"Orb upon orb it follows
As oft they intertwine,
And worlds in vast processions
As if in battle line.
"It loves all things created,
To follow and to trace;
And never fears to penetrate
The dark abyss of space."
The next is to 'The Comet':-
"A maiden fair, with light of stars bedecked,
Starts out of space at Jove's command;
With visage wild, and long dishevelled hair,
Speeds she along her starry course;
The hosts of heaven regards she not,--
Fain would she scorn them all except her father Sol,
Whose mighty influence her headlong course doth all control."
The following translation may also be given: it shows that the
bard is not without a spice of wit. A fellow-workman teased him
to write some lines; when John Jones, in a seemingly innocent
manner, put some questions, and ascertained that he had once been
a tailor. Accordingly this epigram was written, and appeared in
the local paper the week after: "To a quondam Tailor, now a
Slate-teller":--
"To thread and needle now good-bye,
With slates I aim at riches;
The scissors will I ne'er more ply,
Nor make, but order, breeches."[12]
The bi-lingual speech is the great educational difficulty of
Wales. To get an entrance into literature and science requires a
knowledge of English; or, if not of English, then of French or
German. But the Welsh language stands in the way.
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