Consider Freeland Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABCDEFBG HIJKLMNNKONNKN NEKPJCNQRQNSBT JQBUVKWXY KKZPA2B2KKC2D2KPE2F2 LD2G2 KH2GI2DJ2K2L2NM2KNKL 2JN2NO2L2B2QKKJ KYP2BQ2NR2S2T2NNU2NH V2JW2K2 QX2NNEY2N N2PNPNM2Z2NEKNX2F2NZ QNA3NNB3NC3 TD3JE3F3 QG3CH3KNHNNE2 A2I3 QUKLKKJ3NQNK3QQKKQQL 3GK3FNLW2NNQU2QM3KN3 NNQCE2NU2O3P3 QO3NQNO3O3 NQ3NQNO3NM3NQLook at that tract of land there five good acres | A |
Held out of use these thirty years and more | B |
They keep a cow there See the cow's there now | C |
She can't eat up the grass there is so much | D |
And in these thirty years these houses here | E |
Here all around here have been built This lot | F |
Is worth five times the worth it had before | B |
These houses were built round it | G |
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Well by God | H |
I am in part responsible for this | I |
I started out to be a first rate lawyer | J |
Was I first rate lawyer Well I won | K |
These acres for the Burtons in the day | L |
When I could tell you what is gavel kind | M |
Advowsons corodies frank tenements | N |
Scutage escheats feoffments heriots | N |
Remainders and reversions and mortmain | K |
Tale special and tale general tale female | O |
Fees absolute conditional copyholds | N |
And used to stand and argue with the courts | N |
The difference 'twixt a purchase limitation | K |
The rule in Shelley's case | N |
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And so it was | N |
In my good days I won these acres here | E |
For old man Kingston's daughter who in turn | K |
Bound it with limitation for the life | P |
Of selfish sons who keep a caretaker | J |
Who keeps a cow upon it There's the cow | C |
The land has had no use for thirty years | N |
The children are kept off it Elenor Murray | Q |
This girl whose death makes such a stir one time | R |
Was playing there but that's another story | Q |
I only say for the present these five acres | N |
Made Elenor Murray's life a thing of waste | S |
As much as anything and a damn sight more | B |
For think a minute | T |
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Kingston had a daughter | J |
Married to Colonel Burton in Kentucky | Q |
And Kingston's son was in the Civil War | B |
But just before the war the Burtons deeded | U |
These acres here which she inherited | V |
From old man Kingston to this Captain Kingston | K |
The son aforesaid of Old Kingston Well | W |
The deed upon its face was absolute | X |
But really was a deed in trust | Y |
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The Captain | K |
Held title for a year or two and then | K |
An hour before he fought at Shiloh made | Z |
A will and willed acres to his wife | P |
Fee simple and forever Now you'd think | A2 |
That contemplating death he'd make a deed | B2 |
Giving these acres back to Mrs Burton | K |
The sister who had trusted him I don't know | K |
What comes in people's heads but I believe | C2 |
The want of money is the root of evil | D2 |
As well as love of money for this Captain | K |
Perhaps would make provision for his wife | P |
And infant son thought that the chiefest thing | E2 |
No matter how he did it being poor | F2 |
Willed this land as he did But anyway | L |
He willed it so went into Shiloh's battle | D2 |
And fell dead on the field | G2 |
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What happened then | K |
They took this will to probate As I said | H2 |
I was a lawyer then you may believe it | G |
Was hired by the Burtons to reclaim | I2 |
These acres from the Widow Kingston's clutch | D |
Under this wicked will And so I argued | J2 |
The will had not been witnessed according to law | K2 |
Got beat upon that point in the lower court | L2 |
But won upon it in the upper courts | N |
Then next I filed a bill to set aside | M2 |
This deed the Burtons made to Captain Kingston | K |
Oh I was full of schemes expedients | N |
In those days I can tell you Widow Kingston | K |
Came back and filed a cross bill asked the court | L2 |
To confirm the title in her son and her | J |
As heirs of Captain Kingston let the will | N2 |
Go out of thought and reckoning Here's the issue | N |
You understand the case no doubt We fought | O2 |
Through all the courts I lost in the lower court | L2 |
As I lost on the will There was the deed | B2 |
For love and affection and one dollar we | Q |
Convey and warrant lots from one to ten | K |
In the city of LeRoy to Captain Kingston | K |
To be his own forever | J |
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How to go | K |
Behind such words and show the actual trust | Y |
Inhering in the deed that was the job | P2 |
But here I was resourceful as before | B |
Found witnesses to testify they heard | Q2 |
This Captain Kingston say he held the acres | N |
In trust for Mrs Burton but I lost | R2 |
Before the chancellor had to appeal | S2 |
But won on the appeal and thus restored | T2 |
These acres to the Burtons And for this | N |
What did I get Three hundred lousy dollars | N |
That's why I smoke a pipe that's also why | U2 |
I quit the business when I saw the business | N |
Was making ready to quit me By God | H |
My life is waste so far as it was used | V2 |
By this law business and no coroner | J |
Need hold an inquest on me to find out | W2 |
What waste was in my life God damn the law | K2 |
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Well then I go my way and take my fee | Q |
And pay my bills The Burtons have the land | X2 |
And turn a cow upon it See how nice | N |
A playground it would be I've seen ten sets | N |
Of children try to play there hey you hear | E |
The caretaker come out get off of there | Y2 |
And then the children scamper climb the fence | N |
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Well after while the Burtons die The will | N2 |
Leaves these five acres to their sons for life | P |
Remainder to the children of the sons | N |
The sons are living yet at middle life | P |
These acres have been tied up twenty years | N |
They may be tied up thirty years beside | M2 |
The sons can't sell it and their children can't | Z2 |
Only the cow can use it as it stands | N |
It grows more valuable as the people come here | E |
And bring in being Elenor Murrays children | K |
And make the land around it populous | N |
That's what makes poverty this holding land | X2 |
It makes the taxes harder on the poor | F2 |
It makes work scarcer and it takes your girls | N |
And boys and throws them into life half made | Z |
Half ready for the battle Is a country | Q |
Free where the laws permit such things Your priests | N |
Your addle headed preachers mouthing Christ | A3 |
And morals prohibition laws to force | N |
People to be good to save the girls | N |
When every half wit knows environment | B3 |
Takes natures made unstable in these homes | N |
Of poverty and does the trick | C3 |
- | |
That baronet | T |
Who mocked our freedom sailing back for England | D3 |
And said Your Liberty Statue in the harbor | J |
Is just a joke that baronet is right | E3 |
While such conditions thrive | F3 |
- | |
Well look at me | Q |
Who for three hundred dollars take a part | G3 |
In making a cow pasture for a cow | C |
For fifty years or so I hate myself | H3 |
And were the Burtons better than this Kingston | K |
Kingston would will away what was not his | N |
The Burtons took what is the gift of God | H |
As much as air and fenced it out of use | N |
Save for the cow aforesaid for the lives | N |
Of sons in being | E2 |
- | |
Oh I know you think | A2 |
I have a grudge I have | I3 |
- | |
This Elenor Murray | Q |
Was ten years old I think this law suit ended | U |
Twelve years or so and I was running down | K |
Was tippling just a little every day | L |
And I came by this lot one afternoon | K |
When school was out a sunny afternoon | K |
The children had no place except the street | J3 |
To play in they were standing by the fence | N |
The cow was way across the lot and Elenor | Q |
Was looking through the fence some boys and girls | N |
Standing around her and I said to them | K3 |
Why don't you climb the fence and play in there | Q |
And Elenor she always was a leader | Q |
And not afraid of anything said Come on | K |
And in a jiffy climbed the fence the children | K |
Some quicker and some slower followed her | Q |
Some said They don't allow it Elenor | Q |
Stood on the fence flung up her arms and crowed | L3 |
And said What can they do He says to do it | G |
Pointing at me And in a moment all of them | K3 |
Were playing and were shouting in the lot | F |
And I stood there and watched them half malicious | N |
And half in pleasure watching them at play | L |
Then I heard hey the care taker ran out | W2 |
And said Get out of there I will arrest you | N |
He drove them out and as they jumped the fence | N |
Some said He told us to pointing at me | Q |
And Elenor Murray said Why what a lie | U2 |
And then the care taker grabbed Elenor Murray | Q |
And said You are the wildest of them all | M3 |
I spoke up saying Leave that child alone | K |
I won this God damn land for those you serve | N3 |
They use it for a cow and nothing else | N |
And let these children run about the streets | N |
When there are grass and dandelions there | Q |
In plenty for these children and the cow | C |
And space enough to play in without bothering | E2 |
That solitary cow I took his hands | N |
Away from Elenor Murray he and I | U2 |
Came face to face with clenched fists but at last | O3 |
He walked away the children scampered off | P3 |
- | |
Next day however they arrested me | Q |
For aiding in a trespass clausam fregit | O3 |
And fined me twenty dollars and the costs | N |
Since then the cow has all her way in there | Q |
And Elenor Murray left this rotten place | N |
Went to the war came home and died and proved | O3 |
She had the sense to leave so vile a world | O3 |
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George Joslin ending up his days with dreams | N |
Of youth in Europe travels and with talk | Q3 |
Stirred to a recollection of a face | N |
He saw in Paris fifty years before | Q |
Because the face resembled Elenor Murray's | N |
Explored his drawers and boxes where he kept | O3 |
Mementos treasures of the olden days | N |
And found a pamphlet came to Merival | M3 |
With certain recollections and with theories | N |
Of Elenor Murray | Q |
Edgar Lee Masters
(1)
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