 | Alfred |  |
SCENE I.
Emma,and other Peasants.
Wish'd evening now is come: but her soft hour,
Close of our daily toil, that wont to sound
Sweet with the shepherd's pipe and virgin's voice,
Is chearless all and mute.
Second Shepherdess.
Heaven's will be ours.
And since no grief can yesterday recall,
Nor change tomorrow's face; now let us soothe
The present as we may with dance and song,
To lighten sad remembrance.
24
sings.
I.
The shepherd's plain life,Without guilt, without strife,
Can only true blessings impart.
As nature directs,
That bliss he expects
From health and from quiet of heart.
II.
Vain grandeur and power,Those toys of an hour,
Tho mortals are toiling to find;
Can titles or show
Contentment bestow?
All happiness dwells in the mind.
III.
Behold the gay rose,How lovely it grows,
Secure in the depth of the vale.
Yon oak, that on high
Aspires to the sky,
Both lightning and tempest assail.
25
IV.
Then let us the snareOf Ambition beware,
That source of vexation and smart:
And sport on the glade,
Or repose in the shade,
With health and with quiet of heart.
Here a pastoral dance.
| Alfred | |