The Thief and the Travellers
Two men equipp'd were on their way;One fearful; one without dismay,An able fencer. As they went,A robber came with black intent;Demanding, upon pain of death,Their gold and silver in a breath.At which the man of spirit drew,And instantly disarm'd and slewThe Thief, his honor to maintain.Soon as the rogue was fairly slain,The tim'rous chap began to puff,And drew his sword, and stripp'd in buff--"Leave me alone with him! stand back!I'll teach him whom he should attack."Then he who fought, "I wish, my friend,But now you'd had such words to lend;I might have been confirm'd the more,Supposing truth to all you swore;Then put your weapon in the sheath,And keep your tongue within your teeth,Though you may play an actor's partOn them who do not know your heart.I, who have seen this very dayHow lustily you ran away,Experience when one comes to blowsHow far your resolution goes."This narrative to those I tellWho stand their ground when all is well;But in the hour of pressing needAbash'd, most shamefully recede.
Words in this poem
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- fairly adv.
- In a fairmanner; clearly; openly; plainly; fully; distinctly; frankly.
- lustily adv.
- In a lusty or vigorous manner.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Thief and the Travellers 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, The Thief and the Travellers, in The Fables of Phaedrus (1765), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #25512, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/phaedrus-fables/the-thief-and-the-travellers.html, id L21316.
Form and metre
The Thief and the Travellers is 30 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets: octosyllabic couplets. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 92%).
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 AABBCCDDEEFFGGHHIIJJKKAALLMMNN wayA · dismayA · wentB · intentB · deathC · breathC · drewD · slewD · maintainE · slainE · puffF · buffF · backG · attackG · friendH · lendH · moreI · sworeI · sheathJ · teethJ · partK · heartK · dayA · awayA · blowsL · goesL · tellM · wellM · needN · recedeN
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Two men equipp'd were on their way; | 8 | ··˘/···· |
| One fearful; one without dismay, | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| An able fencer. As they went, | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| A robber came with black intent; | 8 | ·/˘···˘/ |
| Demanding, upon pain of death, | 8 | ˘/˘····· |
| Their gold and silver in a breath. | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| At which the man of spirit drew, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| And instantly disarm'd and slew | 8 | ·/˘˘˘/·· |
| The Thief, his honor to maintain. | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Soon as the rogue was fairly slain, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The tim'rous chap began to puff, | 8 | ····˘/·· |
| And drew his sword, and stripp'd in buff-- | 8 | ········ |
| "Leave me alone with him! stand back! | 8 | ··˘/···· |
| I'll teach him whom he should attack." | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Then he who fought, "I wish, my friend, | 8 | ········ |
| But now you'd had such words to lend; | 8 | ········ |
| I might have been confirm'd the more, | 8 | ····˘/·· |
| Supposing truth to all you swore; | 8 | ˘/˘····· |
| Then put your weapon in the sheath, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| And keep your tongue within your teeth, | 8 | ········ |
| Though you may play an actor's part | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| On them who do not know your heart. | 8 | ········ |
| I, who have seen this very day | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| How lustily you ran away, | 8 | ·/˘˘··˘/ |
| Experience when one comes to blows | 8 | ˘/˘····· |
| How far your resolution goes." | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| This narrative to those I tell | 8 | ·/˘˘···· |
| Who stand their ground when all is well; | 8 | ········ |
| But in the hour of pressing need | 8 | ···/·/˘· |
| Abash'd, most shamefully recede. | 9 | ˘/·····˘/ |
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