A darkening vapour with sulphureous steam, In pitchy curlings edg'd by sullen flame, And fram'd a chariot for the dreadful form, Drives whirling up on mad Confusion's storm. Then fiercely burning where the prophet dy'd, "Nor shall thy nation 'scape my wrath," he cry'd;

"This corpse I'll enter and thy flock mislead,
And all thy miracles my lies shall aid.

But where?-He's gone, and, by the scented sky,
The favourite courtiers have been lately nigh;
Oh, slow to business, curs'd in mischief's hour,
Trace on their odours, and if Hell has power”—
This said, with spite and with a bent for ill,
He shot with fury from the trembling hill.

In vain, proud fiend, thy threats are half exprest

And half lie choaking in thy scornful breast,
His shining bearers have perform'd their rite,
And laid him softly down in shades of night,
A warrior heads the band, great Michael he,
Renown'd for victories in wars with thee,
A sword of flame to stop thy course he bears,
Nor has thy rage avail'd, nor can thy snares;
"The Lord rebuke thy pride!" he meekly cries:
The Lord has heard him, and thy project dies.
Here Moses leaves my song, the tribes retire,
The desert flies, and forty years expire;
And now, my Fancy, for a while be still,
And think of coming down from Nebo's hill.
Go search among thy forms, and thence prepare
A cloud in folds of soft surrounding air!
Go find a breeze to lift thy cloud on high,
To waft thee gently-rock'd in open sky,
Then stealing back to leave a silent calm,
And thee reposing in a grove of palm,
The place will suit my next succeeding strain,
And I'll awake thee soon to sing again.

DEBORAH.

TIME, sire of years, unfold thy leaf anew, And still the past recall to present view, Spread forth thy circles, swiftly gaze them o'er, But where an action's nobly sung before, There stop and stay for me, whose thoughts de

sign

To make another's song resound in mine.

Pass where the priest's procession bore the law,
When Jordan's parted waters fix'd with awe,
While Israel march'd upon the naked sand,
Admir'd the wonder, and obtain'd the land;
Slide through the numerous fates of Canaan's kings,
While conquests rode on Expedition's wings,
Glance over Israel at a single view,
In bondage oft and oft unbound anew,
Till Jabin rise, and Deborah stand enroll'd,
Upon the gilded leaf's revolving fold.

Oh, king subdued! oh, woman born to fame!
Oh, wake, my Fancy, for the glorious theme;
Oh, wake, my Fancy, with the sense of praise,
Oh, wake with warblings of triumphant lays.
The land you rise-in sultry Suns invade;
But, when you rise to sing, you'll find a shade.
Those trees in order, and with verdure crown'd,
The sacred prophetess's tent surround,
And that fair palm a front exactly plac'd,
That overtops and overspreads the rest,
Near the firm root a mossy bank supports,
Where Justice opens unexpensive courts:

There Deborah sits, the willing tribes repair,
Refer their causes, and she judges there;
Nor needs a guard to bring her subjects in,
Each Grace, each Virtue, proves a guard unseen;
Nor wants the penalties enforcing law,
While great Opinion gives effectual awe.

Now twenty years, that roll'd in heavy pain,
Saw Jabin gall them with Oppression's chain,
When she, submissive to divine command,
Proclaims a war for freedom o'er the land,
And bids young Barack with those men descend,
Whom in the mountains he for battle train’d.
"Go," says the prophetess, "thy foes assail,
Go make ten thousand over all prevail:
Make Jabin's captains feel thine edged sword,
Make all his army, God has spoke the word.
He, fit for war, and Israel's hope in sight,
Yet doubts the numbers, and by that the fight;"
Then thus replies with wish to stand secure,
Or eager thought to know the conquest sure;
"Belov'd of God, lend thou thy presence too,
And I with gladness lead th' appointed few;
But, if thou wilt not, let thy son deny,
For what's ten thousand men, or what am I?"
"If so," she cries," a share of toil be mine,
Another share, and some dishonour thine;
For God, to punish doubt, resolves to show
That less than numbers can suppress his foe;
You'll move to conquer, and the foes to yield,
But 'tis a woman's act secures the field."

Now seem the warriors in their ranks assign'd, Now furling banners flutter in the wind: Her words encourage, and his actions lead, Hope spurs them forward, Valour draws the blade; And Freedom, like a fair reward for all, Stands reaching forth her hands, and seems to call, On t'other side, and almost o'er the plain, Proud Sisera, Jabin's captain, brings his men, As thick as locusts on the vintage fly, As thick as scatter'd leaves in Autumn lie, Bold with success against a nation try'd, And proud of numbers, and secure in pride.

Now sounds the trumpet, now my fancy warms, And now methinks I view their toils in arms, The lively phantoms tread my boundless mind, And no faint colours or weak strokes design'd: See where in distant conquest from afar, The pointed arrows bring the wounds of war; See where the lines with closer force engage, And thrust the spear, and whirl the sword of rage; Here break the files, and vainly strive to close, There on their own repell'd, assist their foes. | Here Deborah calls, and Jabin's soldiers fly, There Barack fights, and Jabin's soldiers die. But now nine hundred chariots roll along, Expert their guiders, and their horses strong; And Terrour, rattling in their fierce array, Bears down on Israel to restore the day. Oh, Lord of battle, oh, the danger's near! Assist thine Israel, or they perish here. How swift is Mercy's aid, behold it fly On rushing tempests through the troubled sky; With dashing rain, with pelting hail they blow, And sharply drive them on the facing foe. Thus bless'd with help, and only touch'd behind, The favourite nation presses in the wind. But heat of action now disturbs the sight, And wild confusion mingles all the fight; Cold-whistling winds, and shrieks of dying men, And groans and armour, sound in all the plain.

The bands of Canaan fate no longer dare,
Oppress'd by weather and destroy'd by war;
And, from his chariot whence he rul'd the fight,
Their haughty leader leaps to join the flight.
See where he flies, and see the victor near;
See rapid Conquest in pursuit of Fear.

See, see, they both make off, the work is o'er,
And Fancy clear'd of vision as before.

Thus (if the mind of man may seem to move
With some resemblance of the skies above)
When wars are gathering in our hearts below,
We've seen their battles in etherial show:
The long distended tracts of opening sky,
The phantoms azure field of fight supply;
The whitish clouds an argent armour yield,
A radiant blazon gilds their argent shield;
Young glittering comets point the levell'd spear,
Which for their pennons hang their flaming hair,
And o'er the helms for gallant Glory drest
Sit curls of air, and nod upon the crest.
Thus arm'd, they seem to march, and seem to fight,
And seeming wounds of death delude the sight,
The ruddy thunder-clouds look stain'd with gore,
And for the din of war within they roar.
Then flies aside, and then aside pursues,
Till in their motion all their shapes they loose,
Dispersin air concludes the mimic scene,
The sky shuts up, and swiftly clears again.

But does their Sisera share the common fate, Or mourn his humbled pride in dark retreat? With such inquiry near the palm repair, Victorious Honour knows and tells it there.

To that fair type of Israel's late success, Which nobly rises as its weights depress, To that fair type returns the joyful band, Whose courage rose to free their groaning land; There stands the leader in the pomp of arms, There stands the judge in Beauty's awful charms; And whilst, reclin'd upon the resting spear, He pants with chase and breathes in calmer air, Her thoughts are working with a backward view, And would in song the great exploit renew. She sees an arm'd Oppression's hundred hands Impose its fetters on the promis'd lands. She sees their nation struggling in the chains, And wars arising with unequal trains. She sees their fate in arms, the field imbrued, The foe disorder'd, and the foe pursued, Till Conquest, drest in rays of glory, come [home, With Peace and Freedom, brought in triumph Then round her heart a beamy gladness plays, Which, darting forward, thus converts to praise. "For Israel's late avengings on the foe, When led by no compelling power below, When each spring forward of their own accord, For this, for all the mercy, praise the Lord. [hear; "Hear, O ye kings; ye neighbouring princes, My song triumphant shall instruct your fear: My song triumphant bids your glory bow, To God confess'd, the God of Jacob now. [hand, "O glorious Lord! when, with thy sovereign Thou led'st the nation off from Edom's land, Then trembled Earth, and shook the Heavens on And clouds in drops forsook the melted sky, [high, With tumbling waters, hills were heard to roar, And felt such shocks as Sinai felt before. But fear abating, which by time decays, The kings of Canaan rose in Shamgar's days, And still continued ev'n in Jael's times, Their empire fixing with successful crimes.

Oppression ravag'd all our lost abodes,
Nor dare the people trust the common roads;
But paths perplex'd, and unfrequented chose,
To shun the danger of perplexing foes.
Thus direful was deform'd the country round,
Unpeopled towns, and disimprov'd the ground.
Till I, resolving in the gap to stand,

1, Deborah, rose a mother of the land,
Where others, slaves by settled custom grown,
Could serve, and choose to serve, the gods un-
Where others suffer'd with a tame regret, [known,
Destruction spilling blood in every gate,
And forty thousand had not for the field
One spear offensive, or defensive shield.

"O towards the leaders of my nation move, O beat my warming heart with sense of love, Commend th' asserters on their own accord, And bless the sovereign causer, bless the Lord.

'Speak ye, that ride with power return'd in state,

Speak ye the praise, that rule the judgment-seat, Speak ye the praise to God, that walk the roads, While safety brings you to restor❜d abodes.

"The rescued villagers, no more afraid Of archers lurking in the faithless shade, And sudden death convey'd from sounding strings, Shall safe approach the water's rising springs; And, while their turns of drawing there they wait, Loitering in ease upon a mossy seat, Call all the blessings of the Lord to mind, And sing the Lord in all the blessings kind. The townsmen rescued from the tyrant's reign Shall flock with joy to fill their walls again, See Justice in the gates the balance bear, And none but her unsheath a weapon there.

"Awake, O Deborah, O awake to praise, Awake, and utter forth triumphant lays. Arise, O Barack, be thy pomp begun, Lead on thy triumph thou Abinoam's son; Thy captives bound in chains, when God's decree Made humbled princes stoop their necks to thee, When he, the giver of success in fight, Advanc'd a woman o'er the sons of might.

Against this Amaleck, of banded foes,
I, Deborah, root of all the war, arose,
From Ephraim sprung, and leading Ephraim's
line;

The next in rising, Benjamin was thine.
The ruling heads of half Manasseh's land,
To serve in danger, left their safe command.
The tribe of Zebulun's unactive men
For glorious arms forsook the peaceful pen.
The lords of Issachar with Deborah went,
The tribe with Barack to the vale was sent,
Where be on foot perform'd the general's part,
And shar'd the soldiers toil to raise their heart.

"But Reuben's strange divisions justly wrought
Amongst his brethren deep concern of thought.
Ah! while the nation in affliction lay,
How could'st thou, Reuben, by the sheepfolds stay,
And let thy bleating flock divert thy days
That idly pass'd thee with inglorious ease!
Divided tribe, without thy dangers free,
Deep were the searchings of our heart for thee.
Our Gilead too, by such example sway'd,
With unconcern beyond the river stay'd,
And Dan in ships at sea for safety rode,
And frighten'd Asher in its rock's abode.
"Now sing the field, the feats of war began
And praise thy Napthali with Zebulun,

To deaths expos'd, in posts advanc'd they stood
With souls resolv'd, and gallant rage of blood.
Then came the kings and fought, the gather'd
kings

By waters streaming from Megiddo's springs;
In Taanach vale sustain'd the daring toil,
Yet neither fought for pay, nor won the spoil.
The skies, indulgent in the cause of right,
On Israel's side, against their army fight,
In evil aspects, stars and planets range,
And by the weather in tempestuous change
Promote the dire distress, and make it known
That God has hosts above, to save his own.
The Kishon swell'd, grew rapid as they fled,
And roll'd them sinking down its sandy bed.
O river Kishon, river of renown!
And, O my soul, that trod their glory down!
The stony paths, by which disorder'd flight
Convey'd their troops and chariots from the fight,
With rugged points their horses hoofs distress'd,
And broke them prancing in impetuous haste.
"Curse, curse ye Meroz, curse the town ab-
horr'd,

(So spake the glorious angel of the Lord)
For Meroz came not in the field prepar'd,
To join that side on which the Lord declar'd,
But bless ye Jacl, be the Kenite's name
Above our women's bless'd in endless fame.
The captain, faint with sore fatigue of flight,
Implor'd for water to support his might,
And milk she pour'd him, while he water sought,
And in her lordly dish her butter brought.
With courage well-deserving to prevail,
One hand the hammer held, and one the nail,
And him, reclin'd to sleep, she boldly slew,
She smote, she pierc'd, she struck the temples
through.

Before her feet, reluctant on the clay,
He bow'd, he fell; he bow'd, he fell, he lay;
He bow'd, he fell, he dy'd. By such degrees
As thrice she struck, each stroke's effect she sees.
"His mother gaz'd with long-expecting eyes;
And, grown impatient, through the lattice cries,
Why moves the chariot of my son so slow?
Or what affairs retard his coming so?'
Her ladies answer'd-but she would not stay,
(For pride had taught what flattery meant to say)
They 've sped,' she says, and now the prey
they share,

For each a damsel, or a lovely pair,
For Sisera's part a robe of gallant grace,
Where diverse colours rich embroidery trace,
Meet for the necks of those who win the spoil
When triumph offers its reward for toil.'

"Thus perish all whom God's decrees oppose,
Thus, like the vanquish'd, perish all thy foes,
But let the men that in thy name delight
Be like the Sun in heavenly glory bright,
When mounted on the dawn he posts away,
And with full strength increases on the day."
'Twas here the prophetess respir'd from song,
Then loudly shouted all the cheerful throng,
By freedom gain'd, by victory complete,
Prepar'd for mirth irregularly great.
The frowns of sorrow gave their ancient place
To pleasure, drawn in smiles of every face.
The groans of slavery were no longer wrung,
But thoughts of comfort from the blessing sprung.
And as they shouted from the breezy west,
Amongst the pluines that deck the singer's crest,

The spirit of applause itself convey'd
On wafted air, and lightly waving play'd:
Such was the case (or such ideas flow
From thought replenish'd with triumphant show).
What rais'd their joy their love could also raise,
And each contended in the words of praise,
And every word proclaim'd the wonders past,
And God was still the first, and still the last;
Deep in their souls the fair impression lay,
Deep-trac'd, and never to be worn away.

From hence the rescued generation still
Abhorr'd the practice of rebellious ill,
And fear'd the punishment for ill abhorr'd,
And lov'd repentance, and ador'd the Lord.

From hence in all their days the Lord was kind,
His face serene with settled favours shin'd,
Fair banish'd Order was recall'd in state,
The laws reviv'd, the princes rul'd the gate,
Peace cheer'd the vales, Contentment laugh'd with
Peace,

Gay blooming Plenty rose with large increase, Sweet Mercy those who thought on mercy blest, And so for forty years the land had rest.

Rest, happy land, a while; ah, longer so,
Didst thou thine happiness sincerely know!
But soon thy quiet with thy goodness past,
And in the song alone obtain'd to last.

Live, song triumphant, live in fair record,
And teach succeeding times to fear the Lord;
For Fancy moves by bright examples woo'd,
And wins the mind with images of good.
Touch'd with a sacred rage and heavenly flame,
I strive to sing thine universal aim.
To quit the subject, and in lays sublime,
The moral fit for any point of time.
Then go, my verses, with applying strain,
Go form a triumph not ascrib'd to men.

Let all the clouds of grief impending lie,
And storms of trouble drive along the sky,
Then humble Piety thine accents raise,
For prayer will prove the powerful charm of ease.
Lo, now my soul has spoke its best desires,
How blessings answer what the prayer requires!
Before thy sighs the clouds of grief retreat,
The storms of trouble by thy tears abate,
And radiant Glory, from her upper sphere,
Looks down and glitters in relented air.

Rise, lovely Piety, from earthy bed, The parted flame descends upon thine head, This wondrous mitre, fram'd by sacred love, And for thy triumph sent thee from above, In two bright points with upper rays aspires, And rounds thy temples with innocuous fires. Rise, lovely Piety, with pomp appear, And thou, kind Mercy, lend thy chariot here; On either side, fair Fame and Honour place, Behind let Plenty walk in hand with Peace; While Irreligion, muttering horrid sound, With fierce and proud Oppression backward bound, Drag by the wheels along the dusty plain, And gnashing lick the ground, and curse with pain. Now come, ye thousands, and more thousands

Whose various orders bear the rounded ball,
Which would without them to confusion fall,
All are the Lord's, at his disposure stand,
And prop the govern'd world at his command.

"His mercy, still more wonderfully sweet,
Shall guard the 'righteous, and uphold their feet,
While, through the darkness of the wicked soul,
Amazement, dread, and desperation roll;
While envy stops their tongues, and hopeless grief,
That sees their fears, but not their fears' relief.
And they their strength as unavailing view,
Since none shall trust in that and safety too.
"The foes of Israel, for his Israel's sake,
God will to pieces in his anger break;
His bolts of thunder from an open'd sky,
Shall on their heads, with force unerring, fly.
His voice shall call, and all the world shall hear,
And all for sentence at his seat appear."

But mount to gentler praises, mount again, My thoughts, prophetic of Messiah's reign; Perceive the glories which around him shine, And thus thine hymn be crown'd with grace divine. 'Tis here the numbers find a bright repose, The vows accepted, and the votary goes. But thou, my soul, upon her accents hung, And sweetly pleas'd with what she sweetly sung, Prolong the pleasure with thine inward eyes, Turn back thy thoughts, and see the subject rise. In her peculiar case, the song begun, And for a while through private blessings run, As through their banks the curling waters play, And soft in murmurs kiss the flowery way, With force increasing then she leaps the bounds, And largely flows on more extended grounds; Spreads wide and wider, till vast seas appear, And boundless views of Providence are here. How swift these views along her anthem glide, As waves on waves push forward in the tide! How swift thy wonders o'er my fancy sweep, O Providence, thou great unfathom'd deep! Where Resignation gently dips the wing, And learns to love and thank, admire and sing; But bold presumptuous reasonings, diving down To reach the bottom, in their diving drown.

Neglecting man, forgetful of thy ways, Nor owns thy care, nor thinks of giving praise, But from himself his happiness derives, And thanks his wisdom, when by thine he thrives; His limbs at ease in soft repose he spreads, Bewitch'd with vain delights, on flowery beds; And, while his sense the fragrant breezes kiss, He meditates a waking dream of bliss; He thinks of kingdoms, and their crowns are near; He thinks of glories, and their rays appear; He thinks of beauties, and a lovely face Serenely smiles in every taking grace; He thinks of riches, and their heaps arise; Display their glittering forms, and fix his eyes; Thus drawn with pleasures in a charming view, Rising he reaches, and would fain pursue. But still the fleeting shadows mock his care, And still his fingers grasp at yielding air; Whate'er our tempers as their comforts want, It is not man's to take, but God's to grant. If then, persisting in the vain design, We look for bliss without an help divine, We still may search, and search without relief, Nor only want a bliss, but find a grief. That such conviction may to sight appear, Sit down, ye sons of men, spectators here;

Behold a scene upon your folly wrought,
And let this lively scene instruct the thought.
Boy, blow the pipe until the bubble rise,
Then cast it off to float upon the skies;
Still swell its sides with breath-O beauteous frame!
It grows, it shines: be now the world thy name!
Methinks creation forms itself within,

The men, the towns, the birds, the trees, are seen;
The skies above present an azure show,
And lovely verdure paints an Earth below.
I'll wind myself in this delightful sphere,
And live a thousand years of pleasure there;
Roll'd up in blisses, which around me close,
And now regal'd with these, and now with those.
False hope, but falser words of joy, farewel,
You've rent the lodging where I meant to dwell,
My bubbles burst, my prospects disappear,
And leave behind a moral and a tear.

If at the type our dreaming souls awake,
And Hannah's strains their just impression make,
The boundless power of Providence we know,
And fix our trust on nothing here below.
Then he, grown pleas'd that men his greatness

OWD,

Looks down serenely from his starry throne,
And bids the blessed days our prayers have won
Put on their glories, and prepare to run.
For which our thanks be justly sent above,
Enlarg'd by gladness, and inspir'd with love:
For which his praises be for ever sung,
O sweet employment of the grateful tongue!
Burst forth, my temper, in a godly flame,
For all his blessings laud his holy name:
That, ere mine eyes saluted cheerful day,
A gift devoted in the womb Ilay,
Like Samuel vow'd, before my breath I drew,
O could I prove in life like Samuel too!
That all my frame is exquisitely wrought,
The world enjoy'd by sense, and God by thought;
That living streams through living channels glide,
To make this frame by Nature's course abide;
That, for its good, by Providence's care,
Fire joins with water, earth concurs with air;
That Mercy's ever-inexhausted store
Is pleas'd to proffer, and to promise more;
And all the proffers stream with grace divine,
And all the promises with glory shine.
O praise the Lord, my soul, in one accord,
Let all that is within me praise the Lord;
O praise the Lord, my soul, and ever strive
To keep the sweet remembrances alive.
Still raise the kind affections of thine heart,
Raise every grateful word to bear a part,
With every word the strains of love devise,
Awake thine harp, and thou thyself arise;
Then, if his mercy be not half express'd,
Let wondering Silence magnify the rest.