Classic Poem

The Charms which blooming Beauty shows
From Faces heav'nly fair,
We to the Lily and the Rose
With Semblance apt compare:

With Semblance apt, for ah, how soon!
How soon they all decay!
The Lily droops, the Rose is gone,
And Beauty fades away.

But when bright Virtue shines confest,
With sweet Discretion join'd;
When Mildness calms the peaceful Breast,
And Wisdom guides the Mind;

When Charms like these, dear Maid, conspire
Thy Person to approve,
They kindle generous chaste Desire,
And everlasting Love.

Beyond the Reach of Time or Fate
These Graces shall endure;
Still, like the Passion they create,
Eternal, constant, pure.