The Duty Of Children To Their Parents Poem by Rees Prichard

ALL honour, reverence, and due regard,
My son! unto thy parents ever give:
'Tis God's command! - and thou, for thy reward,
Shalt, through his Grace, to length of days arrive.

Do thou whatever they wou'd have thee do,
And act in ev'ry thing, as they desire,
To all their orders strict obedience show ;
So they no sin, nor any crime, require.

Receive thy father's counsel and reproof -
Receive the Precepts, which he deigns to give -
Receive his discipline, however rough,
And thy instruction at his hand receive.

If dull, if blind, if mad, if full of fire
And fierce impatience - if to dotage gone,
Pity thy aged mother and thy sire,
And bear their frailties, as a duteous son.

Shou'd they e'er fall to poverty and need,
And not have means enough to find them bread,
With kind indulgence the old couple feed;
As thee they, in thy helpless childhood, fed.

Take thou example from the stork, that feeds
His sire, when old, and to him succour brings,
Righting his nest, and fetching what he needs,
Or fost'ring him, when weak, beneath his wings.

Do thou a lesson from the dolphins draw,
Which help their parents, when by age o'erpow'rd,
And guard them, when they're weak, with filial awe,
Lest they by other fish shou'd be devour'd.

It is a shame the sons of men shou'd be
Worse than the rav'nous flutt'rers of the air ;
Nay, worse than e'en the fishes of the sea,
To those, to whom, for life, in debt they are.

If thou art, by thy rank or office, great -
However high thy callings, don't neglect,
(Though they be mean, and of a low estate)
To give thy parents honour and respect.

Though Joseph, at his pleasure, Egypt sway'd,
And Jacob by the famine, then, was press'd,
Yet to his father he due honour paid,
Howe'er impov'rish'd, and howe'er distress'd.

Though Solomon, then, wore the Jewish crown,
And sat in state above the vassal crowd,
Yet from his throne he oft descended down,
And to his mother in obeysance bow'd.

Though Christ was God as well as man, and high'r
Than all our race, and all in worth outweigh'd;
Yet, to his mother and reputed sire,
He proper honour and obedience paid.

Though thou wert made a duke, thou still art bound
To give thy parents, howe'er poor, respect ;
And though in wealth thou vastly shou'd abound,
Thou must not them, on that account, neglect.

Thy father is thy father still, tho' poor,
And thou his son, although a lord or squire:
Whilst thou'rt a son, and it is in thy pow'r,
God ties thee down to help thy humble sire.

When in thy infancy thou scarce coud'st move,
And hadst not meat nor drink, nor warm array ;
What then preserv'd thee, but thy mother's love?
Such obligations, how canst thou repay?

Long in her womb th' uneasy load she bore,
And with her blood nine months sustain'd thee there,
Then calm'd thy hunger with her breasts sweet store;
Canst thou enough reward her for such care?

Full many a night, when sick, she kindly tri'd
To ease thy pain, although her sleep she lost,
And, when without that care thou must have di'd,
Still in her arms, 'till day-light, gently tost.

Thy parents therefore filially revere,
For the vast love they unto thee express'd:
The weight of penury ne'er let them bear,
Whilst thou'rt alive, and with a penny bless'd.

For the respect, the honour, clothes, and meat,
Thou giv'st thy hoary sire in his distress,
Thy son shall thee with equal justice treat,
When palsi'd age thy powers shall oppress.

Shou'dst thou e'er for thy father's bed presume
To lay a hair-cloth coverlet, thy son
Shall keep the same in some cold outer-room
For thee, before thy death, to lie upon.

The usage thou dost give thy sire, when old,
Shall be return'd to thee, if thou shalt live;
His grandson shall requite, as I've been told,
The scanty measure thou to him didst give.

Be therefore to thy aged parents free,
Be good, be kind, be dutiful, and give
To them whate'er they can expect from thee,
That in thy turn thou may'st the like receive.

Never clandestinely, like Esau, wed,
E'er their consent thy parents freely give:
God never blesses such a marriage-bed;
Or 'tis a chance if it shou'd ever thrive.

With disrespect their counsels ne'er requite,
Nor with irreverance their checks repay,
Nor ever undervalue them, nor slight ;
But earnestly for their amendment pray.

Thy father's curse, lest thou incur, take heed,
It ne'er departed from Cham's sooty race:
For Noah's curse still cleaves unto the breed;
You see it still in ev'ry negro's face.

Because his sire he offer'd to despise,
A grievous stain upon Cham's offspring came;
In their black skins it still deep rooted lies,
And nothing can eradicate the same.

Absalom, though most beautiful and young,
Was, to his aged sire, and king, unkind:
God therefore in an oak the rebel hung,
Whence by his hair he dangled in the wind.

Then to thy parents shew all due regard,
Assist them both, when they assistance need;
So God shall thee with length of days reward,
Where-ever thou may'st chuse thy life to lead!