1807.] 
The Maggot ended—now behold ! 
The beau, with plumes of glitt’ring gold, 
Was, with a grin, prepar’d to treat him ; 
When forth a fparrow hopp’d, unfeen, 
Spoil’d monfieut’s meditated mien, 
In triumph bore him off, and ate him, 
How few fimplicity endears ! 
Ah! who would lofe, for fighs and tears, 
The charms of friendfhip, love, and calm fe- 
curity, 
To grandeur’s giddy heights to climb ? 
The happy ftate, and true fublime, 
Live in two wordse=Contentment and Obfcu- 
rity. 
Fanuary 27, 1807, 
=e 
VERSES WRITTEN BY WILLIAM CON- 
GREVE, THE DRAMATIC POET. 
[NEVER BEFORE PUBLISHED.] 
FALSE tho” you’ve been to me and love, 
I ne’er can take revenge, 
So much your wond’rous beauties move, 
Tho’ I lament your change. 
In hours of blifs we oft have met 
They could not always laft; 
And tho’ the prefent I regret, 
i ftill am grateful for the. paft. © 
But think not * * tho? my breaft 
A gen’rous flame has warm’d, 
You ere again can make me bleft, 
Or charm, as once you charm’d. 
Who may your future favours own 
May future change forgive, 
In love the firft deceit alone’ 
Is what you never can retrieve. 
EE 
VERSES ON THE BILL FOR THE ABO- 
LITION OF THE SLAVE-TRADE. 
FJAIL, woe-worn Africa! let grief no more, 
In forrowing ftrains, her numbers plain- » 
tive pour ; 
But joy throughout thy num’rous_ nations 
reign, 
And gladnefs gay pervade thy alter’d plain ! 
Letail thy fable fons and daughters hear, 
Britannia can for Afric drop a tear ; 
Yes, let the waters of the weftern wave 
Bear them the charter, Britain’s fenate gave ; 
Watt the glad tidings ev’ry wind that blows, 
From equinoétial heat, to polar fnows 5 
From Barbary’s ftrand to diftant India’s fea, 
Let ev'ry breeze declare that Afric’s free ! 
On blood-{tain’d pinions,Rapine flies the fhore, 
And the fell traffic fhews his guilt no more ; 
Slaw’ry, with favage fternnefs, leaves the 
plains, 
Oppreffion ceafes, and fair Freedom reigns ! 
Long flumb’ring Juftice reaffumes her feat, 
And Afric’s injur’d fons prote€tion meet ,—« 
Mercy and Peace benignant hail the day, 
Which gives to Liberty her priftine fway.— 
Come, mild Benevolence, the verfe infpire, 
And let the poet catch thy heav’n-born fire, 
Original Poetry. 
359 
Teach him aloft to foaron tow’ring wing, 
And of thy fons, their deeds fublime,—to 
fing— 
Without thy aid, vain were his feeble lays, 
And weak the voice that tries to found their 
praife, 
Who, led by thee(the friend of human ~ 
kind= 
That feeks in peace the warring world to 
. bind) — 
Struck the foul fetter from the fuff’ring 
flave, ° 
And by one act, did fable millions fave. 
O Wilberforce, twas thine that path to tread, 
To point the place where Slav’ry rear’d his 
head, 
To follow fill where’er the demon trod, - 
And from his iron hand to wrench the rode-a 
Afric’s pure incenfe at thy name fhall rife, 
And fraught with fragrance fill the ap- 
proving fkies. 
And fhall the bleffings of the fable train, 
The mem’ry of the virtuous Smith retain, 
For Grey and Grenville fhall the pray’r af- 
cend, 
And refcu’d thoufands fhall their voices lend, 
Accept, O Clarkfon,* ’mid the honor’dthrongy 
The fimple tribute of the Mufe’s fong— 
For tho’ no f{plendid rhetoric marks thy name 
On hiftory’s page, and hands it down to fame 5 
Yet thall a life, {pent ina heav’nly caufe, 
Receivea nation’sthanks, and loud applaufe 5 
Long fhalt thou live rever’d among the wife, 
Afric fhall laud thee, and Britannia prize ! 
And far renown’d thro’ time, to lateft age, 
By Fame infcrib’d on Mem’ry’s cleareft page, 
By meck-ey’d Pity {chool’d, on Wifdoim’s 
plan, 
Fox ftands immortal, as the friend of man. 
For it was his—Britannia’s brightett boaft, 
To banifh flavery from Afric’s coaft, 
To drag th’ oppreflive moniter from his den, 
And tell the fons of Guinea, they are men! 
While his lips trembled with his lateft 
breath, 
That jut refolvet made fmooth the path of 
death! 
E’re yet the accents quiv’ring left his tongue, 
Still on th’. unwearied theme the patriot 
satan Uy pica 
The wrongs of Afric long his breaft had 
fir’'d—— 
He broke her chains exulting, and expir’d !— 
* Thomas Clarkfon, AM. a gentleman who, 
although out of the boufey has perhaps done 
more than any other individual, towards the 
abolition of this abominable traffic. His phi- 
lanthropy in devoting the lait 20 years ot his 
life, in vindicating the rights of the African, 
will fecure him a place in the hearts of the 
wife and good of the prefent and future times. 
7 Refolution of the Houfe of Commons 
moved by Mr. Fox, 10th of June 1806, de- 
claring the Slave Trade inconfiftent with juf- 
tice, humanity, and found policy, &¢. 
42.2 Hail 
