Time and Tide
As I was walkin on the strand,I spied ane auld man sitOn ane auld black rock; and aye the wavesCam washin up its fit.His lips they gaed as gien they wad lilt,But o' liltin, wae's me, was nane!He spak but an owercome, dreary and dreigh,A burden wha's sang was gane:"Robbie and Jeanie war twa bonnie bairns;They playt thegither i' the gloamin's hush:Up cam the tide and the mune and the sterns,And pairtit the twa wi' a glint and a gush."
"What can the auld man mean," quod I,"Sittin o' the auld black rock?The tide creeps up wi' a moan and a cry,And a hiss 'maist like a mock!The words he mutters maun be the en'O' some weary auld-warl' sang--A deid thing floatin aboot in his brain,'At the tide 'ill no lat gang!""Robbie and Jeanie war twa bonnie bairns;They playt thegither i' the gloamin's hush:Up cam the tide and the mune and the sterns,And pairtit the twa wi' a glint and a gush."
"Hoo pairtit it them, auld man?" I said;"Was't the sea cam up ower strang?Oh, gien thegither the twa o' them gaedTheir pairtin wasna lang!Or was are ta'en, and the ither left--Ane to sing, are to greit?It's sair, I ken, to be sae bereft--But there's the tide at yer feet!""Robbie and Jeanie war twa bonnie bairns,And they playt thegither i' the gloamin's hush:Up cam the tide and the mune and the sterns,And pairtit the twa wi' a glint and a gush."
"Was't the sea o' space wi' its storm o' timeThat wadna lat things bide?But Death's a diver frae heavenly climeSeekin ye neth its tide,And ye'll gaze again in ither's ee,Far abune space and time!"Never ae word he answered me,But changed a wee his rime:"Robbie and Jeanie war twa bonnie bairns,And they playt thegither upo' the shore;Up cam the tide and the mune and the sterns,And pairtit the twa for evermore."
"May be, auld man, 'twas the tide o' changeThat crap atween the twa?Hech! that's a droonin fearsome strange,Waur, waur nor are and a'!"He said nae mair. I luikit, and sawHis lips they couldna gang:Death, the diver, had ta'en him awa,To gie him a new auld sang.Robbie and Jeanie war twa bonnie bairns,And they playt thegither upo' the shore:Up cam the tide and the mune and the sterns,And souft them awa throu a mirksome door!
Words in this poem 15
- auld a.
- Old; as, Auld Reekie (old smoky), i. e., Edinburgh. [See Old.]
- lilt v. i.
- To do anything with animation and quickness, as to skip, fly, or hop. [Cf. Norw. lilla, lirla, to sing in a high tone.]
- dreary a.
- Sorrowful; distressful. [OE. dreori, dreri, AS. dreórig, sad; akin to G. traurig, and prob. to AS. dreósan to fall, Goth. driusan. Cf. Dross, Drear, Drizzle, Drowse.]
- gane v. i.
- To yawn; to gape. [See Yawn.]
- glint n.
- A glimpse, glance, or gleam. [OE. glent.]
- quod v.
- Quoth; said. See Quoth.
- strang a.
- Strong. [Obs. or Prov. Eng. & Scot.] Halliwell. [See Strong.]
- bide v. i.
- To dwell; to inhabit; to abide; to stay. [OE. biden, AS. bidan; akin to OHG. bitan, Goth. beidan, Icel. bi; perh. orig., to wait with trust, and akin to bid. See Bid, v. t., and cf. Abide.]
- clime n.
- A climate; a tract or region of the earth. See Climate. [L. clima. See Climate.]
- rime n.
- A rent or long aperture; a chink; a fissure; a crack. Sir T. [L. rima.]
- evermore adv.
- During eternity; always; forever; for an indefinite period; at all times; -- often used substantively with for.
- crap n.
- In the game of craps, a first throw of the dice in which the total is two, three, or twelve, in which case the caster loses.
- atween adv.
- Between. Spenser. [See Atwain, and cf. Between.]
- fearsome a.
- Frightful; causing fear
- mirksome a.
- Dark; gloomy; murky.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Time and Tide is in the public domain. This text is taken from The poetical works of George MacDonald in two volumes — Volume 2, Project Gutenberg ebook #9984; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: George MacDonald, Time and Tide, in A Microcosm in Terza Rima, and Other Poems (1893), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #9984, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/macdonald-poems/time-and-tide.html, id L22536.
Form and metre
Time and Tide is 60 lines in 5 stanzas of 12 lines each. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 79%).
See other poems in iambic pentameter.
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-C-C strand · sitA · waves · fitA · lilt · naneB · dreigh · ganeB · bairns · hushC · sterns · gushC
- 2 ABAB-C-C-D-D iA · rockB · cryA · mockB · en · sangC · brain · gangC · bairns · hushD · sterns · gushD
- 3 -A-AB-B--C-C said · strangA · gaed · langA · leftB · greit · bereftB · feet · bairns · hushC · sterns · gushC
- 4 ABABCACA-D-D timeA · bideB · climeA · tideB · eeC · timeA · meC · rimeA · bairns · shoreD · sterns · evermoreD
- 5 A-A--B-B-C-C changeA · twa · strangeA · a · saw · gangB · awa · sangB · bairns · shoreC · sterns · doorC
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 |
|---|---|---|
| As I was walkin on the strand, | 8 | ········ |
| I spied ane auld man sit | 6 | ······ |
| On ane auld black rock; and aye the waves | 9 | ········· |
| Cam washin up its fit. | 6 | ······ |
| His lips they gaed as gien they wad lilt, | 9 | ········· |
| But o' liltin, wae's me, was nane! | 8 | ········ |
| He spak but an owercome, dreary and dreigh, | 11 | ·······/˘·· |
| A burden wha's sang was gane: | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| "Robbie and Jeanie war twa bonnie bairns; | 10 | /˘·/˘··/˘· |
| They playt thegither i' the gloamin's hush: | 10 | ·········· |
| Up cam the tide and the mune and the sterns, | 10 | ·········· |
| And pairtit the twa wi' a glint and a gush." | 11 | ··········· |
| "What can the auld man mean," quod I, | 8 | ········ |
| "Sittin o' the auld black rock? | 7 | ······· |
| The tide creeps up wi' a moan and a cry, | 10 | ·········· |
| And a hiss 'maist like a mock! | 7 | ······· |
| The words he mutters maun be the en' | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| O' some weary auld-warl' sang-- | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| A deid thing floatin aboot in his brain, | 10 | ·········· |
| 'At the tide 'ill no lat gang!" | 7 | ······· |
| "Robbie and Jeanie war twa bonnie bairns; | 10 | /˘·/˘··/˘· |
| They playt thegither i' the gloamin's hush: | 10 | ·········· |
| Up cam the tide and the mune and the sterns, | 10 | ·········· |
| And pairtit the twa wi' a glint and a gush." | 11 | ··········· |
| "Hoo pairtit it them, auld man?" I said; | 9 | ········· |
| "Was't the sea cam up ower strang? | 8 | ········ |
| Oh, gien thegither the twa o' them gaed | 10 | ·········· |
| Their pairtin wasna lang! | 6 | ······ |
| Or was are ta'en, and the ither left-- | 9 | ········· |
| Ane to sing, are to greit? | 6 | ······ |
| It's sair, I ken, to be sae bereft-- | 9 | ·······˘/ |
| But there's the tide at yer feet!" | 7 | ······· |
| "Robbie and Jeanie war twa bonnie bairns, | 10 | /˘·/˘··/˘· |
| And they playt thegither i' the gloamin's hush: | 11 | ··········· |
| Up cam the tide and the mune and the sterns, | 10 | ·········· |
| And pairtit the twa wi' a glint and a gush." | 11 | ··········· |
| "Was't the sea o' space wi' its storm o' time | 10 | ·········· |
| That wadna lat things bide? | 6 | ······ |
| But Death's a diver frae heavenly clime | 10 | ···/˘·/˘˘· |
| Seekin ye neth its tide, | 6 | ······ |
| And ye'll gaze again in ither's ee, | 9 | ···˘/···· |
| Far abune space and time!" | 6 | ······ |
| Never ae word he answered me, | 9 | /˘···/˘˘· |
| But changed a wee his rime: | 6 | ······ |
| "Robbie and Jeanie war twa bonnie bairns, | 10 | /˘·/˘··/˘· |
| And they playt thegither upo' the shore; | 10 | ·········· |
| Up cam the tide and the mune and the sterns, | 10 | ·········· |
| And pairtit the twa for evermore." | 9 | ······/˘· |
| "May be, auld man, 'twas the tide o' change | 9 | ········· |
| That crap atween the twa? | 6 | ··˘/·· |
| Hech! that's a droonin fearsome strange, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Waur, waur nor are and a'!" | 6 | ······ |
| He said nae mair. I luikit, and saw | 9 | ········· |
| His lips they couldna gang: | 6 | ······ |
| Death, the diver, had ta'en him awa, | 9 | ··/˘····· |
| To gie him a new auld sang. | 7 | ······· |
| Robbie and Jeanie war twa bonnie bairns, | 10 | /˘·/˘··/˘· |
| And they playt thegither upo' the shore: | 10 | ·········· |
| Up cam the tide and the mune and the sterns, | 10 | ·········· |
| And souft them awa throu a mirksome door! | 10 | ·······/˘· |
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