'
t, i.e., a quote (apostrophe) character
followed by a target, for each entry that should be visited except
the last, "ordinary & final" entry:
\xymatrix{ {\circ} \ar@{|-->} '[dr] ^a '[rr]+D*{\bullet} ^b [drrr] ^c & {\circ} & {\circ} & {\circ} \\ {\circ} & {\circ} & {\circ} & {\circ} }
typesets
As you see, labels are set separately on each segment.
Hint: "going under" an empty entry leaves a small gap at that location. The compactness is achieved using a trick described in section 3.3.