The post-boy drove with fierce career,
For threatening clouds the moon had drowned;
When, as we hurried on, my ear
Was smitten with a startling sound.
For threatening clouds the moon had drowned;
When, as we hurried on, my ear
Was smitten with a startling sound.
William Wordsworth
]
[Variant 4:
1842.
. . . whose words . . . 1841. ]
[Variant 5:
1842.
With a soft voice, . . . 1841. ]
[Variant 6:
1842.
. . . mine . . . 1841. ]
[Variant 7: The "even" of 1841 is evidently a misprint. ]
[Variant 8:
1842.
. . . too light; 1841. ]
* * * * *
FOOTNOTES ON THE TEXT
[Footnote A: In 'The Poems of Geoffrey Chaucer Modernised'. It is an
extract from 'Troilus and Cressida', book v. ll. 518-686. --Ed. ]
[Footnote B:
"Chaucer's text is:
'And therwithalle his meynye for to blende
A cause he fonde in toune for to go. '
'His meynye for to blende,' i. e. to keep his household or his
domestics in the dark. But Wordsworth writes:
'And therewithal to cover his _intent_,'
possibly mistaking 'meynye' for 'meaning'. "
(Professor Dowden, in the 'Transactions of the Wordsworth Society', No.
III. )--Ed. ]
[Footnote C:
"When Troilus sees the shut windows and desolate aspect of his lady's
house, his face grows blanched, and he rides past in haste, so fast,
says Wordsworth,
'That no wight his continuance espied. '
But in Chaucer he rides fast that his white face may not be noticed:
'And as God wolde he gan so faste ride
That no wight of his countenance espied. '"
(Professor Dowden, in the 'Transactions of the Wordsworth Society', No.
III. )--Ed. ]
[Footnote D: In Chaucer "werreyed" = warred on = fought against. --Ed. ]
[Footnote E:
"'Toward my death with wind I steer and sail. '
This is Urry's version, but Chaucer's text is,
'Toward my death, with wind _in stern_ I sail,'
Troilus' bark careering towards death, with all sails set, before a
fierce stern-wind. "
(Professor Dowden, in the 'Transactions of the Wordsworth Society', No.
III. )--Ed. ]
[Footnote F: In Chaucer "aboute" = around. --Ed. ]
* * * * *
1802
The Lyrical Ballads and Sonnets which follow were written
in 1802; but during that year Wordsworth continued mainly to
work at 'The Excursion', as the following extracts from his sister's
Journal indicate:
"Feb. 1, 1802. --William worked hard at 'The Pedlar,' and tired
himself.
2nd Feb. --Wm. worked at 'The Pedlar. ' I read aloud the 11th book of
'Paradise Lost'.
Thursday, 4th. --William thought a little about 'The Pedlar. '
5th. --Wm. sate up late at 'The Pedlar. '
7th. --W. was working at his poem. Wm. read 'The Pedlar,' thinking it
was done. But lo! . . . it was uninteresting, and must be altered. "
Similar records occur each day in the Journal from the 10th to the 14th
Feb. 1802. --Ed.
* * * * *
THE SAILOR'S MOTHER
Composed March 11th and 12th, 1802. --Published 1807
[Written in Town-end, Grasmere. I met this woman near the Wishing-gate,
on the high road that then led from Grasmere to Ambleside. Her
appearance was exactly as here described, and such was her account,
nearly to the letter. --I. F. ]
One of the "Poems founded on the Affections. "--Ed.
One morning (raw it was and wet--
A foggy day in winter time)
A Woman on [1] the road I met,
Not old, though something past her prime:
Majestic in her person, tall and straight; 5
And like a Roman matron's was her mien and gait.
The ancient spirit is not dead;
Old times, thought I, are breathing there;
Proud was I that my country bred
Such strength, a dignity so fair: 10
She begged an alms, like one in poor estate;
I looked at her again, nor did my pride abate.
When from these lofty thoughts I woke,
"What is it," said I, "that you bear,
Beneath the covert of your Cloak, 15
Protected from this cold damp air? " [2]
She answered, soon as she the question heard,
"A simple burthen, Sir, a little Singing-bird. "
And, thus continuing, she said,
"I had a Son, who many a day 20
Sailed on the seas, but he is dead; [3]
In Denmark he was cast away:
And I have travelled weary miles to see
If aught which he had owned might still remain for me. [4]
"The bird and cage they both were his: 25
'Twas my Son's bird; and neat and trim
He kept it: many voyages
The singing-bird had gone [5] with him;
When last he sailed, he left the bird behind;
From bodings, as might be, that hung upon his mind. [6] 30
"He to a fellow-lodger's care
Had left it, to be watched and fed,
And pipe its song in safety;--there [7]
I found it when my Son was dead;
And now, God help me for my little wit! 35
I bear [8] it with me, Sir;--he took so much delight in it. "
* * * * *
VARIANTS ON THE TEXT
[Variant 1:
1815.
. . . in . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 2:
1836.
. . . I woke,
With the first word I had to spare
I said to her, "Beneath your Cloak
What's that which on your arm you bear? " 1807.
"What treasure," said I,"do you bear,
Beneath the covert of your Cloak
Protected from the cold damp air? " 1820. ]
[Variant 3:
1807.
"I had a Son,--the waves might roar,
He feared them not, a Sailor gay!
But he will cross the waves no more: 1820.
. . . cross the deep . . . 1827.
The text of 1832 returns to that of 1807. [a]]
[Variant 4:
1827.
And I have been as far as Hull, to see
What clothes he might have left, or other property. 1807.
And I have travelled far as Hull, to see 1815.
And I have travelled many miles to see
If aught which he had owned might still remain for me. 1820. ]
[Variant 5:
1845.
This Singing-bird hath gone . . . 1807.
. . . had gone . . . 1820. ]
[Variant 6:
1827.
As it might be, perhaps, from bodings of his mind. 1807. ]
[Variant 7:
1827.
Till he came back again; and there 1807. ]
[Variant 8:
1827.
I trail . . . 1807. ]
* * * * *
SUB-FOOTNOTE ON THE TEXT
[Sub-Footnote a: This return, in 1832, to the original text of the poem
was due to Barren Field's criticism, the justice of which Wordsworth
admitted. --Ed. ]
In the Wordsworth household this poem went by the name
of "The Singing Bird" as well as 'The Sailor's Mother'.
"Thursday (March 11th). --A fine morning. William worked at the poem of
'The Singing Bird. ' . . . "
"Friday (March 12th). --William finished his poem of 'The Singing
Bird. '"
(Dorothy Wordsworth's Grasmere Journal. )--Ed.
* * * * *
ALICE FELL; OR, POVERTY [A]
Composed March 12th and 13th, 1802. --Published 1807
[Written to gratify Mr. Graham of Glasgow, brother of the author of 'The
Sabbath'. He was a zealous coadjutor of Mr. Clarkson, and a man of
ardent humanity. The incident had happened to himself, and he urged me
to put it into verse, for humanity's sake. The humbleness, meanness if
you like, of the subject, together with the homely mode of treating it,
brought upon me a world of ridicule by the small critics, so that in
policy I excluded it from many editions of my poems, till it was
restored at the request of some of my friends, in particular my
son-in-law, Edward Quillinan. --I. F. ]
It was only excluded from the editions of 1820, 1827, and 1832. In the
edition of 1807 it was placed amongst a group of "Poems composed during
a Tour, chiefly on foot. " In 1815, in 1836, and afterwards, it was
included in the group "referring to the Period of Childhood. "
In Dorothy Wordsworth's Grasmere Journal, the following reference to
this poem occurs:
"Feb. 16, 1802. --Mr. Graham said he wished William had been with him
the other day. He was riding in a post-chaise, and he heard a strange
cry that he could not understand. The sound continued, and he called
to the chaise-driver to stop. It was a little girl that was crying as
if her heart would burst. She had got up behind the chaise, and her
cloak had been caught by the wheel, and was jammed in, and it hung
there. She was crying after it, poor thing. Mr. Graham took her into
the chaise, and her cloak was released from the wheel, but the child's
misery did not cease, for her cloak was torn to rags. It had been a
miserable cloak before; but she had no other, and it was the greatest
sorrow that could befall her. Her name was Alice Fell. She had no
parents, and belonged to the next town. At the next town Mr. G. left
money to buy her a new cloak. "
"Friday (March 12). --In the evening after tea William wrote 'Alice
Fell'. "
"Saturday Morning (13th March). --William finished 'Alice Fell'. . . . "
Ed.
The post-boy drove with fierce career,
For threatening clouds the moon had drowned;
When, as we hurried on, my ear
Was smitten with a startling sound. [1]
As if the wind blew many ways, 5
I heard the sound,--and more and more;
It seemed to follow with the chaise,
And still I heard it as before.
At length I to the boy called out;
He stopped his horses at the word, 10
But neither cry, nor voice, nor shout,
Nor aught else like it, could be heard.
The boy then smacked his whip, and fast
The horses scampered through the rain;
But, hearing soon upon the blast 15
The cry, I bade him halt again. [2]
Forthwith alighting on the ground,
"Whence comes," said I, "this piteous moan? " [3]
And there a little Girl I found,
Sitting behind the chaise, alone. 20
"My cloak! " no other word she spake,
But loud and bitterly she wept,
As if her innocent heart would break; [4]
And down from off her seat [5] she leapt.
"What ails you, child? "--she sobbed "Look here! " 25
I saw it in the wheel entangled,
A weather-beaten rag as e'er
From any garden scare-crow dangled.
There, twisted between nave and spoke,
It hung, nor could at once be freed; 30
But our joint pains unloosed the cloak, [6]
A miserable rag indeed! [7]
"And whither are you going, child,
To-night along these lonesome ways? "
"To Durham," answered she, half wild--35
"Then come with me into the chaise. "
Insensible to all relief
Sat the poor girl, and forth did send
Sob after sob, as if her grief [8]
Could never, never have an end. 40
"My child, in Durham do you dwell? "
She checked herself in her distress,
And said, "My name is Alice Fell;
I'm fatherless and motherless.
"And I to Durham, Sir, belong. " 45
Again, [9] as if the thought would choke
Her very heart, her grief grew strong;
And all was for her tattered cloak!
The chaise drove on; our journey's end
Was nigh; and, sitting by my side, 50
As if she had lost [10] her only friend
She wept, nor would be pacified.
Up to the tavern-door we post;
Of Alice and her grief I told;
And I gave money to the host, 55
To buy a new cloak for the old.
"And let it be of duffil grey,
As warm a cloak as man can sell! "
Proud creature was she the next day,
The little orphan, Alice Fell! 60
* * * * *
VARIANTS ON THE TEXT
[Variant 1:
1845.
When suddenly I seem'd to hear
A moan, a lamentable sound. 1807. ]
[Variant 2:
1845.
And soon I heard upon the blast
The voice, and bade . . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 3:
1845.
Said I, alighting on the ground,
"What can it be, this piteous moan? " 1807.
Forthwith alighted on the ground
To learn what voice the piteous moan
Had made, a little girl I found, C. ]
[Variant 4:
1836.
"My Cloak! " the word was last and first,
And loud and bitterly she wept,
As if her very heart would burst; 1807.
"My cloak, my cloak" she cried, and spake
No other word, but loudly wept, C. ]
[Variant 5:
1815.
. . . off the Chaise . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 6:
1845.
'Twas twisted betwixt nave and spoke;
Her help she lent, and with good heed
Together we released the Cloak; 1807.
. . . between . . . 1840. ]
[Variant 7:
1836.
A wretched, wretched rag indeed! 1807. ]
[Variant 8:
1845.
She sate like one past all relief;
Sob after sob she forth did send
In wretchedness, as if her grief 1807. ]
[Variant 9:
1836.
And then, . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 10:
1836.
. . . she'd lost . . . 1807. ]
* * * * *
FOOTNOTE ON THE TEXT
[Footnote A: There was no sub-title in the edition of 1807. --Ed. ]
Charles Lamb wrote to Wordsworth in 1815, referring to
the revisions of this and other poems:
"I am glad that you have not sacrificed a verse to those scoundrels. I
would not have had you offer up the poorest rag that lingered upon the
stript shoulders of little Alice Fell, to have atoned all their
malice; I would not have given 'em a red cloak to save their souls. "
See 'Letters of Charles Lamb' (Ainger), vol. i. p. 283. --Ed.
* * * * *
BEGGARS
Composed March 13th and 14th, 1802. --Published 1807
[Written at Town-end, Grasmere. Met, and described to me by my sister,
near the quarry at the head of Rydal Lake, [A] a place still a chosen
resort of vagrants travelling with their families. --I. F. ]
The following are Dorothy Wordsworth's references to this poem in her
Grasmere Journal. They justify the remark of the late Bishop of Lincoln,
"his poems are sometimes little more than poetical versions of her
descriptions of the objects which she had seen, _and he treated them
as seen by himself_. "
(See
'Memoirs of Wordsworth', vol. i. pp. 180-1. )
"Saturday (March 13, 1802). --William wrote the poem of the Beggar
Woman, taken from a woman whom I had seen in May (now nearly two years
ago), when John and he were at Gallow Hill. I sat with him at
intervals all the morning, and took down his stanzas. After tea I read
W. the account I had written of the little boy belonging to the tall
woman: and an unlucky thing it was, for he could not escape from those
very words, and so he could not write the poem. He left it unfinished,
and went tired to bed. In our walk from Rydal he had got warmed with
the subject, and had half cast the poem. "
"Sunday Morning (March 14). --William had slept badly. He got up at 9
o'clock, but before he rose he had finished the Beggar Boy. "
The following is the "account" written in her Journal on Tuesday, May
23, 1800:
"A very tall woman, tall much beyond the measure of tall women, called
at the door. She had on a very long brown cloak, and a very white cap,
without bonnet. Her face was brown, but it had plainly once been fair.
She led a little barefooted child about two years old by the hand, and
said her husband, who was a tinker, was gone before with the other
children. I gave her a piece of bread. Afterwards, on my road to
Ambleside, beside the bridge at Rydal, I saw her husband sitting at
the roadside, his two asses standing beside him, and the two young
children at play upon the grass. The man did not beg. I passed on, and
about a quarter of a mile farther I saw two boys before me, one about
ten, the other about eight years old, at play, chasing a butterfly.
They were wild figures, not very ragged, but without shoes and
stockings. The hat of the elder was wreathed round with yellow
flowers; the younger, whose hat was only a rimless crown, had stuck it
round with laurel leaves. They continued at play till I drew very
near, and then they addressed me with the begging cant and the whining
voice of sorrow. I said, 'I served your mother this morning' (the boys
were so like the woman who had called at our door that I could not be
mistaken). 'O,' says the elder, 'you could not serve my mother, for
she's dead, and my father's in at the next town; he's a potter. ' I
persisted in my assertion, and that I would give them nothing. Says
the elder, 'Come, let's away,' and away they flew like lightning. They
had, however, sauntered so long in their road that they did not reach
Ambleside before me, and I saw them go up to Mathew Harrison's house
with their wallet upon the elder's shoulder, and creeping with a
beggar's complaining foot. On my return through Ambleside I met, in
the street, the mother driving her asses, in the two panniers of one
of which were the two little children, whom she was chiding and
threatening with a wand with which she used to drive on her asses,
while the little things hung in wantonness over the pannier's edge.
The woman had told me in the morning that she was of Scotland, which
her accent fully proved, and that she had lived (I think at Wigtown);
that they could not keep a house, and so they travelled. "
This was one of the "Poems of the Imagination. "--Ed.
She had a tall man's height or more;
Her face from summer's noontide heat
No bonnet shaded, but she wore
A mantle, to her very feet
Descending with a graceful flow, 5
And on her head a cap as white as new-fallen snow. [1]
Her skin was of Egyptian brown:
Haughty, as if her eye had seen
Its own light to a distance thrown,
She towered, fit person for a Queen [2] 10
To lead [3] those ancient Amazonian files;
Or ruling Bandit's wife among the Grecian isles.
Advancing, forth she stretched her hand
And begged an alms with doleful plea
That ceased not; on our English land 15
Such woes, I knew, could never be; [4]
And yet a boon I gave her, for the creature
Was beautiful to see--a weed of glorious feature. [B]
I left her, and pursued my way;
And soon before me did espy 20
A pair of little Boys at play,
Chasing a crimson butterfly;
The taller followed with his hat in hand,
Wreathed round with yellow flowers the gayest of the land. [5]
The other wore a rimless crown 25
With leaves of laurel stuck about;
And, while both [6] followed up and down,
Each whooping with a merry shout,
In their fraternal features I could trace
Unquestionable lines of that wild Suppliant's face. [7] 30
Yet _they_, so blithe of heart, seemed fit [8]
For finest tasks of earth or air:
Wings let them have, and they might flit
Precursors to [9] Aurora's car,
Scattering fresh flowers; though happier far, I ween, 35
To hunt their fluttering game o'er rock and level green.
They dart across my path--but lo, [10]
Each ready with a plaintive whine!
Said I, "not half an hour ago
Your Mother has had alms of mine. " 40
"That cannot be," one answered--"she is dead:"--
I looked reproof--they saw--but neither hung his head. [11]
"She has been dead, Sir, many a day. "--
"Hush, boys! you're telling me a lie; [12]
It was your Mother, as I say! " 45
And, in the twinkling of an eye,
"Come! come! " cried one, and without more ado,
Off to some other play the joyous Vagrants flew! [13] [C]
* * * * *
VARIANTS ON THE TEXT
[Variant 1:
1845.
She had a tall Man's height, or more;
No bonnet screen'd her from the heat;
A long drab-colour'd Cloak she wore,
A Mantle reaching to her feet:
What other dress she had I could not know;
Only she wore a Cap that was as white as snow. 1807.
Before me as the Wanderer stood,
No bonnet screened her from the heat;
Nor claimed she service from the hood
Of a blue mantle, to her feet
Depending with a graceful flow;
Only she wore a cap pure as unsullied snow. 1827.
Before my eyes a Wanderer stood;
Her face from summer's noon-day heat
Nor bonnet shaded, nor the hood
Of that blue cloak which to her feet
Depended with a graceful flow;
Only she wore a cap as white as new-fallen snow. 1832.
No bonnet shaded, nor the hood
Of the blue cloak . . . 1836.
She had a tall man's height or more;
And while, 'mid April's noontide heat,
A long blue cloak the vagrant wore,
A mantle reaching to her feet,
No bonnet screened her lofty brow,
Only she wore a cap as white as new-fallen snow. C.
She had a tall man's height or more;
A garment for her stature meet,
And for a vagrant life, she wore
A mantle reaching to her feet.
Nor hood, nor bonnet screened her lofty brow, C. ]
[Variant 2:
1827.
In all my walks, through field or town,
Such Figure had I never seen:
Her face was of Egyptian brown:
Fit person was she for a Queen, 1807.
Such figure had I never seen
In all my walks through field or town,
Fit person seemed she for a Queen, C. ]
[Variant 3:
1836.
To head . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 4:
1845.
Before me begging did she stand,
Pouring out sorrows like a sea;
Grief after grief:--on English Land
Such woes I knew could never be; 1807.
Her suit no faltering scruples checked;
Forth did she pour, in current free,
Tales that could challenge no respect
But from a blind credulity; 1827.
She begged an alms; no scruple checked
The current of her ready plea,
Words that could challenge . . . 1832.
Before me begging did she stand
And boldly urged a doleful plea,
Grief after grief, on English land
Such woes I knew could never be. C. ]
[Variant 5:
1807.
With yellow flowers around, as with a golden band. C. ]
[Variant 6:
1827.
And they both . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 7:
1820.
Two Brothers seem'd they, eight and ten years old;
And like that Woman's face as gold is like to gold. 1807. ]
[Variant 8: This stanza was added in the edition of 1827. ]
[Variant 9:
1836.
Precursors of . . . 1827. ]
[Variant 10:
1827.
They bolted on me thus, and lo! 1807. ]
[Variant 11:
1827.
"Nay but I gave her pence, and she will buy you bread. " 1807. ]
[Variant 12:
1845.
"Sweet Boys, you're telling me a lie; 1807.
. . . Heaven hears that rash reply; 1827.
[Variant 4:
1842.
. . . whose words . . . 1841. ]
[Variant 5:
1842.
With a soft voice, . . . 1841. ]
[Variant 6:
1842.
. . . mine . . . 1841. ]
[Variant 7: The "even" of 1841 is evidently a misprint. ]
[Variant 8:
1842.
. . . too light; 1841. ]
* * * * *
FOOTNOTES ON THE TEXT
[Footnote A: In 'The Poems of Geoffrey Chaucer Modernised'. It is an
extract from 'Troilus and Cressida', book v. ll. 518-686. --Ed. ]
[Footnote B:
"Chaucer's text is:
'And therwithalle his meynye for to blende
A cause he fonde in toune for to go. '
'His meynye for to blende,' i. e. to keep his household or his
domestics in the dark. But Wordsworth writes:
'And therewithal to cover his _intent_,'
possibly mistaking 'meynye' for 'meaning'. "
(Professor Dowden, in the 'Transactions of the Wordsworth Society', No.
III. )--Ed. ]
[Footnote C:
"When Troilus sees the shut windows and desolate aspect of his lady's
house, his face grows blanched, and he rides past in haste, so fast,
says Wordsworth,
'That no wight his continuance espied. '
But in Chaucer he rides fast that his white face may not be noticed:
'And as God wolde he gan so faste ride
That no wight of his countenance espied. '"
(Professor Dowden, in the 'Transactions of the Wordsworth Society', No.
III. )--Ed. ]
[Footnote D: In Chaucer "werreyed" = warred on = fought against. --Ed. ]
[Footnote E:
"'Toward my death with wind I steer and sail. '
This is Urry's version, but Chaucer's text is,
'Toward my death, with wind _in stern_ I sail,'
Troilus' bark careering towards death, with all sails set, before a
fierce stern-wind. "
(Professor Dowden, in the 'Transactions of the Wordsworth Society', No.
III. )--Ed. ]
[Footnote F: In Chaucer "aboute" = around. --Ed. ]
* * * * *
1802
The Lyrical Ballads and Sonnets which follow were written
in 1802; but during that year Wordsworth continued mainly to
work at 'The Excursion', as the following extracts from his sister's
Journal indicate:
"Feb. 1, 1802. --William worked hard at 'The Pedlar,' and tired
himself.
2nd Feb. --Wm. worked at 'The Pedlar. ' I read aloud the 11th book of
'Paradise Lost'.
Thursday, 4th. --William thought a little about 'The Pedlar. '
5th. --Wm. sate up late at 'The Pedlar. '
7th. --W. was working at his poem. Wm. read 'The Pedlar,' thinking it
was done. But lo! . . . it was uninteresting, and must be altered. "
Similar records occur each day in the Journal from the 10th to the 14th
Feb. 1802. --Ed.
* * * * *
THE SAILOR'S MOTHER
Composed March 11th and 12th, 1802. --Published 1807
[Written in Town-end, Grasmere. I met this woman near the Wishing-gate,
on the high road that then led from Grasmere to Ambleside. Her
appearance was exactly as here described, and such was her account,
nearly to the letter. --I. F. ]
One of the "Poems founded on the Affections. "--Ed.
One morning (raw it was and wet--
A foggy day in winter time)
A Woman on [1] the road I met,
Not old, though something past her prime:
Majestic in her person, tall and straight; 5
And like a Roman matron's was her mien and gait.
The ancient spirit is not dead;
Old times, thought I, are breathing there;
Proud was I that my country bred
Such strength, a dignity so fair: 10
She begged an alms, like one in poor estate;
I looked at her again, nor did my pride abate.
When from these lofty thoughts I woke,
"What is it," said I, "that you bear,
Beneath the covert of your Cloak, 15
Protected from this cold damp air? " [2]
She answered, soon as she the question heard,
"A simple burthen, Sir, a little Singing-bird. "
And, thus continuing, she said,
"I had a Son, who many a day 20
Sailed on the seas, but he is dead; [3]
In Denmark he was cast away:
And I have travelled weary miles to see
If aught which he had owned might still remain for me. [4]
"The bird and cage they both were his: 25
'Twas my Son's bird; and neat and trim
He kept it: many voyages
The singing-bird had gone [5] with him;
When last he sailed, he left the bird behind;
From bodings, as might be, that hung upon his mind. [6] 30
"He to a fellow-lodger's care
Had left it, to be watched and fed,
And pipe its song in safety;--there [7]
I found it when my Son was dead;
And now, God help me for my little wit! 35
I bear [8] it with me, Sir;--he took so much delight in it. "
* * * * *
VARIANTS ON THE TEXT
[Variant 1:
1815.
. . . in . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 2:
1836.
. . . I woke,
With the first word I had to spare
I said to her, "Beneath your Cloak
What's that which on your arm you bear? " 1807.
"What treasure," said I,"do you bear,
Beneath the covert of your Cloak
Protected from the cold damp air? " 1820. ]
[Variant 3:
1807.
"I had a Son,--the waves might roar,
He feared them not, a Sailor gay!
But he will cross the waves no more: 1820.
. . . cross the deep . . . 1827.
The text of 1832 returns to that of 1807. [a]]
[Variant 4:
1827.
And I have been as far as Hull, to see
What clothes he might have left, or other property. 1807.
And I have travelled far as Hull, to see 1815.
And I have travelled many miles to see
If aught which he had owned might still remain for me. 1820. ]
[Variant 5:
1845.
This Singing-bird hath gone . . . 1807.
. . . had gone . . . 1820. ]
[Variant 6:
1827.
As it might be, perhaps, from bodings of his mind. 1807. ]
[Variant 7:
1827.
Till he came back again; and there 1807. ]
[Variant 8:
1827.
I trail . . . 1807. ]
* * * * *
SUB-FOOTNOTE ON THE TEXT
[Sub-Footnote a: This return, in 1832, to the original text of the poem
was due to Barren Field's criticism, the justice of which Wordsworth
admitted. --Ed. ]
In the Wordsworth household this poem went by the name
of "The Singing Bird" as well as 'The Sailor's Mother'.
"Thursday (March 11th). --A fine morning. William worked at the poem of
'The Singing Bird. ' . . . "
"Friday (March 12th). --William finished his poem of 'The Singing
Bird. '"
(Dorothy Wordsworth's Grasmere Journal. )--Ed.
* * * * *
ALICE FELL; OR, POVERTY [A]
Composed March 12th and 13th, 1802. --Published 1807
[Written to gratify Mr. Graham of Glasgow, brother of the author of 'The
Sabbath'. He was a zealous coadjutor of Mr. Clarkson, and a man of
ardent humanity. The incident had happened to himself, and he urged me
to put it into verse, for humanity's sake. The humbleness, meanness if
you like, of the subject, together with the homely mode of treating it,
brought upon me a world of ridicule by the small critics, so that in
policy I excluded it from many editions of my poems, till it was
restored at the request of some of my friends, in particular my
son-in-law, Edward Quillinan. --I. F. ]
It was only excluded from the editions of 1820, 1827, and 1832. In the
edition of 1807 it was placed amongst a group of "Poems composed during
a Tour, chiefly on foot. " In 1815, in 1836, and afterwards, it was
included in the group "referring to the Period of Childhood. "
In Dorothy Wordsworth's Grasmere Journal, the following reference to
this poem occurs:
"Feb. 16, 1802. --Mr. Graham said he wished William had been with him
the other day. He was riding in a post-chaise, and he heard a strange
cry that he could not understand. The sound continued, and he called
to the chaise-driver to stop. It was a little girl that was crying as
if her heart would burst. She had got up behind the chaise, and her
cloak had been caught by the wheel, and was jammed in, and it hung
there. She was crying after it, poor thing. Mr. Graham took her into
the chaise, and her cloak was released from the wheel, but the child's
misery did not cease, for her cloak was torn to rags. It had been a
miserable cloak before; but she had no other, and it was the greatest
sorrow that could befall her. Her name was Alice Fell. She had no
parents, and belonged to the next town. At the next town Mr. G. left
money to buy her a new cloak. "
"Friday (March 12). --In the evening after tea William wrote 'Alice
Fell'. "
"Saturday Morning (13th March). --William finished 'Alice Fell'. . . . "
Ed.
The post-boy drove with fierce career,
For threatening clouds the moon had drowned;
When, as we hurried on, my ear
Was smitten with a startling sound. [1]
As if the wind blew many ways, 5
I heard the sound,--and more and more;
It seemed to follow with the chaise,
And still I heard it as before.
At length I to the boy called out;
He stopped his horses at the word, 10
But neither cry, nor voice, nor shout,
Nor aught else like it, could be heard.
The boy then smacked his whip, and fast
The horses scampered through the rain;
But, hearing soon upon the blast 15
The cry, I bade him halt again. [2]
Forthwith alighting on the ground,
"Whence comes," said I, "this piteous moan? " [3]
And there a little Girl I found,
Sitting behind the chaise, alone. 20
"My cloak! " no other word she spake,
But loud and bitterly she wept,
As if her innocent heart would break; [4]
And down from off her seat [5] she leapt.
"What ails you, child? "--she sobbed "Look here! " 25
I saw it in the wheel entangled,
A weather-beaten rag as e'er
From any garden scare-crow dangled.
There, twisted between nave and spoke,
It hung, nor could at once be freed; 30
But our joint pains unloosed the cloak, [6]
A miserable rag indeed! [7]
"And whither are you going, child,
To-night along these lonesome ways? "
"To Durham," answered she, half wild--35
"Then come with me into the chaise. "
Insensible to all relief
Sat the poor girl, and forth did send
Sob after sob, as if her grief [8]
Could never, never have an end. 40
"My child, in Durham do you dwell? "
She checked herself in her distress,
And said, "My name is Alice Fell;
I'm fatherless and motherless.
"And I to Durham, Sir, belong. " 45
Again, [9] as if the thought would choke
Her very heart, her grief grew strong;
And all was for her tattered cloak!
The chaise drove on; our journey's end
Was nigh; and, sitting by my side, 50
As if she had lost [10] her only friend
She wept, nor would be pacified.
Up to the tavern-door we post;
Of Alice and her grief I told;
And I gave money to the host, 55
To buy a new cloak for the old.
"And let it be of duffil grey,
As warm a cloak as man can sell! "
Proud creature was she the next day,
The little orphan, Alice Fell! 60
* * * * *
VARIANTS ON THE TEXT
[Variant 1:
1845.
When suddenly I seem'd to hear
A moan, a lamentable sound. 1807. ]
[Variant 2:
1845.
And soon I heard upon the blast
The voice, and bade . . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 3:
1845.
Said I, alighting on the ground,
"What can it be, this piteous moan? " 1807.
Forthwith alighted on the ground
To learn what voice the piteous moan
Had made, a little girl I found, C. ]
[Variant 4:
1836.
"My Cloak! " the word was last and first,
And loud and bitterly she wept,
As if her very heart would burst; 1807.
"My cloak, my cloak" she cried, and spake
No other word, but loudly wept, C. ]
[Variant 5:
1815.
. . . off the Chaise . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 6:
1845.
'Twas twisted betwixt nave and spoke;
Her help she lent, and with good heed
Together we released the Cloak; 1807.
. . . between . . . 1840. ]
[Variant 7:
1836.
A wretched, wretched rag indeed! 1807. ]
[Variant 8:
1845.
She sate like one past all relief;
Sob after sob she forth did send
In wretchedness, as if her grief 1807. ]
[Variant 9:
1836.
And then, . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 10:
1836.
. . . she'd lost . . . 1807. ]
* * * * *
FOOTNOTE ON THE TEXT
[Footnote A: There was no sub-title in the edition of 1807. --Ed. ]
Charles Lamb wrote to Wordsworth in 1815, referring to
the revisions of this and other poems:
"I am glad that you have not sacrificed a verse to those scoundrels. I
would not have had you offer up the poorest rag that lingered upon the
stript shoulders of little Alice Fell, to have atoned all their
malice; I would not have given 'em a red cloak to save their souls. "
See 'Letters of Charles Lamb' (Ainger), vol. i. p. 283. --Ed.
* * * * *
BEGGARS
Composed March 13th and 14th, 1802. --Published 1807
[Written at Town-end, Grasmere. Met, and described to me by my sister,
near the quarry at the head of Rydal Lake, [A] a place still a chosen
resort of vagrants travelling with their families. --I. F. ]
The following are Dorothy Wordsworth's references to this poem in her
Grasmere Journal. They justify the remark of the late Bishop of Lincoln,
"his poems are sometimes little more than poetical versions of her
descriptions of the objects which she had seen, _and he treated them
as seen by himself_. "
(See
'Memoirs of Wordsworth', vol. i. pp. 180-1. )
"Saturday (March 13, 1802). --William wrote the poem of the Beggar
Woman, taken from a woman whom I had seen in May (now nearly two years
ago), when John and he were at Gallow Hill. I sat with him at
intervals all the morning, and took down his stanzas. After tea I read
W. the account I had written of the little boy belonging to the tall
woman: and an unlucky thing it was, for he could not escape from those
very words, and so he could not write the poem. He left it unfinished,
and went tired to bed. In our walk from Rydal he had got warmed with
the subject, and had half cast the poem. "
"Sunday Morning (March 14). --William had slept badly. He got up at 9
o'clock, but before he rose he had finished the Beggar Boy. "
The following is the "account" written in her Journal on Tuesday, May
23, 1800:
"A very tall woman, tall much beyond the measure of tall women, called
at the door. She had on a very long brown cloak, and a very white cap,
without bonnet. Her face was brown, but it had plainly once been fair.
She led a little barefooted child about two years old by the hand, and
said her husband, who was a tinker, was gone before with the other
children. I gave her a piece of bread. Afterwards, on my road to
Ambleside, beside the bridge at Rydal, I saw her husband sitting at
the roadside, his two asses standing beside him, and the two young
children at play upon the grass. The man did not beg. I passed on, and
about a quarter of a mile farther I saw two boys before me, one about
ten, the other about eight years old, at play, chasing a butterfly.
They were wild figures, not very ragged, but without shoes and
stockings. The hat of the elder was wreathed round with yellow
flowers; the younger, whose hat was only a rimless crown, had stuck it
round with laurel leaves. They continued at play till I drew very
near, and then they addressed me with the begging cant and the whining
voice of sorrow. I said, 'I served your mother this morning' (the boys
were so like the woman who had called at our door that I could not be
mistaken). 'O,' says the elder, 'you could not serve my mother, for
she's dead, and my father's in at the next town; he's a potter. ' I
persisted in my assertion, and that I would give them nothing. Says
the elder, 'Come, let's away,' and away they flew like lightning. They
had, however, sauntered so long in their road that they did not reach
Ambleside before me, and I saw them go up to Mathew Harrison's house
with their wallet upon the elder's shoulder, and creeping with a
beggar's complaining foot. On my return through Ambleside I met, in
the street, the mother driving her asses, in the two panniers of one
of which were the two little children, whom she was chiding and
threatening with a wand with which she used to drive on her asses,
while the little things hung in wantonness over the pannier's edge.
The woman had told me in the morning that she was of Scotland, which
her accent fully proved, and that she had lived (I think at Wigtown);
that they could not keep a house, and so they travelled. "
This was one of the "Poems of the Imagination. "--Ed.
She had a tall man's height or more;
Her face from summer's noontide heat
No bonnet shaded, but she wore
A mantle, to her very feet
Descending with a graceful flow, 5
And on her head a cap as white as new-fallen snow. [1]
Her skin was of Egyptian brown:
Haughty, as if her eye had seen
Its own light to a distance thrown,
She towered, fit person for a Queen [2] 10
To lead [3] those ancient Amazonian files;
Or ruling Bandit's wife among the Grecian isles.
Advancing, forth she stretched her hand
And begged an alms with doleful plea
That ceased not; on our English land 15
Such woes, I knew, could never be; [4]
And yet a boon I gave her, for the creature
Was beautiful to see--a weed of glorious feature. [B]
I left her, and pursued my way;
And soon before me did espy 20
A pair of little Boys at play,
Chasing a crimson butterfly;
The taller followed with his hat in hand,
Wreathed round with yellow flowers the gayest of the land. [5]
The other wore a rimless crown 25
With leaves of laurel stuck about;
And, while both [6] followed up and down,
Each whooping with a merry shout,
In their fraternal features I could trace
Unquestionable lines of that wild Suppliant's face. [7] 30
Yet _they_, so blithe of heart, seemed fit [8]
For finest tasks of earth or air:
Wings let them have, and they might flit
Precursors to [9] Aurora's car,
Scattering fresh flowers; though happier far, I ween, 35
To hunt their fluttering game o'er rock and level green.
They dart across my path--but lo, [10]
Each ready with a plaintive whine!
Said I, "not half an hour ago
Your Mother has had alms of mine. " 40
"That cannot be," one answered--"she is dead:"--
I looked reproof--they saw--but neither hung his head. [11]
"She has been dead, Sir, many a day. "--
"Hush, boys! you're telling me a lie; [12]
It was your Mother, as I say! " 45
And, in the twinkling of an eye,
"Come! come! " cried one, and without more ado,
Off to some other play the joyous Vagrants flew! [13] [C]
* * * * *
VARIANTS ON THE TEXT
[Variant 1:
1845.
She had a tall Man's height, or more;
No bonnet screen'd her from the heat;
A long drab-colour'd Cloak she wore,
A Mantle reaching to her feet:
What other dress she had I could not know;
Only she wore a Cap that was as white as snow. 1807.
Before me as the Wanderer stood,
No bonnet screened her from the heat;
Nor claimed she service from the hood
Of a blue mantle, to her feet
Depending with a graceful flow;
Only she wore a cap pure as unsullied snow. 1827.
Before my eyes a Wanderer stood;
Her face from summer's noon-day heat
Nor bonnet shaded, nor the hood
Of that blue cloak which to her feet
Depended with a graceful flow;
Only she wore a cap as white as new-fallen snow. 1832.
No bonnet shaded, nor the hood
Of the blue cloak . . . 1836.
She had a tall man's height or more;
And while, 'mid April's noontide heat,
A long blue cloak the vagrant wore,
A mantle reaching to her feet,
No bonnet screened her lofty brow,
Only she wore a cap as white as new-fallen snow. C.
She had a tall man's height or more;
A garment for her stature meet,
And for a vagrant life, she wore
A mantle reaching to her feet.
Nor hood, nor bonnet screened her lofty brow, C. ]
[Variant 2:
1827.
In all my walks, through field or town,
Such Figure had I never seen:
Her face was of Egyptian brown:
Fit person was she for a Queen, 1807.
Such figure had I never seen
In all my walks through field or town,
Fit person seemed she for a Queen, C. ]
[Variant 3:
1836.
To head . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 4:
1845.
Before me begging did she stand,
Pouring out sorrows like a sea;
Grief after grief:--on English Land
Such woes I knew could never be; 1807.
Her suit no faltering scruples checked;
Forth did she pour, in current free,
Tales that could challenge no respect
But from a blind credulity; 1827.
She begged an alms; no scruple checked
The current of her ready plea,
Words that could challenge . . . 1832.
Before me begging did she stand
And boldly urged a doleful plea,
Grief after grief, on English land
Such woes I knew could never be. C. ]
[Variant 5:
1807.
With yellow flowers around, as with a golden band. C. ]
[Variant 6:
1827.
And they both . . . 1807. ]
[Variant 7:
1820.
Two Brothers seem'd they, eight and ten years old;
And like that Woman's face as gold is like to gold. 1807. ]
[Variant 8: This stanza was added in the edition of 1827. ]
[Variant 9:
1836.
Precursors of . . . 1827. ]
[Variant 10:
1827.
They bolted on me thus, and lo! 1807. ]
[Variant 11:
1827.
"Nay but I gave her pence, and she will buy you bread. " 1807. ]
[Variant 12:
1845.
"Sweet Boys, you're telling me a lie; 1807.
. . . Heaven hears that rash reply; 1827.
