The Unpublished and Uncollected Poems of William Cowper Edited by Thomas Wright |
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On the Trial of Admiral Keppel.
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 | The Unpublished and Uncollected Poems of William Cowper |  |
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On the Trial of Admiral Keppel.
(END OF 1778.)
Keppel, returning from afar
With laurels on his brow,
Comes home to wage a sharper war,
And with a fiercer foe.
With laurels on his brow,
Comes home to wage a sharper war,
And with a fiercer foe.
The blow was raised with cruel aim,
And meant to pierce his heart,
But lighting on his well-earned fame
Struck an immortal part.
And meant to pierce his heart,
But lighting on his well-earned fame
Struck an immortal part.
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Slander and Envy strive to tear
His wreath so justly won,
But Truth, who made his cause her care,
Has bound it faster on.
His wreath so justly won,
But Truth, who made his cause her care,
Has bound it faster on.
The charge that was design'd to sound
The signal of disgrace,
Has only called a navy round
To praise him to his face.
The signal of disgrace,
Has only called a navy round
To praise him to his face.
| The Unpublished and Uncollected Poems of William Cowper | |