THOU GLOOMY DECEMBER

THOU GLOOMY DECEMBER

ANCE mair I hail thee, thou gloomy December,
Ance mair I hail thee wi' sorrow and care;
Sad was the parting thou makes me remember,
Parting wi' Nancy, oh, ne'er to meet mair!

Fond lovers' parting is sweet, painful pleasure,
Hope beaming mild on the soft parting hour;
But the dire feeling, O farewell for ever!

Anguish unmingled, and agony pure!

Wild as the winter now tearing the forest,
Till the last leaf o' the summer is flown,
Such is the tempest has shaken my bosom,
Till my last hope and last comfort is gone.

Still as I hail thee, thou gloomy December,
Still shall I hail thee wi' sorrow and care;
For sad was the parting thou makes me remember,
Parting wi' Nancy, oh, ne'er to meet mair.

BEHOLD THE HOUR, THE BOAT ARRIVE1

BEHOLD the hour, the boat arrive;

Thou goest, the darling of my heart;
Sever'd from thee, can I survive,

But Fate has will'd and we must part.

I'll often greet the surging swell,

Yon distant Isle will often hail:

'E'en here I took the last farewell;

There, latest mark'd her vanish'd sail.'

Alang the solitary shore

Where flitting sea-fowl round me cry,
Across the rolling, dashing roar,

I'll westward turn my wishful eye.

'Happy thou Indian grove,' I'll say,
'Where now my Nancy's path shall be!
While thro' your sweets she holds her way,
O tell me, does she muse on me?'

1 To Clarinda, when she went to the West Indies,

WANDERING WILLIE

WANDERING WILLIE

HERE awa', there awa', wandering Willie,
Here awa', there awa', haud awa' hame;
Come to my bosom, my ain only dearie,

Tell me thou bring'st me my Willie the same. Winter winds blew loud and cauld at our parting, Fears for my Willie brought tears to my e'e, Welcome now Simmer, and welcome my Willie, The Simmer to Nature, my Willie to me.

Rest, ye wild storms, in the cave of your slumbers, How your dread howling a lover alarms! Wauken, ye breezes, row gently, ye billows,

And waft my dear laddie ance mair to my arms. But oh, if he's faithless, and mind na his Nannie, Flow still between us, thou wide roaring main! May I never see it, may I never trow it,

But, dying, believe that my Willie's my ain.

PARTING SONG TO CLARINDA

AE fond kiss, and then we sever;
Ae fareweel, and then for ever!
Deep in heart-wrung tears I'll pledge thee,
Warring sighs and groans I'll wage thee,
Who shall say that Fortune grieves him,
While the star of hope she leaves him?
Me, nae cheerful twinkle lights me;
Dark despair around benights me.

I'll ne'er blame my partial fancy,
Naething could resist my Nancy:
But to see her was to love her;
Love but her, and love for ever.
Had we never lov'd sae kindly,

Had we never lov'd sae blindly,
Never met-or never parted,

We had ne'er been broken-hearted.1

1 Sir Walter Scott said the last four lines of verse two "contain the essence of a thousand love songs.'

"

Byron used the same four lines as the motto for his poem, "The Bride of Abydos."

PARTING SONG TO CLARINDA
Fare-thee-weel, thou first and fairest!
Fare-thee-weel, thou best and dearest!
Thine be ilka joy and treasure,
Peace, Enjoyment, Love and Pleasure!
Ae fond kiss, and then we sever!
Ae fareweel, alas, for ever!

Deep in heart-wrung tears I'll pledge thee,
Warring sighs and groans I'll wage thee.