quote · Legacy record
Oars alone can ne'er prevail / To reach the distant coast; / The breath of heav'n must swell the sail, / Or all the toil is lost.
Oars alone can ne'er prevail / To reach the distant coast; / The breath of heav'n must swell the sail, / Or all the toil is lost.
Approximate author period: c. 1765 AD · early modern
Meaning not yet available
An individual explanation has not yet been added. We do not substitute a generic description for an interpretation of these particular words.
Begin with source-checked readings and explanations ↗Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- William Cowper
Attribution: attributed - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Approximate author period: c. 1765 AD · early modern
author lifetime midpoint (1731–1800)
An author lifetime, approximate period or collection date is not necessarily the date when these words were first written or spoken. - Recorded source
- Dictionary of Quotations (1893) (1893 AD)
Printed citation: Cowper. · page_323
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.