Another moon new-rifen, or meteor fall'n
From heav'n to earth, of lambent flame ferene,
So stood the brittle prodigy, though smooth
And flipp'ry the materials, yet froft-bound
Firm as a rock. Nor wanted aught within
That royal refidence might well befit,
For grandeur or for use. Long wavy wreaths
Of flow'rs that feared no enemy but warmth,
Blushed on the pannels. Mirrour needed none
Where all was vitreous, but in order due
Convivial table and commodious feat
(What seemed at least commodious feat) were there,
Sofa and couch and high-built throne auguft.
The fame lubricity was found in all,
And all was moift to the warm touch, a scene.
Of evanefcent glory, once a ftream,
And foon to slide into a stream again.
Alas! 'twas but a mortifying ftroke
Of undefigned severity, that glanced,
(Made by a monarch) on her own eftate,
On human grandeur and the courts of kings.
'Twas tranfient in its nature, as in show
'Twas durable. As worthlefs as it feemed Intrinsically precious. To the foot Treach'rous and falfe, it fmiled and it was cold.
Great princes have great play-things. Some have At hewing mountains into men, and fome [played At building human wonders mountain high. Some have ammufed the dull fad years of life, Life spent in indolence, and therefore fad, With schemes of monumental fame, and fought By pyramids and maufolæan pomp,
Short-lived themselves, t' immortalize their bones. Some feek diverfion in the tented field,
And make the forrows of mankind their sport. But war's a game, which were their subjects wife, Kings fhould not play at. Nations would do well T'extort their truncheons from the puny hands
Of heroes, whofe infirm and baby minds
Are gratified with mischief, and who spoil
Because men fuffer it, their toy the world.
When Babel was confounded, and the great
Confed'racy of projectors wild and vain
Was fplit into diversity of tongues,
Then, as a fhepherd feparates his flock,
Thefe to the upland, to the valley thofe,
God drave afunder and affigned their lot
To all the nations. Ample was the boon
He gave them, in its diftribution fair
And equal, and he bade them dwell in peace.
Peace was awhile their care. They plough'd and fow'd
And reap'd their plenty without grudge or ftrife.
But violence can never longer fleep
Than human paffions please. In ev'ry heart
Are fown the sparks that kindle fiery war,
Occafion needs but fan them, and they blaze.
Cain had already fhed a brother's blood
The deluge wafh'd it out; but left unquenched
The feeds of murther in the breaft of man.
Soon, by a righteous judgment, in the line
Of his defcending progeny was found
The first artificer of death; the fhrewd
Contriver who first sweated at the forge,
And forced the blunt and yet unblooded fteel
To a keen edge, and made it bright for war.
i Him Tubal named, the Vulcan of old times,
The sword and faulchion their inventor claim,
And the first fmith was the first murd'rer's fon.
His art furvived the waters; and ere long
When man was multiplied and spread abroad
In tribes and clans, and had begun to call
These meadows and that range of hills his own,
The tafted fweets of property begat
Defire of more; and induftry in fome
To improve and cultivate their juft demefne,
Made others covet what they faw fo fair.
Thus wars began on earth.
And those in self-defence.
Thefe fought for spoil,
Savage at first
The onfet, and irregular. At length
One eminent above the reft, for ftrength,
For ftratagem or courage, or for all,
Was chofen leader. Him they served in war,
And him in peace for fake of warlike deeds
Rev'renced no lefs. Who could with him compare ?
Or who fo worthy to controul themselves
As he whofe prowefs had fubdued their foes?
Thus war affording field for the display
Of virtue, made one chief, whom times of peace,
Which have their exigencies too, and call
For skill in government, at length made king,
King was a name too proud for man to wear
With modefty and meeknefs, and the crown,
So dazzling in their eyes who fet it on,
Was fure t' intoxicate the brows it bound.
It is the abject property of most,
That being parcel of the common mass,
And destitute of means to raise themselves,
They fink and fettle lower than they need.
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