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"Now, while my plaintive carols flow,
"Let pity in thy bosom glow;"
And I will consecrate to thee,
The wildest note of liberty.
INSCRIPTION FOR A HERMITAGE.
Pilgrim, view this mossy dell,
View the woodland hermit's cell;
And if thou love the rustic scene,
And love to court the muse serene;
If virtue to thy soul be dear,
And sometimes melancholy's tear;
Oh! thou wilt view the vale around,
As if 'twere consecrated ground.
The pious hermit here retir'd,
With love of solitude inspir'd;
He lov'd the scene of this retreat,
This smiling dell to him was sweet;
And here he sought for hallow'd rest,
To calm the sorrows of his breast;
And resignation with a smile,
His tear of grief would oft beguile;
Would soothe to peace his tranquil age,
In this romantic hermitage.
