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 Nannie, O. VI.
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 Nannie, O.
Our auld Guidman delights to view
His sheep an' kye thrive bonnie, O; But I'm as blithe that hauds his pleugh, An' has nae care but Nannie, O.
Come weel, come woe, I care na by,
I'll take what Heaven will sen' me, O;
Nae ither care in life have I,
But live, an' love my Nannie, O.
Green grow the rashes, O!
Green grow the rashes, O!
The sweetest hours that e'er I spend,
Are spent amang the lasses, O!
I.
THERE'S nought but care on every ban',
In every hour that passes, O;
What signifies the life o' man,
An' 'twere na for the lasses, O.
Green grow, &c.
II.
The warly race may riches cnase,
An' riches still may fly them, O;
An' though at last they catch them fast,
Their hearts can ne'er enjoy them, O
Green grow, &c
But gie me a canny hour at e'en,
My arms about my dearie, O;
An' warly cares, an' warly men,
May a gae tapsalteerie, O.
Green grow, &c.
IV.
For you so douse, ye sneer at this,
Ye're nought but senseless asses, O;
The wisest man the warld e'er saw,
He dearly loved the lasses, O.
In vain to me the cowslips blaw,
In vain to me the vi'lets spring;
In vain to me, in glen or shaw,
The mavis and the lintwhite sing.
And maun I still, &c.
III.
The merry ploughboy cheers his team,
Wi' joy the tentie seedsman stalks,
But life to me's a weary dream,
A dream of ane that never wauks.
And maun I still, &c.
IV.
The wanton coot the water skims,
Amang the reeds the ducklings cry,
The stately swan majestic swims,
And every thing is blest but I.
And maun I still, &c.
The shepherd steeks his faulding slap,
And owre the moorlands whistle shill,
Wi' wild, unequal, wandering step
I meet him on the dewy hill.
And maun I still, &c.
VI.
And when the lark, 'tween light and dark,
Blithe waukens by the daisy's side,
And mounts and sings on fluttering wings,
A woe-worn ghaist I hameward glide.
And maun I still, &c.
*This chorus is part of a song composed by a gentle. man in Edinburgh, a particular friend of the author's. + Menic is a common abbreviation of Mariamne.
THOU whom chance may hither lead,
Be thou clad in russet weed,
Be thou deckt in silken stole,
Grave these counsels on thy soul.
Life is but a day at most,
Sprung from night, in darkness lost;
Hope not sunshine every hour,
Fear not clouds will always lower.
As youth and love with sprightly dance,
Beneath thy morning star advance,
Pleasure with her siren air
May delude the thoughtless pair;
Let prudence bless enjoyment's cup,
Then raptur'd sip, and sip it up.
As thy day grows warm and high,
Life's meridian flaming nigh,
Dost thou spurn the humble vale?
Life's proud summits wouldst thou scale?
Check thy climbing step, elate,
Evils lurk in felon wait:
Dangers, eagle-pinion'd, bold,
Soar around each cliffy hold,
While cheerful peace, with linnet song,
Chants the lowly dells among.
As the shades of ev'ning close,
Beck'ning thee to long repose:
As life itself becomes disease,
Seek the chimney-neuk of ease.
There ruminate with sober thought,
On all thou'st seen, and heard, and wrought;
And teach the sportive younkers round,
Saws of experience, sage and sound.
Say, man's true, genuine estimate,
The grand criterion of his fate,
Is not, Art thou high or low?
Did thy fortune ebb or flow?
Did many talents gild thy span ?
Or frugal nature grudge the one?
Tell them, and press it on their mind,
As thou thyself must shortly find,
The smile or frown of awful Heav'n,
To virtue or to vice is giv'n.
Say, to be just, and kind, and wise,
There solid self-enjoyment lies;
That foolish, selfish, faithless ways,
Lead to the wretched, vile, and base.
Thus resign'd and quiet, creep To the bed of lasting sleep; Sleep, whence thou shalt ne'er awake, Night where dawn shall never break, Till future life, future no more, To light and joy the good restore, To light and joy unknown before.
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