Henry Howard 23 July 2020

     [Study of Holbein's] (Henry Howard,                  Earl of Surrey no date)


(My) '...achievement small
In scale and flawed...' I'm
'...merely a
Man who served,'
     -I contrived to show
     -Court bard broadside, through
     -Pains, travails,
     -Attaining;
A 'literary
Personality'
Whose pen's work
Was 'distinct,'
     -Is still in print, as
     -Mercenary ken
     -Moves pieces
     -By default;
Faint praise when charged as
Borrower of text
In Latin
Translation,
     -'Neither borrower
     -Nor lender be,' traced
     -Lines patterned
     -Depiction;
'Many things tasting
Of a noble mind,'
Sir P. S.
Tongued the block,
     -Too 'tender aged,' lodged
     -Predilection when
     -Ranked, Chaucer,
     -Spenser, you;
Insurrectionist's
Vocabulary,
'Words, words, words,'
Formation,
     -Illustrator's stirred
     -Incubus foments
     -Primary
     -Canvasses;
'Victorious his
Lance, matchless his pen,'
Geraldine
Bird laments,
     -'Perchance to dream' that
     -Prick-tease heralded
     -Scholarly
     -Renewal;
'Windsor, wherein seems
Lust and joy did tread,
Pleasant dreams,
Quiet bed,'
     -Tendrils extracted
     -Of boy's foolery,
     -Bachelor's
     -Bowery;
'We have fought and chased
In active games, rein
Nimble braced,
We did strain,'
     -I have lain, encased
     -In cornstalks, food brought,
     -Left in peace
     -My gamble;
'No secrets forborn,
Or promise unkept,
Friendship sworn
Where trust leapt,'
     -Lawrence's pencil,
     -Adept in kinship's
     -Fist, garnered
     -Likenesses;
'Blood forsakes my guise,
Where is my fere, whom
Woes freed, lies,
Plaints entomb,'
     -Boxer's torso, knee,
     -Pubic plaits festooned
     -Conformist
     -Forbearance;
'I see that things pitched
Not as outward poke,
Wrapped in stitched,
Crafty cloak,'
     -Courtier Lawrence
     -Engaged attentions
     -To flesh out
     -Dramatic;
'Garments to clothe your
Naked man suffice
To lecture
Clad in vice,'
     -Moth furred armature
     -Swept from sedulous
     -Heads fixed by
     -Taskmaster;
'By princely acts I
Strove to make endure,
Houses high
Set my cure,'
     -Royalty's mister
     -Courted credentials
     -To stave off
     -Creditors;
'An heir unaligned
Shall reap fruits I sow,
Goods resigned,
Title crow,'
     -Each peer survived suits
     -Lifetime succession,
     -Lucrative
     -Patronage;
'My soul offended
With griefs of follies,
Bells mended,
Scourged mollies,'
     -Myself confounded
     -By correspondence,
     -Lads spread out
     -Spelling paint;
'Burdened dissolute
At the Lord's behest,
'Til refute
Viper's nest,'
     -Chastened, compulsive
     -Paper procurer,
     -Cotton limned
     -Where flesh foiled;
'When sudden storms heave
Falsehoods to assail,
Crosswinds reave,
Safe ports fail,'
     -Where leaden forearms
     -Paused, bettors wagered
     -Appointments
     -Steep decline;
'These newly risen
Men would by their will
Unchristen
Chosen krill,'
     -European tour
     -Unfastened vaults of
     -Luminous
     -Collections;
'Scarce hath seed formed man
When death leads to earth,
Branch's span
Lopped from birth,'
     -Five decades ceded
     -Level planche to prop
     -An easel,
     -Fresh soled shoes;
'My glass presents me
A determined breast,
Thrawldom free
Planted rest,'
     -My craft predestined
     -A life's dependence
     -Composing
     -Eminence.

23 July 2020