The Complaint: Or, Night Thoughts on Life, Death, and Immortality: To which is Prefixed the Life of the Author..Parker amd Bliss, 1812 - 273 pages |
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ambition angels art thou aſk becauſe beneath beſt bleſſings bleſt bliſs boſom cauſe Chriſtian cloſe dæmons dark death Deity deſpair diſtant divine doſt dread duſt earth eternal ev'ry facred fame fate figh fight firſt flame fome fong fons fool foon foul fuch glory grave guilt heart heav'n human immortal inſpire itſelf juſt laſt leaſt leſs life's Lorenzo man's mankind mortal moſt muſt nature nature's ne'er night nought numbers o'er paffion pain paſt peace pleaſure pow'r praiſe preſent pride proud reaſon reſt rife riſe ſay ſcene ſcheme ſeen ſenſe ſet ſhades ſhall ſhame ſhare ſhe ſhew ſhines ſhort ſhould ſkies ſmall ſmile ſoft ſome ſpeak ſphere ſpirit ſtand ſtars ſtate ſtill ſtorm ſtrange ſtranger ſtream ſtrike ſuch ſurvey ſweet taſte thee theme theſe thine thoſe thought thro throne truth univerſal vaſt virtue waſte whoſe wife wing wisdom wretched
Popular passages
Page 22 - tis madness to defer: Next day the fatal precedent will plead ; Thus on, till wisdom is push'd out of life. Procrastination is the thief of time; Year after year it steals, till all are fled, And to the mercies of a moment leaves The vast concerns of an eternal scene.
Page 13 - I wake : how happy they who wake no more ! Yet that were vain, if dreams infest the grave. I wake, emerging from a sea. of dreams Tumultuous; where my wreck'd, desponding thought, From wave to wave of fancied misery At random drove, her helm of reason lost.
Page 23 - At thirty man suspects himself a fool ; Knows it at forty, and reforms his plan ; At fifty chides his infamous delay, Pushes his prudent purpose to resolve; In all the magnanimity of thought Resolves and re-resolves; then dies the same.
Page 178 - Ocean ! thou dreadful and tumultuous home Of dangers, at eternal war with man ! Death's capital, where most he domineers...
Page 23 - Of man's miraculous mistakes this bears The palm, ' That all men are about to live, For ever on the brink of being born.' All pay themselves the compliment to think They one day shall not drivel : and their pride On this reversion takes up ready praise ; At least, their own ; their future selves applaud How excellent that life they ne'er will lead.
Page 18 - More mortal than the common births of fate. Each Moment has its sickle, emulous, Of Time's enormous scythe, whose ample sweep Strikes empires from the root ; each moment plays His little weapon in the narrower sphere Of sweet domestic comfort, and cuts down The fairest bloom of sublunary bliss.
Page 14 - Lead it through various scenes of life and death, And from each scene the noblest truths inspire. Nor less inspire my conduct than my song ; Teach my best reason, reason; my best will...
Page 37 - To gentle life's descent We shut our eyes, and think it is a plain. We take fair days in winter, for the spring; And turn our blessings into bane.
Page 73 - Though yet unsung, as deem'd, perhaps, too bold ? Angels are men of a superior kind ; Angels are men in lighter habit clad, High o'er celestial mountains wing'd in flight ; And men are angels, loaded for an hour, Who wade this miry vale, and climb with pain, And slippery step, the bottom of the steep.
Page 21 - Is heaven tremendous in its frowns ? Most sure; And in its favours formidable too: Its favours here are trials, not rewards; A call to duty, not discharge from care ; And should alarm us full as much as woes...