Analysis of The Sunderland Calamity
William Topaz McGonagall 1825 – 1902 (Greyfriars Parish, Edinburgh)
'Twas in the town of Sunderland, and in the year of 1883,
That about 200 children were launch'd into eternity
While witnessing an entertainment in Victoria Hall,
While they, poor little innocents, to God for help did call.
The entertainment consisted of conjuring, and the ghost illusion play,
Also talking waxworks, and living marionettes, and given by Mr. Fay;
And on this occasion, presents were to be given away,
But in their anxiety of getting presents they wouldn't brook delay,
And that is the reason why so many lives have been taken away;
But I hope their precious souls are in heaven to-day.
As soon as the children began to suspect
That they would lose their presents by neglect,
They rush'd from the gallery, and ran down the stairs pell-mell,
And trampled one another to death, according as they fell.
As soon as the catastrophe became known throughout the boro'
The people's hearts were brim-full of sorrow,
And parents rush'd to the Hall terror-stricken and wild,
And each one was anxious to find their own child.
Oh! it must have been a most horrible sight
To see the dear little children struggling with all their might
To get out at the door at the foot of the stair,
While one brave little boy did repeat the Lord's Prayer.
The innocent children were buried seven or eight layers deep,
The sight was heart-rending and enough to make one weep;
It was a most affecting spectacle and frightful to behold
The corpse of a little boy not above four years old,
Who had on a top-coat much too big for him,
And his little innocent face was white and grim,
And appearing to be simply in a calm sleep-
The sight was enough to make one's flesh to creep.
The scene in the Hall was heart-sickening to behold,
And enough to make one's blood run cold.
To see the children's faces, blackened, that were trampled to death,
And their parents lamenting o'er them with bated breath.
Oh! it was most lamentable for to hear
The cries of the mothers for their children dear;
And many mothers swooned in grief away
At the sight of their dead children in grim array.
There was a parent took home a boy by mistake,
And after arriving there his heart was like to break
When it was found to be the body of a neighbour's child;
The parent stood aghast and was like to go wild.
A man and his wife rush'd madly in the Hall,
And loudly in grief on their children they did call,
And the man searched for his children among the dead
Seemingly without the least fear or dread.
And with his finger pointing he cried. "That's one! two!
Oh! heaven above, what shall I do;"
And still he kept walking on and murmuring very low.
Until he came to the last child in the row;
Then he cried, "Good God! all my family gone
And now I am left to mourn alone;"
And staggering back he cried, "Give me water, give me water!"
While his heart was like to break and his teeth seem'd to chatter.
Oh, heaven! it must have been most pitiful to see
Fathers with their dead children upon their knee
While the blood ran copiously from their mouths and ears
And their parents shedding o'er them hot burning tears.
I hope the Lord will comfort their parents by night and by day,
For He gives us life and He takes it away,
Therefore I hope their parents will put their trust in Him,
Because to weep for the dead it is a sin.
Her Majesty's grief for the bereaved parents has been profound,
And I'm glad to see that she has sent them £50;
And I hope from all parts of the world will flow relief
To aid and comfort the bereaved parents in their grief.
Scheme | XABB CCCCCC DDEE FFGG HHII JJKK LLJJ KKMM XXCC NNGG BBOO PPFF XXQQ AAXX CCLX XXRR |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 1001110000011 1011001010100 11001010001001 11110100111111 001001011000010101 1010101010101101 011010100111001 101010011010110101 01101011101111001 1111101101011 11101001101 1111110101 11101000110111 010101011010111 1110010001101010 0101011110 0101101101001 01111011111 11111011001 110110101001111 111101101101 111101101011 0100100101011101 0111100011111 1101010100010101 0110101101111 11101111111 011010011101 001011100011 01101111111 0100111100101 001111111 110101010101011 01100101011101 11110100111 01101011101 0101010101 101111100101 110101101101 0100101111111 1111110101011 010101011111 01011110001 010011110111 001111100101 1000101111 011101011111 110011111 01111010100101 01111011001 11111111001 011111101 010011111101110 11111110111110 1101111110011 10111100111 101110011101 0110101011101 110111011011011 11111011101 111110111101 01111011101 010011001101101 0111111111 0111111011101 1101000110011 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 3,462 |
Words | 654 |
Sentences | 27 |
Stanzas | 16 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 6, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Lines Amount | 66 |
Letters per line (avg) | 42 |
Words per line (avg) | 10 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 172 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 41 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on May 03, 2023
- 3:20 min read
- 92 Views
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"The Sunderland Calamity" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 30 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/41941/the-sunderland-calamity>.
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