Bitter in dool I lickit my winnins,
O' marrying Bess, to gie her a slave: Bless'd be the hour she cool'd in her linens,
An' blythe be the bird that sings on her grave. Come to my arms, my Katie, my Katie, An' come to my arms, and kiss me again! Drunken or sober, here's to thee, Katie! And bless'd be the day I did it again.
TUNE-My Eppie.
AN' oh! my Eppie,
My jewel, my Eppie!
Wha wadna be happy
Wi' Eppie Adair?
By love, and by beauty,
By law, and by duty,
I swear to be true to
My Eppie Adair!
An' oh! my Eppie,
My jewel, my Eppie!
Wha wadna be happy
Wi' Eppie Adair?
A' pleasure exile me,
Dishonor defile me,
If e'er I beguile thee,
My Eppie Adair!
Allusion is made in this song to the battle of Killiecrankie
WHARE hae ye been sae braw, lad?
Whare hae ye been sae brankie, O?
Oh, whare hae ye been sae braw, lad?
Cam ye by Killiecrankie, O?
An' ye had been whare I hae been,
Ye wad na been so,cantie, O;
ye had seen what I hae seen,
On the braes of Killiecrankie, O.
I fought at land, I fought at sea;
At hame I fought my auntie, O;
But I met the devil an' Dundee,
On the braes o' Killiecrankie, O.
The bauld Pitcur fell in a furr,
An' Clavers got a clankie, O;
Or I had fed an Athole gled,
On the braes o' Killiecrankie, O.
FRAE THE FRIENDS AND LAND I LOVE
FRAE the friends and land I love,
Driven by fortune's felly spite,
Frae my best beloved I rove,
Never mair to taste delight;
Never mair maun hope to find
Ease frae toil, relief frae care:
When remembrance wracks the mind,
Pleasures but unveil despair.
Brightest climes shall mirk appear,
Désert ilka blooming shore,
Till the fates, nae mair severe,
Friendship, love, and peace restore;
Till Revenge, wi' laurell'd head,
Bring our banish'd hame again;
And ilk loyal bonnie lad
Cross the seas and win his ain.
COCK UP YOUR BEAVER.'
TUNE-Cock up your beaver.
WHEN first my brave Johnie lad
Came to this town,
1 On the accession of the house of Stuart, many sarcastic songs were di rected by the English against the Scots: the latter took it all in very good humor, as they were generally benefited by the change, and even now do not object to exchange the bonnet for a good beaver. The poet produced the present from one of these
He had a blue bonnet
That wanted the crown;
But now he has gotten
A hat and a feather,-
Hey, brave Johnie lad,
Cock up your beaver!
Cock up your beaver,
And cock it fu' sprush,
We'll over the border
And gie them a brush;
There's somebody there
We'll teach better behavior,
Hey, brave Johnie lad,
Cock up your beaver!
HOW CAN I BE BLYTHE AND GLAD
This song is said to have been written in allusion to the treatment of Jean Armour by her father, when he learned that she still kept up a correspondence with the Poet.
TUNE-The bonnie lad that's far awa.
Оn how can I be blythe and glad,
Or how can I gang brisk and braw,
When the bonnie lad that I lo❜e best
Is o'er the hills and far awa?
When the bonnie lad that I lo❜e best
Is o'er the hills and far awa?
It's no the frosty winter wind,
It's no the driving drift and snaw;
But ay the tear comes in my e'e,
To think on him that's far awa.
But ay the tear comes in my e'e,
To think on him that's far awa.
My father pat me frae his door,
My friends they hae disown'd me a',
But I hae ane will tak' my part,
The bonnie lad that.'s far awa.
But I hae ane will tak' my part,
The bonnie lad that's far awa.
A pair o' gloves he gae to me,
And silken snoods he gae me twa;
And I will wear them for his sake,
The bonnie lad that's far awa.
And I will wear them for his sake,
The bonnie lad that's far awa.
SENSIBILITY HOW CHARMING.
The heroine of this song is said to be the fair Clarinda
TUNE-Cornwallis's Lament for Colonel Muirhead.
SENSIBILITY how charming,
Dearest Nancy! thou canst tell,
But distress with horrors arming,
Thou hast also known too well.
Fairest flower, behold the lily,
Blooming in the sunny ray-
Let the blast sweep o'er the valley,
See it prostrate on the clay.
Hear the woodlark charm the forest,
Telling o'er his little joys:
Hapless bird! a prey the surest
To each pirate of the skies.
Dearly bought the hidden treasure,
Finer feelings can bestow:
Chords that vibrate sweetest pleasure,
Thrill the deepest notes of woe.
IT IS NA, JEAN, THY BONNIE FACE. These verses were originally in English; Burns has bestowed on them a Scottish dress.
TUNE-The Maid's Complaint.
Ir is na, Jean, thy bonnie face,
Nor shape, that I admire,
Although thy beauty and thy grace
Might weel awake desire.
Something, in ilka part o' thee,
To praise, to love, I find;
But dear as is thy form to me,
Still dearer is thy mind.
Nae mair ungenerous wish I hae,
Nor stronger in my breast,
Than if I canna mak thee sae,
At least to see thee blest.
Content am I, if Heaven shall give
But happiness to thee:
And as wi' thee I'd wish to live,
For thee I'd bear to die.
Altered from the old song of Eppie Macnab, which has more wit than
Он saw ye my dearie, my Eppie M'Nab?
Oh saw ye my dearie, my Eppie M'Nab?
She's down in the yard, she's kissin' the laird,
She winna come hame to her ain Jock Rab.
Oh come thy ways to me, my Eppie M'Nab!
Oh come thy ways to me, my Eppie M'Nab!
Whate'er thou hast done, be it late, be it soon,
Thou's welcome again to thy ain Jock Rab.
What says she, my dearie, my Eppie M'Nab?
What says she, my dearie, my Eppie M'Nab?
She lets thee to wit, that she has thee forgot,
And forever disowns thee, her ain Jock Rab.
Oh had I ne'er seen thee, my Eppie M'Nab!
Oh had I ne'er seen thee, my Eppie M'Nab!
As light as the air, and fause as thou's fair,
Thou's broken the heart o' thy ain Jock Rab.
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