<emph>The Banks of Wye</emph> A Romantic Circles Electronic Edition Robert Bloomfield (1766–1823) Tim Fulford Romantic Circles General Editor, Neil Fraistat General Editor, Steven E. Jones General Editor, Carl Stahmer Technical Editor Laura Mandell BanksOfWyeI Romantic Circles, http://www.rc.umd.edu, University of Maryland College Park, MD October 10, 2010

Material from the Romantic Circles Website may not be downloaded, reproduced or disseminated in any manner without authorization unless it is for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, and/or classroom use as provided by the Copyright Act of 1976, as amended.

Unless otherwise noted, all Pages and Resources mounted on Romantic Circles are copyrighted by the author/editor and may be shared only in accordance with the Fair Use provisions of U.S. copyright law. Except as expressly permitted by this statement, redistribution or republication in any medium requires express prior written consent from the author/editors and advance notification of Romantic Circles. Any requests for authorization should be forwarded to Romantic Circles:>

Romantic Circlesc/o Professor Neil FraistatDepartment of EnglishUniversity of MarylandCollege Park, MD 20742fraistat@umd.edu

By their use of these texts and images, users agree to the following conditions: These texts and images may not be used for any commercial purpose without prior written permission from Romantic Circles. These texts and images may not be re-distributed in any forms other than their current ones.

Users are not permitted to download these texts and images in order to mount them on their own servers. It is not in our interest or that of our users to have uncontrolled subsets of our holdings available elsewhere on the Internet. We make corrections and additions to our edited resources on a continual basis, and we want the most current text to be the only one generally available to all Internet users. Institutions can, of course, make a link to the copies at Romantic Circles, subject to our conditions of use.

 Tim Fulford Book 1 Robert Bloomfield - <emph>The Banks of the Wye</emph> A Romantic Circles Electronic Edition Robert Bloomfield (1766–1823) Tim Fulford Romantic Circles University of Maryland

All quotation marks and apostrophes have been changed: " for "," for ", ' for ', and ' for '.

Any dashes occurring in line breaks have been removed.

Because of web browser variability, all hyphens have been typed on the U.S. keyboard

Dashes have been rendered as —

Bloomfield's spelling has not been regularized.

Writing in other hands appearing on these manuscripts has been indicated as such, the content recorded in brackets.

& has been used for the ampersand sign.

£ has been used for £, the pound sign

All other characters, those with accents, non-breaking spaces, etc., have been encoded in HTML entity decimals.

 margin-left: 1em; margin-left: 1.5em; margin-left: 2em; margin-left: 2.5em; margin-left: 3em; margin-left: 3.5em; margin-left: 4em; text-align: center; font-size: 10pt; margin-left: 4.5em; margin-left: 5em; margin-left: 5.5em; text-align: center; text-align: left; text-align: right; font-size: 12pt; font-size: 16pt; font-size: 18pt; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; font-style: italic; vertical-align: super; vertical-align: sub; font-variant:small-caps; NINES categories for Genre and Material Form at http://www.performantsoftware.com/nines_wiki/index.php/Submitting_RDF#.3Cnines:genre.3E on 2009-02-26 Architecture Artifacts Bibliography Collection Criticism Letters Drama Life Writing Politics Folklore Ephemera Fiction History Leisure Manuscript Reference Works Humor Education Music nonfiction Paratext Perodical Philosphy Photograph Citation Family Life Poetry Religion Review Visual Art Translation Travel Book History Law Romantic Circles people: Bloomfield Banks of the Wye Romantic Circles places: Bloomfield Banks of the Wye Jason Whittaker TEI Encoding, first pass, all files
The Banks of Wye; A Poem. In Four Books, 1811, 1813, 1823. The text of the first edition of The Banks of Wye; A Poem. In Four Books (London: Vernor, Hood & Sharpe, 1811), collated with the corrected second edition (London, B. & R. Crosby & Co., 1813) and the third edition (London: Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme & Co., 1823).
Frontispiece and Title Page Frontispiece and Title Page
Dedication

TO THOMAS JOHN LLOYD BAKER, ESQ. OF STOUT'S HILL, ULEY, AND HIS EXCELLENT LADY; AND ROBERT BRANSBY COOPER, ESQ. OF FERNEY HILL, DURSLEY, IN THE COUNTY OF GLOUCESTER, AND ALL THE MEMBERS OF HIS FAMILY; THIS JOURNAL IS DEDICATED, WITH SENTIMENTS OF HIGH ESTEEM, AND A LIVELY RECOLLECTION OF PAST PLEASURES, BY THEIR HUMBLE SERVANT, THE AUTHOR.

Preface

IN the summer of 1807, a party of my good friends in Gloucestershire proposed to themselves a short excursion down the Wye, and through part of South Wales.

While this plan was in agitation, the lines which I had composed on 'Shooter's Hill,' during ill health, and inserted in my last volume, obtained their particular attention.See the note Bloomfield appended to the beginning of his manuscript 'Journal of a Ten Days' Tour': 'In my 'Shooters Hill' I have said, / "Of Cambrian Mountains still I dream" / &c. &c. but, / "Tis not for me to trace around / The wonders of my native land" / I find that it was through reading that poem that the tour was resolv'd on, at least that I became one of the party. My friends guess'd that I should like it, and they never form'd a better guess in their lives' [Bloomfield's note]. 'Shooter's Hill' appeared in Wild Flowers. Lines 73-80 read: 'Of Cambrian mountains still I dream, /And mouldering vestiges of war; / By time-worn cliff or classic stream / Would rove,—but prudence holds a bar. / Come then, O Health, I'll strive to bound / My wishes to this airy stand; / 'Tis not for me to trace around / The wonders of my native land. A spirit of prediction, as well as sorrow, is there indulged; and it was now in the power of this happy party to falsify such predictions, and to render a pleasure to the writer of no uncommonuncommon] common 1813 kind. An invitation to accompany them was the consequence; and the following Journal is the result of that invitation.

Should the reader, from being a resident, or frequent visitor, be well acquainted with the route, and able to discover inaccuracies in distances, succession of objects, or local particulars, he is requested to recollect, that the party was but ten days; a period much too short for correct and laborious description, but quite sufficient for all the powers of poetry which I feel capable of exerting. The whole exhibits the language and feelings of man who had never before seen a mountainous country; and of this is it is highly necessary that the reader should be apprized.

A Swiss, or perhaps a Scottish Highlander, may smile at supposed or real exaggerations; but they will be excellent critics, when they call to mind that they themselves judge, in these cases, as I do, by comparison.

Perhaps it may be said, that because much of public approbation has fallen to my lot, it was unwise to venture again. I confess that the journey left such powerful, such unconquerable impressions on my mind, that embodying my thoughts in rhyme became a matter almost of necessity. To the parties concerned I know it will be an acceptable little volume: to whom, and to the public, it is submitted with due respect.

ROBERT BLOOMFIELD.
City Road, London, June 30, 1811.
1813 adds] Advertisement to the Second Edition

When this Poem, or Journal, was submitted to the Public, I endeavoured to meet that confined and temporary approbation, which its locality induced me to expect. It is, therefore, with no small pleasure that I have, thus, in a Second Edition, the power of correcting, and I hope amending, this favourite of my fancy, this gem of my memory, which flashes upon me still like the sunshine of Spring. I have seen no regular critique on the piece, strange as it may appear, (for I have left London,) and consequently, in the present instance, have not the advantage of public criticism.

The Lady whose name appears in the Dedication is no more; she was a wife and a mother, in their truest sense. And, it is sufficient for me to say, that she possessed the character which distinguishes her uncle, the venerable GRANVILLE SHARP.

In my own family, I have sustained the loss of my second daughter, in her twentieth year; yet, while Providence grants me peace of mind, I enjoy repose, and am, the Reader's Obedient, R.B. Shefford, Beds, April 7, 1813.
BOOK I CONTENTS OF BOOK I.

The Vale of Uley.––Forest of Dean.––Ross.––Wilton Castle.––Goodrich Castle.––Courtfield, Welch Bicknor, Coldwell.––Gleaner's Song.––Coldwell Rocks.––Symmon's Yat.––Great Doward.––New Wier.––Arthur's Hall.Arthur's Hall.] omit 1813, 1823 ––Martin's Well.––The Coracle.––Arrival at Monmouth.

'ROUSE from thy slumber, pleasurepleasure] Pleasure 1813, 1823 calls, arise, Quit thy half-rural bower, awhileawhile] a while 1813, 1823 despise The thraldom that consumes thee. We who dwell Far from thy land of smoke,smoke,] smoke 1823 advise thee well. Here Nature's bounteous hand around shall fling, Scenes that thy Muse hath never dar'ddar'd ] dared 1823to sing. When sickness weigh'd thee down, and strength declin'd;declin'd] declined 1823 When dread eternity absorb'd thy mind, Flow'd the predicting verse, by gloom o'erspread, That 'Cambrian mountains' thou should'st never tread, That 'time-worn cliff and classic stream to see,' Was wealth's prerogative, despair for thee. Come to the proof; with us the breeze inhale, Renounce despair, and come to Severn's vale; And where the COTSWOLD HILLS are stretch'd along, Seek our green dell, as yet unknown to song: Start hence with us, and trace, with raptur'draptur'd] raptured 1823 eye, The wild meanderings of the beauteous WYE; Thy ten days leisure ten days joy shall prove, And rock and stream breathe amity and love.' Such was the call; with instant ardour hail'd, The siren Pleasure caroll'd and prevail'd; Soon the deep dell appear'd, and the clear brow Of ULEY BURYBury, or Burg, the Saxon name for a hill, particularly for one wholly or partially formed by art. [1813 adds:] Uley Bury, from the singular valley below, embosoming Uley and Oulpen, is an eminence of singular beauty, crowned by intrenchments; though in itself but a kind of termination of the Cotswold Hills, in which character Stinchcombe takes the lead; and both command a vast prospect over the Severn and the mountains of South Wales [Bloomfield's note]. smiled o'er all below, Mansion, and flock,Mansion, and flock,] O'er mansion, flock, 1813, 1823 and circling woods that hung Round the sweet pastures where the sky-lark sung. O for the fancy, vigorous and sublime, Chaste as the theme, to triumph over time! Bright as the rising day, and firm as truth, To speak new transports to the lowland youth That bosoms still might throb, and still adore, When his who strives to charm them beats no more! ONE August morn, with spirits high, Sound health, bright hopes, and cloudless sky, A cheerful group their farewell bade To DURSLEY tower, to ULEY'S shade; And where bold STINCHCOMB'SSTINCHCOMB'S] STINCHCOMBE'S 1813, 1823 greenwood side Heaves in the van of highland pride, Scour'd the broad vale of Severn; therethere] where 1813, 1823 The foes of verse shall never dare Genius to scorn, or bound its power,1-41] MS A has, in place of these lines, an informal verse introduction about Giant Scoop [link 'Giant Scoop' to unadopted MS passage doc] There blood-stain'd BERKELEY'S turrets low'r, A name that cannot pass away, Till time forgets 'the Bard' of GRAY.'Shrieks of an agonizing King': Line 56 of Thomas Gray's 'The Bard: A Pindaric Ode' (1757), describing the death, by means of a red hot poker inserted into the rectum, of Edward II. Quitting fair Glo'ster's northern road, To gain the pass of FRAMELODE,FRAMELODE] FRAMILODE 1813, 1823 Before us DEAN'S black forest spread, And MAY HILL, with his tufted head, Beyond the ebbing tide appear'd; And Cambria's distant mountains rear'd 50 Their dark blue summits far away; And SEVERN, 'midst the burning day, Curv'dcurv'd] curved 1823 his bright line, and bore along The mingled Avon, pride of song.The Avon, associated with Shakespeare's verse because it flows through Stratford, falls into the Severn at Tewkesbury. The trembling steeds soon ferry'd o'er, Neigh'd loud upon the forest shore; Domains that once, at early morn, Rang to the hunter's bugle horn, When barons proud would bound away; And even kings would hail the day, And swell with pomp more glorious shows, Than ant-hillIn Bloomfield's manuscript 'Journal of a Ten Days' Tour' is Robert Bransby Cooper's derivation of the word 'Bury', in Uley-Bury, from the Saxon for ant-hill. population knows. And well with pomp more glorious shows / The ant-hill population knows] Omit 1813, 1823 HereHere] When 1813, 1823 crested chiefs their bright-arm'd train Of javelin'd horsemen rous'd amain, And chasing wide the wolf or boar, Bade the deep woodland valleys roar. Harmless we past, and unassail'd, Nor once at roads or turnpikes rail'd:Harmless we past, and unassail'd, / Nor once at roads or turnpikes rail'd:] But we no dang'rous chase pursued; / Sound wheels and hoofs their tasks renew'd; / Behind roll'd SEVERN, gleaming far, / Around us roar'd no sylvan war, 1813, 1823 Through depths of shade oft sun-beams broke, Midst noble FLAXLEY'S bow'rs of oak;Through depths of shade oft sun-beams broke, / Midst noble FLAXLEY'S bow'rs of oak; ] 'Mid depths of shade, gay sunbeams broke / Through noble FLAXLEY'S bow'rs of oak; 1813, 1823 And many a cottage, trim and gay, Whisper'd delight through all the way; On hills exposed, in dells unseen, To patriarchal MITCHEL DEAN. Rose-cheek'd PomonaRoman goddess of apples. there was seen,seen] queen 1813, 1823 AndAnd] Though 1813, 1823 CeresRoman goddess of crops, the harvest. edged herher] her 1813, 1823 fields between, And on each hill-top, mounted high, Her sickle wav'dwav'd] waved 1823 in extasy; Till ROSS, thy charms all hearts confess'd, Thy peaceful walks, thy hours of rest And contemplation. Here the mind, With all its luggage left behind,With all its luggage left behind,] (Its usual luggage left behind,) 1813, 1823 Dame Affectation's leaden wares,Dame Affectation's leaden wares, / Spleen, envy, pride, life's thousand cares,] Omit 1813, 1823 Spleen, envy, pride, life's thousand cares, Feels all its dormant fires revive, And sees 'the Man of Ross' alive; And hears the Twick'nham BardAlexander Pope, a resident of Twickenham on the Thames, celebrated the Man of Ross in his third Epistle, 'To the Right Honourable Allen Lord Bathurst', lines 250-90. Kyrle is discussed in the guidebook Bloomfield consulted: Charles Heath, The Excursion down the Wye from Ross to Monmouth (Monmouth, 1808). again To KYRL'SKYRL'S] KYRLE'S 1813, 1823 high virtues lift his strain; Whose own hand cloth'dcloth'd] clothed 1823 this far-fam'dfar-fam'd] far-famed 1823 hill With rev'rend elms, that shade us still; Whose mem'ry shall survive the day,day,] day 1823 When elms and empires feel decay. KYRLKYRL] KYRLE 1813, 1823 die, by BARD ennobled? Never:Never;] Never: 1823 'The Man of Ross''The Man of Ross'] The Man of Ross 1813, 1823 shall live for ever; Ross, that exalts its spire on high, Above the flow'ry-margin'd WYE,Ross, that exalts its spire on high / Above the flow'ry-margin'd WYE,] And long that spire shall time defy, / To grace the flow'ry-margin'd WYE, 1813, 1823 Scene of the morrow's joy, that prest Its unseen beauties on our rest In dreams; but who of dreams would tell, Where truth sustains the song so well?The carriages were sent forward to meet the party at Chepstow. 1813, 1823 [Bloomfield's note] The morrow came, and Beauty's eye Ne'er beam'd upon a lovelier sky; Imagination instant brought, And dash'ddash'd] dash'd, 1823 amidst the train of thought, Tints of the bow. The boatman stript; Glee at the helm exulting tript, And waved her flower-encircled wand, 'Away, away, to Fairy Land.' Light dipt the oars; but who can name The various objects dear to fame, That changing, doubtingdoubting] doubling 1813, 1823 wild, and strong, Demand the noblest powers of song? Then, O forgive the vagrant Muse, Ye who the sweets of Nature choose;choose] chuse 1813 And thouthou] thou, 1813, 1823 whom destiny hasthast] hath 1813, 1823 tied 115 To this romantic river's side, Down gazing from each close retreat, On boats that glide beneath thy feet, Forgive the stranger's meagre line, That seems to slight that spot of thine; For he, alas! could only glean The changeful outlines of the scene; A momentary bliss; and here Links memory's power with rapture's tear. WHO curb'd the barons' kingly power?Henry the Seventh gave an irrevocable blow to the dangerous privileges assumed by the barons, in abolishing liveries and retainers, by which every malefactor could shelter himself from the law, on assuming a nobleman's livery, and attending his person. And as a finishing stroke to the feudal tenures, an act was passed, by which the barons and gentlemen of landed interest were at liberty to sell and mortgage their lands, without fines or licences for the alienation [Bloomfield's note]. Let hist'ry tell that fateful hour At home, when surly winds shall roar, And prudence shut the study door. DE WILTON'S here of mighty name, The whelming flood, the summer stream, Mark'd from their towers.––The fabric falls, The rubbish of their splendid halls Time in his march hath scatter'd wide, And blank oblivion strives to hide.The ruins of Wilton Castle stand on the opposite side of the river, nearly fronting the town of Ross. 1813, 1823 add note [Bloomfield's note] AwhileAwhile] A while 1813, 1823 the grazing herd was seen, And trembling willow's silver green, Till the fantastic current stood In line direct for PENCRAIG WOOD; Whose bold green summit welcome bade, Then rear'd behind his nodding shade. Here, as the light boat skimm'd along, The clarionet, and chosen song, That mellow, wild, Eolian lay, 'Sweet in the Woodlands,'That mellow, wild, Eolian lay, / 'Sweet in the Woodlands,'] (That mellow, wild, Æolian lay, / 'Sweet in the Woodlands,') 1823 roll'd awayAn air of the time, written Dr. Harrington of Bath, which became popular enough for many different verses to be set to it. The verses that gave the air its name begin: 'How sweet in the woodlands, with fleet hound and horn, / To waken shrill Echo, and taste the fresh morn / But hard is the chase my fond heart must pursue, / For Daphne, fair Daphne is lost to my view'. InIn] Their 1813, 1823 echoes down the stream, that bore Each dying close to every shore, And forward CapeCape] cape 1813, 1823, and woody range, That form the never-ceasing change, To him who floating, void of care, Twirls with the stream, he knows not where;where;] where. 1823 Till bold, impressive, and sublime, Gleam'd all that's left by storms and time Of GOODRICH TOWERS. The mould'ring pile Tells noble truths,––but dies the while;while;] while. 1823 O'er the steep path, through brake and brier, His batter'd turrets still aspire, In rude magnificence. 'Twas here LANCASTRIAN HENRY spread his cheer, When came the news that HAL was born, And MONMOUTH hail'd th' auspicious morn;morn;] morn: 1823 A boy in sports, a prince in war, Wisdom and valour crown'd his car; Of France the terror, England's glory, As Stratford's bard has told the story. No butler's proxies snore supine, Where the old monarch kept his wine; No Welsh ox roasting, horns and all, Adorns his throng'd and laughing hall; But where he pray'd, and told his beads, A thriving ash luxuriant spreads. No wheels by piecemeal brought the pile; No barks embowel'dembowel'd] embowell'd 1823 Portland Isle;The castle, that is, was built of local stone and not stone brought from the Isle of Portland, Dorset. Dig, cried experience, dig away, Bring the firm quarry into day; The excavation still shall save Those ramparts which its entrails gave. 'Here kingskings] KINGS 1813, 1823 shall dwell,' the builders cried,cried] cry'd 1813 'Here England's foes shall low'rlow'r] lower 1823 their pride; HitherHither] 'Hither 1813, 1823 shall suppliant nobles come, AndAnd] 'And 1813, 1823 thisthis] THIS 1813, 1823 be England's royalroyal] Royal 1813, royal 1823 home.' Vain hope! for on the GwentianGwent, in which Monmouth lies, was one of the ancient regions of Wales which supported the Tudors. shoreshore,] shore 1823 The regal banner streams no more! Nettles, and vilest weeds that grow, To mock poor grandeur's head laid low, Creep round the turrets valour rais'drais'd] raised 1823, And flaunt where youth and beauty gaz'dgaz'd] gazed 1823. Here fain would strangers loiter long, And muse as Fancy's woof grows strong; Yet cold the heart that could complain, Where POLLETTThe boatman [Bloomfield's note]. struck his oars again; For lovely as the sleeping child, The stream glides on sublimely wild, In perfect beauty, perfect ease;ease;] ease. 1823 TheThe] ––The 1813, 1823 awning trembled in the breeze, And scarcely trembled, as we stood For REURDEAN Spire and BISHOP'S WOOD The fair domains of COURTFIELDA seat belonging to the family of Vaughan, which is not unnoticed in the pages of history. According to tradition, it is the place where Henry the Fifth was nursed, under the care of the Countess of Salisbury, from which circumstance the original name of Grayfield is said to have been changed to Courtfield*. * This is probably an erroneous tradition; for Court was a common name for a manor-house, where the lord of the manor held his court.––Coxe's Monmouth. [Bloomfield's note, referring to William Coxe, An Historical Tour in Monmouthshire: Illustrated with views by Sir R. C. Hoare, Bart. A New Map of the County, and other Engravings (London, 1801)]. made A paradise of mingled shade Round BICKNOR'S tiny church, that cowers Beneath his host of woodland bowers. But who the charm of words shall fling,fling,] fling 1823 O'er RAVEN CLIFF, and COLDWELL Spring, To brighten the unconscious eye, And wake the soul to extasy? Noon scorch'd the fields; the boat lay to; The dripping oars had nought to do, Where round us rose a scene that might Enchant an idiot––glorious sight! Here, in one gay according mind, Upon the sparkling stream we din'ddin'd] dined 1823; As shepherds free on mountain heath, Free as the fish that watch'd beneath For falling crumbs,crumbs] crums 1823 where cooling lay The wine that cheer'd us on our way. Th' unruffled bosom of the stream,stream,] stream 1823 Gave every tint and every gleam; Gave shadowy rocks, and clear blue sky, And double clouds of various dye; Gave dark green woods, or russet brown, And pendent corn-fields, upside down. A troop of gleaners chang'dchang'd] changed 1823 their shade, And 'twas a change by music made; For slowly to the brink they drew, To mark our joy, and share it too. How oft, in childhood's flow'ry days, I've heard the wild impassion'd lays Of such a group, lays strange and new, And thought, was ever song so true?true?] true! 1823 When from the hazel's cool retreat They watch'd the summer's trembling heat; And through the boughs rude urchins play'd, Where matrons, round the laughing maid, Prest the long grass beneath! And here They doubtless shar'dThey doubtless shar'd] Perhaps they shared 1813, 1823 an equal cheer; Enjoy'd the feast with equal glee, And rais'drais'd] raised 1823 the song of revelry: Yet half abash'd, reserv'd,reserv'd] reserved 1823 and shy, Watch'd till the strangers glided by. Gleaner's Song. DEAR ELLEN, your tales are all plenteously stor'd,stor'd,] stored 1823 With the joys of some bride, and the wealth of her lord: Of her chariots and dresses, And worldly caresses, And servants that fly when she's waited upon: But what can she boast if she weds unbelov'd?unbelov'd] unbeloved 1823 Can she e'er feel the joy that one morning I prov'd,prov'd] proved 1823 When I put on my new-gown and waited for John? These fields, my dear Ellen, I knew them of yore, Yet to me they ne'er look'd so enchanting before; The distant bells ringing, The birds round us singing, 250 For pleasure is pure when affection is won: They told me the troubles and cares of a wife; But I lov'dlov'd] loved 1823 him; and that was the pride of my life, When I put on my new-gown and waited for John. He shouted and ran, as he leapt from the stile; 255 And what in my bosom was passing the while? For love knows the blessing Of ardent caressing, When virtue inspires us, and doubts are all gone. The sunshine of Fortune you say is divine; 260 True love and the sunshine of Nature were mine, When I put on my new-gown and waited for John. Never could spot be suited less To bear memorials of distress; None, cries the sage, more fit is found, They strike at once a double wound; Humiliation bids you sigh, And think of immortality.immortality] poor mortality 1813, 1823 Close on the bank, and half o'ergrown, Beneath a dark wood's sombrous frown, A monumental stone appears,appears,] appears 1823 Of one whowho] who, 1823 in his blooming years, While bathing spurn'd the grassy shore, And sunk, midstmidst] 'midst 1823 friends, to rise no more;more;] more. 1823 By parents witness'd.––Hark! their shrieks! The dreadful language horror speaks! But why in verse attempt to tell That tale the stone records so well?Inscription on the side towards the water.

'Sacred to the memory of JOHN WHITEHEAD WARRE, who perished near this spot, whilst bathing in the river Wye, in sight of his afflicted parents, brother, and sisters, on the 14th of September, 1804, in the sixteenth year of his age.

GOD'S WILL BE DONE,

Who, in his mercy, hath granted consolation to the parents of the dear departed, in the reflection, that he possessed truth, innocence, filial piety, and fraternal affection, in the highest degree. That, but a few moments before he was called to a better life, he had (with a never to be forgotten piety) joined his family in joyful thanks to his Maker, for the restoration of his mother's health. His parents, in justice to his amiable virtue and excellent disposition, declare, that he was void of offence towards them. With humbled hearts they bow to the Almighty's dispensation; trusting, through the mediation of his blessed Son, he will mercifully receive their child he so suddenly took to himself.

'This monument is here erected to warn parents and others how they trust the deceitful stream; and particularly to exhort them to learn and observe the directions of the Humane Society, for the recovery of persons apparently drowned. Alas! it is with the extremest sorrow here commemorated, what anguish is felt from a want of this knowledge. The lamented youth swam very well; was endowed with great bodily strength and activity; and possibly, had proper application been used, might have been saved from his untimely fate. He was born at Oporto, in the kingdom of Portugal, on the 14th of February, 1789; third son of James Warre, of London, and of the county of Somerset, merchant, and Elinor, daughter of Thomas Gregg, of Belfast, Esq.

'Passenger, whoever thou art, spare this tomb! It is erected for the benefit of the surviving, being but a poor record of the grief of those who witnessed the sad occasion of it. God preserve you and yours from such calamity! May you not require their assistance; but if you should, the apparatus, with directions for the application by the Humane Society, for the saving of persons apparently drowned, are lodged at the church of Coldwell.'

On the opposite side is inscribed,

'It is with gratitude acknowledged by the parents of the deceased, that permission was gratuitously, and most obligingly, granted for the erection of this monument, by William Vaughan, Esq. of Courtfield' [Bloomfield's note].

Nothing could damp th' awaken'd joy, Not e'en thy fate, ingenuous boy; The great, the grand of Nature strove, To lift our hearts to life and love. HAIL! COLDWELL ROCKS; frown, frown away; Thrust from your woods your shafts of grey: Fall not, to crush our mortal pride, Or stop the stream on which we glide. Our lives are short, our joys are few;few;] few: 1813; few. 1823 But, giants, what is time to you? Ye who erect, in many a mass, Rise from the scarcely dimpled glass, 290 That with distinctdistinct] distinct, 1813 and mellow glow,glow,] glow 1823 Reflects your monstrous forms below; Or in clear shoals, in breeze or sun, ShakeShake] Shakes 1813, 1823 all your shadows into one; Boast ye o'er man in proud disdain, An everlasting silent reign?An everlasting silent reign?] A silent, everlasting reign? 1813, 1823 Bear ye your heads so high in scorn Of namesnames] names 1813, 1823 that puny man hath borne? Would that the Cambrian bards had hereWould that the Cambrian bards had here] Proud rocks! had Cambria's bards but here 1813, 1823 Their names carved deep, so deep, so clear,Their names carved deep, so deep, so clear,] Their names engraven, deep and clear, 1813, 1823 That such as gaily wind along Might shout and cheer them with a song; Might rush on wings of bliss away, Through Fancy's boundless blaze of day!Might shout and cheer them with a song; / Might rush on wings of bliss away, / Through Fancy's boundless blaze of day!] Might greet with shouts these sires of song, / And trace the fame that mortal's crave / To LIGHT and LIFE beyond the grave! / Then might ye boast your wreaths entwined / With trophies of the deathless MIND; / Then would your fronts record on high, / 'We perish!––MAN can never die!' 1813, 1823 Not nameless quite ye lift your brows, For each the navigator knows; Not by King Arthur, or his knights, Bard fam'dfam'd] famed 1823 in lays, or chief in fights; But former tourists, just as free, (Tho'Tho'] Though 1823 surely not so blest as we,)] A group of wranglers from the bar, / Suspending here their mimic war–– 1813, 1823 Mark'd towering BEARCROFT'S ivy crown, And grey VANSITTART'SRobert Vansittart (1728-1789), antiquarian, friend of Hogarth and Johnson, Professor of Law at Oxford. In person tall and very thin; leading the members of the Oxford bar to give the name of 'Counsellor Van' to a sharp-pointed rock on the Wye. waving gown;gown;] gown: 1823 And who's that giant by his side? 'SERGEANT ADAIR,' the boatman cried. Strange it seem,Strange it seem] Yet strange it seems 1813, 1823 however true, That here,here] here 1813, 1823 where law has nought to do, Where rules and bonds are set aside, By wood, by rock, by stream defy'd;defy'd] defied 1823 That here,here] here 1813, 1823 where nature seems at strife With all that tells of busy life, Man should by names be carried still,still,] still 1823 To Babylon against his will. But how shall memory rehearse, Or dictate the untoward verse That truth demands? Could he refuse Thy unsought honours, darling Muse, He who in idle, happy trim,He who in idle, happy trim,] Who thus, in idle, happy, trim, 1813, 1823 Rode just where friends would carry him?] And thus hath since his cares beguiled / By rhymes as joyous, and as wild? 1813, 1823 Truth, I obey.I obey] he obeys 1813––The generous band,Truth, I obey.––The generous band,] Truth he obeys. The generous band, 1823 That spread his board and grasp'd his hand, In native mirth, as here they came, Gave a bluff rock his humble name: A yew-tree clasps its rugged base; The boatman knows its reverend face; With hishis] POLLETT'S 1813, 1823 memory and his fee, Rests the result that time shall see. Yet e'en ife'en if] whether 1813, 1823 time shall sweep away The fragile whimsies of a day; Or future travellers rest the oar, To hear the mingled echoes roar;roar;] roar 1813, 1823 A stranger's triumph––he will feelA stranger's triumph––he will feel] A stranger's triumph! He will feel 1813, 1823 A joy that death alone can steal. And should he cold indifference feign, And treat such honours with disdain, Pretending pride shall not deceive him, Good people all, pray don't believe him; In such a spot to leave a name, At least is no opprobrious fame; This rock perhaps uprear'd his brow, Ere human blood began to flow. And let not wandering strangers fear That WYE is ended there or here;And let not wandering strangers fear / That WYE is ended there or here;] Nor let the wandering stranger fear / That WYE here ends her wild career; 1813, 1823 Though foliage close, though hills may seem To bar all access to a stream,Though foliage close, though hills may seem / To bar all access to a stream] Though closing boughs,––though hills may seem / To bar egress to the stream 1813, 1823 Some airy height he climbs amain, And finds the silver eel again. No fears we form'd, no labours counted, Yet SYMMON'S YAT must be surmounted; A tower of rockrock] rock, 1823 that seems to cry, 'Go round about me, neighbour WYE.'This rocky isthmus, perforated at the base, would measure not more than six hundred yards, and its highest point is two thousand feet above the water. If this statement, taken from Coxe's History of Monmouthshire, and an Excursion down the Wye, by C. Heath, of Monmouth, is correct, its elevation is greater than that of the 'Pen y Vale,' or 'Sugar-Loaf-Hill,' ['Sugar-Loaf-Mountain,' 1813, 1823] near Abergavenny. Yet it has less the appearance of a mountain, than the river has that of an excavation. [It is probable that some error has crept into the publications above named. 1813, 1823] [Bloomfield's note, referring to William Coxe, An Historical Tour in Monmouthshire: Illustrated with views by Sir R. C. Hoare, Bart. A New Map of the County, and other Engravings (London, 1801), and Charles Heath, The Excursion down the Wye from Ross to Monmouth (Monmouth, 1808)]. On went the boat, and up the steep Her straggling crew began to creep, To gain the ridge, enjoy the view, Where the fresh gales of summer blew. The gleaming WYE, that circles round Her four-mile course, again is found; And, crouching to the conqueror's pride, Bathes his huge cliffs on either side; Seen at one glance, when from his brow The eye surveys twin gulphs below. Whence comes thy name? What Symon he, Who gain'd a monument in thee? Perhaps a wild-wood hunter, bornhunter, born] hunter,––born 1813, 1823 Peril, and toil, and death to scorn;scorn;] scorn. 1813 Or warrior, with his powerful lance, Who scaled the cliff to gain a glance;to gain a glance,] to mark th' advance 1813; to mark the advance 1823 Or shepherd lad,Or shepherd lad,] Of rival arms.— 1813; Of rival arms; 1823 or humble swain, Who sought for pasture here in vain; Or venerable bard, who strove To tune his harp to themes of love; Or with a poet's ardent flame Sung to the winds his country's fame? Westward GREAT DOWARD, stretching wide, Upheaves his iron-bowel'diron-bowel'd] iron-bowell'd 1823 side; And by his everlasting mound,mound,] mound 1823 Prescribes th' imprison'd river's bound, And strikes the eye with mountain force: But strangerBut stranger] But, stranger, 1823 mark thy rugged course From crag to crag, unwilling, slow, To NEW WEIR forgeforge] forge, 1813, 1823 that smokes below. Here rush'd the keel like lightning by: The helmsman watch'd with anxious eye; And oars alternate touch'd the brim, To keep the flying boat in trim. [Illustration 1] Forward quick changing, changing still, Again rose cliff, and wood, and hill, Where mingling foliage seem'd to strive With dark-brown saplings, flay'dThe custom is here alluded to of stripping the bark from oaks while growing, which gives an almost undescribable, though not the most agreeable, effect to the landscape [Bloomfield's note]. alive;alive;] alive, 1823 Down to the gulph beneath,beneath,] beneath; 1813, 1823 where oft The toiling wood-boy dragg'd aloft His stubborn faggot from the brim, And gaz'd,gaz'd] gazed 1823 and tugg'd with sturdy limb; And where the mind repose would seek, A barren, storm-defying peak, The Little DOWARD, lifted high His rocky crown of royalty. Hush! not a whisper! Oars, be still! Comes that soft sound from yonder hill? Or is it close at hand, so nearOr is it close at hand, so near] Or is the sound so faint, though near 1813, 1823 It scarcely strikes the list'ning ear? E'en so; for down the green bankbank] bank, 1813 fell An ice-cold stream from MARTIN'S WELL, Bright as young beauty's azure eye, And pure as infant chastity,chastity,] chastity; 1823 Each limpid draught,draught,] draught 1823 suffus'dsuffus'd] suffused 1823 with dew The dipping glass's crystal hue; And as it trembling reach'd the lip, Delight sprung up at everyevery] ev'ry 1813 sip. Pure, temperate joys, and calm, were these;these;] these 1823 We tosttost] toss'd 1823 upon no Indian seas; No savage chiefs, of various hue,chiefs, of various hue] Chiefs, with tawny crew 1813, 1823 Came jabbering in the bark canoeIn Cæsar's Commentaries, mention is made of boats of this description, formed of a raw hide, (from whence, perhaps, their name Coricle,) [Coracle 1823] which were in use among the natives. How little they dreamed of the vastness of modern perfection, and of the naval conflicts of latter days! [Bloomfield's note, referring to Caesar's Commentaries on the Gallic Wars]. Bloomfield's imagination was caught by what he read about South Sea island customs and society. In a note to The Farmer's Boy; a Rural Poem (London, 1800), p. 102, he quotes a passage from 'Reflections of Otaheite: Cook's second Voyage' thus: 'The King, at times, amuses himself with the occupations of his subjects; and not yet depraved by false notions of empty state, he often paddles his own canoe, without considering such an employment derogatory to his dignity'. He probably read the passage in The Lady's Magazine; or Entertaining Magazine for the fair Sex or The Town and Country Magazine, or Universal Repository for May 1777. Our strength to dare, our course to turn; Yet boats a South Sea chief would burn,burn,] burn 1823 Sculk'd in the alder shade. Each bore, Devoid of keel, or sail, or oar, An upright fisherman, with eye,eye,] eye 1823 Of Bramin-like solemnity,solemnity,] solemnity 1823 SurveyedSurveyed] Who scanned 1813, 1823 the surface either way, And cleav'dcleav'd] cleaved 1823 it like a fly at play; And crossways bore a balanc'dbalanc'd] balanced 1823 pole, To drive the salmon from his hole; Then heedful leapt,leapt] leap'd 1823 without parade, On shore, as luck or fancy bade; And o'er his back, in gallant trim, 435 Swung the light shell that carried him; Then down again his burden threw, And launch'd his whirling bowl anew; Displaying, in his bow'ry station, The infancy of navigation. Soon round us spread the hills and dales,dales,] dales 1823 Where GEOFFREYGeoffrey of Monmouth (c. 1100-c. 1155), clergyman whose Historia Regum Britanniae narrates the lives of Lear, Cymbeline, Merlin and Arthur. spun his magic tales, And call'd them history. The land Whence ARTHUR sprung, and all his band Of gallant knights. Sire of romance, Who led the fancy's mazy dance, Thy tales shall please, thy name still be, When Time forgets my verse and me. Low sunk the sun, his ev'ning beam Scarce reach'd us on the tranquil stream;stream;] stream: Shut from the world, and all its din, Nature's own bonds had closed us in; Wood, and deep dell, and rock, and ridge, From smiling Ross to MONMOUTH BRIDGE; From morn, till twilight stole away, A long, unclouded, glorious day.

END OF THE FIRST BOOK.