Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A63972
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A search after honesty a poem / by Mr. Tutchin.
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Tutchin, John, 1661?-1707.
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1697
(1697)
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Wing T3383; ESTC R38381
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5,825
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21
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A SEARCH AFTER HONESTY A POEM By Mr. TUTCHIN LONDON Printed for the Author 1697. To His FRIEND Mr. J. T. on the Following POEM PRithee Old Friend Shall I make bold to Ask What Angry Stars have doom'd Thee to this Task What Powers Sway'd thy Fancy What thy Mind To Seek a Thing so Plaguy hard to Find First try thy Fate see how such Projects hit Find out something that 's Parallel to it Find out a CITY destitute of Vice Find out that Spot call'd The Old Paradise Find a French Courtier without Genteel Lyes Or any English one that Gold denies Find out a Beauty and no Pride Lodg'd there An Honest Thief and Gen'rous Usurer Find out the Unicorn and Phoenix too And from what Cause in Nature they first grew When these are found then we perhaps may see Some dark blind steps of Light-Heel'd-Honesty I once was Led by Curious Thoughts to know On what Strange Soil this Honesty did grow But those I Askt for it return'd me No. I from the Lawyer first Direction sought And begg'd his Aid to this my New-born Thought Tush Tush quoth he Our Trade is to Adjust Nice Points of Law and Doubtfull-Deeds of Trust By which we make Men Poor but seldom Just. The Doctor felt my Pulse quoth he Thou' rt Mad Goe Bleed use Hellebore and Shave thy Head Then to a Priest I went and told my Want Who Fairly Answer'd He knew nothing on 't Nay then quoth I if this is own'd by All I 'll Vse it Sparingly or not at All I 'll Talk on 't too like others without Ground The Crowd they 'll Stare Believe and so 't goes round What is this thing that Men so Lamely Know This Honesty so much Pretended to T is nothing Or What 's next to 't but a Toy Oft-times a Shooing-horn for Knavery 'T is Faith's next Heir a Jewel if you knew it Ingrost by all though very few dare shew it 'T is like the Solvent Chymist's talk so on A sort of Witch-craft more Believ'd then Known 'T is like the Flame that doth so fine appear But Burns the Skin of him that comes too near 'T is vainly Call'd what vauntingly we boast Talk't by the Wise Believ'd to Weak Mens Cost 'T is like the Maiden-head weak Men Adore Ne'r Found when Lost nor never seen before This Truth all know and some Men to their Sorrow One's Honest now perhaps a Knave to Morrow Then what 's the Honesty in Common Vogue When he that hath it Proves next Day a ROGUE Were it as Plenty as 't is said to be More Honest Deeds and fewer Knaves you 'd see 'T is Craft and Skill not Justice makes the Knave Who to Enrich his Heir himself 's a Slave To Swell th' Estate Crowds in a Crime or Two So gains his Point 't is no great matter How So Heires are Curst Estates too now and then And this too done by them Call'd Honest Men. Well Friend Go on in this Design Abide And th' Great Being be thy Sacred Guide 'T is Brave and Gen'rous Nay a Noble Strain To seek for that which few Men wish to gain 'T is a Design of such Descent and Birth That proves 't was Born Above not here on Earth As a Reward may thou its Birth-place View As a Possessor not as Pilgrims Doe Let us be Honest Vs that Shrine Adore A Blessing still Attends it though we 're Poor J. P. A SEARCH After Honesty IN Silent Shades upon the Banks of Thames A Pensive Bard sate viewing of the Streams He thought retiring to have found Reliefe But Shades and Darksome Scenes augment our Griefe Long he his Country and her Fate did Mourn And Pray'd for more Auspicious days return His Godess HONESTY he long had lost Upon the Ages Impious Surges tost No Influence no Tract of her he finds But what remains in his and Generous Minds Whether She 's fled or how disturb'd of rest He long revolv'd within his Tortur'd Breast To Forreign Climes from Heavenly Seats Above Bearing the Mandates of Allmighty Jove As Angels do with swiftest speed repair Through the vast Empires of extended Air Guided by Heav'nly Charts a Passage find And leave the Winds and Flagging Clouds behind At once they view the Regions of the Sky And Humane Actions as aloft they flye Thus does the Mind all distant Forms survey And Just Ideas to it self convey Things hid in Dark recess to Light are brought By Inspiration or a Turn of Thought His Mind first brought him as the chief of things Unto the Gilded Pallaces of Kings He thought a GODESS of so Great a Port Was fit for Empire and receiv'd at COURT Soon the Mistaken Bard his Error found When Fancy brought him on the Slipp'ry Ground Nature does here with hideous Forms affright And Paints the Landscape of Eternal Night The Sun whose Blessing is his heat Divine Does here like some Enchanted Taper shine Pimps Parasites and Knaves make up the Throng Whilst Ghosts of Poyson'd Monarchs glide along A Den where none but Beasts of Prey resort And hatch New Crimes their Old Ones to Support Night Ravens Perch with the Ill-boding Owl State Foxes Bark and Rav'nous Tygers Howl GoblinsTransform themselves and Night-Mares Prance Elves Bellow Loud and Ghastly Satyrs Dance Men here by Philtres do provoke their Loves And every Woman a Medoea proves Each Man with Envy does the next surprize The Small-ones Grumble as the Great-ones Rise One Man Preferr'd the Residue Combine And do his State-Foundations Undermine Yet all Aspiring to be Gay and Great Alike they Flatter and alike they Cheat. Still Fancy leads him by Mistaken Rules And brings him next to Colleges and Schools Where Youth is with the Laws Corruption Fed Where Priests are Form'd and Holy Cheats are Bred Taught to Mislead the Ignorant from the Way Bewitch their Sences and their Faith Betray From these as from the Stews do overflow Num'rous as Grass does on the Mountains grow Monks Nuns and Priests of every Sect and Kind The same in Virtue and the same in Mind Here to the Sacred Altar he repairs Hoping to Meet his Goddess at her Prayers With Fervent Zeal the Priests Devotion Pay With Outward CANT and Hearts within Astray By Formal Zeal the Trading-Priesthood Thrives Yet Damn their Doctrine in their Wicked Lives Incens'd at this our Poet did express His Just Resentments in such Words as these How much this Age than others is Accurst How much Unlike what was Created First The Infant-World with Care and Plenty Blest Knew not the Plague nor odious Name of Priest Each Man a Temple in his Dwelling saw And Taught his Children to Expound the Law Was Priest himself yet Plough'd his Fertile Soil And eat the Sweets of all his Care and Toil No Black-Invader did his Ease molest Nor Pay'd he Tythes to a Voracious Priest Pamper'd with Ease eat Manna for his Bread Yet loath'd those Daintys which his Bowels fed At once his God and Liberty Detests He like the Heathen-Nations