There while he mourn'd, the ftreams forgot to flow, 5
The flocks around a dumb compaffion show,
The Naiads wept in ev'ry watʼry bow'r,
And Jove confented in a filent fhow'r.
Accept, O Garth, the Muse's early lays,
That adds this wreath of Ivy to thy Bays;
Hear what from Love unpractis'd hearts endure,
From Love, the fole difeafe thou canst not cure.
Ye fhady beeches, and ye cooling streams,
Defence from Phœbus, not from Cupid's beams,
Το you I mourn, nor to the deaf I fing,
The woods fhall answer, and their echo ring.
The hills and rocks attend my doleful lay,
Why art thou prouder and more hard than they?
VER. 8. And Jove confented.]
Virg. Jupiter & læto defcendet plurimus imbri.
VER. 9.] Dr. Samuel Garth, Author of the Difpenfary, was one of the first friends of the author, whose acquaintance with him began at fourteen or fifteen. Their friendship continu'd from the year 1703, to 1718, which was that of his death.
VER. 15.-Nor to the deaf I fing-]
Non canimus furdis, refpondent omnia fylva. Virg. VER. 16. The woods fhall answer, and their echo ring, is a line out of Spenfer's Epithalamion.
The bleating fheep with my complaints agree,
They parch'd with heat, and I enflam'd by thee.
The fultry Sirius burns the thirsty plains,
While in thy heart eternal winter reigns.
Where ftray ye Muses, in what lawn or grove,
While your Alexis pines in hopeless love?
In those fair fields where facred Ifts glides,
Or else where Cam his winding vales divides?
As in the cryftal fpring I view my face,
Fresh rifing blushes paint the wat'ry glass;
But fince thofe graces please thy eyes no more,
I fhun the fountains which I fought before.
Once I was skill'd in ev'ry herb that
grew,
And ev'ry plant that drinks the morning dew;
VER. 23. Where firay ye Mufes, &c.]
Quæ nemora, aut qui vos faltus habuere, puella
Naiades, indigno cum Gallus amore periret?
Nam neque Parnaffi vobis juga, nam neque Pindi
Ulla moram fecere, neque Aonia Aganippe.
Virg. Out of Theoc.
VER. 27. Oft in the cryftal spring I caft a view,
And equal'd Hylas, if the glass be true;
But fince thofe graces meet my eyes no more,
Ifbun, &c.
Virgil again from the Cyclops of Theocritus,
-nuper me in littore vidi
Cum placidum ventis ftaret mare, non ego Daphnim
Judice te, metuam, fi nunquam fallat imago.
Ah wretched fhepherd, what avails thy art,
To cure thy lambs, but not to heal thy heart!
Let other fwains attend the rural care,
Feed fairer flocks, or richer fleeces share;
But nigh yon' mountain let me tune my lays,
Embrace my Love, and bind my brows with bays.
That flute is mine which Colin's tuneful breath
Inspir'd when living, and bequeath'd in death;
He faid; Alexis, take this pipe, the same
That taught the groves my Rofalinda's name :
But now the reeds fhall hang on yonder tree,
For ever filent, fince despis'd by thee.
Oh! were I made by fome transforming pow'r
The captive bird that fings within thy bow'r!
Then might my voice thy liftning ears employ,
And I thofe kiffes he receives, enjoy.
And yet my numbers please the rural throng,
Rough Satyrs dance, and Pan applauds the fong:
The Nymphs forfaking ev'ry cave and fpring,
Their early fruit, and milk-white turtles bring;
VER. 39. Colin.] The name taken by Spenfer in his Eclogues, where his mistress is celebrated under that of Rofalinda.
VER. 40. Virg. Ecl. 2.
Eft mihi difparibus feptem compacta cicutis
Fiftula, Damætas dono mibi quam dedit olim.
Et dixit moriens, Te nunc habet ifta fecundum.
Each am'rous nymph prefers her gifts in vain,
On you' their gifts are all bestow'd again.
For
you the swains the fairest flow'rs defign,
And in one garland all their beauties join;
Accept the wreath which you deserve alone,
In whom all beauties are compriz'd in one.
See what delights in fylvan fcenes appear! Defcending Gods have found Elyfium here. In woods bright Venus with Adonis stray'd, And chafte Diana haunts the forest-shade. Come, lovely nymph, and bless the filent hours, When fwains from fheering feek their nightly bow'rs; When weary reapers quit the fultry field, 65 And crown'd with corn, their thanks to Ceres yield. This harmless grove no lurking viper hides, But in my breast the serpent Love abides. Here bees from bloffoms fip the rofy dew, But your Alexis knows no fweet but you. Oh deign to vifit our forfaken feats, The mofly fountains, and the
green retreats! cool gales fhall fan the glade, 'Trees, where you fit, fhall croud into a fhade: Where-e'er you tread, the blushing flow'rs fhall rife, And all things flourish where you turn your eyes. Oh! how I long with you to pafs my days, Invoke the Muses, and refound your praise!
VER. 60. Defcending Gods have found Elyfium here.] Habitarunt Di quoque fylvas-Virg.
Et formofus oves ad flumina pavit Adonis. Idem.
Your praise the birds shall chant in ev'ry grove,
And winds fhall waft it to the pow'rs above.
But would you fing, and rival Orpheus' train,
The wond'ring forefts foon should dance again,
The moving mountains hear the pow'rful call,
And headlong streams hang lift'ning in their fall!
But fee, the shepherds fhun the noon-day heat,
The lowing herds to murm'ring brooks retreat,
To closer shades the panting flocks remove;
Ye Gods! and is there no relief for Love?
But foon the fun with milder rays defcends
To the cool ocean, where his journey ends :
On me love's fiercer flames for ever prey,
By night he scorches, as he burns by day.
Your praife the tuneful birds to heav'n fhall bear,
And liftning wolves grow milder as they hear.
VER. 80. And winds fhall waft-]
Partem aliquam, venti, divûm referatis ad aures!
Virg.
Me tamen urit amor, quis enim modus adfit amori?
VER. 91. Me love inflames, nor will his fires allay.
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