Thamasis's Advice TO THE PAINTER, FROM HER FRIGID ZONE: OR WONDERS upon the WATER.
FAm'd
Thamasis, with shiv'ring
Winter Dresses,
With
Isicles, and other
borrow'd Tresses,
And on her
Head a
Periwig of
Snow,
And
freezed Mantle fring'd with
Ice below,
Out of her
watry Bed, amaz'd appears,
And thus the
Current of her
Language stears.
Spread a
large Canvas, Painter, to contain
The
strange surprising Sights, the
numerous Train,
That all about my
Back do
walk or
sit,
Of
all Degrees, some
Sage, some wanting
wit,
For
Crouds of
People hither do
retire,
As to
Moor-fields, after the
dreadful Fire,
Threatning the
City to depopulate
As once before it was unfortunate.
Then draw the
King, who on his
Leads doth stay,
To see the
Throng, as on a
Lord Mayors day,
And thus unto his
Nobles pleas'd to say;
With these
Men on this
Ice, I'de undertake,
To cause the
Turk all
Europe to forsake:
An Army of these
Men, arm'd and compleat,
Would soon the
Turk in
Christendom defeat.
Then draw me
Temple-Blanket-street, where all
The
Water-men do loudly cry and baul,
Louder than
Lawyers in
Western-hall.
Instead of standing at the
stairs to
ply,
They say,
What is't you lack, what is't you buy?
And whilst the
Rooks do tell an
heavy Tale,
And curse the
Frost, they cry,
Good Beer and Ale,
Coffee or Mum or Wine, the heart to chear,
Roast Beef, or Mutton boil'd, or Brandy clear.
There all variety of things abound,
Only
green Pease and
Cherries, they are rare,
As
Guin
[...]ys in a
Poets Pocket are.
Here you may buy a
Diamond Ring for nought,
Such as from
India ne'er was brought;
(The
Cuts were
Diamond, the
Substance, Ice,
Which in
Mens Pockets vanish'd in a trice:
But for his
Cheat, the
Man will pay full dear,
Condemned by my
Lord to
Whipping Chear.)
Then
Paint
[...]r let us to the
Print-house go,
Where
Men the
Art of Printing soon do know;
Where, for a
Teaster, you may have your
Name
Printed, hereaf
[...]er for to show the same;
And sure in
former Ages ne'er was found,
A
Press to
print, where Men so oft were dround.
N
[...]xt, notice of the
various motions take,
Some bold as
Hector, some for fear do quake,
One slides, one slips, and one downright doth fall
Into an
Hole, the
Skuller then doth baul,
What will you rob my
Cellar of its
drink?
W
[...]en he, alas,
poor man, no harm
doth think:
There
Chariots fly, there
Coaches run on wheels,
And
men (out-tipling
[...]f the
[...]ishes) reels,
And often up doth go the
Womans heels,
And something, to remember what she saw, she f
[...]e
[...]
The
Water-men as busie are as
Bees,
Or as some
Welch men cramming
toasted Cheese.
Instead of
Waves that us'd to beat the shore,
There
Bears and
Bull, loudly now do roar.
There
Boats do sl
[...]de, where
Boats were wont to row;
Where
Ships did sail, the
Water-men them tow.
All things do move upon this
Element,
As if on
Terra fer
[...]a their feet went.
Hard times the good and righteous
God hath sent,
For our more hardned hearts, as punishment;
From
Heav'n thi
[...]
Scourge is sent us for our pride;
We're plagu'd with
Ice, because we do backslide
The only way these things for to redress,
Is that each one his
Sins to
God confess;
L
[...]t every one sweep clean and neat his door,
And let our hearts be softned to the
Poor.
Honour the
King, and all your
Neighbours love,
And then the
Heav'ns these
Judgments will remove.