But that a Soul might well be pleas'd to pass
An age in her; she whose rich beauty lent
Mintage to other beauties, for they went went
But for so much as they were like to her ; 49
She in whose body (if we dare prefer
This low world to so high a mark as she)
The western treasure, eastern spicery,
Europe and Afric, and the unknown rest,
Were easily found, or what in them was best:
And when we ave made this large discovery
Of all, in her some one part then will bec
Twenty such parts, whose plenty" and riches is 1
Enough to make twenty such worlds as this;
She, whom had they known, who did first betroth ***
The tutelar angels, and assign'd one both
To nations, cities, and to companies,
To functions, offices, and dignities,
And to each several man, to him and him,
They would have giv'n her one for every limb;
She of whose Soul, if we may say 'twas gold,
Her body was th' electrum, and did hold ́
Many degrees of that. We understood
Her by her sight; her pure and eloquent blood
Spoke in her cheeks, and so distinctly wrought,"
That one might almost say her body thought;
She, she thus richly' and largely hous'd, is gone,
And chides us, slow-pac'd snails! who crawl upon®!
Our prison's prison, earth, nor think us well
Longer than whilst we bear our brittle shell. 1 1250 But 'twere but little to have chang'd our room
If, as we were in this our living tomb
Oppress'd with ignorance, we still were so.
Poor Soul! in this thy flesh what dost thou know?
Thou know'st thyself so little, as thou know'st not
How thou didst die, nor how thou wast begot.
Thou neither know'st how thou at first cam'st in,
Nor how thou took'st the poison of man's sin;
Nor dost thou (tho' thou know'st that thou art so)
By what way thou art made immortal know.
Thou art too narrow, Wretch! to comprehend
Even thyself, yea, tho' thou wouldst but bend
To know thy body. Have not all Souls, thought,
For many ages,
that our body's wrought
Of air, and fire, and other elements?
And now they think of new ingredients;
And one Soul thinks one, and another way
Another thinks, and 'tis an even lay, ..
Know'st thou but how the stone doth enter in
The bladder's cave, and never break the skin?,
Know'st thou how blood, which to the, heart doth flow,
Doth from one ventricle to th.other go?
And for the putrid stuff which thou dost spit,
Know'st thou how thy lungs have attracted it ?
There are no passages, so that there is
(For ought thou know'st) piercing of substances. de
And of those many opinions, which men raise til ju
Of nails and hairs, dost thou know which to praise ?da
What hope have we to know ourselves, when we da
Know not the least things which for our use belt
We see in authors, too stiff to recanta,
A hundred controversies of an ant ;
And yet one watches, starves, freezes, and sweats,
To know but catechisms and alphabets
Of unconcerning things: matters of fact, cr
How others on our stage their parts did act,
What Cæsar did, yea, and what Cicero said,
Why grass is green, or why our blood is red, vai
Are mysteries which none have reach'd unto: +44
In this low form, poor Soul! what wilt thou do? ** 290
Oh! when wilt thou shake off this pedantry N LE
Of being taught by sense and fantasy ?.da mudsl
Thou look'st thro' spectacles; small things seem great
Below; but up unto the watch-tower get}}
And see all things despoil'd of fallacies:!
Thou shalt not peep thro' lattices of eyes,
Nor hear thro' labyrinths of ears, nor learn
By circuit or collections to discern ;
In heav'n thou straight know'st all concerning it,
And what concerns it not shall straight forgetdi 1,300
There thou (but in no other school) mayst be, Anir-
Perchance, as learned and as full as sheathp
She, who all libraries had th'roughly read 6 21541 577
At home in her own thoughts, and practised on Druge
So much good as would make as many more;
She, whose example they must all implore;
Who would or do or think well, and confess
That all the virtuous actions they express
Are but a new and worse edition
Of her some one thought, or one action;
She who, in th' art of knowing Heav'n, was grown
Here upon earth to such perfection,
That she hath, ever since to heav'n she came,
(In a far fairer print) but read the same;
She, she not satisfied with all this weight,
(For so much knowledge as would over-freight
Another did but ballast her) is gone
As well t' enjoy as get perfection,
And calls us after her, in that she took
(Taking herself) our best and worthiest book.
Return not, my Soul! from this ecstasy
And meditation of what thou shalt be
To earthly thoughts, till it to thee appear
With whom thy conversation must be there.
With whom wilt thou converse? What station
Canst thou chuse out free from infection,
That will not give thee theirs, nor drink in thine 2.
Shalt thou not find a spungy slack divine
Drink, and suck in th' instructions of great men,
And for the word of God vent them agen!
Are there not some courts (and then no things be.
So like as courts) which in this let us see...
That wits and tongues of libellers are weak,ode 2011. -
Because they do more ill than these can speak
The poison's gone thro' all; poisons affect by
Chiefly the chiefest parts; but some effectendard Ti
In nails, and hairs, yea, excrements, will show there
So lies the poison of sin in the most low-san, 17 E
Up, up, my drowsy Soult where thy new ear anak-
Shall in the angels' songs no discord hear;
[[ $349
Where thou shalt see the blessed Mother-maid ubate i
Joy in not being that which men have said;
Where she's exalted more for being good
Than for her interest of motherhood:
Up to those patriarchs which did longer sit
Expecting Christ than they 'ave enjoy'd him yet;-
Up to those prophets which now gladly seeland
Their prophesies grown to be history;
Up to th' apostles, who did bravely run
All the sun's course with more light than the sun;1350
Up to those martyrs who did calmly bleed
Oil to th' apostles' lamps, dew to their seed;
Up to those virgins' who thought that almost
They made joint-tenants with the Holy Ghost,
If they to any should his temple give :
Up, up, for in that squadron there doth live constab She who hath carried thither new degrees
(As to their number) to their dignities;
She who, being to herself a state, enjoy'd-9 1. d'wbYA
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