The Poetical Works of - OUDL Home

510 COMPLAINTS
Ye sacred mines, and ye tragick sights,
Which onely doo the name of Rome retame,
Olde moniments, which of so famous sprights
The honour yet in ashes doo maintaine
Triumphant Arcks, spyres neighbours to the
skie,
That you to see doth th'heauen it selfe appall,
Alas, by little ye to nothing flie, 91
The peoples fable, and the spovle of all
And though your frames do for a time make
warre
Gainst time, yet time in time shall ruinate
Your workes and names, and vour last rehques
marre
My sad desires, rest therefore moderate
For if that time make ende of things so sure,
It als will end the paine, which I endure
8
Through armes and vassals Rome the world
subdu'd,
That one would weene, that one sole Cities
strength 100
Both land and sea in roundnes had suruew'd,
To be the measure of her bredth and length
This peoples vertue yet so fruitful I was
Of vertuous nephewes, that postentie
Stnumg in power their grandfathers to passe,
The lowest earth loin'd to the heauen hie,
To th'endthat hauing all parts in their power,
Nought from the Romane Empire might be
quight,
And that though time doth Commonwealths
deuowre, 109
Yet no time should so low embase their hight,
Thatherheadearth'dinherfoundationsdeep,
Should not her name and endles honour keep
10
As that braue sonne of Aeson, which by
charmes
Atcheiu'd the golden Fleece in Colchd land,
Out of the earth engendred men of armes
Of Dragons teeth, sowne in the sacred sand ,
So this braue Towne, that in her youthlie
daies 131
An Hydra was of warnours glorious,
Did fill with her renowmed nourshngs praise
The fine sunnes both one and other hous
But they at last, there being then not humg
An Hercules, so ranke seed to represse,
Emongst themselues with cruell fune stnumg,
Mow'd downe themselues with slaughter merci
ltsse ,
Renewing in themselues that rage vnkinde,
Which whilom did those earthborn brethren
blmde 140
11
Mars shaming to haue giuen so great head
To his off spring, that mortall puibsaunce
Puft vp with pride of Romane hardie head,
jSeem'd aboue heautns powre it selfe to ad
uaunce,
Cooling againe his former kindled heate,
With which he had those Romane spirits fild ,
Did blowe new fire, and with enflamed breath,
Into the Gothicke colde hot rage mstil'd
Then gan that Nation, th'earths new Giant
brood,
To dart abroad the thunder bolts of warre,
And beating downe these walls with furious
mood 151
Into her mothers bosome, all did marre ,
To th'end that none, all were it lone his sire
Should boast himselfe of the Romane Empire
9
12
Ye cruell starres, and eke ye Gods vnkinde, Like as whilome the children of the earth
Heauen enuious, and bitter stepdame Nature, Heapt hils on hils, to scale the starne skie,
Be it by fortune, or by course of kmde And fight against the Gods of heauenlv berth,
That ye doo weld th'affaires of earthhe creature Whiles hue at them his thunderbolts let flie,
Why haue your hands long sithence traueiled All suddenly with lightning ouerthrowne,
To frame this world, that doth endure so long' The furious squadrons downe to ground did
Or why were not these Romane palaces 119 fall, 160
Made of some matter nolesse firme and strong? That th'earth vnder her childrens weight did
I say not, as the common voyce doth say, grone,
That all things which beneath the Moone haue And th'heauens in glorie triumpht ouer all
being
So did that haughtie front which heaped was
Are temporall, and subiect to decay
On these seuen Romane hils, it selfe vpreare
But I say rather, though not all agreeing Ouer the world, and lift her loftie face
With some, that weene the contrane in Against the heauen, that gan her force to
thought,
feare
That all this whole shall one day come to But now these scorned fields bemone her fall,
nought
I And Gods secure feare not her force at all