Reynolds and Midway 42

          First part: Misery of man without God. 
          Second part: Happiness of man with God. 
          Or, First part: That nature is corrupt. Proved by nature itself. 
          Second part: That there is a Redeemer. Proved by Scripture. 
                              
                                - Blaise Pascal, Pensées, Section II, 60



Hcav*ns, what a ftrange difeafe is this!—That lov^

Should fo change men, that one can hardly fwear

They are the fame!—No mortal liv'd

Lcls weak, more grave» more temperate than he,

—But who comes yonder ?—Gnatho, as I live ^

The Captain's paraiite! and brings along

The Virgin for a prefent: oh rare wench !

f How beautiful! I (hall come off, I doubt^

But fcurvily with my decrepid Eunuch.

This girl furpaflcs ev'n Thais herfelf —

George Colman's plays of Terence were renderd thus ^

whan Kindld from the archive whither Midway

hied. A lass! He cried, but did not, did he? Not.

But in the inside of his noodle thought:

we ought not build unto th' already skying

Tower of Babel not a single brick

since tongues are crissd and crosst enow as is,

ne ought we trowel and mortar walls anew

ne add more height and reaching unto God

lest some should shimmy up and at the top

be there confounded furthermore and drop ¬

so off we went and Midway said, 2 bills

of greeny money is the all we've got

and is the sum and total of our wad,

and thinking, Reynolds sd we ought to read

O'Brian, sallied gladdend thro' St. Vinny's,

whan Lo! behold to our right shoulder, propt

primly, there it was, hardcoverd, stood

right on its ends up: H.M.S. Surprise !

Now who dove guest at ? Naturally, we went

the few mean steps it took to gang anear

that high white shelf and gently claspt the buik,

than opend it to check the pencilld cost—

you guessd aright, a twain of bucks| Now Midway

ell-o-elld whenas his windows lighted

on that number, and he thankd his Lord

and put his tender index to the Cross

and to the Son that sufferd there and Christ

His arms spread wide in terrible restraint,

His slender body bleeding, hands and feet

transfixt, that we might here with joy endite :
His yoke is easy, and His burden, light.

6.8.14