STANZAS OCCASIONED BY A MELANCHOLY
SURVEY OF AN OLD ENGLISH TOBACCO BOX INSCRIBED 1708[193]
Written in a dearth of tobacco, by Hezekiah Salem.
Had I but what this box contained
Since good Queen Anne in Britain reigned,
My happiness would be increased
To more, perhaps, than she possessed.
This box, in many a pocket worn
(And to be used by some unborn)
Has been unfilled a week or more,
And curses the tobacco store,
Which now has had its turn to fail;
The door shut up, the man in jail
Who late behind the counter stood
And vended what was pretty good.
("And are you here?—the turnkey said,
"I rather would have seen you dead!"—
—Yes! I am here—the man replied—
And better so than to have died!)
This box again, in spite of that,
Shall be repackt with—I know what—
Again I'll fill its empty chest
With old Virginia's very best.
The fragrance of that mild perfume
Again shall cheer the reading room,
Again delight your men of wit
Who have the taste to relish it.
This box I deem a small estate
Where all my prospects are complete,
Whose oval round, and clasp, confines
The riches of Potosi's mines.