In place of ruffians ambush'd in the dark,
Comes, with his pen, a harmless lawyer's clerk,
Draws a long-bond, my lady packs her things,
And leaves her mate to smooth his ruffled wings.
In the free code of first enlighten'd France,
Marriage was broke for want of convenance;
No fault to find, no grievances to tell,
But, like tight shoes, they did not fit quite well.
The lady curt'sied, with" Adieu Monsieur,"
The husband bow'd, or shrugg'd," de tout mon cœur !” "L'affaire est faite ;" each partner free to range, Made life a dance, and every dance a change.
In England's colder soil they scarce contrive
To keep these foreign freedom-plants alive;
Yet in some gay parterres we've seen, even there,
Its blushing fruit this frail exotic bear;-
Couples make shift to slip the marriage chain,
Cross hands-cast off and are themselves again.
(Bell rings.)
But, soft, I hear the Prompter's summons rung,
That calls me off, and stops my idle tongue;
A Sage, our fair and virtuous Author's friend,
Shakes his stern head, and bids my nonsense end ;—
Bids me declare, she hopes her parent land
May long this current of the times withstand,
That here, in purity and honour bred,
Shall love and duty wreathe the nuptial bed;
The brave good husband, and his faithful wife,
Revere the sacred charities of life;
And bid their children, like their sires of old,
Firm, honest, upright, for their country bold;
Here, where "Rome's eagles found unvanquish'd foes,"
The Gallic vulture fearlessly oppose,
Chase from this favour'd isle, with baffled wing,
Bless'd in its good old laws, old manners, and old king.
THE LAWYER'S FAREWELL
TO HIS MUSE.
As, by some tyrant's stern command,
A wretch forsakes his native land,
In foreign climes condemn'd to roam,
An endless exile from his home;
Pensive he treads the destin'd way,
And dreads to go, nor dares to stay;
Till on some neighb'ring mountain's brow
He stops, and turns his eye below;
There, melting at the well-known view,
Drops a last tear, and bids adieu :
So I, thus doom'd from thee to part,
Gay Queen of Fancy, and of Art,
Reluctant move, with doubtful mind,
Oft stop, and often look behind.
Companion of my tender age,
Serenely gay, and sweetly sage,
How blithsome were we wont to rove
By verdant hill, or shady grove,
Where fervent bees, with humming voice,
Around the honey'd oak rejoice,
And aged elms, with awful bend,
In long cathedral walks extend !
Lull'd by the lapse of gliding floods,
Cheer'd by the warbling of the woods,
How blest my days, my thoughts how free,
In sweet society with thee!
Then all was joyous, all was young,
And years unheeded roll'd along!
But now the pleasing dream is o'er;
These scenes must charm me now no more:
Lost to the field, and torn from you--
Farewell!-a long a last adieu !
Me, wrangling courts, and stubborn law,
To smoke, and crowds, and cities draw;
There selfish Faction rules the day,
And Pride and Avarice throng the way:
Diseases taint the murky air,
And midnight conflagrations glare;
Loose Revelry, and Riot bold,
In frighted streets their orgies hold ;~
Or, when in silence all is drown'd,
Fell Murder walks her lonely round;
No room for peace, no room for you:
Adieu, celestial nymph, adieu!
Shakespear no more, thy sylvan son,
Nor all the art of Addison,
Pope's heav'n-strung lyre, nor Waller's ease, Nor Milton's mighty self must please.
Instead of these, a formal band,
In furs and coifs, around me stand;
With sounds uncouth, and accents dry,
That grate the soul of harmony,
Each pedant sage unlocks his store
Of mystic, dark, discordant lore;
And points with tottering hand, the ways.
That lead me to the thorny maze.
There, in a winding, close retreat,
Is Justice doom'd to fix her seat;
There, fenc'd by bulwarks of the law,
She keeps the wondering world in awe;
And there, from vulgar sight retir'd,
Like eastern queens, is more admir'd.
O let me pierce the secret shade,
Where dwells the venerable maid!
There humbly mark, with rev'rent awe,
The guardian of Britannia's law,
Unfold with joy her sacred page,
(The united boast of many an age,
Where mix'd, yet uniform, appears
The wisdom of a thousand years ;)
In that pure spring the bottom view,
Clear, deep, and regularly true,
And other doctrines thence imbibe,
Than lurk within the sordid scribe;
Observe how parts with parts unite,
In one harmonious rule of right;
See countless wheels distinctly tend,
By
various laws, to one great end;
While mighty Alfred's piercing soul
Pervades and regulates the whole.
Then welcome business, welcome strife, Welcome the cares, the thorns of life: The visage wan, the purblind sight, The toil by day, the lamp at night, The tedious forms, the solemn prate, The pert dispute, the dull debate, The drowsy bench, the babbling hall, For thee, fair Justice, welcome all!
Thus though my noon of life be past, Yet let my setting sun, at last, Find out the still, the rural cell, Where sage Retirement loves to dwell! There let me taste the home-felt bliss Of innocence, and inward peace;
Untainted by the guilty bribe;
Uncurs'd amid the happy tribe;
No orphan's cry to wound my ear,
My honour and my conscience clear:
Thus may I calmly meet my end,
Thus to the grave in peace descend.
Copied from the Window of an obscure Lodging in
Islington".
STRANGER, whoe'er thou art, whose restless mind
Like me within these walls is cribbed, confined,
Learn how each want that heaves our mutual sighs,
A woman's soft solicitude supplies;
From her white breast retreat all rude alarms,
Or fly the circle of her magic arms;
While souls exchanged alternate grace acquire,
And passions catch from passions mutual fire.
What though to deck this roof no arts combine
Such forms as rival every fair but mine;
No nodding plumes our humble couch above,
Proclaim each triumph of unbounded love;
No silver lamp, with sculptur'd Cupids gay,
O'er yielding beauty pours its midnight ray :
Yet Fanny's charms could Time's slow flight beguile,
Sooth every care, and make this dungeon smile;
In her, what kings, what saints have wished, is given;
Her heart is empire, and her love is heaven.
* An imperfect copy of these verses was printed in the Poetical Register, Vol. II. page 401.
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