Andersen. — Classificntion of Verse. 521 



syllables. Turniii" to the ballads, the following examples are taken from 

 "■ A Lytell Geste of Eobyn Hode " :— 



(6.) (t. Or gyye/ me lo^un/des tltep/ and wyde/, 



I So to leve me dede. (fytte v, st. 25.) 



h. And they l)eset the knyght's cast^ll, 



The wdl/les all/ about/. (fytte vi, st. 2.) 



c. Upon all/ the lon/des that/ I have/, 



As 1/ am a tre/we knvght/. (fytte vi, st. 4.) 



It is clearly seen how. when " woundes " and " walles " lost their second 

 syllables, the paused units were produced : and in the second line of ex- 

 ample c the paused unit is preceded Ijy a triple unit. 



3. The unpaused and paused units are contrasted in — 



(7.) a. Give me leave to set my fist to my mouth, 

 And to whu/te whu/es three/. 



(" Robin Hood and the Curtail Fryer," line 116.) 



b. Give me leave to set my home to my mouth. 



And to blow/ blasts/ three/. (/fciU, line 100.) 



The construction of h is again seen in — 



(8.) n. It's up, it's up the Couden bank, 

 It's doun the Couden brae ; 

 And ave they made the trumpet sound, 

 It's a'/ fair/ play !/ 



(" Katherine Janfarie," st. 15.) 



Such units are plentiful enough in modern poetry, and a few examples were 

 given in paragraph 15 of Section III. They may occur at the opening as 

 readily as at the close : — 



(9.) a. Here/ great/ so ils/, / in a ple/nitude/ of vi/sion. 



Planned/ high/ deeds/ / as immor/tal as/ the sun/ ; 



(Lord Boiren, " Shadow Land.") 



b. Sa/vage 1/ was si/tting in/ my house/, late/, lone/: 



Drea/ry, / wea/ry with/' the long/ day's/ work/: 

 Head/ of me/, heart/ of me/, stu/pid as/ a stone/: 



Tongue-/ tied/ now/, now/ blasphem/ing like/ a Tark/ ; 



{Ih-owning, " Epilogue : The Householder," opening.) 



4. In blank verse this unit rarely occurs unless preceded or succeeded 

 by a triple unit, as discussed in paragraph 20 et seq. of Section III. Did 

 it occur between normal units, the verse would lose a syllable. There 

 would, of course, still be the compensation of the pause, but the pause 

 was disregarded in the poetry of numbers, so that in " Paradise Lost " 

 a,nd " Paradise Regained " the paused unit in normal surroundings 

 is practically ncyi-existent. It may, however, be frecjuently found in 

 Shakspeare : — 



(10.) a. My plenteous joys. 



Wanton in fulness, seek to hide themselves 

 In dropsy of sor/row. Sons/, Mns/nien, thanes/. 



And you whose places are the nearest, (Macb., I, iv, 35.) 



b. What/ should be s])(')/ken here/, wlvre/onr: fate/. 



Hid in an auger-hole, may rusii, and seize us ? 



(Macb., II, iii, 127.) 



This unit mav be called the " heavy paused unit." 



