rests, and one spurns the ground;
thou giv'st the ass his hide, the snail his shell;
th' envenom'd , victorious, guards his cell;
thy minions kings defend, trol, devour,
in all th' omnipotence of rule and power;
foxes and statesmen subtile wiles ensure;
the cit and polecat stink, and are secure;
toads with their poison, doctors with their drug,
the priest and hedgehog in their robes, are snug;
ev'n silly woman has her warlike arts,
her tongue and eyes—her dreaded spear and darts.
but oh! thou bitter step-mother and hard,
to thy poor, fenceless,
Second Epistle To Robert Graham, ESQ., Of Fintry(2/8)