 | Poems on Several Occasions |  |
To Thomas Adderly, Esq
The Muse abash'd thy leisure Hour attends,
To thee dismay'd her thankful Tribute sends,
So long by tim'rous Diffidence delay'd,
And now, tho' late, (alas!) thus poorly paid.
Yet still presuming humbly to appear
With grateful Wishes, and with Soul sincere,
She bids thee Welcome from the Waves and Wind,
Nor sings unmindful of thy Care behind;
From whom, with weeping Eyes, compell'd to part,
Slowly you turn'd, and brought but half your Heart;
Th'illustrious Youth with Justice claims the rest,
Since all thy Image fills his filial Breast.
Him shall thy Precepts shield on ev'ry Side,
Through ev'ry changing Clime his Guard and Guide;
Safely you send him with Ideas fraught,
Impress'd by Science, and by Wisdom taught:
Of Rank tho' conscious, and to Pow'r ally'd,
Yet bearing Titles with becoming Pride:
Whose Mind Religion's genuine Beauty warms;
Whom manly Piety, whom Reason charms:
Accomplish'd thus to stretch his early Ken,
And steer with Safety through the Ways of Men,
Secure he launches on the dang'rous Tide,
And shuns the Shelves and Rocks on either Side;
Caught by no Syren's soft bewitching Mien;
In Calms still cautious, and in Storms serene;
Through Life's all-varying Course sedately steers,
His Pilot, Prudence, still improv'd by Years.
With Transport shalt thou view the home-bound Sail
Gliding triumphant in the prosp'rous Gale,
Nor more by anxious tender Fears dismay'd,
Thy gen'rous Toils shall all be well repaid.
How few, like him, by wise Instruction aw'd,
At home his Country's Pride, her Boast abroad!
Like him, how few make Learning's Heights their Aim,
And climb, and pant to grasp at virtuous Fame!
Go then, bless'd Youth! expand thy curious Mind,
Go, and remark the Wiles of Humankind:
How Custom sways, how Pow'r supports Applause,
How slavish Yokes are sanctify'd by Laws;
Where Nature charms, the Tyrant's Frown annoys;
And Priestly Pride the heavenly Smile destroys.
If blooming Italy inchants thine Eye,
Its flow'ry Summits, and its Chrystal Sky,
With Pity view those Slaves whom Rigours goad,
Who groan and toil beneath the galling Load.
When Freedom's fled, what Joy to Man remains?
Who'd wish to drag in Paradise his Chains?
To thee dismay'd her thankful Tribute sends,
So long by tim'rous Diffidence delay'd,
And now, tho' late, (alas!) thus poorly paid.
Yet still presuming humbly to appear
With grateful Wishes, and with Soul sincere,
She bids thee Welcome from the Waves and Wind,
Nor sings unmindful of thy Care behind;
From whom, with weeping Eyes, compell'd to part,
Slowly you turn'd, and brought but half your Heart;
Th'illustrious Youth with Justice claims the rest,
Since all thy Image fills his filial Breast.
Him shall thy Precepts shield on ev'ry Side,
Through ev'ry changing Clime his Guard and Guide;
36
Impress'd by Science, and by Wisdom taught:
Of Rank tho' conscious, and to Pow'r ally'd,
Yet bearing Titles with becoming Pride:
Whose Mind Religion's genuine Beauty warms;
Whom manly Piety, whom Reason charms:
Accomplish'd thus to stretch his early Ken,
And steer with Safety through the Ways of Men,
Secure he launches on the dang'rous Tide,
And shuns the Shelves and Rocks on either Side;
Caught by no Syren's soft bewitching Mien;
In Calms still cautious, and in Storms serene;
Through Life's all-varying Course sedately steers,
His Pilot, Prudence, still improv'd by Years.
With Transport shalt thou view the home-bound Sail
Gliding triumphant in the prosp'rous Gale,
Nor more by anxious tender Fears dismay'd,
Thy gen'rous Toils shall all be well repaid.
How few, like him, by wise Instruction aw'd,
At home his Country's Pride, her Boast abroad!
Like him, how few make Learning's Heights their Aim,
And climb, and pant to grasp at virtuous Fame!
Go then, bless'd Youth! expand thy curious Mind,
Go, and remark the Wiles of Humankind:
How Custom sways, how Pow'r supports Applause,
How slavish Yokes are sanctify'd by Laws;
Where Nature charms, the Tyrant's Frown annoys;
And Priestly Pride the heavenly Smile destroys.
If blooming Italy inchants thine Eye,
Its flow'ry Summits, and its Chrystal Sky,
With Pity view those Slaves whom Rigours goad,
Who groan and toil beneath the galling Load.
37
Who'd wish to drag in Paradise his Chains?
See ancient Rome, where Earth's grand Tyrants sway'd,
Now Time's sad Prey, in Heaps of Ruin laid:
Recording Stone in dumb Confusion lies,
Whilst Virgil's deathless Song his Stroke defies.
Bright in the Lyric Bard's immortal Page
Mecenas shines through ev'ry distant Age,
Through ev'ry Clime, in ev'ry Language known,
The Patron's Fame has with the Poet's flown.
How glows thy Breast to equal ev'ry Deed!
How kindles at his Glories as you read!
Now Time's sad Prey, in Heaps of Ruin laid:
Recording Stone in dumb Confusion lies,
Whilst Virgil's deathless Song his Stroke defies.
Bright in the Lyric Bard's immortal Page
Mecenas shines through ev'ry distant Age,
Through ev'ry Clime, in ev'ry Language known,
The Patron's Fame has with the Poet's flown.
How glows thy Breast to equal ev'ry Deed!
How kindles at his Glories as you read!
Oh! could my Muse insure her short-liv'd Song,
Like Horace sprightly, and like Virgil strong,
To Time's last Stage my envy'd Name should shine,
And bloom, immortal, by recording thine.
Like Horace sprightly, and like Virgil strong,
To Time's last Stage my envy'd Name should shine,
And bloom, immortal, by recording thine.
| Poems on Several Occasions | |