Now down the steep the flashing torrent flies;
The trembling fun now plays o'er ocean blue,
And now rude mountains frown amid the skies.
Whate'er Lorrain light-touch'd with foftening hue,
Or favage Rofa dafh'd,' or learned Pouffin drew.

Each found, too, here to languishment inclin'd,
Lull'd the weak bofom, and induced ease:
Aërial mufick in the warbling wind

At diftance rifing oft, by fmall degrees
Nearer and nearer came, till o'er the trees
It hung, and breath'd fuch foul-diffolving airs,
As did, alas! with foft perdition please:

Entangled deep in it's enchanting fnares,
The liftening heart forgot all duties and all cares,

A certain mufick, never known before,
Here lull'd the penfive, melancholy mind ;
Full eafily obtain'd. Behoves no more,
But fidelong to the gently-waving wind
To lay the well-tun'd inftrument reclin'd;
From which, with airy-flying fingers light,
Beyond each mortal touch the moft refin'd,

The god of winds drew founds of deep delight,
Whence, with just cause, the harp of Æolus it hight,

Ah, me! what hand can touch the ftring fo fine?
Who up the lofty diapafan roll

Such fweet, fuch fad, fuch folemn airs divine,
Then let them down again into the foul?

Now rifing love they fann'd; now pleafing dole
They breath'd in tender mufings thro' the heart;
And now a graver facred ftrain they ftole,

As when feraphick hands an hymn impart
Wild-warbling Nature all, above the reach of Art!

Such

Such the gay fplendor, the luxurious ftate,

Of Caliphs old, who on the Tigris' shore, In mighty Bagdat, populous and great,

Held their bright court; where was of ladies ftore,
And verfe, love, mufick, ftill the garland wore :

When Sleep was coy, the bard in waiting there,
Chear'd the lone midnight with the Mufe's lore;
Compofing mufick bade his dreams be fair,
And mufick lent new gladness to the morning air.

Near the pavilions where we flept, ftill ran
Soft-tinkling ftreams, and dashing waters fell,
And fobbing breezes figh'd, and oft began

(So work'd the wizard) wint'ry ftorms to fwell,
As heav'n and earth they would together mell:
At doors and windows, threat'ning, seem'd to call
The demons of the tempeft, growling fell;

Yet the least entrance found they none at all,
Whence sweeter grew our fleep, secure in maffy hall.

And hither Morpheus fent his kindest dreams,
Raifing a world of gayer tinct and grace;

O'er which were fhadowy caft Elyfian gleams,
That play'd in waving lights from place to place,
And shed a roseat smile on Nature's face.

Not Titian's pencil e'er could fo array,
So fleece with clouds the pure ethereal space;
Ne could it e'er fuch melting forms display,
As loofe on flowery beds all languishingly lay.

No, fair illufions! artful phantoms! no;
My Mufe will not attempt your fairy land:
She has no colours that like you can glow;
To catch your vivid fcenes too gross her hand.

But

But fure it is, was ne'er a subtler band

Than these fame guileful angel-feeming sprites
Who thus in dreams voluptuous, foft, and bland,
Pour'd all th' Arabian heaven upon our nights,
And blefs'd them oft befides with more refin'd delights.

They were in footh a moft enchanting train;

E'en feigning virtue; fkilful to unite

With evil good, and ftrew with pleasure pain:

But for those fiends whom blood and broils delight,
Who hurl the wretch, as if to hell outright,

Down, down black gulphs, where fullen waters sleep,
Or hold him clambering all the fearful night
On beetling cliffs, or pent in ruins deep,

They, till due time fhould ferve, were bid far hence to keep

Ye guardian fpirits! to whom man is dear,

From these foul demons fhield the midnight gloom; Angels of Fancy and of Love, be near!

And o'er the blank of fleep diffuse a bloom. Evoke the facred fhades of Greece and Rome, And let them virtue with a look impart ;

But chief awhile, O! lend us from the tomb

Those long-loft friends for whom in love we smart, And fill with pious awe, and joy-mix'd woe, the heart!

Or, are you sportive-bid the morn of youth.
Rife to new light, and beam afresh the days

Of innocence, fimplicity, and truth,

To cares eftrang'd, and manhood's thorny ways, What tranfport, to retrace our boyish plays,

Our easy bliss, when each thing joy fupply'd; The woods, the mountains, and the warbling maze

Of the wild brooks!-But, fondly wandering wide, My Muse! refume the task that yet doth thee abide.

One

One great amufement of our houfhold was

In a huge chrystal magick globe to spy", ladion Still as you turn'd it, all things that do pafson

Upon this ant-hill earth; where constantly e Of idly-bufy men the restless fry

Run bustling to and fro with foolish haste,

In fearch of pleasures vain that from them fly,!
Or which, obtain'd, the caitiffs dare not taste : →→
When nothing is enjoy'd, can there be greater wafte?

• Of vanity the mirror' this was call'd.

Here you a muckworm of the town might fee
At his dull desk, amid' his legers ftall'd,
Eat up with carking care and penurie,
Moft like to carcafe parch'd on gallow-tree..
A penny faved is a penny got;'
Firm to this fcoundrel maxim keepeth he,
Ne of it's rigour will he bate a jot, i

Till it has quench'd his fire, and banished his pot.

Straight from the filth of this low grub, behold!

Comes fluttering forth a gaudy spendthrift heir,

All gloffy gay, enamell'd all with gold,

The filly tenant of the fummer-air;
In folly loft, of nothing takes he care;

Pimps, lawyers, ftewards, harlots, flatterers vile,
And thieving tradesmen, him among them share ;
His father's ghost from Limbo-lake the while
Sees this, which more damnation doth upon him pile.

This globe pourtray'd the race of learned men

Still at their books, and turning o'er the page. Backwards and forwards: oft they fnatch the pen As if infpir'd; and, in a Thespian rage,

Tt

.

A

Then

Then write, and blot, as would your ruth engage.
Why, authors! all this fcrawl and scribbling fore,
To lose the present, gain the future age?

Praised to be, when you can hear no more;

And much enrich'd with fame, when useless worldly store?

Then would a splendid city rise to view,

With carts, and cars, and coaches, roaring all:
Wide pour'd abroad, behold the giddy crew;
See how they dash along from wall to wall!
At ev'ry door, hark how they thundering call!
Good Lord! what can this giddy rout excite ?
Why on each other with fell tooth to fall,

A neighbour's fortune, fame, or peace, to blight,
And make new tiresome parties for the coming night.

The puzzling fons of Party next appear'd,

In dark cabals and nightly juntos met;

And now they whisper'd close, now shrugging, rear'd
Th' important shoulder; then, as if to get
New light, their twinkling eyes were inward fet.
No fooner Lucifer recals affairs,

Than forth they various rufh in mighty fret;

When, lo! pufh'd up to pow'r, and crown'd their cares, In comes another fett, and kicketh them down stairs.

But what moft fhew'd the vanity of life,

Was to behold the nations all on fire,

In cruel broils engag'd, and deadly strife;

Most Christian kings inflam'd by black defire, With honourable ruffians in their hire,

Cause war to rage, and blood around to pour:

Of this fad work when each begins to tire,

They fit them down juft where they were before,

Till for new fcenes of woe, peace fhall their force reftore.

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