g the Event of his Trial on board
his Majesty's Ship 'Hector.'_
Come, gentle Muse, I woo thee once again,
Nor woo thee now in melancholy strain;
Assist my verse in cheerful mood to flow,
Nor let this tender bosom Anguish know;
Fill all my soul with notes of Love and Joy,
No more let Grief each anxious thought employ:
With Rapture now alone this heart shall burn,
And Joy, my Lycidas, for thy return!
Return'd with every charm, accomplish'd youth,
Adorn'd with Virtue, Innocence, and Truth;
Wrapp'd in thy conscious merit still remain,
Till I behold thy lovely form again.
Protect him, Heav'n, from dangers and alarms,
And oh! restore him to a sister's arms;
Support his fortitude in that dread hour
When he must brave Suspicion's cruel pow'r;
Grant him to plead with Eloquence divine,
In ev'ry word let Truth and Honour shine;
Through each sweet accent let Persuasion flow,
With manly Firmness let his bosom glow,
Till strong Conviction, in each face exprest,
Grants a reward by Honour's self confest.
Let thy Omnipotence preserve him still,
And all his future days with Pleasure fill;
And oh! kind Heav'n, though now in chains he be,
Restore him soon to Friendship, Love, and me.
_August 5th, 1792, Isle of Man_. NESSY HEYWOOD.
[22] The late Aaron Graham, Esq., the highly respected police magistrate
in London.
[23] Till the moment of the trial, it will readily be supposed that
every thought of this amiable young lady was absorbed in her brother's
fate. In this interval the following lines appear to have been
written:--
_On receiving information by a letter from my ever dearly loved brother
Peter Heywood, that his trial was soon to take place_.
_Isle of Man, August_ 22, 1792. NESSY HEYWOOD.
[24] The minutes being very long, a brief abstract only, containing the
principal points of evidence, is here given.
[25] This Journal, it is presumed, must have been lost when the
_Pandora_ was wrecked.
[26] It was in this state of mind, while in momentary expectation of
receiving an account of the termination of the court-martial, that
Heywood's charming sister Nessy wrote the following lines:--
ANXIETY.
Doubting, dreading, fretful guest,
Quit, oh I quit this mortal breast.
Why wilt thou my peace invade,
And each brighter prospect shade?
Pain me not with needless Fe
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