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Ode to Melancholy.
Daughter of grave reflection, gentle power,
Whose dictates oft improve the lonely hour,
Kind melancholy come!
I seek thy friendly aid;
Beneath thy hallow'd shade
(Still, unmolested gloom,)
Gay mirth's amusing trifles disappear.
Nor art thou far away,
Witness the starting tear
That trembles in my eye;
Kind melancholy say,
Does not the involuntary sigh
Proclaim thy salutary influence near?
Whose dictates oft improve the lonely hour,
Kind melancholy come!
I seek thy friendly aid;
Beneath thy hallow'd shade
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Gay mirth's amusing trifles disappear.
Nor art thou far away,
Witness the starting tear
That trembles in my eye;
Kind melancholy say,
Does not the involuntary sigh
Proclaim thy salutary influence near?
Friend to virtue, foe to pride,
Come, and place thee near my side,
And teach my heart how vain are all the toys
Which wear the smiling form of earthly joys!
Yonder see, the phantoms rising,
In alluring colours drest!
See them fleeting from the view!
See deluded crowds pursue!
Danger braving, toil despising,
Till, at length they catch—the air!
The tempting forms that smil'd so fair
Elude their grasp, and leave the heart unblest.
Come, and place thee near my side,
And teach my heart how vain are all the toys
Which wear the smiling form of earthly joys!
Yonder see, the phantoms rising,
In alluring colours drest!
See them fleeting from the view!
See deluded crowds pursue!
Danger braving, toil despising,
Till, at length they catch—the air!
The tempting forms that smil'd so fair
Elude their grasp, and leave the heart unblest.
Gentle melancholy, say,
Didst thou never softly steal
Into th' assemblies of the gay,
And the truth, in whispers tell?
When mirth and thoughtless pleasure smiling,
Music's charms the heart beguiling,
Unheeded bore the midnight hour away.
Didst thou not whisper, “you must die?”
Did not the bosom heave a sigh,
And for one serious minute banish mirth?
That minute, were enough to show
That pleasure terminates in woe,
That vain are all the boasted joys of earth!
But mirth intrudes with fatal art
To seize the half-relenting heart,
And stifle young conviction in its birth.
Didst thou never softly steal
Into th' assemblies of the gay,
And the truth, in whispers tell?
When mirth and thoughtless pleasure smiling,
Music's charms the heart beguiling,
Unheeded bore the midnight hour away.
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Did not the bosom heave a sigh,
And for one serious minute banish mirth?
That minute, were enough to show
That pleasure terminates in woe,
That vain are all the boasted joys of earth!
But mirth intrudes with fatal art
To seize the half-relenting heart,
And stifle young conviction in its birth.
Melancholy, friendly power,
Oft beneath thy awful gloom,
(Heart-affecting thoughts inspiring)
From the busy world retiring,
Let me spend the solemn hour!
Let me meditate the tomb!
Meditate, but not alone,
Lest my heart should sink dismay'd;
Let religion ever near,
(Sacred guardian) banish fear,
Let my heart, her presence own,
While through the over-spreading shade
(Excluding every glimpse of day)
Her smiles diffuse a cheering ray,
And gild the dark, cold mansions of the dead.
Oft beneath thy awful gloom,
(Heart-affecting thoughts inspiring)
From the busy world retiring,
Let me spend the solemn hour!
Let me meditate the tomb!
Meditate, but not alone,
Lest my heart should sink dismay'd;
Let religion ever near,
(Sacred guardian) banish fear,
Let my heart, her presence own,
While through the over-spreading shade
(Excluding every glimpse of day)
Her smiles diffuse a cheering ray,
And gild the dark, cold mansions of the dead.
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