Alcina'S Enchanted Island[367]

In These fair fields unfading flowers abound, Here purple roses cloathe the enchanted ground; Here, to the sun expand the lillies pale Fann'd by the sweet breath of the western gale:

Here, fearless hares through dark recesses stray, And troops of leverets take the woodland way, Here stately stags, with branching horns, appear, And rove unsought for, unassail'd by fear:

Unknown the snare, the huntsman's fatal dart That wings the death of torture to the heart, In social bands they trace their sylvan reign, Chew the rich cud, or graze along the plain.

In these gay shades the nimble deer delight, While herds of goats ascend the rocky height, Browse on the shrubs that shade the vale below, And crop the plants, that there profusely grow.

Description of the Gardens in Alcina's Inchanted Island. From the Italian." Text from the edition of 1795.