V. By the streams that ever flow, O'er the Elyfian flow'rs; By thofe happy fouls who dwell In yellow meads of Afphodel, 71 75 Or Amaranthine bow'rs; Reftore, reftore Eurydice to life : He fung, and hell confented To hear the Poet's prayer: O'er death, and o'er hell, A conquest how hard and how glorious! Tho' fate had fast bound her With Styx nine times round her, Yet mufic and love were victorious. 80 85 90 VI. eyes: But foon, too foon, the lover turns his Now under hanging mountains, Or where Hebrus wanders, Rolling in Mæanders, All alone, Unheard, unknown, 95 100 For ever, ever, ever loft! 105 Now with Furies furrounded, Defpairing, confounded, He trembles, he glows, Amidst Rhodope's fnows: See, wild as the winds, o'er the defert he flies; 110 Hark! Hamus refounds with the Bacchanals cries- Ah fee, he dies! Yet ev❜n in death Eurydice he fung, Eurydice ftill trembled on his tongue, Eurydice the woods, Eurydice the floods, 115 Eurydice the rocks, and hollow mountains rung. VII. Mufic the fierceft grief can charm, Mufic can foften pain to ease, And make despair and madness please: And antedate the blifs above. This the divine Cecilia found, 120 And to her Maker's praise confin'd the found. To bright Cecilia greater pow'r is giv'n; Her's lift the foul to heav'n. 130 -TWO CHORUS's TO THE Tragedy of BRUTUS'. YR CHORUS OF ATHENIANS. STROPHE I. E fhades, where facred truth is fought; And Epicurus lay inspir'd! 5 In vain your guiltless laurels stood Unfpotted long with human blood. War, horrid war, your thoughtful Walks invades, And steel now glitters in the Muses shades. NOTES. THESE two Chorus's were compofed to enrich a very poor Play; but they had the usual effect of ill-adjusted Ornaments, only to make the meannefs of the fubject the more confpicuous. a Altered from Skakespear by the Duke of Buckingham, at whofe defire thefe two Chorus's were composed to supply as many, wanting in his play. They were fet many years afterwards by the famous Bononcini, and performed at Buckingham-house. P. VER. 3. Where heav'nly Vifions Plato fir'd, And Epicurus lay infpir'd!] The propriety of these lines arifes from hence, that Brutus, one of the Heroes of this play, was of the Old Academy; and Caffius, the other, was an Epicurean : but this had not been enough to justify the Poet's choice, had not Plato's fyftem of Divinity, and Epicurus's fyftem of Morals, been the most rational amongst the various fects of Greek Philofophy. ANTISTROPHE I. Oh heav'n-born fifters! fource of art! Who charm the fenfe, or mend the heart; 10 To what new clime, what distant sky, Say, will ye bless the bleak Atlantic fhore? 15 Or bid the furious Gaul be rude no more? STROPHE II. When Athens finks by fates unjust, Shall cease to blush with stranger's gore, 20 And Athens rifing near the pole! Till fome new Tyrant lifts his purple hand, And civil madness tears them from the land. NOTES. VER. 12. Moral truth AND myftic fong !] He had expressed himself better had he said, "Moral truth IN myftic fong!" In the Antiftrophe he turns from Philofophy to Mythology; and Mythology is nothing but moral truth in myftic fong. |