Soon after the account arrived in England of Captain Cook's decease, two poems were published in celebration of his memory; one of which was an Ode, by a Mr. Fitzgerald, of Gray's Inn. But the first, both in order of time and of merit, was an Elegy, by Miss Seward, whose poetical talents have been displayed in many beautiful instances to the public. This lady, in the beginning of her poem, has admirably represented the principal of humanity by which the captain was actuated in his undertakings.
"Ye, who ere while for Cook's illustrious brow
Pluck'd the green laurel and the oaken bough,
Hung the gay garlands on the trophied oars,
And pour'd his fame along a thousand shores.
Strike the slow death-bell!—weave the sacred verse,
And strew the cypress o'er his honour'd hearse;
In sad procession wander round the shrine,
And weep him mortal, whom ye sung divine!
"Say first, what Pow'r inspir'd his dauntless breast
With scorn of danger, and inglorious rest,
To quit imperial London's gorgeous plains,
Where, rob'd in thousand tints, bright Pleasure reigns!
What Pow'r inspir'd his dauntless breast to brave
The scorch'd Equator, and th' Antarctic wave?
Climes, where fierce suns in cloudless ardours shine,
And pour the dazzling deluge round the Line;
The realms of frost, where icy mountains rise,
'Mid the pale summer of the polar skies?—
It was Humanity!—on coasts unknown,
The shiv'ring natives of the frozen zone,
And the swart Indian, as he faintly strays
'Where Cancer reddens in the solar blaze,'
She bade him seek;—on each inclement shore
Plant the rich seeds of her exhaustless store;
Unite the savage hearts, and hostile hands,
In the firm compact of her gentle bands;
Strew her soft comforts o'er the barren plain,
Sing her sweet lays, and consecrate her fane.
"It was Humanity!—O Nymph divine!
I see thy light step print the burning Line!
There thy bright eye the dubious pilot guides,
The faint oar struggling with the scalding tides—
On as thou lead'st the bold, the glorious prow,
Mild, and more mild, the sloping sunbeams glow;
Now weak and pale the lessen'd lustres play,
As round th' horizon rolls the timid day;
Barb'd with the sleeted snow, the driving hail,
Rush the fierce arrows of the polar gale;
And through the dim, unvaried, ling'ring hours,
Wide o'er the waves incumbent horror lours."
Captain Cook's endeavours to serve the inhabitants of New Zealand, by the vegetables and animals he left among them, are thus described:
"To these the hero leads his living store,
And pours new wonders on th' uncultur'd shore;
The silky fleece, fair fruit, and golden grain;
And future herds and harvests bless the plain,
O'er the green soil his kids exulting play,
And sounds his clarion loud the bird of day;
The downy goose her ruffled bosom laves,
Trims her white wing, and wantons in the waves;
Stern moves the bull along th' affrighted shores,
And countless nations tremble as he roars."
I shall only add the pathetic and animated conclusion of this fine poem:
"But ah!—aloft on Albion's rocky steep,
That frowns incumbent o'er the boiling deep,
Solicitous, and sad, a softer form
Eyes the lone flood, and deprecates the storm.—
Ill fated matron!—for, alas! in vain
Thy eager glances wander o'er the main!
Tis the vex'd billows, that insurgent rave,
Their white foam silvers yonder distant wave,
Tis not his sails! thy husband comes no more!
His bones now whiten an accursed shore!—
Retire,—for hark! the seagull shrieking soars,
The lurid atmosphere portentous lours;
Night's sullen spirit groans in every gale,
And o'er the waters draws the darkling veil,
Sighs in thy hair, and chills thy throbbing breast—
Go wretched mourner!—weep thy griefs to rest!
"Yet, though through life is lost each fond delight,
Though set thy earthly sun in dreary night,
Oh! raise thy thoughts to yonder starry plain,
And own thy sorrow selfish, weak, and vain:
Since, while Britannia, to his virtues just,
Twines the bright wreath, and rears th' immortal bust;
While on each wind of heaven his fame shall rise,
In endless incense to the smiling skies;
The attendant Power, that bade his sails expand,
And waft her blessings to each barren land,
Now raptur'd bears him to th' immortal plains,
Where Mercy hails him with congenial strains;
Where soars, on Joy's white plume, his spirit free,
And angels choir him, while he waits for Thee."
Captain Cook's discoveries, among other effects, have opened new scenes for a poetical fancy to range in, and presented new images to the selection of genius and taste. The morals, in particular, of the inhabitants of the South Sea Islands, afford a fine subject for the exercise of a plaintive Muse. Such a Muse hath seized upon the subject; and, at the same time, has added another wreath to the memory of our navigator. I refer to a lady, who hath already, in many passages of her 'Peru,' in her 'Ode on the Peace.' and, above all, in her 'Irregular Fragment,' amply proved to the world, that she possesses not only the talent of elegant and harmonious versification, but the spirit of true poetry. The poem, which I have now the pleasure of giving for the first time to the public, and which was written at my request, will be found in the Appendix. It is some what remarkable, that female poets have hitherto been the chief celebrators of Captain Cook in this country. Perhaps a subject which would furnish materials for as rich a production as Camoen's Lusiad, and which would adorn the pen of a Hayley or a Cowper, may hereafter call forth the genius of some poet of the stronger sex.
The Royal Society of London could not lose such a member of their body as Captain Cook, without being anxious to honour his name and memory by a particular mark of respect. Accordingly, it was resolved to do this by a medal; and a voluntary subscription was opened for the purpose. To such of the fellows of the society as subscribed twenty guineas, a gold medal was appropriated: silver medals were assigned to those who contributed a smaller sum; and to each of the other members one in bronze was given. The subscribers of twenty guineas were, Sir Joseph Banks, president; the Prince of Anspach, the Duke of Montague, Lord Mulgrave and Mr. Cavendish, Mr. Peachy, Mr. Perrin, Mr. Poli, and Mr. Shuttleworth. Many designs, as might be expected, were proposed on the occasion. The medal which was actually struck contains, on one side, the head of Captain Cook in profile, and round it, JAC. COOK OCEANI INVESTIGATOR ACERRIMUS; and on the exergue, REG. SOC. LOND. SOCIO SUO. On the reverse is a representation of Britannia holding a globe. Round her is inscribed NIL INTENTATUM NOSTRI LIQUERE: and on the exergue, AUSPICIIS GEORGII III.