Classic Poem

A LBIO , M YRTOL , T HELGON .

A LBIO. ] Sing, Myrtol , skilfull'st deem'd of Fisher Swains,
And Thelgon next supply alternate Strains;
In matchless Lays your matchless Voices try.
Sing, Myrtol , first, the Angler will reply;
To you of right the leading Strains belong,
With Art can Thelgon fit his Under-Song .

Myr. ] Me dappled Trout in crystal Floods delight,
And wiley Carp with golden Scales bedight.
By murm'ring Streams, (sweet are the murm'ring Streams)
Loves my blith Muse to chaunt her rural Themes:
The softest Echo there, the freshest Breeze ,
The singing Swain , and Noon-spent Angler please.

Thel. ] Sweet are the murm'ring Streams, 'tis sweet to dwell
Where hilly Woods surround my lonely Cell ;
A sunny Garden decks its little Sides,
Sost by whose Skirts the pearly Medway glides.
Here honey'd Wood-bines bloom, a native Bow'r
And Herbs of ev'ry Leaf and ev'ry Flow'r.

Myr. ] O Aquadune ! unquiet Seas forsake,
And here with me thy milder Dwelling make.
What Sports can'st thou pursue, what Pleasure find
On rugged Rocks, and Seas deform'd with Wind
Along the Main no more thy Nets expand,
Nor Shell-Fish seek forsaken on the Sand.
On the raw Beech and craggy Cliff he dwells,
And sleeps on Sea-weed, or th' updriven Shells.
Lo! Salmon now the Springs of Rivers seek,
And Pike for Frogs explore the streighten'd Creek.
Now Carp their Spawn repose on sedgy Weeds,
And here the Trout frequents, and Grayling breeds.

Thel. ] Nymphs, leave your Fountains, by the briny Main
The Wand'rer seek, recall th' inconstant Swain.
From Shades he flies, he shuns the Cool of Streams,
And deaf'ning Surges lull his hardy Dreams;
Expos'd he leaves his lovely Limbs, resign'd
To the offensive Gnat, and tanning Wind.
Tho' Canens holds thee, thy untempting Care,
As Bull-heads homely, thou than Trouts more fair,
Thy Lines renew, and scatter'd Rods compose,
For now the Fishers sport, and South-wind blows.

Myr. ] The fearful Cheven loves the shaded Stream;
Sharp Rills delight the Trout , and Pools the Bream ;
In Deeps the speckled Samlet loves to rove,
And marly Swifts allure the Barble Drove:
Unwary Roach the sandy Bottom chuse,
And Carp the Weeds, and Eels the muddy Ooze.

Thel. ] Whilom the Trout was wont to yield Delight,
Once cou'd the Umber , once the Tench invite.
The wattled Barble erst my Choice possess'd,
And lordly Pike deserv'd my chief Request:
Now all must to the shapely Dare give place,
My only Choice, for Æ GLE loves the Dace .

Myr. ] Ho! Boys that gather Flow'rs! your Foot-steps heed;
Nor near the Banks your Roam, too vent'rous, lead:
Unsafe when droughty Summers chap their Veins,
Or when they sink, deep-sap'd with mould'ring Rains.

Thel. ] Leave, nibbling Minnows , leave the dang'rous Snare,
Ye worthless Tribe the guileful Bait beware;
Nor trust the raven Trout while here ye rove,
Hence from his Haunts, and seek the safer Drove.

Myr. ] Say, canst thou tell where Eels in Winter hide?
Or where the Swallows , vagrant Race , reside?
How Salmon yearly quest th' accustom'd Main,
Or wint'ry Frogs their foodless Kinds sustain?

Thel. ] Say can'st thou tell how Worms of Moisture breed?
Or Pike are gender'd of the Pickerel-Weed ?
How Carp without the Parent Kinds renew?
Or slimy Eels are form'd of genial Dew?

Myc. ] Rash little Perch ! too heedless of thy fate,
What Frenzy urg'd to try the flatt'ring Bait?
But safe return, — and when of apter Size ,
See thou reward my Care a worthy Prize.

Thel. ] Feed, Gudgeon , on the Pebbly Scower secure
Nor fear th' imprisoning Net , or treach'rous Lure
For rising Trout the barby Hook I tie,
Lengthen the Rod , and fix the flutt'ring Fly .

Myr. ] I hate the greedy Sticklebag , — — they spoil
The Bait , yet ne'er reward the Fisher's Toil.

Thel. ] I hate the Fordwich Trout , intent they wait
The moving Fly , yet ne'er devour the Bait .

Myr. ] Frogs to the Carp a fearful Ruin prove:
And Pike are dreaded by the weaker Drove ;
Devouring Eels affright the lesser Swarm ,
And me Philonda 's deadly Frowns alarm.

Thel. ] The Fly to Trouts , to Bream the wormy Snare ,
Are strong Allurements, Gentles to the Dare :
The Cheven to the Cadew-Bait is prone,
And fair Lycisca is my Choice alone.

Alb. ] This Skin all spotted, of a lovely Hue,
Unwrought with Art, and from the Shearers new
A Scrip , for youthful M ELIBOEUS made,
And not unuseful for the Fisher's Trade,
O Myrtol , take; — the Present I resign — —
These Hooks , O Thelgon , and this Pipe be thine;
Of equal Price, — both Equals in your Art.
But lowery Ev'ning warns us to depart,
Nor long the cautious Singer shou'd be laid
Beneath the Walnut , an unwholsome Shade.
The silver Streams grow blacker to the Sight,
And Groves and Meadows lose their Green in Night.
From reeking Floods obscuring Mists diffuse,
And chilly Air is full of hov'ring Dews.