Which monarchs and their crowns perplex,
Whom factions still, or favorites vex.
But thou, on thy botanic throne,
Sit'st fearless, uncontrol'd, alone:
Thy realms in tumults ne'er involv'd,
Or, rising, are as soon dissolv'd:
Free from the mischiefs and the strife
Of a false friend, or fury wife:
And if a rebel slave, or son,
Audacious by indulgence grown,
Presumes above his mates to rise,
And their dull loyalty despise :
Thou, awful Sultan! with a look,
Canst all his arrogance rebuke;
And, darting one imperial frown,
Hurl the bold traitor headlong down:
His brethren, trembling at his fate,
Thy dread commands with reverence wait
Thy wondrous power and justice own,
And learn t' assert a tottering throne.
Thus, Kings that were in empire wise,
Rebellions early should chastise;
And give their clemency no time,
Betwixt th' offender and the crime,____
With fatal eloquence to plead,
Which does more rebels only breed.
Bobart, to Kings thy rules commend,
For thou to Monarchs art a friend.
Thus, Sovereign Planter! I have paid
The debt, the promis'd present made :
Do thou, what's written for thy sake
With freedom, with like freedom take :
Take the just praise thy Friend may give,
And in my verse for ever live!
SIGNIOR ANTONIO VERRIO,
AT HAMPTON COURT;
ON THE GRANT CF WOODSTOCK PARK, &c.
TO THE DUKE OF MARLBOROUGH, 1704.
BAINBRIGG BUCKEREDGE, ESQ.
RENOWN'D in arms when mighty Heroes rise,
Th' immortal Muse in lasting numbers tries
To future ages to transmit their fame,
And give them, after death, a living name.
The fields of bliss below, the shady grove,
Were the reward of all their toils above;
The Mantuan Swain has fill'd the solemn place
With the wreath'd worthies of his Roman race;
While greater Marlborough disdains to wait,
Mature for Fame, the slow approach of Fate,
But reaps that glorious harvest whilst he lives,
Which Time to all his ancient Heroes gives.
Elysian shades shall now no more be sought,
The gay creation of the Poet's thought;
The royal gift displays a nobler view,
No feign'd Elysium can exceed the true.
EPISTLES DESCRIPTIVE, &c.
Woodstock her lov'd Plantagenet no more
Laments, when Marlborough shall her state restore;
She for whom Chaucer's tuneful lyre was strung,
And Wilmot's Muse in softer transport sung,
From lonely bowers her lofty head shall rear,
And chearful, like her conquering Lord, appear.
Through her cool glades, on every verdant plain,
Eternal Plenty, Peace, and Pleasure reign :
High on her walls, Imperial Eagles tell,
By bolder hands how fierce Bavarians fell;
Here we behold, by Verrio's pencil wrought,
The numerous spoils from Swabian conquests brought;
How o'er th' opposing Schellenberg he run,
Which none before but great Gustavus won.
Here, camps assaulted, and a city storm'd;
There, on expanded plains, the battle form'd;
Through seas of blood the fiery coursers fly,
And rapid streams and thundering brass defy ;
While echoing cliffs and sylvan heights around
With groans and shouts alternately resound.
Surrendering squadrons with their lillies torn,
And haughty chiefs before his prowess born;
In exile One, and One beneath his chain,
Strive for a Crown and Liberty in vain.
Gild his victorious car, bold Artist; draw Albion rejoicing, and the World in awe; Paint in full splendor all his acts, that claim Triumphant laurels and immortal fame.
Make him Gaul's glittering flowers in homage yield,
To fix them faster in Britannia's shield;
Let Austria's sacred branch in state descend,
To view the Victor and applaud the Friend;
Let your great genius on the canvass show,
How the swift Rhine, and how the Danube flow
How eastward this, in streaming purple strays,
How that, his captives to our coasts conveys;
How thus the trophies, he at once has won,
Haste to the rising and the setting sun.
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