The Tree-Toad
"'S cur'ous-like," said the tree-toad,"I've twittered fer rain all day;And I got up soon,And hollered tel noon--But the sun, hit blazed away,Tell I jest clumb down in a crawfish-hole,Weary at hart, and sick at soul!
"Dozed away fer an hour,And I tackled the thing agin:And I sung, and sung,Tel I knowed my lungWas jest about give in;And THEN, thinks I, ef hit don't rain NOW,They's nothin' in singin', anyhow!
"Onc't in a while some farmerWould come a-drivin' past;And he'd hear my cry,And stop and sigh--Tel I jest laid back, at last,And I hollered rain tel I thought my th'oatWould bust wide open at ever' note!
"But I FETCHED her!--O I FETCHED her!--'Cause a little while ago,As I kindo' set,With one eye shet,And a-singin' soft and low,A voice drapped down on my fevered brain,A-sayin',--'EF YOU'LL JEST HUSH I'LL RAIN!'"
Words in this poem
- jest n.
- A deed; an action; a gest. [OE. jeste, geste, deed, action, story, tale, OF. geste, LL. gesta, orig., exploits, neut. pl. from L. gestus, p. p. of gerere to bear, carry, accomplish, perfor]
- tackled a.
- Made of ropes tacked together.
- anyhow adv.
- In any way or manner whatever; at any rate; in any event.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Tree-Toad is in the public domain. This text is taken from Riley Farm-Rhymes, Project Gutenberg ebook #4783; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: James Whitcomb Riley, The Tree-Toad, in Riley Farm-Rhymes (1883–1901), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #4783, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/riley-farm-rhymes/the-tree-toad.html, id L01970.
Form and metre
The Tree-Toad is 28 lines in 4 stanzas of 7 lines each. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 81%). 94% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 7.0 syllables. 2 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 11% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See 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 -ABBACC toad · dayA · soonB · noonB · awayA · holeC · soulC
- 2 -ABBACC hour · aginA · sungB · lungB · inA · nowC · anyhowC
- 3 -ABBACC farmer · pastA · cryB · sighB · lastA · th'oatC · noteC
- 4 -ABBACC her · agoA · setB · shetB · lowA · brainC · rainC
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 |
|---|---|---|
| "'S cur'ous-like," said the tree-toad, | 8 | ········ |
| "I've twittered fer rain all day; | 7 | ······· |
| And I got up soon, | 5 | ····· |
| And hollered tel noon-- | 5 | ·/˘·· |
| But the sun, hit blazed away, | 7 | ·····˘/ |
| Tell I jest clumb down in a crawfish-hole, | 10 | ·······/·· |
| Weary at hart, and sick at soul! | 8 | /˘······ |
| "Dozed away fer an hour, | 7 | ·˘/··/˘ |
| And I tackled the thing agin: | 8 | ··/˘··˘/ |
| And I sung, and sung, | 5 | ····· |
| Tel I knowed my lung | 5 | ····· |
| Was jest about give in; | 6 | ······ |
| And THEN, thinks I, ef hit don't rain NOW, | 9 | ········· |
| They's nothin' in singin', anyhow! | 9 | ·/˘·/˘/˘· |
| "Onc't in a while some farmer | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| Would come a-drivin' past; | 6 | ······ |
| And he'd hear my cry, | 5 | ····· |
| And stop and sigh-- | 4 | ···· |
| Tel I jest laid back, at last, | 7 | ······· |
| And I hollered rain tel I thought my th'oat | 10 | ··/˘······ |
| Would bust wide open at ever' note! | 9 | ···/˘·/˘· |
| "But I FETCHED her!--O I FETCHED her!-- | 8 | ········ |
| 'Cause a little while ago, | 7 | ··/˘·˘/ |
| As I kindo' set, | 5 | ····· |
| With one eye shet, | 4 | ···· |
| And a-singin' soft and low, | 7 | ··/˘··· |
| A voice drapped down on my fevered brain, | 9 | ······/˘· |
| A-sayin',--'EF YOU'LL JEST HUSH I'LL RAIN!'" | 9 | ·/˘······ |
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.