Second Epode
Then too, 'tis said, an hoary pile,'Midst the green navel of our isle,Thy shrine in some religious wood,O soul-enforcing goddess, stood!There oft the painted native's feetWere wont thy form celestial meet:Though now with hopeless toil we traceTime's backward rolls, to find its place;Whether the fiery-tresséd Dane,Or Roman's self o'erturn'd the fane,Or in what heaven-left age it fell,'Twere hard for modern song to tell.Yet still, if Truth those beams infuse,Which guide at once, and charm the Muse,Beyond yon braided clouds that lie,Paving the light embroider'd sky,Amidst the bright pavilion'd plains,The beauteous model still remains.There, happier than in islands blest,Or bowers by spring or Hebe drest,The chiefs who fill our Albion's story,In warlike weeds, retired in glory,Hear their consorted Druids singTheir triumphs to the immortal string.How may the poet now unfoldWhat never tongue or numbers told?How learn delighted, and amazed,What hands unknown that fabric raised?Even now before his favour'd eyes,In gothic pride, it seems to rise!Yet Græcia's graceful orders join,Majestic through the mix'd design:The secret builder knew to chooseEach sphere-found gem of richest hues;Whate'er heaven's purer mould contains,When nearer suns emblaze its veins;There on the walls the patriot's sightMay ever hang with fresh delight,And, graved with some prophetic rage,Read Albion's fame through every age.Ye forms divine, ye laureat band,That near her inmost altar stand!Now soothe her to her blissful trainBlithe Concord's social form to gain;Concord, whose myrtle wand can steepEven Anger's bloodshot eyes in sleep;Before whose breathing bosom's balmRage drops his steel, and storms grow calm:Her let our sires and matrons hoarWelcome to Briton's ravaged shore;Our youths, enamour'd of the fair,Play with the tangles of her hair,Till, in one loud applauding sound,The nations shout to her around,O how supremely art thou blest,Thou, lady--thou shalt rule the west!
Words in this poem 18
- hoary a.
- White or whitish."The hoary willows."
- isle v. t.
- To cause to become an island, or like an island; to surround or encompass; to island.
- dane n.
- A native, or a naturalized inhabitant, of Denmark. Great Dane. [LL. Dani: cf. AS. Dene.]
- 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.]
- amidst prep.
- In the midst or middle of; surrounded or encompassed by; among. [OE. amidde, amiddes, on midden, AS. on middan, in the middle, fr. midde the middle. The s is an adverbial ending, originally marking the genitive; the t is a la]
- beauteous a.
- Full of beauty; beautiful; very handsome. [Mostly poetic] -- Beau"te*ous*ly, adv. --
- hebe n.
- The goddess of youth, daughter of Jupiter and Juno. She was believed to have the power of restoring youth and beauty to those who had lost them. [L., fr. Gr. "h`bh youth, "H`bh Hebe.]
- delighted a.
- Endowed with delight.
- mould n.
- Crumbling, soft, friable earth; esp., earth containing the remains or constituents of organic matter, and suited to the growth of plants; soil. [OE. molde, AS. molde; akin to D. mul, G. mull, mulm, OHG. molt, molta, Icel. mold, Dan. muld, Sw. mull, Goth. mulda, and E. meal flour. See Meal, and cf. Mole a]
- emblaze v. t.
- To adorn with glittering embellishments. [Pref. em- + 1st blaze.]
- inmost a.
- Deepest within; farthest from the surface or external part; innermost. [OE. innemest, AS. innemest, a double superlative form fr. inne within, fr. in in. The modern form is due to confusion with most. See In, and cf. Aftermost, Fore]
- soothe v. t.
- To assent to as true. Testament of Love. [Originally, to assent to as true; OE. so to verify, AS. ges to prove the truth of, to bear witness. See Sooth, a.]
- blissful a.
- Full of, characterized by, or causing, joy and felicity; happy in the highest degree.
- blithe a.
- Gay; merry; sprightly; joyous; glad; cheerful; as, a blithe spirit. [AS. bli blithe, kind; akin to Goth. blei kind, Icel. bli mild, gentle, Dan. & Sw. blid gentle, D. blijd blithe, OHG. blidi kind, blithe.]
- bloodshot a.
- Red and inflamed; suffused with blood, or having the vessels turgid with blood, as when the conjunctiva is inflamed or irritated. [Blood + shot, p. p. of shoot to variegate.]
- hoar v. t.
- To become moldy or musty. [AS. harian to grow gray.]
- supremely adv.
- In a supreme manner.
- shalt
- 2d per. sing. of Shall.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Second Epode is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poetical Works of William Collins; With a Memoir, Project Gutenberg ebook #29879; 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 Collins, Second Epode, in Poetical Works (1746), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #29879, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/collins-poems/second-epode.html, id L13347.
Form and metre
Second Epode is 56 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets: octosyllabic couplets. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%). 90% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.4 syllables. 4 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 18% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in octosyllabic couplets, 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 AABBCCDDEEFFGGHHIIJJKKLLMMNNOOPPQQRRSSTTUUVVWWXXYYZZaabb pileA · isleA · woodB · stoodB · feetC · meetC · traceD · placeD · daneE · faneE · fellF · tellF · infuseG · museG · lieH · skyH · plainsI · remainsI · blestJ · drestJ · storyK · gloryK · singL · stringL · unfoldM · toldM · amazedN · raisedN · eyesO · riseO · joinP · designP · chooseQ · huesQ · containsR · veinsR · sightS · delightS · rageT · ageT · bandU · standU · trainV · gainV · steepW · sleepW · balmX · calmX · hoarY · shoreY · fairZ · hairZ · sounda · arounda · blestb · westb
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Then too, 'tis said, an hoary pile, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| 'Midst the green navel of our isle, | 9 | ···/˘·/˘· |
| Thy shrine in some religious wood, | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| O soul-enforcing goddess, stood! | 8 | ··˘/˘/˘· |
| There oft the painted native's feet | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| Were wont thy form celestial meet: | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| Though now with hopeless toil we trace | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Time's backward rolls, to find its place; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Whether the fiery-tresséd Dane, | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| Or Roman's self o'erturn'd the fane, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Or in what heaven-left age it fell, | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| 'Twere hard for modern song to tell. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Yet still, if Truth those beams infuse, | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Which guide at once, and charm the Muse, | 8 | ········ |
| Beyond yon braided clouds that lie, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Paving the light embroider'd sky, | 8 | /˘··˘/˘· |
| Amidst the bright pavilion'd plains, | 8 | ˘/······ |
| The beauteous model still remains. | 9 | ·/˘˘/˘·˘/ |
| There, happier than in islands blest, | 9 | ·/˘˘··/˘· |
| Or bowers by spring or Hebe drest, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| The chiefs who fill our Albion's story, | 11 | ····/˘/˘˘/˘ |
| In warlike weeds, retired in glory, | 10 | ·/··˘/˘·/˘ |
| Hear their consorted Druids sing | 8 | ··˘/˘/˘· |
| Their triumphs to the immortal string. | 9 | ·/˘··˘/˘· |
| How may the poet now unfold | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| What never tongue or numbers told? | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| How learn delighted, and amazed, | 9 | ··˘/˘·˘/˘ |
| What hands unknown that fabric raised? | 9 | ··˘/·/˘·˘ |
| Even now before his favour'd eyes, | 9 | /˘······· |
| In gothic pride, it seems to rise! | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Yet Græcia's graceful orders join, | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| Majestic through the mix'd design: | 8 | ˘/˘···˘/ |
| The secret builder knew to choose | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| Each sphere-found gem of richest hues; | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Whate'er heaven's purer mould contains, | 10 | ˘˘//˘/˘·˘/ |
| When nearer suns emblaze its veins; | 8 | ·/˘·˘/·· |
| There on the walls the patriot's sight | 9 | ·····/˘˘· |
| May ever hang with fresh delight, | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| And, graved with some prophetic rage, | 9 | ··˘··˘/˘· |
| Read Albion's fame through every age. | 10 | ·/˘˘··/˘˘· |
| Ye forms divine, ye laureat band, | 8 | ··˘/···· |
| That near her inmost altar stand! | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| Now soothe her to her blissful train | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Blithe Concord's social form to gain; | 8 | ·/·/˘··· |
| Concord, whose myrtle wand can steep | 8 | /··/˘··· |
| Even Anger's bloodshot eyes in sleep; | 9 | /˘/˘/˘··· |
| Before whose breathing bosom's balm | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| Rage drops his steel, and storms grow calm: | 8 | ········ |
| Her let our sires and matrons hoar | 9 | ··/˘··/˘· |
| Welcome to Briton's ravaged shore; | 9 | /˘·/˘/˘˘· |
| Our youths, enamour'd of the fair, | 9 | /˘······· |
| Play with the tangles of her hair, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Till, in one loud applauding sound, | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| The nations shout to her around, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| O how supremely art thou blest, | 9 | ··˘/˘˘··· |
| Thou, lady--thou shalt rule the west! | 8 | ·/˘····· |
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