[Page 207]

TO Dr. JOHN SPEED of Southampton.

An EPISTLE, Occasion'd by his Ingenious Satyr on the Dissenters, mingled with his Encomium of Mr. Lloyd's Paraphrase on Solomon's Song, printed in 8vo. 1682.

1 TRUE Son of Phoebus, Heir t' his Tuneful Quill,
2 His murthering Arrows, and his healing Skill:
3 Thy Bills his Med'cines are, his Lyre thy Song,
4 Thine Heart his Quiver, and his Bow thy Tongue:
[Page 208]
5
* Neque sempec arcum Tendit Apollo. Horat. lib. 2. Od. 10.
But here's no Python: Sooth thine Arms a while,
6 And charm thy stately Rigor to a Smile,
7 For Schism prevails no more; we love to see
8 Our Words and Lines in Couplings well agree
9 Nor do we thus abhor Conformity.
10 Hymns may be soft and smooth and comely Drest
11 With humane Art, nor savour of the Beast,
12 A Lyrick Ode submits to Godly Notes;
13 Harmonious Words no more offend our Throats.
14 Nor Rhime, nor Tune, nor Sacred Sense confines
15 The Spirit, Freedom flows in tuneful Lines,
16 And Conscience feels the Pleasure, nor complains
17 Of Impositions, Prisons, Bonds, and Chains,
18 Whilst pure Devotion sings and ANNE th' Indulgent Reigns.
19 Then, Sir, Submit with Joy thine Iron Stile
20 To the soft Polish of a gentle File;
21 The Courteous Muse shines brightest; and 'tis fit
22 Apollo's Heir should deal in kinder Wit.
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23 SPEED to his Lute in Artful Numbers sings
24 Melodious; till his Angry Bow he brings
25 Across the Chorded Shell, and hurts the gentler Strings.

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Title (in Source Edition): TO Dr. JOHN SPEED of Southampton.
Author: Isaac Watts
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Genres: heroic couplet; epistle

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Watts, Isaac, 1674-1748. Horæ lyricæ: Poems, chiefly of the lyric kind. In two books. ... By I. Watts. London: Printed by S. and D. Bridge, for John Lawrence at the Sign of the Angel in the Poultrey. MDCCVI., 1706, pp. 207-209. [20],267,[1]p.; 8⁰. (ESTC T82397; OTA K067329.000) (Page images digitized from a copy in the Princeton Theological Seminary Library.)

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The text has been typographically modernized, but without any silent modernization of spelling, capitalization, or punctuation. The source of the text is given and all editorial interventions have been recorded in textual notes. Based on the electronic text originally produced by the TCP project, 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.

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