Death & Dying
Inscription for the Tomb of Mr. Hamilton
From Poems
Death & Dying
Pause here, and think: a monitory rhyme
Demands one moment of thy fleeting time.
Consult life's silent clock, thy bounding vein;
Seems it to say--"Health here has long to reign?"
Hast thou the vigour of thy youth? an eye
That beams delight? a heart untaught to sigh?
Yet fear. Youth, ofttimes healthful and at ease,
Anticipates a day it never sees;
And many a tomb, like Hamilton's, aloud
Exclaims "Prepare thee for an early shroud."
Cite this poem
MLA
Cowper, William. “Inscription for the Tomb of Mr. Hamilton.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/cowper/118/.
Chicago
Cowper, William. “Inscription for the Tomb of Mr. Hamilton.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/cowper/118/.
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