Delphi Complete Works of Robert Burns (Illustrated) E-Book

Robert Burns

• Herausgeber: Delphi Classics
• Kategorie: Poesie und Drama
• Serie: Delphi Poets Series
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015

Seitenzahl: 2124

Beschreibung

The Delphi Poets Series offers readers the works of literature's finest poets, with superior formatting. This volume presents the complete works of Scotland’s favourite son Robert Burns, with beautiful illustrations, superior indexing and the usual Delphi bonus material. (6MB Version 1)

* Beautifully illustrated with images relating to Burns’ life and works
* Concise introduction to Burns and his poetry
* The famous TAM O’SHANTER is fully illustrated for your enjoyment
* Excellent formatting of the poems
* Special chronological and alphabetical contents tables for the poetry
* Easily locate the poems you want to read
* Special glossary of Scots words to aid your reading of the poems
* Includes Burns’ letters, fully indexed - spend hours exploring the poet's personal correspondence
* Features no less than four biographies, including Carlyle’s scholarly study of the great poet – immerse yourself in Burns’ world
* Scholarly ordering of texts into chronological order and literary genres

CONTENTS:
The Poetry of Robert Burns
ROBERT BURNS: A BRIEF INTRODUCTION
THE COMPLETE POEMS

The Poems
LIST OF POEMS IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER
LIST OF POEMS IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER

Glossary of Scots Words

The Letters
THE LETTERS OF ROBERT BURNS

The Biographies
LIFE OF ROBERT BURNS by Thomas Carlyle
THE REAL ROBERT BURNS by J. L. Hughes
ROBERT BURNS by John Campbell Shairp
BRIEF LIFE OF ROBERT BURNS by Allan Cunningham

Leseprobe

ROBERT BURNS

(1759-1796)

Contents

The Poetry of Robert Burns

ROBERT BURNS: A BRIEF INTRODUCTION

THE COMPLETE POEMS

The Poems

LIST OF POEMS IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER

LIST OF POEMS IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER

Glossary of Scots Words

The Letters

THE LETTERS OF ROBERT BURNS

The Biographies

LIFE OF ROBERT BURNS by Thomas Carlyle

THE REAL ROBERT BURNS by J. L. Hughes

ROBERT BURNS by John Campbell Shairp

BRIEF LIFE OF ROBERT BURNS by Allan Cunningham

© Delphi Classics 2013

Version 1

ROBERT BURNS

By Delphi Classics, 2013

NOTE

When reading poetry on an eReader, it is advisable to use a small font size, which will allow the lines of poetry to display correctly.

The Poetry of Robert Burns

Alloway, Ayrshire — Burns’ birthplace

Another view of the birthplace, which now serves as a museum

Burns’ cottage in 1910

The room in which the great poet was born

ROBERT BURNS: A BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, Robert Burns (1759–1796) is celebrated worldwide as a pioneer of the Romantic movement and one of the most gifted poets the world has ever produced. Best known for having written in the Scots dialect, his work has transcended national boundaries, establishing a worldwide audience and an everlasting fame.

Burns was born in Alloway, South Ayrshire, the eldest of the seven children of William Burnes, a self-educated tenant farmer from Dunnottar, and Agnes Broun, the daughter of a tenant farmer from Kirkoswald, South Ayrshire.  The young Burns had little regular schooling and received much of his education from his father, who taught his children reading, writing, arithmetic, geography and history.  After a few years of home education, Burns was sent to Dalrymple Parish School during the summer of 1772, before returning at harvest time to full-time farm labouring until 1773, when he was sent to lodge with Murdoch for three weeks to study grammar, French and Latin.

Aged 15, Burns was the principal labourer at Mount Oliphant. During the harvest of 1774, he was assisted by Nelly Kilpatrick, who inspired him to write his first poem, O, Once I Lov’d A Bonnie Lass. In the summer of 1775, Burns was sent to finish his education with a tutor at Kirkoswald, where he met Peggy Thompson, to whom he wrote two songs, Now Westlin’ Winds and I Dream’d I Lay.

Despite his ability as a farmer, William Burnes was consistently unfortunate, often compelled to move his large family from farm to farm without ever being able to improve their circumstances. At Whitsun, 1777, he removed his large family from the unfavourable conditions of Mount Oliphant to the 130-acre farm at Lochlea, near Tarbolton, where they stayed until the father’s death in 1784.

Burns continued to write poems and songs and began a commonplace book in 1783, while his father fought a legal dispute with his landlord. The case went to the Court of Session and Burnes was upheld in January 1784, a fortnight before he died.  Robert made an ineffectual struggle to keep on the farm, but after this failure he moved to the farm at Mossgiel, near Mauchline, which he struggled to work on for the next four years. During the summer of 1784, Burns came to know a group of girls known collectively as The Belles of Mauchline, one of whom was Jean Armour, the daughter of a stonemason from Mauchline.

Burns’ many romantic involvements with women have been well documented over the years, with his first child being born to his mother’s servant, Elizabeth Paton, while he was embarking on a relationship with Jean Armour, who became pregnant with twins in March 1786. Burns signed a paper attesting his marriage to Jean, but her parents sent her to live with her uncle in Paisley to avoid the disgrace. Although Armour’s father initially forbade their marriage, they were eventually wed in 1788.  In time, Armour bore Burns nine children, only three of whom survived infancy.

In the meantime, Burns was in financial difficulties due to his lack of success in farming, so, to make enough money to support a family, he took up a friend’s offer of work in Jamaica at a salary of £30 per annum, as a bookkeeper on a slave plantation. At about the same time, Burns fell in love with Mary Campbell, whom he had seen in church while he was still living in Tarbolton. She was born near Dunoon and had lived in Campbeltown before moving to work in Ayrshire. The poet dedicated some of his most celebrated poems to this beauty, including The Highland Lassie O, Highland Mary and To Mary in Heaven. Although some historians now believe that Burns and Mary planned to elope together to Jamaica, she shortly left her work in Ayrshire, to sail home to her parents in Campbeltown.  Sadly, she died of typhus in October, 1786.

As Burns lacked the funds to pay for his passage to the West Indies, Gavin Hamilton suggested that he should publish his poems by subscription, providing money for the journey. On 3 April, Burns sent proposals for publishing his Scotch Poems to John Wilson, a local printer in Kilmarnock, who published them on 14 April 1786, on the same day that Jean Armour’s father tore up the paper in which Burns attested his marriage to Jean.

On 31 July 1786, John Wilson published the volume of works by Robert Burns, Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish dialect. Now known as the Kilmarnock volume, the collection sold for three shillings and contained much of Burn’s greatest poems, including The Twa Dogs; Address to the Deil; Halloween; The Cotter’s Saturday Night; To a Mouse; Epitaph for James Smith and To a Mountain Daisy. The success of the book was immediate and Burns was suddenly famous across the country.

Burns postponed his planned emigration to Jamaica and was at Mossgiel when he learnt that Jean Armour had given birth to twins. On 4 September, Thomas Blacklock wrote a letter expressing admiration for the poetry in the Kilmarnock volume, and suggested an enlarged second edition. Burns later recalled:

“I had taken the last farewell of my few friends, my chest was on the road to Greenock; I had composed the last song I should ever measure in Scotland – ‘The Gloomy night is gathering fast’ – when a letter from Dr Blacklock to a friend of mine overthrew all my schemes, by opening new prospects to my poetic ambition. The Doctor belonged to a set of critics for whose applause I had not dared to hope. His opinion that I would meet with encouragement in Edinburgh for a second edition, fired me so much, that away I posted for that city, without a single acquaintance, or a single letter of introduction.”

On 14 December, William Creech issued subscription bills for the first Edinburgh edition of Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish dialect, which was published on 17 April 1787. Within a week Burns had sold his copyright to Creech for 100 guineas. In Edinburgh, he was received as an equal by the city’s men of letters and was a guest at aristocratic gatherings, where he was recorded as bearing himself with unaffected dignity. It was here that he encountered, and made a lasting impression on, the 16-year-old Walter Scott, who described him later with great admiration:

“His person was strong and robust; his manners rustic, not clownish, a sort of dignified plainness and simplicity which received part of its effect perhaps from knowledge of his extraordinary talents. His features are presented in Mr Nasmyth’s picture but to me it conveys the idea that they are diminished, as if seen in perspective. I think his countenance was more massive than it looks in any of the portraits ... there was a strong expression of shrewdness in all his lineaments; the eye alone, I think, indicated the poetical character and temperament. It was large, and of a dark cast, and literally glowed when he spoke with feeling or interest. I never saw such another eye in a human head, though I have seen the most distinguished men of my time.”

The new edition of poems brought Burns £400 and won the poet much renown. While staying in the city, Burns embarked on a relationship with the separated Agnes “Nancy” McLehose, with whom he exchanged passionate letters under pseudonyms. When it became clear that Nancy would not be easily seduced into a physical relationship, Burns moved on to Nancy’s domestic servant, who bore him a son, Robert Burns Clow, in 1788. The poet also had an affair with a servant girl called Margaret “May” Cameron. His relationship with Nancy concluded in 1791 with a final meeting in Edinburgh, before she set sail for Jamaica to meet her estranged husband. Before she left, Burns sent her the manuscript of Ae Fond Kiss, one of his most beautiful poems, as a farewell gift.

In Edinburgh, early 1787, Burns met James Johnson, a struggling music engraver and music seller, with a love of old Scots songs and a determination to preserve them. Burns shared this interest and became an enthusiastic contributor to The Scots Musical Museum. The first volume was published in 1787 and included three songs by Burns. He contributed 40 songs to Volume II and he resulted in being responsible for a third of the 600 songs in the whole collection, as well as making a considerable editorial contribution. The final volume was published in 1803.

On his return to Ayrshire in February 1788, Burns resumed his relationship with Jean Armour and took a lease on the farm of Ellisland, near Dumfries, but trained as a Gauger or exciseman, in case farming continued to prove unsuccessful. He was appointed to duties in Customs and Excise in 1789 and eventually gave up the farm in 1791. Meanwhile, in November 1790, he had written Tam O’ Shanter, a supernatural and humorous ballad, which would later become his most famous work.

After giving up his farm he removed to Dumfries. It was at this time he was requested to write lyrics for The Melodies of Scotland and so responded by contributing over 100 songs. He made major contributions to George Thomson’s A Select Collection of Original Scottish Airs for the Voice as well as to James Johnson’s The Scots Musical Museum. These volumes established his reputation and secured his immortal fame, placing him in the front rank of lyric poets.

At this time, Burns’ prospects were better than they had ever been; but he had become bitter at times and had alienated many of his best friends by freely expressing sympathy with the French Revolution and the unpopular advocates of reform in Scotland. As his health began to deteriorate, he began to age prematurely and fell into fits of depression. Some sources alleged that his tendency to drink large amounts of alcohol aggravated his long-standing rheumatic heart condition.  In the winter of 1795, Burns died suddenly, following a dental extraction, at the age of 37. The funeral took place on Monday 25 July 1796, on the same day that his son Maxwell was born. He was at first buried in the far corner of St. Michael’s Churchyard in Dumfries, but his body was later moved to its final location in the same cemetery, the Burns Mausoleum, in September 1815. The body of his widow Jean Armour was buried beside him in 1834.

In a comparatively short life, Burns left behind a large corpus of over 550 poems, which have since influenced writers, as well as everyday people, from across the world.  As testament to his enduring popularity, Burns suppers are held annually on the poet’s birthday, 25 January, which has become traditionally known as Burns Night.  These evenings are commonly celebrated in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Burns Clubs, Scottish Societies and in countless other households worldwide. The first suppers were held in Ayrshire at the end of the 18th century by Robert Burns’ friends on the anniversary of his death, 21 July, and they have been a regular occurrence ever since. Burns suppers usually include haggis, Scotch whisky and the recitation of Burns’ poetry, particularly his apposite Address to a Haggis.

The style of Burns’ poetry is marked by spontaneity, directness and sincerity, ranging from sensitive depth to entertaining humour. Burns’ writings often draw upon a substantial knowledge of Classical, Biblical and English literature, as well as the Scottish Makar tradition. The themes of his poems include republicanism, Radicalism - as revealed in Scots Wha Hae, Scottish patriotism, anticlericalism, class inequalities, gender roles, poverty and sexuality. Serving as a major inspiration of Romantic poets such as William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Percy Bysshe Shelley, Burns also popularised the use of Scots dialect in poetry, influencing the works of Allan Ramsay and Robert Fergusson. Now, Burns is regarded as a world poet, his works holding an almost sacred importance for the people of Scotland and an unquestioned respect from all admirer’s of fine literature.

A depiction of the Burns family in the birthplace museum

The famous portrait of Burns by Alexander Nasmyth, 1787

The original title page of the Kilmarnock Edition

The now famous meeting of Robert Burns (left) and a young Sir Walter Scott (centre left), painted by Charles Hardie, 1893

THE COMPLETE POEMS

POEMS GROUPED BY YEARS

Juvenile Poems (1773–1779)

1780

1781

1783

1784

1785

1786

1787

1788

1789

1790

1791

1792

1793

1794

1795

Final Poems (1796)

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

Juvenile Poems (1773–1779)

1.

Handsome Nell (Song)

Tune— “I am a man unmarried.”

O ONCE I lov’d a bonie lass,  Ay, and I love her still;And whilst that virtue warms my breast,  I’ll love my handsome Nell.

As bonie lasses I hae seen,   5  And mony full as braw;But, for a modest gracefu’ mein,  The like I never saw.

A bonie lass, I will confess,  Is pleasant to the e’e;   10But, without some better qualities,  She’s no a lass for me.

But Nelly’s looks are blythe and sweet,  And what is best of a’,Her reputation is complete,   15  And fair without a flaw.

She dresses aye sae clean and neat,  Both decent and genteel;And then there’s something in her gait  Gars ony dress look weel.   20

A gaudy dress and gentle air  May slightly touch the heart;But it’s innocence and modesty  That polishes the dart.

‘Tis this in Nelly pleases me,   25  ‘Tis this enchants my soul;For absolutely in my breast  She reigns without control.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

2.

O Tibbie, I hae seen the day (Song)

Tune— “Invercauld’s Reel, or Strathspey.”

Chor. — O Tibbie, I hae seen the day,  Ye wadna been sae shy;For laik o’ gear ye lightly me,  But, trowth, I care na by.

YESTREEN I met you on the moor,   5Ye spak na, but gaed by like stour;Ye geck at me because I’m poor,  But fient a hair care I.        O Tibbie, I hae seen the day, &c.

When coming hame on Sunday last,   10Upon the road as I cam past,Ye snufft and ga’e your head a cast —   But trowth I care’t na by.        O Tibbie, I hae seen the day, &c.

I doubt na, lass, but ye may think,   15Because ye hae the name o’ clink,That ye can please me at a wink,  Whene’er ye like to try.        O Tibbie, I hae seen the day, &c.

But sorrow tak’ him that’s sae mean,   20Altho’ his pouch o’ coin were clean,Wha follows ony saucy quean,  That looks sae proud and high.        O Tibbie, I hae seen the day, &c.

Altho’ a lad were e’er sae smart,   25If that he want the yellow dirt,Ye’ll cast your head anither airt,  And answer him fu’ dry.        O Tibbie, I hae seen the day, &c.

But, if he hae the name o’ gear,   30Ye’ll fasten to him like a brier,Tho’ hardly he, for sense or lear,  Be better than the kye.        O Tibbie, I hae seen the day, &c.

But, Tibbie, lass, tak’ my advice:   35Your daddie’s gear maks you sae nice;The deil a ane wad speir your price,  Were ye as poor as I.        O Tibbie, I hae seen the day, &c.

There lives a lass beside yon park,   40I’d rather hae her in her sark,Than you wi’ a’ your thousand mark;  That gars you look sae high.        O Tibbie, I hae seen the day, &c.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

3.

I dream’d I lay (Song)

I DREAM’D I lay where flowers were springing  Gaily in the sunny beam;List’ning to the wild birds singing,  By a falling crystal stream:Straight the sky grew black and daring;   5  Thro’ the woods the whirlwinds rave;Tress with aged arms were warring,  O’er the swelling drumlie wave.

Such was my life’s deceitful morning,  Such the pleasures I enjoyed:   10But lang or noon, loud tempests storming  A’ my flowery bliss destroy’d.Tho’ fickle fortune has deceiv’d me —   She promis’d fair, and perform’d but ill,Of mony a joy and hope bereav’d me — 15  I bear a heart shall support me still.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

4.

In the Character of a Ruined Farmer (Song)

Tune— “Go from my window, Love, do.”

THE SUN he is sunk in the west,All creatures retirèd to rest,While here I sit, all sore beset,    With sorrow, grief, and woe:And it’s O, fickle Fortune, O!   5

The prosperous man is asleep,Nor hears how the whirlwinds sweep;But Misery and I must watch    The surly tempest blow:And it’s O, fickle Fortune, O!   10

There lies the dear partner of my breast;Her cares for a moment at rest:Must I see thee, my youthful pride,    Thus brought so very low!And it’s O, fickle Fortune, O!   15

There lie my sweet babies in her arms;No anxious fear their little hearts alarms;But for their sake my heart does ache,    With many a bitter throe:And it’s O, fickle Fortune, O!   20

I once was by Fortune carest:I once could relieve the distrest:Now life’s poor support, hardly earn’d    My fate will scarce bestow:And it’s O, fickle Fortune, O!   25

No comfort, no comfort I have!How welcome to me were the grave!But then my wife and children dear —     O, wither would they go!And it’s O, fickle Fortune, O!   30

O whither, O whither shall I turn!All friendless, forsaken, forlorn!For, in this world, Rest or Peace    I never more shall know!And it’s O, fickle Fortune, O!   35

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

5.

Tragic Fragment — All villain as I am

ALL villain as I am — a damnèd wretch,A hardened, stubborn, unrepenting villain,Still my heart melts at human wretchedness;And with sincere but unavailing sighsI view the helpless children of distress:   5With tears indignant I behold the oppressorRejoicing in the honest man’s destruction,Whose unsubmitting heart was all his crime. — Ev’n you, ye hapless crew! I pity you;Ye, whom the seeming good think sin to pity;   10Ye poor, despised, abandoned vagabonds,Whom Vice, as usual, has turn’d o’er to ruin.Oh! but for friends and interposing Heaven,I had been driven forth like you forlorn,The most detested, worthless wretch among you!   15O injured God! Thy goodness has endow’d meWith talents passing most of my compeers,Which I in just proportion have abused — As far surpassing other common villainsAs Thou in natural parts has given me more.   20

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

6.

The Tarbolton Lasses

IF ye gae up to yon hill-tap,  Ye’ll there see bonie Peggy;She kens her father is a laird,  And she forsooth’s a leddy.

There Sophy tight, a lassie bright,   5  Besides a handsome fortune:Wha canna win her in a night,  Has little art in courtin’.

Gae down by Faile, and taste the ale,  And tak a look o’ Mysie;   10She’s dour and din, a deil within,  But aiblins she may please ye.

If she be shy, her sister try,  Ye’ll maybe fancy Jenny;If ye’ll dispense wi’ want o’ sense — 15  She kens hersel she’s bonie.

As ye gae up by yon hillside,  Speir in for bonie Bessy;She’ll gie ye a beck, and bid ye light,  And handsomely address ye.   20

There’s few sae bonie, nane sae guid,  In a’ King George’ dominion;If ye should doubt the truth o’ this —   It’s Bessy’s ain opinion!

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

7.

Ah, woe is me, my Mother dear

Paraphrase of Jeremiah, 15th Chap., 10th verse.

AH, woe is me, my mother dear!  A man of strife ye’ve born me:For sair contention I maun bear;  They hate, revile, and scorn me.

I ne’er could lend on bill or band,   5  That five per cent. might blest me;And borrowing, on the tither hand,  The deil a ane wad trust me.

Yet I, a coin-denièd wight,  By Fortune quite discarded;   10Ye see how I am, day and night,  By lad and lass blackguarded!

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

8.

Montgomerie’s Peggy (Song)

Tune— “Galla Water.”

ALTHO’ my bed were in yon muir,  Amang the heather, in my plaidie;Yet happy, happy would I be,  Had I my dear Montgomerie’s Peggy.

When o’er the hill beat surly storms,   5  And winter nights were dark and rainy;I’d seek some dell, and in my arms  I’d shelter dear Montgomerie’s Peggy.

Were I a baron proud and high,  And horse and servants waiting ready;   10Then a’ ‘twad gie o’ joy to me, —   The sharin’t with Montgomerie’s Peggy.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

9.

The Ploughman’s Life

AS I was a-wand’ring ae morning in spring,I heard a young ploughman sae sweetly to sing;And as he was singin’, thir words he did say, — There’s nae life like the ploughman’s in the month o’ sweet May.

The lav’rock in the morning she’ll rise frae her nest,   5And mount i’ the air wi’ the dew on her breast,And wi’ the merry ploughman she’ll whistle and sing,And at night she’ll return to her nest back again.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

1780

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

10.

The Ronalds of the Bennals

IN Tarbolton, ye ken, there are proper young men,  And proper young lasses and a’, man;But ken ye the Ronalds that live in the Bennals,  They carry the gree frae them a’, man.

Their father’s laird, and weel he can spare’t,   5  Braid money to tocher them a’, man;To proper young men, he’ll clink in the hand  Gowd guineas a hunder or twa, man.

There’s ane they ca’ Jean, I’ll warrant ye’ve seen  As bonie a lass or as braw, man;   10But for sense and guid taste she’ll vie wi’ the best,  And a conduct that beautifies a’, man.

The charms o’ the min’, the langer they shine,  The mair admiration they draw, man;While peaches and cherries, and roses and lilies,   15  They fade and they wither awa, man,

If ye be for Miss Jean, tak this frae a frien’,  A hint o’ a rival or twa, man;The Laird o’ Blackbyre wad gang through the fire,  If that wad entice her awa, man.   20

The Laird o’ Braehead has been on his speed,  For mair than a towmond or twa, man;The Laird o’ the Ford will straught on a board,  If he canna get her at a’, man.

Then Anna comes in, the pride o’ her kin,   25  The boast of our bachelors a’, man:Sae sonsy and sweet, sae fully complete,  She steals our affections awa, man.

If I should detail the pick and the wale  O’ lasses that live here awa, man,   30The fau’t wad be mine if they didna shine  The sweetest and best o’ them a’, man.

I lo’e her mysel, but darena weel tell,  My poverty keeps me in awe, man;For making o’ rhymes, and working at times,   35  Does little or naething at a’, man.

Yet I wadna choose to let her refuse,  Nor hae’t in her power to say na, man:For though I be poor, unnoticed, obscure,  My stomach’s as proud as them a’, man.   40

Though I canna ride in weel-booted pride,  And flee o’er the hills like a craw, man,I can haud up my head wi’ the best o’ the breed,  Though fluttering ever so braw, man.

My coat and my vest, they are Scotch o’ the best,   45  O’ pairs o’ guid breeks I hae twa, man;And stockings and pumps to put on my stumps,  And ne’er a wrang steek in them a’, man.

My sarks they are few, but five o’ them new,  Twal’ hundred, as white as the snaw, man,   50A ten-shillings hat, a Holland cravat;  There are no mony poets sae braw, man.

I never had frien’s weel stockit in means,  To leave me a hundred or twa, man;Nae weel-tocher’d aunts, to wait on their drants,   55  And wish them in hell for it a’, man.

I never was cannie for hoarding o’ money,  Or claughtin’t together at a’, man;I’ve little to spend, and naething to lend,  But deevil a shilling I awe, man.   60

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

11.

Here’s to thy health, my bonie lass (Song)

Tune— “Laggan Burn.”

HERE’S to thy health, my bonie lass,  Gude nicht and joy be wi’ thee;I’ll come nae mair to thy bower-door,  To tell thee that I lo’e thee.O dinna think, my pretty pink,   5  But I can live without thee:I vow and swear I dinna care,  How lang ye look about ye.

Thou’rt aye sae free informing me,  Thou hast nae mind to marry;   10I’ll be as free informing thee,  Nae time hae I to tarry:I ken thy frien’s try ilka means  Frae wedlock to delay thee;Depending on some higher chance,   15  But fortune may betray thee.

I ken they scorn my low estate,  But that does never grieve me;For I’m as free as any he;  Sma’ siller will relieve me.   20I’ll count my health my greatest wealth,  Sae lang as I’ll enjoy it;I’ll fear nae scant, I’ll bode nae want,  As lang’s I get employment.

But far off fowls hae feathers fair,   25  And, aye until ye try them,Tho’ they seem fair, still have a care;  They may prove waur than I am.But at twal’ at night, when the moon shines bright,  My dear, I’ll come and see thee;   30For the man that loves his mistress weel,  Nae travel makes him weary.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

12.

The Lass of Cessnock Banks (Song)

A Song of SimilesTune— “If he be a Butcher neat and trim.”

ON Cessnock banks a lassie dwells;  Could I describe her shape and mein;Our lasses a’ she far excels,  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

She’s sweeter than the morning dawn,   5  When rising Phoebus first is seen,And dew-drops twinkle o’er the lawn;  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

She’s stately like yon youthful ash,  That grows the cowslip braes between,   10And drinks the stream with vigour fresh;  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

She’s spotless like the flow’ring thorn,  With flow’rs so white and leaves so green,When purest in the dewy morn;   15  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

Her looks are like the vernal May,  When ev’ning Phoebus shines serene,While birds rejoice on every spray;  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.   20

Her hair is like the curling mist,  That climbs the mountain-sides at e’en,When flow’r-reviving rains are past;  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

Her forehead’s like the show’ry bow,   25  When gleaming sunbeams interveneAnd gild the distant mountain’s brow;  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

Her cheeks are like yon crimson gem,  The pride of all the flowery scene,   30Just opening on its thorny stem;  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

Her bosom’s like the nightly snow,  When pale the morning rises keen,While hid the murm’ring streamlets flow;   35  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

Her lips are like yon cherries ripe,  That sunny walls from Boreas screen;They tempt the taste and charm the sight;  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.   40

Her teeth are like a flock of sheep,  With fleeces newly washen clean,That slowly mount the rising steep;  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

Her breath is like the fragrant breeze,   45  That gently stirs the blossom’d bean,When Phoebus sinks behind the seas;  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

Her voice is like the ev’ning thrush,  That sings on Cessnock banks unseen,   50While his mate sits nestling in the bush;  An’ she has twa sparkling roguish een.

But it’s not her air, her form, her face,  Tho’ matching beauty’s fabled queen;‘Tis the mind that shines in ev’ry grace,   55  An’ chiefly in her roguish een.

13.

Bonie Peggy Alison (Song)

Tune— “The Braes o’ Balquhidder.”

Chor. — And I’ll kiss thee yet, yet,  And I’ll kiss thee o’er again:And I’ll kiss thee yet, yet,  My bonie Peggy Alison.

ILK care and fear, when thou art near   5  I evermair defy them, O!Young kings upon their hansel throne  Are no sae blest as I am, O!          And I’ll kiss thee yet, yet, &c.

When in my arms, wi’ a’ thy charms,   10  I clasp my countless treasure, O!I seek nae mair o’ Heaven to share  Than sic a moment’s pleasure, O!          And I’ll kiss thee yet, yet, &c.

And by thy een sae bonie blue,   15    I swear I’m thine for ever, O!And on thy lips I seal my vow,  And break it shall I never, O!    And I’ll kiss thee yet, yet, &c.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

14.

Mary Morison (Song)

Tune— “Bide ye yet.”

O MARY, at thy window be,  It is the wish’d, the trysted hour!Those smiles and glances let me see,  That make the miser’s treasure poor:How blythely was I bide the stour,   5  A weary slave frae sun to sun,Could I the rich reward secure,  The lovely Mary Morison.

Yestreen, when to the trembling string  The dance gaed thro’ the lighted ha’,   10To thee my fancy took its wing,  I sat, but neither heard nor saw:Tho’ this was fair, and that was braw,  And yon the toast of a’ the town,I sigh’d, and said among them a’,   15  “Ye are na Mary Morison.”

Oh, Mary, canst thou wreck his peace,  Wha for thy sake wad gladly die?Or canst thou break that heart of his,  Whase only faut is loving thee?   20If love for love thou wilt na gie,  At least be pity to me shown;A thought ungentle canna be  The thought o’ Mary Morison.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

1781

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

15.

Winter: A Dirge

THE WINTRY west extends his blast,  And hail and rain does blaw;Or the stormy north sends driving forth  The blinding sleet and snaw:While, tumbling brown, the burn comes down,   5  And roars frae bank to brae;And bird and beast in covert rest,  And pass the heartless day.

“The sweeping blast, the sky o’ercast,”  The joyless winter day   10Let others fear, to me more dear  Than all the pride of May:The tempest’s howl, it soothes my soul,  My griefs it seems to join;The leafless trees my fancy please,   15  Their fate resembles mine!

Thou Power Supreme, whose mighty scheme  These woes of mine fulfil,Here firm I rest; they must be best,  Because they are Thy will!   20Then all I want — O do Thou grant  This one request of mine! — Since to enjoy Thou dost deny,  Assist me to resign.

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Alphabetical List of Poems

16.

A Prayer under the Pressure of Violent Anguish

O THOU Great Being! what Thou art,  Surpasses me to know;Yet sure I am, that known to Thee  Are all Thy works below.

Thy creature here before Thee stands,   5  All wretched and distrest;Yet sure those ills that wring my soul  Obey Thy high behest.

Sure, Thou, Almighty, canst not actFrom cruelty or wrath!   10O, free my weary eyes from tears,Or close them fast in death!

But, if I must afflicted be,To suit some wise design,Then man my soul with firm resolves,   15To bear and not repine!

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Alphabetical List of Poems

17.

Paraphrase of the First Psalm

THE MAN, in life wherever plac’d,  Hath happiness in store,Who walks not in the wicked’s way,  Nor learns their guilty lore!

Nor from the seat of scornful pride   5  Casts forth his eyes abroad,But with humility and awe  Still walks before his God.

That man shall flourish like the trees,  Which by the streamlets grow;   10The fruitful top is spread on high,  And firm the root below.

But he whose blossom buds in guilt  Shall to the ground be cast,And, like the rootless stubble, tost   15  Before the sweeping blast.

For why? that God the good adore,  Hath giv’n them peace and rest,But hath decreed that wicked men  Shall ne’er be truly blest.   20

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18.

The First Six Verses of the Ninetieth Psalm versified

O THOU, the first, the greatest friend  Of all the human race!Whose strong right hand has ever been  Their stay and dwelling place!

Before the mountains heav’d their heads   5  Beneath Thy forming hand,Before this ponderous globe itself  Arose at Thy command;

That Pow’r which rais’d and still upholds  This universal frame,   10From countless, unbeginning time  Was ever still the same.

Those mighty periods of years  Which seem to us so vast,Appear no more before Thy sight   15  Than yesterday that’s past.

Thou giv’st the word: Thy creature, man,  Is to existence brought;Again Thou say’st, “Ye sons of men,  Return ye into nought!”   20

Thou layest them, with all their cares,  In everlasting sleep;As with a flood Thou tak’st them off  With overwhelming sweep.

They flourish like the morning flow’r,   25  In beauty’s pride array’d;But long ere night cut down it lies  All wither’d and decay’d.

Chronological List of Poems

19.

A Prayer in the Prospect of Death

O THOU unknown, Almighty Cause  Of all my hope and fear!In whose dread presence, ere an hour,  Perhaps I must appear!

If I have wander’d in those paths   5  Of life I ought to shun,As something, loudly, in my breast,  Remonstrates I have done;

Thou know’st that Thou hast formed me  With passions wild and strong;   10And list’ning to their witching voice  Has often led me wrong.

Where human weakness has come short,  Or frailty stept aside,Do Thou, All-Good-for such Thou art — 15  In shades of darkness hide.

Where with intention I have err’d,  No other plea I have,But, Thou art good; and Goodness still  Delighteth to forgive.   20

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Alphabetical List of Poems

20.

Stanzas, on the same Occasion

  WHY am I loth to leave this earthly scene?    Have I so found it full of pleasing charms?  Some drops of joy with draughts of ill between —     Some gleams of sunshine ‘mid renewing storms,    Is it departing pangs my soul alarms?   5  Or death’s unlovely, dreary, dark abode?    For guilt, for guilt, my terrors are in arms:    I tremble to approach an angry God,And justly smart beneath His sin-avenging rod.

  Fain would I say, “Forgive my foul offence,”   10    Fain promise never more to disobey;  But, should my Author health again dispense,    Again I might desert fair virtue’s way;    Again in folly’s part might go astray;  Again exalt the brute and sink the man;   15    Then how should I for heavenly mercy pray  Who act so counter heavenly mercy’s plan?Who sin so oft have mourn’d, yet to temptation ran?

  O Thou, great Governor of all below!    If I may dare a lifted eye to Thee,   20  Thy nod can make the tempest cease to blow,    Or still the tumult of the raging sea:    With that controlling pow’r assist ev’n me,  Those headlong furious passions to confine,    For all unfit I feel my pow’rs to be,   25  To rule their torrent in th’ allowed line;O, aid me with Thy help, Omnipotence Divine!

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Alphabetical List of Poems

21.

Fickle Fortune: A Fragment

THOUGH fickle Fortune has deceived me,  She pormis’d fair and perform’d but ill;Of mistress, friends, and wealth bereav’d me,  Yet I bear a heart shall support me still.

I’ll act with prudence as far ‘s I’m able,   5  But if success I must never find,Then come misfortune, I bid thee welcome,  I’ll meet thee with an undaunted mind.

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22.

Raging Fortune: A Fragment (Song)

O RAGING Fortune’s withering blast  Has laid my leaf full low, O!O raging Fortune’s withering blast  Has laid my leaf full low, O!

My stem was fair, my bud was green,   5  My blossom sweet did blow, O!The dew fell fresh, the sun rose mild,  And made my branches grow, O!

But luckless Fortune’s northern storms  Laid a’ my blossoms low, O!   10But luckless Fortune’s northern storms  Laid a’ my blossoms low, O!

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23.

I’ll go and be a Sodger

O WHY the deuce should I repine,  And be an ill foreboder?I’m twenty-three, and five feet nine,  I’ll go and be a sodger!

I gat some gear wi’ mickle care,   5  I held it weel thegither;But now it’s gane, and something mair —   I’ll go and be a sodger!

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24.

No Churchman am I (Song)

Tune— “Prepare, my dear Brethren, to the tavern let’s fly.”

NO churchman am I for to rail and to write,No statesman nor soldier to plot or to fight,No sly man of business contriving a snare,For a big-belly’d bottle’s the whole of my care.

The peer I don’t envy, I give him his bow;   5I scorn not the peasant, though ever so low;But a club of good fellows, like those that are here,And a bottle like this, are my glory and care.

Here passes the squire on his brother-his horse;There centum per centum, the cit with his purse;   10But see you the Crown how it waves in the air?There a big-belly’d bottle still eases my care.

The wife of my bosom, alas! she did die;for sweet consolation to church I did fly;I found that old Solomon proved it fair,   15That a big-belly’d bottle’s a cure for all care.

I once was persuaded a venture to make;A letter inform’d me that all was to wreck;But the pursy old landlord just waddl’d upstairs,With a glorious bottle that ended my cares.   20

“Life’s cares they are comforts” — a maxim laid downBy the Bard, what d’ye call him, that wore the black gown;And faith I agree with th’ old prig to a hair,For a big-belly’d bottle’s a heav’n of a care.

A STANZA ADDED IN A MASON LODGE

Then fill up a bumper and make it o’erflow,   25And honours masonic prepare for to throw;May ev’ry true Brother of the Compass and SquareHave a big-belly’d bottle when harass’d with care.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

25.

My Father was a Farmer: A Ballad

Tune— “The weaver and his shuttle, O.”

MY father was a farmer upon the Carrick border, O,And carefully he bred me in decency and order, O;He bade me act a manly part, though I had ne’er a farthing, O;For without an honest manly heart, no man was worth regarding, O.

Then out into the world my course I did determine, O;   5Tho’ to be rich was not my wish, yet to be great was charming, O;My talents they were not the worst, nor yet my education, O:Resolv’d was I at least to try to mend my situation, O.

In many a way, and vain essay, I courted Fortune’s favour, O;Some cause unseen still stept between, to frustrate each endeavour, O;   10Sometimes by foes I was o’erpower’d, sometimes by friends forsaken, O;And when my hope was at the top, I still was worst mistaken, O.

Then sore harass’d and tir’d at last, with Fortune’s vain delusion, O,I dropt my schemes, like idle dreams, and came to this conclusion, O;The past was bad, and the future hid, its good or ill untried, O;   15But the present hour was in my pow’r, and so I would enjoy it, O.

No help, nor hope, nor view had I, nor person to befriend me, O;So I must toil, and sweat, and moil, and labour to sustain me, O;To plough and sow, to reap and mow, my father bred me early, O;For one, he said, to labour bred, was a match for Fortune fairly, O.   20

Thus all obscure, unknown, and poor, thro’ life I’m doom’d to wander, O,Till down my weary bones I lay in everlasting slumber, O:No view nor care, but shun whate’er might breed me pain or sorrow, O;I live to-day as well’s I may, regardless of to-morrow, O.

But cheerful still, I am as well as a monarch in his palace, O,   25Tho’ Fortune’s frown still hunts me down, with all her wonted malice, O:I make indeed my daily bread, but ne’er can make it farther, O:But as daily bread is all I need, I do not much regard her, O.

When sometimes by my labour, I earn a little money, O,Some unforeseen misfortune comes gen’rally upon me, O;   30Mischance, mistake, or by neglect, or my goodnatur’d folly, O:But come what will, I’ve sworn it still, I’ll ne’er be melancholy, O.

All you who follow wealth and power with unremitting ardour, O,The more in this you look for bliss, you leave your view the farther, O:Had you the wealth Potosi boasts, or nations to adore you, O,   35A cheerful honest-hearted clown I will prefer before you, O.

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26.

John Barleycorn: A Ballad

THERE was three kings into the east,  Three kings both great and high,And they hae sworn a solemn oath  John Barleycorn should die.

They took a plough and plough’d him down,   5  Put clods upon his head,And they hae sworn a solemn oath  John Barleycorn was dead.

But the cheerful Spring came kindly on,  And show’rs began to fall;   10John Barleycorn got up again,  And sore surpris’d them all.

The sultry suns of Summer came,  And he grew thick and strong;His head weel arm’d wi’ pointed spears,   15  That no one should him wrong.

The sober Autumn enter’d mild,  When he grew wan and pale;His bending joints and drooping head  Show’d he began to fail.   20

His colour sicken’d more and more,  He faded into age;And then his enemies began  To show their deadly rage.

They’ve taen a weapon, long and sharp,   25  And cut him by the knee;Then tied him fast upon a cart,  Like a rogue for forgerie.

They laid him down upon his back,  And cudgell’d him full sore;   30They hung him up before the storm,  And turned him o’er and o’er.

They filled up a darksome pit  With water to the brim;They heaved in John Barleycorn,   35  There let him sink or swim.

They laid him out upon the floor,  To work him farther woe;And still, as signs of life appear’d,  They toss’d him to and fro.   40

They wasted, o’er a scorching flame,  The marrow of his bones;But a miller us’d him worst of all,  For he crush’d him between two stones.

And they hae taen his very heart’s blood,   45  And drank it round and round;And still the more and more they drank,  Their joy did more abound.

John Barleycorn was a hero bold,  Of noble enterprise;   50For if you do but taste his blood,  ‘Twill make your courage rise.

‘Twill make a man forget his woe;  ‘Twill heighten all his joy;‘Twill make the widow’s heart to sing,   55  Tho’ the tear were in her eye.

Then let us toast John Barleycorn,  Each man a glass in hand;And may his great posterity  Ne’er fail in old Scotland!   60

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Alphabetical List of Poems

1783

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

27.

The Death and Dying Words of Poor Mailie

An Unco Mournfu’ Tale

AS Mailie, an’ her lambs thegither,Was ae day nibbling on the tether,Upon her cloot she coost a hitch,An’ owre she warsl’d in the ditch:There, groaning, dying, she did lie,   5When Hughoc he cam doytin by.

  Wi’ glowrin een, and lifted han’sPoor Hughoc like a statue stan’s;He saw her days were near-hand ended,But, wae’s my heart! he could na mend it!   10He gaped wide, but naething spak,At langth poor Mailie silence brak.

  “O thou, whase lamentable faceAppears to mourn my woefu’ case!My dying words attentive hear,   15An’ bear them to my Master dear.

  “Tell him, if e’er again he keepAs muckle gear as buy a sheep — O, bid him never tie them mair,Wi’ wicked strings o’ hemp or hair!   20But ca’ them out to park or hill,An’ let them wander at their will:So may his flock increase, an’ growTo scores o’ lambs, an’ packs o’ woo’!

  “Tell him, he was a Master kin’,   25An’ aye was guid to me an’ mine;An’ now my dying charge I gie him,My helpless lambs, I trust them wi’ him.

  “O, bid him save their harmless lives,Frae dogs, an’ tods, an’ butcher’s knives!   30But gie them guid cow-milk their fill,Till they be fit to fend themsel’;An’ tent them duly, e’en an’ morn,Wi’ taets o’ hay an’ ripps o’ corn.

  “An’ may they never learn the gaets,   35Of ither vile, wanrestfu’ pets — To slink thro’ slaps, an’ reave an’ stealAt stacks o’ pease, or stocks o’ kail!So may they, like their great forbears,For mony a year come thro the shears:   40So wives will gie them bits o’ bread,An’ bairns greet for them when they’re dead.

  “My poor toop-lamb, my son an’ heir,O, bid him breed him up wi’ care!An’ if he live to be a beast,   45To pit some havins in his breast!

  “An’ warn him — what I winna name — To stay content wi’ yowes at hame;An’ no to rin an’ wear his cloots,Like ither menseless, graceless brutes.   50

  “An’ neist, my yowie, silly thing,Gude keep thee frae a tether string!O, may thou ne’er forgather up,Wi’ ony blastit, moorland toop;But aye keep mind to moop an’ mell,   55Wi’ sheep o’ credit like thysel’!

  “And now, my bairns, wi’ my last breath,I lea’e my blessin wi’ you baith:An’ when you think upo’ your mither,Mind to be kind to ane anither.   60

  “Now, honest Hughoc, dinna fail,To tell my master a’ my tale;An’ bid him burn this cursed tether,An’ for thy pains thou’se get my blather.”

This said, poor Mailie turn’d her head,   65And clos’d her een amang the dead!

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28.

Poor Mailie’s Elegy

LAMENT in rhyme, lament in prose,Wi’ saut tears trickling down your nose;Our bardie’s fate is at a close,          Past a’ remead!The last, sad cape-stane o’ his woes;   5          Poor Mailie’s dead!

  It’s no the loss o’ warl’s gear,That could sae bitter draw the tear,Or mak our bardie, dowie, wear          The mourning weed:   10He’s lost a friend an’ neebor dear          In Mailie dead.

  Thro’ a’ the town she trotted by him;A lang half-mile she could descry him;Wi’ kindly bleat, when she did spy him,   15          She ran wi’ speed:A friend mair faithfu’ ne’er cam nigh him,          Than Mailie dead.

  I wat she was a sheep o’ sense,An’ could behave hersel’ wi’ mense:   20I’ll say’t, she never brak a fence,          Thro’ thievish greed.Our bardie, lanely, keeps the spence          Sin’ Mailie’s dead.

  Or, if he wanders up the howe,   25Her living image in her yoweComes bleating till him, owre the knowe,          For bits o’ bread;An’ down the briny pearls rowe          For Mailie dead.   30

  She was nae get o’ moorland tips,Wi’ tauted ket, an’ hairy hips;For her forbears were brought in ships,          Frae ‘yont the Tweed.A bonier fleesh ne’er cross’d the clips   35          Than Mailie’s dead.

  Wae worth the man wha first did shapeThat vile, wanchancie thing — a raip!It maks guid fellows girn an’ gape,          Wi’ chokin dread;   40An’ Robin’s bonnet wave wi’ crape          For Mailie dead.

  O, a’ ye bards on bonie Doon!An’ wha on Ayr your chanters tune!Come, join the melancholious croon   45          O’ Robin’s reed!His heart will never get aboon —           His Mailie’s dead!

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29.

The Rigs o’ Barley (Song)

Tune— “Corn Rigs are bonie.”

IT was upon a Lammas night,  When corn rigs are bonie,Beneath the moon’s unclouded light,  I held awa to Annie;The time flew by, wi’ tentless heed,   5  Till, ‘tween the late and early,Wi’ sma’ persuasion she agreed  To see me thro’ the barley.

Corn rigs, an’ barley rigs,  An’ corn rigs are bonie:   10I’ll ne’er forget that happy night,  Amang the rigs wi’ Annie.

The sky was blue, the wind was still,  The moon was shining clearly;I set her down, wi’ right good will,   15  Amang the rigs o’ barley:I ken’t her heart was a’ my ain;  I lov’d her most sincerely;I kiss’d her owre and owre again,  Amang the rigs o’ barley.   20    Corn rigs, an’ barley rigs, &c.

I lock’d her in my fond embrace;  Her heart was beating rarely:My blessings on that happy place,  Amang the rigs o’ barley!   25But by the moon and stars so bright,  That shone that hour so clearly!She aye shall bless that happy night  Amang the rigs o’ barley.    Corn rigs, an’ barley rigs, &c.   30

I hae been blythe wi’ comrades dear;  I hae been merry drinking;I hae been joyfu’ gath’rin gear;  I hae been happy thinking:But a’ the pleasures e’er I saw,   35  Tho’ three times doubl’d fairly,That happy night was worth them a’,  Amang the rigs o’ barley.    Corn rigs, an’ barley rigs, &c.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

30.

Composed in August (Song)

Tune— “I had a horse, I had nae mair.”

NOW westlin winds and slaught’ring guns  Bring Autumn’s pleasant weather;The moorcock springs on whirring wings  Amang the blooming heather:Now waving grain, wide o’er the plain,   5  Delights the weary farmer;And the moon shines bright, when I rove at night,  To muse upon my charmer.

The partridge loves the fruitful fells,  The plover loves the mountains;   10The woodcock haunts the lonely dells,  The soaring hern the fountains:Thro’ lofty groves the cushat roves,  The path of man to shun it;The hazel bush o’erhangs the thrush,   15  The spreading thorn the linnet.

Thus ev’ry kind their pleasure find,  The savage and the tender;Some social join, and leagues combine,  Some solitary wander:   20Avaunt, away! the cruel sway,  Tyrannic man’s dominion;The sportsman’s joy, the murd’ring cry,  The flutt’ring, gory pinion!

But, Peggy dear, the ev’ning’s clear,   25  Thick flies the skimming swallow,The sky is blue, the fields in view,  All fading-green and yellow:Come let us stray our gladsome way,  And view the charms of Nature;   30The rustling corn, the fruited thorn,  And ev’ry happy creature.

We’ll gently walk, and sweetly talk,  Till the silent moon shine clearly;I’ll grasp thy waist, and, fondly prest,   35  Swear how I love thee dearly:Not vernal show’rs to budding flow’rs,  Not Autumn to the farmer,So dear can be as thou to me,  My fair, my lovely charmer!   40

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31.

My Nanie, O! (Song)

Tune— “My Nanie, O.”

BEHIND yon hills where Lugar flows,  ‘Mang moors an’ mosses many, O,The wintry sun the day has clos’d,  And I’ll awa to Nanie, O.

The westlin wind blaws loud an’ shill;   5  The night’s baith mirk and rainy, O;But I’ll get my plaid an’ out I’ll steal,  An’ owre the hill to Nanie, O.

My Nanie’s charming, sweet, an’ young;  Nae artfu’ wiles to win ye, O:   10May ill befa’ the flattering tongue  That wad beguile my Nanie, O.

Her face is fair, her heart is true;  As spotless as she’s bonie, O:The op’ning gowan, wat wi’ dew,   15  Nae purer is than Nanie, O.

A country lad is my degree,  An’ few there be that ken me, O;But what care I how few they be,  I’m welcome aye to Nanie, O.   20

My riches a’s my penny-fee,  An’ I maun guide it cannie, O;But warl’s gear ne’er troubles me,  My thoughts are a’ my Nanie, O.

Our auld guidman delights to view   25  His sheep an’ kye thrive bonie, O;But I’m as blythe that hands his pleugh,  An’ has nae care but Nanie, O.

Come weel, come woe, I care na by;  I’ll tak what Heav’n will sen’ me, O:   30Nae ither care in life have I,  But live, an’ love my Nanie, O.

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32.

Green Grow the Rashes (Song)

A Fragment

Chor. — Green grow the rashes, O;  Green grow the rashes, O;The sweetest hours that e’er I spend,  Are spent amang the lasses, O.

THERE’S nought but care on ev’ry han’,   5  In ev’ry hour that passes, O:What signifies the life o’ man,  An’ ‘twere na for the lasses, O.            Green grow, &c.

The war’ly race may riches chase,   10  An’ riches still may fly them, O;An’ tho’ at last they catch them fast,  Their hearts can ne’er enjoy them, O.            Green grow, &c.

But gie me a cannie hour at e’en,   15  My arms about my dearie, O;An’ war’ly cares, an’ war’ly men,  May a’ gae tapsalteerie, O!            Green grow, &c.

For you sae douce, ye sneer at this;   20  Ye’re nought but senseless asses, O:The wisest man the warl’ e’er saw,  He dearly lov’d the lasses, O.            Green grow, &c.

Auld Nature swears, the lovely dears   25  Her noblest work she classes, O:Her prentice han’ she try’d on man,  An’ then she made the lasses, O.            Green grow, &c.

Chronological List of Poems

33.

Indeed will I, quo’ Findlay (Song)

Tune— “Lass, an I come near thee.”

“WHA is that at my bower-door?”  “O wha is it but Findlay!”“Then gae your gate, ye’se nae be here:”  “Indeed maun I,” quo’ Findlay;“What mak’ ye, sae like a thief?”   5  “O come and see,” quo’ Findlay;“Before the morn ye’ll work mischief:”  “Indeed will I,” quo’ Findlay.

“Gif I rise and let you in” —   “Let me in,” quo’ Findlay;   10“Ye’ll keep me waukin wi’ your din;”  “Indeed will I,” quo’ Findlay;“In my bower if ye should stay” —   “Let me stay,” quo’ Findlay;“I fear ye’ll bide till break o’ day;”   15  “Indeed will I,” quo’ Findlay.

“Here this night if ye remain” —   “I’ll remain,” quo’ Findlay;“I dread ye’ll learn the gate again;”  “Indeed will I,” quo’ Findlay.   20“What may pass within this bower” —   “Let it pass,” quo’ Findlay;“Ye maun conceal till your last hour:”  “Indeed will I,” quo’ Findlay.

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

1784

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

34.

Remorse: A Fragment

OF all the numerous ills that hurt our peace,That press the soul, or wring the mind with anguishBeyond comparison the worst are thoseBy our own folly, or our guilt brought on:In ev’ry other circumstance, the mind   5Has this to say, “It was no deed of mine:”But, when to all the evil of misfortuneThis sting is added, “Blame thy foolish self!”Or worser far, the pangs of keen remorse,The torturing, gnawing consciousness of guilt — 10Of guilt, perhaps, when we’ve involvèd others,The young, the innocent, who fondly lov’d us;Nay more, that very love their cause of ruin!O burning hell! in all thy store of tormentsThere’s not a keener lash!   15Lives there a man so firm, who, while his heartFeels all the bitter horrors of his crime,Can reason down its agonizing throbs;  And, after proper purpose of amendment,Can firmly force his jarring thoughts to peace?   20O happy, happy, enviable man!O glorious magnanimity of soul!

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

35.

Epitaph on William Hood, Senior

HERE Souter Hood in death does sleep;  To hell if he’s gane thither,Satan, gie him thy gear to keep;  He’ll haud it weel thegither.

Chronological List of Poems

36.

Epitaph on James Grieve

HERE lies Boghead amang the dead  In hopes to get salvation;But if such as he in Heav’n may be,  Then welcome, hail! damnation.

Chronological List of Poems

37.

Epitaph on William Muir

AN HONEST man here lies at restAs e’er God with his image blest;The friend of man, the friend of truth,The friend of age, and guide of youth:Few hearts like his, with virtue warm’d,   5Few heads with knowledge so informed:If there’s another world, he lives in bliss;If there is none, he made the best of this.

Chronological List of Poems

38.

Epitaph on my Ever Honoured Father

O YE whose cheek the tear of pity stains,  Draw near with pious rev’rence, and attend!Here lie the loving husband’s dear remains,  The tender father, and the gen’rous friend;The pitying heart that felt for human woe,   5  The dauntless heart that fear’d no human pride;The friend of man-to vice alone a foe;  For “ev’n his failings lean’d to virtue’s side.”

Chronological List of Poems

Alphabetical List of Poems

39.

Ballad on the American War

Tune— “Killiecrankie.”

WHEN Guilford good our pilot stood  An’ did our hellim thraw, man,Ae night, at tea, began a plea,  Within America, man:Then up they gat the maskin-pat,   5  And in the sea did jaw, man;An’ did nae less, in full congress,  Than quite refuse our law, man.

Then thro’ the lakes Montgomery takes,