Jackaw Of Rheims, The Poem Rhyme Scheme

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The Jackdaw sat on the Cardinal's chair	A
Bishop and abbot and prior were there	A
Many a monk and many a friar	B
Many a knight and many a squire	C
With a great many more of lesser degree	D
In sooth a goodly company	D
And they served the Lord Primate on bended knee	D
Never I ween	D
Was a prouder seen	D
Read of in books or dreamt of in dreams	E
Than the Cardinal Lord Archbishop of Rheims	E
	-
In and out	F
Through the motley rout	F
That little Jackdaw kept hopping about	F
Here and there	A
Like a dog in a fair	A
Over comfits and cates	E
And dishes and plates	E
Cowl and cope and rochet and pall	G
Mitre and crosier he hopp'd upon all	H
With saucy air	A
He perch'd on the chair	A
Where in state the great Lord Cardinal sat	I
In the great Lord Cardinal's great red hat	I
And he peer'd in the face	E
Of his Lordship's Grace	E
With a satisfied look as if he would say	E
'We two are the greatest folks here to day '	-
And the priests with awe	J
As such freaks they saw	E
Said 'The Devil must be in that little Jackdaw '	-
	-
The feast was over the board was clear'd	K
The flawns and the custards had all disappear'd	K
And six little Singing boys dear little souls	E
In nice clean faces and nice white stoles	E
Came in order due	L
Two by two	L
Marching that grand refectory through	L
A nice little boy held a golden ewer	B
Emboss'd and fill'd with water as pure	M
As any that flows between Rheims and Namur	M
Which a nice little boy stood ready to catch	N
In a fine golden hand basin made to match	N
Two nice little boys rather more grown	D
Carried lavender water and eau de Cologne	D
And a nice little boy had a nice cake of soap	O
Worthy of washing the hands of the Pope	O
One little boy more	M
A napkin bore	M
Of the best white diaper fringed with pink	P
And a Cardinal's Hat mark'd in 'permanent ink '	-
The great Lord Cardinal turns at the sight	Q
Of these nice little boys dress'd all in white	Q
From his finger he draws	E
His costly turquoise	E
And not thinking at all about little Jackdaws	E
Deposits it straight	R
By the side of his plate	R
While the nice little boys on his Eminence wait	R
Till when nobody's dreaming of any such thing	S
That little Jackdaw hops off with the ring	S
	-
There's a cry and a shout	F
And a deuce of a rout	F
And nobody seems to know what they're about	F
But the Monks have their pockets all turn'd inside out	F
The Friars are kneeling	S
And hunting and feeling	S
The carpet the floor and the walls and the ceiling	S
The Cardinal drew	M
Off each plum colour'd shoe	M
And left his red stockings exposed to the view	M
He peeps and he feels	E
In the toes and the heels	E
They turn up the dishes they turn up the plates	E
They take up the poker and poke out the grates	E
They turn up the rugs	E
They examine the mugs	E
But no no such thing	S
They can't find THE RING	S
And the Abbott declared that 'when nobody twigg'd it	T
Some rascal or other had popp'd in and prigg'd it '	-
	-
The Cardinal rose with a dignified look	U
He call'd for his candle his bell and his book	U
In holy anger and pious grief	V
He solemnly cursed that rascally thief	V
He cursed him at board he cursed him in bed	W
From the sole of his foot to the crown of his head	W
He cursed him in sleeping that every night	Q
He should dream of the devil and wake in a fright	Q
He cursed him in eating he cursed him in drinking	S
He cursed him in coughing in sneezing in winking	S
He cursed him in sitting in standing in lying	S
He cursed him in walking in riding in flying	S
He cursed him in living he cursed him in dying	S
Never was heard such a terrible curse	E
But what gave rise	E
To no little surprise	E
Nobody seem'd one penny the worse	E
	-
The day was gone	D
The night came on	D
The Monks and the Friars they search'd till dawn	D
When the Sacristan saw	E
On crumpled claw	E
Come limping a poor little lame Jackdaw	Q
No longer gay	E
As on yesterday	E
His feathers all seem'd to be turn'd the wrong way	E
His pinions droop'd he could hardly stand	Q
His head was as bald as the palm of your hand	Q
His eye so dim	X
So wasted each limb	X
That heedless of grammar they all cried 'THAT'S HIM	X
That's the scamp that has done this scandalous thing	S
That's the thief that has got my Lord Cardinal's Ring '	-
The poor little Jackdaw	Q
When the Monks he saw	E
Feebly gave vent to the ghost of a caw	E
And turn'd his bald head as much as to say	E
'Pray be so good as to walk this way '	-
Slower and slower	M
He limp'd on before	M
Till they came to the back of the belfry door	M
Where the first thing they saw	E
Midst the sticks and the straw	E
Was the Ring in the nest of that little Jackdaw	Q
	-
Then the great Lord Cardinal call'd for his book	U
And off that terrible curse he took	U
The mute expression	D
Served in lieu of confession	D
And being thus coupled with full restitution	D
The Jackdaw got plenary absolution	D
When those words were heard	Q
That poor little bird	Q
Was so changed in a moment 'twas really absurd	Q
He grew sleek and fat	Q
In addition to that	Q
A fresh crop of feathers came thick as a mat	Q
His tail waggled more	M
Even than before	M
But no longer it wagg'd with an impudent air	M
No longer he perch'd on the Cardinal's chair	M
He hopp'd now about	Q
With a gait devout	Q
At Matins at Vespers he never was out	Q
And so far from any more pilfering deeds	E
He always seem'd telling the Confessor's beads	E
If any one lied or if any one swore	M
Or slumber'd in pray'r time and happen'd to snore	M
That good Jackdaw	Q
Would give a great 'Caw '	-
As much as to say 'Don't do so any more '	-
While many remark'd as his manners they saw	E
That they 'never had known such a pious Jackdaw '	-
He long lived the pride	Q
Of that country side	Q
And at last in the odour of sanctity died	Q
When as words were too faint	Q
His merits to paint	Q
The Conclave determined to make him a Saint	Q
And on newly made Saints and Popes as you know	D
It's the custom at Rome new names to bestow	D
So they canonized him by the name of Jim Crow	D

Richard Harris Barham

Jackaw Of Rheims, The Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis

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