Page:Hero and Leander (Musaeus) translated by Laurence Eusden (1750).djvu/26

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26
HERO AND

The trembling mariner dares not withstand
The angry frith, and wisely keeps the land.
But winds and troubl'd seas can ne'er dismay
Leander's soul, or interrupt his way;
The fatal light once seen, the lover must obey.
Yet sure the fair, now winter's rage was strong,
A while should miss thee, to enjoy thee long:
Did reason guide, not folly warp her mind;
To prove less cruel, she must prove less kind.
But heat of passion hurry'd both too far,
And stubborn Fate's decrees resistless are:
Unhappy Hero brandish'd from above
The torch of furies now, no more the torch of love.
'Twas a bleak night; the winds began to play,
And with eternal lungs dispute their sway:
When the too constant, punctual youth again,
Flush'd with past triumphs, tempts the faithless main.