Freshet or purling brook, of shell or fin,
And exquisitest name, for which was drain'd
Pontus, and Lucrine bay, and Afric coast.
Alas how simple, to these cates compar'd,
Was that crude apple that diverted Eve!
And at a stately side-board by the wine
That fragrant smell diffus'd, in order stood
Tall stripling youths rich clad, of fairer hue
Than Ganymed or Hylas; distant more
Under the trees now tripp'd, now solemn stood
Nymphs of Diana's train, and Naiades
With fruits and flowers from Amalthea's horn,
And ladies of the Hesperides, that seem'd
Fairer than feign'd of old, or fabled since
Of fairy damsels met in forest wide
By knights of Logres, or of Lyones,
Lancelot, or Pelleas, or Pellenore;
And all the while harmonious airs were heard
Of chiming strings or charming pipes, and winds
345 Freshet] Brown B. Past. b. ii. s. 3. (1616.)
'Now love the freshet, and then love the sea.' Todd.
347 Lucrine] Hor. Epod. ii. 49.
'Non me Lucrina juverint conchylia ;'
349 diverted] In the latter sense, 'turn aside;' so Drayton's Owle,
'Holla! thou wandering infant of my braine,
Whither thus flingst thou; yet divert thy strayne;
Return we back.'
353 Ganymed] A train of sleek, smooth, beauteous youths ap
The Ganymedes and Hylasses.'
Mountford's Henry II. act iv. sc. 1.
Of gentlest gale Arabian odours fann'd
From their soft wings, and Flora's earliest smells.
Such was the splendour, and the tempter now
His invitation earnestly renew'd.
What doubts the Son of God to sit and eat?
These are not fruits forbidden; no interdict
Defends the touching of these viands pure;
Their taste no knowledge works at least of evil,
But life preserves, destroys life's enemy,
Hunger, with sweet restorative delight.
All these are spirits of air, and woods, and springs,
Thy gentle ministers, who come to pay
Thee homage, and acknowledge thee their lord: What doubt'st thou Son of God? sit down and eat.
To whom thus Jesus temperately replied.
Said'st thou not that to all things I had right?
And who withholds my power that right to use?
Shall I receive by gift what of my own,
When and where likes me best, I can command?
I can at will, doubt not, as soon as thou,
Command a table in this wilderness,
And call swift flights of angels ministrant,
Array'd in glory, on my cup to attend ;
Why should'st thou then obtrude this diligence,
In vain, where no acceptance it can find?
385 flights] Hamlet, act v. sc. 6.
'And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.' Newton.
385 ministrant] Cic. Tusc. Disp. 1. c. 26. Non ambrosia Deos, aut nectare, aut juventute pocula ministrante;' and Ov. Met. x. 100. Dunster.
And with my hunger what hast thou to do?
Thy pompous delicacies 1 contemn,
And count thy specious gifts no gifts, but guiles.
To whom thus answer'd Satan malecontent.
That I have also power to give, thou seest.
If of that power I bring thee voluntary
What I might have bestow'd on whom I pleas'd, 395 And rather opportunely in this place
Chose to impart to thy apparent need,
Why should'st thou not accept it? but I see
What I can do or offer is suspect;
Of these things others quickly will dispose, Whose pains have earn'd the far-fet spoil. With that
Both table and provision vanish'd quite
With sound of Harpies' wings and talons heard;
Only the importune tempter still remain’d,
And with these words his temptation pursu❜d.
By hunger, that each other creature tames,
Thou art not to be harm'd, therefore not mov'd;
Thy temperance invincible besides,
For no allurement yields to appetite,
And all thy heart is set on high designs,
391 no gifts] Sophocl. Ajax. 675,
Εχθρῶν ἄδωρα δῶρα κ' ουκ ὀνήσιμα. Newton.
401 far-fet] 'fet,' 'far-fetched,' used by Chaucer, Spenser, &c. see Newton's note.
403 Harpies] Hark! how the Harpies' wings resound.'
Al. Ross Mel Heliconium, p. 64.
404 importune] Spenser, F. Q. i. xii. 16.
'And often blame the too importune fate.' Newton.
High actions; but wherewith to be achieved?
Great acts require great means of enterprise;
Thou art unknown, unfriended, low of birth,
A carpenter thy father known, thy self
Bred up in poverty and straits at home,
Lost in a desert here and hunger-bit :
Which way, or from what hope, dost thou aspire
To greatness? whence authority deriv'st?
What followers, what retinue can'st thou gain?
Or at thy heels the dizzy multitude,
Longer than thou can'st feed them on thy cost? Money brings honour, friends, conquest, and realms. What rais'd Antipater the Edomite,
And his son Herod plac'd on Judah's throne,
Thy throne, but gold that got him puissant friends?
Therefore, if at great things thou would'st arrive, 426
Get riches first, get wealth, and treasure heap,
Not difficult, if thou hearken to me;
Riches are mine, fortune is in my hand;
They whom I favour thrive in wealth amain,
While virtue, valour, wisdom, sit in want.
To whom thus Jesus patiently reply'd.
Yet wealth without these three is impotent
To gain dominion, or to keep it gain'd.
Witness those ancient empires of the earth,
In highth of all their flowing wealth dissolv'd.
But men endu'd with these have oft attain'd
In lowest poverty to highest deeds;
Gideon and Jephtha, and the shepherd lad,
Whose offspring on the throne of Judah sat
So many ages, and shall yet regain
That seat, and reign in Israel without end.
Among the heathen, (for throughout the world
To me is not unknown what hath been done
Worthy of memorial,) canst thou not remember 445
Quintius, Fabricius, Curius, Regulus?
For I esteem those names of men so poor
Who could do mighty things, and could contemn
Riches though offer'd from the hand of kings.
And what in me seems wanting, but that I
May also in this poverty as soon
Accomplish what they did, perhaps, and more?
Extol not riches then, the toil of fools,
The wise man's cumbrance, if not snare, more apt
To slacken virtue, and abate her edge,
Than prompt her to do aught may merit praise.
What, if with like aversion I reject
Riches and realms? yet not, for that a crown,
Golden in show, is but a wreath of thorns,
Brings dangers, troubles, cares, and sleepless nights To him who wears the regal diadem,
When on his shoulders each man's burden lies;
For therein stands the office of a king,
His honour, virtue, merit, and chief praise,
That for the public all this weight he bears.
Yet he who reigns within himself, and rules
Passions, desires, and fears, is more a king;
Which every wise and virtuous man attains:
And who attains not, ill aspires to rule
Cities of men, or head-strong multitudes,
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