To Mr. Thomas Sheridan upon His Verses Written in Circles by Dr. Swift
It never was known that circular letters,By humble companions were sent to their betters,And, as to the subject, our judgment, meherc'le,Is this, that you argue like fools in a circle.But now for your verses; we tell you, imprimis,The segment so large 'twixt your reason and rhyme is,That we walk all about, like a horse in a pound,And, before we find either, our noddles turn round.Sufficient it were, one would think, in your mad rant,To give us your measures of line by a quadrant.But we took our dividers, and found your d--n'd metre,In each single verse, took up a diameter.But how, Mr. Sheridan, came you to ventureGeorge, Dan, Dean, and Nim, to place in the centre?'Twill appear to your cost, you are fairly trepann'd,For the chord of your circle is now in their hand.The chord, or the radius, it matters not whether,By which your jade Pegasus, fix'd in a tether,As his betters are used, shall be lash'd round the ring,Three fellows with whips, and the Dean holds the string.Will Hancock declares, you are out of your compass,To encroach on his art by writing of bombast;And has taken just now a firm resolutionTo answer your style without circumlocution.Lady Betty presents you her service most humble,And is not afraid your worship will grumble,That she make of your verses a hoop for Miss Tam.Which is all at present; and so I remain--
Words in this poem
- imprimis adv.
- In the first place; first in order. [L., for in primis among the first, chiefly; in in + primus first.]
- quadrant n.
- The fourth part; the quarter. Sir T. Browne. [L. quadrans, -antis, a fourth part, a fourth of a whole, fr. quattuor four: cf. F. quadrant, cadran. See Four, and cf. Cadrans.]
- centre v. i.
- To be placed in a center; to be central.
- fairly adv.
- In a fairmanner; clearly; openly; plainly; fully; distinctly; frankly.
- tether n.
- A long rope or chain by which an animal is fastened, as to a stake, so that it can range or feed only within certain limits. [Formerly tedder, OE. tedir; akin to LG. tider, tier, Icel. tjo, Dan. töir. *64.]
- 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,]
- betty n.
- Etym: [Supposed to be a cant word, from Betty, for Elizabeth, as such an instrument is also called Bess (i. e., Elizabeth) in the Canting Dictionary of 1725, and Jenny (i. e., Jane).]
- grumble v. i.
- To murmur or mutter with discontent; to make ill-natured complaints in a low voice and a surly manner. [Cf. LG. grummeln, grumman, D. grommelen, grommen, and F. grommeler, of German origin; cf. W. grwm, murmur, grumble, surly. sq. root35. Cf. Grum, Grim.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
To Mr. Thomas Sheridan upon His Verses Written in Circles by Dr. Swift is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poems of Jonathan Swift, D.D., Volume 2, Project Gutenberg ebook #13621; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Jonathan Swift, To Mr. Thomas Sheridan upon His Verses Written in Circles by Dr. Swift, in Poems, Volume II (1710–1745), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #13621, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/swift-poems/to-mr-thomas-sheridan-upon-his-verses-written-in-circles-by-.html, id L09405.
Form and metre
To Mr. Thomas Sheridan upon His Verses Written in Circles by Dr. Swift is 28 lines in a single stanza. It is in rhyming couplets, 57% of the lines. The metre is anapaestic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 74%). 88% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 11.7 syllables. 15 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 7% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in rhyming couplets, other poems in anapaestic 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 AABB-ACCDD------EEFF--GGHH-- lettersA · bettersA · meherc'leB · circleB · imprimis · isA · poundC · roundC · rantD · quadrantD · metre · diameter · venture · centre · trepann'd · hand · whetherE · tetherE · ringF · stringF · compass · bombast · resolutionG · circumlocutionG · humbleH · grumbleH · tam · remain
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 anapaestic tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| It never was known that circular letters, | 9 | ·/···/˘/˘ |
| By humble companions were sent to their betters, | 12 | ·/˘˘/˘····/˘ |
| And, as to the subject, our judgment, meherc'le, | 12 | ····˘///˘··· |
| Is this, that you argue like fools in a circle. | 12 | ····/˘····/˘ |
| But now for your verses; we tell you, imprimis, | 12 | ····/˘···˘/˘ |
| The segment so large 'twixt your reason and rhyme is, | 12 | ·/˘····/˘··· |
| That we walk all about, like a horse in a pound, | 12 | ············ |
| And, before we find either, our noddles turn round. | 11 | ·····/˘/··· |
| Sufficient it were, one would think, in your mad rant, | 12 | ˘/˘········· |
| To give us your measures of line by a quadrant. | 12 | ····/˘····/˘ |
| But we took our dividers, and found your d--n'd metre, | 13 | ···/˘/·····/˘ |
| In each single verse, took up a diameter. | 11 | ··/˘····˘/˘ |
| But how, Mr. Sheridan, came you to venture | 11 | ··/˘/˘···/˘ |
| George, Dan, Dean, and Nim, to place in the centre? | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| 'Twill appear to your cost, you are fairly trepann'd, | 12 | ·˘/·····/˘·· |
| For the chord of your circle is now in their hand. | 12 | ·····/˘····· |
| The chord, or the radius, it matters not whether, | 12 | ····/˘·/˘··· |
| By which your jade Pegasus, fix'd in a tether, | 11 | ····/˘···/˘ |
| As his betters are used, shall be lash'd round the ring, | 12 | ··/˘········ |
| Three fellows with whips, and the Dean holds the string. | 11 | ·/˘········ |
| Will Hancock declares, you are out of your compass, | 12 | ·/·˘/·····/˘ |
| To encroach on his art by writing of bombast; | 12 | ·˘/····/˘·/˘ |
| And has taken just now a firm resolution | 12 | ··/˘·····˘/˘ |
| To answer your style without circumlocution. | 12 | ·/˘········· |
| Lady Betty presents you her service most humble, | 13 | /˘/˘/˘··/˘·/˘ |
| And is not afraid your worship will grumble, | 11 | ···˘/·/˘·/˘ |
| That she make of your verses a hoop for Miss Tam. | 12 | ·····/˘····· |
| Which is all at present; and so I remain-- | 11 | ····/˘···˘/ |
Notes from the edition 3
The notes to the Poems of Jonathan Swift, Volume II (Project Gutenberg #13621).
- Line 14 There were four human figures in the centre of the circular verses.--F.
- Line 25 Daughter of the Earl of Drogheda, and married to George Rochfort, Esq.--F.
- Line 27 Miss Thomason, Lady Betty's daughter, then, perhaps, about a year old; afterwards married to Gustavus Lambert, Esq., of Paynstown, in the county of Meath.--Scott.
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