Epitaph to a Dog
Near this Spot
are deposited the Remains of one
Who possessed Beauty without Vanity,
Strength without Insolence,
Courage without Ferocity,
And all the virtues of Man without his Vices.
This praise, which would be unmeaning Flattery
If inscribed over human Ashes,
Is but a just tribute to the Memory of
Boatswain, a Dog,
who was born in Newfoundland May 1803
and died at Newstead, Nov. 18th, 1808.