Analysis of The Second Whip Explains
William Henry Ogilvie 1869 (Scotland) – 1963
Now, gatherin' 'ounds is a job I like
W'en the winter day draws in,
W'en shadows are lyin' by every dyke
An' creepin' out o' the whin ;
W'en 'Armony 's missin' an' Houtcast too,
An' the Master 'e says to me-
'Jim, you go back to that gorse we drew,
For it's there them beggars 'll be ! '
Oh, gatherin' 'ounds is the job I love,
W'en the dark comes down on the thorn
An' the moon is 'ung in the sky above
Like a glitterin' 'untin' 'orn
W'en I ride the banks like a glidin' ghost
An' the dips like a witch o' fear-
This is the job wot I loves the most
In the darkest days o' the year.
Though it's me that knows that the cunnin' old rags
Will be 'alfway 'ome by now,
0' course if you're sent for a 'ound wot lags
You must do as you're ordered 'ow;
An' it's allus the custom, so I've found,
With a pack worth callin' a pack
That a Whip goes back for the missin' 'ound-
An' it's mostly me goes back!
Though I know the beggars is runnin' the road
On a breast-high scent o' soup,
Will I use my brains ? - No, I 'll be blowed
If I 'd ever so 'umble stoop;
If they think that a fox'ound don't have wits,
Let 'em think so, then, I say!
Some folk must gather up sense by bits
As a fed 'oss gathers 'is 'ay.
No, I don't 'alf mind keepin' long late hours,
For it's all in the day for me,
An' I know there's a glass to be 'ad at the Towers,
An' there's Oakwood Farm for tea,
With a pail o' gruel all mixed, I guess,
An' a stall that the old 'oss knows,
An' a seat by the kitchen fire wi' Bess
W'en the cook an' the 'ousemaid goes!
An' that's wy I ride so cheery back
W'en the Master says to me -
'Jim ' - wi' 'is keen heye hover the pack - ,
I am two' ounds short, or three.'
An' that's wy I 'm Houtcast's honly friend
An' 'Armony's life-long pal,
Because if they kept wi' the pack to the end,
Well - 'ow would I see my gal?
Scheme | ABABCDCDEFEFGHGHIJIKLMCMNONOPQPQRDRDSTSTMDMDUVUV |
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Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11110111 1001010110 100111111001 111101 1001111111 10101111 111111111 11111011 11110111 10010111101 1011100101 10111 100111011011 10110111 110111101 00101101 1111110111 111111 111110111 11111101 111010111 1011101 101111011 1110111 1110101101 1011111 1111111111 111101101 111101111 1111111 111101111 10111011 1111111110 11100111 1111011111010 111111 1011101111 10110111 10110101011 1001011011 111111101 1001010111 111111001 1111111 11111111 11111 01111101101 1111111 |
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 1,817 |
Words | 382 |
Sentences | 10 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 48 |
Lines Amount | 48 |
Letters per line (avg) | 27 |
Words per line (avg) | 8 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 1,283 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 383 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on April 11, 2023
- 2:01 min read
- 39 Views
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"The Second Whip Explains" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 16 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/40807/the-second-whip-explains>.
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