And least of all the rest do I affect
To word my duty in this dialect.
My service lies a better way, whose tone
Is spirited by full devotion.
Thus, whilst I mention You, Your Royal Mate,
And Those which your blest line perpetuate,
I shall such votes of happiness rehearse,
50Whose softest accents will out-tongue my verse.
To the Queen at Oxford.] This poem was omitted in Hannah's MS., and it is in no way clear to what visit it refers. The absence of any reference to politics shows that it cannot have been Henrietta's residence at Merton during the Rebellion.
29 plait] Orig 'plat'.