"Now stir the fire, and close the shutters fast,Let fall the curtains, wheel the sofa round,And, while the bubbling and loud hissing urnThrows up a steamy column and the cupsThat cheer but not inebriate, wait on each,So let us welcome peaceful ev'ning in."
William Cowper was an English poet and hymn writer widely read in the late 18th century. His works, including The Task and his Olney Hymns collaboration, influenced later English nature and devotional poetry.