[]
POEMS Occaſion'd by Reading the TRAVELS OF Captain Lemuel Gulliver, EXPLANATORY AND COMMENDATORY.
DUBLIN: Printed by and for J. HYDE, Bookſeller in Dame's-Street, 1727.
TO QVƲINBƲS FLESTRIN THE Man-Mountain.
AN ODE.
[]I.
IN amaze
Loſt, I gaze!
Can our Eyes
Reach thy Size?
May my Lays
Swell with Praiſe
[4] Worthy thee!
Worthy me!
Muſe inſpire,
All thy Fire!
Bards of old
Of him told,
When they ſaid
Atlas Head
Propt the Skies:
See and believe your Eyes!
II.
See him ſtride
Vallies wide:
Over Woods,
Over Floods.
When he treads,
Mountains Heads
Groan and ſhake;
Armies quake,
Leſt his Spurn
Overturn
Man and Steed:
Troops take heed!
Left and Right,
Speed your Flight!
Leſt an Hoſt
Beneath his Foot be loſt.
[5]III.
Turn'd aſide
From his Hide,
Safe from Wound
Darts rebound.
From his Noſe
Clouds he blows;
When he ſpeaks,
Thunder breaks!
When he eats,
Famine threats;
When he drinks,
Neptune ſhrinks!
Nigh thy Ear,
In Mid Air,
On thy Hand
Let me ſtand,
So ſhall I,
Lofty Poet, touch the Sky.
THE LAMENTATION Of Glumdalclitch for the Loſs of Grildrig.
A PASTORAL.
[6]SOON as Glumdalclitch miſt her plea⯑ſing Care,
She wept, ſhe blubber'd, and ſhe tore her Hair.
No Britiſh Miſs ſincerer Grief has known,
Her Squirrel miſſing, or her Sparrow flown.
She furl'd her Sampler, and hawl'd in her Thread,
And ſtuck her Needle into Grildrig's Bed;
Then ſpread her Hands, and with a Bounce let fall
Her Baby, like the Giant in Guild-hall.
In Peals of Thunder, now ſhe roars, and now
She gently whimpers like a lowing Cow.
Yet lovely in her Sorrow ſtill appears:
Her Locks diſhevell'd, and her Flood of Tears
Seem like the lofty Barn of ſome rich Swain,
When from the Thatch drips faſt a Shower of Rain.
[7] In v [...]n ſhe ſearch'd each Cranny of the Houſe,
Each gaping Chink impervious to a Mouſe.
" Was it for this (ſhe cry'd) with daily Care
" Within thy reach I ſet the Vinegar?
" And fill'd the Cruet with the acid Tide,
" While Pepper-Water-Worms thy Bait ſupply'd;
" Where twin'd the Silver Eel around thy Hook,
" And all the little Monſters of the Brook.
" Sure in that Lake he dropt—My Grilly's drown'd.
She dragg'd the Cruet, but no Grildrig found.
" Vain is thy Courage, Grilly, vain thy Boaſt,
" But little Creatures enterpriſe the moſt.
" Trembling, I've ſeen thee dare the Kitten's Paw;
" Nay, mix with Children, as they play'd at Taw;
" Nor fear the Marbles, as they bounding flew:
" Marbles to them, but rolling Rocks to you.
" Why did I truſt thee with that giddy Youth?
" Who from a Page can ever learn the Truth?
" Vers'd in Court Tricks, that Money-loving Boy
" To ſome Lord's Daughter ſold the living Toy;
" Or rent him Limb from Limb in cruel Play,
" As Children tear the Wings of Flies away:
" From Place to Place o'er Brobdingnag I'll roam,
" And never will return, or bring thee home.
[8] " But who hath Eyes to trace the paſſing Wind,
" How then thy fairy Footſteps can I find?
" Doſt thou bewildred wander all alone,
" In the green Thicket of a Moſſy Stone,
" Or tumbled from the Toadſtool's ſlipp'ry Round,
" Perhaps all maim'd, lie groveling on the Ground?
" Doſt thou, imboſom'd in the lovely Roſe,
" Or ſunk within the Peach's Down, repoſe?
" Within the King-Cup if thy Limbs are ſpread,
" Or in the golden Cowſlip's velvet Head;
" O ſhew me, Flora, 'midſt thoſe Sweets, the Flower
" Where ſleeps my Grildrig in the fragrant Bower▪
" But ah! I fear thy little Fancy roves
" On little Females, and on little Loves;
" Thy pigmy Children, and thy tiny Spouſe,
" The Baby Playthings that adorn thy Houſe,
" Doors, Windows, Chimneys, and the ſpacious Rooms
" Equal in Size to Cells of Honeycombs.
" Haſt thou for theſe now ventur'd from the Shore,
" Thy Bark a Bean-ſhell, and a Straw thy Oar?
" Or in thy Box, now bounding on the Main?
" Shall I ne'er bear thy ſelf and Houſe again?
" And ſhall I ſee thee on my Hand no more,
" To ſee thee leap the Lines, and traverſe o'er
" My ſpacious Palm? of Stature ſcarce a Span,
" Mimick the Actions of a real Man?
[9] " No more behold thee turn my Watches Key,
" As Seamen at a Capſtern Anchors weigh?
" How wert thou wont to walk with cautious Tread,
" A Diſh of Tea like Milk-Pale on thy Head?
" How chaſe the Mite that bore thy Cheeſe away,
" And keep the rolling Maggot at a Bay?
She ſpoke; but broken Accents ſtopt her Voice,
Soft as the ſpeaking Trumpets mellow Noiſe:
She ſob'd a Storm, and wip'd her flowing Eyes,
Which ſeem'd like two broad Suns in miſty Skies:
O! ſquander not thy Grief, thoſe Tears command
To weep upon our Cod in Newfound-Land:
The plenteous Pickle ſhall preſerve the Fiſh,
And Europe taſte thy Sorrows in her Diſh.
TO Mr. Lemuel Gulliver, The Grateful ADDRESS of the Unhappy HOUYHNHNMS, now in Slavery and Bon⯑dage in England.
[10]TO thee, we Wretches of the Houhn⯑hnm Band,
Condemn'd to labour in a barb'rous Land,
Return our Thanks. Accept our humble Lays,
And let each grateful Houyhnhnm neigh thy Praiſe.
O happy Yahoo, purg'd from human Crimes,
By thy ſweet Sojourn in thoſe virtuous Climes,
Where reign our Sires! There, to thy Countrey's Shame,
Reaſon, you found, and Virtue were the ſame.
Their Precepts raz'd the Prejudice of Youth,
And even a Yahoo learn'd the Love of Truth.
Art thou the firſt who did the Coaſt explore;
Did never Yahoo tread that Ground before?
Yes Thouſands. But in Pity to their Kind,
Or ſway'd by Envy, or through Pride of Mind,
[11] They hid their Knowledge of a nobler Race,
Which own'd, would all their Sires and Sons diſgrace.
You, like the Samian, viſit Lands unknown,
And by their wiſer Morals mend your own.
Thus Orpheus travell'd to reform his Kind,
Came back, and tam'd the Brutes he left behind.
You went, you ſaw, you heard: With Virtue fought,
Then ſpread thoſe Morals which the Houyhnhnms taught.
Our Labours here muſt touch thy gen'rous Heart,
To ſee us ſtrain before the Coach and Cart;
Compell'd to run each knaviſh Jockey's Heat!
Subſervient to New-market's annual Cheat!
With what Reluctance do we Lawyers bear,
To fleece their Countrey Clients twice a Year?
Or manag'd in your Schools, for Fops to ride,
How foam, how fret beneath a Load of Pride!
Yes, we are Slaves—but yet, by Reaſon's Force,
Have learnt to bear Misfortune, like a Horſe.
O would the Stars, to eaſe my Bonds, ordain,
That gentle Gulliver might guide my Rein!
Safe would I bear him to his Journey's End,
For 'tis a Pleaſure to ſupport a Friend.
But if my Life be doom'd to ſerve the Bad,
O! may'ſt thou never want an eaſy Pad!
MARY GƲLLIVER TO Capt. Lemuel Gulliver; AN EPISTLE
[12]The Captain ſome time after his Return, being retir'd to Mr. Sympſon's in the Countrey, Mrs. Gulliver, apprehending from his late Behaviour ſome E⯑ſtrangement of his Affections, writes him the fol⯑lowing expoſtulating, ſoothing, and tenderly-com⯑plaing EPISTLE.
WELCOME, thrice welcome to thy native Place!
—What, touch me not? what,
ſhun a wife's Embrace?
Have I for this thy tedious Abſence born,
And wak'd and wiſh'd whole Nights for thy Return?
In five long Years I took no ſecond Spouſe;
What Redriff Wife ſo long hath kept her Vows?
Your Eyes, your Noſe, Inconſtancy betray;
Your Noſe you ſtop, your Eyes you turn away.
[13]
'Tis ſaid, that thou ſhouldſt cleave unto thy Wife;
Once thou didſt cleave, and I could cleave for Life.
Hear and relent! hark, how thy Children moan;
Be kind at leaſt to theſe, they are thy own:
Behold, and count them all; ſecure to find
The honeſt Number that you left behind.
See how they pat thee with their pretty Paws:
Why ſtart you? are they Snakes? or have they Claws?
Thy Chriſtian Seed, our mutual Fleſh and Bone:
Be kind at leaſt to theſe, they are thy own.
Biddel like thee, might fartheſt India rove;
He chang'd his Countrey, but retain'd his Love.
There's Captain Pannel, abſent half his Life,
Comes back, and is the kinder to his Wife.
Yet Pannel's Wife is brown, compar'd to me,
And Miſtreſs Biddel ſure is Fifty three.
Not touch me! never Neighbour call'd me Slut!
Was Flimnap's Dame more ſweet in Lilliput?
I've no red Hair to breath an odious Fume;
At leaſt thy Conſort's cleaner than thy Groom.
Why then that dirty Stable-boy thy Care?
What mean thoſe Viſits to the Sorrel Mare?
Say, by what Witchcraft, or what Daemon led,
Preferr'ſt thou Litter to the Marriage Bed?
[14]
Some ſay the Dev'l himſelf is in that Mare:
If ſo, our Dean ſhall drive him forth by Prayer.
Some think you mad, ſome think you are poſſeſt,
That Bedlam and clean Straw would ſuit you beſt:
Vain means, alas, this Frenzy to appeaſe!
That Straw, that Straw would heighten the Diſeaſe.
My Bed, (the Scene of all our former Joys,
Witneſs two lovely Girls, two lovely Boys)
Alone I preſs; in Dreams I call my Dear,
I ſtretch my Hand; no Gulliver is there!
I wake, I riſe, and ſhiv'ring with the Froſt,
Search all the Houſe; my Gulliver is loſt!
Forth in the Street I ruſh with frantick Cries;
The Windows open; all the Neighbours riſe:
Where ſleeps my Gulliver? O tell me where?
The Neighbours anſwer, "With the Sorrel Mare.
At early Morn, I to the Market haſte,
(Studious in ev'ry thing to pleaſe thy Taſte)
A curious Fowl and Sparagraſs I choſe,
(For I remember'd you were fond of thoſe)
Three Shillings coſt the firſt, the laſt ſev'n Groats;
Sullen you turn'd from both, and call'd for Oats.
Others bring Goods and Treaſures to their Houſes.
Something to deck their pretty Babes and Spouſes;
[15] My only Token was a Cup like Horn,
That's made of nothing but a Lady's Corn.
'Tis not for that I grieve; O, 'tis to ſee
The Groom and Sorrel Mare prefer'd to me!
Theſe for ſome Moments when you deign to quit,
And (at due diſtance) ſweet Diſcourſe admit,
'Tis all my Pleaſure thy paſt Toil to know,
For pleas'd Remembrance builds Delight on Woe.
At ev'ry Danger pants thy Conſort's Breaſt,
And gaping Infants ſquawle to hear the reſt.
How did I tremble, when by Touſands bound,
I ſaw thee ſtretch'd on Lilliputian Ground;
When ſcaling Armies climb'd up ev'ry Part,
Each Step they trod, I felt upon my Heart.
But when thy Torrent quench'd the dreadful Blaze,
King, Queen and Nation ſtaring with Amaze,
Full in my view how all my Husband came,
And what extinguiſh'd theirs, encreas'd my Flame.
Thoſe Spectacles, ordain'd thine Eyes to ſave,
Were once my Preſent; Love that Armour gave.
How did I mourn at Bolgolam's Decree!
For when he ſign'd thy Death, he ſentenc'd me.
When Folks might ſee thee all the Country round
For Six pence, I'd have giv'n a Thouſand pound.
Lord! when the Giant-babe that Head of thine
Got in his Mouth, my Heart was up in mine!
[16] When in the Marrow-bone I ſee thee ramm'd,
Or on the Houſe-top by the Monkey cramm'd;
The piteous Images renew my Pain,
And all thy Dangers I weep o'er again!
But on the Maiden's-Nipple when you rid,
Pray Heav'n, 'twas all a wanton Maiden did!
Glumdalclitch too!—with thee I mourn her Caſe,
Heav'n guard the gentle Girl from all Diſgrace!
O may the King that one Neglect forgive,
And pardon her the Fault by which I live!
Was there no other Way to ſet him free?
My Life, alas, I fear prov'd Death to Thee!
O teach me, dear, new words to ſpeak my Flame;
Teach me to wooe thee by thy beſt-lov'd Name!
Whether the Stile of Grildrig pleaſe thee moſt,
So call'd on Brobdingnag's ſtupendious Coaſt,
When on the Monarch's ample Hand you ſate,
And hollow'd in his Ear, Intrigues of State:
Or Quinbus Fleſtrin more Endearment brings,
When like a Mountain you look'd down on Kings:
If Ducal Nardae, Lilliputian Peer,
Or Glumglum's humbler Title ſooth thy Ear;
Nay, would kind Jove my Organs ſo diſpoſe,
To hymn harmonious Houyhnhnm thro' the Noſe,
I'd call thee Houyhnhnm, that high ſounding Name,
Thy Children's Noſes all ſhould twang the ſame.
So might I find my loving Spouſe of courſe
Endu'd with all the Virtues of a Horſe.
FINIS.
- Citation Suggestion for this Object
- TextGrid Repository (2020). TEI. 3698 Poems occasion d by reading the travels of Captain Lemuel Gulliver explanatory and commendatory. University of Oxford Text Archive. . https://hdl.handle.net/21.T11991/0000-001A-60EB-F