XI. The better to conceal her lewd intent In fafety from obferving eyes, Th' old ftrumpet did herself difguife Thither all her lovers flock'd, And there for her fupport the found With all ingredients for his business stock'd, In th' annals of Sir Hudibras. And every knave or fool that to her did repair, By his contrivance to her did refort Those whofe ambition had been croft, Lay nearest to her heart, and ofteneft in her arms. And to her lure, flattering their hopes, she brought The rebel power, the beggar'd fpend-thrift lands, XII. With her in common luft did mingle all the crew, And from her womb, in little time, brought forth Born from a Wapping drab, or Shoreditch quean, Dame Scandal with her fquinting eyes, But midwife Mutiny, that bufy drab, To the bleft family of Pryn. dig; Lov'd to caft ftinking fatires up in ill-pil'd r They promis'd all by turns to take him, Yet in the outcafts of a northern factious town, Hell fhe ador'd, and Satan was her god; And many an ugly loathfome tead Crawl'd round her walls, and cre Under her roof all difmal, black, and fmo Harbour'd beetles, and unwholefomeb Sprawling nefts of little cats; All which were imps fhe cherish'd with blood, To make her fpells fucceed and gre Still at her fhrivel'd breafts they hung, whe mankind the curst, And with these fofter-brethren was our menis In little time the hell-bred brat Not that he wanted parts For which his guardians all thought it, He fhould be fent to learn the laws, out of the good old to raise a damn'd new cause. XIV. which the better to improve his mind, As by Nature he was bent arch in hidden paths, and things long bury'd find, wretch's converfe much he did frequent : e who this world, as that did him, disown'd, d in an unfrequented corner, where thing was pleasant, hardly healthful found, He led his hated life. edy, and ev'n of neceffaries bare, fervant had he, children, friend, or wife : it of a little remnant, got by fraud, all ill turns he lov'd, all good detefted, and believ'd no God) arice in a week he chang'd a hoarded groat," With which of beggars fcraps he bought. hen from a neighbouring fountain water got,. Not to be clean, but flake his thirst. never bloft himself, and all things else he curft. he cell in which he (though but seldom) flept,; Lay like a den, uncleans'd, unfwept: nd there thofe jewels which he lov'd he kept;. Old worn-out ftatutes, and records common privileges, and the rights of lords. lut bound up by themselves with care were laid All the acts, refolves, and orders, made By the old long Rump-parliament, Through all the changes of its government: From which with readiness he could debate Concerning matters of the state, down from goodly forty-one to horrid fortyeight. XV. His friendship much our monster fought By inftinct, and by inclination too: So without much ado They were together brought. him obedience Libel fwore, and by him was he taught. He learnt of him all goodness to deteft; In all things but obedience to be beast; o hide a coward's heart, and shew a hardy face. He taught him to call government a clog, But to bear beatings like a dog: Fraught with these morals, he began Into rebellion to divide the nation, How by a lawful means to bring How to make faithful fervants traitors, Thorough-pac'd rebels legislators, And at last troopers adjutators. Thus well inform'd, and furnish'd with enough Of fuch-like wordy, canting ftuff, Our blade fet forth, and quickly grew A leader in a factious crew. Where-e'er he came, 'twas he first filence broke, And fwell'd with every word he spoke, Ey which becoming faucy grace, He gain'd authority and place: By many for preferments was thought fit, For talking treafon without fear or wit; For opening failings in the state; For loving noify and unfound debate, And wearing of a mystical green ribband in his hat. XVI. Thus, like Alcides in his lion's skin, But, like that Hercules when Love crept in, His foes that found him faw he was but man: At once to hate and fcorn him I began ; He was poetry all o'er, On every fide, behind, before: Of ills that malice could devife, Or ever swarm'd from a licentious prefs, But from fuch ills when will our wretched state Be freed? and who fhall crush this serpent's head? 'Tis faid we may in ancient legends read To lay a finful kingdom waste : So hardly was their lofs endur'd: The lovers all despair'd, and fought their tombs In the fame monster's jaws, and of their pains were cur'd. 4 [H] Till, like our monfter too, and with the fame And every day a maid was flain. Th' unhappy monarch's only child must bow: A royal daughter needs muft fuffer then, a royal brother now. XVII. On him this dragon Libel needs will prey; His fordid venom, and prophan'd Unblemish'd, and to ages laft, When all his foes lie buried in their fhame. To make him every thing that's rare, Why at his prefence fhrink his foes? Why do the brave all ftrive his honour to defend ? Why through the world is he diftinguish'd moft By titles, which but few can boast, A moft juft mafter, and a faithful friend? Of him what widow make her moan? But drooping like their captains hers, Each pendent, every streamer, hung: The feamen feem'd t' have loft their ars; Their fhips at anchor now, of which w' had heard them boast, With ill-furl'd fails and rattlings loose, by every billow toft, Lay like neglected harps, untun'd, unftrung; Till at the laft, provok'd with shame, Forth from their dens the baited foxes came; Foxes in council, and in fight too grave; Seldom true, and now not brave: They blufter'd out the day with fhew of fight, And ran away in the good-natur'd night. With fpoils of victory and glory fraught. To him then every heart was open, down From the great man to the clown: In him rejoic'd, to him inclin'd; And as his health round the glad board did pa's, Each honeft fellow cry'd, Fill full my g'afs; And fhew'd the fullness of his mind. Durst then affront him but in fhow; When his tumultuous milled foes With what heroic grace He chofe the weight of wrong to undergo! No tempeft on his brow, unalter'd in his face, True witness of the innocence within. But, when the meffengers did mandates bring For his retreat to foreign land, Since fent from the relenting hand Of the most loving brother, kindest king; If in his heart regret did rife, It never fcap'd his tongue or eyes; With steady virtue 'twas allay'd, And like a mighty conqueror he obey'd. The eldest first embrac'd, As new-born day in beauty bright, But fad in mind as deepest night : What tenderest hearts could fay, betwixt them pait, Till grief too close upon them crept ; So fighing he withdrew, fhe turn'd away and wept. Much of the father in his breast did rife, When on the next he fix'd his eyes, A tender infant in the nurse's arms, Full of kind play, and pretty charms : And as to give the farewel kifs he near it drew, About his manly neck two little arms it threw ; Smil'd in his eyes, as if it begg'd his stay, And look'd kind things it could not fay. XXI. But the great pomp of grief was yet to come. Th' appointed time was almost pait, Th' impatient tides knock'd at the fhore, and bid him hafte To feek a foreign home; The fummons he refolv'd t' obey, Difdaining of his fufferings to complain, Though every step feem'd trod with pain; So forth he came, attended on his way By a fad lamenting throng, That bleft him, and about him hung. A weight his generous heart could hardly bear; But for the comfort that was neat, His beauteous Mate, the fountain of his joys, The cordial that can mortal pains remove, Just when approach'd the Monarch of our And took the charming Mourner by the hand:, Then down to the fhore fide, Where to convey them did two royal barges ride, Then hand in hand the pity'd pair For that dear pledge fh' ad left behind, And as her paffion grew too mighty for her mind, She of fome tears her eyes beguil'd, Which, as upon her cheek they lay, The happy hero kifs'd away, And, as fhe wept, blush'd with difdain, and fmil'd. Strait forth they launch into the high-fwoln Thames; The well-ftruck oars lave up the yielding streams. All fix'd their longing eyes, and wishing stood, PHEDRA TO HIPPOLYTUS. TRANSLATED OUT OF OVID. THE ARGUMENT. Thefeus, the fan of Egeus, baving flain the Minotaur, promifed to Ariadne, the daughter of Minos and Pafipbae, for the affiftance which fee gave bim, to carry ber bome with bim, and make her his wife; fo together with her fifler Phædra they went on board and failed to Chios, where being warned by Bacchus, be left Ariadne, and married her fifler Phadra, who afterwards, in Thefeus ber pufband's abfence, fell in love with Hippolytus ber fon-in-law, who bad vow'd celibacy, and was a bunter; therefore, fince fee could not conveniently otherwife, foe chofe by this epifle to give him an account of per passion. IF thou 'rt unkind I ne'er fhall health enjoy, Yet much I wish to thee, my lovely boy: But what I blufh'd to fpeak, Love made me write. But Love long breeding to worst pain does turn; So my unpractis'd heart in love can find move, But in our riper years with rage we love. Till in full joy diffolv'd, each falls afleep That what ye meant a bleffing prove no weight. TO MR. CREECH, UPON HIS TRANSLATION OF LUCRETIUS. SIR, when your hook the first time came ab Thus when the great Lucreties gives a look, And lafhes to her fpeed his fiery Mufe; Still with him you maintain an equal pace, And bear full ftretch upon him all the race; But when in rugged way we find him rein His verfe, and not fo fmooth a stroke maintain; There the advantage he receives is found, By you taught temper, and to chufe his ground Next, his philofophy you've fo expreft In genuine terms, fo plain, yet neatly dreft, Thofe murderers that now mingle it all day In fchools, may learn from you the cafy way To let us know what they would mean and Ly: If Ariftotle's friends will fhew the grace To wave for once their ftatute in that cafe. Go on then, Sir, and fince you could alpire, And reach this height, aim yet at laurels higher: Secure great injur'd Maro from the wrong He unredeem'd has labour'd with fo long In Holbourn rhyme, and, left the book frould fail, Expos'd with pictures to promote the fale: So tapfters fet out figns, for muddy ale. You're only able to retrieve his doom, And make him here as fam'd as once at Rome: For fure, when Julius firft this ifle fubdued, Your ancestors then mixt with Roman blood; Some near ally'd to that whence Ovid came, Virgil and Horace, thofe three fons of Fame; Since to their memory it is fo true, And fhews their poetry fo much in you. Go on in pity to this wretched ifle, Which ignorant poetafters do defile With loufy madrigals for lyric verfe; Instead of comedy with nafty farce. Would Plautus, Terence e'er, have been fo lewd. T' have dreft Jack-pudding up to catch the crowd? Or Sophocles five tedious acts have made, To fhew a whining fool in love betray'd By fome falfe friend or flippery chambermaid, Then, ere he hangs himfelf, bemoans his fall In a dull fpeech, and that fine language call? No, fince we live in fuch a fuifome age, When nonfenfe loads the prefs, and choaks the ftage; When blockheads will claim wit in nature's fight, |