Oliver Goldsmith

The true use of speech is not so much to express our wants as to conceal them.

The true use of speech is not so much to express our wants as to conceal them.

That dire disease, whose ruthless power
Withers the beauty's transient flower.

That dire disease, whose ruthless power
Withers the beauty's transient flower.

Man seems the only growth that dwindles here.

Man seems the only growth that dwindles here.

Aromatic plants bestow
No spicy fragrance while they grow;
But crush'd or trodden to the ground,
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Aromatic plants bestow
No spicy fragrance while they grow;
But crush'd or trodden to the ground,
Diffuse their balmy sweets around.

And, e'en while fashion's brightest arts decoy,
The heart, distrusting, asks if this be joy.

And, e'en while fashion's brightest arts decoy,
The heart, distrusting, asks if this be joy.