On The Queen's Visit To London, The Night Of The 17th March 1789
When, long sequestered from his throne,
George took his seat again,
By right of worth, not blood alone
Entitled here to reign;
Then, Loyalty, with all his lamps
New trimmed, a gallant show,
Chasing the darkness and the damps,
Set London in a glow.
'Twas hard to tell of streets or squares,
Which formed the chief display,
These most resembling clustered stars,
Those the long milky way.
Bright shone the roofs, the domes, the spires,
And rockets flew, self-driven,
To hang their momentary fires,
Amid the vault of Heaven.
So, fire with water to compare,
The ocean serves on high
Up-spouted by a whale in air,
To express unwieldly joy.
Had all the pageants of the world
In one procession joined,
And all the banners been unfurled
That heralds e'er designed;
For no such sight had England's Queen
Forsaken her retreat,
Where, George recovered made a scene
Sweet always, doubly sweet.
Yet glad she came that night to prove,
A witness undescried,
How much the object of her love
Was loved by all beside.
Darkness the skies had mantled o'er
In aid of her design,----
Darkness, O Queen! ne'er called before
To veil a deed of thine.
On borrowed wheels away she flies,
Resolved to be unknown,
And gratify no curious eyes
That night, except her own.
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poem by William Cowper
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