Epilogue to Eutychus
I yet have stock in hand to spare,And could write on--but will forbear--First, lest I tire a friend, whose stateAnd avocations are so great:And then, if other pens should tryThis moral scheme as well as I,They may have something to pursue:--Yet if the spacious field we view,More men are wanting for the plan,Rather than matter for the man.Now for that prize I make my pleaYou promised to my brevity.Keep your kind word; for life, my friend,Is daily nearer to its end;And I shall share your love the lessThe longer you your hand repress:The sooner you the boon insure,The more the tenure must endure;And if I quick possession take,The greater profit must I make,While yet declining age subsists,A room for friendly aid exists.Anon with tasteless years grown weak,In vain benevolence will seekTo do me good--when Death at handShall come and urge his last demand.'Tis folly, you'll be apt to say,A thousand times to beg and prayOf one with so much worth and sense,Whose gen'rous bounty is propense.If e'er a miscreant succeeds,By fair confession of his deeds,An innocent offender's caseIs far more worthy of your grace.You for example sake begin,Then others to the lure you'll win,And in rotation more and moreWill soon communicate their store.Consider in your mind how farAt stake your word and honour are;And let your closing the debateBy what I may congratulate.I have been guilty of excessBeyond my thought in this addressBut 'tis not easy to refrainA spirit work'd up to disdainBy wretches insolent and vile,With a clear conscience all the while.You'll ask me, sir, at whom I hint--In time they may appear in print.But give me leave to cite a phraseI met with in my boyish days."'Tis dangerous for the mean and lowToo plain their grievances to show."This is advice I shall retainWhile life and sanity remain.
Words in this poem
- 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,]
- boon n.
- A prayer or petition. [OE. bone, boin, a petition, fr. Icel. b; akin to Sw. & Dan. b, AS. b, and perh. to E. ban; but influenced by F. bon good, fr. L. bonus. Ban, Bounty.]
- anon adv.
- Straightway; at once. [OE. anoon, anon, anan, lit., in one (moment), fr. AS. on in + an one. See On and One.]
- bounty n.
- Goodness, kindness; virtue; worth. [OE. bounte goodness, kindness, F. bonté, fr. L. bonitas, fr. bonus good, for older duonus; cf. Skr. duvas honor, respect.]
- propense a.
- Leaning toward, in a moral sense; inclined; disposed; prone; as, women propense to holiness. Hooker. [L. propensus, p. p. See Propend.]
- miscreant n.
- One who holds a false religious faith; a misbeliever. [OF. mescreant, F. mécréant; pref. mes- (L. minus less) + p. pr. fr. L. credere to believe. See Creed.]
- honour n.
- Esteem due or paid to worth; high estimation; respect; consideration; reverence; veneration; manifestation of respect or reverence. [OE. honor, honour, onour, onur, OF. honor, onor, honur, onur, honour, onour, F. honneur, fr. L. honor, honos.]
- congratulate v. t.
- To address with expressions of sympathetic pleasure on account of some happy event affecting the person addressed; to wish joy to. [L. congratulatus, p.p. of congratulari to wish joy abundantly; con- + gratulari to wish joy, from gratus pleasing. See Grateful.]
- conscience n.
- Knowledge of one's own thoughts or actions; consciousness. [F. conscience, fr. L. conscientia, fr. consciens, p.pr. of conscire to know, to be conscious; con- + scire to know. See Science.]
- boyish a.
- Resembling a boy in a manners or opinions; belonging to a boy; childish; trifling; puerile.
- sanity n.
- The condition or quality of being sane; soundness of health of body or mind, especially of the mind; saneness. [L. saniras, from sanus sound, healthy. See Sane.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Epilogue to Eutychus is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Fables of Phædrus Literally translated into English prose with notes, Project Gutenberg ebook #25512; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Phaedrus, Epilogue to Eutychus, in The Fables of Phaedrus (1765), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #25512, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/phaedrus-fables/epilogue-to-eutychus.html, id L21313.
Form and metre
Epilogue to Eutychus is 56 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets, 89% of the lines: octosyllabic couplets. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%).
See other poems in octosyllabic couplets, other poems in iambic tetrameter.
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 --AABBCCDD--EEFFGGHH--IIJJKKLLMMNNOOPPQQRRSSTTUUVVWWXXYY spare · forbear · stateA · greatA · tryB · iB · pursueC · viewC · planD · manD · plea · brevity · friendE · endE · lessF · repressF · insureG · endureG · takeH · makeH · subsists · exists · weakI · seekI · handJ · demandJ · sayK · prayK · senseL · propenseL · succeedsM · deedsM · caseN · graceN · beginO · winO · moreP · storeP · farQ · areQ · debateR · congratulateR · excessS · addressS · refrainT · disdainT · vileU · whileU · hintV · printV · phraseW · daysW · lowX · showX · retainY · remainY
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 tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| I yet have stock in hand to spare, | 8 | ········ |
| And could write on--but will forbear-- | 8 | ······˘/ |
| First, lest I tire a friend, whose state | 8 | ···/···· |
| And avocations are so great: | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| And then, if other pens should try | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| This moral scheme as well as I, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| They may have something to pursue:-- | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Yet if the spacious field we view, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| More men are wanting for the plan, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Rather than matter for the man. | 8 | /˘·/˘··· |
| Now for that prize I make my plea | 8 | ········ |
| You promised to my brevity. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘˘ |
| Keep your kind word; for life, my friend, | 8 | ········ |
| Is daily nearer to its end; | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| And I shall share your love the less | 8 | ········ |
| The longer you your hand repress: | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| The sooner you the boon insure, | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| The more the tenure must endure; | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| And if I quick possession take, | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| The greater profit must I make, | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| While yet declining age subsists, | 8 | ··˘/˘·˘/ |
| A room for friendly aid exists. | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Anon with tasteless years grown weak, | 8 | ˘/·/˘··· |
| In vain benevolence will seek | 8 | ··˘/˘˘·· |
| To do me good--when Death at hand | 8 | ········ |
| Shall come and urge his last demand. | 8 | ······˘/ |
| 'Tis folly, you'll be apt to say, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| A thousand times to beg and pray | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Of one with so much worth and sense, | 8 | ········ |
| Whose gen'rous bounty is propense. | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| If e'er a miscreant succeeds, | 8 | ···/˘˘˘/ |
| By fair confession of his deeds, | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| An innocent offender's case | 8 | ·/˘˘˘/˘· |
| Is far more worthy of your grace. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| You for example sake begin, | 8 | ··˘/˘·˘/ |
| Then others to the lure you'll win, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And in rotation more and more | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| Will soon communicate their store. | 8 | ··˘/˘··· |
| Consider in your mind how far | 8 | ˘/˘····· |
| At stake your word and honour are; | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| And let your closing the debate | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| By what I may congratulate. | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| I have been guilty of excess | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Beyond my thought in this address | 8 | ······/· |
| But 'tis not easy to refrain | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| A spirit work'd up to disdain | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| By wretches insolent and vile, | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| With a clear conscience all the while. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| You'll ask me, sir, at whom I hint-- | 8 | ········ |
| In time they may appear in print. | 8 | ····˘/·· |
| But give me leave to cite a phrase | 8 | ········ |
| I met with in my boyish days. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| "'Tis dangerous for the mean and low | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Too plain their grievances to show." | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| This is advice I shall retain | 8 | ··˘/··˘/ |
| While life and sanity remain. | 8 | ···/˘˘˘/ |
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.