The Milk-Maid’s Life
YOU rural goddesses,That woods and fields possess,Assist me with your skill, that may direct my quill,More jocundly to express,The mirth and delight, both morning and night,On mountain or in dale,Of them who choose this trade to use,And, through cold dews, do never refuseTo carry the milking-pail.
The bravest lasses gay,Live not so merry as they;In honest civil sort they make each other sport,As they trudge on their way;Come fair or foul weather, they’re fearful of neither,Their courages never quail.In wet and dry, though winds be high,And dark’s the sky, they ne’er denyTo carry the milking-pail.
Their hearts are free from care,They never will despair;Whatever them befal, they bravely bear out all,And fortune’s frowns outdare.They pleasantly sing to welcome the spring,’Gainst heaven they never rail;If grass well grow, their thanks they show,And, frost or snow, they merrily goAlong with the milking-pail:
Base idleness they do scorn,They rise very early i’ th’ morn,And walk into the field, where pretty birds do yieldBrave music on every thorn.The linnet and thrush do sing on each bush,And the dulcet nightingaleHer note doth strain, by jocund vein,To entertain that worthy train,Which carry the milking-pail.
Their labour doth health preserve,No doctor’s rules they observe,While others too nice in taking their advice,Look always as though they would starve.Their meat is digested, they ne’er are molested,No sickness doth them assail;Their time is spent in merriment,While limbs are lent, they are content,To carry the milking-pail.
Upon the first of May,With garlands, fresh and gay,With mirth and music sweet, for such a season meet,They pass the time away.They dance away sorrow, and all the day thoroughTheir legs do never fail,For they nimbly their feet do ply,And bravely try the victory,In honour o’ the milking-pail.
If any think that IDo practise flattery,In seeking thus to raise the merry milkmaids’ praise,I’ll to them thus reply:—It is their desert inviteth my art,To study this pleasant tale;In their defence, whose innocence,And providence, gets honest penceOut of the milking-pail.
Words in this poem
- trudge v. i.
- To walk or march with labor; to jog along; to move wearily. [Perhaps of Scand. origin, and originally meaning, to walk on snowshoes; cf. dial. Sw. truga, trudja, a snowshoe, Norw. truga, Icel. þruga.]
- bravely adv.
- In a brave manner; courageously; gallantly; valiantly; splendidly; nobly.
- outdare v. t.
- To surpass in daring; to overcome by courage; to brave.
- pleasantly adv.
- In a pleasant manner.
- morn n.
- The first part of the day; the morning; -- used chiefly in poetry. [OE. morwen, morgen, AS. morgen; akin to D. morgen, OS. morgan, G. morgen, Icel. morginn, morgunn, Sw. morgon, Dan. morgen, Goth. maúrgins. Cf. Morrow, Morning.]
- dulcet a.
- Sweet to the taste; luscious. [OF. doucet, dim. of dous sweet, F. doux, L. dulcis; akin to Gr. Doucet.]
- jocund
- Merry; cheerful; gay; airy; lively; sportive. [L. jocundus, jucundus, orig., helpful, fr. juvare to help. See Aid.]
- honour n.
- Esteem due or paid to worth; high estimation; respect; consideration; reverence; veneration; manifestation of respect or reverence. [OE. honor, honour, onour, onur, OF. honor, onor, honur, onur, honour, onour, F. honneur, fr. L. honor, honos.]
- defence n.
- The act of defending, or the state of being defended; protection, as from violence or danger. [F. défense, OF. defense, fem., defens, masc., fr. L. defensa (cf. Fence.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Milk-Maid’s Life is in the public domain. This text is taken from Ancient Poems, Ballads, and Songs of the Peasantry of England, Project Gutenberg ebook #649; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Robert Bell, The Milk-Maid’s Life, in Ancient Poems, Ballads and Songs of the Peasantry of England (1857), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #649, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/bell-ancient-poems/the-milk-maid-s-life.html, id L11995.
Form and metre
The Milk-Maid’s Life is 63 lines in 7 stanzas of 9 lines each. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 82%). 86% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.0 syllables. 10 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 13% 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-BCCB goddesses · possessA · quill · expressA · night · daleB · useC · refuseC · pailB
- 2 AA-A-BCCB gayA · theyA · sport · wayA · neither · quailB · highC · denyC · pailB
- 3 AA-A-BCCB careA · despairA · all · outdareA · spring · railB · showC · goC · pailB
- 4 AA-A-BCCB scornA · mornA · yield · thornA · bush · nightingaleB · veinC · trainC · pailB
- 5 AA---BCCB preserveA · observeA · advice · starve · molested · assailB · merrimentC · contentC · pailB
- 6 AA-A-B--B mayA · gayA · meet · awayA · thorough · failB · ply · victory · pailB
- 7 A--A-BCCB iA · flattery · praise · replyA · art · taleB · innocenceC · penceC · pailB
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 |
|---|---|---|
| YOU rural goddesses, | 6 | ·/˘/˘˘ |
| That woods and fields possess, | 6 | ····˘/ |
| Assist me with your skill, that may direct my quill, | 12 | ˘/······˘/·· |
| More jocundly to express, | 7 | ·····˘/ |
| The mirth and delight, both morning and night, | 10 | ···˘/·/˘·· |
| On mountain or in dale, | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| Of them who choose this trade to use, | 8 | ········ |
| And, through cold dews, do never refuse | 8 | ·····/˘/ |
| To carry the milking-pail. | 7 | ·/˘·/˘· |
| The bravest lasses gay, | 6 | ·/˘/˘· |
| Live not so merry as they; | 7 | ···/˘·· |
| In honest civil sort they make each other sport, | 12 | ·/˘/˘····/˘· |
| As they trudge on their way; | 6 | ······ |
| Come fair or foul weather, they’re fearful of neither, | 12 | ····/˘·/˘·/˘ |
| Their courages never quail. | 7 | ·/˘˘/˘· |
| In wet and dry, though winds be high, | 8 | ········ |
| And dark’s the sky, they ne’er deny | 8 | ······˘/ |
| To carry the milking-pail. | 7 | ·/˘·/˘· |
| Their hearts are free from care, | 6 | ······ |
| They never will despair; | 6 | ·/˘·˘/ |
| Whatever them befal, they bravely bear out all, | 12 | ·/˘····/˘··· |
| And fortune’s frowns outdare. | 6 | ·/˘·˘/ |
| They pleasantly sing to welcome the spring, | 9 | ·/˘··/˘·· |
| ’Gainst heaven they never rail; | 7 | ·/˘·/˘· |
| If grass well grow, their thanks they show, | 8 | ········ |
| And, frost or snow, they merrily go | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Along with the milking-pail: | 7 | ˘/··/˘· |
| Base idleness they do scorn, | 7 | ·/˘˘··· |
| They rise very early i’ th’ morn, | 8 | ··/˘/˘·· |
| And walk into the field, where pretty birds do yield | 12 | ·······/˘··· |
| Brave music on every thorn. | 8 | ·/˘·/˘˘· |
| The linnet and thrush do sing on each bush, | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| And the dulcet nightingale | 7 | ··/˘/˘˘ |
| Her note doth strain, by jocund vein, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| To entertain that worthy train, | 8 | ··˘/·/˘· |
| Which carry the milking-pail. | 7 | ·/˘·/˘· |
| Their labour doth health preserve, | 7 | ·/···˘/ |
| No doctor’s rules they observe, | 7 | ·/˘··˘/ |
| While others too nice in taking their advice, | 11 | ·/˘···/˘·˘/ |
| Look always as though they would starve. | 8 | ·/······ |
| Their meat is digested, they ne’er are molested, | 12 | ···/·˘···˘/˘ |
| No sickness doth them assail; | 7 | ·/˘··˘/ |
| Their time is spent in merriment, | 8 | ·····/˘˘ |
| While limbs are lent, they are content, | 8 | ······/˘ |
| To carry the milking-pail. | 7 | ·/˘·/˘· |
| Upon the first of May, | 6 | ······ |
| With garlands, fresh and gay, | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| With mirth and music sweet, for such a season meet, | 12 | ···/˘····/˘· |
| They pass the time away. | 6 | ····˘/ |
| They dance away sorrow, and all the day thorough | 12 | ··˘//˘····/˘ |
| Their legs do never fail, | 6 | ···/˘· |
| For they nimbly their feet do ply, | 8 | ··/˘···· |
| And bravely try the victory, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘˘ |
| In honour o’ the milking-pail. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| If any think that I | 6 | ·/˘··· |
| Do practise flattery, | 6 | ·/˘/˘˘ |
| In seeking thus to raise the merry milkmaids’ praise, | 12 | ·/˘····/˘··· |
| I’ll to them thus reply:— | 6 | ····˘/ |
| It is their desert inviteth my art, | 10 | ···˘/˘/˘·· |
| To study this pleasant tale; | 7 | ·/˘·/˘· |
| In their defence, whose innocence, | 8 | ··˘/·/˘˘ |
| And providence, gets honest pence | 8 | ·/˘˘·/˘· |
| Out of the milking-pail. | 6 | ···/˘· |
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.