Laurel · W. S. Gilbert · The Bab Ballads

The Bishop and the ’Busman

W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) · 1869

short measure · 76 lines · from The Bab Ballads

IT was a Bishop bold,And London was his see,He was short and stout and round aboutAnd zealous as could be.

It also was a Jew,Who drove a Putney ’bus—For flesh of swine however fineHe did not care a cuss.

His name was HASH BAZ BEN,And JEDEDIAH too,And SOLOMON and ZABULON—This ’bus-directing Jew.

The Bishop said, said he,“I’ll see what I can doTo Christianise and make you wise,You poor benighted Jew.”

So every blessed dayThat ’bus he rode outside,From Fulham town, both up and down,And loudly thus he cried:

“His name is HASH BAZ BEN,And JEDEDIAH too,And SOLOMON and ZABULON—This ’bus-directing Jew.”

At first the ’busman smiled,And rather liked the fun—He merely smiled, that Hebrew child,And said, “Eccentric one!”

And gay young dogs would waitTo see the ’bus go by(These gay young dogs, in striking togs),To hear the Bishop cry:

“Observe his grisly beard,His race it clearly shows,He sticks no fork in ham or pork—Observe, my friends, his nose.

“His name is HASH BAZ BEN,And JEDEDIAH too,And SOLOMON and ZABULON—This ’bus-directing Jew.”

But though at first amused,Yet after seven years,This Hebrew child got rather riled,And melted into tears.

He really almost fearedTo leave his poor abode,His nose, and name, and beard becameA byword on that road.

At length he swore an oath,The reason he would know—“I’ll call and see why ever heDoes persecute me so!”

The good old Bishop satOn his ancestral chair,The ’busman came, sent up his name,And laid his grievance bare.

“Benighted Jew,” he said(The good old Bishop did),“Be Christian, you, instead of Jew—Become a Christian kid!

“I’ll ne’er annoy you more.”“Indeed?” replied the Jew;“Shall I be freed?” “You will, indeed!”Then “Done!” said he, “with you!”

The organ which, in man,Between the eyebrows grows,Fell from his face, and in its placeHe found a Christian nose.

His tangled Hebrew beard,Which to his waist came down,Was now a pair of whiskers fair—His name ADOLPHUS BROWN!

He wedded in a yearThat prelate’s daughter JANE,He’s grown quite fair—has auburn hair—His wife is far from plain.

Words in this poem

drove n.: A collection of cattle driven, or cattle collected for driving; a number of animals, as oxen, sheep, or swine, driven in a body. [AS. draf, fr. drifan to drive. See Drive.]
hash n.: That which is hashed or chopped up; meat and vegetables, especially such as have been already cooked, chopped into small pieces and mixed. [Formerly hachey, hachee, F. hachis, hacher to hash; of German origin; cf. G. hippe sickle, OHG. hippa, for happia. Cf. Hatchet.]
solomon n.: One of the kings of Israel, noted for his superior wisdom and magnificent reign; hence, a very wise man.
christianise v. t.: To make Christian; to convert to Christianity; as, to Christianize pagans.
rode n.: Redness; complexion. [See Rud.]
fulham n.: A false die. [Cant]
togs n.: Clothes; garments; toggery.
abode n.: Act of waiting; delay. [OE. abad, abood, fr. abiden to abide. See Abide. For the change of vowel, cf. abode, imp. of abide.]
byword n.: A common saying; a proverb; a saying that has a general currency. [AS.bïword; bï, E.by+word.]
grievance n.: A cause of uneasiness and complaint; a wrong done and suffered; that which gives ground for remonstrance or resistance, as arising from injustice, tyranny, etc.; injury. [OF. grcvance. See Grieve, v. t.]
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,]
wedded a.: Joined in wedlock; married.
jane n.: A coin of Genoa; any small coin. [LL. Janua Genoa; L. Genua, also OE. Jean.]
auburn a.: Flaxen-colored. Florio. [OE. auburne blonde, OF. alborne, auborne, fr. LL. alburnus whitish, fr. L. albus white. Cf. Alburn.]

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

About this text

The Bishop and the ’Busman is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Bab Ballads, Project Gutenberg ebook #931; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.

Cite as: W. S. Gilbert, The Bishop and the ’Busman, in The Bab Ballads (1869), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #931, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/gilbert-bab-ballads/the-bishop-and-the-busman.html, id L02368.

Form and metre

The Bishop and the ’Busman is 76 lines in 19 stanzas of 4 lines each. The metre is short measure, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 94%). 97% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 6.5 syllables. 3 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 17% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.

See other poems in short measure.

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 bold · see^A · about · be^A
2 -A-A jew · bus^A · fine · cuss^A
3 -A-A ben · too^A · zabulon · jew^A
4 -A-A he · do^A · wise · jew^A
5 -A-A day · outside^A · down · cried^A
6 -A-A ben · too^A · zabulon · jew^A
7 ABAB smiled^A · fun^B · child^A · one^B
8 -A-A wait · by^A · togs · cry^A
9 -A-A beard · shows^A · pork · nose^A
10 -A-A ben · too^A · zabulon · jew^A
11 -A-A amused · years^A · riled · tears^A
12 -A-A feared · abode^A · became · road^A
13 -A-A oath · know^A · he · so^A
14 -A-A sat · chair^A · name · bare^A
15 -A-A said · did^A · jew · kid^A
16 -A-A more · jew^A · indeed · you^A
17 -A-A man · grows^A · place · nose^A
18 -A-A beard · down^A · fair · brown^A
19 ABAB year^A · jane^B · hair^A · plain^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 short measure. How this is done.

Line	Syl.	Stress
IT was a Bishop bold,	6	···/˘·
And London was his see,	6	·/˘···
He was short and stout and round about	9	·········
And zealous as could be.	6	·/˘···
It also was a Jew,	6	·/˘···
Who drove a Putney ’bus—	6	···/˘·
For flesh of swine however fine	8	·····/˘·
He did not care a cuss.	6	······
His name was HASH BAZ BEN,	6	······
And JEDEDIAH too,	5	·····
And SOLOMON and ZABULON—	7	·/˘····
This ’bus-directing Jew.	6	··˘/˘·
The Bishop said, said he,	6	·/˘···
“I’ll see what I can do	6	······
To Christianise and make you wise,	8	·/˘·····
You poor benighted Jew.”	6	··˘/˘·
So every blessed day	6	·/˘˘··
That ’bus he rode outside,	6	····//
From Fulham town, both up and down,	8	·/˘·····
And loudly thus he cried:	6	·/˘···
“His name is HASH BAZ BEN,	6	······
And JEDEDIAH too,	5	·····
And SOLOMON and ZABULON—	7	·/˘····
This ’bus-directing Jew.”	6	··˘/˘·
At first the ’busman smiled,	6	······
And rather liked the fun—	6	·/˘···
He merely smiled, that Hebrew child,	8	·/˘··/˘·
And said, “Eccentric one!”	6	··˘/˘·
And gay young dogs would wait	6	······
To see the ’bus go by	6	······
(These gay young dogs, in striking togs),	8	·····/˘·
To hear the Bishop cry:	6	···/˘·
“Observe his grisly beard,	6	˘/·/˘·
His race it clearly shows,	6	···/˘·
He sticks no fork in ham or pork—	8	········
Observe, my friends, his nose.	6	˘/····
“His name is HASH BAZ BEN,	6	······
And JEDEDIAH too,	5	·····
And SOLOMON and ZABULON—	7	·/˘····
This ’bus-directing Jew.”	6	··˘/˘·
But though at first amused,	6	····˘/
Yet after seven years,	6	···/˘·
This Hebrew child got rather riled,	8	·/˘··/˘·
And melted into tears.	6	·/˘···
He really almost feared	6	·/˘/··
To leave his poor abode,	6	····˘/
His nose, and name, and beard became	8	······˘/
A byword on that road.	6	·/····
At length he swore an oath,	6	······
The reason he would know—	6	·/˘···
“I’ll call and see why ever he	7	·····/·
Does persecute me so!”	6	·/˘···
The good old Bishop sat	6	···/˘·
On his ancestral chair,	6	··˘/˘·
The ’busman came, sent up his name,	8	········
And laid his grievance bare.	6	···/˘·
“Benighted Jew,” he said	6	˘/˘···
(The good old Bishop did),	6	···/˘·
“Be Christian, you, instead of Jew—	8	·/˘·˘/··
Become a Christian kid!	6	˘/·/˘·
“I’ll ne’er annoy you more.”	6	··˘/··
“Indeed?” replied the Jew;	6	˘/˘/··
“Shall I be freed?” “You will, indeed!”	8	······˘/
Then “Done!” said he, “with you!”	6	······
The organ which, in man,	6	·/˘···
Between the eyebrows grows,	6	···/··
Fell from his face, and in its place	8	········
He found a Christian nose.	6	···/˘·
His tangled Hebrew beard,	6	·/˘/˘·
Which to his waist came down,	6	······
Was now a pair of whiskers fair—	8	·····/˘·
His name ADOLPHUS BROWN!	6	··˘/˘·
He wedded in a year	6	·/˘···
That prelate’s daughter JANE,	6	·/˘/˘·
He’s grown quite fair—has auburn hair—	8	·····/˘·
His wife is far from plain.	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.

More by W. S. Gilbert

The Bab Ballads