And as an evening dragon came,

Assailant on the perched roosts,

And nests in order ranged.

Of tame villatic fowl; but as an eagle

His cloudless thunder bolted on their heads.

So Virtue, given for lost,

Depressed and overthrown, as seemed,

Like that self-begotten bird,

In the Arabian woods embost,

That no second knows nor third,

And lay erewhile a holocaust,

From out her ashy womb now teemed,

Revives, reflourishes, then vigorous most

When most unactive deemed;

And, though her body die, her fame survives

1700

ἣν γὰρ φθαρεῖσαν ἐς τὸ πᾶν ἐπῄκασαν,

ἀπολωλυϊάν θ ̓ ὡς ἐκπατίαν,

ὡς αὐτοφυὲς ἐν ̓Αραβικῶν
θαῦμ ̓ ὄρνιθος ἐρημίᾳ

δενδρέων, ἀνέστη,

ὃ δὴ μουνογενὲς δεύτερον οὐκ, οὐδὲ τρίτον, δέχεται,

ἐν ᾧπερ δ ̓ ὁλόκαυτον ὡς ἔκειτο,

ἀναζῇ, γαστέρος δὲ φεψαλω

-θείσης ἀναβρύει πάλιν,

τότε μάλιστα βίον ἔχον

ὅτε πλεῖστ ̓ ἀπειπεῖν

ἐδόκει· σῶμα γὰρ θάνεν,
ἀλλ ̓ ἀρετᾶς ἔτ ̓ ἐστὶ δόξα

1790

A secular bird, ages of lives.

MANOAH.

Come, come; no time for lamentation now,

Nor much more cause. Samson hath quit himself
Like Samson, and heroicly hath finished

A life heroic, on his enemies

Fully revenged; hath left them years of mourning,
And lamentation to the sons of Caphtor,
Through all Philistian bounds; to Israël

Honour hath left, and freedom, let but them
Find courage to lay hold on this occasion;
To himself and father's house eternal fame:
And, which is best and happiest yet, all this
With God not parted from him, as was feared,
But favouring and assisting to the end.
Nothing is here for tears, nothing to wail

Or knock the breast, no weakness, no contempt,
Dispraise, or blame; nothing but well and fair,
And what may quiet us in a death so noble.
Let us go find the body, where it lies

Soaked in his enemies' blood, and from the stream
With lavers pure and cleansing herbs wash off
The clotted gore. I with what speed the while
-Gaza is not in plight to say us nay—

1710

1720

Will send for all my kindred, all my friends,

1730

φοίνιχ ̓ ὑπερβαλοῦσα,

ἀδιάφθορος ζῇ.

ΜΑΝΩΣ.

1798

ἄγετε δὴ, καιρὸς γὰρ οὐκέτ ̓, οὐδὲ δεῖ, θρηνῳδίας, τοῖα γὰρ δέδρακε Σάμψων, οἷα καὶ Σάμψων ̓ ἐχρῆν, ζῶν τε καὶ θνήσκων ἀγαστός· οὐδὲ τῆς τιμωρίας ἀποτυχὼν κατ ̓ οὐδὲν, ἔν γε τῶν Φιλιστίνων ὅροις πολυετεῖς ἔθηκεν ἄτας τῷ γένει τοῦ Κάπτορος, τοῖσι δ ̓ Ἑβραίοισι δόξαν καὶ πόνων ἀπαλλαγὴν, μή νυν ἀποτυχοῦσι καιροῦ δειλίας ἡσσημένοις. ἀμφὶ δ ̓ αὑτὸν, ἀμφὶ γένναν, εὖ γ ̓ ἀείμνηστον κλέος ὃ δὲ κράτιστον, οὐκ ἀπόντος, τοῦτο δ ̓ ἦν δεῖσαι, Θεοῦ. αὐτὸς ἦν βοηθὸς, αὐτὸς διετέλει παραστατῶν. τοισίδ ̓ οὐ κλαυθμὸς προσήκει, στέρνα κοπτόντων γόοι, 1809

οὐ γάρ ἐστ ̓ ἄβληχρον οὐδὲν, οὐδ ̓ ἀτιμίας τυχόν πάγκαλ ̓ ἡμὶν, εὖ θανόντος, ταῦτ ̓ ἔχει μειλίγματα. δεῖ δὲ κείμενον τὸ σῶμα καὶ μυδῶν ἐχθρῶν φόνῳ ἐκματεύσαντας, ῥοαῖσι καὶ φυτοῖς καθαρσίοις αἷμα δὴ τὸ συμπεπηγὸς ἐκβαλεῖν διαῤῥύδην. ἐν δὲ τῷδ ̓, ὡς οὐκ ἐχόντων τῶνδε κωλύειν ἔτι, ὡς τάχιστα τοὺς φίλους τε τούς τε συγγενεῖς ἐγὼ

To fetch him hence, and solemnly attend,

With silent obsequy and funeral train,

Home to his father's house. There will I build him

A monument, and plant it round with shade

Of laurel ever-green and branching palm,
With all his trophies hung, and acts enrolled
In copious legend, or sweet lyric song.
Thither shall all the valiant youth resort,
And from his memory inflame their breasts,
To matchless valour and adventures high;
The virgins also shall, on feastful days,
Visit his tomb with flowers, only bewailing
His lot unfortunate in nuptial choice,
From whence captivity and loss of eyes.

CHORUS.

All is best, though we oft doubt,
What the unsearchable dispose
Of highest Wisdom brings about,
And ever best found in the close.

Oft He seems to hide his face,

1740

But unexpectedly returns

1750

And to his faithful champion hath in place

Bore witness gloriously; whence Gaza mourns,