The Child-mother Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: AABCCB DDAEEA FFGHHG AABIIB JJKAAK LLMNNM OOLAAL AAAEEA AAAPPA QQHAAH RRBKKB AASRRT AAAKKA AAKUUK KKVAAV WWQXXQ YYNZZN KKA2AAB2 C2C2HKKH D2D2KBBK E2E2AF2F2A G2G2KH2H2KHeavily slumbered noonday bright | A |
Upon the lone field glory dight | A |
A burnished grassy sea | B |
The child in gorgeous golden hours | C |
Through heaven descended starry flowers | C |
Went walking on the lea | B |
- | |
Velvety bees make busy hum | D |
Green flies and striped wasps go and come | D |
The butterflies gleam white | A |
Blue burning vaporous to and fro | E |
The dragon flies like arrows go | E |
Or hang in moveless flight | A |
- | |
Not one she followed like a rill | F |
She wandered on with quiet will | F |
Received but did not miss | G |
Her step was neither quick nor long | H |
Nought but a snatch of murmured song | H |
Ever revealed her bliss | G |
- | |
An almost solemn woman child | A |
Not fashioned frolicsome and wild | A |
She had more love than glee | B |
And now though nine and nothing more | I |
Another little child she bore | I |
Almost as big as she | B |
- | |
No silken cloud from solar harms | J |
Had she to spread with shifting arms | J |
She dodged him from the sun | K |
Mother and sister both in heart | A |
She did a gracious woman's part | A |
Life's task even now begun | K |
- | |
They came upon a stagnant ditch | L |
The slippery sloping banks of which | L |
More varied blossoms line | M |
Some ragged robins baby spies | N |
Stretches his hands and crows and cries | N |
Plain saying They are mine | M |
- | |
What baby wants that baby has | O |
A law unalterable as | O |
The poor shall serve the rich | L |
They are beyond her reach almost | A |
She kneels she strains and too engrossed | A |
Topples into the ditch | L |
- | |
Adown the side she slanting rolled | A |
But her two arms convulsive hold | A |
The precious baby tight | A |
She lets herself sublimely go | E |
And in the ditch's muddy flow | E |
Stands up in evil plight | A |
- | |
'Tis nothing that her feet are wet | A |
But her new shoes she can't forget | A |
They cost five shillings bright | A |
Her petticoat her tippet blue | P |
Her frock they're smeared with slime like glue | P |
But baby is all right | A |
- | |
And baby laughs and baby crows | Q |
And baby being right she knows | Q |
That nothing can be wrong | H |
So with a troubled heart yet stout | A |
She plans how ever to get out | A |
With meditation long | H |
- | |
The high bank's edge is far away | R |
The slope is steep and made of clay | R |
And what to do with baby | B |
For even a monkey up to run | K |
Would need his four hands every one | K |
She is perplexed as may be | B |
- | |
And all her puzzling is no good | A |
Blank staring up the side she stood | A |
Which settling she grew higher | S |
At last seized with a fresh dismay | R |
Lest baby's patience should give way | R |
She plucked her feet from the mire | T |
- | |
And up and down the ditch not glad | A |
But patient very did promenade | A |
Splash splash went her small feet | A |
And baby thought it rare good fun | K |
Sucking his bit of pulpy bun | K |
And smelling meadow sweet | A |
- | |
But oh the world that she had left | A |
The meads from her so lately reft | A |
Poor infant Proserpine | K |
A fabled land they lay above | U |
A paradise of sunny love | U |
In breezy space divine | K |
- | |
Frequent from neighbouring village green | K |
Came sounds of laughter faintly keen | K |
And barks of well known dogs | V |
While she the hot sun overhead | A |
Her lonely watery way must tread | A |
In mud and weeds and frogs | V |
- | |
Sudden the ditch about her shakes | W |
Her little heart responsive quakes | W |
With fear of uncouth woes | Q |
She lifts her boding eyes perforce | X |
To see the huge head of a horse | X |
Go past upon its nose | Q |
- | |
Then hark what sounds of tearing grass | Y |
And puffing breath With knobs of brass | Y |
On horns of frightful size | N |
A cow's head through the broken hedge | Z |
Looks awful from the other edge | Z |
Though mild her pondering eyes | N |
- | |
The horse the cow are passed and gone | K |
The sun keeps going on and on | K |
And still no help comes near | A2 |
At misery's last oh joy the sound | A |
Of human footsteps on the ground | A |
She cried aloud I'm here | B2 |
- | |
It was a man oh heavenly joy | C2 |
He looked amazed at girl and boy | C2 |
And reached his hand so strong | H |
Give me the child he said but no | K |
Care would not let the burden go | K |
Which Love had borne so long | H |
- | |
Smiling he kneels with outstretched hands | D2 |
And them unparted safely lands | D2 |
In the upper world again | K |
Her low thanks feebly murmured she | B |
Drags her legs homeward painfully | B |
Poor wet one chickened hen | K |
- | |
Arrived at length Lo scarce a speck | E2 |
Was on the child from heel to neck | E2 |
Though she was sorely mired | A |
No tear confessed the long drawn rack | F2 |
Till her mother took the baby back | F2 |
And the she cried I'm tired | A |
- | |
And intermixed with sobbing wail | G2 |
She told her mother all the tale | G2 |
Her wet cheeks in a glow | K |
But mother mother though I fell | H2 |
I kept the baby pretty well | H2 |
I did not let him go | K |
George Macdonald
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