On Conversation (1782) [ Concepts ]
… His whisper'd theme, dilated and at large, Proves after all a wind-gun's airy charge, An extract of his diary—no more, A tasteless journal of the day before. He walk'd abroad, o'ertaken in the rain, Call'd on a friend, drank tea, stepp'd home … and all its quickening power; And lips unstained by folly or by strife, Whose wisdom, drawn from the deep well of life, Tastes of its healthful origin, and flows A Jordan for the ablution of our woes. O days of heaven, and nights of equal … heart, Abhors constraint, and dares not feign a zeal, Or seem to boast a fire, he does not feel. The song of Sion is a tasteless thing, Unless, when rising on a joyful wing, The soul can mix with the celestial bands, And give the strain the …
Conversation | Crime
Anthology