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'Twas then the studious head or generous

mind,

Follower of God, or friend of human-kind,
Poet or patriot, rose but to restore

285

The faith and moral, nature gave before;
Resum'd her ancient light, not kindled new ;
If not God's image, yet his shadow drew:
Taught power's due use to people and to kings,
Taught not to slack, nor strain its tender strings,
The less, or greater, set so justly true,

291

That touching one must strike the other too;
Till jarring interests of themselves create
Th' according music of a well-mix'd state.
Such is the world's great harmony, that springs
From order, union, full consent of things:
Where small and great, where weak and mighty
made

To serve, not suffer, strengthen, not invade;

More powerful each as needful to the rest,

And, in proportion as it blesses, blest:
Draw to one point, and to one centre bring
Beast, man, or angel, servant, lord, or king.
For forms of government let fools contest;

300

285-291. Rose, resumed, drew, taught, and set are all connected, having the same nom. continued, viz. head, &c. 292. Touching one is an imperfect phrase, or part of a sentence, and is the subject of the verb must strike.

297-301. (Being) made to serve, &c. Each (being made) more powerful, and (each being) blest, &c. small and great, &c. Draw, &c.

Were

Whate'er is best administer'd is best:

For modes of faith, let graceless zealots fight;
His can't be wrong whose life is in the right;
In faith and hope the world will disagree,
But all mankind's concern is charity:

307

;

All must be false that thwarts this one great end
And all of God, that bless mankind, or mend.
Man, like the generous vine, supported lives;
The strength he gains is from th' embrace he
gives.

On their own axis as the planets run,

Yet make at once their circle round the sun;
So two consistent motions act the soul;

And one regards itself, and one the whole.

315

Thus God and nature link'd the general frame,

And bade self-love and social be the same.

306. His mode of faith can't be wrong, &c. 309-310. All modes of faith must be false, &c. And all modes must be of God, &c.

4

EPISTLE IV. thow and

O HAPPINESS! our being's end and aim!

Good, pleasure, ease, content! whate'er thy name

That something still which prompts th' eternal

sigh,

For which we bear to live, or dare to die,
honey.
Which still so near us, yet beyond us lies,

O'erlook'd, seen double, by the fool and wise:
Plant of celestial seed! if dropp'd below,

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Say, in what mortal soil thou deign'st to grow?
Fair opening to some court's propitious shrine,
Or deep with diamonds in the flaming mine?
Twin'd with the wreaths Parnassian laurels yield,
Or reap'd in iron harvests of the field?

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5

10

Where grows? where grows it not? If vain our
toil,

We ought to blame the culture, not the soil :
Fix'd to no spot is happiness sincere,

15

EPISTLE IV.

1-2. End and aim connected, good, &c., are in app. with happiness. Whatever-see note to line 26, Epistle II. 6. O'erlooked is a per. part. agreeing with happiness. O'erlooked by those who are simple enough to seek it in any thing but virtue; seen double by those who admit any thing else to have a share in procuring it.

9. Growest the opening fair, &c.—or growest those in the fair opening.

'Tis nowhere to be found, or everywhere: "Tis never to be bought, but always free,

And fled from monarchs, St. John! dwells with

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This bids to serve, and that to shun mankind;
Some place the bliss in action, some in ease,
Those call it pleasure, and contentment these:
Some, sunk to beasts, find pleasure end in pain;
Some, swell'd to gods, confess ev'n virtue vain;
Or, indolent, to each extreme they fall,

To trust in ev'rything, or doubt of all.

Who thus define it, say they more or less,

Than this, that happiness is happiness?

hath

Take nature's path, and mad opinion's leave;

25

All states can reach it, and all heads conceive; an

Obvious her goods, in no extreme they dwell;

There needs but thinking right, and meaning well;

over

And, mourn our various portions as we please,

Λ

Equal is common sense, and common ease.

25. Indolent is an adj. agreeing with they.

27-28. Do they, who thus define it, say more or less than to say this, &c., in which case, to say would follow than in the infinitive, which it does in place of a noun, and sometimes, of the ind. or poten. mood.

29. Take nature's path and leave mad opinion's path. 32. There is needed only thinking right and meaning well. Here the active form of the verb is used for the passive, and the sub. phrase is the nom. case.

33. Mourn-see note to line 49, Epistle 1.

Remember, man, "the Universal Cause

Acts not by partial, but by general laws;"

35

And makes what happiness we justly call, which. Subsist not in the good of one, but all.

There's not a blessing individuals find,

But some way leans and hearkens to the kind;
No bandit fierce, no tyrant mad with pride,

No cavern'd hermit, rests self-satisfied:

41

Who most to shun or hate mankind pretend,
Seek an admirer, or would fix a friend :
Abstract what others feel, what others think,
All pleasures sicken, and all glories sink:

46

Each has his share; and who would more obtain,

Shall find, the pleasure pays not half the pain.

Order is heaven's first law; and this confest, Some are, and must be, greater than the rest, More rich, more wise; but who infers from hence That such are happier, shocks all common sense. Heaven to mankind impartial we confess,

If all are equal in their happiness:

But mutual wants this happiness increase;

55

37. And makes that, which we call happiness, to subsist, &c.

43. They, who most pretend to shun, or hate, mankind, seek, &c.

45. Abstract-see note to ver. 49, Epistle I.

49. And this confest. This is in the nom. case absolute with confest, or (being) confest.

51. But he, who infers from hence, that such are hap pier, shocks, &c. Hence is an adj. put after from, as a sub. in the obj. case, or from hence is an adverbial phrase.

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