text,updated_at,metaphor,created_at,context,theme,reviewed_on,dictionary,comments,provenance,id,work_id
"This verse, O gentle Hamilton! be thine,
(Each softer grace bedew thy darling shrine);
Nature to thee did her best gifts impart,
The mildest manners and the warmest heart;
Honour erected in thy breast its throne,
And kind Humanity was all thy own.
Yet when thy country's wrong to action moved,
You rose to save, and left that ease you loved;
For this she grieves thy early fate to see;
And 'midst her sufferings finds a tear for thee.
But thou perhaps hast well escaped her doom,
Thy eyes are closed, nor sees her ills to come;
Abandon'd o'er, to shameless men a prey,
And slow, deceiving friends, far worse than they;
The kindred triumph of thy noble blood,
Thy name enroll'd amidst the few that stood.
Fair, beaming clear, through life, the patriot flame,
And deaf to honours that begun in shame;
Each duty paid that friendship could demand;
Each nobler deed to save a destin'd land.
An age, corrupt amidst the civil storm,
Would suffer struggling Virtue to perform;
To fix his country, ever free, he tried--
Found the brave labour vain, resigned, and died.
(cf. p. 259 in 1760 ed.)",2014-08-20 04:14:08 UTC,"""Honour erected in thy breast its throne, / And kind Humanity was all thy own.""",2004-08-07 00:00:00 UTC,"","",2012-01-12,Throne,I've included the entire poem,"Searching ""throne"" and ""heart"" in HDIS (Poetry)",8482,3232
"Hear me, O youths! whose now impending fates
The extreme of joy or misery awaits,
Or still to mourn your unavailing vows,
Or victor in the strife enjoy the spouse.
Then who shall first begin the important lay
Let lots determine, and those lots obey.
This coin, ordained through Scotia's realm to pass,
The monarch's face refulgent on the brass;
Fair, on the side opposed, the thistle rears
Its wand'ring foliage and its bristly spears.
This, from my hand flung upwards in the sky,
In countless circles whirls its orb on high;
If, when descended on the level ground,
The monarch's awful visage upward's found,
Then thou, O Fiddler, shall thy skill employ
The first, to try the song of grief or joy.
If, undeprised upon the blushing green
Its chance directs, the thistle's front is seen,
The Piper first the sweet melodious strain
Shall urge, and finish or increase his pain.
But thou, O Elspet, fair beyond the rest,
Whose fatal beauty breeds the dire contest,
O heedful of advice, attentive hear
My faithful counsels with no careless ear.
Fair (though) thou art, yet fairer have there been,
Such as of old these aged orbs have seen.
Lives there a maiden now that can compare
With Agnew's downy breasts and amber hair?
O, when shall I again the match behold
Of sprightly Henny, and her cheeks of gold!
Or her, adorn'd with every blushing grace,
Sweet Marion, comely as the Gentle's race!
If these in younger years I could engage,
Then blush not thou to hear my words of age.
View both the combatants with equal eyes,
Thyself at once the judge, at once the prize.
O dread to load thy tender soul with sin,
For love, I fear, corrupts the judge within.
For if misjudging, thou award'st the day
To him inferior in the sweet essay,
Each tongue shall rank thee with the worst of names,
Deep pierces scandal when 'tis truth that blames.
The perjury shall every age prolong,
To fright the changeful mind from doing wrong.
But if thy sentence speak an upright heart,
Where pride and female error has no part,
Thy name remembered in the feasting days,
The youths shall chant sweet ballads in thy praise,
The lover shall his faithless fair upbraid,
And quote the example of the Piper's Maid.
Then Elspet, Maid of Gallowshiels, take heed,
For infamy or fame attends thy deed.",2013-06-12 19:05:37 UTC,"""For love, I fear, corrupts the judge within.""",2004-08-26 00:00:00 UTC,"","",,Court,"•The poem is incomplete. On the Electric Scotland website the following is reported:
There exists in manuscript another fragmentary poem by Mr Hamilton, called the ""Maid of Gallowshiels."" It is an epic of the heroic-comic kind, intended to celebrate the contest between a piper and a fiddler for the fair Maid of Gallowshiels. Mr Hamilton had evidently designed to extend it to twelve books, but has only completed the first and a portion of the second.","Searching ""judge within"" in HDIS (Poetry)",8502,3248
"But we return to view the Band,
Under the regular Command
Of ane wha arbitrarly sways,
And makes it Law whate'er he says:
Him Honour and true Reason rule,
Which makes Submission to his Will
Nae Slav'ry, but a just Delight,
While he takes care to keep them right;
Wha never lets a Cause depend
Till the Pursuer's Power's at End;
But, like a Minister of Fate,
He speaks, and there's no more Debate:
Best Government, were Subjects sure
To find a Prince fit for sic Pow'r.
",2009-09-14 19:36:10 UTC,"A man may be ruled by ""Honour and true Reason,"" ""Which makes Submission to his Will / Nae Slav'ry, but a just Delight"" ",2004-06-22 00:00:00 UTC,"","",,"","","Searching ""rule"" and ""reason"" in HDIS (Poetry)",11691,4439
"Thus as the hero spoke, the kings divide,
And mingled murmurs round th' assembly glide,
Heard like the sound which warn the careful swain
Of sudden winds or thick descending rain;
When mountain echoes catch the sullen roar
Of billows bursting on the sandy shore,
And hurl it round in airy circles tost,
Till in the distant clouds the voice is lost.
The king of men to sudden rage resign'd,
At once, the empire of his mighty mind,
With sharp reproaches hast'ning to reply;
But, more sedate, the Pylian monarch nigh,
In act to rise, the angry chief confin'd;
And, whisp'ring, thus address'd with head declin'd:
It ill becomes the prince, whose sov'reign hand
Sways the dread scepter of supreme command,
To be the first in discord; and obey
As headlong passion blindly leads the way.
For when the kings in rash debate engage,
'Tis yours to check and moderate their rage;
Since, of the various ills that can distress
Confed'rate councils and prevent success,
Discord is chief; where'er the fury sways,
The parts she severs, and the whole betrays.",2014-02-23 21:13:24 UTC,"""The king of men to sudden rage resign'd, / At once, the empire of his mighty mind.""",2004-08-11 00:00:00 UTC,"","",,Empire,"","Searching ""mind"" and ""empire"" in HDIS (Poetry); confirmed in ECCO in 1757 edition",14264,5318
"NORVAL.
Nay, my good Lord, tho' I revere you much,
My cause I plead not, nor demand your judgment.
I blush to speak; I will not, cannot speak
Th'opprobrious words that I from him have borne.
To the liege lord of my dear native land
I owe a subject's homage; but even him
And his high arbitration I'd reject.
Within my bosom reigns another lord;
Honour, sole judge and umpire of itself.
If my free speech offend you, noble Randolph ,
Revoke your favours, and let Norval go
Hence as he came, alone, but not dishonour'd.
(Act IV, p. 59)",2013-06-28 16:39:45 UTC,"""Within my bosom reigns another lord; / Honour, sole judge and umpire of itself.""",2013-06-28 16:39:45 UTC,Act IV,"",,Court,"",C-H Lion,21284,7492
"LADY RANDOLPH.
Sad fear and melancholy still divide
The empire of my breast with hope and joy.
Now hear what I advise.
(Act V, p. 55)",2014-06-30 20:07:57 UTC,"""Sad fear and melancholy still divide / The empire of my breast with hope and joy.""",2013-06-28 16:41:20 UTC,Act V,"",,Empire,"USE IN ENTRY. A play about Scotland, early reference to ""ideal line"" drawn by fancy that divides England from Scotland.
Said p. 65 (AER Checked and found it on 55: my mistake?).",Searching in C-H Lion; confirmed in ECCO.,21285,7492
"""We may define TASTE to be that internal sense, which, by its own exquisitely nice sensibility, without the assistance of the reasoning faculty, distinguishes and determines the various qualities of the objects submitted to its cognisance; pronouncing, by its own arbitrary verdict, that they are grand or mean, beautiful or ugly, decent or ridiculous."" From this definition it appears, that Taste is designed as a supplement to the defects of the power of judgment, at least in canvassing the merit of the performances of art. These indeed are the subjects on which it exercises its discerning talent with the greatest propriety, as well as with the greatest probability of success: its dominion, however, is in some degree universal, both in the Arts and Sciences; though that dominion is much more absolute, and more legitimate in the former than it is in the latter. The truth is, to bring philosophical subjects to the tribunal of Taste, or to employ this faculty principally in their examination, is extremely dangerous, and naturally productive of absurdity and error. The order of things is thereby reversed; reason is dethroned, and sense usurps the place of judgment. Taste therefore must be contented to act an inferior and subordinate part in the researches of science: it must not pretend to take the lead of reason, but humbly follow the path marked out by it. In the designs and works of art, the case is quite otherwise. Instead of being directed by judgment, it claims the direction in its turn; its authority is uncontrolable, and there lies no appeal from its decisions. Indeed it is well qualified to decide with precision and certainty on subject of this kind; for it possesses a perspicacity of discernment with regard to them which reason can by no means pretend to, even on those subjects that are the most adapted to its nature. So much more perfect are the senses than the understanding.
(pp. 11-2)",2013-07-01 16:48:40 UTC,"""The order of things is thereby reversed; reason is dethroned, and sense usurps the place of judgment.""",2013-07-01 16:48:40 UTC,"","",,Throne,"",C-H Lion,21356,7498
"Let it be observed therefore, that as Invention is the peculiar and distinguishing province of every species of Genius. Imagination claims an undivided empire over this province. It is this faculty alone, which, without the aid or participation of Judgment, supplies all the incidents, characters, imagery, sentiments, and descriptions of Poetry, and most of the theories, at least, in Philosophy, as well as the arguments (a circumstance not commonly attended to) for supporting those theories. Judgment only claims the right of determining their propriety and truth. Since therefore, to supply these, constitutes the highest effort of Genius; that faculty which supplies them; must certainly predominate in its full accomplishment; and this, we have seen, is Imagination. There are at the same time inferior degrees of Philosophic Genius, in which Judgment has the principal ascendant. Those persons in whom this distribution takes place, are in general qualified for making improvements in Philosophy, in exact proportion to the degree in which they possess the talent of Imagination; and will, upon account of the superior strength of their reasoning talents, be found better qualified for canvassing the discoveries of others, possessed of more extensive powers of Imagination, though perhaps of a less penetrating Judgment, than for making those discoveries themselves. It is true indeed, that besides those philosophical truths, which, to the mortification of the pride of human understanding, accident hath brought to light, and those others which have been hit upon by certain happy random thoughts of persons of very moderate abilities, discoveries in Science have sometimes been made by those, who, enjoying a very small share of imagination, were however endued with a clear apprehension, united with a patient and careful observation of the various objects they contemplated. It must likewise be confessed, that this method, accompanied with proper experiments, and just reasoning founded on those experiments, though not the most expeditious, is however the only certain one of attaining the knowledge of the truths of natural Philosophy in particular. But then, on the other hand, it must be acknowledged, that where an extensive Imagination is superadded to the qualifications above-mentioned, the mind, being thereby enabled to comprehend a greater variety of objects, and to combine its ideas in a greater variety of forms, becomes qualified to push its inquiries much farther, as well as with more advantage.
(pp. 99-102)",2013-07-01 17:04:02 UTC,"""Let it be observed therefore, that as Invention is the peculiar and distinguishing province of every species of Genius. Imagination claims an undivided empire over this province.""",2013-07-01 17:04:02 UTC,"","",,Empire,"",C-H Lion,21372,7498
"The talents of a PERFORMER, and a MASTER and COMPOSER of Music, are very different. To constitute the first, a nice musical ear, and a dexterity of performance acquired by habit, are the sole requisites. To constitute the last, not only a nice musical ear, but an exquisite sensibility of passion, together with a peculiar CONFORMATION of Genius to this particular art, are indispensibly necessary. Though all the liberal Arts are indebted to Imagination in common, a talent for each of them respectively depends upon the peculiar MODIFICATION and ADAPTATION of this faculty to the several RESPECTIVE Arts. Thus the Poet, having by the force of Imagination formed lively images of the objects he proposes to describe, thinks only of expressing his ideas in smooth and harmonious numbers; the Painter, having the same vivid conception of every object, is wholly intent on exhibiting a representation of them in colours, as if he had no other method of conveying his ideas; and the Musician, having his head filled with crotchets and concords, airs and sonatas, employs his Imagination intirely in combining a variety of sounds, and trying their power, in order to constitute harmony. A musical Genius naturally exerts itself in exercises of this kind, and is indicated by them. In this art likewise it must be confessed, that considerable scope is afforded for the exertions even of ORIGINAL Genius. Every masterly Composer of Music must feel, in the most intense and exquisite degree, the various emotions, which, by his compositions, he attempts to excite in the minds of others. Even before he begins to compose a piece of music, he must work himself up to that transport of passion, which he desires to express and to communicate in his piece. In effectuating this purpose, Imagination operates very powerfully, by awakening in his own mind those particular affections, that are correspondent to the airs he is meditating; and by raising each of these to that tone of sensibility, and that fervor of passion, which is most favourable to composition. This fervor and enthusiasm of passion, may be termed the inspiration of Music; and is the principal quality which gives it such an irresistible empire over the human heart.
(pp. 248-50)",2013-07-01 18:26:58 UTC,"""This fervor and enthusiasm of passion, may be termed the inspiration of Music; and is the principal quality which gives it such an irresistible empire over the human heart.""",2013-07-01 18:26:34 UTC,"","",,Empire,"",C-H Lion,21388,7498
"The great Aim and Design of Politicians and Princes generally has been to heap up Riches, to aggrandize their Fortunes, to extend their Conquests, and enlarge their Dominions, to prey upon the Weakness or Necessities of their Neighbours; and in short, to stick at Nothing that could any wise tend to gratify their Ambitious Ends and Purposes: Whereas Moralists and Philosophers, always taught, that a Man's Happiness did not depend upon any such vain Purfuits, or on the Possession or Enjoyment of any external Conveniencies or Accommodations; such as Riches, Beauty, sensual Pleasures, worldly Blandishments, or any of, the Goods of Fortune, but only on the Calmness and Serenity of the, Mind, on the Government of the Passions, and subjecting them to the Command and Authority of Reason.
(pp. vii-viii)",2013-07-16 15:23:28 UTC,"""Whereas Moralists and Philosophers, always taught, that a Man's Happiness did not depend upon any such vain Purfuits, or on the Possession or Enjoyment of any external Conveniencies or Accommodations; such as Riches, Beauty, sensual Pleasures, worldly Blandishments, or any of, the Goods of Fortune, but only on the Calmness and Serenity of the, Mind, on the Government of the Passions, and subjecting them to the Command and Authority of Reason.""",2013-07-16 15:23:28 UTC,"","",,"","",Google Books,21781,7546