Childern's Childern
Oh! if my ling'ren life should run,Drough years a-reckoned ten by ten,Below the never-tiren zun,Till beaebes ageaen be wives an' men;An' stillest deafness should ha' boundMy ears, at last, vrom ev'ry sound;Though still my eyes in that sweet light,Should have the zight o' sky an' ground:Would then my steaeteIn time so leaete,Be jay or pain, be pain or jay?
When Zunday then, a-weaenen dim,As theaese that now's a-clwosen still,Mid lose the zun's down-zinken rim,In light behind the vier-bound hill;An' when the bells' last peal's a-rung,An' I mid zee the wold an' youngA-vlocken by, but shoulden hear,However near, a voot or tongue:Mid zuch a zight,In that soft lightBe jay or pain, be pain or jay.
If I should zee among em all,In merry youth, a-gliden by,My son's bwold son, a-grown man-tall,Or daughter's daughter, woman-high;An' she mid smile wi' your good feaece,Or she mid walk your comely peaece,But seem, although a-chatten loud,So dumb's a cloud, in that bright pleaece:Would youth so feaeir,A-passen there,Be jay or pain, be pain or jay.
'Tis seldom strangth or comelinessDo leaeve us long. The house do showMen's sons wi' mwore, as they ha' less,An' daughters brisk, vor mothers slow.A dawn do clear the night's dim sky,Woone star do zink, an' woone goo high,An' liven gifts o' youth do vall,Vrom girt to small, but never die:An' should I view,What God mid do,Wi' jay or pain, wi' pain or jay?
Words in this poem
- deafness n.
- Incapacity of perceiving sounds; the state of the organs which prevents the impression which constitute hearing; want of the sense of hearing.
- rung n.
- A floor timber in a ship. [OE. ronge, AS. hrung, a staff, rod, pole; akin to G. runge a short, thick piece of iron or wood, OD. ronghe a prop, support, Icel. röng a rib in a ship, Goth. H]
- wold n.
- A wood; a forest. [OE. wold, wald, AS. weald, wald, a wood, forest; akin to OFries. & OS. wald, D. woud, G. wald, Icel. völlr, a field, and probably to Gr. va a garden, inclosure.]
- girt v. t.
- To gird; to encircle; to invest by means of a girdle; to measure the girth of; as, to girt a tree. [From Girt, n., cf. Girth, v.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Childern's Childern is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems of Rural Life in the Dorset Dialect, Project Gutenberg ebook #21785; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: William Barnes, Childern's Childern, in Poems of Rural Life in the Dorset Dialect (1844–1862), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #21785, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/barnes-dorset/childern-s-childern.html, id L02277.
Form and metre
Childern's Childern is 44 lines in 4 stanzas of 11 lines each. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%). 100% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 7.3 syllables. 1 line ends on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 14% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic tetrameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 -A-ABB-BCC- run · tenA · zun · menA · boundB · soundB · light · groundB · steaeteC · leaeteC · jay
- 2 ABABCC-CDD- dimA · stillB · rimA · hillB · rungC · youngC · hear · tongueC · zightD · lightD · jay
- 3 ABABCC-C--- allA · byB · tallA · highB · feaeceC · peaeceC · loud · pleaeceC · feaeir · there · jay
- 4 ABABCC-CDD- comelinessA · showB · lessA · slowB · skyC · highC · vall · dieC · viewD · doD · jay
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Oh! if my ling'ren life should run, | 8 | ········ |
| Drough years a-reckoned ten by ten, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Below the never-tiren zun, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Till beaebes ageaen be wives an' men; | 8 | ········ |
| An' stillest deafness should ha' bound | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| My ears, at last, vrom ev'ry sound; | 8 | ········ |
| Though still my eyes in that sweet light, | 8 | ········ |
| Should have the zight o' sky an' ground: | 8 | ········ |
| Would then my steaete | 4 | ···· |
| In time so leaete, | 4 | ···· |
| Be jay or pain, be pain or jay? | 8 | ········ |
| When Zunday then, a-weaenen dim, | 8 | ········ |
| As theaese that now's a-clwosen still, | 8 | ········ |
| Mid lose the zun's down-zinken rim, | 8 | ········ |
| In light behind the vier-bound hill; | 8 | ········ |
| An' when the bells' last peal's a-rung, | 8 | ········ |
| An' I mid zee the wold an' young | 8 | ········ |
| A-vlocken by, but shoulden hear, | 8 | ········ |
| However near, a voot or tongue: | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Mid zuch a zight, | 4 | ···· |
| In that soft light | 4 | ···· |
| Be jay or pain, be pain or jay. | 8 | ········ |
| If I should zee among em all, | 8 | ········ |
| In merry youth, a-gliden by, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| My son's bwold son, a-grown man-tall, | 8 | ········ |
| Or daughter's daughter, woman-high; | 8 | ·/˘/˘/˘· |
| An' she mid smile wi' your good feaece, | 8 | ········ |
| Or she mid walk your comely peaece, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| But seem, although a-chatten loud, | 8 | ········ |
| So dumb's a cloud, in that bright pleaece: | 8 | ········ |
| Would youth so feaeir, | 4 | ···· |
| A-passen there, | 4 | ···· |
| Be jay or pain, be pain or jay. | 8 | ········ |
| 'Tis seldom strangth or comeliness | 8 | ·/˘··/˘˘ |
| Do leaeve us long. The house do show | 8 | ········ |
| Men's sons wi' mwore, as they ha' less, | 8 | ········ |
| An' daughters brisk, vor mothers slow. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| A dawn do clear the night's dim sky, | 8 | ········ |
| Woone star do zink, an' woone goo high, | 8 | ········ |
| An' liven gifts o' youth do vall, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Vrom girt to small, but never die: | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| An' should I view, | 4 | ···· |
| What God mid do, | 4 | ···· |
| Wi' jay or pain, wi' pain or jay? | 8 | ········ |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.