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High in the air serene, with the brightness of gold in the Were the Souls of the Wicked, who wilful in guilt and furnace, in error, Where on their bread;h the splendour lay intense and Chose the service of sin, and now were abiding its wages. Change of place to them brought no reprieval from anguish ;

quiescent:

Part with a fierier glow, and a short quick tremulous motion,

Like the burning pyropus; and turrets and pinnacles sparkled,

Playing in jets of light, with a diamond-like glory

coruscant.

Groves of all hues of green their foliage intermingled,
Tempering with grateful shade the else unendurable
Justre.

Drawing near, I beheld what over the portal was writ

ten:

They in their evil thoughts and desires of impotent malice,

Envy and hate, and blasphemous rage, and remorse un-
availing,

Carried a Hell within, to which all outer affliction,
So it abstracted the sense, might be deem'd a remission
of torment.

At the edge of the cloud, the Princes of Darkness were
marshall'd:

Dimly descried within were wings and truculent faces; This is the Gate of Bliss,4 it said; through me is the Aud in the thick obscure there struggled a mutinous

passage

To the City of God, the abode of beatified Spirits. Weariness is not there, nor change, nor sorrow, nor parting;

Time hath no place therein; nor evil. Ye who would enter,

Drink of the Well of Life, and put away all that is earthly.

O'er the adamantine gates an Angel stood at the summit.

Ho! he exclaim'd, King George of England cometh to judgement!

Hear Heaven! Ye Angels hear! Souls of the Good and the Wicked

Whom it concerns, attend! Thou, Hell, bring forth his accusers!

As the sonorous summons was utter'd, the Winds, who were waiting,

Bore it abroad through Heaven; and Hell, in her nethermost caverns,

Heard, and obey'd in dismay.

Anon a body of splendour

uproar,

Railing, and fury, and strife, that the whole deep body of darkness

Roll'd like a troubled sea, with a wide and a manifold motion.

V.

THE ACCUSERS.

On the cerulean floor by that dread circle surrounded,
Stood the soul of the King alone. In front was the
Presence

Veil'd with excess of light; and behind was the black-
ness of darkness.

Then might be seen the strength of holiness, then was its triumph,

Calm in his faith he stood, and his own clear conscience upheld him.

When the trumpet was blown, and the Angel made proclamation

Gather'd before the gate, and veil'd the Ineffable Pre- Lo, where the King appears! Come forward ye who

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Which, with a rushing of wings, came down. The sen- Forth from the lurid cloud a Demou came at the sumtient ether

mons.

Shook with that dread descent, and the solid firmament It was the Spirit by whom his righteous reign had been troubled;

trembled.

Round the cloud were the Orders of Heaven-Archan- Likest in form uncouth to the hideous Idols whom Ingel and Angel,

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Far as the sight could pierce, that glorious company And with numberless mouths which were fill'd with lies glisten'd.

From the skirts of the shining assembly, a silvery vapour

Rose in the blue serene, and moving onward it deepen'd, Taking a denser form; the while from the opposite region

Heavy and sulphurous clouds roll'd on, and completed

the circle.

as with arrows.

Clamours arose as he came, a confusion of turbulent

voices,

Maledictions, and blatant tongues, and viperous hisses;
And in the hubbub of senseless sounds the watchwords
of faction,

Freedom, Invaded Rights, Corruption, and War, and
Oppression,

There with the Spirits accurst, in congenial darkness Loudly enounced were heard.

enveloped,

But when he stood in the Presence,

Then was the Fiend dismay'd, though with impudence Who might the other be, his comrade in guilt and in

clothed as a garment;

And the lying tongues were mute, and the lips which had scatter'd

Accusation and slander, were still. No time for evasion This, in the Presence he stood: no place for flight; for dissembling

No possibility there. From the souls on the edge of the darkness,

suffering,

Brought to the proof like him, and shrinking like him from the trial?

Nameless the libeller lived, and shot his arrows in dark

ness;

Undetected he pass'd to the grave, and leaving behind him

Noxious works on earth, and the pest of an evil example, Two he produced, prime movers and agents of mis- Went to the world beyond, where no offences are hidchief, and bade them

den.

Show themselves faithful now to the cause for which Mask'd had he been in his life, and now a visor of iron they had labour'd, Riveted round his head, had abolish'd his features for

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Wretched and guilty souls, they stood in the face of Think ye then by shame to shorten the term of your their Sovereign,

penance?

Conscious and self-condemn'd; confronted with him Back to your penal dens!—And with horrible grasp they had injured,

At the Judgement-seat they stood.

gigantic

geance

ness.

Seizing the guilty pair, he swung them aloft, and in venBeholding the foremost, Him by the cast of his eye oblique, I knew as the fire- Hurl'd them all abroad, far into the sulphurous darkbrand Whom the unthinking populace held for their idol and Sons of Faction, be warn'd! And ye, ye Slanderers! hero, learn ye Lord of Misrule in his day. But how was that coun- Justice, and bear in mind that after death there is tenance alter'd judgment.6 Where emotion of fear or of shame had never been wit- Whirling, away they flew. Nor long himself did he ness'd; tarry, That invincible forehead abash'd; and those eyes where- Ere from the ground where he stood, caught up by a in malice vehement whirlwind, Once had been wont to shine with wit and hilarity tem- He too was hurried away; and the blast with lightning per'd,

and thunder

ness,

Into how deep a gloom their mournful expression had Volleying aright and aleft amid the accumulate black-
settled!
Little avail'd it now that not from a purpose malignant, Scatter'd its inmates accurst, and beyond the limits of
Not with evil intent he had chosen the service of evil;

ether

But of his own desires the slave, with profligate im- Drove the hircine host obscene: they howling and groanpulse, ing

Solely by selfishness moved, and reckless of aught that Fell precipitate, down to their dolorous place of endur

might follow. Could he plead in only excuse a confession of baseness? Could he hide the extent of his guilt; or hope to atone for Faction excited at home, when all old feuds were abated,

Insurrection abroad, and the train of woes that had follow'd?

Discontent and disloyalty, like the teeth of the dragon,
He had sown on the winds; they had ripen'd beyond
the Atlantic;5

Thence in natural birth sedition, revolt, revolution;
France had received the seeds, and reap'd the harvest

of horrors ;

Where where should the plague be stay'd? Oh, most to be pitied

They of all souls in bale, who see no term to the evil

ance.

Then was the region clear; the arrowy flashes which redden'd

Thro' the foul thick throng, like sheeted argentry floating Now o'er the blue serene, diffused an innocuous splendour,

In the infinite dying away. The roll of the thunder Ceased, and all sounds were hush'd, tilf again from the gate adamantine

Was the voice of the Angel heard through the silence |

of Heaven.

VI.

THE ABSOLVERS.

They by their guilt have raised, no end to their inner Ho! he exclaim'd, King George of England standeth in

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flim I could not choose but know, nor knowing but Hell hath been dumb in his presence. Ye who on earth grieve for.

arraign'd him,

Come ye before him now, and here accuse or absolve him!

For injustice hath here no place.

From the Souls of the Blessed

Washington! said the Monarch, well hast thou spoken and truly,

Just to thyself and to me. On them is the guilt of the

contest,

Some were there then who advanced; and more from Who, for wicked ends, with foul arts of faction and the skirts of the meeting,

falsehood,

Spirits who had not yet accomplish'd their purifica- Kindled and fed the flame: but verily they have their tion, guerdon. Yet being cleansed from pride, from faction and error Thou and I are free from offence. And would that the deliver'd, nations, Purged of the film wherewith the eye of the mind is Learning of us, would lay aside all wrongful resentclouded,

ment,

They, in their better state, saw all things clear; and All injurious thought, and honouring each in the other discerning Kindred courage and virtue, and cognate knowledge and freedom,

Now in the light of truth what tortuous views had deceived them,

They acknowledged their fault, and own'd the wrong they had offer'd;

Not without ingenuous shame, and a sense of com-
punction,

More or less, as each had more or less to atone for.
One alone remain'd, when the rest had retired to their

station :

Silently he had stood, and still unmoved and in silence,
With a steady mien, regarded the face of the Monarch.
Thoughtful awhile he gazed; severe, but serene, was his

aspect;

Calm, but stern; like one whom no compassion could
weaken,

Neither could doubt deter, nor violent impulses alter:
Lord of his own resolves,-of his own heart absolute

master.

Live in brotherhood wisely conjoined. We set the example. 7

They who stir up strife, and would break that natural concord,

Evil they sow, and sorrow will they reap for their harvest.

VII.

THE BEATIFICATION.

WHEN that Spirit withdrew, the Monarch around the assembly

Look'd, but none else came forth; and he heard the voice of the Angel,

Awful Spirit! his place was with ancient sages and King of England, speak for thyself! here is none to ar

heroes:

Fabius, Aristides, and Solon, and Epaminondas.

Here then at the Gate of Heaven we are met! said the Spirit;

raign thee.

Father, he replied, from whom no secrets are hidden, What should I say? Thou knowest that mine was an arduous station,

Full of cares, and with perils beset. How heavy the burthen

King of England! albeit in life opposed to each other,
Here we meet at last. Not unprepared for the meeting Thou alone canst tell! Short-sighted and frail hast
Ween I; for we had both outlived all enmity, rendering
Each to each that justice which each from each had And Thy judgments who can abide?

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During evil days, when right and wrong are confounded. Left to our hearts we were just. For me, my actions have As in Thee I have trusted, so let me not now be conspoken,

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LIFT up your heads, ye Gates; and ye everlasting Portals,

Be ye lift up! For lo! a glorified Monarch approacheth,
One who in righteousness reign'd, and religiously go-
vern'd his people.

Who are these that await him within?
Deliverer,

Nassau the

Then methought we approach'd the gate. In front❘ Him I knew: and the Stuart, he who, serene in his

of the portal, From a rock where the standard of man's Redemption was planted,

Issued the Well of Life, where whosoever would enter, So it was written, must drink, and put away all that is earthly.

Earth among its gems, its creations of art and of nature, Offers not aught whereto that marvellous Cross may be liken'd

meekness,

Bow'd his anointed head beneath the axe of rebellion, Calm in that insolent hour, and over his fortune triumphant. 8

Queen of the eagle eye, thou too, O matchless Eliza, Excellent Queen, wert there! and thy brother's beautiful spirit;

O'er whose innocent head there hover'd a silvery halo, Even in dim similitude, such was its wonderful sub- Such as crowns the Saint when his earthly warfare is

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Sun, nor Moon, nor Stars; but from that Cross as a fountain

Flow'd the Light uncreated; light all-sufficing, eternal, Light which was, and which is, and which will be, for ever and ever;

Light of light, which, if daringly gazed on, would blind an Archangel,

Yet the

eye

of weak man may behold, and beholding is strengthened.

Yea, while we wander below, opprest with our bodily burthen,

ended.

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In the Orient and Occident known, from Tagus to
Tigris. 9

Lion-hearted Richard was there, redoubtable warrior,
At whose irresistible presence the Saracen trembled;
At whose name the Caliph exclaim'd in dismay on Ma-
hommed,

Syrian mothers grew pale, and their children were
scared into silence.

And in the shadow of death, this Light is in mercy Born in a bloody age, did he in his prowess exulting

vouchsafed us,

So we seek it with humble heart; and the soul that receives it

Run like a meteor his course, and fulfil the service assign'd him,

Hath with it healing and strength, peace, love, and life Checking the Mussulman power in the height of its everlasting.

prosperous fortune; But that leonine heart was with virtues humaner ennobled,

Thither the King drew nigh, and kneeling he drank (Otherwhere else, be sure, his doom had now been ap

of the water.

pointed),

Oh what a change was wrought! In the semblance of Friendship, disdain of wrong, and generous feeling age he had risen,

redeem'd it,

Such as at last he appear'd, with the traces of time and Magnanimity there had its seat, and the love of the affliction

Deep on his faded form, when the burthen of years was upon him.

Oh what a change was wrought! For now the cor-
ruptible put on

Incorruption; the mortal put off mortality. Rising
Rejuvenescent he stood in a glorified body, obnoxious
Never again to change, nor to evil and trouble and

sorrow,

But for eternity form'd, and to bliss everlasting appointed.

Muses.

There with the Saxon Kings who founded our laws and our temples,

(Gratefully still to be named while these endure in re-
membrance,

They, for the pious work!) I saw the spirit of Alfred;
Alfred than whom no Prince with loftier intellect gifted,
Nor with a finer soul, nor in virtue more absolute, ever
Made a throne twice-hallow'd, and reign'd in the hearts
of his people.

With him the Worthies were seen who in life partook of
his labours,

Shared his thoughts, and with him for the weal of posterity travail'd:

Some who in cloisters immured, and to painful study Gazed on that soul sublime: of passion now as of devoted blindness

Day and night, their patient and innocent lives ex- Ileal'd, and no longer here to Kings and to Hierarchs hausted, hostile, And in meekness possess'd their souls and some who He was assoil'd from taint of the fatal fruit; and in in battle Eden

Put the Raven to flight: and some who intrepid in duty | Not again to be lost, consorted an equal with Angels. Reach'd the remotest East, or invading the kingdom of Taylor too was there, from whose mind of its treasures Winter,

Plough'd with audacious keel the Hyperborean Ocean.

I could perceive the joy which fill'd their beatified spirits

redundant

Streams of eloquence flow'd, like an inexhaustible

fountain:

While of the Georgian age they thought, and the glory And the victor of Blenheim, alike in all virtues accom

of England.

IX.

THE ELDER WORTHIES.

LIFT up your heads, ye Gates! and ye everlasting
Portals,

Be ye lift up!

Behold the Worthies are there to receive him,

They who in later days, or in elder ages, ennobled

plish'd,

Public or private, he; the perfect soldier and states

man,

England's reproach and her pride, her pride for his

noble achievements,

Her reproach for the wrongs he endur'd: And Newton, exalted

There above those orbs whose motions from earth he had measur'd,

Through infinity ranging in thought: And Berkeley, angelic

Britain's dear name. Bede I beheld, who, humble and Now in substance as soul, that kingdom enjoying where holy, all things Shone like a single star, serene in a night of darkness. Are what they seem, and the good and the beautiful Bacon also was there, the marvellous Friar; and he who Struck the spark from which the Bohemian kindled his

taper;

Thence the flame, long and hardly preserv'd, was to Luther transmitted,

Mighty soul, and he lifted his torch, and enlighten'd the nations.

Thee too, Father Chaucer! I saw, and delighted to see thee,

At whose well undefiled I drank in my youth, and was strengthen'd;

With whose mind immortal so oft I have communed, partaking

All its manifold moods, and willingly moved at its plea

sure.

there are eternal.

X.

THE WORTHIES OF THE GEORGIAN AGE. THESE with a kindred host of great and illustrious spirits

Stood apart, while a train whom nearer duty attracted
Through the Gate of Bliss came forth to welcome their
Sovereign.

Many were they and glorious all. Conspicuous among
them

Wolfe was seen: And the seaman who fell on the shores

of Owhyhee,

Leaving a lasting name, to humanity dear as to science: Bearing the palm of martyrdom, Cranmer was there in And the mighty musician of Germany, ours by adophis meekness, tion,

Holy name to be ever revered! And Cecil, whose Who beheld in the King his munificent pupil and

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pupil shall e'er be approach'd, alone in his greatness.

Reverend in comely mien, of aspect mild and benignant,

There, too, Wesley I saw and knew, whose zeal apos-
tolic,

Though with error alloy'd, hath on earth its merited
honour,
As in Heaven its reward.
intrepid;

And Mansfield the just and

Wise Judge, by the craft of the Law ne'er seduced from its purpose;

With other emotion And when the misled multitude raged like the winds and in reverence humbled

in their madness,

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