EPIGRAM On the Sacred Memory of that glorious Patron of POETS, greatest and best of Monarchs, KING CHARLES the Second. Thomas D'Urfey Alexander Huber Editor Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford
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Eighteenth-Century Poetry Archive
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Oxford This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. R17889 D'Urfey, Thomas, 1653-1723. New poems, consisting of satyrs, elegies, and odes together with a choice collection of the newest court songs set to musick by the best masters of the age / all written by Mr. D'Urfey. London Printed for J. Bullord ... and A. Roper ... 1690 pp. 185-176. [16],207,[1]p.

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EPIGRAM On the Sacred Memory of that glorious Patron of POETS , greatest and best of Monarchs , KING CHARLES the Second . Written 1686. IF Sacred Worth , which high as Heaven does raise His Fame , were low enough for mortal Praise , The mighty Theme would crack each studious Brain , No Tongue be still , nor unimploy'd no Pen ; But since no Planet can for Phaebus shine , And all Applause is vain of things Divine , To Court a Tomb let every Muse be taught , And perish with the sad extremes of Thought ; The impoverish'd Land is by his loss undone , As each Muse dull'd now its Inspirer's gone : Blest by his Beams the learn'd in Crowds would throng , To hear the Oraculous Wisdom of his Tongue ; Mute as the Grave , when he a Story told , England was then as Athens was of old , Or Rome , where Arms with Science flourish'd long , Augustus smil'd at honour'd Virgil's Song , But now our Harps are on the Willows hung : For since the Sovereign of all Arts could die , There is no farther use of Poetry ; Hot Pegasus no middle Tract will go , Charles , is a Theme too high , and all besides too low .