How soone she leaves the pride of wealth, The flatteries of youth and health And fames more precious breath. And every gaudy circumstance That doth the pompe of life advance At the approach of death? The cunning of Astrologers Observes each motion of the starres Placing all knowledge there: And Lovers in their Mistresse eyes Contract those wonders of the skies, And seeke no higher sphere. The wandring Pilot sweates to find The causes that produce the wind Still gazing on the Pole. The Politician scornes all Art But what doth pride and power impart. And swells the ambitious soule. But he whom heavenly fire doth warme, And 'gainst these powerful follies arme, Doth soberly disdaine All these fond humane misteries As the deceitfull and unwise Distempers of our braine. He as a burden beares his clay, Yet vainely throwes it not away On every idle cause: But with the same untroubled eye Can resolve to live or dye, Regardlesse of th' applause. My God! If 'tis thy great decree That this must the last moment be Wherein I breath this ayre; My heart obeyes joy'd to retreate From the false favours of the great And treachery of the faire. When thou shalt please this soule t' enthrone, Above impure corruption; What shall I grieve or feare. To thinke this breathlesse body must Become a loathsome heape of dust And nere againe appeare. For in the fire when Ore is tryed, And by that torment purified: Doe we deplore the losse? And when thou shalt my soule refine, That it thereby may purer shine Shall I grieve for the drosse? _FINIS._ A List of WORKS _Edited by Professor_ EDWARD ARBER _F.S.A.; Fellow of King's College, London; Hon. Member of the Virginia and Wisconsin Historical Societies; late English Examiner at the London University; and also at the Victoria University, Manchester; Emeritus Professor of English Language and Literature, Mason College, Birmingham._ An English Garner English Reprints The War Library The English Scholar's Library The first Three English Books on America The first English New Testament, 1526 The Paston Letters, 1422-1509. Edited by JAMES GAIRDNER. 3 vols. A List of 837 London Publishers, 1553-1640 _All the Works in this Catalogue are published at net prices._ ARCHIBALD CONSTABLE AND CO., 14, PARLIAMENT ST., WESTMINSTER. Detailed Transcriber's Note Archaic, dialectical and other spellings not in current usage have been left as in the original book. Obvious misprints have been fixed. Text that was originally printed in blackletter has been changed to all capitals without further comment. Details of the text changes are below.