Upon Sight of LONDONS Stately New Buildings,
Anno Domini, MDCLXXII.
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The FIRST PART,
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Admiring it as a WONDER.
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1. O Thrice Illustrious Famous City LONDON,
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What Tongue can say that e're thou yet wert undon!
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Or who can think thou ever so shalt be,
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Since Fire, which All Consumes, Increaseth Thee.
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2. Inferiour unto None, before thou wert,
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But now the Glory of the World thou art:
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Thou far transcends that Phoenix which of old
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In Antient Stories to us have been told.
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3. Who when the Revolution of her time
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Is come, She Burns to Ashes: But in Prime
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Again to Admiration she Revives,
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And in her wonted State again she Lives.
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4. Which seems a Miracle unto the Eyes
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Of all the Studious, Learned, and the Wise:
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And unto those who oft have heard 'tis so,
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Yet know not whether it be True or No.
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5. But this strange wonder which thou shew'st is such
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As cannot well be wondred at too much:
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I for my part, so often as I view
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Thy vast incomparable Buildings New,
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6. Do stand agast to think thereon, and say,
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To work thy Ruin, sure Fire's not the way:
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Fire only as with Gold it works with Thee,
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In purging forth thy Dross doth Clarifie.
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The SECOND PART,
Supposing it might be Fir'd by TREACHERY.
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1. BEhold ye impious Fiery Brands of Hell,
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Who with your Grand-sire Lucifer do dwell,
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And put in practice his Foul Hellish Trade
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By Fier-Plots! With Fire you'll All be paid.
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2. Though little you do dream of such a thing,
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Your Sin's a Crying Sin, and will it bring,
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In th' end assuredly, to your Dire Cost:
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Behold, I say, how all your Labour's lost!
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3. What you intended for our woe to be,
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Is turned otherwise, (our Joy) you see:
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Our Glory, and our great Renown is seen,
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Which otherwise perhaps had not yet been.
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4. Go, go ye Envious Dolts; go learn more Wit,
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Improve your Folly; make some use of it:
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(Who of necessity a Virtue makes,
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Deserves due Praise, for that good course he takes.)
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5. I'le put you in a way what you shall do,
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Go set a Fire on ROME and PARIS too;
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And all your old Built Towns; go Burn them down,
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That they may be Rebuilt like LONDON Town.
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6. If all your Wit, and Skill, and Art can do it,
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(And I believe you'l stretch your Brains unto't:)
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O then brave Boyes, perchance you'll seem to be!
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Yet still
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Rich LONDON cryes, Vail Bonnet unto Me.
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An Advertisement to the Reader,
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or rather Singer.
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WHo is desir'd to take notice, That the
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MUSICK Ayre (for Quantities and
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Humour is chiefly naturalliz'd to Accord with the
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First Staff of the Ballad; yet so consider'd upon in
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the Formality, that it may tollerably well suit with
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the whole: However, it begs the favour of the
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understanding Performer to help it a little in certain
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places; viz the First Note of the Treble would some-
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times be made a Quaver as in the beginning of the
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Second Staff, Thus,
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In--fe-riour, etc.
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Likewise the Last Note and Word of the Fifth Staff
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would be made a Quaver, and so suddainly proceed
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to the Sixth Staff with a Quaver again: Also the
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First Staff of the Second Part would be altered
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thus with an odd Note,
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Be--hold ye im-pious, etc.
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As by good consideration will be thought very ne-
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cessary: For 'tis impossible that an Ayre should be
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so contriv'd, as to agree exactly in proper Life and
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Humour to every word of so many several Staves
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as here are. Let this little hint suffice for all, only,
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pray Sing the whole Song over very slowly, and
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make your Pauses properly in all places; And
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because there are added two Feet to the Last Line
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of the Ballad, alter the conclusion, Thus,
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Yet still Rich London cries, Vail Bonnet un---to me.
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The Ayre with its Thorough-Bass.
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O Thrice Illustrious Famous Ci---ty LONDON,
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what Tongue can say that e're thou yet wert undon!
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Or who can think thou ever so shalt be,
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since Fire which All Consumes, Increaseth Thee?
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