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In confecrated Earth,

And on the holy Hearth,

XXI.

Th' Lares and Lemures moan with midnight plaint; In Urns, and Altars round,

A drear and dying found

Affrights the Flamins at their fervice quaint;
And the chill Marble seems to sweat,

While each peculiar Pow'r forgoes his wonted feat.
XXII.

Peor and Baalim

Forfake their Temples dim,

With that twice batter'd god of Palestine ; And mooned Afbtaroth,

Heav'n's Queen and Mother both,

Now fits not girt with Taper's holy shine; The Libyc Hammon fhrinks his horn ;

In vain the Tyrian Maids their wounded Thammu

mourn.

And fullen Moloch fled,

XXIII.

Hath left in fhadows dread

His burning Idol all of blackeft hue; In vain, with Cymbals ring,

They call the griefly King,

In difmal dance about the furnace blue;

The brutish gods of Nile as faft,

Ifis and Orus, and the Dog Anubis, hafte.

Nor is Ofiris feen,

XXIV.

In Memphian Grove, or Green,

Trampling the unshowr'd Grass with lowings loud: Nor can he be at reft

Within his facred cheft;

Nought but profoundest Hell can be his fhroud:

In vain with timbrel'd Anthems dark

The fable-ftoled Sorc'rers bear his worshipp'd Ark.

'XXV.

He feels from Juda's Land

The dreaded Infant's hand;

The rays of Bethlehem blind his dusky eyn; Nor all the Gods befide

Longer dare abide,

Not Typhon huge ending in fnaky twine:
Our Babe, to fhew his Godhead true,

Can in his fwadling bands controul the damned crew.
XXVI.

So when the Sun in bed,

Curtain'd with cloudy red,

Pillows his chin upon an orient wave,

The flocking fhadows pale,

Troop to th' infernal Jail;

Each fetter'd Ghoft flips to his several grave; And the yellow-fkirted Fayes

Fly after the Night-steeds, leaving their Moon-lov'd maze.

But fee! the Virgin bleft

XXVII.

Hath laid her Babe to reft;

Time is our tedious Song fhould here have ending; Heav'n's youngest teemed Star

Hath fix'd her polish'd Car,

Her fleeping Lord with Handmaid Lamp attending : And all about the Courtly Stable,

Bright harneft Angels fit in order ferviceable.

Anno

Anno ætatis 17.

On the Death of a fair Infant, a Nephew of his, dying of a Cough.

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I.

Fairest flower, no fooner blown but blasted, Soft filken Primrose fading timeleЛly, Summer's chief Honour, if thou hadft out-lafted Bleak winter's force that made thy bloffom drie; For he being amorous on that lovely die,

That did thy cheek envermeil, thought to kifs,
But kill'd, alas! and then bewail'd his fatal blifs.
II.

For fince grim Aquilo his charioteer
By boift'rous rape the Athenian damfel got,
He thought it toucht his Deity full near,
If likewife he fome fair one wedded not,
Thereby to wipe away th' infamous blot

Of long-uncoupled bed, and childless eld,
Which 'mongst the wanton Gods a foul reproach was held.
III.

So mounting up in icy-pearled carr,

Through middle empire of the freezing air
He wander'd long, till thee he spy'd from far,
There ended was his quest, there ceas'd his care:
Down he defcended from his Snow-foft chair;

But all unwares with his cold-kind embrace
Unhous'd thy Virgin Soul from her fair biding-place.
IV.

Yet art thou not inglorious in thy fate;
For fo Apollo, with unweeting hand,
Whilom did flay his dearly-loved mate,
Young Hyacinth born on Eurota's strand,
Young Hyacinth, the pride of Spartan land;

But

But then transform'd him to a purple flower: Alack! that fo to change thee winter had no power. V.

Yet can I not perfuade me thou art dead,

Or that thy coarfe corrupts in earth's dark womb,
Or that thy beauties lie in wormie bed,

Hid from the World in a low delved tomb;
Could Heav'n for pity thee so strictly doom?
Oh no! for fomething in thy face did fhine
Above mortality, that fhew'd thou waft divine.

VI.

Refolve me then, oh Soul moft furely bleft,
(If fo it be that thou thefe plaints doft hear)
Tell me bright Spirit where-e'er thou hovereit,
Whether above that high firft-moving Sphere,
Or in th' Elfian fields (if fuch there were ;)

O fay me true, if thou wert mortal wight,
And why from us fo quickly thou didst take thy flight.
VII.

Wert thou fome Star, which from the ruin'd roof
Of fhak'd Olympus by mischance didft fall;
With careful Jove in Nature's true behoof
Took up, and in fit place did reinstal ?
Or did of late earth's Sons befiege the wall

Of fheenie Heav'n, and thou fome goddess fled,
Amongst us here below to hide thy nectar'd head ?
VIII.

Or wert thou that juft Maid, who once before
Forfook'ft the hated earth, O tell me footh,
And cam'ft again to vifit us once more?
Or wert thou that fweet fmiling Youth?
Or that crown'd Matron, fage white-robed Truth?
Or any other of that Heav'nly brood,

Let down in cloudy throne to do the World fome good?
IX.

Or wert thou of the golden-winged host,
Who, having clad thyself in human weed,
To earth from thy prefixed feat didft poft,

And

And after short abode fly back with speed,
As if to fhew what creatures Heav'n doth breed ;
Thereby to fet the hearts of men on fire

To fcorn the fordid world, and unto Heav'n afpire

X.

But oh! why didst thou not stay here below
To bless us with thy Heav'n-lov'd innocence,
To flake his wrath, whom fin hath made our foe,
To turn swift-rushing black perdition hence,
Or drive away the flaughtering peftilence,

To ftand 'twixt us and our deferved fmart?
But thou canst best perform that office where thou art.
XI.

Then thou, the Mother of fo fweet a Child,
The falfe imagin'd lofs ceafe to lament,
And wifely learn to curb thy forrows wild ;
Think what a present thou to God haft fent,
And render, him with patience what he lent;

This if thou do, he will an off-fpring give,

That till the World's last end fhall make thy name to live.

Anno Etatis 19. At a Vacation Exercife in the College, part Latin, part Englifn. The Latin Speeches ended, the English thus began.

HAL, native Language, that by finews weak

Didft move my firft endeavouring tongue to speak, And mad'ft imperfect words with childifh trips, Half unpronounc'd, flide through my infant lips, Driving dumb filence from the portal door, Where he had mutely fat two years before: Here I falute thee, and thy pardon afk, That now I use thee in my latter task :

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