Yet, mighty spirit ! did thy lyre,
To themes of nobler thought aspire ;
Did virtue's mandate sway thy heart,
And piety her aid impart
To guide thy verse's magic spell,
And tune thy high harp's potent swell —
Didst thou not violate each tie
Of sweet and sacred sympathy,
And outrage with ungenerous art,
Each finer feeling of the heart,
By calling vilest passions in
As ministers of shame and sin —
How would my spirit rush to greet
Thy muse, and worship at her feet !



MISCELLANEOUS. 271

Entranced I 'd turn with feelings high,

And even throw my Spenser by,

To welcome lays sublime and bland,

Might not have shamed a master hand,

Then well might virtue love the strains,

Where uncorrupted genius reigns. 1823



ODE TO NAPOLEON BONAPARTE.
The following stanzas were written before the first downfall of
Napoleon.
Hail, Bonaparte ! chief of the iron wand !
Trampling on human hearts with demon glee —
Disclaiming nature's every tie and bond —
Striding o'er fallen thrones exultingly !

Thou who delight'st to hold despotic sway
O'er vanquished realms, deeming thyself a god ;
Whose dread career fills Europe with dismay,
While desolation waits upon thy nod.
Say, potent monarch of a wide domain !
What fury fills thee with a thirst for blood ?
What fiend incites thee to extend thy reign,
And pour distress on nations like a flood ?



Z72 MISCELLANEOUS.
