Sub-Footnote on the Text
"Thursday (March 11th).--A fine morning. William worked at the poem of'The Singing Bird.' ..."
"Friday (March 12th).--William finished his poem of 'The SingingBird.'"
The post-boy drove with fierce career,For threatening clouds the moon had drowned;When, as we hurried on, my earWas smitten with a startling sound.
As if the wind blew many ways,I heard the sound,--and more and more;It seemed to follow with the chaise,And still I heard it as before.
At length I to the boy called out;He stopped his horses at the word,But neither cry, nor voice, nor shout,Nor aught else like it, could be heard.
The boy then smacked his whip, and fastThe horses scampered through the rain;But, hearing soon upon the blastThe cry, I bade him halt again.
Forthwith alighting on the ground,"Whence comes," said I, "this piteous moan?"And there a little Girl I found,Sitting behind the chaise, alone.
"My cloak!" no other word she spake,But loud and bitterly she wept,As if her innocent heart would break;And down from off her seat she leapt.
"What ails you, child?"--she sobbed "Look here!"I saw it in the wheel entangled,A weather-beaten rag as e'erFrom any garden scare-crow dangled.
There, twisted between nave and spoke,It hung, nor could at once be freed;But our joint pains unloosed the cloak,A miserable rag indeed!
"And whither are you going, child,To-night along these lonesome ways?""To Durham," answered she, half wild--"Then come with me into the chaise."
Insensible to all reliefSat the poor girl, and forth did sendSob after sob, as if her griefCould never, never have an end.
"My child, in Durham do you dwell?"She checked herself in her distress,And said, "My name is Alice Fell;I'm fatherless and motherless.
"And I to Durham, Sir, belong."Again, as if the thought would chokeHer very heart, her grief grew strong;And all was for her tattered cloak!
The chaise drove on; our journey's endWas nigh; and, sitting by my side,As if she had lost her only friendShe wept, nor would be pacified.
Up to the tavern-door we post;Of Alice and her grief I told;And I gave money to the host,To buy a new cloak for the old.
"And let it be of duffil grey,As warm a cloak as man can sell!"Proud creature was she the next day,The little orphan, Alice Fell!
Words in this poem 15
- drove n.
- A collection of cattle driven, or cattle collected for driving; a number of animals, as oxen, sheep, or swine, driven in a body. [AS. draf, fr. drifan to drive. See Drive.]
- career n.
- A race course: the ground run over. [F. carrière race course, high road, street, fr. L. carrus wagon. See Car.]
- chaise n.
- A two-wheeled carriage for two persons, with a calash top, and the body hung on leather straps, or thoroughbraces. It is usually drawn by one horse. [F. chaise seat, or chair, chaise or carriage, for chaire, from a peculiar Parisian pronunciation. See Chair.]
- aught n.
- Property; possession. [AS. , fr. agan to own, p. p. ahte.]
- bade
- A form of the pat tense of Bid.
- forthwith adv.
- Immediately; without delay; directly.
- bitterly adv.
- In a bitter manner.
- scare v. t.
- To frighten; to strike with sudden fear; to alarm. [OE. skerren, skeren, Icel. skirra to bar, prevent, skirrask to shun , shrink from; or fr. OE. skerre, adj., scared, Icel. skjarr; both perhaps akin to E. sheer ]
- spoke n.
- The radius or ray of a wheel; one of the small bars which are inserted in the hub, or nave, and which serve to support the rim or felly. [OE. spoke, spake, AS, spaca; akin to D. speek, LG. speke, OHG. speihha, G. speiche. sq. root170. Cf. Spike a nail.]
- whither adv.
- To what place; -- used interrogatively; as, whither goest thou [OE. whider. AS. hwider; akin to E. where, who; cf. Goth. hvadre whither. See Who, and cf. Hither, Thither.]
- lonesome a.
- Secluded from society; not frequented by human beings; solitary.
- durham n.
- One or a breed of short-horned cattle, originating in the county of Durham, England. The Durham cattle are noted for their beef-producing quality.
- dwell v. i.
- To delay; to linger. [OE. dwellen, dwelien, to err, linger, AS. dwellan to deceive, hinder, delay, dwelian to err; akin to Icel. dvelja to delay, tarry, Sw. dväljas to dwell, Dan. dv]
- fatherless a.
- Destitute of a living father; as, a fatherless child.
- motherless a.
- Destitute of a mother; having lost a mother; as, motherless children. [AS. modorleás.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Sub-Footnote on the Text is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poetical Works of William Wordsworth — Volume 2 (of 8), Project Gutenberg ebook #12145; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: William Wordsworth, Sub-Footnote on the Text, in The Poetical Works, Volume II (1798–1807), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #12145, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/wordsworth-vol2/sub-footnote-on-the-text.html, id L17338.
Form and metre
Sub-Footnote on the Text is 64 lines in 17 stanzas. The rhyme scheme is ABAB, complete in 15 of its 17 stanzas. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%). 95% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.1 syllables. 4 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 19% 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.
- 3 ABAB careerA · drownedB · earA · soundB
- 4 ABAB waysA · moreB · chaiseA · beforeB
- 5 ABAB outA · wordB · shoutA · heardB
- 6 ABAB fastA · rainB · blastA · againB
- 7 ABAB groundA · moanB · foundA · aloneB
- 8 ABAB spakeA · weptB · breakA · leaptB
- 9 ABAB hereA · entangledB · e'erA · dangledB
- 10 ABAB spokeA · freedB · cloakA · indeedB
- 11 ABAB childA · waysB · wildA · chaiseB
- 12 ABAB reliefA · sendB · griefA · endB
- 13 ABAB dwellA · distressB · fellA · motherlessB
- 14 ABAB belongA · chokeB · strongA · cloakB
- 15 ABAB endA · sideB · friendA · pacifiedB
- 16 ABAB postA · toldB · hostA · oldB
- 17 ABAB greyA · sellB · dayA · fellB
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 |
|---|---|---|
| "Thursday (March 11th).--A fine morning. William worked at the poem of | 14 | /····/˘/˘···/· |
| 'The Singing Bird.' ..." | 4 | ·/˘· |
| "Friday (March 12th).--William finished his poem of 'The Singing | 13 | /··/˘/˘·/··/˘ |
| Bird.'" | 1 | · |
| The post-boy drove with fierce career, | 8 | ······˘/ |
| For threatening clouds the moon had drowned; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| When, as we hurried on, my ear | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Was smitten with a startling sound. | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| As if the wind blew many ways, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| I heard the sound,--and more and more; | 8 | ········ |
| It seemed to follow with the chaise, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| And still I heard it as before. | 8 | ········ |
| At length I to the boy called out; | 8 | ········ |
| He stopped his horses at the word, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| But neither cry, nor voice, nor shout, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Nor aught else like it, could be heard. | 8 | ········ |
| The boy then smacked his whip, and fast | 8 | ········ |
| The horses scampered through the rain; | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| But, hearing soon upon the blast | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| The cry, I bade him halt again. | 8 | ······˘/ |
| Forthwith alighting on the ground, | 8 | //˘/˘··· |
| "Whence comes," said I, "this piteous moan?" | 9 | ·····/˘˘· |
| And there a little Girl I found, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Sitting behind the chaise, alone. | 8 | /˘····˘/ |
| "My cloak!" no other word she spake, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| But loud and bitterly she wept, | 8 | ···/˘˘·· |
| As if her innocent heart would break; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| And down from off her seat she leapt. | 8 | ········ |
| "What ails you, child?"--she sobbed "Look here!" | 8 | ········ |
| I saw it in the wheel entangled, | 9 | ······˘/˘ |
| A weather-beaten rag as e'er | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| From any garden scare-crow dangled. | 9 | ·/˘/˘··/˘ |
| There, twisted between nave and spoke, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| It hung, nor could at once be freed; | 8 | ········ |
| But our joint pains unloosed the cloak, | 8 | ·/······ |
| A miserable rag indeed! | 8 | ·/˘˘˘·˘/ |
| "And whither are you going, child, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| To-night along these lonesome ways?" | 8 | ··˘/·/˘· |
| "To Durham," answered she, half wild-- | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| "Then come with me into the chaise." | 8 | ········ |
| Insensible to all relief | 8 | ˘/˘˘··˘/ |
| Sat the poor girl, and forth did send | 8 | ········ |
| Sob after sob, as if her grief | 8 | ········ |
| Could never, never have an end. | 8 | ·/˘/˘··· |
| "My child, in Durham do you dwell?" | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| She checked herself in her distress, | 8 | ··˘/··˘/ |
| And said, "My name is Alice Fell; | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| I'm fatherless and motherless. | 8 | ·/˘˘·/˘˘ |
| "And I to Durham, Sir, belong." | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| Again, as if the thought would choke | 8 | ˘/······ |
| Her very heart, her grief grew strong; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And all was for her tattered cloak! | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| The chaise drove on; our journey's end | 8 | ····//˘· |
| Was nigh; and, sitting by my side, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| As if she had lost her only friend | 9 | ······/˘· |
| She wept, nor would be pacified. | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Up to the tavern-door we post; | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Of Alice and her grief I told; | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And I gave money to the host, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| To buy a new cloak for the old. | 8 | ········ |
| "And let it be of duffil grey, | 8 | ········ |
| As warm a cloak as man can sell!" | 8 | ········ |
| Proud creature was she the next day, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| The little orphan, Alice Fell! | 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.