Elegy on the Death of Sir James Hunter Blair

Robert Burns (1759–1796) · 1786–1796

iambic pentameter · ABAB · 44 lines · from Poems and Songs

The lamp of day, with—ill presaging glare,Dim, cloudy, sank beneath the western wave;Th’ inconstant blast howl’d thro’ the dark’ning air,And hollow whistled in the rocky cave.

Lone as I wander’d by each cliff and dell,Once the lov’d haunts of Scotia’s royal train;Or mus’d where limpid streams, once hallow’d well,Or mould’ring ruins mark the sacred fane.

Th’ increasing blast roar’d round the beetling rocks,The clouds swift-wing’d flew o’er the starry sky,The groaning trees untimely shed their locks,And shooting meteors caught the startled eye.

The paly moon rose in the livid east.And ’mong the cliffs disclos’d a stately formIn weeds of woe, that frantic beat her breast,And mix’d her wailings with the raving storm

Wild to my heart the filial pulses glow,’Twas Caledonia’s trophied shield I view’d:Her form majestic droop’d in pensive woe,The lightning of her eye in tears imbued.

Revers’d that spear, redoubtable in war,Reclined that banner, erst in fields unfurl’d,That like a deathful meteor gleam’d afar,And brav’d the mighty monarchs of the world.

“My patriot son fills an untimely grave!”With accents wild and lifted arms she cried;“Low lies the hand oft was stretch’d to save,Low lies the heart that swell’d with honest pride.

“A weeping country joins a widow’s tear;The helpless poor mix with the orphan’s cry;The drooping arts surround their patron’s bier;And grateful science heaves the heartfelt sigh!

“I saw my sons resume their ancient fire;I saw fair Freedom’s blossoms richly blow:But ah! how hope is born but to expire!Relentless fate has laid their guardian low.

“My patriot falls: but shall he lie unsung,While empty greatness saves a worthless name?No; every muse shall join her tuneful tongue,And future ages hear his growing fame.

“And I will join a mother’s tender cares,Thro’ future times to make his virtues last;That distant years may boast of other Blairs!”—She said, and vanish’d with the sweeping blast.

Words in this poem 21

glare v. i.: To shine with a bright, dazzling light. [OE. glaren, gloren; cf. AS. glær amber, LG. glaren to glow or burn like coals, D. gloren to glimmer; prob. akin to E. glass.]
lone n.: A lane. See Loanin.
dell n.: A small, retired valley; a ravine. [AS. del, akin to E. dale; cf. D. delle, del, low ground. See Dale.]
scotia n.: A concave molding used especially in classical architecture. [L., fr. Gr. skoti`a darkness, a sunken molding in the base of a pillar, so called from the dark shadow it casts, from sko`tos darkness.]
fane n.: A temple; a place consecrated to religion; a church. [L. fanum a place dedicated to some deity, a sanctuary, fr. fari to speak. See Fame.]
starry a.: Abounding with stars; adorned with stars.
paly a.: Pale; wanting color; dim. Shak. Whittier. [From Pale, a.]
filial a.: Of or pertaining to a son or daughter; becoming to a child in relation to his parents; as, filial obedience. [L. filialis, fr. filius son, filia daughter; akin to e. female, feminine. Cf. Fitz.]
caledonia n.: The ancient Latin name of Scotland; -- still used in poetry.
trophied a.: Adorned with trophies.
redoubtable a.: Formidable; dread; terrible to foes; as, a redoubtable hero; hence, valiant; -- often in contempt or burlesque. [F. redoutable, formerly also spelt redoubtable.]
reclined a.: Falling or turned downward; reclinate.
deathful a.: Full of death or slaughter; murderous; destructive; bloody.
afar adv.: At, to, or from a great distance; far away; -- often used with from preceding, or off following; as, he was seen from afar; I saw him afar off. [Pref. a-.(for on or of) + far.]
bier n.: A handbarrow or portable frame on which a corpse is placed or borne to the grave. [OE. bæe, beere, AS. b, b; akin to D. baar, OHG. bara, G. bahre, Icel barar, Dbaare, L. feretrum, Gr. , from the same bear to produce. See 1st Bear, and cf. Barr]
heaves n.: A disease of horses, characterized by difficult breathing, with heaving of the flank, wheezing, flatulency, and a peculiar cough; broken wind.
heartfelt a.: Hearty; sincere.
resume n.: A summing up; a condensed statement; an abridgment or brief recapitulation. [F. See Resume.]
relentless a.: Unmoved by appeals for sympathy or forgiveness; insensible to the distresses of others; destitute of tenderness; unrelenting; unyielding; unpitying; as, a prey to relentless despotism.
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,]
tuneful a.: Harmonious; melodious; musical; as, tuneful notes.

Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.

About this text

Elegy on the Death of Sir James Hunter Blair is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems and Songs of Robert Burns, Project Gutenberg ebook #1279; 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 Burns, Elegy on the Death of Sir James Hunter Blair, in Poems and Songs (1786–1796), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #1279, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/burns-poems/elegy-on-the-death-of-sir-james-hunter-blair.html, id L03089.

Form and metre

Elegy on the Death of Sir James Hunter Blair is 44 lines in 11 stanzas of 4 lines each. The rhyme scheme is ABAB, complete in 9 of its 11 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 91%). 100% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 9.9 syllables.

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 glare^A · wave^B · air^A · cave^B
2 ABAB dell^A · train^B · well^A · fane^B
3 ABAB rocks^A · sky^B · locks^A · eye^B
4 -A-A east · form^A · breast · storm^A
5 ABAB glow^A · view'd^B · woe^A · imbued^B
6 -A-A war · unfurl'd^A · afar · world^A
7 ABAB grave^A · cried^B · save^A · pride^B
8 ABAB tear^A · cry^B · bier^A · sigh^B
9 ABAB fire^A · blow^B · expire^A · low^B
10 ABAB unsung^A · name^B · tongue^A · fame^B
11 ABAB cares^A · last^B · blairs^A · blast^B

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
The lamp of day, with—ill presaging glare,	9	······/˘·
Dim, cloudy, sank beneath the western wave;	10	·/˘····/˘·
Th’ inconstant blast howl’d thro’ the dark’ning air,	10	˘/˘·······
And hollow whistled in the rocky cave.	10	·/˘/˘··/˘·
Lone as I wander’d by each cliff and dell,	10	···/˘·····
Once the lov’d haunts of Scotia’s royal train;	10	·····/˘/˘·
Or mus’d where limpid streams, once hallow’d well,	10	···/˘··/˘·
Or mould’ring ruins mark the sacred fane.	10	···/˘··/˘·
Th’ increasing blast roar’d round the beetling rocks,	10	˘/˘····/˘·
The clouds swift-wing’d flew o’er the starry sky,	10	·······/˘·
The groaning trees untimely shed their locks,	10	·/˘·˘/˘···
And shooting meteors caught the startled eye.	10	·/˘/˘··/˘·
The paly moon rose in the livid east.	10	·/˘····/˘·
And ’mong the cliffs disclos’d a stately form	10	····˘/·/˘·
In weeds of woe, that frantic beat her breast,	10	·····/˘···
And mix’d her wailings with the raving storm	10	···/˘··/˘·
Wild to my heart the filial pulses glow,	10	·····/˘/˘·
’Twas Caledonia’s trophied shield I view’d:	10	··˘/˘/˘···
Her form majestic droop’d in pensive woe,	10	··˘/˘··/˘·
The lightning of her eye in tears imbued.	10	·/˘·····˘/
Revers’d that spear, redoubtable in war,	9	˘/··˘/˘··
Reclined that banner, erst in fields unfurl’d,	10	˘/·/˘···˘/
That like a deathful meteor gleam’d afar,	10	···/˘/˘·˘/
And brav’d the mighty monarchs of the world.	10	···/˘/····
“My patriot son fills an untimely grave!”	10	·/˘···˘/˘·
With accents wild and lifted arms she cried;	10	·/˘··/˘···
“Low lies the hand oft was stretch’d to save,	9	·········
Low lies the heart that swell’d with honest pride.	10	·······/˘·
“A weeping country joins a widow’s tear;	10	·/˘/˘··/˘·
The helpless poor mix with the orphan’s cry;	10	·/˘····/˘·
The drooping arts surround their patron’s bier;	10	·/˘·˘/·/˘·
And grateful science heaves the heartfelt sigh!	10	·/˘/˘··/··
“I saw my sons resume their ancient fire;	10	····˘/·/˘/
I saw fair Freedom’s blossoms richly blow:	10	···/˘/˘/˘·
But ah! how hope is born but to expire!	10	········˘/
Relentless fate has laid their guardian low.	10	˘/˘····/˘·
“My patriot falls: but shall he lie unsung,	10	·/˘·····˘/
While empty greatness saves a worthless name?	10	·/˘/˘··/˘·
No; every muse shall join her tuneful tongue,	10	·/˘····/˘·
And future ages hear his growing fame.	9	·/˘/˘··/·
“And I will join a mother’s tender cares,	10	·····/˘/˘·
Thro’ future times to make his virtues last;	10	·/˘····/˘·
That distant years may boast of other Blairs!”—	10	·/˘····/˘·
She said, and vanish’d with the sweeping blast.	10	···/˘··/˘·

Notes from the edition 3

Notes from The Complete Works of Robert Burns (Project Gutenberg #1279).

Stanza 2, line 2 Written at Oughtertyre. Phemie is Miss Euphemia Murray, a cousin of Sir William Murray of Oughtertyre.—Lang.
Stanza 2, line 3 Sir John Whitefoord, then residing at Cloncaird or “Glencaird.”
Stanza 2, line 4 St. Anthony’s Chapel.—R. B.

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