Date: 1788

"Thou Christian emperor in whose generous breast / The light of pure devotion shone impress'd, / That sacred light descending from above, / An emanation of coelestial love; / With speed of light'ning spread the lambent ray, / Till realms of darkness kindled into day; / From God himself the spark ...

— Pratt, Samuel Jackson [pseud. Courtney Melmoth] (1749-1814)

Date: 1791, 1806

"I'll snatch a ray of hope, / For Hope's the lamp divine / That lights and vivifies the fainting soul, / With ecstacies beyond the pow'rs of song!"

— Robinson [Née Darby], Mary [Perdita] (1758-1800)

Date: 1792

"That sweet enchantress ... Can give to Fancy's work a blaze more bright, / Or Reason's steady lamp feed with new light."

— Whyte, Samuel (1733-1811)

Date: 1793

" When painful truths invade the mind, / Ev'n wisdom wishes to be blind, / And hates th' officious ray."

— Blacklock, Thomas (1721-1791)

Date: 1793, 1806

"'Twas Instinct rushing thro' her beating breast! / Instinct, the lamp divine that lights the soul"

— Robinson [Née Darby], Mary [Perdita] (1758-1800)

Date: 1793, 1806

"The noblest passions, and the living pow'rs / Of intellectual light, the soul's pure lamp, / All, all extinguish'd! "

— Robinson [Née Darby], Mary [Perdita] (1758-1800)

Date: 1796

"He ponders on the world,--abhors the whole; / While black as night, his gloomy thought expands / O'er life's perplexing paths, and barren sands"

— Merry, Robert (1755-1798)

Date: 1796

"Reason's dying lamp / Scarce brighter burns than instinct in their breast"

— Bruce, Michael (1746-1767)

Date: 1796

"The effect [of wit on the mind] is strong,--because it's odd, / Like fire electric from a clod; / Or when fix'd air puts out a light, / Tho' vital makes it blaze more bright."

— Courtenay, John Lees (1775?-1794)

Date: 1797

"May the soft rays of dawning hope impart / Reviving Patience to my fainting heart."

— Smith, Charlotte (1749-1806)