66 Naming no name of friend or foe, Ay, go thy way, thou painted thing, And scarcely guessing, that beneath "And ever round thy jeweled brow "And thou wilt banquet!-air and sea The page's lip must taste the wine Before he fills the cup for thine !— "And night will come; and thou wilt lie With lutes to lull thee, flowers to shed The Persian lance,-the Carian club !— "And thou wilt pass away, and have UTOPIA. "I can dream, sir, If I eat well and sleep well." The Mad Lover. IF I could scare the sun away, In Slumber's hour for me. I had a vision yesternight Of a fairer land than this, Where Heaven was clothed in warmth and light, And every zephyr wakened lutes In passion-haunted bowers. I clambered up a lofty rock, And did not find it steep; I read through a page and a half of Locke I said whate'er I may but feel, I paid whate'er I owe; And I danced one day an Irish reel And I was more than six feet high, And fortunate and wise ; And I had a voice of melody, And beautiful black eyes; My horses like the lightning went, My barrels carried true; And I held my tongue at an argument, And winning cards at Loo. I saw an old Italian priest, Who spoke without disguise; And I dined with a Judge, who swore, like Best, All libels should be lies. I bought for a penny a two-penny loaf Of wheat, and nothing more; I danced with a female philosopher Who was not quite a bore. There was a crop of wheat which grew Where plough was never brought; There was a noble lord who knew What he was never taught. There was a scheme in the gazette For a lottery without blanks; And a Parliament had lately met, Without a single Bankes. And there were Kings who never went To cuffs for half a crown; And Lawyers who were eloquent And Statesmen who forebore to praise And Boroughs were bought without a test, And no man feared the Pope; And the Irish cabins were all possessed Of Liberty and soap; And the Chancellor, feeling very sick, Had just resigned the seals; And a clever little Catholic Was hearing Scotch appeals. There was no fraud in the penal code, No shame in Wellesly Pole. They showed me a figurante, whose name Had never known disgrace; And a gentleman of spotless fame, With Mr. Bochsa's face. |