Analysis of How Salvator Won
Ella Wheeler Wilcox 1855 (Janesville) – 1919
The gate was thrown open, I rode out alone,
More proud than a monarch who sits on a throne.
I am but a jockey, yet shout upon shout
Went up from the people who watched me ride out;
And the cheers that rang forth from that warm-hearted crowd,
Were as earnest as those to which monarch e'er bowed.
My heart thrilled with pleasure so keen it was pain
As I patted my Salvator's soft silken mane;
And a sweet shiver shot from his hide to my hand
As we passed by the multitude down to the stand.
The great waves of cheering came billowing back,
As the hoofs of brave Tenny rang swift down the track;
And he stood there beside us, all bone and all muscle,
Our noble opponent, well trained for the tussle
That waited us there on the smooth, shining course.
My Salvator, fair to the lovers of horse,
As a beautiful woman is fair to man's sight-
Pure type of the thoroughbred, clean-limbed and bright,-
Stood taking the plaudits as only his due,
And nothing at all unexpected or new.
And then, there before us the bright flag is spread,
There's a roar from the grand stand, and Tenny's ahead;
At the sound of the voices that shouted 'a go!'
He sprang like an arrow shot straight from the bow.
I tighten the reins on Prince Charlie's great son-
He is off like a rocket, the race is begun.
Half-way down the furlong, their heads are together,
Scarce room 'twixt their noses to wedge in a feather;
Past grand stand, and judges, in neck-to-neck strife,
Ah, Salvator, boy! 'tis the race of your life.
I press my knees closer, I coax him, I urge,
I feel him go out with a leap and a surge;
I see him creep on, inch by inch, stride by stride,
While backward, still backward, falls Tenny beside.
We are nearing the turn, the first quarter is past-
'Twixt leader and chaser the daylight is cast.
The distance elongates, still Tenny sweeps on,
As graceful and free-limbed and swift as a fawn;
His awkwardness vanished, his muscles all strained-
A noble opponent, well born and well trained.
I glanced o'er my shoulder, ha! Tenny, the cost
Of that one second's flagging, will be-the race lost.
One second's weak yielding of courage and strength,
And the daylight between us has doubled its length.
The first mile is covered, the race is mine-no!
For the blue blood of Tenny responds to a blow.
He shoots through the air like a ball from a gun,
And the two lengths between us are shortened to one.
My heart is contracted, my throat feels a lump,
For Tenny's long neck is at Salvator's rump;
And now with new courage, grown bolder and bolder,
I see him once more running shoulder to shoulder.
With knees, hands and body I press my grand steed;
I urge him, I coax him, I pray him to heed!
Oh, Salvator! Salvator! list to my calls,
For the blow of my whip will hurt both if it falls.
There's a roar from the crowd like the ocean in storm,
As close to my saddle leaps Tenny's great form,
One more mighty plunge, and with knee, limb and hand,
I lift my horse first by a nose past the stand.
We are under the string now-the great race is done,
And Salvator, Salvator, Salvator won!
Cheer, hoar-headed patriarchs; cheer loud, I say
'Tis the race of a century witnessed to-day!
Though ye live twice the space that's allotted to men
Ye never will see such a grand race again.
Let the shouts of the populace roar like the surf
For Salvator, Salvator, king of the turf!
He has broken the record of thirteen long years;
He has won the first place in a vast line of peers.
'Twas a neck-to-neck contest, a grand, honest race,
And even his enemies grant him his place.
Down into the dust let old records be hurled,
And hang out 2.05 in the gaze of the world.
Scheme | AABBCC DDEE FFGGHHIIJJ KKLXMMNNOOPPQQRRXXSSXXTT LLMMUUNNVVWWXXEEMMYYZZ1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 01111011101 1110111101 11101011011 11101011111 001111111101 011011111101 11111011111 1110111101 001101111111 11110101101 01111011001 101111011101 0111011110110 1010010111010 11011101101 111101011 101001011111 11101011101 11001011011 0101101011 01101101111 10110110101 101101011001 11111011101 11001111011 111101001101 11101111010 111110110010 11101001111 111101111 11111011111 11111101001 11111111111 11011011001 111001011011 1100100111 010111011 11001101101 11001011011 01001011011 111011011001 111101011011 11011011001 00101111011 01111001111 101111001101 11101101101 001101111011 11110011101 11111111 011110110010 111111010110 11101011111 11111111111 1111111 101111111111 101101101001 1111101111 11101011101 11111101101 111001101111 01111 1110101111 101101001011 111101101011 11011101101 101101001101 1111101 111000111111 111011001111 101111001101 01011001111 10101110111 011001101 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 3,556 |
Words | 684 |
Sentences | 34 |
Stanzas | 5 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 4, 10, 24, 30 |
Lines Amount | 74 |
Letters per line (avg) | 38 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 558 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 136 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on May 02, 2023
- 3:29 min read
- 81 Views
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"How Salvator Won" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 12 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/10638/how-salvator-won>.
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