To Thomas Stanley, On His Lyric Poems

________________________________________________
Title:     To Thomas Stanley, On His Lyric Poems
Author: Richard Lovelace [More Titles by Lovelace]

TO MY NOBLE KINSMAN THOMAS STANLEY,<1> ESQ.
ON HIS LYRICK POEMS COMPOSED
BY MR. JOHN GAMBLE.<2>

I.

What means this stately tablature,
The ballance of thy streins,
Which seems, in stead of sifting pure,
T' extend and rack thy veins?
Thy Odes first their own harmony did break:
For singing, troth, is but in tune to speak.

II.

Nor trus<3> thy golden feet and wings.
It may<4> be thought false melody<5>
T' ascend to heav'n by silver strings;
This is Urania's heraldry.
Thy royal poem now we may extol,
As<6> truly Luna blazon'd upon Sol.

III.

As when Amphion first did call
Each listning stone from's den;
And with his<7> lute did form the<8> wall,
But with his words the men;
So in your twisted numbers now you thus
Not only stocks perswade, but ravish us.

IV.

Thus do your ayrs eccho ore
The notes and anthems of the sphaeres,
And their whole consort back restore,
As if earth too would blesse Heav'ns ears;
But yet the spoaks, by which they scal'd so high,
Gamble hath wisely laid of UT RE MI.

Notes:

<1> Thomas Stanley, Esq., author of the HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY, and an elegant poet and translator, v. SUPRA.

Lovelace wrote these lines for AYRES AND DIALOGUES. TO BE SUNG TO THE THEORBO, LUTE, OR BASE-VIOLL: By John Gamble, London, Printed by William Godbid for the Author, 1656. folio. [The words are by Stanley.]

<2> "Wood, in his account of this person, vol. i. col. 285, conjectures that many of the songs in the above collection (Gamble's AYRES, &c. 1659), were written by the learned Thomas Stanley, Esq., author of the HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY, and seemingly with good reason, for they resemble, in the conciseness and elegant turn of them, those poems of his printed in 1651, containing translations from Anacreon, Bion, Moschus and others."--Hawkins.

<3> LUCASTA and AYRES AND DIALOGUES read THUS, which leaves no meaning in this passage.

<4> Old editions have MAY IT.

<5> Harmonie--AYRES AND DIALOGUES, &c.

<6> Original reads AND, and so also the AYRES AND DIALOGUES.

<7> Old editions have THE.

<8> So the AYRES AND DIALOGUES. LUCASTA has HIS.

P. 249. UT RE MI.

See LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST, 1598, iv. 3:--
"Hol. Old Mantuan! Old Mantuan! who understandeth thee not,
loves thee not--UT, RE, SOL, la, mi, FA"----

And Singer's SHAKESPEARE, ed. 1856, ii. 257, NOTE 15.

[The end]
Richard Lovelace's poem: To Thomas Stanley, On His Lyric Poems

________________________________________________



GO TO TOP OF SCREEN