The Project Gutenberg EBook of Poems of Rural Life in the Dorset Dialect, by
William Barnes

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Title: Poems of Rural Life in the Dorset Dialect

Author: William Barnes

Release Date: June 9, 2007 [EBook #21785]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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[Transcriber's Note: The Pronunciation Guide and Word List are at the end
of the book.]

_POEMS OF RURAL LIFE IN THE DORSET DIALECT._

BY WILLIAM BARNES.

[Illustration]

LONDON: KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRUeBNER & Co., LTD. 1903

_TO THE READER._

KIND READER,

Two of the three Collections of these Dorset Poems have been, for some
time, out of print, and the whole of the three sets are now brought
out in one volume.

I have little more to say for them, than that the writing of them
as glimpses of life and landscape in Dorset, which often open to
my memory and mindsight, has given me very much pleasure; and my
happiness would be enhanced if I could believe that you would feel my
sketches to be so truthful and pleasing as to give you even a small
share of pleasure, such as that of the memories from which I have
written them.

This edition has a list of such Dorset words as are found in the
Poems, with some hints on Dorset word shapes, and I hope that they
will be found a fully good key to the meanings of the verse.

Yours kindly,

W. BARNES

_June 1879._

CONTENTS.

FIRST COLLECTION.

SPRING.

The Spring 3
The Woodlands 4
Leaedy-Day, an' Ridden House 5
Easter Zunday 8
Easter Monday 9
Dock-Leaves 9
The Blackbird 10
Woodcom' Feaest 12
The Milk-Maid o' the Farm 13
The Girt Woak Tree that's in the Dell 15
Vellen o' the Tree