"Judge REASON view'd him with an eye of grace, / Look'd thro' his soul, and quite forgot his face."
— Churchill, Charles (1731-1764)
Work Title
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed for the Author; and sold by J. Almon
Date
1764
Metaphor
"Judge REASON view'd him with an eye of grace, / Look'd thro' his soul, and quite forgot his face."
Metaphor in Context
With such accoutrements, with such a form,
Much like a Porpoise just before a storm,
Onward He roll'd; a laugh prevail'd around,
E'en JOVE was seen to simper; at the sound
(Nor was the cause unknown, for from his Youth
Himself he studied by the glass of Truth)
He join'd their mirth, nor shall the Gods condemn
If, whilst They laugh'd at him, he laugh'd at them.
Judge REASON view'd him with an eye of grace,
Look'd thro' his soul, and quite forgot his face,
And, from his hand receiv'd, with fair regard
Plac'd in her other scale the name of Bard.
Then (for She did as Judges ought to do,
She nothing of the case beforehand knew
Nor wish'd to know, She never stretch'd the laws,
Nor, basely to anticipate a cause,
Compell'd Sollicitors no longer free,
To shew those briefs She had no right to see)
Then She with equal hand her scales held out,
Nor did the Cause one moment hang in doubt,
She held her scales out fair to public view;
The Lord, as sparks fly upwards, upwards flew,
More light than air, deceitful in the weight;
The Bard, preponderating, kept his state,
REASON approv'd, and with a voice, whose sound
Shook earth, shook heaven, on the clearest ground.
Pronouncing for the Bards a full decree,
Cried—Those must Honour Them, who honour Me,
They from this present day, where'er I reign,
In their own right, Precedence shall obtain,
Merit rules here, Be it enough that Birth
Intoxicates, and sways the fools of earth.
(pp. 9-10)
Much like a Porpoise just before a storm,
Onward He roll'd; a laugh prevail'd around,
E'en JOVE was seen to simper; at the sound
(Nor was the cause unknown, for from his Youth
Himself he studied by the glass of Truth)
He join'd their mirth, nor shall the Gods condemn
If, whilst They laugh'd at him, he laugh'd at them.
Judge REASON view'd him with an eye of grace,
Look'd thro' his soul, and quite forgot his face,
And, from his hand receiv'd, with fair regard
Plac'd in her other scale the name of Bard.
Then (for She did as Judges ought to do,
She nothing of the case beforehand knew
Nor wish'd to know, She never stretch'd the laws,
Nor, basely to anticipate a cause,
Compell'd Sollicitors no longer free,
To shew those briefs She had no right to see)
Then She with equal hand her scales held out,
Nor did the Cause one moment hang in doubt,
She held her scales out fair to public view;
The Lord, as sparks fly upwards, upwards flew,
More light than air, deceitful in the weight;
The Bard, preponderating, kept his state,
REASON approv'd, and with a voice, whose sound
Shook earth, shook heaven, on the clearest ground.
Pronouncing for the Bards a full decree,
Cried—Those must Honour Them, who honour Me,
They from this present day, where'er I reign,
In their own right, Precedence shall obtain,
Merit rules here, Be it enough that Birth
Intoxicates, and sways the fools of earth.
(pp. 9-10)
Categories
Provenance
Searching "judge" and "reason" in HDIS (Poetry); text from ECCO-TCP.
Citation
At least 4 entries in ESTC (1764, 1765).
Independence. A Poem. Addressed to the Minority. By [Blank] (London: Printed for the Author; and sold by J. Almon, in Piccadilly; J. Coote, in Pater-Noster-Row; W. Flexney, near Gray’s-Inn Gate, Holborn; C. Henderson, at the Royal-Exchange; J. Gardiner, in Parliament-Street, Westminster; and C. Moran, under the Great Piazza, Covent-Garden, 1764). <Link to ESTC><Link to ECCO-TCP>
Searching Poems of Charles Churchill ed. James Laver (London: The King's Printers, 1933).
Independence. A Poem. Addressed to the Minority. By [Blank] (London: Printed for the Author; and sold by J. Almon, in Piccadilly; J. Coote, in Pater-Noster-Row; W. Flexney, near Gray’s-Inn Gate, Holborn; C. Henderson, at the Royal-Exchange; J. Gardiner, in Parliament-Street, Westminster; and C. Moran, under the Great Piazza, Covent-Garden, 1764). <Link to ESTC><Link to ECCO-TCP>
Searching Poems of Charles Churchill ed. James Laver (London: The King's Printers, 1933).
Date of Entry
09/01/2004
