In and on
ON earth we take but feeble hold;Joy is not confident or bold;We dare not strike deep roots and stay,Nor trust to-morrow or to-day.We scatter grain beneath frail skies,And note its shoot and watch its rise,And do not know or guess a whitWhat other hands shall garner it.We raise our songs, but fast and soonOur voices unto silence die,And other voices end the tuneWhich, too, shall falter presently.“Forever” is our idle oath;But while the word is on our lipNight falls, and past and future bothOut of our hold and keeping slip.We dare not love as angels may,Lest love should fail us or betray;And life goes on and we go hence,Nor never know continuance.
In heaven is safety and sure peace;There is no waning nor decrease.The endless ages ebb and flow,The endless harvests riper grow;Fast in the rich eternal mouldThe heart’s deep roots take hold, take holdWith the strong joy of permanence,Never to be transplanted thence.Sweet songs are sung to very close,Sweet closes recommence and blend;And still as rose-bud answers roseThe new strains grow, the old strains end.Forever means forever there;New joy past sorrow reconciles,And hung in clear and golden airAn undeceiving morrow smiles.While Love the law and Love the sunBlesses and warms and saves each one;And God’s dear will, our earthly prayer,Is made quite plain and perfect there.
Words in this poem
- whit n.
- The smallest part or particle imaginable; a bit; a jot; an iota; -- generally used in an adverbial phrase in a negative sentence. [OE. wight, wiht, AS. wiht a creature, a thing. See Wight, and cf. Aught, Naught.]
- 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,]
- garner n.
- A granary; a building or place where grain is stored for preservation. [OE. garner, gerner, greiner, OF. gernier, grenier, F. grenier, fr. L. granarium, fr. granum. See 1st Grain, and cf. Granary.]
- falter v. t.
- To thrash in the chaff; also, to cleanse or sift, as barley.
- presently adv.
- At present; at this time; now.
- waning n.
- The act or process of waning, or decreasing.
- 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]
- recommence v. i.
- To commence or begin again. Howell.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
In and on is in the public domain. This text is taken from A Few More Verses, Project Gutenberg ebook #49518; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Susan Coolidge, In and on, in A Few More Verses (1889), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #49518, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/coolidge-few-more-verses/in-and-on.html, id L23437.
Form and metre
In and on is 40 lines in 2 stanzas of 20 lines each. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 89%).
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 AABBCCDDE-E-FGFGBBHH holdA · boldA · stayB · dayB · skiesC · riseC · whitD · itD · soonE · die · tuneE · presently · oathF · lipG · bothF · slipG · mayB · betrayB · henceH · continuanceH
- 2 AABBCCDDEFEFGHGHIIGG peaceA · decreaseA · flowB · growB · mouldC · holdC · permanenceD · thenceD · closeE · blendF · roseE · endF · thereG · reconcilesH · airG · smilesH · sunI · oneI · prayerG · thereG
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 |
|---|---|---|
| ON earth we take but feeble hold; | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Joy is not confident or bold; | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| We dare not strike deep roots and stay, | 8 | ········ |
| Nor trust to-morrow or to-day. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| We scatter grain beneath frail skies, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And note its shoot and watch its rise, | 8 | ········ |
| And do not know or guess a whit | 8 | ········ |
| What other hands shall garner it. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| We raise our songs, but fast and soon | 8 | ··/····· |
| Our voices unto silence die, | 8 | //˘··/˘· |
| And other voices end the tune | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| Which, too, shall falter presently. | 8 | ···/˘/˘˘ |
| “Forever” is our idle oath; | 8 | ˘/˘·//˘· |
| But while the word is on our lip | 8 | ······/· |
| Night falls, and past and future both | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Out of our hold and keeping slip. | 8 | ··/··/˘· |
| We dare not love as angels may, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Lest love should fail us or betray; | 8 | ······˘/ |
| And life goes on and we go hence, | 8 | ········ |
| Nor never know continuance. | 8 | ·/˘·˘/˘˘ |
| In heaven is safety and sure peace; | 8 | ·/·/˘··· |
| There is no waning nor decrease. | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| The endless ages ebb and flow, | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| The endless harvests riper grow; | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| Fast in the rich eternal mould | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| The heart’s deep roots take hold, take hold | 8 | ········ |
| With the strong joy of permanence, | 8 | ·····/˘˘ |
| Never to be transplanted thence. | 8 | /˘··˘/˘· |
| Sweet songs are sung to very close, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Sweet closes recommence and blend; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And still as rose-bud answers rose | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The new strains grow, the old strains end. | 8 | ········ |
| Forever means forever there; | 8 | ˘/˘·˘/˘· |
| New joy past sorrow reconciles, | 8 | ···/˘/˘· |
| And hung in clear and golden air | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| An undeceiving morrow smiles. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| While Love the law and Love the sun | 8 | ········ |
| Blesses and warms and saves each one; | 8 | /˘······ |
| And God’s dear will, our earthly prayer, | 8 | ····//˘· |
| Is made quite plain and perfect there. | 8 | ·····˘/· |
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.