The Carrier's Story Or, Brighten's Sister-in-law Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis
Rhyme Scheme: ABABCDCD ECECBFBF EGEGHBHB IDIDIBIB BJBJAKAK ILILAMAM ININEOEO BKBKIBIB APAPBBBB EAEAABAB APAPAQAQ IBIBIRIR IBIBEBEB IAIAEBEB BSBSAKKK ABKBEBEB BBBBBBKB HBHBBDBD ADADIBIB BTBUIIII ADADEAEA ITIUIAIA EVEVKAWA XBXBBKBK KBKBIAIAAt a point where the old road crosses | A |
The river and turns to the right | B |
I'd camped with the team and the hosses | A |
Was all fixed up for the night | B |
I'd been to the town to carry | C |
A load to the Cudgegong | D |
And I'd taken the youngster Harry | C |
On a trip as I'd promis'd him long | D |
- | |
I had seven more and another | E |
That died at the age of three | C |
But they all took arter the mother | E |
And Harry took arter me | C |
And from the tiniest laddie | B |
'Twas always his fondest dream | F |
To go on the roads with his daddy | B |
And help him to drive the team | F |
- | |
He was bright at the school and clever | E |
The best of the youngsters there | G |
And the teacher said there was never | E |
A lad that promised so fair | G |
And I half forgot life's battle | H |
An' its long hard beaten road | B |
In the sound of the youngster's prattle | H |
From his perch on top o' the load | B |
- | |
An' when he was tired o' ridin' | I |
I'd lift him down for a walk | D |
And he'd say at my silence chidin' | I |
Now daddy tell me some talk | D |
And oft by the camp fire sittin' | I |
When the bush was round us wild | B |
I'd yarn by the hour forgittin' | I |
That Harry was only a child | B |
- | |
But to day he'd been strange and quiet | B |
An' lay on the chaff bags still | J |
An' though he'd bravely deny it | B |
I know'd as the boy was ill | J |
He said he was only dosey | A |
In his queer old fashioned way | K |
And I fixed him up warm an' cosey | A |
In the hammock under the dray | K |
- | |
I fried him some eggs and some bakin' | I |
Which I couldn't git him to touch | L |
And it set my heart a achin | I |
For he'd always eaten so much | L |
I wandered about half silly | A |
And thought that my heart would stop | M |
And the tea got cold in the billy | A |
For I couldn't 'a' tasted a drop | M |
- | |
I'd seen the same sickness of'en | I |
An' my spirits began to droop | N |
For as soon as he started coughin' | I |
I know'd as he'd got the croup | N |
'Twas fifteen mile to the river | E |
An' Gulgong was twenty five | O |
An' I thought 'twas a chance if ever | E |
I got him back home alive | O |
- | |
The thought of the loss was horrid | B |
If the young 'un was taken away | K |
And I went and leaned my forehead | B |
Against the tire o' the dray | K |
And sudden I started cryin' | I |
And sobbed like a woman too | B |
For I felt that the boy was dyin' | I |
And I didn't know what to do | B |
- | |
All helpless I was and lonely | A |
But I thought 'twas a coward's cry | P |
To call on the Saviour only | A |
When trouble or death was nigh | P |
But after a while I lifted | B |
My eyes to the steely blue | B |
Of the sky where somethin' drifted | B |
Like a great white cockatoo | B |
- | |
An' nearer it came and nearer | E |
Right down to the branch of the tree | A |
And it seemed when its shape grew clearer | E |
Like the form of a woman to me | A |
For a moment it seemed to tarry | A |
An' p'int away up the road | B |
An' then seemed pintin' at Harry | A |
A coughin' beneath the load | B |
- | |
I don't want ter arger there's chances | A |
The vision was only the sky | P |
Or the smoke outlin'd on the branches | A |
Or a lonely cloud on high | P |
But I says 'twas a message from glory | A |
I sees as yer goin' to chaff | Q |
Just wait till I done my story | A |
An' laugh if yer want to laugh | Q |
- | |
Away went the vision flyin' | I |
Up into the blue it went | B |
And I stood for a minute tryin' | I |
To think what its comin' meant | B |
When it flashed on my brain like lightnin' | I |
An' arter I thought it strange | R |
I'd almost forgotten old Brighten | I |
Who lived on the top of the range | R |
- | |
He lived on a small selection | I |
Or used ter live there I know'd | B |
An' it lay in a west direction | I |
'Bout five miles back from the road | B |
I harnessed the horses quicker | E |
Than ever I'd taken 'em out | B |
An' they must 'a' thought me in liquor | E |
For the way as I shov'd 'em about | B |
- | |
I'd allers bin fond o' sneerin' | I |
An' laughin' at women's ways | A |
I could see in their lives I'm fearin' | I |
But little as called for praise | A |
But now when I thought he'd smother | E |
With croup in the lonely wild | B |
Good God how I longed for a mother | E |
To save the life of my child | B |
- | |
I seed in a vision each minit | B |
The youngster nursed back into life | S |
An' the hand of a woman was in it | B |
An' the woman was Brighten's wife | S |
There's times when not knowin' a bliss is | A |
As Harry's school teacher 'ud say | K |
And I didn't know Brighten's missis | K |
Had gone to the town that day | K |
- | |
In a moment I'd lifted Harry | A |
To the bags on top of the load | B |
And I flogged the weary horses | K |
Along on the dusty road | B |
But ev'rything seem'd to hinder | E |
My hopes when I reached the hut | B |
For there wasn't a light in the winder | E |
And both o' the doors was shut | B |
- | |
That moment my heart got hurted | B |
An' I felt it for many a day | B |
For I thought that the place was deserted | B |
An' Brighten had gone away | B |
But I called and the door was opened | B |
An' I saw that the hut was alight | B |
It hadn't shone in the winders | K |
For the moon was shinin' bright | B |
- | |
An' there in the door with a candle | H |
I saw old Brighten stand | B |
With his fingers grasping the handle | H |
Of a pistol he held in his hand | B |
If any one moves he shouted | B |
I'll fire if I've got to hang | D |
For the moment he never doubted | B |
'Twas a visit from Gard'ner's gang | D |
- | |
I didn't move in a hurry | A |
For a man in a fright shoots quick | D |
But I told him he needn't flurry | A |
'Twas only a youngster sick | D |
Stan' back said old Brighten snatchin' | I |
An' shuttin' the door in his fright | B |
It's typhoid maybe he's catchin' | I |
An' I can't have him here to night | B |
- | |
But a woman's voice shouted What is it | B |
I'd never seen her before | T |
She was only there on a visit | B |
'Twas Brighten's sister in law | U |
An' nothin' seemed able to frighten | I |
This woman so pale an' thin | I |
She pushed from the door old Brighten | I |
An' carried the youngster in | I |
- | |
She'd bin hospital nurse in the city | A |
I heard and had got the sack | D |
For havin' a little pity | A |
An' exposin' a doctor quack | D |
Some trumped up stories agin her | E |
All over the town was belled | A |
An' in spite of the fightin' in her | E |
They got her at last expelled | A |
- | |
An' talkin' o' fight I'm fearin' | I |
There's sudden fightin' in store | T |
For the first as speaks in my hearin' | I |
'Gin Brighten's sister in law | U |
For in spite of old Brighten's cussin' | I |
She got the youngster to bed | A |
And arter a week's good nussin' | I |
She won him back from the dead | A |
- | |
And then I began to hanker | E |
For a speech to tell her the joy | V |
I felt in my heart and to thank her | E |
For givin' me back my boy | V |
The mornin' I left old Brighten's | K |
While puttin' the horses to | A |
I puzzled my brains to make up | W |
A speech as I thought would do | A |
- | |
She lifted the youngster and kissed him | X |
And helped him into the dray | B |
An' I thought of how I'd 'a' missed him | X |
If he'd only been taken away | B |
An' Mum I sez I oughter | B |
An' to finish the speech I tries | K |
But all on a sudden the water | B |
Kem bubblin' up to my eyes | K |
- | |
An' down'ard like water courses | K |
The tears began to tear | B |
An' I had to swear at the horses | K |
To hide my weakness from her | B |
But the tears was only human | I |
An' they seem'd to ha' done some good | A |
For she pressed my hand like a woman | I |
An' said that she understood | A |
Henry Lawson
(1)
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