Selected quad for the lemma: earth_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A34298
|
The birth of a muse a poem to the right honourable Charles Montague, Chancellor of the Exchequer &c. / by Mr. Congreve.
|
Congreve, William, 1670-1729.
|
1698
(1698)
|
Wing C5845; ESTC R29682
|
4,254
|
14
|
THE BIRTH OF THE MUSE A POEM TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE CHARLES MONTAGUE CHANCELLOUR OF THE EXCHEQUER c. By Mr. CONGREVE Dignum laude virum Musa vetat mori Horat. LONDON Printed for Iacob Tonson at the Iudge's Head near the Inner-Temple-Gate in Fleetstreet 1698. THE BIRTH OF THE MUSE DEscend Celestial Muse thy Son inspire Of thee to sing infuse the Holy Fire Belov'd of Gods and Men thy self disclose Say from what Source thy Heav'nly Pow'r arose Which from unnumb'red Years deliv'ring down The Deeds of Heroes deathless in Renown Extends their Life and Fame to Ages yet unknown Time and the Muse set forth with equal Pace At once the Rivals started to the Race And both at once the destin'd Course shall end Or both to all Eternity Contend One to preserve what t' other cannot save And rescue Vertue rising from the Grave To thee O Montague these Strains are sung For thee my Voice is tun'd and speaking Lyre is strung For ev'ry Grace of ev'ry Muse is thine In thee their various Fires united shine Darling of Phaebus and the tunefull Nine To thee alone I dare my Song Commend Whose Nature can forgive and Pow'r defend And shew by turns the Patron and the Friend Begin my Muse from Iove derive thy Song Thy Song of right does first to Iove belong For thou thy self art of Celestial Seed Nor dare a Sire inferiour boast the Breed When first the Frame of this vast Ball was made And Iove with Joy the finish'd Work survey'd Then change of Things the rise and fall of States Tho' yet to come were destin'd by the Fates Then Time had first a Name by firm Decree Appointed Lord of all Futurity Within whose spacious Womb the Fates repose Causes of Things and secret Seeds enclose Which ripening there shall one Day gain a Birth And force a Passage thro' the teeming Earth To him they gave to rule the spacious Light And bound the yet unparted Day and Night To wing the Hours that whirl the rowling Sphere To shift the Seasons and conduct the Year The Term of Empires and Extent of Power To him they trust and fix each fated Hour This mighty Rule to Time the Fates ordain But yet to hard Conditions bind his Reign For ev'ry beauteous Birth he brings to light How good soe'er and grateful in his sight He must again to Native Earth restore And all his Race with Iron Teeth devour Nor Good nor Great shall scape his hungry Maw But bleeding Nature prove the rigid Law Not yet the loosned Earth aloft was flung Or pois'd amid the Skies in ballance hung Nor yet did Golden Fires the Sun adorn Or borrow'd Lustre silver Cynthia's Horn. Nor yet had Time Commission to begin Or Fate the many-twisted Web to spin When all the Heav'nly Host assembled came To view the World yet resting on its Frame Eager they press to see the Sire dismiss And rowl the Globe along the vast Abyss But deep revolving Thoughts the God retain Which for a space suspend the promis'd Scene Again his Eyes inspect Time's pregnant Womb Again he reads the World 's predestin'd Doom Abroad the bulky Volume he displays And present views the Deeds of future Days A beauteous Prospect paints the foremost Page Where Nature's Bloom presents the Golden Age. The Golden Leaf to Silver soon resigns And fair the Sheet but yet more faintly shines Of baser Brass the next denotes the Times An impious Page deform'd with deadly Crimes The Fourth yet wears a worse and browner Face And adds to Gloomy Days an Iron Race He turns the Book and ev'ry Age reviews Then all the Kingly Line his Eye pursues The First of Men and Lords of Earth design'd Who under him should rule the rest of Human-kind Of Future Heroes there the Lives he reads In search of Glory spent and Godlike Deeds Who Empires found and goodly Cities build And Savage Men Compel to leave the Field All this th' Eternal saw and seen approv'd When Lo but thence a Narrow Space remov'd And Hungry Time has all the Scene defac'd The Kings destroy'd and laid the Kingdoms waste Together all in Common Ruins lie And but anon and ev'n the Ruins die Th' Almighty inly touch'd Compassion found To see Great Actions in Oblivion drown'd And forward search the Roll to find if Fate Had no Reserve to spare the Good and Great Bright in his View the Trojan Heroes shine And Ilian Structures rais'd by Hands Divine But Ilium soon in Native Dust is laid And all her boasted Pile a Ruine made Not Great Aeneas can her Fall withstand But flies to save his Gods to foreign Land The Roman Race succeed the Pardan State And first and second Caesar God-like Great Still on to after-days his Eyes descend And rising Heroes still the Search attend Proceeding thus he many Empires pass'd But fair Britania fix'd his Sight at last Above the Waves she lifts her Silver Head And looks a Venus born from Ocean's Bed For rowling Years her happy Fortunes smile And Fates propitious bless the beauteous Isle To Worlds remote she wide extends her Reign And wields the Trident of the stormy Main Thus on the Base of Empire firm she stands While bright Eliza rules the willing Lands But soon a Lowring Sky comes on apace And Fate revers'd shews her ill-omen'd Face The Void of Heav'n a Gloomy Horrour fills And Cloudy Veils involve her shining Hills Of Greatness pass'd no Footsteps she retains Sunk in a Series of Inglorious Reigns She feels the Change and deep regrets the Shame Of Honours lost and her diminish'd Name Conscious she seeks from Day to shrowd her Head And glad would shrink beneath her Oozy Bed Thus far the Sacred Leaves Britania's Woes In shady Draughts and dusky Lines disclose Th' ensuing Scene revolves a Martial Age And ardent Colours gild the glowing Page Behold of radiant Light an Orb arise Which kindling Day restores the darkned Skies And see on Seas the beamy Ball descends And now its Course to fair Britania bends Along the foamy Main the Billows bear The floating Fire and wast the shining Sphere Hail happy Omen Hail auspicious Sight Thou glorious Guide to yet a greater Light For see a Prince whom dazling Arms array Pursuing closely plows the wat'ry Way And tracks the Glory thro' the flaming Sea Britania rise awake O Fairest Isle From Iron Sleep again thy Fortunes smile Once more look up the Mighty Man behold Whose Reign renews another Age of Gold The Fates at length the Blissful Web have spun And bid it round in Endless Circles run Again shall distant Lands Confess thy Sway Again the wat'ry World thy Rule Obey Again thy Martial Sons shall thirst for Fame And win in foreign Fields a deathless Name For WILLIAM's Genius ev'ry Soul inspires And warms the frozen Youth with warlike Fires Already see the Hostile Troops retreat And seem forwarn'd of their impending Fate Already routed Foes his Fury feel And fly the Force of his unerring Steel The haughty