The Inn of the Star
When the Old Year plods downToward the end of the hill,Where the white little townLies asleep, wonder-still,Then he mends his dull pace,For a ray, streaming far,Strikes a gleam on his faceFrom the Inn of the Star.
Then the staff is set by,And the shoon from his feet,And the burden let lie,And he sitteth at meat;Old jests round the board,Old songs round the blaze,While the faint bells accordLike the souls of old days.
In the sweet bed of peaceHe shall sleep for a night,And faith, like a fleece,Lap him kindly and light;Then the wind, crooning wild,Mystic music shall seem,And the brow of the ChildBe a light through his dream.
And we, too, follow downThe long slope of the hill:See, the white little town,Where it shines, wonder-still!Be our hopes quenched or bright,Be our griefs what they are,We shall sojourn a nightAt the Inn of the Star.
Words in this poem
- streaming a.
- Sending forth streams.
- 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,]
- sojourn v. i.
- To dwell for a time; to dwell or live in a place as a temporary resident or as a stranger, not considering the place as a permanent habitation; to delay; to tarry. [OE. sojornen, sojournen, OF. sojorner, sejorner, F. séjourner, fr. L. sub under, about + diurnus belonging to the day. See Journal, Diurnal.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Inn of the Star is in the public domain. This text is taken from A chant of love for England, and other poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #71425; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Helen Gray Cone, The Inn of the Star, in A Chant of Love for England, and Other Poems (1915), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #71425, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/cone-chant-for-england/the-inn-of-the-star.html, id L22082.
Form and metre
The Inn of the Star is 32 lines in 4 stanzas of 8 lines each. Every stanza rhymes ABABCDCD. The metre is anapaestic dimeter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 86%).
See other poems in anapaestic dimeter.
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 ABABCDCD downA · hillB · townA · stillB · paceC · farD · faceC · starD
- 2 ABABCDCD byA · feetB · lieA · meatB · boardC · blazeD · accordC · daysD
- 3 ABABCDCD peaceA · nightB · fleeceA · lightB · wildC · seemD · childC · dreamD
- 4 ABABCDCD downA · hillB · townA · stillB · brightC · areD · nightC · starD
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 anapaestic dimeter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| When the Old Year plods down | 6 | ······ |
| Toward the end of the hill, | 7 | ······· |
| Where the white little town | 6 | ···/˘· |
| Lies asleep, wonder-still, | 6 | ·˘//˘· |
| Then he mends his dull pace, | 6 | ······ |
| For a ray, streaming far, | 6 | ···/˘· |
| Strikes a gleam on his face | 6 | ······ |
| From the Inn of the Star. | 6 | ······ |
| Then the staff is set by, | 6 | ······ |
| And the shoon from his feet, | 6 | ······ |
| And the burden let lie, | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| And he sitteth at meat; | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| Old jests round the board, | 5 | ····· |
| Old songs round the blaze, | 5 | ····· |
| While the faint bells accord | 6 | ····˘/ |
| Like the souls of old days. | 6 | ······ |
| In the sweet bed of peace | 6 | ······ |
| He shall sleep for a night, | 6 | ······ |
| And faith, like a fleece, | 5 | ····· |
| Lap him kindly and light; | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| Then the wind, crooning wild, | 6 | ···/˘· |
| Mystic music shall seem, | 6 | /˘/˘·· |
| And the brow of the Child | 6 | ······ |
| Be a light through his dream. | 6 | ······ |
| And we, too, follow down | 6 | ···/˘· |
| The long slope of the hill: | 6 | ······ |
| See, the white little town, | 6 | ···/˘· |
| Where it shines, wonder-still! | 6 | ···/˘· |
| Be our hopes quenched or bright, | 6 | ·/···· |
| Be our griefs what they are, | 6 | ·/···· |
| We shall sojourn a night | 6 | ··/˘·· |
| At the Inn of the Star. | 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.