See, heaven displeas'd thy fond attempt upbraids,
And claims the province thy bold hand invades;
Untimely darkness gathering round the skies,
Blackens the morn to grace his obsequies.
The sick'ning sun shines dim, and in the sight
Of gazing crowds, resigns his waning light;
Mark how he labours with relapse of night!
How his diminish'd face a crescent seems,
Like Cynthia newly silver'd with his beams.
But as in full eclipse his light expires,
Back to its source our gelid blood retires;
Chill'd with surprize, our trembling joints unbrace,
And pale confusion sits on every face.
The bleating flocks, no more the shepherd's care,
Stray from those folds to which they wou'd repair.
Home to his young the raven wings his way,
And leaves untasted his yet bleeding prey.
While tow'ring larks their rival notes prolong,
They drop benighted in their morning song.
Darkness and horror reign o'er earth and skies,
And nature for awhile with WHARTON dies.