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THE BIRTH-DAY ORNAMENTS.

1 PERSON and mind, we must confess,
2 Receive from polish and from dress
3 A charm to point the native grace,
4 The virtuous heart, the beauteous face;
5 But faults in each, refuse their aid,
6 And more adorn'd are more display'd;
7 Can polish'd vice the good engage?
8 A viper in a gilded cage!
9 'Twas thus the tender parent thought,
10 When his adorning gifts he brought;
11 My child, he said, my Rosaline,
12
* There is no affection so pure and angelic, as that of a father to a daughter. In love to our wives, there is desire; to our sons, ambition; but in that to our daughters, there is something which there are no words to express —Spectator, No. 449.
And all the father beam'd divine,
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13 Benignant May now cheers the earth,
14 And this day twelve years was thy birth;
15 May it be mine this day to bring,
16 Important treasures to thy spring.
17 And thy lost mother to restore,
18 Give thee the ornaments she wore;
19 For these, while here we were allied,
20 With love and me were all her pride.
21 Evander then in accents mild,
22 Thus with his gifts address'd his child.
23 My sweetest Rose, attention pay,
24 And fix thy thoughts on what I say;
25 If these from you no worth receive,
26 How vainly does my fondness give.
27 For here, the wise no value trace,
28 Till these are joined by kindred grace;
29 And first, he said, my Rosaline,
30 This OZIER WAND'S by nature thine,
31 Alas! it was in Eden broke,
32 Evander sighing as he spoke;
33 The giver there how much forgot,
34 Ordained it your peculiar lot;
35 Whene'er it bends to just command,
36 See, how it blooms beneath the hand;
37 Keep it my child, with care thro' life,
38 It suits the daughter and the wife,
39 And tho' it marks no present sway,
40 To rising honours leads the way;
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41 'Tis planted first in wisdom's school,
42 And leads the mighty to their rule.
43 A VEIL he next display'd to view,
44 Adorn'd with PEARLS of blooming hue;
45 He thus proceeded, these you see,
46 Wear the sweet blush of MODESTY;
47 When thus drawn forth, compell'd to shew,
48 Mark how they tremble as they glow;
49 This serves you in a double sense,
50 An ornament and a defence;
51 Its timid lustre can unfold,
52 A sacred charm to awe the bold;
53 Give every beauty softer grace,
54 And add ideal loveliness,
55 The beauteous ensign of your fame,
56 And woman's glory is its name;
57 Again he paus'd to view his child,
58 With timid look, she blushing smil'd.
59 A brilliant WATCH the next he brought,
60 It's chain with many an emblem wrought;
61 The cock, prime herald of the dawn,
62 The loaded bee, from flowery lawn.
63 Silkworms and spiders at their looms,
64 And ants that hoard ere winter comes;
65 Its worth admiring, as he viewed,
66 His theme Evander thus pursued,
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67 My Rose, 'till time shall pass away,
68 Be this the emblem of thy day;
69 With this pursue thy steady course,
70 'Tis action gives to virtue force,
71 Loitering, you as this machine,
72 Some spring to good have wrong within;
73 When winding up this splendid toy,
74 Upon yourself your thoughts employ,
75 And since life here, to you was given,
76 To fit you for a life in heaven;
77 Ask with every setting sun,
78 What for heaven has Rosaline done?
79 The gift that courted next her sight,
80 Was a clear ROBE, of SPOTLESS WHITE;
81 The father said, my Rosaline,
82 This, with its kindred grace be thine,
83 By all the good and wise confest,
84 The pride of virtue and of taste;
85 Free as the air, open as day,
86 Children this beauteous robe display.
87 And thence, the prince of love and peace,
88 Declares, of such my kingdom is;
89 Much merit should this gift impart,
90 And, all its wearers shew the heart;
91 It is the dress which angels wear,
92 And thought their purest emblem here;
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93 Evander ceased, rejoiced to see,
94 His child possess SIMPLICITY.
95 A TURBAN to adorn the HEAD,
96 Was the rich present next display'd;
97 Gems from every country brought,
98 Work which every age had wrought;
99 There arts and science spread their store,
100 In brilliant types, from every shore;
101 And as its value stood confest,
102 Evander thus his thoughts exprest,
103 This gift a value must possess,
104 Too rich, some think, for female dress;
105 Its worth to know exceeds your powers,
106 And nature meant it only ours;
107 Whoe'er these narrow claims have spread,
108 But little of themselves have said;
109 Little discernment have they shown,
110 Who have your worth so little known.
111 How can their rugged bosoms prove,
112 Exalted friendship, tender love.
113 By no such vanity beguil'd,
114 I give it thee my darling child,
115 Tho' in itself a boundless store,
116 With caution let it still be wore.
117 On you, it was not meant for show,
118 Tho' there be those who wear it so,
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119 From all conceit, still wear it free,
120 Beneath the veil of modesty.
121 A conscious joy the father took,
122 From Rosaline's inquiring look,
123 And as his last best gift he draws,
124 He views it with a solemn pause,
125 Conceal'd the moisture of his eye,
126 And half suppress'd the rising sigh,
127 Assum'd composure ere he spoke,
128 And thus his tender silence broke,
129 Thou dearest object of my cares,
130 Accept the gifts my love prepares,
131 But vain the value of the rest,
132 If this, the chief, be not carest;
133 Then, thro' this CRYSTAL every day,
134 My presents carefully survey,
135 Thro' this, inspect my gifts of love,
136 How they decay, or they improve,
137 To what the wise shall recommend,
138 If fitly, meek OBEDIENCE bend,
139 This will a gentle firmness show,
140 To dignify the MODEST glow;
141 Display your best pursuits, and thence,
142 Incite to active DILIGENCE,
143 And by a conscience free from harm,
144 Show INNOCENCY'S open charm,
145 Extending every virtue's sphere,
146 You see the worth of KNOWLEDGE here;
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147 Tis thus the wise, with steady eye,
148 Their morals by RELIGION try,
149 And if with these thro' life you move,
150 Our joys our virtues you improve,
151 With fond attentions, ceaseless cares,
152 Tis woman guards our infant years;
153 Her kind compassions sooth in death,
154 And she receives our parting breath.

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Title (in Source Edition): THE BIRTH-DAY ORNAMENTS.
Author: Eliza Day
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Genres: occasional poem

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Daye, Eliza, b. ca. 1734. Poems, on Various Subjects. Liverpool: Printed by J. M'Creery, 1798, pp. [6]-12. [2],x,[4],258p.; 8° (ESTC T132359) (Page images digitized by University of California Libraries.)

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