The Do'Set Militia
Hurrah! my lads, vor Do'set men!A-muster'd here in red ageaen;All welcome to your ranks, a-spreadUp zide to zide, to stand, or wheel,An' welcome to your files, to headThe steady march wi' tooe to heel;Welcome to marches slow or quick!Welcome to gath'rens thin or thick;God speed the Colonel on the hill,An' Mrs Bingham, off o' drill.
When you've a-handled well your lock,An' flung about your rifle stockVrom han' to shoulder, up an' down;When you've a-lwoaded an' a-vired,Till you do come back into town,Wi' all your loppen limbs a-tired,An you be dry an' burnen hot,Why here's your tea an' coffee potAt Mister Greenen's penny till,Wi' Mrs Bingham off o' drill.
Last year John Hinley's mother cried,"Why my bwoy John is quite my pride!Vor he've a-been so good to-year,An' han't a-mell'd wi' any squabbles,An' han't a-drown'd his wits in beer,An' han't a-been in any hobbles.I never thought he'd turn out bad,He always wer so good a lad;But now I'm sure he's better still,Drough Mrs Bingham, off o' drill."
Jeaene Hart, that's Joey Duntley's chaice,Do praise en up wi' her sweet vaice,Vor he's so strait's a hollyhock(Vew hollyhocks be up so tall),An' he do come so true's the clockTo Mrs Bingham's coffee-stall;An' Jeaene do write, an' brag o' JoeTo teaeke the young recruits in tow,An' try, vor all their good, to bring em,A-come from drill, to Mrs Bingham.
God speed the Colonel, toppen high,An' officers wi' sworded thigh,An' all the sargeants that do bawlAll day enough to split their droats,An' all the corporals, and allThe band a-playen up their notes,An' all the men vrom vur an' nearWe'll gi'e em all a hearty cheer.An' then another cheeren stillVor Mrs Bingham, off o' drill.
Words in this poem
- hurrah interj.
- A word used as a shout of joy, triumph, applause, encouragement, or welcome. [Cf. G., Dan., & Sw. hurra. Cf. Huzza.]
- mister n.
- A trade, art, or occupation. [OF. mistier trade, office, ministry, need, F. métier trade, fr. L. ministerium service, office, ministry. See Ministry, Mystery trade.]
- hollyhock n.
- A species of Althæa (A. rosea), bearing flowers of various colors; -- called also rose mallow. [OE. holihoc; holi holy + hoc mallow, AS. hoc; cf. W. hocys mallows, hocys bendigaid hollyhock, lit., blessed mallow. Prob. so named because brought from the Hol]
- sworded a.
- Girded with a sword. [Cf. AS. geswurdod.]
- bawl v. i.
- To cry out with a loud, full sound; to cry with vehemence, as in calling or exultation; to shout; to vociferate. [Icel. baula to low, bellow, as a cow; akin to Sw. böla; cf. AS bellan, G. bellen to bark, E. bellow, bull.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Do'Set Militia 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, The Do'Set Militia, in Poems of Rural Life in the Dorset Dialect (1844–1862), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #21785, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/barnes-dorset/the-do-set-militia.html, id L02344.
Form and metre
The Do'Set Militia is 50 lines in 5 stanzas of 10 lines each. The rhyme scheme is AABCBCDDEE, complete in 4 of its 5 stanzas. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%). 98% 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. 22% 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 men · ageaen · spreadA · wheelB · headA · heelB · quickC · thickC · hillD · drillD
- 2 AABCBCDDEE lockA · stockA · downB · viredC · townB · tiredC · hotD · potD · tillE · drillE
- 3 AABCBCDDEE criedA · prideA · yearB · squabblesC · beerB · hobblesC · badD · ladD · stillE · drillE
- 4 AABCBCDDEE chaiceA · vaiceA · hollyhockB · tallC · clockB · stallC · joeD · towD · emE · binghamE
- 5 AABCBCDDEE highA · thighA · bawlB · droatsC · allB · notesC · nearD · cheerD · stillE · drillE
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Hurrah! my lads, vor Do'set men! | 9 | ˘/······· |
| A-muster'd here in red ageaen; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| All welcome to your ranks, a-spread | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Up zide to zide, to stand, or wheel, | 8 | ········ |
| An' welcome to your files, to head | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| The steady march wi' tooe to heel; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Welcome to marches slow or quick! | 8 | /˘·/˘··· |
| Welcome to gath'rens thin or thick; | 8 | /˘······ |
| God speed the Colonel on the hill, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| An' Mrs Bingham, off o' drill. | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| When you've a-handled well your lock, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| An' flung about your rifle stock | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Vrom han' to shoulder, up an' down; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| When you've a-lwoaded an' a-vired, | 8 | ········ |
| Till you do come back into town, | 8 | ········ |
| Wi' all your loppen limbs a-tired, | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| An you be dry an' burnen hot, | 8 | ········ |
| Why here's your tea an' coffee pot | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| At Mister Greenen's penny till, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Wi' Mrs Bingham off o' drill. | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| Last year John Hinley's mother cried, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| "Why my bwoy John is quite my pride! | 8 | ········ |
| Vor he've a-been so good to-year, | 8 | ········ |
| An' han't a-mell'd wi' any squabbles, | 9 | ·····/˘/˘ |
| An' han't a-drown'd his wits in beer, | 8 | ········ |
| An' han't a-been in any hobbles. | 9 | ·····/˘/˘ |
| I never thought he'd turn out bad, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| He always wer so good a lad; | 8 | ·/······ |
| But now I'm sure he's better still, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Drough Mrs Bingham, off o' drill." | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| Jeaene Hart, that's Joey Duntley's chaice, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Do praise en up wi' her sweet vaice, | 8 | ········ |
| Vor he's so strait's a hollyhock | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| (Vew hollyhocks be up so tall), | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| An' he do come so true's the clock | 8 | ········ |
| To Mrs Bingham's coffee-stall; | 8 | ·/˘/˘/˘· |
| An' Jeaene do write, an' brag o' Joe | 8 | ········ |
| To teaeke the young recruits in tow, | 8 | ····˘/·· |
| An' try, vor all their good, to bring em, | 9 | ········· |
| A-come from drill, to Mrs Bingham. | 9 | ·····/˘/˘ |
| God speed the Colonel, toppen high, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| An' officers wi' sworded thigh, | 8 | ·/˘˘·/˘· |
| An' all the sargeants that do bawl | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| All day enough to split their droats, | 8 | ··˘/···· |
| An' all the corporals, and all | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| The band a-playen up their notes, | 7 | ······· |
| An' all the men vrom vur an' near | 8 | ········ |
| We'll gi'e em all a hearty cheer. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| An' then another cheeren still | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| Vor Mrs Bingham, off o' drill. | 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.