[83]

The Sun came up L. B. 1798.

[85]

And broad as a weft upon the left L. B. 1798.

[89]

Nor] Ne L. B. 1798.

[90]

mariners'] Marinere's L. B. 1798, 1800, S. L. 1817: Mariner's L. B. 1800.

[91]

a] an all editions to 1834.

[95-6]

om. L. B. 1798, 1800: were added in Sibylline Leaves.

[97]

Nor . . . nor] ne . . . ne L. B. 1798. like an Angel's head L. B. 1800.

[103]

The breezes blew L. B. 1798, 1800.

[104]

[190:A]The furrow stream'd off free S. L. 1817.

[190:A] In the former editions the line was,

The furrow follow'd free:

But I had not been long on board a ship, before I perceived that this was the image as seen by a spectator from the shore, or from another vessel. From the ship itself, the Wake appears like a brook flowing off from the stern. Note to S. L. 1817.

[116]

nor . . . nor] ne . . . ne L. B. 1798.

[122]

Nor] Ne L. B. 1798.

[123]

deep] deeps L. B. 1798, 1800.

[139]

well a-day] wel-a-day L. B. 1798, 1800.

Between 143 and 149

I saw a something in the sky
 No bigger than my fist;
 At first it seem'd, &c.

L. B. 1798.

Between 143 and 147

So past a weary time, each throat
 Was parch'd and glaz'd each eye,
 When looking westward, &c.

L. B. 1800.

[Lines 143-8 of the text in their present shape were added in Sibylline Leaves, 1817.]

Part III] III L. B. 1798, 1800: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Part the Third, S. L. 1828, 1829.

[154]

And still it ner'd and ner'd. L. B. 1798, 1800.

[155]

And, an it dodg'd L. B. 1798: And, as if it dodg'd L. B. 1800, S. L. 1817.

[157-60]
With throat unslack'd with black lips baked
 Ne could we laugh, ne wail,
 Then while thro' drouth all dumb they stood
 I bit my arm, and suck'd the blood

L. B. 1798.

[157]

With throat unslack'd, &c. L. B. 1800, 1802, S. L. 1817.

[160]

Till I bit my arm and suck'd the blood L. B. 1800.

[162]

With throat unslack'd, &c. L. B. 1798, 1800, 1802, S. L. 1817.

[167-70]
She doth not tack from side to side—
 Hither to work us weal.
 Withouten wind, withouten tide
 She steddies with upright keel.

L. B. 1798.

[170]

She steddies L. B. 1800, S. L. 1817.

[177]

straight] strait L. B. 1798, 1800.

[182]

neres and neres L. B. 1798, 1800.

[183]

her] her 1834, and also in 185 and 190.

Between 184-90

Are those her naked ribs, which fleck'd
 The sun that did behind them peer?
 And are those two all, all the crew,[193:A]
 That woman and her fleshless Pheere?
His bones were black with many a crack,
 All black and bare I ween;
 Jet-black and bare, save where with rust
 Of mouldy damps and charnel crust
 They're patch'd with purple and green.

L. B. 1798.

Are those her ribs which fleck'd the Sun
 Like the bars of a dungeon grate?
 And are those two all, all the crew
 That woman and her mate?

MS. Correction of S. T. C. in L. B. 1798.

Are those her Ribs, thro' which the Sun
 Did peer as thro' a grate?
 And are those two all, all her crew,
 That Woman, and her Mate?
His bones were black with many a crack
       *       *       *       *       *
They were patch'd with purple and green.

L. B. 1800.

This Ship it was a plankless thing,
 —A bare Anatomy!
 A plankless spectre—and it mov'd
 Like a Being of the Sea!
 The woman and a fleshless man
 Therein sate merrily.
His bones were black, &c. (as in 1800).

This stanza was found added in the handwriting of the Poet in the margin of a copy of the Bristol Edition [1798] of Lyrical Ballads. It is here printed for the first time. Note P. and D. W., 1877-80, ii. 36.

[193:A] those] these Errata, L. B. 1798.

[190-4.]
Her lips are red, her looks are free,
 Her locks are yellow as gold:
 Her skin is as white as leprosy,
 And she is far liker Death than he;
 Her flesh makes the still air cold.

L. B. 1798.

Her lips were red, her looks were free,
 Her locks were as yellow as gold:
 Her skin was as white as leprosy,
 And she was far liker Death than he;
 Her flesh made the still air cold.

L. B. 1800.

[196]

casting] playing L. B. 1798, 1800.

[197]

The game is done, I've, I've won S. L. 1817, 1828, 1839, 1834, 1844. The restoration of the text of 1798 and 1800 dates from 1852.

[198]

whistles] whistled L. B. 1798, 1800.

Between 198-218

A gust of wind sterte up behind
And whistled thro' his bones;
Thro the
 
 
 holes of his eyes and the hole of his mouth
 hole L. B. 1802, 1805
Half-whistles and half-groans.
 
With never a whisper in the Sea
Off darts the Spectre-ship;
 While clombe above the Eastern bar
The horned Moon with one bright Star
Almost atween the tips.
 [Almost between the tips. L. B. 1800.]
 
One after one by the horned Moon
(Listen, O Stranger! to me)
 Each turn'd his face with a ghastly pang
And curs'd me with his ee.
 
Four times fifty living men,
With never a sigh or groan,

L. B. 1798, 1800.

Between 198-9 A gust of wind . . . half groans. S. L. (Page 15 erase the second stanza. Errata, S. L., p. [xi].)

Between 201-12

With never a whisper on the main
Off shot the spectre ship;
 And stifled words and groans of pain
Mix'd on each  murmuring
 trembling
 
 
 lip.
And we look'd round, and we look'd up,
And fear at our hearts, as at a cup,
The Life-blood seem'd to sip—
 
The sky was dull, and dark the night,
The helmsman's face by his lamp gleam'd bright,
From the sails the dews did drip—
 Till clomb above the Eastern Bar,
The horned Moon, with one bright star
Within its nether tip.

Undated MS. correction of S. T. C. (first published 1893).

[208]

dew] dews S. L. 1817.

[209]

clomb] clombe S. L. 1817, 1828.

Part IV] IV. L. B. 1798, 1800: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Part the Fourth S. L. 1828, 1829.

[220]

The] Their L. B. 1798, 1800.

[224]

ancyent Marinere L. B. 1798.

[233-4]
Alone on the wide wide sea;
 And Christ would take no pity on

L. B. 1798, 1800.

[238]

And a million, million slimy things L. B. 1798, 1800.

[242]

rotting] eldritch L. B. 1798: ghastly L. B. 1800.

[249]

And] Till L. B. 1798, 1800.

[251]

load] cloud S. L. (for cloud read load. Errata, S. L., p. [xi]).

[254]

Ne rot, ne reek L. B. 1798.

[260]

the curse] a curse 1828, 1829.

[268]

Like morning frosts yspread L. B. 1798.

Part V] V. L. B. 1798, 1800: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Part the Fifth S. L. 1828, 1829.

[294]

To Mary-queen L. B. 1798, 1800. given] yeven L. B. 1798.

[300]

awoke] woke (a pencilled correction in 1828, ? by S. T. C.).

[309]

The roaring wind! it roar'd far off L. B. 1798.

[313]

burst] bursts L. B. 1798.

[315]

were] are L. B. 1798.

[317]

The stars dance on between. L. B. 1798.

[317-24]
The coming wind doth roar more loud;
 The sails do sigh, like sedge:
 The rain pours down from one black cloud
 And the Moon is at its edge.
Hark! hark! the thick black cloud is cleft,
 And the Moon is at its side

L. B. 1798.

[325]

fell] falls L. B. 1798.

[327-8]
The strong wind reach'd the ship: it roar'd
 And dropp'd down like a stone!

L. B. 1798.

[332]

nor . . . nor] ne . . . ne L. B. 1798.

Between 344-5

And I quak'd to think of my own voice
 How frightful it would be!

L. B. 1798.

[345-9]

om. in L. B. 1798, added in L. B. 1800.

[350]

The daylight dawn'd L. B. 1798.

[359]

sky-lark] Lavrock L. B. 1798.

Between 372-3

Listen, O listen, thou Wedding-guest!
 'Marinere! thou hast thy will:
 For that, which comes out of thine eye, doth make
 My body and soul to be still.'
Never sadder tale was told
 To a man of woman born:
 Sadder and wiser thou wedding-guest!
 Thoul't rise to-morrow morn.
Never sadder tale was heard
 By a man of woman born:
 The Marineres all return'd to work
 As silent as beforne.
The Marineres all 'gan pull the ropes,
 But look at me they n'old;
 Thought I, I am as thin as air—
 They cannot me behold.

L. B. 1798.

[373]

quietly] silently L. B. 1798, 1800.

[392]

down in] into L. B. 1798, 1800.

Part VI] VI. L. B. 1798, 1800: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. Part the Sixth S. L. 1828, 1829.

[423]

Withouten wave L. B. 1798.

[440-1]

een from theirs; Ne turn L. B. 1798.

[442-6]
And in its time the spell was snapt,
 And I could move my een:
 I look'd far-forth, but little saw
 Of what might else be seen.

L. B. 1798.

[446]

lonesome] lonely L. B. 1798.

[453]

Nor . . . nor] Ne . . . ne L. B. 1798.

[464]

O dream L. B. 1798, 1800.

Between 475-80

The moonlight bay was white all o'er,
 Till rising from the same,
 Full many shapes, that shadows were,
 Like as of torches came.
A little distance from the prow
 Those dark-red shadows were;
 But soon I saw that my own flesh
 Was red as in a glare.
I turn'd my head in fear and dread,
 And by the holy rood,
 The bodies had advanc'd, and now
 Before the mast they stood.
They lifted up their stiff right arms,
 They held them strait and tight;
 And each right-arm burnt like a torch,
 A torch that's borne upright.
 Their stony eye-balls glitter'd on
 In the red and smoky light.
I pray'd and turn'd my head away
 Forth looking as before.
 There was no breeze upon the bay,
 No wave against the shore.

L. B. 1798.

[487]

Oh, Christ!] O Christ L. B. 1798, 1800.

[498]

oh!] O L. B. 1798, 1800.

[500]

But soon] Eftsones L. B. 1798.

Between 503-4

Then vanish'd all the lovely lights;[205:A]
 The bodies rose anew:
 With silent pace, each to his place,
 Came back the ghastly crew,
 The wind, that shade nor motion made,
 On me alone it blew.

L. B. 1798.

[205:A]

Then vanish'd all the lovely lights,
 The spirits of the air,
 No souls of mortal men were they,
 But spirits bright and fair.

MS. Correction by S. T. C. in a copy of L. B. 1798.

[511]

makes] maketh (a pencilled correction in 1828, ? by S. T. C.).

Part VII] VII. L. B. 1798, 1800: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Part the Seventh S. L. 1829: The Ancient Mariner. Part the Seventh 1828.

[517]

marineres] mariners L. B. 1800.

[518]

That come from a far Contrée. L. B. 1798.

[523]

neared] ner'd L. B. 1798, 1800.

[529]

looked] look L. B. 1798, 1800, S. L.

[533]

Brown] The L. B. 1798, 1800, S. L. [for The read Brown. Errata, S. L. 1817, p. (xi)].

[543]

nor . . . nor] ne . . . ne L. B. 1798.

[577]

What manner man L. B. 1798, 1800.

[582-5]
Since then at an uncertain hour,
 Now ofttimes and now fewer,
 That anguish comes and makes me tell
 My ghastly aventure.

L. B. 1798.

[583]

agony] agency [a misprint] L. B. 1800.

[588]

That] The L. B. 1798, 1800.

[610]

Farewell, farewell] The comma to be omitted. Errata, L. B. 1798.

[618]

The Marinere L. B. 1798.

SONNETS ATTEMPTED IN THE MANNER OF
CONTEMPORARY WRITERS[209:1]

[SIGNED 'NEHEMIAH HIGGINBOTTOM']

I
Pensive at eve on the hard world I mus'd,
 And my poor heart was sad: so at the Moon
 [210]I gaz'd—and sigh'd, and sigh'd!—for, ah! how soon
 Eve darkens into night. Mine eye perus'd
 With tearful vacancy the dampy grass 5
 Which wept and glitter'd in the paly ray;
 And I did pause me on my lonely way,
 And mused me on those wretched ones who pass
 O'er the black heath of Sorrow. But, alas!
 Most of Myself I thought: when it befell 10
 That the sooth Spirit of the breezy wood
 Breath'd in mine ear—'All this is very well;
 But much of one thing is for no thing good.'
 Ah! my poor heart's inexplicable swell!
II
TO SIMPLICITY
O! I do love thee, meek Simplicity!
 For of thy lays the lulling simpleness
 Goes to my heart and soothes each small distress,
 Distress though small, yet haply great to me!
 'Tis true on Lady Fortune's gentlest pad 5
I amble on; yet, though I know not why,
 So sad I am!—but should a friend and I
 Grow cool and miff, O! I am very sad!
 [211]And then with sonnets and with sympathy
 My dreamy bosom's mystic woes I pall; 10
 Now of my false friend plaining plaintively,
 Now raving at mankind in general;
 But, whether sad or fierce, 'tis simple all,
 All very simple, meek Simplicity!
III
ON A RUINED HOUSE IN A ROMANTIC COUNTRY
And this reft house is that the which he built,
 Lamented Jack! And here his malt he pil'd,
 Cautious in vain! These rats that squeak so wild,
 Squeak, not unconscious of their father's guilt.
 Did ye not see her gleaming thro' the glade? 5
 Belike, 'twas she, the maiden all forlorn.
 What though she milk no cow with crumpled horn,
 Yet aye she haunts the dale where erst she stray'd;
 And aye beside her stalks her amorous knight!
 Still on his thighs their wonted brogues are worn, 10
And thro' those brogues, still tatter'd and betorn,
 His hindward charms gleam an unearthly white;
 As when thro' broken clouds at night's high noon
 Peeps in fair fragments forth the full-orb'd harvest-moon!

1797.

FOOTNOTES:

[209:1] First published in the Monthly Magazine for November, 1797. They were reprinted in the Poetical Register for 1803 (1805); by Coleridge in the Biographia Literaria, 1817, i. 26-8[209:A]; and by Cottle in Early Recollections, i. 290-2; and in Reminiscences, p. 160. They were first collected in P. and D. W., 1877-80, i. 211-13.

[209:A] 'Under the name of Nehemiah Higginbottom I contributed three sonnets, the first of which had for its object to excite a good-natured laugh at the spirit of doleful egotism and at the recurrence of favourite phrases, with the double defect of being at once trite and licentious. The second was on low creeping language and thoughts under the pretence of simplicity. The third, the phrases of which were borrowed entirely from my own poems, on the indiscriminate use of elaborate and swelling language and imagery. . . . So general at the time and so decided was the opinion concerning the characteristic vices of my style that a celebrated physician (now alas! no more) speaking of me in other respects with his usual kindness to a gentleman who was about to meet me at a dinner-party could not, however, resist giving him a hint not to mention The House that Jack Built in my presence, for that I was as sore as a boil about that sonnet, he not knowing that I was myself the author of it.'

Coleridge's first account of these sonnets in a letter to Cottle [November, 1797] is much to the same effect:—'I sent to the Monthly Magazine (1797) three mock Sonnets in ridicule of my own Poems, and Charles Lloyd's and Lamb's, etc., etc., exposing that affectation of unaffectedness, of jumping and misplaced accent in common-place epithets, flat lines forced into poetry by italics (signifying how well and mouthishly the author would read them), puny pathos, etc., etc. The instances were almost all taken from myself and Lloyd and Lamb. I signed them "Nehemiah Higginbottom". I think they may do good to our young Bards.' [E. R., i. 289; Rem. 160.]

LINENOTES: