Even his teeth, and white like a young flock
Coeval, newly fhorn, from the clear brook
Recent, and branching on the funny rock.
Ivory, with fapphires interfpers'd, explains
How white his hands, how blue the manly veins. 455 Columns of polish'd marble, firmly fet
On golden bafes, are his legs and feet.
His ftature all majestic, all divine,
Straight as the palm-tree, ftrong as is the pine.
Saffron and myrrh are on his garments shed :
And everlasting fweets bloom round his head.
What utter I! where am I
Die, Abra, die: too plainly haft thou faid
Thy foul's defire to meet his high embrace,
And bleffing stamp'd upon thy future race;
To bid attentive nations bless thy womb,
With unborn Monarchs charg'd, and Solomons to come.
Here o'er her speech her flowing eyes prevail.
O foolish Maid! and O unhappy Tale!
My fuffering heart for ever fhall defy
New wounds and danger from a future eye.
O! yet my tortur'd fenfes deep retain
The wretched memory of my former pain,
The dire affront and my Egyptian chain.
As Time, I said, may happily efface
That cruel image of the King's difgrace;
Imperial Reafon fhall refume her feat;
And Solomon, once fallen, again be great.
Betray'd by paffion, as fubdued in war,
We wifely fhould exert a double care,
Nor ever ought a fecond time to err.
VOL. II.
I faw her; 'twas Humanity; it gave
Some refpite to the forrows of my flave.
Her fond excess proclaim'd her paffion true;
And generous pity to that truth was due.
Well I intreated her, who well deferv'd;
I call'd her often; for the always ferv'd.
Ufe made her perfon easy to my fight;
And eafe infenfibly produc'd delight.
Whene'er I revel'd in the womens bowers
(For first I fought her but at loofer hours),
The apples fhe had gather'd smelt most sweet;
The cake fhe kneaded was the favoury meat :
But fruits their odour loft, and meats their taste,
If gentle Abra had not deck'd the feast.
Dishonour'd did the fparkling goblet stand,
Unless receiv'd from gentle Abra's hand :
And, when the Virgins form'd the evening choir,
Raifing their voices to the mafter lyre,
Too flat I thought this voice, and that too fhrill,
One fhew'd too much, and one too little skill,
Nor could my foul
the mufic's tone;
Till all was hush'd, and Abra sung alone.
Fairer she feem'd distinguish'd from the rest,
And better mien difclos'd, as better drest.
A bright tiara, round her forehead ty’'d,
To jufter bounds confin'd its rifing pride;
The blufhing ruby on her fnowy breast
Render'd its panting whitenefs more confefs'd;
Bracelets of pearl gave roundness to her arm,
And every gem augmented every charm.
Her fenfes pleas'd, her beauty ftill improv'd;
And the more lovely grew, as more belov❜d.
And now I could behold, avow, and blame,
The feveral follies of my former flame;
Willing my heart for recompence to prove
The certain joys that lie in profperous Love.
For what, faid I, from Abra can I fear,
Too humble to infult, too foft to be fevere ?
The Damfel's fole ambition is to please :
With freedom I may like, and quit with ease :
She fooths, but never can enthral my mind:
Why may not Peace and Love for once be join'd ?
Great Heaven! how frail thy creature Man is made!
How by himself infenfibly betray'd!
In our own ftrength unhappily fecure,
Too little cautious of the adverfe power,
And by the blaft of felf-opinion mov’d,
We wish to charm, and feek to be belov'd.
On Pleafure's flowing brink we idly ftray,
Mafters as yet of our returning way ;
Seeing no danger, we difarm our mind,
And give our conduct to the waves and wind:
Then in the flowery mead, or verdant fhade,
To wanton dalliance negligently laid,
We weave the chaplet, and we crown the bowl,
And fmiling fee the nearer waters roll;
Till the ftrong gufts of raging paffion rife;
Till the dire tempeft mingles earth and skies;
And, swift into the boundless ocean borne,
Our foolish confidence too late we mourn;
Round our devoted heads the billows beat;
And from our troubled view the lessen'd lands retreat. O mighty Love! from thy unbounded power
How fhall the human bofom reft fecure?
How shall our thought avoid the various snare?
Or Wisdom to our caution'd foul declare
The different shapes thou pleafeft to employ,
When bent to hurt, and certain to destroy?
The haughty Nymph, in open beauty dreft,
To-day encounters our unguarded breast :
She looks with majesty, and moves with state;
Unbent her foul, and in misfortune great,
She fcorns the world, and dares the rage of Fate. 555
Here whilst we take stern manhood for our guide,
And guard our conduct with becoming pride;
Charm'd with the courage in her action fhewn,
We praise her mind, the image of our own.
She that can please is certain to persuade,
To-day belov❜d, to-morrow is obey'd.
We think we fee through Reason's optics right;
Nor find how Beauty's rays elude our fight:
Struck with her eye, whilft we applaud her mind;
And when we speak her great, we wish her kind. 565
To-morrow, cruel power! thou arm'ft the fair
With flowing forrow, and difhevel'd hair ;
Sad her complaint, and humble is her tale,
Her fighs explaining where her accents fail.
Here generous foftness warms the honeft breast;
We raise the fad, and fuccour the distress'd.
And, whilst our with prepares the kind relief,
Whilft pity mitigates her rifing grief,
We ficken foon from her contagious care,
Grieve for her forrows, groan for her despair;
And against Love too late those bosoms arm,
Which tears can soften, and which fighs can warm.
Against this neareft, crueleft of foes,
What fhall wit meditate, or force oppose?
Whence, feeble Nature, fhall we fummon aid,
If by our pity and our pride betray'd?
External remedy shall we hope to find,
When the close fiend has gain'd our treacherous mind; Infulting there does Reason's power deride,
And, blind himself, conducts the dazzled guide?
My conqueror now, my lovely Abra, held
My freedom in her chains; my heart was fill'd
With her, with her alone; in her alone
It fought its peace and joy: while the was gone,
It figh'd, and griev'd impatient of her stay;
Return'd, fhe chas'd those fighs, that grief, away :
Her abfence made the night: her prefence brought
the day.
The ball, the play, the mask, by turns fucceed : For her I make the fong; the dance with her I lead. I court her various in each shape and drefs, That luxury may form, or thought exprefs. To-day, beneath the palin-tree on the plains, In Deborah's arms and habit Abra reigns: L 3
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