And patient listening, thanks accept from me. Life, death, eternity! momentous themes Are they, and might demand a seraph's tongue, Were they not equal to their own support; And therefore no incompetence of mine Could do them wrong. The universal forms Of human nature, in a spot like this, Present themselves at once to all men's view: Ye wish'd for act and circumstance, that make The individual known and understood: And such as my best judgment could select From what the place afforded have been given; Though apprehensions cross'd me that my zeal To his might well be liken'd, who unlocks A cabinet with gems or pictures stored, And draws them forth-soliciting regard To this, and this, as worthier than the last, Till the spectator who a while was pleased More than the exhibiter himself, becomes Weary and faint, and longs to be released. But let us hence! my dwelling is in sight, And there--"
At this the solitary shrunk
With backward will: but, wanting not address That inward motion to disguise, he said To his compatriot, smiling as he spake ; "The peaceable remains of this good knight Would be disturbed, I fear, with wrathful scorn, If consciousness could reach him where he lies That one, albeit of these degenerate times, Deploring changes past, or dreading change Foreseen, had dared to couple, e'en in thought, The fine vocation of the sword and lance With the gross aims and body-bending toil Of a poor brotherhood who walk the earth Pitied, and where they are not known, despised. Yet, by the good knight's leave, the two estates Are traced with some resemblance. Errant those, Exiles and wanderers-and the like are these; Who with their burden, traverse hill and dale, Carrying relief for nature's simple wants. What though no higher recompense they seek Than honest maintenance, by irksome toil Full oft procured, yet such may claim respect, Among th' intelligent, for what this course Enables them to be, and to perform. Their tardy steps give leisure to observe, While solitude permits the mind to feel; Instructs and prompts her to supply defects By the division of her inward self,
For grateful converse; and to these poor men (As I have heard you boast with honest pride) Nature is bountiful, where'er they go ; Kind nature's various wealth is all their own. Versed in the characters of men and bound, By ties of daily interest, to maintain Conciliatory manners and smooth speech; Such have been, and still are in their degree, Examples efficacious to refine
Rude intercourse: apt agents to expel, By importation of unlook'd-for arts, Barbarian torpor, and blind prejudice; Raising, through just gradation, savage life To rustic, and the rustic to urbane. Within their moving magazines is lodged Power that comes forth to quicken and exalt
A panegyric from your generous tongue! But, if to these wayfarers once pertained Aught of romantic interest, 'tis gone; Their purer service, in this realm at least, Is past for ever. An inventive age Has wrought, if not with speed of magic, yet To most strange issues. I have lived to mark A new and unforeseen creation rise From out the labours of a peaceful land, Wielding her potent enginery to frame And to produce, with appetite as keen
As that of war, which rests not night or day, Industrious to destroy! With fruitless pains Might one like me now visit many a tract Which, in his youth, he trod, and trod again, A lone pedestrian with a scanty freight, Wish'd for, or welcome, wheresoe'er he came, Among the tenantry of Thorpe and Ville; Or straggling burgh, of ancient charter proud, And dignified by battlements and towers Of some stern castle, mouldering on the brow Of a green hill or bank of rugged stream. The footpath faintly mark'd, the horse-track wild And formidable length of plashy lane, (Prized avenues ere others had been shaped Or easier links connecting place with place) Have vanished,-swallow'd up by stately roads Easy and bold, that penetrate the gloom
Of Britain's farthest glens. The earth has lent Her waters, air her breezes; and the sail Of traffic glides with ceaseless interchange, Glistening along the low and woody dale, Or on the naked mountain's lofty side. Meanwhile, at social industry's command, How quick, how vast an increase! From the germ Of some poor hamlet, rapidly produced Here a huge town, continuous and compact, Hiding the face of earth for leagues-and there, Where not a habitation stood before, Abodes of men irregularly mass'd
Like trees in forest,-spread through spacious
O'er which the smoke of unremitting fires Hangs permanent, and plentiful as wreaths Of vapour glittering in the morning sun. And wheresoe'er the traveller turns his steps, He sees the barren wilderness erased,
* In treating this subject, it was impossible not to recollect, with gratitude, the pleasing picture, which, in his poem of the Fleece, the excellent and amiable Dyer has given of the influences of manufacturing industry upon the face of this island. He wrote at a time when machinery was first beginning to be introduced, and his benevolent heart prompted him to augur from it nothing but good. Truth has compelled me to dwell upon the baneful effects arising out of an ill-regulated and excessive application of powers so admirable in themselves.
Or disappearing; triumph that proclaims How much the mild directress of the plough Owes to alliance with these new-born arts! Hence is the wide sea peopled,—hence the shores Of Britain are resorted to by ships
Freighted from every climate of the world
That there should pass a moment of the year, When in their land th' Almighty's service ceased. "Triumph who will in these profaner rites Which we, a generation self-extoll'd, As zealously perform! I cannot share His proud complacency; yet I exult,
With the world's choicest produce. Hence that sum Casting reserve away, exult to see
Of keels that rest within her crowded ports, Or ride at anchor in her sounds and bays; That animating spectacle of sails
Which, through her inland regions, to and fro Pass with the respirations of the tide, Perpetual, multitudinous! Finally, Hence a dread arm of floating power, a voice Of thunder daunting those who would approach With hostile purposes, the blessed isle, Truth's consecrated residence, the seat Impregnable of liberty and peace.
"And yet, O happy pastor of a flock Faithfully watch'd, and, by that loving care And Heaven's good providence, preserved from taint!
With you I grieve, when on the darker side Of this great change I look; and there behold Such outrage done to nature as compels Th' indignant power to justify herself; Yea, to avenge her violated rights,
An intellectual mastery exercised
O'er the blind elements; a purpose given,
A perseverance fed; almost a soul Imparted to brute matter. I rejoice, Measuring the force of those gigantic powers, That by the thinking mind have been compell'd To serve the will of feeble-bodied man. For with the sense of admiration blends The animating hope that time may come When strengthen'd, yet not dazzled, by the might Of this dominion over nature gain'd, Men of all lands shall exercise the same In due proportion to their country's need; Learning, though late, that all true glory rests, All praise, all safety, and all happiness, Upon the moral law. Egyptian Thebes, Tyre by the margin of the sounding waves, Palmyra, central in the desert, fell;
And the arts died by which they had been raised. Call Archimedes from his buried tomb
For England's bane. When soothing darkness Upon the plain of vanish'd Syracuse,
O'er hill and vale," the wanderer thus express'd His recollections, " and the punctual stars, While all things else are gathering to their homes, Advance, and in the firmament of heaven Glitter-but undisturbing, undisturb'd; As if their silent company were charged With peaceful admonitions for the heart
Of all beholding man, earth's thoughtful lord ; Then, in full many a region, once like this Th' assured domain of calm simplicity And pensive quiet, an unnatural light Prepared for never-resting labour's eyes, Breaks from a many-window'd fabric huge; And at the appointed hour a bell is heard, Of harsher import than the curfew-knoll That spake the Norman conqueror's stern behest- A local summons to unceasing toil! Disgorged are now the ministers of day: And, as they issue from th' illumined pile,
A fresh band meets them, at the crowded door, And in the courts—and where the rumbling stream, That turns the multitude of dizzy wheels, Glares, like a troubled spirit, in its bed Among the rocks below. Men, maidens, youths, Mother and little children, boys and girls, Enter, and each the wonted task resumes Within this temple, where is offer'd up To gain the master idol of the realm- Perpetual sacrifice. E'en thus of old Our ancestors within the still domain Of vast cathedral or conventual church, Their vigils kept: where tapers day and night On the dim altar burn'd continually, In token that the house was evermore Watching to God. Religious men were they; Nor would their reason, tutor❜d to aspire Above this transitory world, allow
And feelingly the sage shall make report How insecure, how baseless in itself, Is the philosophy, whose sway depends On mere material instruments; how weak Those arts, and high inventions, if unpropp'd By virtue. He with sighs of pensive grief, Amid his calm abstractions, would admit That not the slender privilege is theirs To save themselves from blank forgetfulness!" When from the wanderer's lips these words had fall'n,
I said, "And, did in truth these vaunted arts Possess such privilege, how could we escape Regret and painful sadness, who revere, And would preserve as things above all price, The old domestic morals of the land, Her simple manners, and the stable worth That dignified and cheer'd a low estate? O! where is now the character of peace, Sobriety, and order, and chaste love, And honest dealing, and untainted speech, And pure good-will, and hospitable cheer; That made the very thought of country life A thought of refuge, for a mind detain'd Reluctantly amid the bustling crowd? Where now the beauty of the Sabbath kept With conscientious reverence, as a day By the almighty Lawgiver pronounced Holy and blest? and where the winning grace Of all the lighter ornaments attach'd
To time and season, as the year roll'd round?” "Fled!" was the wanderer's passionate re-
"Fled utterly! or only to be traced
In a few fortunate retreats like this; Which I behold with trembling, when I think What lamentable change, a year-a month- May bring; that brook converting as it runs
Into an instrument of deadly bane For those, who, yet untempted to forsake The simple occupations of their sires, Drink the pure water of its innocent stream With lip almost as pure. Domestic bliss, (Or call it comfort, by a humbler name,)
How art thou blighted for the poor man's heart; Lo! in such neighbourhood, from morn to eve, The habitations empty! or perchance The mother left alone, no helping hand To rock the cradle of her peevish babe; No daughters round her busy at the wheel, Or in despatch of each day's little growth Of household occupation; no nice arts Of needle-work; no bustle at the fire, Where once the dinner was prepared with pride; Nothing to speed the day, or cheer the mind; Nothing to praise, to teach, or to command; The father, if perchance he still retain His old employments, goes to field or wood, No longer led or followed by the sons; Idlers perchance they were, but in his sight; Breathing fresh air, and treading the green earth; Till their short holyday of childhood ceased, Ne'er to return! That birthright now is lost. Economists will tell you that the state Thrives by the forfeiture,-unfeeling thought, And false as monstrous! Can the mother thrive By the destruction of her innocent sons? In whom a premature necessity
Blocks out the forms of nature, preconsumes The reason, famishes the heart, shuts up The infant being in itself, and makes Its very spring a season of decay! The lot is wretched, the condition sad, Whether a pining discontent survive,
And thirst for change; or habit hath subdued The soul deprest, dejected-even to love Of her dull tasks, and close captivity. O, banish far such wisdom as condemns A native Briton to these inward chains, Fix'd in his soul, so early and so deep, Without his own consent, or knowledge, fix'd! He is a slave to whom release comes not, And cannot come. The boy, where'er he turns, Is still a prisoner; when the wind is up Among the clouds and in the ancient woods; Or when the sun is shining in the east, Quiet and calm. Behold him, in the school Of his attainments? no; but with the air Fanning his temples under heaven's blue arch. His raiment whiten'd o'er with cotton flakes, Or locks of wool, announces whence he comes. Creeping his gait and cowering, his lip pale, His respiration quick and audible;
And scarcely could you fancy that a gleam From out those languid eyes could break, or blush Mantle upon his cheek. Is this the form, Is that the countenance, and such the port, Of no mean being? One who should be clothed With dignity befitting his proud hope; Who, in his very childhood, should appear Sublime, from present purity and joy? The limbs increase, but liberty of mind Is gone for ever; this organic frame, So joyful in her motions, is become
Dull, to the joy of her own motions dead; And e'en the touch, so exquisitely pour'd Through the whole body, with a languid will Performs her functions; rarely competent T'impress a vivid feeling on the mind Of what there is delightful in the breeze, The gentle visitations of the sun,
Or lapse of liquid element, by hand,
Or foot, or lip, in summer's warmth, perceived. Can hope look forward to a manhood raised On such foundations ?"
"Hope is none for him!" The pale recluse indignantly exclaim'd, "And tens of thousands suffer wrong as deep. Yet be it ask'd, in justice to our age,
If there were not, before those arts appear'd, These structures rose, commingling old and young, And unripe sex with sex, for mutual taint; Then, if there were not in our far-famed isle, Multitudes, who from infancy had breathed Air unimprisoned, and had lived at large; Yet walk'd beneath the sun, in human shape, As abject, as degraded? At this day, Who shall enumerate the crazy huts And tottering hovels, whence do issue forth A ragged offspring, with their own blanch'd hair Crown'd like the image of fantastic fear;
Or wearing, we might say, in that white growth An ill-adjusted turban, for defence
Or fierceness, wreathed around their sunburnt brows,
By savage nature's unassisted care.
Naked, and coloured like the soil, the feet On which they stand; as if thereby they drew Some nourishment, as trees do by their roots, From earth the common mother of us all. Figure and mien, complexion and attire,
Are leagued to strike dismay, but outstretch'd hand And whining voice denote them supplicants For the least boon that pity can bestow. Such on the breast of darksome heaths are found; And with their parents dwell upon the skirts Of furze-clad commons; such are born and rear'd At the mine's mouth, beneath impending rocks, Or in the chambers of some natural cave; And where their ancestors erected huts, For the convenience of unlawful gain, In forest purlieus; and the like are bred, All England through, where nooks and slips of ground,
Purloin'd, in times less jealous than our own, From the green margin of the public way, A residence afford them, 'mid the bloom And gayety of cultivated fields.
Such (we will hope the lowest in the scale) Do I remember oft-times to have seen 'Mid Buxton's dreary heights. Upon the watch, Till the swift vehicle approach, they stand; Then, following closely with the cloud of dust, An uncouth feat exhibit, and are gone Heels over head, like tumblers on a stage. Up from the ground they snatch the copper coin, And, on the freight of merry passengers Fixing a steady eye, maintain their speed; And spin-and pant-and overhead again, Wild pursuivants! until their breath is lost,
Or bounty tires, and every face that smiled Encouragement, hath ceased to look that way. But, like the vagrants of the gipsy tribe, These, bred to little pleasure in themselves, Are profitless to others. Turn we then To Britons born and bred within the pale Of civil polity, and early train'd
To earn, by wholesome labour in the field, The bread they eat. A sample should I give Of what this stock produces to enrich The tender age of life, ye would exclaim,
With pure cerulean gravel from the heights Fetch'd by the neighbouring brook. Across the vale The stately fence accompanied our steps; And thus the pathway, by perennial green Guarded and graced, seemed fashion'd to unite, As by a beautiful yet solemn chain,
The pastor's mansion with the house of prayer. Like image of solemnity, conjoin'd With feminine allurement soft and fair, The mansion's self display'd; a reverend pile With bold projections and recesses deep;
Is this the whistling ploughboy whose shrill notes Shadowy, yet gay and lightsome as it stood
Impart new gladness to the morning air!' Forgive me if I venture to suspect That many, sweet to hear of in soft verse, Are of no finer frame: his joints are stiff; Beneath a cumbrous frock, that to the knees Invests the thriving churl, his legs appear, Fellows to those that lustily upheld The wooden stools for everlasting use, Whereon our fathers sate. And mark his brow! Under whose shaggy canopy are set
Two eyes, not dim, but of a healthy stare; Wide, sluggish, blank, and ignorant, and strange; Proclaiming boldly that they never drew A look or motion of intelligence
From infant conning of the Christ-cross-row, Or puzzling through a primer, line by line, Till perfect mastery crown the pains at last. What kindly warmth from touch of fostering hand, What penetrating power of sun or breeze, Shall e'er dissolve the crust wherein his soul Sleeps, like a caterpillar sheath'd in ice? This torpor is no pitiable work Of modern ingenuity; no town Nor crowded city may be tax'd with aught Of sottish vice or desperate breach of law To which in after years he may be roused. This boy the fields produce: his spade and hoe- The carter's whip that on his shoulder rests In air high-towering with a boorish pomp, The sceptre of his sway; his country's name, Her equal rights, her churches and her schools- What have they done for him? And let me ask, For tens of thousands uninform'd as he? In brief, what liberty of mind is here?"
This ardent sally pleased the mild, good man, To whom the appeal couched in its closing words Was pointedly address'd and to the thoughts That, in assent or opposition, rose
Within his mind, he seem'd prepared to give Prompt utterance; but, rising from our seat, The hospitable vicar interposed With invitation urgently renew'd. We followed, taking as he led, a path Along a hedge of hollies, dark and tall, Whose flexile boughs, descending with a weight Of leafy spray, conceal'd the stems and roots That gave them nourishment. When frosty winds Howl from the north, what kindly warmth, me- thought,
Is here, how grateful this impervious screen; Not shaped by simple wearing of the foot On rural business passing to and fro
Was the commodious walk; a careful hand
Had mark'd the line, and strewn the surface o'er
Fronting the noontide sun. We paused t' admire The pillar'd porch, elaborately emboss'd; The low wide windows with their mullions old; The cornice richly fretted, of grey stone; And that smooth slope from which the dwelling
By beds and banks Arcadian of gay flowers And flowering shrubs, protected and adorn'd; Profusion bright! and every flower assuming A more than natural vividness of hue, From unaffected contrast with the gloom Of sober cypress, and the darker foil
Of yew, in which survived some traces, here Not unbecoming, of grotesque device And uncouth fancy. From behind the roof Rose the slim ash and massy sycamore, Blending their diverse foliage with the green Of ivy, flourishing and thick, that clasp'd The huge round chimneys, harbour of delight For wren and redbreast, where they sit and sing Their slender ditties when the trees are bare. Nor must I leave untouch'd (the picture else Were incomplete) a relique of old times Happily spared, a little gothic niche Of nicest workmanship: that once had held The sculptured image of some patron saint, Or of the blessed virgin, looking down On all who entered those religious doors.
But lo! where from the rocky garden mount Crown'd by its antique summer house, descends, Light as the silver fawn, a radiant girl; For she hath recognised her honour'd friend, The wanderer ever welcome! A prompt kiss The gladsome child bestows at his request; And, up the flowery lawn as we advance, Hangs on the old man with a happy look, And with a pretty, restless hand of love. We enter, by the lady of the place Cordially greeted. Graceful was her port: A lofty stature undepress'd by time, Whose visitation had not wholly spared The finer lineaments of form and face;
To that complexion brought which prudence trusts in
And wisdom loves. But when a stately ship Sails in smooth weather by the placid coast On homeward voyage, what, if wind and wave, And hardship undergone in various climes, Have caused her to abate the virgin pride, And that full trim of inexperienced hope With which she left her haven, not for this, Should the sun strike her, and the impartial breeze Play on her streamers, fails she to assume Brightness and touching beauty of her own,
That charm all eyes. So bright, so fair, appear'd This goodly matron, shining in the beams Of unexpected pleasure. Soon the board Was spread, and we partook a plain repast. Here, resting in cool shelter, we beguiled The midday hours with desultory talk; From trivial themes to general argument Passing, as accident or fancy led,
Or courtesy prescribed. While question rose And answer flow'd, the fetters of reserve Dropping from every mind, the solitary Resumed the manners of his happier days; And, in the various conversation, bore A willing, nay, at times, a forward part! Yet with the grace of one who in the world Had learn'd the art of pleasing, and had now Occasion given him to display his skill, Upon the steadfast vantage-ground of truth. He gazed with admiration unsuppress'd Upon the landscape of the sunbright vale, Seen, from the shady room in which we sate, In soften'd perspective; and more than once Praised the consummate harmony serene Of gravity and elegance-diffused Around the mansion and its whole domain; Not, doubtless, without help of female taste And female care. "A blessed lot is yours!" The words escaped his lip with a tender sigh Breathed over them; but suddenly the door Flew open, and a pair of lusty boys Appear'd, confusion checking their delight. Not brothers they in feature or attire, But fond companions, so I guess'd, in field, And by the river's margin, whence they come, Anglers elated with unusual spoil. One bears a willow pannier on his back, The boy of plainer garb, whose blush survives More deeply tinged. Twin might the other be To that fair girl who from the garden mount Bounded-triumphant entry this for him! Between his hands he holds a smooth blue stone, On whose capacious surface see outspread Large store of gleaming crimson-spotted trouts; Ranged side by side, and lessening by degrees Up to the dwarf that tops the pinnacle. Upon the board he lays the sky-blue stone With its rich freight:-their number he proclaims; Tells from what pool the noblest had been dragg'd; And where the very monarch of the brook, After long struggle, had escaped at last- Stealing alternately at them and us (As doth his comrade too) a look of pride; And, verily, the silent creatures made A splendid sight, together thus exposed; Dead-but not sullied or deform'd by death, That seem'd to pity what he could not spare. But O, the animation in the mien
Of those two boys! yea, in the very words With which the young narrator was inspired, When, as our questions led, he told at large Of that day's prowess. Him might I compare, His look, tones, gestures, eager eloquence, To a bold brook that splits for better speed, And, at the selfsame moment, works its way Through many channels, ever and anon Parted and reunited: his compeer
To the still lake, whose stillness is to sight As beautiful, as grateful to the mind. But to what object shall the lovely girl
Be liken'd? She, whose countenance and air Unite the graceful qualities of both,
E'en as she shares the pride and joy of both.
My gray-hair'd friend was moved his vivid eye Glisten'd with tenderness; his mind, I knew, Was full; and had, I doubted not, return'd, Upon this impulse, to the theme-erewhile Abruptly broken off. The ruddy boys
Withdrew, on summons, to their well-earn'd meal; And he, (to whom all tongues resign'd their rights With willingness, to whom the general ear Listen'd with readier patience than to strain Of music, lute or harp,-a long delight
That ceased not when his voice had ceased,) as one Who from truth's central point serenely views The compass of his argument--began Mildly, and with a clear and steady tone.
DISCOURSE OF THE WANDERER, AND AN EVENING VISIT TO THE LAKE.
Wanderer asserts that an active principle pervades the universe. Its noblest seat the human soul. How lively this principle is in childhood. Hence the delight in old age of looking back upon childhood. The dignity, powers, and privileges of age asserted. These not to be looked for generally but under a just government. Right of a human creature to be exempt from being considered as a mere instrument. Vicious inclinations are best kept under by giving good ones an opportunity to show themselves. The condition of multitudes de- plored, from want of due respect to this truth on the part of their superiors in society. Former conversation recurred to, and the wanderer's opinions set in a clearer light. Genuine principles of equality. Truth placed within reach of the humblest. Happy state of the two boys again adverted to. Earnest wish expressed for a system of national education established universally by government. Glorious effects of this foretold. Wan- derer breaks off. Walk to the lake. Embark. De- scription of scenery and amusements. Grand spectacle from the side of a hill. Address of priest to the Supreme Being; in the course of which he contrasts with ancient barbarism the present appearance of the scene before him. The change ascribed to Christianity. Apostrophe to his flock, living and dead. Gratitude to the Al- mighty. Return over the lake. Parting with the soli- tary. Under what circumstances.
"To every form of being is assign'd," Thus calmly spake the venerable sage, "An active principle:-howe'er removed From sense and observation, it subsists In all things, in all natures, in the stars Of azure heaven, the unenduring clouds, In flower and tree, in every pebbly stone That paves the brooks, the stationary rocks, The moving waters, and th' invisible air. Whate'er exists hath properties that spread Beyond itself, communicating good A simple blessing, or with evil mix'd; Spirit that knows no insulated spot, No chasm, no solitude; from link to link It circulates, the soul of all the worlds.
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