darkness of the boist'rous night
Woos with impassion'd eye th' approach of light;
And O! what heart-consoling transports rise,
If with the early gleam he land descries,
Tho' bleak the shores, and barren hills appear,
He bids them welcome with a joy sincere.
Nor wearied sorrow slumber'd in her mind,
Again the Porter claims his vanquish'd prey,
And leads her footsteps o'er the lonely way,
Until they reach a dissolute abode,
Whose num'rous lights th' internal concourse show'd,
Where twelve mean wretches drain'd the frantic bowl,
Of manners rude, and infamous of soul,
Rough as Mount-Cenis' cloud-encircled brow,
That angry low'rs on Piedmont's vale below,
Barren of sentiment and feeling too,
Sons of severe debauch, a baleful crew;
To such as these the meek Paulina borne,
With eyes that stream'd like April's humid morn,
Sustain'd the savage wrongs of brutal fire,
Their mingled insults, and their causeless ire;
51
Each the dark madness of his bosom shows;
Some, proud of infamy, avow their crimes,
The fault'ring Porter tells of former times;
Rage swells on rage, on tumult tumults rise,
'Till recollection sinks, and reason flies,
And drunkenness, than death more dire to view,
Wraps in oblivious veil th' inhuman crew.
Meantime Paulina who with folded arms
Sate silent by, and brooded o'er her harms,
Observ'd th' occasion, while within her breast
Revenge awoke for modesty opprest;
She saw weak hope expand a twilight ray,
That offer'd rest to calm her future day:
So the poor sailor on the broken mast,
Driv'n o'er the turgid wave by every blast,
Amid the darkness of the boist'rous night
Woos with impassion'd eye th' approach of light;
And O! what heart-consoling transports rise,
If with the early gleam he land descries,
52
He bids them welcome with a joy sincere.
Ah! who among the best can ever know
What coming guilt may lay his virtue low?
Strange chance, or injury, or love, or rage,
To sudden acts of infamy engage;
And the most happy may to-morrow try,
The arduous weight of life's calamity.
What coming guilt may lay his virtue low?
Strange chance, or injury, or love, or rage,
To sudden acts of infamy engage;
And the most happy may to-morrow try,
The arduous weight of life's calamity.
Now stern Paulina, rising at the thought,
From the dull Porter's belt a dagger caught,
She threw the softness of her sex aside,
Gaz'd on the glitt'ring point, and thus she cried:
“Hail freedom hail! from loathed vice I fly,
“Ye ruthless violating miscreants! die,
“Die cursed crew, and may the pow'r that reigns,
“Just, and immortal, bid you feel my pains,
“When all my tears were useless, and my sighs
“Made lust more eager for the sacrifice;
“Say, shall these corpse-like limbs from day to day,
“Be borne for ev'ry scornful boor a prey,
“And shall I tamely meet the crying sin,
“Nor find remorse, nor vengeance stir within?
“No— in reward for all the wrongs I feel,
“Prove the sharp searching of this deadly steel;
“And thou belov'd Alexis, injur'd shade!
“Behold me vindicate the vows I made;
“For tho' mine innocence be lost, for thee
“My soul retains it's first sincerity.
She ceas'd, and with unerring stroke around,
In ev'ry heart fix'd deep the vengeful wound;
Death triumph'd there, while from each villain's side
The ebbing purple pour'd a smoky tide.
From the dull Porter's belt a dagger caught,
She threw the softness of her sex aside,
Gaz'd on the glitt'ring point, and thus she cried:
“Hail freedom hail! from loathed vice I fly,
“Ye ruthless violating miscreants! die,
“Die cursed crew, and may the pow'r that reigns,
“Just, and immortal, bid you feel my pains,
“When all my tears were useless, and my sighs
“Made lust more eager for the sacrifice;
53
“Be borne for ev'ry scornful boor a prey,
“And shall I tamely meet the crying sin,
“Nor find remorse, nor vengeance stir within?
“No— in reward for all the wrongs I feel,
“Prove the sharp searching of this deadly steel;
“And thou belov'd Alexis, injur'd shade!
“Behold me vindicate the vows I made;
“For tho' mine innocence be lost, for thee
“My soul retains it's first sincerity.
She ceas'd, and with unerring stroke around,
In ev'ry heart fix'd deep the vengeful wound;
Death triumph'd there, while from each villain's side
The ebbing purple pour'd a smoky tide.
Now from the horrid scene she turn'd her view,
And with quick-palpitating anguish flew.
But first in haste the mansion key she tore,
That her late tyrant at his girdle bore:
Then home return'd across the silent lawn,
With all the fleetness of the bounding fawn.
Soon as she reach'd her solitary room,
Which yet no streaks of early light illume,
On the hard floor her lovely limbs she throws,
While many a tear it's timely aid bestows;
Then on her knees in agony of sighs,
Thus to the Pow'r supreme her accents rise.
“O thou first cause! who rul'st this world below,
“Dread scene of complicated vice and woe,
“If to thine all-embracing spirit seem
“Or good, or bad, this life's mysterious dream,
“If thou can'st pity those who suffer here
“The settled sorrow of the daily tear,
“If ev'ry action of this world combin'd
“Still float before thine inexhausted mind,
“My injuries shall with my faults be known,
“And plead for pardon at thine awful throne.
“Now too in deep contrition will I swear
“To pass my life in penitence and pray'r,
“To pour the pious hymn at early morn,
“Quit ev'ry rose, and dwell upon the thorn.
“Far from my heav'n-fix'd thoughts shall now be hurl'd
“The joys of youth and pleasures of the world;
“In humble solitude my days shall flow,
“And hallow'd hope be all the bliss I know.
“Grim Suicide, to ease my lab'ring heart,
“Shall vainly lift his sadly-tempting dart;
“For I will suffer what just fate may give,
“And, all my sins to expiate, dare to live:
“But when at length these agonies are fled,
“And my cold corse is number'd with the dead;
“Forgiven all the horror of my crimes,
“Perhaps I then shall mount th' angelic climes,
“Where meek ey'd Mercy, with a sister's love,
“Shall the just tumult of my fears remove;
“And dear Alexis to my soul be join'd,
“In sacred essence of etherial mind;
“With happiness unalter'd still to be,
“While length'ning time becomes eternity.”
And with quick-palpitating anguish flew.
But first in haste the mansion key she tore,
That her late tyrant at his girdle bore:
Then home return'd across the silent lawn,
With all the fleetness of the bounding fawn.
54
Which yet no streaks of early light illume,
On the hard floor her lovely limbs she throws,
While many a tear it's timely aid bestows;
Then on her knees in agony of sighs,
Thus to the Pow'r supreme her accents rise.
“O thou first cause! who rul'st this world below,
“Dread scene of complicated vice and woe,
“If to thine all-embracing spirit seem
“Or good, or bad, this life's mysterious dream,
“If thou can'st pity those who suffer here
“The settled sorrow of the daily tear,
“If ev'ry action of this world combin'd
“Still float before thine inexhausted mind,
“My injuries shall with my faults be known,
“And plead for pardon at thine awful throne.
“Now too in deep contrition will I swear
“To pass my life in penitence and pray'r,
“To pour the pious hymn at early morn,
“Quit ev'ry rose, and dwell upon the thorn.
“Far from my heav'n-fix'd thoughts shall now be hurl'd
“The joys of youth and pleasures of the world;
55
“And hallow'd hope be all the bliss I know.
“Grim Suicide, to ease my lab'ring heart,
“Shall vainly lift his sadly-tempting dart;
“For I will suffer what just fate may give,
“And, all my sins to expiate, dare to live:
“But when at length these agonies are fled,
“And my cold corse is number'd with the dead;
“Forgiven all the horror of my crimes,
“Perhaps I then shall mount th' angelic climes,
“Where meek ey'd Mercy, with a sister's love,
“Shall the just tumult of my fears remove;
“And dear Alexis to my soul be join'd,
“In sacred essence of etherial mind;
“With happiness unalter'd still to be,
“While length'ning time becomes eternity.”
This alludes to the tremendous Earthquake in the beginning of February, 1783, which entirely destroyed the city of Messina, and buried many thousands of the inhabitants. Its ravages were also extended throughout Calabria, which Country it laid waste. Sir Wm. Hamilton has given a very interesting and scientifick account of its causes and effects.
It has been objected by Friends whose opinion I much respect, that the continuation of Paulina's submission to her wrongs, takes from the propriety of pity; but if it be considered that the same cause existed, which overcame her in the first instance, I hope I shall be justified in adhering to the fact.
It may perhaps not be uninteresting to the curious to know, that the whole of the above-related transaction was discovered by means of the Wife of Paulina's Confessor; and that in consequence the magnanimous Catharine II. took the unfortunate girl under her protection, and procured her the necessary retirement in a Convent, which she ardently desired.
THE END.
| Paulina | |