CHAPTER X

THE SEPTENARY, THE ALEXANDRINE, AND THE THREE-FOOT LINE

§ 135. The septenary 192 136. Irregularity of structure of the septenary rhyming line as shown in the _Moral Ode_ 193 137. Regularity of the rhymeless septenary verse of the _Ormulum_ 193 138. The septenary with a masculine ending 194 139. The septenary as employed in early lyrical poems and ballads 195 140. Use of the septenary in Modern English 196 141-4. Intermixture of septenaries, alexandrines, and four-beat lines 197 145, 146. Origin of the 'Poulter's Measure' 202 147. The alexandrine: its first use 204 148. Structure of the alexandrine in Mysteries and Moral Plays 205 149. The alexandrine in Modern English 205 150. The three-foot line 206