DUKE 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 Treasure %>om 
 
A 
 
JOAN of ARC 
 
 A N 
 
 EPIC POEM, 
 
 B Y 
 
 ROBERT SOUTHET. 
 
 EIS OinNOS API2T02 AMTNE20AI TIEPI IIATTHS. 
 
 OMHPOX. 
 
 ^05 TON.* 
 
 Printed by Manning &f Loring, 
 
 For J. NANCREDE, No. 49, Martin' -Street, 
 
 1798, 
 
As 
 
 JOAN OF ARC, 
 
 BOOK THE FIRST. 
 
 AFLGUMENt. 
 
 Bunois (the Baflard of Orleans) carried away, by his 
 wounded Steed, faints with lofs of blood, JOAN 
 difcovers and heals hint. They proceed to the King. 
 Narrative of the Maid. She relates the Capture of 
 Harfeur, and the expuljion of the inhabitants by Hen- 
 ry the $th. Her education with Bizardo. The an- 
 nunciation of her mijjisn and fubfequent life. 
 
 W A RV varied horrorsy and the train of ills- 
 That follow on Ambition's blood-ftain'd path 
 And fill the world with woe ; of France preferv'd 
 By maiden hand, what time her chiefs fubdued, 
 Or flept in death, or lingered life in chains, 5 
 
 I fmg : nor wilt thou Freedom fcorn the fong. 
 Sunk was the fun : o'er all the expanfe of air 
 The mills of evening deepening as they rofe 
 Ghill'd the ftill fcene ; when thro' the foreft gloom, 
 Rapt on with lightning fpeed, in vain Dunois 10 * 
 
4 JOAN OF ARC- 
 
 Now check'd with weaker force the unheeded rein, 
 
 Now rais'd the unheeded voice. Swift as the ftorm 
 
 Tremendous urges o'er the dangerous cape 
 
 His fweeping pinions, rufh'd the fteed \. for deep 
 
 The heavy-hanging arrow's barbed point 15 
 
 Gor'd his red flank. Impatient of defeat 
 
 Shame and Revenge boil'd in the Baftard's breaft. 
 
 Adown his batter'd arms the tide of life 
 
 Roll'd purpling ; foon its grafp the nervelefs hand 
 
 Relax'd, and faint and fainter wax his limbs. 20 
 
 Dim rolls the fhadowy eye — he droops — he. falls. 
 
 Chill drop the dews of night. The new-borrt fun 
 
 Refulgent fmiles around. Prom trance reviv'd 
 
 In dubious life Dunois^unfeals his eyes, 
 
 And views a form with mildly-melting gaze 25" 
 
 Hang o'er his wounds : loofe to the morning breeze 
 
 Waved her brown hair, and on her rubied cheek 
 
 Hung Pity's- cryftal gem. Fearful awhile 
 
 Left wandering Fancy's unfubftantial fhapes 
 
 Had mock'd the vagrant fenfe, filent he gaz'd, 30, 
 
 And gazing wonder'd ; o'er his aching foul 
 
 Soon Memory rufh'd and woke with ruthlefs hand 
 
 Each fleeping care. 
 
 " O France," he cried, " my country !" 
 When fc ft as breeze that curls the fummer clouds 
 At clofe of day, dole on his ear a voice 35 
 
 Seraphic. u Son of Orleans ! grieve no more. 
 His eye not flept, tho' long the All-Juft endur'd 
 The woes of France ; at length his bar'd right arm 
 
BOOK THE FIRST. 5 
 
 Volleys red thunder. From his veiling clouds 
 
 Rufhes the ftorm, Ruin, and Fear, and Death. 40- 
 
 Take Son of Orleans the relief of Heaven : 
 
 Nor thou the wintry hour of adterfe fate 
 
 Deem ufelefs : Tho* unhous'd thou roam awhile, 
 
 The keen and icy wind that fhivers thee 
 
 Shall brace thine arm, and with ftern difcipline 45 
 
 Firm thy young heart for fearlefs enterprife. 
 
 As who, through many a fummer night ferene 
 
 Had hover'd round the fold with coward wifh ; 
 
 Horrid with brumal ice, the fiercer wolf 
 
 From his bleak mountain and his den of fnows 5a 
 
 Leaps terrible, and mocks the fhepherd's fpear." 
 
 So fpake the delegated Maid, Meantime 
 From many a potent herb the juice (he prefs-d * 
 Medicinal, and touch'd with lenient hand 
 Each gaping, wound, where life as loath to fly 55. 
 Sat trembling : not the. plants Medea cull'd 
 On Colchis* plain,. nor thofe ingredients.dire. 
 Erichtho mingled on Pharfalia's field,. 
 Making, the foul retenant its cold corfe* 
 More potent ; thro' his frame, with force divine 60 
 The fubtle fpirit ran, and, every limb 
 Fill'd with unwonted vigor ; from the ground 
 On nimble feet he fprang* and knelt, and fpake. 
 
 " O more than mortal ! thou, whofe powerful hand 
 Avails to check the. rapid flep of death, 65 
 
 Snatching his prey even from the open'd grave.. 
 
 O Powerful ! O Benignant ! for myfelf 
 
 Ai 
 
6 yojN OF arc. '; 
 
 Thus faved, I thank thee ; for my country, more ; 
 Angel of Heaven ! for furely thou wilt aid 
 My country, and mine arm nerv'd with new life 70 
 Shall on thefe proud invaders pour the war 
 With tenfold fury." " Son of Orleans, ceafe ;" 
 With lovelieft fmile fhe faid, " nor thus mifgive 
 What Heaven alone can claim. To Heaven return 
 The grateful prayer ; to Heaven, whofe bounteous 
 will 75 
 
 Me, moft unworthy, delegates to wield 
 His thunder. Hear Dunois the tale of Her, 
 Offspring of frail Mortality, yet doom'd 
 To fave her country. Lead me to the king, 
 And as we journey on, thefe lips fhall tell 80 
 
 The Wonderous work of Fate," 
 
 She paus'd ; meantime, 
 As down the fteep defcent with many a ftep 
 They urge their way, her eye with wiftful gaze 85 
 Views the departing fcene ; fo his laft glance 
 High from the deck the wretched exile fends 
 To all that life holds dear ; the glift'ning tear, 
 Soften'd her eye and all the Woman reign'd. 
 Soon the delufion dies ; in diftance loft 90 
 
 Fades every fpot belov'd ; the hillock's top, 
 The oak wide-branching, and the rifmg fmoke 
 Slow o'er the copfe that floated on the breeze 
 Melt in the morning clouds. She dried the tear, 
 Then thus : 
 
BOOK THE FIRST. 7 
 
 " Near Harfleur's wall, where rolls the Seine 95 
 Full to the fea his congregated waves, 
 Dwelt Albert once.— Seat of my eai-lieft years ! 
 Still bufy Fancy loves with fairy touch 
 To paint its faded fcenes : even now mine eye 
 Darts thro' the pad' its retrofpeclive glance, 100 
 And calls to view each haunt of fportive youth, 
 Each long-loft haunt Ilov'd : the woodbin'd wall, 
 The jafmine that around the ftraw-roof'd cot 
 Its fragrant branches wreath'd, beneath whofe fhade 
 I wont to fit and mark the fetting fun 105 
 
 And hear the redbreaft's lay. Nor far remote 
 As o'er the fubject landfkip round I gaz'd, 
 The tow'rs of Harfleur rofe upon the view. 
 A foreign matter holds my father's home i 
 I, far away, remember the paft years, no 
 
 And weep. The invader came. High o'er the waves 
 Rides the proud armament in dreadful pomp 
 That wafted flaughter ; to the pebbled fhore 
 The anxious natives throng, and gaze upon 
 The approaching ruin. Gn the fav'ring gale, 115 
 The banner'd lion floats. Then might be heard, 
 (That dreadful emblem of deftru&ion feen,) 
 The mother's anguifh'd fhriek, the old man's groan 
 Of deep defpondence. Defolate the cot j 
 Silent the hamlet haunts of Innocence ; 120 
 
 For the poor villagers remembering all 
 Their grandfires told of war, fled wing'dwith fear 
 To Harfleur's ihelter 5 thither me, yet young, 
 
# JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 (For icarce four fummers o'er my head had beamed 
 Their radiance) bore my fire ; the well barr'd gate* 
 The mafTy wall*; the turrets guarded ftrength, 
 Too fondly wifh'd, too fondly deem'd fecure. 
 
 " Firm on the battlements the natives ftand, l 
 Heedlefs of Death that rode the iron ftorffl. 
 Fire-brands and darts and ftones and javelins 1*30- 
 (Vainly deftru&ive^thinn'd the hoftile hoft. 
 The intrepid foe ruin onward; Fourteen years,. 
 Young as I was, have not' effaced the fcene 
 From bleeding memory. The widow's cry, 
 The fhrieks of anguifh and the yell of war 13^: 
 And Deaths deep groan, yet vibrate on my heart,, 
 Yet wake the firings of grief !' 'Twere long to tell 
 The vaft variety of Woe that filPd 
 Unhappy Harfkun Long Eftouteville ftrove, 
 Long Gaucour's forceful arm repell'd the foe. 140 s 
 In vain they ftrove, for weak were the wide-walls- 
 And few the gallant garrifon, worn out 
 "With days of ceafelefs toil, and fearful nights-- 
 Of unfeen peril. O'er the wafted town* 
 The dreadful engines~of definition hurl'd* 145; 
 
 Their ponderous ruin: then my father died! 
 Spirit of Albert ! bend from yon high Heaven 
 Thy head; lookdown— beholdnhine orphan child I 
 She goes to fill her deft in y ; like thee, 
 Leaving domeftic joys, in rugged arms? i$Q 
 
 To clafp her limbs ;— like thee to dare the war> 
 To die— yet not inglorious ! Wild with woe 
 
BOOK THE FIRST. $ 
 
 O'er my poor father's fhatter'd corfe I lay, 
 
 And kill his rigid cheek, and tore my veft 
 
 To bind his mangled limbs ; nor, now bereft 155; 
 
 Of him the only parent of my youth,, 
 
 Fear'd I the horrors that prevail'd around* 
 
 Suddenly all was ftill : anon burft forth 
 
 The fhout of conqueft: from their long-lov'd homes'* 
 
 Thrufl: forth, the unhappy natives wander o'er 1 6© 
 
 The wafted plain, in want and wretchednefs, 
 
 Feebly I followed ; one who knew and lov'ci 
 
 My fallen father, fav'd his helplefs child. 
 
 Long time he journeyed on in hopes to gain 
 
 Beyond old Arden, in his fitter's home 165" 
 
 A fafe afylum ; and we now had reach'd 
 
 The wood, with many a painful day's hard toily. 
 
 When by the rankling wound that prey'd upon him 
 
 Worn out, he fell. My agonizing fhrieks 
 
 Pierced thro' the £breft, and a. holy man 170 
 
 Drew near :. he bore him to his rock-rooPd cell, 
 
 And many a precious balm, and virtuous herb 
 
 The aged leech applied ; his earthly cares 
 
 Were fruit lefs, for worn nature funk to reft. 
 
 Yet of a Judge, all juft, all merciful, 175 
 
 A Gon of Love, infpir'd the hermit told, 
 
 And folaced his departing foul with ftrains 
 
 Of fweeteft piety, and bade it rife 
 
 On Faith's ftrong wings to Heaven. Thus, once again 
 
 Bereav'd of friends, the iport of adverfe fate, 180 
 
 On his turf'd grave I pour'd the orphan tear. 
 
*<^ jo a it of arc: 
 
 "Rude was Brzardo's cell ; the beetling rock' 
 Frown ? d o'er its ivied -entrance ; the hewn (tone - 
 Form'd his rough feat, and ; on a bed of leaves 
 The aged hermit toofc-his nightly reflv 18^ 
 
 A pure ftream welling from the moffy rock 
 Crept murmuring thro* the woody and-many a -flow'r 
 Drank on its fide the genial fap of life. 
 The rich foil wafted not in- worthlefs ! weeds' 
 Its nurture ; for Bizardo's patient hand ' 1 96 
 
 Cultured <?ach dealing and falubrious herb ; 
 And every fruit that courts the fummer fun> 
 Bloomy for the holy hermit's blamelefs food. 
 Oft would the fage exclaim, " Ah why mould man,. 
 Stern tyrant of the field, with blood pollute 195:; 
 His feftive board ; Nature has fpread around ■ 
 The unguilty- food of life abundantly. 
 How frolic in the fun 701* little fawn 
 Strains his young limbs ; now browzes the fweet grafs,.. 
 Now o'er the plain leaps lightly ; that man's heart; 
 Were hard and alien from humanity 
 Who could endure to gdre' his innocent fide ! ' 
 Sport on, poor forefter f fport on fecure, 
 Fearlefs of oneby hard misfortune fchool-d 
 To feel for others^ Here my infant years 2C£ 
 
 Roll'd on at length in peace ; he taught my knees- 
 To bend in prayer to that all-gracious* God 
 Whofe parent power had call'd me into life ; 
 And who, from every perilous chance preferv'3, 
 Had to the frieudlefs orphan- given airiendw zi& 
 
BOOK THE SIRST. m 
 
 *Of every herb that blooms amid the grove, 
 Qr-on the high cliff drinks a purer air 
 He bade me. know the. virtue ; with the morn 
 Up from the homely couch we rofe to pour 
 The foul-expanding prayer : his eyes would beam 
 Seraphic rapture, as with eloquent tongue 
 He told the, works of Heaven, to thanklefs man. 
 How from the womb of daricnefs nature rofe 
 Refulgent^ at the^ Godhead's high command 
 How matter teem'd with life: the earth pntforth 220 
 Her various itores : the groves of Paradife 
 :Gave, their mild echoes to the choral fong 
 Of new-born beings : and the laft beft work 
 Form'd in God's image, reared, the. lordly face 
 To Heaven. But when Bizardo toldhow man 2 25 
 Pell from perfection, from angelic ft ate, 
 -Plung'd deep in fin, and vpluck'd the fruit- of woe, 
 And bow'd the knee to fiends, and mocVd at God, 
 Till Chrift expiring on. the facred crofs 
 Pour'd forth the atoning life ; the tears ran down 
 His aged cheeks with woe-mixt gratitude. 
 
 " Forgive the prolix tale ! -Oh I could dwell 
 forever thus,; for weeks, ^and months, and years, 
 Roll'd undiftinguifiVddown the ftream of Time, 
 Till fourteen fummers fmiling o'er my head 235 
 Saw t my young mind rich with the precious lore 
 Of virtue, and the leeches healing art 
 JBy him— the good man— taught. 
 
12 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 " One morn it chanc'cl, 
 As wandering thro' the wilds my fteps ftray'd on, 
 And:from the high grafsbrufhed the morning dew, 
 The track of blood alarm'd me ; void of fear, 
 For the innocent fear little ; eagerly 
 I traced the ftain, thinking fome mangled fawn 
 Or lamb had from the favage wolf efcap'd, 
 And I might haply heal its bleeding wounds. 245 
 It led me where outftretch'd on the red earth 
 There lay a youth wounded, and faint ; his hair 
 Clotted with gore ; faft from his fide ftream'd out 
 The blood ; on his pale cheek the cold dews flood, 
 And from his hand the blood-ftain'd fword had faU'n. 
 Fearful to leave, yet impotent alone 
 To bear him to our cell — my echoing voice 
 Calls on Bizardo's aid ; he heard ; our hands 
 Enwove the ofier car ; the cave receives 
 The fenfelefs ftranger. O'er his couch I bent 255 
 With pious vigilance and fearful hope, 
 Watching the wounded man till fugitive life 
 Dubious return'd. His eyes gazed wiftful round 
 And ere again the heavy lids clos'd on them 
 Beam'd languid gratitude. Long time elapfed 260 
 Ere thro* his frame the temperate current roll'd 
 Of former flrength : for deeply had he felt 
 The ruffian's fword, and diftant many a league 
 Domremi lay the Granger's native home. 
 
 " Scarce eighteen years had nerv'd the ftripltng's 
 arm ; 265 
 
BOOK THE FIRST. 13 
 
 Yet Theodore had view'd each deathful icene : 
 And oft the tear from his averted eye 
 'He dried; mindful of fertile fields laid wafte, 
 Difpeopled hamlets, the lorn widow's groan, 
 And the pale orphan's feeble ery for bread. 270 
 But when he told of thofe fierce fons of guilt 
 That o'er this earth which God had fram'd fo fair 
 Spread defolation, and its wood-crown'd hills 
 Make echo to the mercilefs war dog's howl ; 
 And how himfelf from fuch foul favagery 275 
 Had fcarce efcap'd with life, then his ftretch'd arm 
 Seem'd, as it wielded the refiftlefs fword 
 Of Vengeances in his eager eye the foul 
 Was eloquent ; warm glow'd his manly cheek ; 
 And beat againft his fide the indignant heart. 280 
 " Meantime autumnal gales had fwept the grove, 
 And to the cold blaft now the fullen oak 
 •Spread his unfoliag'd arms ; the cloud-clad iky 
 Frown'd o'er the drear and melancholy fcene. 
 At length the fnows fell fa ft, and drifting deep 285 
 Choak'd up the road ; yet felt not Theodore 
 One tedious hour of all the live-long day. 
 Oh ! he would fit and mark the driving ftorm, 
 Wbilft o'er the high heap'd hearth, of a bad world 
 And of the woes that Man creates for Man 290 
 He told. Then gazing round our peaceful cell, 
 *' Here (he would cry) let Theodore remain, 
 Till at the laft his wafted lamp of life 
 Gently go out," Yet were not then the hours 
 
$4 :JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Devoid of forrov* ; for our anxious «yes 2 95 
 
 Beheld Bizardo waining to the tomb. 
 In the, full -of years he funk .: his eyes grew dim, 
 And on the bed of leaves his feeble frame 
 Lay helplefs. Patiently did he endure, 
 In faith anticipating blenednefs., 500 
 
 Already more than Man in that dread hour 
 When Man is meaneft. His were the beft joys 
 The pious .know, .and his laft prayer was praife. 
 I faw him die.; I faw the dews of J)eath 
 Starting on his .cold brow :i I ieard bim then 305 
 Pour out a bleffing on^iev—Son of Orleans i 
 I would not wife to live to know that hour, 
 When I .eould think upon a dear Jriend dead, 
 And weep'not. Aching at the heart we delved 
 The narrow haufe, and o'er the inearthed corfe 31,0 
 Heapt we the grafs-green fod. The fpring cameon; 
 I felt a pang that may not be exprefs'd 
 Leaving that little cell where many a year 
 ^Had paft in peace. We journeyed on our way, 
 Seeking the diftant .home of Theodore ; 315 
 
 And at the laft faw o'^er the budding copfe 
 The curling fmoke rifeilow; onward he fpeeds 
 Elate of heart, The watch dog with hoarfe bark 
 Announc'd the coming gueft ; then, wild with joy 
 Soon as Remembrance fpake his long-loved Lord, 
 Fawn'd on his feet and howl'd with ecftafy, 
 'Twas happinefs indeed, one face of blifs 
 Shines thro* the home : die eager ploughman quits 
 
BOOK THE FIRST. is 
 
 The labouring team, for Theodore is come, 
 Faft down his mother's eheek roll'd the warm tear 
 Of tranfport, to her bread fhe clafpt her child, 
 Long wept as one no more ; nor me forgot* 
 But welcomed me even with a mother's fmile. 
 Here paft my unruffled days. Sometimes at morn 
 With pleafing toil to drive the woolly flock 33a 
 To verdant m?ad or ftream* fometimes to eafe 
 The lowing cattle of their milky load> - 
 My grateful tafk ; as with a parent's love 
 Would Eleanor partake each peaceful hour. 
 Hours of delight, ye are forever gone ! 335 
 
 I'fhall no more with cheerful toil prepare- 
 The rural cates forhfgfrfolemiu'tyr 
 At holy hour ; no mdreairtid the dance 
 Move in brifk meafures with -the blamelefs train. 
 The cot's calm quiet and the village fports 340 
 Thefe leave I willingly, thefe do I change 
 For -the camp's din, the clangor of the war, 
 The pomp of daughter : fuch- the high-command - 
 Of Duty ; that command I fhall obey. 
 
 " Dunois ! I dwelt in happinefs, my 1 foul- 345 
 Slumber'd ; and never feeling- wretchednefs 
 I never dreamt of what the wretched feel. 
 The night was comfortlefs; the loud blafts howl'd, 
 And as we fat around. the focial hearth 
 We heard the rain beat hard : driven by the ftorm 
 A warrior mark'd our diftant taper's light. 350 
 We Jieapt the fire : the friendly board was fpread : 
 
16 JOAN OF ARC 
 
 The bowl of hofpitality went round. 
 
 " The ftorm beats hard," the ftranger cried, M fkfe 
 
 bous'd, 
 Pleafant it is to hear the pelting rain. 
 I too were weli content to dwell in peace, 355 
 
 Retting my head upon the lap of. Love, 
 But that, my Country calls. When the winds roar,-. 
 Remember fometimes what a foldier.fuffers, 
 And think of Conrade." Theodore replied, 
 " Succefs go with thee. Something I have.feen 360. 
 Of war, and of its dreadful ravages. 
 My foal was fick at fuch ferocity ; 
 And I am well content to dwell in peace 
 Albeit inglorious, thanking that good God 
 Who made me to be happy." " Did that God," 
 Cried Conrade, «« form thy heart for happinefs 
 When Defolation royally careers 
 Over thy wretched country ?" did that God ; 
 Form thee for peace when Slaughter is abroad, 
 When her brooks run with, blood, and Rape, and* 
 
 Murder, 37° 
 
 Stalk thro' her flaming towns ? live thou in peace, 
 Young ma-n!: my heart is flefhly : L do ifceb 
 For what my brethren fuffer." As he fpake, 
 Such mingled paffions charactered his. face 
 Of fierce and terrible benevolence, 3.7 £ 
 
 That I did tremble as I liftened to him. 
 Then in mine heart tumultuous thoughts arofe. 
 Q£ high achievements, indiftinc]:, and wttdV, 
 
BOOK THE FIRST. iy 
 
 And vaft, yet fuch they were that I did pant 
 
 As the/ by fome divinity poflefs'd. 380 
 
 " But is there not fome duty due to thofe 
 We love ?" faid Theodore ; and as he fpake 
 His warm cheek erimfon'd. " Is it not moil right 
 To cheer the evening of declining age, 
 With filial tendernefs repaying thus, 3^5 
 
 Parental love ?" " Hard is it," Conrade cried, 
 " Aye, very hard, to part from thofe we love,; , 
 And I have fufFer'dthat fevereft pang. 
 My Agnes ! | have left an aged mother y X 
 I have left 'one, on whom my fond heart doats 390. 
 With love unutterable. Should I live 
 Till France fhall fee the blefled hour of Peace, 
 I fhall return; \ My heart will be content* 
 My higheft duties. wilL be well difcharg'd 
 And I may dare be happy. There are thofe 395 
 Who deem thefe thoughts wild fancies of a mind - 
 Strict beyond meafure, and were well content 
 If I Ihould foften down my rigid nature ; 
 Even to inglorious eafe, to- honor me; 
 But pure : iOf heart and hi£h of felf-efteem : \ 400, 
 I muft be honored by myfelf. , s Allelfe, 
 The. breath of Fame, is as the unfteady; wind 
 Worthlefs." $o faying from his belt he took 
 The encumb'ring fw'ord, /», I held it, lift'ning to him. 
 And wifllefs what I did, half from the fheath 405 
 Drew the well-temper'd blade. I gaz'd upon it 
 And fhuddering, as I felt its edge, exclaim'd, . 
 »':»■'■ 
 
18 JOAN @F ARC:. 
 
 It is mofl horrible with the keen fwordV 
 To gore the finely fibred human frame I 
 I could not ftrike a lamb. He anfwer'd me, ^icr 
 "Maiden, thou haft faid well- I could not ftrike 
 A lamb. But when the invader's favage ftrry 
 Spares not grey age, and mockfr the infant's fhriek 
 As he does writhe upon his curfed lance, 
 And forces to his foul embrace, the wife 415: 
 
 Even on her murder'd hufband's gafping corfeX 
 Almighty God ! I fhould not be a man 
 If I did let one weak and pitiful: feeling 
 Make mine arm impotent to cleave him down.. 
 Think well of this, young Man," he cried and feiz'd 
 The hand of Theodore ; "think well of this $ 
 As you are human, as you hope to live 
 In peace, amid the deareft joys of home ^ 
 Think well of this : you have a tender mother*, 
 As you do wifkthat fhe may die in peace, 425; 
 
 As you would even to madnefs-, agonize 
 To hear this maiden call on you in vain 
 For aid, and fee her dragg'd, and hear her fcream 
 In the blood-reeking foldier's luftful arms. 
 Think that there are fuch. horrors y that even now * 
 Some city flames, and haply as in Rouen 
 Some faminVd babe on his dead mother's breaft 
 Yet hangs for food.. Oh God ! I would not lofe 
 Thefe horrible feelings tho' they tear mine heart." 
 " When we had all betaken us to reft, 43^ 
 
 Sleeplefs I lay, and in my mind revolv'd 
 
book: the FiR&r. i& 
 
 The High-foul'd- Warriar/s i fpeech . . Then roie the . 
 
 thought 
 Of all the miferies that my early youth b 
 Had feen in that beleager'd city, where 6 
 Death never refted, and the morning;fiin 440- 
 
 Made, fteam the fearful havoc of the night ; 
 Till at the break of day I flept ;. nor then 
 Repos'd my heated brain ; for to my view 
 Arofe ftrange forms, fent as I do believe 
 From the Moft High*- I faw a town hemm'd in 4457 
 Like HarrTeur, round with enemies begirt, , 
 Where Famine on a heap of carcaffes, 
 Half envious of the unutterable feaft: 
 Mark'd the gorgfd raven clog, his beak with gore;. 
 J turn'd me then to the befieger*s camp, 450 
 
 And there was revelry 5, the loud lewd laugh; 
 Burft on mine ears, and I beheld the chiefs 
 Even at their feaft plan< the device of Death;. 
 My foul grew fick within me t then methougHt 
 From a dark lowering cloud, the womb of tempeils, 
 A giant arm burft forth, and dropt a fword 
 That pierc'd like lightning thro* the midnight air. 
 Then was there heard a voice, which in mine ear 
 Shall echo, at that hour of di eadful joy 
 When the pale foe fhall wither in my rage. 460 
 " From- that night I could feel my burthen'd foul 
 Heaving beneath incumbent Deity. 
 I fat in filence, mufing on the days 
 To come. Anon my raptur'd eye would glance 
 
■p, JOAJZ OF ARC 
 
 A wild prophetic-meaning. I have heard 465.: 
 
 Strange voices in the evening wind. Strange forms . 
 IHmly difcovered tbrong'd the twilight air. 
 They wonderecf at me. who had known me once 
 A ^cheerful,: carelefs daxnfcL I have feen,. 
 Theodore gaze upon me wiftfully , 470 v 
 
 Till he did, weep... I would have .told him all 
 The mighty future labouring in my bread, 
 But that methought the, hour, was not yet come. 
 
 "At length I heard of Orleans, by the foe 
 Waird in^from li^man luccour r ,; to the event 475 
 All look with fear, for there the fate. of France 
 Hung in the balance* , Now my troubled foul 
 G^ew.mare-difturb'd, and fhunning. every eye, 
 I loy'd to wander. where the fared fhade 
 Frown 'd deeped y there on mightieft deeds .to brood \ 
 Of ihadowy yadnefs, fuch las made my heart 
 Throb fail. . Anon I paus'd^and in a date 
 Of half e^pe,cT:ance. liften'd to the wind.. 
 
 " Laft. evening Jone in thought I wandered forth.'; 
 Down in. the dingles depth there is a brook 485 
 That makes its way ; between the craggy dones 
 Murmuring hoarfe murmurs. On an aged oak , 
 Whofe root uptorn by tempeds overhangs * 
 The dream, I fat, and mark'd the deep red clouds ;• 
 Gather before the wind, whild the rude dafli 490 
 Of waters rock'd my fenfes, and the mids 
 Rofe round : there as I gazed, a form dim-feen 
 Defcended, like the dark and moving clouds 
 
BOOK THE SECOND.. JK 
 
 That in the moon -beam change their fhadowy fhapes> . 
 His voice was on the breeze ; he bade me hail 495: 
 The miflioned Maid! for lo ! the hour was come.. 
 Then was the future prefent to my view, 
 And ftrange events yet in the womb of Time 
 To me made manifeft* , I fat entranc'd 
 In the beatitude of; heavenly vifion. 500 
 
 At length .a, wounded courfer dropping blood 
 RufrYd by me. . I arofe and fought the fpot 
 Where thou hadft fallen; there the M6ft High 
 
 vouehfaf'd 
 That aid .mtracuio-ua whkk tliou jiaft .known* . 
 
BOOK THE SECOND 
 
 ARGUMENT. 
 
 Preternatural -agency*. J4XAN and Dunoij -refloat a 
 cottage* Their hoftfpmfo of the battle- of Azin- 
 cour, and the maffacre of the prifoners after that de- 
 feat. The ftege of Rouen related and the miferies of 
 the befiegedr The ufelefs inhabitants fent out of the 
 to<wn+, Behaviour of Henry to- them* Capture of 
 Rouen and execution of J&ain Blanchardi it* gallant 
 defender, 
 
 IN O more of UfurpairOn's cfaom'cl defeat* 
 Ere we the deep preluding ftrain have pour'd- 
 To the Great Father, Only Rightful King,. 
 Eternal Father ! King Omnipotent I 
 Beneath whofe fhadowy banners wide unfurl'dr 
 Juftice leads forth her tyrant-quelling .Hofts. 
 Such Symphony requires beft Inflrument. 
 Seize then, my Soul! from Freedom's trophiedi 
 
 Dome 
 Tlie Harp which, hanging, high between the fhields 
 Of Brutus and Leonidas, oft gives iou- 
 
 A fitful mufic to the breezy touch 
 
BOJDK THE SECOND. 33 
 
 Of patriot Spirits that demand their fame, 
 -lifer what is freedom, but the unfetter'd ufe 
 Of all the Powers which God for ufe had given? 
 But chiefly this, with holieft habitude 15 
 
 Of conftant Faith, him Firft, him Laft to view 
 Thro* meaner powers and fecondary things 
 Effulgent, as thro' clouds that veil his blaze. 
 For all that meets the bodily fenfe I deem 
 Symbolical, one mighty alphabet ^20 
 
 For infant minds ; and we in this low WorM 
 Placed with our backs to bright Reality, 
 That we may learn with young unwounded ken 
 Things from their fhadoWs. Know thyfelf, my Soul I 
 Confirm'd thy ftrength, thy pinions fledged for flight 
 B&rfting this fliell and leaving next thy neft 
 Soon upward foaring fbalt thou fix-intenfe 
 Thine -eaglet eye on Heaven's eternal Sun V s 
 But fome there are who deem themferves moft free, 
 When they within this grofs and vifible fphere 30 
 Chain down the winged thought, fcoffing afcent 
 Proud in their meanhef's ; and themfelves they cheat 
 With noify^emptinefs of learned phrafe, 
 Their fubtle fluids, impacts, eflences, ■ 
 Self -working Tools, uncaus'd Effects, and all 35 
 Thofe blind Omnifcients, thofe Almighty Slaves, 
 Untenanting Creation of its God, 
 But Properties are God : the naked' ma& 
 Acts only by its inactivity. 
 Here we paufe humbly. Others boldlier think '4* 
 
*4 JOAN OF ART:. 
 
 That as one body is the aggregate 
 1 Of atoms numberlefs, each organiz'd; 
 So by a flrange and dim fimilitude, 
 Infinite myriads of felf-confcious minds 
 Form one all-confcious Spirit, who dire&s ■$$ 
 
 With abfolute ubiquity of thought 
 AH his component monads, that yet feem 
 With various. province and apt agency 
 Each to purfue its own felf-centering end. 
 Some nurfe the infant diamond in the mine.; 50 
 -Some roll the genial juices thro' the oak ; 
 Some drive the mutinous' clouds to clafh in air ; 
 And ruining on the ftorm with whirlwind fpeed 
 Yoke the red lightning to their vollying car. 
 Thus thefe purfue their never-varying courfe, 55 
 No eddy in their ftream. Others more wild, 
 With complex interefts weaving human fates, 
 Duteous onproud, alike obedient all, 
 Evolve the prooefs of eternal good. 
 
 And what if fome rebellious, o'er dark realms 6© 
 Arrogate power ? yet tthefe train up to -God, 
 And on the rude eye uneonfirm'd for day 
 Flafti meteor lights better than total gloom. 
 As ere from Lieule^Oaive's vapoury head 
 The Laplander behold* the far off fun 6$ 
 
 Dart his flant beam on unobeying fnows, 
 While yet the ftern and folitary Night 
 Brooks no alternate fway, the Boreal Morn 
 With mimic luftre tfubftitutcs its gleam 
 
%00K THE SECOND. 25 
 
 Guiding his courfe, or by Niemi's lake 70 
 
 Or Balda-Zhiok, or the moffj ftone a 
 Of Solfar-Kapper, while the fnowy blaft 3 
 Drifts arrowy by, or eddies round his fledge 
 Making the poor babe at its mother's back 
 Scream in its fcanty cradle : he the while 75 
 
 "Wins gentle folace as with upward eye 
 He marks the ftreamy banners of the North, 
 Thinking, himfelf thofe happy fpirits mall join 
 Who there in floating robes of rofy light 
 Dance fportively. For Fancy is the power 80 
 
 That firft unfenfualizes the dark mind 
 "Giving it new delights ; and bids it fwell 
 With wild activity ; and peopling air, 
 By obfcure fears of Beings invinble 
 Emancipates it from the grofler thrall S$ 
 
 Of the prefent impulfe, teaching felf control 
 Till Superftition with unconfcious hand 
 Seat Reafon on her throne. Wherefore not vain, 
 Nor yet without permitted power imprefs'd, 
 I deem thofe legends terrible, with which 90 
 
 The polar Ancient thrills his uncouth throng : 
 Whether of pitying fpirits that make their moan 
 O'er flaughter'd infants, or that Giant Bird 
 Vuokho, of whofe ruining wings -the noife 
 Is Temped, when the unutterable Shape 95 
 
 Speeds from the Mother of Death his deftin'd way 4 
 To fnatch the murderer from his fecret cell ! 
 Or if the Greenland Wizard in orange trance 
 C 
 
26 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Pierces the un traveled realms of oceans hed 
 (Where live the innocent, as far from cares ioo 
 As from the florms and overwhelming waves 
 Dark-tumbling on the furface of the deep) 5 
 Over the abyfm even to that uttermoft cave 
 By milhap'd Prodigies beleager'd, fuch 
 As Earth ne'er bred, nor Air, nor the upper Sea* 
 There dwells the fury Form, whofe unheard name 
 With eager eye, pale cheek, impended breath 
 Unfleeping Silence guards, worn out with fear 
 Left haply efcaping on fome treacherous blaft 
 The fatal Sound let 'flip the Elements no 
 
 And frenzy Nature. Yet the wizard her, 
 Arm'd with Torngarfuck's power, the Spirit of 
 
 good, 
 Forces to unchain the foodful progeny 
 Of the Ocean ftream. Wild phantafies ! yet wife, 
 On the victorious goodnefs of high God 115 
 
 Teaching Reliance and medicinal Hope, 
 Till, from Bethabra northward, heavenly Truth 
 With gradual fteps winning her difficult way 
 Transfer their rude Faith perfected and pure. 
 
 If there be Beings of higher clafs than Man, 120 
 I deem no nobler province they poffefs 
 Than by difpofal of apt circumftance 
 To rear fome realm with patient difcipline, 
 Aye bidding Pain, dark Error's uncouth child, 
 Blamelefs Parenticide ! his fnakey fcourge 12$ 
 
 Lift fierce againft his Mother 1 Thus they make 
 
BOOK THE SECOWU. 27 
 
 Of tranfient Evil ever-during Good 
 
 Themfelves probationary, and denied 
 
 Confefs'd to view by preternatural deed 
 
 To o'erwhelm the will, fave on fome fated day rj©. 
 
 Headftrong, or with petitioned might from God. 
 
 And fuch perhaps the guardian Power whofe ken 
 Still dwelt on France. He from the Invifible World 
 Buril on the Maiden's eye, impregning Air 
 With Voices and ftrange Shapes, illufions apt, 1 35 
 Shadowy of Truth. And firfl a landfcape rofe 
 More wild and wafte and defolate, than where 
 •The white bear drifting, on a field of ice 
 Howls to her funder'd cubs with piteous rage 
 And favage agony. Mid the drear fcene 140 
 
 A craggy rnafs uprear'd. its mifty brow, 
 Untouched by breath of Spring, unwont to know 
 Red Summer's influence, or the cheerful face 
 Of Autumn ; yet its fragments many and huge 
 Aftounded ocean with the dreadful dance 145 
 
 Of whirlpools numberlefs, abforbing oft 
 The blamelefs fifTier at his perilous toil. 
 Upon the topmoil height the Maiden faw 
 A meteor-lighted dome : to every blaft 
 Shook the wide fabric, tottering, as to fall, 150 
 
 Forever tottering ; round the tempefts yell'd 
 Tremendous, mufic hoarfe ! : yet to the ear 
 Of him who there had rule, the Dynaft ftera, 
 Not undelightful. His perturbed flight 
 Anxious and gloomy, fpeeding hitherwards, 155 
 
28 JOAN OF ARC, 
 
 She faw the dark-wing ? d Shape :. with all its towers 
 The palace nods: fuch was Ambition's voice 
 Obedient firft, fierce fervant of fierce Lord, 
 CowPd Superstition comes, her loofen'd robes 
 Float on the breeze and half expofed to view 16& 
 The rufted dagger. By her fide crept on 
 Mitred Hypocrisy, with meekefl mien 
 And ftep demure, and crofs, which to his heart 
 He preft, and feem'd with heaven-ward eye to pour. 
 The pious prayer ; yet never prayer he pour'd 165 
 Save when with fecret glance he view'd the crowd 
 Admiring near. Revenge unwilling quits 
 The mangled corfe ; and prodigal of death 
 Next Slau g hter ftrode ; his falchion yet unfheath'd . 
 Reeks from the wound, ioofe flow his long black 
 locks, 17a: 
 
 The wide roll of his eye is terrible, 
 And each limb quivers. Cruelty comes next, 
 With favage imile grafping a widowed dove. 
 And Fury next beating her own fwoln bread 
 Ruin'd at the call : and Envy hideous form 175.; 
 Gnawing her flefh, and tearing from her head 
 The viper turn'd to bite : and Horror wild 
 "With creeping flefli. Despair, his fullen arms 
 Folded ; aye muttering dark and half-form'd words 
 Of dreadful import. Aged Avarice next 180, 
 Hugg'd to his heart his bags, and call around 
 (Unwilling tho' to lofe the golden fight,) 
 The fearful look. And fitful Jealousy 
 
BOOK THE SECOND. 29 
 
 Anxious for mifery came : and feverifh Lust 
 Hot from the convent. Paliied Fear fled on, 185 
 And ever as he fled his ghaftly eye 
 Reverts. Then ftalk'd along the giant form 
 Gf proud Oppression, on his crowned brow 
 Sate Defolation, and his pitylefs frown 
 Difpeopled countries : him behind a train 190. 
 
 Loathly and horrible, of namelefs fiends 
 Outnumbering locufts. Laft, as fill'd with fear, 
 Suspicion ever- watchful clos'd.the train:. 
 Pale meagre fpeclre, ribb'd with iron plates, 
 Sleeplefs, and fearful of the friendly meal, 195 
 
 Worn out with anxious vigilance of life. 
 
 Thefe at the palace, meet, there, porter fit, 
 Remorse forever his fad vigils kept, 
 His heart the viper's feaft :. worn down his face, 
 If face it were when fcarce the fhrivelPd Ikin 200.. 
 Wrap'd o'er the bone,proclaim'd the gnawing pang : 
 Inly he groan'd, or ftarting wildly, fhriek'd, 
 Aye as the fabric tottering from its bafe 
 Threatened deftrucVion, tho' oft announc'd withheld, 
 Tho' ftill withheld, expetfed. Thefe the maid 205 
 Mark'd as they fteer'd their dufky flight along ; 
 And lo ! fhe was amidft them. Paved with bones. 
 The floor breath'd peftilence :. the emblazon'd walls 
 "With enfigns and witkblood-ftain'd arms were hung, 
 The trophies of Ambition. On his throne 210, 
 That Form portentous rear'd his giant bulk, 
 More huge than he, wh-O with his hundred arms 
 
 c'i 
 
SQ JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Scattered confufion o'er the hod of Gods- 
 Briareus : or the monfter brethren twain, 
 Whofe ftature fwelling ev'ry hour gave hopes 2 15 * 
 Of equalling higheft Heaven : nor larger he 
 Illufive, 'gain ft whofe head the thunderer Thor 
 Sped fruftrate his full force. A fable helm 7 
 Shades his brown face, where glow'd thro' each- 
 
 dark tint 
 The fire of anger ; in his hand he grafp'd 220- 
 
 The defolating fpear : his broad black brow 
 In thought contracted fpake his brooding foul. 
 Sullenly filent. " Maid beloved of Heaven ! 
 (To her the tutelary Power exclaim'd) 
 Of Chaos the adventurous progeny 225 
 
 Thou feeft ; foul miffionaries of foul fire, 
 Fierce to regain the loifes of that hour » 
 
 When Love rofe glittering, and his gorgeous wings 
 Over the abyfs flutter' d with fuch glad noife, 
 As what time after long and peftful Calms 230 
 With llimy inapes and mifcreated life 
 Pois'ning the vaft Pacific, the freih breeze 
 Wakens the merchant fail, uprifmg. Night 
 An heavy unimaginable moan 
 Sent forth, when fhe the Protoplast beheld 235 
 Stand beauteous on Confufion's charmed wave. 
 Moaning fhe fled, and entered the Profound 
 That leads with downward windings to the Cave 
 Of darkaefs palpable, defart of Death, 
 Sunk deep beneath Gehenna's marly roots. 240 
 
BOOK THE SECOND. ji 
 
 There many a datelefs age the Beldame lurk'd 
 And trembled : till engender' d by fierce Hate, 
 Fierce Hate and gloomy Hope, a Dream arofe 
 Shap'd like a blaek cloud mark'd with (breaks of firev 
 It rous'd the Hell-hag ; fhe the dew-damps wip'd 
 From off her brow, and thro' the uncouth maze 
 Retraced her fteps ; but ere fhe reach'd the mouth 
 Of that drear labyrinth, fhudd'ring fhe paus'd 
 Nor dar'd re-enter the diminifh'd Gulph. 
 As thro' the dark vaults of fome moulder'd tower 
 (Which fearful to approach, the evening hind 
 Circles at diftance in his homeward way) 
 The winds breathe hollow, deem'd the plaining 
 
 groan 
 Of prifon'd fpirits ; with fuch fearful voice 
 Night murmur'd, and the found thro' Chaos went. 
 Leapt at the call her hideous-fronted brood ! 
 A dark beheft they heard, and ruftYd on earth, 
 Since that fad hour in camps and courts adored 
 Rebels from God and-Monarchs o'er Mankind ! 
 Thefe are the fiends that o'er thy native land 260 
 Spread Guilt and Horror. Maid belov'd of Heaven ! 
 Dar'fl thou infpir'd by the holy flame of Love 
 Encounter fuch fell fhapes, nor fear to meet 
 Their wrath, their wiles ? O Maiden, dar'ft thou die ? 
 
 " Father of Heaven ! I will not fear," fhe faid, 
 " My arm is weak, but mighty is thy fword." 
 
 She fpake, and as fhe fpake the trump was heard 
 That echoed ominous o'er the ftreets of Rome, 
 
gas J.'OAN OF AR-C 
 
 When the firft. Cefar totter'd o'er the grave 
 
 By Freedom delv'd : the tramp whole chilling blafti 
 
 On Marathon and on Platasa's plain 
 
 Scatter'd the Perfian. From his obfcure haunt 
 
 Shriek'd Fear, the ghaftlieft of Ambition's throng, 
 
 Fev'rifli, yet freezing, eager-pac'd, yet flow ;. 
 
 As fhe that creeps from forth her fwampy reeds 275 
 
 Ague, the biform Hag! when early Spring 
 
 Beams on the marm-bred vapours. " Lo ! fhe goes ! 
 
 T.o Orleans lo ! fhe goes— the Miflion'd Maid-! 
 
 The Viclor Hofts wither beneath her arm! 
 
 And what are. Crecy, Poidtiers,. Azincour 28a 
 
 But noify echoes in the ear of Pride ?" 
 
 Ambition heard and ftarted on his throne ; 
 
 But ftraight a fmile of favage joy illum'd 
 
 His grifly features, like the iheety Burft. 
 
 Of Lightning o'er the awaken'd midnight clouds 285; 
 
 Wide-flafti'd. For lo I. a flaming pile reflects 
 
 Its red light fierce and gloomy on the face 
 
 Of Superstition and her goblin Son, 
 
 Loud-laughing Cruelty, who to the flake 
 
 A female fix'd, of bold, and beauteous mien, 290 
 
 Her fnow-white limbs by iron fetters bruis'd, 
 
 Her breait expos'd, JOAN'fow, fhe faw and knew 
 
 Her perfect image. Nature thro' her. frame 
 
 One pang (hot fhiv'ring-; but, that frail pang foon 
 
 Difmifs'd, "Even fo (the exulting Maiden faid) 295 
 
 The fainted Heralds of Good Tidings fell, 
 
 And thus.they witnefs'd God ! But now the Clouds 
 
BOOK THE SECOim. 53 
 
 Treading, and ftorms beneath their feet, they foar 
 Higher, and higher foar, and foaring ling 
 Loud Songs of Triumph \ O ye Spirits of God, 30^ 
 Hover around my mortal agonies !" 
 Shefpake : and inftantly faint melody 
 Melts on her ear, foothing, and fad, and flow, 
 Such meafures as at calmy midnight heard 
 By aged Hermit in his holy dream 305" 
 
 Foretel and folace death t and now they rife 
 Louder, as when with harp and mingled voice 
 The white-rob'd multitude of flaughter'd Saints 
 At Heaven.' s wide-open'd portals gratulant 
 Receive fome martyr'd Patriot. The harmony 310* 
 Entranc'd the maid, till each fufpended fenfe 
 Brief (lumber feiz'd and confused ecftacy.. 
 At length aWak'ning flow Hie gaz'd around ;* 
 But lo ! no more was feen the ice-pil'd mount 
 And meteor-lighted dome. An Ifle appear'd, 315 
 Its high, o'erhanging, roughs broad-breafted cliffy 
 Glafs'd on the fubjecT: ocean. A vaft plain, 
 Stretch'd oppofite, where ever and anon 
 The Ploughman following fad his meagre team 
 Turn'd up frefh fkulls unftartled, and the bones 320 
 Of fierce, hate-breathing Combatants, who there 
 All mingled lay beneath the common earth, 
 Death's gloomy reconcilement ! O'er the fields 
 Stepp'd a fair Form repairing all flie might, 
 Her temples olive-wreath' d; and where flie trod^ 
 Frefh flowerets rofe and many a foodful herb* 
 
S4 J'OAJSt OF u4RC. 
 
 But wan her cheek, her footfteps infecure,. 
 And anxious, pleafure beam'd in her faint eye.. 
 As fhe had newly left a couch of pain, 
 Pale Convalefcent ! (;Yet fome time to rule 33a' 
 With power exclufive o'er the willing world,. 
 That blefl prophetic Mandate then. fulfill'd, 
 Peace be on earth !) An happy while but brief 
 She feem'd to wander with affiduous feci, 
 And heal'd the recent harm of chill or blight, 33^- 
 And nurs'd each plant that fair and virtuous grew- 
 But foon, a deep precurfive found moan'd hollow :. 
 Black rofe the clouds, and now, £as hi a dream) 
 Their redd'ning (hapes transformed to warrior, hods,. 
 Gours'd o'er the Iky, and battled in mid air. 340 
 The Sea meantime his billows darKeft rcll'd, 
 And each ftain'd wave, dafh'd on the more a cor£e. 
 Nor didnot-the large blood-drops fall from. Heaven. 
 Portentous ! while aloft were feen to float, 
 His hideous features blended with the mift, 345 
 The long black lodes of Slaughter. Peace beheld, 
 And o'er the plain with oft-reverted eye 
 Fled, till a place of tombs me reach'd, and there 
 Within a ruin'd fepulchre obfeure 
 Found hiding-place.. The delegated Maid 350 
 Gaz'd thro' her tears, then, in fad tones exclaim'd, 
 ** Thou mild-ey'd Form ! wherefore, ah ! wherefore- 
 fled? 
 The name of Justice written on thy brow 
 liefplendent fhone ; but all they,, who unblam'd. 
 
BOOK THE SECOND. 33* 
 
 Dwelt in thy dwellings, call thee Happiness. 355 
 Ah ! why uninjur'd and unprofited 
 Should multitudes againft their brethren rufli > 
 Why fow they guilt, ftill reaping mifery ! 
 -Lenient of care, thy fongs, O Peace ! are fweet, 
 As after fnowers the perfum'd gale of Eve, 360 
 That plays around the fick man's throbbing temples ; 
 And gay thy graffy altar pil'd with fruits. 
 But boafts the fhrine of Demon War one charm ? 
 Save that with many an orgie ftrange and foul 
 Dancing around with interwoven arms 365 
 
 The Maniac Suicide and Giant Murder 
 Exult in their fierce union ! I am fad 
 And know not why the fimple Peafants crowd 
 Beneath the Chieftain's ftandard !" Thus the Maid. 
 To her the tutelary Spirit reply 'd, 37© 
 
 "When Luxury and Lull's exhaufted ftores 
 No more can roufe the appetites of Kings ; 
 When the low flattery of their reptile Lords 
 Falls flat and heavy on the accuftomed ear ; 
 When Eunuchs fmg,and Fools buffoon'ry make, 375 
 And Dancers writhe their harlot limbs in vain : 
 Then War and all its dread viciflitudes 
 Pleafmgly agitate their ftagnant hearts, 
 Its hopes, its fears, its vi&ories, its defeats;, 
 Infipid Royalty's keen Condiment. 380 
 
 Therefore, uninjur'd and unprofited 
 {Victims at once and executioners) 
 The congregated hufbandmen lay wafts 
 
36 JOAN OF ARC, 
 
 The vineyard and the harveft : as along 
 The Bothnic Coaft or fouthward of the Line 385 
 Tho' hufh'd the winds, and cloudlefs the high noon, 
 Yet if Leviathan, weary of eafe, 
 In fports unwieldy tofs his ifland bulk* 
 Ocean behind him billows, and, before, 
 A ftorm of waves breaks foamy on the (brand. 390 
 And hence for times and feafons bloody and dark 
 Short Peace fhall ikin the wounds of caufelefs War, 
 And War, his drained finews knit anew, 
 Still violate th* unfinilhed Works of Peace. 
 But yonder look— for more demands thy view." 395 
 He faid ; and ftraightway from the oppofite Ifle 
 A Vapor rofe, pierc'd by the Maid-en's- eye. 
 Guiding its courfe Oppression fat within, 
 With terror pale and rage, yet laugh' d at times 
 Mufing on Vengeance « trembled in his hand 400 
 A Sceptre fiercely-grafp'd. O'er ocean weftward 
 The Vapor fail'd, as when a Cloud exhal'd 
 From Egypt's fields, that fteam hot Peftilence, 
 Travels the fky for many a tracklefs league, 
 Till o'er fome death-doom'd Land diftant in vain 
 It broods incumbent. Forthwith from the Plain 
 Facing the Ifle, a brighter Cloud arofe 
 And fteer'd its courfe which way the Vapor went. 
 Envy fat guiding— Envy, hag abhorr'd ! 
 Like Justice mafk'd, and doom'd to aid the fight 
 Victorious 'gainfl Oppression. Hufh'd awhile 
 The Maiden paus'd, mufing what this might mean ; 
 
BOOK THE SECOND. 37 
 
 But long time pafs'd not, ere that brighter Cloud 
 Return'd more bright : along the Plain it fwept ; 
 And foon from forth its burfting fides emerg'd 415 
 A dazzling Form, broad-bofom'd, bold of Eye, 
 And wild her hair fave where by Laurels bound. 
 -Not more majeftic ftood the healing God 
 When from his Bow the arrow fped, that flew 
 Huge Python. Shriek' d Ambition's ghaftly throng, 
 And with them thofe, the locuft Fiends thatcrawl'cl 
 And glitter'din Corruption's flimy track. 
 'Great was their wrath, for fhort they knew their 
 
 reign. 
 And fuch Commotion made they and Uproar 
 As when the mad Tornado bellows thro* 425 
 
 The guilty Iflands of the weftern main, 
 What time departing for their native fhores, 
 Eboe, or Koromantyn's plain of Palms, 9 
 The infuriate Spirits of the Murder'd make 
 Fierce merriment, and vengeance afk of Heaven. 
 Warm'd with new Influence the unwholfome Plain 
 Sent up its foulefl fogs to meet the Morn : 
 The Sun, that rofe on Freedom, rofe in blood ! 
 " Maiden beloved, and Delegate of Heaven ! 
 (To her the tutelary Spirit faid) 435- 
 
 " Soon mail the Morning ftruggle into Day, 
 The ftormy Morning into cloudlefs Noon. 
 Much haft thou feen, nor all canfl underftand— 
 But this be thy beft Omen, Save thy Country !" 
 Thus faying, from the anfwering Maid he pafs'd, 
 
38 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 And with him difappear'd the goodly Virion. 
 
 " Glory to thee, Father of Earth and Heaven 1 
 All-confcious Presence of the Univerfe ! 
 Nature's vaft ever-acting Energy ! 
 In will, in deed, Impulse of All to all ; 445 
 
 Whether thy Law with unrefracted Ray 
 Beam on the Prophet's purged Eye, or if 
 Difeafmg Realms the Enthusiast wild of thought 
 Seatter new frenzies on the infected Throng, 
 Thou Bo.th infpiring, and predooming Both, 450 
 Fit Instruments and bed of perfect End. 
 Glory to thee, Father of Earth and Heaven !" 
 
 Return, adven'trous Song ! to where Dunois 
 With eager ear heard from the Maid her tale 
 Of early youth and Million from on high. 455 
 
 And now beneath the Horizon weft'ring flow 
 Had funk the orb of Day : a milder Light 
 Soften'd the fcene, fading thro' every hue 
 Till twilight's deep'ning mifts o'erfhadow'd all. 
 The trav'llers wend, beguiling the long way 460 
 With converfe, till the dewy Damps of Night 
 Rofe round. Far off a glimm'ring taper's ray 
 Gleam'd thro' the embowered gloom : to that they 
 
 turn, 
 An aged man came forth ; his fcant grey locks 
 Waved on the night breeze. Time had written deep 
 On his fhrunk face the characters of age. 
 Them louting low with ruftic courtefy 
 He welcom'd in, on the white-ember'd hearth 
 
BOOR THE SECOND. 39 
 
 Then lieapt frefti fuel, and with friendly care 
 
 Spread out the homely board : fatigued they eat 470 
 
 The country cakes and quaff the nut-brown bowl. 
 
 " Strangers, your fare is homely," faid their Hoft, 
 
 a But fuch as we poor men earn with hard toil 1 
 
 In faith ye are welcome to it. I do love 
 
 A foldier, my old heart feems young again. 475 
 
 Poor and decrepit as I am, my arm 
 
 Once grafp'd the fword full firmly, and my limbs 
 
 Were ftrong. as thine, Sir Warrior ! God be with 
 
 thee, 
 And fend thee better fortune than old Bertram ! 
 I would that I were young again to meet 480 
 
 Thefe haughty Englifh in the field of fight. 
 Such as I was when on the fatal plain 
 Of Azfncour I met them." " Wert thou then 
 A fharer in that dreadful day's defeat ?" 
 Exclaim* d the Baftard, " didft thou know the chief 
 Of Orleans ?" " Know him !" the old veteran cried, 
 " I faw him ere the bloody fight began 
 Riding from rank to rank, his beaver up, 
 The long lance quivering in his mighty grafp. 
 Full was his eye and fierce, yet beaming ftill 490 
 On all his countrymen cheerful and mild, 
 Winning all hearts. Looking at thee, Sir Knight, 
 Methinks I fee him now, fuch was his eye 
 So mild in peace, fuch was his manly brow. 
 Befhrew me but I weep at the remembrance.*' 495 
 
4 o JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 " Full was his eye," exclaim'd the Baftard Son 
 Of Orleans, " yet it beam'd benevolence. 
 I never yet faw love fo dignified ! 
 There lived not one his vaffal but adored 
 The good, the gallant Chief. Amid his halls 500 
 High blazed the hofpitable hearth, the pilgrim 
 Of other countries feeing his high towers " ° 
 Rejoiced, for he had often heard of Orleans : 
 He lives, my brother ! bound in the hard chain 
 He lives moft wretched." The big tear roll'd down 
 The Warrior's cheeks. " But he mail live, Dunois," 
 Exclaim'd the Miflion'd Maid, "but he mail live 
 To hear good tidings ; hear of Liberty, 
 Of his own liberty by his brother's arm 
 Achiev'd in hard-fought battle. He fball live 51c 
 Happy. The memory of his prifon'd years 
 Shall heighten all his joys, and his grey hairs 
 Go to the grave in peace." " I would fain live 
 To fee that day," replied their aged hoft, 
 " How would my heart leap once more to behold i 
 The gallant generous chieftain ! I fought by him 
 When all the hopes of victory were loft, 
 And down his batter'd arms the blood ftream'd fall 
 From many a wound. Like wolves thzf hemm'd 
 
 us in 
 Fierce in unhop'd for conqueft : all around 52G 
 Our dead and dying countrymen lay heap'd. 
 Yet flill he drove, I wonder'd at his valor !. 
 Was not a man that on that fatal day 
 
BOOK THE SECOND. 41 
 
 Fought bravelier." "Fatal was that day to France,'* 
 
 Exclaim'd the Baftard, " there Alencon died 525 
 
 Valiant in vain ; and he the haughty chief 
 
 D'Albert, who ralhly arrogant of ftrength 
 
 impetuous rufiVd to ruin. Brabant fell, 
 
 Vaudemont and Marie, and Bar, and Faquenberg, 
 
 Her nobleft warriors : daring in defpair 530 
 
 Fought the fierce foe— ranks fell on ranks before 
 
 them : 
 
 The prifoners of that fhameful day out-fumm'd 
 
 Their vielors !" ss 
 
 "There are thofe," old Bertram cried, 
 
 " Who for his. deeds will honor Henry's name. 
 
 That honor that a conqueror may deferve 535 
 
 He merits, for right valiantly he fought 
 
 On that difaftrous day ; but when the field 
 
 Was won, and thofe who had efcap'd the carnage 
 
 Had yielded up their arms, it was mod foul 
 
 On his defencelefs prifoners to glut * •" 540 
 
 The blunted fword of conqueft. Girt around 
 
 I to their mercy had furrendered me, 
 
 When lo \ I heard the dreadful groan of death — 
 
 Not as amid the fray, when man met man 
 
 And in fair combat gave the mortal blow ; 545 
 
 Here the poor captives, weaponlefs and bound, 
 
 Saw their ftern victors draw again the fword, 
 
 And groan'd and (trove in vain to free their hands 
 
 And bade them think upon their plighted faith, 
 
 And pray'd for mercy in the name of God 550 
 Da 
 
4 2 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 In vain : Their King had bade them mauacre, 
 
 And in their helplefs prifoners' naked breads 
 
 They drove the fword. Then I expected death, 
 
 And at that moment death was terrible ; 
 
 For the heat of flight was over ; of my home 55$ 
 
 I thought, and of my wife and little ones 
 
 In bitternefs of heart,. The gallant man, 
 
 Whofe by the chance of war I had become, 
 
 Had pity, and he loos'd my hands and faid, 
 
 " Frenchman ! I would have killed thee in the battle, 
 
 But my arm fhrinks at murder — get thee hence." 
 
 " It was the will of Heaven that I mould live 
 
 Childlefs and old to think upon the paft 
 
 And wifh that I had perifh'd !" The old man 
 
 Wept as he fpake. ". Ye may perhaps have heard 
 
 Of the hard fiege fo long by Rouen endur'd. 
 
 I dwelt there ftrangers, I had then a wife 
 
 And I had children tenderly beloved, 
 
 Who I did hope mould, cheer me in old age 
 
 And clofe mine eyes. The tale of Mifery 570 
 
 Mayhap were tedious, or I could relate 
 
 Much of that dreadful fiege." The Maid replied 
 
 Anxious of that devoted town to learn. 
 
 Thus then the veteran--" From that field of fhame 
 
 To France fo fatal, Azincour efcap'd ; 575 
 
 I fpeeded homewards and abode in peace. 
 
 Henry as wife as brave had back to England x 5 
 
 Led his victorious army ; well aware 
 
 That France was mighty, that her warrior fons, 
 
BOOK THE SECOND. 43 
 
 impatient of a foreign vigor's fway, 580 
 
 Might rife impetuous, and with multitudes 
 Tread down, the invaders* Wifely he return'd, 
 For the proud Barons in their private broils 
 Wafted the ftrength of France. I dwelt at home 
 Peaceful though lowly, with my little ftore 585 
 
 Content. I lov'd around the cheerful hearth 
 To tell of all the perils I had known : 
 My children they would fit and Men eager, 
 And blefs.the allrgood Father who preferv'd me. 
 
 " Ah me — when war the mafters of mankind, 590 
 Woe to the poor man ! If. he fow the field, 
 He fhall not reap, the harvefl : if he fee 
 His blooming children rife around, his heart 
 Aches at the thought that they are multiplied 
 To. the fword i Again from England the fierce foe 
 RuftVd on our ravag'd coafts. In battle bold, 
 Savage in conqueft, their victorious King 
 Swept like the defolating tempefl round. 
 Dambiere's fubmits— on Caen's fubjefted walls 
 Proudly in conqueft wav'd the Englifh flag. 600 
 Bulwark of Normandy, Rouen ftill remain' d ; 
 Nor unrefifled round our mafTy walls 
 Fix'd they their camp. I need not tell Sir Knight 
 How oft and boldly on th' invading hoft 
 We burft with fierce a/Fault impetuous forth ; 605 
 For many were the warrior fons of Rouen. x 4 
 O'er all that gallant Citizen was fam'd 
 For virtuous hardihood pre-eminent 
 
44 JOAN OP ARC 
 
 Blanchard. He gathering his compatriots round, 
 
 With his own courage kindling every breaft, 610 
 
 Had bade them vow before Almighty God 
 
 Never to yield them to the ufurping foe * s 
 
 While yet their arms could lift the fpear ; while yet 
 
 .Life was to think of every pledge that man 
 
 Moft values. To the God- of Hofts we vow'd ; 615 
 
 And we had baftled the befieging power, 
 
 But our cold-hearted Foeman drew around 
 
 His ftrong entrenchments; From the watch-tower's- 
 
 top 
 In vain with fearful hearts along the Seine 
 We ftrain'd the eye, and every diftant wave 62a 
 That in the fun-beam glitter'd, fondly thought 
 The white fail of fupply. Ah me ! no more 
 Rofe on our aching- fight the food-fraught bark ; 
 For guarded was the Seine, and our ftern foe 
 Had made a league with Famine. How my heart l ° 
 Sunk in me- when- at night I. carried home 
 The fcanty pittance of to-morrow's meal ! 
 You know not, ftrangers ! what it is to fee 
 The asking eye of hunger ! Still we ftrove 
 Expecting aid, till fickening Expectation^ 630 
 
 Felt never hope, and yet moft keen the pang 
 Of difappomtmenu Tho' with chriftian zeal 
 Vrfino would have pour'd the balm of peace " 7 
 Into our wounds, ambitious ear beft pleas'd 
 With the War's clamor and the groan of Deaths- 
 Was deaf to prayer. Day after day fled on ; 
 
BOOK THE SECOND. 4? 
 
 We heard no voice of comfort ; never aid 
 Arriv'd. And now the loathlieft. food was fought 
 And now the wretched ones lay in our ftreets- 
 Crying for food, and dying as they cry'd— 640 
 Oh God it was a dreadful fight to lee- ! 
 Yet ftill we ftruggled nobly. Blanch ard Hill 
 Spoke of the favage fury of the foe, 
 Of captives maffacred at Azmcour; 
 Of ravaged Caen, and of her gallant fons 645 
 
 In cold blood rnurder'd. Then his fcanty food * \ 
 Sharing with the moll wretched, he would bid us, 
 Bear with our miferies cheerly. Thus di&refs'd 
 Left all fhould perifh thus, our chieftains doom'd. 
 The helplefs ones—dreadful alternative, 
 To feek their fates. I never fnall forget 
 The horrors of that hour ! Oh God forbid 
 That my worft foe fhould ever feel fuch pangs. 
 Then as our widow wives clung round our necks,, 
 And the deep fob of anguifh interrupted 65$ 
 
 The prayer of parting— even the pious prieh; 
 As he implor'd his God to ftrengthen us, 
 And told us we fhould meet again in Heaven^ 
 He groan'd and curs'd in hitternefs of heart ia 
 That mercilefs man.-The wretched crowd pais'd on : 
 My wife— my children— thro' the gates they pafs'd — 
 Then the gates clos'd^— Would I were in my grave 
 That I might lofe remembrance. What is man 
 That he can hear the groan of wretchednefs 
 And feel no fleihly pang ! Why did the All-Good 
 
45- JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Create thefe warrior fcourges of mankind, 
 
 Thefe who delight in flaughter ? I did think 
 
 There was not on this earth a heart fo hard 
 
 Could hear a famifli'd Woman cry for bread, 
 
 And know no pity. As the outcafl train &1& 
 
 Drew near, tlie Englifh Monarch bade his troops 
 
 Force back the miferable multitude. ao 
 
 They drove them to the walls-^-it was the depth 
 
 Of Winter — we had no relief to grant. 
 
 The aged ones groan'd to our foe in vain, 675 
 
 The mother pleaded for her dying child 
 
 And they felt no remorfe !" The Miffion'd Maid 
 
 Starts from her feat — "The old and the infirm 
 
 The mother and her babes— and yet no lightning 
 
 Blafled this man !" " Aye Lady," Bertram cried,. 
 
 ** And when we fent the herald to implore * l 
 
 His mercy on the helplefs, he relaxed 
 
 His flera face into favage merriment, 
 
 Scoffing their agonies. On the high wall 
 
 I flood and mark'd the miferable outcafts, 685. 
 
 And every moment thought that Henry's heart, 
 
 Hard as it was, mufl feel. All night I ftood — 
 
 Their deep groans founded on the midnight gale. 
 
 Fainter they, grew, for the cold wintry wind 
 
 Blew bleak ; fainter they grew, and at the laft 69.G. 
 
 All was (till, fave that ever and anon 
 
 Some mother fhriek'd o'er her expiring child 
 
 The fhriek of frenzying anguifh. From that hour 
 
 On all. the bufy turmoil of the world 
 
300JC TEE SECOND. 47 
 
 1 gaz'd with ftrange indifference ; bearing want 695 
 
 "With the fick patience of a mind worn out. 
 
 Nor when the Traitor yielded up our town zx 
 
 Ought heeded I as through our ruin'd ftreets, 
 
 Thro' putrid iieaps of famifh'd carcafTes 
 
 Pafs'd the long pomp of triumph. One keen pang 
 
 I felt, when by that bloody King's command 
 
 The -gallant Blanchard died. Calmly he died, a } 
 
 And as he bow'd beneath the axe, thank' d God 
 
 That he had done his duty. I furvive, 
 
 A folitary, friendlefs, wretched one, 705 
 
 Knowing no joy fave in the faith I feel 
 
 That I fhall foon be gather'd to my fires, 
 
 And foon repofe there where the wicked ceafe 
 
 From troubling, and the weary are at reft." 
 
 "And happy," cried the delegated Maid, 710 
 -*' And happy they who in that holy faith 
 Bow meekly to the rod 1 a little while 
 ;Shall they endure the proud man's contumely, 
 The hard wrongs of the great. A little while 
 Tho' ihelterlefs they feel, the wintry wind, 715 
 
 The wind fhall whittle o'er their turf-grown grave, 
 And all beneath be peace. But woe to thofe, 
 Woe to the Mighty Ones who fend abroad 
 Their train'd afTaflins, and who give to Fury 
 "The flaming firebrand ; thefe indeed fhall live 720 
 The heroes of the wand'ring minftrel's fong, 
 
48 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 But they have their reward : the innocent blood 
 Steams up to Heaven againft them. God fhall hear 
 The widow's groan.'' So fpake fhe and arofe, 
 And they betook them to their homely reft. 
 
BOOK THE THIRD, 
 
 ARGUMENT. 
 
 ti&UNOIS and the Maid arrive at Chlnon. D UNO IS 
 announces the Mijfion of JOAN. Defpondency and 
 incredulity of the King. He attempts to deceive her. 
 She difcovers and addreffes him. CHARLES fill 
 incredulous convenes the Doclors of Theology. They 
 ajfemlle a?id examine the Maid. Event of that Ex- 
 amination. 
 
 i HE early fun beams on the latticed cot ; 
 XJp fpring the travellers, and along their way 
 Holding high converfe fpeed. So as they pafs, 
 Faft by a fpring that welling at his feet 
 With many a winding crept along the mead, 5 
 A Knight they faw. He at his plain repaft 
 Felt the Weft wind play round his ungirt brow. 
 Him, drawing near the Baftard recogniz'd, 
 The gallant friend of Orleans, the brave chief 
 Du Chattel ; and the mutual greeting pafs'd, 10 
 They on the ftreamlet's moffy brink reclin'd, 
 Paus'd on their way, the frugal fare partook, 
 E 
 
5 o JOAN OF ARC, 
 
 And drank the running waters. " Art thou bound 
 For the court, Dunois?" exclaim* d the aged Knight, 
 " I deem'd thee far away, coop'd in the walls 15 
 Of Orleans ; a hard fiege her valiant fons 
 Right loyally endure." " I left the town," 
 Dunois reply'd, " thinking that my promprTpeed 
 Might feize the hoftile ftores, and with frefh force 
 Re-enter, FaftolfFe's better fate prevail'd, zc 
 
 And from the field of fhame my maddening horfe 
 Bore me, for the barb'd arrow gor'd his flank. 
 Fatigued and faint with that day's dangerous toil, 
 My deep wounds bleeding, vainly with weak hand 
 Check'd I the powerlefs rein. Now thus reviv'd 
 By Heaven's high aid, I feek the Court, and thence 
 To that beleager'd town (hall lead fuch force 
 That the proud Englifh in their fields of blood 
 Shall perifh." " I too," Tannegui reply'd, x 
 " May haply in the battle once again 30- 
 
 Serve him my Royal Matter ; in his caufe 
 My youth adventur'd much, nor can my age 
 Find better clofe than in the clang of arms 
 To die for him whom I have liv'd to ferve. 
 Thou art for the Court ; Son of the Chief I lov'd ! 
 pe wife by my experience. JLook not thou 
 For happinefs in that polluted fcene. 
 Thou feelt me here, Dunois, a banifh'd man, 
 A not unwilling exile, to appeafe 
 The proud and powerful Richemont, who long time* 
 Moil flemly jealous of the royal ear 
 
BOOK THE THIRD. $i 
 
 With midnight murder leagues, and down the Loire, 
 
 Rolls the black carcafs of his ftrangled foe^ 
 
 Now confident of ftrength at the King's feet 
 
 He (tabs the King's beft friends, and then demands,* 
 
 As with a conqueror's imperious tone, 
 
 The poft of honor. Son of that lov'd Chief 
 
 tVhofe death my arm avenged, may thy days 
 
 Be happy j ferve thy country in the field, 
 
 And in the hour of peace amid thy friends °$q 
 
 Dwell thou without ambition." So he fpake. 
 
 But when the- Baftard told the wond'rous tale, 
 
 How interpofmg Heaven had its high aid 
 
 Vouchfaf'd to France, the old man's eyes flafli'd fire, 
 
 And rifmg from the bank, the {lately freed 55 
 
 That grazM befide he mounts. " Farewell, Dunois, 
 
 Thou too the Delegate of Heaven, farewell ! 
 
 I go to raife the ftandard — we (hall meet 
 
 At Orleans." O'er the plain he fpurr'd his fteed. 
 
 They journey on their way till Chinon's towers 60 
 
 Rofe to the diflant view ; imperial feat 
 
 Of Charles, for Paris with her fervile fon§ 
 
 A headftrong, mutable, ferocious race, 
 
 Bow'd to the invader's yoke, 'fince that fad hour 
 
 When Faction o'er herftreets with giant ftride 65 
 
 Strode terrible, and Murder and Revenge, - 
 
 As by the midnight torch's lurid light 4 
 
 They mark'd their mangled victims writhe con* 
 
 vuh'-d, 
 Liften'd the deep death groan. Ill-fated fcene ! 
 
52 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Thro* many a dark age drench'd with innocent 
 blood, 7a 
 
 And one day doom'd to know the damning guilt 
 Of Brissot murder' d, and the blamelefs wife 
 Of Roland ! Martyr'd patriots — fpirits pure, 
 Wept by the good ye fell ! Yet (till furvives 
 Sow'd by your toil and by your blood manur'd 75 
 TV imperifhable feed, foon to become 
 That Tree, beneath whofe vaft and mighty fhade. 
 The fons of men (hall pitch their tents in peace, 
 Aiid in the unity of truth preferve 
 The bond of love. For by the eye of God 8a 
 Hath Virtue fworn, that never one good act 
 Was work'd in vain. In Paris triumph'd now 
 Tii' Invader. On a cradled infant's head 
 Hud Bedford placed the crown of Charlemagne,- 
 And factious nobles bow'd the fubject knee 8£ 
 
 In homage to their King, their Sovereign Lord, 
 Their baby Mighty One. " Belov'd of Heav'n," 
 So fpake the Son of Orleans as they pafs'd, 
 " Lo thefe the walls of Chinon, this the abode 
 Of Charles our monarch. Here in revelry 90 
 
 He of his armies vanquihVd, his fair towns 
 Subdu'd, hears carelefs and prolongs the dance. 
 And little marvel I that to the cares 
 Of empire ftill he turns the unwilling ear, 
 For lofs on lofs, defeat upon defeat, 95 
 
 His ftrong holds taken, and his braveft Chiefs 
 Or dead or captur'd, and the hopes of youth 
 
BOOK THE THIRD. 53 
 
 All blafled, have fubdu'd the royal mind 
 Undifciplin'd in Fortitude's ftern fchool. 
 So may thy voice aroufe his fleeping virtues I" 100 
 .The mifllon'd Maid reply'd, <* Go thou, Dunois, 
 Announce my mifiibn to the royal ear. 
 I on the river's winding banks the while 
 Would roam, collecting for high enterprize 
 My thoughts, troubled tho' firm. He who efTays 105 
 Achievements of vaft import, will perforce 
 Feel his heart heave $ and in my bread I feel 
 Such perturbation." On the banks of Vienne 
 Devious the Damfel turn'd. Thro' Chinon's gates 
 The Son of Orleans prefs'd with rapid ftep no 
 Seeking the King. Him from the public view- 
 He found fecluded with his blamelefs Queen, 
 And her partaker of the unlawful bed, 
 The lofty-minded Agnes. " Son of Orleans !" s 
 So as he enter'd cried the haughty fair, nc 
 
 u Thou art well come to witnefs the difgraee, 
 The weak, unmanly, mean defpondency 
 Of this thy Sovereign Liege. He will retreat 
 To diftant Dauphine, and fly the war I 
 Go, then, unworthy of thy rank ! retreat 120 
 
 To diftant Dauphine, and fly the war, 
 Recreant from Battle ! I will not partake 
 A fugitive's fate, but to my home returning 
 In bitternefs of memory curfe the hour 
 When to a coward bafely I refign'd 125 
 
 My virgin worth." « Nay Agnes," Charles replied, 
 
54 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 " Add not the anguifh of thy keen reproach ! 
 I have enough of iorrow. Look around, 
 See this fair country ravag'd by the foe, 
 My ftrong holds taken, and my braved Chiefs 130 
 Fall'n in the field, or captives far away. 
 Dead is the Douglas— cold thy warrior frame, 
 Illuftrious Buchan ; ye from Scotland's hills, 
 Not mindlefs of your old ally diftrefs'd, 
 RnhVd to his fuccour : in his caufe ye fought, 13^ 
 Ye periih'd. Gallant, rafh, ill-deftin'd Narbonne ! 
 Thy mangled corfe waves to the winds of Heaven. 
 Cold, Graville, is thy fmewy arm in death. 
 Fall'n is Ventadaur. Silent in the grave 
 Rambouillet fleeps. Bretagne's unfaithful chief 140 
 Leagues with my foes, and Richemont or in arms 
 Defies my weak control, or from my fide, 
 (A friend more dreaded than the enemy) 
 Drives my beft fervants with the affaflin fword. 
 Soon muft the towers of Orleans fall. But now 1 45 
 Thefe fad thoughts boot not. Welcome to our court, 
 Dunois ! We yet can give the friendly feaft, 
 And from the heavy cares of empire win 
 One hofpitable day of merriment. " 
 
 The Chief reply'd, " So may thy future years 
 Pafs from misfortune free, as all thefe ills 
 Shall vanifh like a vifion of the night ! 
 To thee, to France I come the meffenger 
 Of aid from Heaven. The delegated Maid 
 With me, whom Providence all-wife decrees 155 
 
BO&K THE THIRD. $jf 
 
 The faviour of the realm. Me, gafh'd with wounds*, 
 And in mine own blood fenfeiefs on the plain^ 
 This more than mortal, with leleftial touch,- 
 Woke to new life." Aftonifh'd by his fpeech- 
 Stood Charles. " At one of meaner eftimation 1 60 
 I. ihould have fm il'd y Dunois. Thy well-known 
 The loyalty of all thy noble houfe, [y/ortlv 
 
 Compel me even- to this a moft ftrange tale 
 To lend a ferious ear. A woman fent 
 From Heaven, the Saviour of this wafted realm, 165. 
 Whofe magic touch awoke thee to new life 
 When gafh'd with wounds and fenfeiefs I Son of 
 
 Orleans, 
 111 now befeems ought hazardous. My flate 
 Totters upon deftruclion. Is my perfon 
 Known to this woman ?" " She has liv'd retir'd> ,r 
 The Baftard anfwer'd, " ignorant of courts, 
 And little heeding, till the Spirit of God 
 Rous'd her to this great work." To him the King, 
 " She knows not then my perfon. Thou, Dunois, 
 Lead here the Maiden. On the throne meantime, 
 I the while mingling with the menial throng, 
 Some courtier fnall be feated. If this Maid / 
 Be by the holy fpirit of God infpir'd, 
 That holy fpirit will gift her with the power 
 To pierce deception. But if ftrange of mind 180 
 Enthufiaft fancy fire her wilder'd brain, 
 Thus prov'd, fhe to obfcurity again 
 May guiltlefsly retire. Our Englifh foes 
 Might well exult to fee the fons of : France 
 
$6 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Led by a frenzied female." So he faid ; 185 
 
 And confident in faith the fon of Orleans 
 Sought on the banks oT Vienne the miffion'd Maid. 
 
 Soon is the court conven'd ; the jewelPd crown 
 Shines on a menial's head. Amid the throng 
 The Monarch ftands, and anxious for the event, 190 
 His heart beats high. She comes — the infpir'd Maid ! 
 And as the Baftard led her to the throne, 
 Quick glancing o'er the mimic Majefty, 
 Fix'd full her eye on Charles. * Thou art the King. 
 I come the avenging Delegate of Heaven, 195 
 
 Wielding the wrathful weapon, from whofe death, 
 Their ftern hearts palfied by the arm of God, 
 Far, far from Orleans fhall the Englifh wolves 
 Speed their difaftrous flight. Monarch of France ! 
 Spread the good tidings through thy ravag'd realm. 
 The Maid is come — the miflion'd Maid— whofe hand 
 Shall in the confecrated walls of Rheims 
 Place on thy head the crown." In wonder mute 
 The courtiers heard. The aftoniuVd King exclaim'd, 
 u This is indeed the agency of Heaven ! 205 
 
 Hard, Maiden, were I of belief," he cried, 
 " Did I not now with full and confirm'd faith 
 Thee the redeemer of this ravag'd realm 
 Believe. Not doubting therefore the ftrange will 
 Of the All- Wife, northofe high miracles 210 
 
 Vouch'd by the Son of Orleans, do I now 
 Delay to marihal the brave fons of France 
 
BOOK THE THIRD. 57 
 
 Beneath thy banners; but to fatisfy 
 
 Thofe who at diftance from this moft clear proof 
 
 May hear and difbelieve, or yield at beft 2I£ 
 
 A cold affent. Thefe fully to confirm 
 
 And more to manifefl thy holy power, 
 
 Forthwith with all due fpeed I ft all convene- 
 
 The Doctors of Theology, wife men 
 
 And fkilful in the myfleries of Heaven, 22a 
 
 By thefe thy miflion ftudied and approv'd- 
 
 As needs it muft be ; of thefe holy men 
 
 The fanclion to the dubious minds of alL 
 
 Shall bring conviction, and the firm belief 
 
 Lead on thy favor' d troops to mightieft deeds, 22£ 
 
 SurpafHng human credibility." 
 
 Well pleas'd the Maiden heard. Her the King 
 leads- 
 From the difbanding throng, meantime to dwell 
 With' Mary.. Watchful for her Lord's return 
 She fat with Agnes. Agnes proud of heart,. 23a 
 Majeftically fair,.whofe large full eye 
 Or flafhing anger, or with fcornful fcowl 
 Deform'd her beauteous features. Yet with her 
 The lawlefs idol of. the Monarch's, heart,, 
 Mary, obedient to her husband's will >v 2.3 5* 
 
 Dwelt peaceful, from the. proudly generous mind 
 Of Agnes winning friendfhip* Soon the Maid 
 Lov'd the mild Queen*, and fojourning. with her,- 
 Expech the folemn fummons- Thro' the realm 
 Meantime the King's convoking voice was heard*. 
 
J* JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 And from their palaces and monafteries 
 Swarm'd forth the Doctors, men acute and deep? 
 Grown grey in ftudy ; Priefts and Bifhops hafte 
 To Chinon. — Teachers wife and with high names, 
 Seraphic, Subtile, or Irrefragable, 245 
 
 By their admiring pupils dignified 1 . 
 
 Nor Superstition to embrace the hour 
 Neglects. She haftehs from the EnglifrY courts 
 Where mad Ferocity led the holy war, 
 Arm'd with the mitred helmet. By her fide 256 
 Inanely learn'd, came reverend Ignorance, 
 His grey eye large and raylefs ; o'er his beads 
 Aye wont to mutter forth the drowfy prayer. 
 And meet companion came with thefe the form 
 Of Cruelty, like monk Dominican 255 
 
 His garb. One hand Tertullian's volume grafp'd, 
 Volume beloved ! and high the other rear'd 
 The thirfty fword, whofe impious hilt difplay'd 
 The crofs. Thefe join'd the theologic train. 
 
 TheDo<3sors met — from cloifter gloom reclufe 260 
 Or from the haunts luxurious of the abode, 
 Epifcopal they met, and fought the place 
 Of judgment. Very ancient was the dome, 
 The floor with many a monumental ftone 
 O'erfpread, and brafs-enfculptur'd efiigy 265 
 
 Of holy abbots honor' d in their day, 
 Now to the grave gone down. The branching arms 
 Of many a ponderous pillar met aloft, 
 Wreath'donthe roof embofs'd. The windows gleam'd 
 
BOOK THE THIRD. S9 
 
 Awful and dim their many-colour'd light 
 
 Thro* the rich robes of Eremites and Saints, 
 
 Trees, mountains, caftles, fhips, fun, moon, and ftars, 
 
 Splendid confufion 1 the pure wave beneath 
 
 Reflects and trembles in the purpling beam. 
 
 .On the altar burns that my ftic lamp whofe flame 275 
 
 May not be quench'd. Circling round the vafe 
 
 They &ow the knee, uttering the half-heard prayer % 
 
 Myfterious power communicating thus 
 
 To the hallowed water, deem'd a mightier fpell 
 
 O'er the fierce fiends of Satan's fallen crew, 280 
 
 Than e'er the hell-hags taught in Theffaly, 
 
 Or they who fitting on the rifled grave, 
 
 "Seen by th' exhalations lurid light, 
 
 Bartake the Vampire's banquet. This perform'd, 
 
 The Maid is fummon'd. Round the holy vafe 285 
 
 Mark'd with the myftic tonfure and enrob'd 
 
 In facred veils, a venerable train 
 
 They ftand. The delegated Maid obeys 
 
 Their fummons. As fhe came a lovelieft blufh 
 
 O'er her fair cheek fuffus'd, fuch as became 290 
 
 One mindful &1I1 of maiden modefly, 
 
 Tho* of her own worth eonfcious. Thro' the aifle 
 
 The cold wind moaning as it paft'd along 
 
 Wav'd her dark flowing locks. Before the train 
 
 In reverend filence waiting their lage will, 295 
 
 With half averted eye fhe flood compos'd.- 
 
 So have I feen the fimple fnow-drop rife 
 
 Amid the ruffe t leaves that hide the earth 
 
tfo JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 •In early fpring, fo feen its gentle bend 
 
 Of modeft lovelinefs amid the wafte 300 
 
 Of defolation. By the maiden's fide 
 
 Proud in conviction flood the warrior Son 
 
 Of Orleans, to avow his deep wounds heal'd 
 
 'By power miraculous vouchfafd from Heaven 
 
 To her the infpir'd damfel. As he flood, 305 
 
 Viewing with fteadyeye the magic rites 
 
 Of preparation, thus the arch Prieft fpake 
 
 Severe. ■" Woman, if any fiend of hell 
 
 <Lurk in thy bofom fo to prompt the vaunt 
 
 Of infpiration, and to mock the power 31G 
 
 Of God and holy church, thus by the virtue 
 
 Of water hallow'd by the name of God 
 
 That damned fpirit. adjure I to depart 
 
 Prom his poffeffed prey. Detected thus 
 
 Thy impious wiles, to th' ecclefiaftic arm 31.5 
 
 Thou muft deliver'd purge in flames the crime 
 
 -Atrocious. " Thus he fpajce, and dafh'd the wave 
 
 With hand unfparing<on the virgin's face : 
 
 2?he water fhone upon her glowing cheek 
 
 Like morning dew-drops on the opening rofe. 320 
 
 indignant at th' .unworthy charge the Maid 
 
 Felt her cheek flufh, but foon the tranfient glow 
 
 Fading, ihe anfwer'd .meek. " Moft holy Sires, 
 
 .Ye reverend Fathers of the Chriftian church 
 
 Moft catholic! before your view I ftand 32 J 
 
 A poor weak woman. Of the grace vouchfaf 'd, 
 
 How far .unworthy c-onfcious : yet tho' mean, 
 
 
BOOK THE THIRD. 61 
 
 Guiltlefs of ill, and chofen by higheft Heaven 
 
 The minifter of aid. Strange voices heard, 
 
 The dark and fhadowing vifions of the night, 330 
 
 And that miraculous power that thro' the frame, 
 
 Then gor'd with wounds and fenfelefs, of Dunois, 
 
 Pour'd rapid the full tide of life and health, 
 
 Thefe portents make me confcious of the God 
 
 Within me— he who gifted my purg'd eye 335 
 
 To know the Monarch 'mid the menial throng, 
 
 Unfeen before. Thus much it boots to fay, 
 
 The life of fimple virgin ill deferves 
 
 To call your minds from ftudies wife and deep, 
 
 Not to be fathom'd by the weaker fenfe 340 
 
 Of man profane." Blufhing the Maiden fpake. 
 
 Thus then the Father : " Brethren, ye have heard 
 
 The woman's tale. Befeems us now to afk 
 
 Whether of holy church a duteous child 
 
 Before our court appears, fo not unlike 345 
 
 Heaven might vouchfafe its gracious miracle : 
 
 Or filly heretic whole erring thoughts 
 
 Monftrous and vain perchance might ftray beyond 
 
 All reafon, and conceit ftrange dreams and figns 
 
 Impoffible ? Say, woman, from thy youth 350 
 
 Hail thou (as rightly mother church demands) 
 
 To holy Prieft confefs'd each fecret fin, 
 
 So purg'd by grace to him vouchfaf'd from Heaven 
 
 Of abfolution ?" " Father," (he replied, 
 
 In foreft fhade my infant years train' d up 355 
 
 Knew not devotion's forms. The chaunted mafs, 
 F 
 
6z JOAN OF ARC, 
 
 The filver altar and religious robe, 
 The myftic wafer and the hallowed cup, 
 Gods prieft.- created, are to me unknown. 
 Beneath no high arch'd roof I bow'd in prayer, 360 
 No folemn light by ftoried pane difguis'd, 
 No trophied pillars, and no imag'd crofs 
 Wak'd my young mind to artificial awe, 
 To fear the God I only learnt to love. 
 I faw the eternal energy pervade 365 
 
 The boundlefs range of nature, with the Sun 
 Pour life and radiance from his flamy path, 
 And on the lowlieft flowret in the field 
 The kindly dew-drops fhed. All nature's voice 
 Proclaim'd the all-good Parent ; nor myfelf 3 70 
 Deem'd I by him neglected, This good Power 
 My more than Father taught my youth to know, 
 Knowing to love, and loving to adore. 
 At earliefl morn to him my grateful heart 
 Pour'4 forth the unftudied prayer, that fpake my 
 thanks 375 
 
 For mercies oft vouchfaf'd, and humbly afk'd 
 Protection yet to come. Each flower, that bloom'd 
 Expanding in the new-born fpring, call'd forth 
 The foul of full devotion. Every morn 
 My foaring fpirit glorified the God 380 
 
 Of light, and every evening thank'd the Power 
 Preferving thro' the day. For fins confefi 
 To holy Prieft and abfolution given 
 I knew them not ; for ignorant of fin 
 
BOOK THE THIRD. 63 
 
 Why fhould I feek forgivenefs ? Of the points 385 
 
 Abftrufe of nice religion, aud the bounds 
 
 Subtile and narrow which confine the path 
 
 Of orthodox belief, my artlefs creed 
 
 Knew nought. 'Twas nature taught my early 
 
 youth 
 Religion— Nature bade me fee the God 390 
 
 Confeft in all that lives, and moves, and is." 
 
 She fpake energic. The full force of truth 
 Breath'd from her lips. Appall'd the Doctors flood 
 In vacant wonder, liftening to the founds 
 Unwonted ; till at laft a Prieft replied : 395 
 
 " Woman, of holy church thou feem'ft to feorn 
 Profane the mighty power ; nay more, thy lips 
 Confefs that Nature taught thee thy religion. 
 This is heretical, and thou thyfelf 
 Haft proved it impious j for thou haft declared 400 
 MafTes and abfolution, and the ufe 
 Of myftic wafer are to> thee unknown. 
 How then could nature teach thee true religion, 
 Depriv'd of thefe I Nature can teach to fin, 
 But 'tis the Prieft alone can teach remorfe, 405 
 Can bid St. Peter ope the gates of Heaven, 
 And from the penal fires of purgatory 
 Abfolve the foul. Could nature teach thee this ? 
 Or tell thee that St. Peter holds the keys, 
 And that his fucceffors-' unbounded power 410 
 Extends o'er either world ? Altho' thy life 
 Of fm were free,, if of this holy truth 
 
64 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Ignorant, thy foul in liquid flames muft rue 
 
 Tranfgreflion." Thus he fpake, the applauding look 
 
 Went round. Nor dubious to reply the Maid 415 
 
 Was filent. " Fathers of the holy church, 
 
 If on thefe points abftrufe a iimple maid 
 
 Like me, fhould err, impute not you the crime 
 
 To felf-will'd wifdom, vaunting its own ftrength 
 
 Above Omnipotence. 'Tis true my youth, 420 
 
 Conceal'd in foreft gloom, knew not the found 
 
 Of mafs high chaunted, nor with trembling lips 
 
 I touch'd the myftic wafer : yet the Bird 
 
 That to the matin ray prelufive pour'd 
 
 His joyous fong, methought did warble forth 425 
 
 Sweeter thankfgiving to Religion's ear 
 
 In his wild melody of happkiefs* 
 
 Than ever rung along the high-arch'd roofs 
 
 Of man. Yet never from the bending vine 
 
 Pluck'd I its ripen'd clufters thanklefsly, 43Q 
 
 Of that good God unmindful who beftow'd 
 
 The bloodlefs banquet. Ye have told me, Sires, 
 
 That nature only teaches man to fin ! 
 
 If it be fin. to feek the wounded lamb, 
 
 To bind its wounds, and bathe them with my tears, 
 
 This is what Nature taught ! No, Reverends ! no, 
 
 It is not Nature that can teach to fin : 
 
 Nature is all Benevolence— all Love, 
 
 All Beauty ! In the greenwood's fimple fhade 
 
 There is no vice that to the indignant cheek 44Q 
 
 Bids the red current rufti, No mifery there-- 
 
BOOK THE THIRD. 6$ 
 
 No wretched mother, that with pallid face 
 And famine-falPn, hangs o'er her hungry babes, 
 With fuch a look, fo wan, fo woe-begone, 
 As fliall one day, with damning eloquence, 44^ 
 Againft the mighty plead ! Nature teach fin ! 
 O blafphemy againft the Holy One, 
 Who made us in the image of himfelf, 
 Who made us all for Happinefs and Love, 
 Infinite happinefs — infinite love, 450 
 
 Partakers of his own eternity," 
 
 Solemn and flow the reverend Prieft replied, 
 " Much, woman, do I doubt that all-wife Heaven 
 Would thus vouchfafe its gracious miracles 
 On one fore-doom'd to mifery ; for fo doom'd 455 
 Is that deluded one, who, of the mafs 
 Unheeding, and the Church's faving power, 
 Deems nature finlefs. Therefore, mark me well 1 , 
 Brethren, I would propofe this woman try 
 The holy ordeal. Let her, bound and ftript, 460 
 (Left haply in her clothes mould be conceal'd 
 Some holy relic fo profan'd) be caft 
 In the deep pond ; there if fhe float, no doubt 
 Some fiend upholds, but if (he inftant fink 
 O'erwhelm'd, fure iign that Providence difplays 465: 
 Her free from witchcraft. This done, let her walk 
 Blinded and bare o'er ploughfhares heated red, 
 And o'er thefe paft, her naked arm plunge deep 
 In fcalding water. If from thefe fhe pafs 
 Unhurt, to holy father of the church 
 
66 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Moft bleiTed Pope, we then refer the.caufe 
 
 For judgment : and this Chief, the Son of Orleans, 
 
 Heal'd, as he fays, even at the point of death, 
 
 By her miraculous touch, fhall pafs with her 
 
 The facred trial." " Grace of God V exclaimed 
 
 The aftonifli'd Baftard ; " Plunge me in the pool, 
 
 O'er red-hot ploughfhares make me dance to pleafe 
 
 Your dotard fancies ! Fathers of the church, 
 
 Where is your gravity ? what elder-like 
 
 This fairer than Sufannah would you eye ? 480 
 
 Ye call for ordeals — and I too demand 
 
 The nobleft ordeal, on the Englifh hoft 
 
 To prove in victory the million fent 
 
 From favoring Heaven, To the Pope refer 
 
 For judgment ! Know ye not that France even now 
 
 Stands tottering on deftru&ion !" Starting wild, 
 
 With a ftrange look, the miffion'd Maid exclaim'd, 
 
 " The fword of God is here ! the grave ihall fpeak 
 
 To manifeft me !" Even as me fpake, 
 
 A pale blue flame rofe from the trophied tomb 490 
 
 Befides her, A deep filence thro* the dome 
 
 Dwelt awful. Sudden from that houfe of death 
 
 The clafli of arms was heard, as tho' within 
 
 The fhrouded warrior Ihook his mailed limbs, 
 
 "Hear ye," theDamfel cried; "thefe are the arms 
 That (hall flafti terror o'er the hoftik hoft. 
 Thefe, in the prefence of our Lord the King, 
 And the afTembled people, I fhall take 
 From this the fepulchre, where many an age 
 
BOOK THE THIRD. 67 
 
 Incorruptible they have Iain conceal'd, 500 
 
 Deftin'd for me, the Delegate of Heaven," 
 Recovering from amaze, the Pried replied : 
 " Thou art indeed the Delegate of Heaven ! 
 What thou haft faid furely thou fhalt perform i 
 We ratify thy million. Go in peace," 
 
BOOK THE FOURTH, 
 
 ARGUMENT. 
 
 A Mejjenger arrive? from (frlcans, reprefenting the Dif- 
 trefs of that city, and fequejl'mg wmiediate fuccours. 
 JOAN, in the prefence of the King and ajfembled 
 people, takes the armour of Orlando from his tomb in 
 the church of St, Catharine of Fierbois. Strange 
 conducl of the Mejjenger. The Maid recognizes him* 
 She meets tvith Theodore. Returns defpondently to 
 the palace, aud after exprejfing her difgujl at the //'- 
 eentidufnefs of the court,- annoimces her intention of 
 marching on the 7Jtorro<w to relieve Orleans. 
 
 X HE feaft was fpread — the fparkling bowl went 
 
 round, 
 And to the a/Tembled court the minftrel harp'd 
 The fong of other days. Sudden they heard 
 The horn's loud blaft, " This is no time for cares,. 
 Feaft ye the meifenger without," cried Charles, 5 
 •* Enough is given of the wearying day 
 To the public weal." Obedient to the King. 
 The guard invites the traveller to his fare. 
 " Nay, I lliall fee the monarch,." he replied* 
 
BOOK THE FOURTH, 66 
 
 " And he fh'all hear my tidings, duty-urg'd : 10 
 
 For many a long league have I haften'd on, 
 Not now to be repell'd." Then with ftrong arm 
 Removing him who barr'd his onward way, 
 The hall he enters. " King of France ! I come 
 From Orleans, fpeedy and effectual aid i> 
 
 Demanding for her gallant garrifon, 
 Faithful to thee, tho' thinn'd in many a fight, 
 And wither'd now by want. Thee it befeexas 
 Forever anxious for thy people's weal, 
 To fuccour thefe brave men whofe hohefl breafts to 
 Bulwark thy throne." He faid, and from the hall 
 With upright ftep departing, in amaze 
 At his fo bold deportment left the court. 
 The King exclaim'd, " But little need to fend 
 Quick fuccour to this gallant garrifon, 
 If to the Engliih half fo firm a front 
 They bear in battle !" " In the field, my liege," 
 Dunois replied, " that man has ferv'd thee well. 
 Him have I feen the foremofr. of the fight, 
 Wielding fo fearfully his blood-red fword, 30 
 
 His eye fo fury-fired, that the pale foe 
 Let fall their palfied arms with powerlefs fixoke, 
 Defperate of fafety, I do marvel much 
 That he is here, Orleans mull be hard prefs'd 
 When one the braved of her garrifon 35 
 
 Is thus commifiion'd.' , Swift the Maid exclaim'd, 
 " I tell thee, Chief, that there the Englifh wolves 
 Shall never pour their yells of victory. 
 
j<s JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 The will of God defends thofe fated walls, 
 
 And refting in full faith on that high will 40 
 
 I mock their efforts. But the night draws on ; 
 
 Retire we to repofe. To-morrow's fun 
 
 Breaking the darknefs of the fepulchre, 
 
 Shall on that armor gleam, thro* many an age 
 
 Kept holy and inviolate by time*" 4£ 
 
 She faid, and rifmg from the board* retired. 
 
 Meantime the herald's brazen voice proclaim'd 
 Coming folemnity :- and far and wide 
 Spread the Grange tidings. .Every labour ceasM ; 
 The ploughman from the unfinifh'd furrow haftes ; 
 The armorer's anvil beats no more the din 
 Of future daughter. Thro' the thronging, ilreets 
 The buz of afking wonder hums along. 
 
 On to St. Catherine's facred fane they go ; 
 The holy fathers with the imag'd crofs $5 
 
 Leading the long proceflion. Next, as one 
 Suppliant for mercy to the King of kings* 
 And grateful for the benefits of Heaven, 
 The Monarch pafs'd ; and by his fide the Maid ; 
 Her lovely limbs rob'd in a fnow- white vert : 60 
 Wiftlefs that every eye dwelt on her form, 
 With ftately ftep fhe paced ; her labouring foul 
 To high thoughts elevate ; and gazing round 
 With the wild eye, that of the circling throng 
 And of the vifible world unieeing, faw 6j 
 
 The fhapes of holy phantafy. By her 
 The warrior Son ef Orleans ftrode along 
 
BOOK THE FOURTH. n 
 
 Preeminent. He, nerving his young limbs 
 
 With manly exercife, had fcaled the cliff, 
 
 And darning in the torrent's foaming flood, 70 
 
 Stemm'd with broad breaft its fury ; fo his form, 
 
 Sinewy and firm, and fit for loftieft deeds, 
 
 Tower'd high amid the throng effeminate ; 
 
 His armor bore of hoftile fteel the marks, 
 
 Many and deep. His pictur'd fhield difplay'd 75 
 
 A Lion vainly ftruggling in the toils, 
 
 Whilft by his fide the cub with pious rage, 
 
 His young mane floating to the defart air, 
 
 Rends the fall'n huntfman, Tremouille him behind, 
 
 The worthlefs favourite of the flothful Prince, 80 
 
 Stalk'd arrogant, in Aiming armor clafp'd 
 
 With gold and gems of richeft hues embofs'd, 
 
 Gaudily graceful, by no hoftile blade 
 
 Defaced, and rufted by no hoftile blood } 
 
 Trimly-accoutred court habiliment, 85 
 
 Gay, lady-dazzling armor, fit to adorn, 
 
 In dangerlefs manoeuvres fome review, 
 
 The mockery of murder ! followed him 
 
 The train of courtiers, fummer-flies that fport 
 
 In the fun-beam of favor, infecls fprung 90 
 
 From the court dunghill, greedy blood-fuckers, 
 
 The foul corruption-gender'd fwarm of ftate. 
 
 As o'er fome flowery field the bufy bees 
 Pour their deep mufic, pleafant melody 
 To the tired traveller, under fome old oak 9J 
 
 Stretchd in the chequerd (hade ; or as the found 
 
72 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Of far-off waters down the craggy deep 
 
 Dafh'd with loud uproar, rofe the murmur round 
 
 Of admiration. Every gazing eye 
 
 Dwelt on the miffion'd Maid. Of all befides, ioo 
 
 The long proceffion and the gorgeous train, 
 
 Tho* glittering they with gold and fparkling gems, 
 
 And their rich plumes high waving ^o the air, 
 
 Heedlefs. The confecrated dome they reach, 
 
 Rear'd to St. Catherine's holy memory. 105 
 
 Her death the altar told, what time expos'd 
 
 A virgin victim to the defpot's rage, 
 
 The agonizing rack outftretch'd her limbs, 
 
 Till the {train' d mufcles crack'd, and from their 
 
 fockets 
 Started the blood-red eyes. Before her flood no 
 Glutting his iron fight, the giant form 
 Of Maximin, on whofe rais'd lip Revenge 
 Kindled a favage fmile ; whilft even the face 
 Of the hard executioner relax'dV 
 And fternly foften'd to a maiden tear. 1 15 
 
 Her eye averting from the ftoried woe, 
 The delegated damfei knelt and pour'd 
 To Heaven the prayer of praife, A trophied tomb 
 Clofe to the altar rear'd its antique bulk. 
 Two pointlefs javelins and a broken fword, 1 20 
 Time-mouldering now, proclaim'd fome warrior 
 
 flept 
 The fleep of death beneath. A mafly (tone 
 And rude-enfculptur'd effigy o'erlaid 
 
BOOK THE FOURTH. 73 
 
 "The fepulchre. Above flood Victory, 
 With lifted arm and trump as fhe would blow 125 
 The blaft of Fame, but on her outftretch'd arm 
 Death laid his ebon rod. The Maid approach'd— 
 Death drop t his ebon rod — the lifted trump 
 Pour'd forth a. blaft whofe found miraculous 
 Burft the rude tomb. Within the arms appear'd 
 The crefted helm, the maffy bauldrick's ftrength, 
 'The oval fhield, the magic-temper'd blade. 
 A found of awe-reprefs'd aftonifhment 
 Rofe from the crowd. The delegated Maid 
 O'er her white robes the hallowed breaft-plate threw, 
 Self- fitted to her form. On her helm'd head 
 The white plumes nod, majeftically (low. 
 She lifts the buckler and the magic fword, 
 'Gleaming portentous light. The amazed crowd 
 Raife the loud fhoutof tranfport. "God of Heaven," 
 The Maid exclaim'd, " Father all merciful ! 
 Devoted to whofe holy will, I wield 
 The fword of Vengeance, go before our hofts ! 
 All-juft avenger of the innocent, 
 Be thou our Champion ] God of Love, preferve 145 
 Thofe whom no luft of glory leads to arms." 
 
 She fpake, and lo again the magic trump 
 Breath'd forth ^the notes of conqueft. The white 
 
 plumes 
 Refponfive o'er the martial Maiden's head, 
 Triumphant waved. They rais'd the chaunted mafs 
 
 G 
 
74 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 ■" Thee, Lord, we praife, our God." The affembled 
 Join'd the loud hymn in choral harmony, [throng 
 
 As thro' the parting crowd the Virgin pafs'd, 
 He who from Orleans on the yefternight 
 Demanded fuccour, clafp'd with warmth her hand, 
 And with a bofom-thrilling voice exclaim'd, 
 ■ w IlUomen'd Maid ! victim of thine own worth, 
 Devoted for the King-curft realm of France ! 
 Ill-omen'd Maid, I pity thee." So faying, 
 He turn'd into the crowd. At his flrange words 1 60 
 Difturb'd, the warrior Virgin pafs'd along, 
 And much revolving in her troubled mind, 
 Retreads the palace-: there the feaft was fpread, 
 And fparkling with the red dew of the vine-yard, 
 The bowl went round. Meantime the minftrel ftruck 
 His harp : the PalladSns of France he fung ; 
 The warrior who from Arden's fated fount 
 J)rank of the bitter waters of averfion, 
 And loathing beauty, fpurn'd the lovely Maid, 
 Suppliant for Love ; {bon doomM to rue the charm 
 Revers'd : and that invulnerable Chief 
 Orlando, he who from the magic horn 
 Breath'd fuch heart-withering founds, tkat every foe 
 Fled from the fearful blaflt, and all-appall'd, 
 jSpell-flricken Valour hid his recreant head. 175 
 
 Tfre full found ecfioed o'er the arched roof, 
 And liftening eager to the favorite lay, 
 The guefts fat ftlent. When into the hall 
 The Meftenger from that befieged town, 
 
J300K THE FOURtH. 75 
 
 Stalk'd ftately. " It is pleafant, King of France, 1 80 
 
 To feaft at eafe and hear the harper's fong ; 
 
 Far 1 other mufk hear the men of Orleans ! 
 
 Death is among them ; there the voice of Woe 
 
 Moans eeafelefs." " Rude unmannerly intruder !" 
 
 Exclaim'd the Monarch, i<f c eafe to interrupt 185 
 
 The hour of merriment ; it is not thine 
 
 To inftruct me in my duty." Of reproof 
 
 Heedlefs, the Granger to the minftrel cried, 
 
 " Why harpeft thou of Good Rinaldo's fame 
 
 Amid thefe Walls ? Virtue and Genius love 190 
 
 That lofty lay. Haft thou no loofe lewd tale 
 
 To pamper and provoke the appetite ? 
 
 Such fhouid procure tHee- worthy recompenfe : 
 
 £)r rather fing thou of that mighty one, 
 
 Who tore the ewe lamb from the poor man's bofom> 
 
 That was to him even as a daughter ! Charles, 
 
 This holy tale would I tell, prophet-like, 
 
 And gazing on thee cry, " Thou art the man !"' 
 
 He faid, and with a quicfc and- troubled flep 
 Retired^ Aftbnifh'd at his daring phrafe, 200 
 
 The guefts fat heedlefs of the minftrel's fong, 
 Pondering the words myfterious. Soon the harp 
 Beguil'd their fenfes of anxiety.- 
 
 The court difpers'd : retiring from the hall, 
 Charles and the^delegated damfel fought 205 
 
 The inner palace. There awaited them 
 The Queen : with her JOAN loved to pafs the hours, 
 By. various converfe cheer'd ; for fhe had woh 
 
76 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 The Virgin's heart by her mild melancholy, 
 The calm and duteous patience that deplor'd 21c 
 A hiifband's cold half-love, To her fhe told 
 With what ftrange words the meffenger from Orleans 
 Had rous'd uneafy wonder in her mind j 
 For on her ear yet vibrated the voice, 
 '* Ill-omen'd Maid, I pity thee !" when lo ! 215 
 Again that man ftalk'd to the door, and flood 
 Scowling around, "Why dofl thou haunt me thus," 
 The Monarch cried, " is there no place fecure 
 From thy rude infclenee ? unmanner'd Man ! 
 I know thee not !"" 
 
 " Then learn to know me, Charles i" 220 
 Solemnly he replied ; " read well my face, 
 That thou mayeft know it on that dreadful day, 
 When at the throne of God I (hall demand 
 His juftice on thee !" Turning from the King, 
 To Agnes as fhe enter'd, m a tone 225: 
 
 More low, more awfully fevere, he cried, 
 " Doft thou too know me not ?" She glanced on him, 
 And pale and breathlefs hid her head convuls'd 
 In the Maid's bofom. " King of France !" he laid, 
 " She lov'd me ! day by day I dwelt with her ; 230 
 Her voice was mufic — very fweet her fmiles ! 
 I left her \ left her Charles, in evil hour, 
 To fight thy battles. Thou meantime didfl come, 
 Staining mod foul her fpotlefs purity ; 
 For fhe was pure— my Agnes ! even as mow 235 
 Fall'n in fome cleft where never the fierce fun 
 
SOQK THE FOURTH 77 
 
 Pours his hot ray~moft foul, for once mod fair ; 
 
 My poor polluted Agnes !— Thou bad man ! 
 
 Thou haft almoft fhaken my faith in Heaven. 
 
 £ fee thee rioting in floth and guilty 240 
 
 And yet thou reftefl, pillowing thy head 
 
 Even on her bofom 1 I, though innocent 
 
 Of ill, the victim of another's vice, 
 
 l)rag on the loathfome burthen of exiflence, 
 
 And doubt Heaven's juftke !" 
 
 So he faid, and frown'd 245 
 
 Dark as that man who at Mohammed's door 
 
 Knock'dfierce and frequent ; from whofe fearful look 
 
 Bath'd with cold damps, every beholder fled. 
 
 Even he the prophet almoft terrified, 
 
 Endur'd but half to view him, for he knew 250 
 
 Azarael, ftern-brow'd Meffenger of Fate, 
 
 And his death-day was come. Guilt-petrified 
 
 The Monarch fat, nor could endure to face 
 
 His bofom-probing frown. The miffion'd Maid 
 
 Read anxious his, ftern features and exclaim'd 255* 
 
 " I know thee, Conrade !" Rifing from her feat, 
 
 She took his hand, for he flood motionlefs, 
 
 Gazing on Agnes now with full-flx'd eye, 
 
 Dreadful though calm : him from the Court fhe 
 
 And to the river's banks refilling not, [drew, 
 
 Both fadly filent led ; till at the laft 
 
 As from a dream awaking, Conrade look'd 
 
 Full on the Maid, and falling on her neck, 
 
 He wept. " I know thee, Damfel W he exclaim'd? 
 Gz 
 
78 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 " Doft thou remember that tempeftuous night, 265 
 
 When I, a weather-beaten traveller, fought 
 
 Your hofpitable doors ? ah me 1 I then 
 
 Was happy ! you too fojourn'd then in peace. 
 
 Fool that I was, I blam'd fuch happinefs, 
 
 Arraign'd it as a guilty felfifh floth, 27a 
 
 Unhappily prevailing, fo I fear me, 
 
 Or why art thou at Chinon ?" Him the Maid 
 
 Anfwering, addrefs'd : " I do remember well 
 
 That night : for then the holy Spirit firft, 
 
 Wak'd by thy words, poflefs'd me." 
 
 Conrade cried, 275 
 " Then I have one more fin to anfwer for ! 
 Oh Maiden, thou wert happy \ thou hadft liv'd 
 Bleffing and bleft, i£ I had never ftray'd 
 Needlefsly rigid from my peaceful path* 
 And thou haft left thine home then, and obey'd 2 80 
 The feverifh fancies of thine ardent brain ! 
 And haft thou left him too, the youth whofe eye 
 For ever glancing on thee, fpake fo well 
 Affection's eloquent tale V 1 So as he faid, 
 Rufti'd the warm purple to the Virgin's cheek. 285- 
 " I am alone," Ihe anfwer'd,- "for this realm 
 Devoted." Nor to anfwer more the Maid 
 Endur'd ; for many a melancholy thought 
 Throng'd on her aching memory. Her mind's eye 
 Beheld Domremi and the Melds of Arc : 1290 
 
 She gaz'd amid the air with fuch fad look,. 
 Yet fuch fweet folacing of felf-applaufe,. 
 
BOOK THE FOURTH. 79 
 
 As he the virtuous exile feels, who, driven x 
 By " that dark Vizier" from his native land, * 
 Roams on the fea-beach, while the roaring waves 
 Rocking his fenfes, break upon the lhore. 
 Loft in fad dreams his diitant home he fees, 
 His friends, and haply too an aged Mother 
 That weeps for him in bitternefs of heart. 
 All, all he loved fond fancy fees again, 300 
 
 Till the big tear-drop ruihes o'er its orb, 
 And drowns the fbft enchantment. By the hand 
 Her Conrade held and cried, " Ill-fated Maid ! 
 That I have torn thee from Affection's breaft, 
 My foul will groan in anguifh. Thou wilt ferve 305* 
 Like me, the worthlefs Court, and having ferv'd, 
 In the hour of ill abandon'ol, thou fhalt curfe 
 The duty that deluded. Of the world- 
 Fatigued, and loathing at my fellow-men, 
 I fhall be feen no more. There is a path — 3 r» 
 The eagle hath not mark'd it ? the young wolf 
 Knows not its hidden windings ; I have trod 
 That path, and mark'd a melancholy den> 
 Where one whofe jaundiced foul abhors itfelf, 
 May pamper him in complete wretehednefs. 315: 
 There fepnlchred, the ghoft of what he was, 
 Conrade fhall dwell, and in the languid hour, 
 When the jarr'd fenfes fink to a fiek calm, 
 Shall mourn the waire of frenzy !" So he fpake, 
 And clafping to his heart the Virgin's hand, 320 
 Sped rapid o'er the plain. She with dim eyes, 
 
8a JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 For gufhing tears obfcur'd them, follow'd him' 
 Till loft in diftance. With a weight of thought 
 Oppreft, along- the poplar-planted Vienne 
 Then wander 'd, till o'erwearied on the banks 325 
 She laid her down, and watch'd its flowed ftream 
 Dim purpling to the clouds, that ftill 5 were pierc'd 
 By the funk day-ftar's ray. The murmuring tide 
 LulPd her, and many a penfive pleafing dream 
 Rofe in fad fhadowy trains at Memory's call. 330 
 She thought of Arc, and of the- dingled brook, 
 Whofe waves oft leaping on their craggy courfe 
 Made dance the low-hung willow's dripping twigs ;- 
 And where it fpread into a glaffy lake, 
 Of that old oak, which on the frnooth expanfe 335, 
 Imaged its hoary moiTy-mantled boughs. 
 Wak'd by the thought, a tear ran down her cheek 
 Unconfcious, when a voice behind addrefs'd her, 
 " Forgive the intrufion, Lady ! I would afk 
 Where I might meet thatHeaven-commiflion'dMaid, 
 Call'd to deliver France." The well-known tones 
 Thrill'd her : her heart throbb'd faft--fhe ftarted up, 
 And fell upon the neck of Theodore. [youth r 
 
 " Oh ! I have found thee !" cried th' enraptur'd 
 " And I ftiall dare the battle by thy fide, 345 
 
 And fhield thee from the war ! but tell me, JOAN> 
 Why didft thou brood in fuch flrange myftery, 
 O'er this thy Heav'n-doom'd purpofe ? truft «ie>- 
 
 Maideny 
 I have fhed many tears for that wild gloom 
 
BOOK THE FOURTH. m 
 
 That fo eftrang'd thee from thy Theodore ! 350 
 If thou couldft know the anguifh I endur'd 
 When-thou wert gone ! how thro' the live-long night 
 I vainly travers'd o'er thy wonted paths, 
 Making the foreft echo to thy name ! 
 Our mother too ! in footh it was unkind 35£ 
 
 To leave us thus !" Mindlefs of her high call, 
 Again the- lowly fhepherdefs of Arc, 
 In half-articulated words the Maid- 
 Exprefs'd her joy. Of Elinor (lie auVd,< 
 How from a doating mother he had come 360 
 
 In arms array'd. " Thou waked in- my mind 
 A thought that makes me fad^" the youth replied, 
 " For Elinor wept much at my refolve, 
 And eloquent with; all a mother's fears, 
 Urg'd me to leave her not. My wayward heart 365 
 Smote me as I look'd back and faw her wave- 
 Adieu !' but high in hope I foon begnil'd 
 Thefe melancholy feelings by the thought 
 That we fhould both return to cheer her age, 
 Thy miffion well-fulruTd, and quit no more 370 
 The copfe-embofom'd cottage." But the Maid 
 Soon darted from her dream of happmefs, 
 For on her memory naPn'd the flaming pile. 
 A death-like palenefs at the dreadful thoughts 
 Wither'd her cheek ; the dews on her cold brow 375 
 Started, and on the arm of Theodore 
 Feeble and faint fne hung. His eager eye 
 Concentring all the anguifh of the foul* 
 
82 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 And ftrain'd in anxious love, on her wan cheek 
 
 Fearfully filent gazed. But by the thought 3 So 
 
 Of her high million rous'd, the Maiden's foul 
 
 Collected; and fhe fpake. " My Theodore, 
 
 Thou haft done wrong- to quit thy mother's home I 
 
 Alone and aged fhe will weep for thee, 
 
 Wafting the little that is left of life 585 
 
 In anguifh* Go thee back again to Arc, 
 
 And cheering fb her wintry hour of age, 
 
 Cherifh my memory there." Swift he exclaim'd, 
 
 " Nay, Maid ! the pang of parting is o'erpaft, 
 
 And Elinor looks on to the glad hour 39c 
 
 When we fhall both return. Amid the war 
 
 How many an arm will fcek thy fingle life, 
 
 How many a'fword pierce through thy brittle mail, 
 
 Wound thy fair face, or, driven with impious rage, 
 
 Gore thy white bofom !' JOAN, I will go with thee,, 
 
 And fpread the guardian fhield !" Again the Maid 
 
 Grew pale ; for of her laft and terrible hour 
 
 The vifion'd fcene fhe faw. " Nay," fhe replied* 
 
 •■' 1 fhall not need thy foe c bur in the war. 
 
 Me Heaven, if fo feem good to its high will, 400 
 
 Will fave. I fhall be happier, Theodore, 
 
 Thinking that thou doft fojourn fafe at home, 
 
 Arid make thy mother happy." The youth's cheeks 
 
 A rapid blulh diforder'd. " O ! the Court 
 
 Is pleafant, and thy foul would fain forget 405 
 
 An obfeure Villager, who only boafts 
 
 The treafure of the heart." She look'd at him- 
 
%QOK THE FOURTH. 8 S 
 
 With the reproaching eye of tendernefs : 
 
 " Devoted for the realm of France, I go 
 
 A willing victim. The unpierc'd Veil 410 
 
 Was raifed, and my gifted eye beheld 
 
 The fearful features of futurity. 
 
 Yes, Theodore, I mall redeem my country, 
 
 Abandoning for this the joys of life, 
 
 Yea, life itfelf !" then on his neck flie fell, 415 
 
 And with a faultering voice, " return to Arc ; 
 
 I do not tell thee there are other maids 
 
 As fair : for thou v/ilt love my memory, 
 
 Hallowing to it the temple of thy heart. 
 
 Worthy a happier, not a better love, 420 
 
 My Theodore !" — Then, preffing his pale lips, 
 
 A lad and holy kifs the Virgin fix'd, 
 
 And runVd acrofs the plain. She reach'd the court 
 
 jBreathlefs. The mingled movements of her mind 
 
 Shook every fibre. Sad and fick at heart, 425 
 
 Fain to her lonely .chamber's folitude 
 
 ^The Maiden had r-etir'd ; but her the King 
 
 Met on the threshold. He of the late fcene 
 
 Forgetful and his crime, as cheerful feem'd 
 
 As tho* there had not beea a God in Heav'n i 43* 
 
 ** Enter the hall," he cried, " the mafquers there 
 
 Join in the dance. Why, Maiden, art thou fad ? 
 
 Has that rude madman flaook thy gentle frame 
 
 With his ftrange frenzies ?" The difgufted Maid, 
 
 As fternly forrowful {he frown* d upon him, 435 
 
 Replied. " Yes, Charles J that madman has indeed 
 
% JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Made me moft fad. Much had I heard of courts, 
 
 Much of the vice and folly that enthralled 
 
 The mailers of mankind. Incredulous 
 
 I heard, incredulous that man fhould bow 440 
 
 In homage to the flaves. of appetite. 
 
 Thron'd in Infinity, the Eternal Juftlce 
 
 Gives or withholds fuccefs ; by his high will 
 
 Withering the uplifted Warrior's fmewy arm. 
 
 Victory is.his ; on whom he delegates 445 
 
 His minifter of wrath, the .Genius waits 
 
 Stern-brow'd attendant. In the human heart 
 
 Dwells Virtue ; milder form ! and templed there 
 
 Loves her meet altar ; and, tho' oft diilodg'd, 
 
 Reluctantly fhe quits her lov'd abode, 450 
 
 And oft returns, and oft importunate 
 
 Reclaims her empire. Wilt thou, Charles, reject 
 
 The fuppliant angel ? wilt thou thru ft her from thee* 
 
 Turning thine ear from her unheeded .cries, 
 
 To Riot's deaf 'ning clamors ? King of France! 455 
 
 To thee elated, thus above mankind 
 
 Subjected thoufands gaze.: they wait thy will, 
 
 They wait thy will to quit their peaceful homes, 
 
 To quit the comforts of domeftic life., 
 
 For the camp's diflbnance, the clang of arms, 460 
 
 The banquet of deftruction. King of France, 
 
 Glows not thy crimfon cheek — fmks not thine heart 
 
 At the dread thought of thoufands in thy caufe, 
 
 Mow'd by the giant fcythe of Victory ? 
 
 Of widows weeping for their flaughter'd hufbands ? 
 
BOOJC THE FQURTIf. 8$ 
 
 Of orphans groaning for their daily food ? 
 Oh that my voice in thunder might awake 
 The monitor within thee ! that thy foul 
 Might, like Manoah's iron-finew'd fon, 
 Burft its bafe fetters !" The aftouifh'd King 470 
 Trembled like Felix, when the Apoftle fpake 
 Of righteoufnefs to come. And now Dunois, 
 Toifing a javelin, came with hafty ftep : 
 His eye beam'd exultation, " Thou haft rous'd 
 The fleeping virtue of the fons of France ; 475 
 
 They crowd around. the ftandard," cried the chief. 
 "jm My lance is ponderous ; 1 have fharp'd my fword 
 To meet the mortal combat. Miflion'd Maid, 
 Our brethren fieged in Orleans, every moment 
 *Gaze from the watch-tower with the fick'ning eye 
 Of expectation." Rous'd from his amaze, 
 And trufting by religion's forms obferv'd, 
 With fcrupulous care, to atone for the foul breach 
 •Of her firft duties, thus the King exclaim'd : 
 Sp O chofen by Heaven, defer awhile thy march, 485 
 That o'er the land my heralds may proclaim 
 A general faft," Severe the Maid replied : 
 *" Monarch of France ! and canft thou think that God 
 Beholds well-pleas'd the mockery of a faft ? * 
 ^Luxuriant lordly riot is content, 490 
 
 And willingly obedient to command, 
 Feafts on fome fainted dainty. The poor man, 
 From the hard labor of the day debarr'd, 
 H 
 
86 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 jLofes his hard meal too. It were to wafte 
 
 The hour in impious folly, fo to bribe 495 
 
 The all-creating Parent to deftroy 
 
 The works Jie made. Proud tyranny to Man, 
 
 To God foul infult ! -Mortify your pride ; 
 
 Be clad in fackcloth when the conqueror's car 
 
 Rolls o'er the field of blood. — Believe me,King, 50,0 
 
 If thou didft know the untold mifery 
 
 When from the bofom of domeftic Love 
 
 But one— one viclim goes ! if that thine heart 
 
 Be human, it would bleed 1" Her heart was full, 
 
 And, paufing for a moment, fhe repre-fs'd 595 
 
 The unbidden anguifh. " Lo ! they crowd around 
 
 The ftandard 1 Thou, Dunois, the chofen troops 
 
 Marfhal in fpeed, for early with the dawn 
 
 We march to xefcue Orleans from the foe." 
 
iooK the fifth: 
 
 ARGUMENT. 
 
 The Maid receives a confecrated bamier from the Areh- 
 bifljop. The troops under the *'■ command' of ~ JOAN 
 a?id Dunois march towards Orleans. They vieet ivith 
 one of thefemah cittcajfs from- that city i Her bijlcry 
 previous to taking, refuge there: Preparations for the 
 enfuing fiege. Encampment of the beftegers. Their 
 progrefs, and the fubfequent diflrejfes of Orleans. 
 
 OCARCE had the earlieft ray from Chinon's towers 
 
 Made vifible the mifts that cu'rPd* along 
 
 The winding waves of Vienne,. when from her couch 
 
 Started the martial Maid.- She mail'd her limbs ; 
 
 The white plumes nodded o'er her helmed head ; 5 
 
 She girt the temper'd falchion by her fide* 
 
 And, like fome youth- that from His- mother's arms, 
 
 For his firflt field impatient, breaks away, 
 
 Foiling the lance went forth.- Twelve hundred men, 
 
 Rearing in order ? d ranks their well-fharp'd fpears, 
 
 Await her coming. Terrible in arms 
 
 Before them tower'd Dunois,- His manly face 
 
 Dark-fhadow'd by the helmet's iron cheeks. 
 
 the afTembled court gaz'd on the marfhall'd train,. 
 
$8 JOAN. OF ARC. 
 
 And at the gate the aged Primate flood if 
 
 To pour his blefiing on the chofen hoft. 
 
 And now a foft and folemn fymphony 
 
 Was heard ; and chaunting high theliallow'd hymn 
 
 From the near convent came the veftal maids. 
 
 A holy banner, woven by. virgin hands,* 20 
 
 Snow-white they bore. A mingled fentiment 
 
 Of awe, and eager ardor for the fight, 
 
 Thrlll'd through the troops, as he the reverend man- 
 
 Took the white fkandard, and with heav'nward eye 
 
 Call'd on the God of Juftice, bleffing it. 25; 
 
 The Maid, her brows in reverence unhelm'd, 
 
 Her dark hair floating on the morning gale, 
 
 Knelt to his prayer, and ftretchirig forth her hand' 
 
 Receiv'd the myftic enfign. From the hoft 
 
 A loud and univerfal fliout Bur ft forth, 30 
 
 As rifmg from the ground, on her white brow 
 
 She placed the plumed cafque, and wav'd on high> 
 
 The banner'd lilies. On their way they march, 
 
 And dim in diftance, foon the towers of Chinon 
 
 Fade from the eye reverted. The third fun, 35" 
 
 Purpling the Iky with his dilated light, 
 
 Sunk weftering ; when embofom'd in the depth 
 
 Of that vaft foreft, whefe prodigious track x 
 
 Shadows the hills and vales of Orleannois, 
 
 They pitch their tents. The hum of occupation 40 
 
 Sounds ceafelefs. Waving to the evening gale, 
 
 The ftreamers wanton ; and, afcending flow 
 
 Beneath the foliage of the foreft trees, 
 
BOOK THE FIFTH. 89, 
 
 With many a light hue tinged,. the curling fmoke 
 Melts in the impurpled air : leaving her tent, 45 
 The martial Maiden wandered thro* the wood. 
 There, by a ftreamlet,. on its mofly bank 
 Reclined, (He faw a damfel : her long locks - 
 Engarlandedi and as fhe nearer came, 
 The Virgin knew it for the willow weed. 50 
 
 Refting his Head upon her lap, there lay 
 A dark-hair'd man, liftening as fhe did fing 
 Sad ditties, and en wreathe to bind his brow 
 The melancholy rue, Scar'd at the found 
 Of one in arms approaching, fhe had fled ;. 55 
 
 But Conrade, looking upward, recogniz'd 
 The Maid of Arc. " Fear not, poor Ifabel,-' 
 He faid, "for this is, one of gentle kind,. 
 Whom even the wretched need not fear to love." 
 
 So faying, he arofe and took her Hand, 60 
 
 And held it to his bofom. " My fond heart, 
 Though fchool'd by wrongs to loath at human kind, 
 Beats high, a rebel to its' own refolvesi 
 Come hither, outcaft One ! and call her friend, 
 And fhe friallbe thy friend more readily 65; 
 
 Becaufe thou art unHappy." Ifabel- 
 Saw a tear flarting in the Virgin's eye; 
 And glancing upon Conrade, ffie too wept; 
 Wailing his wilder' dfenfes. " Miflion'd Maid !"" 
 The warrior cried, "be happy T for thy power 70 
 Cart make this Wanderer fo. From Orleans driven}, 
 (Drphan'd by war, and torn away from one 
 H2- 
 
90 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Her only friend, I found her in the wilds, 
 
 Worn out with want and wretchednefs. Thou, Joan 9 
 
 Wilt his beloved to the youth reftore. 75 
 
 And, truft me, Maid ! the miferable feel 
 
 When they on others be flow happinefs 
 
 High joys and foul-ennobling." She replied, 
 
 Preffing the damfel's hand, in the mild tone 
 
 Of equal friendship, folacing her cares. 80 
 
 " Soon fhall we enter Orleans," faid the Maid ; 
 
 *' A few hours in her dream of victory 
 
 England (hall triumph ; then to be awak'd 
 
 By the loud thunder of Almighty wrath 1 
 
 Jrkfome meantime the bufy camp to me 85 
 
 A folitary woman. Ifabel, 
 
 Wert thou the while companion of my tent, 
 
 Lightly the time would pafs. Return with me, 
 
 I may not long be abfent." So ihe fpake. 
 
 The Wanderer in half-uttered words exprefs'd 90 
 
 Grateful affent. " Art thou aftonifh'd, Maid, 
 
 That one though powerful is benevolent ? 
 
 In truth thou well may'ft wonder !" Conrade cried* 
 
 " But little caufe to love the mighty ones 
 
 Has the low cottager f for with its {hade 95 
 
 Does Power,, a barren death-dew-dropping tree, 
 
 Blaft every herb beneath its baleful boughs ! 
 
 Tell thou thy fuiferings, Ifabel ! Relate 
 
 How warr'd the chieftains, and the people died. 
 
 The miffion'd Virgin hath not heard thy woes, iqo 
 
 And plcafant to my ear the twice-told tale 
 
BOOK THE FIFTH. 91 
 
 Of forrov. r ." Gazing on the martial Maid 
 
 She read her wifh and fpake. " Of lowly line, 
 
 Not diftant far from Jeriville, dwelt niy fire. 
 
 Two brethren forrri'd bur family of love. 105 
 
 Humble we were, but happy. Hoheft toil 
 
 Procur'd our homely fuftenance. Our herds 
 
 Duly at morri and evening to my hand 
 
 Gave their full (lores. The vineyard he had rear'd 
 
 Purpled its clufters in the fouthern fun ; 1 10 
 
 And plenteous produce of my father's toil 
 
 ^7he yellow harveft billowed o y er the plain. 
 
 We were content and envied not the great ; 
 
 We fear'd them nor, for we were innocent. 
 
 How cheerful feated round the blazing hearth 115 
 
 When all the labour of the day was done, 
 
 We pafs'd the ev'ning hours \ for they would fing 
 
 Or cheerful roundelay, or ditty fad 
 
 Of maid forfalceri and the willow weed, 
 
 Or of the doughty Douzeperes of France, 1 20 
 
 Some warlike fit, the while my fpinning wheel 
 
 Humm'd not unpleafmg round !" 
 
 " Thus long we lived, 
 And happy. To a neighbouring youth my hand, 
 In holy wedlock foon to be combin'd, 
 Was plighted. My poor Francis !" Here (he paused, 
 And here fhe. wept awhile* «* We did not dream 
 The defolating fword of War would ftoop 
 To us. But foon as with the whirlwind's fpeed 
 Ruin rufh'd round us. Mehun, Clery, Fell,, * 
 
92 fOAN OF ARC, 
 
 The banner'd Lion- waved on Gergeau's wall,- ^ 
 
 Baugenci yielded : foon the foe approach'd ; 
 
 The towers of Jenville. Fatal was the hour 
 
 To lucklefs Ifabel. For from the wall 
 
 The rufty fword was taken, and the fhield 
 
 That long, had mouldered on the mouldering nail*? 
 
 To meet the war repair'd. No more was heard 
 
 The ballad, or the merry roundelay. 
 
 The clattering hammer's clank, the grating file 
 
 Harfh founded thro' the day a difmal din* 
 
 L never fhall forget their mournful found !• 14^ 
 
 " My father flood encircling his old limbs 
 In long forgotten arms. "Come, boys," he cried,'* 
 '* I did not think that this grey head again 
 Should bear the helmet's weight ! but in the field - 
 Better to boldly die afoldier's death,- 14^: 
 
 Than here be tamely butcher'd*- My dear girl, 
 Go to the Abbey. Here is gold to buy 
 The kind protection of the holy church, •• 
 Fare thee well, Ifabel ! if we furvive 
 And conquer, we fhall meet again :• if not, 15CP 
 There is abetter world !" In broken words 
 Lifting his looks to Heav'n ! my father breath'd- 
 His blefling on me:- As they ftrode away, 
 My brethren gazed on me and preft my hand 
 In filence, for they lov'd their Ifabel. 155; 
 
 From the near cottage Francis join'd the troop. 
 Then did I look on our forfaken home, 
 Andalmoft fob my very, foul away '!'- 
 
BOOK THE FIFTH*. g? 
 
 J$6r all my hopes of happinefs were fled, • 
 
 Hike a vain dream ! * " Perifh thefe mighty ones," 
 
 Cried Conrade, " thefe prime minillers of death, 
 
 Who ftaik elated o'er their fields of fame, 
 
 And count the thoufand's they have maiTacredV 
 
 And witli the bodies of the innocent, rear 
 
 Their pyramid of glory \" Perifn thefe, 165 
 
 The epitome of • all the peftilent plagues- 
 
 That Egypt knew ! who pour their locufl fwarms 
 
 G'er ravaged realms, and bid tlie brooks run blood. 
 
 Fear and Destruction go before their path. 
 
 And Famine dogs thdr~feet£eps. God of Juftice, 
 
 Let not the innocent blood cry out in vain !" 
 
 Tlras whilft he fpake,,the murmur of the camp; 
 Rofe on their ear. Firfl like the diftant found 
 When the full -foliag'd' fore ft: to the ftorrn 
 Shakes its hoar fe head"; Anon with louder din ; 175 
 And thro* the opening glade gleam'd many a fire. 
 The Virgin's tent they enter'd. There the board 
 Was fpread. The Wanderer, of the fare partook, 
 Then thus her tale renew'd. "-Slow o'er the hill 
 Whofe rifmg head conceal'd our cot I pafs'd, 1-80 
 Yet on my journey paus'd awhile, and gaz'd,. 
 And wept — for often had I croft the hill 
 With cheerful ftep> and feen the rifmg fmoke 
 Of hofpitable fire. Alas ! no fmoke 
 Curl'd o'er the melancholy chimneys now. 185 
 Orleans I reach'd. There in the fuburbs flood 
 The Abbey — and ere long I learnt the fall 
 
9* JO AN OF' ARC, 
 
 Of Jenville. On a day, a foldier aiVd 
 
 For Ifabel. Scarce could my faultering feet 
 
 Support mei It was iFrancis, and alone— i9< 
 
 The fole furvrvor of the fatal fight ! 
 
 And foon the foes approach'd. Impending War 
 
 Soon fadden'd Orleans. There the braveft chiefs J 
 
 AfTemble; Gallant D'Orval ihines in' arms, 
 
 And Xaintrailles ranfom'd from the captive chain* 
 
 Graville, La Hire, and Thouars, and preferv'd 
 
 When fallen and faint," Alencon on the field ' 
 
 Verneuiljto France fo fatal; and releas'd, 
 
 La Fayette from his hard captivity, 
 
 BbufTac, Chabanries, and'over all rehbwn'd *' 20a 
 
 The Baftard Orleans. Thefe within the town 
 
 Expect the foe. Twelve hundred chofen men 
 
 Well tried in- war^uprear the guardian fhield 
 
 Beneath their banners. - Dreadful' was- the fight 
 
 Of preparation. The wide fuburbs ftretcn'd 265 
 
 Along the pleafant borders of the Loire, 
 
 Late throngfd withmukitudes, now feel' the hand - 
 
 Of Ruin. Thefe preventive Care deftroys* 4 
 
 Left England,* ftielter'd' by the friendly walls, 
 
 Securely (hould approach; The monafteries 210 
 
 Fell in the general wafte. The holy monks 
 
 Uuwillingly their long.accuftom'd haunts 
 
 Abandon, haunts where- every gloomy nook 
 
 Call'd to awakened Memory fome trace 
 
 Of vifion feen, or found miraculous; 215' 
 
 Trembling and terrified,, their noifelefs cells 
 
BOOK THE FIFTH. ,$$ 
 
 l?or the rude uproar of a world unknown, 
 The Nuns defert. Their Abbefs, more compofed, 
 Collects her maids around, and tells her beads, 
 And pours the timid prayer of piety. 220 
 
 The citizens with ftrong and ceafelefs ftroke 
 Dug up the violated earth, ;o impede 
 The foe. The hollow chambers of the dead 
 J Echoed beneath. -The brazen-trophied tomb 
 ■Thrown in the furnace, now prepares to give 225 
 [The death it late recorded. It was fad 
 [To fee io wide a wafte ; the aged ones 
 [Hanging their heads, and weeping as they went 
 jO'er the fal-l'n dwellings of their happier years ; 
 The ftern and fullen filence of the men 23,0 
 
 Muling on vengeance: and ^ut ill repreft 
 The mother's fears as to her bread flie clafp^d 
 Her ill-doom'd infant. Soon the fuburbs lay 
 [One ample ruin ; the huge Hones remov'd, 
 Wait in the town to rain the ftorm of death. 235 
 " And now .--without the walls the delplate plain 
 •Stretcb'd wide, a rough and melancholy wafte. 
 (With uptorn pavements and foundations deep 
 Df many a ruined dweljing— horrid fcene ! 
 fclor was within lefs drear. At evening hour 240 
 No more the merry tabor's note was heard, 
 (No more the aged matron at her door 
 jHumm'd cheery to her fpinning wheel, and mark'd 
 iHer children dancing to the roundelay. 
 'It was a hurried, melancholy fcene ! '445 
 
*$6 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 The chieftains ftrengthening ftill the many walls, 
 Survey them with the prying eye of fear. 
 The eager youth in dreadful preparation 
 ' Strive in. the mimic war. Silent and ftem 
 They urge with fearful hafte their gloomy work. 250. 
 All day the .armorer's bufy beat was heard, 
 All night it founded. In the city -dwelt 
 Such a dead filence of all, pleafant founds 
 As in the fore ft when the lowering clouds 
 Meet, and the deep and hollow wind is heard 255 
 That omens tempeft : trembles to its voice 
 The grove, and cafts a darker gloom around. 
 
 - " At length the foe approach. The watchman 
 - founds 
 \His dreadful warning. From the lofty tower 
 Of old cathedral I beheld the &ene. 2 60 
 
 Trembling as when upon fome'little rock 
 Iflanded from the not-far-diftant more, 
 The^fhipwreck'd feaman difficultly efcap'd 
 .Stands, and beholds the tide faft rifing round. 
 
 " With ftandards proudly waving to the breeze, 
 Onward they move. The clarions breathe aloud 
 Their martial clangor, and the cheerful fife, 
 According to the thundering drum's deep^found, 
 Directs their-meafur'd march. 'Before the ranks 
 Stalks the ftern form of Salisbury, the fcaurge 270 
 Of France:.; and Talbot towered by his fide, 
 Talbot, at whofe dread name the froward child 
 vClings mute and trembling to his nurfe's breaft. 
 
BOOK THE FIFTH. 97 
 
 Suffolk was there, and Hungerford, and Scales, 
 And Faftolffe, viclor in the frequent fight. 275 
 Dark as the autumnal ftorm they roll'd along, 
 That big with ruin chills the blacken'd vale ; 
 A countlefs hoft ! From the high tower I mark'd 
 The dreadful fcene.— I faw the iron blaze 
 Of javelins fparkling to the noontide fun, 280 
 
 Their banners toflmg to the troubled gale, 
 And— fearful mufic— heard upon the wind 
 The modulated ftep of multitudes. 
 There in the midft, fhuddering with fear, I faw 
 The dreadful ftores of death. Tremendous roll'd 
 Over rough roads the har£b wheels. The brazen 
 Flafh'd in the fun their fearful fplendor far, [tubes 
 And laft the loaded waggons creak'd along. 
 .An awful fcene ! that chill'd me as I gaz'd. 
 Thus from the black womb of the mutinous fky, 
 When the red lightning rallies, and illumes 
 With lurid light the cloud-clad hemifphere, 
 The traveller fpeeds acrofs the plain, yet marks 
 All fearful as he is, with flrange delight, 
 The forked flafh. Meantime, a penfive train, 295 
 The fearful Nuns in fad folemnity 
 Pafs to the temple. In this hour of ill, 
 Earned of foul they pray to Heav'n for aid." 
 And now Dunois, for he had feen the camp 
 Well-order'd, .enter'd. " One night more in peace 
 England mail reft," he cried, " ere yet the ftorm 
 Burfts on her guilty head ! then their proud vaunts 
 
$8 JOAN OF ARC, 
 
 Forgotten or remember'd to their fliame, 
 Vainly her chiefs fhall curfe the hour, when firfl 
 They pitch/d their tents round Orleans. ,, 
 
 " Of that fiege," 310 
 The Maid of Arc replied, u gladly I hear 
 The detail. Ifabel, proceed ; for foon 
 Deftin'd to refcue that devoted town, 
 AH that has chanced, the ills fhe has endur'd, 
 I liften, forrowing for the pait, and feel 315 
 
 High fatisfaction at the faviour power 
 To me commiflioned." Thus the Virgin fpake, 
 Nor Ifabel delayed. u And now more near 
 The hoftile hoft advancing pitch their tents. 
 Unnumber'd ftreamerswave, and clamorous fhouts, 
 Anticipating conqueft, rend the air 
 With univerfal uproar. From their camp 
 A herald comes. His garb emblazon'd o'er 
 With Britifh. lions, and foul blot to France 1 
 The lilies from the field of Azincour 325 
 
 In flaughter pluck'd. The fummons of the foe 
 He brought." The Baftard interrupting cried, 
 " I was with Gaucour and the afTembled chiefs, 
 When by his office privileged and proud 
 That herald fpake, as certain of fuccefs 330 
 
 As he had made a league with Victory/* 
 " Nobles of France rebellious ! from the chief 
 Of yon victorious hoft, the mighty Earl 
 Of Salifbury, now there in place of him 
 Your Regent John of Bedford : in his name 33^ 
 
BOOK THE FIFTH. 99 
 
 1 come, and in our fover eign Lord the King's 
 
 Henry. Ye know full well our mailer's claim 
 
 Incontrovertible to this good realm, 
 
 By right defcent, andfolemnly confirm'd 
 
 By your late Monarch and our mighty King 340 
 
 Fifth Henry, in the treaty ratified 
 
 At Troyes, wherein your Monarch did difclaim 5 
 
 All future right and title to this crown, 
 
 His own exempted, for his fon and heirs 
 
 Down to the end of time. This fign'd and feal'd 
 
 At the holy altar, and by nuptial knot 
 
 Of Henry and your Princefs, yields the realm, 
 
 Charles dead and Henry, to his infant fon 
 
 Henry of Windfor. Who then dares oppofe 
 
 My matter's title, in the face of God 3 jd 
 
 Of wilful perjury, moft atrocious crime, 
 
 Stands guilty, and of flat rebellion 'gainft 
 
 The Lord's anointed. He at Paris crown'd, 
 
 With loud acclaim from duteous multitude 
 
 Thus fpeaks by me. Deliver up your town 355* 
 
 To Salifbury, and yield yourfelves and arms, 
 
 So fhall your lives be fafe. And — mark his grace ! 
 
 If of your free accord, to him you pay 
 
 Due homage as your fovereign Lord and King, 
 
 Your rich eftates, your houfes fhall be fafe v 360 
 
 And you in favor ftand, as is the Dukey 
 
 Philip of Burgundy. But— mark me well— ■ 
 
 If obftinately wilful, you perfift 
 
 To fcorn his proffer'd mercy ; not one ftone : 
 
ioo JOAN OF ARC, 
 
 Upon another of this wretched town 365 
 
 Shall then be left. And when the Englifh hoft 
 Triumphant in the duft have trod the towers 
 Of Orleans, who furvive the dreadful war 
 Shall die like traitors by the hangman's hand. 
 Ye men of France, remember Caen and Rouen !" 
 
 " He ceafed. Nor Gaucour for a moment paus'd 
 To form reply. " Herald, to all thy vaunts 
 Of Englifh fovereignty let this fuffice 
 For anfwcr : France will only own as King 
 Him whom the people choofe. On Charles's brow, 
 Tranfmitted thro* a long and good defcent 
 The crown remains. We know no homage due 
 To Englifh robbers, and cHfclaim the peace 
 Inglorious made at Troves by factious men 
 
 tioftile to France. Thy matter's proffer'd grace 3S0 
 
 Meets the contempt it merits. Herald, yes, 
 
 We fhall remember Meaux, and Caen, and Rouen. 
 
 Go tell the mighty Earl of Salifbury, 
 
 That as like Blanchard, Gaucour dares his power ; 
 
 Like Blanchard, he can mock his cruelty, 385. 
 
 And triumph by enduring. Speak I well, 
 
 Ye men of Orleans ?" " Never did I hear 
 
 A fhout fo univerfal as enfued 
 
 Of approbation. The affembled hoft 
 
 As with one voice pour'd forth their loyalty, 390 
 
 And ftruck their founding fhields. The towers of 
 
 Orleans 
 Echoed the loud uproar. The herald went, 
 
BOOK THE FIFTH. 101 
 
 The work of war began." " A fearful fcene," 
 Cried Ifabel. " The iron florin of death 
 ClahVd in the fky. From the ftrong engines hurPd^ 
 Huge rocks with temp eft force convuls'd the air. 
 Then was there heard at once the clang of arms, 
 The bellowing cannon's, and the foldier's fhout, 
 The female's fhriek— the affrighted infant's cry : 
 The groan of death. — Difcord- of dreadful founds 
 That jarr'd the foul ! Nor while the encircling foe- 
 Leagur'd the wall of Orleans, idly flept 
 Our friends* For winning down the Loire its way 
 The frequent vefTel with provi (ion fraught,. 
 And men, and all the artillery of death, 405 
 
 Cheer'd us with welcome fuccour. At the bridge 
 Thefe fafely ftranded mock'd the foeman's force. 
 This to prevent,. Salifbury their watchful chief, 6 
 Prepares the amazing work. Around our walls, 
 Encircling walls he builds, furrounding thus 410 
 The city. Firm'd with maffieft buttreffes, 
 At equal diftance, fixty forts protfcft 
 The pile. ' But chief where in theJieged town 
 The fix great avenues meet in the mid ft, 
 Six caftles there he rear'd impregnable, 415: 
 
 With deep-dug moats and bridges drawn aloft,. 
 Where over the ftrong gate fufpended hung 
 The dread portcullis. Thence' the gunner's eye 
 From his fafe fhelter could with eafe furvey 
 intended fally, or approaching aid, 420 
 
 And point definition. It were long to tell 
 1 2 
 
102 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 And tedious, how with many a bold affault 
 The men of Orleans rufti'd upon their foes ; 
 How fell the Tournelles (where in time of peace 
 Juftice had held her feat) and that ftrong tower 7 
 That fhadowed from the bridge the fubjecl Loire ; 
 Th'o* numb'ring now three thoufand daring men, 
 Frequent and fierce the garrifon repell'd 
 Their far out-numbering foes. From ev'ry aid 
 Included, they in Orleans groan'd beneath 430 
 All ills accumulate. The fhatter'd roofs 
 Gave to the midnight dews free pafTage there. 
 And ever and anon with hideous cram 
 Some houfe fell ; darting from his fcanty reft 
 The wearied foldier. Thro' the ftreets were feen 
 The frequent fire, and heaps of dead, in hafte 
 Piled up and (learning to infecled Heaven. 
 For ever the inceflant ftorm of Death 
 Showers down, and fhrouded in unwholefome vaults 
 The wretched females hide, not idle there, 440 
 Wafting the hours in tears, but all employ 'd, 
 Or to provide the hungry foldier's meal, 
 Or tear their garments to bind up his wounds : 
 A fad equality of wretchednefs. 
 
 u Now came the worft of ills, for Famine came ! 
 The provident hand deals out its fcanty dole, 
 Yielding fo little a fupply to life 
 As but protracted death. The loathlieft food 
 Hunted with eager eye, and dainty deem'd. 
 The dog is flain, that at his mailer's feet 450 
 
BOOK THE FIFTH. 103 
 
 Howling with hunger lay. With jealous fear, 
 Hating a HvaPs look, the hufband hides 
 His miferable meal. The famifh'd babe 
 Clings clofely to his dying mother's breaft ; 
 And—horrible to tell !— where, thrown aiide, 455 
 There lay unburied in the open ftreets 
 Huge heaps of carcaffes, the foldier ftands 
 Eager to feize the carrion crow for food. 
 Oh peaceful fcenes of childhood ! pleafant fields ! 
 Haunts of my infancy, where I have ftray'd 460. 
 Tracing the brook along its winding way, 
 Or pluckM the primrofe, or with giddy fpeed 
 Chaced the gay butterfly from flower to flower ! 
 Oh days in vain remember'd ! how my foul 
 Sick with calamity, and the fore ills 465 
 
 Of hunger, dwelt upon you ! quiet home 
 Thinking of you amid the wafte of war, 
 I could in bitternefs have curs'd the Great 
 Who made me what I was ! a helplefs one, 
 Orphan'd, and wanting bread !" 
 
 " And be they curft," 470 
 Conrade exclaim'd, his dark eye flafliing rage ; 
 iC And be they curft I O groves and woodland fhades, 
 How bleft indeed were you, if the iron rod 
 Should one day from Oppreflion's hand be wrench'd 
 By everlafting Juftice I come that hour 475 
 
 When in the Sun the Angel of the Lord 8 
 Shall ftand and cry to all the fowls of Heaven, 
 1 Gather ye to the fupper of your God, 
 
io+ JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 That ye may eat the flefh of • mighty men, 
 Of Captains, and of Kings !' Then fhall be peace 48CP 
 When — Author of all ills that flefh endures, 
 Oppression, in the bottomlefs abyfs 
 Shall fall to rife no m<*re V The Maid purfued : 
 " And now, left all fhould perifh, was decreed 
 That from the town the females and the infirm 48^ 
 Should, out-caft, feek their fate. I may not now 
 Recal the moment, when on my poor Francis, 
 With a long look I hung ! At dead of night, 
 Made mute by fear, we mount the fecret bark, 
 And glide ado wn the ftream with filent oars : 490' 
 Thus thrown upon the mercy of mankind. 
 I wandered recklefs where, till wearied out 
 And cold at heart, I laid me down to die : 
 So by this warrior found. Him I had known 
 And loved, for all loved Conrade who had known-' 
 him. 495. 
 
 Nor did I feel fo prefling the hard hand 
 Of want in Orleans, ere he parted thence 
 On perilous envoy. For of his fmall fare" — 
 " Of this enough," faid Conrade, " Holy Maid ! 
 One duty yet awaits me to perform. 500'- 
 
 Orleans he-r envoy fent me, claiming aid 
 From her inactive fovereign. Willingly 
 Did I achieve the hazardous enterprize, 
 For Rumor had already made me fear- 
 
BOOK THE FIFTH. 105 
 
 The ill that had fallen on me. It remains 505 
 
 Ere I do bapifh me from human kind, 
 
 That I re-enter Orleans, and announce 
 
 Thy march. 'Tis night— and hark ! how dead a 
 
 filence ! 
 Fit hour to tread fo perilous a path !" 
 So faying, Conrade from the tent went forth. 510 
 
BOOK THE SIXTH. 
 
 ARGtJMENT.- 
 
 Senrade on his way to Orleans releafes a French foldief,- 
 He enters that city* Council of the leaders. Their 
 determination. Summons of the Maid to the EngliJIi 
 Generals. They receive it with fcorn. The Maid 7 
 attacks, defeats them, and enters Orleans in triumph 
 at midnight, amid thunder and lightning. 
 
 nrr 
 JL HE flight Was calm, and many a moving cloud" 
 
 Shadowed' the moon. Along the foreft glade 
 
 With fwift foot Conrade paft, and now had reach'd* 
 
 The plain, where whilome by the pleafant Loire, 
 
 Cheer'd with the fong, the nifties had beheld <f 
 
 The day go down upon their merriment : 
 
 No fong of Peace now echoed on its banks. 
 
 There tents- were pitched — and there the centinel, 
 
 Slow pacing on his fullen rounds, beheld 
 
 The frequent corfe roll down the tainted flream. 10 
 
 Conrade with wider fweep purfuedhis way, 
 
 Shunning the camp, now huhYd in fleep and ftill. 
 
 And now no found was heard fave of the Loire, 
 
 Murmuring along. The noife of coming feet 
 
BOOK THE SIXTH. 107 
 
 Alarm'd him. Nearer drew the fearful found 15 
 As of purfult — anon — the clam of arms ! 
 That inftant rifmg o'er a broken cloud 
 The moon beams ihone, where two with combined 
 Preft on a fmgle foe : he, warding ftill [force 
 
 Their fwords, retreated in the unequal light, 2Q 
 As he would make the city. Conrade fhook 
 His long lance for the war, and ftrode along. 
 Pull in the breaft of one with forceful arm 
 Plunged he the fpear of death ; and as, difmayed 
 By his fellow's fall, the other turn'd to fly, 25 
 
 Hurl'd the red weapon reeking from the wound, 
 And nVd him to the plain. " Now hafle we on, 
 Frenchman !" he cried. On to the ft ream they fpeed, 
 And plunging ftemm'd with fmewy ftroke the tide. 
 Soon on the oppofite more arrived and fafe. 30 
 
 >*< "Whence commit thou ?" cried the Chief; " on 
 
 what high charge 
 •Commiffion/d I" " Is it not the yoice of Conrade ¥> 
 Francis exclaim'd ; " and doft thou bring to us 
 <( Tidings of fpeedy aid I oh ! had it come 
 A few hours earlier ! Jfabel is gone (•' 35 
 
 il Nay, (he is fafe," cried Conrade, " her I found 
 When wilder'd in the foreft, and coafign'd 
 To the protection of that holy Maid, 
 The delegate of Heaven, One evening more 
 And thou {halt have thine IfabeU Now fay, 49 
 Wherefore alone ? A fugitive from Orleans, 
 Or fent on dangerous fervice from the town I" 
 
io8. JOAN OF 4kC. 
 
 " There is no food in Orleans," he replied, 
 " Scarce a meal more ! the aflembled Chiefs refolved 
 If thou mouldfl bring no tidings of near aid 45 
 To cut their way to fafety, or by death 
 Prevent the pang of -famine. One they fought 
 Who venturous in the Englifli camp fhould fpy 
 Where fafeft they might rufh upon the foe. 
 The perilous tafk I chofe, then defperate 50 
 
 Of happinefs." So faying they approached 
 The gate. The centinel, foon as he heard 
 Thitherward footfteps, with uplifted lance 
 Challenged the darkling travellers. At their voice 
 He draws the ftrong bolts back, and painful turns 55 
 The many entrance. To the careful chiefs 
 They jpafs. At midnight of their extreme ftate 
 Counfellmg they fat, ferious and ftern. To them 
 Conrade. " AfTembled Warriors ! Tent from God 
 There is a holy Maid by miracles 60 
 
 Made manifeft. Twelve hundred chofen men 
 Follow her hallowed ftandard. Thefe Dunois, 
 The itrength of France, arrays. With the next nooi 
 Ye ihall behold their march." Aftonifliment 
 Seized the convened Chiefs, and joy by doubt 6$ 
 Little reprefs'd. " Open the granaries !" 
 Xaintrailles exclaim'd. " Give we to all the hoft 
 With hand unfparing now the plenteous meal ; 
 .To-morrow we are fafe. For Heaven all juft 
 Has feen our fufferings and decreed their end. 7.3 
 J.ct the glad tidings echo thro' the town j 
 
BOOK THE SIXTH. 109 
 
 God is with us !" " Reft not in too full faith," 
 D'Orval replied, " on this miraculous aid. 
 Some frenzied female whofe wild phantafy, 
 Shaping vain dreams, infects the credulous 75 
 
 With her own madnefs ! That Dunois is there, 
 Leading in arms twelve hundred chofen men, 
 Cheers me : yet let not we our little food 
 Be lavifh'd, left the warrior in the fight 
 Should haply fail, and Orleans he the prey 80 
 
 Of England!" "Chief! I tell thee," Conrade cried, 
 «' I did myfelf behold the marble tomb 
 Burft, to the holy Maid difclofmg arms 
 Held in the grave inviolate for her. 
 *She is the Delegate of the Moft High, 85 
 
 And fhall deliver Orleans !" Gaucour then, 
 -" Be it as thou haft faid. High Hope I feel, 
 For to no vulgar tale would Conrade yield 
 Belief, or he the Baftard. Our fmall ftores 
 Muft yield us ere another week elapfe, 90 
 
 To death or England. Tell thro* all our troops 
 There is a holy Virgin fent from God ; 
 They in that faith invincible fhall war 
 With more than mortal fury." Thus the Chief, 
 And what he faid feem'd good. The men of Orleans, 
 Long by their foemen bayed, a victim band, 
 -To war, and woe, and want, fuch tranfport felt 
 As when the Mexicans, with eager eye x 
 •Gazing to Huixachtla's diftant top, 
 On that laft night, doubtful if ever morn 100 
 
Tip JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Again ftiall cheer them, mark the my/lic fire* 
 That kindled by the fierce Copolcan prieft, 
 Flames on the breaft of fome brave prifoner, 
 A dreadful altar. As they fee the blaze 
 Beaming on Iztapalapan's near towers, 105 
 
 Or on Tezcuco's calmy lake fiafhld far, 
 Songs of tljankfgiving and the fhout of joy 
 Wake the loud echo ; the glad hufband tears 
 The mantling aloe from the female's face, 
 And children, now deliver'd from, the dread 11 p 
 Of everlafting darknefs, look abroad, 
 Hail the good omen, and expect the fun 
 Uninjur'd ftill to run his flaming race. 
 
 Thus w-hilft in that befieged town the night 
 Wain'd fleeplefs, filent jflept the hallowed hoft. 1 i£ 
 And now the morning came. From his hard couch, 
 Lightly upftarting and bedight in arms, 
 The Baftard moved along, with provident eye 
 Marfhalling the troops. All high in hope they 
 
 march. 
 A.ud now the.fun mot from the fouthern iky 1 20 
 His noon-tide radiance, when afar they hear 
 The hum of men, and mark the diftant towers 
 Of Orleans, and the bulwarks of the foe, 
 And many a ftreamer. wantoning in air. 
 Thefe as they faw and thought of all the ills .1 23 
 Their brethren had endur'd beleager'd there 
 For many a. month ; fuch ardor for the fight 
 ,B)irnt in each bofom, as young AHjfelt 
 
BOOK THE SIXTH. m 
 
 When to the afTembled tribe Mohammed fpake, 
 Afking for' one his Vizier, Fierce in faith; 130 
 
 Forth from the race of Hafhem ftept the youth, 
 " Prophet of God ! lo— I will be the man !" 
 Nor did not Ali merit that higbf pOfH 
 Victorious upon Beder's fertile vale,' 
 And on mount Ohud, and before the walls 13^*5 
 Gf Chaibar, then when cleaving to the chefl 
 His giant foe, he grafp'd the many gate$ 
 Shook with ftrong arm and tore it from the fort, 
 And lifted it in air — portentous fbield ! 
 
 " Behold the towers of Orleans," criedDunois. 146 
 w Lo ! this the vale where on the banks of Loire,' 
 Gf yore, at ciofe of day the fa ft ic band 
 Danced to the roundelay. In younger years 
 As oft I glided down the filver ftream, 
 Frequent upon the lifted oar I paus'd 14^ 
 
 Lift'ning the found of far-off merriment. 
 There wave the Englifh banners ! martial Maid, 
 Give thou the fignal — let me rufh upon 
 Thefe minifters of murder, who have fack'd 
 The fruitful fields, and made the hamlet haunts 1 50 
 Silent— *or hearing but the widow's groan. 
 Give thou the fignal, Maiden !" Her dark eye 
 Fix'd fadly on the foe, the holy Maid 
 Ahfwer'd him. li Ere the bioody fword be drawn, 
 Ere- flaughter be let loofe — befits us fend 1 5$ 
 
 Some peaceful mefTenger, who fhall make known 
 The will of Heaven. So timely warn'd, our foes- 
 
in JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Haply may yet repent, and quit in peaee 
 
 Befieged Orleans. Victory is fad 
 
 When even one man is murder'd." So fhe faid, 16c* 
 
 And as fhe fpake a foldier from the ranks 
 
 Advanced. " I will be thy Meffenger, 
 
 Maiden- of God T I to the Englifh camp 
 
 Will bear thy bidding." " Go/'the Virgin cried,. 
 
 " Say to the Chief of Salisbury, and the hoft 165 
 
 Attending— Suffolk, Faftolffe, Talbot, Scales, 
 
 Invaders of the country — fay, thus fays 
 
 The Maid 01? D*i&gvt&» " With your troops retire. 
 
 In peace. Of: every captur'd town the keys 
 
 E.eftore to Charles ; fo bloodlefs you may feek 170 
 
 Your native England ; for the God of Hofts 
 
 Thus has decreed- To Charles the rightful heir, 
 
 By long defcent and voluntary choice 
 
 Of duteous fubjecls, hath the Lord afllgn'd 
 
 His conqueft. In his name the Virgin comes 1 75 , 
 
 Arm'd with his fword — -yet not of mercy void. 
 
 Depart in peace : for ere the morrow dawns, 
 
 Victorious upon Orleans' wall mall wave 
 
 The holy banner," To the Englifh camp 
 
 Fearlefs the warrior ftrode. At mid-day meal, 180 
 
 With all the diflbnance of boiilerous mirth, 
 
 The Britifh Chiefs carous'd and quaff 'd the bowl 
 
 To future conqueft. By the centinel 
 
 Conducted came the Frank. "Chiefs," he exclaim'd, 
 
 " Salifbury, and ye the reprefentatives • 1 85 
 
 Of the Engliih King, ufurper of this realm ,. 
 
BOOK THE SIXTH. 113 
 
 To ye the leaders of the invading hofl 
 
 I come, no welcome mefTenger. Thus fays 
 
 The Maid of Orlean s. " With your troops retire 
 
 In peace. Of every captur'd town the keys 190 
 
 Reftore to Charles ; fo bloodlefs may you feek 
 
 Your native England ; .for the God of Hofts 
 
 Thus has decreed.!' To Charles the rightful heir, 
 
 By long defcent and voluntary choice 
 
 Of duteous fubjecls, hath the Lord affign'd 195 
 
 His conqueft. In his name the Virghvcomes, 
 
 Arm'd with his fword, yet not of mercy void. 
 
 Depart in peace ; for ere the morrow dawns,. 
 
 Victorious upon Orleans' wall fhall wave 
 
 The holy; banner*"" Wonder made, a paufe ; 200 
 
 To this the laugh fucceeds, " What I" FaflolfFe cried, 
 
 ** A woman, warrior has your monarch fent 
 
 To fave devoted Orleans I. By the rood 
 
 I thank his Grace. If fhe be.young and. fair 
 
 No worthlefs prize, my Lords.. Go tell your Maid 
 
 Joyful we wait her coming."" "^Get thee gone," 
 
 Sternly cried Talbot^ " thou -who think'ft to fcare. 
 
 With girlifh phantafies the Englimhoft. 
 
 That fcorns your braveft warriors. Hiethee hence, 
 
 Infolent herald 1 tell this frantic girl, &lq 
 
 This courtly minion, to avoid my wrath*., 
 
 For if fhe dares the war,, I will. not ftain 
 
 My good-blood-rufted fword — but {fee fhall meet 
 
 The mockery of the camp." " Nay, fcare her not," 
 
 Replied their Chiefc "go tell thisMaid ofOrleans, 2 1< 
 
1 1 4 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 That Salifbury longs to meet her in the fight. 
 Nor let her fear that rude and iron chains 
 Shall gall her tender limbs ; for I myfelf 
 Will be her prifon, and—" " Contemptuous Man \ 
 No more," the Frank exclaimed, as to his cheek 220- 
 Rufh'd the red anger. " Bearing words of peace 
 And timely warning, came I to your camp, 
 Here with rude mock'ry and flern infolence 
 Received. Bear witnefs, Chieftains! that the French, 
 Free from blood-guiltinefs, fhall meet the war." 225 
 So faying, he departed. Thro' the tents 
 As him the centinel conducted,. round 
 He gaz'd and cried ; " Oh ! I am fad to think 
 So many men mail never fee the fun 
 Go down ! Ye Englilh mothers, mourn ye now, 2.3Q 
 Daughters of. England weep ! for hard of heart 
 Still your mad leaders urge the impious war, 
 And for their folly and their wickednefs 
 Your fons, your hufbands, by the fworcl muft fall. 
 Widow'd and friendlefs, ye flial'l" fit and weep, 231 
 And, wanting bread, groan for the murdered onej 
 In whom your joys were murdered !" So he cried 
 And they who heard him trembled. Thro' the hod 
 Ran the ftrange tidings. For the fight they arm ? 
 Eager for war no longer, nor of blood 240 
 
 Greedy, but palfied by religious dread. 
 Some by bold words feeking to hide their fear 
 Even from themfelves ; fome of the. coming fray 
 Murmuring in hints half heard; tho r underftood ; 
 
BOOK THE SIXTH. iv^ 
 
 Some deadly pale and ominous of death, 245 
 
 Silently flood and breath'd the inward prayer. 
 
 Meantime the herald had with hafly fleps- 
 Rejoin'd the hallowed troops. " Maiden of God ! 
 Vainly I proffer'd peace to the proud chiefs : 
 Their hearts are hardened." 
 
 Thro' the marfhall'd band 250 
 Ran the loud cry, " Lead, lead -us to the foe !" 
 The miffion'd Maid exclaim'd, " Not -upon us, 
 Not upon us, cry out the innocent blood !" 
 Given. was the fignal now : and now were heard 
 The clarion's clangor, and the trumpet's blaft, 255 
 Soul-roufmg founds. Like two conflicting clouds, 
 Pregnant with thunder, rufh'd the hoflile hofls. 
 Then man met man; — then on the batter'd fhield 
 Rung the loud lance, and thro* the darken'd Iky. 
 3* aft fell the arrowy ftorm. Amidfl his foes 26o_ 
 The Ballard's arm . fway'd irrefiftible 
 The flrok.es of death ; and by his fide the Maid' 
 Led the fierce fight ; the Maid, tho' all unus'd 
 To the rude conflict, now infpir'd by Heaven* 
 Flafhing her flamy falchion thro' the troops 265 
 That like the thunderbolt, where'er it fell, 
 Scattered the trembling ranks. Nor plated fliield, 
 Nor the flrong hauberk, nor- the crefled cafque, 
 Stay that defcending fword. Dreadful fhe moved, 
 Like as the Angel of the Lord went forth 270 
 And fmote his army, when the Affyrian King, 
 Haughty of Hamath and Sepharvaim fallen, 
 
ii6 JOA-H OF ARC. 
 
 Blafphem'd the God of Ifrael. Yet the fight- 
 Hung doubtful, where exampling hardieft deeds, 
 Salifbury raow'd down the foe, and Faftolffe drove,;. 
 And in the hotted doings of the w r ar 
 Towered Talbot. He* remembering the pall day 
 When from his name the affrighted fons of France. 
 Fled trembling, all aftonifh'd at their force 
 And wontlefs valor, rages round the field 280- 
 
 Dreadful in fury ; yet in every man 
 Meeting .a- foe fearlefs, and in, the faith 
 O&Heaven's affiftance firm. The clang of arms 
 Reaches- the walls of Orleans-. For the war 
 Prepared, and confident of victory, 285; 
 
 Speed forth thet troops. - Not when afar exhal'd 
 The hungry, raven fnuffs the fleam of blood 
 That from fome carcafs-cover'd field of fame 
 Taints the pure- air, wings he more eagerly 
 To riot on the gore, than ruftVd the ranks ; 290 
 Impatient now for many an ill endur'd 
 In the long fiege ? - to. wreak uppntheir foes 
 Due vengeance.- Then more fearful grew the fray; - 
 The fwords that late flafti'd to- the- evening fun, 
 Now loft in blood their radiance. O'er the hoft 205 
 Howl'd the deep,.- wind that ominous of ftorms 
 Roll'd on the lurid clouds* The blacken' d night 
 Frown'd, and the thunder from the troubled fky 
 Roar ? d hollow. Javelins clafh'dand bucklers rang .;- 
 Shield prefl on fhield ; loud on the helmet jarr'd 
 The ponderous battle-axe ; the groan of death- 
 
BOOK THE SIXTH* 117 
 
 Commingling. frequent with the ftorm was heard, 
 And the ihrill fhriek of Fear. Amid the ftorm 
 Slaughter exultant rides. His giant limbs 
 Beftride the whirlwind, and his red right arm 305" 
 Arrowed the lightning. Frantic Fury howls 
 Amid the thickeft ranks, and from her torch 
 Tartarean Sallies fhook, and loud was heard 
 Horror's dread fhriek amid the wilduiproarv. 
 
 Lo I where the holy banner waved aloft 5*1 o 
 The lambent lightnings play'd. Irradiate round.' 
 As with a blaze of glory, o'er the field* 
 It mot miraculous fplendor. Then their hearts 
 Sunk, and the Englifh trembled. With fuch fear 
 PofTefled, as when.the combined h oft beheld 3 1 :j 
 The fun (land ftiH on Gibeon, at the voice 
 Of that king-conquering warrior, he who fmote 
 The country of the hills, ..and of .the fouth,. 
 From Baal-gad to Halak, and their Kings^- 
 Even as the Lord commanded. Swift they fled 320 
 From that portentous banner, and the fword 
 Of France ; tho' Talbot with vain valiancy 
 Yet urged the war, and ftemm'd alone the tide 
 Ofconqueft. Even their leaders felt difmay j ,. 
 FaftolfFe ikd faft, and Saliibury in the rout 325* 
 Mingles, and all impatient of defeat, 
 Borne backward Talbot turns. Then echoed loud 
 The cry ofconqueft. Deeper grew the ftorm, 
 And darknefs, hovering o'er on raven_wing, 
 Brooded the field of death. Nor in the camp 330 
 
n8 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Deem themfelves fafe the trembling fugitives. 
 On to the forts they liafte. Bevvilder'd there 
 Amid the moats by fear, and the dead gloom 
 Of more than midnight darknefs, plunge the troopsy 
 Grufh'd by fa ft following numbers who partake 335 
 The death they give. As rufhing from the fnows 
 Of winter liquified, the torrent tide 
 Refiftlefs down the mountain rolls along, 
 Till at the brink; of giddy precipice 
 Arrived , with deaf'ning clkmcr down it falls f 340^ 
 Thus borne along, the affrighted Englifti troops 
 Driven by the force behind them, plunge amid 
 The liquid* deathi TlienTDfe the dreadful cries 
 More dreadful, and the dafh' of breaking waves 
 That to the parang lightning as they broke 34 
 Gleam'd horrible. Nor of the hoft fo late 
 Triumphing in the pride of victory, 
 And fvvoln with confidence, had now efcap'd ' 
 One wretched remnant, had not Talbot's mind, 
 Slow as he mov'd unwilling fromthe War, 350- 
 
 What moil' might profit the defeated ranks; 
 Pondered. He reaching fafe ths mafTyfort 
 By. St. John's name made holy, kindled up 
 The guiding fire. Not'unobfeiVd'it blaz'd ; 
 The watchful guards on Tournelles, and the pile 
 Of that proud' city, in remembrance fond 
 CalPd London, light the beacon. Nor aloft 
 Did they not flame from every fmaller 'fort, [moats •' 
 That firm entrenched with walls and deep-delv'd- 
 
 
BOOK THE SIXTH, 119 
 
 Included Orleans, O'er the fhadowy plain 360 
 
 They caft a lurid fplendor ; to the troops 
 Orateful, as to the way-worn traveller, 
 Wand'ring with parched feet o'er the Arabian fknds, 
 The far-feen ciftern ; he for many a league 
 Travelling the tracklefs defolate, where heaved 3 65 
 With tempeft fwell the defart billows round, 
 Paufes, and fhudders at -his perils paft, 
 Then wild with joy fpeeds on to tafte the wave 
 So long bewail'd. Swift .as the affrighted herd 
 Scud o'er the plain, wlien frequent thro' the fky 370 
 Flafh the fierce lightnings, fpeed the routed hoft 
 Of England. To the fheltering forts they hafte, 
 Though fafe, of fafety doubtful,, (till appall'd 
 And trembling, as the pilgrim who by night 
 On his way wilder' d, to the wolf's deep howl 3,75 
 Hears the wood echo, when from the fell bea.fl 
 Efcap'd, of fome tall tree the topmoft branch 
 He grafps clofe-elinging,.ftill of that keen fang 
 Fearful, his teeth jar, and the big drops ftand 
 On his cold quiv'ring limbs. /Npr now the Maid 
 Greedy of vengeance urges the purfuit. 
 She bids the trumpet of retreat refound. ; 
 A pleafant mufic to the routed ranks 
 Blows the -loud blaft. .Obedient to its voice 
 The French, tho'. eager onthe.invaders' heads 385 
 To wreak their wrath, ftay the victorious, fword. 
 
 Loud is the cry of conqueft as they turn 
 To Orleans. There what few to. guard the towja. 
 
X20 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Unwilling had remained,. hade forth to meet 
 The triumph. Many a blazing torch they held 390 
 That rais'd aloft amid the midnight ftorm, 
 Flafh'd far a. feftive light. The Maid advanced- 
 Deep through the iky the hollow thunders roll'd— 
 Innocuous lightnings round the hallowed banner 
 Wreath'd their red radiance. 
 
 Through the open'd gate 395 
 Slow paft the laden convoy. Then was heard 
 The fhout of.exultation, and iuch joy 
 The men of Orleans at that welcome fight 
 PofTefs'd ; as when from Baclria late fubdued, 
 The Macedonian Madman led his troops 400 
 
 Amid the Sogdian defart, where no ftream 
 Waftes on the wild its fertilizing waves. 
 Fearful alike to paufe, or to proceed ; 
 Scorch' d by the fun that o'er their morning march 
 Steam'd his hot vapors, heart fubdued and faint 
 Such joy as then they felt, when from the heights 
 Burft the foul-gladdening found ! for thence was fee 
 The evening fun filvering the tide below, 
 Where Oxus roll'd along. Clamors of joy 
 Echo along the ftreet of Orleans, wont 410 
 
 Long time to hear the infant's feeble cry, 
 The mother's frantic fhriek, or the dread found, 
 When from the cannon burft its ftores of death. 
 Far flames the fire of joy on ruin'd piles, 
 And high-heap'd carcaiTes, whence fcar'd away 415 
 
 n 
 
 ■ 
 
BOOK THE SIXTH. 121 
 
 From his abhorsed meal, on clattering wing 
 Rofe the night-raven flow. In the Englifh forts 
 Sad was the fcene. There all the livelong night 
 Steals in the ftraggling fugitive ; as when, 
 Paft is the ftorm, and o'er the azure flcy 420 
 
 Serenely fhines the fun ; with ev'ry breeze 
 The waving branches drop their gather'd rain 9 
 Renewing the remembrance of the ftorm. 
 
BOOK THE SEVENTH, 
 
 ARGUMENT. 
 
 Befcription of the Englijh forts. The French troops 
 attack and capture the forts cf St, Loup and St. John. 
 Attack of Fort London, Salifbury encounters the 
 Maid, Event of that encounter. The Tournelles 
 furrounded by the French, who difpatch a troop to Or- 
 leans for provifions, and e?ica?nj) before it for the night, 
 
 QTRONG were the Englift forts, by daily toil 
 Of thoufands reared on high, what time, elate 
 With fancied conqueft, Salifbury hade rife 
 The amazing pile, from fuccour to include 
 Befieged Orleans. Round the city walls 
 Stretch'd the wide circle, mafly as the fence 
 Erft by the fearful Roman on the bounds 
 Of Caledonia rais'd, for, foul-enflaved, 
 Her hireling plunderers fear'd the car-borne cl)i 
 Who rufh'd from Morven down. Strong battle- 
 Crefted the mighty bulwarks on whofe top [ment 
 Secure the charioteer might wheel along. 
 From bafe declining ; at juft diftance rofe 
 The frequent buttrefs, and thrice twenty forts 
 Lifted alpft their turret^crowned heads, 15 
 
 
BOOK THE SEVENTH. 123 
 
 All firm and mafly. But of thefe moft firm 
 As though of fome large caftle each the Keep 
 Stood fix fquare fortreffes with turrets flank'd, 
 Piles of unequall'd ftrengtb — tho' now deem'd weak 
 'Gain ft puiilanee more than mortal, and the flames 
 Shot from eeleftial banner. Safely hence 
 The fkilful archer entering with his eye 
 The city, might himfelf the while unfeen, 
 Thro* the long opening, {bower his winged death?, 
 Loire's waves diverted fi-ll'd the deep-dug moat 25 
 Circling the pile, a bulwark vaft, as what 
 Round their dilheai tened camp and branded (hips 
 The GTreeks uprear'd, a common fepulchre 
 Of thoufands flaughter'd, and the doom'd death- 
 place 
 Of many a Chief, when Priam's patriot fbn 30 
 
 Rufh'd in his wrath and fcattered their pale tribes. 
 
 But cowering now amid their fheltering forts 
 Tremble the Englifb hoft. Their leader's care 
 In anxious vigilance prepares to ward 
 Aflault expeded. Nor the Maid's intent 35 
 
 Did be not rightly aread : tho' vain the attempt 
 To kindle in their breads the wonted flame 
 Of valor j for by prodigies unmann'd 
 They wait the morning, or in filent dread, 
 Or pouring out their fears in many a prayer. 4c 
 
 The morning came. The martial Maid arofe. 
 Lovely in arms fhe moved. Around the gate 
 Eager again for conqueft throng the troops. 
 
22 4 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 High towered the Son of Orleans, in his ftrength 
 Poifing the ponderous fpear. His batter'd fhield, 45 
 Witneiling the fierce fray of yefternight, 
 Hung on his finewy arm. " Maiden of Arc, 
 Hail !" fo, to her approaching, cried the Chief. 
 " Well haft thou prov'd thy million, as, by words 
 And miracles attefted when difmayed 50 
 
 The ftern Theologifts forgot their doubts, 
 So in the field of flaughter now confirm'd. 
 Yon well-fenced forts protect the fugitives, 
 And feem as in their ftrength they mock'd our force. 
 Yet muft they fall." 
 
 " And fall they (hall !" replied 55 
 The Maid of Orleans. " Ere the fun be fet 
 The lily on that fhattered wall fhall wave 
 Triumphant.— Men of France ! ye have fought well 
 On that blood-reeking plain. Your humbled foes 
 Lurk trembling now amid their mafly walls. 6© 
 Wolves that have ravaged the neglected flock ! 
 The Shepherd — the Great Shepherd is arifen ! 
 Ye fly ! yet fhall not ye by flight efcape 
 His vengeance. Men of Orleans ! it were vain 
 By words to waken wrath within your breafts. 65 
 Look round. Your holy buildings and your homes-- - 
 lluins that choke the way ! your populous town- 
 One open fepulchre ! Who is there here 
 That does not mourn a friend, a brother {lain, 
 A parent famifh'd — or his dear loved wife 70 
 
 Torn from his bofom— outcaft--- brokenhearted-- 
 
BOOK THE SEVENTH. 125 
 
 Caft on-tfce mercy- of mankind I" She ceafed. 
 
 The cry of indignation from the hoft ' 
 
 Burft forth, and all impatient for the war 
 
 Demand the fignal. Thefe Dunois arrays 75 
 
 In four battalions. Xaintrailles, tried in war, 
 
 Commands the firft ;. Xaintrailles, who oft fubdued 
 
 By adverfe fortune to the captive chain, 
 
 Still more tremendous to the enemy? 
 
 Lifted his death-fraught lance, as erft from earth 80 
 
 Antaeus vaunting in his giant bulk, 
 
 When grafpt by force Herculean, down he fell 
 
 Vanquifht ; anon uprofe more fierce for war. 
 
 Gaucour o'er one prefides. The fteady friend 
 Of him imprifon'd Orleans. Of his town 85 
 
 Belov'd guardian, he the dreadful fiege 
 Firmly abiding, prudent ft ill to plan 
 Irruption, and with youthful vigor fwift 
 To lead the battle* from his foldiers love 
 Prompter obedience gained, than ever fear 90 
 
 Forced from the heart reluctant* The third band 
 Alencon leads* He on the fatal field 
 Verneuil, when Buchan and the Douglas died, 
 Fell fenfelefs. Guiltlefs he of that day's lofs, 
 Wore undifgraced awhile the captive chain. 95 
 The Monarch him grateful to his high rank 
 Had ranfom'd, once again to meet the foe 
 With better fortune. O'er the laft prefides 
 Dunois the Baftard, mighty in the war. 
 His prowefs knew the foes, and his fair fame ice 
 
126 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Confefs'd, fince when before his (tripling arm 
 Fled Warwick— Warwick, that King-making Chief, 
 In after days the arbiter of England, 
 Who, bearing on his fword her diadem, 
 Gave or bereft at will. Yet by Dunois 105 
 
 Baffled, and yielding him the conqueror's praife. 
 And by his fide the martial Maiden pafs'd, 
 Lovely in arms as that Arcadian boy 
 Parthenopaeus, when the war of beafts 
 Difdaining, he to murder man rufh'd forth, no 
 Bearing the bow, and thofe Didaean fhafts 
 Diana gave, when fhe the youth's fair form 
 Saw foftened, and forgave the mother's fault. 
 
 Saint Loup's ftrong fort flood firft. O'er this com- 
 Nobled by valor, Gladdifdale ; and here [mands, 
 The heir of Poyning's name, and Molyns lead 
 The fearful garrifon. As lowering clouds 
 Swept by the hoarfe wind o'er the blacken'd plain, 
 Moved on the hoft of France : they from the fort, 
 Through fecret opening, fhower their pointed fhafts, 
 Or from the battlements the death-tipt fpear 
 Hurl fierce. Nor from the ftrong arm only launch'd ■ 
 The javelin fled, but driven by the ftrained force 
 Of the balifta, in one carcafs fpent 
 Stay'd not ; thro' arms and men it makes its way, 
 And leaving death behind, ftill holds its courfe 
 By many a death unclogg'd. With rapid march 
 Right onward they advanced, and foon the fhafts, 
 Impell'd by that ftrong ftroke beyond the hoft 
 
BOOK THE SEVENTH. 127 
 
 Wafting their force, fell harmlefs. Now they reach'd 
 Where by the bayle's embattled wall in arms 
 The Knights of England ftood. TherePoynmgs fhook* 
 His lance, and Gladdifdale his heavy mace 
 For the death-blow prepared. Alencon here, 
 And here the Baftard ft rode, and by the Maid 13 £ 
 That daring man who to the Englifh hoft 
 Then infolent of many a conqueft gain'd, 
 Bore her bold bidding. A rude coat of mail 
 Unhofed, unhooded, as of lowly line 
 Arm'd him, tho' here amid the high-born chiefs 140 
 Preeminent for prowefs. On his head l 
 A black plume (hadowed the rude featur'd helim 
 Then was the war of men, when front to front 4 
 They rear'd the hoftile hand, for low the wall 
 Where the bold Frenchman's upward driven fpeaf, 
 Might pierce the foe. Then rang along the lifts 
 The clafti of battle. As Alencon moved 
 On his crown-crefted helm with ponderous blow 
 Fell Gladdifdale's huge mace. Back he recoil'd * 
 Aftounded. Soon recovering, his keen lance 150 
 Thruft on the warrior mield. There faft infix'd, 
 Nor could Alen5on the deep driven fpear 
 Recover, nor the foeman from his grafp 
 Wrench the contended weapon. Fierce again 
 He lifts the mace, that on the afhen hilt 155 
 
 Fell full. It fhiver'd, and the Frenchman held 
 A pointlefs truncheon. Where the Baftard fought 
 The fpear of Poynings, thro' his plated mail 
 
123 ' JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Pierced, and againfl the iron fence beneath 6 
 Blunted its points Again he fpeeds the fpear ; 1 6*o> 
 At once Duxiois on his broad buckler bears 
 The unharming ftroke, and aims with better fate 
 His javelin. Thro' his fword-arm did it pierce 
 Maugre the maik Hot from the ftreaming wound 1 
 Again the weapon fell, and in his bread 165: 
 
 Even thro' the hauberk drove. But there the war 
 Raged fierceft where the martial Maiden moved 
 The minifter of wrath. For thither throng'd 
 The bravefl champions of the adverfe hoft. 
 And on her either fide two warriors flood 170^ 
 
 Of unmatched prowefs, ftill with eager eye 
 Shielding her form, and aiming at her foes 
 Their deadly weapons, of themfelves the while- 
 Little regarding. One was that bold man> 
 Who bade defiance to the Englifh Chiefs.- 17^ 
 
 Firmly he ftood, untir'd and undifmay'd, 
 Tho*' on his burgonet the frequent fpear 
 Drove fierce, and on his arm the buckler hung. 
 Heavy, thick-briflled with the hoftile fhafts, 
 Even like the porcupine when in his rage i>8o> 
 
 Rous'd, he collects within him all his force,- 
 Himfelf a quiver. And of loftier port 
 On the other hand toweredConrade. Firmly fenced/ 
 A jazerent of double mail he wore, 
 Beneath whofe weight one but of common ftrength; 
 Had funk. Untir'd the conflict he endur'd 
 Wielding a battle axe ponderous and keen,. 
 
BOOK THE SEVENTH.. 129 
 
 That gave no fecond ftroke. For where it fell, 
 
 Not the ftrong buckler nor the plated mail 
 
 Might fave, nor crefted cafque. On Molyn's head, 
 
 As at the Maid he aim'd his javelin, 
 
 Forceful it fell, and fhiver'd with the blow 
 
 The iron helm, and to his brain-pan drove 
 
 The fragments.. At their comrades death amaz'd, 
 
 And for a moment fearful fhrunk the foes. 195 
 
 That inftant Conrade, with an a&ive bound, 
 
 Sprung on the battlements. There firm he flood,. 
 
 Guarding afeent. The warrior Maid of Arc* 
 
 And he the partner of that battle's fame, 
 
 Followed, and foon the exulting cry of France 2co 
 
 Along the lifts was heard, as waved aloft 
 
 The holy banner. Gladdifdale beheld, 
 
 And hafting from his well-defended pofi r . 
 
 Sped to the fiercer conflict. To the Maid 
 
 He flrode, on her refolv'd to wreak his rage, 205 
 
 With her to end the war. Nor did not JOAN 
 
 Read his ftern purpofe. Lifting up her iliield 
 
 Prepared fhe flood, and pois'd her fparkling fpear. 
 
 The Englifli Chief came on ; on high he rais'd 
 
 His mace, and all his might into one blow 210 
 
 Collected. As the Maiden rear'd her fliield, 
 
 Befote her rufli'd the man of lowly line, 
 
 And on his buckler caught the mighty ftroke,. 
 
 And at that inftant thro' the warrior's neck 
 
 Thruft the keen lance. Prone fell the Engliih Knight. 
 
 Faft from the deadly wound the blood gufh'd forth. 
 
130 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Then thro* the hoft contagious terror ran, 
 
 Their Chieftain flain. And lo ! where on the wall 
 
 Bulwark'd of late by Gladdifdale fo well 
 
 The fon of Orleans ftood, and fwayed around 220 
 
 His falchion, keeping thus at bay the foe, 
 
 Till on the battlements his comrades fprang, 
 
 And rais'd the fhout of conouefl. Then appall'd 
 
 The Englifh fled j nor fled they unpurfued, 
 
 For mingling with the foremoft fugitives, 225" 
 
 The gallant Conrade rufh'd ; and with the throng* 
 
 The Knights of France together o'er the bridge 
 
 Fail fpeeded* Nor the garrifon wkhin 
 
 Durfl let the ponderous portcullis fall, 
 
 For m the entrance of the fort the fight 2 30 
 
 Raged fiercely,, and together thro' the gate 
 
 The vanquifh'd Englifh and their eager foes 
 
 Pafs'd in the flying conflict. Well I deem 
 
 And wifely did that daring Spaniard ac\ 
 
 At Vera-Cruz, when he his yet found fhips 235 
 
 Difmantling, left no fpot where treacherous Fear 
 
 Might ft ill with wild and wififul eye look back. 
 
 For knowing no retreat, his defperate troops 
 
 In conqueft fought their fafety. Victors hence 
 
 At Tlaicala, and o'er the Cholulans, 240 
 
 And by Otompan, on that bloody field 
 
 When Mexico her patriot thoufands pour'd, 
 
 Fierce in vain valor on their ruffian foes. 
 
 There was a portal to the Englifh fort 
 
 That opened on the wall ; a fpeedier path 24 j 
 
BOOK THE SEVENTH. 131 
 
 In peace affording, whence the charmed eye 
 Might linger down the river's pleafant courfe. 
 Tierce in the gate-way raged the deadly war ; 
 For there the Maiden ftrove, and Conrade there* 
 And he of lowly line, bravelier than whom 25® 
 Fought not in that day's battle. Of fuccefis 
 Defperate, for from above, the garrifon 
 Could wield no arms fo certain to beftow 
 Equal deftru&ion ; of the portal's aid 
 The foe bethought them : then with leffer force 255 
 *pheir weapons fell ; abandoned was the gate.; 
 And foon from Orleans the glad citizens 
 Beheld the hallowed banner on the tower 
 Triumphant. Swift along the lofty wall 
 The Englifh hafte to St. John's neighbouring fort, 
 Jlying with fearful fpeed. Nor from purfuit 
 The victors ceafed, but with the fugitives 
 Mingled and waged the war •; the combatants, 
 Lock'd m the hoftile grafp, together fall 
 Precipitate. But foremoft of the French, 265 
 
 Pealing deftru&ion, Conrade rufti'd along : 
 Heedlefs of danger^ he to the near fort 
 Pafs'd in the fight ; nor did not then the Chief 
 What moil might ferye bethink him r ; firm he flood 
 In the portal, and one moment looking back 270 
 Lifted his loud voice ; thrice the warrior cried, 
 Then to the war addreft .him, now aflaiPd 
 By numerous foes, who arrogant of power 
 Threatened his fingle valor. He the while 
 
Ige JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Stood firm, not vainly confident, or rafh, 275 
 
 But of his own ftrength confcious, and tlie poft 
 Friendly ; for narrow was the portal way 
 To one alone fit paffage, from above 
 O'erbrow'd by no out-jutting parapet, 
 Whence death might crufli him. He in double mail 
 Was arm'd ; a mafTy burgonet, well tried 
 In many a hard-fought field, helming his head ; 
 A buckler broad, and fenced with iron plates, 
 £ulwark'd his breaft. Nor to diflodge the Chief 
 Could the Englifh pour their numbers, for the way 
 By upward fteps prefented from the fort 
 Narrow afcent, where one alone could meet 
 The war. Yet were they of their numbers proud, 
 Tho* ufelefs numbers were in that ftraight path, 
 Save by aflault, unceafing to out-lail 29* 
 
 A fmgle warrior who at length muft fink 
 Fatigued with conquering, by long victory 
 Vanquifh'd. There was amid the garrifon 
 A fearlefs Knight who at Verneuil had fought, 
 And high renown for his bold chivalry 295 
 
 Acquir'd in that day's conqueft, To his fame 
 The thronging Englifh yield the foremoft place. 
 He his keen javelin to tranfpierce the Frank 
 HurPd forceful ; harmlefs in his fhield it fix'-d, 
 Advantaging the foe, for by his fide 300 
 
 The battle-axe, an unfit weapon there, 
 He hung, and feized the fpear ; then in himfelf 
 Collected floods and calm. Nor the Englifh Knight 
 
BOOK THE SEVENTH. 133 
 
 Remain'd unweapon'd : to have fped fo ill, 
 Indignant, from behind he fnatch'd a lance 305 
 And hurl'd with fiercer fury. Conrade lifts 
 The ponderous buckler. Thro' three iron folds 
 Pierced the keen point, there, innocent of ill, 
 XJnharming hung. He with forceful grafp, 
 Plucking the javelin forth, with mightier arm, 310 
 iaunch'd on his foe. With wary bend, the foe 
 Shrunk from the flying death ; yet not in vain 
 From that ftrong hand the fate-fraught weapon fled : 
 Full on the corflet of a meaner man 
 It fell, and pierced, there where the heaving lungs, 
 With purer air diftended, to the heart 
 Roll back their purged tide ; from the deep wound 
 The red blood gufh'd : prone on the fteps he fell, 
 And in the ftrong convulfive grafp of death 
 Grafp'd his long pike. Of unrecorded name 320 
 Died the mean man ; yet did he leave behind 
 One who did never fay her daily prayers, 
 Of him forgetful ; who to every tale 
 Of the diftant war, lending an eager ear, 
 Grew,pale and trembled. At her cottage door, 323; 
 The wretched one fliall fit, and with dim eye 
 Gaze o'er the plain, where on his parting fteps 
 Her laft look hung. Nor ever fhall fhe know 
 Her hufband dead, but tortur'd with vain hope, 
 'Gaze on— then heart-nck turn to her poor babe, 330 
 And weep it fatherlefs I The enraged Knight 
 J}rew his keen falchion, and with dauntlefs ftep 
 
i 3 4 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Moved to the clofer conflict. Then the Frank, 
 Laying his javelin by, his battle-axe 
 Uplifted. Where the buckler was below 335 
 
 Rounded, the. falchion ftruck ; but impotent 
 To pierce its plated folds, more. forceful driven, 
 Fierce on his crefted helm, the Frenchman's ftroke 
 Fell ; the helm fhivered ; from his eyes the blood 
 Started ; with hloo4 the chambers of the brain 340 
 Were fill'd ; his breaft-plate with convulfive throes, 
 Heaved as he fell ; victorious, he the prize 
 At many a tournament had borne away 
 Fn the mimic war : happy, if fo content 
 With bloodlefs glory, he had never left 343 
 
 The manfion of his fires. Warn'd by his fall, 
 With a long pike at diftance, the next foe 
 Thruft on the Frank. Then Conrade his fharp fpear 
 Flung, and transnVd him ; feizing the falPn pike 
 He in the portal ftood, fo well prepared 350 
 
 To greet who fhould affail. But terrified 
 The Englifh ftood, -nor durft adventure now 
 Near that death-doing man. Amid their hoft 
 Was. one who well could- from the jlubborn bow 
 Shower his (harp fhafts : well fkill'd in wood-craft 
 Even as the merry Outlaws who their haunts [he, 
 In Sherwood h eld, and bade their bugles roufe 
 The fleeping ftag, ere on the web-woven grafs 
 The dew-drops fparkled to the rifing-fun. 
 He fafe in diftance at the warrior aim'd 3^0 
 
 £he feather' d dart— With force he drew the; bow : 
 
BGOK THE SEVENTH. 135 
 
 Loudon his bracer flruck the founding firing :' 
 Deep in his fhield it hung : then Conrade rais'd 
 Again his echoing voice, and call'd for aid, 
 Nor was the call unheard ; the troops of France, 365 
 From St. Loup's captur'd fort along the wall 
 Hafte to the' portal ; cheering was the found 
 Of their near footfleps to the Chief : he drew 
 His falchion forth, and down the fleps he rufiVd. 
 'Then terror feiz'd the Englifhy for their foes 3 70 
 Swarm'd thro** the open portal, and the fword 
 Of Conrade was among them,- Not more fierce 
 The iujur'd Turnus fway'd his aifgry arm, 
 Slaughtering the robber emigrants of Troy : 
 Nor with more fury -thro' the flreets of Paris : 373' 
 RauYd he, the King of Sarza, Rodomont 
 Clad in his dragon mail. Like fome tail rock, 
 Around whofe billow-beaten foot the waves 
 Wafte their wild fury, flood the unfhaken man ; 
 Tho' round him prefl his foemen, by Defpair 380 
 Hearten'd. He, mowing- thro* the throng his path, 
 CalPdon the troops of France, and bade them hafte 
 Where he mould lead the way: A daring band 
 Followed the adventurous Chieftain : he moved on 
 Unterrified, amid the arrowy fhower, 385 
 
 Tho* on his fhield and helm the" darts fell fafl ; 
 As the fear'd leaves that from the trembling tree 
 The autumnal whirlwind makes. NorConrade paus'd, 
 Still thro* the fierce fight urging on his way, 
 Till to the gate he came, and with flrong hand 39®- 
 
i$6 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Seiz'd on the maffy bolts. Thefe as he drew, 
 Full on his helm the weighty Englifh fword 
 Defcended ; fwift he turn'd to wreak his wrath, 
 When lo ! the aflailant gafping on the ground, 
 Cleft by the Maiden's falchion : fhe herfelf 395; 
 To the foe oppoflng with that lowly man, 
 For they alone following the adventurous fteps 
 Of Conrade, ftill had equall'd his bold courfe, 
 Shielded him as with eager hand he drew 
 The bolts : the gate turn'd flow : forth leapt the Chief 
 And fhivered with his battle-axe the chains 
 That hung on high the bridge. The impetuous 
 By Gaucour led, rufli'd o'er to victory* [troops, 
 
 The banner'd lilies on the captur'd wall 
 Toffed to the wind. " On to the neighbouring fort !" 
 Cried Conrade-, **Xaintrailles! ere the night draws on 
 Once more to conqueft lead the troops of France : 
 Force ye the lifts, and fill the deep-dug moat, 
 And with the ram, make down their batter'd walls.. 
 Anon I fiiall be with you." Thus he faid ; 410 
 Then to the Damfel, " Maid of Arc ! awhile 
 Ceafe we from battle, and by fhort repofe 
 Renew our ftrength." So faying he his helm 
 Unlaced, and in the Loire's near-flowing ftream 
 Cieanfed his hot face. The Maid her head urihelm'd,. 
 And ftooping to the ftream, reflected there 
 •Saw her white plumage ftam'd with human blood ! 
 Shudd'ring lhe faw, but foon her fteady foul 
 Collected : on the banks {he laid her down 
 
BOaK THE SEVENTH. i 
 
 37 
 
 Freely awhile refpiring, for her breath 420 
 
 Quick panted from the fight : filent they lay, 
 For gratefully the cooling breezes bathed 
 Their throbbing temples. It was- now the noon 1 
 The fun-beams on the gently waving ftream 
 Danced fparklihg. Loft in thought the warrior lay. 
 And foftening fadly his ftern face, exclaim'd, , 
 " Maiden of Arc ! at fuch an hour as this, 
 Beneath the o'er-arching.foreft's chequer'd (hade, 
 With that loft woman have I wandered on, 
 Talking of years of happinefs to come ! 43a 
 
 Oh hours for ever fled ! delightful dreams 
 Of the unfufpecling heart ! I do believe 
 If Agnes on a worthier one had fix'd 
 Her love, that tho' mine aching heart had nurft 
 Its forrows, I had never on her choice 435 
 
 Bour'd one upbraiding — but to ftoop to him ! 
 A harlot ! — an adulterefs !" In his eye 
 Red anger flafh'd ; anoaof what me was 
 Ere yet the foul pollution of the Court 
 Stain'd her fair fame, he thought, " Oh happy age ! " 
 He cried, " when all the family of man- 
 Freely enjoyed the goodly earth he gave, 
 And only bow'd the knee, in prayer to God ! 
 Calm flow'd the unruffled ftream of years along, 
 Till o'er the peaceful ruftic's head, grew grey 445 
 The hairs in full of time* Then he would fit 
 Beneath the coetaneous oak, whilft round, 
 
 Sons, grandfons, and their offspring join'd to form 
 
 ""Ma 
 
i 3 iSr JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 The blamelefs merriment ; and learnt of him 
 
 What time to yoke the oxen, to the plough, 45a 
 
 What hollow moanings of the weftern wind 
 
 Foretel the ftorm, and in what lurid clouds 
 
 The embryo lightning lies. Well pleas'd, he taught 
 
 The heart-fmile glowing on his aged cheek, 
 
 Mild as decaying light of fummer fun. 455 
 
 Thus calmly conftant flowed the ftream of life 
 
 Till loft at length amid that fhorelefs fea, ■* 
 
 Eternity. Around the bed' of death 
 
 Gathered his numerous race— his laft advice 
 
 In fad attention heard — caught his iaft fighr-- 4^0 
 
 Then underneath the aged tree that grew 
 
 With him, memorial planted at his birth, 
 
 They delved the- narrow houfe ; there oft at eve 
 
 Drew round their children of the after days, 
 
 And pointing to the turf, told how he lived, 465, 
 
 And taught by his example how to die. 
 
 " Maiden ! and fuch the evening of my days 
 Fondly I hoped ; but I fliall be at reft 
 Soon, in that better world of Peace and Love 
 Where evil is not : in that better world, 470, 
 
 JOAN, we ihall meet, and he too will be there, 
 Thy Theodore." Sooth'd by his words, the Maid 
 Had liftened fadly, till at that loved name 
 She wept. " Nay, Maid !" he cried, "I did not think 
 To wake a tear ; but pleafant is thy grief ! 475 
 Thou know'ft not what it is, round thy warm heart 
 To h:tve a faHe one wreath in viper folds. 
 
BOOK THE SEVENTH. 139., 
 
 Bat to the battle I in the clang of arms, 
 
 We win forgetfulnefs."' Then from the bank 
 
 Heiprung, and helm'd his head. The Maid, arofe, 
 
 Bidding awhile adieu to milder thoughts. 
 
 On to the fort they fpeed, v/hofe name recall'd 
 
 England's proud capital to the Englifh hony 
 
 Now halrfubdued, anticipating death, 
 
 And vainly wifning they from her. white clifts 48^ 
 
 Had never fpread the fail. Gold terror creeps 
 
 Thro' every vein : already they turn back 
 
 Their eager eyes to meditate the flight, 
 
 Tho' Talbot there prefided, with their Chief, : 
 
 The gallant Salifhury. " Soldiers fam'd in arms !""■ 
 
 Thus, in vain hope to renovate the ftrength 
 
 Of England, fpake the Chief. " Vicarious friends, 
 
 So oft victorious in the hard-fought fight, 
 
 What — fhrink ye now difmay'd? have ye forgot 
 
 The plains of Azincour, when vanquifVd France 
 
 Fled with her thcufands from your father's arms, 
 
 Though worn with ficknefs ? or your own exploits, 
 
 When on Verneuil, the flower of chivalry 
 
 Fell by your daring prowefs ? when the Scot 
 
 Bit the red earth in death, and Narbonne died, 500 
 
 And the young boafter proud Alencon felt 
 
 The weight of Englifh fetters ? then we broke 
 
 The plated fhield, and cleft the warrior's helm, 
 
 Forever victors. On BaugencPs wall 
 
 Ye placed the Engliih flag ; beneath your force 505 
 
 Fell JenvUle and Gergeau, the neighbouring towns 
 

 140 JQAN OF ARC. 
 
 Of well-nigh captur'd Orleans. I omit 
 To fpeak of Caen fubdued, and vanquifti'd Rouen, 
 And that late day when Clermont fled the fight, 
 And the young Baftard of that prifon'd Duke. 510 
 Shame ! fhame ! that beaten Boy is here in arms, 
 And ye will fly before the fugitives ; 
 Fly from a woman ! from a frenzied girl ! 
 That .with her- empty mummeries, would blaft 
 Your courage ; or if miracles fhe brings, 515 
 
 Aid of the Devil ! who is there among you 
 Falfe to his country — to his former fame- 
 To ma— your leader to the frequent field, 
 The field of glory ?" From the heartlefs hoft 
 A timid fhout arofe : then Talbot's cheek 520 
 
 Grew red with indignation. ** Earl I" he cried, 
 Addreffing him the Chief:, "there is no hope 
 From thefe white-liver'd daftards ; and this fort 
 Will fall an eafy conqueft : it were well 
 To reach the Tournelles, better fortified, 525, 
 
 Fit to endure long fiege : the hope in view 
 To reach a fafer fortrefs, thefe our troops 
 Shall better dare the battle." So he fpake, 
 Wifely advifing. Him the Chief replied : 
 "Well haft thoafaid ; and, Talbot, if our fwords 
 Could thro* the thickeft ranks this Sorcerefs reach, 
 The hopes of France were. blafted. I have ftrove. 
 In many a field, yet never to a foe 
 Stoop'd my proud ere ft : nor difficult to meet 
 This wizard girl, for from the battlements, $1$. 
 
BOOK THE SEVENTH. 14 r 
 
 Her have I mark'd the foremoft in attack,. 
 Playing right valiantly the foldier's part ; 
 Yet mall not all her witcheries avail 
 To blunt my good fword's edge." 
 
 Thus communed they, 
 And thro' the hoft the gladdening tidings ran, 540 
 That they mould feek the Tournelles. Then their 
 
 hearts 
 Gather'd new ftrength, placing on thofe ftrong walls. 
 Dependence ; empty hope ! nor the ftrong wall,- 
 Nor the deep moat can fave, if Fear within 
 Palfy the foldier's arm. Them iffuing. forth, 545, 
 As from the river's banks they pad along, 
 The Maid beheld ! " Lo ! Conrade !" (lie exclaim'd, 
 " The foes advance to meet us— look \ they lower 
 The bridge— and now they rufh upon the troops : 
 A gallant onfet : Doft thou mark that man 55.0 
 Who all the day has- by our fide endur'd 
 The hotteft conflict ? I did then behold 5 
 His force, and wonder : now his deeds of death 
 Make all the acricns of the former light 
 Seem as of no account : know'ft thou the man ? 555 
 There is not one amid the hoft: of France, 
 Of fairer promife." 4 < He," the Chief replied,, 
 " Wretched and prodigal of life achieves 
 The exploits of Defpair : a gallant youth 
 Widowed like me of Hope, and but for whom, 560 
 I had been feen among mankind no more.. 
 Maiden ! with me thy comrade in the. war^ 
 
1 
 
 142 JO AW* OF JRC. 
 
 His arm is vowed to Heaven. L.® ! where he ftands 
 Bearing the battle's brunt in unmoved ftrength, 
 Firm as the mountain round whofemrfty head, $6$ 
 The unharming tempeft breaks !** Nor paused they 
 In farther converfe, to the perilous fray [now 
 
 Speeding, not unobferved— - them Salifbury faw 
 And call'd on Talbot.- She, the braved Knights 
 And vow'd with them, againft the Virgin's life 57a 
 Bent their fierce courfe; She by that unknown man 
 Now urged the war* when on her plumed helm 
 The hoftile falchion fell. On high fhe life 
 That hallowed fword, the tenant of the tomb, 
 And drench'd it in his bofom. On the front 575" 
 Of one, his comrade, fell the battle-axe 
 Of him the dark-brow'd Chief : the ponderous bio 
 Shatter'd his bram.* With Talbot's giant force 
 The daring, herald urged unequal fight ; 
 For like fome oak that firm with deep-fix'd roots 
 Mocks at the ftorm, the undaunted Earl endur'd 
 Hrsiude affault. Warding, with wary eye 
 The angry fword, the Frank around his foe 
 Wheels rapid, flafhing his keen weapon faft P 
 Now as he marks the Earl's defeending flroke 58$ 
 Bending, anon more fierce- in fwift attack. 
 Ill-fated man I one deed of glory more 
 Shall with the fliort-lived lightning's fplendor grace 
 ThTs thy death-day; for Slaughter even now 
 Stands-b'er the loom of life, and lifts his fword. 590 
 
BOOK THE ^SEVENTH. 143 
 
 Upon -4ier fhield the Martial Maiden bore 
 An Englifli warrior's blow, and in his fide 
 Pierced him ; that inftant Salisbury fpeeds his fword 
 That glancing from her helm fell on the folds 
 That arm'd her neck, and making there its way, 
 Stain'd with her bloqd its edge. The herald faw, 
 He faw her red blood gufhing from the wound, 
 And turn'd from Talbot heedjefs of himfelf, 
 And lifting up his falchion,; ? all his force 
 Cancenter'd, On the breail of Salifbury 600 
 
 It fell, and pierced his mail, and thro* the plate 
 Beneath drove fierce, and inhis heart's-bloodplunged. 
 Lo ! as he ftruck the ftrength of Talbot came : 
 : Full on his treacherous helm he fmote : it burft, 
 And the ftern Earl againft his,fencelefs head 60$ 
 J)rives with ftrong arm the. murderous fword. She 
 
 faw-*- 
 iShe knew — (he could not fave-^her Theodore. 
 : Conrade fceheld, and from his vanquifti'd foe 
 Sjtrode terrible in vengeance. Front to front 
 They flood, and each.for the death-blow prepar'd 
 His angry might. At once their weapons fell, 
 The Frank's huge battle-axe, an,d the keen fword 
 1 Of Talbot. He, ftunn'd by th^e weighty blow, 
 Sunk fenfelefs ; by his followers from the field 
 Conveyed with fearful fpeed : nor did his ftrobe-615 
 tFall vainly on the Frenchman's crefted helm, 4 
 ,Tho' weak to wound ; for from his eyes the fire 
 
i44 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Sparkled, and back recoiling with the blow, 
 He in the Maiden's arms aflounded.felL 
 
 But now their troops allcaptainlefs confus'd, 620 
 Fear feized the Englifh. Not with more difmay 
 When over wild Caffraria's wooded hills, 
 Echoes the lion's roar, the timid herd 
 Fly the death-boding found. The forts they feek, 
 Now recklefs which, fo from that battle's rage 625 
 A prefent refuge. On their flying ranks 
 The victors prefs, and mark their courfe with,bloodc 
 
 But loud the trumpet of retreat refounds, 
 For now the weftering fun with many a hue 
 Streak'd the gay clouds. 
 
 "Dtmois !" the Maiden cried, 630 
 - c< Form we around yon ftronger pile the fiege, 
 There for the night encamping." So fhe faid. 
 The Chief to Orleans for their needful food, 
 And enginery to batter that huge pile, 
 Difmifs'd a troop, and round the Tournelles led 635 
 The hoft beleagering. There they pitch their tents, 
 And plant their engines for the morrow's war, 
 Then to their meal, and o'er the cheerful ;bowl, 
 Recount the tale of danger ; foon to reft 
 J3etaking them, for now the night drew on. 64s 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 
 
 ARGUMENT. 
 
 Tranfaclions of the night. Attack of the Tournelles. 
 The garrifon retreat to the tower on the bridge. Their 
 total defeat there. Defpondency of the Englifh army. 
 Their Chiefs counfel together and refolve on retreating. 
 Noclurnal retreat of the Englifh. Funeral of Theodore. 
 
 T\ OW was the noon of night ; and all was ftill, 
 ^Save where the centinel paced on his rounds 
 Humming a broken fong. Along the camp 
 High flames the frequent fire. The warrior Franks, 
 On the hard earth extended, reft their limbs 5 
 
 Fatigued, their fpears lay by them, and the fiiield 
 Pillowed the helmed head : fecure they flept, 
 And bufy Fancy in her dream renewed 
 The fight of yefterday. But not to JOAN, 
 But not to her moft wretched, came thy aid, 10 
 Soother of forrows, Sleep ! no more her pulfe, 
 . Amid the battle's tumult throbbing faft, 
 Allow'd no paufe for thought. With clafped hands 
 -And fixed eye fhe fat, the while around 
 N 
 
1 46 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 The Spe&res of the Days departed rofe, j$ 
 
 A melancholy train ! that rock-roof'd cell 
 
 She call'd to mind where many a winter's day 
 
 With Theodore fhe marked the driving ftorm : 
 
 She call'd to mind the hours of merriment 
 
 When mingling in the dance with carelefs glee 2Q 
 
 She join' d the blithefome train : then her wild eye 
 
 Beheld him cold, and his blood-clotted face 
 
 In death diftorted. O'er her fhivering frame 
 
 The chill dews ftarted, for upon the gale 
 
 The crow's hoarfe croak was heard. Sudden fhe rofe, 
 
 And pafung thro' the camp with hafly ftep 
 
 Strode to the field of blood. The night was calmj 
 
 Fair as was ever on Chaldea's plain 
 
 When the pale moon-beams o'er the filvery fcene 
 
 Shone cloudlefs, whilft the watchful fhepherd's eye 
 
 Survey'd the hoft of heaven, and mark'd them rife 
 
 Succeffive, and fucceffively decay j 
 
 XK)fl in the ftream of light, as letter fprings 
 
 Amid Euphrates' current. The high wall 
 
 Caft a deep fhadow, and her faultering feet 35 
 
 Stumbled o'er broken arms and carcafTes ; 
 
 And fometimes did me hear the heavy groan 
 
 Of one yet ftruggling in the pangs of death. 
 
 She reach'd the fpot where Theodore had fall'n, 
 
 Before fort London's gate ; but vainly there 40 
 
 Sought fhe the youth, on every clay-cold face 
 
 Gazing with fuch a look as tho' fhe fear'd 
 
 The thing fhe fought. Amazement feiz'd the Maid,, 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 147 
 
 For there the victim of his vengeful arm, 
 Known by the buckler's blazon'd heraldry, 45 
 
 Salifbury lay dead. So as the Virgin flood 
 Gazing around the plain, (he mark'd a man ' 
 Pafs (lowly on, as burthened. Him to aid 
 She fped, and foon with unencumber'd fpeed 
 Overtaking, thus befpake : " Stranger ! this weight 
 impedes thy progrefs. Doft thou bear away 
 Some flaughter'd friend ? or lives the fufFerer 
 With many a fore wound gafh'd ? Oh if he lives ! 
 I will with earned prayer petition Heaven 
 To fhed its healing on him !" So (he faid, 55 
 
 And as fhe fpake ftretched forth her careful hands 
 To eafe the burthen. " Warrior,'' he replied, 
 " Thanks for thy proffered fuccour : but this marv 
 Lives not, and I with unaffifted arm 
 Can bear him to the fepulchre. Farewell — 60 
 The night is far advanced ; thou to the camp 
 Return : it fits not darkling thus to flray." 
 
 "Conrade !" the Maid exclaim'd,for well (he knew 
 His voice : — with that (lie fell upon his neck 
 And cried, " My Theodore ! but wherefore thus 65 
 Thro' the dead midnight doft thou bear his corfe ?" 
 
 " Peace, Maiden !" Conrade cried, " collect thy 
 He is but gone before thee to that world [foul ! 
 Whither thou foon mull follow ! in the morn, 
 Ere yet from Orleans to the war we went, 70 
 
 He pour'd his tale of forrow on mine ear. 
 " Lo Conrade where (he moves— beloved Maid ! 
 
i 4 8 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Devoted for the realm of France fhe goes, ? 
 
 Abandoning for this the j.oys of life ! 
 
 Yea — life itfelf ! yet- on my heart her words 
 
 Vibrate ; if fhe mud perifh in the war, 
 
 I will not live to bear the dreadful thought, 
 
 Haply my arm had fav-ed her. I fhall go 
 
 Her unknown guardian. Conrade, if I fall, 
 
 (And truft me I have little love of life,) 80 
 
 Bear me in fecret from the gory field, 
 
 Left haply I might meet her wandering eye 
 
 A mangled corfe. She muft not know my fate. 
 
 Do this laft act of friendfhip — in the flood 
 
 Whelm me : fo fhall fhe think of Theodore 85 
 
 UnanguiftYd." " Maiden, I did vow with him 
 
 That I would dare the battle by thy fide, 
 
 And fhield thee in the war. Thee of his death 
 
 I hoped unknowing. " As the warrior fpake, 
 
 He on the earth the clay-cold carcafs kid. 
 
 With fixed eye the wretched Maiden gazed 
 
 The life-left tenement. The dews of night 
 
 Were on his arms, and o'er the ghaftly wound 
 
 Hung his brown hair gore-clotted. " Gallant youth ! " 
 
 She cried, " I would to God the hour were come 95 
 
 When I might meet thee in the bowers of blifs ! 
 
 No, Theodore ! the fport of winds and waves* 
 
 Thy body fhall not roll adown the ftream 
 
 The fea-wolPs banquet. Conrade, bear with me 
 
 The corfe to Orleans, there in hallowed ground 100 
 
 To reft ; the Prieft fhall fay the facred prayer, 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 
 
 149 
 
 And hymn the requiem to his parted foul. 
 
 So fhall not Elinor in bitternefs 
 
 I*ament that no dear friend to her dead child 
 
 Paid the laft office. " From the earth they lift 105 
 
 The mournful burden, and along the plain 
 
 Pafs with flow footfteps to the city gate. 
 
 The obedient centinel at Conrade's voice 
 
 Admits the midnight travellers ; on they pafs, 
 
 Till in the neighbouring Abbey's porch arrived no 
 
 They reft the lifelefs load. Loud rings the bell ; 
 
 The awakened porter turns the heavy door. 
 
 To him the Virgin : "Father, from the flain- 
 
 On yonder reeking field a dear-loved friend 
 
 I bring to holy fepulture : chaunt ye 11 5" 
 
 The requiem to his foul : to-morrow eve 
 
 Will I return, and in the narrow houfe 
 
 Behold him laid to reft*" The father knew 
 
 The miffion'd Maid, and humbly bow'd afl'ent. 
 
 Now from the city, o'er the fhadowy plain, 120 
 Backward they bend their way. From filent thoughts 
 The Maid awakening cried, "There was a time, 
 When thinking on my clofmg hour of life, 
 Tho' with refolved mind, fome natural fears 
 Shook the weak frame ; now, that the happy hour,. 
 When my emancipated foul fhali burft. 
 The cumberous fetters of mortality, 
 Wiihful I contemplate. Conrade I my friend,. 
 My wounded heart would feel another pang, 
 
 Should' ft thou forfake me !" 
 
 Ni 
 
i 5 o JGAN OF ARC. . 
 
 "JOAN!" the Chief replied, i 3 q 
 " Along the weary pilgrimage of life 
 Together will we journey, and beguile 
 The dreary road, telling with what gay hopes, 
 We in the morning eyed the pleafant fields 
 Vifion'd before ; then wifh that we had reach'd 1 35 
 The bower of reft 1" Thus communing they gain' d 
 The camp, yet huhYd in fleep ; there feparating, 
 Each in the poft allotted, reftlefs waits 
 The day-break. Morning came : dim thro' the made 
 The firft rays glimmer ; foon the brightening clouds- 
 Drink the rich beam, and o'er the landfcape fpread 
 The dewy light. The foldiers from the earth 
 Leap up invigorate, and each his food 
 Receives, impatient to renew the war. 
 Dunois his javelin to the Tournelles points. 145 
 " Soldiers of France ! your Englifh foes are there I" 
 
 As when a band of hunters, round the den 
 Of fome wood-monfter, point their fpears, elate 
 In hope of con.queft and the future feaft ; 
 ( When on the hofpitable board their fpoil 150 
 
 Shall fmoke, and they, as the rich bowl goes round,. 
 Tell to their guefts their exploits in the chafe ;) 
 They with their fhouts of exultation make 
 The foreft ring : fo elevate of heart, 
 With fuch loud clamors for the fierce afTault 15^ 
 The French prepare ; nor, guarding now the lifts 
 Durft the diiheartened Englifh man to man 
 Meet the clofe conflict. From the barbican, * 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 151 
 
 Or from the embattled wall they their yengh bows 
 Bent forceful, and their death-fraught enginery 1,60 
 Difcharged - r nor did the Gallic archers ceafe 
 With well-directed mafts their loftier foes 
 To affail : behind the guardian pavais fenced,, * 
 They at the battlements their arrows aim'd> 
 Showering an iron ftorm, whilft o'er the bayle 165 
 Pafs'd the bold troops with all their mangonels ; 
 Or tortoifes, beneath whofe roofing fafe, 
 They, filling the deep moat, might for the towers 
 Make fit foundation, or their petraries, 
 War-wolfs, and Beugles, and that murderous fling; 
 The Matafunda, whence the ponderous ftone 
 Fled fierce, and made one wound of whom it (truck,. 
 Shattering the frame fo that no pious hand 
 Gathering his mangled limbs might him convey 
 To where his fathers iflept. Nor indolent 175 
 
 Did the Englifh troops lie trembling, for the fort 
 Was ably garrifon'd. Glacidas, the Chief, 
 A gallant man,, fped on from place to place 
 Cheering the brave ; or if the archer's hand, 
 Palfied with fear, fnot wide the ill-aim'd mart, 180 
 Threatening the coward who betrayed himfelf, 
 He drove him from the ramparts. In his hand,. 
 The Chief a crofs-bow held ; an engine dread 
 Of fuch wide wafting fury, that of yore 
 The affembled fathers of the Chriftian church 1 85 ? 
 Pronounced that man accurs'd whofe impious hand 
 Should-point the murderous weapon. Such decrees 
 
r 5 2 JOAN OF ARC 
 
 Befits the men of God to promulgate : 
 Them it befits to wafh their hands of blood; 
 And with a warning; voice, tho' haply vain, 
 To cry aloud* and fpare not ] ** Woe to them 
 Whofe hands are full of blood I Woe, faith the Lord r 
 To them, who faft for ftrife, that they may fmite ' 
 With the. arm ofwickednefs." An Englifh King 
 The. lion-hearted Richard, their decree 195* 
 
 Firft broke, and heavenly retribution doom'd 
 His fall by the keen quarrel ; fince that day 
 Frequent in fields of battle, and from far 
 To many a good Knight, bearing .his death-wound 
 From hands unknown* With fuch an inftrumemv 
 Arm'd on. the ramparts, Glacidas his eye 
 Caft on the. afTailing hoft. A keener glance 
 Darts not the hawk when from the feather'd tribe 
 He marks his viciim. On a Frank he fix'd- 
 His gaze, who kneeling by the trebuchet, 205 J 
 Charged its long fling with - death* Him Glacidas [ 
 Secure behind the battlements, beheld,, 
 And ftrung his bow;, then bending on one knee, 
 He in the groove the feather'd quarrel plac'd 6 
 And levelling withfirm eye, the death-wound mark'd^ 
 TJie bow-ftring twang'd — on its fwift way the dare 
 Whizzed fierce, and ftruck, there where the hel- 
 met's clafps • 
 Defend the neck ; a weak protection now,, 
 For through the tube that the pure air inhales 
 Pierc'd the keen ihaft ; blood down the unwonted way 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 153 
 
 Gufh'd to the lungs : prone fell the dying man 
 Grafping, convuls'd, the earth : a hollow groan 
 In his throat ftruggled, and the dews of death 
 Stood on his livid cheek. The days of youth- 
 He had pafs'd peaceful, and had known what joys 
 Domeftic love bellows, the father once 
 Of two fair infants ; in the city hemm'd 
 During the hard fiege ; he had feen their cheeks 
 Grow pale with famine, and had heard their cries 
 For bread ! his wife—a- broken-hearted one — 225 
 Sunk to the cold grave's quiet, and her babes 
 With hunger pined, and followed : he furvived 
 A miferable man J and heard the fhouts" 
 Of joy in Orleans, when the Maid approach'd, 
 As o'er the corfe of his laft little one 230 
 
 He heap'd the unhallowed earth. To him the foe 
 Perform'd a friendly part, haflening the hour 
 Grief elfe had foon brought on. The Englifh Chief, 
 Pointing again his arbalifl, let loofe 
 The firing ; the quarrel, driven by that ftrong blow, 
 True to its aim, fled fatal : one it flruck 
 Dragging a tortoife to the moat, and fix'd 
 Deep in his liver ; blood and mingled gall 
 Flow'd from the wound; and writhing with keen 
 
 pangs, 
 Headlong he fell :.. he for the wintry hour 240.. 
 Knew many a merry ballad and quaint tale,, 
 A man in his fmall circle, well-beloved* 
 None better knew with prudent hand to guide 
 
154 JOAN OF ARC 
 
 The vine's young tendrils, or at vintage time 
 
 To prefs the full-fwoln clufters : he, heart-glad, 2\\ 
 
 Taught his young boys the little all he knew, 
 
 Enough for happinefs. The Englifh hoft 
 
 Laid wafte his fertile fields; he, to the war, 
 
 By want compell'd, adventurM,— in liis gorr 
 
 Now weltering. Nor the Gallic hoft remit 2$'(y 
 
 Their eager efforts ; fome,- the watry fence,- 
 
 Beneath the tortoife- roof 'd* with engines apt 
 
 Drain painful ; part, laden with wood, throw thefe 
 
 Their buoyant burdens, laboring fo to gain- 
 
 Firm footing:- fome the mangonels fupply, 2J5 
 
 Or charging wkh huge ftones the murdering fling, 
 
 Gr petrarvy or in the efpringal 
 
 Fix the brafs-winged arrows. Hoarfe around- 
 
 Rofe the confufed'din of multitudes. 
 
 Fearlefs along the ramparts Gargrave moved, 
 Cheering the Englifh troops. The bow he bore $ 
 The quiver rattled as he moved along. 
 He knew aright to aim the feather'd fhafts, 
 Well-fkill'd to pierce the mottled roebuck's fide, 
 O'ertaken in his flight. Him, pafTmg on, 265 
 
 From fome huge engine driven, a ponderous ftone 
 Grufh'd : on his breaft-plate falling, the vaft force- 
 Shattered the bone, and with his mangled lungs 
 The fragments mingled. On the funny brow 
 Of a fair hill wood-circled, flood his home, 270 
 A pleafant dwelling, whence the ample ken 
 Gaz'd o'er fubjecled diflance, and furvey'd 
 
BOOM THE EIGHTH. i$$ 
 
 .Streams, hills, and forefls,. fair variety ! 
 The traveller knew its h^fpitable towers, 
 For open were the gates', and blazed for all 275 
 The friendly fire. B/ glory lur'd, the youth 
 Went forth ; and he. had bathed Jiis falchion's edge 
 Jn many a Frenchman's gore ; now crufh'd beneath 
 The ponderous fragments force, his mangled limbs 
 Lie quivering. Lo ! towards the levelled moat, 
 A moving tower tfie men of -Orleans wheel 
 Four flages elevate. Above was hung 
 Equalling the walls, a bridge ; in the lower ftage 
 The ponderous battering-ram : a troop within 
 Of archers, thro* the opening, fhot their fhafts. 285 
 In the loftieft part was Conrade, fo prepar'd 
 To mount the rampart, for he loath' d the chafe, 
 And loved to fee the dappled forefters 
 Browze fearlefs on their lair, with .friendly eye, 
 And happy in beholding happinefs, «5lQ 
 
 Not meditating death : the bowman's art 
 Therefore he little Jcnew, nor was he wont 
 To aim the arrow at the diftant foe, 
 But uprear.in clofe conflicl:, front to -front, 
 His death-red battle-axe, and break the fhield, 295 
 Firft in the war of men. There too the Maid 
 Awaits, impatient on the wall to wield 
 Her falchion. Onward moves the heavy tower, 
 -Slow o'er the moat and fteady, tho' the foe 
 Shower'd there their javelins^im'dtheirenginesthere^ 
 And from the arbalifl the fire-tip dart 
 
156 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Shot lightning thro' the air. In vain it fiam'd, 
 
 For well with many a reeking hide fecured, 
 
 Pafs'd on the dreadful pile, and now it reach'd 
 
 The wall. Below, with forceful impulfe driven, 305 
 
 The iron-horned engine fwings its firoke, 
 
 Then back recoils, whilft they within who guide. 
 
 In backward ftep collecting all their ftrength, 
 
 Anon the maffy beam with ftronger arm 
 
 Drive full and fierce ; fo rolls the fwelling fea 3 10 
 
 Its curly billows to the unmoved foot • 
 
 Of fome huge promontory, whofe broad bafe 
 
 Breaks the rough wave ; the fhiver'd furge rolls back, 
 
 Till, by the coming billow borne,. it burfts 
 
 Again,, and foams with ceafelefs violence, 315 
 
 The Wanderer, on the funny clift outftretch'd, 
 
 Harks to the roaring furges, as they rock 
 
 Jiis weary fenfes to forgetfulnefs. 
 
 But nearer danger threats the invaders now, 
 For on the ramparts, lowered from above 320 
 
 The bridge reclines. A univerfal fhout 
 Rofe from thehoftile hofts. The exultant Franks 
 Clamor their loud rejoicing, whilft the foe 
 Lift up the warning voice, and call aloud 
 For fpeedy fuccour there, with deafening fhout 325 
 Cheering their comrades. Not with louder din 
 The mountain torrent flings precipitate 
 Its bulk of waters, tho* amid the fall 
 Shattered, and darning filvery from the rock. 
 Xo ! on the bridge he Hands, the undaunted. man 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 157 
 
 Conrade ! the gathered foes along the wall 
 Throng oppofite, and on him point their pikes, 
 Crefting with armed men the battlements. 
 He, undifmayed, tho' on that perilous height, 
 Stood firm, and hurl'd his javelin ; the keen point 
 pierced thro' the deftined viclim, where his arm 
 Join'd the broad breafl : a wound that fkilful care 
 Haply had heal'd ; but, him difabled now 
 For farther fervice, the unpitying throng 
 Of his tumultuous comrades from the wall 340 
 Thrufl headlong. Nor did Conrade ceafe to hurl 
 His deadly javelins fafl, for well within 
 The tower was ftor'd with weapons, to the Chief 
 Quickly fupplied : nor did the million' d Maid 
 Reft idle from the combat ; fhe, fecure 345 
 
 Aim'd the keen quarrel, taught the crofs-bow's ufe 
 By the willing mind that what it well defires 
 Gains aptly : nor amid the numerous throng, 
 Tho' haply erring from their deflin'd mark, 
 Sped her fharp arrows fru (Irate. From the tower 
 Ceafelefs the bow-firings twang : the Knights below, 
 Each by his pavais bulwark'd, thither aim'd 
 Their darts, and not a dart fell woundlefs there, 
 So thickly throng'd they flood, and fell as faft 
 As when the Monarch of the Eafl goes forth 355 
 From Gemna's banks and the proud palaces 
 •Of Delhi, the wild monfters of the wood 
 Die in the blamelefs warfare : clofed within 
 O 
 
158 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 The flill-contra&ing circle, their brute force 
 
 Wafting in mutual rage, they perifh there, 36$ 
 
 Or by each other's fury lacerate, 
 
 The archer's barbed arrow, or the lance 
 
 Of fome bold youth of his firft exploits vain, 
 
 Rajah or Omrah, for the war of beafts 
 
 Venturous, and learning thus the love of blood. 365 
 
 The fhout of terror rings along the wall, 
 
 For now the French their fcaling ladders place, 
 
 And bearing high their bucklers, to the afiault 
 
 Mount fearlefs : from above the furious troops 
 
 Hurl down fuch weapons as inventive care 370 
 
 Or frantic rage fupplies 1 huge ilones and beams 
 
 Crufh the bold foe ;- fome, thruft adown the height, 
 
 Fall living to their death ; fome in keen pangs 
 
 And wildly-writhing, as the liquid lead 
 
 Gnaws thro' their members, leap down defperate, 
 
 Eager to ceafe from fuffering. Still they mount, 
 
 And by their fellows' fateunterrified, 
 
 Still dare the perilous way. Nor dangerlefs 
 
 To the Englifli was the fight, tho' from above 
 
 Eafy to crufli the aflailants : them amidft 3 80 
 
 Faft fled the arrows ; the large brafs-wing'd darts, 7 
 
 There driven refiftlefs from the efpringal, 
 
 Keeping their impulfe even in the wound, 
 
 Whirl as they pierce the viftim. Some fall crufh'fi 
 
 Beneath the ponderous fragment that defcends 385 
 
 The heavier from its height : fome, the long lance 
 
 Jmpetuous ruftiing on its viewlefs way, 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 159 
 
 IVansfiVd.' The death-fraught cannon's thundering 
 Oonvulfmg air ; the foldier's eager fliout ; [roar 
 And terror's wild fhriek"echo o'er' the plain 39O 
 In dreadful harmony. Meantime the Chief, 
 Who equall'd on the bridge the rampart's height, 
 With many a weHr- arm' d javelin dealing death, 
 Made thro' the throng his pafFage : he advanced 
 In wary valor o'er his Slaughtered foes, 395 
 
 On the blood-reeking wall. Him drawing near 
 Two youths, the boldeft of the Englifh hoft 
 Preft on to thruft him from that perilous height; 
 At once they rufh'd upon him : he, his axe 
 Dropping, the dagger drew : one thro' the throat 
 He pierced, and fwinging his broad buckler round, 
 Dafh'd down his comrade. So, unmoved he floods 
 The "fire of Guendblen, that daring man, 
 Corienus ; grappling with his monftrous foe, 
 He the brute vaftnefs held aloft, and bore, 405 
 And headlong-.hurl'd, all fhatter'd to the fea, 
 Down from the rock's high fummit, fmce that day 
 Him, hugefbof the giants, chronicling, 
 Hight Langpemagogr The Maid of Arc 
 Bounds o'er the bridge, and to the wind unfurls 410 
 Her hallowed banner. At that welcome fight 
 A general fliout of acclamation rofe, 
 And loud,- as- when the tempeft-toffing forefV 
 Roars to the roaring wind ; then terror feiz'd 
 The garrifon ; and fired anew with hope, 415- 
 
 The fierce affailants to their prize rufh on 
 
i5o **^QJN- OF JRC. 
 
 Refifllefs. Vainly do their Englifh foes 
 
 Hurl there their beams, and ftones, and javelins, 
 
 And fire-brands : fearlefs in the efcalade, 
 
 Firm mount the French, and now upon the wall 42 a; 
 
 Wage equal battle. Burning at the fight 
 
 With indignation, Glacidas beheld 
 
 His troops fly fcattered ; faft on every fide 
 
 The foes up-rufhing eager to their fpoil ; 
 
 The holy flandard waving ; and the Maid 425 
 
 Fierce in purfuit. " Speed but this arrow, Heaven !" ' 
 
 The Chief exclaim'd, "and I fhall fall content." 
 
 So faying, he his (harped quarrel chofe, 
 
 And ftVd the bow-ftring, and againft the Maid 
 
 Levelling, let loofe ; her arm was rais'd on high 430 
 
 To fmite a fugitive : he glanced afide, 
 
 Shunnim? her deadly ftroke, and thus receiv'4 
 
 The Chieftain's arrow ; thro' his ribs it pafs'd, 
 
 And cleft that ve/Tel, whence the purer blood, 
 
 Thro' many a branching channel o'er the frame 435 
 
 Meanders. " Fool I" the enraged Chief exclaim'd,. 
 
 " Would flie had flain thee ! thou haft lived too long." 
 
 Again he aim'd his arbalift : the firing 
 
 Struck forceful : fwift the erring arrow fped 
 
 Guiltlefs of blood, for lightly o'er the court 440 
 
 Bounded the warrior Virgin. Glacidas 
 
 Levelled his bow again ; the fated fhaft 
 
 Fled true, and difficultly thro' the mail 
 
 Pierced to her neck, and tinged its point with blood. 
 
 " She bleeds ! fhe bleeds J" exulting cried the Chidf : 
 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 161 
 
 ^'The Sorcerefs bleeds ! nor* ail her heUifh arts 
 
 Can charm my arrows from their deftined courfe^ 5 
 
 Ill-fated man ! in vain with murderous hand 
 
 Placing thy feathered quarrel in its groove, 
 
 Dream' ft thou o£ JOJNiubdu'd ? She from her neck 
 
 Plucking the fhaft unterrified, exclaim'd, 
 
 "This is a favor ! - Frenchmen, let us on ! 
 
 Efcape they cannot from the hand of God .!" 
 
 But Conrade, rolling ?round his angry eyes, 
 
 Beheld the Englifh Chieftain as he aim'd 455 
 
 Again the bow ; with rapid ftep he ftrode; 
 
 Nor did not Glacidas. the Frank perceive ; 
 
 At him he drew the firing : the powerlefs dart 
 
 Fell blunted from his buckler. Fierce he came, 
 
 And lifting, high his ponderous battle-axe, 460 
 
 Full on his fhoulder drove the furious ftroke 
 
 Deep-buried in his bofom : prone he fell — 
 
 The cold air rufh'd upon his heaving heart. 
 
 A gallant man, of no ignoble line, 
 
 Was Glacidas, • His fires had lived in peace ; 465 
 
 Wifely fecluded from the jarring world 
 
 They heap'd the hofpitable hearth, they fpread 
 
 The feaft ; their vaiTals loved them, and afar 
 
 The traveller told their fame. In peace they died ; 
 
 Exhaufted Nature finking flow to reft. 470 
 
 For them the venerable fathers pour'd 
 
 A .requiem when they flept, and o'er them rais'd 
 
 The fculptur'd monument. Now far away 
 
 Their offspring falls, the laft 01 all his race ! 
 O ?, 
 
z6i JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Slain in a foreign land, and doom'd to fhare 471 
 The common grave. And now their leader flain, 
 The vanquiftYd Englifh fly towards the gate, 
 Seeking the inner court, as hoping there 8 
 Again to dare the fiege, and with their friends 
 Find prefent refuge. Ah ! miftaken men ! 48Q 
 The vanquiih'd have no friends ! defeated thus, 
 Prefl by purfuit, in vain with eager voice 
 They call their comrades in the fuppliant tones 
 Of pity now, now in the indignant phrafe 
 Of fruitlefs anger : they indeed within 485 
 
 Fall from the ramparts on the victor troops 
 Hurl their keen javelins,— but the gate is barr'd — 
 The huge portcullis down ! Then terror feiz'd 
 Their hopelefs hearts : fome, furious in defpair, 
 Turn on their foes ; fear-palfied. fome await 490 
 The coming death ; fome drop the ufelefs fword 
 And cry for mercy. Then the Maid of Arc 
 Had pity on the vanquihVd ; and Ihe call'd 
 Aloud, and cried to all the hoft of France, 
 And bade them ceafe from flaughter. They obeyed- 
 The delegated damfel. Some there were 
 Apart that communed murmuring, and of thefe 
 D'Orval addrefs'd her. " Miffion'd Maid ! our troops 
 Are few in number ; and to well fecure 
 Thefe many prifoners fuch a force demands, 5©o 
 As fhould we fpare might fhortly make us need 
 The mercy we bellow : not mercy then,. 
 Rather to thefe our foldiers, cruelty. 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 163 
 
 Juftice to them, to France, and to our King, 
 And that regard wife Nature has in each. 505 
 
 Implanted of felf-fafety, all demand 
 Their deaths." " Foul fall fuch evil policy !" 
 The indignant Maid exclaim'd. " I tell thee, Chief,. 
 God is with us ! but God fhall hide his face 
 From him who fheds one drop of human blood 510. 
 Ln calm cold-hearted wifdom— him who weighs 
 The right and the expedient, and refolves, 
 Juft as the well-pois'd fcale fhall rife or fall. 
 Thefe men fhall live— live to be happy, Chief, 
 And in the lateft hour of life, fhall blefs 515 
 
 Us who preferved. What is the Conqueror's name,. 
 Compar'd to this when the death-hour fhall come ? 
 To think that we have from the murderous fword 
 Refcued one man, and that his heart-pour'd prayers, 
 Already with celeuial eloquence, 520 
 
 Plead for us to the All juft," Severe fhe fpake, 
 Then turn'd to Conrade. " Thou from thefe our 
 Appoint fit efcort for the prifoners £ [troops 
 
 I need not tell thee, Conrade, they are men, 
 Mifguided men, led from their little homes, 525 
 The viclims of the mighty ! thus fubdued 
 They are our foes no longer : be they held 
 Safely in Orleans. Thou choofe forth with fpeed 
 One of known prudence, but whofe heart is rich 
 In Heaven's moft precious boon humanity, 530 
 Their captain. From the war we may not fpare 
 Thy valor long." She faid : when Conrade caft 
 
1 64 J VAN of- arc: 
 
 His eyes around, and mark'd amid the court 
 From man to man where Francis rufh'd along, 
 Bidding them fpare the vanquiftVd* Him he hail'd 
 " The Maid hath bade: me choofe a leader forth 
 To guard the captives : thou (halt be the man ; . 
 For thou wilt guard them with due diligence, 
 Yet not forgetting they are men, bereft 
 Of all they love, and who may largely claim - 5 
 Thy pity." Nor meantime the garrifon 
 CeasMfrom the war ^ they, in the hour of need, \ 
 Abandoning their comrades to the fword, 
 A daring band, refolved to bide the fiege 
 In defperate valor. ... Faft againft the walls 545 
 
 The battering-ram drove fierce : the enginery. 
 Ply'd at the ramparts fall ; the catapults- 
 Drove there their dreadful darts ; the war-wolfs there - 
 Hurl'd their huge ftones ; and, by the pavais fenced, 
 The Knights of France fped. there their well-aim' d I 
 fhafts. $5° 
 
 " Feel ye not, comrades, how the ramparts fhake - 
 Beneath the ponderous ram's unceafmg ftroke V 
 Cried one, a venturous Englifhman. if Our foes, 
 In woman-like compaflion, have difmiffed 
 A powerful efcort, weakening thus themfelves, 555 
 And giving us fair hope, in equal field, 
 Of better fortune. Sorely here annoyed, 
 And Slaughtered by their engines from afar, 
 We perifh. Vainly does the foldier boaft > 
 Undaunted courage and the powerful arm, 560 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 165 
 
 If thus pent up, like fomewild beaft he falls, 
 Mark'd for the hunter's arrows : . let us rufti 
 And meet them in the battle, man to man,. 
 Either to conquer, or, at lead to die 
 A foldier's death." " Nay, nay. — not fo," replied 
 Gne of lefs daring valor. " Tho' they point 
 Their engines here, our archers not in vain 
 Speed their death-doing (hafts. Let the ftrongf walls 
 Firft by the foe be won ; 'twill then.be time 
 To meet them. in. the battle man to man, 570 
 
 When thefe mail fail us." Scarc^y had he fpoke, 
 When full upon his bread a ponderous (lone 
 Fell fierce impell'd, and drove him to the earth, 
 All mattered. Horror the fpeclators feiz'd ! 
 For as the dreadful weapon fhivered him, 575 
 
 His blood befprmMed round, and they beheld 
 His mangled lungs lie quivering ! " Such the fate 
 Of thofe who trufl them to their walls' defence," 
 Again exclaim'd the foldier : " thus they fall, 
 Betrayed by their own fears. Courage alone 58© 
 Can fave us." Nor to draw them from the fort 
 Now needed eloquence ; with one accord 
 They bade him lead to battle. Forth they rufh'd 
 Impetuous. With fuch fury o'er the plain, 
 Swoln by the autumnal tempeft, Vega, rolls 585. 
 His rapid waters, when the gathered ftorm. 
 On the black hills of Cambria burfting, fwells^ 
 The tide of defolation. Then the Maid 
 Spake to the fon of Orleans, "Let our troops 
 
i66 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 
 
 Fall back, fo fhall the Englifh in purfuit 590 
 
 Leave this ftrong fortrefs, thus an eafy prey." 
 Time was not for long counfel. From the court, 
 Obedient to Dunois, a band of' Franks 
 Retreat, as at the irruption of their foes 
 Difheartened ; they, with' fhouts and loud uproaf, 
 Rufh to their fancied conqueft ; JOAN, the while 
 Placing a fmall but gallant garrifon, 
 Bade them fecure the gates : then forth ftie rufh'd, 
 With fuch fierce onfet charging on their rear, 
 That terror fmote the Englifh, and they wifh'd 600 
 Again that they might hide them in their walls 
 Rafhly abandoned, for now wheeling round 
 The fon of Orleans fought* All captainlefs, - 
 Ill-marfhall'd, ili-dkected, in vain rage r 
 They wafte their furious efforts, falling fad 60^ 
 Before the Maid's good falchion and the fword 
 OFConrade :~loud was heard-the mingled found 
 Of arms and men - r the earth, that trampled late 
 By multitudes^ gave to the palling. wind 
 Its dufty clouds, now reek'd with their hot gore. 610 
 
 High on the fort's far-fummit Talbot mark'd 
 The fight, and call'd impatient for his arms, 
 Eager to rufh to war; and fcarce withheld, 
 For now, difheartened and difcomfited, 
 The troops fied fearful. On the bridge there flood I 
 A ftrong-built tower, commanding o'er the Loire, 
 The traveller, fometimes lingered On his way, 
 Marking the playful tenants of the ft ream, 
 
•XOOlK THE EIGHTH. 167 
 
 -'Seen in its fhadow, ftem the fea-ward tide. 
 This had the invaders won in hard afTault 620 
 
 . 3Jre fhe, the Delegate of Heaven, came forth 
 And made them fear who .never fear'd before. 
 -Hither the Englifh troops with hafty fteps 
 ^Retir'd, yet not forgetful of defence, 
 But waging ftill the war : the garrifon 625 
 
 f hem thus retreating faw, and open threw 
 Their guarded gates, and on the Gallic hoft, 
 - Covering their vanquifh'd fellows, pour'd their fhafts. 
 Check'd in purfuit they ftopt. Then D'Orval cried, 
 r Hl> Maiden, haft thou done ! thofe valiant troops 
 Thy womanifh pity has difmilfed, wi$i us 
 Conjoin'd might prefs upon the vanquifti'd foes, 
 Tho* aided thus, and plant the lilied flag 
 Victorious on yon tower." " Dark-minded man !*' 
 The Majd of Orleans anfwered, " to. act well 635 
 Brings with itfelf an ample recompenfe. 
 Chieftain ! let come what will, me it behoves, 
 Mindful of that Good Power whofe delegate 
 J. am, to fpare the fallen : that gracious God 
 ..Sends me the minifter of mercy forth, 640 
 
 Sends me to fave this ravaged realm of France. 
 To England friendly as to all the world, 
 Foe only to the great blood-guilty ones, 
 The mailers and the murderers of mankind.** 
 
 She faid, and fuddenly threw off her helm ; 645 
 Her bread heaved high -her cheek grew red-her eyes 
 FlaftTd forth a wilder luftre, « Thou doft deem 
 

 i68 JOAN OF ARC, 
 
 That 1 have illy fpar'd fo large a band, 
 Dlfabling from purfuit our weakened troops- 
 God is with us," fhe cried—" God is with us ! 650 
 Our Champion manifeft !" Even as fhe fpake, 
 The tower, the bridge, and all its multitudes, 
 Sunk with a mighty crafh. Aflonifhment 
 Seiz'd on the French— a univerfal cry 
 Of terror burft from them. Crufh'd in the fall, 655 
 Or by their armor whelm'd beneath the tide, 
 The fufFerers funk, or vainly plied their arms, 
 Caught by fome finking wretch, who grafp'd them fail 
 And dragg'd them down to death : fhrieking they 
 
 funk ; 
 Huge fragments frequent danVd with thund'ring roar 
 Amid the foaming current. From the fort 
 Talbot beheld, and gnafrVd his teeth, and curs'd 
 The more than mortal Virgin ; whilft the towers 
 Of Orleans echoed to the loud uproar, 
 And all who heard, trembled, and crofs'd their. breads, 
 And as they haftened to the city walls, 
 Told fearfully their beads. 'Twas now the hour 
 When o'er the plain the penfive hues of eve 
 Shed their meek radiance; when the lowing herd. 
 Slow as they ftalk to fhelter, draw behind 670 
 
 The lengthening (hades ; and feeking his high nert, 
 As heavily he flaps the dewy air, 
 The hoarfe rook pours his not unpleafing note. 
 " Now then, Dunois, for Orleans !" cried the Maid, 
 a The ftrongeft forts are ours, and who remain, 63$ 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. 169 
 
 Saved from our fwords awhile, in heart fubdued, 
 Will yield an eafy conqueft ; reft we now 
 Our wearied foldiers, for the night draws on." 
 
 She faid, and joyful of their fmifh'd toil 
 The hoft retire. HufiYd is the field of fight, 680 
 And filent as the deep, but late uptorn 
 By vernal tempefts, when the ftorm is paft 
 And o'er the gently-fwelling furface, fleeps 
 The unruffling wind. Meantime the Englifh troops 
 Now loud in terror, clamor'd for retreat, 685 
 
 Deeming that, aided by the powers of Heaven, 
 The Maid w T ent forth to conquer. One more bold, 
 Learning reflection in the hour of ill, 
 Exclaira'd, « I marvel not that the Moft High 
 Hath hid his face from England ! Wherefore thus 
 Quitting the comforts of domeftic life, 
 Swarm we to defolate this goodly land t 
 Making the drench'd earth, rank with human blood, 
 Scatter pollution on the winds of Heaven ? 
 -Oh ! that the fepulchre had clofed its jaws 695 
 On that foul Prieft, that bad blood-guilty man, 9 
 Who, trembling for the Church's ill-got wealth, 
 Bade Henry look on France, ere he had drawn 
 The defolating fword, and fent him forth 
 To flaughter i think that in this fatal war 700 
 
 Thoufands and tens of thoufands, by the fword 
 Cut off, and fent before the eternal Judge, 
 With all their unrepented crimes upon them, 
 Cry out for vengeance ! that the widow's, groan, 
 
lyo JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Tho' here Die groan unpitied or unheard, 705 
 
 Is heard in Heaven againft us ! o'er this land 
 That hills of human ilain, unfepulchred, 
 Steam peftilence, and cloud the blefled fun ! 
 The wrath of God is on us— God has call'd 
 This Virgin forth, and gone before her path— 7 1 o 
 Our brethren, vainly valiant, fall beneath them, 
 Clogging with gore their weapons, or in the flood 
 Whelm'd like the Egyptian tyrant's impious hoft, 
 Mangled and fwoln, their blackened carcafles 
 Tofs on the toiling billows ! We remain, 715 
 
 For yet our rulers will purfue the war, 
 We ft ill remain to perifh by the fword, 
 Soon to appear before the throne of God, 
 Loft, guilty wretches, hireling murderers, 
 Uninjur'd, unprovok'd, who dared to rifk 720 
 
 The life his goodnefs gave us, on the chance 
 Of war, and in obedience to our Chiefs, 
 Durft difobey our God." Then terror feized 
 The troops and late repentance : and they thought 
 The Spirits of the Mothers and their Babes, 725 
 FamihYd at Rouen, fat on the clouds of night, 
 Circling the forts, to hail with gloomy joy 
 The hour of vengeance. Nor the Englifh Chiefs 
 Heard their loud murmurs heedlefs : counfelling 
 They met defpondent. Suffolk -(now their Chief, 
 Since conquered by the arm of Theodore 
 Fell Salifbury) thus began. " It now were vain 
 Lightly of this our more than mortal fo\b 
 
BOOK THE EIGBTJJ. 17.1 
 
 To fpeak- contemptuous. She has vanquifiVd us, 
 Aided by Hell's leagued powers ; nor aught avails 
 Man unaflifted 'gain ft the powers of Hell 
 To dare the conflict- : it were better far 
 Retreating as we may, from this fad fcene, 
 What of our hard- won conquefts yet remain, 
 Haply to fave." He ceased, and with a figh 740 
 Struggling with pride that heav'd his gloomy breaft, 
 Talbot replied—" Our council little boots ** 
 The foldiers will not fight, they will not heed 
 Our vain refolves, heart-withered by the fpells 
 Of this accurfed Sorcerefs : foon will come 745 
 The expected hoft from England : even now 
 Perchance the tall bark feuds acrofs- the deep 
 That bears my fon — young Talbot comes — he comes 
 To find his fire difgraced ! but foon mine arm, 
 By vengeance nerved, and fhame of fuch defeat, 
 Shall, from the. creft-fallen courage of yon witch, 
 Regain its ancient glory. Near the coaft 
 Bell is it to retreat, and there expect 
 The coming fuccour." Thus the warrior fpake. 
 Joy ran through all the troops, as tho' retreat 755 
 Were fafety. Silently in ordered ranks 
 They iflue forth, favored by the deep clouds 
 That mantled o'er the moon. With throbbing hearts 
 Fearful they fpeeded on : fome, thinking fad 
 Of diftant England, and, now wife too late, 760 
 Curfing in bitternefs that evil hour 
 That led them from her fhores : fome in faint hope 
 
172 Joan of arc. 
 
 Calling to mind the comforts of their home : 
 
 Talbot went mufmg on his blafted fame 
 
 Sullen and Mem, and feeding on dark thoughts, 765 
 
 And meditating vengeance. In the walls 
 
 Of Orleans, tho' her habitants with joy 
 
 Humbly acknowledged the high aid of Heaven, 
 
 Of many a heavy ill and bitter lofs 
 
 Mindful ; fuch mingled fentiments they felt 770 
 
 As one from fhipwreck faved, the firft warm glow 
 
 Of tranfport part, who contemplates himfelf, 
 
 Preferved alone, a folitary Wretch, 
 
 PorTeiTed of life indeed, but reft of all 
 
 That makes man love to live. The Chieftains fhared 
 
 The fecial bowl, glad of the' town Telieved, 
 
 And communing of that miraculous Maid, 
 
 Who came the favior of the realm of France, 
 
 When vanquifK'd in the frequent field of fname* 
 
 Her braveft warriors trembled. JOAN the white 
 
 Foodlefs and filent to the Convent pafs'd : 
 
 Conrade, with her and Ifabel ; both mute, 
 
 Yet gazing on her oft with eloquent eye, 
 
 Looking the confolation that they fear'd 
 
 To give a voice to. Now they reach'd the dome : 
 
 The glaring torches o'er the ho ufe of death 
 
 Stream'd a fad fplendor. Flowers and funeral herbs 
 
 Bedeck'd the bier of Theodore : the rue, 
 
 The dark green rofemary, and the violet, 
 
 That pluck'd like him withered in its firft bloom. 
 
 DifTolved in forrow, Ifabel her grief 
 
JS'OOKl THE EIGHTH, 173 
 
 POur'd copious ; . Conrade wept : the Maid alone 
 Was tearlefs, for fhe flood, unheedingly, 
 Gazing the vifion'd fcene of her laft hour, 
 Abforb'd in contemplation ; from her eye 800 
 
 Intelligence was abfent ; nor fhe feem'd 
 To hear, tho' liftening to the dirge of death. 
 Laid in his laft home now was Theodore, 
 And now upon the coffin thrown, the earth 
 Fell heavy : the Maid ftarted— for the found 805 
 Smote on her heart ; her eye one lightning glance 
 Shot wild, and fhuddering, upon Ifabel 
 She hung, her pale lips trembling, and her cheek 
 As wan as though untenanted by life. 
 
 Then in the Prieft arofe the earned hope, 810 
 That weary of the world and fick with woe, 
 The Maid might dwell with them a veftal vowed. 
 " Ah, Damfel !" flow he fpake and croft his breaft, 
 ** Ah, Damfel ! favored as thou art of Heaven, 
 Let not thy foul beneath its forrow fink 815 
 
 Defpondent; Heaven by forrow difciplines 
 The froward heart, and chaftens whom it loves ; 
 Therefore, companion of thy way of life, 
 Affliction thee fhall wean from this vain world, 
 Where happinefs provokes the traveller's chafe, 820 
 And like the midnight meteor of the marfh, 
 Allures his long and perilous purfuit, 
 Then Leaves him dark and comfortlefs. O Maid ! 
 Fix thou thine eyes upon that heavenly dawn 
 beyond the night of life ! thy race is run, 825 
 
 P.j 
 
i 7 4 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Thou haft delivered Orleans : now perfect 
 Thyfelf ; accomplish all, and be the child 
 Of God. Amid thefe facred haunts the groart 
 Of Woe is never heard ; thefe hallowed roofs 
 Re-echo only. to the pealing quire, 
 The chaunted mafs, and virgin's holy hymn ; 
 Celeftial founds ! fecluded here, the foul 
 Receives a foretafte of her joys to come ! 
 This is the abode of Piety and Peace : 
 Oh ! be their inmate, Maiden ! come to reft, 835 
 Die to the world, and live efpous^d to Heaven !" 
 Then. Conrade anfwere.d, " Father ! Heaven has- 
 doom'd 
 This Maid to active virtue." " Active I" cried 
 The aftonifh'd Prieft ; " thou doft. not know the toils 
 This holy warfare afks ; thou doft not know 84c 
 How powerful the attacks that Satan makes 
 By finful nature aided ! doft thou deem 
 It is an eafy talk from the fond breaft 
 To root affection out ? to bur ft the cords 
 That grapple to fociety the heart 845- 
 
 Of focial man ? to roufe the unwilling fpirit, 
 That, rebel to Devotion, faintly pours 
 The cold lip- worihip of the wearying prayer ? 
 To fear and tremble at him, yet to love 
 A God of Terrors ? Maid, beloved of Heaven E 
 Come to this facred trial ! ftiare with us 
 The day of penance and the night of prayer V 
 
BOOK THE EIGHTH. tfZ 
 
 Humble thyfelf ! feel thine own worthlefsnefs, 
 A reptile worm ! before thy birth condemn' d 
 To all the horrors of thy Maker's wrath,, 855; 
 
 The lot of fallen mankind ! Oh .hither come I 
 Humble thyfelf in afhes,fo thy name 
 Shall live amid the blefTed hod of faints, 
 And unborn pilgrims at thyhallowed fhrine 
 Pour forth their pious offerings." *' Hear mePried!' ir 
 Exclaim'd the awakened Maid ; " amid thefe tombs, 
 Cold as their clayey tenants, knew, my heart 
 Mud never grow to done ! chill thou thyfelf,. 
 And break thy midnight reft, and tell thy beads, 
 And labor thro' thy dill repeated prayer ; 865 
 
 Fear thou thy God of Terrors ; fpurn the gifts 
 He gave, and fepulchre thyfelf alive I 
 But far more valued is the vine that bends- 
 Beneath its fwelling cluders, than the dark 
 And joylefs ivy, round the cloider's wall 87c 
 
 Wreathing its barren arms. For me I know 
 Mine own worth, Pried ! that I have well perform'd 
 My duty, and untrembling fhall appear 
 Before the jud tribunal of that God, 
 Whom grateful love has taught me to adore !* 875 
 She {kid, and they departed frojra the dqme, 
 

 BOOK THE NINTHS- 
 
 ARGUMENT.- 
 Vifion of the Maid*- 
 
 R k EA NS ; was huhVd in fleep. Stretch'd on 
 
 her couch 
 The delegated Maiden lay \ with toil 
 Exhaufted and fore anguifh. Soon ffoe clofed 
 Her heavy eye-lids ; not repofmg then, 
 For bufy Phantafy, in other fcenes 5 
 
 Awakened : whether that fuperior powers, 
 By wife permifFion, prompt the midnight dreanv- 
 Or that the foul, efcaped its flefhly ^logy- 
 Flies free, and foars amid the in.cifible world, 
 And all things are that feenu Along a heath, 10 
 Barren, and wide, and ^rear, and defolate, 
 She roam'd a wan^ erer . t hto ? the cheerlefs night. . 
 Black clouds, ^ n: - 1Y€ . n f a ft before the ftormy wind, 
 Swept fK^owklg ; thro' their broken folds, the -moon 
 Sf higgled fometimes with tranfitory ray, 
 Anofmade the moving darknefs, vifible. 
 And now arrived befide a fenny lake 
 She ftands : amid its ftagnate waters, hoaife 
 The thick fcdge ruftled to the gales of night, 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. . 177 
 
 And loud was heard the Bittern's mournful cry, 20 
 An age-worn bark receives the Maid, impell'd 
 By powers unfe.en ; then did the moon difplay 
 Where thro* the crazy veffePs yawning fide 
 Ruih'd in the muddy wavei a female guides 
 And fpreads the fail before the wind* that moan'd 
 As melancholy mournful to her ear,. 
 As ever by the dungeon'd wretch was heard' 
 Howling at evening round the embattled towers 
 Of that hell-houfe of France, ere yetfublime ■ 
 The Almighty people from their tyrant's hand 3b 
 Daih'd down the iron rod. Intent the MaicT 
 Gazed on the pilot's form, and as ihe ga^zed 
 Shiver'd, for wan her face was, and her eyes 
 Hollow, and her funk cheeks were furrowed deep^ 
 Channell'd by tears ; a few grey locks hung down 
 Beneath her hood : then thro' the maiden's veins 
 Chill crept the blood ; for, as the night-breeze pafs'd r 
 Lifting her tatter'd mantle, coil'd around^ 
 She faw a ferpent gnawing at her heart. 
 
 The plumelefs Bat with fhort fhrill note flits by. 
 And the night-raven's fcream came fitfully, 
 Borne on the hollow blaft. Eager the Maid 
 Look'd to the fhore, and now upon the bank: 
 Leaps, joyful to efeape, yet trembling ftill 
 In recollection-. There, a mouldering pile 45 
 
 Stretch'd its wide ruins, o'er the plain below 
 Cafting a gloomy made, f&ve where the moon. 
 Shone thro' its fretted windows : the dark Yewv 
 
178 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Withering with age, branched there its naked roots, 
 And there the melancholy Cyprefs rear'd 50. 
 
 Its head : the earth was heaved with many a mound,. 
 And here and there a half-demolifh'd tomb. 
 
 And now, amid the rains' darkeft fliade, 
 The Virgin's eye beheld where pale blue flames 
 Rofe wavering, now juft gleaming from the earth,* 
 And now in darknefs drown' d. An aged Man 
 Sat near, feated on what in long-paft days- 
 Had been fome fculptured monument, nowfall'fi- 
 And half-obfcur'd by mofs, and gathered heaps 
 Of withered yew-leaves and earth-mouldering bones r 
 And Alining in the ray was feenthe track. 
 Gf flimy fnail obfeene. Compofed his look,, 
 His eye was large and raylefs, and fix'd full- 
 Upon the Maid ', the blue flames on his face 
 Stream'd a drear light ; his face was of the hue 65 
 Of death : his limbs were mantled in a fhroud. 
 
 Then with a deep heart-terrifying voice, 
 Exclaim'd the Spectre, " Welcome to thefe realms,. 
 Thefe regions of Despair !- O thou whofe fteps 
 By Grief conducted to thefe fad abodes* 70 
 
 Have piere'd ; welcome, welcome to this gloom 
 Eternal ; to this everlafting night ; 
 Where never morning darts the enlivening ray,. 
 Where never fhines the.fun, but all is dark, 
 Dark as the bofom of their gloomy King !" 75 
 
 So faying, he arofe, and by the hand 
 The Virgin feiz'd.with fuch a death-cold touch 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. i 79 
 
 As froze her very heart ; and drawing on, 
 Mer, to the abbey's inner ruin, led 
 Refiftlefs.: thro' the broken roof the moon 8.0 
 
 Glimmer' d a fcatter'd ray : the ivy twined 
 Round the difman tied column : imaged forms 
 Of Saints and warlike Chiefs, mofs-canker'd now 
 And mutilate, lay ftrewn upon the ground ; 
 With crumbled fragments, crucifixes fallen, 
 And rufted trophies ; and amid the heap 
 Some monument's defaced legend fpake, 
 All human glory vain. The loud blaft roar'd 
 Amid the pile .; and from the tower the owl 
 Scream'd as the tempeft fnook her fecret neft. 90 
 He, filent, led her on, and often paus'd, 
 And pointed, that her eye might contemplate 
 At leifure the drear fcene. He dragged her on 
 Thro' a low iron door, down broken ftairs ; 
 Then a cold iiorror thro' the Maiden's frame 95 
 Crept, for (he flood amid a vault, and faw, 
 By the fepulchral lamp's dim glaring light, 
 The fragments of the dead. " Look here !" he cried, 
 " Damfel, look here ! furvey the houfeof Death ! 
 O foon to tenant it ! foon to increafe 100 
 
 Thefe trophies of mortality ! for hence 
 Is no return ! Gaze here ! behold this fkvill ! 
 Thefe eyelefs fockets, and thefe unflefh'd jaws, 
 That with their ghaftly grinning, feem to mock 
 Thy perifhable charms ; for thus thy cheek 105 
 Muft moulder-! Child of Grief! ihrinks not thy fouls 
 
a So JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Viewing thefe horrors ? trembles not thy heart 
 
 At the dread thought, that here its life's-blood fooa 
 
 Shall ftagnate, and the finely-fibred frame, 
 
 Now warm in life and feeling, mingle foon 1 1» 
 
 With the cold clod ? a thought moft horrible 
 
 So only, dreadful, for reality 
 
 Is none of fuffering here ; here all is peace ; 
 
 No nerve will throb to anguifti in the grave. 
 
 Dreadful it is to think of lofmg life, 1 1 
 
 But having loft, knowledge of lofs is not 
 
 Therefore no ill. Hafte, Maiden, to repofe ; 
 
 Probe deep the feat of life. " So fpake Despair. 
 
 The vaulted roof echoed his hollow voice. 
 
 And all again was filence. Quick her heart 120 
 
 Panted. He drew a dagger from his breaft, 
 
 And cried again, " Hafte, Damfel, to repofe ! 
 
 One blow, arfcl reft for ever !" On the fiend 
 
 Dark fcowl'd the Virgin with indignant eye, 
 
 And dafn'd the dagger down. He next his heart 
 
 Replaced the murderous fteel, and drew the t Maid 
 
 Along the downward vault. The damp earth gave 
 
 A dim found as they pafs'd : the tainted air 
 
 Was cold, and heavy with unwholefome dews. 
 
 < 6i Behold !" the fiend exclaim'd, " how gradual here 
 
 " The fleftily burden of mortality 
 
 Moulders to clay IV then fixing his broad eye 
 
 Full on her face, he pointed where a corpfe 
 
 Lay livid ; flie beheld with loathing look, 
 
 The fpechicle abhorr'd by living man, 13$ 
 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. 1S1 
 
 "Look here I" Despair purfued, " this loathfome 
 Was once as lovely, and as full of life [mafs 
 
 As, Damfel ! thou art now. Thofe deep-funk eyes 
 Once beam'd the mild light of intelligence, 
 And where thou feeft the pamper'd flefh worm trail, 
 Once the white bofom heaved. She fondly thought 
 That at the hallowed altar, foon the Prieft 
 Should blefs her coming union, and the torch, 
 Its joyful mitre o'er the hall of joy, 
 Caft on her nuptial evening : earth to earth 145 
 That Prieft confign'd her, and the funeral lamp 
 Glares on her cold face ; for her lover went, 
 By glory lur'd to war, and periih'd there ; 
 Nor me endur'd to live. Ha ! fades thy cheek ? 
 Doft thou then, Maiden, tremble at the tale ? 150 
 Look here ! behold the youthful paramour ! 
 The felf-devoted hero i" Fearfully 
 The Maid look'd down, and faw the well-known face 
 Of— Theodore ! in thoughts unfpeakable, 
 Convulfed with horror, o'er her face ihe clafp'd 155 
 Her cold damp hands : 
 
 " Shrink not," the Phantom cried, 
 * l Gaze on ! for ever gaze !" more firm he grafp'd 
 Her quiv'ring arm : " This lifelefs mouldering clay, 
 As well thou know' ft, was warm with all the glow 
 Of Youth and Love ! this is the arm that cleaved 
 Salisbury's proud ere ft, now motionlefs in Death, 
 Unable to protect the ravaged frame 
 From, the foul Offspring of Mortality 
 Q 
 
i82 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 That feed on heroes. Tho' long years were thine, 
 Yet never more would life reanimate 165 
 
 This murdered man ; murdered by thee ! for thou 
 Didft lead him to the battle from his home, 
 Elfe living there in peace to good old age : 
 In thy defence he died : ftrike deep— deftroy 
 Remorfe with life." The Maid flood motionlefs, 
 And wiftlefs what fhe did, with trembling hand 
 Received the dagger. Starting then, fhe cried, 
 " Avaunt, Despair ! Eternal Wifdom deals 
 Or peace to man, or mifery, for his good 
 Alike defign'd ; and fhall the Creature cry, 175 
 " Why haft thou done this ?" and with impious pride 
 Deftroy the life God gave ?" The Fiend rejoirx'd : 
 M And thou doft deem -it impious to deftroy 
 The life God gave \ What, Maiden, is the lot 
 Ailign'd to mortal man ? born but to drag, 1 80 
 Thro* Life's long pilgrimage, the wearying load 
 Of Being ; care-corroded at the heart ; 
 AlTaiPd by all the numerous train of ills 
 That flefh inherits ; till at length worn out, 
 This is his consummation ! think again : 185 
 
 What, Maiden, canft thou hope from lengthened life 
 But lengthen' d forrow ? If protracted long, 
 Till on the bed of Death thy feeble limbs 
 Outftretch their languid length? Qh think What 
 
 thoughts, 
 What agonizing woes, in that dread hour, 19* 
 
 AfTail the finking heart ! flow beats the pulfe ! 
 
 
BOOK THE • NINTH. 183 
 
 Dim grows the eye, and clammy drops bedew 
 The fhuddering frame \ then in its mightieft force, 
 Mightieft in impotence, the love of life 
 Shall feize the throbbing heart — the faultering lips 
 Pour out the impious prayer, that fain would change 
 The Immutable's decree— furrounding friends 
 Sob round the fufferer — wet his cheek with tears, 
 And all he loved in life embitters death ! 
 
 "' Such, Maiden, are the pangs that wait the hour 
 Of calmeft dnTolution ! yet weak man 
 Dares, in his timid piety, to live ; 
 And veiling Fear in Super nation's garb, 
 He calls it— Refignation ! Coward wretch ! 
 Fond Coward, thus to make his Reafon war 205 
 Againft his Reafon ! infect as he is, 
 This fport of Chance ! this being of a Day, 
 Whofe whole exiftence the next cloud may blaft ! 
 Believes himfelf the care of heavenly powers, 
 That God regards Man ! miferable Man ! 210 
 
 And preaching thus of Power and Providence, 
 Will crufh the reptile that may crofs his path 1 
 
 ** Fool that thou art ! the Being that permits 
 Exiftence, gives to man the worthlefs boon : 
 A goodly gift to thofe who, fortune-bleft, 215 
 
 Bafk in the funfhine of Profperity, 
 And fuch do well to keep it. But to him, 
 Sick at the heart with mifery, and fore 
 With many a hard unmerited affliction,. 
 It is a hair that chains to wretchednefs- 220 
 
 
1 84 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 The flave who dares not burft it ! Thmkeft thou, 
 The parent, if his child fhould unrecall'd 
 Return and fall upon his neck, and cry, z 
 " Oh ! the wide world is comfortlefs, and full 
 Of vacant joys or heart-confuming cares ! 225 
 
 I can be only happy in my home [Maid, 
 
 With thee—my friend !— my father!" Think'ft thou, 
 That he would thruft him as an outcaft forth ? 
 Oh ! he would clafp the truant to his heart, 
 And love the trefpafs." Whilft he fpake, his eye 
 Dwelt on the Maiden's cheek, and read her foul 
 Struggling within. In trembling doubt fhe flood, 
 Even as the wretch, whofe famifh'd entrails crave 
 Supply, before him fees the poifon'd food 
 In greedy horror. Yet not long the Maid 235 
 
 Debated, " Ceafe thy dangerous fophiftry, 
 Eloquent tempter !" cried fhe, " gloomy one ! 
 What though affliction be my portion here, 
 Think'h: thou I do not feel high thoughts of joy, 
 Of heart-ennobling joy, when I look back 240 
 
 Upon a life of duty well perform'd, 
 Then lift mine eyes to Heaven, and there in faith 
 Know my reward ? I grant, were this life all ; 
 Was there no morning to the Tomb's long night ; 
 If man did mingle with the fenfelefs clod, 245 
 
 Himfelf as fenfelefs, then wert thou indeed 
 A wife and friendly comforter ! But— Fiend ! 
 There is a morning to the Tomb's long night, 
 A dawn of glory, a reward in Heaven, 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. 185 
 
 He fhall not gain who never merited. 250 
 
 If thou didft know the worth of one good deed 
 
 In life's laft hour, thou would'ft not bid me lofe 
 
 The power to benefit ; if I but fave 
 
 A drowning fly, I fhall not live in vain. 
 
 I have great duties, Fiend ! me France expects, 255 
 
 Her heaven-doonl'd Champion." 
 
 " Maiden, thou haft done 
 Thy miflion here," the unbaffled Fiend replied : 
 " The foes are fled from Orleans : thou, perchance 
 Exulting in the pride of victory, 
 Forgetteft him who perifh'd ; yet albeit 260 
 
 Thy harden'd heart forget the gallant youth ; 
 That hour allotted, canft thou not efcape 
 That dreadful hour, when Contumely and Shame 
 Shall fojourn in thy dungeon. Wretched Maid ! 
 Deftined to drain the cup of bitternefs,_ 265 
 
 Even to its dregs 1 England's inhuman Chiefs 
 Shall feoff thy forrows, black thy fpotlefs fame, 
 Wit-wanton it with lewd barbarity, 
 And force fuch burning biufhes to the cheek 
 Of Virgin modefty, that thou fhalt wifh 270 
 
 The earth might cover thee \ in that laft hour, 
 When thybruis'dbreaft fhall heave beneath the chains 
 That link thee to the ftake ; when o'er thy form, 
 Expofed unmantled, the brute multitude 
 Shall gaze, and thou fhalt hear the ribald taunt, 275 
 More painful than the circling flames that fcorch 
 Each quivering member ; wilt thou not in vain 
 
i86 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Then wifh my friendly aid ? then wifh thine ear 
 
 Had drank my words of comfort ? that thy hand 
 
 Had grafp'd the dagger, and in death preferved 280 
 
 Infulted modefty ?" Her glowing cheek 
 
 Blufh'd crimfon ; her wide eye on vacancy 
 
 Was fix'd ; her breath fhort panted. The cold Fiend, 
 
 Grafping her hand, exclaim'd, " Too timid Maid, 
 
 So long repugnant to the healing aid 285 
 
 My friendfhip proffers, now {halt thou behold 
 
 The allotted length of life." He ftamp'd the earth. 
 
 And dragging a huge coffin as his car, 
 
 Two Gouls came on, of form more fearful-foul 
 
 Than ever palfied in her wildeft dream 290 
 
 Hag-ridden Superftition. Then Despair. 
 
 Seiz'd on the Maid, whofe curdling blood flood frill* 
 
 And placed her in the feat ; and on they pafs'd 
 
 Adown the deep defcent. A meteor light 
 
 Shot from the Demons, as they dragg'd along 295- 
 
 The unwelcome load, and mark'd their brethren glut 
 
 On carcaifes. Below the vault dilates 
 
 Its ample bulk. " Look here l"— Despair addrefl 
 
 The fhuddering Virgin, " fee the dome of Death !" 
 
 It was a fpacious cavern, hewn amid 300 
 
 The entrails of the earth, as though to form 
 
 The grave of all mankind : no eye could reach, 
 
 Though gifted with the Eagle's ample ken, 
 
 Its diftant bounds. There, thron'd in darknefs, dwelt 
 
 The unfeen Power of Death. 
 
 Here ftopt the Gouls, 305 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. 187 
 
 Reaching the deftin'd fpot. The Fiend leapt out, 
 And from the" coffin, as he led the Maid, 
 Exclaim'd, " Where never yet flood mortal man 
 Thou ftandeft : look around this boundlefs vault ; 
 Obferve the dole that Nature deals to man, 310 
 And learn to know thy friend." She not replied, 
 Obferving where the Fates their feveral talks 
 Plied ceafelefs. " Mark how fhort the longeft web 
 Allowed to man !" he cried ; " obferve how foon, 
 Twin'd round yon never-refting wheel, they change 
 Their fnowy hue, darkening through many a made, 
 Till Atropos relentlefs fhuts the fheers !" 
 
 Too true he fpake, for of the countlefs threads, 
 Drawn from the heap, as white as unfunn'd fnow, 
 Or as the lovely lily of the vale, , 320 
 
 Was never one beyond the little fpan 
 Of infancy untainted : few there were 
 But lightly tinged ; more of deep crimfon hue, 
 Or deeper fable died. Two Genii ft ood, 
 Still as the web of Being was drawn forth, 325 
 Sprinkling their powerful drops. From ebon urn. 
 The one unfparing dafrVd the bitter wave 
 Of woe ; and as he dafh'd, his dark-brown brow 
 Relax'd to a hard fmile. The milder form 
 Shed lefs profufely there his leuer (lore ; 330 
 
 Sometimes with tears increafmg the fcant boon, 
 Mourning the lot of man ; and happy he 
 Who on his thread thofe precious drops receives ; 
 If it be happinefs to have the pulfe 
 
i88 JOAN OF ARC, 
 
 Throb faft with pity, and in fuch a world 335 
 
 Of wretchednefs, the generous heart that aches 
 With anguifh at the fight of human woe ! 
 
 To her the Fiend, well-hoping now fuccefs, 
 " This is thy thread ! obferve how fhort the fpan, 
 And fee how copious yonder Genius pours 340 
 The bitter ftream of woe." The Maiden faw 
 Fearlefs. "Nowgaze!" the tempter Fiend exclaim'd,- 
 And placed again the poniard in her hand, 
 For Superstition, with fulphureal torch, 
 Stalk'd-to the loom. " This, Damfel, is thy fate ! 
 The hour draws on— now drench the dagger deep I 
 Now rufh to happier worlds \" The Maid replied, 
 " Or to prevent or change the will of Heaven, 
 Impious I ftrive not : be that will perform'd i" 
 
 Lo ! as me fpake, celeflial radiance beam'd 350 
 Amid the air j fuch odors wafting now 
 As ever fled upon the evening gale r 
 From Eden's blifsful bowers. An angel form 
 Stood by the Maid ; his wings, ethereal white, 
 Flafh'd like the diamond in the noon-tide fan, 355 
 Dazzling her mortal eye ; all elfe appear' d 
 Her Theodore. Amazed fhe faw : the Fiend 
 Was fled, and on her ear the well-known voice 
 Sounded ; though now more mufically fweet 
 Than ever yet had thrill'd her charmed foul 36a 
 When eloquent Affection fondly told 
 The day-dreams of delight ! " Beloved Maid L 
 Lo ! I am with thee ! ftill thy Theodore t 
 
BOOK THE NlNTm 189: 
 
 Hearts in the holy bands of Love combin'd, 
 
 Death has no power to fever.. Thou art mine ! 365 
 
 A little while, and thou flialt dwell with me 
 
 In fcenes where Sorrow is not. Cheerily 
 
 Tread thou the path that leads thee to the grave, 
 
 Rough though it be, and painful, for the grave 
 
 Is but the threfhold- of Eternity ! ' 370 
 
 Favor'd of Heaven F to thee is given to view 
 
 Thefe fecret realms. In night unpierceable 
 
 Enveloped; Death is there, around him wait 
 
 His mini iters." Undauntedly the Maid 
 
 Beheld his ghaftly train. The withered form 375 
 
 Gf Age : his cheek was hollow, and his eyes 
 
 Sunk deep, and palfied were his toothlefs jaws* 
 
 He, as he tottered on the open grave, 
 
 Look'd back, and call'd on one with earnefl voice 
 
 For aid ; yet never aid from him received 380 
 
 His fellow minifter : all gravity 
 
 He was, a well-wigg'd form, and in his hand 
 
 A gold-topt cane, which ever to his lips, 
 
 In thought profound, he prefs'd : his lofty fpeech 
 
 With learned phrafe abounded, fuch as fills 385 
 
 The aftonifh'd foul with awe : and oft his hand 
 
 Dire incantations drew, wich magic drugs, 
 
 To fill the myftic phial, which who feels, 
 
 With griping pains opprefl, (hall tofs and writhe, 
 
 Till Nature, wearied with difeafe, and fkk 390 
 
 Of remedy, mud yield the unequal ftrife. 
 
 Murder was there, well-verfed in many a fiiape 
 
190 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 To ferve his fhadowy King ; or in the rags 
 
 Of ruffian poverty, or fkill to drug 
 
 The bowl with death, or, hid beneath his cloak, 39,5, 
 
 Sharp the ftiletto for the mortal blow ; 
 
 Now in the form of Honor, fierce to talk 
 
 Of fatisfaclion for his injuries, 
 
 And reputation, and the jargon'd phrafe . 
 
 That make mankind genteely violate 400- 
 
 The law of God. But thefe are petty deeds- 
 
 For this proud Fiend, that o'er the ravaged earth 
 
 Stalks royally^and bids his liveried flaves, 
 
 His hireling train'd affaffins, to go forth, 
 
 And defolate and kill ! As on they pafs'd ' 405* 
 
 Beyond the hideous train, thus Theodore 
 
 Purfued : " The bottom of the vaft abyfs 
 
 Thou treadeft, Maiden ! Here the dungeons are 
 
 Where bad men learn repentance ; fouls difeafed 
 
 Muft have their remedy ; and where difeafe 410' 
 
 Is rooted deep, the remedy is long. 
 
 Perforce, and painful." Thus the Spirit fpake r 
 
 And led the Maid along a narrow path, 
 
 Dark-gleaming to the light of far-off flames, 
 
 More dread than darknefs.. Soon the diftant found 
 
 Of clanking anvils, and the lengthened breath 
 
 Provoking fire are heard : and now they reach 
 
 A vaft expanded den,, where all around - 
 
 Tremendous furnaces, with hellifh blaze,_ 
 
 Flamed dreadful. At the heaving bellows flood 
 
 The meagre form of Care, and as he blew 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. 191 
 
 'To augment the fire, the fire augmented, fcorch'd 
 His wretched limbs : fleeplefs for ever thus 
 He toil'd and toil'd, Or toil to reap no end 
 But eridlefs toil, and never-ending woe. ' 425 
 
 An aged man went round the infernal vault 
 ^Urging his workmen at their ceafelefs tafk : 
 White were his locks, as is the wintry fnow 
 On hoar Plinlimmon ? s head. A golden ftaff 
 His fteps fupported ; powerful talifman, 430 
 
 Which whofo feels fhall never feci again 
 The tear of Pity or the throb of Love. 
 Touch'd but by this, the maiTy gates give way, 
 The buttrefs trembles, and the guarded wall, 
 •Guarded in vain, fubmits. Him heathens erft 435 
 Had deified, and bowed the fuppliant knee 
 To Plutus. Nor are now his votaries few, 
 Though he the BlefTed Teacher of mankind 
 Hath faid, that eafier through the needle's eye 
 Shall the huge cable pafs, than the rich man 440 
 Enter the gates of Heaven. " Ye cannot ferve 
 Your God, and worfhip Mammon." 
 
 " Miffioned Maid !" 
 So fpake the Angel, " know that thefe, whofe hands 
 Round each white furnace ply the unceafmg toil, 
 Were Mammon's flaves on earth. They did not fpare 
 To wring from Poverty the hard-earn'd mite ; 
 They robb'd the orphan's pittance ; they could fee 
 Want's afking eye unmoved ; and therefore thefe, 
 Ranged round the furnace, (till muft perfevere 
 
192 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 In Mammon's fervice ; fcorch'd by thefe fierce fires, 
 And frequent deluged by th' o'erboiling ore : 
 Yet ftill fo framed, that oft to quench their third 
 Unquenchable, large draughts of molten gold 
 They drink infatiate, ftill with pain renewed, 
 Pain to deftroy !" So faying, her he led 455 
 
 Forth from the dreadful cavern to a cell, 
 Brilliant with gem-born light. The rugged walls 
 Part gleam'd with gold, and, part with filver ore 
 A milder radiance fhone. The Carbuncle 
 There, its ftrong luftre like the flamy fun, 460 
 
 Shot forth irradiate ; from the earth beneath, 
 And from the roof a diamond light emits ; 
 Rubies and Amethyfts their glows commix' d 
 With the gay Topaz, and the fofter ray 
 Shot from the Sapphire, and the Emerald's, hue, 465 
 And bright Pyropus. There on golden feats, 
 A numerous, fullen, melancholy train, 
 Sat filent. " Maiden, thefe," faid Theodore, 
 " Are they who let the love of wealth abforb 
 All other paflions ; in their foals that, vice 470 
 Struck deeply-rooted, like the poifon-tree 
 That with its fliade fpreads barrennefs around. 
 Thefe, Maid ! were men by no atrocious crime 
 Blacken'd ; no fraud, nor ruffian violence : 
 Men of fair dealing, and refpectable 475 
 
 On earth, but fuch as only for themfelves 
 Heap'd up their treafures, deeming all their wealth 
 Their own, and given to them, by partial Heaven, 
 

 BOOK THE NINTH. 193 
 
 To blefs them only : therefore here they fit, 
 PoiTefled of gold enough, and by no pain 480 
 
 Tormented, fave the knowledge of the blifs 
 They loft, and vain repentance. Here they dwell, 
 Loathing thefe ufelefs treafures, till the hour 
 Of general reftitution." Thence they part, 
 And now arrived at fuch a gorgeous dome, 485 
 As even the pomp of Eaftern opulence 
 Could never equal : wandered through it's halls 
 A numerous train ; fome with the red-fwoln eye 
 Of riot and intemperance-bloated cheek ; 
 Some pale and nervelefs, and with feeble ftep, 490 
 And eyes lack-luftre, " Maiden !" faid her guide, 
 " Thefe are the wretched flaves of Appetite, 
 Curft with their wifli enjoyed : the Epicure 
 Here pampers his foul frame, till the palPd fenfe 
 Loaths at the banquet : the Voluptuous here 495 
 Plunge in the tempting torrent of delight, 
 And fmk in mifery. All they winVd on earth, 
 Poffefling here, whom have they to accufe, 
 But their own folly, for the lot they chofe ? 
 Yet, for that thefe injured themfelve€ alone, 500 
 They to the houfe of Penitence may hie, 
 And, by a long and painful regimen, 
 To wearied Nature her exhaufted powers 
 Reftore, till they fhall learn to form the wifh 
 Of wifdom, and Almighty Goodness grants 505 
 That prize to him who feeks it." Whilft he fpake, 
 The board is fpread. With bloated paunch, and eye 
 R 
 
194 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Fat fwoln, and legs whofe monftrous fize difgraced 
 
 The human form divine, their caterer, 
 
 Hight Gluttony, fet forth the fmoaking feaft. 51© 
 
 And by his fide came on a brother form, 
 
 With fiery cheek x)f purple hue, and red 
 
 And fc urfy-white, mix'd motley : his jgrofs bulk, 
 
 Like fome huge hogfhead fhapen'd, as applied. 
 
 Him had antiquity with myftic rites £15 
 
 Ador'd, to him the fons of Greece, and thine 
 
 Imperial Rome ! on many an altar pour'd 
 
 The viclim blood, with godlike titles graced,; 
 
 Bacchus, or Dionusus, fon of Jove, 
 
 Deem'd falfely, for from Folly's idiot form 520 
 
 He fprung, what time Madness, with furious hand, 
 
 Seiz'd on the laughing female. At one birth 
 
 She brought the brethren, menial here, above 
 
 Reigning with fway fupreme ; and oft they hold 
 
 High revels. Mid the monaftery's gloom, 52^ 
 
 Thy palace Gluttony ! and oft to thee 
 
 The facrifice is fpread, when the grave voice 
 
 Epifcopal, proclaims approaching day 
 
 Of vifitation, or Church-wardens meet 
 
 To fave the wretched many from the gripe 530 
 
 Of eager Poverty, or amid thy halls 
 
 Of London, mighty Mayor ! rich Aldermen 
 
 Of coming-feaft hold converfe. Otherwhere, 
 
 For though allied in nature as in blood, 
 
 They hold divided fway, his brother lifts 5$K 
 
 His fpungy fceptre. In the noble domes 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. 195 
 
 Of Princes, and flate-wearied Minifters, 
 
 Maddening he reigns ; and when the affrighted mind 
 
 Cafts o'er a long career of guilt and blood 
 
 Its eye reluctant, then his aid is fought 540 
 
 To lull the worm of Confcience to repofe. ' 
 
 He too the halls of country Squires frequent?/ 
 
 But chiefly loves the learned gloom that ■■ Grades' 
 
 Thy offspring, Rhedycina ! and thy- walls, 
 
 Granta ! Nightly libations there to him 545 
 
 Profufe are pour*d, till from' the dizzy brain 
 
 Triangles, Circles;- Parallelograms, 
 
 Moods, Tenfes, Dialects, and Demigods, 
 
 And Logic and Theology are fwept 
 
 By the red deluge. Unmolefted there 550 
 
 He reigns ; till comes at length the general feaft, 
 
 Septennial facrifice ; then when thefonsr 
 
 Of England meet, with watchful care to choofe 
 
 Their delegates— wife ! independent men ! 
 
 Unbribing and unbrib'd ! and cull'd to guard 555 
 
 Their rights and charters from the encroaching grafp 
 
 Of greedy Power : then all the joyful land 
 
 Join in his facrifices, fo infpir'd 
 
 To make the important choice. The obfei vingMaid 
 
 Addrefs'd her guide, " Thefe, Theodore, thou fayeft 
 
 Are men who, pampering their foul appetites, 
 
 Injured themfelyes alone. But where are they,. 
 
 The worfl of villains, viper-like, who coil 
 
 Around the guilelefs female, fo to fting 
 
 The heart that loves them K' 
 
196 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 " Them," the Spirit replied, 565 
 " A long and dreadful punihYment awaits. 
 For when the prey of want and infamy, 
 Lower and lower ftill the victim links 
 Even to the depth of fhame, not one lewd word, 
 One impious imprecation from her lips 570 
 
 Efcapes, nay, not a thought of evil lurks 
 In the polluted mind, that does not plead 
 Before the throne of Juftice thunder-tongued 
 Againft the foul Seducer." Now they reach'd 
 The houfe of Penitence. Credulity 575 
 
 Stood at the gate, ftretching her eager head 
 As though to liften ; on her vacant face, 
 A fmile that promifed premature aiTent ; 
 Though her Regret behind, a meagre Fiend ! 
 Difciplin'd forely. Here they entered in, 58* 
 
 And now arrived where as in ftudy tranced 
 She fat the Miftrefs of the Dome. Her face 
 Spake that compos'd feverity, that knows- 
 No angry impulfe, no weak tendernefs, 
 Refolved, and calm. Before her lay that Book 585- 
 That hath the words of Life ; and as flie read, 
 Sometimes a tear would trickle down her cheek, 
 Though heavenly Joy beam'd in her eye the while. 
 
 Leaving her undifturb'd, to the firft ward 
 Of this great Lazar-houfe, the Angel led 590 
 
 The favor'd Maid of Orleans. Kneeling down 
 On the hard ftone that their bare knees had worn, 
 In fackcloth robed, a numerous train appear' d : 
 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. 197 
 
 Hard featur'd fome, and fome demurely grave ; 
 
 Yet fuch expreffion ftealing from the eye, 595 
 
 As though, that only naked, all the reft 
 
 Was one clofe-fltting mafk : a fcoffing Fiend- 
 
 ( For Fiend he was, though wifely ferving here ) 
 
 Mock'd at his patients, and did often pour 
 
 Ames upon them, and then bid them fay 600 
 
 Their prayers aloud, and then he louder laughed : 
 
 For thefe were Hypocrites, on earth revered 
 
 As holy ones, who did in public tell [felves, 
 
 Their beads, and make long prayers, and erofs them- 
 
 And call themfelves raoft miferable fmners, 605. 
 
 That fo they might be deem'd moft pious faints ; 
 
 And go all filth, and never let a fmile 
 
 Bend their ftern mufcles, gloomy fallen men I 
 
 Barren of all affection ! and all this 
 
 To pleafe their God, forfooth ! and therefore Scorn 
 
 Grinn'd at his patients, making them repeat 
 
 Their folemn farce, with keeneft raillery 
 
 Tormenting ; but if earneft in their prayer,- 
 
 They pour'd the filent forrows of the foul 
 
 To Heaven, then did they not regard his mocks 615. 
 
 Which then came painlefs, and Humility 
 
 Soon refcued them, and led to Penitence, 
 
 That She might lead to Heaven. 
 
 From thenee they came, 
 Where, in the next Ward, a moft wretched band 
 Groan'd underneath the bitter tyranny 620 
 
 Of a fierce Demon ; his coarfe hair was red,, 
 R z 
 
i 9 8 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Pale grey his eyes, and blood-fnot ; and his face 
 Wrinkled by fuch a fmile as Malice wears 
 In ecftacy. Well-pleafed he went around, 
 Plunging his dagger in the hearts of fome, 625 
 Or probing with a poifon'd lance their breads, 
 Or placing coals of fire within their wounds ; 
 Or feizing fome within his mighty grafp 
 He fix'd them on a flake, and then drew back, 
 And laugh'd to fee them writhe. 
 
 " Thefe," faid the Spirit, 630 
 i( Are taught by Cruelty, to loath the lives 
 They led themfelves. Here are thofe wicked men 
 Who loved to exercife their tyrant power 
 On fpeechlefs brutes ; bad hufbands undergo 
 A long purgation here ; the Traffickers 635 
 
 In human flefh here too are difciplin'd, 
 Till by their fufFerings they have equaled all 
 The miferies they inflicted, all the mafs 
 Of wretchednefs caufed by the wars they waged, 
 The towns they burnt, (for they who bribe to war 640 
 Are guilty of the blood) the widows left 
 In want, the flave or led to fuicide, 
 Or murdered by the foul infected air 
 Of his clofe dungeon, or, more fad than all, 
 His virtue loft, his very foul enflaved, 645 
 
 And driven by woe to wickednefs. Thefe next, 
 Whom thou beholdeft in this dreary room, 
 So fuller), and with fuch an eye of hate 
 Each on the other fcowling, thefe have been 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. 199 
 
 Falfe friends. Tormented by their own dark thoughts 
 
 Here they dwell : in the hollow of their hearts 
 
 There is a worm that feeds ! and though thou feeft 
 
 That fkilful leech who willingly would heal 
 
 The ill they fiiffer, judging of all elfe 
 
 By their own evil ftandard, they fufpect 655 
 
 The aid he vainly proffers, lengthening thus 
 
 By vic^ its punifhment." " But who are thefe," 
 
 The Maid exclaim'd, " that robed in flowing lawn, 
 
 And mitred, or in fcarlet, and in caps 
 
 Like Cardinals, I fee in every ward 660 
 
 Performing menial fervice at the beck 
 
 Of all who bid them ?" Theodore replied, 
 
 " Thefe men are they who in the name of Christ" 
 
 Did heap up wealth, and arrogating power, 
 
 Did make men bow the knee, and call themfelves 
 
 Mod Reverend Graces and Right Reverend Lords : 
 
 They dwelt in palaces, in purple clothed, 
 
 And in fine linen : therefore are they here ; 
 
 And though they would not minifter on earth, 
 
 Here penanced they perforce muft minifter : 670 
 
 For he, the lowly Man of Nazareth, 
 
 Hath faid, his kingdom is not of the world." 
 
 So faying, on they paft, and now arrived 
 Where fuch a hideous ghaftly group abode, 
 That the Maid gazed with half-averting eye, 675 
 And fhudder'd : each one was a loathly corpfe 1 
 The worm did banquet on his putrid prey, 
 Yet had they life and feeling exquinte, 
 
200 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Tho* motionlefs and mute. " Moft wretched mt 
 Are thefe," the angel cried. 
 
 « Thefe, JOANyaxe Bards 68cr 
 Whofe loofe lafcivious lays perpetuate 
 Their own corruption. Soul-polluted f!aves>< 
 Who fat them down, deliberately lewd, 
 So to awake and pamper luft in minds 
 Unborn ; and therefore foul of body now 685 
 
 As then they were of foul, they here abide* 
 Their punifhment, and here they muft abide 
 Long as the evil works they lefc on earth 
 Shall live to taint mankind. A dreadful doom ! 
 Yet amply merited by that bad man 690 
 
 Who proftitutes the facred gift of fong." 
 
 They entered now a large and lofty dome, 
 O'er whofe black marble fides 1 a dim drear light 
 Struggled with darknefs from the unfrequent lamp. 
 Enthroned around, the Murderers of Mankind! 
 Monarchs, the great ! the glorious ! the auguft ! 
 Each bearing on his brow a crown of fire, 
 Sat ftern and filent. Nimrod he was there, 
 Firft King the mighty hunter ; and that Chief 
 Who did belie his mother's fame, that fo 700- 
 
 He might be calPd young Ammon. In this court 
 Cefar was crown'd, accurft liberticide ; 
 And he who murder'd Tully, that cold villain ! 
 O&avius, tho' the courtly minion's lyre 
 Hath hymn'd his praife, tho' Maro fung to him> 705 
 And when Death levelPd to original clay 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. 201 
 
 The royal carcafs, Flattery, fawning low, 
 
 Fell at his feet, and worfhipp'd the new God ! 
 
 Titus was here, the Conqueror of the Jews, 3 
 
 He the Delight of human-kind mifnamed j 71b 
 
 Cefars and Soldans, Emperors and Kings ; 
 
 Here they were all, all who for glory fought, 
 
 Here in the Court of Glory, reaping now 
 
 The meed they merited. As gazing round 
 
 The Virgin mark'd the miferahle train, 715 
 
 A deep and hollow voice from one went forth ; 
 
 " Thou who art come to view our punifhment, 
 
 Maiden of Orleans I hither turn thine eyes, 
 
 For I am he whcfe bloody victories 
 
 Thy power hath rendered vain. Lo ! I am here, 
 
 The hero conqueror of Azincour, 
 
 Henry of England ! — wretched that 1 am ! 
 
 I might have reigned in happinefs and peace, 
 
 My coffers full, my fubjects undifturb'd, 
 
 And Plenty and Prosperity had loved 725 
 
 To dwell amongft them : but mine eye beheld 
 
 The realm of France, by faction tempeft-torn ; 
 
 And therefore I did think that it would fail 
 
 An eafy prey. I perfecuted thofe 
 
 Who taught new doctrines, tho' they taught the truth : 
 
 And when I heard of thoufands by the fword 
 
 Cut off, or blafted by the peftilence, 
 
 I calmly counted up my proper gains, 
 
 And fent new herds to flaughter : temperate 
 
 Myfelf, no blood that mutinied, no vice 735 
 
202 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Tainting my private life, I fent abroad 
 
 Murder and Rape ; and therefore am 1 doom'd, 
 
 Like thefe imperial Sufferers, crown'd with fire, 
 
 Here to remain, till Man's awaken'd eye 
 
 Shall fee the genuine blacknefs of our deeds, 740 * 
 
 And warn'd by them, till the whole human race, - 
 
 Equalling in blifs the aggregate we caus'd 
 
 Of wretchednefs, fhall form one brotherhood,' 
 
 One universal Family cp'Love." 
 
 The Maiden, mufmg on the Warrior's words, 745';' 
 Turn'd from the Hall of Glory. Now they reachM * 
 A cavern* at whofe mouth a Genius flood, 
 In front, a bearc&efs youth, whofe fmiling eye 
 Beam'd promife* but behind withered and old, 
 And all unlovely. Underneath his feet 75°' 
 
 Lay records trampled,- and the laurel wreath" 
 Now rent and faded : in his hand he held 
 An hour-glafs, and, as fall the reftlefs fands, 
 So pafs the lives of men. By him they pad 
 Along, the darkfome cave, and reach'd a ft ream. 
 Aye rolling onward its perpetual waves, 
 Noifelefs and undifturb'd. Here they afcend 
 A Bark unpiloted, that down the flood, 
 Borne by the current, rufh'd. The circling ftream, 
 Returning to itfelf, an ifland form'd ;. 760 
 
 Nor had the Maiden's footfteps ever reach'd 
 The infulated coarl, eternally 
 Rapt round the endleft courfe ; but Theodore, 
 With force angelic, drove the obedient bark* 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. zo.3 
 
 They land, a. mighty fabric meets their eyes, 765 
 Seen by its gem-born light. Of adamant 
 The pile was, framed,, for ever to abide 
 Firm in eternal ftrength. Before the gate 
 Stood eager Expectation, as to lift 
 The half-heard murmurs inning from within, 770 
 Her mouth halfopen'd, and her head ftretch'd forth. 
 On the other fide there flood an aged Crone, 
 <JUftening to every breath of air ; .fhe knew 
 Vague fuppofitions and uncertain dreams, 
 Of what was foon to come, for fhe would mark 775 
 The paley glow-worm's felf-created light, 
 And argue thence of kingdoms overthrown, 
 And defolated nations ; ever fill'd 
 With undetermined terror, as Ihe heard 
 Or diftant fcreech owl, or the regular beat 78© 
 
 Q£ evening death-watch. " Maid," the Spirit cried, 
 V Here, robed in fhadows, dwells Futurity. 
 There is no eye hath feen her fecret form, 
 For round the Mother of Time, unpierced mifls 
 Aye hover. Would'fl thou read the book of Fate, 
 Enter. ? * The Damiel for a moment paus'd, 
 Then to the Angel fpake : •*' All-gracious Heaven! 
 Benignant in withholding, hath denied 
 To man that knowledge. I, in faith aflur'd, 
 That he, my heavenly Father, for the beft 79$ 
 Ordaineth all things, in that faith remain 
 .Contented." " Well and wifely haft thou faid," 
 $0 Theodore replied ; and as he fpake, 
 
2o 4 JO A N OF ARC. 
 
 Seizing her hand, (for Spirits have fuch power 
 That there they are where they but wifh to be, 8co 
 Swift as the thought that guides them) in a vale 
 They flood ; a fairer fpot induftrious Man 
 Made never, tho' in climes where Nature pours 
 Profufe her bounty. Foreft-waving hills 
 Bofom'd the tranquil fcene, beneath whofe feet 805 
 A river roll'd along its willowy courfe, 
 And as it wound beneath the neighbouring coomb, 
 Allur'd the charmed eye. Here, as they pafs 
 Beneath a woodbine bower, a manly form 
 They faw of open vifage, who from wood 810 
 
 Of odorous Myrtle form'd the fhafts of Love. 
 Yet whilft Humanity thus plied his toil, 
 Deceit would fteal away the precious fhafts, 
 And in their ftead the evil darts return, 
 Form'd from the Cyprefs or the Afpin wood, 815 
 Or from that tree that on the traveller drops 
 The dews of death. And as the Genius form'd 
 His fhafts, he plunged them in the urn of blifs : 
 But brooding evil to the race of man, 
 Sat fhamelefs Vice behind, and fann'd her fire, 820 
 Hell-kindled, heating in its flames the darts 
 Deceit had form'd, and Avarice venom'd them 
 With his cold drugs that petrify the heart. 
 " Thefe are the Demons that pervert the power 
 Of Love," faid Theodore. " The time was once 
 When Love and Happiness went hand in hand, 
 In that bled era of the infant world 
 
 
BOOK THE NINTH. . 205 
 
 Ere man had learnt to bow the knee to man. 
 Was there a youth whom warm affection fill'd, 
 He fpake his hone ft heart ; the earlieft fruits 830 
 His toil produced, the fweeteft flowers that deck'd 
 The funny bank, he gather'd for the maid, 
 Nor ihe difdain'd the gift— for Vice not yet 
 Had burft the dungeons of her hell, and rear'd 
 Thofe artificial boundaries that divide 835 
 
 Man from his fpecies. State of bleflednefs ! 
 Till that ill-omen'd hour when Cain's ftern fon 
 Delved in the bowels of the earth for gold, 
 Accurfed bane of virtue ! of fuch force 
 As poets feign dwelt in the Gorgon's locks, £4* 
 "Which whofo faw, felt inftant the life-blood 
 -Cold curdle in his veins, the creeping flefti 
 Grew ftiff with horror, and the heart forgot 
 To beat. Accurfed hour ! for man no more 
 To Justice paid his homage, but forfook 845 
 
 Her altars, and bow'd down before the fhrine 
 Of Wealth and Power, the idols he had made. 
 Then Hell enlarg'd herfelf, her gates flew wide, 
 Her legion fiends rufh'd forth. Oppression came, 
 Whofe frown is defolation, and whofe breath 850 
 Blafts like the Peftilence ; and Poverty, 
 A meagre monfter, who with withering touch 
 Makes barren all the better part of man, 
 Mother of Miseries ; then the goodly earth 
 Which God had fram'd for happinefs, became 855 
 
 One theatre of woe, and all that God 
 S 
 
2c6 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Had given to blefs free men, thefe tyrant fiends 
 
 His bittereft curfes made. Yet. for the beft 
 
 Hath he ordained all things, the All-wise ! 
 
 For by experience rous'd fhall man at length 86> 
 
 Dafh down his Moloch Idols, Samfon-like, 
 
 And burft his fetters— only ftrong whilft ftrong 
 
 Believed ; then in the bottomlefs abyfs 
 
 Oppression fhall be chain'd, and Poverty 
 
 Die, and with her, her Brood of Mileries ; 865 
 
 And Virtue and Equality preferve 
 
 The reign of Love, and Earth fhall once again 
 
 Be Paradife, whilft Wisdom fhall fecure 
 
 The ftate of blifs which Ignorance betrayed." 
 
 " Oh age of happinefs !" the Maid exclaim'd, 
 " Roll fall thy current, Time, till that bleft age 
 Arrive ! and happy thou, my Theodore, 
 Permitted thus to fee the facred depths 
 Of wifdom .!" " Such," the blefled Spirit replied, 
 " Beloved ! fuch our lot ; allowed to range 875 
 The vaft infinity, progreffive ftill 
 In knowledge, and increafmg bleffednefs, 
 This our united portion. Thou haft yet 
 A little while to fojourn amongft men ; 
 I will be with thee ! there fhall not a breeze 889 
 Wanton around thy temples, on whofe wing 
 I will not hover near ! and at that hour 
 When from its flefhly fepulchre let loofe, 
 Thy phenix foul fhall foar, O beft-belovedj 
 I will be with thee in thine agonies, 885 
 
BOOK THE NINTH, 207 
 
 And welcome thee to life and happinefs, 
 Eternal infinite beatitude !" 
 
 He fpake, and led her near a draw-roof* d cot, 
 Love's Palace. By the Virtues circled there, 
 The cherub liften'd to fuch melodies, 
 As aye, when one good deed is regifter'd 89©- 
 
 Above, re-echo in the halls of Heaven. 
 Labor, was there, his crifp locks floating loofe, 
 Clear was his cheek, and beaming his full eye, 
 And Pcronghis armrobuft; the wood-nymph Health 
 Still follow'd on his path, and where he trod C95 
 Frefli flowers and fruits arofe. And there was Kopf, 
 The general friend ; and Mercy, whofe mild eye 
 Wept o'er the widowed dove ; and, loveliefl form,. 
 Majeftic Chastity,- whofe fober fmile 
 Delights and awes the foul, a laurel wreath 90s" 
 Reftrain'd her treffes, and upon her breaft 
 The fnow-drop hung its head, that feem'd to grow 4 
 Spontaneous, cold and fair : frill by the Maid 
 Love went fubmifs, with eye more dangerous 
 Than fancied bafilifk to wound whoe'er 905 
 
 Too bold approached, yet anxious would he read 
 Her every rifmg wifh, then only pleafed 
 When pleafmg. Hymning him the fong was rais'd. 
 
 " Glory to thee, whofe vivifying power 
 Pervades all Nature's univerfal frame ! 910 
 
 Glory to thee, Creator Love ! to thee, 
 Parent of all the mailing Charities, 
 That ftrew the thorny path of Life with flowers !' 
 
2©8 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Glory to thee, Preserver! to thy praife 
 The awakened Woodlands echo all the day 915 
 Their living melody ; and warbling forth 
 To thee her twilight fong, the Nightingale 
 Holds the lone Traveller from his way, or charms 
 The liitening Poet's ear. Where Love fhall deign 
 To fix his feat, there blamelefs Pleasure fheds 920 
 Ker rofeate dews ; Content will fojourn there, 
 And Happiness behold Affection's eye 
 Gleam with the Mother's fmile. Thrice happy he 
 Who feels thy holy power ! he fhall not drag, 
 Forlorn and friendlefs, along Life's long path 925 
 To Age's drear abode ; he mail not wafte 
 The bitter evening of his days unfooth'd ; 
 But Hope fhall cheer his hours of Solitude, 
 And Vice fhall vainly ftrive to wound his breaft, 
 That bears that talifman ; and when he meets 930 
 The eloquent eye of Tenderness, and hears 
 The bofom-thrilling mufic of her voice ; 
 The joy he feels fhall purify his foul, 
 And imp it for anticipated Heaven,; 5 
 
BOOK THE TENTH, 
 
 ARGUMENT. 
 
 Tranfaclions of the French at Orlecms. Arrivals ef 
 Du Chaftel and Richemont. The Englijh meet their 
 expecled fuccours. Battle of Pat ay. The King ar- 
 rives* The Poem concludes with the Coronation of 
 Charles at Rkeims. 
 
 A HE morning came, and from the Eaftern clouds, 
 Emerging in his glory, the new Sun 
 Pour'd on the Virgin's cheek his ftartling rays. 
 Serene fhe rofe, her anguifh mellowed down 
 Even to that fober fadnefs that delights 5 
 
 On other days to dwell. Her ifTuing forth 
 The Baftard met. " Hail Maid of Orleans ! hail 
 Preferver of the French," the Chief exclaim'd. 
 " The hoflile hoft are fled ; yet not by flight 
 Shall England's robber fons efcape the arm 10 
 
 Of Retribution. Even now our troops, 
 By battle unfatigued, unfatisfied 
 With conqueft, clamor to purfue the foe." 
 
 The Delegated Damfel thus replied : 
 " So let them fly, Dunois ! but other toils 15 
 
 Than thofe of battle, thefe our hallowed troops 
 S 2, , 
 
210 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Await. Look yonder to that carnaged plain ! 
 Behoves us there to delve the general grave : 
 Then, Chieftain, for purfuit, when we have paid 
 The rites of burial to our fellow-men, 20 
 
 And hymn'd our gratitude to that All-just 
 Who gave the conqueft. Thou,, meantime, difpatch 
 Tidings to Chinon : bid the King fet forth, 
 That crowning him before anembled France, 
 In Rheims delivered from the enemy, 25 
 
 I may accomplifh all." So faid the Maid, 
 Then to the gate moved on. The anembled troops 
 Beheld their coming Chief, an&fmote their Ihields^ 
 Clamoring their admiration ; for they thought 
 That (he would lead them to the inftant war. 30 
 She waved her hand, and filence ftill'd the hoft. 
 Then thus the MhTion'd Maid, " Fellows in arms ! 
 We muft not fpeed to joyful victory, 
 Whilft our unburied comrades, on yon plain, 
 Allure the carrion bird. Give we this day $5 
 
 To our dear friends I" Nor did fhe fpeak in vain ; 
 For as fhe fpake, the third of battle dies 
 In every breaft, fach awe and love pervade [plain 
 The liftening troops. They o'er the corfe-ftrewn 
 Speed to their fad employment : fome dig deep 40 
 The houfe of Death ; fome bear the lifelefs load ; 
 One little troop fearch carefully around, 
 If haply they might find furviving yet 
 Some wounded wretches. As they labor thus, 
 They mark far off the iron-blaze of arms ; 45 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. *u 
 
 See diftant ftandards waving on the air, 
 And hear the clarion's clang. Then fpake the Maid 
 To Conrade, and fhe bade him fpeed to view 
 The coming army ; or to meet their march 
 With friendly greeting, or if foes they came $Q 
 With fuch array of battle as fhort fpace 
 Allowed : the Warrior fped acrofs the plain, 
 And foon beheld the banner'd lilies wave. 
 
 Their Chief was Richemont : he, when as he heard 
 What rites employed the Virgin, ftraightway bade 
 His troops affift in burial : they, though grieved 
 At late arrival, and the expected day 
 Of conqueft pall, yet give their willing aid : 
 They dig the general grave, and thither bear 
 Englifh or French, alike commingled now ! 6© 
 
 And heap the mound of Death. Amid the plain 
 There was a little eminence, of old 
 Piled o'er lbme honored Chieftain's narrow houfe. 
 His praife the fong had ceas'd to celebrate, 
 And many an unknown age had the long grafs 65 
 Waved o'er the namelefs mound, tho' barren now 
 Beneath the, frequent tread of multitudes. 
 There, elevate, the Martial Maiden ftood. 
 Her brow unhelmed, and floating on the wind 
 Her long dark locks. The filent troops around 70 
 Stood thickly throng'd, as o'er the fertile field 
 Billows the ripen'd corn. The paffing breeze 
 Bore not a murmur from the numerous holt, 
 Such deep at{£ ition held them. She began. 
 
2i2 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 " Glory to thofe who in their country's caufe 7 J 
 Fall in the field of battle ! Citizens, 
 I ftand not here to mourn thefe gallant men, 
 Our comrades, nor with vain and idle phrafe 
 Of pity and companion, to confole 
 The friends who loved them. They, indeed, who fall 
 Beneath Oppreffion's banner, merit well 
 Our pity ; may the God of Peace and Love 
 Be merciful to thofe blood-guilty men 
 Who came to defolate the realm of France, 
 To make us bow the knee, and crouch like flaves, &jf 
 Before a tyrant's footftool ! Give to thefe, 
 And to their wives and orphan little-ones, 
 That on their diftant father vainly cry 
 For bread, give thefe your pity. Wretched men, 
 Forced or inveigled from their homes, or driven 90 
 By Need and Hunger to the trade of blood 5. 
 Or, if with free and willing mind they came, 
 Mofl wretched— for before the eternal throne 
 They ftand, as hireling murderers arraign'd. 
 But our dead comrades for their freedom fought ; 
 No arts they needed, nor the fpecious bribes 
 Of promife, to allure them to this fight, 
 This holy warfare ! them their parents fent, 
 And as they raifed their ftreaming eyes to Heaven, 
 Bade them go forth, and from the ruffian's fvvord 
 Save their grey hairs : thefe men their wives fent forth, 
 Fix'd their laft kifles on their armed hands, 
 And bade them in the battle think they fought 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 213 
 
 For them and for their babe?. Thus rous'd to rage 
 By every milder feeling, they rufh'd forth, 105 
 
 They fought, they conquered. 
 
 " To this high-rear'd mound r 
 The men of Orleans fhall in after days 
 Bring their young boys, and tell them of the deeds 
 Our gallant' friends achieved, and bid them learn 
 Like them to love their country, and like them, no 
 Should wild Oppreffion pour again its tide 
 Ofdefolation, to ftep forth and ftera 
 Fearlefs-the furious torrent* Men of- France ! 
 Mourn not for thefe our; comrades ; boldly they 
 Fought the good fight, and that Eternal One, 1 15 
 Who bade the angels harbinger his word" 
 With "Peace on Earth," rewards them. We furvive, 
 Honoring their memories to avenge their fall 
 On England's ruffian hordes ; in vain her chiefs 
 Madly will drain her wealth and wafte her blood 
 To concuier this vaft realm ! for, eafier were it 
 To hurl the rooted mountain from its bafe, 
 Than force the yoke of flavery upon men 
 Determin'd to be free : yes— let them rage, 
 And drain their country'swealth,and wafteherblood, 
 And pour their hireling thoufands on our coafts, 
 Sublime amid the ftorm fhall France arife, 
 And like the rock amid furrounding waves, 
 Repel the ruining ocean — me fhall wield 
 The thunderbolt of vengeance— fhe fhall blaft 130 
 The Defpots that affail her." As fhe ceas'd, 
 
214 JOAN OF JRC^ ' 
 
 Such murmur from the multitude arofe* 
 
 As when at twilight hour the fummer breeze 
 
 Moves o'er the elmy vale : there was not one 
 
 Who mourn'd with feeble forrow for his friend, 135', 
 
 Slain in the fight of Freedom ; or if chance 
 
 Remembrance with a tear fuffus'd the eye, 
 
 The Patriot's joy flafh'd thro'. And now the rites 
 
 Of fepulture perform'd, the hymn to Heaven 
 
 They chanted. To the town the Maid return'd, 
 
 Dunois with her, and Richemont, and the man, 
 
 Conrade, whofe converfe moll the Virgin loved. 
 
 They of purfuit and of the future war 
 
 Sat communing ; when loud the trumpet's voice 
 
 Proclaim'd approaching herald. " To the Maid," ' 
 
 Exclaim'd the MefTenger, " and thee, Dunois, 
 
 Son of the Chief he loved ! Du Chattel fends 
 
 Greeting. The aged warrior has not fpared 
 
 All active efforts to partake your toil, 
 
 And ferve his country ; and tho' late arrived, 15© 
 
 He fhare not in the fame your arms acquire ; 
 
 His heart is glad that he is late arrived, 
 
 And France preferved thus early. He were here 
 
 To join your hoft, and follow on their flight, 
 
 But Richemont is his foe. To that high Lord 155 
 
 Thus fays my Mafter : We, tho' each to each. 
 
 Be hoftile, are alike the embattled fons 
 
 Of this our common country. Do thou join 
 
 The conquering troops* and profecute fuccefs ; 
 
 I will the while aflault what guarded towns 160 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 215 
 
 Bedford yet' holds in Orleannois : one day, 
 Perhaps the Conftable of France may learn 
 He wrong'd Du Chattel." As the herald fpake, 
 The crimfon current rutti'd to Richemont's cheek. 
 
 •" Tell to thy Matter," eager he replied, 165 
 
 *' I am the foe of thofe Court Parafites 
 Who poifon the King's ear. Him who fhall ferve 
 Our country in the field, I hold my -friend : 
 
 ; Such may Du Chattel prove." So faid the Chief, 
 And paufing as the Herald went his way, 170 
 
 Gaz'd on the Virgin. " Maiden ! if aright 
 I deem, thou doft not with a friendly eye 
 Scan my paft deeds." Then o'er the Damfel's cheek 
 A faint glow fpread. " True, Chieftain I " (he replied, 
 " Report befpeaks thee haughty, of thy power 175 
 Jealous, and to the fliedding human blood 
 Revengeful." " Maid of Orleans !" he exclaim'd, 
 
 ■■" Should the Wolf jlaughter thy defencelefs flock, 
 Were it a crime if thy more mighty force 
 Deftroy'd the fell deftroyer ■? if thy hand 18.0 
 
 Had pierc'd the rufEan as he burft thy door 
 
 ;Prepar'd for midnight murder, would'ft thou feel 
 The weight of blood prefs heavy on thy foul ? 
 I flew the Wolves of State, the Murderers 
 Of thousands. JOAN! when rutted in its fheath, 
 The fword of Juftice hung, blam'ft thou the man 
 That lent his weapon for the virtuous deed J" 
 . Conrade replied. " Nay, Richemont, it were well 
 
 To pierce the ruffian as he burtt thy doors j 
 
iiC JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 But if he bear the plunder fafely thence, 190 
 
 And thou fhould'ft meet him on the future day.; 
 Vengeance muft not be thine : there is the law 
 To punifh ; and if thy impatient hand, 
 Unheard and uncondemn'd, mould execute 
 Death on that man, Juftice will not allow 195 
 
 The Judge in the AccufcH" " Thou haft faid 
 Right wifely, Warrior !" cried the Conftable ; 
 " But there are guilty ones above the law, 
 Men whofe black crimes exceed the utmoft bound 
 Of private guilt ; court vermin that buz round, 200 
 And fly-blow the King's ear, and make him wafte, 
 In this moft perilous time, his people's wealth 
 And blood : immers'd one while in crimfon floth, 
 Heedlefs tho' ruin threat the realm they rule ; 
 And now projecting fome mad enterprize, 205 
 
 To certain Slaughter fend their wretched troops. 
 Thefe are the men that make the King fufpect 
 His wifeft, faithfulleft, beft Counfellors ; 
 And for themfelves and their dependants, feize 
 All places, and all profits ; and they wreft 21* 
 To their own ends the Statutes of the land, 
 Or fafely break them : thus, or indolent, 
 Or active, ruinous alike to France. 
 Wifely thou fayeft, Warrior ! that the Law 
 Should ftrike the guilty ; but the voice of Juftice 
 Cries out, and brings conviction as it cries j 
 Whom the Laws cannot reach the Dagger mould.'* 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 217 
 
 The Maid replied, " I blame thee not, O Chief ! 
 If, reafoning to thine own conviction thus, 
 Thou didft, well fatisfied, deftroy thefe men 220 
 Above the Law : but if a meaner one, 
 Self-conftituting him the Minifter 
 Of Juftice, to the death of thefe bad men [Teized, 
 Had wrought the deed, him would the Laws have 
 And doom'd a Murderer : thee, thy power preferred ! 
 And what haft thou exampled ? thou haft taught 
 All men to execute what deeds of blood 
 Their will or paffion fentence : right and wrong 
 Confounding thus, and making Power, of all, 
 Sole arbiter. Thy acts. were criminal,. 230 
 
 Yet, Richemont, for thou didft them felf-approved, 
 I may not blame the agent. Truft me, Chief i 
 That when a People forely are oppreft, 
 The hour of violence will come too foon, 
 And he does wrong who haftens it. He beft 235 
 Performs the Patriot's and the Good Man's part, 
 Who, in the ear of Rage and Faction, breathes 
 The healing words of Love." 
 
 Thus communed they ; 
 Meantime, all panic-ftruck and terrified, 
 The Englifh urge their flight ; by other thoughts 
 PolTefs'd, than when, elate with arrogance, 
 They dreamt of conqueft, and the crown of France 
 At their difpofal. Of their hard-fought fields, 
 Of glory hardly-earn'd, and loft with lhame, 
 Of friends and brethren flaughtei'd, and the fate 2^.5 
 T 
 
.ai8 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Threatening themfelves, they brooded fadly ; now 
 Repentant, late, and vainly. They whom fear 
 Frit made obedient to their conquering march, 
 At their defeat exultant, wreak what ills 
 Their .power allow'd. Thus many a league they fled, 
 Marking their path with ruin, day by day 
 Leaving the weak and wounded, deftitute, 
 To the foe's mercy ; thinking cf their home, 
 Though to that far-off profpect fcarcely Hope 
 Could raife her fickly eye. Oh ! then what joy 255 
 Infpir'd anew their bofoms, when, like clouds 
 Moving in fhadows down the diftant hill, 
 They mark'd their coming fuccors ! in each heart 
 Doubt rais'd a bufy tumult ; foon they knew 
 The friendly ftandard, and a general fhout 260 
 
 Burft from the joyful ranks ; yet came no joy 
 To Talbot : he, with dark and downward brow, 
 Mus'd flernly, till at length arous'd to hope 
 Of vengeance, welcoming his warrior fon, 
 He brake a fullen fmile. ■ " Son cf my age ! 265 
 Welcome, young Talbot, to thyfirft of fields. 
 Thy father bids thee welcome, though difgraced, 
 Baffled, and Hying from a Woman's arm ! 
 Yes, by my former glories, from a Woman ! 
 The fcourge of France ! the conqueror of Men 1 
 Flying before a Woman ! Son of Talbot, 
 Had the winds wafted thee a few days fooner, 
 Thou hadft feen mc high in honor, and thy name 
 Alone had fcatter'd armies : yet, my Child, 
 
BOOK THE TENTH, 219 
 
 I bid thee welcome ! reft we here our flight, 275 
 And lift again the fword." So fpake the Chief ; 
 And well he coimfeli'd : for not yet the fun 
 Had reach'd meridian height, when o'er the plain 
 Of Patay they beheld the troops of France 
 Speed in purfuit. Collected in himfelf 280 
 
 Appear'd the might of Talbot. Thro' the ranks 
 He ftalks, reminds them of their former fame, 
 Their native land, their homes, the friends they lov'd, 
 All the rewards of this day's victory. 
 But awe had fill'd the Engliih, and they ftruck 285 
 Faintly their fhields : for they who had beheld 
 The hallowed banner with celeflial light 
 Irradiate, and the Miffion'd Maiden's deeds, 
 Felt their hearts fink within them, at the thought 
 Of her near vengeance ; and the tale they told 290 
 Rous'd fuch a tumult in the new-come troops, 
 As fitted them for fear. The aged Chief 
 Beheld their drooping valor : his ftern brow, 
 Wrinkled with thought, bewray 'd his inward doubts :. 
 Still he was firm, tho' all might fly, refolved 295 
 That Talbot fhould retrieve his old renown, 
 And period Life with Glory. Yet fome hope 
 Infpir'd the Veteran, as acrofs the plain 
 Cafting his eye, he mark'd the embattled flrength 
 Of thoufands ; Archers of unequall'd fkill, 300 
 Brigans, and Pikemen, from whofe lifted points 
 A fearful radiance flafh'd, and young Efquires, 
 And high-born Warriors, bright in blazon'd arms, 
 
220 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Nor few, nor famelefs were the Englifh Chiefs : 
 
 In many a field victorious, he was there, 305 
 
 The garter' d Faftolffe ; Hungerford, and Scales, 
 
 Men who had feen thehoftile fquadrons fly 
 
 Before the arms of England. Suffolk there, 
 
 The haughty Chieftain tower'd ; bleft had he fallen, 
 
 Ere yet a Courtly Minion he was mark'd 310 
 
 By public hatred, and the murderer's name I 
 
 There tuo the Son of Talbot, young in arms, 
 
 Moved eager he, at many a tournament, 
 
 With matchlefs force, had pointed his flrong lance,. 
 
 O'er all opponents, victor : confident 315 
 
 In ftrength, and jealous of his future fame, 
 
 His heart beat high for battle. Such array 
 
 Of martiall'd numbers fought not on the fieM 
 
 Of Crecy, nor at Foictiers ; nor fuch force 
 
 Led Henry to the fight of Azincour, 320 
 
 When thoufands fell before him. Onward move 
 
 The hofc of France ; and now their venturous 
 
 Knights 
 Difmount ; their fafety, and their country's weal, 
 Trufting to their own ftrength. The Maid alone, 
 Confpicuous on a coal-black courier, meets 325 
 
 The war. They moved to battle with fuch found 
 As ruflies o'er the vaulted firmament, 
 When from his feat, on the utmoil verge of Heaven 
 That overhangs the Void, Father of Winds ! 
 Hrjesvelger darting, rears his giant bulk, 33a 
 And from his Eagle pinions fhakes the ftorrru 
 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 221 
 
 High on her ftately freed the Martial Maid 
 Rode foremoft of the war : her burnifh'd arms 
 Shone like the brook that o'er its pebbled courfe 
 Runs glittering gaily to the noon- tide fun. 335 
 
 Her foaming courfer, of the guiding hand 
 Impatient, fmote the earth, and tofs'd his mane, 
 And rear'd aloft with many a froward bound, 
 As though the Maiden's fkill, and his own ftrength 
 Proud to difplay. The light gale with her plumes 
 Wantoned. Even fuch a fair and warlike form 
 Pelides moved from Scyros, where conceal'd 
 He lay, obedient to his mother's fears, 
 A feemly Virgin ; thus the Youth appear'd 
 Terribly graceful, when upon his neck 345 
 
 Deidameia hung ; and with a look 
 That fpake the tumult of her troubled breaft, 
 Fear, anguifh, and upbraiding tendernefs, 
 Gazed on the father of her unborn babe. 
 
 An Englifh Knight, who eager for renown 350 
 Late left his peaceful manfion, mark'd the Maid. 
 Her power miraculous, and fearful deeds 
 He from the troops had heard incredulous, 
 And fcoiPd their eafy fears, and vow'd that he, 
 Proving the magic of this dreaded Girl 355 
 
 In equal battle, would diilblve the fpell, 
 Powerlefs oppos'd to valor. Forth he fpurr'd 
 Before the ranks ; fhe mark'd the coming foe, 
 And fix'd her lance in reft, and rufh'd along. 
 Midway they met ; full on her buckler driv'n, 360 
 T 2 
 
222 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Shiver'd the Englifli fpear : her better force 
 Drove the brave foeman fcnfelefs from his feat* 
 Headlong he fell, nor ever to the fenfe 
 Of fhame awoke, for ruining multitudes 
 Soon cruhVd the helplefs Warrior. Then the Maid 
 Rode thro' the thickeft battle : faft they fell, 
 Pierced by her forceful fpear. Amid the troops 
 Plunged her ftrong war-horfe, by the noife of arms 
 Elate, and rous'd to rage, he tramples o'er, 
 Or with the lance protended from his front, [turns 
 Thrufts down the thronging fquadrons. Where (lie 
 The £oz tremble and die. Such ominous fear 
 Seizes the Traveller o'er the tracklefs fands, 
 Who marks the dread Simoom acrofs the wafle, 
 Sweep i:s fwift peftilence : to earth he falls, 375 
 Nor dares give utterance to the inward prayer, 
 Deeming the Genius of the Defart breathes 
 The purple blail of Death. Such was the found 
 As when the tempefl, mingling air and fea, 
 Flies o'er the uptorn ocean : dafhing high 380 
 
 Their foamy heads amid the incumbent clouds, 
 The madden' d billows, with their deafening roar, 
 Drown the loud thunder's peal. In every form 
 Of horror, Deadi was there. They fall, transfix'd 
 By the random arrov/'s point, or fierce-thruft lance, 
 Or fink, all battered by the ponderous mace : 
 Seme from their courfers thrown, lie on the earth, 
 Unwieldy in their arms, that weak to fave, 
 Protracted all the agonies of Death. 
 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 223 
 
 But mod the Englifh fell, by their own fears 390 
 Betrayed, for Fear the evil that it dreads 
 Increafes. Even the Chiefs, who many a day 
 Had met the war and conquered, trembled now, 
 Appall'd by her, the Maid miraculous. 
 Thus the blood-nurtured Monarch of the wood, 395 
 That o'er the wilds of Afric, in his flrength 
 Refiftlefs ranges, when the mutinous clouds 
 Bur ft, and the lightnings thro' the midnight fky 
 Dart their red fires, lies fearful in his den, 
 And howls in terror to the palling ftorm. 
 
 But Talbot, fearlefs where the bravefr, fear'd, 
 Mowed down the hoftile ranks. The Chieftain flood 
 Like the ftrong oak, amid the tempeft's rage, 
 That {lands unharm'd ; and whilft the foreft falls 
 Uprooted round, lifts his high head aloft, 405 
 
 And nods majeftic to the warring wind. 
 Him, prefent danger but magnanimates : 
 He fought refolved to fnatch the fliield of Death 
 And ihdterhim from Shame. The very herd 
 Who fought near Talbot, tho' the Virgin's name 
 Made their cheeks pale, and drove the curdling blood 
 Back to their hearts, caught from his daring deeds 
 New force, and went like Eaglets to the prey 
 Beneath their mother's wing. Nor his high birth 
 Difgrac'd the Son of Talbot ; by his fire 415 
 
 Emulous he ilrove, like the young Lionet 
 When firfl he bathes his murderous jaws in blood. 
 They fought intrepid, tho' amid their ranks 
 
224 JO A 17 OF ARC, 
 
 Fear and Confufion triumph'd ; for fuch awe 
 Poffefs'd the Englilh, as the Etrufcans felt, 420 
 
 When felf-devoted to the Infernal Gods 
 The gallant Decius flood before the troops, 
 Robed in the victim garb of facrifice, : 
 And fpake aloud, and call'd the Shadowy Powers 
 To give to Rome the conqueft, and receive 425 
 Their willing prey ; then rufh'd amid the foe, 
 And died upon the hecatombs he flew. 
 
 But Hope infpir'd the aflailants. Xaintrailles there 
 Spread fear and death ; and Orleans' valiant Son 
 Fought as when Warwick fled before his arm, 430 
 O'er all preeminent for hardieft deeds 
 Was Conrade. Where he drove his battle-axe, 
 Weak was the buckler or the helm's defence, 
 Hauberk, or plated mail ; thro' all it pierced, 
 Refiftlefs as the forked flalli of Heaven. 435 
 
 The death-doom'd foe, who mark'd the coming Chief, 
 Felt fuch a chill run thro' his fhivering frame, 
 As the night traveller of the Pyrenees, 
 Lone and bewildered on his wint'ry way, 
 When from the mountains round reverberates 440 
 The hungry Wolves' deep yell : on every fide, 
 Their fierce eyes gleaming as with meteor fires, 
 The famifh'd troop come round : the affrighted mule 
 Snorts loud with terror : on his fhuddering limbs 
 The big fweat ftarts ; convulfive pant his fides ; 
 Then on he rufhes, wild in defperate fpeed. 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 225 
 
 Him dealing death an Englifli Knight beheld, 
 And fpurr'd his freed to crufh him : Conrade leap'd 
 Lightly afide, and thro' the Warrior's greeves 
 Fix'd a deep wound : nor longer could the foe, 450 
 Tortur'd with anguiih, guide his mettled horfe* 
 Or his rude plunge endure ; headlong he fell, 
 And perihYd. In his cattle-hall was hung 
 On high his father's fhield, with many a dint 
 Graced on the blood-drenched plain of Azincour r 
 His deeds the fon had heard ; and when a boy,, 
 Liftening delighted to the old man^ tale, 
 His little hand would lift the weighty fpear 
 In warlike paftime : he had left behind 
 An infant offspring, and did fondly deem 460 
 
 He too in age the exploits of his youdi 
 Should tell, and in the Stripling's bofom roufe 
 The nre of glory. Conrade the next foe 
 Smote where the heaving membrane feparates 
 The chambers of the trunk. The dying man, 465 
 In his Lord's cattle dwelt, for many a year, 
 A well-beloved fervant : he could fing 
 Carols for Shrove-tide, or for Candlemas* 
 Songs for the Waffel, and when the Boar's head, 
 Crown'd with gay garlands, and with Rofemary, 
 Smoked on the Chriitmas board : he went to war 
 Following the Lord he loved, and law him fall 
 Beneath the arm of Conrade, and expir'd, 
 Slain on his Matter's body. Nor the fight 
 Was doubtful long. Fierce on the invading hoil 
 
22 6 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Prefs the French troops impetuous, as of old, 
 When, pouring o'er his legion flaves on Greece,. 
 The Eaftern Defpot bridged the Hellefpont, 
 The ruining fea againft the mighty pile 
 Roll'd its full weight of waters ; far away 48c 
 The fearful Satrap mark'd on Afia's coafts 
 The floating fragments, and with ominous fear 
 Trembled for the Great King. Still Talbot drove, 
 Tho' with vain valor, as when Ali rear'd 
 In the midnight war the warrior* withering cry ! 485 
 The aged HerS rear'd his two-edged fword r 
 And ever as he fmote a foe, exclaim'd, 
 11 God is victorious !" in the battle's clang. 
 Four hundred times from Ali's powerful voice 
 That found of Death was heard : but vainly ftrove 
 The blamelefs Chieftain, by the Affaffin's hand 
 Deftin'd to end a life of fruftrate hopes. 
 
 Young Talbot mark'd the Maid acrofs the plain, 
 Careering fierce in conqueit. Her to meet 
 He fpurr'd his horfe, by one decifive deed 495 
 
 Or to retrieve the battle, or to fall 
 With glory. , Each beneath the other's blow 
 Bow'd down ; .their lances fhiver'd with the fhock ; 
 To earth their courfers fell : at once they rofe, 
 At once uniheath'd their falchions, and rufh'd on 
 To clofer combat. But in vain the Youth 
 Effay'd to pierce thofe arms that even the power 
 Of Time was weak to injure : fhe the while 
 Thro' many a wound beheld her foeman's blood 
 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 227 
 
 Ooze faft. "Yet fave thee, Warrior !" cried the 
 Maid, 505 
 
 " Me canft thou not deftroy : be timely wife, 
 And live !" He anfwered not, but lifting high 
 His weapon, drove with fierce and forceful arm 
 Full on the Virgin's helm : fire from her eyes 
 Flafh'd with the (broke : one .ftep fhe back recoil'd, 
 Then in his bread: plung'd deep the fword of Deaths 
 
 Him falling Talbot faw. On the next foe, 
 With rage and anguifli wild, the Warrior turn'd ; 
 His ill-directed weapon to the earth 
 Drove down the unwounded Frank : he lifts the 
 And thro' his all-in-vain imploring hands [fword 
 Cleaves the poor iuppliant. On that dreadful day' 
 The fword of Talbot, clogg'd with hoftile gore, 2 
 Made good its vaunt. Amid the heaps his arm 
 Had ilain, the Chieftain flood andiway'd around 
 His furious ftrokes : nor ceas'd he from the fight, 
 Tho' now difcomfited, the Englifh troops 
 Fled faft,, all panic -(track and fpiritlefs ; 
 And mingling with the routed, Faftolffe fled 
 Falfe to his former fame ; for he beheld C25 
 
 The Maiden rufhing onward, and fuch fear 
 Ran thro' his frame, as thrills the African 
 When, grateful folace in the fultry hour, 
 He rifes on the buoyant billow's bread 
 If then his eye behold the monfter Shark rq® 
 
 Gape eager to devour. But Talbot now 
 A. moment paus'u. for bending thitherwards 
 
228 JOJN OF ARC. 
 
 He mark'd a warrior, fuch as well might afk 
 His utmoft force. Of ftrong and fiately port 
 The onward foeman mov'd, and bore on high 535 
 A battle-axe, in many a field of blood 
 Known by the Englifh Chieftain. Over heaps 
 Of flaughter'd, ftrode the Frank, and bade the troops 
 Retire from the bold Earl : then Conrade fpake. 
 " Vain is thy valor, Talbot ! look around, 540 
 
 See where thy fquadrons fly ! but thou {halt lofe 
 No glory, by their cowardice fubdued, 
 Performing well thyfelf the foldier's part." 
 
 "And let them fly!" the indignant Earl exclaim 'd, 
 <l And let them fly I but bear thou witnefs, Chief! 
 That guiltlefs of this day's difgrace, I fall. 
 But, Frenchmen ! Talbot will not tamely fall, 
 Or unrevenged." So faying, for the war 
 He flood prepar'd : nor now with heedlefs rage 
 The Champions fought, for either knew full well 
 His foemen's prowefs : now they aim the blow 
 Inhdious, with quick change then drive the fteel 
 Fierce on the fide expos'd. The unfaithful arms 
 Yield to the ftrong-drivcn edgt ; the blood ftreams 
 down [mark'd 
 
 Their batter'd mails. With fwift eye Conrade 
 The lifted buckler, and beneath impell'd 
 His batt]e-axe ; that inftant on his helm 
 The fword of Talbot fell, and with the blow 
 Shiver'd. " Yet yield thee, Englifhman!" exclaim'd 
 The generous Frank—" vain is this bloody ftrife : 
 
 
 I 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 229 
 
 Me fliouldft thou conquer, little would my death 
 Avail thee, weak and wounded ! " " Long enough 
 Talbot has lived," replied the fullen Chief: 
 " His hour is come ; yet fiialt not thou furvive 
 To glory in his fall !" So, as he fpake, $6$ 
 
 He lifted from the ground a maffy fpear, 
 And rufh'd again to battle. Now more fierce 
 The conflicl raged, for carelefs of himfelf, 
 And defperate, Talbot fought. Collected ftill 
 Was Conrade. Wherefoe'er his foemanaim'd 570 
 His barbed javelin, there he fwung around 
 The- guardian fhield : now pierc'd with many a ftroke, 
 The Earl's emblazon'd buckler to the earth 
 Fell, fever' d : from his riven arms the blood 
 Stream'd faft ; and now the Frenchman's battle-axe 
 Drove unrefifted thro' the fhieldlefs mail. 
 Backward die Frank recoil'd. " Urge not to death 
 This fruitlefs conteft," cried he ; "live, Oh Chief! 
 Are there not thofe in England who would feel 
 Seen anguifh at thy lofs ? a wife perchance $%a 
 "Who trembles for thy fafety, or a child 
 Needing a Father's care !" Then Talbot's heart 
 Smote him. " Warrior !" he cried, " if thou doft 
 That life is worth preferving, hie thee hence, [think 
 And fave thyfelf : I loath this ufelefs talk." 585 
 
 So faying, he addrefs'dhim to the fight, 
 Impatient of exiftence ; from their arms 
 Flalh'd fire, and quick they panted ; but not long 
 Endured the deadly combat. With full force 
 U 
 
230 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Down thro* his moulder even to the cheft, £90 
 
 Conrade impell'd the ponderous battle axe ; 
 And at that inflant underneath his fhield 
 Received the hoftile fpear. Prone fell the Earl, 
 Even in his death rejoicing that no foe 
 Should live to boaft his fall. Then with faint hand 
 Conrade unlaced his helm, and from his brow 
 Wiping the cold dews, ominous of death, 
 He laid him on the earth, thence to remove, 
 While the long lance hung heavy in his fide, 
 Powerlefs. As thus befide.his lifelefs foe 60© 
 
 He lay, the herald of the Elnglim Earl 
 With faltering ftep drew near, and when he faw 
 His matter's arms, " Alas ! and is it you, 
 My Lord ?" he cried. ^ God pardon you your fins ! 
 I have been forty years your officer, 605 
 
 And time it is I mould furrender now 
 The enfigns of my ofBce !" So he faid, 
 And paying thus his rite of fepulture, 
 Threw o'er the flaughter'd chief his blazon'd coat. 
 Then Conrade thus befpake him : ■* Englifhmam 
 Do for a dying foldier one kind act 1 
 Seek for the Maid of Orleans, bid her hafte 
 Hither, and thou malt gain what recompenfe 
 It.pleafes thee to afk." The herald foon, 
 Meeting the miffion'd Virgin, told his tale. 61 5 
 Trembling fhe haflen'd on, and when fhe knew 
 The death-pale face of Conrade, fcarce could JOAN 
 Lift up the expiring warrior's heavy hand, 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 231 
 
 And prefs it to her heart. " I fent for thee, 
 My friend !" with interrupted voice he cried, 626 
 " That I might comfort this my dying hour 
 With one good deed. A fair domain is mine ; 
 Let Francis and his Ifabel pofTefs- 
 That, mine inheritance." He paus'd awhile, 
 Struggling for utterance ; then with hreathlefs fpeed, 
 And pale as him he mourn'd for, Francis came, 
 And hung in filence o'er the blamelefs man, 
 Even with a brother's forrow : he purfued, 
 "This JOAN will be thy care. I have at home- 
 An aged mother — Francis, do thou foothe 630 
 
 Her childlefs age. Nay, weep not for me thus : 
 Sweet to the wretched is the Tomb's repofe 1" 
 
 So faying Comrade drew the javelin forth r 
 And died without a groan. By} this the Scouts, 
 Forerunning the King's march, upon the plain 635 
 Of Patay had arrived, of late fo gay 
 With marmall'd'thoufands in their radiant arms, 
 And dreamer glittering in the noon tide fun, 
 And blazon' d fhields, and gay accoutrements, 
 The pageantry of murder : now defiled 640 
 
 With mingled duft and blood, and broken arms, . 
 And mangled bodies. Soon the Monarch joins 
 His victor army. Round the royal flag, 
 Uprear'd in conqueft now, the Chieftains flockj 
 Proffering their eager fervice. To his armsi 645 
 Or wifely fearful, or by fpeedy force 
 Gompell'd, the embattled towns fubmit and own 
 
232 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 Their rightful King. Baugenci drives in vain r 
 
 Jenviile and Mehun yield ; from Sully's wall 
 
 Hurl'd is the banner'd Lion : on they pafs. 65a 
 
 Auxerre, and Troyes, and Chalons, ope their gates,. 
 
 And by the MifTion'd Maiden's rumour'd deeds 
 
 Infpirited, the Citizens of Rheims 
 
 Feel their own ftrength ; againft the Englifh troops 
 
 With patriot valor, irrefiftible,, 655 
 
 They rife, they conquer, and to their liege Lord" 
 
 Prefent the city keys. The mom was fair 
 
 When Rheims re-echoed to the bufy hum 
 
 Of multitudes, for high folemnity 
 
 AfTembled. To the holy fabric moves 660 
 
 The long proceffion, thro' the ftreets beftrewn 
 
 With flowers and laurel boughs. The Courtier throng 
 
 Were there, and they in Orleans, who entfur'd 
 
 The fiege right bravely : D'Orval, and La Hire r 
 
 The gallant Xaintrailles, BoufTac, and Chabannes, 
 
 La Fayette, name that Freedom hull mail love. ; 
 
 Alencon, and the braveft of the brave, 
 
 The Baftard Orleans, now in hope elate, 
 
 Soon to releafe from hard captivity 
 
 A dear-beloved brother. He was there, 670 
 
 Regnier of Sicily, the Sire of her, 
 
 That great unfortunate, whofe various woes 
 
 St. Albans knew, and Hexham's fatal field, 
 
 And the dark foreft, where the Robber met 
 
 The midnight Wanderer and her child, and vow'd, 
 
 Aw'd by the Majefty of Fortitude, 
 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 233 
 
 His fword to ferve them. By the Monarch's fide 
 The Delegated Damfel pafs'd along, 
 Clad in her batter'd arms. She bore on high 
 Her hallowed banner to the facred pile, 680 
 
 And fix'd it on the altar, whilft her hand 
 Pour'd on the Monarch's head the myftic oil, 
 Wafted of yore by milk-white Dove from Heaven, 
 (So legends fay) to Clovis, when he flood 
 At Rheims for haptifm ; dubious fmce that day, 
 When Tolbiac plain reek'd with his warrior's blood,, 
 And fierce upon their flight the Alemanni preft, 
 And rear' d the fhout of triumph ; in that hour 
 Clovis invok'd aloud the Chriitian God, 
 And conquer'd : wak'd to. wonder thus, the Chief 
 Became Love's convert, and Clotilda led 
 Her hufband to the. font. The Miffion'd Maid 
 Then placed on Charles's brow the Crown of France, 
 And back retiring, gazed upon the King 
 Gne moment, quickly fcanning all the paft, 695. 
 Till in a tumult of wild wonderment 
 She wept aloud; The affembled multitude: 
 In awful ftillnefs witnefs'd : then at once, 
 As with a tempeit-rufhing noife of winds,, 
 Lifted their mingled clamors. Now the Maid 700. 
 Stood as prepar'd to fpeak, and waved her hand, 
 And inftant filence followed. " King of France !" 
 She cried—" At Chinon, when my gifted eye 
 Knew thee difguis'd, what inwardly the Spirit 
 Prompted, I fpake— arm'd with the fword of God 
 U 2 
 
234 JOAN OF ARC. 
 
 To drive from Orleans far the Englifh Wolves, 
 
 And crown thee in the refcued walls of Rheims^ 
 
 All is accomplilh'd. I have here this day 
 
 Fulfill'd my miflion, and anointed thee 
 
 Chief Servant of the People. Of this charge, 7 1 o- 
 
 Or well perform'd or wickedly, High Heaven 
 
 Shall take account. If that thine heart be good, 
 
 I know no limit to the happinefs 
 
 Thou mayeft create. I do befeech thee, King V* 
 
 (The Maid exclaim'd, and fell upon the ground 
 
 And clafp'd his knees) " I do befeech thee, King ! 
 
 By all the millions that depend on thee^ 
 
 For weal or woe— confider what thou art, 
 
 And know thy duty ! if thou doft opprefs 
 
 Thy people, if to aggrandize thyfelf 720. 
 
 Thou tear'ft them from their homes, and fend'ft' 
 
 them forth 
 To flaughter, prodigal of mifery ! 
 If when the Widow and the Orphan groan 
 In want and wretchednefs, thou turneft thee 
 To hear the mufic of the flatterer's tongue ; 725 
 If when thou hear' ft of thoufands maflacred, 
 Thou fayeft, " I am a King ! and fit it is 
 That thefe mould perifh for me." If thy realm 
 Should, thro' the counfels of thy government, 
 Be filled with woe, and in thy ftreets be heard 730 
 The voice of mourning and the feeble cry 
 Of afking Hunger ; if at fuch a time 
 Thou dofl: behold thy plenty-covered board, 
 
 I 
 
BOOK THE TENTH. 235 
 
 And fliroud thee in thy robes of Royalty, 
 
 And fay that all is well — Oh gracious God ! 735 
 
 Be merciful to fueh a monftrous man, 
 
 When the Spirits of the murder' d innocent 
 
 Cry at thy throne for juftice ! King of France ! 
 
 Protect the lowly, feed the hungry ones, 
 
 And be the Orphan's father ! thus malt thou 740 
 
 Become the Reprefentative of Heaven, 
 
 And Gratitude and Love eftablifh thus 
 
 Thy reign. Believe me, King ! that hireling guards, 
 
 Tho' flefh'd in flaughter, would be weak to fave 
 
 A tyrant on the blood-cemented Throne 745 
 
 That totters underneath him," Thus the Maid 
 
 Redeem'd her country. Ever may the All-Just 
 
 Give to the arms of Freedom fuch fuccefs. 
 
 FINIS. 
 
N O T E & 
 
 BOOK THE FIRST.- 
 
 Note Firft, p. 3. Line 10. 
 
 DUNOIS was wounded in the battle of Herrings, which 
 was the laft vi&ory of the Englifh, before the appear- 
 ance of the Maid of Orleans. 
 
 Note Second, p. 5. 
 Eihe 53. — Hue quicquid fetu genuit Natura finiftro 
 Mifcetur. Non fpuma canum, quibus unda timori eft, 
 Vifcera non lyncis, non dirae nodus hysense 
 Defuit : infando faturatas carmine frondes. 
 £t quibus os dirum nafcentibus infpuit, herbas • 
 Addidit, et quicquid mundo dedit ifpa veneni 
 Afpicit aftantem projecti- corporis umbram^ 
 Exanimes artus, invifaque clauftra timentem. 
 
 Carceris antiqui. Luoan, Lib. vi. 
 
 Note Third, p. 8. 
 Line 128. — Harfeedr was taken in 1415. The Maid of 
 Orleans firft appeared in. 1 429. This agrees with the ac- 
 count of her age given by Holinfhcd, who calls her " a yong 
 wench of an eighteene years old ; of favour was fhe counted 
 likefome, of perfon ftronglie made and manlie, of courage 
 great hardie, and ftout wichall ; an underftandcr of counfels, 
 though fhe were not at them ; greet femblance of chaftitie, 
 both of bodie and behaviour ; the name of Jefus in hir mouth 
 about all hir bufineffes, humble, obedient, and fafting diverfe 
 daies in the weeke." Holinshed, 600. 
 
 The Englifhmen, notwithftanding all the damage that the 
 French could worke againft them, forraied the countrie, fpoil- 
 ed the villages, bringing manie a rich preie to the camp before 
 Harfi'ue. And dailie was the towne affaulted : for the duke 
 of Glocefter, to whome the order of the fiege was committed, 
 made three mines under the ground, and approching to the 
 wals with his engins and ordinence, would not fufFer them 
 within to take anie raft, Holinshed, 549. 
 
NOTE S. 237 
 
 Eftouteville was Governor of Harfleur ;• the place was gal- 
 lantly defended under him by Guitri Gaucour, and others of 
 the French nobility ; but the garrifon was weak, and the for- 
 tifications were in bad repair. 
 
 Note Fourth, p. 9. 
 Line 159. — " Some writing of this yeelding up of Har- 
 flue, doo in like fort make mention of the diftreffe whereto 
 the people, then expelled out of their habitations were driven : 
 infomuch as parents with their children, yong maids and 
 old folke went out of the towne gates with heavie harts, 
 (God wot)' as put to their prefent fhifts to feek them a new 
 abode." Holinsiied, 550. 
 
 This a<?t of defpotic barbarity was perpetrated by Henry, 
 that he might people the town with Englifh inhabitants. 
 " This doth Anglorum prseiia report, faieng (not without 
 good ground I believe) as followeth : 
 
 Turn flentes tenera cum prole parentes 
 Virgjneufque chorus veterres liquere penates : 
 Turn populus cuncltus de portis Gallicus exit 
 Mceftus, inarmatus, vacuus, mifer seger, inopfque : 
 Utque novas fedes quterat migrare coa<5r.us : 
 Oppidulo belli potiuntur jure Britanni L" 
 Note Fifth, p-. 18'.. 
 Line 421. — Dreadful indeed muft have been the mifcries 
 of the French from vulgar plunderers, when the manners of 
 the higheft claffes were marked by hideous groffnefs and vices 
 that may not be uttered. The following portrait of fome of 
 thefe outrages we give from the notes of Andrew's admiraMe 
 hiftory of Great Britain. " Agricola quilibet, fponfam juve- 
 nem acquifitus, ac in vicinia alicujus viri nobilis & prsepoten- 
 tis habitans, crudeliffime vexabatur. N'erape nonnunquam in 
 ejus domum irruens ifte optimas, magna, comitante eaterva, 
 pretium ingens redemptionis exigeret, ac fi non protinus fol- 
 veret colonus, iftum miferum in magna area protrudens, ve- 
 nuftse ac tenerse uxori fua? (fuper ipfam arcam proftratse) vim 
 vir nobilis adferret ; voce exclamans horrenda." Audine 
 Ruftice ! jamjam, fuper hanc arcam conftupratur dile&a tua 
 fponfa, at que peraclo hoc fcelere nefando relinquerctur (hor- 
 refco referens), fuffbeatione expirans maritus, nifi magno pre- 
 tio fponfa nuper vitiata liberationem, ejus redimeret." 
 
 J. qe Paris. 
 
2 3 S NO T E 8. 
 
 Let us add to this the deteftable hiflory of a great command- 
 er under Charles VII. of France, the baflard of Bourbon, wh<5 
 (after having committed the moffc execrable crimes during a 
 feries of years with impunity) was drowned in- 144 1, by the 
 conftable Richemont, (a treacherous affaffin, but a mirror of 
 juftice when compared to his noble contemporaries) on its- 
 being proved againft him : " Quod fuper ipfum maritum vi 
 proftratum uxori, fruftra repugnanti vim adtulerer." 
 
 " Enfuite il avoit fait battre et decouper le mari, rant que 
 c'etoit pitie a voir. Mem. de Ricuemont. 
 
 Page 19. 
 
 Line 438. — Holinfhed fays, fpeaking of the fiege of Rouen, 
 " If I mould rehearfe how deerelie dogs, rats, mife, and cats 
 were fold within the towne, and hew greedilie they were by 
 the poore people eaten and devoured, and how the people dai- 
 lie died for fault of food, and yong infants laie fucking in ttef.reets 
 on their mother s oreafts, being dead flawed for hunger — the reader 
 might lament their extreme miferies." p. 566* 
 
 Note Sixth, ibid. 
 
 Line 439. — Harfleur. 
 
 BOOK THE SECOND, 
 
 Note Firft, p. 23. 
 Line 34.— Sir Ifaac Newton, at the end of the laft edition of his* 
 Optics, fuppofes that a very fubtile and elaftic fluid, which he 
 calls ether, is diffufed through the pores of grofs bodies, as well 
 as through the open fpaces-that are void of grofs matter ; he fup- 
 pofes it to pierce all bodies, and to touch their leaft particles, 
 acting on them with a force proportional to their number or 
 to the matter cf the hody on which it ads. He fuppofes 
 likewife, that it is rarer in the pores of bodies than in open 
 fpaces, and even rarer in imall pores and denfe bodies, than 
 in large pores and rare bodies ; and alfo that its denfity 
 increafes in receding from grofs matter; fo, for inftance, as to 
 be greater at the T ~ of an inch from the furfacc of any body, 
 than at it's furface ; and fo on. To the action of this ether 
 he afcribes the attractions of gravitation and cohefion, the 
 attraction and repuiiion of electrical bodies, the mutual in- 
 fluences of bodies and light upon each other, the effects and 
 communication of heat, and the performance of animal fenfa- 
 tion and motion. David Hartley, from whom this account of 
 ether is chiefly borrowed, makes ii the inflrument of propa- 
 
NOTES. 
 
 ■39 
 
 -gating thofe vibrations or configurative motions which are 
 ideas. It appears to me, no hypothefis ever involved fo many- 
 contradictions ; for how can the fame fluid be both denfe and 
 rare in the fame body at one time ? yet in the Earth as grav- 
 itating to the Moon, it muft be very rare ; and in the Earth 
 as gravitating to the Sun, it muft be very denfe. For, as An- 
 drew Baxter well obferves, it doth not appear fufficient to ac- 
 count how this .fluid may act with a force proportional to the 
 body to which another is impelled, to affert that it is rarer in 
 great bodies than in fmall ones : it muft be farther afferted 
 that this fluid is rarer or denfer in the fame body, whether 
 fmall or great, according as the body to which that is impelled 
 is itfelf fmall or great. But whatever may be the folidity of 
 this objection, the following feerns unanfwerable : 
 
 If every particle through the whole folidity of a heavy 
 body receive its impulfe from the particles of this fluid, it 
 fhould feem that the fluid itfelf muft be as denfe as the very 
 denfcft heavy body, gold for inftance ; there being as many- 
 impinging particles in the one, as there are gravitating parti- 
 cles in the other, which receive their gravitation by being im- 
 pinged upon : fo that, throwing gold or any heavy body up- 
 ward, againft the impulfe of this fluid, would be like throw- 
 ing gold through gold ; and as this ether muft be equally dif- 
 fufed over the whole fphere of its activity, it muft be as denfe 
 yvhen it impels cork as when it impels gold : fo that to throw 
 a piece of cork upward, would be as if we endeavoured to 
 make cork penetrate a medium as denfe as gold : and though 
 we were to adopt the extravagant opinions which have been 
 advanced concerning the pr-ogrefCon of pores, yet however 
 porous we fuppofe a body, if it be riot all pore, the argument 
 holds, equally ; the fluid muft be as denfe as the body, in order 
 to give every particle its impulfe. 
 
 It has been afferted that Sir Ifaac Newton's philofophy leads 
 in its confequences to Atheifm : perhaps not without reafom 
 For if matter, by any powers or properties given to it, can 
 produce the order of the vifible world, and even generate 
 thought ; why may it not have poffeffed fuch properties by . 
 inherent right ? and where is the neceflity of a God ? Matter is, 
 according to the mechanic philofophy, capable of acting moft 
 wifely and moft beneficently, without Wifdom or Benevo- 
 lence ; and what more does the Atheift affert ? If matter pof- 
 fefs thofe properties, why might it not have, poffeffed them 
 
 

 240 NOTE S. 
 
 from all eternity? Sir Ifaac Newton's Deity feems to be al- 
 ternately operofe and indolent ; to have delegated fo much 
 power as to make it inconceiveable what he can have referved. 
 He is dethroned by vice-regent fecond caufes. 
 
 We feem placed here to acquire a knowledge of effects. 
 Whenever we would pierce into the Adyta of Caufation, we 
 bewilder ourfelves; and all that laborious Conjecture can do, 
 is to fill up the gaps of Imagination. We are reftlefs, becaufe 
 in-vifible things are not the objects of vifxon — and philosophical 
 fyftems, for the moft part, are received, not for their Truth, 
 but in ^proportion as they attribute to Caufes as fufceptibility 
 of being feen, whenever our vifual organs fhall have become 
 fufficiently powerful. 
 
 Note Second, p. 25. 
 
 Line 71. — Balda-Zhiok. i. e. mons altudinis, the higheft, 
 mountain in Lapland. 
 
 Note Third, ibid. 
 
 Line 72. — Solfar-Kapper: capitium Solfar,liic locus omni- 
 um, quotquot veterum Lapponum fuperftitio facrificiis religi- 
 ofque cultui dedicavit, celebratiffimus erat, in parte finus au- 
 ftralis fitus, femimrlliaris fpatio a mari diftans. Ipfe locus, 
 quern curiofitatis gratia aliquando me invififfe memini, duabus 
 prsealtis lapidibus, fibi invicem oppofitis, quorum alter mufco 
 circumdatus erat, conftabat. Leemius de Lapponibus. 
 
 Line 75. — The Lapland women carry their infants at their 
 backs in a piece of excavated wood, which ferves them for a 
 cradle : oppofite the infant's mouth there is a hole for it to 
 breathe through. 
 
 Mirandum prorfus eft et vix credibile nifi cui vidhTe contigit. 
 Lappones hyeme iter fafcientes per vaftos montes, per-que hor- 
 rida et invia tefqua, eo przefertim tempore quo omnia perpetuis 
 nivibus obtecta funt et nives ventis agitantur et in .gyros agnn- 
 tur, viam ad deftinata loca abfque errore invenire poffe, lac- 
 tantem autem infantem, fi quern habeat, ipfa mater in dorf© 
 bajulat, in excavato ligno (Gieed'k ipfi vocant) quod pro cunis 
 utuntur, in hoc infans pannis et pellibus convolutus colligatus 
 jacet. Leemjus de Lapponibus^ 
 
 Note Fourth, ibid. 
 
 Line 96. — Jaibme Aibmo. 
 
 Note Fifth, p. 26. 
 
 Line 112.. — They call the Good Spirit Torngarfuck the 
 other great but malignant fpirit is a namelcfs female ; ftie 
 
NOTES. 241 
 
 dwells under the fea in a great houfe, where fhe can detain in 
 captivity all the animals of the ocean by her magic power. 
 "When a dearth befals the Greenlanders, an Angekok or ma- 
 gician muft undertake a journey thither : he paffes through the 
 kingdom of fouls, over a horrible abyfs, into the palace of this 
 phantom, and by his enchantments caufesthe captive creatures 
 to afcend directly to the furface of the ocean. 
 
 See Crantz. Hift. of Greenland, Vol. i, 406. 
 Note Sixth, p. 30. 
 
 Line 215. — Otus and Ephialtes. 
 
 Note Seventh, ibid. 
 
 Line 218. — See the Edda, Fab. 24th of the illufions practif- 
 ed upon Thor by Skrymner. 
 
 Note Eighth, p. 33. 
 
 Line 310. — Revel, vi. 9, 11. And when he had opened the 
 fifth feal, I faw under the altar the fouls of them that were 
 flain for the word of God, and for the teftimony which they 
 held. And white robes were given unto every one of them ; 
 and it was faid unto them, that they Ihould reft yet for a little 
 feafon, until their fellow-fervants alfo, and their Brethren that 
 Ihould be killed, as they were, fhould be fulfilled. 
 Note Ninth, p. 37. 
 
 Line 428. — The Slaves in the Weft-india Iflands confider 
 Death as a paflport to their native Country. — This Senti- 
 ment is thus expreffed in the Introduction to a Greek Prize 
 Ode on the Slave-Trade, of which the Ideas are better than 
 the Language or Metre, in which they are conveyed. 
 
 ■H. cry.OTOu Tv\ac, Qz.va.Ti, TpoXitToiv 
 Eg yivog crTiv£otg vTro^iy^Qiv Arx. 
 Ov fyvicr'dna"/) yivuav cr7ra.pocyp.01e 
 
 Cud 1 ' o\o\vy t uu t 
 AKKx xxt Y.VY.Koi<ri yopoiTUTotcri 
 Kacr/xxruv X?? *-' <r°fopog /jav «ro~t, 
 Ah\ oyjjg E\ivhiptx crvvoiy.uc, 
 
 ~2rvyvz Tv r xvvi ! 
 Axtryuo'.g (Tit TTipvyicrcrt evert 
 A ! bxkao-criov -/.xSopuvrig otS'y.a. 
 A.t$ipoT\a.yToi$ vtto too-lt cevuert 
 
 UciTplSiT cctocv. 
 Ev^x /y,av Epxgxt Epa/xivycrtv 
 Aju.pt Tnyytriv Kirptvav V7t xhcrav, 
 
 Ofl-0" V7T0 fipOTOtf ITCtdov (ZpOTOl, TX 
 
 Aitvx hsyovri. 
 
 w 
 
242 NOTE -S. 
 
 LITERAL TRANSLATION. 
 
 Leaving the gates of Darknefs, O Death ! haften thou to a 
 Race yoked to Mifery ! Thou wilt not he received with lac- 
 erations of Cheeks, nor with funereal Ululation — hut with 
 circling Dances and the joy of Songs. Thou art terrihle in- 
 deed, yet thou dwelleft with Liberty, ftern Genius ! Borne 
 on thy dark pinions over the fwelling of Ocean, they return 
 to their native Country. There, by the fide of Fountains 
 beneath Citron Groves, the Lovers teH to their Beloved, what 
 horrors, being Men, they had endured from Me n ! S. T. C. 
 Note Tenth, p. 40. 
 
 Line 502.— The Maid declared upon her trial, that God 
 loved the Duke of Orleans, and that fhe had received more 
 revelations concerning him, than any perfon living, except the 
 King. Rapin. 
 
 Orleans, during his long captivity, " had learnt to court the 
 fair ladies of England in their native {trains." Among the Har- 
 leian MSS. is a collection of " love poems, roundels and fongs," 
 compofed by the French Prince during his confinement. 
 Note Eleventh, p." 41. 
 
 Line 533. — According to Holinfhed, the Englifh army con- 
 fifted of only 15,000 men, harafled with a tedious march of a 
 month, in very bad weather, through an enemy's country, and 
 for the moft part fick of a flux. He ftates the number of the 
 French at 60,000, of whom 10,000 were flain, and ijoo of 
 the higher ' order taken prifoners. Some hiflorians make the 
 difproportion in numbers ftill greater. Goodwin fays, that 
 among the flain there were one Archbifhop, three Dukes, fix 
 Earls, ninety Barons, fifteen hundred Knights, and feven thou- 
 fand Efquires or Gentlemen. 
 
 Note Twelfth, ibid. 
 
 Line 540. — A company of fugitives, headed by Robert de 
 Bournonville, who had retired by times out of the battle, know- 
 ing the Engliih camp was but weakly guarded, pillaged it 
 during the engagement : in confequence of this alarm, Henry 
 ordered the prifoners to be flain, except the moil eminent. 
 Note Thirteenth, p. 42. 
 
 Line J 7 7. — Henry judged, that by fomenting the troubles 
 of France, he fhould procure more certain and lafling advan- 
 tages, than by means of his arms. The truth is, by pufhing 
 the French too vigoroufly, he ran the rilk of uniting them 
 ail againft him ; in which cafe, his advantages, probably, 
 
NOTES. 243 
 
 Would have been inconfiderable ; but by granting them fome 
 refpite, he gave them opportunity to deflroy one another ; 
 therefore, contrary to every one's expectation, he laid afide 
 his military affairs for near eighteen months, and betook him- 
 felf entirely to negociation, which afforded him the profpecl: 
 of lefs doubtful advantages. Rapin. 
 
 Note Fourteenth, p. 43. 
 
 Line 606. — " Yet although the armie was flrong without, 
 there lacked not within both hai die capteins and manfull fol- 
 diers, and as for people, they had more than inough : for ag 
 it is written by fome that had good caufe to know the truth, 
 and no occafion to erre from the fame, there were in the 
 citie at the time of the fiege, 210,000 perfons. Dailie were 
 iffiies made out of the citie at diverfe gates, fometime to the 
 Ioffe of the one partie and fometimes of the other, as chances of 
 warre in fuch adventures happen." Holinshed, 566. 
 
 Note Fifteenth, p. 44. 
 
 Line 612. — "The Frenchmen indeed preferring fame before 
 worldlie riches, and defpifmg pleafure , (the enemie to warlike 
 proweffe) fware ech to other, never to render or deliver the 
 citie, while they might either hold fword in hand or fpeare in 
 reft." Holinshed, 566. 
 
 Note Sixteenth, ibid. 
 
 Line 625. — " The King of England, advertifed of their 
 hautie courages, determined to conquer them by famine, 
 which would not be tamed by weapon. Wherefore he flop- 
 ped all the paffages, both by water and land, that no vittels 
 could be conveied to the citie. He caft trenches round about 
 the walls, and fet them full of flakes, and defended them with 
 archers, fo that there was left neither waie for them within to 
 iflue out, nor for anie that were abroad to enter in without 
 his licenfe. — The King's cooiine germane and alie (the King 
 of Portugale) fent a great navie of well-appointed fhips 
 unto the mouth of the river of Seine, to flop that no French 
 veffel fhould enter the river and pafie up the fame, to the aid 
 of them within Rouen. 
 
 " Thus was the faire citie of Rouen compaffed about with en- 
 emies, both by water and land, having neither comfort nor aid 
 of King, Dauphin, or Duke." Holinshed, 566. 
 
 Note Seventeenth, ibid. 
 
 Line 633. — " After he had profecuted the fiege of this place 
 for fome time, the Cardinal Urfino repaired to his camp, and 
 
244 NOTES. 
 
 endeavoured to perfuade him to moderate his terms, and agree 
 to an equitable peace ; but the King's reply plainly evinced 
 his determination of availing himfelf of the prefent fituation 
 of public affairs. " Do you not fee," faid he, " that God has 
 brought me hither, as it were by the hand ? The throne of 
 France may be faid to be vacant ; 1 have a good title to that 
 crown ; the whole kingdom is involved in the utmoft diforder 
 and confufion ; few are willing, and ftill fewer are able, to 
 refill me. Can I have a more convincing proof of the inter- 
 pofition of Heaven in my favour, and that the Supreme Ruler 
 of all things has decreed that I mould afcend the throne of 
 France ?" Hist, of England, by Hugh Clarendon. 
 
 Note Eighteenth, p. 45. 
 
 Line 646. — Henry, not fatisfied with the reduction of Caen, 
 put feveral of the inhabitants to death, who had fignalized 
 their valour in defence of their liberty and property. 
 
 H. Clarendon. 
 Note Nineteenth, ibid. 
 
 Line 6 59. — After the capture of the city, " Luca ltalico, the 
 
 Vicar Generall of the archbKhoprike of Rouen, for denouncing 
 
 the king accurfed was delivered to him, and deteined in prifon 
 
 till he died." Holinshed. Titus Livius. 
 
 Note Twentieth, p. 46. 
 
 Line 672, — " A gl£«t nUmLcf u£,^CC:? "Hie creatures were 
 put out of the gates, which were by the Ehglifhmen that kept 
 the trenches, beaten and driven back againe to the fame gates, 
 which they found clofed and fhut againft them, and fo they 
 laie betweene the wals of the citie and the trenches of the en- 
 emies, ftill crieing for help and releefe, for lack whereof great 
 numbers of them dailie died." Holinshed. 
 
 Note Twenty-firft, ibid. 
 
 Line 681. — One of the deputed citizens, "fhewing himfelf 
 more rafh than wife, more arrogant than learned, took upon 
 him to fhew wherein the glorie of vietorie confifted ; ad- 
 vifing the king not to fhew his manhood in famifhing a mul- 
 titude of poore, fimple, and innocent people, but rather fuffer' 
 fuch miferable wretches as laie betwixt the wals of the citie and 
 the trenches of his fiege, to paffe through the camp, that theie 
 might get their living in other places ; then, if he durft manfullie 
 affault the place, and by force fubdue it, he fhould win both 
 worldlie fame, and merit great meed from the hands of Al- 
 mightie God, for having compaffion of the poore, needie and in-? 
 
NOTES. 245 
 
 digent people. When this orator had faid, the King, with a 
 fierce countenance and bold fpirit, reproved them for their 
 malapert prefumption, in that they fhould feeme to go about to 
 teach him what belonged to the dutie of a conqueror, and there- 
 fore, fince it appeared that the fame was unknown to them, he 
 declared that the Goddeffe of Battell, called Bellona, had three 
 handmaidens, ever of neceffitie attending upon her, as Blood, 
 Fire, and Famine, and whereas it laie in his choice to ufe them 
 all three, he had appointed onelie the meekeft maid of thofe 
 three damfels, to punifli them of that citie till they were 
 brought to reafon. This anfwer put the French ambaffador 
 in a great ftudie, mufing much at his excellent -wit and havvti 
 neffe of courage." Holinshed 
 
 Note Twenty-fecond, p. 47. 
 
 Line 697. — Roan was betrayed by its Burgundian Gover- 
 nor, Bouthellier. During this fiege, fifty thoufand men per- 
 ifhed through fatigue and the ufe of unwholefome provifions 
 Note Twenty-third, ibid. 
 
 Line 70a. — Roy d'Angletterre fift coupper la teft a Allairi 
 Blartchart cappitaine du commun. 
 
 MoNSTRELLET. FEUILLET, CXCviL 
 
 BOOK THE THIRD. 
 
 Note Firft, p. 50. 
 
 Line 29. — Tanneguy du Chatel had faved the life of Charles 
 when Paris was feized by the Burgundians. Lifie Adam, 
 a man noted for ferocity even in that age, was admitted at 
 midnight into the city with eight hundred horfe. The par- 
 tisans of Burgundy were under arms to aflift them, and a 
 dreadful {laughter of the Armagnacs enfued. Du Chate], 
 then Governor of the Eaftile, being unable to retrain the tu- 
 mult, ran to the Louvre, and carried away the Dauphin in 
 his fliirt, in order to fecure him in his fortrefs,. Rapin. 
 
 Note Second, ibid. 
 
 Line 40. — Riehemont caufed De Giac to be Wrangled in 
 his bed, and thrown into the Loire, to puiiifh the negligence 
 that had occafioned him to be defeated by an inferior force at 
 Avrsnehes. The conftable had laid fiege to St. James de 
 Beuvron, a place ftrongly garrifoned by the Engbfh. He had 
 been promifed a convoy of money, which De Giac, who bad 
 the management of the treafury, purpefely detained to mortify 
 the conftable. Riehemont openly aceufed the trtafi:rcr, and 
 W z 
 
246 NOTES. 
 
 revenged himfelf thus violently. After this, he boldly de- 
 clared, that he would ferve in the fame manner any perfon 
 whatfoever, that fhould endeavour to engrofs the King's favour. 
 The Camus of Beaulieu accepted De Giac's place, and was, by 
 the conftable's means, affaffinated in the King's prefence. 
 Note Third, p. 51. 
 Line 45. — " The Dukes of Orleans- and Burgundy had 
 agreed to bury all paft quarrels in oblivion, and to enter into 
 ftrid amity : they fwore before the altar the fincerity of their 
 friendfhip ; the prieft adminiftered the facrament to both of 
 them ; they gave to each other every pledge which could be 
 deemed facred among men. But all this folemn preparation 
 was only a cover for the bafeft treachery, which was delibe- 
 rately premeditated by the Duke of Burgundy. He procured 
 his rival to be affaffinated in the ftreets of Paris : he endeav- 
 oured for fome time to conceal the part which he took in the 
 crime ; but being detected, he embraced a refolution frill more 
 criminal, and more dangerous to fociety, by openly avowing 
 and juftifying it. The parliament itfelf, of Paris, the tribu- 
 nal of juftice, heard the harangues of the Duke's advocate, in 
 defence of affaffination, which he termed tyrannicide ; and that 
 affembly, partly influenced by faction, partly overawed by 
 power, pronounced no fentence of condemnation againft this 
 
 deteftable doctrine. " " This murder, and ft ill more 
 
 the open avowal of the deed, and defence of the doctrine, 
 tended to dhTolve all bands of civil fociety ; and even men of 
 honour, who detefled the example, might deem it juft, on a 
 favourable opportunity, to retaliate upon the author. Bur- 
 gundy had entered into a fecret treaty with the Dauphin, and 
 the two princes agreed to an interview, in order to concert 
 the means of rendering effectual their common attack on the 
 Englifh ; but how both or either of them could with fafety 
 venture upon this conference, it feemed fomewhat difficult to 
 contrive. The Duke, therefore, who neither dared to give, 
 nor could pretend to expect any truft, agreed to all the con- 
 trivances for mutual fecurity which were propofed by the min- 
 ifters of the Dauphin. The two princes came to Montefeau : 
 the Duke lodged in the cattle, the Dauphin in the town, 
 which was divided from the caftle by the river Yonne ; the 
 bridge between them was chofen for the place of interview ; 
 two high rails were drawn acrofs the bridge ;• the gates on 
 each fide were guarded, one by the officers of the Dauphin. 
 
NOTE S. 247 
 
 the other by thofe of the Duke. The princes were to enter 
 into the intermediate fpace by the oppofite gates, accompanied 
 each by ten perfons, and with all thefe marks of diffidence, 
 to conciliate their mutual friendfhip. Eut it appeared that 
 no precautions are fufficient where laws have no place, and 
 where all principles of honour are utterly abandoned. Tan- 
 neguy du Chatel, and others of the Dauphin's retainers, had 
 been zealous partizans of the late Duke of Orleans, and they 
 determined to feize the opportunity of revenging on the af- 
 faffin the murder of that Prince. They no fooner entered 
 the rails, than they drew their fwcrds, and attacked the Duke 
 of Burgundy. His friends were aftonifhed, and thought not 
 of making any defence ; and all of them either fhared his 
 fate, or were taken prifoners by the retinue of the Dauphin." 
 
 Hume. 
 Note Fourth, p. 51. 
 Line 67.— A dreadful flaughter of the Armagnacs had 
 taken place, when Lifie Adam entered Paris at midnight. 
 May 18, 141 8. This, however, was only a prelude to a 
 much greater commotion in the fame city fome days after. 
 Upon news of what had paffed, the exiles being returned to 
 Paris from all quarters, the maffacre was renewed, June the 
 1 2th. The conftable Armagnac was taken out of prifon, 
 murdered, and fhamefully dragged through the ftreets. The 
 Chancellor, feveral Bifhops, and other perfons, to the number 
 of two thoufand, underwent the fame barbarous treatment. 
 Women and children died fmothered in dungeons. Many of 
 the nobles were forced to leap from high towers upon the points 
 of fpears. The maffacre being ended, the Queen and the Duke 
 of Burgundy entered Paris in triumph. Mezeray. Rapin, 
 Note Fifth, p. 53. 
 Line 114. — Charles, in defpair of collecting an army which 
 ihould dare to approach the enemy's entrenchments, not only 
 gave the city of Orleans for loft, but began to entertain a very 
 difmal profpect with regard to the general ftate of his affairs. 
 He faw that the country in which he had hitherto, with great 
 difficulty, fubfifted, would be laid entirely open to the invafion 
 of a powerful and victorious enemy, and he already entertained 
 thoughts of retiring with the remains of his forces into Lan- 
 guedoc and Dauphiny, and defending himfelf as long as poffible 
 in thofe remote provinces. But it was fortunate for this good 
 prince that, as he lay under the dominion of the fair, the 
 
2 4 S NOTES, 
 
 women whom he confulted had the fpirit to fupport his 
 finking resolution in this defperate extremity. Mary of 
 Anjou, his Queen, a princefs of great merit and prudence, ve- 
 hemently oppofed this meafure, which fhe forefaw would dif- 
 courage all his partizans, and ferve as a general fignal for de- 
 ferring a prince, who feemed himfelf to defpair of fuccefs. His 
 miftrefs too, the fair Agnes Sorel, who lived in entire amity 
 with the Queen, feconded all her remonftrances. Hume. 
 
 BOOK THE FOURTH. 
 
 Note Firft, p. 79. 
 Line 293. — Thomas Muir. 
 
 Note Second, ibid. 
 Line 294. — Though roufed hy that dark Vizier, Riot 
 rude, Sec. Coleridge's Poems. 
 
 Note Third, p. 85. 
 Line 489. — " If they who mingled the Cup of Bitternefs, 
 drank its contents, we might look with compaflion on the 
 wickednefs of great men : But alas ! the ftorm which they 
 raife, " beats heavieft on the expofed innocent," and the cot- 
 tage of the poor man is ftripped of every comfort, before the 
 Oppreffors, who fend forth the mandate of Death, are amerced 
 of one Luxury or one Vice. If calamities fucceed each other 
 in a long feries, they deprecate the anger of Heaven by a 
 Fast; which word (being interpreted) feems to fignify — 
 Prayers of Hate to the God of Love, and then a turbot feaft 
 to the rich, and their ufual fcanty meal to the poor, if, indeed, 
 debarred from their ufual labour, they can procure even this ! 
 But if the caufe be crowned by victory, 
 
 " They o'er the ravaged earth, 
 
 As at an altar wet with human blood, 
 
 And flaming with the fire of cities burnt, 
 
 Sing their mad Hymns of Triumph — Hymns to God, 
 
 O'er the deflruclrion of his gracious worlrs, 
 
 Hymns to the father o'er his flaughter'd fon." 
 
 See Conciones ad Populum, or Addreffes 
 to the People, by S. T. Coleridge. 
 
 BOOK THE FIFTH. 
 
 Note Firft, p. 88. 
 Line 38.— The foreft of Orleans contains, even now, four- 
 teen thoufand acres of various kinds of wood. 
 
NOTES. 24ft? 
 
 Note Second, p. 91. 
 
 Line 129.-—" To fucceed in the fiege of Orleans, the En- 
 glifh firft fecured the neighbouring places, which might oth- 
 erwife have annoyed the befiegers. The months of Auguft 
 and September were fpent in this work. During that fpace 
 they took Mehun, Bangenoi, Gergeau, Clery, Sully, Jenville^ 
 and fome other fmall towns, and at lall appeared before Or- 
 leans on the 1 2th of October." Rapin. 
 Note Third, p. 94. 
 
 Line 193. — "The French King ufed every expedient to 
 fupply the city with a garrifon and provifions, and enable it 
 to maintain a long and obftinate fiege. The Lord of Gau- 
 cour, a brave and experienced captain, was appointed gover- 
 nor. Many officers of diftinclion threw themfelves into the 
 place. The troops which they conducted were inured to 
 war, and were determined to make the moft obftinate refift- 
 ance : and even the inhabitants,- difciplined by the long con- 
 tinuance of hoftilities, were well qualified, in their own de- 
 fence, to fecond the efforts of the moft veteran forces. The 
 eyes of all Europe were turned towards this fcene ; where, it 
 was reafonably fuppofed, the French were to make their laffc 
 Hand for maintaining the independence of their monarchy, 
 and the rights of their fovereign." Hume. 
 
 Note Fourth, ibid. 
 
 Line 208. — " They pulled down all the moft confiderable 
 
 buildings in the fuburb's, and among the reft twelve churches 
 
 and feveral monafteries ; that the Englifh might not make ufe 
 
 of them in carrying on the fiege." Rapin. Monstrelletv 
 
 Note Fifth, p. 99. 
 
 Line 342. — " By the treaty of Troyes, Charles was to re- 
 main in quiet poffeffion of royal dignity and revenues. After 
 his death, the crown, with all its rights and dominions, de- 
 volved to Henry and his heirs. The imbecility of Charles was 
 fo great that he could not appear in public, fo that the Queen 
 and Burgundy fwore for him." Rapin.. 
 
 Note Sixth, p. 101. 
 
 Line 408. — " The befiegers received fuccors in the very be- 
 ginning of the fiege ; but the Earl of Salifbury, who confidered 
 this enterprize as a decifive action, for the King his mafter, 
 and his own reputation, omitted nothing to deprive the befieged 
 of that advantage. He run up round the city, fixty forts. 
 How great foever this work might be, nothing could divert 
 
250 NOTE S. 
 
 him from it, fince the fuccefs of the fiege entirely depended 
 upon it. In vain would he have purfued his attack, if the en- 
 emies could continually introduce frefh fupplies. Befides, the 
 feafon, now far advanced, fuggefted to him, that he would be 
 forced to pafs the winter in the camp, and during that time 
 be liable to many infults. Among the fixty forts, there were 
 fix much ftronger than the reft, upon the fix principal ave- 
 nues of the city. The French could before with eafe intro- 
 duce convoys into the place, and had made frequent ufe of 
 that advantage. But after thefe forts were built, it was with 
 extreme difficulty that they could, now and then, give fome 
 affiftance to the befieged. Upon thefe fix redoubts the gen- 
 eral erecled batteries, which thundered againft the walls." 
 
 Rapin. 
 Note Seventh, p. 102. 
 
 Line 425. — " The bulwark of the Tournelles being much 
 fhaken by the befiegers' cannon, and the befieged thinking it 
 proper to fet it on fire, the Englifh extinguished the flames, and 
 lodged themfelves in that poft. At the fame time they be- 
 came inafters of the tower on the bridge, from whence the 
 whole city could be viewed." Rapin. 
 
 Note E'ghth, p 103. 
 
 Line 476. — Revelations, chap, xix- if, 18.. 
 
 BOOK THE SIXTH. 
 
 Note Firft, p. 109. 
 Line 98. — " It was the belief of the Mexicans, that at 
 the conclufon of one of their centuries, the fun and earth 
 would be deftroyed. On the laft night of every century they 
 extinguimed all their fires, covered the faces of the women 
 and children, and expected the end of the world. The kin- 
 dling of the facred fire on the mountain of Huixachtla, was be- 
 lieved an omen of their fafety."" 
 
 See the History of Mexico, by the Abbe Ciavigers*. 
 
 BOOK THE SEVENTH 
 
 Note Firft, p. 126. 
 Line 122. — Neque enim folis exculfa lacertis 
 Lancea, fed tenfo balifta turbine rapta, 
 Haud unum contenta latus tranfire, quiefcit ; 
 Sed pandens perque arma viam, perque ofl'a, relicta 
 Morte fugit : fupercft tel'o poft vulnera curfus. 
 
 Lucan. III. 
 
NOTES. 251 
 
 Note Second, p. 127. 
 ' Line 13 a. — The bayie or lifts was a fpace on the outfide 
 of the ditch, furrounded by ftrong pallifades, and fonietimes 
 by a low embattled wall. In the attack of fortreffes, as 
 the range of the machines then in ufe did not exceed the dis- 
 tance of four ftadia, the befiegers did not carry on their ap- 
 proaches by means of trenches, but began their operations 
 above ground, with the attack of the bayle or lifts, where 
 many feats of chivalry were performed by the Knights and 
 men at arms, who confidered the afTault of that work as par- 
 ticularly belonging to them ; the weight of their armour pre- 
 venting them from fcaling the walls. As this part was at- 
 tacked by the Knights and men at arms, it was alfo defended 
 by thofe of the fame rank in the place, whence many fingle 
 combats were fought here. This was at the firft inverting 
 of the plate. Grose. 
 
 Note Third, ibid. 
 
 Line 141. — In France, only perfons of a certain eftate, called 
 un jief de hauber, were permitted to wear a hauberk, which 
 was the armour of a Knight. Efquires might only wear a fimple 
 coat of mail, without the hood and hofe. Had this ariftocratic 
 diftinction confifted in the ornamental part of the arms alone, it 
 would only have been ridiculous. In the enlightened and free 
 States of Greece, every foldier was well provided with defen- 
 five arms. In Rome, a civic wreath was the reward of him 
 who fliould fave the life of a citizen. To ufe the words of 
 Dr. Gillies, " The miferable peafants of modern Europe are 
 expofed without defence as without remorfe, by the ambition of 
 men, whom the Greeks would have ftyled tyrants." 
 Note Fourth, ibid. 
 
 Line 143.; — The burgonet, which reprefented the fh ape of 
 the head and features. 
 
 Note Fifth, ibid. 
 
 Line 149. — Earls and Dukes frequently wore their coronets 
 on the crefts of their helmets. 
 
 Note Sixth, p. 1.7.8. 
 
 Line I J 9. — A breaft-plate was fometimes worn under flic 
 hauberk. _ 
 
 BOOK THE EIGHTH. 
 
 Note Firft, p. 150. 
 Line 158. — Next the bayle was the ditch, fofs, graff, or 
 mote ; generally where it could he a wet one, and pretty deep. 
 
252 NOTES. 
 
 The pafTage over it was by a draw-bridge, covered by an ad- 
 vance work, called a barbican. Grose. 
 Note Second, p. 151. 
 Line 163. — The pavais, or pavache, was a large fhield, or 
 rather a portable mantlet, capable of covering a man from head 
 to foot, and probably of fufficient thicknefs to refill: the mif- 
 five weapons then in ufe. Thefe were in fieges carried by 
 fervants, whofe bufinefs it was to cover their mailers with 
 them, whilft they, with their bows and arrows, fhot at the en- 
 emy on the ramparts. As this muft have been a fervice of 
 danger, it was that, perhaps, which made the office of Scutifer 
 honourable. The pavais was rectangular at the bottom, but 
 rounded off above : it was fometimes fupported by props. 
 
 Grose. 
 Note Third, ibid. 
 Xine 185. — The crofs-bow was for fome time laid afide, in 
 obedience to a decree of the feeond JLateran Council, held in 
 1139. " Artem illam mortiferam et Deo odibilem balliftari- 
 orum adverfus Chriftianos et Catholicos exercere de castero 
 fub anathemate prohibemus." This weapon was again intro- 
 duced into our armies by Richard I. who being flain with a 
 quarrel-fhot from one of them, at the fiege of the Caftle of 
 Chaluz in Normandy, it was confidered as a judgment from 
 Heaven, inflicted upon him for his impiety. Guilliaume le 
 Bretons, relating the death of this King, puts the following 
 into the mouth of Atropos : 
 
 Hac volo, non alia Richardum morte perire 
 
 Ut qui Francigenis balliftas primitus uium 
 
 Tradidit, ipfe fui rem primitus experiatur, 
 
 Quemque alios docuic in fe vim fentiat artis. Gross. 
 
 Note Fourth, p. 152. 
 Xine 193. — The fifty-eighth chapter of lfaiah was the ap- 
 pointed leffon for our general faft in 1 793. The tenor of 
 the chapter is fuch as almoffc to prove an ironical intention in 
 whoever fele&ed it. " Behold, ye fafl for Jl 'rife and debate, and to 
 frnite ivith thefjl of ivickednefs : ye fhall not faft as ye do this day, 
 to make your voice to be heard on high. Is it fuch a faft that 
 I have chofen ? a day for a man to afflict his foul ? Is it to bow 
 down his head as a bulrufh, and to fpread fackcloth and afties 
 under him ? Wilt thou caJl this a faft, and an acceptable day to 
 the Lord ? Is not this the faft that I have chofen ? to loofe the 
 
NOTES. sjf 
 
 bands of ivlcledncfs, to undo the heavy but dens , and TO LET the 
 oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke." 
 
 Verses 4, 5, 6. 
 Note Fifth, p. 152. 
 Line 205. — From the trehuchet they difcharged many ftones 
 at once by a fling. It a&ed by means of a great weight faften- 
 ed to the fhort arm of a lever, which being let fall, raifed the 
 end of the long arm with a great velocity. A man is repre- 
 fented kneeling to load one of thefe in an ivory carving, fup- 
 pofed to be of the age of Edward II. Grose. 
 
 Note Sixth ; ibid,. 
 Line 209. — Quarrels, or carreaux, were fo called from their 
 heads, which were fquare pyramids of iron. 
 Note- Seventh, p. 158. 
 Line 381. — The efpringal threw large darts, called Mu- 
 chettse, fometimes winged with brafs inftead of feathers. 
 Thefe darts were alfo called Viretons, from their whirling 
 abroad in the air. 
 
 Note Eighth, p. 1 62. 
 Line 478. — On entering the outer gate, the next part that 
 prefented itfelf was the outer ballium, or bailey, leparated 
 from the inner ballium by a ftrong embattled wall and tow- 
 ered gate. 
 
 Note Ninth, p. 169. 
 Line 696. — The Parliament, when Henry V. demanded 
 fupply, entreated him to feize ail the eccleiiaftical revenues, 
 and convert them to the ufe of the crown. The Clergy were 
 alarmed, and Chichely, Archbiihop of Canterbury, endeav- 
 oured to divert the blow, by giving occupation to the King, 
 and by perfuading him to undertake a war againft France. 
 
 Hume, 
 
 BOOK THE NINTH. 
 
 Note Firft, p. 177. 
 Line 29.—The Baftille. 
 
 Note Second, p. 184. 
 Line 223. — This thought is taken from Goethe's Sorrows 
 of Werter. 
 
 Note Third, p. 201. 
 Line 709. — During the fiege of Jerufalem, " the Roman 
 commander, iv'ith a generous clemency, that infeparable attendant on 
 true heroifm, laboured inceffantly, and to the very lait moment, 
 X 
 
254 NOTE S. 
 
 to preferve the. place. With this view, he again and again 
 entreated the tyrants to furrender and fave their lives. With 
 the fame view alio, after carrying the fecond wall, the fiege 
 was intermitted four days. To roufe ;their fears, prifoners, to 
 the number vf Jive hundred, or more, ivere crucified daily beforje the 
 walls ; till /pace, Jofephus fays, was wanting for the crpffes, and 
 crojjes for the captives.** 
 
 From the Bampton Lectures of Ralph Churton. 
 
 If any of my readers fhould inquire why Titus Vefpafian, 
 
 the Delight of Mankind, is placed in fuch a fituation— -I an- 
 
 fwer, for " his generous clemency, that inseparable 
 
 ATTENDANT ON TRU.E HEROISM !" 
 
 Note Fourth, p. 207. 
 Line 90a. — " The grave matron doesnot perceive how time 
 has impaired her charms, but decks her faded bofom with the 
 fame fnow-drop that feems to grow on the hreaft of the Vir- 
 gin." P. H. 
 
 BOOK THE TENTH. 
 
 Note Firft, p. 218. 
 Line 265. — " She fternly fhook h.er dewy locks, and brake 
 A melancholy fmile." Quarles. 
 
 Note Second, p. 227. 
 Line 518. — This infcription was upon the fword of Talbot 
 — " Sum Talboti pro vincere inimicos fuos." 
 
 CCjr* THE Editor of Joan of Arc has lately received 
 
 a volume of fugitive poems (\%mo. 21 8 pages ) by the fame author, 
 which he propofes to publijh in the fame form ; -to -he delivered in 
 hoards and lettered at ffiy cents. the merit cf the work is war- 
 ranted by the Manthly Reviewers for March, 1/97, to be of a jupc- 
 rior kind ; but as the expenfe attending the publication of fuch works is 
 great, and their f ale wholly confined to pcrfons eftafe, he cannot prom- 
 ife this volume for the moderate price of 50 cents, ('which tc/ls $f. 
 JlerlingJ nor put it to the prefs, until afubfcription ftfficient to defray 
 the expenfe of printing, at leaf, be previoufiy obtained, 
 
JOSEPH NANCREDE 
 
 Has received, by the lajl vejfels from London, a frefh af- 
 fortment of new and, in other refpeEts, valuable Publica- 
 tions, ivhich,. added to the flock of Books already on 
 hand, forms a collection of upwards of twenty thoufand 
 volumes, principally Englifh, in the various branches of 
 Science, and ancient and modern Literature. As great 
 pains and much time were be/lowed on the choice, it is 
 hoped it 'will be f mind as judicious and as intercjling as 
 any in- the United States. In THEOLOGY, LAW, 
 POLITICS, AGRICULTURE, HISTORY and 
 VOYAGES, Particular attention has been paid to fe- 
 hSing all that is rare and valuable in the Englijh lan- 
 guage ; all* new works and fear ce trails, many of which 
 'were never feen before in America, are comprifed in this- 
 a/Jbrtment. 
 
 Gentlemen of Science and of tafle iri general : — Young gen- 
 tlemen intended for the fuperior departments of commer- 
 cial life, or the learned prof effions, have now a?i oppor- 
 tunity of completing or of forming their libraries, from 
 the latefl and befi editi&ns of the bejl works, and on the 
 mofi reafonable terms. 
 
 0Cj=* The Monthly Review, Critical Review, New An- 
 
 ■ nual Regtfler, European Magazine, Monthly Magazine, 
 Medical Review, and Annals of Medicine are regularly 
 imported, and may he. had at the above Store. All other 
 Books of any magnitude or amount, imported on thejhort- 
 efl notice, and on the mofi moderate commifflon. 
 The following are among his laft importation. 
 
 BELOE's Aulus Gellius, 3 vols.- 8vo. New.- 
 Herodotus, 4 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Mifcellanies, 3 vols. i2mo. 
 
 Nicholfon's Chemical Dictionary, 2 vols. 4to.- 
 Hartley on Man, with notes, 3 vols. 8vo. 
 
 abridged by Prieftley, 8vo. 
 
 Kama's Hiftorical Law Tracts, 8vo. 
 
 ---Sketches of the Hirtory of Man,- 4 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Salmon's Stemmata Latinitatis,. 2 vols, large 8vo. A 
 
 new work of great merit. 
 BurFon's Natural Hiftory* 18 vols. 8vo. 
 ■— t abridged, 2 vols- 
 
*56 CATALOGUE OF BOOKS. 
 
 Tillotfon's Works, 12 vols. 8vo. 
 Lardner's Sermons, 1 1 vols. 8vo. 
 Jortin's Sermons, 7 vols. 8vo. 
 Hiftory of France, 3d and 4th vols. 8vo. 
 
 of Spain, 3 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Clayton's Hiftory of the Houfe of Medici, 2 vols. 4to. 
 Knox's Britifh Empire, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 Melmoth's Tranflation of Cicero, 3 vols. 8vo. A com- 
 plete and elegant translation. 
 Shakefpeare, 7 vols. 870. An edition of 1798, complete 
 'with a Gloffary. fcj* This is the lajl and bejl edition. 
 Elegant editions of Milton's Paradife Loft. 
 
 Young's Night Thoughts. 
 
 Thomfon's Seafons. 
 
 Banyan's Pilgrim's Progrefs. 
 
 Hervey's Meditations. 
 
 Bibles, 8vo. and i2mo. 
 
 Virgil, 1 Wakefie l d > s gdfc. 
 
 Horace, y 
 
 Quintillian, by Rollin. 
 
 Harding's Prayer Book. 
 
 Telemachus, 4to. 
 
 Goldfmith, 7 vols. 
 
 Edwy and Edilda. Apafioral 
 Terry's Voyages. [tale. 
 
 Winter botham's China, 8vo. 
 Dictionary of Surgery, i8vo. 
 Adams's Univerfal Hiftory, 3 vols. 8vo. A /at; and 
 
 well received work. 
 Watfon's Gazetteer. New. 
 Salmon's" do. 
 
 Malham's Navigation. Author of Naval Gazetteer. 
 Hiftory of Athens, 410. 
 Darton's Teftaments. Elegant large print. 
 Monthly Magazine. 
 Monthly Review. 
 Sporting Magazine, complete. 
 Duke of Berwick. — For military men. 
 Butterworth on Religion. 
 on Government. 
 
CATALOGUE OF BOOKS. a 5 7 
 
 Adventurer, 4 vols. i2mo. 
 
 Addifon's Works, 3 vols. 1 2mo. 
 
 Anatomical Dialogues. Ufeful for fludents. 
 
 Anfon's Voyages, 12 mo. 
 
 Henry's Hiftory of Great-Britain. Claffical men pratfe 
 
 this work highly, ' 
 Spallanzani's Voyage through Sicily- 
 Simfon's Euclid, 8vo. 
 Sale's Koran, 2 vols. 8vo- 
 Reid's Eftays, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 Paley's Horse Paulinse, 8vo. 
 Paufanias's Greece, 3 vols. 8vo. 
 Proteftant Preacher, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 New Eloifa, by J. J. RoufTeau, 3 and 4 vols. 
 Emilius and Sophia, 4 vols. 
 Social Compact. 
 
 Sturm's Reflections, 3 vols. 1 2mo. 
 Bolingbroke's Philosophical Works, 5 vols. 8voi> 
 Ladies' Library. Ufeful and cheap. 
 Modern Europe, 5 vols. 8vo. 
 Robertfon's America, 3 and 4 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Hiftory of Charles V. 3 vols. 8vo- 
 
 Roland's Appeal, 2 vols. Second Edition, 
 
 Saurin's Sermons, 6 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Stewart's Philofophy, 1 vol. 8vo t 
 
 Thomfon's Life of Suetonius. 
 
 Murphy's Tacitus, 4 vols. 4to. and 8vo. with mapsv 
 
 Anacharfis's Travels, 8vo~ 
 
 Chronologift of the War, 1 2mo. 
 
 Smith's Wealth of Nations, 3 vols. 8vo. and 1 2mo.. 
 
 Elements of Morality, 3. vols. i2mo. 
 
 Letters from Scandinavia, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Moflieim's Ecclefiaftical Hiftory, 6 vols. 8vo.. 
 
 Maury on Eloquence, 8vo. 
 
 Montague on Republics, 8vo; 
 
 Phillips on Inland Navigation, 4tOi, 
 
 Bruce's Travels, 5 vols. 4to. 
 
 abridged, 1 vok rzmo. Jufl publijlied* 
 
 R.ollin'5 Ancient Hiftory, 8 vols. 8vo. 
 New Edition of the Britilh Encyclopedia, 3 vols, folio, 
 X % 
 
2j8 CATALOGUE OF BOOKS. 
 
 ParkhurfPs Hebrew Lexicon, 4to. 
 
 — Greek do. 4to. 
 
 Goldfmith's Mifcellaneous Works, 4 vob. 1 2mo. New 
 
 Edition. 
 
 Greece, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Life of Chatham, 3 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Varieties of Literature, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Wolftoncraft's Tour through Sweden, &c. 
 
 Church of St. SifFrid. A new novel. 
 
 Swift's Works, 27 vols, and 18 vols. 
 
 Theatre of Education, by Madame Genlis, 4 vols. 1 2mo. 
 
 The Nun, by Diderot. 1 Theje two pojlhumous works 
 
 James the Fatalifr, by do. j of Diderot were prefented 
 
 to the firji National AJfembly, by Prince Henry of Pruffia* 
 Am's Dictionary, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 Adams on the Globe, 8vo. 
 
 on the Microfcopes, 4to. 
 
 's Geometrical EfTays, 8vo. 
 
 Barclay's Dictionary, 8vo. 
 
 Brown's Dictionary c*f the Bible. 
 
 Chaptal's Chemiftry, 3 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Watfon's Theological Tracts, 6 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Hiftory of the New World. 
 
 BirTet on Democracy. Late. 
 
 Ulloa's Voyages, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Pyle's Paraph rafe. 
 
 Letters of a Hindoo Rajah. Late. 
 
 Vanillo Gonzales, by the author of Gil Bias. 
 
 Voltaire's Univerfal Hiftory, complete. 
 
 Prefton on Mafonry. 
 
 Memoirs of Sully, 6 vols. i2mo. 
 
 of Cardinal de Retz, 4 vols. i2mo. 
 
 Marmontel's New Moral Tales, 3 vols. i2mo. 
 Millot's Hiftory of England, 4 vols. i2mo. 
 Life of George Ann Bellamy, 5 vols. l2mo. 
 Houfe of Brandenburgh, 2 vols. 1 2mo. 
 Hermit of Caucafus, a novel, 2 vols. 1 2rao. 
 Ganganelli's Letters, 2 vols. j.2mo. 
 Gazetteer of France: 
 of the Netherlands, 
 
CATALOGUE OF BOOKS. 
 
 259 
 
 Dryden's Virgil, 4 vols. i2mo. 
 
 Cibber's Works, 5 vols. 
 
 Lillo's Works, 2 vols. 
 
 Hume's Hiftory <sf, Engl and, 8 vols. 8vo. Englifh edition. 
 
 Winterbotham's View of America. 
 
 Dow's Hiftory of Hindoilan, 3 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Addrefs to a young Lady on her Entrance into the 
 
 World, -2 vols. Svo. 
 Bonnet on Chriftianity, 8vo. 
 ' Beauties of the Spectator. 
 Brown's Claffical Dictionary : a late publication. 
 Beaume's Manual of Chemiftry, i2mo. vdry ufeful. 
 Chenier's Prefent State of Morocco, 2 vo)s. i2mo. 
 Evans's Sketch of the Denominations of^ the Chriftian 
 
 World. 
 Elorian's new Tales, i2mo. a new edition, elegant. 
 Gibbon's Mifcellaneous Works, with Memoirs of his 
 Life and Writings, compofed by himfelf. 2 vols. 
 4to. elegant. 
 Gifborne's Duties of Women, 8vo. Jlrongly recommended. 
 Old Maids, 3 vols. 8vo. By a Friend to the Sifterhood. 
 Mr. Hay ley, one of the mojl elegant 'writers and poets in 
 England, has drawn from a barren subject, a 
 fruitful and entertaining treatife — on the Jituation and 
 treatment of old maids — on the envy and ill-nature of 
 old maids — on the particular good qualities of old maids 
 — on the reverence paid to old maids, by our northern 
 ancejlors — on the infinite increafe of old maids, after the 
 Chrijlian era. 
 Godwin's Enquirer ; principally on Education. This 
 work went through federal editions in the courfe of a 
 few months in England. 
 Grotius, Englifh, 3 vols. 8vo. 
 Geographical Dictionary, i8mo. A neat edition. 
 Grieve's Hiftory of Kamfchatka, 4-to. Veryfcarce and 
 
 valuable. 
 Gallatin's Sketch of the Finances of the United 
 
 States, 8vo. 
 Hutton's Mathematical Dictionary, 2 vols. 4to. 
 Kume's Dialogues on Natural Religion. 
 
*6d CATALOGUE OF BOOKS. 
 
 Hunter's Obfervations on the Life of Chrift, 2 vols. 1 2 mo. 
 
 Hiftory of France abridged, i2mo. 
 
 India Trader's Pocket Companion, 8vo. half bound. 
 
 Italian Monk, a play, by James Boaden. 
 
 Illuftrations of the Prophecies, by J. Towers, 2 vols. 
 8vo. Late. 
 
 James's Selections from Sillery, (Madame Genlis.) 
 
 Knave or Not ; a new comedy, by Holcroft. 
 
 LefTep's Travels in Kamfkatka during the Years 1789 
 and 1790, 2 vols. Late and well received. 
 
 Latimer's Sermons, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Lempriere's Tour, 8vo. 
 
 , : Claffical Dictionary. 
 
 Milns's Well-Bred Scholar, Svo. 
 
 Martin's Rouffeau's Botany, 8vo. A beautiful thing* 
 
 Mickle's Lufiad, by Camouens, 4to. 
 
 Mandeville's Fable of the Bees, 8vo. 
 
 Meare's Voyage, 2 vols. Svo. Late. 
 
 Nappleton's Advice to a Student at the Univerfity. 
 
 Offian's Poems, 2 vols. 8vo. Late. 
 
 Onanifm, by Tiflbt, i2mo. 
 
 Perry's elegant Englifh Dictionary, i2mo. 
 
 Pindar's Works, 4 vols. Svo. Uncommonly elegant. 
 
 Pye's Sketches, moral, literary and political. An elegant 
 performance, 8vo. 
 
 Prideaux's Life of Mahomet, 8vo. 
 
 Potter v s Euripides, 2 vols. 4to. Elegant. 
 
 Playfair's Commercial and Political Atlas, which repre- 
 fents at a Jingle view, by means of copper-plate charts, 
 the mojl important Public Accounts, Revenues, Expend}- 
 iures, Debts and Commerce of England. By William 
 Playfair. To which is added, Charts of the Revenues, 
 and Debts of Ireland, done in the fame manner, by James 
 Corry, Efq. A new edition, improved. Ilhflrated 
 with forty copper-plates, 4to. boards. 
 
 R.ochon's Voyage to Madagafcar, Svo. 
 
 Sketches of the Hindoos ; chiefly relating to the hi/lory, 
 religion, learning and manners of the Hindoos, with a 
 concife account of the prefent flate of the natives of Hin- 
 doflan. The fecond edition enlarged, in two volumes. 
 
CATALOGUE OF BOOKS. 261 
 
 Variant's New Travels, 3 vols. 8vo. Univerfally ejleemed. 
 
 Wakefield on the New Teftament, 2 vols. 8vo. Laft edition, 
 with corrections. 
 
 WoJftonecraft on the Education of Daughters. Afmall volume, 
 
 Whitaker's Review of Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Ro- 
 man Empire. 
 
 Whitehurft's Theory of the Earth, 4fo. 
 
 Watfon's Chemical EiTays, 5 vols. l2mo. 
 
 Rowe's Letters. A neat EngHfi edition. 
 
 Chantreau's Travels into Ruffia, 2 vols, 8vo. 
 
 Art of Dyeing Wool, Cottons, &c. 8vo. 
 
 A Treatife on Painting in Oil Colours, 8vc*. 
 
 Da Vinci on Painting, 8vo. with plates. 
 
 Motherby's Medical Dictionary, with the additional plates. 
 
 Adams's Roman Antiquities, 8vo. 
 
 Patrick's and Lowth's Commentaries, 4 vols, folio. Very fcarce. 
 
 Whitby on the New Teftament, 2 vols, folio. Ditto. 
 
 Johnfon's Dictionary, 2 vols. 4to. 
 
 Halley's Aftronomical Tables, 4to. 
 
 Campbell's Journey over land to India, by a route never gone 
 before by any European. Probably that Intended by Buonaparte, 
 
 Grief^ack on the New Teftament, 8vo. 
 
 Algarotti on Military Affairs, 8vo. 
 
 Doddridge's Family Expofitor, 6 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Fitzgerald's Biblical Hebrew. 
 
 Bailey's Elegant Hebrew Bible, 8vo. 
 ,Dubos on Taffce, Poetry, and Painting, 3 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Botanic Garden, by D. Deerwin, 4to. with a large number cf 
 plates. A "very beautiful edition. 
 
 Free-Mafon's Pocket Companion, i?mo. 
 
 An interefting Narrative of the Travels of James Bruce into 
 Abyffinia, to difcover the fource of the Nile, abridged from 
 the original work ; to which are added, Notes and Extracts 
 from the Travels of Dr. Shaw, M. Savary, and the Memoirs 
 of Baron de Tott. 
 
 Religion of Nature, by Woolaftcn, 4to. 
 
 Roman Converfation, 2 vols. 8vo. 
 
 Selections from the French Anas, 2 vols. umo. 
 
 Spelman's Tranflation of Xenophon, 8vo. 
 
 Seally's Geographical Dictionary, 2 vols. 4to. 
 
 Sheldon on the Abforbents, 4to. 
 
 Savary's Greece and Egypt. A nexv edition. 
 
 Townfon's Travels in Hungary, with an Account of Vienna 
 in 1793, 4to. 
 
 Ulyffes' Travels through Naples, 8vo. 
 
 Campbell on the Gofpel, 2 vols. 4to. 
 
BOO K S 
 
 Lately publilhed by Joseph Nancrede, 
 
 N'°. 49, Marlborougb-Street, Boston. 
 
 THE STUDIES OF NATURE, tranflated 
 from the French of J. H. B. de St. Pierre, by H. Hunter, 
 D. D. 3 vols. 8vo. — fine wove paper, embeilifhed with plates. 
 
 # * # This very ingenious, inter efing, and inJiruSlive tuork has, 
 fmce its Jirji publication, gone through four fuccej/ive impreffions, under 
 the author's immediate inspection ; befides a variety of pirated editions 
 in different parts of the European continent. 
 
 " N"o book difplays a more fublime Theology, inculcates a purer mo- 
 rality, or breathes a mere ardent and expanfive philanthropy. St. 
 Pierre has enabled us to contemplate this univerfe iviih other eyes ; 
 has fur nified neiv arguments to COMBAT ATHEISM ; has ef.ablijhed, 
 beyond the poiver of contradiction, the doctrine of a Univerfal Provi- 
 dence ; has excited a loarmer inter efl in favour of fv.ffering himanity ; 
 and has dif covered fcurces, unknoivn before y of moral and intellectual 
 enjoyment. 
 
 THE NAVAL GAZETTEER; being a com- 
 
 plete Geographical Dictionary, containing a full and accurate 
 account, aiphabttically arranged, of all the Countries and 
 Iflands in the known world ; fhowing their latitude, found- 
 ings, and llations for anchorage ; with a particular defcription 
 of the feveral Bays, Capes, Channels, Coves, Creeks, Currents y 
 Gulfs, Harbours, Havens, Lakes, Oceans, Races, Rivers, Roads, 
 Rocks, Sands, Shoals, Sounds, Straits, Tides, Variation of tie Com- 
 fafs, &c. Together with a particular relation of the (hape and 
 appearance at fea, of the feveral Headlands, Ifhmufes, Peninfulas, 
 Points, Promontories, and whatever is of uft or importance to 
 the Mafter, Pilot, Commander, or Seaman of any {hip or vef- 
 fel, in navigating the watery element. 
 
 Alfo comprehending 
 .Ample directions for failing into or out of the 
 different Ports, Straits, and Harbours of the. four quarters of 
 the world ; and for avoiding dangers on the various and ex- 
 tended coafts ; in which more than twelve thoufand diftincl 
 names of places, &c are treated of, and explained ; with a 
 correct fet of Charts — a vols. 8vo. 
 
 By the Rev. John Maluam. 
 
 *** This has been pronounced the tncji ufeful and the cbeapefi book 
 pullifhedin America. 
 
- CATALOGUE OF BOOKS. ^63 
 
 A VINDICATION OF DIVINE PROVI- 
 
 DENCE, derived from a philofophical and moral furvey of nature 
 and of man. By the Author of Studies of Nature— ~% vols. 8vo. 
 with plates. 
 
 The fame work abridged, in 1 vol. 8vo. plates. 
 BOTANICAL HARMONY DELINEATED ; 
 
 ©r, Applications of fome general Laws of Nature to Plants ; 
 by the Author of Studies of Nature, with three botanical plates, 
 elegantly engraved, I vol. 8vo. 
 
 PAUL AND VIRGINIA ; afentimental Nar- 
 ration, founded on fad: ; by J. H. B. de St. Pierre, in % fmall 
 pocket vols. French and Engliih, with cuts. 
 
 The fame work in 1 vol. wholly Engliih, fame 
 plates. 
 
 The fame in French, fame plates. 
 
 A HISTORY, or ANECDOTES OF THE 
 
 REVOLUTION IN RUSSIA, in the year ij6z ; tranflated 
 from the Frenchof M. de Rulhiere ; with an elegant head of 
 the late Emprefs. The fecond edition, price 75 cents, bound. * 
 
 #* # " The grounds of 1\I. de Rulhiere' s information feem indifpu- 
 tctble, and his readers appear to have every reafon to be fatisfcd with 
 .his difcernment, in unfolding the motives and cirotmjiances that concur^ 
 red in bringing about this Jiriking event. 
 
 " We fhall only add, that tve have feldom met ivith more interety- 
 ing original anecdotes, than thofe that are contained in the little work 
 which we have now reviewed" 
 
 Appendix to Monthly Review, vol. %t. 
 
 THE ADVENTURES OF TELEMACHUS, 
 
 Son of Ulyffes, by M. Salignac Fenelon. 
 
 *** Of -Fenelon, the Monthly Reviewers faid, in March, 1 796, 
 tc The annals of time do not, perhaps, contain a name more re" ered, by 
 the befl and ivifejl friends of the-hmnan race, than that of Fenelon ; 
 and it is to be doubted, whether any production of human genius ever 
 was fo effectual in enlightening mankind, and in rendering them beiiev* 
 dent and jujl, as the beautiful philofophic poem of Telemachus. It 
 contains a greater portion of political and moral wifdom, than, as we 
 ■believe, is to be found in any preceding work" 
 
 The fame work is to be had in Englifh, with the 
 French text on the oppofite page, with corrections, in two 
 vols. izmo. 
 
 Alfo in French, feparate. — For execution and ac- 
 curacy, the above is fupejior to the late Englifh edition. 
 
264 CATALOGUE OF BOOKS. 
 
 JOAN OF ARC, an Epic Poem, by Robert 
 
 Southey ; with Notes. 
 
 " We do not hefttate to declare our opinion f that the poetical powers 
 
 difplayed in it are of a very fuperior kind Conceptions more lofty 
 
 and daring, fentiments more commanding, and language more energetic, 
 ivill not eafily be found : nor does feat cely any part of it Jink to lan- 
 guor, as the gloiv of feelings and genius animates the ivholc. The 
 language is, for the mof part, modelled on that of JVLilton ; and not 
 unfrequently, it has a Jlrong relifh of Shakefpeare" 
 
 Monthly Review, vol. 1 9, p. 361. 
 
 % * # A valuable Affortment of the laft London 
 
 editions of Law-Books, 
 
 Vellum, Parchment, and Stationary. Alfo, a 
 fmall affortment of Mills' Patent Hand Lanterns. 
 
 A number of SECOND-HAND MED- 
 ICAL BOOKS. 
 
 FRENCH BOOKS, LATIN and GREEK 
 CLASSICS, &c. 
 
 (Cj* To Country Bookfellers and Shop-keepers, Purchafert 
 for Social Librraies, a?id others nvho buy in quantities , 
 confiderable abateffient will be made from the ufual re- 
 tail prices. 
 
 Orders from the Country , though never fo trifling, execu- 
 ted by the firfl conveyances, and with as much fidelity 
 .as if .the perfons were prefent*