Analysis of Bush Justice

Charles Harpur 1813 (Windsor) – 1868 (Australia)



A Dealer, bewitched by gain-promising dreams
Settled down near my Station, to trade with my Teams,
And to sell to, my men too! from whom, through the nose,
Until then, I had screw'd just what prices I chose;
And for this, to be sure, I so hated the man,
That I swore ne'er to rest till I'd settled some plan
Whereby in the Lockup to cleverly cram him!
And so to my Super the matter I put,
Who thereupon 'found' a sheep's head near his hut,
And the 'how came it there?' was sufficient to damn him,
The Beak before who I then lugg'd him, as you
May suppose, being neck-deep in Squattery too.

'Twas a beautiful Hearing, as noted at large
By the Clerk (who was bonuss'd)-sheep-stealing the charge;
'Twould make your hearts laugh in the Records to see
How we bullied him out of his wits! -I say we,
Because while on this side against him 1 banged,
On the other the Beak said he ought to be hanged,
For a gallows-grained, scandalous son of transgression!
And committing him then-the case being so plain,
We sent him three hundred miles 'down on the chain'
To his Trial-and eke to his 'acquittal', at Session!
For what care we Squatters for Law on a push?
And for Justice! what has she to do with the Bush?


Scheme AABBCCDXXDEE FFGGHHIJJIKK
Poetic Form
Metre 01001111001 101111011111 011111111101 011111111011 011111111001 111111111011 01001110011 01111001011 1011011111 0011111010111 01011111111 1011011011 101001011011 10111111001 11111000111 111011111111 0111110111 101001111111 1010110011010 001011011011 11111011101 11100111010110 11111011101 011011111101
Closest metre Iambic hexameter
Characters 1,184
Words 229
Sentences 11
Stanzas 2
Stanza Lengths 12, 12
Lines Amount 24
Letters per line (avg) 38
Words per line (avg) 9
Letters per stanza (avg) 457
Words per stanza (avg) 113
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 08, 2023

1:10 min read
127

Charles Harpur

Charles Harpur was an Australian poet. more…

All Charles Harpur poems | Charles Harpur Books

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