The Stranger’s Song
(As sung by MR. CHARLES CHARRINGTON in the play of “The ThreeWayfarers”)
O MY trade it is the rarest one,Simple shepherds all—My trade is a sight to see;For my customers I tie, and take ’em up on high,And waft ’em to a far countree!
My tools are but common ones,Simple shepherds all—My tools are no sight to see:A little hempen string, and a post whereon to swing,Are implements enough for me!
To-morrow is my working day,Simple shepherds all—To-morrow is a working day for me:For the farmer’s sheep is slain, and the lad who did it ta’en,And on his soul may God ha’ mer-cy!
Words in this poem
- waft v. t.
- To give notice to by waving something; to wave the hand to; to beckon. [Prob. originally imp. & p. p. of wave, v. t. See Wave to waver.]
- hempen a.
- Made of hemp; as, a hempen cord.
- whereon adv.
- On which; -- used relatively; as, the earth whereon we live.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Stranger’s Song is in the public domain. This text is taken from Wessex Poems and Other Verses, Project Gutenberg ebook #3167; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Thomas Hardy, The Stranger’s Song, in Wessex Poems and Other Verses (1898), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #3167, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/hardy-wessex-poems/the-stranger-s-song.html, id L04455.
Form and metre
The Stranger’s Song is 17 lines in 4 stanzas. 95% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.5 syllables. 6% 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.
- 2 --AAA one · all · seeA · highA · countreeA
- 3 --A-A ones · all · seeA · swing · meA
- 4 --A-A day · all · meA · ta'en · cyA
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 |
|---|---|---|
| (As sung by MR. CHARLES CHARRINGTON in the play of “The Three | 15 | ···/˘·········· |
| Wayfarers”) | 3 | ··· |
| O MY trade it is the rarest one, | 9 | ······/˘· |
| Simple shepherds all— | 5 | /˘/˘· |
| My trade is a sight to see; | 7 | ······· |
| For my customers I tie, and take ’em up on high, | 12 | ··/˘········ |
| And waft ’em to a far countree! | 8 | ········ |
| My tools are but common ones, | 7 | ····/˘· |
| Simple shepherds all— | 5 | /˘/˘· |
| My tools are no sight to see: | 7 | ······· |
| A little hempen string, and a post whereon to swing, | 13 | ·/˘/˘····˘/·· |
| Are implements enough for me! | 7 | ·/˘˘/·· |
| To-morrow is my working day, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Simple shepherds all— | 5 | /˘/˘· |
| To-morrow is a working day for me: | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| For the farmer’s sheep is slain, and the lad who did it ta’en, | 14 | ··/˘·········· |
| And on his soul may God ha’ mer-cy! | 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.