Things Do Come Round
Above the leafless hazzle-wrideThe wind-drove rain did quickly vall,An' on the meaeple's ribby zideDid hang the rain-drops quiv'ren ball;Out where the brook o' foamy yollowRoll'd along the meaed's deep hollow,An' noo birds wer out to beaet,Wi' flappen wings, the vleen wetO' zunless clouds on flow'rless ground.How time do bring the seasons round!
The moss, a-beaet vrom trees, did lieUpon the ground in ashen droves,An' western wind did huffle high,Above the sheds' quick-drippen oves.An' where the ruslen straw did soundSo dry, a-shelter'd in the lew,I staied alwone, an' weather-bound,An' thought on times, long years agoo,Wi' water-floods on flow'rless ground.How time do bring the seasons round!
We then, in childhood play, did seemIn work o' men to teaeke a peaert,A-dreven on our wild bwoy team,Or lwoaden o' the tiny cart.Or, on our little refters, spreadThe zedgen ruf above our head,But coulden tell, as now we can,Where each would goo to tweil a man.O jays a-lost, an' jays a-vound,How Providence do bring things round!
Where woonce along the sky o' blueThe zun went roun' his longsome bow,An' brighten'd, to my soul, the viewAbout our little farm below.There I did play the merry geaeme,Wi' childern ev'ry holitide,But coulden tell the vaice or neaemeThat time would vind to be my bride.O hwome a-left, O wife a-vound,How Providence do bring things round!
An' when I took my manhood's pleaece,A husband to a wife's true vow,I never thought by neaeme or feaeceO' childern that be round me now.An' now they all do grow vrom small,Drough life's feaeir sheaepes to big an' tall,I still be blind to God's good plan,To pleaece em out as wife, or man.O thread o' love by God unwound,How He in time do bring things round;
Words in this poem
- drove n.
- A collection of cattle driven, or cattle collected for driving; a number of animals, as oxen, sheep, or swine, driven in a body. [AS. draf, fr. drifan to drive. See Drive.]
- ashen a.
- Of or pertaining to the ash tree. [See Ash, the tree.]
- childhood n.
- The state of being a child; the time in which persons are children; the condition or time from infancy to puberty. [AS. cildhad; cild child + -had. See Child, and hood.]
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- longsome a.
- Extended in length; tiresome. Bp. Hall. Prior. [AS. langsum.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Things Do Come Round 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, Things Do Come Round, in Poems of Rural Life in the Dorset Dialect (1844–1862), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #21785, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/barnes-dorset/things-do-come-round.html, id L02328.
Form and metre
Things Do Come Round is 50 lines in 5 stanzas of 10 lines each. The commonest rhyme scheme is ABABCCDDEE, in 2 of the 5 stanzas; the rest vary or could not be confirmed. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%). 96% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.0 syllables. 1 line ends on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 24% 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-A-BB--CC wrideA · vall · zideA · ball · yollowB · hollowB · beaet · wet · groundC · roundC
- 2 A-A-B-B-BB lieA · droves · highA · oves · soundB · lew · boundB · agoo · groundB · roundB
- 3 ABABCCDDEE seemA · peaertB · teamA · cartB · spreadC · headC · canD · manD · voundE · roundE
- 4 ABABCDCDEE blueA · bowB · viewA · belowB · geaemeC · holitideD · neaemeC · brideD · voundE · roundE
- 5 ABABCCDDEE pleaeceA · vowB · feaeceA · nowB · smallC · tallC · planD · manD · unwoundE · roundE
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Above the leafless hazzle-wride | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| The wind-drove rain did quickly vall, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| An' on the meaeple's ribby zide | 7 | ······· |
| Did hang the rain-drops quiv'ren ball; | 8 | ········ |
| Out where the brook o' foamy yollow | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| Roll'd along the meaed's deep hollow, | 8 | ·˘/···/˘ |
| An' noo birds wer out to beaet, | 7 | ······· |
| Wi' flappen wings, the vleen wet | 7 | ······· |
| O' zunless clouds on flow'rless ground. | 8 | ········ |
| How time do bring the seasons round! | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The moss, a-beaet vrom trees, did lie | 8 | ········ |
| Upon the ground in ashen droves, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| An' western wind did huffle high, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Above the sheds' quick-drippen oves. | 8 | ········ |
| An' where the ruslen straw did sound | 8 | ········ |
| So dry, a-shelter'd in the lew, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| I staied alwone, an' weather-bound, | 9 | ·/˘···/˘· |
| An' thought on times, long years agoo, | 8 | ········ |
| Wi' water-floods on flow'rless ground. | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| How time do bring the seasons round! | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| We then, in childhood play, did seem | 8 | ···/···· |
| In work o' men to teaeke a peaert, | 8 | ········ |
| A-dreven on our wild bwoy team, | 8 | ····/··· |
| Or lwoaden o' the tiny cart. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Or, on our little refters, spread | 8 | ··//˘··· |
| The zedgen ruf above our head, | 8 | ······/· |
| But coulden tell, as now we can, | 8 | ········ |
| Where each would goo to tweil a man. | 8 | ········ |
| O jays a-lost, an' jays a-vound, | 8 | ········ |
| How Providence do bring things round! | 8 | ·/˘˘···· |
| Where woonce along the sky o' blue | 8 | ··˘/···· |
| The zun went roun' his longsome bow, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| An' brighten'd, to my soul, the view | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| About our little farm below. | 8 | ··//˘··· |
| There I did play the merry geaeme, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Wi' childern ev'ry holitide, | 8 | ········ |
| But coulden tell the vaice or neaeme | 8 | ········ |
| That time would vind to be my bride. | 8 | ········ |
| O hwome a-left, O wife a-vound, | 8 | ········ |
| How Providence do bring things round! | 8 | ·/˘˘···· |
| An' when I took my manhood's pleaece, | 8 | ·····/·· |
| A husband to a wife's true vow, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| I never thought by neaeme or feaece | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| O' childern that be round me now. | 8 | ········ |
| An' now they all do grow vrom small, | 8 | ········ |
| Drough life's feaeir sheaepes to big an' tall, | 8 | ········ |
| I still be blind to God's good plan, | 8 | ········ |
| To pleaece em out as wife, or man. | 8 | ········ |
| O thread o' love by God unwound, | 8 | ······˘/ |
| How He in time do bring things round; | 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.