11.

Sometimes disturb'd, they ruffle all the Air,
And neither Earth, nor Ocean spare:
The mounting Waves with loud Confusion roar,
And furious Surges dash against the Shore:
The stately Cedar bends her awful Head;
The meaner Trees can no Resistance make;
Their broken Branches all around are spread,
And all their leafy Honours shed:
The frighted Birds their shatter'd Nests forsake:
Their verdant Food the trembling Cattle shun,
And urg'd by Fear to gloomy Coverts run.

12.

Blest be that God who doth our Good design,
Whose Kindness do's in each Occurrence shine:
Who makes the boist'rous Winds declare his Love,
And from our Air the noxious Steams remove,
Those pois'nous Vapors which would fatal prove.
By him restrain'd, they gently blow,
And friendly Gales bestow:
To sultry Climes Relief convey,
Where Sun-burnt Indians faint away,
And curse th'excessive Heat of their tormenting Day.
To them the Greedy, and the Curious owe
A Part of what they have, and what they know.
By them assisted, they new Seas explore,
And visit ev'ry foreign Shore:
Their Sails they fill; the Ships make speedy way,
And to wish'd Ports their precious Freight convey.

13.

Thou kind inlivening Fire,
Which dost a needful Warmth inspire;
And Heat which does to all extend,
From Stars above, to Mines below:
Which does on Natures Works attend,
At once to cherish, and defend,
And make her tender Embryo's grow:
The whole Creation springs from thee,
Both what we are, and what we see,
Are owing to thy wondrous Energy.
Opprest with Cold, and void of Day,
The sluggish Matter stupid lay,
Till that propitious Hour,
When thy invigorating Pow'r
Did first its self display:
Then Life and Motion soon begun,
And fiery Atoms form'd the Sun.
How various are the Blessings you bestow!
To that great God from whom they flow,
With us your Praises send;
Let them in purest Flames ascend;
To your bright Centre swiftly move,
Th' eternal Fountain both of Heat and Love.

14.

Ye kind Vicissitudes of Heat and Cold,
Which thro' the Year a due Proportion hold;
As on the Wings of Time your Round you move,
Extol that wise Almighty Mind,
Who has your diff'rent Tasks assign'd;
And from his lofty Throne above
Instructs you when to warm, and when to cool,
And does your Order with an undisputed Empire rule.
Your grateful Changes Health and Pleasure give;
Blest with the dear Variety we live:
Variety which tempts us on
The painful Ills of Life to bear,
And when the cheating Vision's gone,
For us does new deluding Scenes prepare:
From Place to Place,
Fresh Pleasures we pursue,
And the delightful Toil renew,
Till Death o'ertakes us in our thoughtless Chase,
And puts an End to our phantastick Race.

15.

Ye Frosts and Ice, and you descending Snow,
Adore that God to whom your Pow'r you owe,
While we, well-pleas'd, your chilling Cold endure,
And to the friendly Smart our selves inure;
And with the pure, the fresh, the salutif'rous Air,
The Mischiefs of the Summers Heat repair;
Then with new Pleasure wait th'approaching Spring,
And grasp those Blessings which th' increasing Year does bring.
But Oh! the Rigors of the Northern Air!
What Pains must those unhappy Mortals bear,
Who near the Pole, remote from Phaebus Rays
Wast in uncomfortable Darkness half their Days!
There, piercing Winds commence their stormy reigns,
And Icy Cold th' Ascendant gains:
There, Seas congeal, and Rivers cease to flow,
Where harden'd Earth doth firm as Marble grow,
And where both Hills and Vales are ever hid with Snow.
Nature to them penuriously does give;
They on a scant Allowance live:
Yet with contented Minds their Lot sustain,
Not knowing better, and inur'd to Pain.

16.

Ye silent Nights, who sacred are to Rest,
Wherein th' afflicted, by their Griefs opprest,
Are with a short Cessation blest;
While in the downy Bands of Sleep they lie,
Sorrow can no Impression make,
Slumbers the absent Joy supply;
And they are happy till they wake,
Where you command, an awful Quiet reigns;
Ev'n Nature seems the Blessing to partake.
On the smooth verdant Plains
The weary Beasts recline their Heads,
And fall asleep upon their grassy Beds:
The drowsie Birds sit nodding on the Boughs;
To all her Works she soft Repose allows.
E'er Darkness has her Veil withdrawn,
Or Light unbarr'd her radiant Gate,
Before the cheerful Morn begins to dawn;
While you march slowly on in solemn State,
With gentlest Whispers, Accents soft as Air,
The Praises of your bounteous God declare.

17.

And ye bright Days, who from the East arise,
And with diffusive Glories gild the Skies,
With them your early Tribute pay;
While we by kindly Sleep refresh'd,
Rise gay and sprightly from our Rest,
And see, well-pleas'd, the Out-guards of the Night,
The gloomy Shades give way
To your victorious Light;
At whose Approach Joy spreads it self around,
Pleasures in ev'ry Place abound:
The busie Peasants their lov'd Toil renew,
And active Youths their noisie Sports pursue:
With loud-mouth'd Hounds the frighted Hare they chase,
And with his Spoils their Triumphs grace:
The harmless Flocks lie basking in your Beams,
And Birds awaken'd from their Dreams,
From their soft Wings shake off the pearly Dew,
And their melodious Strains, in tuneful Notes renew.

18.

Let Darkness, whom th' infernal Pow'rs obey,
And who e'er Time begun, with universal Sway
Thro' the wide Void its Empire did extend,
And still do's with its younger Sister Light
In its nocturnal Course contend,
And ancient Rights defend:
As round th' Almighty's Throne, with sable Wings display'd,
It forms a venerable Shade,
A Shade, which does from each celestial Sight
Such dazling Glories hide,
As did it not a needful Veil provide,
Wou'd with their prodigious Blaze
Attending Seraphims amaze;
For the high Honour thankful prove.
And thou, fair Off-spring of eternal Love,
Thou brightest Gift of Pow'r Divine,
Which thro' the happy Plains above
Didst with an undiminish'd Splendor shine:
From whence thou kindly didst descend,
And thro' the mournful Gloom thy cheerful Beams extend;
(Then beauteous Nature from the Chaos rose,
And did a thousand Charms disclose:
With wondrous Pleasure she receiv'd the Grace,
And blooming Joy sat smiling in her Face.)
To thy bright Fountain on retorted Rays
Send constant Tributes of unweary'd Praise.

19.

Ye transient Fires, who with tremendous Light
Rush thro' the dusky Horrors of the Night,
As with a dreadful Sound you force your way
Thro' those resisting Clouds where you imprison'd lay,
To Heav'n your Adoration pay;
While we your dang'rous Glories view
Glories, whose pernicious Blaze
Does the trembling World amaze:
Both Birds and Beasts with Haste retire,
And Men the Dictates of their Fear pursue;
From open Fields, and from th' enkindled Air,
They to the neighbouring Cliffs repair;
But who can shun your penetrating Fire?
The subtile Mischief spreads it self around,
And tumbles lofty Temples to the Ground;
Rocks feel its Pow'r, Marbles are forc'd to yield,
Nor can the Trees their shady Cov'rings shield:
Thro' closest Pores it makes its speedy Way,
And on the vital Stock does prey.
Unhappy Mortals, thus expos'd by Fate
To the fierce Rage of each impending Ill,
Find in their transitory State,
That Death has many Ways to kill:
The Treasure, Life, is kept with Pains and Cost,
And sometimes hardly seen, before 'tis lost.

20.

O let the Earth her great Creator bless,
And all the Wonders of his Pow'r confess:
From Pole to Pole, let her resound his Praise;
Around her Globe let the glad Accents fly,
Till they are echo'd by the neighbouring Skie:
To all the list'ning Worlds above
Let her proclaim aloud
The blest Effects of his transcendent Love,
Who out of nothing did her beauteous Fabrick raise.
O Prodigy of Art Divine!
The Deity did in the wondrous Structure shine!
Who can in fit Expressions the sublime Idea dress,
Or the stupendous Marvels of that Work express!
Angels themselves, whose Intellects are free
From those dark Mists which our weak Reason cloud,
Who things in their remotest Causes see,
Whose Knowledge like their Station's great and high,
Above the loftiest Flights of weak Mortality,
Astonish'd saw the rising World appear;
The new, the glorious, the transporting Sight,
So full of Wonder, and Delight,
With rapt'rous Joys fill'd each celestial Breast,
With Joys too vast to be exprest;
Such Extasies as here
We could not feel, and live;
They to our Beings wou'd a Period give:
The killing Pleasure wou'd be too intense,
And quite o'erwhelm our feeble Sense;
But they who are all Intellect and Will,
And what they please fulfil,
Whose Minds are pure, free from the least Allay,
Serene, and clear, as everlasting Day,
Imbibe the most extatick Joys with eager Haste,
Nor can th' immense Excess immortal Spirits waste.