In vain, in vain—­the all-composing hour
Resistless falls:  the Muse obeys the power. 
She comes! she comes! the sable throne behold
Of Night primeval and of Chaos old! 
Before her, Fancy’s gilded clouds decay,
And all its varying rainbows die away. 
Wit shoots in vain its momentary fires,
The meteor drops, and in a flash expires. 
As one by one, at dread Medea’s strain,
The sickening stars fade off th’ ethereal plain;
As Argus’ eyes, by Hermes’ wand oppressed,
Closed one by one to everlasting rest: 
Thus at her felt approach, and secret might,
Art after art goes out, and all is night. 
See skulking Truth to her old cavern fled,
Mountains of casuistry heaped o’er her head! 
Philosophy, that leaned on Heaven before,
Shrinks to her second cause, and is no more. 
Physic of Metaphysic begs defence,
And Metaphysic calls for aid on Sense! 
See Mystery to Mathematics fly! 
In vain! they gaze, turn giddy, rave, and die. 
Religion blushing veils her sacred fires,
And unawares Morality expires. 
Nor public flame, nor private, dares to shine;
Nor human spark is left, nor glimpse divine! 
Lo! thy dread empire, Chaos! is restored;
Light dies before thy uncreating word: 
Thy hand, great Anarch! lets the curtain fall;
And universal darkness buries all.

LADY WINCHILSEA

  TO THE NIGHTINGALE

  Exert thy voice, sweet harbinger of Spring! 
  This moment is thy time to sing,
  This moment I attend to praise,
  And set my numbers to thy lays. 
  Free as thine shall be my song;
  As thy music, short, or long. 
  Poets, wild as thee, were born,
  Pleasing best when unconfined,
  When to please is least designed,
  Soothing but their cares to rest;
  Cares do still their thoughts molest,
  And still th’ unhappy poet’s breast,
  Like thine, when best he sings, is placed against a thorn. 
  She begins, let all be still! 
  Muse, thy promise now fulfil! 
  Sweet, oh! sweet, still sweeter yet! 
  Can thy words such accents fit? 
  Canst thou syllables refine,
  Melt a sense that shall retain
  Still some spirit of the brain,
  Till with sounds like these it join? 
  ’Twill not be! then change thy note;
  Let division shake thy throat. 
  Hark! division now she tries;
  Yet as far the muse outflies. 
  Cease then, prithee, cease thy tune;
  Trifler, wilt thou sing till June? 
  Till thy business all lies waste,
  And the time of building’s past! 
  Thus we poets that have speech,
  Unlike what thy forests teach,
  If a fluent vein be shown
  That’s transcendent to our own,
  Criticise, reform, or preach,
  Or censure what we cannot reach.

  A NOCTURNAL REVERIE