CLOSE by the threshold of a door nail'd fast,
Three kittens sat: each kitten look'd aghast.
I passing swift, and inattentive by,
At the three kittens cast a careless eye;
Not much concern'd to know what they did there;
Not deeming kittens worth a poet's care.
But presently a-loud and furious hiss
Caus'd me to stop, and to exclaim "what's this?"
When lo! upon the threshold met my view,
With head erect, and eyes of fiery hue,
A viper, long as Count de Grasse's queue.
Forth from his head his forked tongue he throws,
Darting it full against a kitten's nose;
Who, having never seen, in field or house,
The like, sat still and silent as a mouse:
Only projecting, with attention due,
Her whisker'd face, she ask'd him, " who are you
On to the hall went I, with pace not slow,
But swift as lightning, for a long Dutch hoo:
With which well arm'd I hasten'd to the spot,
To find the viper, but I found him not.
And turning up the leaves and shrubs around,
Found only, that he was not to be found.
But still the kittens sitting as before,
Sat watching close the bottom of the door
"I hope," said I," the villain I would kill,
Has slipp'd between the door, and the door's sill;
And if I make despatch, and follow hard,
No doubt but I shall find him in the yard :"
For long ere now it should have been rehears'd,
Twas in the garden that I found him first.
Ev'n there I found him, there the full-grown cat
His head, with velyet paw, did gently pat;
As curious as the kittens erst had been
To learn what this phenomenon might mean.
Fill'd with heroick ardour at the sight,
And fearing every moment he would bite,
And rob our household of our only cat,
That was of age to combat with a rat;
With outstretch'd hoe I slew him at the door,
And taught him NEVER TO COME THERE NO MORE
Amicitia nisi inter bonos esse non potest.... Cicero
WHAT virtue can we name, or grace,
But men unqualified and base
Will boast it their possession?
Profusion apes the noble part
Of liberality of heart,
And dulness of discretion.
But as the gem of richest cost
Is ever counterfeited most,
So, always, imitation
Employs the utmost skill she can
To counterfeit the faithful man,
The friend of long duration.
Some will pronounce me too severe―
But long experience speaks me clear;
Therefore that censure scorning,
I will proceed to mark the shelves,
On which so many dash themselves,
And give the simple warning.
Youth, unadmonish'd by a guide,
Will trust to any fair outside:
An errour soon corrected;
For who, but learns, with riper years, That man, when smoothest he appears, Is most to be suspected!
But here again a danger lies
Lest, thus deluded by our eyes,
And taking trash for treasure,
We should, when undeceiv'd, conclude
Friendship, imaginary good,
A mere Utopian pleasure..
An acquisition, rather rare,
Is yet no subject of despair;
Nor should it seem distressful,
If either on forbidden ground,
Or, where it was not to be found,
We sought it unsuccessful.
No friendship will abide the test
That stands on sordid interest
And mean self-lovo ereviou Nor such, as may awhile subsist "Twixt sensualist and sensualist,
For vicious ends connected.
Who hopes a friend, should have a heart, Himself, well furnish'd for the part,
And ready on occasion
To show the virtue that he seeks;
For 'tis an union that bespeaks
A just reciprocation.
A fretful temper will divide
The closest knot that may be tied,
By ceaseless sharp corrosion.
A temper passionate and fierce
May suddenly your joys disperse
At one immense explosion.
In vain the talkative unite
With hope of permanent delight,
The secret just committed:
They drop through mere desire to prate,
Forgetting its important weight,
And by themselves outwitted.
How bright soe'er the prospect seems,
All thoughts of friendship are but dreams
If envy chance to creep in;
An envious
man, if you succeed,
May prove a dangʼrous foe indeed,
But not a friend worth keeping.
As envy pines at good possess'd,
So jealousy looks forth distress'd
On good that seems approaching,
And, if success his steps attend,
Discerns a rival in a friend,
And hates him for encroaching.
Hence authors of illustrious name,
(Unless belied by common fame,)
Are sadly prone to quarrel;
To deem the wit a friend displays
So much of loss to their own praise,
And pluck each other's laurel.
A man renowned for repartee,
Will seldom scruple to make free
With friendship's finest feeling,
Will thrust a dagger at your breast
And tell you, 'twas a special jest,
By way of balm for healing.
Beware of tattlers; keep your ear
Close stopp'd against the tales they bear;
Fruits of their own invention;
The separation of chief friends
Is what their kindness most intends;
Their sport is your dissension.
Friendship that wantonly admits
A joco-serious play of wits
In brilliant altercation,
Is union such as indicates,
Like hand-in-hand insurance-plates,
Danger of conflagration.
Some fickle creatures boast a soul
True as the needle to the pole ;
Yet shifting, like the weather,
The needle's constancy forego
For any novelty, and show
Its variations rather
Insensibility makes some
Unseasonably deaf and dumb,
When most you need their pity;
"Tis waiting till the tears shall fall
From Gog and Magog in Guildhall,
Those playthings of the city.
The great and small but rarely meet
On terms of amity complete :
Th' attempt would scarce be madder,
Should any, from the bottom, hope
At one huge stride to reach the top
Of an erected ladder.
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