of this poem bear a very small proportion to its beauties; and its beauties are of no common account. They are happily conceived and forcibly expressed. Its language is the natural and unforced result of his conceptions; and though it is sometimes careless and prosaic, and seldom rich or ornamented, yet it is vigorous and animated, and carries the thought home to the heart with irresistible energy."-The Monthly Review, June, 1786. 'How do you like Cowper? Is not 'The Task' a glorious poem? The religion of 'The Task,' bating a few scraps of Calvinistic divinity, is the religion of God and nature, the religion that exalts, that ennobles man."-Robert Burns, in a letter to Mrs. Dunlop, December 25, 1795. ROBERT FERGUSSON For the meaning of words see Glossary to Scotch Poems, p. 509. (329) THE DAFT DAYS. The days so called are Christmas, the last day of the year, New Year's Day, and the first Monday of the year, which were celebrated with wild festivity. (330) 19. Auld Reikie: Edinburgh; so called from its smoke. 35. Spa: a wateringplace in Belgium, famous for its medicinal springs. (331) 45. Italian tricks: Italian tunes and modes of playing; cf. Burns, "The Cotter's Saturday Night," l. 115 (p. 356). ¶ 48. “Tulloch gorum": an old Scotch tune; see p. 335 for the most famous words to it. (333) ODE TO THE GOWDSPINK. (334) 45. Like Tantalus: "Moreover, I beheld Tantalus in grievous torment, standing in a mere, and the water came nigh unto his chin. And he stood straining as one athirst, but he might not attain to the water to drink of it; for often as that old man stooped down in his eagerness to drink, so often the water was swallowed up and it vanished away.”—Odyssey, xi. 582 ff., Butcher and Lang's translation. ¶56. lauds: a part of the morning service of the Roman Catholic Church; so called from the psalms of praise (Pss. 148-50) which form a part of the service. ROBERT BURNS .... "Though it cost the schoolmaster some thrashings, I made an excellent English scholar; and by the time I was ten or eleven years of age I was a critic in substantives, verbs, and particles. In my infant and boyish days, too, I owe much to an old woman who resided in the family, remarkable for her ignorance, credulity, and superstition. She had, I suppose, the largest collection in the country of tales and songs concerning devils, ghosts, fairies, brownies, witches, warlocks, spunkies, kelpies, elf-candles, dead-lights, wraiths, apparitions, cantraips, giants, enchanted towers, dragons, and other trumpery. This cultivated the latent seeds of poetry; but had so strong an effect on my imagination that to this hour, in my nocturnal rambles, I sometimes keep a sharp look-out in suspicious places. . . . . The first two books I ever read in private, and which gave me more pleasure than any two books I ever read since, were The Life of Hannibal and The History of Sir William Wallace; the story of Wallace poured a Scottish prejudice into my veins which will boil along there till the floodgates of life shut in eternal rest. . . . . What I know of ancient story was gathered from Salmon's and Guthrie's Geographical Grammars; and the ideas I had formed of modern manners of literature and criticism I got from The Spectator. These, with Pope's works, some plays of Shakespeare, Tull and Dickson on Agriculture, The Pantheon, Locke's Essay on the Human Understanding, Stackhouse's History of the Bible, Justice's British Gardener's Directory, Boyle's Lectures, Allan Ramsay's works, Taylor's Scripture Doctrine of Original Sin, A Select Collection of English Songs, and Hervey's Meditations, had formed the whole of my reading [at sixteen]. The collection of songs was my vade mecum. I pored over them, driving my cart or walking to labor, song by song, verse by verse, carefully noting the true, tender, or sublime from affectation and fustian. I am convinced I owe to this practice much of my critic-craft, such as it is. My life flowed on much in the same course till my .... .... twenty-third year. 'Vive l'amour, et vive la bagatelle,' were my sole principles of action. The addition of two more authors to my library gave me great pleasure; Sterne and Mackenzie-Tristram Shandy and The Man of Feeling-were my bosom favorites. Poesy was still a darling walk for my mind, but it was only indulged in according to the humor of the hour. I had usually half a dozen or more pieces on hand; I took up one or other, as it suited the momentary tone of the mind, and dismissed the work as it bordered on fatigue. My passions, when once lighted up, raged like so many devils till they got vent in rhyme; and then the conning over my verses, like a spell, soothed all into quiet.”—Letter to Dr. Moore, August 2, 1787. "For my own part, I never had the least thought or inclination of turning poet till I got once heartily in love, and then rhyme and song were in a manner the spontaneous language of my heart. The following composition ["O, once I loved a bonie lassie"] was the first of my performances. . . . . The seventh stanza has several minute faults; but I remember I composed it in a wild enthusiasm of passion, and to this hour I never recollect it but my heart melts, my blood sallies, at the remembrance."—Commonplace Book, 1783-85. "'Laddie lie near me,' must lie by me for some time. I do not know the air; and until I am master of a tune, in my own singing (such as it is), I can never compose for it. My way is: I consider the poetic sentiment correspondent to my idea of the musical expression; then choose my theme; begin one stanza; when that is composed, which is generally the most difficult part of the business, I walk out, sit down now and then, look out for objects in nature round me that are in unison or harmony with the cogitations of my fancy and workings of my bosom, humming every now and then the air, with the verses I have framed. When I feel my Muse beginning to jade, I retire to the solitary fireside of my study, and there commit my effusions to paper, swinging at intervals on the hind legs of my elbow chair, by way of calling forth my own critical strictures, as my pen goes on. Seriously, this, at home, is almost invariably my way."-Letter to Thomson, September, 1793. "All my poetry is the effect of easy composition but of laborious correction." For the meaning of words see Glossary to Scotch Poems, p. 509. (338) MY NANIE, O. "As I have been all along a miserable dupe to love, and have been led into a thousand weaknesses and follies by it, for that reason I put the more confidence in my critical skill in distinguishing foppery and conceit from real passion and nature. Whether the following song will stand the test, I will not pretend to say, because it is my own; only I can say it was, at the time, real."-Burns's Commonplace Book. 1. Lugar: "Stinchar" in all editions published during the poet's lifetime; but in a letter to Thomson (October 20, 1792) he says, "The name of the river is horribly prosaic," and suggests "Girvan” and "Lugar" as substitutes, adding, "Girvan is the river that suits the idea of the stanza best, but 'Lugar' is the most agreeable modulation of syllables." (339) THE HOLY FAIR. "'Holy Fair' is a common phrase in the west of Scotland for a sacramental occasion."-Burns. "The satire is chiefly concerned with the 'tent-preaching' outside the church while the communion services went on within. In Mauchline the preaching-tent was pitched in the church-yard, whence a back entrance gave access to Nanse Tinnock's tavern; and the sacrament was observed once a year, on the second Sunday in August.” -Henley and Henderson. The stanza is an old one in Scotch poetry: it is a simplified form of the stanza in "Christ's Kirk on the Green," of the fifteenth century; and in a modernized version of that poem, published in 1706, the stanza is the same that Burns uses. ¶ 1-54. Cf. Fergusson's "Leith Races," ll. 1-45: In July month, ae bonny morn, Quod she, "I ferly unco sair Whan on Leith-Sands the racers rare, Their orrow pennies there to ware. "And wha are ye, my winsome dear, That sic braw buskit laughing lass Frae dule this day." "I dwall amang the caller springs They ca' me Mirth; I ne'er was kend But blyth wad be a lift to lend, "A bargain be 't; and, by my feggs, Wi' you I'll screw the cheery pegs- We'll reel and ramble thro' the sands, And jeer wi' all we meet; Nor hip the daft and gleesome bands That fill Edina's street Sae thrang this day." (340) 41. Mauchline: the town where Burns married Jean Armour; Mossgiel Farm, where he lived for a time, is near by. (341) 66. black-bonnet: the elder who had charge of the collection-plate, at the entrance usually wore a black bonnet. (342) 91. The line is taken from the Scotch metrical version of Ps. 146:2, and may have been sung at the meeting. (343) 131. Antonine: Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-80 A. D.), the Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher. 138. frae the water-fit: the clergyman referred to, who, like all the others mentioned, was a real person and well known in the region, lived at Newton on the river Ayr. 143. Cowgate: "A street so called, which faces the tent in Mauchline."-Burns. 145. Wee Miller: Alexander Miller, who was short and stout. (344) 184. Black Russell: John Russell, minister at Kilmarnock, a man of dark visage, thundering voice, and stern temper. 188. "sauls does harrow': Burns cites Hamlet, doubtless referring to Act I. v. 15, 16: I could a tale unfold whose lightest word (346) THE TWA DOGS. The poem was written partly in memory of Burns's dog Luath, who had just died. 2. au'd King Coil: Kyle, the middle district of Ayrshire is supposed to have been named from this mythical Pictish king. ¶ 11. some place: Newfoundland. ¶27. some dog in Highland sang: "Cuchullin's dog in Ossian's Fingal.”—Burns. (347) 65. whipper-in: the servant who by his whip keeps the dogs from wandering during a hunt. (348) 96. factor's: a factor is a landlord's agent. "My father's generous master died; the farm proved a ruinous bargain; and to clench the misfortune, we fell into the hands of a factor, who sat for the picture I have drawn of one in my tale of 'Twa Dogs.'"-Letter to Dr. Moore, August 2, 1787. (349) 115. twalpennie worth: twelve Scotch pence, equal to an English penny, bought a Scotch pint of ale, equal in size to four English pints. 123. Hallowmass: All Saints' Day, November 1; literally, "mass"-day for the "holy." ¶ 146. gentle of gentle birth, belonging to the gentry. ¶ 148. indentin': an indenture, by which one bound himself to some service. was so called from the indented, or zig-zag, line where the two copies of the agreement were cut apart; the genuineness of each part could later be shown, if necessary, by matching the notches. (351) 226. the Devil's pictured beuks: playing-cards. (352) POOR MAILIE'S ELEGY. This stanza-form had been used for elegies by the Scotch poets Robert Sem pill (1595?-1661?), Ramsay, and Fergusson; the first stanza of Fergusson's "Elegy on the Death of Scots Music" is as follows: On Scotia's plains, in days of yore, But harmony is now no more, 34. Frae 'yont the Tweed: i. e., from England; the river Tweed forms a part of the southern boundary of Scotland. (353) THE COTTER'S SATURDAY NIGHT. "Inscribed to R. Aiken, Esq." Robert Aiken (1739-1807), a native of Ayr and a solicitor there, was early a friend of Burns-who called him "my chief patron"-and subscribed for 105 copies of the first edition of Burns's poems. Burns printed as a motto for the poem lines 29-32 of Gray's "Elegy Written in Country Church-Yard" (p. 239). Robert's brother Gilbert said that Fergusson's "Farmer's Ingle," stanzas from which are given below, suggested the plan and title of "The Cotter's Saturday Night." The Spenserian stanza Burns borrowed from Shenstone, Thomson, and Beattie, whom he had read before this time (see "The Vision” [1786], Duan II, stanzas 7 and 20); Spenser he did not read until later. ¶6. Cf. Gray's "Elegy," ll. 72-76 (p. 240). 10-27. Cf. Fergusson's "Farmer's Ingle," ll. 1-18: Whan gloming grey out o'er the welkin keeks, Whan Thrasher John, sair dung, his barn-door steeks, And lusty lasses at the dighting tire; What bangs fu' leal the e'enings coming cauld, Frae the big stack, weel winnow't on the hill, That a' his housie looks sae cosh and clean; For cleanly house looes he, tho' e'er sae mean. 17. the morn-the morrow. ¶ 21-25. Cf. Gray's "Elegy," ll. 21-24 (p. 239). (354) 31. town-farm (O.E. "tun," inclosure, farm with the buildings). ¶51. duty: duty to God, prayers. (355) 91-99. Cf. "The Farmer's Ingle," ll. 23-27, 37-40: Wi' buttered bannocks now the girdle reeks, And had the riggin het wi' welcome steams, Whilk than the daintiest kitchen nicer seems. . . . . By Caledonia's ancestors been done; In brulzies frae the dawn to set o' sun. (356) 103. ha'-Bible: so called because it was originally used in worship in the hall, or general assembly-room, of a castle or mansion. ¶115. Italian trills: cf. Fergusson's "Daft Days," 1. 45 (p. 331). (357) 138. Burns cites Pope's "Windsor Forest" (see p. 82, l. 38). ¶ 154, 155. Cf. "The Farmer's Ingle," ll. 100-8: 158. See Ps. 147:9. Then a' the house for sleep begin to grien, And hafflins steeks them frae their daily toil; The restit ingle 's done the maist it dow; Till waukened by the dawning's ruddy glow. 159. See Matt. 6:28, 29. 165. Cf. Goldsmith's "Deserted Village," ll. 52, 53 (p. 283). ¶ 166. Quoted from Pope's "Essay on Man," IV. 248. (358) 172-80. Cf. "The Farmer's Ingle," ll. 109-17: Peace to the husbandman and a' his tribe, Whase care fells a' our wants frae year to year; Frae the hard grip of ails and poortith freed, ¶ 182. Wallace's: William Wallace (1274 ?-1305), the Scotch national hero, after the Scottish king had been defeated and imprisoned by Edward I of England, aroused the common people to continue the struggle for independence, and won a victory at Stirling Bridge, in 1297; the next year he was defeated in the battle of Falkirk, and in 1305 was executed at London, refusing Edward's offer of mercy. (358) TO A MOUSE. Burns's brother Gilbert says that the poem was composed while the poet was ploughing, after he had turned up a mouse's nest and had saved the little creature from the "murdering pattle" of the boy who was leading the horses. (361) TO A LOUSE. (362) 35. Lunardi: a balloon bonnet; so called from Vincent Lunardi, an Italian aeronaut, who had recently become famous by introducing ballooning into England and Scotland. (363) EPISTLE TO J. LAPRAIK. Stanzas 9-13. John Lapraik (1727-18c7) was an Ayrshire poet. (364) Address TO EDINBURGH. Written in Edinburgh, whither the poet had gone to arrange for the publication of a new edition of his poems. ¶ 29. Fair Burnet: "Fair B— is heavenly Miss Burnet, daughter to Lord Monboddo, at whose house I have had the honor to be more than once. There has not been anything nearly like her in all the combinations of beauty, grace, and goodness the great Creator has formed since Milton's Eve on the first day of her existence."-Burns, in a letter to Chalmers, December 27, 1786. |