The Lyttel Boy

Eugene Field 1850 (St. Louis) – 1895 (Chicago)



Sometime there ben a lyttel boy
 That wolde not renne and play,
And helpless like that little tyke
 Ben allwais in the way.
"Goe, make you merrie with the rest,"
 His weary moder cried;
But with a frown he catcht her gown
 And hong untill her side.

That boy did love his moder well,
 Which spake him faire, I ween;
He loved to stand and hold her hand
 And ken her with his een;
His cosset bleated in the croft,
 His toys unheeded lay,--
He wolde not goe, but, tarrying soe,
 Ben allwais in the way.

Godde loveth children and doth gird
 His throne with soche as these,
And He doth smile in plaisaunce while
 They cluster at His knees;
And sometime, when He looked on earth
 And watched the bairns at play,
He kenned with joy a lyttel boy
 Ben allwais in the way.

And then a moder felt her heart
 How that it ben to-torne,--
She kissed eche day till she ben gray
 The shoon he used to worn;
No bairn let hold untill her gown,
 Nor played upon the floore,--
Godde's was the joy; a lyttel boy
 Ben in the way no more!

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:00 min read
122

Quick analysis:

Scheme abxBxcdc xdxdxbeB xexexbaB xdbxdfaf
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 990
Words 202
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 8, 8, 8, 8

Eugene Field

Eugene Field, Sr. was an American writer, best known for his children's poetry and humorous essays. more…

All Eugene Field poems | Eugene Field Books

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