Poems by the Late Reverend Dr. Thomas Blacklock Together with an Essay on the Education of the Blind. To Which is Prefixed A New Account of the Life and Writings of the Author |
 |
|
|
| I. |
| II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
| V. |
| VI. |
| VII. |
| VIII. |
| IX. |
| X. |
| XI. |
The GENEALOGY of NONSENSE. |
 | Poems by the Late Reverend Dr. Thomas Blacklock |  |
195
The GENEALOGY of NONSENSE.
With long and careful scrutiny in vain,
I search'd th' obscure recesses of my brain;
The muses oft, with mournful voice I woo'd,
To find a plea for silence if they could.
But thro' my search not one excuse appear'd,
And not a muse would answer if she heard.
Thus I remain'd in anxious, sad suspence,
Despairing aid from reason or from sense,
Till from a pow'r, of late well known to fame,
Tho' not invok'd, the wish'd solution came.
I search'd th' obscure recesses of my brain;
The muses oft, with mournful voice I woo'd,
To find a plea for silence if they could.
But thro' my search not one excuse appear'd,
And not a muse would answer if she heard.
Thus I remain'd in anxious, sad suspence,
Despairing aid from reason or from sense,
Till from a pow'r, of late well known to fame,
Tho' not invok'd, the wish'd solution came.
Now night incumbent shaded half the ball,
Silence assum'd her empire over all,
While on my eyes imperfect slumbers spread
Their downy wings, and hover'd round my head;
But still internal sense awake remain'd,
And still its first solicitude retain'd;
When, lo! with slow descent, obscurely bright,
Yet cloath'd in darkness visible, not light,
A form, high tow'ring to the distant skies,
In mimic grandeur, stood before my eyes:
As after storms waves faintly lash the shore,
As hollow winds in rocky caverns roar,
Such were the sounds which pierc'd my trembling ear,
And chill'd my soul with more than common fear.
Silence assum'd her empire over all,
While on my eyes imperfect slumbers spread
Their downy wings, and hover'd round my head;
But still internal sense awake remain'd,
And still its first solicitude retain'd;
When, lo! with slow descent, obscurely bright,
Yet cloath'd in darkness visible, not light,
A form, high tow'ring to the distant skies,
In mimic grandeur, stood before my eyes:
As after storms waves faintly lash the shore,
As hollow winds in rocky caverns roar,
196
And chill'd my soul with more than common fear.
Thus spoke the Pow'r:—“From yon extended void,
“Where Jove's creating hand was ne'er employ'd,
“Where soft with hard, and heavy mix'd with light,
“And heat with cold, maintain eternal fight;
“Where end the realms of order, form, and day;
“Where night and chaos hold primæval sway;
“Their first, their ever-darling offspring view,
“Who comes thy wonted calmness to renew.
“'Ere yet the mountains rear'd their heads on high,
“'Ere yet the radiant sun illum'd the sky,
“'Ere swelling hills, or humble vales were seen,
“Or woods the prospect chear'd with waving green;
“'Ere nature was, my wond'rous birth I date,
“More old than Chance, Necessity, or Fate;
“'Ere yet the Muses touch'd the vocal lyre,
“My reverend mother and tumultuous sire
“Beheld my wond'rous birth with vast amaze,
“And Discord's boundless empire roar'd my praise.
“Where Jove's creating hand was ne'er employ'd,
“Where soft with hard, and heavy mix'd with light,
“And heat with cold, maintain eternal fight;
“Where end the realms of order, form, and day;
“Where night and chaos hold primæval sway;
“Their first, their ever-darling offspring view,
“Who comes thy wonted calmness to renew.
“'Ere yet the mountains rear'd their heads on high,
“'Ere yet the radiant sun illum'd the sky,
“'Ere swelling hills, or humble vales were seen,
“Or woods the prospect chear'd with waving green;
“'Ere nature was, my wond'rous birth I date,
“More old than Chance, Necessity, or Fate;
“'Ere yet the Muses touch'd the vocal lyre,
“My reverend mother and tumultuous sire
“Beheld my wond'rous birth with vast amaze,
“And Discord's boundless empire roar'd my praise.
“In me, whate'er by nature is disjoin'd,
“All opposite extremes involv'd you find:
“Born to retain, by Fate's eternal doom,
“My sire's confusion, and my mother's gloom.
“Where'er extend the realms of letter'd pride,
“With uncontroll'd dominion I preside;
“Thro' its deep gloom I dart the doubtful ray,
“And teach the learned idiots where to stray:
“The labouring chemist, and profound divine,
“Err, not seduc'd by Reason's light, but mine.
“From me alone these boast the wond'rous skill
“To make a myst'ry, more mysterious still;
“While those pursue by science, not their own,
“The universal cure, and philosophic stone.
“Thus, when the leaden pedant courts my aid,
“To cover ignorance with learning's shade,
“To swell the folio to a proper size,
“And throw the clouds of art o'er nature's eyes,
“My soporific pow'r the sages own;
“Hence by the sacred name of Dulness known:
“But if mercurial scribblers pant for fame,
“Those I inspire, and Nonsense is my name.
“Sustain'd by me, thy muse first took her flight,
“I circumscrib'd its limits and its height;
“By me she sinks, by me she soars along;
“I rule her silence, and I prompt her song.”
“All opposite extremes involv'd you find:
“Born to retain, by Fate's eternal doom,
“My sire's confusion, and my mother's gloom.
“Where'er extend the realms of letter'd pride,
“With uncontroll'd dominion I preside;
197
“And teach the learned idiots where to stray:
“The labouring chemist, and profound divine,
“Err, not seduc'd by Reason's light, but mine.
“From me alone these boast the wond'rous skill
“To make a myst'ry, more mysterious still;
“While those pursue by science, not their own,
“The universal cure, and philosophic stone.
“Thus, when the leaden pedant courts my aid,
“To cover ignorance with learning's shade,
“To swell the folio to a proper size,
“And throw the clouds of art o'er nature's eyes,
“My soporific pow'r the sages own;
“Hence by the sacred name of Dulness known:
“But if mercurial scribblers pant for fame,
“Those I inspire, and Nonsense is my name.
“Sustain'd by me, thy muse first took her flight,
“I circumscrib'd its limits and its height;
“By me she sinks, by me she soars along;
“I rule her silence, and I prompt her song.”
My doubts resolv'd, the Goddess wing'd her flight
Dissolv'd in air, and mix'd with formless night.
Much more the muse, reluctant, must suppress,
For all the pow'r of time and fate confess;
Too soft her accents, and too weak her pray'r,
For time or fate, or cruel posts to hear.
Dissolv'd in air, and mix'd with formless night.
Much more the muse, reluctant, must suppress,
For all the pow'r of time and fate confess;
Too soft her accents, and too weak her pray'r,
For time or fate, or cruel posts to hear.
| Poems by the Late Reverend Dr. Thomas Blacklock | |