Where, gliding thro' his daughter's honour'd shades[O 1],
The smooth Penéus from his glassy flood
Reflects purpureal Tempe's pleasant scene?
Fair Tempe! haunt belov'd of sylvan pow'rs,
Of nymphs and fawns; where in the golden age300
They play'd in secret on the shady brink
With ancient Pan: while round their choral steps
Young hours and genial gales with constant hand
Show'r'd blossoms, odours, show'r'd ambrosial dews,
And spring's Elysian bloom. Her flow'ry store305
To thee nor Tempe shall refuse; nor watch
Of winged Hydra guard Hesperian fruits
From thy free spoil. O bear then, unreprov'd,
Thy smiling treasures to the green recess
Where young Dione stays. With sweetest airs310
Intice her forth to lend her angel-form
For beauty's honour'd image. Hither turn
Thy graceful footsteps; hither, gentle maid,
Incline thy polish'd forehead: let thy eyes
Effuse the mildness of their azure dawn;315
And may the fanning breezes waft aside
Thy radiant locks, dissolving as it bends
With airy softness from the marble neck
The cheek fair-blooming, and the rosy lip
- ↑ Where gliding thro' his daughter's honour'd shades.] Daphne, the daughter of Penéus, transformed into a laurel.
