A narrow orb each crowded conquest keeps,
Beneath her palm here sad Judea weeps.
Now scantier limits the proud arch confine,
And scarce are seen the prostrate Nile, or Rhine;
A small Euphrates thro' the piece is roll'd,
And little Eagles wave their wings in gold.
The Medal, faithful to its charge of fame,
Thro' climes and ages bears each form and name:
In one short view subjected to our eye,
Gods, emp'rors, heroes, sages, beauties, lie.
With sharpen'd sight pale Antiquaries pore,
Th' inscription value, but the rust adore.
This the blue varnish, that the green endears,
The sacred rust of twice ten hundred years!
To gain Pescennius one employs his schemes,
One grasps a Cecrops in extatic dreams.
Poor Vadius, long with learned spleen devour'd
Can taste no pleasure since his shield was scour'd;
And Curio, restless by the fair-one's side,
Sighs for an Otho, and neglects his bride.
Theirs is the vanity, the learning thine:
Touch'd by thy hand again Rome's glories shine;
Her gods and godlike heroes rise to view
And all her faded garlands bloom anew.
Nor blush these studies thy regard engage;
These pleas'd the fathers' of poetic rage;
The verse and sculpture bore an equal part,
And art reflected images to art.
Oh! when shall Britain, conscious of her claim,
Stand emulous of Greek and Roman fame?
In living Medals see her wars enroll'd,
And vanquish'd realms supply recording gold!
Here, rising bold, the patriot's honest face,
There warriors frowning in historic brass;
Then future ages with delight shall see
How Plato's, Bacon's, Newton's looks agree;
Or in fair series laurell'd bards be shown,
A Virgil there, and here an Addison:
Then shall thy craggs (and let me call him mine)
On the cast ore another Pollio shine;
With aspect open shall erect his head
And round the orb in lasting notes be read,
'Statesman, yet friend to truth! of soul sincere, "In action faithful, and in honour clear;
"Who broke no promise, serv'd no private end, "Who gain'd no title, and who lost no friend; "Ennobled by himself, by all approv'd,
"And prais'd unenvy'd by the Muse he lov'd."
BEHOLD the woes of matrimonial life,
And hear with rev'rence an experienc'd Wife;
To dear-bought wisdom give the credit due,
And think for once a woman tells you true.
In all these trials I have borne a part;
I was myself the scourge that caus'd the smart ;
For since fifteen in triumph have I led
Five captive husbands from the church to bed.
Christ saw a wedding once, the Scripture says,
And saw but one, 'tis thought, in all his days;
Whence some infer, whose conscience is too nice,
No pious Christian ought to marry twice.
But let them read, and solve me if they can,
The words address'd to the Samaritan:
Five times in lawful wedlock she was join'd,
And sure the certain stint was ne'er defin'd.
"Increase and multiply" was Heaven's command,
And that's a text I clearly understand.
This too "Let men their sires and mothers leave,
"And to their dearer wives for ever cleave."
More wives than one by Solomon were try'd,
Or else the wisest of mankind's bely'd.
I've had myself full many a merry fit,
And trust in Heav'n I may have many yet;
For when my transitory spouse, unkind,
Shall die and leave his woful wife behind,
I'll take the next good Christian I can find.
Paul, knowing one could never serve our turn,
Declar'd 'twas better far to wed than burn.
There's danger in assembling fire and tow;
I grant them that; and what it means you know.
The same apostle, too, has elsewhere own'd
No precept for virginity he found:
'Tis but a a council---and we women still
Take which we like, the counsel or our will.
I envy not their bliss if he or she
Think fit to live in perfect chastity:
Pure let them be, and free from taint of vice;
I for a few slight spots am not so nice.
Heav'n calls us diff'rent ways, on these bestows
One proper gift, another grants to those:
Not ev'ry man's oblig'd to sell his store,
And give up all his substance to the poor:
Such as are perfect may, I can't deny;
But by your leaves, Divines! so am not Ï.
Full many a saint, since first the world began,
Liv'd an unspotted maid in spite of man:
Let such (a God's name) with fine wheat be fed,
And let us honest wives eat barley bread.
For me, I'll keep the post assign'd by Heav'n,
And use the copious talent it has giv'n:
Let my good spouse pay tribute, do me right,
And keep an equal reck'ning ev'ry night:
His proper body is not his but mine;
For so said Paul, and Paul's a sound divine.
Know then, of those five husbands I have had,
Three were just tolerable, two were bad.
The three were old, but rich, and fond beside,
And toil'd most piteously to please their bride;
But since their wealth (the best they had) was mine, The rest without much loss I could resign:
Sure to be lov'd I took no pains to please,
Yet had more pleasure far than they had ease.
Presents flow'd in apace: with show'rs of gold
They made their court, like Jupiter of old:
If I but smil'd a sudden youth they found,
And a new palsy seiz'd them when I frown'd.
Ye sov'reign Wives! give ear, and understand,
Thus shall ye speak, and exercise command;
For never was it giv'n to mortal man
To lie so boldly, as we women can;
Forswear the fact, tho' seen with both his eyes,
And call your maids to witness how he lies.
Hark, old Sir Paul! ('twas thus I us'd to say)
Whence is our neighbour's wife so rich and gay?
Treated, caress'd, where'er she's pleas'd to roam---
I sit in tatters, and immur'd at home.
Why to her house dost thou so oft repair?
Art thou so am'rous? and is she so fair?
If I but see a cousin or a friend,
Lord! how you swell and rage like any fiend?
But you reel home, a drunken beastly bear,
Then preach till midnight in your easy chair;
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