Page:The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, Volume 7.djvu/302

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290
SWIFT'S POEMS.

I twice a day a hunting go;
Nor ever fail to seize my foe;
And when I have him by the pole,
I drag him upward from his hole;
Though some are of so stubborn kind,
I'm forc'd to leave a limb behind.
I hourly wait some fatal end;
For I can break, but scorn to bend.




VII.


THE GULF OF ALL HUMAN POSSESSIONS.


COME hither, and behold the fruits,
Vain man! of all thy vain pursuits.
Take wise advice, and look behind,
Bring all past actions to thy mind.
Here you may see, as in a glass,
How soon all human pleasures pass.
How will it mortify thy pride,
To turn the true impartial side!
How will your eyes contain their tears,
When all the sad reverse appears!
This cave within its womb confines
The last result of all designs:
Here lie deposited the spoils
Of busy mortals' endless toils:
Here, with an easy search, we find
The foul corruptions of mankind.
The wretched purchase here behold
Of traitors, who their country sold.
This gulf insatiate imbibes

The lawyer's fees, the statesman's bribes.

Here,