Analysis of Birds, Batsmen and Bowlers
Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis 1876 (Auburn) – 1938 (Melbourne)
The throstle now in English lanes
Bids Summer strew her dear delights. . . .
But we, intent on cricket gains,
Watch well our valiant willow knights.
With eager eyes on cabled news,
We watch each bravely mounting score;
With ears half frozen, we refuse
To go to bed; but crane for more
From out the ether, as we sit
And 'listen-in,' tho' midnight's gone.
While glorious centuries they hit
(And if it isn't Bradman, it's Ponsford;
and if it isn't Ponsford, it's Woodfull;
and if it isn't Woodfull, it's McCabe;
and if it isn't McCabe, it's Chipperfield;
and if it isn't Chipperfield -)
Gosh! Can this sort of thing go on?
Our hope lies not alone in Don;
Others remain to carry on.
The Merry Mavis, fluting free
In England now by wood and weald,
Calls from the edge of Arcady. . . .
But, as our bowlers take the field,
We mark them with a mental eye,
Striving against the mimic foe,
Despite one Shaw. (Let Mavis cry,
The foolish fowl.) We see them mow
The wickets down; this way and that,
Turning the ball. Rare joy we sup
To mark their cunning beat the bat -
(And if it isn't Wall, it's O'Reilly;
and if it isn't O'Reilly, it's Grimmett;
and if it isn't Grimmett, it's Fleetwood-Smith;
and if it isn't Fleetwood-Smith -)
Oh Gosh! Can our men keep this up?
The Test? Alas, what bitter cup -
Hey! Shut that kookaburra up!
Scheme | ABABCDCDEXEEFXEEGGG XEEXHIHIJKJFELLKKK |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 0110101 11010101 11011101 11101011 11011101 11110101 11110101 11111111 11010111 0100111 110010011 01110111 01110111 011101101 011100111 011101 11111111 101110101 10011101 0101011 01011101 110111 111010101 11110101 10010101 01111101 01011111 01011101 10011111 11110101 0111011010 01110010110 0111010111 0111011 111101111 01011101 11111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,298 |
Words | 244 |
Sentences | 22 |
Stanzas | 2 |
Stanza Lengths | 19, 18 |
Lines Amount | 37 |
Letters per line (avg) | 27 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 492 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 127 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:18 min read
- 83 Views
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"Birds, Batsmen and Bowlers" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 21 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/6226/birds%2C-batsmen-and-bowlers>.
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