Spoken at Edinburgh, by Mrs. Bellamy, to the Tragedy of Antony and Cleopatra

by John Cunningham

John Cunningham

SPOKEN AT EDINBURGH, BY MRS. BELLAMY, TO THE TRAGEDY OF ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA .

The flame our hero felt for his Egyptian
Is finely drawn; it glows in the description:
But modern love can ne'er maintain its station,
So many different gouts divide the nation.

The man of sense disdains the soft'ning passion;
The coxcomb is enamour'd of — the fashion;
The bon virant prefers the feast conviv'al;
And Phillis in a turtle finds a rival;
Besides the gentle race — the petit-maitres!
The set insensible of happy cretures;
So coy — so cold — that Beauty ne'er can warm 'em;
So nice, that nothing but themselves can charm 'em.

But hold — I run too fast, without reflection,
(Each gen'ral rule admits of some exception.)
Here 'tis allow'd imperial beauty governs,
And there the conquer'd sex adore their sov'reigns.

Let me — to wave this bagatelle — declare
The grateful homage of a heart sincere:
I feel your favours with refin'd delight,
And glory in my patrons of to-night.





Last updated September 05, 2017