The Free Young Maid, a Marry'd Life wou'd chuse,
Ty'd to one Man, to be with all more loose;
Travellers gain Reft, but by coming Home,
Men at Home none, till that Abroad they come;
Thus is Love of Variety, Man's Curse,

Which us to fuch a Love of Change does force,
Rather than not change, we wou'd for the worfe;
In fine, all forts of Affectations fo,

In Quest of Praise, Ease, Shame, and Trouble, grow;
To make our vain Endeavours, lose our Aim,

By more Pride, seeking more Praise, more our Shame,
Which Fame we merit, forfeits by our Claim;
Till our own Affectation of more Praise,
Makes our Pretence to Honour, our Disgrace,
And us our Pride does, by our Height, debase;
Whilst our Contempt of Fame, or Praise of Man,
Wou'd it fure, from him, for us fooner gain,
As we feem lefs (more Praise to merit) vain;
Thus Affectation, of Good Mien, or Dress,
In Setting off, but heightens Ugliness,
Which, but by Carelesness alone, seems less;
Since Affectations give themselves the Lie,
Whilft Truth is feen, thro' its Simplicity;
Our Self-Denials then, our Praises are,
Since Virtues best, by hiding them, appear;
Then he who wou'd get, and deserve Esteem,
Not Wifer, Jufter, than he is, must seem,
Since Affectation does itself condem',
And all Vain, Self-Juftification, does
Praise, else its Due, Pretending to it, lofe;
Provoking Envious Men to Calumny,
Who Contradiction love, Truth, Praise, deny,
To Vain Men, but from their own Vanity;

Yet to the Meritorious, Praife, or Fame,

Refuse not, (if their Right) till 'tis their Claim,

Feign'd Virtues, more than own'd Crimes, are our Shame,
And Vain Pretenders, will but more expose;

No Man's fo Faulty, fo Ridiculous,

For Faults, or Follies he has, and avows;

Or, for Bad Qualities, which he does own,

As Good Ones, he pretends to, having none;
Which, tho' he had his Vain Pretence to them,
Wou'd lose him, what he fought for, Men's Esteem.

} }

}

A SONG to Lucinda: Upon the News of Her Returning to Town in Winter; and, Her Enquiry by Letter, How Things went in Town, fince Her Departure.

I.

HE Town is, like the Season, fad,

TH

Since you, and your Bright Brother Sun,
Are at fuch Distance, with us, made,

We Chill'd, for want of Heat, are grown;
So, Nought but your Return fure, to us can,
Restore our Sense, and make us Live again;

II.

Our Winter's now feverer grown,
Taking you from us out of Sight,
Than taking from our Eyes the Sun,

Lefs Chearful to us, and lefs Bright;

Your Coldness, Distance, shortens more our Days,
Than our Mifs of the Sun's Reviving Rays;

III.

Rather than Freeze ftill, we wou'd Burn,
Rather than we wou'd undergo
Your Abfence, wou'd have you Return,
T'enflame us, as you us'd to do;

Since it, in you, more Mercy wou'd appear,
To Kill with Love, than Save with Cold Despair;

IV.

We, like our Days, o'er-clouded are,
Now you, fo far, are from us gone;
Our Short Days are, more tedious far,
By lofing your Eyes, than the Sun;
Return then to us, your Eyes Brighter Rays,
You, tho' in Winter, will prolong our Days.

To Play the Fool in General, is to be Wife in Particular: To a Conceited Fop, who pretended to be more Wife, as more Singular.

Sis done, which Juft, Wife, Reaf nable, we call,

INCE but by Custom, not by Reason, all

Is

Then Practice, Pow'r, not Juftice, or True Sense,
Our Actions, Notions, Lives, must influence;
Since New Conceits, Old Practices explode,
Knowledge itself, must be then Alamode;
Experience muft for Antic Nonsense go,
And Novelty the True Wit's Study grow,
Who, but his Parts, and Reason, best to show,
Try'd Truths for New Conjectures, must forfake,
Muft Truth from Fancy, not Experience take,
From his Sense, not Example, Act, Think, Speak;
As Thoughts, Tongues, Stiles, change with their Ages, fo
Muft Reason, Fancy, Wit, and Judgment too;
Since, by the Major Vote, not Greater Sense,

By Reason not, or Good Intelligence;

But Bought Experience, all Things here, must pass,
The Wit, who fcorns Examples, proves an Afs;
For, fince Dull Custom is too hard for Wit,
He shows most Senfe, who leaft depends on it;
So none now, Fops for Want of Sense appear,
Made, as most of their Fellow-Creatures are;
The Wits, most Fools are, as most Singular,
Who, to their Sense, against the World's, adhere;
Since Men, by Numbers, not by Reason vote,
They must tell Nofes, not Examples quote;
By Reason, not determine what is what,

}

By Rules difpute, Form'd Arguments debate,

But thinks, he thinks best, who the most does Prate;

}

Who Talks not the most Reason, but most Loud,

Since most Noise, not most Sense 'tis, leads the Crowd;

So he, who truly has more Sense or Wit,

(Since it makes Foes) is fhie of showing it;
Who not, like Wits, the Populace defies,
But to be Popular, with it complies,
So, making one of many Fools, is Wife;

}

And proves to Knaves, or Fools, but more his Sense,
As lefs he shows it, to give more Offence,

By which, Good Senfe wou'd prove Impertinence;
To make his Foes more, than they were before,
Friends Trust him less, but as his Wit is more;
More Folly, but by more Wit, so to show,
Since for most Fools, the most Wise ought to go,
When they have most mind to make others so;
As Rooks at Play, conceal their Art, or Skill,
Their Ends, best on their Cullies, to fulfil.

}

A SONG. To an Antiquated Mistress, accused by Her of Falfenefs, and not being the fame Man He was once to Her; but call'd a Renegade to Love and Beauty.

IV.

By the fame Justice, that I was

Thy Beauty's conquer'd Slave before;

I'm more enflav'd by that New Face,

Whose Charms both me, nay thine o'erpow'r, Must not your Subjects Vaffals

grow,

To her, who triumphs over you?

V.

Cease then, to call me Renegade,

Since thou, fure 'tis, art chang'd, not I;

I have the Paffion still I had,
For Beauty, love Variety;
Others I left, to come to you,
For others, justly leave you now;

VI.

Then as the Fire is ftill the fame,
Altho' new Fuel keeps it in,

So still the fame, has my Love's Flame,
Through all its Change of Paffions been;

Since Love, Variety does love,

To Love, in Change, I Conftant prove;

Inclof'd by one Particular;

Since all we call Peculiar Love,
But Wrong does to the Public prove;