130 
The Oriental Gleaner ». No. IF, 
Mr. Gallon has mentioned, I should 
feel particularly obliged if the observer, 
besides measuring the height of Iris ba¬ 
rometer basin, would travel along the 
towing-path, and actually measure the 
rise or fall of water at each lock until 
he reaches one of the pounds mentioned; 
and if the same was also done in the 
contrary direction, so as to procure a 
check on the difference of levels in Mr. 
G.’s table, a further obligation would 
be conferred on me by the making of 
these particulars public : and the same, 
as to extending like observations by 
actual measurements of the locks, or 
to any others of the canals which branch 
from, or connect with those Mr. G. has 
particularized. 
At a future time it is hoped that 
those who may prefer reducing and cal¬ 
culating their own observations, will 
not hesitate to send the heights which 
result , and ample local descriptions, 
either to you or to Mr. Tilloch, as con¬ 
tributions to the general stock of know¬ 
ledge on this interesting subject. 
John Farey, sen. 
37, Howl find-street, August 10, 1821. 
For the Month!]/ Magazine. 
THE ORIENTAL GLEANER. 
No. IV.* 
THE PERSIAN POETS. 
S EVERAL of the poets, in imitation 
k!5 ofFi rdansi and Nizami, have com¬ 
posed a khamsah ; the height of their 
ambition seems to have been to equal or 
excel their predecessors. The names 
of these poets, and their respective de¬ 
grees of excellence, may be classed as 
follows :—AmiigKhosru, Katifi, Katibi, 
and Jami, whose poems, including those 
of Firdansi and Nizami, amount to more 
than one hundred thousand couplets. 
The following exhortation to vigi¬ 
lance and activity is from Sadi, who 
flourished in A.D. 1280. Although a 
literal prose translation cannot convey 
a correct idea of the original poetry, 
yet, as it gives an interesting descrip¬ 
tion of the figurative style of the east, 
it is piesumed that it will not be deemed 
uninteresting. 
« O youth, to-day religion s patn pursue; 
to-morrow age will cheek thy course : now 
strong is thy frame and ardent is thy mind, 
then every moment to improve thyself em¬ 
ploy. I did not know the value of my 
younger days; bnt now, too late, I learn to 
prize them, as fate has spoiled me of those 
precious hours. What efforts can an aged 
ass beneath his load exert ? But thou an 
[Sept. 1, 
agile courser, urge thy speed; a broken 
vase, though joined again with skill, its 
price regai'neth not. When opportunity 
once has slipped from the neglectful hand, 
never can it be recalled. Thou careless, 
threw away the purest water,* and now 
with sand mnst thou ablution make. When 
with the fleet in the course thou borest not 
away the ball, fatigued and trembling must 
thou now proceed ; and now, scarce tot¬ 
tering mnst thy steed, decayed and faint¬ 
ing onward move. 
“ In the desert, one night, by travel 
wearied, I sunk in slumber. The camel 
driver came, and clamorous and angry 
struck me with the reins, saying, ‘Arise; 
if thou have not fixed thy heart on death, 
why not arise at the sound of the bells of 
the camels ? Sweet would be repose to me 
as well as to thee, but the desert extends 
before us ; if thou to gentle slumber yield, 
when the sound of departure is heard, how 
wilt thou the path regain ?’ 
“ Oh ! happy those of auspicious fortune, 
who bind their loads before the signal for 
moving is given ! But those who on their 
journey sleep, will never see again the 
track of the traveller. Though starting'up 
in haste, what use is it to awake after the 
caravan has departed ? Who barley sows 
in spring, that he may wheat in autumn 
reap ? But now, thou slumberer, awake ! 
When death prolongs thy sleep, what will 
be then thy benefit ? When greyness 
covers the locks of youth, and day is 
changed to night, then fill thy eyes with 
sleep. Now that the black is mingled with 
the white, no longer in my days I place my 
hopes. Alas ! passed away is the sweetest 
part of life ; and soon these few remaining 
hours will also pass away. But now for 
thee it is the time to sow, if thou would’st 
wish to reap a harvest. The man at resur¬ 
rection’s hour who unprepared appears, 
shall -sink into the regions of despair. If 
thou possess the eyes of wisdom, arrange 
thy journey to the gi’ave, before those eyes 
are dimmed. Now that the water rises but 
to thy waist, exert thyself, nor wait until 
the torrent rushes o’er thy head. While 
still thy eyes remain, tears repenting shed : 
and while thy tongue retains its power, 
pardon for thy sins implore. Not always 
will the eyes with lustre shine, nor always 
will the tongue in. z ‘cents move. To-day 
listen to the ie< ft wisdom,lest to-morrow 
thou shouAest be with dread interrogated. 
Cherish, then, thy sou! as invaluable, and 
pass not thy life in vanity ; for time is 
precious, and transient are thy days.” 
STORY. 
a A friend that Jemshid loved, descended 
to the grave, inshrouded in the finest silk 
* The ablution? are always made by the Muha- 
niedans before they prostrate themselves to prayer ; 
when they can get no water for tIris purpose, as is 
the case in the deserts, they substitute sand. 
that 
