[Variant 2:
1827.
Upon the forehead of a jutting crag
Sit perch'd with book and pencil on their knee,
And look and scribble, ... 1800.]
[Variant 3:
1836.
... youngest child,
Who turn'd her large round wheel in the open air
With back and forward steps.... 1800.]
[Variant 4:
1827.
Which ... 1800.]
[Variant 5:
1815.
... who ere his thirteenth year
Had chang'd his calling, with the mariners 1800.]
[Variant 6:
1840.
... green ... 1800.]
[Variant 7:
1815.
... at length, ... 1800.]
[Variant 8:
1827.
... traffic in ... 1800.]
[Variant 9:
1827.
... which he liv'd there, ... 1800.]
[Variant 10:
1836.
... of one whom he so dearly lov'd, 1800.]
[Variant 11:
1836.
Towards the church-yard he had turn'd aside, 1800.]
[Variant 12:
1836.
... and he had hopes 1800.
... and hope was his 1832.]
[Variant 13:
1815.
As up the vale he came that afternoon, 1800.]
[Variant 14:
1836.
... the ... 1800.]
[Variant 15:
1815.
... he thought that he perceiv'd 1800.]
[Variant 16:
1827.
And the eternal hills, ... 1800.
And the everlasting hills, ... 1820.]
[Variant 17:
1815.
He scann'd him ... 1800.]
[Variant 18:
1800.
... cheeks, ... 1802.
The text of 1827 returns to that of 1800.]
[Variant 19:
1815.
Why, Sir, ... 1800.]
[Variant 20:
1827.
Companions for each other: ten years back,
Close to those brother fountains, the huge crag
Was rent with lightning--one is dead and gone, 1800.]
[Variant 21:
1815.
Why we have store of them! ... 1800.]
[Variant 22:
1815.
Cross-bones or skull, type of our earthly state
Or emblem of our hopes: ... 1800.]
[Variant 23:
1827.
... winter's evening, 1800.]
[Variant 24:
1815.
For five ... 1800.]
[Variant 25:
1802.
... still preserv'd 1800.]
[Variant 26:
1815.
... in ... 1800.]
[Variant 27:
1815.
... these ... 1800.]
[Variant 28:
1836.
... For
Though from their cradles they had liv'd with Walter,
The only kinsman near them in the house,
Yet he being old, they had much love to spare, 1800.
The only Kinsman near them, and though he
Inclined to them, by reason of his age,
With a more fond, familiar tenderness,
They, notwithstanding, had much love to spare, 1815.]
[Variant 29:
1820.
Was ... 1800.]
[Variant 30:
1836.
... when elder boys perhaps
Remain'd at home, go staggering through the fords 1800.]
[Variant 31:
1832.
... I've ... 1800.]
[Variant 32:
1836.
The finest Sunday that the Autumn saw, 1800.]
[Variant 33:
1836.
... these .... 1800.]
[Variant 34:
1836.
Where foot could come, to one or both of them 1800.]
[Variant 35:
1836.
... and I'd wager twenty pounds,
That, if he is alive, ... 1800.
... and I'd wager house and field 1827.]
[Variant 36:
1815.
... that end, ... 1800.]
[Variant 37:
1815.
... this ... 1800.]
[Variant 38:
1815.
And, though a very Stripling, twelve years old; 1800.]
[Variant 39:
1827.
'Tis now twelve years ... 1800.]
[Variant 40:
1820.
... was ... 1800.]
[Variant 41:
1836.
... a very festival, 1800.]
[Variant 42:
1815.
... the Lad 1800.]
[Variant 43.
1832.
If ever the day came when he was rich,
He would return, and on his Father's Land
He would grow old among us. 1800.]
[Variant 44:
1827.
... liv'd ... 1800.]
[Variant 45:
1820.
With two or three companions whom it chanc'd
Some further business summon'd to a house
Which stands at the Dale-head. James, tir'd perhaps,
Or from some other cause remain'd behind. 1800.]
[Variant 46:
... it almost looks
Like some vast building ... 1800.]
[Variant 47:
1827.
... it is called, _The Pillar_.
James pointed to its summit, over which
They all had purpos'd to return together,
And told them that he there would wait for them:
They parted, and his comrades pass'd that way
Some two hours after, but they did not find him
At the appointed place, a circumstance
Of which they took no heed: but one of them,
Going by chance, at night, into the house
Which at this time was James's home, ... 1800.
... but they did not find him
Upon the Pillar--at the appointed place.
Of this they took no heed: ... 1802.
Which at that time ... 1802.
Upon the Summit--at the appointed place. 1815.
... they found that he was gone.
From this no ill was feared; but one of them,
Entering by chance, at even-tide, the house 1820.
In all else the edition of 1820 is identical with the final text of
1827.]
[Variant 48:
1836.
Some went, and some towards the Lake; ... 1800.
Some hastened, some towards the Lake: ... 1820.]
[Variant 49:
1815.
... Lad ... 1800.]
[Variant 50:
1820.
... said ... 1800.]
[Variant 51:
1815.
... Lad ... 1800.]
[Variant 52:
1836.
Upon the grass, ... 1800.]
[Variant 53:
1836.
... he perish'd: at the time,
We guess, that in his hands he must have had 1800.
must have held 1827.]
[Variant 54:
1836.
... for midway in the cliff
It had been caught, and there for many years 1800.]
[Variant 55:
1815.
... but he felt
Tears rushing in; both left the spot in silence, 1800.]
[Variant 56:
1836.
Pointing towards the Cottage, he entreated 1800.]
[Variant 57:
1836.
... fervent 1800.]
[Variant 58:
1836.
Were with him in his heart: his cherish'd hopes, 1800.]
[Variant 59:
1836.
... travell'd on ... 1800.]
[Variant 60:
1802.
That night, address'd a letter to the Priest 1800.]
* * * * *
FOOTNOTES ON THE TEXT
[Footnote A: This Poem was intended to be the concluding poem of a
series of pastorals, the scene of which was laid among the mountains of
Cumberland and Westmoreland. I mention this to apologise for the
abruptness with which the poem begins.--W. W. 1800.]
[Footnote B: In Dorothy Wordsworth's Grasmere Journal the following
entry occurs:
"Friday, 6th August (1800).--In the morning I copied 'The Brothers'."
Ed.]
[Footnote C: This description of the Calenture is sketched from an
imperfect recollection of an admirable one in prose, by Mr. Gilbert,
Author of 'The Hurricane'.--W. W. 1800.
Compare another reference to 'The Hurricane; a Theosophical and Western
Eclogue' etc., by William Gilbert, in one of the notes to 'The
Excursion', book iii. l. 931.--Ed.]
[Footnote D: The impressive circumstance here described, actually took
place some years ago in this country, upon an eminence called Kidstow
Pike, one of the highest of the mountains that surround Hawes-water. The
summit of the pike was stricken by lightning; and every trace of one of
the fountains disappeared, while the other continued to flow as
before.--W. W. 1800.]
[Footnote E: There is not any thing more worthy of remark in the manners
of the inhabitants of these mountains, than the tranquillity, I might
say indifference, with which they think and talk upon the subject of
death. Some of the country church-yards, as here described, do not
contain a single tomb-stone, and most of them have a very small
number.--W. W. 1800.]
[Footnote F: The name in the original MS. was "Wilfred Evans."--Ed.]
[Footnote G: The great Gavel, so called I imagine, from its resemblance
to the Gable end of a house, is one of the highest of the Cumberland
mountains. It stands at the head of the several vales of Ennerdale,
Wastdale, and Borrowdale.
The Leeza is a River which flows into the Lake of Ennerdale: on issuing
from the Lake, it changes its name, and is called the End, Eyne, or
Enna. It falls into the sea a little below Egremont--W. W. 1800.]
[Footnote H: See Coleridge's criticism of these lines in a note to
chapter xviii. of 'Biographia Literaria' (vol. ii. p. 83 of the edition
of 1817).--Ed.]
This poem illustrates the way in which Wordsworth's imagination worked
upon a minimum of fact, idealizing a simple story, and adding
'the gleam,
The light that never was, on sea or land,
The consecration, and the Poet's dream.'
It is the only poem of his referring to Ennerdale; but perhaps the chief
association with that dale, to those who visit it after becoming
acquainted with this poem, will be the fact that the brothers Ewbank
were supposed to have spent their youth under the shadow of the Pillar,
and Leonard to have had this conversation, on his return from sea, with
the venerable priest of Ennerdale. The district is described with all
that local accuracy which Wordsworth invariably showed in idealization.
The height whence James Ewbank is supposed to have fallen is not the
Pillar-Rock--a crag somewhat difficult to ascend, except by practised
climbers, and which has only been accessible since mountaineering became
an art and a passion to Englishmen. But, if we suppose the conversation
with the priest of Ennerdale to have taken place at the Bridge, below
the Lake--as that is the only place where there is both a hamlet and "a
churchyard"--the "precipice" will refer to the Pillar "Mountain." Both
are alluded to in the poem. The lines,
'You see yon precipice;--it wears the shape
Of a vast building made of many crags;
And in the midst is one particular rock
That rises like a column from the vale,
Whence by our shepherds it is called, _The Pillar_,'
are definite enough. The great mass of the Pillar Mountain is first
referred to, and then the Rock which is a characteristic spur, halfway
up the mountain on its northern side. The "aëry summit crowned with
heath," however, on which "the loiterer" "lay stretched at ease," could
neither be the top of this "rock" nor the summit of the "mountain": not
the former, because there is no heath on it, and it would be impossible
for a weary man, loitering behind his companions, to ascend it to rest;
not the latter, because no one resting on the summit of the mountain
could be "not unnoticed by his comrades," and they would not pass that
way over the top of the mountain "on their return" to Ennerdale. This is
an instance, therefore, in which precise localization is impossible.
Probably Wordsworth did not know either that the pillar "rock" was bare
on the summit, or that it had never been ascended in 1800; and he
idealised it to suit his imaginative purpose. In connection with this
poem, a remark he made to the Hon. Mr. Justice Coleridge may be
recalled.
"He said there was some foundation in fact, however slight, for every
poem he had written of a narrative kind; ... 'The Brothers' was
founded on a young shepherd, in his sleep, having fallen down a crag,
his staff remaining suspended mid-way."
(See the 'Memoirs of Wordsworth', by the late Bishop of Lincoln, vol.
ii. p. 305.) It should be added that the character of Leonard Ewbank was
drawn in large part from that of the poet's brother John--Ed.
* * * * *
THE SEVEN SISTERS; OR, THE SOLITUDE OF BINNORIE [A]
Composed 1800. [B]--Published 1807
The Story of this Poem is from the German of Frederica Brun. [C]--W. W.
1807.
One of the "Poems of the Fancy."--Ed.
I Seven Daughters had Lord Archibald,
All children of one mother:
You could [1] not say in one short day
What love they bore each other.
A garland, of seven lilies, wrought! 5
Seven Sisters that together dwell;
But he, bold Knight as ever fought,
Their Father, took of them no thought,
He loved the wars so well.
Sing, mournfully, oh! mournfully, 10
The solitude of Binnorie!
II Fresh blows the wind, a western wind,
And from the shores of Erin,
Across the wave, a Rover brave
To Binnorie is steering: 15
Right onward to the Scottish strand
The gallant ship is borne;
The warriors leap upon the land,
And hark! the Leader of the band
Hath blown his bugle horn. 20
Sing, mournfully, oh! mournfully,
The solitude of Binnorie.
III Beside a grotto of their own,
With boughs above them closing,
The Seven are laid, and in the shade 25
They lie like fawns reposing.
But now, upstarting with affright
At noise of man and steed,
Away they fly to left, to right--
Of your fair household, Father-knight, 30
Methinks you take small heed!
Sing, mournfully, oh! mournfully,
The solitude of Binnorie.
IV Away the seven fair Campbells fly,
And, over hill and hollow, 35
With menace proud, and insult loud,
The youthful Rovers [2] follow.
Cried they, "Your Father loves to roam:
Enough for him to find
The empty house when he comes home; 40
For us your yellow ringlets comb,
For us be fair and kind!"
Sing, mournfully, oh! mournfully,
The solitude of Binnorie.
V Some close behind, some side by side, 45
Like clouds in stormy weather;
They run, and cry, "Nay, let us die,
And let us die together."
A lake was near; the shore was steep;
There never foot had been; 50
They ran, and with a desperate leap
Together plunged into the deep, [3]
Nor ever more were seen.
Sing, mournfully, oh! mournfully,
The solitude of Binnorie. 55
VI The stream that flows out of the lake,
As through the glen it rambles,
Repeats a moan o'er moss and stone,
For those seven lovely Campbells.
Seven little Islands, green and bare, 60
Have risen from out the deep:
The fishers say, those sisters fair,
By faeries all are buried there,
And there together sleep.
Sing, mournfully, oh! mournfully, 65
The solitude of Binnorie.
* * * * *
VARIANTS ON THE TEXT
[Variant 1:
1836.
I could ... 1807.]
[Variant 2:
1807.
The Irish Rovers ... MS.]
[Variant 3:
1807.
The sisters ran like mountain sheep MS.
And in together did they leap MS.]
* * * * *
FOOTNOTES ON THE TEXT
[Footnote A: It is a well-known Scottish Ballad. In Jamieson's 'Popular
Ballads', vol. i. p. 50 (1806), its title is "The Twa Sisters." In
Walter Scott's 'Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border', vol. iii. p. 287, it
is called "The Cruel Sisters." In 'The Ballads of Scotland', collected
by W. Edmonstone Aytoun (1858), vol. i. p. 194, it is printed
"Binnorie." In 1807 Wordsworth printed the sub-title 'The Solitude of
Binnorie'.--Ed.]
[Footnote B: In Dorothy Wordsworth's Grasmere Journal there is an entry,
under date August 16, 1800,
"William read us 'The Seven Sisters'."
It is uncertain whether this refers to his own poem or not, but I
incline to think it does.--Ed.]
[Footnote C: In a MS. copy this note runs thus:
"This poem, in the groundwork of the story, is from the German of
Frederica Brun."
Ed.]
* * * * *
RURAL ARCHITECTURE
Composed 1800.--Published 1800
[Written at Town-end, Grasmere. These structures, as every one knows,
are common amongst our hills, being built by shepherds, as conspicuous
marks, and occasionally by boys in sport.--I. F.]
Included among the "Poems referring to the Period of Childhood."--Ed.
There's George Fisher, Charles Fleming, and Reginald Shore, [1]
Three rosy-cheeked school-boys, the highest not more
Than the height of a counsellor's bag;
To the top of GREAT HOW [A] did it please them to climb: [2]
And there they built up, without mortar or lime, 5
A Man on the peak of the crag.
They built him of stones gathered up as they lay:
They built him and christened him all in one day,
An urchin both vigorous and hale;
And so without scruple they called him Ralph Jones. 10
Now Ralph is renowned for the length of his bones;
The Magog of Legberthwaite dale.
Just half a week after, the wind sallied forth,
And, in anger or merriment, out of the north,
Coming on with a terrible pother, 15
From the peak of the crag blew the giant away.
And what did these school-boys?--The very next day
They went and they built up another.
--Some little I've seen of blind boisterous works
By Christian disturbers more savage than Turks, [3] 20
Spirits busy to do and undo:
At remembrance whereof my blood sometimes will flag;
Then, light-hearted Boys, to the top of the crag;
And I'll build up a giant with you. [4]
* * * * *
VARIANTS ON THE TEXT
[Variant 1:
1800.
From the meadows of ARMATH, on THIRLMERE'S wild shore, 1827.
The text of 1832 reverts to that of 1800.]
[Variant 2:
1800.
... were once tempted to climb; 1827
The text of 1832 reverts to that of 1800.]
[Variant 3:
1820.
In Paris and London, 'mong Christians or Turks, 1800]
[Variant 4: This last stanza was omitted from the editions of 1805 and
1815. It was restored in 1820.]
* * * * *
FOOTNOTE ON THE TEXT
[Footnote A: Great How is a single and conspicuous hill, which rises
towards the foot of Thirl-mere, on the western side of the beautiful
dale of Legberthwaite, along the high road between Keswick and
Ambleside.--W. W. 1800.]
The editions of 1836, 1840, 1841, 1842, 1843, and 1845, and the Fenwick
note, assign this poem to the year 1801. It must, however, have been
composed during the previous year, because it was published in the
"Lyrical Ballads" of 1800. The locality referred to--which is also
associated with 'The Waggoner'--is easily identified.
In a letter to Wordsworth, written in the year 1815, Charles Lamb said:
"How I can be brought in, _felo de omittendo_, for that ending to the
Boy-builders is a mystery. I can't say positively now, I only know that
no line oftener or readier occurs than that 'Light-hearted boys, I will
build up a Giant with you.' It comes naturally, with a warm holiday, and
the freshness of the blood. It is a perfect summer amulet, that I tie
round my legs to quicken their motion when I go out a maying." (See
_Letters of Charles Lamb_, edited by Alfred Ainger, vol. i. p.
287.)--Ed.
* * * * *
A CHARACTER
Composed 1800.--Published 1800
[The principal features are taken from my friend Robert Jones.--I. F.]
Included among the "Poems of Sentiment and Reflection."--Ed.
I marvel how Nature could ever find space
For so many strange contrasts in one human face: [1]
There's thought and no thought, and there's paleness and bloom
And bustle and sluggishness, pleasure and gloom.
There's weakness, and strength both redundant and vain; 5
Such strength as, if ever affliction and pain
Could pierce through a temper that's soft to disease,
Would be rational peace--a philosopher's ease.
There's indifference, alike when he fails or [2] succeeds,
And attention full ten times as much as there needs; 10
Pride where there's no envy, there's so much of joy;
And mildness, and spirit both forward and coy.
There's freedom, and sometimes a diffident stare
Of shame scarcely seeming to know that she's there,
There's virtue, the title it surely may claim, 15
Yet wants heaven knows what to be worthy the name.
This picture from nature may seem to depart, [3]
Yet the Man would at once run away with your heart;
And I for five centuries right gladly would be
Such an odd such a kind happy creature as he. 20
* * * * *
VARIANTS ON THE TEXT
[Variant 1:
1837.
For the weight and the levity seen in his face: 1800.]
[Variant 2:
1837.
... and ... 1800.]
[Variant 3:
1837.
What a picture! 'tis drawn without nature or art, 1800.]
The full title of this poem, in "Lyrical Ballads," 1800, is 'A
Character, in the antithetical Manner'. It was omitted from all
subsequent editions till 1837. With this early friend, Robert Jones--a
fellow collegian at St. John's College, Cambridge--Wordsworth visited
the Continent (France and Switzerland), during the long vacation of
1790; and to him he dedicated the first edition of 'Descriptive
Sketches', in 1793. With him he also made a pedestrian tour in Wales in
1791. Jones afterwards became the incumbent of Soulderne, near
Deddington, in Oxfordshire; and Wordsworth described his parsonage there
in the sonnet, beginning "Where holy ground begins, unhallowed ends."
(See Wordsworth's note to the sonnet 'Composed near Calais', p.
333.)--Ed.
* * * * *
INSCRIPTION FOR THE SPOT WHERE THE HERMITAGE STOOD ON ST. HERBERT'S
ISLAND, DERWENT-WATER
Composed 1800.--Published 1800
Included in 1815 among the "Poems referring to the Period of Old Age,"
and in all subsequent editions among the "Inscriptions."--Ed.
If thou in the dear love of some one Friend
Hast been so happy that thou know'st what thoughts
Will sometimes in the happiness of love
Make the heart sink, [A] then wilt thou reverence
This quiet spot; and, Stranger! not unmoved 5
Wilt thou behold this shapeless heap of stones,
The desolate ruins of St. Herbert's Cell.
Here stood his threshold; here was spread the roof
That sheltered him, a self-secluded Man,
After long exercise in social cares 10
And offices humane, intent to adore
The Deity, with undistracted mind,
And meditate on everlasting things,
In utter solitude.--But he had left
A Fellow-labourer, whom the good Man loved 15
As his own soul. And, when with eye upraised
To heaven he knelt before the crucifix,
While o'er the lake the cataract of Lodore
Pealed to his orisons, and when he paced
Along the beach of this small isle and thought 20
Of his Companion, he would pray that both
(Now that their earthly duties were fulfilled)
Might die in the same moment. Nor in vain
So prayed he:--as our chronicles report,
Though here the Hermit numbered his last day 25
Far from St. Cuthbert his belovèd Friend,
Those holy Men both died in the same hour. [1]
* * * * *
VARIANT ON THE TEXT
[Variant 1:
1832.
The text of this poem underwent so many changes, which are not easily
shown by the plan adopted throughout this edition--portions of the
earliest version of 1800 being abandoned and again adopted, and the
whole arrangement of the passages being altered--that it seems desirable
to append the entire text of 1800, and extensive parts of that of
subsequent years. The final text of 1832 is printed above.
If thou in the dear love of some one friend
Hast been so happy, that thou know'st what thoughts
Will, sometimes, in the happiness of love
Make the heart sink, then wilt thou reverence
This quiet spot.--St. Herbert hither came
And here, for many seasons, from the world
Remov'd, and the affections of the world
He dwelt in solitude. He living here,
This island's sole inhabitant! had left
A Fellow-labourer, whom the good Man lov'd
As his own soul; and when within his cave
Alone he knelt before the crucifix
While o'er the lake the cataract of Lodore
Peal'd to his orisons, and when he pac'd
Along the beach of this small isle and thought
Of his Companion, he had pray'd that both
Might die in the same moment. Nor in vain
So pray'd he:--as our Chronicles report,
Though here the Hermit number'd his last days,
Far from St. Cuthbert his beloved friend,
Those holy men both died in the same hour. 1800.
The text of the editions of 1802 and 1805 (which are identical), omits
one line of the text of 1800. The passage reads:
He dwelt in solitude.--But he had left
A Fellow-labourer, whom ...
And the following variants occur in 1802 and 1805:
Make the heart sick, ....
... he would pray that both
The text of 1815, which is continued in 1820, begins thus:
This Island, guarded from profane approach
By mountains high and waters widely spread,
Is that recess to which St. Herbert came
In life's decline; a self-secluded Man,
After long exercise in social cares
And offices humane, intent to adore
The Deity, with undistracted mind,
And meditate on everlasting things.
--Stranger! this shapeless heap of stones and earth
(Long be its mossy covering undisturbed!)
Is reverenced as a vestige of the Abode
In which, through many seasons, from the world
Removed, and the affections of the world,
He dwelt in solitude.--But he had left
A Fellow-labourer, ... 1815 and 1820.
In 1827 the poem began thus:
Stranger! this shapeless heap of stones and earth
Is the last relic of St. Herbert's Cell.
Here stood his threshold; here was spread the roof
That sheltered him, a self-secluded Man, 1827.]
* * * * *
FOOTNOTE ON THE TEXT
[Footnote A: Compare the last stanza of "Strange fits of passion have I
known," p. 79 of this volume.--Ed.]
The "shapeless heap of stones" in St. Herbert's Island, which were
"desolate ruins" in 1800, are even more "shapeless" and "desolate" now,
but they can easily be identified. The island is near the centre of the
lake, and is in area about four acres. The legend of St. Herbert dates
from the middle of the seventh century. The rector of Clifton,
Westmoreland, Dr. Robinson, writing in 1819, says:
"The remains of his hermitage are still visible, being built of stone
and mortar, and formed into two apartments, one of which, about twenty
feet long and sixteen feet wide, seems to have been his chapel; the
other, of less dimensions, his cell. Near these ruins the late Sir
Wilfred Lawson (to whose representative the island at present belongs)
erected some years ago a small octagonal cottage, which, being built
of unhewn stone, and artificially mossed over, has a venerable
appearance."
(See _Guide to the Lakes_, by John Robinson, D.D., 1819). This cottage
has now disappeared. The following version of this "Inscription" occurs
in a letter from Wordsworth to Lady Beaumont, dated 26th November 1811: