C452) 
ORIGINAL POETRY. 

W ASHING-DAY. 
—and their voice, 
Turning again towards childifh treble, pipes 
And whiftles in its found. 
“y ‘HE Mufes are turned goffips; they have loft 
te, 


The bufkin’d ftep, and clear high-found- — 
ing phrafe, 
Language of godss - Come, then, domeftic 
Mute, 
In flip-thod meafure loofely prattling on 
Of farm or orchard, pleafant curds and cream, 
Or drowning flies, or fhoe loft in the m‘re 
By little whimpering boy, with rueful face ; 
Come, Mufe, and fing the dreaded Wo/king- 
Day. 
—Ye whe takend the yoke of wedlock bend, 
With bowed foul, full well ye ken the day =~ 
Which week, fmooth fliding after week, brings 
on a ii 
Too foon ; for to that day nor peace belongs 
Nor comfort; e’er the firft prey ftreak of dawn, 
‘The red-arm’d wafhers come and chafe repofe. - 
Nor pleafant {mile, nor quaint device of mirth, 
E’er vifited that day ; the very cat, 
From the wet kitchen fcared, and reeking 
- hearth, 
WVifits the parlour, an unwonted gueft. 
The filent break faft-meal is foon difpatch’d 
Uninterrupted, fave by anxious looks 
Caft at the lowering fky, if {kv fhould lower. 
From that jaft evil, oh preferve us, heavens ! 
For fhould the fkics pour down, adieu to all- 
Remains of quiet; then expeét to hear - 
Of fad difafters—dirt and gravel ftains — - 
Hard to efface, and loaded lines at once 
Snapped fhort—and linen-horfe by dog 
j down, 
And all the petty miferies of life. 
Saints have been ¢alm while ftretched upon the 
rack, — ; 
And Montezuma fmil’d on burning coals3 
But never yet did houfewife notable 
Greet with a {mile a rainy wathing-day. 
—But grant the welkin fair, require not thou 
Who call’ thyfelf perchance the mafter there, 
Or ftudy fwept, or nicely dufted coaf, _ 
Or ufual ’tendance 3 afnot, indifcreet, 
Thy ftockings mended, tho’ the yawning rents 
Gape wide as Erebus, nor hope to find 
Some fnug recefs impervious ; fhould’ft thou try 
The cuftomed garden walks, thine eye fhall rue 
The budding fragrance of thy tender thrubs, 
Myrtle or rote, all crufhed beneath the weight - 
Of coarfe check’d apron, with impatient hand 
Twitch’d off when fhowers impend : or croffing 
- lines 
Shall mar thy mufings, as the wet cold fheet 
~ Flaps in thy face abrupt. Woe to the friend 
-Whofe evil ftars have urged him forth to claim 
On fuch a day the hofpitable rites; _ 
Looks, blank at beft, and ftinted courtefy, 
| Ball he receive; vainly he feeds his hopes 
thrown 
With dinner of roatt chicken, favoury pie, 
Or tart-or pudding :—pudding he nor tart 
That day fhall eat; nor. tho? the hufband try, 
Mending what can’t be help’d, to kindle mirth 
From cheer deficient, thalf his confort’s brow 
Clear up propitious ; the unlucky gueft © 
In filence dines, and early flinks away. 
I well remember, when a child, the awe 
This day ftruck intosme ; for then the maids, ° 
I icarce knew why, looked crofs, and drove me 
from them ; 
Nor foft carefs could I obtain, ner hope | 
Ulual indulgencies ; jelly or creams, 
Relique of cofily fuppers, and fet by 
_For me their petted one; or butter’d toaft, 
When butter was forbid; or thrilling tale 
Of ghoft, or witch, or murder—fo I went 
And fheiter’d me befide the parlour fre, 
There my dear grandmother, eldeft of forms, 
‘Tended the little ones, and watched from harm, 
Anxioufly fond, tho” oft her fpeGtacles 
With elfin cunning hid, and oft the pins 
Drawn from her ravell’d ftocking,. nvight have 
four’d secalieai 
- One lefs indulgent —— 
At intervals my mother’s voice was heard, wi 
Urging difpatch; brifkly the work went ony, 
All hands employed to wash, to nnfe, to wring, 
To fold, and ftarch, and clap, and iron, and plait. | 
‘Then would I fit'medown, and ponder much. 
Why wathings were. Sometimes thro’ hollow 
bole 
Of pipe amufed we blew, and fent aloft 
The floating bubbles, little dreaming then 
‘To fee, Mongoifier; thy filken ball 
Ride buoyant thro’ the clouds—fo near approach » 
The fports of children and the toils of men. 
Earth, air, and fky, and ocean, -hath its bubbles, 
And verte is one of them———this moft of all 
ee 
F OR Se 
A SOLILoQUY. 
Cujus offavum irepidavit etas 
Claudere luftrum. HOR. 
fe thirty, am I not a fool ?” fays man: 
™ “* At. forty, certain!”? He reforms his 
plan ;— ~ ; “ 
At forty I’m arriv’d! “i 
*Tis time. then, fure, to afk my heart, 
If I have well perform’d my part, 
e Or like a fool have liv’d? 
Some talents, by indulgent Heav’n, 
Haye to my hands, in truft, been giveny 
Have [I imptov’d them well ? 
And can J hope that bright reward, 
Which the Great Father will accord, 
To faithfulnefs and zeal 2 
What tho’, in mem’ry’s page, no trace _ 
Of forceful wrong, or treach’ry bafe, 
Appal my frighted eye ; 
What 
e é 
