Grammer A-Crippled
"The zunny copse ha' birds to zing,The leaeze ha' cows to low,The elem trees ha' rooks on wing,The meaeds a brook to flow,But I can walk noo mwore, to passThe drashel out abrode,To wear a path in theaese year's grassOr tread the wheelworn road,"Cried Grammer, "then adieu,O runnen brooks,An' vleen rooks,I can't come out to you.If 'tis God's will, why then 'tis well,That I should bide 'ithin a wall."
An' then the childern, wild wi' fun,An' loud wi' jayvul sounds,Sprung in an' cried, "We had a run,A-playen heaere an' hounds;But oh! the cowslips where we stoptIn Maycreech, on the knap!"An' vrom their little han's each droptSome cowslips in her lap.Cried Grammer, "Only zee!I can't teaeke strolls,An' little soulsWould bring the vields to me.Since 'tis God's will, an' mus' be wellThat I should bide 'ithin a wall."
"Oh! there be prison walls to holdThe han's o' lawless crimes,An' there be walls arear'd vor woldAn' zick in tryen times;But oh! though low mid slant my ruf,Though hard my lot mid be,Though dry mid come my daily lwoaf,Mid mercy leaeve me free!"Cried Grammer, "Or adieuTo jay; O grounds,An' bird's gay soundsIf I mus' gi'e up you,Although 'tis well, in God's good will,That I should bide 'ithin a wall."
"Oh! then," we answer'd, "never fret,If we shall be a-blest,We'll work vull hard drough het an' wetTo keep your heart at rest:To woaken chair's vor you to vill,For you shall glow the coal,An' when the win' do whissle sh'illWe'll screen it vrom your poll."Cried Grammer, "God is true.I can't but feelHe smote to healMy wounded heart in you;An' zoo 'tis well, if 'tis His will,That I be here 'ithin a wall."
Words in this poem
- copse n.
- A wood of small growth; a thicket of brushwood. See Coppice. [Contr. from coppice.]
- bide v. i.
- To dwell; to inhabit; to abide; to stay. [OE. biden, AS. bidan; akin to OHG. bitan, Goth. beidan, Icel. bi; perh. orig., to wait with trust, and akin to bid. See Bid, v. t., and cf. Abide.]
- knap v. t.
- To bite; to bite off; to break short. [D. knappen to chew, bite, crack, take hold of; prob. of imitative origin.]
- 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.]
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
- vill n.
- A small collection of houses; a village. [OF. ville, vile, a village, F. ville a town, city. See Villa.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Grammer A-Crippled 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, Grammer A-Crippled, in Poems of Rural Life in the Dorset Dialect (1844–1862), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #21785, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/barnes-dorset/grammer-a-crippled.html, id L02267.
Form and metre
Grammer A-Crippled is 56 lines in 4 stanzas of 14 lines each. This poem did not settle on a metre of its own; the book it comes from is in iambic tetrameter. 100% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 6.5 syllables. 25% 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 ABABCDCDEFFE-- zingA · lowB · wingA · flowB · passC · abrodeD · grassC · roadD · adieuE · brooksF · rooksF · youE · well · wall
- 2 ABABC-C-DEED-- funA · soundsB · runA · houndsB · stoptC · knap · droptC · lap · zeeD · strollsE · soulsE · meD · well · wall
- 3 ABAB-C-CDEED-- holdA · crimesB · woldA · timesB · ruf · beC · lwoaf · freeC · adieuD · groundsE · soundsE · youD · will · wall
- 4 ABABCDCDEFFEC- fretA · blestB · wetA · restB · villC · coalD · sh'illC · pollD · trueE · feelF · healF · youE · willC · wall
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 |
|---|---|---|
| "The zunny copse ha' birds to zing, | 8 | ········ |
| The leaeze ha' cows to low, | 6 | ······ |
| The elem trees ha' rooks on wing, | 8 | ········ |
| The meaeds a brook to flow, | 6 | ······ |
| But I can walk noo mwore, to pass | 8 | ········ |
| The drashel out abrode, | 6 | ······ |
| To wear a path in theaese year's grass | 8 | ········ |
| Or tread the wheelworn road," | 6 | ···/˘· |
| Cried Grammer, "then adieu, | 6 | ·/˘·˘/ |
| O runnen brooks, | 4 | ···· |
| An' vleen rooks, | 3 | ··· |
| I can't come out to you. | 6 | ······ |
| If 'tis God's will, why then 'tis well, | 8 | ········ |
| That I should bide 'ithin a wall." | 8 | ········ |
| An' then the childern, wild wi' fun, | 8 | ········ |
| An' loud wi' jayvul sounds, | 6 | ······ |
| Sprung in an' cried, "We had a run, | 8 | ········ |
| A-playen heaere an' hounds; | 5 | ····· |
| But oh! the cowslips where we stopt | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| In Maycreech, on the knap!" | 6 | ······ |
| An' vrom their little han's each dropt | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Some cowslips in her lap. | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| Cried Grammer, "Only zee! | 6 | ·/˘/˘· |
| I can't teaeke strolls, | 4 | ···· |
| An' little souls | 4 | ·/˘· |
| Would bring the vields to me. | 6 | ······ |
| Since 'tis God's will, an' mus' be well | 8 | ········ |
| That I should bide 'ithin a wall." | 8 | ········ |
| "Oh! there be prison walls to hold | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| The han's o' lawless crimes, | 6 | ···/˘· |
| An' there be walls arear'd vor wold | 8 | ········ |
| An' zick in tryen times; | 5 | ····· |
| But oh! though low mid slant my ruf, | 8 | ········ |
| Though hard my lot mid be, | 6 | ······ |
| Though dry mid come my daily lwoaf, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Mid mercy leaeve me free!" | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| Cried Grammer, "Or adieu | 6 | ·/˘·˘/ |
| To jay; O grounds, | 4 | ···· |
| An' bird's gay sounds | 4 | ···· |
| If I mus' gi'e up you, | 6 | ······ |
| Although 'tis well, in God's good will, | 8 | ········ |
| That I should bide 'ithin a wall." | 8 | ········ |
| "Oh! then," we answer'd, "never fret, | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| If we shall be a-blest, | 6 | ······ |
| We'll work vull hard drough het an' wet | 8 | ········ |
| To keep your heart at rest: | 6 | ······ |
| To woaken chair's vor you to vill, | 8 | ········ |
| For you shall glow the coal, | 6 | ······ |
| An' when the win' do whissle sh'ill | 8 | ········ |
| We'll screen it vrom your poll." | 6 | ······ |
| Cried Grammer, "God is true. | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| I can't but feel | 4 | ···· |
| He smote to heal | 4 | ···· |
| My wounded heart in you; | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| An' zoo 'tis well, if 'tis His will, | 8 | ········ |
| That I be here 'ithin a wall." | 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.