My Orcha'd in Linden Lea
'Ithin the woodlands, flow'ry gleaeded,By the woak tree's mossy moot,The sheenen grass-bleaedes, timber-sheaeded,Now do quiver under voot;An' birds do whissle over head,An' water's bubblen in its bed,An' there vor me the apple treeDo leaen down low in Linden Lea.
When leaves that leaetely wer a-springenNow do feaede 'ithin the copse,An' painted birds do hush their zingenUp upon the timber's tops;An' brown-leav'd fruit's a-turnen red,In cloudless zunsheen, over head,Wi' fruit vor me, the apple treeDo leaen down low in Linden Lea.
Let other vo'k meaeke money vasterIn the air o' dark-room'd towns,I don't dread a peevish meaester;Though noo man do heed my frowns,I be free to goo abrode,Or teaeke ageaen my hwomeward roadTo where, vor me, the apple treeDo leaen down low in Linden Lea.
Words in this poem
- moot n.
- A ring for gauging wooden pins.
- copse n.
- A wood of small growth; a thicket of brushwood. See Coppice. [Contr. from coppice.]
- cloudless a.
- Without a cloud; clear; bright.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
My Orcha'd in Linden Lea 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, My Orcha'd in Linden Lea, in Poems of Rural Life in the Dorset Dialect (1844–1862), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #21785, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/barnes-dorset/my-orcha-d-in-linden-lea.html, id L02154.
Form and metre
My Orcha'd in Linden Lea is 24 lines in 3 stanzas of 8 lines each. Every stanza rhymes ABABCCDD. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%). 100% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.0 syllables. 29% 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 ABABCCDD gleaededA · mootB · sheaededA · vootB · headC · bedC · treeD · leaD
- 2 ABABCCDD springenA · copseB · zingenA · topsB · redC · headC · treeD · leaD
- 3 ABABCCDD vasterA · townsB · meaesterA · frownsB · abrodeC · roadC · treeD · leaD
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 'Ithin the woodlands, flow'ry gleaeded, | 9 | ···/····· |
| By the woak tree's mossy moot, | 7 | ····/˘· |
| The sheenen grass-bleaedes, timber-sheaeded, | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| Now do quiver under voot; | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| An' birds do whissle over head, | 8 | ········ |
| An' water's bubblen in its bed, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| An' there vor me the apple tree | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Do leaen down low in Linden Lea. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| When leaves that leaetely wer a-springen | 10 | ·········· |
| Now do feaede 'ithin the copse, | 7 | ······· |
| An' painted birds do hush their zingen | 9 | ·/˘······ |
| Up upon the timber's tops; | 7 | ····/˘· |
| An' brown-leav'd fruit's a-turnen red, | 8 | ········ |
| In cloudless zunsheen, over head, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Wi' fruit vor me, the apple tree | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Do leaen down low in Linden Lea. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Let other vo'k meaeke money vaster | 9 | ·/˘··/˘·· |
| In the air o' dark-room'd towns, | 7 | ······· |
| I don't dread a peevish meaester; | 8 | ····/˘·· |
| Though noo man do heed my frowns, | 7 | ······· |
| I be free to goo abrode, | 7 | ······· |
| Or teaeke ageaen my hwomeward road | 9 | ········· |
| To where, vor me, the apple tree | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Do leaen down low in Linden Lea. | 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.