[Page 99]

Written from Dublin, to a Lady in the Country.

1 A wretch, in smoaky Dublin pent,
2 Who rarely sees the Firmament,
3 You graciously invite, to view
4 The Sun's enliv'ning Rays with you;
5 To change the Town for flow'ry Meads,
6 And sing beneath the sylvan Shades.
7 You're kind in vain It will not be
8 Retirement was deny'd to me;
9 Doom'd by inexorable Fate,
10 To pass thro' crouded Scenes I hate.
11 O with what Joy could I survey
12 The rising, glorious Source of Day!
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13 Attend the Shepherd's fleecy Care,
14 Transported with the vernal Air;
15 Behold the Meadow's painted Pride,
16 Or see the limpid Waters glide;
17 Survey the distant, shaded Hills,
18 And, pensive, hear the murm'ring Rills.
19 Thro' your Versailles with Pleasure rove,
20 Admire the Gardens, and the Grove;
21 See Nature's bounteous Hand adorn
22 The blushing Peach, and blooming Thorn;
23 Beheld the Birds distend their Throats,
24 And hear their wild, melodious Notes.
25 Delighted, thro' your Pastures roam,
26 Or see the Kine come lowing home;
27 Whose od'rous Breaths a Joy impart,
28 That sooths the Sense, and glads the Heart;
29 With Pleasure view the frothing Pails,
30 And silent hear the creaking Rails;
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31 See whistling Hinds attend their Ploughs,
32 Who never hear of broken Vows;
33 Where no Ambition to be great,
34 E'er taught the Nymph, or Swain, Deceit.
35 Thus thro' the Day, delighted, run;
36 Then raptur'd view the setting Sun;
37 The rich, diffufive God behold,
38 On distant Mountains pouring Gold,
39 Gilding the beauteous, rising Spire,
40 While Crystal Windows glow with Fire;
41 Gaze, till he quit the Western Skies,
42 And long to see his Sister rise;
43 Prefer the silent, Silver Moon
44 To the too radiant, noisy Noon.
45 Or Northward turn, with new Delight,
46 To mark what Triumphs wait the Night;
47 When Shepherds think the Heav'ns foreshow
48 Some dire Commotions here below;
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49 When Light the human Form assumes,
50 And Champions meet with nodding Plumes,
51 With Silver Streamers, wide unfurl'd,
52 And gleaming Spears amaze the World.
53 Thence to the higher Heav'ns I soar,
54 And the great Architect adore;
55 Behold what Worlds are hung in Air,
56 And view ten thousand Empires there;
57 Then prostrate to Jehovah fall,
58 Who into Being spake them all.

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About this text

Title (in Source Edition): Written from Dublin, to a Lady in the Country.
Author: Mary Barber
Themes: rural life; city; nature
Genres: epistle
References: DMI 11544

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Source edition

Barber, Mary, ca. 1690-1757. Poems on Several Occasions [poems only]. London: Printed for C. Rivington, at the Bible and Crown in St. Paul's Church-Yard, 1734, pp. 99-102. xlviii,283,[7]p.; 8⁰. (ESTC T42622; DMI 519; Foxon p. 45) (Page images digitized from a copy in the Bodleian Library [Harding C 3644].)

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Typography, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation have been cautiously modernized. The source of the text is given and all significant editorial interventions have been recorded in textual notes. This ECPA text has been edited to conform to the recommendations found in Level 5 of the Best Practices for TEI in Libraries version 4.0.0.

Other works by Mary Barber