O Daughter of Babylon! boast not thy power!

On thee shall adversity frown,

The vessel of wrath on thy pinnacles shower,

And scatter the gems of thy crown.

A Prince shall rejoice to behold thee distress'd,

And down the wild precipice throw

The babes that for shelter would cling to thy breast,

And sport in the streams of thy woe!

AN ADDRESS

TO THE

SUBSCRIBERS OF A BENEVOLENT SOCIETY.*

Blessed is the man who provideth for the sick and needy: the Lord shall deliver him in the time of trouble.

Psalm xli. v. 1.

HAIL! Band of Brothers! ye, whose hands impart

The tender cords that bind the broken heart;

Whose visits life's afflicted hours beguile ;

Whose kindness makes e'en misery to smile;—

* This society, "for the relief of indigent persons in time of sickness, and for poor married lying-in women," was instituted in the parish of Farnham, in the county of Surry, in the year 1815, and continues to be of the greatest utility. Its construction is simple and practical, and is perhaps liable to as few errors as any charity of the kind. It would be well for

Accept (and poverty can give no more)

The thanks-the blessings of the sick and poor.

Ere this your charity had rais'd its head,

No public aid was near their sorrowing bed:

the afflicted poor, if a society after the same model were established in every town in Great Britain. I shall make no apology for briefly inserting its rules in this place. as follow:

They are

I. The affairs of this institution to be conducted by a patroness, treasurer, secretary, committee, and visitors.

II. Every person subscribing annually the sum of five shillings and upwards, shall be entitled to recommend cases to the society for relief.

III. Every gentleman subscribing one guinea or upwards annually, shall be a member of the committee.

IV. Divides the town and neighbourhood into districts.

V. Specifies the times of meeting of the committee to regulate its affairs.

VI. Six gentlemen of the committee shall be nominated as visitors for the relief of the sick, two of whom shall be appointed to each district.

VII. Every subscriber desirous of recommending a person

But pause, my verse-nor in thy zeal offend

The generous efforts of the private friend.

Oft have I seen the wretched and distress'd

Cheer'd by the bounty that her store possess'd;

for relief, shall apply to one of the visitors belonging to the district in which such person resides.

VIII. No person shall be relieved without a satisfactory certificate from a medical practitioner.

IX. Relief shall be usually afforded in articles of food or clothing, and not more than the sum of five shillings shall be given or applied in any one week in ordinary cases; and in no case shall the sum exceed ten shillings, except by the consent of the committee.

X. Relates to the department of the poor married lying-in women, which is under the sole management of the ladies, subscribers to the institutions, and which was added since the above address was written.

I would recommend the adoption of institutions of this kind more especially to medical gentlemen practising in country towns; as by such means they will be enabled to relieve those distresses, which so frequently fall under their observation, without either difficulty or delay.

Oft have I heard her praises from the poor,

And trac'd her footsteps to the cottage door :

Yet in this far and wide-extended field,

Full many a lonely cot still lay conceal'd,

Where pain and wretchedness had wept unseen,

And where her heav'nward feet had never been.*

But now no more let poverty complain

Of pangs unheeded-tears that flow in vain:

Your genial orb of charity displays

The warmth of general, not of partial rays.

Upheld by you, its patrons and its source,

Onward it rolls its philanthropic course,

*These lines allude to a kind benefactress, resident in the neighbourhood.

M