Three Poets in three distant ages born, Greece, Italy, and England did adorn, The first in loftiness of thought surpass'd, The next in dignity, in both the last, The force of nature could no further go To make a third, she join'd the former two.
WITH THE LIFE OF THE AUTHOR.
HARVARD COLLEGE LIBRARY
IN MEMORY OF
LIONEL DE JERSEY HARVARD CLASS OF 1915
: May 14,1927
Raphael at the request of Adam relates how and wherefore this world was first created: that God, after the expelling of Satan and his angels out of heaven, declared his pleasure to create another world, and other creatures to dwell therein; sends bis Son with glory, and attendance of angels, to perform the work of creation in six days: the angels celebrate with hymns the performance thereof, and his reascension into heaven.
DESCEND from heaven, Urania, by that name If rightly thou art call'd, whose voice divine Following above the Olympian hill I soar, Above the flight of Pegasean wing!
The meaning, not the name, I call for thou Nor of the muses nine, nor on the top Of old Olympus dwell'st; but heavenly born, Before the bills appear'd or fountain flowed, Thou with eternal wisdom didst converse, Wisdom thy sister, and with her didst play In presence of the Almighty Father pleased With thy celestial song. Up lead by thee Into the heaven of heavens I have presumed, An early guest, and drawn empyreal air, Thy tempering: with like safety guided down Return me to my native element :
Lest from this flying steed unrein'd (as once Bellerophon, though from a lower clime,) Dismounted, on the Aleian field I fall,
Erroneous there to wander, and forlorn, Half yet remains unsung, but narrower bound Within the visible diurnal sphere;
Standing on earth not wrapp'd above the pole, More safe I sing with mortal voice, unchanged To hoarse or mute, though fallen on evil days, On evil days though fallen, and evil tongues; In darkness and with dangers compass'd round, And solitude; yet alone, while thou
Visit'st my slumbers nightly, or when morn Purples the east: still govern thou my song, Urania, and fit audience find, though few. But drive far off the barbarous dissonance Of Bacchus and his revellers, the race
Of that wild rout that tore the Thracian bard In Rhodope, where woods and rocks had ears To rapture, till the savage clamour drown'd Both harp and voice; nor could the muse defend Her son. So fail not thou, who thee implores : For thou art heavenly she an empty dream. Say goddess, what ensued when Raphael, The affable archangel, had forewarn'd Adam, by dire example, to beware Apostacy, by what befel in heaven
To those apostates: lest the like befal In Paradise to Adam or his race, Charged not to touch the interdicted tree,
If they transgress, and slight that sole command, So easily obeyed amid the choice
Of all tastes else to please their appetite,
Though wandering. He, with his consorted Eve,
The story heard attentive, and was fill'd
With admiration and deep muse to hear
Of things so high and strange; things to their thought
So unimaginable, as hate in heaven,
And war so near the peace of God in bliss, With such confusion: but the evil, soon Driven back, redounded as a flood on those From whom it sprang; impossible to mix With blessedness. Whence Adam soon repeal'd The doubts that in his heart arose and now Led on, yet sinless, with desire to know What nearer might concern him, how this world Of heaven and earth conspicuous first began; When, and whereof created; for what cause; What within Eden, or without, was done Before his memory as one whose drouth Yet scarce allay'd still eyes the currant stream, Whose liquid murmur heard new thirst excites, Proceeded thus to ask his heavenly guest.
Great things, and full of wonder in our ears, Far differing from this world, thou hast reveal'd, Divine interpreter! by favour sent
Down from the empyrean, to forwarn
Us timely of what might else have been our loss, Unknown, which human knowledge could not
For which to the infinitely good we owe Immortal thanks, and his admonishment Receive, with solemn purpose to observe Immutably his sov'reign will, the end Of what we are. But since thou hast vouchsafed Gently, for our instruction, to impart
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