The Poetical Works of Hector MacNeill ... A New Edition, Corrected and Enlarged. In Two Volumes |
 | I. |
TO MISS JEAN AND MISS ISABELLA MONRO,
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| II. |
 | The Poetical Works of Hector MacNeill |  |
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TO MISS JEAN AND MISS ISABELLA MONRO,
WITH TWO BOTTLES OF THE OTTA OF ROSES.
Tost rudely round this whirling sphere,
Estranged from all he valued dear;
Shut out from beauty's bright'ning ray;
The social night, the tranquil day;
Involved in tumult's wild uproar,
And dropt on India's burning shore;
Behold a woe-worn wand'rer roam,
Far from his friends and native home!
Estranged from all he valued dear;
Shut out from beauty's bright'ning ray;
The social night, the tranquil day;
Involved in tumult's wild uproar,
And dropt on India's burning shore;
Behold a woe-worn wand'rer roam,
Far from his friends and native home!
83
‘Thus 'scaped from storm and battle's rage
,
Shall I,’ he cried, ‘new ills engage!
Shall I, by wayward fortune crossed,
Droop sorrowing on a foreign coast;
And whelmed at last in hopeless gloom,
Sink unlamented to the tomb!’
Shall I,’ he cried, ‘new ills engage!
Shall I, by wayward fortune crossed,
Droop sorrowing on a foreign coast;
And whelmed at last in hopeless gloom,
Sink unlamented to the tomb!’
‘Perish the thought!’ a seraph cries,
(A seraph wafted from the skies .)
‘Perish the thought! a softer ray
Yet comes to guide thy wildered way.
What though rude mirth and tempest's roar,
And fortune frowning locks her store;
What though no converse reigns refined,
And loved Miranda's left behind;
A brighter morn will yet appear
To chace the gloom and gild the year;
A milder dawn o'erspread the grove,
A warmer theme attune to love;
When freedom's sun bright o'er the main
Illumes fair Albion's cliffs again;
And glittering high on mountain hoar,
Proclaims afar loved Scotia's shore;
Where friendship waits in smiles arrayed,
To bind the wounds that fate has made;
And sympathy, with melting eye,
To catch the tale, and heave the sigh;
And mild oblivion, kind to cast
Her dark'ning shade o'er suff'rings past.
(A seraph wafted from the skies .)
‘Perish the thought! a softer ray
Yet comes to guide thy wildered way.
84
And fortune frowning locks her store;
What though no converse reigns refined,
And loved Miranda's left behind;
A brighter morn will yet appear
To chace the gloom and gild the year;
A milder dawn o'erspread the grove,
A warmer theme attune to love;
When freedom's sun bright o'er the main
Illumes fair Albion's cliffs again;
And glittering high on mountain hoar,
Proclaims afar loved Scotia's shore;
Where friendship waits in smiles arrayed,
To bind the wounds that fate has made;
And sympathy, with melting eye,
To catch the tale, and heave the sigh;
85
Her dark'ning shade o'er suff'rings past.
‘Meanwhile,’ she said, ‘this gift receive,
And henceforth, wand'rer, cease to grieve;
For know, in this a virtue rare,
(A passport likewise to the fair.)
Can cheer dejection's languid gloom,
And rich, to beauty yield perfume!
Guard then this treasure, and when fate
Conducts thee safe, or soon, or late,
Where Forth's meanderings gently glide
Through fields that wave their cultured pride,
There, while again thou wander'st o'er
Each dear loved spot, oft trod before;
Or from Strevlina's height serene
Survey'st around the pictured scene;
Or view'st sublime her castled towers
From A---'s sheltering bowers;
Where social mirth wan care beguiles,
'Midst female virtues, female smiles;
While hope's fond joys past sorrows heal,
Let breasts like thine fresh ardour feel,
To mark each virtue as it springs,
And as the muse impassioned sings,
On maids of worth this gift bestow,
A---; a---; a Monro.’
And henceforth, wand'rer, cease to grieve;
For know, in this a virtue rare,
(A passport likewise to the fair.)
Can cheer dejection's languid gloom,
And rich, to beauty yield perfume!
Guard then this treasure, and when fate
Conducts thee safe, or soon, or late,
Where Forth's meanderings gently glide
Through fields that wave their cultured pride,
There, while again thou wander'st o'er
Each dear loved spot, oft trod before;
86
Survey'st around the pictured scene;
Or view'st sublime her castled towers
From A---'s sheltering bowers;
Where social mirth wan care beguiles,
'Midst female virtues, female smiles;
While hope's fond joys past sorrows heal,
Let breasts like thine fresh ardour feel,
To mark each virtue as it springs,
And as the muse impassioned sings,
On maids of worth this gift bestow,
A---; a---; a Monro.’
Charmed with this tale, with sighs I prest
The welcome treasure to my breast;
‘Here dwell,’ I cried, ‘till fate once more
Conducts me safe to Scotia's shore!
Till free from tumult's madd'ning strife,
Once more I taste a poet's life;
And female smiles to soothe and cheer,
And love to cheat the lingering year:
Here rest,’ I cried, ‘till heaven bestows
Your ---'s, your ---'s, your Monro's!’
The welcome treasure to my breast;
87
Conducts me safe to Scotia's shore!
Till free from tumult's madd'ning strife,
Once more I taste a poet's life;
And female smiles to soothe and cheer,
And love to cheat the lingering year:
Here rest,’ I cried, ‘till heaven bestows
Your ---'s, your ---'s, your Monro's!’
The seraph smiled, and instant flew!
The canvas spread, Eolus blew!
From India's shores and burning skies,
O'er waves the Gibraltar flies.
Blow, blow, ye breezes! oft I said,
While seas the ling'ring voyage delayed;
Blow, blow, ye breezes! oft I cried,
While sleep her balmy rest denied:
Yet, midst my watchings, cares, and rest,
Still clasped the treasure to my breast!
The canvas spread, Eolus blew!
From India's shores and burning skies,
O'er waves the Gibraltar flies.
Blow, blow, ye breezes! oft I said,
While seas the ling'ring voyage delayed;
88
While sleep her balmy rest denied:
Yet, midst my watchings, cares, and rest,
Still clasped the treasure to my breast!
Relieved from cares that lately spread
A tempest round a wand'rer's head,
Arrived at length, where tumults cease,
And all within is hope and peace,
The warning seraph whispers low,
‘Remember Worth, and each Monro!’
A tempest round a wand'rer's head,
Arrived at length, where tumults cease,
And all within is hope and peace,
The warning seraph whispers low,
‘Remember Worth, and each Monro!’
Go! partner of my throbbing heart!
To gentler breasts thy balm impart!
Go!—to yon social bowers repair,
Far softer forms thy sweets shall share!
Go! and while odours from thee break
Round Jane or Bella's snowy neck,
Tell them from me, no sweets refined
Can match the tender female mind;
Nor Persia's rose , that blooms so fair,
With virtue's charms can e'er compare;
No! nor rich Ceylon's spicy gales,
Nor famed Arabia's scented vales,
A balm so grateful can diffuse,
To wake and animate the muse,
As that which shook from friendship's wing,
Attunes the lyre's according string,
And prompts e'en bards like me to sing!
To gentler breasts thy balm impart!
Go!—to yon social bowers repair,
Far softer forms thy sweets shall share!
89
Round Jane or Bella's snowy neck,
Tell them from me, no sweets refined
Can match the tender female mind;
Nor Persia's rose , that blooms so fair,
With virtue's charms can e'er compare;
No! nor rich Ceylon's spicy gales,
Nor famed Arabia's scented vales,
A balm so grateful can diffuse,
To wake and animate the muse,
As that which shook from friendship's wing,
Attunes the lyre's according string,
And prompts e'en bards like me to sing!
| The Poetical Works of Hector MacNeill | |