Analysis of Sydney Cup 1899

Andrew Barton Paterson 1864 (Orange, New South Wales) – 1941 (Sydney, New South Wales)



Of course they say if this Bobadil starts
He'll settle 'em all in a flash:
For the pace he can go will be breaking their hearts,
And he ends with the "Bobadil dash".
But there's one in the race is a fance of mine
Whenever the distance is far --
Crosslake! He's inbred to the Yattendon line,
And we know what the Yattendons are.
His feet are his trouble: they're tender as gum!
If only his feet are got straight,
If the field were all Bobadils --let 'em all come
So long as they carry the weight.
For a three-year-old colt with nine-three on his back --
Well, he needs to be rather a star!
And with seven stone ten we will trust the old black,
For we know what the Yattendons are.

He is sired by Lochiel, which ensures that his pace
Is enough, and a little to spare.
But the blood that will tell at the end of the race
Is the blood of the Yattendon mare.
And this "Bobby" will find, when the whips are about,
It's a very fast journey and far.
And there's just the least doubt -- will he battle it out?
Nut we know what the Yattendons are.

In the rest of the field there are some that can stay,
And a few that can fly -- while they last.
But the old black outsider will go all the way,
And finish uncommonly fast.
If his feet last him out to the end of the trip --
Bare-footed or shod with a bar --
If he once gets this Bobadil under the whip,
Then he'll show what the Yattendons are.


Scheme ABABCDCDEFEFGDGD HIHIJDJD KLKLMDMD
Poetic Form
Metre 11111111 11011001 101111111011 0111011 11100110111 01001011 1111011 0111011 11111011011 11011111 1010111111 11111001 101111111111 111111001 011011111011 1111011 11111101111 101001011 101111101101 1011011 011011101101 101011001 011011111011 1111011 001101111111 001111111 101101011101 0101001 111111101101 11011101 1111111001 1111011
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,390
Words 279
Sentences 16
Stanzas 3
Stanza Lengths 16, 8, 8
Lines Amount 32
Letters per line (avg) 33
Words per line (avg) 9
Letters per stanza (avg) 349
Words per stanza (avg) 92
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:25 min read
169

Andrew Barton Paterson

Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson, was an Australian bush poet, journalist and author. He wrote many ballads and poems about Australian life, focusing particularly on the rural and outback areas, including the district around Binalong, New South Wales, where he spent much of his childhood. Paterson's more notable poems include "Clancy of the Overflow" (1889), "The Man from Snowy River" (1890) and "Waltzing Matilda" (1895), regarded widely as Australia's unofficial national anthem. more…

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