Where Jove, fubdu’d by mortal paffion still,
Might change Olympus for a nobler hill.
Happy the man whom this bright court ap-
proves,
His fovereign favours, and his country loves:
Happy next him, who to thefe fhades retires,
Whom nature charms, and whom the mufe in-
spires;
Whom humbler joys of home-felt quiet please,
Succeffive ftudy, exercise, and ease.
He gathers health from herbs the foreft yields,
And of their fragrant physic spoils the fields;
With chemic art exalts the mineral powers,
And draws the aromatic fouls of flowers:
Now marks the course of rolling orbs on high;
O'er figur'd worlds now travels with his eye;
Of ancient writ unlocks the learned ftore,
Confults the dead, and lives paft ages o'er :
Or wandering thoughtful on the filent wood,
Attends the duties of the wife and good,
T'observe a mean, be to himself a friend,
To follow nature, and regard his end;
Or looks on heaven with more than mortal eyes,
Bids his free foul expatiate in the fkics,
Amid her kindred stars familiar roam,
Survey the region, and confefs her home!
Such was the life great Scipio once admir'd,
Thus Atticus and Trumbull thus retir'd.
Ye facred nine! that all my foul poffefs,
Whose raptures fire me, and whofe vifions blefs, 260
Bear me, oh bear me to fequefter'd scenes,
The bowery mazes, and furrounding greens;
To Thames's banks which fragrant breezes fill,
Or where the mufes fport on Cooper's Hill
(On Coopers Hill eternal wreaths fhall grow,
While lafts the mountain, or while Thames fhall
flow):
I feem through confecrated walks to rove,
I hear foft mufic die along the grove:
Led by the found, I roam from fhade to fhade,
By god-like poets venerable made :
Here his first lays majestic Denham sung;
There the laft numbers flow'd from Cowley's
O early loft! what tears the river shed, When the fad pomp along his banks was led !
Ver. 233. It flood thus in the MS. And force great Jove, if Jove's a lover fill, To change Olympus, &c.
Ver. 235. Happy the man, who to the fhades retires, But doubly happy, if the mufe infpires! Bleft whom the fweets of home-felt quiet please; But far more bleft, whofe ftudy joins with ease.
Ver. 267. It flood thus in the MS. Methinks around your holy fcenes I rove, And hear your mufic echoing through the grove; With transport vifit each infpiring shade, By godlike poets venerable made.
His drooping fwans on every note expire,
And on his willows hung each mufe's lyre.
Since fate relentless stopp'd their heavenly voice,
No more the forefts ring, or groves rejoice;
Who now fhall charm the fhades, where Cowley
ftrung
His living harp, and lofty Denham fung
But hark the groves rejoice, the foreft rings!
Are thefe reviv'd? or is it Granville fings!
'Tis yours, my Lord, to blefs our foft retreats,
And call the mufes to their ancient feats;
To paint anew the flowery Sylvan scenes,
To crown the foreft with immortal greens,
Make Windfor hills in lofty numbers rife,
And lift her turrets nearer to the skies;
To fing thofe honours you deserve to wear,
And add new luftre to her filver ftar.
Here noble Surrey felt the facred rage,
Surrey, the Granville of a former age:
Matchlefs his pen, victorious was his lance,
Buid in the lifts, and graceful in the dance:
In the fame fhades the Cupids tun'd his lyre,
To the fame notes, of love, and foit defire:
Fair Geraldine, briglt object of his vow,
Then fill'd the groves, as heavenly Mira now.
Oh wouldst thou fing what heroes Windfor bore,
What king first breath'd upon her winding
Ver. 290. her filver ftar.] All the lines that follow were not added to the poem till the year 1710. What immediately followed this, and made the conclufion, were thefe :
My humble mufe, in unambitious strains,
Paints the green forests and the flowery plains;
Where I obfcurely pafs my careless days,
Pleas'd in the filent fhade with empty praise,
Enough for me that to the listening swains
Firft in these fields I fung the Sylvan strains.
Ver. 307. Originally thus in the MS. When brafs decays, when trophies lie o'erthrown, And mouldering into duft drops the proud stone.
Whom not th' extended Albion could contain,
From old Belerium to the northern main,
The grave unites; where ev'n the great find reft,
And blended lie th' oppreffor and th' oppreft!
Make facred Charles's tomb for ever known (Obscure the place, and uninscrib'd the stone); 320 Oh fact accurs'd! what tears has Albion fhed! Heavens, what new wounds! and how her old have bled!
She faw her fons with purple deaths expire,
Her facred domes involv'd in rolling fire,
A dreadful series of inteftine wars,
Inglorious triumphs, and dishonest scars.
At length great Anna faid, "Let difcord ceafe!"
She faid, the world obey'd, and all was peace!
In that bleft moment from his oozy bed
Old father Thames advanc'd his reverend head.
His treffes dropp'd with dews, and o'er the fiream
His fhining horns diffus'd a golden gleam:
Grav'd on his urn appear'd the moon, that guides
His fwelling waters, and alternate tides;
The figur'd ftreams in waves of filver roll'd,
And on their banks Augusta rose in gold;
Around his throne the fearborn brothers ftood
Who fwell with tributary urns his flood!
Firft the fam'd authors of this ancient name,
The winding Ifis, and the fruitful Thame :
The Kennet fwift, for filver eels renown'd;
The Loddon flow, with verdant alders crown'd;
Cole, whose dark streams his flowery islands lave;
And chalky Wey, that rolls a milky wave;
The blue, transparent Vandalis appears;
The gulfy Lee his fedgy treffes rears;
And fullen Mole, that hides his diving flood;
And filent Darent, stain'd with Danish blood.
High in the midft, upon his urn reclin'd, (His fea-green mantle waving with the wind) 350 The god appear'd: he turn'd his azure eyes Where Windfor-domes and pompous turrets rife;
Ver. 321. Originally thus in the MS.
Oh fact accurs'd! oh facrilegious brood,
Sworn to rebellion, principled in blood!
Then bow'd, and fpoke; the winds forget to roar, And the hush'd waves glide foftly to the fhore.
Hail, facred peace! hail, long-expected days, That Thames's glory to the stars fhall raife! Though Tiber's ftreams immortal Rome behold, Though foaming Hermus fwells with tides of gold, From heaven itself the seven-fold Nilus flows, And harvests on a hundred realms beftows; These now no more fhall be the muses' themes, Loft in my fame, as in the fea their streams. Let Volga's banks with iron fquadrons fhine, And groves of lances glitter on the Rhine; Let barbarous Ganges arm a fervile train: Be mine the bleffings of a peaceful reign. No more my fons fhall die with British blood, Red Iber's fands, or Ifter's foaming flood: Safe on my fhore each unmolested swain Shall tend the flocks, or reap the bearded grain; 370 The fhady empire shall retain no trace Of war or blood, but in the Sylvan chace; The trumpet fleep, while cheerful horns are blown, And arms employ'd on birds and beafts alone. Behold th' afcending villas on my fide, Project long shadows o'er the crystal tide. Behold! Augufta's glittering spires increase, And temples rife, the beauteous works of peace. I fee, I fee, where two fair cities bend Their ample bow, a new Whitehall afcend! 380 There mighty nations fhall inquire their doom, The world's great oracle in times to come; There kings fhall fue, and fuppliant states be seen Once more to bend before a British queen.
Thy trees, fair Windsor! now fhall leave their
And half thy forefts rush into thy floods;
Bear Britain's thunder, and her cross display,
To the bright regions of the rifing day:
Tempt icy feas, where scarce the waters roll,
Where clearer flames glow round the frozen pole;
Or under fouthern fkies exalt their fails,
Led by new stars, and borne by spicy gales!
For me the balm shall bleed, and amber flow,
The coral redden, and the ruby glow,
The pearly shell its lucid globe unfold,
And Phoebus warm the ripening ore to gold.
The time fhall come, when free as feas or wind
Since that dire morn, what tears has Albion shed: Unbounded Thames fhall flow for all mankind, Gods what new wounds, &c,
Ver. 327. Thus in the MS.
Till Anna rofe, and bade the furies cease;
Let there be peace-she said, and all was peace.
Between verse 330 and 331, originally stood these lines:
From shore to fhore exulting fhouts he heard,
O'er all his banks a lambient light appear'd;
With Sparkling flames heaven's glowing concave
fhone,
Fictitious stars, and glories not her own.
He faw, and gently rofe above the stream;
His fhining horns diffuse a golden gleam :
With pearl and gold his towery front was drest,
Whole nations enter with each fwelling tide, And feas but join the regions they divide;
Ver. 363. Originally thus in the MS. Let Venice boast her towers amidst the main, Where the rough Adrian swells and roars in vain: Here not a town, but spacious realm fhall have A fure foundation on the rolling wave.
Ver. 385, &c. were originally thus in the MS. Now fhall our fleets the bloody crofs difplay To the rich regions of the rifing day,
Or thofe green ifles, where headlong Titan sleeps His hiffing axle in th' Atlantic deeps:
He gathers health from herbs the foreft yields,
And of their fragrant phyfic fpoils the fields;
With chemic art exalts the mineral powers,
And draws the aromatic fouls of flowers:
Now marks the courfe of rolling orbs on high;
O'er figur'd worlds now travels with his eye;
Of ancient writ unlocks the learned store,
Confults the dead, and lives past ages o'er :
Or wandering thoughtful on the filent wood,
Attends the duties of the wife and good,
T'obferve a mean, be to himself a friend,
To follow nature, and regard his end;
Or looks on heaven with more than mortal eyes,
Bids his free foul expatiate in the skies,
Amid her kindred stars familiar roam,
Survey the region, and confefs her home!
Such was the life great Scipio once admir'd,
Thus Atticus and Trumbull thus retir'd.
Ye facred nine! that all my foul poffefs,
Whofe raptures fire me, and whofe vifions blefs, 260
Bear me, oh bear me to fequefter'd scenes,
The bowery mazes, and furrounding greens;
To Thames's banks which fragrant breezes fill,
Or where the mufes fport on Cooper's Hill
(On Coopers Hill eternal wreaths fhall grow,
While lafts the mountain, or while Thames fhall
flow):
I feem through confecrated walks to rove,
I hear foft mufic die along the grove:
Led by the found, I roam from fhade to fhade,
By god-like poets venerable made :
Here his first lays majestic Denham fung;
There the last numbers flow'd from Cowley's
tongue.
O early loft! what tears the river shed,
When the fad pomp along his banks was led !
Ver. 233. It ftood thus in the MS. And force great Jove, if Jove's a lover Rill, To change Olympus, &c.
Happy the man, who to the fhades retires,
But doubly happy, if the muse inspires!
Bleft whom the fweets of home-felt quiet please;
But far more bleft, whofe ftudy joins with eafe.
Ver. 267. It flood thus in the MS.
Methinks around your holy fcenes I rove,
And hear your mufic echoing through the grove;
With transport vifit each inspiring fhade,
By godlike poets venerable made.
His drooping fwans on every note expire,
And on his willows hung each mufe's lyre.
Since fate relentless stopp'd their heavenly voice,
No more the forefts ring, or groves rejoice;
Who now fhall charm the fhades, where Cowley
ftrung
His living harp, and lofty Denham fung
280
But hark the groves rejoice, the forest rings!
Are thefe reviv'd? or is it Granville fings!
'Tis yours, my Lord, to blefs our foft retreats,
And call the mufes to their ancient feats;
To paint anew the flowery Sylvan scenes,
To crown the foreft with immortal greens,
Make Windfor hills in lofty numbers rife,
And lift her turrets nearer to the skies;
To fing thofe honours you deserve to wear,
And add new luftre to her filver ftar.
Here noble Surrey felt the facred rage,
Surrey, the Granville of a former age:
Matchlefs his pen, victorious was his lance,
Bold in the lifts, and graceful in the dance:
In the fame fhades the Cupids tun'd his lyre,
To the fame notes, of love, and foit defire:
Fair Geraldine, bright object of his vow,
Then fill'd the groves, as heavenly Mira now.
Oh wouldst thou fing what heroes Windfor bore,
What king first breath'd upon her winding
What fighs, what murmurs, fill'd the vocal fhore! His tuneful fwans were heard to fing no more.
Ver. 290. her filver ftar.] All the lines that follow were not added to the poem till the year 1710. What immediately followed this, and made the conclufion, were thefe :
My humble muse, in unambitious ftrains,
Paints the green forests and the flowery plains;
Where I obfcurely pafs my careless days,
Pleas'd in the filent fhade with empty praise,
Enough for me that to the listening fwains
First in these fields I fung the Sylvan strains.
Ver. 307. Originally thus in the MS. When brafs decays, when trophies lie o'erthrown, And mouldering into duft drops the proud stone.
Whom not th' extended Albion could contain,
From old Belerium to the northern main,
The grave unites; where ev'n the great find reft,
And blended lie th' oppreffor and th' oppreft!
Make facred Charles's tomb for ever known (Obscure the place, and uninfcrib'd the ftone); 320 Oh fact accurs'd! what tears has Albion fhed! Heavens, what new wounds! and how her old have bled!
She faw her fons with purple deaths expire,
Her facred domes involv'd in rolling fire,
A dreadful series of inteftine wars,
Inglorious triumphs, and dishonest scars.
At length great Anna faid, "Let difcord ceafe!"
She faid, the world obey'd, and all was peace!
Is that bleft moment from his oozy bed
Old father Thames advanc'd his reverend head.
His treffes dropp'd with dews, and o'er the fiream
His fhining horns diffus'd a golden gleam :
Grav'd on his urn appear'd the moon, that guides
His fwelling waters, and alternate tides;
The figur'd ftreams in waves of filver roll'd,
And on their banks Augusta rose in gold;
Around his throne the fearborn brothers ftood
Who fwell with tributary urns his flood!
Firft the fam'd authors of this ancient name,
The winding Ifis, and the fruitful Thame :
The Kennet swift, for filver eels renown'd;
The Loddon flow, with verdant alders crown'd;
Cole, whose dark streams his flowery islands lave;
And chalky Wey, that rolls a milky wave;
The blue, tranfparent Vandalis appears;
The gulfy Lee his fedgy treffes rears;
And fullen Mole, that hides his diving flood;
And filent Darent, ftain'd with Danish blood.
High in the midft, upon his urn reclin'd, (His fea-green mantle waving with the wind) 350 The god appear'd: he turn'd his azure eyes Where Windfor-domes and pompous turrets rife;
Ver. 321. Originally thus in the MS. Oh fact accurs'd! oh facrilegious brood, Sworn to rebellion, principled in blood! Since that dire morn, what tears has Albion fhed: Gods what new wounds, &c,
Ver. 327. Thus in the MS.
Till Anna rofe, and bade the furies cease;
Let there be peace-she said, and all was peace.
Between verse 330 and 331, originally stood these lines:
From shore to shore exulting shouts he heard,
O'er all his banks a lambient light appear'd;
With Sparkling flames heaven's glowing concave
fhone,
Fictitious stars, and glories not her own.
He faw, and gently rofe above the stream;
His fhining horns diffufe a golden gleam:
With pearl and gold his towery front was dreft,
Then bow'd, and spoke; the winds forget to roar, And the hufh'd waves glide foftly to the fhore.
Hail, facred peace! hail, long-expected days, That Thames's glory to the stars fhall raife! Though Tiber's ftreams immortal Rome behold, Though foaming Hermus fwells with tides of gold, From heaven itself the feven-fold Nilus flows, And harvests on a hundred realms bestows; These now no more shall be the muses' themes, Loft in my fame, as in the sea their streams. Let Volga's banks with iron fquadrons fhine, And groves of lances glitter on the Rhine; Let barbarous Ganges arm a fervile train : Be mine the bleflings of a peaceful reign. No more my fons fhall die with British blood, Red Iber's fands, or Ifter's foaming flood: Safe on my fhore each unmolefted fwain Shall tend the flocks, or reap the bearded grain; 370 The shady empire shall retain no trace Of war or blood, but in the Sylvan chace; The trumpet fleep, while cheerful horns are blown, And arms employ'd on birds and beasts alone. Behold th' afcending villas on my fide, Project long fhadows o'er the crystal tide. Behold! Augufta's glittering fpires increase, And temples rife, the beauteous works of peace. I fee, I fee, where two fair cities bend Their ample bow, a new Whitehall ascend! 380 There mighty nations fhall inquire their doom, The world's great oracle in times to come; There kings fhall fue, and suppliant states be seen Once more to bend before a British queen.
Thy trees, fair Windfor! now fhall leave their
And half thy forests rush into thy floods;
Bear Britain's thunder, and her cross display,
To the bright regions of the rifing day:
Tempt icy feas, where scarce the waters roll,
Where clearer flames glow round the frozen pole;
Or under fouthern fkies exalt their fails,
Led by new stars, and borne by spicy gales!
For me the balm fhall bleed, and amber flow,
The coral redden, and the ruby glow,
The pearly fhell its lucid globe unfold,
And Phoebus warm the ripening ore to gold.
The time fhall come, when free as feas or wind
Unbounded Thames fhall flow for all mankind,
Whole nations enter with each fwelling tide,
And feas but join the regions they divide;
Ver. 363. Originally thus in the MS. Let Venice boast her towers amidst the main, Where the rough Adrian fwells and roars in vain: Here not a town, but spacious realm shall have A fure foundation on the rolling wave.
Ver. 385, &c. were originally thus in the MS. Now fhall our fleets the bloody crofs difplay To the rich regions of the rifing day, Or thofe green ifles, where headlong Titan steeps His hifling axle in th' Atlantic deeps:
Earth's diftant ends our glory fhall behold,
And the new world launch forth to seek the old.
Then hips of uncouth form shall stem the tide,
And feather'd people crowd my wealthy fide,
And naked youths and painted chiefs admire,
Our fpeech, our colour, and our strange attire!
Oh, ftretch thy reign, fair peace! from fhore to fhore,
Till conqueft cease, and flavery be no more;
Till the freed Indians in their native groves
Reap their own fruits, and woo their fable loves;
Peru once more a race of kings behold,
And other Mexicos be roof'd with gold.
Exil'd by thee from earth to deepest hell,
In brazen bonds fhall barbarous difcord dwell;
Gigantic pride, pale terror, gloomy care,
And mad ambition, fhall attend her there :
There purple vengeance bath'd in gore retires,
Her weapons blunted, and extinct her fires:
There hateful envy her own fnakes fhall feel,
And perfecution mourn her broken wheel: 420
There faction roar, rebellion bite her chain,
And gafping furies thirst for blood in vain.
Here cease thy flight, nor with unhallow'd lays
Touch the fair fame of Albion's golden days:
The thoughts of gods let Granville's verse recite,
And bring the fcenes of opening fate to light:
My humble muse, in unambitious strains,
Paints the green forefts and the flowery plains,
Where peace descending bids her olive spring,
And scatters bleffings from her dove-like wing.
Ev'n I more fweetly pafs my careless days,
Pleas'd in the filent fhade with empty praise ;
Enough for me, that to the listening swains
First in these fields I fung the Sylvan strains.
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