Page:Poems, in two volumes (IA poemsintwovolume01word).pdf/152

This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.

140

14.

LONDON,

1802.

Milton! thou should'st be living at this hour:England hath need of thee: she is a fenOf stagnant waters: altar, sword and pen,Fireside, the heroic wealth of hall and bower,Have forfeited their ancient English dowerOf inward happiness. We are selfish men;Oh! raise us up, return to us again;And give us manners, virtue, freedom, power.Thy soul was like a Star and dwelt apart:Thou hadst a voice whose sound was like the sea;Pure as the naked heavens, majestic, free,So didst thou travel on life's common way,In chearful godliness; and yet thy heartThe lowliest duties on itself did lay.
This article is issued from Wikisource. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.