Poem by Anna Seward

Sonnet 9. Seek not, my Lesbia, the sequester'd dale

Seek not, my Lesbia, the sequester'd dale,
    Or bear thou to its shades a tranquil heart;
    Since rankles most in solitude the smart
    Of injur'd charms and talents, when they fail
To meet their due regard;—nor e'en prevail
    Where most they wish to please:—Yet, since thy part
    Is large in Life's chief blessings, why desert
    Sullen the world?—Alas! how many wail
Dire loss of the best comforts Heaven can grant!
    While they the bitter tear in secret pour,
    Smote by the death of Friends, Disease, or Want,
Slight wrongs if thy self-valuing soul deplore,
    Thou but resemblest, in thy lonely haunt,
    Narcissus pining on the watry shore.

1. Sonnet 25. Fortunate Vale! exulting Hill! dear Plain!
2. Sonnet 71. While Summer Roses all their glory yield
3. Sonnet 58. Not the slow Hearse, where nod the sable plumes
4. Sonnet 15. The evening shines in May's luxuriant pride
5. Sonnet 11. How sweet to rove, from summer sun-beams veil'd

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