Conversation Poem Rhyme Scheme

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Though nature weigh our talents and dispense	A
To every man his modicum of sense	A
And Conversation in its better part	B
May be esteem'd a gift and not an art	B
Yet much depends as in the tiller s toil	C
On culture and the sowing of the soil	C
Words learn'd by rote a parrot may rehearse	D
But talking is not always to converse	D
Not more distinct from harmony divine	E
The constant creaking of a country sign	E
As alphabets in ivory employ	F
Hour after hour the yet unletter d boy	F
Sorting and puzzling with a deal of glee	G
Those seeds of science call d his a b c	G
So language in the mouths of the adult	H
Witness its insignificant result	H
Too often proves an implement of play	I
A toy to sport with and pass time away	I
Collect at evening what the day brought forth	J
Compress the sum into its solid worth	K
And if it weigh the importance of a fly	L
The scales are false or algebra a lie	L
Sacred interpreter of human thought	M
How few respect or use thee as they ought	M
But all shall give account of every wrong	N
Who dare dishonour or defile the tongue	O
Who prostitute it in the cause of vice	P
Or sell their glory at a market price	P
Who vote for hire or point it with lampoon	Q
The dear bought placeman and the cheap buffoon	Q
There is a prurience in the speech of some	R
Wrath stays him or else God would strike them dumb	R
His wise forbearance has their end in view	S
They fill their measure and receive their due	S
The heathen lawgivers of ancient days	T
Names almost worthy of a Christian s praise	T
Would drive them forth from the resort of men	U
And shut up every satyr in his den	U
Oh come not ye near innocence and truth	V
Ye worms that eat into the bud of youth	V
Infectious as impure your blighting power	W
Taints in its rudiments the promised flower	W
Its odour perish d and its charming hue	S
Thenceforth tis hateful for it smells of you	S
Not e en the vigorous and headlong rage	X
Of adolescence or a firmer age	X
Affords a plea allowable or just	Y
For making speech the pamperer of lust	Y
But when the breath of age commits the fault	Z
Tis nauseous as the vapour of a vault	Z
So wither d stumps disgrace the sylvan scene	A2
No longer fruitful and no longer green	A2
The sapless wood divested of the bark	B2
Grows fungous and takes fire at every spark	B2
Oaths terminate as Paul observes all strife	C2
Some men have surely then a peaceful life	C2
Whatever subject occupy discourse	D2
The feats of Vestris or the naval force	D2
Asseveration blustering in your face	E2
Makes contradiction such a hopeless case	E2
In every tale they tell or false or true	S
Well known or such as no man ever knew	S
They fix attention heedless of your pain	F2
With oaths like rivets forced into the brain	F2
And e en when sober truth prevails throughout	G2
They swear it till affirmance breeds a doubt	G2
A Persian humble servant of the sun	H2
Who though devout yet bigotry had none	H2
Hearing a lawyer grave in his address	I2
With adjurations every word impress	I2
Supposed the man a bishop or at least	J2
God s name so much upon his lips a priest	J2
Bow d at the close with all his graceful airs	K2
And begg d an interest in his frequent prayers	K2
Go quit the rank to which ye stood preferr d	G
Henceforth associate in one common herd	L2
Religion virtue reason common sense	A
Pronounce your human form a false pretence	A
A mere disguise in which a devil lurks	A
Who yet betrays his secret by his works	A
Ye powers who rule the tongue if such there are	M2
And make colloquial happiness your care	N2
Preserve me from the thing I dread and hate	O2
A duel in the form of a debate	O2
The clash of arguments and jar of words	A
Worse than the mortal brunt of rival swords	A
Decide no question with their tedious length	P2
For opposition gives opinion strength	P2
Divert the champions prodigal of breath	Q2
And put the peaceably disposed to death	Q2
Oh thwart me not Sir Soph at every turn	R2
Nor carp at every flaw you may discern	R2
Though syllogisms hang not on my tongue	O
I am not surely always in the wrong	N
Tis hard if all is false that I advance	A
A fool must now and then be right by chance	A
Not that all freedom of dissent I blame	S2
No there I grant the privilege I claim	S2
A disputable point is no man s ground	T2
Rove where you please tis common all around	T2
Discourse may want an animated No	U2
To brush the surface and to make it flow	U2
But still remember if you mean to please	A
To press your point with modesty and ease	A
The mark at which my juster aim I take	V2
Is contradiction for its own dear sake	V2
Set your opinion at whatever pitch	W2
Knots and impediments make something hitch	W2
Adopt his own tis equally in vain	F2
Your thread of argument is snapp d again	U
The wrangler rather than accord with you	S
Will judge himself deceived and prove it too	S
Vociferated logic kills me quite	X2
A noisy man is always in the right	X2
I twirl my thumbs fall back into my chair	N2
Fix on the wainscot a distressful stare	N2
And when I hope his blunders are all out	G2
Reply discreetly To be sure no doubt	G2
Dubius is such a scrupulous good man	Y2
Yes you may catch him tripping if you can	Y2
He would not with a peremptory tone	Z2
Assert the nose upon his face his own	Z2
With hesitation admirably slow	U2
He humbly hopes presumes it may be so	U2
His evidence if he were call d by law	A3
To swear to some enormity he saw	A3
For want of prominence and just relief	B3
Would hang an honest man and save a thief	B3
Though constant dread of giving truth offence	A3
He ties up all his hearers in suspense	A3
Knows what he knows as if he knew it not	C3
What he remembers seems to have forgot	C3
His sole opinion whatsoe er befall	D3
Centring at last in having none at all	D3
Yet though he tease and balk your listening ear	E3
He makes one useful point exceeding clear	F3
Howe er ingenious on his darling theme	G3
A sceptic in philosophy may seem	G3
Reduced to practice his beloved rule	H3
Would only prove him a consummate fool	H3
Useless in him alike both brain and speech	I3
Fate having placed all truth above his reach	I3
His ambiguities his total sum	R
He might as well be blind and deaf and dumb	R
Where men of judgment creep and feel their way	I
The positive pronounce without dismay	I
Their want of light and intellect supplied	J3
By sparks absurdity strikes out of pride	J3
Without the means of knowing right from wrong	N
They always are decisive clear and strong	N
Where others toil with philosophic force	A3
Their nimble nonsense takes a shorter course	A3
Flings at your head conviction in the lump	K3
And gains remote conclusions at a jump	K3
Their own defect invisible to them	L3
Seen in another they at once condemn	L3
And though self idolised in every case	A3
Hate their own likeness in a brother s face	A3
The cause is plain and not to be denied	J3
The proud are always most provoked by pride	J3
Few competitions but engender spite	X2
And those the most where neither has a right	X2
The point of honour has been deem d of use	A3
To teach good manners and to curb abuse	A3
Admit it true the consequence is clear	F3
Our polish d manners are a mask we wear	N2
And at the bottom barbarous still and rude	M3
We are restrain d indeed but not subdued	M3
The very remedy however sure	N3
Springs from the mischief it intends to cure	N3
And savage in its principle appears	A3
Tried as it should be by the fruit it bears	A3
Tis hard indeed if nothing will defend	O3
Mankind from quarrels but their fatal end	O3
That now and then a hero must decease	A3
That the surviving world may live in peace	A3
Perhaps at last close scrutiny may shew	S
The practice dastardly and mean and low	U2
That men engage in it compell d by force	A3
And fear not courage is its proper source	A3
The fear of tyrant custom and the fear	F3
Lest fops should censure us and fools should sneer	F3
At least to trample on our Maker s laws	A3
And hazard life for any or no cause	A3
To rush into a fix d eternal state	O2
Out of the very flames of rage and hate	O2
Or send another shivering to the bar	M2
With all the guilt of such unnatural war	P3
Whatever use may urge or honour plead	Q3
On reason s verdict is a madman s deed	Q3
Am I to set my life upon a throw	U2
Becau	N

William Cowper

Conversation Poem Rhyme Scheme and Analysis

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