THE PIN. William Woty Alexander Huber Editor Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford
Broad Street Oxford OX1 3BG UK
Eighteenth-Century Poetry Archive
Taylor Institution Library St Giles' Oxford OX1 3NA UK info@eighteenthcenturypoetry.org https://www.eighteenthcenturypoetry.org/
Oxford This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. T124631 1073 K099398.000 Mendez, Moses. A collection of the most esteemed pieces of poetry: that have appeared for several years. With variety of originals, by the late Moses Mendez, Esq; and other contributors to Dodsley's collection. To which this is intended as a supplement. London printed for Richardson and Urquhart 1767 pp. 165-167. [8],320p. ; 8⁰.

This e-text is part of the Works section of the Eighteenth-Century Poetry Archive (ECPA).

XML created for the Eighteenth-Century Poetry Archive (ECPA).

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 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.

Library of Congress Name Authority File (LCNAF) text-indent: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em; text-align: center; text-align: right; text-align: left; display: inline font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;
THE PIN . BY MR. WOTY. FOR once , ye critics , let the sportive Muse Her fool's cap wear , spite of the shaking head Of stern-eyed Gravity — for , tho' the Muse To frolic be dispos'd , no song she chants Immoral ; nor one picture will she hold , But Virtue may approve it with a smile . Ye sylvan deities ! awhile adieu ! Ye curling streams ! whose banks are fring'd with flowers , Violet and hare-bell , or the king-cup bright , Farewell ! for I must leave your rich perfumes To sing the Pin in ever sounding lays : But not that Pin , at whose circumference Rotund , the strong-nerv'd rustic hurls the bowl Ponderous and vast : nor that which window bars From thief nocturnal : nor that other call'd A skittle ; chiefly found where alehouse snug Invites mechanic to the flowing cup Of Calvert's mild , o'er-canopied with froth . No — 'tis the Pin so much by ladies us'd ; Without whose aid the nymph of nicest taste , Of neatest mould , a slattern would appear . Hail then , thou little useful instrument ! Tho' small , yet consequential . For by thee Beauty sets off her charms , as at the glass Lucy , or Phillis , best adapts thy point . Without thy service would the ribband flaunt Loose to the fanning gale , nor on the head Of belle would stand her whimsical attire . The kerchief from her neck of snow would fall With freedom bold , and leave her bosom bare . How would the sempstress trim thy want regret As she her apron forms ! And how the man Of law , sagacious , with his spectacles On nose reverted ! frequent does he want Thy prompt assistance , to connect his scraps And notes obliterated o'er . Thee oft In alley , path , wide square , and open street , The miser picks , as conscious of thy use ; With frugal hand , accompanied with brow Of corrugated bent , he sticks thee safe , Interior on his coat ; then creeps along , Well judging thy proportion to a groat . Thro' all thy different storehouses to trace Thy presence , either in the sculptur'd dome , Or tenement clay-built , would ask a pen With points almost as various as thy heads . Where-e'er thou art , or in whatever form , Magnificent in silver , or in brass , Or wire more humble , nightly may'st thou lie Safe on thy cushion'd bed , or kiss the locks Of Chloe , sleeping on the pillow's down .