L

AUR A,

AN ELEGY FROM PETRARCH.

N this fair season, when the whispering gales

*IN

Drop showers of fragrance o'er the bloomy vales, From bower to bower the vernal warblers play; The skies are cloudless, and the meads are gay;

IMITATIONS.

* Ver. 1. Petrarch. Sonnet. 270.

Zefiro torna, e'l bel tempo rimena,

E' i fiori, e l' erbe, fua dolce famiglia;
E garrir Progne, e pianger Filomela;
E primavera candida, e vermiglia:

The nightingale in many a melting ftrain

Sings to the groves, "Here Mirth and Beauty reign."

But me, for ever bath'd in gushing tears,

No mirth enlivens, and no beauty cheers:

The birds that warble, and the flowers that bloom,
Relieve no more this folitary gloom.

I fee, where late the verdant meadow fmil'd,
A joyless defert, and a dreary wild.

For thofe dear eyes, that pierc'd my heart before,
Are clos'd in death, and charm the world no more;

IMITATIONS.

Ridono i prati, e'l ciel fi rafferena;

Giove s'allegra di mirar fua figlia;

L'aria, e l'acque, e la terra e d'amor piena;
Ogni animal d'amar fi riconfiglia :

Ma per me, laffo, tornano i piu gravi
Sofpiri, che del cor profondo tragge
Quella ch' al ciel fe ne portò le chiavi :

E cantar' augel'etti, e fiorir piagge,

E'n belle donne oneste atti soavi,
Sono un deferto, e fere afpre e selvagge.

Loft

Loft are thofe treffes, that outfhone the morn,

And pale those cheeks, that might the skies adorn. * Ah, death! thy hand has cropp'd the faireft flower, That shed its smiling rays in beauty's bower;

Thy dart has lay'd on yonder fable bier

All

my foul lov'd, and all the world held dear; Celestial sweetness, love-inspiring youth,

Soft-ey'd benevolence, and white-rob'd truth.

+ Hard fate of man, on whom the heavens bestow A drop of pleasure for a sea of woe!

IMITATIONS.

* Ver. 17. Sonnet. 243.

Difcolorato ai, morte, il piu bel volto

Che mai fi vede, e'i plu begli occhi spenti;
Spirto piu accefo di virtuti ardenti

Del piu leggiadro, e piu bel nodo ai fciolto!

+ Ver. 28. Sonnet, 230.

O noftra vita, ch'è fi bella in vista!

Com' perde agevolmente in un' mattina

Quel che'n molt' anni a gran pena s' acquista.

Ah,

Ah, life of care, in fears or hopes confum'd,
Vain hopes, that wither ere they well have bloom'd!
How oft, emerging from the shades of night,
Laughs the gay morn, and spreads a purple light;
But foon the gathering clouds o'ershade the skies,
Red lightnings play, and thundering storms arise!
How oft a day, that fair and mild appears,
Grows dark with fate, and mars the toil of years!

* Not far remov'd, yet hid from distant eyes, Low in her fecret grot a Naiad lies.

IMITATIONS.

Ver. 33. See a defcription of this celebrated fountain in a poem of Madame Defhoulieres.

Entre de hauts rochers, dont l'afpect eft terrible,

Des pres toujours fleuris, des arbres toujours verds,

Une fource orgueilleuse et pure,

Dont l'eau fur cent rochers divers

D'une mouffe verte couverts,

S'épanche, bouillonne, et murmure;

Des agneaux bondiflans fur la tendre verdure,

Et de leurs conducteurs les ruftiques concerts, &c.

Steep

Steep arching rocks, with verdant mofs o'ergrown,.
Form her rude diadem, and native throne:
There in a gloomy cave her waters fleep,
Clear as a brook, but as an ocean deep.
Yet, when the waking flowers of April blow,
And warmer funbeams melt the gather'd snow;
Rich with the tribute of the vernal rains,
The nymph, exulting, burfts her filver chains;
Her living waves in sparkling columns rife,
And fhine like rainbows to the funny skies;
From cliff to cliff the falling waters roar;
Then die in murmurs, and are heard no more.
Hence, foftly flowing in a dimpled stream,
The cryftal Sorga fpreads a lively gleam;
From which a thousand rills in mazes glide,
And deck the banks with fummer's gayeft pride;
Brighten the verdure of the smiling plains,
And crown the labour of the joyful fwains.

First on these banks (ah, dream of short delight!)
The charms of Laura ftruck my dazzled fight;
Charms, that the blifs of Eden might reftore,
That heaven might envy, and mankind adore.

I faw