Analysis of Yarra Flats
Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis 1876 (Auburn) – 1938 (Melbourne)
A spieler came to Yarra Glen upon the Yarra flats;
He wore a suit of noisy cheeks and something cute in hats.
He was a wicked man, they say,
Such as they grow down Melbourne way.
A spieler gay,
From Melbourne way,
Who sought for Yarra flats.
He taught them an amusing trick with three elusive cards;
But with suspicion such vain things the Yarra flat regards.
And then, with fingers mighty quick,
He tried them with the thimble trick.
A nimble trick,
The thimble trick,
As tricky as the cards.
But still the stolid natives stood, and let him have his say,
But always changed the subject when he wanted them to play.
They were not parting with their 'dough.'
'But now,' said they, 'give us a show.
We'll do a trick,
The river trick,
The only trick we know.
'We'll bet you fifty pounds,' they said, 'that we produce a man
Who'll throw you clean across the river Yarra - and he can
Right where the stream is swift and wide
And land you on the other side.'
'I call your bluff!
Put up the stuff!'
The spieler chap replied.
They led him to the river bank - the day was bleak and cold
And on his collar and his pants their strong man took a hold.
He swung him once, he swung him twice
(The strong man's grip was like a vice)
Then, with a flop,
He let him dropp
The stream was cold as ice.
The spieler scrambled to the bank. 'I've won!' he cried. 'I've won!'
'Get out!' the simple natives jeered. 'Our strong man hasn't done.
He's only tried it once, you fool!
He's going to try again. Keep cool.'
'I've done my dash;
You take the cash,'
The spieler said: 'I'm full.'
The spieler went from Yarra Glen; his clothes were dripping wet.
'These are,' he murmured brokenly, 'the fliest flats I've met.'
And, as the natives saw him off,
They cheered him on with shout and scoff;
'We're all strong men
In Yarra Glen,
But Yarra flats are off!'
Scheme | AABBBBA CCDDDDC BBEEDDE FFGGHHG IIJJKKJ LLMMNNX OOPPQQP |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 010111101011 11011101010101 11010111 11111101 0101 1101 11111 11110101110101 1101011101101 01110101 11110101 0101 0101 110101 11010101011111 1110011110111 10110111 11111101 1101 0101 010111 11110111110101 1111010101011 11011101 01110101 1111 1101 010101 11110101011101 01110011111101 11111111 01111101 1101 1111 011111 01010101111111 110101011011101 11011111 110110111 1111 1101 010111 0101111110101 11110101111 01010111 11111101 1111 011 11111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,798 |
Words | 363 |
Sentences | 31 |
Stanzas | 7 |
Stanza Lengths | 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7, 7 |
Lines Amount | 49 |
Letters per line (avg) | 28 |
Words per line (avg) | 7 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 196 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 50 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:48 min read
- 137 Views
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"Yarra Flats" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 27 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/6831/yarra-flats>.
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