pride's PICTVR&3. 223 



Above those arches — dark as wears the night- 

 Tow 'ring aloft, a wood of masts I see : 



Though faint and fainter wanes her sickly light. 

 E'en the sad moon, Britannia, smiles on thee. ' 



She's gone ! behind yon cloud, her face sublime 

 Doth bide. When Orus' star leads on the dawn. 



Then, all the heraldry of Nature's prime 



Shall guild her argent sphere to man unknown. 



Silent as dark, and dark as silent, all : 



'Tis meditation's softest hour of prayer : 

 'Tis time to mourn philosophy's dread fall — ' 



Since all we know — is knowledge in despair. 



The Sage, the Cynic : they who piled on high 



Babel's proud pyramid — brazen in decay ; 

 Those prophets who disgrac'd Assyrias' sky 



By impious daring — all these have passed away. 



The Druid Fathers, with their cruel lord 



The bold Barbarian from fair Italy : 

 The conquering Persian, whose prophetic words 



Struck terror to thy palmy state, and thee — 



Imperial Rome ! Gaunt Pride's own sorceress ! 



The disembroiling mother of all ill : — 

 Ills which are human and of dire distress— 



Of which, methink, thou hast not yet thy fill ? 



Doomed as thou art — on seven hills, to be 



The scourge of reason, and the bane of peace. 

 With Pride's false cowl, and dark latinity. 



Unborrowed from thine isles, awakened Greece ! 



Thou wert, aforetime. Pride's empurpled thing — 

 While yet the world was young, and sin less fell : 



Ere thou pressed on to conquer, conquering : 

 And Delphi lost her oracle and spell. 



Where are her spirits — brilliant in disguise — 



Those magnificent, god-born men of sense. 

 Who followed after Hebrew wisdom, wise : 



Say, muse neglected. Pride's best recompense ? 



What says the' Oracle ? List— humpli ! no set speech ? 



Then all is lost — except man's vital soul : 

 To that essential particle, canst reach ? 



Speak— if thou mightest, wouldest— liadst control ,* 



