'Lines On Mr. Benjn. Danford’s portrait painted by Matt.
Haughton.
See a brave hardy veteran portray’d
to your view,
Whose hearts like the coats of his
regiment true blue !
Who for full forty years brav’d the
perils of war
Without losing a limb or receiving a
scar,
When shipmates and friends found a watery grave,
Who hath often encounter’d the
boisterous wave,
Who midst his brave comrades
disdaining to yield,
Hath as often brav’d death on the
dangerous field.
Though but poorly requited for
services so hard,
May his country yet grateful confer
its reward!
And long may he live social hearty
and free
Belov’d by his friends many years yet
to see!
And when cruel fate shall his vital
thread sever,
He shall live in our tender
remembrance for ever,
And whilst his pale day lies beneath
the green sod,
May his soul find repose in the arms
of his God!'
Provenance: Purchased form The Hayhurst Collection in 2016.
Note: Little is known of Benjamin Danford, though clearly he had a distinguished naval career. The National Archives contain a 1787 record of a naval purser with that name. Haughton studied at the Royal Academy Schools in 1790. He moved to Liverpool in the 1790s and became a protégé of William Roscoe (1753 -1831). His father was Moses Haughton the elder (1735-1804), a miniature and portrait painter (National Museums Liverpool).
