John Dyer

thumb|A little rule, a little sway,A sun beam in a winter’s day,Is all the proud and mighty haveBetween the cradle and the grave. John Dyer (1699 – 15 December 1757) was a Welsh poet who wrote in the English language. Quotes Grongar Hill (1727) "Grongar Hill", in Dodsley's Collection, vol. 1 (2nd ed., 1763) A little rule, a little sway,A sun beam in a winter’s day,Is all the proud and mighty haveBetween the cradle and the grave. l. 89 See the rivers how they runThro' woods and meads, in shade and sun,Sometimes swift, sometimes slow,Wave succeeding wave, they goA various journey to the deep,Like human life to endless sleep! l. 93 Ever charming, ever new,When will the landskip tire the view? l. 103 · Variant: 'landscape' not 'landskip' While the wanton Zephyr sings,And in the vale perfumes his wings. l. 139 So little distant dangers seem: So we mistake the future's face,Ey'd thro' hope's deluding glass:As yon summits soft and fair,Clad in colours of the air,Which to those who journey near,Barren, brown, and rough appear. l. 120 The Ruins of Rome (1740)      Disparting towers,Tumbling all precipitate down-dashed,Rattling around, loud thundering to the moon. l. 40 · Variant: 'Trembling' not 'Tumbling' The solitary, silent, solemn scene,Where Caesars, heroes, peasants, hermits lie,Blended in dust together; where the slaveRests from his labours; where the insulting proudResigns his power; the miser drops his hoard;Where human folly sleeps. l. 339 There is a kindly mood of melancholy,That wings the soul, and points her to the skies. l. 346 Misattributed A man may go to heaven without health, without riches, without honors, without learning, without friends; but he can never go there without Christ. Reported in Josiah Hotchkiss Gilbert, Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895), p. 88. Based on a quotation by William Dyer: "You may go to Heaven without health, without wealth, without honours, without pleasures, without friends, without learning; but you can never go to Heaven without Christ." A little rule, a little sway,A sunbeam in a winter's day,Is all the proud and mighty haveBetween the cradle and the grave. Grongar Hill (1726), line 89. External links Category:Poets from Wales Category:Poets from England Category:Painters from England Category:Clergy Category:1699 births Category:1757 deaths