Alexander Pope

Condemned whole years in absence to deplore,
And image charms he must behold no more.

Condemned whole years in absence to deplore,
And image charms he must behold no more.

Good-nature and good-sense must ever join;
To err is human, to forgive, divine.

Good-nature and good-sense must ever join;
To err is human, to forgive, divine.

Pleas'd to the last he crops the flowery food,
And licks the hand just rais'd to shed his blood.

Pleas'd to the last he crops the flowery food,
And licks the hand just rais'd to shed his blood.

Be not the first by whom the new are tried,
Nor yet the last to lay the old aside.

Be not the first by whom the new are tried,
Nor yet the last to lay the old aside.

The flying rumours gather'd as the roll'd,
Scarce any tale was sooner heard than told;
And all read more

The flying rumours gather'd as the roll'd,
Scarce any tale was sooner heard than told;
And all who told it added something new.
And all who heard it made enlargements too.