In the Morning Before Daybreak
Ye many twinkling stars, who yet do holdYour brilliant places in the sable vaultOf night's dominions!--Planets, and central orbsOf other systems!--big as the burning sunWhich lights this nether globe,--yet to our eyeSmall as the glowworm's lamp!--To you I raiseMy lowly orisons, while, all bewilder'd,My vision strays o'er your ethereal hosts;Too vast, too boundless for our narrow mind,Warp'd with low prejudices, to unfold,And sagely comprehend. Thence higher soaring,Through ye I raise my solemn thoughts to Him,The mighty Founder of this wondrous maze,The great Creator! Him! who now sublime,Wrapt in the solitary amplitudeOf boundless space, above the rolling spheresSits on his silent throne and meditates.
The angelic hosts, in their inferior Heaven,Hymn to the golden harps his praise sublime,Repeating loud, "The Lord our God is great,"In varied harmonies.--The glorious soundsRoll o'er the air serene--The Æolian spheres,Harping along their viewless boundaries,Catch the full note, and cry, "The Lord is great,"Responding to the Seraphim. O'er allFrom orb to orb, to the remotest vergeOf the created world, the sound is borne,Till the whole universe is full of Him.Oh! 'tis this heavenly harmony which nowIn fancy strikes upon my listening ear,And thrills my inmost soul. It bids me smileOn the vain world, and all its bustling cares,And gives a shadowy glimpse of future bliss.
Oh! what is man, when at ambition's height,What even are kings, when balanced in the scaleOf these stupendous worlds! Almighty God!Thou, the dread author of these wondrous works!Say, canst thou cast on me, poor passing worm,One look of kind benevolence?--Thou canst:For Thou art full of universal love,And in thy boundless goodness wilt impartThy beams as well to me as to the proud,The pageant insects of a glittering hour.
Oh! when reflecting on these truths sublime,How insignificant do all the joys,The gaudes, and honours of the world appear!How vain ambition! Why has my wakeful lampOutwatch'd the slow-paced night!--Why on the page,The schoolman's labour'd page, have I employ'dThe hours devoted by the world to rest,And needful to recruit exhausted nature?Say, can the voice of narrow Fame repayThe loss of health? or can the hope of gloryLend a new throb into my languid heart,Cool, even now, my feverish aching brow,Relume the fires of this deep sunken eye,Or paint new colours on this pallid cheek?
Say, foolish one--can that unbodied fame,For which thou barterest health and happiness,Say, can it soothe the slumbers of the grave?Give a new zest to bliss, or chase the pangsOf everlasting punishment condign?Alas! how vain are mortal man's desires!How fruitless his pursuits! Eternal God!Guide thou my footsteps in the way of truth,And oh! assist me so to live on earth,That I may die in peace, and claim a placeIn thy high dwelling.--All but this is folly,The vain illusions of deceitful life.
Words in this poem 25
- twinkling n.
- The act of one who, or of that which, twinkles; a quick movement of the eye; a wink; a twinkle. Holland.
- 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.]
- nether a.
- Situated down or below; lying beneath, or in the lower part; having a lower position; belonging to the region below; lower; under; -- opposed to upper. [OE. nethere, neithere, AS. ni, fr. the adv. ni downward; akin to neo below, beneath, D. neder down, G. nieder, Sw. nedre below, nether, a. & adv., and also to S]
- sagely adv.
- In a sage manner; wisely.
- wondrous adv.
- In a wonderful or surprising manner or degree; wonderfully. [OE. wonders, adv. (later also adj.). See Wonder, n., and cf. -wards.]
- maze n.
- A wild fancy; a confused notion. [OE. mase; cf. OE. masen to confuse, puzzle, Norweg. masast to fall into a slumber, masa to be continually busy, prate, chatter, Icel. masa to chatter, dial. Sw.]
- amplitude n.
- State of being ample; extent of surface or space; largeness of dimensions; size. [L. amplitudo, fr. amplus: cf. F. amplitude. See Ample.]
- glorious a.
- Exhibiting attributes, qualities, or acts that are worthy of or receive glory; noble; praiseworthy; excellent; splendid; illustrious; inspiring admiration; as, glorious deeds. [OF. glorios, glorious, F. glorieux, fr. L. gloriosus. See Glory, n.]
- harping a.
- Pertaining to the harp; as, harping symphonies.
- viewless a.
- Not perceivable by the eye; invisible; unseen.
- seraphim n.
- The Hebrew plural of Seraph. Cf. Cherubim.
- inmost a.
- Deepest within; farthest from the surface or external part; innermost. [OE. innemest, AS. innemest, a double superlative form fr. inne within, fr. in in. The modern form is due to confusion with most. See In, and cf. Aftermost, Fore]
- bustling a.
- Agitated; noisy; tumultuous; characterized by confused activity; as, a bustling crowd.
- stupendous a.
- Astonishing; wonderful; amazing; especially, astonishing in magnitude or elevation; as, a stupendous pile. [L. stupendus astonishing, p. future pass. of stupere to be astonished at. Cf. Stupid.]
- pageant n.
- A theatrical exhibition; a spectacle. [OE. pagent, pagen, originally, a movable scaffold or stage, hence, what was exhibited on it, fr. LL. pagina, akin to pangere to fasten; cf. L. pagina page, leaf]
- wakeful a.
- Not sleeping; indisposed to sleep; watchful; vigilant.
- needful a.
- Full of need; in need or want; needy; distressing.
- recruit v. t.
- To repair by fresh supplies, as anything wasted; to remedy lack or deficiency in; as, food recruits the flesh; fresh air and exercise recruit the spirits. [F. recruter, corrupted (under influence of recrue recruiting, recruit, from recro, p.p. recr, to grow again) from an older recluter, properly, to patch, to mend]
- throb v. i.
- To beat, or pulsate, with more than usual force or rapidity; to beat in consequence of agitation; to palpitate; -- said of the heart, pulse, etc. [OE. ; of uncertain origin; cf. Russ. trepete a trembling, and E. trepidation.]
- aching a.
- That aches; continuously painful. See Ache.
- relume v. t.
- To rekindle; to light again. [OF. relumer (cf. F. rallumer), L. reluminare; pref. re- re- + luminare to light. Cf. Reillume.]
- soothe v. t.
- To assent to as true. Testament of Love. [Originally, to assent to as true; OE. so to verify, AS. ges to prove the truth of, to bear witness. See Sooth, a.]
- zest n.
- A piece of orange or lemon peel, or the aromatic oil which may be squeezed from such peel, used to give flavor to liquor, etc. [F. zeste, probably fr. L. schistos split, cleft, divided, Gr. Schism.]
- condign a.
- Worthy; suitable; deserving; fit. [F. condigne, L. condignus very worthy; con- + dignus worthy. See Deign, and cf. Digne.]
- fruitless a.
- Lacking, or not bearing, fruit; barren; destitute of offspring; as, a fruitless tree or shrub; a fruitless marriage.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
In the Morning Before Daybreak is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poetical Works of Henry Kirk White : With a Memoir by Sir Harris Nicolas, Project Gutenberg ebook #7149; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Henry Kirke White, In the Morning Before Daybreak, in The Poetical Works of Henry Kirke White (1803–1806), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #7149, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/kirke-white-poems/in-the-morning-before-daybreak.html, id L10056.
Form and metre
In the Morning Before Daybreak is 69 lines in 5 verse paragraphs. It is unrhymed, as far as the pronouncing dictionary can tell. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 86%). 93% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 10.1 syllables. 8 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 30% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in iambic pentameter, other poems in blank verse.
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----B---A--B---- holdA · vault · orbs · sun · eye · raiseB · bewilder'd · hosts · mind · unfoldA · soaring · him · mazeB · sublime · amplitude · spheres · meditates
- 2 --A---A--------- heaven · sublime · greatA · sounds · spheres · boundaries · greatA · all · verge · borne · him · now · ear · smile · cares · bliss
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 pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Ye many twinkling stars, who yet do hold | 10 | ·//˘˘····· |
| Your brilliant places in the sable vault | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Of night's dominions!--Planets, and central orbs | 11 | ··˘/˘/˘·/˘· |
| Of other systems!--big as the burning sun | 11 | ·/˘/˘···/˘· |
| Which lights this nether globe,--yet to our eye | 10 | ···/˘···/· |
| Small as the glowworm's lamp!--To you I raise | 10 | ·········· |
| My lowly orisons, while, all bewilder'd, | 11 | ·/˘·····˘/˘ |
| My vision strays o'er your ethereal hosts; | 10 | ·/˘···˘/˘· |
| Too vast, too boundless for our narrow mind, | 10 | ···/˘·//˘· |
| Warp'd with low prejudices, to unfold, | 10 | ···/˘˘˘·˘/ |
| And sagely comprehend. Thence higher soaring, | 11 | ·/˘·˘/·/˘/˘ |
| Through ye I raise my solemn thoughts to Him, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| The mighty Founder of this wondrous maze, | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| The great Creator! Him! who now sublime, | 10 | ··˘/˘···˘/ |
| Wrapt in the solitary amplitude | 10 | ···/˘·˘/˘· |
| Of boundless space, above the rolling spheres | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| Sits on his silent throne and meditates. | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| The angelic hosts, in their inferior Heaven, | 11 | ··/˘···˘/˘/ |
| Hymn to the golden harps his praise sublime, | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| Repeating loud, "The Lord our God is great," | 10 | ˘/˘···/··· |
| In varied harmonies.--The glorious sounds | 10 | ·/˘/˘˘·/˘· |
| Roll o'er the air serene--The Æolian spheres, | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| Harping along their viewless boundaries, | 10 | /˘˘/·/˘/˘˘ |
| Catch the full note, and cry, "The Lord is great," | 10 | ·········· |
| Responding to the Seraphim. O'er all | 10 | ˘/˘··/˘˘·· |
| From orb to orb, to the remotest verge | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| Of the created world, the sound is borne, | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| Till the whole universe is full of Him. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Oh! 'tis this heavenly harmony which now | 10 | ···/˘/˘˘·· |
| In fancy strikes upon my listening ear, | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| And thrills my inmost soul. It bids me smile | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| On the vain world, and all its bustling cares, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| And gives a shadowy glimpse of future bliss. | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Oh! what is man, when at ambition's height, | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| What even are kings, when balanced in the scale | 10 | ·/···/˘··· |
| Of these stupendous worlds! Almighty God! | 10 | ··˘/˘·˘/˘· |
| Thou, the dread author of these wondrous works! | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Say, canst thou cast on me, poor passing worm, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| One look of kind benevolence?--Thou canst: | 10 | ····˘/˘˘·· |
| For Thou art full of universal love, | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| And in thy boundless goodness wilt impart | 10 | ···/˘/˘·˘/ |
| Thy beams as well to me as to the proud, | 10 | ·········· |
| The pageant insects of a glittering hour. | 10 | ·/˘/···/˘/ |
| Oh! when reflecting on these truths sublime, | 10 | ··˘/˘···˘/ |
| How insignificant do all the joys, | 10 | ··˘/˘˘···· |
| The gaudes, and honours of the world appear! | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| How vain ambition! Why has my wakeful lamp | 11 | ··˘/˘···/˘· |
| Outwatch'd the slow-paced night!--Why on the page, | 10 | ·········· |
| The schoolman's labour'd page, have I employ'd | 10 | ········˘/ |
| The hours devoted by the world to rest, | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| And needful to recruit exhausted nature? | 11 | ·/˘·˘/˘/˘/˘ |
| Say, can the voice of narrow Fame repay | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| The loss of health? or can the hope of glory | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| Lend a new throb into my languid heart, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Cool, even now, my feverish aching brow, | 10 | ·/··/˘˘/˘· |
| Relume the fires of this deep sunken eye, | 10 | ˘/·/···/˘· |
| Or paint new colours on this pallid cheek? | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Say, foolish one--can that unbodied fame, | 9 | ·/˘······ |
| For which thou barterest health and happiness, | 11 | ···/˘˘··/˘˘ |
| Say, can it soothe the slumbers of the grave? | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Give a new zest to bliss, or chase the pangs | 10 | ·········· |
| Of everlasting punishment condign? | 10 | ··˘/˘/˘˘˘/ |
| Alas! how vain are mortal man's desires! | 11 | ˘/···/˘·˘/˘ |
| How fruitless his pursuits! Eternal God! | 10 | ·/˘·˘/˘/˘· |
| Guide thou my footsteps in the way of truth, | 10 | ···/······ |
| And oh! assist me so to live on earth, | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| That I may die in peace, and claim a place | 10 | ·········· |
| In thy high dwelling.--All but this is folly, | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| The vain illusions of deceitful life. | 10 | ··˘/˘·˘/˘· |
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