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114 POEMS OF PHILLIS WHEATLEY. 115 Thrice happy they, whose heavenly shield Secures their soul from harms, And fell Temptation on the field Of all its power disarms! Boston, May 7th, 1773. A REBUS.—BY J.B. A BIRD delicious to the taste, On which an army once did feast, Sent by a hand unseen; A creature of the horned race, Which Britain's royal standards grace, A gem of vivid green; A town of gaiety and sport, Where beaux and beauteous nymphs resort, And gallantry doth reign; A Dardan hero famed of old For youth and beauty, as we're told, And by a monarch slain; A peer of popular applause, Who doth our violated laws And grievances proclaim. The initials show a vanquished town, That adds fresh glory and renown To old Britannia's fame. AN ANSWER TO THE REBUS. By the Author of these Poems. THE poet asks, and Phillis can't refuse To shew th' obedience of the Infant Muse. She knows the Quail, of most inviting taste, Fed Israel's army in the dreary waste; And what's on Britain's royal standard borne, But the tall, graceful, rampant unicorn? The Emerald with a vivid verdure glows Among the gems which regal crowns compose; Boston's a town, polite and debonair, To which the beaux and beauteous nymphs repair. Each Helen strikes the mind with sweet surprise, While living lightning flashes from her eyes. See young Euphorbus, of Dardan line, By Menelaus' hand to death resign: The well-known peer, of popular applause, Is C----m, zealous to support our laws. Quebec, now vanquished, must obey, She, too, must annual tribute pay To Britain, of immortal fame, And add new glory to her name.
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