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<DATE>2012-12-07</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Mona Logarbo</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
</RESPSTMT>
<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B120912.pdcc.</ITEM>
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<EEBO>
<IDG S="marc" R="UM" ID="B03509">
<STC T="W">G1671</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99886934</BIBNO>
<VID>181484</VID>
</IDG>
<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>Great BRITAINS WONDER: OR, LONDONS Admiration.</P>
<P>Being a True Repre&s;entation of a Prodigious <HI>FROST,</HI> which began about the beginning of <HI>Decemb.</HI> 1683. and continued till the Fourth Day of <HI>February</HI> following. And held on with &s;uch violence, that Men and Bea&s;ts, Coaches and Carts, went as frequently thereon, as Boats were wont to pa&s;s before.</P>
<P>There was al&s;o a Street of Booths built from the <HI>Temple</HI> to <HI>Southwark,</HI> where were Sold all &s;orts of Goods imaginable, namely, Cloaths, Plate, Earthen Ware; Meat, Drink, Brandy, Tobacco, and a Hundred &s;orts of other Commodities not here in&s;erted. It being the Wonder of this pre&s;ent Age, and a great con&s;ternation to all the Spectators.</P>
<P><FIGURE>
<FIGDESC>depiction of the 1683 frost fair on the Thames</FIGDESC>
<HEAD>Arundel Hou&s;e. E&s;&s;ex-Buildings. The Temple.</HEAD>
</FIGURE></P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="poem">
<PB REF="2" MS="y">
<L>BEhold the Wonder of this pre&s;ent Age,</L>
<L>A Famous <HI>RIVER</HI> now become a Stage.</L>
<L>Que&s;tion not what I now declare to you,</L>
<L>The <HI>Thames</HI> is now both <HI>Fair</HI> and <HI>Market</HI> too,</L>
<L>And many Thou&s;ands dayly do re&s;ort,</L>
<L>There to behold the Pa&s;time and the Sport</L>
<L>Early and late, u&s;ed by young and old,</L>
<L>And valu'd not the fiercene&s;s of the Cold;</L>
<L>And did not think of that Almighty Hand</L>
<L>Who made the Waters bare, like to the Land:</L>
<L>Thou&s;ands and Thou&s;ands to the River flocks,</L>
<L>Where mighty flakes of Ice do lye like Rocks.</L>
<L>There may you &s;ee the <HI>Coaches</HI> &s;wiftly run,</L>
<L>As if beneath the Ice were Waters none;</L>
<L>And &s;holes of People every where there be,</L>
<L>Ju&s;t like to Herrings in the bracki&s;h Sea;</L>
<L>And there the quaking Water-men will &s;tand ye,</L>
<L>Kind Ma&s;ter, drink you Beer, or Ale, or Brandy:</L>
<L>Walk in, kind Sir, this Booth it is the chief,</L>
<L>We'l entertain you with a &s;lice of Beef,</L>
<L>And what you plea&s;e to Eat or Drink, 'tis here,</L>
<L>No Booth, like mine, affords &s;uch dainty cheer.</L>
<L>Another crys, Here Ma&s;ter, they but &s;coff ye,</L>
<L>Here is a Di&s;h of famous new-made Coffee.</L>
<L>And &s;ome do &s;ay, a giddy &s;en&s;ele&s;s A&s;s</L>
<L>May on the <HI>THAMES</HI> be furni&s;h'd with a La&s;s.</L>
<L>But to be &s;hort, &s;uch Wonders there are &s;een,</L>
<L>That in this Age before hath never been.</L>
<L>Before the <HI>Temple</HI> there a Street is made,</L>
<L>And there is one almo&s;t of every Trade:</L>
<L>There may you al&s;o this hard Fro&s;ty Winter,</L>
<L>See on the Rocky Ice a Working-<HI>PRINTER,</HI></L>
<L>Who hopes by his own Art to reap &s;ome gain,</L>
<L>Which he perchance does think he may obtain.</L>
<L>Here is al&s;o a Lottery and Mu&s;ick too,</L>
<L>Yea, a cheating, drunken, leud, and <HI>debauch'd crew.</HI></L>
<L>Hot Codlins, Pancakes, Duck, Goo&s;e, and Sack,</L>
<L>Rabit, Capon, Hen, Turkey, and a wooden Jack.</L>
<L>In this &s;ame Street before the <HI>Temple</HI> made,</L>
<L>There &s;eems to be a brisk and lively Trade:</L>
<L>Where e'ry Booth hath &s;uch a cunning Sign,</L>
<L>As &s;eldome hath been &s;een in former time;</L>
<L>The <HI>Flying Pi&s;s-pot</HI> is one of the &s;ame,</L>
<L>The <HI>Whip</HI> and <HI>Egg-&s;hell,</HI> and the <HI>Broom</HI> by name:</L>
<L>And there if you have Money for to &s;pend,</L>
<L>Each cunning Snap will &s;eem to be your Friend.</L>
<L>There may you &s;ee &s;mall Ve&s;&s;els under Sail,</L>
<L>All's one to them, with or again&s;t the Gale,</L>
<L>And as they pa&s;s they little Guns do fire,</L>
<L>Which feedeth &s;ome, and puffs them with de&s;ire</L>
<L>To &s;ail therein, and when their Money's gone,</L>
<L>'Tis right, they cry, the <HI>Thames</HI> to come upon.</L>
<L>There on a Sign you may mo&s;t plainly &s;ee't,</L>
<L><HI>Here's the fir&s;t Tavern built in</HI> Freezeland-&s;treet:</L>
<L>There is Bull-baiting and Bear-baiting too,</L>
<L>That no Man living yet e're found &s;o true;</L>
<L>And Foot-Ball play is there &s;o common grown,</L>
<L>That on the <HI>Thames</HI> before was never known;</L>
<L>Coals being dear, are carry'd on Mens backs,</L>
<L>And &s;ome on Sledges there are drawn in Sacks;</L>
<L>Men do on Hor&s;e-back ride from &s;hore to &s;hore,</L>
<L>Which formerly in Boats were wafted o're:</L>
<L>Poor people hard &s;hifts make for livelihoods,</L>
<L>And happy are if they can &s;ell their Goods;</L>
<L>What you can buy for Three-pence on the &s;hore,</L>
<L>Will co&s;t you Four-pence on the <HI>Thames,</HI> or more.</L>
<L>Now let me come to things more &s;trange, yet true,</L>
<L>And que&s;tion not what I declare to you;</L>
<L>There Roa&s;ted was a great and well-fed Oxe,</L>
<L>And there, with Dogs, Hunted the cunning Fox;</L>
<L>Dancing o'th' Ropes, and Puppit-<HI>plays</HI> likewi&s;e,</L>
<L>The like before ue'r &s;een beneath the Skies;</L>
<L>All &s;tand admir'd, and very well they may,</L>
<L>To &s;ee &s;uch pa&s;times, and &s;uch &s;orts of play.</L>
<L>Be&s;ides the things I nam'd to you before,</L>
<L>There other Toys and Baubles are great &s;tore;</L>
<L>There may you fea&s;t your wandring eyes enough,</L>
<L>There you may buy a Box to hold your Snuff:</L>
<L>No Fair nor Market underneath the Skies</L>
<L>That can afford you more Varieties;</L>
<L>There may you &s;ee &s;ome hundreds &s;lide in Skeets,</L>
<L>And beaten paths like to the City Streets.</L>
<L>There were <HI>Dutch</HI> Whim&s;ies turned &s;wiftly round,</L>
<L>Fa&s;ter then Hor&s;es run on level Ground:</L>
<L>The like to this I now to you do tell,</L>
<L>No former Age could ever parallel;</L>
<L>There's all that can &s;upply mo&s;t curious minds,</L>
<L>With &s;uch Varieties of cunning Signs,</L>
<L>That I do think no Man doth under&s;tand,</L>
<L>Such merry Fancies ne'r were on the Land;</L>
<L>There is &s;uch Whim&s;ies on the Frozen Ice,</L>
<L>Makes &s;ome believe the <HI>Thames</HI> a Paradice.</L>
<L>And though the&s;e &s;ights be to our admiration,</L>
<L>Yet our &s;ins, our &s;ins, do call for lamentation.</L>
<L>Though &s;uch unu&s;ual Fro&s;ts to us are &s;trange,</L>
<L>Perhaps it may predict &s;ome greater Change;</L>
<L>And &s;ome do fear may a fore-runner be</L>
<L>Of an approaching &s;ad Mortality:</L>
<L>But why &s;hould we to &s;uch belief incline?</L>
<L>There's none that knows but the ble&s;t pow'r <HI>divine</HI></L>
<L>And what&s;oe're is from <HI>Jehovah</HI> fent,</L>
<L>Poor Sinners ought therewith to be content;</L>
<L>If dreadful, then to fall upon the knee,</L>
<L>And beg remi&s;&s;ion of the DEITY:</L>
<L>But if beyond our thoughts he &s;ends us &s;tore,</L>
<L>With all our hearts let's thankful be therefore.</L>
<L>Now let us all in Great <HI>Jehovah</HI> tru&s;t,</L>
<L>Who doth pre&s;erve the Righteous and the Ju&s;t;</L>
<L>And eke conclude Sin is the cau&s;e of all</L>
<L>The heavy Judgements that on us do fall:</L>
<L>And call to mind; fond Man, thy time mi&s;pent,</L>
<L>Fall on thy knees, and heartily Repent,</L>
<L>Then will thy Saviour pitty take on thee,</L>
<L>And thou &s;halt live to all Eternity.</L>
</DIV1>
<TRAILER>Finis</TRAILER>
</BODY>
<BACK>
<DIV1 TYPE="colophon">
<P><HI>Printed by</HI> M. Haly, <HI>and</HI> J. Millet, <HI>and &s;old by</HI> Robert Walton, <HI>at the</HI> Globe <HI>on the North-&s;ide of</HI> St. Pauls-Church, <HI>near that end towards</HI> Ludgate; <HI>Where you may have all &s;orts and &s;izes o</HI> Coppy-Books, <HI>and</HI> Prints, <HI>not only</HI> Engli&s;h, <HI>but</HI> Italian, French, <HI>and</HI> Dutch. <HI>And by</HI> John Seller <HI>in the We&s;h-&s;ide of the</HI> Royal-Exchange. 1684.</P>
</DIV1>
</BACK>
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