More from The Secular Masque. Line 40.
- A fiery soul, which, working out its way, Fretted the pygmy-body to decay, And o'er-inform'd the tenement of clay. A daring pilot in extremity; Pleas'd with the danger, when the waves went high He sought the storms.
- A man so various, that he seem'd to be Not one, but all mankind's epitome; Stiff in opinions, always in the wrong, Was everything by starts, and nothing long; But in the course of one revolving moon Was chymist, fiddler, statesman, and buffoon.
- And all to leave what with his toil he won To that unfeather'd two-legged thing, a son.
- And heaven had wanted one immortal song.
- And kind as kings upon their coronation day.
- And torture one poor word ten thousand ways.
Last reviewed 2026-07-06