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Gay hope is theirs by fancy fed, Less pleasing when possest; The tear forgot as soon as shed, The sunshine of the breast.

Gay hope is theirs by fancy fed, Less pleasing when possest; The tear forgot as soon as shed, The sunshine of the breast.

Approximate author period: c. 1743 AD · early modern

Meaning not yet available

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Attribution & collection notes
Author or tradition
Thomas Gray
Attribution: attributed
Country attributed
Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin.
Historical period
Approximate author period: c. 1743 AD · early modern
author lifetime midpoint
An author lifetime, approximate period or collection date is not necessarily the date when these words were first written or spoken.
Recorded source
Familiar Quotations, ninth edition (1905 printing) (1905 AD)

On a Distant Prospect of Eton College. Stanza 5.

A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.