OFT the bold Minstrel shuns each vulgar theme,
The Hero's exploit and the Lover's dream,
And from th' unfathom'd deep of Nature draws
Her hidden wonders, and unveils her laws.
E'en those stern mandates, which condemn'd the Bard
To years of labour for a late reward,
Allow, midst harshest threats and heaviest woes,
A gleam of mercy here to interpose.
As if some Draco, drench'd with legal blood,
For one soft hour forgot his tyrant mood.
The Hero's exploit and the Lover's dream,
And from th' unfathom'd deep of Nature draws
Her hidden wonders, and unveils her laws.
E'en those stern mandates, which condemn'd the Bard
To years of labour for a late reward,
Allow, midst harshest threats and heaviest woes,
A gleam of mercy here to interpose.
As if some Draco, drench'd with legal blood,
For one soft hour forgot his tyrant mood.
