WESTWOOD's Beads from a Rosary
Little Ellie sits alone'Mid the beeches of a meadow,By a stream-side on the grass,And the trees are showering downDoubles of their leaves in shadowOn her shining hair and face.
She has thrown her bonnet by,And her feet she has been dippingIn the shallow water's flow:Now she holds them nakedlyIn her hands, all sleek and dripping,While she rocketh to and fro.
Little Ellie sits alone,And the smile she softly usesFills the silence like a speechWhile she thinks what shall be done,And the sweetest pleasure choosesFor her future within reach.
Little Ellie in her smileChooses--"I will have a loverRiding on a steed of steeds:He shall love me without guile,And to him I will discoverThe swan's nest among the reeds.
"And the steed shall be red-roan,And the lover shall be noble,With an eye that takes the breath:And the lute he plays uponShall strike ladies into trouble,As his sword strikes men to death.
"And the steed it shall be shodAll in silver, housed in azure,And the mane shall swim the wind;And the hoofs along the sodShall flash onward and keep measure,Till the shepherds look behind.
"But my lover will not prizeAll the glory that he rides in,When he gazes in my face:He will say, 'O Love, thine eyesBuild the shrine my soul abides in,And I kneel here for thy grace!'
"Then, ay, then he shall kneel low,With the red-roan steed anear himWhich shall seem to understand,Till I answer, 'Rise and go!For the world must love and fear himWhom I gift with heart and hand.'
"Then he will arise so pale,I shall feel my own lips trembleWith a yes I must not say,Nathless maiden-brave, 'Farewell,'I will utter, and dissemble--'Light to-morrow with to-day!'
"Then he'll ride among the hillsTo the wide world past the river,There to put away all wrong;To make straight distorted wills,And to empty the broad quiverWhich the wicked bear along.
"Three times shall a young foot-pageSwim the stream and climb the mountainAnd kneel down beside my feet--'Lo, my master sends this gage,Lady, for thy pity's counting!What wilt thou exchange for it?'
"And the first time I will sendA white rosebud for a guerdon,And the second time, a glove;But the third time--I may bendFrom my pride, and answer--'PardonIf he comes to take my love.'
"Then the young foot-page will run,Then my lover will ride faster,Till he kneeleth at my knee:'I am a duke's eldest son,Thousand serfs do call me master,But, O Love, I love but thee!'
"He will kiss me on the mouthThen, and lead me as a loverThrough the crowds that praise his deeds;And, when soul-tied by one troth,Unto him I will discoverThat swan's nest among the reeds."
Little Ellie, with her smileNot yet ended, rose up gaily,Tied the bonnet, donned the shoe,And went homeward, round a mile,Just to see, as she did daily,What more eggs were with the two.
Pushing through the elm-tree copse,Winding up the stream, light-hearted,Where the osier pathway leads,Past the boughs she stoops--and stops.Lo, the wild swan had deserted,And a rat had gnawed the reeds!
Ellie went home sad and slow.If she found the lover ever,With his red-roan steed of steeds,Sooth I know not; but I knowShe could never show him--never,That swan's nest among the reeds!
Words in this poem 18
- nakedly adv.
- In a naked manner; without covering or disguise; manifestly; simply; barely.
- dripping n.
- A falling in drops, or the sound so made.
- 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,]
- steed n.
- A horse, especially a spirited horse for state of war; -- used chiefly in poetry or stately prose. [OE. stede, AS. steda a stud-horse, war horse, fr. stod a stud of breeding steeds; akin to G. stute a mare, Icel. stedda, sto, a stud. *163. See Stud of horses.]
- discover v. i.
- To discover or show one's self.
- kneel v. i.
- To bend the knee; to fall or rest on the knees; -- sometimes with down. [OE. knelen, cneolien; akin to D. knielen, Dan. knæle. See Knee.]
- anear v. t.
- To near; to approach.
- nathless adv.
- Nevertheless. Chaucer. Milton. E. Arnold. [OE. natheles, na the les, not the less, AS. na never. See Na, The, conj., and cf. Nevertheless.]
- dissemble v. t.
- To hide under a false semblance or seeming; to feign (something) not to be what it really is; to put an untrue appearance upon; to disguise; to mask. [OF. dissembler to be dissimilar; pref. dis- (L. dis-) + F. sembler to seem, L. simulare to simulate; cf. L. dissimulare to dissemble. See Simulate, and cf. Diss]
- rosebud n.
- The flower of a rose before it opens, or when but partially open.
- guerdon n.
- A reward; requital; recompense; -- used in both a good and a bad sense. [OF. guerdon, guerredon, LL. widerdonum (influenced by L. donum gift, cf. Donation ), fr. OHG. widarl; widar again, against (G. wider wieder) + lon reward, G. lo]
- troth n.
- Belief; faith; fidelity. [A variant of truth. See Truth.]
- gaily adv.
- Merrily; showily. See gaily. [From Gay.]
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- homeward a.
- Being in the direction of home; as, the homeward way.
- copse n.
- A wood of small growth; a thicket of brushwood. See Coppice. [Contr. from coppice.]
- pathway n.
- A footpath; a beaten track; any path or course. Also used figuratively.
- sooth a.
- True; faithful; trustworthy. [OE. soth, AS. s, for san; akin to OS. s, OHG. sand, Icel. sannr, Sw. sann, Dan. sand, Skr. sat, sant, real, genuine, present, being; properly p. pr. from a root]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
WESTWOOD's Beads from a Rosary is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poetical Works of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Volume 2, Project Gutenberg ebook #33363; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Elizabeth Barrett Browning, WESTWOOD's Beads from a Rosary, in Lady Geraldine's Courtship, and Other Poems (1844), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #33363, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/barrett-browning-poems-2/westwood-s-beads-from-a-rosary.html, id L24820.
Form and metre
WESTWOOD's Beads from a Rosary is 102 lines in 17 stanzas of 6 lines each. The commonest rhyme scheme is ABCABC, in 7 of the 17 stanzas; the rest vary or could not be confirmed. The metre is trochaic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%).
See other poems in trochaic 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- alone · meadowA · grass · down · shadowA · face
- 2 -AB-AB by · dippingA · flowB · nakedly · drippingA · froB
- 3 -AB-AB alone · usesA · speechB · done · choosesA · reachB
- 4 ABCABC smileA · loverB · steedsC · guileA · discoverB · reedsC
- 5 --A--A roan · noble · breathA · upon · trouble · deathA
- 6 A-BA-B shodA · azure · windB · sodA · measure · behindB
- 7 ABCABC prizeA · inB · faceC · eyesA · inB · graceC
- 8 ABCABC lowA · himB · understandC · goA · himB · handC
- 9 AABAAB paleA · trembleA · sayB · farewellA · dissembleA · dayB
- 10 ABCABC hillsA · riverB · wrongC · willsA · quiverB · alongC
- 11 A--A-- pageA · mountain · feet · gageA · counting · it
- 12 A-BA-B sendA · guerdon · gloveB · bendA · pardon · loveB
- 13 ABCABC runA · fasterB · kneeC · sonA · masterB · theeC
- 14 -AB-AB mouth · loverA · deedsB · troth · discoverA · reedsB
- 15 ABCABC smileA · gailyB · shoeC · mileA · dailyB · twoC
- 16 A-BA-B copseA · hearted · leadsB · stopsA · deserted · reedsB
- 17 ABCABC slowA · everB · steedsC · knowA · neverB · reedsC
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 trochaic tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Little Ellie sits alone | 7 | /˘/˘·˘/ |
| 'Mid the beeches of a meadow, | 8 | ··/˘··/· |
| By a stream-side on the grass, | 7 | ······· |
| And the trees are showering down | 7 | ····/˘· |
| Doubles of their leaves in shadow | 8 | /˘····/· |
| On her shining hair and face. | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| She has thrown her bonnet by, | 7 | ····/˘· |
| And her feet she has been dipping | 8 | ······/˘ |
| In the shallow water's flow: | 7 | ··/˘/˘· |
| Now she holds them nakedly | 7 | ····/˘˘ |
| In her hands, all sleek and dripping, | 8 | ······/˘ |
| While she rocketh to and fro. | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| Little Ellie sits alone, | 7 | /˘/˘·˘/ |
| And the smile she softly uses | 8 | ····/˘/˘ |
| Fills the silence like a speech | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| While she thinks what shall be done, | 7 | ······· |
| And the sweetest pleasure chooses | 8 | ··/˘/˘/˘ |
| For her future within reach. | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| Little Ellie in her smile | 7 | /˘/˘··· |
| Chooses--"I will have a lover | 8 | /˘····/˘ |
| Riding on a steed of steeds: | 7 | /˘····· |
| He shall love me without guile, | 7 | ······· |
| And to him I will discover | 8 | ·····˘/˘ |
| The swan's nest among the reeds. | 7 | ······· |
| "And the steed shall be red-roan, | 7 | ······· |
| And the lover shall be noble, | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| With an eye that takes the breath: | 7 | ······· |
| And the lute he plays upon | 7 | ······· |
| Shall strike ladies into trouble, | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| As his sword strikes men to death. | 7 | ······· |
| "And the steed it shall be shod | 7 | ······· |
| All in silver, housed in azure, | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| And the mane shall swim the wind; | 7 | ······· |
| And the hoofs along the sod | 7 | ···˘/·· |
| Shall flash onward and keep measure, | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| Till the shepherds look behind. | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| "But my lover will not prize | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| All the glory that he rides in, | 8 | ··/˘···· |
| When he gazes in my face: | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| He will say, 'O Love, thine eyes | 7 | ······· |
| Build the shrine my soul abides in, | 8 | ·····˘/· |
| And I kneel here for thy grace!' | 7 | ······· |
| "Then, ay, then he shall kneel low, | 7 | ······· |
| With the red-roan steed anear him | 8 | ·····˘/· |
| Which shall seem to understand, | 7 | ·····˘/ |
| Till I answer, 'Rise and go! | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| For the world must love and fear him | 8 | ········ |
| Whom I gift with heart and hand.' | 7 | ······· |
| "Then he will arise so pale, | 7 | ···˘/·· |
| I shall feel my own lips tremble | 8 | ······/˘ |
| With a yes I must not say, | 7 | ······· |
| Nathless maiden-brave, 'Farewell,' | 7 | /˘/˘··/ |
| I will utter, and dissemble-- | 8 | ··/˘·˘/˘ |
| 'Light to-morrow with to-day!' | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| "Then he'll ride among the hills | 7 | ······· |
| To the wide world past the river, | 8 | ······/˘ |
| There to put away all wrong; | 7 | ···˘/·· |
| To make straight distorted wills, | 7 | ···˘/˘· |
| And to empty the broad quiver | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| Which the wicked bear along. | 7 | ··/˘·˘/ |
| "Three times shall a young foot-page | 7 | ······· |
| Swim the stream and climb the mountain | 8 | ······/˘ |
| And kneel down beside my feet-- | 7 | ···˘/·· |
| 'Lo, my master sends this gage, | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| Lady, for thy pity's counting! | 8 | /˘··/˘/˘ |
| What wilt thou exchange for it?' | 7 | ···˘/·· |
| "And the first time I will send | 7 | ······· |
| A white rosebud for a guerdon, | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| And the second time, a glove; | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| But the third time--I may bend | 7 | ······· |
| From my pride, and answer--'Pardon | 8 | ····/˘/˘ |
| If he comes to take my love.' | 7 | ······· |
| "Then the young foot-page will run, | 7 | ······· |
| Then my lover will ride faster, | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| Till he kneeleth at my knee: | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| 'I am a duke's eldest son, | 7 | ····/˘· |
| Thousand serfs do call me master, | 8 | /˘····/˘ |
| But, O Love, I love but thee!' | 7 | ······· |
| "He will kiss me on the mouth | 7 | ······· |
| Then, and lead me as a lover | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Through the crowds that praise his deeds; | 7 | ······· |
| And, when soul-tied by one troth, | 7 | ······· |
| Unto him I will discover | 8 | ·····˘/˘ |
| That swan's nest among the reeds." | 7 | ······· |
| Little Ellie, with her smile | 7 | /˘/˘··· |
| Not yet ended, rose up gaily, | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| Tied the bonnet, donned the shoe, | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| And went homeward, round a mile, | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| Just to see, as she did daily, | 8 | ······/˘ |
| What more eggs were with the two. | 7 | ······· |
| Pushing through the elm-tree copse, | 7 | /˘····· |
| Winding up the stream, light-hearted, | 8 | /˘····/˘ |
| Where the osier pathway leads, | 7 | ··/˘/·· |
| Past the boughs she stoops--and stops. | 7 | ······· |
| Lo, the wild swan had deserted, | 8 | ·····˘/˘ |
| And a rat had gnawed the reeds! | 7 | ······· |
| Ellie went home sad and slow. | 7 | /˘····· |
| If she found the lover ever, | 8 | ····/˘/˘ |
| With his red-roan steed of steeds, | 7 | ······· |
| Sooth I know not; but I know | 7 | ······· |
| She could never show him--never, | 8 | ··/˘··/˘ |
| That swan's nest among the reeds! | 7 | ······· |
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.