I have read and sung Cowper (God moves in a mysterious way). I have his complete works. Pronounced Cooper.Oh Nymph of transatlantic fame,Where'er thine haunt, whate'er thy name,Whether reposing on the sideOf Oroonoquo's spacious tide,Or listening with delight not smallTo Niagara's distant fall,'Tis time to cherish and to feedThe pungent nose-refreshing weed,Which, whether pulverised it gainA speedy passage to the brain,Or, whether, touch'd with fire, it riseIn circling eddies to the skies,Does thought more quicken and refineThan all the breath of all the Nine-Forgive the bard, if bard he be,Who once too wantonly made free,To touch with a satiric wipeThat symbol of thy power, the pipe;So may no blight infest thy plainsAnd no unseasonable rains;And so may smiling peace once moreVisit America's sad shore;And thou secure from all alarms,Of thundering drums and glittering arms,Rove unconfined beneath the shadeThy wide-expanded leaves have made;So may thy votaries increase,And fumigation never cease,May Newton with renew'd delightsPerform thy odoriferous rites.While clouds of incense half divineInvolve thy disappearing shrine:And so may smoke-inhaling BullBe always filling, never full.William Cowper ADDRESS TO TOBACCOThe Newton here is John of Amazing Grace, his friend and vicar.
Graham Weeks ● 6815d