The spider's touch how exquisitely fine!
Feels at each thread, and lives along the line:
In the nice bee what sense so subtly true,
From poisonous herbs extracts the healing dew!
How instinct varies in the groveling swine
Compar'd, half-reasoning elephant, with thine!
'Twixt that and reason what a nice barrier !
For ever separate, yet for ever near!
Remembrance and reflection how allied!
What thin partitions sense from thought divide!
And middle natures how they long to join,
Yet never pass th' insuperable line!
Without this just gradation could they be
Subjected these to those, or all to thee?
The pow'rs of all subdued by these alone,
Is not thy reason all these pow'rs'in one?
VIII. Šee thro' this air, this ocean, and this earth,
All matter quick, and bursting into birth.
Above, how high progressive life may go!
Around, how wide! how deep extend below!
Vast chain of being! which from God beg an
Natures ethereal, human, angel, man,
Beast, bird, fish, insect, what no eye can see,
No glass can reach; from infinite to thee;
From thee to nothing.---On superior pow'rs
Were we to press, inferior might on ours;
Or in the full creation leave a void,
Where, one step broken, the great scale's destroy'd.
From Nature's chain whatever link you strike,
Tenth, or ten thousandth, breaks the chain alike.
And if each system in gradation roll
Alike essential to th' amazing whole,
The least confusion but in one, not all
That system only, but the whole must fall.
Let earth unbalanc'd from her orbit fly,
Planets and suns run lawless through the sky;
Let ruling angels from their spheres be hurl'd,
Being on being wreck'd, and world on world;
Heav'ns whole foundations to their centre nod, 255
And Nature tremble to the throne of God:
All this dread order break-for whom? for thee?
Vile worm!-Oh, madness! pride! impiety!
IX. What if the foot, ordain'd the dust to tread, Or hand to toil, aspir'd to be the head? What if the head, the eye, or ear repin'd To serve mere engines to the ruling mind? Just as absurd for any part to claim To be another in this general frame; Just as absurd to mourn the tasks or pains The great directing Mind of All ordains.
All are but parts of one stupendous whole,
Whose body Nature is, and God the soul;
That chang'd through all, and yet in all the same,
Great in the earth as in th' ethereal frame,
Warms in the sun, refreshes in the breeze,
Glows in the stars, aud blossoms in the trees;
Lives through all life, extends through all extent,
Spreads undivided, operates unspent;
Breathes in our soul, informs our imortal part,
As full, as perfect, in a hair as heart;
As full, as perfect, in vile man that mourns,
As the rapt seraph that adores and burns:
To him no high, uo low, no great, no small;
He fills, he bounds, connects, and equals all.
X. Cease then, nor order imperfection name;
Our proper bliss depends on what we blame,
Know thy own point: this kind, this due degree
Of blindness, weakness, Heav'n bestows on thee.
Submit-In this or any other sphere,
Secure to be as bless'd as thou canst bear;
Safe in the hand of one disposing Pow'r,
Or in the natal or the mortal hour,
All nature is but art unknown to thee;
All chance, direction which thou canst not sce; 290 All discord, harmony not understood;
All partial evil, universal good:
And spite of prite, in erring reason's spite,
One truth is clear-Whatever is is right.
OF THE NATURE AND STATE OF MAN WITH RESPECT TO HIMSELF AS AN INDIVIDUAL.
1. The business of man not to pry into God, but to study himself; his middle nature; his powers and frailties, v. 1-18. The limits of his capacity, v. 19, &c. II. The two principles of man, self-love and reason, both necessary, v. 53, &c. Self-love the stronger, and why, v. 67, &c. Their end the same, v. 81, &c. III. The passions and their use, v. 93-130. The predominant passion, and its force,, v. 132-160. Its necessity in directing men to dif ferent purposes, v. 165, &c. Its providential use in fixing our principle, and ascertaining our virtue, v. 177. IV. Virtue and vice joined in our mixed nature; the limits near, yet the things separate and evident: what is the office of reason, v. 203-216. V. How odious vice in itself, and how we deceive ourselves into it, v. 217. That, however, the ends of Providence and general good are answered in our passions and imperfections, v. 238, dc. How usefully these are distributed to all orders of men, v. 241. How useful they are to society, v. 251; and to individuals,, v. 263; in every state, and every age of life, v. 273, &c.
I. KNOW then thyself, presume not God to scan;
The proper study of mankind is man.
Plac'd on this isthmus of a middle state,
A being darkly wise and rudely great;
With too much knowledge for the Sceptic side,
With too much weakness for the Stoic's pride,
He hangs between, in doubt to act or rest;
In doubt to deem himself a god or beast;
In doubt his mind or body to prefer;
Born but to die, and reasoning but to err;
Alike in ignorance, his reason such,
Whether he thinks too little or too much:
Chaos of thought and passion, all confus'd;
Still by himself abus'd or disabus'd;
Created half to rise and half to fall;
Great lord of all things, yet a prey to all;
Sole judge of truth, in endless error hurl'd;
The glory, jest, and riddle of the world!
Go, wond'rous creature! nount where science
Go, measure earth, weigh air, and state the tides; 20 Instruct the planets in what orbs to run,
Correct old Time, and regulate the sun;
Go soar with Plato to th' empyreal sphere,
To the first good, first perfect, and first fair;
Or tread the mazy round his followers trod,
And quitting sense call imitating God;
As Eastern priests in giddy circles run,
And turn their heads to imitate the sun;
Go, teach Eternal Wisdom how to rule-
Then drop into thyself, and be a fool!
Superior beings, when of late they saw A mortal man unfold all Nature's law, Admir'd such wisdom in an earthly shape, And shew'd a Newton as we shew an ape. Could he whose rules the rapid comet bind, Describe or fix one movement of his mind? Who saw its fires here rise and there descend, Explain his own beginning or his end? Alas! what wonder! man's superior part Uncheck'd may rise, and climb from art to art; 40 But when his own great work is but begun, What reason, weaves, by passion is undone. Trace science then, with modesty thy guide: First strip off all her equipage of pride; Deduct what is but vanity or dress,
Or learning's luxury, or idleness;
Or tricks to shew the stretch of human brain,
Mere curious pleasure, or ingenious pain;
Expunge the whole, or lop th' excrescent parts
Of all our vices have created arts;
Then see how little the remaining sum,
Which serv'd the past, and must the times to come!
II. Two principles in human nature reign,
Self-love to urge, and reason to restrain:
Nor this a good, nor that a bad we call,
Each works its end to move or govern all;
And to their proper operation still
Ascribe all good, to their improper, ill.
Self-love, the spring of motion, acts the soul;
Reason's comparing balance rules the whole.
Man but for that no action could attend,
And but for this were active to no end;
Fix'd like a plant on his peculiar spot,
To draw nutrition, propagate, and rot;
Or, meteor-like, flame lawless through the void, 65
Destroying others, by himself destroy'd.
Most strength the moving principle requires;
Active its task, it prompts, impels, inspires.
Sedate and quiet the comparing lies,
Form'd but to check, deliberate, and advise.
Self-love, still stronger, as its objects nigh,
Reason's at distance, and in prospect lie:
That sees immediate good by present sense;
Reason the future and the consequence.
Thicker than arguments temptations throng;
At best more watchful this, but that more strong.
The action of the stronger to suspend
Reason still use, to reason still attend.
Attention habit and experience gains;
Each strengthens reason, and self-love restrains. 80
Let subtle schoolmen teach these friends to fight,
More studious to divide than to unite,
And grace and virtue, sense and reason split,
With all the rash dexterity of wit.
Wits, just like fools, at war about a name,
Have full as oft no meaning, or the same.
Self-love and reason to one end aspire,
Pain their aversion, pleasure their desire:
But greedy that, its object would devour;
This taste the honey, and not wound the flow'r: 90
Pleasure, or wrong or rightly understood,
Our greatest evil or our greatest good.
III. Modes of self-love the passions we may call; 'Tis real good or sceming moves them all: But since not every good we can divide, And reason bids us for our own provide, Passions, though selfish, if their incans be fair, List under reason, and deserve her care; Those that imparted court a nobler aim, Exalt their kind, and take some virtue's name. In lazy apathy let Stoics boast Their virtue fix'd; 'tis fix'd as in a frost;
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