Wise by some centuries before the crowd, Twas ever thus; and such has been thy fate- But glory, honour, and renown, tho late Thy well-deserved, thy sure reward shall be. Oh! had thy hasty censurers known thee well, Unbiass'd had they weigh'd thy wORKS and THEE; Base Calumny had blush'd her tale to tell, And thousands from this worst of crimes been free This CRIME of CRIMES! to damn unheard, unknown, No fouler aim can INFAMY pursue. What agonies have wrung my indignant breast, Of every talent, every worth possest, IMMUTABLE AND JUST, AND WISE AND GOOD! Is WIT a quality to charm the soul? Is GENIUS dear-is SCIENCE to be loved? IS REASON, of omnipotent controul, Man's highest, noblest boast, to be approved? Is all divine PHILOSOPHY, held forth Are strong, romantic, rich, poetic powers- Talents ACUTE, IMPRESSIVE, and PROFOUND— Are THESE held dear, and by the bard and sage For ME, who thus pourtray the man I loved, But not the voice of millions, led astray Or make me aught but what I am appear. WORMS OF A DAY! our duty let us do, And bow to TRUTH, eternal TRUTH alone; All pride, and selfishness, and strife subdue, Be kind to others' faults, and mend our own. For ME, I followed where conviction led, Sought only peace and right, with even course; Still labour'd that the HEART might guide the HEAD, And hated enmity, cabal, and force. And for the dear dear groupe that croud my board, For these, my boys and girls, I but implored That TRUTH, and only TRUTH, might be their guide.. WORMS OF A DAY! it is not worth our while To live to mental lying, vice, and woe: I've read their works, and known high-minded meu, But these, indeed, to THEE the palm must yield; Twas thine to point the means of human weal, To all his better passions to appeal, His life ennoble, and his thoughts sublime. Twas THINE his social happiness to plan, Twas THINE, by works devoted but to TRUTH, WISDOM and LIFE and LIGHT to spread below; To lead from jarring creeds, and laws uncouth, From slavery, superstition, pride, and woe. Let THESE thy WORKS immortalize thy fame; My boast it is to rank with these, though few; This to MYSELF, to THEE, and TRUTH I owe! APPENDIX, CONTAINING SOME ORIGINAL PIECES IN PROSE AND VERSE, BY MR. PAIN E. Note. This little production of Mr. Paine is well worth attention; particularly too when millions have been and are squandering upon useless land fortifications along the coast, and on the works in and about Dover, &c. The observations of a great man are always deserving of notice; and those which follow carry so complete a conviction of their propriety and truth along with them, that the English reader cannot but be led to reflect on the very opposite plans pursued in protecting our own coasts; if indeed, that may be called protection which we are now adopting, One thing most recommendatory of gun-boats has, I think, not been sufficiently enlarged upon in Mr. Paine's essay, but which, while we lament that any system of war should be necessary, surely speaks highly in favour of them, |