Let them his safety, freedom, pleasure know, Feel all their rulers on the land bestow; And be at length dismiss'd by one unerring blow, - Not hack'd and hew'd by one afraid to strike, But shorn by that which shears all men alike; Nor, as in Britain, let them curse delay Of law, but borne without a form away - Suspected, tried, condemn'd, and carted in a day; Oh! let them taste what they so much approve, These strong fierce freedoms of the land they love." {2} Home came our hero, to forget no more The fear he felt and ever must deplore: For though he quickly join'd his friends again, And could with decent force his themes maintain, Still it occurr'd that, in a luckless time, He fail'd to fight with heresy and crime; It was observed his words were not so strong, His tones so powerful, his harangues so long, As in old times--for he would often drop The lofty look, and of a sudden stop; When conscience whisper'd, that he once was still, And let the wicked triumph at their will; And therefore now, when not a foe was near, He had no right so valiant to appear. Some years had pass'd, and he perceived his fears Yield to the spirit of his earlier years - When at a meeting, with his friends beside, He saw an object that awaked his pride; His shame, wrath, vengeance, indignation--all Man's harsher feelings did that sight recall. For, lo! beneath him fix'd, our Man of Law That lawless man the Foe of Order saw; Once fear'd, now scorn'd; once dreaded, now abhorrd: A wordy man, and evil every word: Again he gazed--"It is," said he "the same Caught and secure: his master owes him shame;" So thought our hero, who each instant found His courage rising, from the numbers round. As when a felon has escaped and fled, So long, that law conceives the culprit dead; And back recall'd her myrmidons, intent On some new game, and with a stronger scent; Till she beholds him in a place, where none Could have conceived the culprit would have gone; There he sits upright in his seat, secure, As one whose conscience is correct and pure; This rouses anger for the old offence, And scorn for all such seeming and pretence: So on this Hammond look'd our hero bold, Rememb'ring well that vile offence of old; And now he saw the rebel dar'd t'intrude Among the pure, the loyal, and the good; The crime provok'd his wrath, the folly stirr'd his blood: Nor wonder was it, if so strange a sight Caused joy with vengeance, terror with delight; Terror like this a tiger might create, A joy like that to see his captive state, At once to know his force and then decree his fate. Hammond, much praised by numerous friends, was come To read his lectures, so admired at home; Historic lectures, where he loved to mix His free plain hints on modern politics: Here, he had heard, that numbers had design, Their business finish'd, to sit down and dine; This gave him pleasure, for he judged it right To show by day that he could speak at night. Rash the design--for he perceived, too late,