J. F. Campbell Collection > Temora, an ancient epic poem, in eight books

92 T E M O R A:
He flowly rofe againft the hill, and faw the troubled field.
The gleaming ridges of the fight, disjoined and broken round. —
As dill?.nt fires, on heath by night, now feem as lofl in fmoak,
then rearing their red ftreams on the hill, as blow or ceafe the
winds : fo met the intermitting war the e3'e of broad-fliielded Der-
mid. — Thro' the hoft are the ftrides of Foldath, like feme dark
fliip on wintry waves, when it illlies from between two illes, ta
fport on echoing fcas.
Dermic, with rage, beheld his courfe. He ftrove to rurtl
along. But he failed in the midft of his fteps ; and the big tear
came down. — He founded his father's hum ; and thrice flruck his
boffy fliield. He called thrice the name of Foldath, from his roar-
ing tribes. — Foldath, with joy, beheld the chief : he lifted high his
bloody fpear. — As a rock is marked with ftreams, that fell troubled
down its fide in a ftorm ; fo, ftreaked with wandering^ blood, is the
dark form of Moma.
The hoft, on either fide, withdrew from the contending of
kings. — They raifed, at once, their gleaming points. — RuOiing
came Fillan of Moruth *. Three paces back Foldath withdrew ;
poet that ever appeared. His great know- * The rapidity of this verfe, which iii-
ledge in anatomy can never be difputed ; deed is but faintly imitated in the tranfla-
but, I am far from thinking, that his bat- tion, is amazingly exprefiive in the origi-
tles, even with all their novelty of wounds, nal. One hears the very rattling of the
are the moft beautiful parts of his poems, aimour of Fillan. The intervention of
The human mind dwells with difguft upon Fillan is neceflary herej for, as Dcrmid
a protraflcd fcene of carnage ; and, tho' was wounded before, it is not to be fup-
the introduction of the terrible is neceflary pofed, he could be a match for Foldath,
to the grandeur of heroic poetry, yet I am Fillan is often, poetically, called the/>n of
convinced, that a medium oug'it to be ob- Moruth^ from a ftream of that name in
fcrvcd. Morven, near which he was born.
daz-