Classic Poem

I Envy not the Proud their Wealth,
Their Equipage and State;
Give me but Innocence and Health,
I ask not to be great.

I in this sweet Retirement find
A Joy unknown to Kings,
For Sceptres to a virtuous Mind,
Seem vain and empty Things

Great Cincinnatus at his Plough,
With brighter Lustre shone,
Than guilty Caesar e'er could shew,
Tho' seated on a Throne.

Tumultuous Days, and restless Nights,
Ambition never knows,
A Stranger to the calm Delights
Of Study and Repose.

Then free from Envy, Care, and Strife,
Keep me, ye Powers divine;
And pleased, when ye demand my Life,
May I that Life resign.