Honesty, as a stern frown to cast on Villainy: If the times would suffer me, I could be as pleasing as others; and perhaps ere long I will make you amends for my former rigour; meanwhile I commit this unto your censures, and bid you farewell.
BRIGHT Northern Star and great Minerva's peer,
Sweet Lady of this day! Great Britain's dear!
Lo, thy poor vassal, that was erst so rude
With his most rustic satyrs to intrude,
Once more like a poor Silvan now draws near,
And in thy sacred presence dares appear.
O let not that sweet bow, thy brow, be bent,
To scare him with a shaft of discontent!
One look with anger, nay, thy gentlest frown,
Is twice enough to cast a greater down.
My will is ever, never to offend
Those that are good; and what I here intend
Your worth compels me to; for, lately griev'd,
More than can be exprest or well believ'd,
Minding for ever to abandon sport
And live exil'd from places of resort,
Careless of all, I yielding to security,
Thought to shut up my muse in dark obscurity,
And in content the better to repose,
A lonely grove upon a mountain chose,
East from Cær Win, midway 'twixt Arle and Dis,
True springs, where Britain's true Arcadia is.
But ere I enter'd my intended course,
Great Eolus began to offer force.
The boisterous king was grown so mad with rage,
That all the earth was but his fury's stage :*
Fire, air, earth, sea, were intermix'd in one;
Yet fire, through water, earth and air shone.
The sea, as if she meant to whelm them under,
Beat on the cliffs, and rag'd more loud than thunder;
And whilst the vales she with salt waves did fill,
The air shower'd floods that drench'd our highest
And the proud trees, that would no duty know,
Lay overturned, twenties in a row;
Yea, every man, for fear, fell to devotion,
Lest the whole isle should have been drench'd in
Which I perceiving, conjur'd up my muse,
The spirit whose good help I sometimes use,
And though I meant to break her rest no more,
I was then fain her aid for to implore;
And by her help indeed I came to know
Why both the air and seas were troubled so;
* Alluding to a remarkably tempestuous winter
For having urg'd her, that she would unfold
What cause she knew, thus much at last she told.
Of late (quoth she) there is by powers divine
A match concluded, 'twixt great Thame and Rhine,
Two famous rivers, equal both to Nile;
The one, the pride of Europe's greatest Isle ;
Th'other, disdaining to be closely pent,
Washes a great part of the Continent,
Yet with abundance doth the wants supply
Of the still-thirsting sea, that's never dry.
And now these, being not alone endear'd
To mighty Neptune and his wat’ry herd,
But also to the great and dreadful Jove,
With all his sacred companies above,
Both have assented, by their loves inviting,
To grace with their own presence this uniting.
Jove call'd a summons, to the world's great wonder;
"Twas that we heard of late, which we thought
thunder.
A thousand legions he intends to send them,
Of cherubim and angels to attend them;
And those strong winds that did such blust'ring
Were but the tritons' sounding in the deep
To warn each river, petty stream and spring,
Their aid unto their sovereign to bring.
The floods and showers that came so plenteous down,
And lay entrench'd in every field and town,
Were but retainers to the nobler sort,
That owe their homage at the watʼry court;
Or else the streams, not pleas'd with their own store,
To grace the Thames, their mistress, borrowed more,
Exacting from their neighbouring dales and hills,
But by consent all, nought against their wills.
Yet now, since in this stir are brought to ground
Many fair buildings, many hundreds drown'd,
And daily found of broken ships great store,
That lie dismember'd upon every shore,
With divers other mischiefs known to all,
This is the cause that those great harms befall:
Whilst other things in readiness did make,
Hell's hateful hags from out their prisons break,
And spiting at this hopeful match, began
To wreak their wrath on air, earth, sea, and ma
Some, having shapes of Romish shavelings got,
Spew'd out their venom, and began to plot
Which way to thwart it; others made their way
With much distraction through land and sea,
Extremely raging. But Almighty Jove
Perceives their hate and envy from above;
He'll check their fury, and in irons chain'd,
Their liberty abus'd shall be restrain'd:
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