A friend's "influence hovers o'er the panting heart ... Till the pain'd, prison'd mind shall rise, / And drop her feeble mansion in the dust, / To claim thy promis'd bliss beyond the skies"
— Steele, Anne (1717-1778)
Author
Place of Publication
Bristol
Publisher
Printed by W. Pine. Sold by T. Cadell, T. Mills, and T. Evans; and by J. Buckland ... and J. Johnson [etc.]
Date
1780
Metaphor
A friend's "influence hovers o'er the panting heart ... Till the pain'd, prison'd mind shall rise, / And drop her feeble mansion in the dust, / To claim thy promis'd bliss beyond the skies"
Metaphor in Context
Dear faithful friend, thy lenient hand allays
The pangs of grief, and smooths the frowning brow
Of rough adversity, thy voice conveys
Reviving comfort to the sons of woe;
Thy gentle voice rebukes their fears,
The sigh, suspended, listening dies,
And sorrow stays her flowing tears
While happier scenes in distant prospect rise.
Thou last, kind solace of distress,
Whose smile retains a power to bless
Though every friend besides, depart;
Still kind, still faithful to thy trust,
Thy influence hovers o'er the panting heart,
While reason lives to wake desire,
Till life's pale trembling lamp expire,
Till the pain'd, prison'd mind shall rise,
And drop her feeble mansion in the dust,
To claim thy promis'd bliss beyond the skies.
The pangs of grief, and smooths the frowning brow
Of rough adversity, thy voice conveys
Reviving comfort to the sons of woe;
Thy gentle voice rebukes their fears,
The sigh, suspended, listening dies,
And sorrow stays her flowing tears
While happier scenes in distant prospect rise.
Thou last, kind solace of distress,
Whose smile retains a power to bless
Though every friend besides, depart;
Still kind, still faithful to thy trust,
Thy influence hovers o'er the panting heart,
While reason lives to wake desire,
Till life's pale trembling lamp expire,
Till the pain'd, prison'd mind shall rise,
And drop her feeble mansion in the dust,
To claim thy promis'd bliss beyond the skies.
Categories
Provenance
Searching in HDIS (Poetry)
Citation
2 entries in ESTC (1780).
Anne Steele, Miscellaneous pieces, in Verse and Prose, by Theodosia, ed. Caleb Evans (Bristol: Printed by W. Pine. Sold by T. Cadell, T. Mills, and T. Evans; - and by J. Buckland and J. Johnson, 1780). <Link to ESTC><Link to ECCO>
Anne Steele, Miscellaneous pieces, in Verse and Prose, by Theodosia, ed. Caleb Evans (Bristol: Printed by W. Pine. Sold by T. Cadell, T. Mills, and T. Evans; - and by J. Buckland and J. Johnson, 1780). <Link to ESTC><Link to ECCO>
Date of Entry
01/18/2006
