328 
The N.Z. Journal of Science and Technology. 
[July 
another poet might print it as three, dividing it at each rime ; and a third 
might print it as one. So far, then, as printing is concerned, the poet has 
absolute liberty to do as he pleases—or as the printer pleases. 
It is to be observed, however, that the verse had assumed definiteness, 
and maintained that definiteness, however much it might appear to be 
broken into parts by rime, before the poet could have had any thought of 
printing at all- at a time, in fact, when the art of printing was undiscovered, 
and poems were recited or sung.' So absolute was this definiteness that on 
the introduction of printing it required no ingenuity on the part of the 
printer to set down the poems in a way that has not to this day changed in 
any essential particular. If it be objected that he had manuscripts to 
guide him, the remark need but be transferred to the writer of the manu¬ 
scripts ; and he had no guide but his ear. In many instances, too, the 
verses in the manuscripts were run on without punctuation or division 
of any kind, as though the writer, having the lilt of the divisions in his 
mind, assumed that the reader would have them in his mind likewise, and 
needed no guide ; others, whose ears were perhaps less certain, assumed 
a like uncertainty in the reader, and marked the divisions with colons, or 
periods, or some equivalent device. The point is that it was always possible 
to make the division, even when it was not indicated. 
The singer or reciter had his means of indicating the line and verse 
units to his hearers. In modern poetry the ends of the units are indicated, 
by the rime ; in ancient poetry the beginnings were indicated, by allitera¬ 
tion. Alliteration is more prominent in trochaic or abrupt rhythms— 
that is, rhythms with the accent on the opening syllable of the unit; rime 
is more prominent in iambic or ordinary rhythms—that is, rhythms with 
the accent on the last syllable of the unit. The change in British poetry 
from alliteration to rime took place at a time when the language itself, as 
represented in its poetry, was changing from trochaic to iambic, from abrupt 
to ordinary. The reason for the change may not be altogether beyond 
conjecture : to say that it was due to the genius of the language is to explain 
nothing. It would appear, however, that the abrupt rhythm is the rhythm 
favoured by primitive, passionate peoples ; and that as civilization brings 
the passions more and more into subjection, so the ordinary rhythm is more 
and more favoured. It is mostly in lyric poetry, the expression of the 
emotions, that the abrupt rhythms occur. Blank verse, the expression of 
contemplative moods, discourages abrupt rhythms, except in drama, where 
the rhythm in emotional passages is inclined to break away from the 
ordinary to the abrupt. The explanation would appear to be that in high 
emotion —- in passion — the short, sharp beat of the heart is the more 
obtrusive ; in contemplation, when the passions are asleep, the short beat 
is subdued, and the long after beat becomes the more prominent. 
It was remarked that the very sound of metrical language gives pleasure, 
even if in a foreign tongue. An example may be given to illustrate this 
and two or three other points at the same time. The following is an old 
Icelandic stave, with full alliteration and half alliteration :—- 
Bramara skein bruaa 
Brims of ljosum himn.i 
HrisZar horvi glsesZrar 
.HawMrann a mik laulca, 
(En) sa geisZi sysZir 
S ZcZ&an gullmens FrtVZ/au' 
Hvarma tungrls oy hritfga 
YLlinav othurft m ina. 
