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Poem
June 4, 1804
Jenks' Portland Gazette
Portland, Cumberland County, Maine
What is this article about?
A lyrical address to a stranger, evoking pity for the blind who cannot see nature's beauty or art, highlighting their isolation and the solace found in the Blind Asylum through companionship and toil, concluding with a religious call to give alms.
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OCR Quality
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Full Text
POETRY.
THE BLIND ASYLUM.
STRANGER pause—for thee the day
Smiling pours its cheerful ray,
Spreads the lawn and rears the bower.
Lights the stream, and paints the flower.
Stranger pause—with pity's mind,
Learn the sorrows of the blind—
Earth and ease and varying skies,
Visit not their cheerless eyes.
Not for them the bliss to trace,
The chisel's animating grace ;
Nor on the glowing canvas find
The poet's soul, the Sage's mind.
Not for them the heart is seen
Speaking thro'th' expressive mein—
Not for them are pictured there
Friendship, pity, love sincere.
Helpless, as they only stay.
Childhood points their cheerless way—
Or the wand exploring guides
Faltering steps where fear presides.
Yet for them has genius kind
Humble pleasures here assigned—
Here with unexpected ray,
Reached the soul that felt no day.
Lonely blindness here can meet
Kindred woes, and converse sweet—
Torpid once, can learn to smile
Proudly o'er its useful toil.
He who designed for man to die.
Op'd on day the darken'd eye—
Humbly copy—thou canst feel—
Give thine alms—thou canst not heal.
THE BLIND ASYLUM.
STRANGER pause—for thee the day
Smiling pours its cheerful ray,
Spreads the lawn and rears the bower.
Lights the stream, and paints the flower.
Stranger pause—with pity's mind,
Learn the sorrows of the blind—
Earth and ease and varying skies,
Visit not their cheerless eyes.
Not for them the bliss to trace,
The chisel's animating grace ;
Nor on the glowing canvas find
The poet's soul, the Sage's mind.
Not for them the heart is seen
Speaking thro'th' expressive mein—
Not for them are pictured there
Friendship, pity, love sincere.
Helpless, as they only stay.
Childhood points their cheerless way—
Or the wand exploring guides
Faltering steps where fear presides.
Yet for them has genius kind
Humble pleasures here assigned—
Here with unexpected ray,
Reached the soul that felt no day.
Lonely blindness here can meet
Kindred woes, and converse sweet—
Torpid once, can learn to smile
Proudly o'er its useful toil.
He who designed for man to die.
Op'd on day the darken'd eye—
Humbly copy—thou canst feel—
Give thine alms—thou canst not heal.
What sub-type of article is it?
Ode
What themes does it cover?
Moral Virtue
Religious Faith
What keywords are associated?
Blind Asylum
Sorrows Blind
Pity Stranger
Charity Alms
Blindness Isolation
Moral Pity
Poem Details
Title
The Blind Asylum.
Subject
The Sorrows Of The Blind
Form / Style
Rhymed Couplets
Key Lines
Stranger Pause—For Thee The Day
Smiling Pours Its Cheerful Ray,
Spreads The Lawn And Rears The Bower.
Lights The Stream, And Paints The Flower.
Learn The Sorrows Of The Blind—
Earth And Ease And Varying Skies,
Visit Not Their Cheerless Eyes.
Give Thine Alms—Thou Canst Not Heal.