Once only was the latter
of these qualities put to the trial, when the little daughter of his
fair hostess was brought into the room. At the sight of the child he
started involuntarily,--it was with the utmost difficulty he could
conceal his emotion; and to the sensations of that moment we are
indebted for those touching stanzas, "Well--thou art happy,"
&c.,[107] which appeared afterwards in a Miscellany published by one
of his friends, and are now to be found in the general collection of
his works. Under the influence of the same despondent passion, he
wrote two other poems at this period, from which, as they exist only
in the Miscellany I have just alluded to, and that collection has for
some time been out of print, a few stanzas may, not improperly, be
extracted here.
"THE FAREWELL--TO A LADY.[108]
"When man, expell'd from Eden's bowers,
A moment linger'd near the gate,
Each scene recall'd the vanish'd hours,
And bade him curse his future fate.
"But wandering on through distant climes,
He learnt to bear his load of grief;
Just gave a sigh to other times,
And found in busier scenes relief.
"Thus, lady,[109] must it be with me,
And I must view thy charms no more!
For, whilst I linger near to thee,
I sigh for all I knew before," &c. &c.
The other poem is, throughout, full of tenderness; but I shall give
only what appear to me the most striking stanzas.
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