Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	death_n	life_n	love_n	2,521	5	5.4712	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A41984	Elegies of old age made English from the Latin of Cn. Cornelivs Gallvs.; Elegiae. English	Maximianus, 6th cent.; Walker, Hovenden, Sir, 1656?-1728.; Gallus, Gaius Cornelius, 69?-26 B.C.	1688 (1688)	Wing G181A; ESTC R11044	28,218	106

wrinkled Face And I am tickled with my own Disgrace Thus these are the First Fruits of Death with these Down to the Grave I march by slow degrees My Form my Dress my Colour Shape and Meen Are not the same which heretofore they 've been My Body now inclin'd and awkward grown Le ts my large Coat slide from my shoulders down And what was short before seems now a Gown I so contracted and decreas'd appear You 'd think my very Bones deminish't were I 'm no more privileg'd to look on high To contemplate the rich and spacious Sky But prone to Earth from whence I came I tend To shew where I began there I must end Three Feet I use but streight I shall use four And brought to Childhood crawl upon the Floor To its first Principle each thing resolves What ris ' from Nought to Nought again devolves Hence 't is that I mould'ring to Dust am found With my old Staff poking the lazy Ground And my short steps moving with weakly pace But slowly quitting the attractive Place Seem thus to mutter my Complaints and pray With belching Jaws to Earth against Delay Mother receive thy Child pitty his pain And in thy Bosome cherish me again For hardly can my Leggs their Load sustain My loathsome Figure now moves no Delight And my sad gastly Looks the Boys affright For fear they shun me and abhor my Sight Why to thy Brood do'st shew such Crueltie To let me thus a common Bugbear be My bus'ness now with Mankind here is none The wretched Task of Life by me is done With all its various Trouble various Toyl Receive me therefore to my proper Soil What Pleasure is 't to see me undergo So many diff'rent Penalties of Wo Is it a Mother's part to use me so Scarce have I Strength thus even to complain And scarce my Staff my trembling Limbs sustain But with my Labour and my Grief opprest Lolling upon my Couch I seek for Rest Where stretch't along upon th' uneasie Bed I represent an Earthie Body dead Such as it is when once the Soul is fled Thus when I loll and stretch who would believe That I am sensible at all or live Though this indeed what Life I have do's give My Life is but one intire Punishment And all the World but one whole Discontent Heat burns my Body Clouds offend my Sight Nor do's the cold or clearer Air delight The Summer Dews are hurtfull to my Head And as Infections April Showers I dread The chearfull Days of the gay blooming Spring Nor Autumn's jolly Vintage nor any thing To me the least reviving Joy can bring But wretched I with Scurf and Scab o'er-run And with the Ptisick and Chin-Cough undone My miserable Age it self bemoans With never-ceasing and continual Groans And can you think those Creatures live to whom The Air by which we breath and Light become Hatefull and grievous sad and troublesome Ev'n Sleep Death's gentle gratefull Imagerie Which for a Time do's wretched Mortals free From the unquiet Thoughts of Miserie Still flies away and shuns unhappy me And if he do's vouchsafe though late to close My heavy Eyes he troubles my Repose With horrid frightfull Dreams and dreadfull Sights Of fatal Specters and of murther'd Sprights Down Beds or Beds of Stone are much the same And seem to me to differ but in name Though softest Silks my thin light Cov'ring be Heavy they seem and troublesome to me With many Inconveniencies opprest Often I rise to break imperfect Rest Thus urg'd by my weak Bodies sad Defect I do those very things I would neglect And striving many Evils to avoid My Health by many Evils is destroy'd Thus Age coming on unheeded and unsought With multitudes of heavy Mischiefs fraught Submission to its own sad Weight is taught Who therefore would a tedious Life desire And so by piece-meal painfully expire Then in the Flesh the Soul should bury'd lye And to live dying better once to dye Alas I don't complain because I 'd give A six't Prescription how long Man should live 'T is an unpardonable Crime I know To circumscribe great Nature by my Law. I only wish that I might meet my Fate E'er Age should all my Pleasures captivate E'er Time with his rank Ills my Life invade Time which makes all things wear away and fade The sturdy Bull by Time deficient grows Nor use of former noble Courage knows The proud gay mettled Horse of late so good By Age becomes the Scandal of the Stud This can abate the furious Lyon's Rage And the fierce Tyger gentle grows with Age. Antiquitie makes even Rocks decay And ev'ry thing alas to Time gives way Wherefore I rather would anticipate My growing Miseries by swifter Fate And all my Punishment at once would feel Nor wait in painfull Expectation still But who can tell the Sorrows and the Pain VVhich not themselves but others do sustain Thus poor Old men increase their grievous Care By minding how much they unpitty'd are Of those who cannot in their Suff'rings share Hence 't is that Age forsaken friendless Age Do's in so many scolding Broyls engage Meeting with such Contempts such Detriments While none in his behalf his Harms resents The rogu'ish Boys and wanton Girls agree Both to despise abuse and laugh at me For Master me they think 't is shame to own Because with Age I 'm despicable grown They flout my Gate my Face and trembling Head Whose angry Nod they heretofore would dread Though my dim'd sight small help to me do's give Yet I shall certainly my Shame perceive No rude affronts by me unseen can go But I must mark 'em to compleat my Woe Thrice happy sure is the deserving He Who leads his Life in calm Tranquillitie And e'er with Age his Strength is quite decay'd Is from the World by timely Death convey'd For to remember former Happiness Do's but increase the wretched Man's Distress ELEGY II. The ARGUMENT In this Elegy the Poet mourns the Inconstancy of his Mistriss and seems to attribute the Cause of it to his being Old nevertheless he endeavours by several Arguments to perswade her to continue her Love to him still but despairing of Success he ends the Elegy with a Complaint BUT lo Lycoris my inconstant Fair To me too faithless and to me too dear She whose Desires whose Soul and mine were one And long we undevided liv'd alone Secure I thought of such a lasting Love And Happiness as nothing could remove But now by strange Infatuations led The stupify'd Ingrate avoids my Bed And from my aged and enfeebl'd Arms To younger Lovers bears her sprightly Charms Of former Joys forgetfull all the while Do's me decrepid old unable stile Nor recollects those many Pleasures past Which she with vast Delight so oft would tast And my unhappy Age so much did hast Nay the ungratefull the perfidious She To cast the odium of her Crime on me Feigns that my Faults caus'd her Inconstancie Perhaps hereafter when she may

Ev'n from each other we kept unreveal'd And with much Pain our Sufferings conceal'd But then at last our Love so fierce became That we no longer could suppress the Flame We find it much too hard and cruel too To hide a Light which so apparent grew For frequent Blushes Sighs and thousand things Declar'd our Wishes and our Languishings But oh what Joys what Ecstasies were shown When we to each durst our hid Passions own Then oft in private we together came And with Discourse blow'd up the pleasing Flame What cunning Plots we 've us'd what sly deceit To cheat our Spies and undiscover'd meet Whole Nights in whisp'ring Murmurs soft Tread We 've spent while drowsie Watches snor'd in Bed. And if we fail'd of such an Enterprize Too strictly guarded by our curious Spies We could in spite converse with speaking Eyes In vain they strove our Glances to constrain They spoke our mutual Wishes our mutual Pain Disorder'd thus not long unmark't I liv'd For my observing Mother soon perceiv'd The sad unusual melancholy Care Which did in all my Words and Acts appear And quickly guest the fatal Cause was Love Whom she design'd by Rigour to remove She thought my Passion with a Rod to quell But that provok't it stubborn to rebell Her cruel Usage could effect no Cure For Love alas had taught me to endure All only serv'd more to inflame Desire Like added Fuel to increase the Fire Nothing could chase the Stranger from my Breast My Health decay'd but still my Love increast This rough Experiment she try'd in vain For Love do's all Restraint and Force disdain And I within was more severely vext Doubly with mingled Fear and Love perplext Then with Maternal Tenderness she strove By Sighs and Tears my wilfull Mind to move Believing that her Sorrows might prevail On filial Duty to relate the Tale But even that soft Stratagem did fail At last she thought since nothing else could do To make pretence that she already knew And seeming pleas'd and speaking smilingly Said why do'st strive to keep ought hid from me Alas canst thou believe that I am blind By all thy Words and Actions not to find That secret Love distracts thy tender Mind For did not I but very lately see Some wanton Songs and Verses made by thee Then be obedient let thy Mother know Who cruel Pains for thee did undergo Acquaint me freely lay aside your Fear Tell me the naked Truth of all my Dear What then must I thus beg and sue in vain And is this all the Purchase I shall gain For Blood diffus'd and lost to bring thee forth And am I and my Woes of no more worth But if thou do'st preserve thy Chastitie Keeping thy self from guilty Action free All may be well and innocent as yet And Time may wear away this fond Love-sit Thus was I daily plagu'd but yet the Curse Was that I hop'd no Cure but still grew worse Not daring to discover the hid Pain I lov'd I languish'd and I griev'd in vain Nor needed I at last a Tongue to tell What my consumptive Paleness did reveal And doz'd Stupidity declar'd so well Thou mighty Searcher of Mysterious things Whose certain Knowledge certain Succour brings Bobetius you alone were truely kind Who div'd into the Secrets of my Mind And the hid Cause from dark Effects did find Well I remember when you first perceiv'd How I was tortur'd and how I was griev'd With gentle Words you prob'd the tender Wound And by soft soothing the sad secret found Urging me to declare my Griefs and Pain As the best means my Temper to regain With Ease did you my closed Breast unlock When gently arguing thus to me you spoke For an unknown Disease no Cure can be Conceal your Grief and want a Remedie As Fire when in a Cellar closely pent Rages the more for want of Air and Vent So while your Passions you with Force constrain To burn in secret you increase the Pain Then I half willing but o'er-rul'd with shame Blush't the sad Cause of all my Griefs to name Darkly at last my trembling Tongue exprest The rowling Flames which warm'd my guilty Brest Enough said you I now enough have seen By these Effects to know the Cause within Be plain and tell me all lay by your Fear I cannot else a Remedy prepare Thus you prevail'd I blush't I wept and sigh'd And nothing of the whole Intreigue could hide Down at your Feet to dye I prostrate fall And in its native order told you all You ask't would I possess the Beautious She No I reply'd 't were an Impietie You laugh'd and cry'd Oh wonderfull Delight Had ever Venus such a worthy Wight What an unspeakable strange Prodigie In Love alas would you appear to be Striving to keep a needless Chastitie 'T would be a most unmanly Sin and base To spare a longing Virgin in this Case Would you ridiculously strive to be Pious herein 't were worst Impietie Though when perhaps you try to tast the Joy She may seem angry and unkindly coy Be not discourag'd at the gratefull Fight For Opposition whets the Appetite Makes Love more fierce and heightens the Delight Young tender Loves are fed with peevish Rage And inn'cent Quarrels more the Hearts ingage Virgins untry'd half yielding half afraid Are in their own Resistance best betray'd With secret Pleasure to soft Force they yield And seemingly displeas'd give up the Field Melted at last their striving is but weak And breathless thus perhaps they faintly speak Ah do not use a harmless Creature so Still in the midst of Rapture crying no And prithee let me prithee let me go Thus when he had incourag'd me to hope I gave my Wishes an unbounded Scope In the mean time with Gifts and Gold he strove To bribe her Parents to allow my Love They easily consent such strength do's lye In the prevailing Force of Alchimy Their natural Affection soon gave way To the high Worship which to Gold they pay Oh sacred Metal Oh resistless Gold Who can thy strange betwitching Charms unfold 'T is thy unanswerable Eloquence Thy weighty Arguments and mighty Sence Which can perswade poor Mortals to dispence With any Vice or Villanous Offence So much thou didst her Parents move herein They did not barely suffer but begin To love and so promote their Daughter's sin All privacies of Place all proper Time We were allow'd to forward the sweet Crime They put us hand in hand and all the day A thousand Am'rous toying Tricks we play Nay ev'n at last the very lushious Fact They gave us Opportunity to act But there I baulk't for when to do an Ill I gain'd the Privilege I lost the Will. My hot Desire strait became cool within When once it was permitted me to sin That Lust which I before could not endure The very Power to fulfill did cure Then I and not before began to find The miserable Sickness of my Mind The Laws of Love by me were