A Border Ballad
Oh, I have n't got long to live, for we allDie soon, e'en those who live longest;And the poorest and weakest are taking their chanceAlong with the richest and strongest.So it's heigho for a glass and a song,And a bright eye over the table,And a dog for the hunt when the game is flush,And the pick of a gentleman's stable.
There is Dimmock o' Dune, he was here yester-night,But he 's rotting to-day on Glen Arragh;'Twas the hand o' MacPherson that gave him the blow,And the vultures shall feast on his marrow.But it's heigho for a brave old songAnd a glass while we are able;Here 's a health to death and another cupTo the bright eye over the table.
I can show a broad back and a jolly deep chest,But who argues now on appearance?A blow or a thrust or a stumble at bestMay send me to-day to my clearance.Then it's heigho for the things I love,My mother 'll be soon wearing sable,But give me my horse and my dog and my glass,And a bright eye over the table.
Words in this poem
- dune n.
- A low hill of drifting sand usually formed on the coats, but often carried far inland by the prevailing winds. [The same word as down: cf. D. duin. See Down a bank of sand.]
- 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,]
- clearance n.
- The act of clearing; as, to make a through clearance.
- sable n.
- A carnivorous animal of the Weasel family (Mustela zibellina) native of the northern latitudes of Europe, Asia, and America, -- noted for its fine, soft, and valuable fur. [OF. sable, F. zibeline sable (in sense 4), LL. sabellum; cf. D. sabel, Dan. sabel, zobel, Sw. sabel, sobel, G. zobel; all fr. Russ. sóbole.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
A Border Ballad is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Complete Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar, Project Gutenberg ebook #18338; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Paul Laurence Dunbar, A Border Ballad, in The Complete Poems (1893–1905), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #18338, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/dunbar-poems/a-border-ballad.html, id L00533.
Form and metre
A Border Ballad is 24 lines in 3 stanzas of 8 lines each. 92% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 11 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 21% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
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 -A-A-B-B all · longestA · chance · strongestA · song · tableB · flush · stableB
- 2 -----A-A night · arragh · blow · marrow · song · ableA · cup · tableA
- 3 ABAB-C-C chestA · appearanceB · bestA · clearanceB · love · sableC · glass · tableC
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. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Oh, I have n't got long to live, for we all | 11 | ··········· |
| Die soon, e'en those who live longest; | 8 | ······/˘ |
| And the poorest and weakest are taking their chance | 12 | ··/˘·/˘·/˘·· |
| Along with the richest and strongest. | 9 | ˘/··/˘·/˘ |
| So it's heigho for a glass and a song, | 10 | ·········· |
| And a bright eye over the table, | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| And a dog for the hunt when the game is flush, | 11 | ··········· |
| And the pick of a gentleman's stable. | 10 | ·····/˘·/˘ |
| There is Dimmock o' Dune, he was here yester-night, | 12 | ·········/˘· |
| But he 's rotting to-day on Glen Arragh; | 11 | ···/˘······ |
| 'Twas the hand o' MacPherson that gave him the blow, | 12 | ····˘/˘····· |
| And the vultures shall feast on his marrow. | 10 | ··/˘····/˘ |
| But it's heigho for a brave old song | 9 | ········· |
| And a glass while we are able; | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Here 's a health to death and another cup | 11 | ·······˘/˘· |
| To the bright eye over the table. | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| I can show a broad back and a jolly deep chest, | 12 | ········/˘·· |
| But who argues now on appearance? | 9 | ··/˘··˘/˘ |
| A blow or a thrust or a stumble at best | 11 | ·······/˘·· |
| May send me to-day to my clearance. | 9 | ·······/˘ |
| Then it's heigho for the things I love, | 9 | ········· |
| My mother 'll be soon wearing sable, | 10 | ·/˘···/˘/˘ |
| But give me my horse and my dog and my glass, | 11 | ··········· |
| And a bright eye over the table. | 9 | ·······/˘ |
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.