From others he shall stand in need of nothing,
Yet on his brothers shall depend for clothing,
To find a foe it shall not be his hap,
And peace shall lull him in her flowry lap;
Yet shall he live in strife, and at his door
Devouring war shall never cease to roar:
Yea, it shall be his natural property
To harbour those that are at enmity.'

What power, what force, what mighty spell, if not
Your learned hands, can loose this Gordian knot?

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90

The next, QUANTITY and QUALITY, spake in prose, then
RELATION was called by his name.

Rivers arise; whether thou be the son

of utmost Tweed, or Oose, or gulfy Dun;

Or Trent, who like some earth-born giant spreads
His thirty arms along the indented meads;
Or sullen Mole that runneth underneath,
Or Severn swift, guilty of maiden's death,

Or rocky Avon, or of sedgy Lee,

Or coaly Tine, or ancient hallowed Dee,

Or Humber loud that keeps the Scythian's name,
Or Medway smooth, or royal-towred Thame.

[The rest was prose.]

ON THE MORNING OF CHRIST'S NATIVITY.

(1629.)

95

100

1.

THIS is the month, and this the happy morn
Wherein the Son of Heav'ns eternal King,
Of wedded maid and virgin mother born,
Our great redemption from above did bring;

For so the holy sages once did sing, la satament prophete

That he our deadly forfeit should release,

percally

And with his Father work us a perpetual peace.

eternd

f death.

2.

That glorious Form, that Light unsufferable,
And that far-beaming blaze of Majesty,

a wont Wherewith he wont at Heav'ns high council-table
To sit the midst of Trinal Unity,

He laid aside; and here with us to be,
Forsook the courts of everlasting day,

And chose with us a darksome house of mortal clay.

3.

Say Heav'nly Muse, shall not thy sacred vein
Afford a present to the Infant God?

ΙΟ

talent 15 grains

Hast thou no verse, no hymn, or solemn strain,
To welcome him to this his new abode;

Now while the Heav'n by the sun's team untrod

Hath took no print of the approaching light,

20

And all the spangled host keep watch in squadrons bright?

4.

See how from far upon the eastern road

The star-led wisards haste with odours sweet: hier men

anticipat, 0 run, prevent them with thy humble ode,

O

And lay it lowly at his blessed feet;

Have thou the honour first, thy Lord to greet,

And join thy voice unto the angel quire,
From out his secret altar toucht with hallow'd fire.

25

THE HYMN.

1.

It was the winter wild,

While the Heav'n-born child,

All meanly wrapt in the rude manger lies:
Nature in awe to him

Had doff't her gaudy trim, holiday

With her great Master so to sympathize: agrees

It was no season then for her

To wanton with the sun her lusty paramour.

30

35

Only with speeches fair

She woos the gentle Air

2.

To hide her guilty front with innocent snow,
And on her naked shame,

Pollute with sinful blame,

The saintly veil of maiden white to throw;
Confounded, that her Maker's eyes

Should look so near upon her foul deformities.

But he her fears to cease,

3.

to cause to cater

Sent down the meek-ey'd Peace;

She crown'd with olive green, came softly sliding
Down through the turning sphere

His ready harbinger, one who preparce socalled With turtle wing the amorous clouds dividing, because ne-And waving wide her myrtle wand,

She strikes a universal peace through sea and land.
as with an enchanters so d.

No war, or battle's sound

Was heard the world around:

The idle spear and shield were high up hung;
The hooked chariot stood

Unstain'd with hostile blood,

The trumpet spake not to the armed throng;
And kings sate still with awful eye, with terror
As if they surely knew their sovran Lord was by.

But peaceful was the night

5.

Wherein the Prince of light

whiches.

His reign of peace upon the earth began:
The winds with wonder whist whis,
Smoothly the waters kist,

Whispering new joys to the mild Ocean,
Who now hath quite forgot to rave,

While birds of calm sit brooding on the charmed wave.

refers to Healyou days.

6.

The stars with deep amaze

Stand fixt in stedfast gaze,

Bending one way their pretious influence;
And will not take their flight,

For all the morning light, notwiths

if

Or Lucifer that often warn'd them thence,
But in their glimmering orbs did glow,

Until their Lord himself bespake, and bid them go.

7.

And though the shady gloom

place

Had given day her room, as her pay
The sun himself withheld his wonted speed; .
And hid his head for shame,

As his inferior flame

The new-enlightn'd world no more should need;
He saw a greater Sun appear

70

75

80

Than his bright throne, or burning axletree could bear.

8.

The shepherds on the lawn, open space bet wordt wher sheep are fed.

Or ere the point of dawn,

Sate simply chatting in a rustic row,

Full little thought they than, old form of

That the mighty Pan

Was kindly come to live with them below;

Perhaps their loves, or else their sheep,

Was all that did their silly thoughts so busy keep.

When such music sweet

9.

Their hearts and ears did greet,

As never was by mortal finger strook;

Divinely-warbled voice

them.

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95

Answering the stringed noise, music, bout of musi

Charmed As all their souls in blissful rapture took!

The air such pleasure loth to lose,

With thousand echoes still prolongs each heav'nly close.

10.

Nature that heard such sound

Beneath the hollow round

Apollo.

ΤΟΙ

and Actumis were calles byssthine and byuthie

Of Cynthia's seat, the airy region thrilling,

Now was almost won

To think her part was done,

And that her reign had here its last fulfilling;
She knew such harmony alone

105

Could hold all Heav'n and Earth in happier union. ¿

11.

At last surrounds their sight

A globe of circular light,

that of nature.

ΙΙΟ

That with long beams the shame-fac't night array'd;

The helmed cherubim

And sworded seraphim,

Are seen in glittering ranks with wings display'd;
Harping in loud and solemn quire,

With unexpressive notes to Heav'ns new-born Heir.
inexpressible

Such music (as 'tis said)

Before was never made,

12.

But when of old the sons of morning sung;
While the Creator great

His constellations set,

And the well-balanc't world on hinges hung,

And cast the dark foundations deep,

And bid the weltring waves their oozy channel keep.

simply roll 18.

Ring out ye crystal spheres,

115

120

125

Once bless our human ears,

(If ye have power to touch our senses so,)

And let your silver chime

Move in melodious time;

And let the base of Heav'ns deep organ blow:

130

And with your ninefold harmony for the nine pharet

bad Make up full consort to th' angelic symphony.

a the only polare in Willon exuptance in Par. Lost) that "ite" is used. There is another place Least Wit It but it is a pruiters Wistake.