Troopin'
Troopin', troopin', troopin' to the sea:'Ere's September come again -- the six-year men are free.O leave the dead be'ind us, for they cannot come awayTo where the ship's a-coalin' up that takes us 'ome to-day.We're goin' 'ome, we're goin' 'ome,Our ship is at the shore,An' you must pack your 'aversack,For we won't come back no more.Ho, don't you grieve for me,My lovely Mary-Ann,For I'll marry you yit on a fourp'ny bitAs a time-expired man.
The Malabar's in 'arbour with the Jumner at 'er tail,An' the time-expired's waitin' of 'is orders for to sail.Ho! the weary waitin' when on Khyber 'ills we lay,But the time-expired's waitin' of 'is orders 'ome to-day.
They'll turn us out at Portsmouth wharf in cold an' wet an' rain,All wearin' Injian cotton kit, but we will not complain;They'll kill us of pneumonia -- for that's their little way --But damn the chills and fever, men, we're goin' 'ome to-day!
Troopin', troopin', winter's round again!See the new draf's pourin' in for the old campaign;Ho, you poor recruities, but you've got to earn your pay --What's the last from Lunnon, lads? We're goin' there to-day.
Troopin', troopin', give another cheer --'Ere's to English women an' a quart of English beer.The Colonel an' the regiment an' all who've got to stay,Gawd's mercy strike 'em gentle -- Whoop! we're goin' 'ome to-day.We're goin' 'ome, we're goin' 'ome,Our ship is at the shore,An' you must pack your 'aversack,For we won't come back no more.Ho, don't you grieve for me,My lovely Mary-Ann,For I'll marry you yit on a fourp'ny bitAs a time-expired man.
Words in this poem
- damn v. t.
- To condemn; to declare guilty; to doom; to adjudge to punishment; to sentence; to censhure. [OE. damnen dap), OF. damner, dampner, F. damner, fr. L. damnare, damnatum, to condemn, fr. damnum damage, a fine, penalty. Cf. Condemn, Damage.]
- campaign n.
- An open field; a large, open plain without considerable hills. [F. campagne, It. campagna, fr. L. Campania the level country about Naples, fr. campus field. See Camp, and cf. Champaign, Champagne.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Troopin' is in the public domain. This text is taken from Verses 1889-1896, Project Gutenberg ebook #323; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Rudyard Kipling, Troopin', in Verses 1889–1896 (1889–1896), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #323, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/kipling-verses/troopin.html, id L16754.
Form and metre
Troopin' is 36 lines in 5 stanzas. The rhyme scheme is AABB, complete in 3 of its 5 stanzas. 97% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.4 syllables. 8% 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 AABB-C-CAD-D seaA · freeA · awayB · dayB · ome · shoreC · aversack · moreC · meA · annD · bit · manD
- 2 AABB tailA · sailA · layB · dayB
- 3 AABB rainA · complainA · wayB · dayB
- 4 AABB againA · campaignA · payB · dayB
- 5 AABB-C-C-D-D cheerA · beerA · stayB · dayB · ome · shoreC · aversack · moreC · me · annD · bit · manD
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Troopin', troopin', troopin' to the sea: | 9 | ········· |
| 'Ere's September come again -- the six-year men are free. | 13 | ·˘/˘·˘/······ |
| O leave the dead be'ind us, for they cannot come away | 13 | ········/˘·˘/ |
| To where the ship's a-coalin' up that takes us 'ome to-day. | 14 | ·············· |
| We're goin' 'ome, we're goin' 'ome, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Our ship is at the shore, | 7 | /˘····· |
| An' you must pack your 'aversack, | 8 | ········ |
| For we won't come back no more. | 7 | ······· |
| Ho, don't you grieve for me, | 6 | ······ |
| My lovely Mary-Ann, | 6 | ·/˘/˘· |
| For I'll marry you yit on a fourp'ny bit | 11 | ··/˘······· |
| As a time-expired man. | 7 | ···˘/˘· |
| The Malabar's in 'arbour with the Jumner at 'er tail, | 14 | ·····/˘······· |
| An' the time-expired's waitin' of 'is orders for to sail. | 14 | ···˘//˘··/˘··· |
| Ho! the weary waitin' when on Khyber 'ills we lay, | 13 | ··/˘/˘······· |
| But the time-expired's waitin' of 'is orders 'ome to-day. | 14 | ···˘//˘··/˘··· |
| They'll turn us out at Portsmouth wharf in cold an' wet an' rain, | 14 | ·····/˘······· |
| All wearin' Injian cotton kit, but we will not complain; | 14 | ·····/˘·····˘/ |
| They'll kill us of pneumonia -- for that's their little way -- | 13 | ····˘/˘···/˘· |
| But damn the chills and fever, men, we're goin' 'ome to-day! | 14 | ·····/˘··/˘··· |
| Troopin', troopin', winter's round again! | 9 | ····/˘·˘/ |
| See the new draf's pourin' in for the old campaign; | 12 | ··········˘/ |
| Ho, you poor recruities, but you've got to earn your pay -- | 12 | ············ |
| What's the last from Lunnon, lads? We're goin' there to-day. | 13 | ········/˘··· |
| Troopin', troopin', give another cheer -- | 9 | ·····˘/˘· |
| 'Ere's to English women an' a quart of English beer. | 13 | ··/˘/˘····/˘· |
| The Colonel an' the regiment an' all who've got to stay, | 13 | ·/˘··/˘······ |
| Gawd's mercy strike 'em gentle -- Whoop! we're goin' 'ome to-day. | 14 | ·/˘··/˘··/˘··· |
| We're goin' 'ome, we're goin' 'ome, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Our ship is at the shore, | 7 | /˘····· |
| An' you must pack your 'aversack, | 8 | ········ |
| For we won't come back no more. | 7 | ······· |
| Ho, don't you grieve for me, | 6 | ······ |
| My lovely Mary-Ann, | 6 | ·/˘/˘· |
| For I'll marry you yit on a fourp'ny bit | 11 | ··/˘······· |
| As a time-expired man. | 7 | ···˘/˘· |
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.