TEMPLE OF APOLLO.

waves' loud uproar At thy approach, the wild?

And foaming furges of the mad'ning main, Forget to heave their mountains to the shore;

Ditlus'd into the level of the plain. For thee, the halcyon builds her summer's neft; For thee, the ocean smooths her troubled breati, Gay from thy placid smiles, in thy own purple dreft. Have ye not seen, in gentle even-tide,

When Jupiter the earth had richly shower’d,
Striding the clouds, a bow dispredden wide,

As if with light inwove, and gayly flower'd
With bright variety of blending dies ?
White, purple, yellow, melt along the skies,
Alternate colours fink, alternate colours rise.
The earth's embroidery then have ye ey’d,

And smile of blossoms, yellow, purple, white;
Their vernal-tinctur'd leaves, luxurious, dy'd

In Flora's liv'ry, painted by the light. Lights' painted children in the breezes play, Lay out their dewy blossoms to the ray, Their soft enamel spread, and beautify the day. From the wide altar of the foodful earth The flow’rs, the herbs, the plants, their incense

roll; The orchards fwell the ruby-tinctur'd birth ;

The vermil gardens breathe the fpicy foul. Grateful to MAY, the nectar-spirit tlies, The wasted clouds of lavith'd odours rise, The zephyr's balmy burthen, worthy of the skies. The bee, the golden daughter of the spring,

From mead to mead, in wanton labour, roves, And loads its little thigh, or gilds its wing

With all the eilence of the flushing groves : Extracts the aromatic foul of flow'rs, And, humming in delight, its waxen bowers Fills with the luscious spoils, and lives ambrosial Touch'd by thee, MAY, the flocks and lusty droves,

That low in pastures, or on mountains bleat, Revive their frolics and renew their loves,

Stung to the marrow with a generous heat. The fiately courfer, bounding o'er the plain, Shakes to the winds the honours of his mane, (High-arch'd his neck) and, fnuffing, hopes the

dappled train. The aëreal fongsters footh the lift'ning groves :

The mellow uth, the ouzle sweetly thrill,
And little linnet, celebrate their loves

In hawthorn valley, or on tufted hill;
The foaring lark, the lowly nightingale,
A thorn her pillow, trills her doleful tale,
And melancholy music dies along the dale.
This gay exuberance of gorgeous fpring,

The gilded mountain and the herbag'd vale,
The woods that blossom, and the birds that fing,

The murmuring fountain, and the breathing dale : The dale, the fountains, birds and woods delight, The vales, the mountains, and the spring invite, Yet, unadorn’d by May, no longer charm the light: When nature laughs around, shall man alone,

Thy image, hang (ah me!) the fickly head? When nature fings, mall nature's glory groan,

And languish for the pittance poor of bread ? O may the man that shall his image scorn, Alive, be ground with hunger, molt forlorn, Die unanell’d, and dead, by dogs and kites be torn, Curs’d may he be (as if he were not fo).

Nay doubiy curs'd be such a breast of steel, Which never melted at another's woe,

Nor tenderness of bowels knew to feel. His heart is black as hell, in flowing store Who hears the needy crying at his door, Who hears them cry, ne recks; but suffers them But bleft, O more than doubly bleft be he!

Let honour crown him and eternal relt, Whose bofoin, the sweet fount of charity,

Flows out to nourish innocence difireit. His ear is open to the widow's cries, His hand the orphan's cheek of forrow dries; Like mercy's self he looks on want with pity's eyes. In this bleit season, pregnant with delight,

Ne may the boding owl with screeches wound The solemn silence of the quiet night,

Ne croaking raven, with unhallow'd sound, Ne damned ghost affray with deadly yell The waking lover, rais'd by mighty spell, To pale the stars, till Hesper shine it back to hell. Ne witches rifle gibbets, by the moon,

(With horror winking, trembling all with fear) Of many a clinking chain, and canker'd bone :

Nor imp in visionary thape appear, To blast the thriving verdure of the plain; Ne let hobgoblin, ne the ponk, profane With Madowy glare the light, and mad the bursting

brain. Yet fairy-elves (so ancient custom's will)

The green-gown'd fairy-elves, by starry seen, May gambol or in valley or on hill,

And leave their footiieps on the circled green. Full lightly trip it, dapper MAB, around; Full featly, ob'ron, thou, o'er grass-turf bound : MaB bruihes off' no dew-drops, OB'RON prints no

ground. Ne bloody rumours violate the ear,

Of cities fack’d, and kingdoms defolate,
With plague or sword, with peliilence or war;

Ne eful murder stain thy era-date;
Ne shamless calumny, for fell despight,
The foulesi fiend that e'er blafphem'd the light,
At lovely lady rail, nor grin at courteous knight.

Ne wailing in our streets nor fields be heard,

Ne voice of mifery affault the heart; Ne fatherless from table be debar'd;

Ne piteous tear from eye of forrow fiart; But plenty, pour thyself into the bowl Of bounty-head; may never want controul That good-good-honeft man, who feeds the familh'd

foul.
Now let the trumpet's martial thunders sleep;

The viol wake alone, and tender Aute:
The Phrygian lyre with sprightly fingers sweep,

And, Erato, dissolve the Lydian lute.
Yet Clio frets, and burns, with honest pain,
To rouse and animate the martial strain,
While British banners flame o'er many a purpled

plain. Through kind infusion of cælestial pow'r,

The dullard earth, MAY quick’neth with delight: Full suddenly the seeds of joy recure

Elastic fpring, and force within empight. If senseless elements invigorate prove By genial MAY and heavy matter move, Shall thepherdefies cease, Thall thepherds fail to love. Ye shepherdesses, in a goodly round,

Purpled with health, as in the greenwood shade, Incontinent ye thump the echoing ground

And defftly lead the dance along the glade ; (O may no show'rs your merry-makes affray!) I!ail at the op’ning, at the closing day, All hail, ye bonnibells, to your own feafon, MAY. Nor ye absent yourselves, ye shepherd-swains,

But lend to dance and song the lib'ral MAY, And while in jocund ranks you beat the plains,

Your flocks Tall nibble and your lambkins play, Frisking in glee. To may your garlands bring, And ever and anon her praises fing: The woods thall echo MAY,with may the vallies ring. Your May-pole deck with flow'ry coronal;

Sprinkle the flow'ry coronal with wine; And in the nimble footed galliard, all,

Shepherds and shepherdefies, lively join. Hither from village sweet and hanılet fair, From bordering cot and distant glenne repair, Let youth indulge its sports, to eld bequeath its care. Ye wanton dryads and light-tripping fawns,

Ye jolly satyrs, full of luftihed,
And ye that haunt the hills, the brooks, the lawns,

O come! with rural chaplets gay dispread :
With heel so nimble wear the springing grass,
To fhrilling bagpipe, or to tinkling brass;
Or foot it to the reed: Pan pipes himself apace.
In this soft season, when creation fmil'd,

A quivering fplendour on the ocean. hung,
And from the fruitful froth, his fairelt child,

The queen of bliss and beauty, Venus fprung.
The dolphins gainbol o'er the wat’ry way,
Carol the naiades, while the tritons play,
And all the sea-green fisiers bless the holiday.
In honour of her natal-month, the queen

Of bliss and beauty, confecrates her hours,
Fresh as her cheek, and as her brow serene,

To buxom ladies, and their paramours. Love tips with golden alchemy his dart; With rapt'rous anguish, with an honey'd smart Eye languishes on eye, and heart diffolves on heart. A softly-swelling hill, with myrtles crown'd,

(Myrtles to Venus algates facred been) Hight Acidale, the faireft spot on ground,

Forever fragrant and forever green, O’erlooks the windings of a Mady vale, By beauty form'd for amorous regale: Was

as ever hill so sweet, as sweeteli Acidale ? All down the sides, the sides profuse of flow'rs,

An hundred rills, in thining mazes, flow