Whilst guardian Muses shade the happy piles,
And all around diffuse propitious smiles.
Here Lancaster, adorn'd with ev'ry grace,
Stands chief in merit as the chief in place :
To his lov'd name our earliest lays belong,
The theme at once and patron of our fong:
Long may he o'er his much lov'd Queen's prefide,
Our arts encourage and our counfels guide,
Till after ages fill'd with glad surprise
Behold his image all majestick rise.
Where now in pomp a venerable band,
Princes, and queens, and holy fathers, stand,
Good Egglesfield * claims homage from the eye, 255
And the hard stone seems soft with piety;
The mighty monarchs still the same appear,
And ev'ry marble frown provokes the war;
Whilft rugged rocks mark'd with Philippa's face
Soften to charms, and glow with newborn grace. 220
A fight less noble did the warriours yield
Transform'd to ftatues by the Gorgon shield;
Distorting fear the coward's form confest,
And fury feem'd to heave the hero's breast;
The lifeless rocks each various thought betray'd, 225
And all the foul was in the stone difplay'd.
Too high, my Verse! has been thy daring flight,
Thy fofter numbers now the groves invite,
* Robert Egglesfield, B. D. the founder, 1340.
Where filent fhades provoke the speaking lyre,
And cheerful objects happy fongs inspire,
At once bestow rewards and thoughts infuse,
Compofe a garland and fupply a Muse.
Behold around, and fee the living green
In native colours paints a blooming scene;
'Th' eternal buds no deadly winter fear,
But fcorn the coldest season of the year;
Apollo fure will bless the happy place
Which his own Daphne condescends to grace,
For here the everlasting laurels grow
In ev'ry grotto and on ev'ry brow.
Prospects fo gay demand a Congreve's strains
To call the gods and nymphs upon the plains;
Pan yields his empire o'er the fylvan throng,
Pleas'd to fubmit to his fuperiour fong,
Great Denham's genius looks with rapture down, 245 And Spenfer's fhade refigns the rural crown.
Fill'd with great thoughts a thousand sages rove Thro' ev'ry field and solitary grove, Whose fouls afcending an exalted height Outfoar the drooping Mufe's vulgar flight, That longs to fee her darling vot'ries laid Beneath the covert of some gentle fhade, Where purling ftreams and warbling birds confpire To aid th' enchantments of the trembling lyre.
Bear me, fome god, to Christ-church, royal seat! 255 And lay me foftly in the green retreat
Where Aldrich holds o'er wit the fov'reign pow'r,
And crowns the poets which he taught before.
To Aldrich Britain owes her tuneful Boyle,
The nobleft trophy of the conquer'd isle,
Who adds new warmth to our poetick fire,
And gives to England the Hibernian lyre.
Philips by Phoebus and his Aldrich taught
Sings with that heat wherewith his Churchill fought;
Unfetter'd in great Milton's ftrain he writes,
Like Milton's angels whilft his hero fights
Purfues the bard whilft he with honour can,
Equals the poet and excels the man.
O'er all the plains, the fireams, and woods, around
The pleasing lays of sweetest bards refound,
A faithful echo ev'ry note returns,
And lift'ning river-gods neglect their urns.
When Codrington * and Steele their verse unrein, And form an eafy unaffected strain,
A double wreath of laurel binds their brow,
As they are poets and are warriours too.
Trapp's lofty fcenes in gentle numbers flow,
Like Dryden great, as foft as moving Rowe.
When youthful Harrison with tuneful skill
Makes Woodstock Park scarce yield to Cooper's Hill,
Old Chaucer from th' Elyfian Fields looks down,
And fees at length a genius like his own;
The great benefactor to All Souls College,
Charm'd with his lays which reach the shades below Fair Rofamonda intermits her wo,
Forgets the anguish of an injur'd foul,
The fatal poniard and envenom❜d bowl.
Apollo fmiles on Magd'let's peaceful bow'rs,
Perfumes the air and paints the grot with flow'rs
Where Yalden learn'd to gain the myrtle crown,
And ev'ry Mufe was fond of Addifon.
Applauded Man! for weightier trusts defign'd,
For once difdain not to unbend thy mind;
Thy mother Ifis and her groves rehearse,
A fubject not unworthy of thy verse;
So Latian fields will cease to boast thy praise,
And yield to Oxford painted in thy lays;
And when the age to come, from envy free,
What thou to Virgil giv'st shall give to thee,
Ifis immortal by the poet's skill
"Shall in the smooth description murmur still,*" 300 New beauties fhall adorn our fylvan scene,
And in thy numbers grow for ever green.
Danby's fahr'd gift † fuch verfe as thine requires,
Exalted raptures and celeftial fires;
Apollo here fhould plenteously impart
As well his finging as his curing art.
* Letter from Italy by Mr. Addifon.
The Phyfick garden at Oxford. This hint was happily taken
Nature herself the healing Garden loves
Which kindly her declining ftrength improves,
Baffles the ftrokes of unrelenting Death,
Can break his arrows and can blunt his teeth.
How fweet the landscape! where in living trees
Here frowns a vegetable Hcrcules,
There fam'd Achilles learns to live again,
And looks yet angry in the mimick scene,
Here artful birds which blooming arbours fhow 315
Seem to fly higher whilft they upwards grow;
From the fame leaves both arms and warriours rise,
And ev'ry bough a diff'rent charm supplies.
So when our world the great Creator made,
And unadorn'd the fluggish Chaos laid,
Horrour and Beauty own'd their fire the fame,
And Form itfelf from Parent Matter came;
That lumpish mafs alone was fource of all,
And bards and themes had one original.
In vain the groves demand my longer stay, 325 The gentle ifs wafts the Mufe away.
With ease the river guides her wand'ring stream,
And haftes to mingle with uxorious Thame;
Attempting poets on her banks lie down,
And quaff infpir'd the better Helicon;
Harmonious ftrains adorn their various themes,
Sweet as the banks and flowing as the streams. Blefs'dwe whombounteous Fortune here has thrown, And made the various bleffings all our own!
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