In its black scope involv'd me—not a ray

Shot thro' the ambient night one glimpse of day;

'Till heaven's own mercy offer'd to my view

From its dark sphere, a radiant avenue:

Cheer'd with fresh hope, its limits I forsook,

And, wing'd with new-born speed, a fresh direction took.

[Pg 30]

If Heaven prohibit not the blow, my fate

Lies in thy hands; my transitory date

This hour may close; and thou, e'en thou, mayst be

The doom'd assertor of his wrath on me:

So let it be! E'en so, thy friendly hate

Will snatch its victim from a heavier fate:

And when the storms of vengeance, that impend

O'er thee and thine, collected shall descend,

The bolt that shakes your haughty souls with dread,

Shall roll innocuous o'er my shelter'd head,

Safe in that mansion of unbroken rest,

Which neither lightnings strike nor winds molest.

Thus then in brief, relentless tyrant, take

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