Basil and Edward
Man hath with man on earth no holier bondThan that the Muse weaves with her dreamy thread:Nor e'er was such transcendent love more fondThan that which Edward unto Basil led,Wandering alone across the woody shiresTo hear the living voice of that wide heart,To see the eyes that read the world's desires,And touch the hand that wrote the roving rhyme.Diverse their lots as distant were their homes,And since that early meeting, jealous TimeKnitting their loves had held their lives apart.
But now again were these fine lovers metAnd sat together on a rocky hillLooking upon the vales of Somerset,Where the far sea gleam'd o'er the bosky combes,Satisfying their spirits the livelong dayWith various mirth and revelation dueAnd delicate intimacy of delight,As there in happy indolence they layAnd drank the sun, while round the breezy heightBeneath their feet rabbit and listless eweNibbled the scented herb and grass at will.
Much talked they at their ease; and at the lastSpoke Edward thus, ''Twas on this very hillThis time of the year,--but now twelve years are past,--That you provoked in verse my younger skillTo praise the months against your rival song;And ere the sun had westered ten degreesOur rhyme had brought him thro' the Zodiac.Have you remembered?'--Basil answer'd back,'Guest of my solace, how could I forget?Years fly as months that seem'd in youth so long.The precious life that, like indifferent gold,Is disregarded in its worth to holdSome jewel of love that God therein would set,It passeth and is gone.'--'And yet not all,'Edward replied: 'The passion as I pleaseOf that past day I can to-day recall;And if but you, as I, remember yetYour part thereof, and will again rehearse,For half an hour we may old Time outwit.'And Basil said, 'Alas for my poor verse!What happy memory of it still enduresWill thank your love: I have forgotten it.Speak you my stanzas, I will ransom yours.Begin you then as I that day began,And I will follow as your answers ran.'
Words in this poem
- dreamy a.
- Abounding in dreams or given to dreaming; appropriate to, or like, dreams; visionary.
- wrote v. i.
- To root with the snout. See 1st Root. [OE. wroten. See 1st Root.]
- somerset n.
- A leap in which a person turns his heels over his head and lights upon his feet; a turning end over end. [Written also summersault, sommerset, summerset, etc.] [F. soubresaut a jump, leap, OF. soubresault, It. soprassalto an overleap, fr. L. supra over + saltus a leap, fr. salire to leap; or the French may be from Sp. s]
- bosky a.
- Woody or bushy; covered with boscage or thickets. [Cf. Bushy.]
- livelong a.
- Whole; entire; long in passing; -- used of time, as day or night, in adverbial phrases, and usually with a sense of tediousness. [For lifelong. Cf. Lifelong.]
- indolence n.
- Freedom from that which pains, or harasses, as toil, care, grief, etc. [L. indolentia freedom from pain: cf. F. indolence.]
- drank n.
- Wild oats, or darnel grass. See Drake a plant. [Cf. 3d Drake.]
- breezy a.
- Characterized by, or having, breezes; airy.
- listless a.
- Having no desire or inclination; indifferent; heedless; spiritless. [OE. listles, lustles. See Lust.]
- spoke n.
- The radius or ray of a wheel; one of the small bars which are inserted in the hub, or nave, and which serve to support the rim or felly. [OE. spoke, spake, AS, spaca; akin to D. speek, LG. speke, OHG. speihha, G. speiche. sq. root170. Cf. Spike a nail.]
- solace n.
- Comfort in grief; alleviation of grief or anxiety; also, that which relieves in distress; that which cheers or consoles; relief. [OF. solas, ssoulaz, L. solacium, solatium, fr. solari to comfort, console. Cf. Console, v. t.]
- outwit n.
- The faculty of acquiring wesdom by observation and experience, or the wisdom so acquired; -- opposed to inwit. Piers Plowman.
- thank n.
- A expression of gratitude; an acknowledgment expressive of a sense of favor or kindness received; obligation, claim, or desert, or gratitude; -- now generally used in the plural. [AS. Þanc, Þonc, thanks, favor, thought; akin to OS. thank favor, pleasure, thanks, D. & G. dank thanks, Icel. Þ\'94kk, Dan. tak, Sw. tack, Goth. Þagks thanks; -]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Basil and Edward is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poetical Works of Robert Bridges, Excluding the Eight Dramas, Project Gutenberg ebook #37804; 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 Bridges, Basil and Edward, in The Growth of Love, and Other Poems (1873–1912), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #37804, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/bridges-shorter-poems/basil-and-edward.html, id L01787.
Form and metre
Basil and Edward is 47 lines in 3 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%). 91% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 1 line ends on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 40% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic pentameter.
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 ABAB-C-D-DC bondA · threadB · fondA · ledB · shires · heartC · desires · rhymeD · homes · timeD · apartC
- 2 ABA-CDECEDB metA · hillB · somersetA · combes · dayC · dueD · delightE · layC · heightE · eweD · willB
- 3 ABABCDEEFCGGFHDHFIJIKJKLL lastA · hillB · pastA · skillB · songC · degreesD · zodiacE · backE · forgetF · longC · goldG · holdG · setF · allH · pleaseD · recallH · yetF · rehearseI · outwitJ · verseI · enduresK · itJ · yoursK · beganL · ranL
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 pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Man hath with man on earth no holier bond | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Than that the Muse weaves with her dreamy thread: | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Nor e'er was such transcendent love more fond | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| Than that which Edward unto Basil led, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Wandering alone across the woody shires | 10 | /˘˘/˘/·/˘· |
| To hear the living voice of that wide heart, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| To see the eyes that read the world's desires, | 11 | ········˘/˘ |
| And touch the hand that wrote the roving rhyme. | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Diverse their lots as distant were their homes, | 10 | ˘/···/˘··· |
| And since that early meeting, jealous Time | 10 | ···/˘/˘/˘· |
| Knitting their loves had held their lives apart. | 10 | /˘······˘/ |
| But now again were these fine lovers met | 10 | ··˘/···/˘· |
| And sat together on a rocky hill | 10 | ··˘/˘··/˘· |
| Looking upon the vales of Somerset, | 10 | /˘·····/˘· |
| Where the far sea gleam'd o'er the bosky combes, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Satisfying their spirits the livelong day | 11 | /˘·˘·/˘·/˘· |
| With various mirth and revelation due | 10 | ·/˘···˘/˘· |
| And delicate intimacy of delight, | 10 | ·/˘/˘˘˘·˘/ |
| As there in happy indolence they lay | 10 | ···/˘/˘˘·· |
| And drank the sun, while round the breezy height | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Beneath their feet rabbit and listless ewe | 10 | ····/˘·/˘· |
| Nibbled the scented herb and grass at will. | 10 | /˘·/˘····· |
| Much talked they at their ease; and at the last | 10 | ·········· |
| Spoke Edward thus, ''Twas on this very hill | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| This time of the year,--but now twelve years are past,-- | 11 | ··········· |
| That you provoked in verse my younger skill | 10 | ··˘/···/˘· |
| To praise the months against your rival song; | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| And ere the sun had westered ten degrees | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| Our rhyme had brought him thro' the Zodiac. | 10 | /······/˘· |
| Have you remembered?'--Basil answer'd back, | 10 | ··˘/˘/˘/˘· |
| 'Guest of my solace, how could I forget? | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| Years fly as months that seem'd in youth so long. | 10 | ·········· |
| The precious life that, like indifferent gold, | 10 | ·/˘···˘/˘· |
| Is disregarded in its worth to hold | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| Some jewel of love that God therein would set, | 10 | ·/········ |
| It passeth and is gone.'--'And yet not all,' | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| Edward replied: 'The passion as I please | 10 | /˘˘/·/˘··· |
| Of that past day I can to-day recall; | 10 | ········/· |
| And if but you, as I, remember yet | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| Your part thereof, and will again rehearse, | 10 | ······˘/˘/ |
| For half an hour we may old Time outwit.' | 10 | ···/····/· |
| And Basil said, 'Alas for my poor verse! | 10 | ·/˘·˘/···· |
| What happy memory of it still endures | 10 | ·/˘/˘···˘/ |
| Will thank your love: I have forgotten it. | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| Speak you my stanzas, I will ransom yours. | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Begin you then as I that day began, | 10 | ˘/······˘/ |
| And I will follow as your answers ran.' | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
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.