John Bartlett (1820–1905). Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. 1919.
James Beattie 1735-1803 John Bartlett
| 1 |
| Ah, who can tell how hard it is to climb The steep where Fame’s proud temple shines afar? |
| The Minstrel. Book i. Stanza 1. |
| 2 |
| Zealous, yet modest; innocent, though free; Patient of toil, serene amidst alarms; Inflexible in faith, invincible in arms. |
| The Minstrel. Book i. Stanza 11. |
| 3 |
| Old age comes on apace to ravage all the clime. |
| The Minstrel. Book i. Stanza 25. |
| 4 |
| Mine be the breezy hill that skirts the down, Where a green grassy turf is all I crave, With here and there a violet bestrewn, Fast by a brook or fountain’s murmuring wave; And many an evening sun shine sweetly on my grave! |
| The Minstrel. Book ii. Stanza 17. |
| 5 |
| At the close of the day when the hamlet is still, And mortals the sweets of forgetfulness prove, When naught but the torrent is heard on the hill, And naught but the nightingale’s song in the grove. |
| The Hermit. |
| 6 |
| He thought as a sage, though he felt as a man. |
| The Hermit. |
| 7 |
| But when shall spring visit the mouldering urn? Oh when shall it dawn on the night of the grave? |
| The Hermit. |
| 8 |
| By the glare of false science betray’d, That leads to bewilder, and dazzles to blind. |
| The Hermit. |
| 9 |
| And beauty immortal awakes from the tomb. |
| The Hermit. |