Analysis of The Squatter's Baccy Famine
James Brunton Stephens 1835 (Scotland) – 1902
In blackest gloom he cursed his lot;
His breath was one long weary sigh;
His brows were gathered in a knot
That only baccy could untie.
His oldest pipe was scraped out clean;
The deuce a puff was left him there;
A hollow sucking sound of air
Was all he got his lips between.
He only said, “My life is dreary.
The Baccy's done,” he said.
He said, “I am aweary, aweary;
By Jove, I'm nearly dead.”
The chimney-piece he searched in vain,
Into each pocket plunged his fist;
His cheek was blanched with weary pain,
His mouth awry for want of twist.
He idled with his baccy-knife;
He had no care for daily bread:—
A single stick of Negro-head
Would be to him the staff of life.
He only said, “My life is dreary.
The Baccy's done,” he said.
He said, “I am aweary, aweary
I'd most as soon be dead.”
Books had no power to mend his grief;
The magazines could tempt no more;
“Cut Gold-Leaf” was the only leaf
That he had cared to ponder o'er.
From chair to sofa sad he swings,
And then from sofa back to chair;
But in the depth of his despair
Can catch no “bird's-eye” view of things.
And still he said, “My life is dreary.
No Baccy, boys,” he said.
He said, “I am aweary, aweary;
I'd just as soon be dead.”
His meals go by he knows not how;
No taste in flesh, or fowl, or fish;
There's not a dish could tempt him now,
Except a cake of Caven-dish.
His life is but a weary drag;
He cannot choose but curse and swear,
And thrust his fingers through his hair,
All shaggy in the want of shag.
And still he said, “My life is dreary,
No Baccy, boys,” he said.
He said, “I am aweary, aweary;
I'd rather far be dead.”
To him one end of old cheroot
Were sweetest root that ever grew.
No honey were due substitute
For “Our Superior Honey-Dew.”
One little fig of Latakia
Would buy all fruits of Paradise;
“Prince Alfred's Mixture” fetch a price
Above both Prince and Galatea.
Sudden he said, “No more be dreary!
The dray has come!” he said.
He said, “I'll smoke till I am weary—
And then, I'll go to bed.”
Scheme | ababcddcEFDf ghghiffiEFDf jxjxkddkEFDf lmlmnd dnEFDf aoxonppxefef |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Etheree (30%) Tetractys (20%) |
Metre | 01011111 11111101 11010001 1101101 11011111 01011111 01010111 11111101 110111110 01111 111111 111101 01011101 01110111 11111101 11011111 1101111 11111101 01011101 11110111 110111110 01111 111111 111111 111101111 0101111 11110101 111111010 11110111 01110111 10011101 11111111 011111110 11111 111111 111111 11111111 11011111 11011111 01011101 11110101 11011101 01110111 11000111 011111110 11111 111111 110111 1111111 01011101 1100110 1100100101 110111 1111110 1110101 01110010 101111110 011111 111111110 011111 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,992 |
Words | 398 |
Sentences | 27 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 12, 12, 12, 6, 6, 12 |
Lines Amount | 60 |
Letters per line (avg) | 25 |
Words per line (avg) | 6 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 246 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 64 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 2:03 min read
- 88 Views
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"The Squatter's Baccy Famine" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 2 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/20043/the-squatter%27s-baccy-famine>.
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