PART II TO THE CLOSE OF THE TROUBLES IN THE REIGN OF CHARLES I.

How soon—alas! did Man, created pure— By Angels guarded, deviate from the line Prescribed to duty:—woeful forfeiture[116] He made by wilful breach of law divine. With like perverseness did the Church abjure 5 Obedience to her Lord, and haste to twine,[117] 'Mid Heaven-born flowers that shall for aye endure, Weeds on whose front the world had fixed her sign. O Man,—if with thy trials thus it fares, If good can smooth the way to evil choice, 10 From all rash censure be the mind kept free; He only judges right who weighs, compares, And, in the sternest sentence which his voice Pronounces, ne'er abandons Charity.[118]

From false assumption rose, and fondly hail'd By superstition, spread the Papal power; Yet do not deem the Autocracy prevail'd Thus only, even in error's darkest hour. She daunts, forth-thundering from her spiritual tower Brute rapine, or with gentle lure she tames. 6 Justice and Peace through Her uphold their claims; And Chastity finds many a sheltering bower. Realm there is none that if controul'd or sway'd By her commands partakes not, in degree, 10 Of good, o'er manners arts and arms, diffused: Yes, to thy domination, Roman See, Tho' miserably, oft monstrously, abused By blind ambition, be this tribute paid.[119]

"Here Man more purely lives, less oft doth fall, More promptly rises, walks with stricter heed,[121] More safely rests, dies happier, is freed Earlier from cleansing fires, and gains withal A brighter crown."[122]—On yon Cistertian wall 5 That confident assurance may be read; And, to like shelter, from the world have fled Increasing multitudes. The potent call Doubtless shall cheat full oft the heart's desires:[123] Yet, while the rugged Age on pliant knee 10 Vows to rapt Fancy humble fealty, A gentler life spreads round the holy spires; Where'er they rise, the sylvan waste retires, And aëry harvests crown the fertile lea.

Deplorable his lot who tills the ground, His whole life long tills it, with heartless toil Of villain-service, passing with the soil To each new Master, like a steer or hound, Or like a rooted tree, or stone earth-bound; 5 But mark how gladly, through their own domains, The Monks relax or break these iron chains; While Mercy, uttering, through their voice, a sound Echoed in Heaven, cries out, "Ye Chiefs, abate These legalized oppressions! Man—whose name 10 And nature God disdained not; Man—whose soul Christ died for—cannot forfeit his high claim To live and move exempt from all controul Which fellow-feeling doth not mitigate!"

Record we too, with just and faithful pen, That many hooded Cenobites[125] there are, Who in their private cells have yet a care Of public quiet; unambitious Men, Counsellors for the world, of piercing ken; 5 Whose fervent exhortations from afar Move Princes to their duty, peace or war;[126] And oft-times in the most forbidding den Of solitude, with love of science strong, How patiently the yoke of thought they bear! 10 How subtly glide its finest threads along! Spirits that crowd the intellectual sphere[127] With mazy boundaries, as the astronomer With orb and cycle girds the starry throng.

And, not in vain embodied to the sight, Religion finds even in the stern retreat Of feudal sway her own appropriate seat;[128] From the collegiate pomps on Windsor's height Down to the humbler[129] altar, which the Knight 5 And his Retainers of the embattled hall Seek in domestic oratory small, For prayer in stillness, or the chanted rite; Then chiefly dear, when foes are planted round, Who teach the intrepid guardians of the place— 10 Hourly exposed to death, with famine worn, And suffering under many a perilous wound—[130] How sad would be their durance, if forlorn Of offices dispensing heavenly grace!

And what melodious sounds at times prevail! And, ever and anon, how bright a gleam Pours on the surface of the turbid Stream! What heartfelt fragrance mingles with the gale That swells the bosom of our passing sail! 5 For where, but on this River's margin, blow Those flowers of chivalry, to bind the brow Of hardihood with wreaths that shall not fail?— Fair Court of Edward! wonder of the world![131] I see a matchless blazonry unfurled 10 Of wisdom, magnanimity, and love; And meekness tempering honourable pride; The lamb is couching by the lion's side, And near the flame-eyed eagle sits the dove.

Furl we the sails, and pass with tardy oars Through these bright regions, casting many a glance Upon the dream-like issues—the romance[132] Of many-coloured life that[133] Fortune pours Round the Crusaders, till on distant shores 5 Their labours end; or they return to lie, The vow performed, in cross-legged effigy, Devoutly stretched upon their chancel floors. Am I deceived? Or is their requiem chanted By voices never mute when Heaven unties 10 Her inmost, softest, tenderest harmonies; Requiem which Earth takes up with voice undaunted, When she would tell how Brave, and Good, and Wise,[134] For their high guerdon not in vain have panted!

As faith thus sanctified the warrior's crest While from the Papal Unity there came, What feebler means had fail'd to give, one aim Diffused thro' all the regions of the West; So does her Unity its power attest 5 By works of Art, that shed, on the outward frame Of worship, glory and grace, which who shall blame That ever looked to heaven for final rest? Hail countless Temples! that so well befit Your ministry; that, as ye rise and take 10 Form spirit and character from holy writ, Give to devotion, wheresoe'er awake, Pinions of high and higher sweep, and make The unconverted soul with awe submit.[135]

Where long and deeply hath been fixed the root In the blest soil of gospel truth, the Tree, (Blighted or scathed tho' many branches be, Put forth to wither, many a hopeful shoot) Can never cease to bear celestial fruit. 5 Witness the Church that oft-times, with effect Dear to the saints, strives earnestly to eject[136] Her bane, her vital energies recruit. Lamenting, do not hopelessly repine When such good work is doomed to be undone,[137] 10 The conquests lost that were so hardly won:— All promises vouchsafed by Heaven will shine[138] In light confirmed while years their course shall run, Confirmed alike in[139] progress and decline.

Enough! for see, with dim association The tapers burn; the odorous incense feeds A greedy flame; the pompous mass proceeds; The Priest bestows the appointed consecration; And, while the Host is raised, its elevation 5 An awe and supernatural horror breeds; And all the people bow their heads, like reeds To a soft breeze, in lowly adoration. This Valdo brooks[140] not.[141] On the banks of Rhone He taught, till persecution chased him thence, 10 To adore the Invisible, and Him alone. Nor are[142] his Followers loth to seek defence, 'Mid woods and wilds, on Nature's craggy throne, From rites that trample upon soul and sense.

But whence came they who for the Saviour Lord Have long borne witness as the Scriptures teach?— Ages ere Valdo raised his voice to preach In Gallic ears the unadulterate Word, Their fugitive Progenitors explored 5 Subalpine vales, in quest of safe retreats Where that pure Church survives, though summer heats Open a passage to the Romish sword, Far as it dares to follow. Herbs self-sown, And fruitage gathered from the chesnut wood, 10 Nourish the sufferers then; and mists, that brood O'er chasms with new-fallen obstacles bestrown, Protect them; and the eternal snow that daunts Aliens, is God's good winter for their haunts.

Praised be the Rivers, from their mountain springs Shouting to Freedom, "Plant thy banners here!"[143] To harassed Piety, "Dismiss thy fear, "And in our caverns smooth thy ruffled wings!" Nor be unthanked their final lingerings— 5 Silent, but not to high-souled Passion's ear— 'Mid reedy fens wide-spread and marshes drear, Their own creation. Such glad welcomings As Po was heard to give where Venice rose Hailed from aloft those Heirs of truth divine[144] 10 Who near his fountains sought obscure repose, Yet came[145] prepared as glorious lights to shine, Should that be needed for their sacred Charge; Blest Prisoners They, whose spirits were[146] at large!

Those had given[148] earliest notice, as the lark Springs from the ground the morn to gratulate; Or[149] rather rose the day to antedate, By striking out a solitary spark, 4 When all the world with midnight gloom was dark.— Then followed the Waldensian bands, whom Hate[150] In vain endeavours[151] to exterminate, Whom[152] Obloquy pursues with hideous bark:[153] But they desist not;—and the sacred fire,[154] Rekindled thus, from dens and savage woods 10 Moves, handed on with never-ceasing care, Through courts, through camps, o'er limitary floods; Nor lacks this sea-girt Isle a timely share Of the new Flame, not suffered to expire.

"What beast in wilderness or cultured field "The lively beauty of the leopard shows? "What flower in meadow-ground or garden grows "That to the towering lily doth not yield? "Let both meet only on thy royal shield! 5 "Go forth, great King! claim what thy birth bestows; "Conquer the Gallic lily which thy foes "Dare to usurp;—thou hast a sword to wield, "And Heaven will crown the right."—The mitred Sire Thus spake—and lo! a Fleet, for Gaul addrest, 10 Ploughs her bold course across the wondering seas;[155] For, sooth to say, ambition, in the breast Of youthful heroes, is no sullen fire, But one that leaps to meet the fanning breeze.

Thus is the storm abated by the craft Of a shrewd Counsellor, eager to protect The Church, whose power hath recently been checked, Whose monstrous riches threatened. So the shaft Of victory mounts high, and blood is quaffed 5 In fields that rival Cressy and Poictiers—[156] Pride to be washed away by bitter tears! For deep as Hell itself, the avenging draught[157] Of civil slaughter. Yet, while temporal power Is by these shocks exhausted, spiritual truth 10 Maintains the else endangered gift of life; Proceeds from infancy to lusty youth; And, under cover of this[158] woeful strife, Gathers unblighted strength from hour to hour.

Once more the Church is seized with sudden fear, And at her call is Wicliffe disinhumed: Yea, his dry bones to ashes are consumed And flung into the brook that travels near; 4 Forthwith, that ancient Voice which Streams can hear Thus speaks (that Voice which walks upon the wind, Though seldom heard by busy human kind)— "As thou these ashes, little Brook! wilt bear "Into the Avon, Avon to the tide "Of Severn, Severn to the narrow seas, 10 "Into main Ocean they, this deed accurst "An emblem yields to friends and enemies "How the bold Teacher's Doctrine, sanctified "By truth, shall spread, throughout the world dispersed."[159]

"Woe to you, Prelates! rioting in ease "And cumbrous wealth—the shame of your estate; "You, on whose progress dazzling trains await "Of pompous horses; whom vain titles please; "Who will be served by others on their knees, 5 "Yet will yourselves to God no service pay; "Pastors who neither take nor point the way "To Heaven; for, either lost in vanities "Ye have no skill to teach, or if ye know "And speak the word ——" Alas! of fearful things 'Tis the most fearful when the people's eye 11 Abuse hath cleared from vain imaginings; And taught the general voice to prophesy Of Justice armed, and Pride to be laid low.

And what is Penance with her knotted thong; Mortification with the shirt of hair, Wan cheek, and knees indúrated with prayer, Vigils, and fastings rigorous as long; If cloistered Avarice scruple not to wrong 5 The pious, humble, useful Secular,[160] And rob[161] the people of his daily care, Scorning that world whose blindness makes her strong? Inversion strange! that, unto One who lives[162] For self, and struggles with himself alone, 10 The amplest share of heavenly favour gives; That to a Monk allots, both in the esteem Of God and man, place higher than to him[163] Who on the good of others builds his own!

Yet more,—round many a Convent's blazing fire Unhallowed threads of revelry are spun; There Venus sits disguisèd like a Nun,— While Bacchus, clothed in semblance of a Friar, Pours out his choicest beverage high and higher 5 Sparkling, until it cannot choose but run Over the bowl, whose silver lip hath won An instant kiss of masterful desire— To stay the precious waste. Through every brain The domination of the sprightly juice 10 Spreads high conceits to madding Fancy dear,[164] Till the arched roof, with resolute abuse Of its grave echoes, swells a choral strain, Whose votive burthen is—"Our kingdom 's here!"[165]

Threats come which no submission may assuage, No sacrifice avert, no power dispute; The tapers shall be quenched, the belfries mute, And,'mid their choirs unroofed by selfish rage, The warbling wren shall find a leafy cage; 5 The gadding bramble hang her purple fruit; And the green lizard and the gilded newt Lead unmolested lives, and die of age.[166] The owl of evening and the woodland fox For their abode the shrines of Waltham choose:[167] 10 Proud Glastonbury can no more refuse To stoop her head before these desperate shocks— She whose high pomp displaced, as story tells, Arimathean Joseph's wattled cells.[168]

The lovely Nun (submissive, but more meek Through saintly habit than from effort due To unrelenting mandates that pursue With equal wrath the steps of strong and weak) Goes forth—unveiling timidly a cheek[169] 5 Suffused with blushes of celestial hue, While through the Convent's[170] gate to open view Softly she glides, another home to seek. Not Iris, issuing from her cloudy shrine, An Apparition more divinely bright! 10 Not more attractive to the dazzled sight Those watery glories, on the stormy brine Poured forth, while summer suns at distance shine, And the green vales lie hushed in sober light!

Yet many a Novice of the cloistral shade, And many chained by vows, with eager glee[171] The warrant hail, exulting to be free; Like ships before whose keels, full long embayed In polar ice, propitious winds have made 5 Unlooked-for outlet to an open sea, Their liquid world, for bold discovery, In all her quarters temptingly displayed! Hope guides the young; but when the old must pass The threshold, whither shall they turn to find 10 The hospitality—the alms (alas! Alms may be needed) which that House bestowed? Can they, in faith and worship, train the mind To keep this new and questionable road?

Ye, too, must fly before a chasing hand, Angels and Saints, in every hamlet mourned! Ah! if the old idolatry be spurned, Let not your radiant Shapes desert the Land: Her adoration was not your demand, 5 The fond heart proffered it—the servile heart; And therefore are ye summoned to depart, Michael, and thou, St. George, whose flaming brand[172] The Dragon quelled; and valiant Margaret[173] Whose rival sword a like Opponent slew: 10 And rapt Cecilia, seraph-haunted Queen[174] Of harmony; and weeping Magdalene, Who in the penitential desert met Gales sweet as those that over Eden blew!

Mother! whose virgin bosom was uncrost With the least shade of thought to sin allied; Woman! above all women glorified, Our tainted nature's solitary boast; Purer than foam on central ocean tost; 5 Brighter than eastern skies at daybreak strewn With fancied roses, than the unblemished moon Before her wane begins on heaven's blue coast; Thy Image falls to earth. Yet some, I ween, Not unforgiven the suppliant knee might bend, 10 As to a visible Power, in which did blend All that was mixed and reconciled in Thee Of mother's love with maiden purity, Of high with low, celestial with terrene![176]

Not utterly unworthy to endure Was the supremacy of crafty Rome;[177] Age after age to the arch of Christendom Aërial keystone haughtily secure; Supremacy from Heaven transmitted pure, 5 As many hold; and, therefore, to the tomb Pass, some through fire—and by the scaffold some— Like saintly Fisher,[178] and unbending More.[179] "Lightly for both the bosom's lord did sit Upon his throne;"[180] unsoftened, undismayed 10 By aught that mingled with the tragic scene Of pity or fear; and More's gay genius played With the inoffensive sword of native wit, Than the bare axe more luminous and keen.

Deep is the lamentation! Not alone From Sages justly honoured by mankind; But from the ghostly tenants of the wind, Demons and Spirits, many a dolorous groan Issues for that dominion overthrown: 5 Proud Tiber grieves, and far-off Ganges, blind As his own worshippers: and Nile, reclined Upon his monstrous urn, the farewell moan Renews.[181] Through every forest, cave, and den, Where frauds were hatched of old, hath sorrow past— Hangs o'er the Arabian Prophet's native Waste,[182] 11 Where once his airy helpers[183] schemed and planned 'Mid spectral[184] lakes bemocking thirsty men,[185] And stalking pillars built of fiery sand.[186]

Grant, that by this unsparing hurricane Green leaves with yellow mixed are torn away, And goodly fruitage with the mother spray; 'Twere madness—wished we, therefore, to detain, With hands stretched forth in[187] mollified disdain, 5 The "trumpery" that ascends in bare display— Bulls, pardons, relics, cowls black, white, and grey—[188] Upwhirled, and flying o'er the ethereal plain Fast bound for Limbo Lake.[189] And yet not choice But habit rules the unreflecting herd, 10 And airy bonds are hardest to disown; Hence, with the spiritual sovereignty transferred Unto itself, the Crown assumes a voice Of reckless mastery, hitherto unknown.

But, to outweigh all harm, the sacred Book, In dusty sequestration wrapt too long, Assumes the accents of our native tongue; And he who guides the plough, or wields the crook, With understanding spirit now may look 5 Upon her records, listen to her song, And sift her laws—much wondering that the wrong, Which Faith has suffered, Heaven could calmly brook Transcendent Boon! noblest that earthly King Ever bestowed to equalize and bless 10 Under the weight of mortal wretchedness! But passions spread like plagues, and thousands wild With bigotry shall tread the Offering Beneath their feet, detested and defiled.[190]

For what contend the wise?—for nothing less Than that the Soul, freed from the bonds of Sense, And to her God restored by evidence[191] Of things not seen, drawn forth from their recess, Root there, and not in forms, her holiness;— 5 For[192] Faith, which to the Patriarchs did dispense Sure guidance, ere a ceremonial fence Was needful round men thirsting to transgress;— For[193] Faith, more perfect still, with which the Lord Of all, himself a Spirit, in the youth 10 Of Christian aspiration, deigned to fill The temples of their hearts who, with his word Informed, were resolute to do his will, And worship him in spirit and in truth.

"Sweet is the holiness of Youth"—so felt Time-honoured Chaucer speaking through that Lay[194] By which the Prioress beguiled the way,[195] And many a Pilgrim's rugged heart did melt. Hadst thou, loved Bard! whose spirit often dwelt 5 In the clear land of vision, but foreseen King, child, and seraph,[196] blended in the mien Of pious Edward kneeling as he knelt In meek and simple infancy, what joy For universal Christendom had thrilled 10 Thy heart! what hopes inspired thy genius, skilled (O great Precursor, genuine morning Star) The lucid shafts of reason to employ, Piercing the Papal darkness from afar!

The tears of man in various measure gush From various sources; gently overflow From blissful transport some—from clefts of woe Some with ungovernable impulse rush; And some, coëval with the earliest blush 5 Of infant passion, scarcely dare to show Their pearly lustre—coming but to go; And some break forth when others' sorrows crush The sympathising heart. Nor these, nor yet The noblest drops to admiration known, 10 To gratitude, to injuries forgiven— Claim Heaven's regard like waters that have wet The innocent eyes of youthful Monarchs driven To pen the mandates, nature doth disown.[197]

The saintly Youth has ceased to rule, discrowned[198] By unrelenting Death.[199] O People keen For change, to whom the new looks always green! Rejoicing did they cast upon the ground[200] Their Gods of wood and stone; and, at the sound 5 Of counter-proclamation, now are seen, (Proud triumph is it for a sullen Queen!) Lifting them up, the worship to confound Of the Most High. Again do they invoke The Creature, to the Creature glory give; 10 Again with frankincense the altars smoke Like those the Heathen served; and mass is sung; And prayer, man's rational prerogative, Runs through blind channels of an unknown tongue.[201]

How fast the Marian death-list is unrolled! See Latimer and Ridley in the might Of Faith stand coupled for a common flight![202] One (like those prophets whom God sent of old) Transfigured,[203] from this kindling hath foretold 5 A torch of inextinguishable light; The Other gains a confidence as bold; And thus they foil their enemy's despite. The penal instruments, the shows of crime, Are glorified while this once-mitred pair 10 Of saintly Friends the "murtherer's chain partake, Corded, and burning at the social stake:" Earth never witnessed object more sublime In constancy, in fellowship more fair!

Outstretching flame-ward his upbraided hand[205] (O God of mercy, may no earthly Seat Of judgment such presumptuous doom repeat!) Amid the shuddering throng doth Cranmer stand; Firm as the stake to which with iron band 5 His frame is tied; firm from the naked feet To the bare head. The victory is complete;[206] The shrouded Body to the Soul's command Answers[207] with more than Indian fortitude, Through all her nerves with finer sense endued, 10 Till breath departs in blissful aspiration: Then, 'mid the ghastly ruins of the fire, Behold the unalterable heart entire, Emblem of faith untouched, miraculous attestation![208][209]

Aid, glorious Martyrs, from your fields of light, Our mortal ken! Inspire a perfect trust (While we look round) that Heaven's decrees are just: Which few can hold committed to a fight That shows, ev'n on its better side, the might 5 Of proud Self-will, Rapacity, and Lust, 'Mid clouds enveloped of polemic dust, Which showers of blood seem rather to incite Than to allay. Anathemas are hurled From both sides; veteran thunders (the brute test 10 Of truth) are met by fulminations new— Tartarean flags are caught at, and unfurled— Friends strike at friends—the flying shall pursue— And Victory sickens, ignorant where to rest!

Scattering, like birds escaped the fowler's net, Some seek with timely flight a foreign strand; Most happy, re-assembled in a land By dauntless Luther freed, could they forget Their Country's woes. But scarcely have they met, 5 Partners in faith, and brothers in distress, Free to pour forth their common thankfulness, Ere hope declines:—their union is beset With speculative notions[211] rashly sown, 9 Whence thickly-sprouting growth of poisonous weeds; Their forms are broken staves; their passions, steeds That master them. How enviably blest Is he who can, by help of grace, enthrone The peace of God within his single breast!

Hail, Virgin Queen! o'er many an envious bar Triumphant, snatched from many a treacherous wile! All hail, sage Lady, whom a grateful Isle Hath blest, respiring from that dismal war Stilled by thy voice! But quickly from afar 5 Defiance breathes with more malignant aim; And alien storms with home-bred ferments claim Portentous fellowship.[212] Her silver car, By sleepless prudence[213] ruled, glides slowly on; Unhurt by violence, from menaced taint 10 Emerging pure, and seemingly more bright: Ah! wherefore yields it to a foul constraint[214] Black as the clouds its beams dispersed, while shone, By men and angels blest, the glorious light?[215]

Methinks that I could trip o'er heaviest soil, Light as a buoyant bark from wave to wave, Were mine the trusty staff that Jewel gave To youthful Hooker, in familiar style The gift exalting, and with playful smile:[216] 5 For thus equipped, and bearing on his head The Donor's farewell blessing, can[217] he dread Tempest, or length of way, or weight of toil?— More sweet than odours caught by him who sails Near spicy shores of Araby the blest, 10 A thousand times more exquisitely sweet, The freight of holy feeling which we meet, In thoughtful moments, wafted by the gales From fields where good men walk, or bowers wherein they rest.

Holy and heavenly Spirits as they are, Spotless in life, and eloquent as wise, With what entire affection do they prize[219] Their Church reformed![220] labouring with earnest care To baffle all that may[221] her strength impair; 5 That Church, the unperverted Gospel's seat; In their afflictions a divine retreat; Source of their liveliest hope, and tenderest prayer!— The truth exploring with an equal mind, In doctrine and communion they have sought[222] 10 Firmly between the two extremes to steer; But theirs the wise man's ordinary lot, To trace right courses for the stubborn blind, And prophesy to ears that will not hear.

Men, who have ceased to reverence, soon defy Their forefathers; lo! sects are formed, and split With morbid restlessness;[223]—the ecstatic fit Spreads wide; though special mysteries multiply, The Saints must govern is their common cry; 5 And so they labour, deeming Holy Writ Disgraced by aught that seems content to sit Beneath the roof of settled Modesty. The Romanist exults; fresh hope he draws From the confusion, craftily incites 10 The overweening, personates the mad—[224] To heap disgust upon the worthier Cause: Totters the Throne;[225] the new-born Church[226] is sad For every wave against her peace unites.

Fear hath a hundred eyes that all agree To plague her beating heart; and there is one (Nor idlest that!) which holds communion With things that were not, yet were meant to be. Aghast within its gloomy cavity 5 That eye (which sees as if fulfilled and done Crimes that might stop the motion of the sun) Beholds the horrible catastrophe Of an assembled Senate unredeemed From subterraneous Treason's darkling power: 10 Merciless act of sorrow infinite! Worse than the product of that dismal night, When gushing, copious as a thunder-shower, The blood of Huguenots through Paris streamed.[228]

The Virgin Mountain,[229] wearing like a Queen A brilliant crown of everlasting snow, Sheds ruin from her sides; and men below Wonder that aught of aspect so serene Can link with desolation. Smooth and green, And seeming, at a little distance, slow, The waters of the Rhine; but on they go Fretting and whitening, keener and more keen; Till madness seizes on the whole wide Flood, Turned to a fearful Thing whose nostrils breathe 10 Blasts of tempestuous smoke—wherewith he tries To hide himself, but only magnifies; And doth in more conspicuous torment writhe, Deafening the region in his ireful mood.[230]

Even such the contrast that, where'er we move,[231] To the mind's eye[232] Religion doth present; Now with her own deep quietness content; Then, like the mountain, thundering from above Against the ancient pine-trees of the grove 5 And the Land's humblest comforts. Now her mood Recals the transformation of the flood, Whose rage the gentle skies in vain reprove, Earth cannot check. O terrible excess Of headstrong will! Can this be Piety? 10 No—some fierce Maniac hath usurped her name; And scourges England struggling to be free: Her peace destroyed! her hopes a wilderness! Her blessings cursed—her glory turned to shame!

Prejudged by foes determined not to spare,[234] An old weak Man for vengeance thrown aside, Laud,[235] "in the painful art of dying" tried, (Like a poor bird entangled in a snare Whose heart still flutters, though his wings forbear 5 To stir in useless struggle) hath relied On hope that conscious innocence supplied,[236] And in his prison breathes[237] celestial air. Why tarries then thy chariot?[238] Wherefore stay, O Death! the ensanguined yet triumphant wheels, 10 Which thou prepar'st, full often, to convey (What time a State with madding faction reels) The Saint or Patriot to the world that heals All wounds, all perturbations doth allay?

Harp! could'st thou venture, on thy boldest string, The faintest note to echo which the blast Caught from the hand of Moses as it pass'd O'er Sinai's top, or from the Shepherd-king, Early awake, by Siloa's brook, to sing 5 Of dread Jehovah; then, should wood and waste Hear also of that name, and mercy cast Off to the mountains, like a covering Of which the Lord was weary. Weep, oh! weep, Weep with the good,[239] beholding King and Priest 10 Despised by that stern God to whom they raise Their suppliant hands; but holy is the feast He keepeth; like the firmament his ways: His statutes like the chambers of the deep.[240]