Poems1824 |
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Page 331
... heads replete with thoughts of other men ; Wisdom in minds attentive to their own , Knowledge , a rude unprofitable mass , The mere materials with which Wisdom builds , Till smooth'd , and squared , and fitted to its place , Does but ...
... heads replete with thoughts of other men ; Wisdom in minds attentive to their own , Knowledge , a rude unprofitable mass , The mere materials with which Wisdom builds , Till smooth'd , and squared , and fitted to its place , Does but ...
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Common terms and phrases
appears beauty beneath cause charge charms close course death delight divine dream e'en earth ease eyes face fair fall fancy fear feel field fire flowers folly force fruit give glory grace half hand happy head hear heard heart Heaven hope hour human kind land least leaves less light live lost means mind nature never night o'er once peace perhaps play pleasure poor praise pride prove rest round scene seek seems seen shew shine side sight skies smile song soon soul sound speak stand stream sweet taste teach tell thee theme thine things thou thought thousand true truth turn virtue voice waste wind wisdom wonder worth wrong youth
Popular passages
Page 261 - My panting side was charged when I withdrew To seek a tranquil death in distant shades.^ There was I found by one who had himself Been hurt by the archers.
Page 248 - Himself, as conscious of his awful charge, And anxious mainly that the flock he feeds May feel it too. Affectionate in look, And tender in address, as well becomes A messenger of grace to guilty men.
Page 323 - Knowledge dwells In heads replete with thoughts of other men, Wisdom in minds attentive to their own.
Page 157 - I am lord of the fowl and the brute. 0 solitude ! where are the charms That sages have seen in thy face ? Better dwell in the midst of alarms, Than reign in this horrible place. 1 am out of humanity's reach, I must finish my journey alone, Never hear the sweet music of speech, — I start at the sound of my own. The beasts that roam over the plain My form with indifference see, They are so unacquainted with man, Their tameness is shocking to me.
Page 387 - Shoots into port at some well-havened isle, Where spices breathe and brighter seasons smile; There sits quiescent on the floods, that show Her beauteous form reflected clear below While airs impregnated with incense play Around her, fanning light her streamers gay, So thou, with sails how swift! hast reached the shore "Where tempests never beat nor billows roar;" And thy loved consort on the dangerous tide Of life long since has anchored by thy side.
Page 208 - Now mistress Gilpin (careful soul !) Had two stone bottles found, To hold the liquor that she loved, And keep it safe and sound. Each bottle had a curling ear, Through which the belt he drew, And hung a bottle on each side, To make his balance true. Then over all, that he might be Equipp'd from top to toe, His long red cloak, well brush'd and neat, He manfully did throw.
Page 157 - Ye winds, that have made me your sport, Convey to this desolate shore Some cordial endearing report Of a land I shall visit no more.
Page 248 - Like whom ? The things that mount the rostrum with a skip, And then skip down again ; pronounce a text; Cry — hem; and reading what they never wrote, Just fifteen minutes, huddle up their work, And with a well-bred whisper close the scene...
Page 211 - For why ? — his owner had a house Full ten miles off, at Ware. So like an arrow swift he flew Shot by an archer strong; So did he fly — which brings me to The -middle of my song. Away went Gilpin, out of breath, And sore against his will, Till at his friend the calender's His horse at last stood still. The...
Page 239 - Slaves cannot breathe in England ; if their lungs Receive our air, that moment they are free, They touch our country, and their shackles fall.
Bibliographic information
| Title | Poems |
| Author | William Cowper |
| Published | 1824 |
| Original from | Oxford University |
| Digitized | 25 Sep 2006 |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |