A Strike Among the Poets
In his chamber, weak and dying,
While the Norman Baron lay,
Loud, without, his men were crying,
'Shorter hours and better pay.'
Know you why the ploughman, fretting,
Homeward plods his weary way
Ere his time? He's after getting
Shorter hours and better pay.
See! the Hesperus is swinging
Idle in the wintry bay,
And the skipper's daughter's singing,
'Shorter hours and better pay.'
Where's the minstrel boy? I've found him
Joining in the labour fray
With his placards slung about him,
'Shorter hours and better pay.'
Oh, young Lochinvar is coming;
Though his hair is getting grey,
Yet I'm glad to hear him humming,
'Shorter hours and better pay.'
E'en the boy upon the burning
Deck has got a word to say,
Something rather cross concerning
Shorter hours and better pay.
Lives of great men all remind us
We can make as much as they,
Work no more, until they find us
Shorter hours and better pay.
Hail to thee, blithe spirit! (Shelley)
Wilt thou be a blackleg? Nay.
Soaring, sing above the mêlée,
'Shorter hours and better pay.'
Commentary
Ah, shorter hours and better pay. What we all wish for.
— Thomas
Notes
To make up for the lack of insightful commentary (really, what would you expect, except for the obvious statement that I love the conceit :)), here’s a list of sources:
Stanza #1: “The Norman Baron” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
http://www.emule.com/poetry/?page=poem&poem=4763
In his chamber, weak and dying,
Was the Norman baron lying;
Loud, without, the tempest thundered
And the castle-turret shook,
Stanza #2: “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” – Thomas Gray
Poem #1091
The curfew tolls the knell of parting day;
The lowing herd wind slowly o'er the lea;
The ploughman homeward plods his weary way,
And leaves the world to darkness and to me.
Stanza #3: “The Wreck of the Hesperus” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Poem #717
It was the schooner Hesperus,
That sailed the wintry sea;
And the skipper had taken his little daughter,
To bear him company.
Stanza #4: I have no idea where this comes from. Any pointers, gentle readers?
Stanza #5: “Lochinvar” – Sir Walter Scott
Poem #125
O, young Lochinvar is come out of the west, Through all the wide Border his steed was the best;
Stanza #6: “Casabianca” – Felicia Hemans
Poem #1000
The boy stod on the burning deck,
Whence all but him had fled;
The flame that lit the battle's wreck
Shone round him o'er the dead.
Stanza #7: “A Psalm of Life” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Poem #888
Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;
Stanza #8: “To a Skylark” – Percy Byshhe Shelley
http://www.bartleby.com/106/241.html
Hail to thee, blithe spirit!
Bird thou never wert,
That from heaven, or near it,
Pourest thy full heart
In profuse strains of unpremeditated art.
And finally, ‘blackleg’ : “A name of opprobrium for a workman willing to work for a master whose men are on strike” (OED).
Show 11 commentsHide comments
From the Wondering Minstrels mailing list, 1999–2008.
Jerry Rao · 2 September 2003
I think “shorter Hours and better pay” and refernce to blacklegs may be from Auden…possibly James Honeyman
Jerry
Leslie Pack Kaelbling · 2 September 2003
The Minstral Boy is a folk song, which figures prominently in “The Man Who Would be King”.
[broken link] http://www.contemplator.com/folk/minstrel.html
- Leslie
Iain Muir · 2 September 2003
The Minstrel Boy to the Wars has gone
In the Ranks of Death you will find him.
His father’s Sword he has girded on
And his wild harp slung behind him;
“Land of Song!” said the warrior bard,
“Tho’ all the world betrays thee,
One sword, at least, thy rights shall guard,
One faithful harp shall praise thee!”
Thomas Moore (1779-1852).
Jenny Kirkby · 2 September 2003
Stanza 4 - probably from a traditional Welsh song “The minstrel boy to the wars is gone,
and his wild harp slung behind him”
Keep up the good work - I can cope without shorter hours and better pay as long as the poetry keeps coming!
Jenny
Balaji Srinivasan · 2 September 2003
Probably this Thomas Moore’s poem:
[broken link] http://www.acronet.net/~robokopp/eire/theminst.htm -Balaji.
Frank O'Shea · 2 September 2003
Lovely.
The fourth verse comes from The Minstrel Boy
The Minstrel Boy to the war has gone In the ranks of death you will find him His father’s sword he has girded on
And his wild harp slung behind him.
I don’t have time to check it out, but I have a funny feeling that Anonymous might be Henry Lawson??
Frank
Martin DeMello · 2 September 2003
The Minstrel Boy to the war is gone
In the ranks of death you will find him;
His father’s sword he hath girded on,
And his wild harp slung behind him;
–Thomas Moore
[broken link] http://www.28thmass.com/Songs/minstrel_boy.htm
More famous as a song than as a poem.
m.
Netscape SuiteSpot User · 3 September 2003
In light of the recently celebrated Labor Day holiday, today’s poem is quite timely - and personally amusing as well: here at AVeryLargeCorporation we’ve been working without a contract since August 2. If only it were as simple as shorter hours, better pay!
Rara Avis
MC Pike · 3 September 2003
A lovely, sad, song The Minstrel Boy to the War has Gone, rather relevant to this warlike world. No-one has quoted the ending, tho’ “This harp will sing for the brave & free,” “It will never sound in slavery!”
Also, ‘round here instead of blackleg, they’re called “SCAB!” - much better to yell out as you join arms with your fellow picketers ;)
Chellappa Mallika (Mallika) · 7 September 2003
The whole song (according to me)
The minstrel boy to the war has gone.
In the ranks of death you’ll find him.
His father’s sword he has girded on
And his wild harp slung behind him.
“Land of song,” said the warrior bard,
“Though all the world betrays thee,
One sword at least thy rights shall guard,
One faithful heart shall praise thee.”
The minstrel fell, but the foeman’s chain
Could not bring his proud soul under.
The harp he loved never spoke again,
For he tore its cords asunder,
And said, “No sound shall sully thee
Thou soul of love and bravery.
Thy songs were made for the pure and free.
They shall never sound in slavery.”
Chellappa Mallika (Mallika) · 7 September 2003
Stanza #4
The Minstrel boy to the war has gone
In the ranks of death you’ll find him
His Father’s sword he has girded on
And his wild harp slung behind him
Old Irish air.
Minstrels should have known this for sure!!
Mallika