Thou fing loud hymenéals. Let the pride
Of outward fhew in lafting leagues combine
With shame thread-bare; the gay vermilion face
Of rash intemp❜rance, be discreetly pair'd
With fallow hunger; the licentious joy,
With mean dependence; ev'n the dear delight
Of sculpture, paint, intaglio's, books, and coins,
Thy breaft, fagacious prudence! fhall connect
With filth and beggary; nor disdain to link
With black infolvency. Thy foul alarm'd
Shall fhun the firen's voice; nor boldly dare.
To bid the foft enchantress share thy breast,
With fuch a train of horrid fiends conjoin'd.
Nor think, ye fordid race! ye groveling minds!
I frame the fong for you! for you, the muse
Cou❜d other rules impart. The friendly strain
For gentler bofoms plan'd, to yours wou'd prove
The juice of lurid aconite, exceed
Whatever COLCHOS bore; and in your breaft
Compaffion, love, and friendship all destroy !
It greatly shall avail, if e'er thy stores.
Increase apace, by periodic days
Of annual payment, or thy patron's boon,
The lean reward of grofs unbounded praise !
It much avails, to feize the present hour,
And, undeliberating, call around
Thy hungry creditors; their horrid rage
When once appeas'd, the small remaining store
Shall rife in weight tenfold, in luftre rife,
As gold improv'd by many a fierce assay.
'Tis thus the frugal husbandman directs
His narrow stream, if o'er its wonted banks
By fudden rains impell'd, it proudly fwell;
His timely hand thro' better tracks conveys
The quick-decreasing tide; ere borne along
Or thro' the wild morafs, or cultur'd field,
Or bladed grafs mature, or barren sands,
It flow deftructive, or it flow in vain !
But happiest he who fanctifies expence
By prefent pay! who fubjects not his fame
To tradesmen's varlets, nor bequeaths his name,
His honour'd name, to deck the vulgar page
Of base mechanic, fordid, unfincere !
There haply, while thy mufe fublimely foars
Beyond this earthly sphere, in heav'n's abodes,
And dreams of nectar and ambrofial fweets,
Thy growing debt steals unregarded o'er
The punctual record; till nor PHOEBUS felf-
Nor fage MINERVA's art can aught avail
To foothe the ruthlefs dun's detefted rage.
Frantic and fell, with many a curse profane
He loads the gentle mufe; then hurls thee down
To want, remorfe, captivity and fhame.
Each public place, the glitt'ring haunts of men,
With horror fly. Why loiter near thy bane?-
Why fondly linger on a hostile fhore
Difarm'd, defencelefs? why require to tread
The precipice? or why alas to breathe
A moment's space, where ev'ry breeze is death?
Death to thy future peace! Away, collect
Thy diffipated mind; contract thy train
Of wild ideas o'er the flow'ry fields
Of fhew diffus'd, and speed to fafer climes.
Economy prefents her glafs, accept
The faithful mirror; powerful to disclose
A thousand forms, unfeen by careless eyes,
That plot thy fate. Temptation in a robe
Of Tyrian dye, with every sweet perfum'd,
Befets thy sense; extortion follows clofe
Her wanton ftep; and ruin brings the rear.
These and the reft fhall her mysterious glass
Embody to thy view; like VENUS, kind,
When to her lab'ring fon, the vengeful pow'rs
That urg'd the fall of ILIUM, fhe display'd.
He, not imprudent, at the fight declin'd
Th' inequal conflict, and decreed to raise
The Trojan welfare on fome happier shore.
For here to drain thy fwelling purse await
A thousand arts, a thousand frauds attend,
"The cloud-wrought canes, the gorgeous fnuff-boxes,
The twinkling jewels, and the gold etwee,
With all its bright inhabitants, fhall wafte
Its melting stores, and in the dreary void
Leave not a doit behind." Ere
yet exhauft Its flimfy folds offend thy penfive eye,
Away! embofom'd deep in diftant fhades,
Nor feen nor feeing, thou may'ft vent thy scorn
Of lace, embroidery, purple, gems, and gold!
There of the farded fop, and essenc'd beau,
Ferocious with a ftoic's frown, disclose
Thy manly scorn, averfe to tinfel pomp;
And fluent thine harangue. But can thy foul
Deny thy limbs the radiant grace of dress,
Where dress is merit! where thy graver friend
Shall wish thee burnish'd! where the sprightly fair
Demand embellishment! ev'n DELIA's eye,
As in a garden, rovės, of hues alone
Inquirent, curious? Fly the curft domain;
These are the realms of luxury and fhew;
No claffic foil, away! the bloomy spring
Attracts thee hence; the waning autumn warns;
Fly to thy native fhades, and dread evʼn there,
Left bufy fancy tempt thy narrow state
Beyond its bounds. Obferve FLORELIO'S mien.
Why treads my friend with melancholy step
That beauteous lawn? why penfive ftrays his eye
O'er statues, grottos, urns by critic art
Proportion'd fair? or from his lofty dome
Bright glittering thro' the grove, returns his eye
Unpleas'd, difconfolate? And is it love,
Difaftrous love, that robs the finish'd scenes
Of all their beauty? cent'ring all in her
His foul adores? or from a blacker cause
Springs this remorseful gloom? is conscious guilt
The latent fource of more than love's defpair?
It cannot be within that polish'd breast
'tis the fad furvey of prefent want,
paft profufion! Loft to him the fweets
on pavilion, fraught with ev'ry charm
other eyes; or, if remaining, proofs
iminal expence! Sweet interchange
ver, valley, mountain, woods, and plains!
v gladfome once he rang'd your native turf,
r fimple scenes, how raptur'd! ere expence
lavish'd thousand ornaments, and taught
venience to perplex him, art to pall,
p to deject, and beauty to displease.
Oh! for a foul to all the glare of wealth,
fortune's wide exhaustless treasury,
oly fuperior! but let caution guide
ecoy difpofal of the wealth we scorn,
d prudence be our almoner! Alas!
e pilgrim wand'ring o'er fome diftant clime,
orn foe of avʼrice! not difdains to learn
coin's imputed worth; the deftin'd means
fmoothe his paffage to the favour'd fhrine.
let not us, who tread this ftranger-world,
et none, who fojourn on the realms of life,
orget the land is merc'nary; nor wafte
is fare, ere landed on no venal fhore:
Let never bard confult PALLADIO's rules;
et never bard, O BURLINGTON! furvey
hy learned art, in CHISWICK's dome display'd;
ang'rous incentive! nor with ling'ring eye
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