Till from thy heart Hope ebbing fast away,

Thou sought'st thy cave-and breath'dst a pray'r to

Heaven.

No foot is heard upon the Jetty's base;

I am alone-and leaning o'er its side

I gaze in silence-thinking on the deep,

Its dangers, and its wonders, and its paths,

Dark, trackless, and unsearchable by all

Save by His eye who made earth, sea, and heav'n.

Fill'd with these thoughts, I ponder till my mind

Shrinks back in mute astonishment and awe.

'Tis good to be alone-it turns the view

Into the inward man, and makes him strive

To root the weeds of passion from his breast

That choke the growth of virtue Who can gaze

Upon the green expanse of waters, though they seem

Smooth as the mirror which to beauty's eye

Reflects her graceful form, and not be rais'd

Above the low contentions of the world

Not feel the glow that meditation gives,

Whose sacred musings lift him to his God?

Light springs the gale, and round yon eastern point,

Stretching in bold projection from the land,

In quick succession comes the frequent bark

Wafting the freight of commerce-every sail
Is set unreef'd, courting the gentle breeze;
Their canvas glitters in the noon-tide sun,
And as the vessels crowd upon the eye,

They spread, and whiten on the vast expanse,

Covering the ocean's surface, where but late

No solitary object met the view.

Before them plows her course the stately Ship

With guardian thunders to protect their stores,
And as with sails unfurl'd she graceful moves,

She seems the empress of the vassal wave:

Soon as her undulating flag is seen,

The watchful signal on the lofty coast

At various stations flies, and waves in air,

Till from her mast the answering signal floats *.

*Upon the appearance of any ship of war off the coast, signals are hoisted from the different stations, the answer to

These fragile vessels to the careless eye

Seem but the sport of tempests, yet by them
Does commerce circulate through every vein
Of Britain's empire-life-blood of the state.

By them are far-divided countries join'd

In ties of brotherhood and friendly trade.

In every clime their busy sail is spread,

From Afric's sun-burnt Cape to Greenland's snows,

From Darien's isthmus to the sea that rolls

Where spicy groves lift high their fragrant heads. Nor yet is wealth alone from them deriv'd,

which tells the number of the ship, from which the commanders at the signal-posts, by referring to their books, immediately

learn her name and force.

C

But power and fame; for on their humble decks

Are learnt the rudiments of naval skill,

Are train'd the heroes of the naval war;

Who at their country's call, by glory led,

And thee, undaunted NELSON, rush to arms,
Wooing the form of Danger as a bride *.

As when on Egypt's shores, the hostile fleets

In conflict join'd, thy dread volcanoes burst

As thunder awful, rapid as the flash

Of Heav'n-and Gallia's navy was no more!

-if I must die,

I will encounter darkness as a bride,

And hug it in my arms.

Measure for Measure.