O'er the unthinking rabble's spite
(His head adorn'd with beams of light)
60And the dull wealthy fool's disdain.
Thrice happy he, that dies the Muses' friend;
He needs no obelisk, no pyramid
His sacred dust to hide,
He needs not for his memory to provide,
For well he knows his praise can never end.
On the Death of Mr. John Oldham.] Oldham died in 1683.
Alexis seems to be Richard Flatman, Oldham Menalcas, the poet himself Astragon. It is curious that the printers—and perhaps even the writers—of this time were so besotted with 'apostrophation' as even to use it when the full value is metrically necessary, as here in 'wouldn't', which must be 'would not' to scan.