Page:Vida's Art of Poetry.djvu/74

He gathers omens from each bird that flies,
And signs from ev'ry wing that beats the skies.
He now describes a banquet where the guest
Prolongs with narratives the royal feast.
Or at the glorious hero's tomb we read
Of games ordain'd in honour of the dead.
And oft for mercies in old times displaid
To their own gods their annual rites are paid.
For monstrous Python slain, their praises rise,
And lift the fame of Phœbus to the skies.
In hymns Alcides' labours they resound,
While Cacus lies extended on the ground,
Alternate sing the labours of his hands,
Enjoin'd by first Eurysteus' stern commands;
The den of Cacus crowns the grateful strain,
Where the grim monster breathes his flames tn vain.

Mark how sometimes the bard without controul,
Exerts his fire, and pours forth alt his soul,
His lines so dating, and his words so strong,
We see the subject figur'd in the song.