Grenley Water
The sheaedeless darkness o' the nightCan never blind my mem'ry's zight;An' in the storm, my fancy's eyesCan look upon their own blue skies.The laggen moon mid fail to rise,But when the daylight's blue an' greenBe gone, my fancy's zun do sheenAt hwome at Grenley Water.
As when the work-vo'k us'd to rideIn waggon, by the hedge's zide,Drough evenen sheaedes that trees cast downVrom lofty stems athirt the groun';An' in at house the mug went roun',While ev'ry merry man prais'd upThe pretty maid that vill'd his cup,The maid o' Grenley Water.
There I do seem ageaen to rideThe hosses to the water-zide,An' zee the visher fling his hookBelow the withies by the brook;Or Fanny, wi' her blushen look,Car on her pail, or come to dipWi' ceaereful step, her pitcher's lipDown into Grenley Water.
If I'd a farm wi' vower ploughs,An' vor my deaeiry fifty cows;If Grenley Water winded downDrough two good miles o' my own groun';If half ov Ashknowle Hill wer brownWi' my own corn,--noo growen prideShould ever meaeke me cast azideThe maid o' Grenley Water.
Words in this poem
- sheen v. i.
- To shine; to glisten.
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- vower n.
- One who makes a vow. Bale.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Grenley Water 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, Grenley Water, in Poems of Rural Life in the Dorset Dialect (1844–1862), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #21785, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/barnes-dorset/grenley-water.html, id L02087.
Form and metre
Grenley Water is 32 lines in 4 stanzas of 8 lines each. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 92%). 100% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.1 syllables. 4 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 47% 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 AABBBCC- nightA · zightA · eyesB · skiesB · riseB · greenC · sheenC · water
- 2 AA-BBCC- rideA · zideA · down · grounB · rounB · upC · cupC · water
- 3 AABBBCC- rideA · zideA · hookB · brookB · lookB · dipC · lipC · water
- 4 AAB-BCC- ploughsA · cowsA · downB · groun · brownB · prideC · azideC · water
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 sheaedeless darkness o' the night | 9 | ····/˘··· |
| Can never blind my mem'ry's zight; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| An' in the storm, my fancy's eyes | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Can look upon their own blue skies. | 8 | ········ |
| The laggen moon mid fail to rise, | 8 | ········ |
| But when the daylight's blue an' green | 8 | ···/···· |
| Be gone, my fancy's zun do sheen | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| At hwome at Grenley Water. | 8 | ······/˘ |
| As when the work-vo'k us'd to ride | 8 | ········ |
| In waggon, by the hedge's zide, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Drough evenen sheaedes that trees cast down | 9 | ········· |
| Vrom lofty stems athirt the groun'; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| An' in at house the mug went roun', | 8 | ········ |
| While ev'ry merry man prais'd up | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| The pretty maid that vill'd his cup, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| The maid o' Grenley Water. | 8 | ······/˘ |
| There I do seem ageaen to ride | 8 | ········ |
| The hosses to the water-zide, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| An' zee the visher fling his hook | 8 | ········ |
| Below the withies by the brook; | 7 | ······· |
| Or Fanny, wi' her blushen look, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Car on her pail, or come to dip | 8 | ········ |
| Wi' ceaereful step, her pitcher's lip | 9 | ······/˘· |
| Down into Grenley Water. | 8 | ······/˘ |
| If I'd a farm wi' vower ploughs, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| An' vor my deaeiry fifty cows; | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| If Grenley Water winded down | 9 | ····/˘/˘· |
| Drough two good miles o' my own groun'; | 8 | ········ |
| If half ov Ashknowle Hill wer brown | 9 | ········· |
| Wi' my own corn,--noo growen pride | 8 | ········ |
| Should ever meaeke me cast azide | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| The maid o' Grenley Water. | 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.