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diff --git a/18619.txt b/18619.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..9dcab11 --- /dev/null +++ b/18619.txt @@ -0,0 +1,12722 @@ +Project Gutenberg's The Modern Scottish Minstrel, Volume II., by Various + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Modern Scottish Minstrel, Volume II. + The Songs of Scotland of the past half century + +Author: Various + +Release Date: June 19, 2006 [EBook #18619] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MODERN SCOTTISH MINSTREL *** + + + + +Produced by Ted Garvin, Susan Skinner and the Online +Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + + + + +[Illustration: + +THE + +MODERN SCOTTISH MINSTREL; + +BY + +CHARLES ROGERS, LL.D. +F.S.A. SCOT. + +VOL. II. + + +ALTRIVE. +_THE RESIDENCE OF THE ETTRICK SHEPHERD._ + +EDINBURGH: +ADAM & CHARLES BLACK, NORTH BRIDGE, +BOOKSELLERS AND PUBLISHERS TO THE QUEEN.] + + * * * * * + +[Illustration: + +[Signature: James Hogg] + +THE ETTRICK SHEPHERD + +Lithographed from an original Portrait in the possession of his widow +by Schenck & McFarlane, Edinburgh.] + + * * * * * + + + + +THE + +MODERN SCOTTISH MINSTREL; + +OR, + +THE SONGS OF SCOTLAND OF THE +PAST HALF CENTURY. + + +WITH + +Memoirs of the Poets, + +AND + +SKETCHES AND SPECIMENS +IN ENGLISH VERSE OF THE MOST CELEBRATED +MODERN GAELIC BARDS. + + +BY + +CHARLES ROGERS, LL.D. +F.S.A. SCOT. + + +IN SIX VOLUMES. + +VOL. II. + + +EDINBURGH: +ADAM & CHARLES BLACK, NORTH BRIDGE, +BOOKSELLERS AND PUBLISHERS TO HER MAJESTY. + +M.DCCC.LVI. + + +EDINBURGH: +PRINTED BY BALLANTYNE AND COMPANY, +PAUL'S WORK. + + + + +TO + +JOHN BROWN, ESQ., OF MARLIE. + +My dear Sir, + +I dedicate to you this second volume of "THE MODERN SCOTTISH MINSTREL," +as a sincere token of my estimation of your long continued and most +disinterested friendship, and of the anxiety you have so frequently +evinced respecting the promotion of my professional views and literary +aspirations. + +I have the honour to be, + My dear Sir, + your most obliged, + and very faithful servant, + CHARLES ROGERS. + +Argyle House, Stirling, + _December 1855._ + + + + +INTRODUCTION + +TO + +The Modern Gaelic Minstrelsy.[1] + + +The suspicion which arose in regard to the authenticity of Ossian, +subsequent to his appearance in the pages of Macpherson, has unjustly +excited a misgiving respecting the entire poetry of the Gael. With +reference to the elder poetry of the Highlands, it has now been +established[2] that at the period of the Reformation, the natives were +engrossed with the lays and legends of Bards and Seanachies,[3] of which +Ossian, Caoillt, and Cuchullin were the heroes. These romantic strains +continued to be preserved and recited with singular veneration. They +were familiar to hundreds in different districts who regarded them as +relics of their ancestors, and would as soon have mingled the bones of +their fathers with the dust of strangers, as ventured on the alteration +of a single passage. Many of the reciters of this elder poetry were +writers of verses,[4] yet there is no instance of any attempt to alter +or supersede the originals. Nor could any attempt have succeeded. There +are specimens which exist, independent of those collected by Macpherson, +which present a peculiarity of form, and a Homeric consistency of +imagery, distinct from every other species of Gaelic poetry. + +Of an uncertain era, but of a date posterior to the age of Ossian, there +is a class of compositions called _Ur-sgeula_,[5] or _new-tales_, which +may be termed the productions of the sub-Ossianic period. They are +largely blended with stories of dragons and other fabulous monsters; the +best of these compositions being romantic memorials of the +Hiberno-Celtic, or Celtic Scandinavian wars. The first translation from +the Gaelic was a legend of the _Ur-sgeula_. The translator was Ierome +Stone,[6] schoolmaster of Dunkeld, and the performance appeared in the +_Scots Magazine_ for 1700. The author had learned from the monks the +story of Bellerophon,[7] along with that of Perseus and Andromeda, and +from these materials fabricated a romance in which the hero is a +mythical character, who is supposed to have given name to Loch Fraoch, +near Dunkeld. Belonging to the same era is the "Aged Bard's Wish,"[8] a +composition of singular elegance and pathos, and remarkable for certain +allusions to the age and imagery of Ossian. This has frequently been +translated. Somewhat in the Ossianic style, but of the period of the +_Ur-sgeula_ are two popular pieces entitled _Mordubh_[9] and _Collath_. +Of these productions the imagery is peculiarly illustrative of the +character and habits of the ancient Gael, while they are replete with +incidents of the wars which the Albyn had waged with their enemies of +Scandinavia. To the same period we are disposed to assign the "Song of +the Owl," though it has been regarded by a respectable authority[10] as +of modern origin. Of a portion of this celebrated composition we subjoin +a metrical translation from the pen of Mr William Sinclair. + + The Bard, expelled from the dwellings of men by + plunderers according to one account, by a discontented + helpmate according to another, is placed in a lone + out-house, where he meets an owl which he supposes + himself to engage in an interchange of sentiment + respecting the olden time:-- + + +HUNTER. + + O wailing owl of Strona's vale! + We wonder not thy night's repose + Is mournful, when with Donegal + In distant years thou first arose: + O lonely bird! we wonder not, + For time the strongest heart can bow, + That thou should'st heave a mournful note, + Or that thy sp'rit is heavy now! + +OWL. + + Thou truly sayest I lone abide, + I lived with yonder ancient oak, + Whose spreading roots strike deep and wide + Amidst the moss beside the rock; + And long, long years have gone at last, + And thousand moons have o'er me stole, + And many a race before me past, + Still I am Strona's lonely owl! + +HUNTER. + + Now, since old age has come o'er thee, + Confess, as to a priest, thy ways; + And fearless tell thou unto me + The glorious tales of bygone days. + +OWL. + + Rapine and falsehood ne'er I knew, + Nor grave nor temples e'er have torn, + My youthful mate still found me true-- + Guiltless am I although forlorn! + I 've seen brave Britto's son, the wild, + The powerful champion, Fergus, too, + Gray-haired Foradden, Strona's child-- + These were the heroes great and true! + +HUNTER. + + Thou hast well began, but tell to me, + And say what further hast thou known! + E'er Donegal abode with thee, + In the Fersaid these all were gone! + +OWL. + + Great Alexander of the spears, + The mightiest chief of Albyn's race, + Oft have I heard his voice in cheers + From the green hill-side speed the chase; + I saw him after Angus brave-- + Nor less a noble warrior he-- + Fersaid his home, his work he gave + Unto the Mill of Altavaich. + +HUNTER. + + From wild Lochaber, then, the sword + With war's dread inroads swept apace; + Where, gloomy-brow'd and ancient bird, + Was then thy secret hiding-place? + +OWL. + + When the fierce sounds of terror burst, + And plunder'd herds were passing on, + I turn'd me from the sight accurst + Unto the craig Gunaoch lone; + Some of my kindred by the lands + Of Inch and Fersaid sought repose, + Some by Loch Laggan's lonely sands, + Where their lamenting cries arose! + +Here follows a noble burst of poetical fervour in praise of the lonely +rock, and the scenes of the huntsman's youth. The green plains, the wild +harts, the graceful beauty of the brown deer, and the roaring stag, with +the banners, ensigns, and streamers of the race of Cona,--all share in +the poet's admiration. The following constitutes the exordium of the +poem:-- + + Oh rock of my heart! for ever secure, + The rock where my childhood was cherish'd in love, + The haunt of the wild birds, the stream flowing pure, + And the hinds and the stags that in liberty rove; + The rock all encircled by sounds from the grove, + Oh, how I delighted to linger by thee, + When arose the wild cry of the hounds as they drove, + The herds of wild deer from their fastnesses free! + Loud scream'd the eagles around thee, I ween, + Sweet the cuckoos and the swans in their pride, + More cheering the kid-spotted fawns that were seen, + With their bleating, that sweetly arose by thy side, + I love thee, O wild rock of refuge! of showers, + Of the leaves and the cresses, all glorious to me, + Of the high grassy heights and the beautiful bowers + Afar from the smooth shelly brink of the sea! + +The termination of the Sub-Ossianic period brings us to another epoch in +the history of Gaelic poetry. The Bard was now the chieftain's retainer, +at home a crofter and pensioner,[11] abroad a follower of the camp. We +find him cheering the rowers of the galley, with his _birlinn_ chant, +and stirring on the fight with his _prosnuchadh catha_, or battle-song. +At the noted battle of Harlaw,[12] a piece was sung which has escaped +the wreck of that tremendous slaughter, and of contemporary poetry. It +is undoubtedly genuine; and the critics of Gaelic verse are unanimous in +ascribing to it every excellence which can belong either to alliterative +art, or musical excitement. Of the battle-hymn some splendid specimens +have been handed down; and these are to be regarded with an amount of +confidence, from the apparent ease with which the very long "Incitement +to Battle," in the "Garioch Battle-Storm," as Harlaw is called, was +remembered. Collections of favourite pieces began to be made in writing +about the period of the revival of letters. The researches of the +Highland Society brought to light a miscellany, embracing the poetical +labours of two contemporaries of rank, Sir Duncan Campbell[13] of +Glenurchay, and Lady Isabel Campbell. From this period the poet's art +degenerates into a sort of family chronicle. There were, however, +incidents which deserved a more affecting style of memorial; and this +appears in lays which still command the interest and draw forth the +tears of the Highlander. The story of the persecuted Clan Gregor +supplies many illustrations, such as the oft-chanted _Macgregor na +Ruara_,[14] and the mournful melodies of Janet Campbell.[15] In the +footsteps of these exciting subjects of poetry, came the inspiring +Montrose wars, which introduce to our acquaintance the more modern class +of bards; of these the most conspicuous is, Ian Lom[16] or Manntach. +This bard was a Macdonald; he hung on the skirts of armies, and at the +close of the battle sung the triumph or the wail, on the side of his +partisans.[17] To the presence of this person the clans are supposed to +have been indebted for much of the enthusiasm which led them to glory in +the wars of Montrose. His poetry only reaches mediocrity, but the +success which attended it led the chiefs to seek similar support in the +Jacobite wars; and very animated compositions were the result of their +encouragement. Mathieson, the family bard of Seaforth, Macvuirich, the +pensioner of Clanranald, and Hector the Lamiter, bard of M'Lean, were +pre-eminent in this department. The Massacre of Glencoe suggested +numerous elegies. There is one remarkable for pathos by a clansman who +had emigrated to the Isle of Muck, from which circumstance he is styled +"Am Bard Mucanach." + +The knights of Duart and Sleat, the chiefs of Clanranald and Glengarry, +the Lochaber seigniory of Lochiel, and the titled chivalry of Sutherland +and Seaforth,[18] formed subjects of poetic eulogy. Sir Hector Maclean, +Ailein Muideartach, and the lamented Sir James Macdonald obtained the +same tribute. The second of these Highland favourites could not make his +manly countenance, or stalwart arm, visible in hall, barge, or +battle,[19] without exciting the enthusiastic strain of the enamoured +muse of one sex, or of the admiring minstrel of the other. In this +department of poetry, some of the best proficients were women. Of these +Mary M'Leod, the contemporary of Ian Lom, is one of the most musical and +elegant. Her chief, _The M'Leod_, was the grand theme of her +inspiration. Dora Brown[20] sung a chant on the renowned Col-Kitto, as +he went forth against the Campbells to revenge the death of his father; +a composition conceived in a strain such as Helen Macgregor might have +struck up to stimulate to some deed of daring and vindictive enterprise. + +Of the modern poetry of the Gael, Macpherson has expressed himself +unfavourably; he regarded the modern Highlanders as being incapable of +estimating poetry otherwise than in the returning harmony of similar +sounds. They were seduced, he remarks, by the charms of rhyme; and +admired the strains of Ossian, not for the sublimity of the poetry, but +on account of the antiquity of the compositions, and the detail of facts +which they contained. On this subject a different opinion has been +expressed by Sir Walter Scott. "I cannot dismiss this story," he writes, +in his last introduction to his tale of the "Two Drovers," "without +resting attention for a moment on the light which has been thrown on the +character of the Highland Drover, since the time of its first +appearance, by the account of a drover poet, by name Robert Mackay, or, +as he was commonly called, Rob Donn, _i.e._, Brown Robert; and certain +specimens of his talents, published in the ninetieth number of the +_Quarterly Review_. The picture which that paper gives of the habits +and feelings of a class of persons with which the general reader would +be apt to associate no ideas but those of wild superstition and rude +manners, is in the highest degree interesting; and I cannot resist the +temptation of quoting two of the songs of this hitherto unheard-of poet +of humble life.... Rude and bald as these things appear in a verbal +translation, and rough as they might possibly appear, even were the +originals intelligible, we confess we are disposed to think they would +of themselves justify Dr Mackay (editor of Mackay's Poems) in placing +this herdsman-lover among the true sons of song." + +Of that department of the Gaelic Minstrelsy admired by Scott and +condemned by Macpherson, the English reader is presented in the present +work with specimens, to enable him to form his own judgment. These +specimens, it must however be remembered, not only labour under the +ordinary disadvantages of translations, but have been rendered from a +language which, in its poetry, is one of the least transfusible in the +world. Yet the effort which has been made to retain the spirit, and +preserve the rhythm and manner of the originals, may be sufficient to +establish that the honour of the Scottish Muse has not unworthily been +supported among the mountains of the Gael. Some of the compositions are +Jacobite, and are in the usual warlike strain of such productions, but +the majority sing of the rivalries of clans, the emulation of bards, the +jealousies of lovers, and the honour of the chiefs. They likewise abound +in pictures of pastoral imagery; are redolent of the heath and the +wildflower, and depict the beauties of the deer forest. + +The various kinds of Highland minstrelsy admit of simple classification. +The _Duan Mor_ is the epic song; its subdivisions are termed _duana_ or +_duanaga_. Strings of verse and incidents ([Greek: Rhapsodia]) were +intended to form an epic history, and were combined by successive bards +for that purpose. The battle-song (_Prosnuchadh-catha_) was the next in +importance. The model of this variety is not to be found in any of the +Alcaic or Tyrtaean remains. It was a dithyrambic of the wildest and most +passionate enthusiasm, inciting to carnage and fury. Chanted in the +hearing of assembled armies, and sometimes sung before the van, it was +intended as an incitement to battle, and even calculated to stimulate +the courage of the general. The war-song of the Harlaw has been already +noticed; it is a rugged tissue of alliteration, every letter having a +separate division in the remarkable string of adjectives which are +connected to introduce a short exordium and grand finale. The _Jorram_, +or boat-song, some specimens of which attracted the attention of Dr +Johnson,[21] was a variety of the same class. In this, every measure was +used which could be made to time with an oar, or to mimic a wave, either +in motion or sound. Dr Johnson discovered in it the proceleusmatic song +of the ancients; it certainly corresponds in real usage with the poet's +description:-- + + "Stat margine puppis, + Qui voce alternos nautarum temperet ictus, + Et remis dictet sonitum pariterque relatis, + Ad numerum plaudet resonantia caerula tonsis." + +Alexander Macdonald excels in this description of verse. In a piece +called Clanranald's _Birlinn_, he has summoned his utmost efforts in +timing the circumstances of a voyage with suitable metres and +descriptions. A happy imitation of the boat-song has been rendered +familiar to the English reader by Sir Walter Scott, in the "Roderigh +Vich Alpine Dhu, ho! ieroe," of the "Lady of the Lake." The _Luineag_, +or favourite carol of the Highland milkmaid, is a class of songs +entirely lyrical, and which seldom fails to please the taste of the +Lowlander. Burns[22] and other song-writers have adopted the strain of +the _Luineag_ to adorn their verses. The _Cumha_, or lament, is the +vehicle of the most pathetic and meritorious effusions of Gaelic poetry; +it is abundantly interspersed with the poetry of Ossian. + +Among the Gael, blank verse is unknown, and for rhyme they entertain a +passion.[23] They rhyme to the same set of sounds or accents for a space +of which the recitation is altogether tedious. Not satisfied with the +final rhyme, their favourite measures are those in which the middle +syllable corresponds with the last, and the same syllable in the second +line with both; and occasionally the final sound of the second line is +expected to return in every alternate verse through the whole poem. The +Gael appear to have been early in possession of these coincidences of +termination which were unknown to the classical poets, or were regarded +by them as defects.[24] All writers on Celtic versification, including +the Irish, Welsh, Manx, and Cornish varieties, are united in their +testimony as to the early use of rhyme by the Celtic poets, and agree in +assigning the primary model to the incantations of the Druids.[25] The +lyrical measures of the Gael are various, but the scansion is regular, +and there is no description of verse familiar to English usage, from the +Iambic of four syllables, to the slow-paced Anapaestic, or the prolonged +Alexandrine, which is not exactly measured by these sons and daughters +of song.[26] Every poetical composition in the language, however +lengthy, is intended to be sung or chanted. Gaelic music is regulated by +no positive rules; it varies from the wild chant of the battle-song to +the simple melody of the milkmaid. In Johnson's "Musical Museum," +Campbell's "Albyn's Anthology," Thomson's "Collection," and Macdonald's +"Airs," the music of the mountains has long been familiar to the curious +in song, and lover of the national minstrelsy.[27] + + +[1] We are indebted for these observations on the Highland Muse to the +learned friend who has supplied the greater number of the translations +from the Gaelic poets, which appear in the present work. + +[2] Highland Society's Report on Ossian, pp. 16-20. + +[3] Genealogists or Antiquaries. + +[4] Letter from Sir James Macdonald to Dr Blair. + +[5] M'Callum's "Collection," p. 207. See also Smith's "Sean Dana, or +Gaelic Antiquities;" Gillies' "Collection" and Clark's "Caledonian +Bards." + +[6] Highland Society's Report on Ossian, pp. 99, 105, 112. + +[7] Boswell's "Life of Johnson," p. 320, Croker's edition, 1847. + +[8] "Poems by Mrs Grant of Laggan," p. 395, Edinburgh, 1803, 8vo. The +original is to be found in the Gaelic collections. + +[9] Mrs Grant's Poems, p. 371; Mackenzie's "Gaelic Poets," p. 1. + +[10] See Mrs Grant's "Highland Superstitions," vol. ii. p. 249. The +original is contained in Mackenzie's "Gaelic Poets." + +[11] See Johnson's "Journey to the Western Islands." + +[12] Stewart's Collection, p. 1. + +[13] Report on Ossian, p. 92. Sir Duncan Campbell fell at the battle of +Flodden, Lady Campbell afterwards married Gilbert, Earl of Cassillis. + +[14] Mrs Grant's "Highland Superstitions," vol. ii. p. 196. + +[15] Mrs Ogilvie's "Highland Minstrelsy." For the original see Turner's +Collection, p. 186. + +[16] Reid's "Bibliotheca Scotica Celtica." Mackenzie's "Gaelic Poets," +p. 36. + +[17] Napier's "Memoirs of Montrose." In this work will be found a very +spirited translation of Ian Lom's poem on the battle of Innerlochy. + +[18] Mackenzie's "Gaelic Poets," pp. 24, 59, 77, 77, 151; Turner's +"Gaelic Collection," _passim._ + +[19] See the beautiful verses translated by the Marchioness of +Northampton from "Ha tighinn fodham," in "Albyn's Anthology," or +Croker's "Boswell." + +[20] Mackenzie's "Gaelic Poets," p. 56. + +[21] Johnson's Works, vol. xii. p. 291. + +[22] Poems, Chambers' People's Edition, p. 134. + +[23] Armstrong's "Gaelic Dictionary," p. 63. + +[24] _Edinburgh Review_ on Mitford's "Harmony of Language," vol. vi. p. +383. + +[25] Brown's "History of the Highlands," vol. i. p. 89. + +[26] Armstrong's "Gaelic Dictionary," p. 64. + +[27] See also Logan's "Scottish Gael," vol. ii. p. 252. + + + + +CONTENTS. + + + PAGE + +JAMES HOGG, 1 + Donald Macdonald, 48 + Flora Macdonald's farewell, 50 + Bonnie Prince Charlie, 51 + The skylark, 52 + Caledonia, 53 + O Jeanie, there 's naething to fear ye, 54 + When the kye comes hame, 55 + The women folk, 58 + M'Lean's welcome, 59 + Charlie is my darling, 61 + Love is like a dizziness, 62 + O weel befa' the maiden gay, 64 + The flowers of Scotland, 66 + Lass, an' ye lo'e me, tell me now, 67 + Pull away, jolly boys, 69 + O, saw ye this sweet bonnie lassie o' mine? 70 + The auld Highlandman, 71 + Ah, Peggy, since thou 'rt gane away, 72 + Gang to the brakens wi' me, 74 + Lock the door, Lariston, 75 + I hae naebody now, 77 + The moon was a-waning, 78 + Good night, and joy, 79 + +JAMES MUIRHEAD, D.D., 81 + Bess the gawkie, 82 +MRS AGNES LYON, 84 + Neil Gow's farewell to whisky, 86 + See the winter clouds around, 87 + Within the towers of ancient Glammis, 88 + My son George's departure, 90 + +ROBERT LOCHORE, 91 + Now, Jenny lass, 92 + Marriage, and the care o't, 94 + Mary's twa lovers, 95 + The forlorn shepherd, 96 + +JOHN ROBERTSON, 98 + The toom meal pock, 99 + +ALEXANDER BALFOUR, 101 + The bonnie lass o' Leven water, 104 + Slighted love, 105 + +GEORGE MACINDOE, 106 + Cheese and whisky, 108 + The burn trout, 109 + +ALEXANDER DOUGLAS, 110 + Fife, an' a' the land about it, 112 + +WILLIAM M'LAREN, 114 + Now summer shines with gaudy pride, 116 + And dost thou speak sincere, my love? 116 + Say not the bard has turn'd old, 117 + +HAMILTON PAUL, 120 + Helen Gray, 128 + The bonnie lass of Barr, 129 + +ROBERT TANNAHILL, 131 + Jessie, the flower o' Dumblane, 136 + Loudon's bonnie woods and braes, 137 + The lass of Arranteenie, 139 + Yon burn side, 140 + The braes o' Gleniffer, 141 + Through Crockston Castle's lanely wa's, 142 + The braes o' Balquhither, 143 + Gloomy winter 's now awa', 145 + O! are ye sleeping, Maggie? 146 + Now winter, wi' his cloudy brow, 147 + The dear Highland laddie, O, 148 + The midges dance aboon the burn, 149 + Barrochan Jean, 150 + O, row thee in my Highland plaid, 151 + Bonnie wood of Craigie lea, 153 + Good night, and joy, 154 + +HENRY DUNCAN, D.D., 156 + Curling song, 161 + On the green sward, 163 + The Ruthwell volunteers, 164 + Exiled far from scenes of pleasure, 165 + The roof of straw, 166 + Thou kens't, Mary Hay, 167 + +ROBERT ALLAN, 169 + Blink over the burn, my sweet Betty, 171 + Come awa, hie awa, 171 + On thee, Eliza, dwell my thoughts, 173 + To a linnet, 174 + The primrose is bonnie in spring, 174 + The bonnie lass o' Woodhouselee, 175 + The sun is setting on sweet Glengarry, 176 + Her hair was like the Cromla mist, 177 + O leeze me on the bonnie lass, 178 + Queen Mary's escape from Lochleven Castle, 179 + When Charlie to the Highlands came, 180 + Lord Ronald came to his lady's bower, 181 + The lovely maid of Ormadale, 183 + A lassie cam' to our gate, 184 + The thistle and the rose, 186 + The Covenanter's lament, 187 + Bonnie lassie, 188 + +ANDREW MERCER, 189 + The hour of love, 190 + +JOHN LEYDEN, M.D., 191 + Ode to the evening star, 196 + The return after absence, 197 + Lament for Rama, 197 + +JAMES SCADLOCK, 199 + Along by Levern stream so clear, 201 + Hark, hark, the skylark singing, 202 + October winds, 203 + +SIR ALEXANDER BOSWELL, BART., 204 + Jenny's bawbee, 208 + Jenny dang the weaver, 210 + The lass o' Isla, 211 + Taste life's glad moments, 212 + Good night, and joy be wi' ye a', 214 + Old and new times, 215 + Bannocks o' barley meal, 216 + +WILLIAM GILLESPIE, 218 + The Highlander, 220 + Ellen, 221 + +THOMAS MOUNSEY CUNNINGHAM, 223 + Adown the burnie's flowery bank, 227 + The hills o' Gallowa', 227 + The braes o' Ballahun, 229 + The unco grave, 230 + Julia's grave, 231 + Fareweel, ye streams, 232 + +JOHN STRUTHERS, 235 + Admiring Nature's simple charms, 239 + Oh, bonnie buds yon birchen tree, 240 + +RICHARD GALL, 241 + How sweet is the scene, 243 + Captain O'Kain, 243 + My only jo and dearie, O, 244 + The bonnie blink o' Mary's e'e, 245 + The braes o' Drumlee, 246 + I winna gang back to my mammy again, 248 + The bard, 249 + Louisa in Lochaber, 249 + The hazlewood witch, 250 + Farewell to Ayrshire, 251 + +GEORGE SCOTT, 253 + The flower of the Tyne, 254 + +THOMAS CAMPBELL, 255 + Ye mariners of England, 262 + Glenara, 263 + The wounded hussar, 264 + Battle of the Baltic, 265 + Men of England, 268 + +MRS G. G. RICHARDSON, 269 + The fairy dance, 273 + Summer morning, 274 + There 's music in the flowing tide, 275 + Ah! faded is that lovely broom, 276 + +THOMAS BROWN, M.D., 278 + Consolation of altered fortunes, 281 + The faithless mourner, 282 + The lute, 283 + +WILLIAM CHALMERS, 285 + Sing on, 286 + The Lomond braes, 287 + +JOSEPH TRAIN, 288 + My doggie, 293 + Blooming Jessie, 295 + Old Scotia, 296 + +ROBERT JAMIESON, 297 + My wife 's a winsome wee thing, 299 + Go to him, then, if thou can'st go, 300 + +WALTER WATSON, 302 + My Jockie 's far awa, 304 + Maggie an' me, 305 + Sit down, my cronie, 306 + Braes o' Bedlay, 307 + Jessie, 308 + +WILLIAM LAIDLAW, 310 + Lucy's flittin', 314 + Her bonnie black e'e, 316 + Alake for the lassie, 317 + + + + +METRICAL TRANSLATIONS FROM THE MODERN GAELIC MINSTRELSY. + + +ALEXANDER MACDONALD, 321 + The lion of Macdonald, 323 + The brown dairy-maiden, 327 + The praise of Morag, 329 + News of Prince Charles, 335 + +JOHN ROY STUART, 340 + Lament for Lady Macintosh, 341 + The day of Culloden, 343 + +JOHN MORRISON, 346 + My beauty dark, 347 + +ROBERT MACKAY, 349 + The Highlander's home sickness, 349 + + * * * * * + +GLOSSARY, 350 + + + + +THE + +MODERN SCOTTISH MINSTREL. + + + + +JAMES HOGG. + + +The last echoes of the older Border Minstrelsy were dying from the +memory of the aged, and the spirit which had awakened the strains seemed +to have sighed an eternal farewell to its loved haunts in the past, +when, suddenly arousing from a long slumber, it threw the mantle of +inspiration, at the close of last century, over several sons of song, +worthy to bear the lyre of their minstrel sires. Of these, +unquestionably the most remarkable was James Hogg, commonly designated +"The Ettrick Shepherd." This distinguished individual was born in the +bosom of the romantic vale of Ettrick, in Selkirkshire,--one of the most +mountainous and picturesque districts of Scotland. The family of Hogg +claimed descent from Hougo, a Norwegian baron; and the poet's paternal +ancestors at one period possessed the lands of Fauldshope in Ettrick +Forest, and were followers, under the feudal system, of the Knights of +Harden. For several generations they had adopted the simple occupation +of shepherds. On the mother's side, the poet was descended from the +respectable family of Laidlaw,--one of the oldest in Tweeddale, and of +which all the representatives bore the reputation of excelling either in +intellectual vigour or physical energy; they generally devoted +themselves to the pastoral life. Robert Hogg, the poet's father, was a +person of very ordinary sagacity, presenting in this respect a decided +contrast to his wife, Margaret Laidlaw, a woman of superior energy and +cultivated mind. Their family consisted of four sons, of whom the second +was James, the subject of this Memoir. The precise date of his birth is +unknown: he was baptised, according to the Baptismal Register of +Ettrick, his native parish, on the 9th of December 1770.[28] + +At the period of his marriage, Robert Hogg was in circumstances of +considerable affluence; he had saved money as a shepherd, and, taking on +lease the two adjoining pastoral farms of Ettrick-hall and +Ettrick-house, he largely stocked them with sheep adapted both for the +Scottish and English markets. During several years he continued to +prosper; but a sudden depression in the market, and the absconding of a +party who was indebted to him, at length exhausted his finances, and +involved him in bankruptcy. The future poet was then in his sixth year. +In this destitute condition, the family experienced the friendship and +assistance of Mr Brydon, tenant of the neighbouring farm of Crosslee, +who, leasing Ettrick-house, employed Robert Hogg as his shepherd. But +the circumstances of the family were much straitened by recent reverses; +and the second son, young as he was, and though he had only been three +months at school, was engaged as a cow-herd, his wages for six months +being only a ewe-lamb and a pair of shoes! Three months' further +attendance at school, on the expiry of his engagement, completed the +future bard's scholastic instructions. It was the poet's lot, with the +exception of these six months' schooling, to receive his education among +the romantic retreats and solitudes of Nature. First as a cow-herd, and +subsequently through the various gradations of shepherd-life, his days, +till advanced manhood, were all the year round passed upon the hills. +And such hills! The mountains of Ettrick and Yarrow are impressed with +every feature of Highland scenery, in its wildest and most striking +aspects. There are stern summits, enveloped in cloud, and stretching +heavenwards; huge broad crests, heathy and verdant, or torn by fissures +and broken by the storms; deep ravines, jagged, precipitate, and +darksome; and valleys sweetly reposing amidst the sublimity of the awful +solitude. There are dark craggy mountains around the Grey-Mare's-Tail, +echoing to the roar of its stupendous cataract; and romantic and +beautiful green hills, and inaccessible heights, surrounding and +towering over St Mary's Loch, and the Loch of the Lowes. To the +sublimity of that vast academy, in which he had learned to invoke the +Muse, the poet has referred in the "Queen's Wake":-- + + "The bard on Ettrick's mountain green, + In Nature's bosom nursed had been; + And oft had mark'd in forest lone + The beauties on her mountain throne; + Had seen her deck the wildwood tree, + And star with snowy gems the lea; + In loveliest colours paint the plain, + And sow the moor with purple grain; + By golden mead and mountain sheer, + Had view'd the Ettrick waving clear, + When shadowy flocks of purest snow + Seem'd grazing in a world below." + +Glorious as was his academy, the genius of the poet was not precocious. +Forgetting everything he had learned at school, he spent his intervals +of toil in desultory amusements, or in pursuing his own shadow upon the +hills. As he grew older, he discovered the possession of a musical ear; +and saving five shillings of his earnings, he purchased an old violin, +upon which he learned to play his favourite tunes. He had now attained +his fourteenth year; and in the constant hope of improving his +circumstances, had served twelve masters. + +The life of a cow-herd affords limited opportunities for mental +improvement. And the early servitude of the Ettrick Shepherd was spent +in excessive toil, which his propensities to fun and frolic served just +to render tolerable. When he reached the respectable and comparatively +easy position of a shepherd, he began to think of teaching himself to +read. From Mrs Laidlaw, the wife of the farmer at Willinslee, on which +he served, he was privileged with the loan of two works, of which the +reputation had been familiar to him from childhood. These were Henry the +Minstrel's "Life and Adventures of Sir William Wallace," and the "Gentle +Shepherd" of Allan Ramsay. On these the future poet with much difficulty +learned to read, in his eighteenth year. He afterwards read a number of +theological works, from his employer's collection of books; and among +others of a speculative cast, "Burnet's Theory of the Conflagration of +the Earth," the perusal of which, he has recorded, "nearly overturned +his brain." + +At Whitsunday 1790, in his twentieth year, Hogg entered the service, as +shepherd, of Mr James Laidlaw, tenant of Blackhouse,--a farm situate on +the Douglasburn in Yarrow. This proved the most signally fortunate step +which he had yet taken. Mr Laidlaw was a man of singular shrewdness and +of a highly cultivated mind; he readily perceived his shepherd's +aptitude for learning, and gave him the use of his library. But the +poet's connexion with Blackhouse was especially valuable in enabling him +to form the intimacy of Mr William Laidlaw, his master's son, the future +factor and amanuensis of Sir Walter Scott. Though ten years his junior, +and consequently a mere youth at the period of his coming to Blackhouse, +young Laidlaw began early to sympathise with the Shepherd's +predilections, and afterwards devoted a large portion of time to his +society. The friendship which ensued proved useful to both. A MS. +narrative of the poet's life by this unfailing friend, which has been +made available in the preparation of this Memoir, enables us to supply +an authentic account of this portion of his career. "He was not long," +writes Mr Laidlaw, "in going through all the books belonging to my +father; and learning from me that Mr Elder, bookseller, Peebles, had a +large collection of books which he used as a circulating library, he +forthwith became a subscriber, and by that means read Smollett's and +Fielding's novels, and those voyages and travels which were published at +the time, including those of Cook, Carteret, and others." + +The progress of the Shepherd in learning was singularly tardy. He was, +by a persevering course of reading, sufficiently familiar with the more +esteemed writers in English literature, ere he attempted penmanship. He +acquired the art upon the hill-side by copying the Italian alphabet, +using his knees as his desk, and having his ink-bottle suspended from +his button. In his twenty-sixth year he first essayed to write +verses,--an effort attended, in the manual department, with amusing +difficulty, for he stripped himself of his coat and vest to the +undertaking, yet could record only a few lines at a sitting! But he was +satisfied with the fame derived from his verses, as adequate +compensation for the toil of their production; he wrote for the +amusement of the shepherd maidens, who sung them to their favourite +tunes, and bestowed on him the prized designation of "Jamie the Poeter." +At the various gatherings of the lads and lasses in the different +homesteads, then frequent in this pastoral district, he never failed to +present himself, and had golden opportunities of winning the chaplet of +applause, both for the strains of his minstrelsy, and the music of his +violin. These _reunions_ were not without their influence in stimulating +him to more ambitious efforts in versification. + +The Shepherd's popularity, while tending the flocks of Mr Laidlaw at +Blackhouse, was not wholly derived from his skill as a versifier, and +capabilities as a musician, but, among the fairer portion of the +creation, was perhaps scarcely less owing to the amenity of his +disposition, combined with the handsomeness of his person. As a +candidate for the honour of feminine approbation, he was successful +alike in the hall and on the green: the rumour of his approach at any +rural assemblage or merry-meeting was the watchword for increased mirth +and happiness. If any malignant rival had hinted aught to his prejudice, +the maidens of the whole district had assembled to vindicate his cause. +His personal appearance at this early period is thus described by Mr +William Laidlaw:--"About nineteen years of age, Hogg was rather above +the middle height, of faultless symmetry of form; he was of almost +unequalled agility and swiftness. His face was then round and full, and +of a ruddy complexion, with bright blue eyes that beamed with gaiety, +glee, and good-humour, the effect of the most exuberant animal spirits. +His head was covered with a singular profusion of light-brown hair, +which he was obliged to wear coiled up under his hat. On entering church +on a Sunday (where he was all his life a regular attender) he used, on +lifting his hat, to raise his right hand to assist a graceful shake of +his head in laying back his long hair, which rolled down his back, and +fell below his loins. And every female eye was upon him, as, with light +step, he ascended the stair to the gallery where he sat." + +As the committing of his thoughts to paper became a less irksome +occupation, Hogg began, with commendable prudence, to attempt +composition in prose; and in evidence of his success, he had the +satisfaction to find short essays which he sent to the _Scots Magazine_ +regularly inserted in that periodical. Poetry was cultivated at the same +time with unabated ardour, though the bard did not yet venture to expose +his verses beyond the friendly circle of his associates in Ettrick +Forest. Of these, the most judicious was young Laidlaw; who, predicting +his success, urged him to greater carefulness in composition. There was +another stimulus to his improvement. Along with several shepherds in the +forest, who were of studious inclinations, he formed a literary society, +which proposed subjects for competition in verse, and adjudged encomiums +of approbation to the successful competitors. Two spirited members of +this literary conclave were Alexander Laidlaw, a shepherd, and +afterwards tenant of Bowerhope, on the border of St Mary's Lake, and the +poet's elder brother, William, a man of superior talent. Both these +individuals subsequently acquired considerable distinction as +intelligent contributors to the agricultural journals. For some years, +William Hogg had rented the sheep-farm of Ettrick-house, and afforded +shelter and support to his aged and indigent parents. In the year 1800, +he resigned his lease to the poet, having taken another farm on the +occasion of his marriage. James now established himself, along with his +parents, at Ettrick-house, the place of his nativity, after a period of +ten years' connexion with Mr Laidlaw of Blackhouse, whose conduct +towards him, to use his own words, had proved "much more like that of a +father than a master." It was during the course of a visit to Edinburgh +in the same year, that an accidental circumstance gave a wider range to +his poetical reputation. Spending an evening with a party of friends in +the Crown Tavern, he was solicited for a song. He sung the last which he +had composed; it was "Donald Macdonald." The reception was a roar of +applause, and one of the party offered to get it set to music and +published. The song was issued anonymously from the music establishment +of Mr John Hamilton of Edinburgh. Within a few months it was sung in +every district of the kingdom; and, at a period when the apprehended +invasion of Napoleon filled the hearts of the nation with anxiety, it +was hailed as an admirable stimulus to patriotism. In the preparation of +the "Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border," Scott had been largely indebted +to the intelligent peasantry of the south. He was now engaged in making +collections for his third volume, and had resolved to examine the +pastoral inhabitants of Ettrick and Yarrow. Procuring a note of +introduction from his friend Leyden to young Laidlaw, Scott arrived at +Blackhouse during the summer of 1801, and in his native home formed the +acquaintance of his future steward. To his visitor, Laidlaw commended +Hogg as the best qualified in the forest to assist him in his +researches; and Scott, who forthwith accompanied Laidlaw to +Ettrick-house, was more than gratified by an interview with the +shepherd-bard. "He found," writes his biographer, "a brother poet, a +true son of nature and genius, hardly conscious of his powers.... As +yet, his naturally kind and simple character had not been exposed to any +of the dangerous flatteries of the world; his heart was pure; his +enthusiasm buoyant as that of a happy child; and well as Scott knew that +reflection, sagacity, wit and wisdom, were scattered abundantly among +the humblest rangers of these pastoral solitudes, there was here a depth +and a brightness that filled him with wonder, combined with a quaintness +of humour, and a thousand little touches of absurdity, which afforded +him more entertainment, as I have often heard him say, than the best +comedy that ever set the pit in a roar." Scott remained several days in +the forest, daily accompanied in his excursions by Hogg and Laidlaw, +both of whom rapidly warmed in his regard. From the recitation of the +Shepherd's mother, he obtained important and interesting accessions to +his Minstrelsy. + +With the exception of the song of "Donald Macdonald," Hogg had not yet +published verses. His _debut_ as an author was sufficiently +unpropitious. Shortly after Scott's visit, he had been attending the +Monday sheep-market in Edinburgh, and being unable to dispose of his +entire stock, was necessitated to remain in the city till the following +Wednesday. Having no acquaintances, he resolved to employ the interval +in writing from recollection several of his poems for the press. Before +his departure, he gave the pieces to a printer; and shortly after, he +received intimation that a thousand copies were ready for delivery. On +comparing the printed sheets with his MSS. at Ettrick, he had the +mortification of discovering "many of the stanzas omitted, others +misplaced, and typographical errors abounding in every page." The little +_brochure_, imperfect as it was, sold rapidly in the district; for the +Shepherd had now a considerable circle of admirers, and those who had +ridiculed his verse-making, kept silent since Scott's visit to him. A +copy of the pamphlet is preserved in the Advocates' Library; it consists +of sixty-two pages octavo, and is entitled, "Scottish Pastorals, Poems, +Songs, &c., mostly written in the Dialect of the South, by James Hogg. +Edinburgh: printed by John Taylor, Grassmarket, 1801. Price One +Shilling." The various pieces evince poetic power, unhappily combined +with a certain coarseness of sentiment. One of the longer ballads, +"Willie and Keatie," supposed to be a narrative of one of his early +amours, obtained a temporary popularity, and was copied into the +periodicals. It is described by Allan Cunningham as a "plain, rough-spun +pastoral, with some fine touches in it, to mark that better was coming." + +The domestic circumstances of the Shepherd were meanwhile not +prosperous; he was compelled to abandon the farm of Ettrick-house, which +had been especially valuable to him, as affording a comfortable home to +his venerated parents. In the hope of procuring a situation as an +overseer of some extensive sheep-farm, he made several excursions into +the northern Highlands, waiting upon many influential persons, to whom +he had letters of recommendation. These journeys were eminently +advantageous in acquainting him with many interesting and celebrated +scenes, and in storing his mind with images drawn from the sublimities +and wild scenery of nature, but were of no account as concerned the +object for which they were undertaken. Without procuring employment, he +returned, with very reduced finances, to Ettrick Forest. He published a +rough narrative of his travels in the _Scots Magazine_; and wrote two +essays on the rearing and management of sheep, for the Highland Society, +which were acknowledged with premiums. Frustrated in an attempt to +procure a farm from the Duke of Buccleuch, and declining an offer of +Scott to appoint him to the charge of his small sheep-farm at Ashestiel, +he was led to indulge in the scheme of settling in the island of Harris. +It was in the expectation of being speedily separated from the loved +haunts of his youth, that he composed his "Farewell to Ettrick," +afterwards published in the "Mountain Bard," one of the most touching +and pathetic ballads in the language. The Harris enterprise was not +carried out; and the poet, "to avoid a great many disagreeable questions +and explanations," went for several months to England. Fortune still +frowned, and the ambitious but unsuccessful son of genius had to return +to his former subordinate occupation as a shepherd. He entered the +employment of Mr Harkness of Mitchel-Slack, in Nithsdale. + +Dissatisfied with the imitations of ancient ballads in the third volume +of "The Border Minstrelsy," Hogg proceeded to embody some curious +traditions in this kind of composition. He transmitted specimens to +Scott, who warmly commended them, and suggested their publication. The +result appeared in the "Mountain Bard," a collection of poems and +ballads, which he published in 1803, prefixed with an account of his +life. From the profits of this volume, with the sum of eighty-six pounds +paid him by Constable for the copyright of his two treatises on sheep, +he became master of three hundred pounds. With this somewhat startling +acquisition, visions of prosperity arose in his ardent and enthusiastic +mind. He hastily took in lease the pastoral farm of Corfardin, in the +parish of Tynron, Dumfriesshire, to which he afterwards added the lease +of another large farm in the same neighbourhood. Misfortune still +pursued him; he rented one of the farms at a sum exceeding its value, +and his capital was much too limited for stocking the other, while a +disastrous murrain decimated his flock. Within the space of three years +he was again a penniless adventurer. Removing from the farm-homestead of +Corfardin, he accepted the generous invitation of his hospitable +neighbour, Mr James Macturk of Stenhouse, to reside in his house till +some suitable employment might occur. At Stenhouse he remained three +months; and he subsequently acknowledged the generosity of his friend, +by honourably celebrating him in the "Queen's Wake." Writing to Mr +Macturk, in 1814, he remarks, in reference to his farming at Corfardin, +"But it pleased God to take away by death all my ewes and my lambs, and +my long-horned cow, and my spotted bull, for if they had lived, and if I +had kept the farm of Corfardin, I had been a lost man to the world, and +mankind should never have known the half that was in me. Indeed, I can +never see the design of Providence in taking me to your district at all, +if it was not to breed my acquaintance with you and yours, which I hope +will be one source of happiness to me as long as I live. Perhaps the +very circumstance of being initiated into the mysteries of your +character,[29] is of itself a sufficient compensation for all that I +suffered in your country." + +Disappointed in obtaining an ensigncy in a Militia Regiment, through the +interest of Sir Walter Scott, and frustrated in every other attempt to +retain the social position he had gained, he returned to Ettrick, once +more to seek employment in his original occupation. But if friendship +had somewhat failed him, on his proving unsuccessful at Ettrick-house, +his _prestige_ was now completely gone; old friends received him coldly, +and former employers declined his services. He found that, till he +should redeem his reputation for business and good management, there was +no home for him in Ettrick Forest. Hogg was not a man who would tamely +surrender to the pressure of misfortune: amidst his losses he could +claim the strictest honesty of intention, and he was not unconscious of +his powers. With his plaid over his shoulders, he reached Edinburgh in +the month of February 1810, to begin, in his fortieth year, the career +of a man of letters. The scheme was singularly adventurous, but the die +was cast; he was in the position of the man on the tread-wheel, and felt +that he must write or perish. + +It affords no matter of surprise that the Shepherd was received coldly +by the booksellers, and that his offers of contributing to their +periodicals were respectfully declined. His volume, "The Mountain Bard," +had been forgotten; and though his literary fitness had been undisputed, +his lengthened want of success in life seemed to imply a doubt of his +general steadiness. Mr Constable, his former publisher, proved the most +friendly; he consented to publish a collection of songs and ballads, +which he had prepared, two-thirds being his own composition, and the +remainder that of his ingenious friends. This publication, known as "The +Forest Minstrel," had a slow sale, and conferred no benefit on the +unfortunate author. What the booksellers would not do for him, Hogg +resolved to do for himself; he originated a periodical, which he +designated "The Spy," acting as his own publisher. The first number of +this publication--a quarto weekly sheet, price fourpence--was issued on +the first of September 1810. With varied popularity, this paper existed +during the space of a year; and owing to the perseverance of the +conductor might have subsisted a longer period, but for a certain +ruggedness which occasionally disfigured it. As a whole, being chiefly +the composition of a shepherd, who could only read at eighteen, and +write at twenty-six, and who, to use his own words, "knew no more of +human life or manners than a child," the work presented a remarkable +record in the annals of literature. As a business concern, it did not +much avail the projector, but it served indirectly towards improving his +condition, by inducing the habit of composing readily, and with +undeviating industry. A copy of "The Spy" is now rare. + +From his literary exertions, Hogg was long, subsequent to his arrival in +the metropolis, in deriving substantial pecuniary emolument. In these +circumstances, he was fortunate in the friendship of Mr John Grieve, and +his partner Mr Henry Scott, hat manufacturers in the city, who, fully +appreciating his genius, aided him with money so long as he required +their assistance. These are his own words, "They suffered me to want for +nothing, either in money or clothes, and I did not even need to ask +these." To Mr Grieve, Hogg was especially indebted; six months he was an +inmate of his house, and afterwards he occupied comfortable lodgings, +secured him by his friend's beneficence. Besides these two invaluable +benefactors, the Shepherd soon acquired the regard and friendship of +several respectable men of letters, both in Edinburgh and elsewhere. As +contributors to "The Spy," he could record the names of James Gray of +the High School, and his accomplished wife; Thomas Gillespie, afterwards +Professor of Humanity in the University of St Andrews; J. Black, +subsequently of the _Morning Chronicle_; William Gillespie, the +ingenious minister of Kells; and John Sym, the renowned Timothy Tickler +of the "_Noctes_." Of these literary friends, Mr James Gray was the more +conspicuous and devoted. This excellent individual, the friend of so +many literary aspirants, was a native of Dunse, and had the merit of +raising himself from humble circumstances to the office of a master in +the High School of Edinburgh. Possessed of elegant and refined tastes, +an enthusiastic admirer of genius, and a poet himself,[30] Mr Gray +entertained at his table the more esteemed wits of the capital; he had +extended the hand of hospitality to Burns, and he received with equal +warmth the author of "The Forest Minstrel." In the exercise of +disinterested beneficence, he was aided and encouraged by his second +wife, formerly Miss Peacock, who sympathised in the lettered tastes of +her husband, and took delight in the society of men of letters. They +together made annual pedestrian excursions into the Highlands, and the +narrative of their adventures proved a source of delightful instruction +to their friends. Mr Gray, after a lengthened period of residence in +Edinburgh, accepted, in the year 1821, the Professorship of Latin in the +Institution at Belfast; he subsequently took orders in the Church of +England, and proceeded to India as a chaplain. In addition to his +chaplaincy, he held the office of preceptor to one of the native princes +of Hindostan. He died at Bhoog, in the kingdom of Cutch, on the 25th of +September 1830; and if we add that he was a man of remarkable learning, +his elegy may be transcribed from the "Queen's Wake:"-- + + "Alike to him the south and north, + So high he held the minstrel worth; + So high his ardent mind was wrought, + Once of himself he never thought." + +As the circle of the poet's friends increased, a scheme was originated +among them, which was especially entertained by the juniors, of +establishing a debating society for mutual improvement. This institution +became known as the Forum; meetings were held weekly in a public hall of +the city, and strangers were admitted to the discussions on the payment +of sixpence a-head. The meetings were uniformly crowded; and the +Shepherd, who held the office of secretary, made a point of taking a +prominent lead in the discussions. He spoke once, and sometimes more +frequently, at every meeting, making speeches, both studied and +extemporaneous, on every variety of theme; and especially contributed, +by his rough-spun eloquence, to the popularity of the institution. The +society existed three years; and though yielding the secretary no +pecuniary emolument, proved a new and effective mean of extending his +acquaintance with general knowledge. + +Hogg now took an interest in theatricals, and produced two dramas, one +of which, a sort of musical farce, was intended as a burlesque on the +prominent members of the Forum, himself included. This he was induced, +on account of the marked personalities, to confine to his repositories; +he submitted the other to Mr Siddons, who commended it, but it never was +brought upon the stage. He was about to appear before the world in his +most happy literary effort, "The Queen's Wake,"--a composition +suggested by Mr Grieve. This ingenious individual had conceived the +opinion that a republication of several of the Shepherd's ballads in +"The Spy," in connexion with an original narrative poem, would arrest +public attention as to the author's merits; while a narrative having +reference to the landing of the beautiful and unfortunate Queen Mary, +seemed admirably calculated to induce a general interest in the poem. +The proposal, submitted to Allan Cunningham and Mr Gray, received their +warm approbation; and in a few months the entire composition was ready +for the press. Mr Constable at once consented to undertake the +publication; but a more advantageous offer being made by Mr George +Goldie, a young bookseller, "The Queen's Wake" issued from his +establishment in the spring of 1813. Its success was complete; two +editions were speedily circulated, and the fame of the author was +established. With the exception of the _Eclectic Review_, every +periodical accorded its warmest approbation to the performance; and +vacillating friends, who began to doubt the Shepherd's power of +sustaining the character he had assumed as a poet and a man of letters, +ceased to entertain their misgivings, and accorded the warmest tributes +to his genius. A commendatory article in the _Edinburgh Review_, in +November 1814, hailed the advent of a third edition. + +By the unexpected insolvency of his publisher, while the third edition +was in process of sale, Hogg had nearly sustained a recurrence of +pecuniary loss. This was, however, fortunately prevented by the +considerate beneficence of Mr Goldie's trustees, who, on receiving +payment of the printing expenses, made over the remainder of the +impression to the author. One of the trustees was Mr Blackwood, +afterwards the celebrated publisher of _Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine_. +Hogg had now attained the unenviable reputation of a literary prodigy, +and his studies were subject to constant interruption from admirers, and +the curious who visited the capital. But he gave all a cordial +reception, and was never less accessible amidst the most arduous +literary occupation. There was one individual whose acquaintance he was +especially desirous of forming; this was John Wilson, whose poem, "The +Isle of Palms," published in 1812, had particularly arrested his +admiration. Wilson had come to reside in Edinburgh during a portion of +the year, but as yet had few acquaintances in the city. He was slightly +known to Scott; but a peculiarity of his was a hesitation in granting +letters of introduction. In despair of otherwise meeting him, Hogg, who +had reviewed his poem in the _Scots Magazine_, sent him an invitation to +dinner, which the Lake-poet was pleased cordially to accept. That dinner +began one of the most interesting of the Shepherd's friendships; both +the poets were pleased with each other, and the closest intimacy ensued. +It was on his way to visit Wilson, at Elleray, his seat in Cumberland, +during the autumn of 1814, that the Shepherd formed the acquaintance of +the Poet-laureate. He had notified to Southey his arrival at one of the +hotels in Keswick, and begged the privilege of a visit. Southey promptly +acknowledged his summons, and insisted on his remaining a couple of days +at Greta Hall to share his hospitality. Two years could not have more +firmly rivetted their friendship. As a mark of his regard, on returning +to Edinburgh Hogg sent the Laureate the third edition of "The Queen's +Wake," then newly published, along with a copy of "The Spy." In +acknowledging the receipt of these volumes, Southey addressed the +following letter to the Shepherd, which is now for the first time +published:-- + + "Keswick, _December 1, 1814._ + + "Dear Hogg,--Thank you for your books. I will not say + that 'The Queen's Wake' has exceeded my expectations, + because I have ever expected great things from you, + since, in 1805, I heard Walter Scott, by his own + fireside at Ashestiel, repeat 'Gilmanscleuch.'[31] When + he came to that line--'I ga'e him a' my goud, + father'--the look and the tone with which he gave it + were not needed to make it go through me. But 'The + Wake' has equalled all that I expected. The + improvements in the new edition are very great, and + they are in the two poems which were most deserving of + improvement, as being the most impressive and the most + original. Each is excellent in its way, but 'Kilmeny' + is of the highest character; 'The Witch of Fife' is a + real work of fancy--'Kilmeny' a fine one of + imagination, which is a higher and rarer gift. These + poems have given general pleasure throughout the house; + my eldest girl often comes out with a stanza or two of + 'The Witch,' but she wishes sometimes that you always + wrote in English. 'The Spy' I shall go through more at + leisure. + + "I like your praise both of myself and my poem, because + it comes from a good quarter. You saw me where and how + a man is best seen--at home, and in his every-day wear + and tear, mind and manners: I have no holiday suit, and + never seek to shine: such as it is, my light is always + burning. Somewhat of my character you may find in + Chaucer's Clerk of Oxenford; and the concluding line of + that description might be written, as the fittest + motto, under my portrait--'Gladly would he learn, and + gladly teach.' I have sinned enough to make me humble + in myself, and indulgent toward others. I have suffered + enough to find in religion not merely consolation, but + hope and joy; and I have seen enough to be contented + in, and thankful for, the state of life in which it has + pleased God to place me. + + "We hoped to have seen you on your way back from + Ellery. I believe you did not get the ballad of the + 'Devil and the Bishop,' which Hartley transcribed for + you. I am reprinting my miscellaneous poems, collected + into three volumes. Your projected publication[32] will + have the start of it greatly, for the first volume is + not nearly through the press, and there is a corrected + copy of the ballad, with its introduction, in + Ballantyne's hands, which you can make use of before it + will be wanted in its place. + + "You ask me why I am not intimate with Wilson. There is + a sufficient reason in the distance between our + respective abodes. I seldom go even to Wordworth's or + Lloyd's; and Ellery is far enough from either of their + houses, to make a visit the main business of a day. So + it happens that except dining in his company once at + Lloyd's many years ago, and breakfasting with him here + not long afterwards, I have barely exchanged + salutations once or twice when we met upon the road. + Perhaps, however, I might have sought him had it not + been for his passion for cock-fighting. But this is a + thing which I regard with abhorrence. + + "Would that 'Roderick' were in your hands for + reviewing; I should desire no fairer nor more competent + critic. But it is of little consequence what friends or + enemies may do for it now; it will find its due place + in time, which is slow but sure in its decisions. From + the nature of my studies, I may almost be said to live + in the past; it is to the future that I look for my + reward, and it would be difficult to make any person + who is not thoroughly intimate with me, understand how + completely indifferent I am to the praise or censure of + the present generation, farther than as it may affect + my means of subsistence, which, thank God, it can no + longer essentially do. There was a time when I was + materially injured by unjust criticism; but even then I + despised it, from a confidence in myself, and a natural + buoyancy of spirit. It cannot injure me now, but I + cannot hold it in more thorough contempt. + + "Come and visit me when the warm weather returns. You + can go nowhere that you will be more sincerely + welcomed. And may God bless you. + + "Robert Southey." + +In waging war with the Lake school of poetry, the _Edinburgh Review_ had +dealt harshly with Southey. His poems of "Madoc" and "The Curse of +Kehama" had been rigorously censured, and very shortly before the +appearance of "Roderick," his "Triumphal Ode" for 1814, which was +published separately, had been assailed with a continuance of the same +unmitigated severity. The Shepherd, who knew, notwithstanding the +Laureate's professions of indifference to criticism, that his nature was +sensitive, and who feared that the _Review_ would treat "Roderick" as it +had done Southey's previous productions, ventured to recommend him to +evince a less avowed hostility to Jeffrey, in the hope of subduing the +bitterness of his censure. The letter of Southey, in answer to this +counsel, will prove interesting, in connexion with the literary history +of the period. The Bard of Keswick had hardly advanced to that happy +condition which he fancied he had reached, of being "indulgent toward +others," at least under the influence of strong provocation:-- + + "Keswick, _24th Dec. 1814._ + + "Dear Hogg,--I am truly obliged to you for the + solicitude which you express concerning the treatment + 'Roderick' may experience in the _Edinburgh Review_, + and truly gratified by it, notwithstanding my perfect + indifference as to the object in question. But you + little know me, if you imagine that any thoughts of + fear or favour would make me abstain from speaking + publicly of Jeffrey as I think, and as he deserves. I + despise his commendation, and I defy his malice. _He_ + crush the 'Excursion!!!'[33] Tell him that he might as + easily crush Skiddaw. For myself, _popularity_ is not + the mark I shoot at; if it were, I should not write + such poems as 'Roderick;' and Jeffrey can no more stand + in my way to _fame_, than Tom Thumb could stand in my + way in the street. + + "He knows that he has dealt unfairly and maliciously by + me; he knows that the world knows it, that his very + friends know it, and that if he attacks 'Roderick' as + he did 'Madoc' and 'Kehama,' it will be universally + imputed to personal ill-will. On the other hand, he + cannot commend this poem without the most flagrant + inconsistency. This would be confessing that he has + wronged me in the former instances; for no man will + pretend to say that 'Madoc' does not bear marks of the + same hand as 'Roderick;' it has the same character of + language, thought, and feeling; it is of the same ore + and mint; and if the one poem be bad, the other cannot + possibly be otherwise. The irritation of the _nettling_ + (as you term it), which he has already received [a + portion of the letter is torn off and lost].... + Whatever part he may take, my conduct towards him will + be the same. I consider him a public nuisance, and + shall deal with him accordingly. + + "Nettling is a gentle term for what he has to undergo. + In due season he shall be _scorpioned_ and + _rattlesnaked_. When I take him in hand it shall be to + dissect him alive, and make a preparation of him to be + exhibited _in terrorem_, an example to all future + pretenders to criticism. He has a forehead of native + brass, and I will write upon it with aqua-fortis. I + will serve him up to the public like a turkey's + gizzard, sliced, scored, peppered, salted, cayanned, + grilled, and bedevilled. I will bring him to justice; + he shall be executed in prose, and gibbeted in + verse....[34] + + .... "'Roderick' has made good speed in the world, and + ere long I shall send you the poem in a more commodious + shape,[35] for Ballantyne is at this time reprinting + it. I finished my official ode a few days ago. It is + without rhyme, and as unlike other official odes in + matter as in form; for its object is to recommend, as + the two great objects of policy, general education and + extensive colonization. At present, I am chiefly + occupied upon 'The History of Brazil,' which is in the + press--a work of great labour. + + "The ladies here all desire to be kindly remembered to + you. I have ordered 'The Pilgrims of the Sun,' and we + look for it with expectation, which, I am sure, will + not be disappointed. God bless you.--Yours very truly, + + "Robert Southey." + +A review of "Roderick" appeared in the _Edinburgh Review_ for June 1815, +which on the whole was favourable, so that the wrath of the Laureate was +appeased. + +During the earlier period of his Edinburgh career, Hogg had formed the +acquaintance of an estimable family in Athol, Mr and Mrs Izett, of +Kinnaird House, and he had been in the habit of spending a portion of +his time every summer at their hospitable residence. In the summer of +1814, while visiting there, he was seized with a severe cold, which +compelled him to prolong his stay with his friends; and Mrs Izett, who +took a warm interest in his welfare, suggested that he might turn his +illness to account, by composing a poem, descriptive of the beauties of +the surrounding scenery. The hint was sufficient; he commenced a +descriptive poem in the Spenserian stanza, which was speedily completed, +and given to the world under the title of "Mador of the Moor." It was +well received; and the author is correct in asserting that it contains +"some of his highest and most fortunate efforts in rhyme." "The +Pilgrims of the Sun" was his next poem; it was originally intended as +one of a series, to be contained in a poetical work, which he proposed +to entitle "Midsummer Night Dreams," but which, on the advice of his +friend, Mr James Park of Greenock, he was induced to abandon. From its +peculiar strain, this poem had some difficulty in finding a publisher; +it was ultimately published by Mr John Murray of London, who liberally +recompensed the author, and it was well received by the press. + +The circle of the Shepherd's literary friends rapidly extended. Lord +Byron opened a correspondence with him, and continued to address him in +long familiar letters, such as were likely to interest a shepherd-bard. +Unfortunately, these letters have been lost; it was a peculiarity of +Hogg to be careless in regard to his correspondence. With Wordsworth he +became acquainted in the summer of 1815, when that poet was on his first +visit to Edinburgh. They met at the house, in Queen Street, of the +mother of his friend Wilson; and the Shepherd was at once interested and +gratified by the intelligent conversation and agreeable manners of the +great Lake-poet. They saw much of each other in the city, and afterwards +journeyed together to St Mary's Loch; and the Shepherd had the +satisfaction of entertaining his distinguished brother-bard with the +homely fare of cakes and milk, in his father's cottage at Ettrick. +Wordsworth afterwards made the journey memorable in his poem of "Yarrow +Visited." The poets temporarily separated at Selkirk,--Wordsworth having +secured the promise of a visit from his friend, at Mount Ryedale, prior +to his return to Edinburgh. The promise was duly fulfilled; and the +Shepherd had the pleasure of meeting, during his visit, Lloyd, and De +Quincey, and his dear friend Wilson. A portion of the autumn of 1815 was +spent by the Shepherd at Elleray. In the letter inviting his visit +(dated September 1815), the author of "The Isle of Palms" indicates his +opinion of the literary influence of his correspondent, by writing as +follows:--"If you have occasion soon to write to Murray,[36] pray +introduce something about 'The City of the Plague,' as I shall probably +offer him that poem in about a fortnight, or sooner. Of course, I do not +_wish_ you to say that the poem is utterly worthless. I think that a +bold eulogy from you (if administered immediately), would be of service +to me; but if you do write about it, do not tell him that I have any +intention of offering it to him, but you may say, you hear I am going to +offer it to a London bookseller." + +The Shepherd's intimacy with the poets had induced him to entertain a +somewhat plausible scheme of bettering his finances. He proposed to +publish, in a handsome volume, a poem by each of the living bards of +Great Britain. For this purpose, he had secured pieces from Southey, +Wilson, Wordsworth, Lloyd, Morehead, Pringle, Paterson, and some others; +and had received promises of contributions from Lord Byron and Samuel +Rogers. The plan was frustrated by Scott. He was opposed to his +appearing to seek fresh laurels from the labours of others, and +positively refused to make a contribution. This sadly mortified the +Shepherd,[37] and entirely altered his plans. He had now recourse to a +peculiar method of realising his original intention. In the short period +of four weeks, he produced imitations of the more conspicuous bards, +which speedily appeared in a volume entitled "The Poetic Mirror." This +work, singularly illustrative of the versatility of his genius, was +eminently successful, the first edition disappearing in the course of +six weeks. The imitations of the bards were pronounced perfect, only +that of Wordsworth was intentionally a caricature; the Shepherd had been +provoked to it by a conceived slight of the Lake-poet, during his visit +at Mount Ryedale.[38] + +"The Poetic Mirror" appeared in 1816; and in the following year the +Shepherd struck out a new path, by publishing two duodecimo volumes of +"Dramatic Tales." This work proved unsuccessful. In 1813 he had +dedicated his "Forest Minstrel" to the Countess of Dalkeith; and this +amiable and excellent woman, afterwards better known as Harriet, Duchess +of Buccleuch, had acknowledged the compliment by a gift of a hundred +guineas, and several other donations. The Shepherd was, however, +desirous of procuring the means of comfortable self-support, +independently of his literary exertions; and had modestly preferred the +request that he might receive a small farm in lease on the Buccleuch +estates. The request was at length responded to. The Duchess, who took a +deep interest in him, made a request to the Duke, on her death-bed, that +something might be done for her ingenious protege. After her decease, +the late Charles, Duke of Buccleuch, gave the Shepherd a life-lease of +the farm of Altrive Lake, in Yarrow, at a nominal rent, no portion of +which was ever exacted. The Duke subsequently honoured him with his +personal friendship, and made him frequently share of his hospitality. + +From the time of his abandoning "The Spy," Hogg had contemplated the +publication of a periodical on an extended scale. At length, finding a +coadjutor in Mr Thomas Pringle, he explained their united proposal to +his friend, Mr Blackwood, the publisher, who highly approved of the +design. Preliminaries were arranged, and the afterwards celebrated +_Blackwood's Magazine_ took its origin. Hogg was now resident at +Altrive, and the editorship was entrusted to Pringle and his literary +friend Cleghorn. The vessel had scarcely been well launched, however, on +the ocean of letters, when storms arose a-head; hot disputes occurred +between the publisher and the editors, which ultimately terminated in +the withdrawal of the latter from the concern, and their connexion with +the _Edinburgh Magazine_, an opposition periodical established by Mr +Constable. The combating parties had referred to the Shepherd, who was +led to accord his support to Mr Blackwood. He conceived the idea of the +"Chaldee Manuscript," as a means of ridiculing the oppositionists. Of +this famous satire, the first thirty-seven verses of chapter first, with +several other sentences throughout, were his own composition, the +remaining portion being the joint fabrication of his friends Wilson and +Lockhart.[39] This singular production produced a sensation in the +capital unequalled in the history of any other literary performance; and +though, from the evident personalities and the keenness of the satire, +it had to be cancelled, so that a copy in the pages of the magazine is +now a rarity, it sufficiently attained the purpose of directing public +attention to the newly-established periodical. The "Chaldee Manuscript" +appeared in the seventh number of _Blackwood's Magazine_, published in +October 1817. To the magazine Hogg continued to be a regular +contributor; and, among other interesting compositions, both in prose +and verse, he produced in its pages his narrative of the "Shepherd's +Calendar." His connexion with this popular periodical is more generally +known from the position assigned him in the "_Noctes Ambrosianae_" of +Professor Wilson. In those interesting dialogues, the _Shepherd_ is +represented as a character of marvellous shrewdness and sagacity, whose +observations on men and manners, life and literature, uttered, as they +are, in the homeliest phrases, contain a depth of philosophy and vigour +of criticism rarely exhibited in the history of real or fictitious +biography. "In wisdom," writes Professor Ferrier, "the Shepherd equals +the Socrates of Plato; in humour, he surpasses the Falstaff of +Shakspeare; clear and prompt, he might have stood up against Dr Johnson +in close and peremptory argument; fertile and copious, he might have +rivalled Burke in amplitude of declamation; while his opulent +imagination and powers of comical description invest all that he utters, +either with a picturesque mildness or a graphic quaintness peculiarly +his own." These remarks, applicable to the Shepherd of the "_Noctes_," +would, indeed, be much overstrained if applied to their prototype; yet +it is equally certain that the leading features of the ideal Shepherd +were depicted from those of the living Shepherd of Ettrick, by one who +knew well how to estimate and appreciate human nature. + +On taking possession of his farm of Altrive Lake, which extended to +about seventy acres, Hogg built a small cottage on the place, in which +he received his aged father, his mother having been previously called to +her rest. In the stocking of the farm, he received very considerable +assistance from the profits of a guinea edition of "The Queen's Wake," +of which the subscribers' list was zealously promoted by Sir Walter +Scott. At Altrive he continued literary composition with unabated +ardour. In 1817, he published "The Brownie of Bodsbeck," a tale of the +period of the Covenant, which attained a considerable measure of +popularity. In 1819, he gave to the world the first volume of his +"Jacobite Relics," the second volume not appearing till 1821. This work, +which bears evidence of extensive labour and research, was favourably +received; the notes are lengthy and copious, and many of the pieces, +which are set to music, have long been popular. His "Winter Evening +Tales" appeared in 1820: several of them were composed on the hills in +early life. + +The worldly circumstances of the Shepherd now were such as rendered him +abundantly justifiable in entering into the married state. On the 28th +April 1820, he espoused Miss Margaret Phillips, the youngest daughter of +Mr Phillips, late of Longbridgemoor, in Annandale. By this union he +became brother-in-law of his friend Mr James Gray, whose first wife was +a sister of Mrs Hogg. At the period of his marriage, from the profits of +his writings and his wife's dowry, he was master of nearly a thousand +pounds and a well-stocked farm; and increasing annual gains by his +writings, seemed to augur future independence. But the Shepherd, not +perceiving that literature was his forte, resolved to embark further in +farming speculations; he took in lease the extensive farm of Mount +Benger, adjoining Altrive Lake, expending his entire capital in the +stocking. The adventure proved almost ruinous. + +The coronation of George IV. was fixed to take place on the 19th of +July 1821; and Sir Walter Scott having resolved to be among the +spectators, invited the Shepherd to accompany him to London on the +occasion. Through Lord Sidmouth, the Secretary of State, he had procured +accommodation for Hogg at the pageant, which his lordship had granted, +with the additional favour of inviting both of them to dinner, to meet +the Duke of York on the following day. The Shepherd had, however, begun +to feel more enthusiastic as a farmer than a poet, and preferred to +attend the sheep-market at St Boswells. For this seeming lack of +loyalty, he afterwards made ample compensation; he celebrated the King's +visit to Scotland, in August 1822, in "a Masque or Drama," which was +published in a separate form. A copy of this production being laid +before the King by Sir Walter Scott, Sir Robert Peel, then Secretary of +State, received his Majesty's gracious command suitably to acknowledge +it. In his official communication, Sir Robert thanked the Shepherd, in +the King's name, "for the gratifying proof of his genius and loyalty." +It had been Scott's desire to obtain a Civil List pension for the +Shepherd, to aid him in his struggles at Mount Benger; and it was with +something like hope that he informed him that Sir Robert Peel had +expressed himself pleased with his writings. But the pension was never +obtained. + +Harassed by pecuniary difficulties, Hogg wrote rapidly, with the view of +relieving himself. In 1822, he published a new edition of his best +poems, in four volumes, for which he received the sum of L200; and in +this and the following year, he produced two works of fiction, entitled, +"The Three Perils of Man," and "The Three Perils of Women," which +together yielded him L300. In 1824, he published "The Confessions of a +Fanatic;" and, in 1826, he gave to the world his long narrative poem of +"Queen Hynde." The last proved unequal to his former poetical efforts. +In 1826, Mr J. G. Lockhart proceeded to London to edit the _Quarterly +Review_, taking along with him, as his assistant, Robert Hogg, a son of +the Shepherd's elder brother. The occasion afforded the poet an +opportunity of renewing his correspondence with his old friend, Allan +Cunningham. Allan wrote to him as follows:-- + + "27 Lower Belgrave Place, _16th Feb. 1826._ + + "My dear James,--It required neither present of book, + nor friend, nor the recalling of old scenes, to render + your letter a most welcome one. You are often present + to my heart and fancy, for your genius and your + friendliness have secured you a place in both. Your + nephew is a fine, modest, and intelligent young man, + and is welcome to my house for his own sake as well as + yours. Your 'Queen Hynde,' for which I thank you, + carries all the vivid marks of your own peculiar cast + of genius about her. One of your very happiest little + things is in the Souvenir of this season--it is pure + and graceful, warm, yet delicate; and we have nought in + the language to compare to it, save everybody's + 'Kilmeny.' In other portions of verse you have been + equalled, and sometimes surpassed; but in scenes which + are neither on earth, nor wholly removed from it--where + fairies speak, and spiritual creatures act, you are + unrivalled. + + "Often do I tread back to the foot of old + Queensberry,[40] and meet you coming down amid the + sunny rain, as I did some twenty years ago. The little + sodded shealing where we sought shelter rises now on my + sight--your two dogs (old Hector was one) lie at my + feet--the 'Lay of the Last Minstrel' is in my hand, for + the first time, to be twice read over after sermon, as + it really was--poetry, nothing but poetry, is our talk, + and we are supremely happy. Or, I shift the scene to + Thornhill, and there whilst the glass goes round, and + lads sing and lasses laugh, we turn our discourse on + verse, and still our speech is song. Poetry had then a + charm for us, which has since been sobered down. I can + now meditate without the fever of enthusiasm upon me; + yet age to youth owes all or most of its happiest + aspirations, and contents itself with purifying and + completing the conceptions of early years. + + "We are both a little older and a little graver than we + were some twenty years ago, when we walked in glory and + joy on the side of old Queensberry. My wife is much the + same in look as when you saw her in Edinburgh--at least + so she seems to me, though five boys and a girl might + admonish me of change--of loss of bloom, and abatement + of activity. My oldest boy resolves to be a soldier; he + is a clever scholar, and his head has been turned by + Caesar. My second and third boys are in Christ's School, + and are distinguished in their classes; they climb to + the head, and keep their places. The other three are at + their mother's knee at home, and have a strong capacity + for mirth and mischief. + + "I have not destroyed my Scottish poem. I mean to + remodel it, and infuse into it something more of the + spark of living life. But my pen has of late strayed + into the regions of prose. Poetry is too much its own + reward; and one cannot always write for a barren smile, + and a thriftless clap on the back. We must live; and + the white bread and the brown can only be obtained by + gross payment. There is no poet and a wife and six + children fed now like the prophet Elijah--they are more + likely to be devoured by critics, than fed by ravens. I + cannot hope that Heaven will feed me and mine while I + sing. So farewell to song for a season. + + "My brother's[41] want of success has surprised me too. + He had a fair share of talent; and, had he cultivated + his powers with care, and given himself fair play, his + fate would have been different. But he sees nature + rather through a curious medium than with the tasteful + eye of poetry, and must please himself with the praise + of those who love singular and curious things. I have + said nothing all this while of Mrs Hogg, though I might + have said much, for we hear her household prudence and + her good taste often commended. She comes, too, from my + own dear country--a good assurance of a capital wife + and an affectionate mother. My wife and I send her and + you most friendly greetings. We hope to see you both in + London during the summer. + + "You have written much, but you must write more yet. + What say you to a series of poems in your own original + way, steeped from end to end in Scottish superstition, + but purified from its grossness by your own genius and + taste? Do write me soon. I have a good mind to come and + commence shepherd beside you, and aid you in making a + yearly pastoral _Gazette_ in prose and verse for our + _ain_ native Lowlands. The thing would take. + + "The evil news of Sir Walter's losses came on me like + an invasion. I wish the world would do for him now what + it will do in fifty years, when it puts up his statue + in every town--let it lay out its money in purchasing + an estate, as the nation did to the Duke of Wellington, + and money could never be laid out more worthily.--I + remain, dear James, your very faithful friend, + + "Allan Cunningham." + +One of the parties chiefly aggrieved in the matter of the Chaldee MS. +was Thomas Pringle, one of the original editors of _Blackwood_. This +ingenious person had lately returned from a period of residence in +Southern Africa, and established himself in London as secretary to the +Slave Abolition Society, and a man of letters. Forgetting past +differences, he invited the Shepherd, in the following letter, to aid +him in certain literary enterprises:-- + + "London, _May 19, 1827._ + + "My dear Sir,--I wrote you a hasty note some time ago, + to solicit your literary aid for the projected work of + Mr Fraser. I now address you on behalf of two other + friends of mine, who are about to start a new weekly + publication, something in the shape of the _Literary + Gazette_, to be entitled _The London Review_. The + editors are Mr D. L. Richardson, the author of a volume + of poems chiefly written in India, and a Mr St John, a + young gentleman of very superior talents, whose name + has not yet been (so far as I know) before the public, + though he has been a contributor to several of the + first-rate periodicals. I have no other interest in the + work myself than that of a friend and contributor. The + editors, knowing that I have the pleasure of your + acquaintance, have requested me to solicit your aid to + their work, either in verse or prose, and they will + consider themselves pledged to pay for any + contributions with which you may honour them at the + same rate as _Blackwood_. May I hope, my dear sir, that + you will, at all events, stretch a point to send them + something for their first number, which is to appear in + the beginning of June.... + + "I always read your '_Noctes_,' and have had many a + hearty laugh with them in the interior of Southern + Africa; for though I detest _Blackwood's_ politics, and + regret to see often such fine talents so sadly + misapplied (as I see the matter), yet I have never + permitted my own political predilections, far less any + reminiscences of old magazine squabbles, to blind me to + the exuberant flow of genius which pervades and + beautifies so many delightful articles in that + magazine.... Believe me always, dear Hogg, yours very + truly, + + "Tho. Pringle." + +A similar request for contributions was made the year following by +William Howitt. His letter is interesting, as exhibiting the epistolary +style of a popular writer. Howitt, it will be perceived, is a member of +the Society of Friends. + + "Nottingham, _12th mo., 20th, 1828._ + + "Respected Friend,--Herewith I forward, for thy + acceptance, two small volumes, as a trifling testimony + of the high estimation in which we have long held thy + writings. So great was our desire to see thee when my + wife and I were, a few springs ago, making a ramble on + foot through some parts of your beautiful country, that + nothing but the most contrary winds of circumstance + prevented us. + + "I am now preparing for the press 'The Book of the + Seasons,' a volume of prose and poetry, intended to + furnish the lover of nature with a remembrancer, to put + him in mind, on the opening of each month, of what he + may look for in his garden, or his country walks; a + notice of all remarkable in the round of the seasons, + and the beautiful in scenery,--of all that is pleasant + in rural sights, sounds, customs, and occupations. I + hope to make it, if I am favoured with health, in a + little time, both a pleasant and original volume, and + one which may do its mite towards strengthening and + diffusing that healthful love of nature which is so + desirable in a great commercial country like this, + where our manufacturing population are daily spreading + over its face, and cut off themselves from the + animating and heart-preserving influence of + nature,--are also swallowing up our forests and heaths, + those free, and solitary, and picturesque places, which + have fostered the soul of poetry in so many of our + noble spirits. I quite envy thy residence in so bold + and beautiful a region, where the eye and the foot may + wander, without being continually offended and + obstructed by monotonous hedge-rows, and abominable + factories. If thou couldst give, from the ample stores + of thy observant mind, a slight sketch or two of + anything characteristic of the seasons, in + _mountainous_ scenery especially, I shall regard them + as apples of gold. I am very anxious to learn whether + any particular customs or festivities are kept up in + the sheep-districts of Scotland at sheep-shearing time, + as were wont of old all over England; and where is + there a man who could solve such a problem like + thyself? I am sensible of the great boldness of my + request; but as my object is to promote the love of + nature, I am willing to believe that I am not more + influenced by such a feeling than thou art. I intend to + have the book got out in a handsome manner, and to have + it illustrated with woodcuts, by the best artists; + being more desirous to give to others that ardent + attachment to the beauties of the country that has + clung to me from a boy, and for the promotion of which + all our real poets are so distinguished, than to + realise much profit. Anything that thou couldst send me + about your country life, or the impression which the + scenery makes upon a poetical mind at different + seasons, on your heaths and among your hills, I should + be proud to acknowledge, and should regard as the gems + of my book. Whether or not, however, it be practicable + or agreeable to thee, I hope to have the pleasure of + presenting thee a copy of the work when it is out. Mary + requests me to present to thee her respectful regards; + and allow me to subscribe myself, with great respect, + thy friend, + + "W. Howitt." + +In 1829, on the expiry of his lease, Hogg relinquished the farm of Mount +Benger, and returned to his former residence at Altrive. Rumour, ever +ready to propagate tales of misfortune, had busily circulated the +report that, a completely ruined man, he had again betaken himself to +literary labours in the capital. In this belief, Mr Tennant, author of +"Anster Fair," addressed to him the following characteristic letter, +intended, by its good-humoured pleasantries, to soothe him in his +contendings with adversity:-- + + "Devongrove, _27th June 1829._ + + "My dear Friend James Hogg,--I have never seen, spoken, + whispered to, handled, or smelt you, since the King's + visit in 1822, when I met you in Edinburgh street, and + inhaled, by juxtaposition, your sweet fraternal breath. + How the Fates have since sundered us! How have you been + going on, fattening and beautifying from one degree to + another of poetical perfection, while I have, under the + chilling shade of the Ochil Hills, been dwindling down + from one degree of poetical extenuation to another, + till at length I am become the very shadow and ghost of + literary leanness! I should now wish to see you, and + compare you as you are now with what you were in your + 'Queen's Wake' days. For this purpose, I would be very + fain you would condescend to pay us a visit. I see you + indeed, at times, in the _Literary Journal_; I see you + in _Blackwood_, fighting, and reaping a harvest of + beautiful black eyes from the fists of Professor John + Wilson. I see you in songs, in ballads, in calendars. I + see you in the postern of time long elapsed. I see you + in the looking-glass of my own facetious and + song-recalling memory--but I should wish to see you in + the real, visible, palpable, smellable beauty of your + own person, standing before me in my own house, at my + own fireside, in all the halo of your poetical + radiance! Come over, then, if possible, my dear + Shepherd, and stay a night or two with us. You may + tarry with your friend, Mr Bald, one afternoon or so by + the way, and explore the half-forgotten treasures of + the Shakspeare cellars[42]--but you may rest yourself + under the shadow of the Ochil Hills a longer space, + and enjoy the beauties of our scenery, and, such as it + is, the fulness of our hospitality, which, believe me, + will be spouted out upon you freely and rejoicingly. + + "To be serious in speech, I really wish you would take + a trip up this way some time during the summer. I + understand you are settled in Edinburgh, and in that + thought have now addressed you. If I am wrong, write + me. Indeed, write me at any rate, as I would wish again + to see your fist at least, though the Fates should + forbid my seeing your person here. But I think you + would find some pleasure in visiting again your Alloa + friends, to say nothing of the happiness we should have + in seeing you at Devongrove.... Be sure to write me + now, James, in answer to this; and believe me to be, + ever most sincerely yours, + + "Wm. Tennant." + +The Shepherd's next literary undertaking was an edition of Burns, +published at Glasgow. In this task he had an able coadjutor in the poet +Motherwell. In 1831, he published a collected edition of his songs, +which received a wide circulation. On account of some unfortunate +difference with Blackwood, he proceeded in December of that year to +London, with the view of effecting an arrangement for the republication +of his whole works. His reception in the metropolis was worthy of his +fame; he was courted with avidity by all the literary circles, and feted +at the tables of the nobility. A great festival, attended by nearly two +hundred persons, including noblemen, members of Parliament, and men of +letters, was given him in Freemasons' Hall, on the anniversary of the +birthday of Burns. The duties of chairman were discharged by Sir John +Malcolm, who had the Shepherd on his right hand, and two sons of Burns +on his left. After dinner, the Shepherd brewed punch in the punch-bowl +of Burns, which was brought to the banquet by its present owner, Mr +Archibald Hastie, M.P. for Paisley. He obtained a publisher for his +works in the person of Mr James Cochrane, an enterprising bookseller in +Pall Mall, who issued the first volume of the series on the 31st of +March 1832, under the designation of the "Altrive Tales." By the +unexpected failure of the publisher, the series did not proceed, so that +the unfortunate Shepherd derived no substantial advantage from a three +months' residence in London. + +Recent reverses had somewhat depressed his literary ardour; and, though +his immediate embarrassments were handsomely relieved by private +subscriptions and a donation from the Literary Fund, he felt indisposed +vigorously to renew his literary labours. He did not reappear as an +author till 1834, when he published a volume of essays on religion and +morals, under the title of "Lay Sermons on Good Principles and Good +Breeding." This work was issued from the establishment of Mr James +Fraser, of Regent Street. In the May number of _Blackwood's Magazine_ +for 1834, he again appeared before the public in the celebrated +"_Noctes_," which had been discontinued for upwards of two years, owing +to his misunderstanding with Mr Blackwood. On this subject we are +privileged to publish the following letter, addressed to him by +Professor Wilson:-- + + "_30th April._ + + "My dear Mr Hogg,--After frequent reflection on the + estrangement that has so long subsisted between those + who used to be such good friends, I have felt convinced + that _I_ ought to put an end to it on my own + responsibility. Without, therefore, asking either you + or Mr Blackwood, I have written a '_Noctes_,' in which + my dear Shepherd again appears. I hope you will think I + have done right. I intend to write six within the year; + and it is just, and no more than just, that you should + receive five guineas a sheet. Enclosed is that sum for + No. I. of the new series. + + "If you will, instead of writing long tales, for which + at present there is no room, write a 'Series of Letters + to Christopher North,' or, 'Flowers and Weeds from the + Forest,' or, 'My Life at Altrive,' embodying your + opinions and sentiments on all things, _angling_, + shooting, curling, &c., &c., in an easy characteristic + style, it will be easy for you to add L50 per annum to + the L50 which you will receive for your '_Noctes_.' I + hope you will do so. + + "I have taken upon myself a responsibility which + nothing but the sincerest friendship could have induced + me to do. You may be angry; you may misjudge my + motives; yet hardly can I think it. Let the painful in + the past be forgotten, and no allusion ever made to it; + and for the future, I shall do all I can to prevent + anything happening that can be disagreeable to your + feelings.--With kind regards to Mrs Hogg and family, I + am ever most sincerely and affectionately yours, + + "John Wilson." + +During the summer after his return from London, Hogg received what he +accounted his greatest literary honour. He was entertained at a public +dinner, attended by many of the distinguished literary characters both +of Scotland and the sister kingdom. The dinner took place at Peebles, +the chair being occupied by Professor Wilson. In reply to the toast of +his health, he pleasantly remarked, that he had courted fame on the +hill-side and in the city; and now, when he looked around and saw so +many distinguished individuals met together on his account, he could +exclaim that surely he had found it at last! + +The career of the Bard of Ettrick was drawing to a close. His firm and +well-built frame was beginning to surrender under the load of anxiety, +as well as the pressure of years. Subsequent to his return from London, +a perceptible change had occurred in his constitution, yet he seldom +complained; and, even so late as April 1835, he gave to the world +evidence of remaining bodily and mental vigour, by publishing a work in +three volumes, under the title of "Montrose Tales." This proved to be +his last publication. The symptoms of decline rapidly increased; and, +though he ventured to proceed, as was his usual habit, to the moors in +the month of August, he could hardly enjoy the pleasures of a sportsman. +He became decidedly worse in the month of October, and was at length +obliged to confine himself to bed. After a severe illness of four weeks, +he died on the 21st of November, "departing this life," writes William +Laidlaw, "as calmly, and, to appearance, with as little pain, as if he +had fallen asleep, in his gray plaid, on the side of the moorland rill." +The Shepherd had attained his sixty-fifth year. + +The funeral of the Bard was numerously attended by the population of the +district. Of his literary friends--owing to the remoteness of the +locality--Professor Wilson alone attended. He stood uncovered at the +grave after the rest of the company had retired, and consecrated, by his +tears, the green sod of his friend's last resting-place. With the +exception of Burns and Sir Walter Scott, never did Scottish bard receive +more elegies or tributes to his memory. He had had some variance with +Wordsworth; but this venerable poet, forgetting the past, became the +first to lament his departure. The following verses from his pen +appeared in the _Athenaeum_ of the 12th of December:-- + + "When first descending from the moorlands, + I saw the stream of Yarrow glide, + Along a bare and open valley, + The Ettrick Shepherd was my guide. + + "When last along its banks I wander'd, + Through groves that had begun to shed + Their golden leaves upon the pathway, + My steps the Border Minstrel led. + + "The mighty minstrel breathes no longer, + 'Mid mouldering ruins low he lies; + And death, upon the braes of Yarrow, + Has closed the Shepherd-poet's eyes. + + * * * * * + + "No more of old romantic sorrows, + For slaughter'd youth or love-lorn maid, + With sharper grief is Yarrow smitten, + And Ettrick mourns with her their Shepherd dead!" + +Within two bow-shots of the place where lately stood the cottage of his +birth, the remains of James Hogg are interred in the churchyard of +Ettrick. At the grave a plain tombstone to his memory has been erected +by his widow. "When the dark clouds of winter," writes Mr Scott Riddell, +"pass away from the crest of Ettrick-pen, and the summits of the +nearer-lying mountains, which surround the scene of his repose, and the +yellow gowan opens its bosom by the banks of the mountain stream, to +welcome the lights and shadows of the spring returning over the land, +many are the wild daisies which adorn the turf that covers the remains +of THE ETTRICK SHEPHERD. And a verse of one of the songs of his early +days, bright and blissful as they were, is thus strikingly verified, +when he says-- + + 'Flow, my Ettrick! it was thee + Into my life that first did drop me; + Thee I 'll sing, and when I dee, + Thou wilt lend a sod to hap me. + Pausing swains will say, and weep, + Here our Shepherd lies asleep.'" + +As formerly described, Hogg was, in youth, particularly good-looking and +well-formed. A severe illness somewhat changed the form of his features. +His countenance[43] presented the peculiarity of a straight cheekbone; +his forehead was capacious and elevated, and his eye remarkable for its +vivacity. His hair, in advanced life, became dark brown, mixed with +gray. He was rather above the middle height, and was well-built; his +chest was broad, his shoulders square, and his limbs well-rounded. He +disliked foppery, but was always neat in his apparel: on holidays he +wore a suit of black. Forty years old ere he began to mix in the circles +of polished life, he never attained a knowledge of the world and its +ways; in all his transactions he retained the simplicity of the pastoral +character. His Autobiography is the most amusing in the language, from +the honesty of the narrator; never before did man of letters so minutely +reveal the history of his foibles and failings. He was entirely +unselfish and thoroughly benevolent; the homeless wanderer was sure of +shelter under his roof, and the poor of some provision by the way. +Towards his aged parents his filial affection was of the most devoted +kind. Hospitable even to a fault, every visitor received his kindly +welcome, and his visitors were more numerous than those of any other man +of letters in the land.[44] Fond of conviviality, he loved the +intercourse of congenial minds; the voice of friendship was always more +precious to him than the claims of business. He was somewhat expert in +conversation; he talked Scotch on account of long habit, and because it +was familiar to him. He was possessed of a good musical ear, and loved +to sing the ballads of his youth, with several of his own songs; and the +enthusiasm with which he sung amply compensated for the somewhat +discordant nature of his voice. A night with the Shepherd was an event +to be remembered. He was zealous in the cause of education; and he built +a school at Altrive, and partly endowed a schoolmaster, for the benefit +of the children of the district. A Jacobite as respected the past, he +was in the present a devoted loyalist, and strongly maintained that the +stability of the state was bound up in the support of the monarchy; he +had shuddered at the atrocities of the French Revolution, and +apprehended danger from precipitate reform; his politics were strictly +conservative. He was earnest on the subject of religion, and regular in +his attendance upon Divine ordinances. When a shepherd, he had been in +the habit of conducting worship in the family during the absence or +indisposition of his employer, and he was careful in impressing the +sacredness of the duty upon his own children. During his London visit, +he prepared and printed a small book of prayers and hymns for the use of +his family, which he dedicated to them as a New Year's gift. These +prayers are eminently devotional, and all his hymns breathe the language +of fervency and faith. From the strict rules of morality he may have +sometimes deviated, but it would be the worst exercise of +uncharitableness to doubt of his repentance. + +It is the lot of men of genius to suffer from the envenomed shafts of +calumny and detraction. The reputation of James Hogg has thus bled. Much +has been said to his prejudice by those who understood not the simple +nature of his character, and were incapable of forming an estimate of +the principles of his life. He has been broadly accused[45] of doing an +injury to the memory of Sir Walter Scott, who was one of his best +benefactors; to which it might be a sufficient reply, that he was +incapable of perpetrating an ungenerous act. But how stands the fact? +Hogg strained his utmost effort to do honour to the dust of his +illustrious friend! He published reminiscences of him in a small volume, +and in such terms as the following did he pronounce his eulogy:--"He had +a clear head as well as a benevolent heart; was a good man, an anxiously +kind husband, an indulgent parent, and a sincere, forgiving friend; a +just judge, and a punctual correspondent.... Such is the man we have +lost, and such a man we shall never see again. He was truly an +extraordinary man,--the greatest man in the world."[46] Was ever more +panegyrical language used in biography? But Hogg ventured to publish his +recollections of his friend, instead of supplying them for the larger +biography; perhaps some connexion may be traced between this fact and +the indignation of Scott's literary executor! Possessed, withal, of a +genial temper, he was sensitive of affront, and keen in his expressions +of displeasure; he had his hot outbursts of anger with Wilson and +Wordsworth, and even with Scott, on account of supposed slights, but his +resentment speedily subsided, and each readily forgave him. He was +somewhat vain of his celebrity, but what shepherd had not been vain of +such achievements? + +Next to Robert Burns, the Ettrick Shepherd is unquestionably the most +distinguished of Scottish bards, sprung from the ranks of the people: in +the region of the imagination he stands supreme. A child of the forest, +nursed amidst the wilds and tutored among the solitudes of nature, his +strong and vigorous imagination had received impressions from the +mountain, the cataract, the torrent, and the wilderness, and was filled +with pictures and images of the mysterious, which those scenes were +calculated to awaken. "Living for years in solitude," writes Professor +Wilson,[47] "he unconsciously formed friendships with the springs, the +brooks, the caves, the hills, and with all the more fleeting and +faithless pageantry of the sky, that to him came in place of those human +affections, from whose indulgence he was debarred by the necessities +that kept him aloof from the cottage fire, and up among the mists on the +mountain top. The still green beauty of the pastoral hills and vales +where he passed his youth, inspired him with ever-brooding visions of +fairy-land, till, as he lay musing in his lonely shieling, the world of +phantasy seemed, in the clear depths of his imagination, a lovelier +reflection of that of nature, like the hills and heavens more softly +shining in the water of his native lake." Hogg was in his element, as he +revelled amid the supernatural, and luxuriated in the realms of faery: +the mysterious gloom of superstition was lit up into brilliancy by the +potent wand of his enchantment, and before the splendour of his genius. +His ballad of "Kilmeny," in the "Queen's Wake," is the emanation of a +poetical mind evidently of the most gifted order; never did bard +conceive a finer fairy tale, or painter portray a picture of purer, or +more spiritual and exquisite sweetness. "The Witch of Fife," another +ballad in "The Wake," has scarcely a parallel in wild unearthliness and +terror; and we know not if sentiments more spiritual or sublime are to +be found in any poetry than in some passages of "The Pilgrims of the +Sun." His ballads, generally in his peculiar vein of the romantic and +supernatural, are all indicative of power; his songs are exquisitely +sweet and musical, and replete with pathos and pastoral dignity. Though +he had written only "When the kye comes hame," and "Flora Macdonald's +Lament," his claims to an honoured place in the temple of Scottish song +had been unquestioned. As a prose-writer, he does not stand high; many +of his tales are interesting in their details, but they are too +frequently disfigured by a rugged coarseness; yet his pastoral +experiences in the "Shepherd's Calendar" will continue to find readers +and admirers while a love for rural habits, and the amusing arts of +pastoral life, finds a dwelling in the Scottish heart. + +Of the Shepherd it has been recorded by one[48] who knew him well, that +at the time of his death he had certainly the youngest heart of all who +had ever attained his age; he was possessed of a buoyancy which +misfortune might temporarily depress, but could not subdue. To the close +of his career, he rejoiced in the sports and field exercises of his +youth; in his best days he had, in the games of leaping and running, +been usually victorious in the annual competitions at Eskdalemuir; in +his advanced years, he was constituted judge at the annual Scottish +games at Innerleithen. A sportsman, he was famous alike on the moor and +by the river; the report of his musket was familiar on his native hills; +and hardly a stream in south or north but had yielded him their finny +brood. By young authors he was frequently consulted, and he entered with +enthusiasm into their concerns; many poets ushered their volumes into +the world under his kindly patronage. He had his weaker points; but his +worth and genius were such as to extort the reluctant testimony of one +who was latterly an avowed antagonist, that he was "the most remarkable +man that ever wore the _maud_ of a Shepherd."[49] + +Hogg left some MSS. which are still unpublished,--the journals of his +Highland tours being in the possession of Mr Peter Cunningham of London. +Since his death, a uniform edition of many of his best works, +illustrated with engravings from sketches by Mr D. O. Hill, has been +published, with the concurrence of the family, by the Messrs Blackie of +Glasgow, in eleven volumes duodecimo. A Memoir, undertaken for that +edition by the late Professor Wilson, was indefinitely postponed. A +pension on the Civil List of L50 was conferred by the Queen on Mrs Hogg, +the poet's widow, in October 1853; and since her husband's death, she +has received an annuity of L40 from the Duke of Buccleuch. Of a family +of five, one son and three daughters survive, some of whom are +comfortably settled in life. + + +[28] The Shepherd entertained the belief that he was born on the 25th of +January 1772. + +[29] Mr Macturk is well remembered in Dumfriesshire as a person of +remarkable shrewdness and unbounded generosity. + +[30] Mr Gray was the author of "Cona, or the Vale of Clywyd," "A Sabbath +among the Mountains," and other poems. + +[31] The ballad of "Gilmanscleuch" appeared in "The Mountain Bard." See +"The Ettrick Shepherd's Poems," vol. ii., p. 203. Blackie and Son. + +[32] "The Poetic Mirror," for which the Shepherd had begun to collect +contributions. + +[33] Jeffrey reviewed Wordsworth's "Excursion" in the _Edinburgh Review_ +for November 1814, and certainly had never used more declamatory +language against any poem. + +[34] In a letter to Mr Grosvenor C. Bedford, dated Keswick, December 22, +1814, Southey thus writes:--"Had you not better wait for Jeffrey's +attack upon 'Roderick.' I have a most curious letter upon this subject +from Hogg, the Ettrick Shepherd, a worthy fellow, and a man of very +extraordinary powers. Living in Edinburgh, he thinks Jeffrey the +greatest man in the world--an intellectual Bonaparte, whom nobody and +nothing can resist. But Hogg, notwithstanding this, has fallen in liking +with me, and is a great admirer of 'Roderick.' And this letter is to +request that I will not do anything to _nettle_ Jeffrey while he is +deliberating concerning 'Roderick,' for he seems favourably disposed +towards me! Morbleu! it is a rich letter! Hogg requested that he himself +might review it, and gives me an extract from Jeffrey's answer, refusing +him. 'I have, as well as you, a great respect for Southey,' he says, +'but he is a most provoking fellow, and at least as conceited as his +neighbour Wordsworth.' But he shall be happy to talk to Hogg upon this +and other _kindred_ subjects, and he should be very glad to give me a +lavish allowance of praise, if I would afford him occasion, &c.; but he +must do what he thinks his duty, &c.! I laugh to think of the effect my +reply will produce upon Hogg. How it will make every bristle to stand on +end like quills upon the fretful porcupine!"--_Life and Correspondence +of Robert Southey, edited by his Son_, vol. iv., p. 93. London: 6 vols. +8vo. + +[35] The first edition of "Roderick" was in quarto,--a shape which the +Shepherd deemed unsuitable for poetry. + +[36] Murray of Abermarle Street, the famous publisher. + +[37] Hogg evinced his strong displeasure with Sir Walter for his +refusal, by writing him a declamatory letter, and withdrawing from his +society for several months. The kind inquiries which his old benefactor +had made regarding him during a severe illness, afterwards led to a +complete reconciliation,--the Shepherd apologising by letter for his +former rashness, and his illustrious friend telling him "to think no +more of the business, and come to breakfast next morning." + +[38] See Hogg's autobiography, prefixed to the fifth volume of Blackie's +edition of his poems, p. 107. + +[39] See the Works of Professor Wilson, edited by his Son-in-law, +Professor Ferrier, vol. i., p. xvi. Edinburgh: 1855. 8vo. + +[40] When the Shepherd was tending the flocks of Mr Harkness of +Mitchel-slack, on the great hill of Queensberry, in Nithsdale, he was +visited by Allan Cunningham, then a lad of eighteen, who came to see +him, moved with admiration for his genius.--(See Memoir of Allan +Cunningham, _postea_). [Transcriber's Note: This Memoir appears in +Volume III.] + +[41] Thomas Mouncey Cunningham. See _postea_. + +[42] The Shakspeare Club of Alloa, which is here referred to, took its +origin early in the century--being composed of admirers of the +illustrious dramatist, and lovers of general literature in that place. +The anniversary meeting was usually held on the 23d of April, generally +supposed to be the birth-day of the poet. The Shepherd was laureate of +the club, and was present at many of the meetings. On these occasions he +shared the hospitality of Mr Alexander Bald, now of Craigward +Cottage--"the Father of the Club," and one of his own attached literary +friends. Mr Bald formed the Shepherd's acquaintance in 1803, when on a +visit to his friend Grieve, at Cacrabank. This venerable gentleman is in +possession of the original M.S. of the "Ode to the Genius of +Shakspeare," which Hogg wrote for the Alloa Club in 1815. In a letter, +addressed to Mr Bald, accompanying that composition, he wrote as +follows: "_Edin., April 23d, 1815._--Let the bust of Shakspeare be +crowned with laurel on Thursday, for I expect it will be a memorable day +for the club, as well as in the annals of literature,--for I yesterday +got the promise of being accompanied by both _Wilson_, and _Campbell_, +the bard of Hope. I must, however, remind you that it was very late, and +over a bottle, when I extracted this promise--they both appeared, +however, to swallow the proposal with great avidity, save that the +latter, in conversing about our means of conveyance, took a mortal +disgust at the word _steam_, as being a very improper agent in the +wanderings of poets. I have not seen either of them to-day, and it is +likely that they will be in very different spirits, yet I think it not +improbable that one or both of them may be induced to come." The club +did not on this occasion enjoy the society of any of the three poets. + +[43] Hogg used to say that his face was "out of all rule of drawing," as +an apology for artists, who so generally failed in transferring a +correct representation of him to canvas. There were at least four +oil-paintings of the poet: the first executed by Nicholson in 1817, for +Mr Grieve; the second by Sir John Watson Gordon for Mr Blackwood; the +third by a London artist for Allan Cunningham; and the fourth by Mr +James Scott of Edinburgh, for the poet himself. The last is universally +admitted to be the most striking likeness, and, with the permission of +Mrs Hogg, it has been very successfully lithographed for the present +volume. + +[44] See "Memoir and Correspondence of Mrs Grant of Laggan." 1844. + +[45] See Lockhart's "Life of Sir Walter Scott." + +[46] "The Domestic Memoirs and Private Life of Sir Walter Scott, by +James Hogg," p. 118. Glasgow, 1834. 16mo. + +[47] _Blackwood's Magazine_, vol. iv., p. 521. + +[48] Mr H. S. Riddell. + +[49] Mr J. G. Lockhart. + + + + +DONALD MACDONALD. + +AIR--_"Woo'd, and married, and a'."_ + + + My name it is Donald Macdonald, + I leeve in the Highlands sae grand; + I hae follow'd our banner, and will do, + Wherever my master[50] has land. + When rankit amang the blue bonnets, + Nae danger can fear me ava; + I ken that my brethren around me + Are either to conquer or fa': + Brogues an' brochin an' a', + Brochin an' brogues an' a'; + An' is nae her very weel aff, + Wi' her brogues and brochin an' a'? + + What though we befriendit young Charlie?-- + To tell it I dinna think shame; + Poor lad! he cam to us but barely, + An' reckon'd our mountains his hame. + 'Twas true that our reason forbade us, + But tenderness carried the day; + Had Geordie come friendless amang us, + Wi' him we had a' gane away. + Sword an' buckler an' a', + Buckler an' sword an' a'; + Now for George we 'll encounter the devil, + Wi' sword an' buckler and a'! + + An' O, I wad eagerly press him + The keys o' the East to retain; + For should he gie up the possession, + We 'll soon hae to force them again, + Than yield up an inch wi' dishonour, + Though it were my finishing blow, + He aye may depend on Macdonald, + Wi' his Hielanders a' in a row: + Knees an' elbows an' a', + Elbows an' knees an' a'; + Depend upon Donald Macdonald, + His knees an' elbows an' a'. + + Wad Bonaparte land at Fort William, + Auld Europe nae langer should grane; + I laugh when I think how we 'd gall him + Wi' bullet, wi' steel, an wi' stane; + Wi' rocks o' the Nevis and Garny + We 'd rattle him off frae our shore, + Or lull him asleep in a cairny, + An' sing him--"Lochaber no more!" + Stanes an' bullets an a', + Bullets an' stanes an' a'; + We 'll finish the Corsican callan + Wi' stanes an' bullets an' a'. + + For the Gordon is good in a hurry, + An' Campbell is steel to the bane, + An' Grant, an' Mackenzie, an' Murray, + An' Cameron will hurkle to nane; + The Stuart is sturdy an' loyal, + An' sae is Macleod an' Mackay; + An' I, their gude-brither Macdonald, + Shall ne'er be the last in the fray! + Brogues and brochin an' a', + Brochin an' brogues an' a'; + An' up wi' the bonny blue bonnet, + The kilt an' the feather an' a'. + + +[50] This is the term by which the Highlander was wont to designate his +lawful prince. The word "maker," which appears in former editions of the +song, was accidentally printed in the first edition, and the Shepherd +never had the confidence to alter it. + + + + +FLORA MACDONALD'S FAREWELL.[51] + + + Far over yon hills of the heather sae green, + An' down by the corrie that sings to the sea, + The bonny young Flora sat sighing her lane, + The dew on her plaid, and the tear in her e'e. + She look'd at a boat wi' the breezes that swung, + Away on the wave, like a bird of the main; + An' aye as it lessen'd she sigh'd and she sung, + Fareweel to the lad I shall ne'er see again! + Fareweel to my hero, the gallant and young, + Fareweel to the lad I shall ne'er see again! + + The moorcock that craws on the brows of Ben-Connal, + He kens of his bed in a sweet mossy hame; + The eagle that soars o'er the cliffs of Clan-Ronald, + Unawed and unhunted his eyrie can claim; + The solan can sleep on the shelve of the shore, + The cormorant roost on his rock of the sea, + But, ah! there is one whose hard fate I deplore, + Nor house, ha', nor hame in his country has he: + The conflict is past, and our name is no more-- + There 's nought left but sorrow for Scotland and me! + + The target is torn from the arm of the just, + The helmet is cleft on the brow of the brave, + The claymore for ever in darkness must rust, + But red is the sword of the stranger and slave; + The hoof of the horse, and the foot of the proud, + Have trod o'er the plumes on the bonnet of blue, + Why slept the red bolt in the breast of the cloud, + When tyranny revell'd in blood of the true? + Fareweel, my young hero, the gallant and good! + The crown of thy fathers is torn from thy brow! + + +[51] Was composed to an air handed me by the late lamented Neil Gow, +junior. He said it was an ancient Skye air, but afterwards told me it +was his own. When I first heard the song sung by Mr Morison, I never was +so agreeably astonished--I could hardly believe my senses that I had +made so good a song without knowing it.--_Hogg._ + + + + +BONNY PRINCE CHARLIE. + + + Cam ye by Athol, lad wi' the philabeg, + Down by the Tummel or banks o' the Garry, + Saw ye our lads wi' their bonnets and white cockades, + Leaving their mountains to follow Prince Charlie? + Follow thee! follow thee! wha wadna follow thee? + Lang hast thou loved and trusted us fairly! + Charlie, Charlie, wha wadna follow thee, + King o' the Highland hearts, bonnie Prince Charlie? + + I hae but ae son, my gallant young Donald; + But if I had ten they should follow Glengarry! + Health to M'Donnell and gallant Clan-Ronald-- + For these are the men that will die for their Charlie! + Follow thee! follow thee! &c. + + I 'll to Lochiel and Appin, and kneel to them, + Down by Lord Murray, and Roy of Kildarlie; + Brave M'Intosh, he shall fly to the field with them, + These are the lads I can trust wi' my Charlie! + Follow thee! follow thee! &c. + + Down through the Lowlands, down wi' the Whigamore! + Loyal true Highlanders, down wi' them rarely! + Ronald and Donald, drive on, wi' the broad claymore, + Over the necks o' the foes o' Prince Charlie! + Follow thee! follow thee! wha wadna follow thee? + Long hast thou loved and trusted us fairly! + Charlie, Charlie, wha wadna follow thee, + King o' the Highland hearts, bonny Prince Charlie? + + + + +THE SKYLARK.[52] + + + Bird of the wilderness, + Blithesome and cumberless, + Sweet be thy matin o'er moorland and lea! + Emblem of happiness, + Bless'd is thy dwelling-place-- + O to abide in the desert with thee! + Wild is thy lay and loud, + Far in the downy cloud, + Love gives it energy, love gave it birth. + Where on thy dewy wing, + Where art thou journeying? + Thy lay is in heaven, thy love is on earth. + O'er fell and mountain sheen, + O'er moor and mountain green, + O'er the red streamer that heralds the day, + Over the cloudlet dim, + Over the rainbow's rim, + Musical cherub, soar, singing, away! + Then, when the gloaming comes, + Low in the heather blooms, + Sweet will thy welcome and bed of love be! + Emblem of happiness, + Blest is thy dwelling-place-- + O to abide in the desert with thee! + + +[52] For the fine original air, see Purdie's "Border Garland."--_Hogg._ + + + + +CALEDONIA.[53] + + + Caledonia! thou land of the mountain and rock, + Of the ocean, the mist, and the wind-- + Thou land of the torrent, the pine, and the oak, + Of the roebuck, the hart, and the hind: + Though bare are thy cliffs, and though barren thy glens, + Though bleak thy dun islands appear, + Yet kind are the hearts, and undaunted the clans, + That roam on these mountains so drear! + + A foe from abroad, or a tyrant at home, + Could never thy ardour restrain; + The marshall'd array of imperial Rome + Essay'd thy proud spirit in vain! + Firm seat of religion, of valour, of truth, + Of genius unshackled and free, + The Muses have left all the vales of the south, + My loved Caledonia, for thee! + + Sweet land of the bay and the wild-winding deeps, + Where loveliness slumbers at even, + While far in the depth of the blue water sleeps, + A calm little motionless heaven! + Thou land of the valley, the moor, and the hill, + Of the storm, and the proud-rolling wave-- + Yes, thou art the land of fair liberty still, + And the land of my forefathers' grave! + + +[53] An appropriate air has just been composed for this song by Mr +Walter Burns of Cupar-Fife, which has been arranged with symphonies and +accompaniments for the pianoforte by Mr Edward Salter, of St Andrews. + + + + +O, JEANIE, THERE 'S NAETHING TO FEAR YE! + +AIR--_"Over the Border."_ + + + O, my lassie, our joy to complete again, + Meet me again i' the gloamin', my dearie; + Low down in the dell let us meet again-- + O, Jeanie, there 's naething to fear ye! + Come, when the wee bat flits silent and eiry, + Come, when the pale face o' Nature looks weary; + Love be thy sure defence, + Beauty and innocence-- + O, Jeanie, there 's naething to fear ye! + + Sweetly blaw the haw an' the rowan tree, + Wild roses speck our thicket sae breery; + Still, still will our walk in the greenwood be-- + O, Jeanie, there 's naething to fear ye! + List when the blackbird o' singing grows weary, + List when the beetle-bee's bugle comes near ye, + Then come with fairy haste, + Light foot, an' beating breast-- + O, Jeanie, there 's naething to fear ye! + + Far, far will the bogle and brownie be, + Beauty an' truth, they darena come near it; + Kind love is the tie of our unity, + A' maun love it, an' a' maun revere it. + 'Tis love maks the sang o' the woodland sae cheery, + Love gars a' Nature look bonny that 's near ye; + That makes the rose sae sweet, + Cowslip an' violet-- + O, Jeanie, there 's naething to fear ye! + + + + +WHEN THE KYE COMES HAME.[54] + +AIR--_"Shame fa' the gear and the blathrie o't."_ + + + Come all ye jolly shepherds, + That whistle through the glen, + I 'll tell ye of a secret + That courtiers dinna ken: + What is the greatest bliss + That the tongue o' man can name? + 'Tis to woo a bonny lassie + When the kye comes hame. + When the kye comes hame, + When the kye comes hame, + 'Tween the gloamin' an' the mirk, + When the kye comes hame. + + 'Tis not beneath the coronet, + Nor canopy of state, + 'Tis not on couch of velvet, + Nor arbour of the great-- + 'Tis beneath the spreadin' birk, + In the glen without the name, + Wi' a bonny, bonny lassie, + When the kye comes hame. + When the kye comes hame, &c. + + There the blackbird bigs his nest + For the mate he lo'es to see, + And on the topmost bough, + O, a happy bird is he; + Where he pours his melting ditty, + And love is a' the theme, + And he 'll woo his bonny lassie + When the kye comes hame. + When the kye comes hame, &c. + + When the blewart bears a pearl, + And the daisy turns a pea, + And the bonny lucken gowan + Has fauldit up her e'e, + Then the laverock frae the blue lift + Doops down, an' thinks nae shame + To woo his bonny lassie + When the kye comes hame. + When the kye comes hame, &c. + + See yonder pawkie shepherd, + That lingers on the hill, + His ewes are in the fauld, + An' his lambs are lying still; + Yet he downa gang to bed, + For his heart is in a flame, + To meet his bonny lassie + When the kye comes hame. + When the kye comes hame, &c. + + When the little wee bit heart + Rises high in the breast, + An' the little wee bit starn + Rises red in the east, + O there 's a joy sae dear + That the heart can hardly frame, + Wi' a bonny, bonny lassie, + When the kye comes hame! + When the kye comes hame, &c. + + Then since all Nature joins + In this love without alloy, + O, wha would prove a traitor + To Nature's dearest joy? + Or wha would choose a crown, + Wi' its perils and its fame, + And miss his bonny lassie + When the kye comes hame? + When the kye comes hame, + When the kye comes home, + 'Tween the gloamin' an' the mirk, + When the kye comes hame! + + +[54] In the title and chorus of this favourite pastoral song, I choose +rather to violate a rule in grammar, than a Scottish phrase so common, +that when it is altered into the proper way, every shepherd and +shepherd's sweetheart account it nonsense. I was once singing it at a +wedding with great glee the latter way, "When the kye come hame," when a +tailor, scratching his head, said, "It was a terrible affectit way +that!" I stood corrected, and have never sung it so again.--_Hogg._ + + + + +THE WOMEN FOLK.[55] + + + O sarely may I rue the day + I fancied first the womenkind; + For aye sinsyne I ne'er can hae + Ae quiet thought or peace o' mind! + They hae plagued my heart, an' pleased my e'e, + An' teased an' flatter'd me at will, + But aye, for a' their witchery, + The pawky things I lo'e them still. + O, the women folk! O, the women folk! + But they hae been the wreck o' me; + O, weary fa' the women folk, + For they winna let a body be! + + I hae thought an' thought, but darena tell, + I 've studied them wi' a' my skill, + I 've lo'ed them better than mysel, + I 've tried again to like them ill. + Wha sairest strives, will sairest rue, + To comprehend what nae man can; + When he has done what man can do, + He 'll end at last where he began. + O, the woman folk, &c. + + That they hae gentle forms an' meet, + A man wi' half a look may see; + An' gracefu' airs, an' faces sweet, + An' waving curls aboon the bree; + An' smiles as soft as the young rose-bud, + An' e'en sae pauky, bright, an' rare, + Wad lure the laverock frae the clud-- + But, laddie, seek to ken nae mair! + O, the woman folk, &c. + + Even but this night, nae farther gane, + The date is neither lost nor lang, + I tak ye witness ilka ane, + How fell they fought, and fairly dang. + Their point they 've carried right or wrang, + Without a reason, rhyme, or law, + An' forced a man to sing a sang, + That ne'er could sing a verse ava. + O, the woman folk! O, the woman folk! + But they hae been the wreck o' me; + O, weary fa' the women folk, + For they winna let a body be! + + +[55] The air of this song is my own. It was first set to music by +Heather, and most beautifully set too. It was afterwards set by Dewar, +whether with the same accompaniments or not, I have forgot. It is my own +favourite humorous song when forced by ladies to sing against my will, +which too frequently happens; and notwithstanding my wood-notes wild, it +will never be sung by any so well again.--For the air, see the "Border +Garland."--_Hogg._ + + + + +M'LEAN'S WELCOME.[56] + + + Come o'er the stream, Charlie, + Dear Charlie, brave Charlie; + Come o'er the stream, Charlie, + And dine with M'Lean; + And though you be weary, + We 'll make your heart cheery, + And welcome our Charlie, + And his loyal train. + We 'll bring down the track deer, + We 'll bring down the black steer, + The lamb from the braken, + And doe from the glen, + The salt sea we 'll harry, + And bring to our Charlie + The cream from the bothy + And curd from the penn. + + Come o'er the stream, Charlie, + Dear Charlie, brave Charlie; + Come o'er the sea, Charlie, + And dine with M'Lean; + And you shall drink freely + The dews of Glen-sheerly, + That stream in the starlight + When kings do not ken; + And deep be your meed + Of the wine that is red, + To drink to your sire, + And his friend The M'Lean. + + Come o'er the stream, Charlie, + Dear Charlie, brave Charlie; + Come o'er the stream, Charlie, + And dine with M'Lean; + If aught will invite you + Or more will delight you + 'Tis ready, a troop of our bold Highlandmen, + All ranged on the heather, + With bonnet and feather, + Strong arms and broad claymores, + Three hundred and ten! + + +[56] I versified this song at Meggernie Castle, in Glen-Lyon, from a +scrap of prose said to be the translation, _verbatim_, of a Gaelic song, +and to a Gaelic air, sung by one of the sweetest singers and most +accomplished and angelic beings of the human race. But, alas! earthly +happiness is not always the lot of those who, in our erring estimation, +most deserve it. She is now no more, and many a strain have I poured to +her memory. The air is arranged by Smith.--See the "Scottish +Minstrel."--_Hogg._ + + + + +CHARLIE IS MY DARLING.[57] + + + 'Twas on a Monday morning, + Right early in the year, + That Charlie cam' to our town, + The young Chevalier. + An' Charlie is my darling, + My darling, my darling; + Charlie is my darling, + The young Chevalier. + + As Charlie he came up the gate, + His face shone like the day; + I grat to see the lad come back + That had been lang away. + An' Charlie is my darling, &c. + + Then ilka bonny lassie sang, + As to the door she ran, + Our King shall hae his ain again, + An' Charlie is the man: + For Charlie he 's my darling, &c. + + Out ow'r yon moory mountain, + An' down the craggy glen, + Of naething else our lasses sing, + But Charlie an' his men. + An' Charlie he 's my darling, &c. + + Our Highland hearts are true an' leal, + An' glow without a stain; + Our Highland swords are metal keen, + An' Charlie he 's our ain. + An' Charlie he 's my darling, + My darling, my darling; + Charlie he 's my darling, + The young Chevalier. + + +[57] Altered at the request of a lady who sang it sweetly, and published +in the "Jacobite Relics."--_Hogg._ + + + + +LOVE IS LIKE A DIZZINESS. + +AIR--_"Paddy's Wedding."_ + + + I lately lived in quiet ease, + An' never wish'd to marry, O! + But when I saw my Peggy's face, + I felt a sad quandary, O! + Though wild as ony Athol deer, + She has trepann'd me fairly, O! + Her cherry cheeks an' e'en sae clear + Torment me late an' early, O! + O, love, love, love! + Love is like a dizziness, + It winna let a poor body + Gang about his business! + + To tell my feats this single week, + Would mak' a daft-like diary, O! + I drave my cart outow'r a dike, + My horses in a miry, O! + I wear my stockings white an' blue, + My love 's sae fierce an' fiery, O! + I drill the land that I should plough, + An' plough the drills entirely, O! + O, love, love, love! &c. + + Ae morning, by the dawn o' day, + I rose to theek the stable, O! + I keust my coat an' plied away + As fast as I was able, O! + I wrought that morning out an' out, + As I 'd been redding fire, O! + When I had done an' look'd about, + Gude faith, it was the byre, O! + O, love, love, love! &c. + + Her wily glance I 'll ne'er forget, + The dear, the lovely blinkin' o't + Has pierced me through an' through the heart, + An' plagues me wi' the prinklin' o't. + I tried to sing, I tried to pray, + I tried to drown 't wi' drinkin' o't, + I tried wi' sport to drive 't away, + But ne'er can sleep for thinkin' o't. + O, love, love, love! &c. + + Nae man can tell what pains I prove, + Or how severe my pliskie, O! + I swear I 'm sairer drunk wi' love + Than e'er I was wi' whisky, O! + For love has raked me fore an' aft, + I scarce can lift a leggie, O! + I first grew dizzy, then gaed daft, + An' soon I 'll dee for Peggy, O! + O, love, love, love! + Love is like a dizziness, + It winna let a poor body + Gang about his business! + + + + +O, WEEL BEFA' THE MAIDEN GAY.[58] + + + O, weel befa' the maiden gay, + In cottage, bught, or penn, + An' weel befa' the bonny May + That wons in yonder glen; + Wha loes the modest truth sae weel, + Wha 's aye kind, an' aye sae leal, + An' pure as blooming asphodel + Amang sae mony men. + O, weel befa' the bonny thing + That wons in yonder glen! + + 'Tis sweet to hear the music float + Along the gloaming lea; + 'Tis sweet to hear the blackbird's note + Come pealing frae the tree; + To see the lambkins lightsome race-- + The speckled kid in wanton chase-- + The young deer cower in lonely place, + Deep in her flowing den; + But sweeter far the bonny face + That smiles in yonder glen! + + O, had it no' been for the blush + O' maiden's virgin flame, + Dear beauty never had been known, + An' never had a name; + But aye sin' that dear thing o' blame + Was modell'd by an angel's frame, + The power o' beauty reigns supreme + O'er a' the sons o' men; + But deadliest far the sacred flame + Burns in a lonely glen! + + There 's beauty in the violet's vest-- + There 's hinney in the haw-- + There 's dew within the rose's breast, + The sweetest o' them a'. + The sun will rise an' set again, + An' lace wi' burning goud the main-- + The rainbow bend outow'r the plain, + Sae lovely to the ken; + But lovelier far the bonny thing + That wons in yonder glen! + + +[58] This song was written at Elleray, Mr Wilson's seat in Westmoreland, +where a number of my very best things were written. There was a system +of competition went on there, the most delightful that I ever engaged +in. Mr Wilson and I had a "Queen's Wake" every wet day--a fair set-to +who should write the best poem between breakfast and dinner, and, if I +am any judge, these friendly competitions produced several of our best +poems, if not the best ever written on the same subjects before. Mr +Wilson, as well as Southey and Wordsworth, had all of them a way of +singing out their poetry in a loud sonorous key, which was very +impressive, but perfectly ludicrous. Wilson, at that period, composed +all his poetry by going over it in that sounding strain; and in our +daily competitions, although our rooms were not immediately adjoining, I +always overheard what progress he was making. When he came upon any +grand idea, he opened upon it full swell, with all the energy of a fine +fox-hound on a hot trail. If I heard many of these vehement aspirations, +they weakened my hands and discouraged my heart, and I often said to +myself, "Gude faith, it 's a' ower wi' me for this day!" When we went +over the poems together in the evening, I was always anxious to learn +what parts of the poem had excited the sublime breathings which I had +heard at a distance, but he never could tell me.--_Hogg._ + + + + +THE FLOWERS OF SCOTLAND. + +AIR--_"The Blue Bells of Scotland."_ + + + What are the flowers of Scotland, + All others that excel-- + The lovely flowers of Scotland, + All others that excel? + The thistle's purple bonnet, + And bonny heather-bell, + O, they 're the flowers of Scotland, + All others that excel! + + Though England eyes her roses + With pride she 'll ne'er forego, + The rose has oft been trodden + By foot of haughty foe; + But the thistle in her bonnet blue, + Still nods outow'r the fell, + And dares the proudest foeman + To tread the heather-bell. + + For the wee bit leaf o' Ireland, + Alack and well-a-day! + For ilka hand is free to pu' + An' steal the gem away. + But the thistle in her bonnet blue + Still bobs aboon them a'; + At her the bravest darena blink, + Or gie his mou' a thraw. + + Up wi' the flowers o' Scotland, + The emblems o' the free, + Their guardians for a thousand years, + Their guardians still we 'll be. + A foe had better brave the deil, + Within his reeky cell, + Than our thistle's purple bonnet, + Or bonny heather-bell. + + + + +LASS, AN' YE LO'E ME, TELL ME NOW.[59] + + + "Afore the muircock begin to craw, + Lass, an' ye lo'e me, tell me now, + The bonniest thing that ever ye saw, + For I canna come every night to woo." + "The gouden broom is bonny to see, + An' sae is the milk-white flower o' the haw, + The daisy's wee freenge is sweet on the lea, + But the bud of the rose is the bonniest of a'." + + "Now, wae light on a' your flow'ry chat, + Lass, an' ye lo'e me, tell me now; + It 's no the thing that I would be at, + An' I canna come every night to woo! + The lamb is bonny upon the brae, + The leveret friskin' o'er the knowe, + The bird is bonny upon the tree-- + But which is the dearest of a' to you?" + + "The thing that I lo'e best of a', + Lass, an' ye lo'e me, tell me now; + The dearest thing that ever I saw, + Though I canna come every night to woo, + Is the kindly smile that beams on me, + Whenever a gentle hand I press, + And the wily blink frae the dark-blue e'e + Of a dear, dear lassie that they ca' Bess." + + "Aha! young man, but I cou'dna see, + What I lo'e best I 'll tell you now, + The compliment that ye sought frae me, + Though ye canna come every night to woo; + Yet I would rather hae frae you + A kindly look, an' a word witha', + Than a' the flowers o' the forest pu', + Than a' the lads that ever I saw." + + "Then, dear, dear Bessie, you shall be mine, + Sin' a' the truth ye hae tauld me now, + Our hearts an' fortunes we 'll entwine, + An' I 'll aye come every night to woo; + For O, I canna descrive to thee + The feeling o' love's and nature's law, + How dear this world appears to me + Wi' Bessie, my ain for good an' for a'!" + + +[59] This song was suggested to the Shepherd by the words adapted to the +formerly popular air, "Lass, gin ye lo'e me"--beginning, "I hae laid a +herring in saut." + + + + +PULL AWAY, JOLLY BOYS! + + + Here we go upon the tide, + Pull away, jolly boys! + With heaven for our guide, + Pull away! + Here 's a weather-beaten tar, + Britain's glory still his star, + He has borne her thunders far, + Pull away, jolly boys! + To your gallant men-of-war, + Pull away! + + We 've with Nelson plough'd the main, + Pull away, jolly boys! + Now his signal flies again, + Pull away! + Brave hearts, then let us go + To drub the haughty foe, + Who once again shall know, + Pull away, gallant boys! + That our backs we never shew, + Pull away! + + We have fought and we have sped, + Pull away, gallant boys! + Where the rolling wave was red, + Pull away! + We 've stood many a mighty shock, + Like the thunder-stricken oak, + We 've been bent, but never broke, + Pull away, gallant boys! + We ne'er brook'd a foreign yoke, + Pull away! + + Here we go upon the deep, + Pull away, gallant boys! + O'er the ocean let us sweep, + Pull away! + Round the earth our glory rings, + At the thought my bosom springs, + That whene'er our pennant swings, + Pull away, gallant boys! + Of the ocean we 're the kings, + Pull away! + + + + +O, SAW YE THIS SWEET BONNY LASSIE O' MINE? + + + O, saw ye this sweet bonny lassie o' mine, + Or saw ye the smile on her cheek sae divine; + Or saw ye the kind love that speaks in her e'e? + Sure naebody e'er was so happy as me! + + It 's no that she dances sae light on the green, + It 's no the simplicity mark'd in her mien; + But O, it 's the kind love that speaks in her e'e, + That makes me as happy as happy can be. + + To meet her alane 'mang the green leafy trees, + When naebody kens, an' when naebody sees; + To breathe out the soul of a saft melting kiss-- + On earth here there 's naething is equal to this! + + I have felt every bliss which the soul can enjoy, + When friends circled round me, and nought to annoy; + I have felt every joy that illumines the breast, + When the full flowing bowl is most warmly caress'd: + + But O, there 's a sweet and a heavenly charm + In life's early day, when the bosom is warm; + When soul meets wi' soul in a saft melting kiss-- + On earth sure there 's naething is equal to this! + + + + +THE AULD HIGHLANDMAN. + + + Hersell pe auchty years and twa, + Te twenty-tird o' May, man; + She twell amang te Heelan hills, + Ayont the reefer Spey, man. + Tat year tey foucht the Sherra-muir, + She first peheld te licht, man; + Tey shot my father in tat stoure-- + A plaguit, vexin' spite, man. + + I 've feucht in Scotland here at hame, + In France and Shermanie, man; + And cot tree tespurt pluddy oons, + Beyond te 'Lantic sea, man. + But wae licht on te nasty cun, + Tat ever she pe porn, man; + Phile koot klymore te tristle caird, + Her leaves pe never torn, man. + + Ae tay I shot, and shot, and shot, + Phane'er it cam my turn, man; + Put a' te force tat I could gie, + Te powter wadna purn, man. + A filty loon cam wi' his cun, + Resolvt to to me harm, man; + And wi' te tirk upon her nose, + Ke me a pluddy arm, man. + + I flang my cun wi' a' my micht, + And felt his nepour teit, man; + Tan drew my swort, and at a straik + Hewt aff te haf o 's heit, man. + Be vain to tell o' a' my tricks; + My oons pe nae tiscrace, man; + Ter no pe yin pehint my back, + Ter a pefore my face, man. + + + + +AH, PEGGIE, SINCE THOU 'RT GANE AWAY![60] + + + Ah, Peggie! since thou 'rt gane away, + An' left me here to languish, + I canna fend anither day + In sic regretfu' anguish. + My mind 's the aspen i' the vale, + In ceaseless waving motion; + 'Tis like a ship without a sail, + On life's unstable ocean. + + I downa bide to see the moon + Blink owre the glen sae clearly; + Aince on a bonnie face she shone-- + A face that I lo'ed dearly! + An' when beside yon water clear, + At e'en I 'm lanely roaming, + I sigh an' think, if ane was here, + How sweet wad fa' the gloaming! + + When I think o' thy cheerfu' smile, + Thy words sae free an' kindly, + Thy pawkie e'e's bewitching wile, + The unbidden tear will blind me. + The rose's deepest blushing hue + Thy cheek could eithly borrow, + But ae kiss o' thy cherry mou' + Was worth a year o' sorrow. + + Oh! in the slippery paths of love, + Let prudence aye direct thee; + Let virtue every step approve, + An' virtue will respect thee. + To ilka pleasure, ilka pang, + Alak! I am nae stranger; + An' he wha aince has wander'd wrang + Is best aware o' danger. + + May still thy heart be kind an' true, + A' ither maids excelling; + May heaven distil its purest dew + Around thy rural dwelling. + May flow'rets spring an' wild birds sing + Around thee late an' early; + An' oft to thy remembrance bring + The lad that loo'd thee dearly. + + +[60] This song was addressed, in 1811, to Miss Margaret Phillips, who in +nine years afterwards became the poet's wife. + + + + +GANG TO THE BRAKENS WI' ME. + + + I 'll sing of yon glen of red heather, + An' a dear thing that ca's it her hame, + Wha 's a' made o' love-life thegither, + Frae the tie o' the shoe to the kaime, + Love beckons in every sweet motion, + Commanding due homage to gie; + But the shrine o' my dearest devotion + Is the bend o' her bonny e'ebree. + + I fleech'd an' I pray'd the dear lassie + To gang to the brakens wi' me; + But though neither lordly nor saucy, + Her answer was--"Laith wad I be! + I neither hae father nor mither, + Sage counsel or caution to gie; + An' prudence has whisper'd me never + To gang to the brakens wi' thee." + + "Dear lassie, how can ye upbraid me, + An' try your ain love to beguile? + For ye are the richest young lady + That ever gaid o'er the kirk-stile. + Your smile that is blither than ony, + The bend o' your cheerfu' e'ebree, + An' the sweet blinks o' love there sae bonny, + Are five hunder thousand to me!" + + She turn'd her around an' said, smiling, + While the tear in her blue e'e shone clear, + "You 're welcome, kind sir, to your mailing, + For, O, you have valued it dear: + Gae make out the lease, do not linger, + Let the parson indorse the decree; + An' then, for a wave of your finger, + I 'll gang to the brakens wi' thee!" + + There 's joy in the bright blooming feature, + When love lurks in every young line; + There 's joy in the beauties of nature, + There 's joy in the dance and the wine: + But there 's a delight will ne'er perish, + 'Mang pleasures all fleeting and vain, + And that is to love and to cherish + The fond little heart that's our ain! + + + + +LOCK THE DOOR, LARISTON. + + + Lock the door, Lariston, lion of Liddisdale, + Lock the door, Lariston, Lowther comes on, + The Armstrongs are flying, + Their widows are crying, + The Castletown's burning, and Oliver's gone; + Lock the door, Lariston,--high on the weather gleam, + See how the Saxon plumes bob on the sky, + Yeoman and carbineer, + Billman and halberdier; + Fierce is the foray, and far is the cry. + + Bewcastle brandishes high his broad scimitar, + Ridley is riding his fleet-footed grey, + Hedley and Howard there, + Wandale and Windermere,-- + Lock the door, Lariston, hold them at bay. + Why dost thou smile, noble Elliot of Lariston? + Why do the joy-candles gleam in thine eye? + Thou bold Border ranger + Beware of thy danger-- + Thy foes are relentless, determined, and nigh. + + Jock Elliot raised up his steel bonnet and lookit, + His hand grasp'd the sword with a nervous embrace; + "Ah, welcome, brave foemen, + On earth there are no men + More gallant to meet in the foray or chase! + Little know you of the hearts I have hidden here, + Little know you of our moss-troopers' might, + Lindhope and Sorby true, + Sundhope and Milburn too, + Gentle in manner, but lions in fight! + + "I 've Margerton, Gornberry, Raeburn, and Netherby, + Old Sim of Whitram, and all his array; + Come, all Northumberland, + Teesdale and Cumberland, + Here at the Breaken Tower end shall the fray." + Scowl'd the broad sun o'er the links of green Liddisdale, + Red as the beacon-light tipp'd he the wold; + Many a bold martial eye + Mirror'd that morning sky, + Never more oped on his orbit of gold! + + Shrill was the bugle's note, dreadful the warrior shout, + Lances and halberts in splinters were borne; + Halberd and hauberk then + Braved the claymore in vain, + Buckler and armlet in shivers were shorn. + See how they wane, the proud files of the Windermere, + Howard--ah! woe to thy hopes of the day! + Hear the wide welkin rend, + While the Scots' shouts ascend, + "Elliot of Lariston, Elliot for aye!" + + + + +I HAE NAEBODY NOW. + + + I hae naebody now, I hae naebody now + To meet me upon the green, + Wi' light locks waving o'er her brow, + An' joy in her deep blue e'en; + Wi' the raptured kiss an' the happy smile, + An' the dance o' the lightsome fay, + An' the wee bit tale o' news the while + That had happen'd when I was away. + + I hae naebody now, I hae naebody now + To clasp to my bosom at even, + O'er her calm sleep to breathe the vow, + An' pray for a blessing from heaven. + An' the wild embrace, an' the gleesome face + In the morning, that met my eye, + Where are they now, where are they now? + In the cauld, cauld grave they lie. + + There 's naebody kens, there 's naebody kens, + An' O may they never prove, + That sharpest degree o' agony + For the child o' their earthly love-- + To see a flower in its vernal hour + By slow degrees decay, + Then, calmly aneath the hand o' death, + Breathe its sweet soul away. + + O, dinna break, my poor auld heart! + Nor at thy loss repine, + For the unseen hand that threw the dart + Was sent frae her Father and thine; + Yet I maun mourn, an' I will mourn, + Even till my latest day; + For though my darling can never return, + I can follow the sooner away. + + + + +THE MOON WAS A-WANING. + + + The moon was a-waning, + The tempest was over; + Fair was the maiden, + And fond was the lover; + But the snow was so deep, + That his heart it grew weary, + And he sunk down to sleep, + In the moorland so dreary. + + Soft was the bed + She had made for her lover, + White were the sheets + And embroider'd the cover; + But his sheets are more white, + And his canopy grander, + And sounder he sleeps + Where the hill foxes wander. + + Alas, pretty maiden, + What sorrows attend you! + I see you sit shivering, + With lights at your window; + But long may you wait + Ere your arms shall enclose him, + For still, still he lies, + With a wreath on his bosom! + + How painful the task, + The sad tidings to tell you!-- + An orphan you were + Ere this misery befell you; + And far in yon wild, + Where the dead-tapers hover, + So cold, cold and wan + Lies the corpse of your lover! + + + + +GOOD NIGHT, AND JOY. + + + The year is wearing to the wane, + An' day is fading west awa', + Loud raves the torrent an' the rain, + And dark the cloud comes down the shaw; + But let the tempest tout an' blaw + Upon his loudest winter horn, + Good night, and joy be wi' you a', + We 'll maybe meet again the morn! + + O, we hae wander'd far and wide + O'er Scotia's hills, o'er firth an' fell, + An' mony a simple flower we 've cull'd, + An' trimm'd them wi' the heather-bell! + We 've ranged the dingle an' the dell, + The hamlet an' the baron's ha', + Now let us take a kind farewell,-- + Good night, an' joy be wi' you a'! + + Though I was wayward, you were kind, + And sorrow'd when I went astray; + For O, my strains were often wild, + As winds upon a winter day. + If e'er I led you from the way, + Forgie your Minstrel aince for a'; + A tear fa's wi' his parting lay,-- + Good night, and joy be wi' you a'! + + + + +JAMES MUIRHEAD, D.D. + + +James Muirhead was born in 1742, in the parish of Buittle, and stewartry +of Kirkcudbright. His father was owner of the estate of Logan, and +representative of the family of Muirhead, who, for several centuries, +were considerable landed proprietors in Galloway. He was educated at the +Grammar School of Dumfries, and in the University of Edinburgh. +Abandoning the legal profession, which he had originally chosen, he +afterwards prosecuted theological study, and became, in 1769, a +licentiate of the Established Church. After a probation of three years, +he was ordained to the ministerial charge of Urr, a country parish in +the stewartry. In 1794 he received the degree of D.D. from the +University of Edinburgh. Warmly attached to his flock, he ministered at +Urr till his death, which took place on the 16th of May 1806. + +Dr Muirhead was a person of warm affections and remarkable humour; his +scholarship was extensive and varied, and he maintained a correspondence +with many of his literary contemporaries. As an author, he is not known +to have written aught save the popular ballad of "Bess, the Gawkie,"--a +production which has been pronounced by Allan Cunningham "a song of +original merit, lively without extravagance, and gay without +grossness,--the simplicity elegant, and the naivete scarcely +rivalled."[61] + + +[61] We have frequently had occasion to remark the ignorance of modern +editors regarding the authorship of the most popular songs. Every +collector of Scottish song has inserted "Bess, the Gawkie;" but scarcely +one of them has correctly stated the authorship. The song has been +generally ascribed to an anonymous "Rev. Mr Morehead;" by some to the +"Rev. Robert Morehead;" and Allan Cunningham, who states that his father +was acquainted with the real author, has described him as the "Rev. +William Morehead!" + + + + +BESS, THE GAWKIE. + +TUNE--_"Bess, the Gawkie."_ + + + Blythe young Bess to Jean did say, + Will ye gang to yon sunny brae, + Where flocks do feed, and herds do stray, + And sport a while wi' Jamie? + Ah, na, lass, I 'll no gang there, + Nor about Jamie tak' a care, + Nor about Jamie tak' a care, + For he 's ta'en up wi' Maggie. + + For hark, and I will tell you, lass, + Did I not see young Jamie pass, + Wi' mickle blytheness in his face, + Out ower the muir to Maggie. + I wat he gae her mony a kiss, + And Maggie took them nae amiss; + 'Tween ilka smack pleased her wi' this, + That Bess was but a gawkie. + + For when a civil kiss I seek, + She turns her head, and thraws her cheek, + And for an hour she 'll hardly speak; + Wha 'd no ca' her a gawkie? + But sure my Maggie has mair sense, + She 'll gie a score without offence; + Now gie me ane into the mense, + And ye shall be my dawtie. + + O Jamie, ye hae monie ta'en, + But I will never stand for ane + Or twa when we do meet again; + So ne'er think me a gawkie. + Ah, na, lass, that canna be; + Sic thoughts as thae are far frae me, + Or ony thy sweet face that see, + E'er to think thee a gawkie. + + But, whisht, nae mair o' this we 'll speak, + For yonder Jamie does us meet; + Instead o' Meg he kiss'd sae sweet, + I trow he likes the gawkie. + O, dear Bess! I hardly knew, + When I cam' by, your gown sae new; + I think you 've got it wet wi' dew! + Quoth she, That 's like a gawkie! + + It 's wat wi' dew, and 'twill get rain, + And I 'll get gowns when it is gane; + Sae ye may gang the gate ye came, + And tell it to your dawtie. + The guilt appear'd in Jamie's cheek; + He cried, O cruel maid, but sweet, + If I should gang anither gate, + I ne'er could meet my dawtie. + + The lasses fast frae him they flew, + And left poor Jamie sair to rue + That ever Maggie's face he knew, + Or yet ca'd Bess a gawkie. + As they gaed ower the muir, they sang, + The hills and dales wi' echoes rang, + The hills and dales wi' echoes rang, + Gang o'er the muir to Maggie. + + + + +MRS AGNES LYON. + + +A female contemporary of the Baroness Nairn, of kindred tastes, and of +equal indifference to a poetical reputation, was Mrs Agnes Lyon of +Glammis. She was the eldest daughter of John Ramsay L'Amy, of Dunkenny, +in Forfarshire, and was born at Dundee about the commencement of the +year 1762. She was reputed for her beauty, and had numerous suitors for +her hand; but she gave the preference to the Rev. Dr James Lyon, +minister of Glammis, to whom she was married on the 25th of January +1786. Of a highly cultivated mind and most lively fancy, she had early +improved a taste for versifying, and acquired the habit of readily +clothing her thoughts in the language of poetry. She became the mother +of ten children; and she relieved the toils of their upbringing, as well +as administered to the improvement of their youthful minds, by her +occasional exercises in verse. Her four volumes of MS. poetry contain +lyrics dated as having been written from the early period of her +marriage to nearly the time of her decease. The topics are generally +domestic, and her strain is lively and humorous; in pathetic pieces she +is tender and singularly touching. Possessed of a correct musical ear, +she readily parodied the more popular songs, or adapted words to their +airs, with the view of interesting her friends, or producing good humour +and happiness in the family circle. She had formed the acquaintance of +Neil Gow, the celebrated violinist, and composed, at his particular +request, the words to his popular tune "Farewell to Whisky,"--the only +lyric from her pen which has hitherto been published. In all the +collections of Scottish song, it appears as anonymous. In the present +work, it is printed from a copy in one of her MS. volumes. + +Mrs Lyon died on the 14th September 1840, having survived her husband +about two years, and seen the greater number of her children carried to +the grave. Entirely free of literary ambition, she bequeathed her MSS. +to the widow of one of her sons, to whom she was devotedly attached, +accompanied by a request, inscribed in rhyme at the beginning of the +first volume, that the compositions might not be printed, unless in the +event of a deficiency in the family funds. Their origin is thus +described:-- + + "Written off-hand, as one may say, + Perhaps upon a rainy day, + Perhaps while at the cradle rocking. + Instead of knitting at a stocking, + She 'd catch a paper, pen, and ink, + And easily the verses clink. + Perhaps a headache at a time + Would make her on her bed recline, + And rather than be merely idle, + She 'd give her fancy rein and bridle. + She neither wanted lamp nor oil, + Nor found composing any toil; + As for correction's iron wand, + She never took it in her hand; + And can, with conscience clear, declare, + She ne'er neglected house affair, + Nor put her little babes aside, + To take on Pegasus a ride. + Rather let pens and paper flame, + Than any mother have the shame + (Except at any _orra time_) + To spend her hours in making rhyme." + +In person, Mrs Lyon was of the middle height, and of a slender form. She +had a fair complexion, her eyes were of light blue, and her countenance +wore the expression of intelligence. She excelled in conversation; and a +retentive memory enabled her to render available the fruits of extensive +reading. In old age, she retained much of the buoyant vivacity of youth, +and her whole life was adorned by the most exemplary piety. + + + + +NEIL GOW'S FAREWELL TO WHISKY.[62] + +TUNE--_"Farewell to Whisky."_ + + + You 've surely heard of famous Neil, + The man who play'd the fiddle weel; + He was a heartsome merry chiel', + And weel he lo'ed the whisky, O! + For e'er since he wore the tartan hose + He dearly liket _Athole brose_![63] + And grieved he was, you may suppose, + To bid "farewell to whisky," O! + + Alas! says Neil, I'm frail and auld, + And whiles my hame is unco cauld; + I think it makes me blythe and bauld, + A wee drap Highland whisky, O! + But a' the doctors do agree + That whisky 's no the drink for me; + I 'm fley'd they'll gar me tyne my glee, + By parting me and whisky, O! + + But I should mind on "auld lang syne," + How Paradise our friends did tyne, + Because something ran in their mind-- + Forbid--like Highland whisky, O! + Whilst I can get good wine and ale, + And find my heart, and fingers hale, + I 'll be content, though legs should fail, + And though forbidden whisky, O! + + I 'll tak' my fiddle in my hand, + And screw its strings whilst they can stand, + And mak' a lamentation grand + For guid auld Highland whisky, O! + Oh! all ye powers of music, come, + For deed I think I 'm mighty glum, + My fiddle-strings will hardly bum, + To say, "farewell to whisky," O! + + +[62] In the Author's MS., the following sentences occur prefatory to +this song:--"Everybody knows Neil Gow. When he was poorly, the +physicians forbade him to drink his favourite liquor. The words +following were composed, at his particular desire, to a lamentation he +had just made." Mrs Lyon became acquainted with Gow when she was a young +lady, attending the concerts in Dundee, at which the services of the +great violinist were regularly required. The song is very inaccurately +printed in some of the collections. + +[63] A beverage composed of honey dissolved in whisky. + + + + +SEE THE WINTER CLOUDS AROUND.[64] + + + See the winter clouds around; + See the leaves lie on the ground; + Pretty little Robin comes, + Seeking for his daily crumbs! + + In the window near the tree, + Little Robin you may see; + There his slender board is fix'd, + There his crumbs are bruised and mix'd. + + View his taper limbs, how neat! + And his eyes like beads of jet; + See his pretty feathers shine! + Little Robin haste and dine. + + When sweet Robin leaves the space, + Other birds will fill his place; + See the Tit-mouse, pretty thing! + See the Sparrow's sombre wing! + + Great and grand disputes arise, + For the crumbs of largest size, + Which the bravest and the best + Bear triumphant to their nest. + + What a pleasure thus to feed + Hungry mouths in time of need! + For whether it be men or birds, + Crumbs are better far than words. + + +[64] These simple stanzas, conveying such an excellent _morale_ at the +close, were written, almost without premeditation, for the amusement and +instruction of a little girl, the author's grandchild, who had been on a +visit at the manse of Glammis. The allusion to the _board_ in the second +verse refers to a little piece of timber which the amiable lady of the +house had affixed on the outside of one of the windows, for holding a +few crumbs which she daily spread on it for _Robin_, who regularly came +to enjoy the bounty of his benefactress. This lyric, and those +following, are printed for the first time. + + + + +WITHIN THE TOWERS OF ANCIENT GLAMMIS.[65] + +TUNE--_"Merry in the Hall."_ + + + Within the towers of ancient Glammis + Some merry men did dine, + And their host took care they should richly fare + In friendship, wit, and wine. + But they sat too late, and mistook the gate, + (For wine mounts to the brain); + O, 'twas merry in the hall, when the beards wagg'd all; + O, we hope they 'll be back again; + We hope they 'll be back again! + + Sir Walter tapp'd at the parson's door, + To find the proper way, + But he dropt his switch, though there was no ditch, + And on the steps it lay. + So his wife took care of this nice affair, + And she wiped it free from stain; + For the knight was gone, nor the owner known, + So he ne'er got the switch again; + So he ne'er got the switch again. + + This wondrous little whip[66] remains + Within the lady's sight, + (She crambo makes, with some mistakes, + But hopes for further light). + So she ne'er will part with this switch so smart, + These thirty years her ain; + Till the knight appear, it must just lie here, + He will ne'er get his switch again; + He will ne'er get his switch again! + + + +[65] This lively lyrical rhapsody, written in April 1821, celebrates an +amusing incident connected with the visit of Sir Walter Scott to the +Castle of Glammis, in 1793. Sir Walter was hospitably entertained in the +Castle, by Mr Peter Proctor, the factor, in the absence of the noble +owner, the Earl of Strathmore, who did not reside in the family mansion; +and the conjecture may be hazarded, that he dropt his whip at the manse +door on the same evening that he drank an English pint of wine from the +_lion beaker_ of Glammis, the prototype of the _silver bear_ of +Tully-Veolan, "the _poculum potatorium_ of the valiant baron."--(See +_Note_ to Waverley, and Lockhart's Life of Sir Walter Scott). + +[66] The whip is now in the custody of Mr George Lyon, of Stirling, the +author's son. + + + + +MY SON GEORGE'S DEPARTURE.[67] + +TUNE--_"Peggy Brown."_ + + + The parting kiss, the soft embrace, + I feel them at my heart! + 'Twere joy to clasp you in those arms, + But agony to part. + But let us tranquillise our minds, + And hope the time may be, + When I shall see that face again, + So loved, so dear to me! + + Five tedious years have roll'd along, + And griefs have had their sway, + Though many comforts fill'd my cup, + Yet thou wert far away. + On pleasant days, when friends are met, + Our sports are scarce begun, + When I shall sigh, because I miss + My George, my eldest son! + + I owe my grateful thanks to Heaven, + I 've seen thee well and gay, + I 've heard the music of thy voice, + I 've heard thee sweetly play. + O try and cheer us with your strains + Ere many twelvemonths be, + And let us hear that voice again, + So loved, so dear to me! + + + +[67] This lay of affection is dated September 1820, when the author +received a visit from her eldest son, who was then settled as a merchant +in London. Mr George Lyon, the subject of the song, and the only +surviving member of the family, is now resident at Snowdoun House, +Stirling. + + + + +ROBERT LOCHORE. + + +Robert Lochore was descended from a branch of a Norman family of that +name, long established in the neighbourhood of Biggar, and of which the +representative was the House of Lochore de Lochore in Fifeshire. He was +born at Strathaven, in the county of Lanark, on the 7th of July 1762, +and, in his thirteenth year, was apprenticed to a shoemaker in Glasgow. +He early commenced business in the city on his own account. In carrying +on public improvements he ever evinced a deep interest, and he +frequently held public offices of trust. He was founder of the "Annuity +Society,"--an institution attended with numerous benefits to the +citizens of Glasgow. + +Mr Lochore devoted much of his time to private study. He was +particularly fond of poetical composition, and wrote verses with +facility, many of his letters to his intimate friends being composed in +rhyme. His poetry was of the descriptive order; his lyrical effusions +were comparatively rare. Several poetical tales and songs of his youth, +contributed to different periodicals, he arranged, about the beginning +of the century, in a small volume. The greater number of his +compositions remain in MS. in the possession of his family. He died in +Glasgow, on the 27th April 1852, in his ninetieth year. Of a buoyant and +humorous disposition, he composed verses nearly to the close of his long +life; and, latterly, found pleasure in recording, for the amusement of +his family, his recollections of the past. He was universally beloved as +a faithful friend, and was deeply imbued with a sense of religion. + + + + +NOW, JENNY LASS. + +TUNE--_"Garryowen."_ + + + Now, Jenny lass, my bonnie bird, + My daddy 's dead, an' a' that; + He 's snugly laid aneath the yird, + And I 'm his heir, an' a' that; + I 'm now a laird, an' a' that; + I 'm now a laird, an' a' that; + His gear an' land 's at my command, + And muckle mair than a' that. + + He left me wi' his deein' breath, + A dwallin' house, an' a' that; + A burn, a byre, an' wabs o' claith-- + A big peat-stack, an' a' that. + A mare, a foal, an' a' that; + A mare, a foal, an' a' that; + Sax guid fat kye, a cauf forby, + An' twa pet ewes, an' a' that. + + A yard, a meadow, lang braid leas, + An' stacks o' corn, an' a' that-- + Enclosed weel wi' thorns an' trees, + An' carts, an' cars, an' a' that; + A pleugh, an' graith, an' a' that; + A pleugh, an' graith, an' a' that; + Guid harrows twa, cock, hens, an' a'-- + A grecie, too, an' a' that. + + I 've heaps o' claes for ilka days, + For Sundays, too, an' a' that; + I 've bills an' bonds on lairds an' lands, + And siller, gowd, an' a' that. + What think ye, lass, o' a' that? + What think ye, lass, o' a' that? + What want I noo, my dainty doo, + But just a wife to a' that. + + Now, Jenny dear, my errand here + Is to seek ye to a' that; + My heart 's a' loupin', while I speer + Gin ye 'll tak me, wi' a' that. + Mysel', my gear, an' a' that; + Mysel', my gear, an' a' that; + Come, gie 's your loof to be a proof, + Ye 'll be a wife to a' that. + + Syne Jenny laid her neive in his-- + Said, she 'd tak him wi' a' that; + An' he gied her a hearty kiss, + An' dauted her, an' a' that. + They set a day, an' a' that; + They set a day, an' a' that; + Whan she 'd gang hame to be his dame, + An' haud a rant, an' a' that. + + + + +MARRIAGE, AND THE CARE O'T. + +TUNE--_"Whistle o'er the lave o't."_ + + + Quoth Rab to Kate, My sonsy dear, + I 've woo'd ye mair than half a-year, + An' if ye 'd wed me, ne'er cou'd speer + Wi' blateness, an' the care o't. + Now to the point: sincere I 'm we 't; + Will ye be my half-marrow sweet? + Shake han's, and say a bargain be 't, + An' ne'er think on the care o't. + + Na, na, quo' Kate, I winna wed, + O' sic a snare I 'll aye be rede; + How mony, thochtless, are misled + By marriage, an' the care o't! + A single life 's a life o' glee, + A wife ne'er think to mak' o' me, + Frae toil an' sorrow I 'll keep free, + An' a' the dool an' care o't. + + Weel, weel, said Robin, in reply, + Ye ne'er again shall me deny, + Ye may a toothless maiden die, + For me, I 'll tak' nae care o't. + Fareweel, for ever!--aff I hie;-- + Sae took his leave without a sigh: + Oh! stop, quo' Kate, I 'm yours, I 'll try + The married life, an' care o't. + + Rab wheel't about, to Kate cam' back, + An' gae her mou' a hearty smack, + Syne lengthen'd out a lovin' crack + 'Bout marriage, an' the care o't. + Though as she thocht she didna speak, + An' lookit unco mim an' meek, + Yet blythe was she wi' Rab to cleek + In marriage, wi' the care o't. + + + + +MARY'S TWA LOVERS. + +TUNE--_"Bessie Bell and Mary Gray."_ + + + Dear Aunty, I 've been lang your care, + Your counsels guid ha'e blest me; + Now in a kittle case ance mair + Wi' your advice assist me: + Twa lovers frequent on me wait, + An' baith I frankly speak wi'; + Sae I 'm put in a puzzlin' strait + Whilk o' the twa to cleek wi'. + + There 's sonsy James, wha wears a wig, + A widower fresh and canty, + Though turn'd o' sixty, gaes fu' trig, + He 's rich, and rowes in plenty. + Tam 's twenty-five, hauds James's pleugh, + A lad deserves regardin'; + He 's clever, decent, sober too, + But he 's no worth ae fardin'. + + Auld James, 'tis true, I downa see, + But 's cash will answer a' things; + To be a lady pleases me, + And buskit be wi' braw things. + Tam I esteem, like him there 's few, + His gait and looks entice me; + But, aunty, I 'll now trust in you, + And fix as ye advise me. + + Then aunt, wha spun, laid down her roke, + An' thus repliet to Mary: + Unequal matches in a yoke + Draw thrawart and camstrarie. + Since gentle James ye dinna like, + Wi 's gear ha'e nae connexion; + Tam 's like yoursel', the bargain strike, + Grup to him wi' affection. + + + + +THE FORLORN SHEPHERD.[68] + +TUNE--_"Banks of the Dee."_ + + + Ye swains wha are touch'd wi' saft sympathy's feelin', + For victims wha 're doom'd sair affliction to dree, + If a heart-broken lover, despairin' an' wailin', + Claim pity, your pity let fa' upon me. + Like you I was blest with content, an' was cheerie,-- + My pipe wont to play to the cantiest glee, + When smilin' an' kind was my Mary, sweet Mary, + While Mary was guileless, an' faithfu' to me. + + She promised, she vow'd, she wad be my half-marrow, + The day too was set, when our bridal should be; + How happy was I, but I tell you wi' sorrow, + She 's perjured hersel', ah! an' ruined me. + For Ned o' Shawneuk, wi' the charms o' his riches, + An' sly winnin' tales, tauld sae pawky an' slee, + Her han' has obtain'd, an' clad her like a duchess, + Sae baith skaith an' scorn ha'e come down upon me. + + Ye braes ance enchantin', o' you I 'm now wearie, + An' thou, ance dear haunt, 'neath the aul' thornie tree, + Where in rapture I sat an' dawtit fause Mary, + Fareweel! ye 'll never be seen mair by me. + Awa' as a pilgrim, far distant I 'll wander, + 'Mang faces unkent, till the day that I dee. + Ye shepherds, adieu! but tell Mary to ponder, + To think on her vows, an' to think upon me. + + +[68] This song is here printed for the first time. + + + + +JOHN ROBERTSON. + + +John Robertson, author of "The Toom Meal Pock," a humorous song which +has long been popular in the west of Scotland, was the son of an +extensive grocer in Paisley, where he was born about the year 1770. He +received the most ample education which his native town could afford, +and early cultivated a taste for the elegant arts of music and drawing. +Destined for one of the liberal professions, the unfortunate bankruptcy +of his father put an effectual check on his original aspirations. For a +period he was engaged as a salesman, till habits of insobriety rendered +his services unavailable to his employer. As a last resort, he enlisted +in the regiment of local militia; and his qualifications becoming known +to the officers, he was employed as a regimental clerk and schoolmaster. +He had written spirited verses in his youth; and though his muse had +become mournful, she continued to sing. His end was melancholy: the +unfortunate circumstances of his life preyed upon his mind, and in a +paroxysm of phrensy he committed suicide. He died in the vicinity of +Portsmouth, in the beginning of April 1810, about six weeks before the +similar death of his friend, Robert Tannahill. A person of much +ingenuity and scholarship, Robertson, with ordinary steadiness, would +have attained a good position in life. + + + + +THE TOOM MEAL POCK. + + + Preserve us a'! what shall we do, + Thir dark, unhallow'd times; + We 're surely dreeing penance now, + For some most awfu' crimes. + Sedition daurna now appear, + In reality or joke; + For ilka chiel maun mourn wi' me, + O' a hinging, toom meal pock, + And sing, Oh waes me! + + When lasses braw gaed out at e'en, + For sport and pastime free; + I seem'd like ane in paradise, + The moments quick did flee. + Like Venuses they all appear'd, + Weel pouther'd were their locks; + 'Twas easy dune, when at their hame, + Wi' the shaking o' their pocks. + And sing, Oh waes me! + + How happy pass'd my former days, + Wi' merry heartsome glee; + When smiling Fortune held the cup, + And Peace sat on my knee. + Nae wants had I but were supplied; + My heart wi' joy did knock, + When in the neuk I smiling saw + A gaucie, weel-fill'd pock. + And sing, Oh waes me! + + Speak no ae word about reform, + Nor petition Parliament; + A wiser scheme I 'll now propose, + I 'm sure ye 'll gi'e consent: + Send up a chiel or twa like me, + As a sample o' the flock, + Whose hollow cheeks will be sure proof + O' a hinging, toom meal pock. + And sing, Oh waes me! + + And should a sicht sae ghastly-like, + Wi' rags, and banes, and skin, + Hae nae impression on yon folks, + But tell ye 'll stand ahin'; + O what a contrast will ye shaw, + To the glowrin' Lunnun folk, + When in St James' ye tak' your stand, + Wi' a hinging, toom meal pock. + And sing, Oh waes me! + + Then rear your head, and glowr, and stare, + Before yon hills o' beef; + Tell them ye are frae Scotland come, + For Scotia's relief. + Tell them ye are the vera best, + Waled frae the fattest flock; + Then raise your arms, and oh! display + A hinging, toom meal pock. + And sing, Oh waes me! + + + + +ALEXANDER BALFOUR. + + +Alexander Balfour, a poet, novelist and miscellaneous writer, was born +on the 1st March 1767, at Guildie, a small hamlet in the parish of +Monikie, Forfarshire. His parents were in humble circumstances; and +being a twin, he was supported in early life by a friend of the family, +from whom he received such a religious training as exercised a highly +beneficial influence on his future character. He was educated at the +parish school, and evidenced precocity by essaying composition in his +twelfth year. Apprenticed to a weaver, he soon became disgusted with the +loom, and returned home to teach a school in his native parish. During +the intervals of leisure, he wrote articles for the provincial +miscellanies, the _British Chronicle_ newspaper, and _The Bee_, +published by Dr Anderson. In his 26th year, he became clerk to a +sail-cloth manufacturer in Arbroath; and, on the death of his employer, +soon afterwards, he entered into partnership with his widow. On her +death, in 1800, he assumed another partner. As government-contractors +for supplying the navy with canvas, the firm rapidly attained +prosperity; and Balfour found abundant leisure for prosecuting his +literary studies, and maintaining a correspondence with several men of +letters in the capital. He had married in 1794; and deeming a country +residence more advantageous for his rising family, he removed, in 1814, +to Trottick, within two miles of Dundee, where he assumed the management +of the branch of a London house, which for many years had been connected +with his own firm. This step was lamentably unfortunate; the house, in +which he had embarked his fortune, shared in the general commercial +disasters of 1815, and was involved in complete bankruptcy. Reduced to a +condition of dependance, Balfour accepted the situation of manager of a +manufacturing establishment at Balgonie, in Fife. In 1818, he resigned +this appointment; and proceeding to Edinburgh, was employed as a clerk +in the establishment of Mr Blackwood, the eminent publisher. The close +confinement of the counting-house, and the revolution of his fortunes, +which pressed heavily upon his mind, were too powerful for his +constitution. Symptoms of paralysis began to appear, shortly after his +removal to the capital; and in October 1819, he was so entirely +prostrated, as to require the use of a wheeled chair. His future career +was that of a man of letters. During the interval which elapsed between +his commercial reverses and the period of his physical debility, he +prepared a novel, which he had early projected, depicting the trials and +sufferings of an unbeneficed preacher. This work appeared in 1819, under +the title of "Campbell, or the Scottish Probationer," in three volumes; +and though published anonymously, soon led to the discovery and +reputation of the author. Towards the close of the same year, he edited +the poetical works of his late friend, Richard Gall, to which he +supplied an elegant biographical preface. His next separate publication +was "The Farmer's Three Daughters," a novel in three volumes. In 1820, +he published "Contemplation," with other poems, in one volume octavo; +which, favourably received by the press, also added considerably to his +fame. A third novel from his pen, entitled, "The Smuggler's Cave; or, +The Foundling of Glenthorn," appeared in 1823 from the unpropitious +Minerva press; it consequently failed to excite much attention. To the +_Scots Magazine_ he had long been a contributor; and, on the +establishment of _Constable's Edinburgh Magazine_ in its stead, his +assistance was secured by Mr Thomas Pringle, the original editor. His +articles, contributed to this periodical during the nine years of its +existence, contain matter sufficient to fill three octavo volumes: they +are on every variety of theme, but especially the manners of Scottish +rural life, which he has depicted with singular power. Of his numerous +contributions in verse, a series entitled, "Characters omitted in +Crabbe's Parish Register," was published separately in 1825; and this +production has been acknowledged as the most successful effort of his +muse. It is scarcely inferior to the more celebrated composition of the +English poet. + +In 1827, on the application of Mr Hume, M.P., a treasury donation of one +hundred pounds was conferred on Mr Balfour by the premier, Mr Canning, +in consideration of his genius. His last novel, "Highland Mary," in four +volumes, was published shortly before his death. To the last, he +contributed to the periodical publications. He died, after an illness of +about two weeks' duration, on the 12th September 1829, in the +sixty-third year of his age. + +Though confined to his wheel-chair for a period of ten years, and +otherwise debarred many of the comforts to which, in more prosperous +circumstances, he had been accustomed, Alexander Balfour retained to the +close of life his native placidity and gentleness. His countenance wore +a perpetual smile. He joined in the amusements of the young, and took +delight in the recital of the merry tale and humorous anecdote. His +speech, somewhat affected by his complaint, became pleasant from the +heartiness of his observations. He was an affectionate husband, and a +devoted parent; his habits were strictly temperate, and he was +influenced by a devout reverence for religion. A posthumous volume of +his writings, under the title of "Weeds and Wild-flowers," was published +under the editorial care of Mr D. M. Moir, who has prefixed an +interesting memoir. As a lyrical poet, he is not entitled to a first +place; his songs are, however, to be remarked for deep and genuine +pathos. + + + + +THE BONNY LASS O' LEVEN WATER. + + + Though siller Tweed rin o'er the lea, + An' dark the Dee 'mang Highland heather, + Yet siller Tweed an' drumly Dee + Are not sae dear as Leven Water: + When Nature form'd our favourite isle, + An' a' her sweets began to scatter, + She look'd with fond approving smile, + Alang the banks o' Leven Water. + + On flowery braes, at gloamin' gray, + 'Tis sweet to scent the primrose springin'; + Or through the woodlands green to stray, + In ilka buss the mavis singin': + But sweeter than the woodlands green, + Or primrose painted fair by Nature, + Is she wha smiles, a rural queen, + The bonny lass o' Leven Water! + + The sunbeam in the siller dew, + That hangs upon the hawthorn's blossom, + Shines faint beside her e'en sae blue; + An' purer is her spotless bosom. + Her smile wad thaw a hermit's breast; + There 's love an' truth in ilka feature; + For her I 'm past baith wark an' rest, + The bonny lass o' Leven Water! + + But I 'm a lad o' laigh degree, + Her purse-proud daddy 's dour an' saucy; + An' sair the carle wad scowl on me, + For speakin' to his dawtit lassie: + But were I laird o' Leven's glen, + An' she a humble shepherd's daughter, + I 'd kneel, an' court her for my ain, + The bonny lass o' Leven Water! + + + + +SLIGHTED LOVE. + + + The rosebud blushing to the morn, + The sna'-white flower that scents the thorn, + When on thy gentle bosom worn, + Were ne'er sae fair as thee, Mary! + How blest was I, a little while, + To deem that bosom free frae guile; + When, fondly sighing, thou wouldst smile; + Yes, sweetly smile on me, Mary! + + Though gear was scant, an' friends were few, + My heart was leal, my love was true; + I blest your e'en of heavenly blue, + That glanced sae saft on me, Mary! + But wealth has won your heart frae me; + Yet I maun ever think of thee; + May a' the bliss that gowd can gie, + For ever wait on thee, Mary! + + For me, nae mair on earth I crave, + But that yon drooping willow wave + Its branches o'er my early grave, + Forgot by love, an' thee, Mary! + An' when that hallow'd spot you tread, + Where wild-flowers bloom above my head, + O look not on my grassy bed, + Lest thou shouldst sigh for me, Mary! + + + + +GEORGE MACINDOE. + + +George Macindoe, chiefly known as the author of "A Million o' Potatoes," +a humorous ballad, in the Scottish language, was born at Partick, near +Glasgow, in 1771. He originally followed the occupation of a +silk-weaver, in Paisley, which he early relinquished for the less +irksome duties of a hotel-keeper in Glasgow. His hotel was a corner +tenement, at the head of King Street, near St Giles' Church, Trongate; +and here a club of young men, with which the poet Campbell was +connected, were in the habit of holding weekly meetings. Campbell made a +practice of retiring from the noisy society of the club to spend the +remainder of the evenings in conversation with the intelligent host. +After conducting the business of hotel-keeper in Glasgow, during a +period of twenty-one years, Macindoe became insolvent, and was +necessitated to abandon the concern. He returned to Paisley and resumed +the loom, at the same time adding to his finances by keeping a small +change-house, and taking part as an instrumental musician at the local +concerts. He excelled in the use of the violin. Ingenious as a mechanic, +and skilled in his original employment, he invented a machine for +figuring on muslin, for which he received premiums from the City +Corporation of Glasgow and the Board of Trustees. + +Macindoe was possessed of a lively temperament, and his conversation +sparkled with wit and anecdote. His person was handsome, and his open +manly countenance was adorned with bushy locks, which in old age, +becoming snowy white, imparted to him a singularly venerable aspect. He +claimed no merit as a poet, and only professed to be the writer of +"incidental rhymes." In 1805, he published, in a thin duodecimo volume, +"Poems and Songs, chiefly in the Scottish Dialect," which he states, in +the preface, he had laid before the public to gratify "the solicitations +of friends." Of the compositions contained in this volume, the ballad +entitled "A Million o' Potatoes," and the two songs which we have +selected for this work, are alone worthy of preservation. In 1813, he +published a second volume of poems and songs, entitled "The Wandering +Muse;" and he occasionally contributed lyrics to the local periodicals. +He died at Glasgow, on the 19th April 1848, in his seventy-seventh year, +leaving a numerous family. His remains were interred at Anderston, +Glasgow. The following remarks, regarding Macindoe's songs, have been +kindly supplied by Mr Robert Chambers:-- + + "Amidst George Macindoe's songs are two distinguished + by more clearness and less vulgarity than the rest. One + of these, called 'The Burn Trout,' was composed on a + real incident which it describes, namely, a supper, + where the chief dish was a salmon, brought from Peebles + to Glasgow by my father,[69] who, when learning his + business, as a manufacturer, in the western city, about + the end of the century, had formed an acquaintance with + the poet. The other, entitled 'Cheese and Whisky,' + which contains some very droll verses, was written in + compliment to my maternal uncle, William Gibson, then + also a young manufacturer, but who died about two + months ago, a retired captain of the 90th regiment. The + jocund hospitable disposition of Gibson--'Bachelor + Willie'--and my father's social good-nature, are + pleasingly recalled to me by Macindoe's verses, rough + as they are. + + "_June 1, 1855._" + + + +[69] Mr James Chambers, of Peebles, who died in 1824. + + + + +CHEESE AND WHISKY. + +TUNE--_"The gude forgi' me for leein'."_ + + + Believe me or doubt me, I dinna care whilk, + When Bachelor Willie I 'm seeing, + I feast upon whisky, and cheese o' ewe milk, + And ne'er was choked for leeing, for leeing, + And ne'er was choked for leeing. + + Your jams and your jellies, your sugars and teas, + If e'er I thought worthy the preeing, + Compared wi' gude whisky, and kebbocks o' cheese, + May I sup porridge for leeing, for leeing, + May I sup porridge for leeing. + + When patfou's o' kale, thick wi' barley and pease, + Can as weel keep a body frae deeing, + As stoupfou's o' whisky, and platefou's o' cheese, + I 'll dree to be scrimpit for leeing, for leeing, + I 'll dree to be scrimpit for leeing. + + Tho' the house where we 're sittin' were a' in a bleeze, + I never could think about fleeing, + But would guzzle the whisky, and rive at the cheese; + Perhaps ye may think that I 'm leeing, I 'm leeing, + Perhaps ye may think that I 'm leeing. + + + + +THE BURN TROUT. + +TUNE--_"The gude forgi' me for leein'."_ + + + Brither Jamie cam west, wi' a braw burn trout, + An' speer'd how acquaintance were greeing; + He brought it frae Peebles, tied up in a clout, + An' said it wad just be a preeing, a preeing, + An' said it wad just be a preeing. + + In the burn that rins by his grandmother's door + This trout had lang been a dweller, + Ae night fell asleep a wee piece frae the shore, + An' was kill'd wi' a stane by the miller, the miller, + An' was kill'd wi' a stane by the miller. + + This trout it was gutted an' dried on a nail + That grannie had reested her ham on, + Weel rubbed wi' saut, frae the head to the tail, + An' kipper'd as 't had been a sa'mon, a sa'mon, + An' kipper'd as 't had been a sa'mon. + + This trout it was boil'd an' set ben on a plate, + Nae fewer than ten made a feast o't; + The banes and the tail, they were gi'en to the cat, + But we lickit our lips at the rest o't, the rest o't, + But we lickit our lips at the rest o't. + + When this trout it was eaten, we were a' like to rive, + Sae ye maunna think it was a wee ane, + May ilk trout in the burn grow muckle an' thrive, + An' Jamie bring west aye a preeing, a preeing, + An' Jamie bring west aye a preeing. + + + + +ALEXANDER DOUGLAS. + + +Alexander Douglas was the son of Robert Douglas, a labourer in the +village of Strathmiglo in Fife, where he was born on the 17th June 1771. +Early discovering an aptitude for learning, he formed the intention of +studying for the ministry,--a laudable aspiration, which was +unfortunately checked by the indigence of his parents. Attending school +during winter, his summer months were employed in tending cattle to the +farmers in the vicinity; and while so occupied, he read the Bible in the +fields, and with a religious sense, remarkable for his years, engaged in +daily prayer in some sequestered spot, for the Divine blessing to grant +him a saving acquaintance with the record. At the age of fourteen he was +apprenticed to a linen weaver in his native village, with whom he +afterwards proceeded to Pathhead, near Kirkcaldy. He now assiduously +sought to acquaint himself with general literature, especially with the +British poets; and his literary ardour was stimulated by several +companions of kindred inclinations. He returned to Strathmiglo, and +while busily plying the shuttle began to compose verses for his +amusement. These compositions were jotted down during the periods of +leisure. Happening to quote a stanza to Dr Paterson of Auchtermuchty, +his medical attendant, who was struck with its originality, he was +induced to submit his MSS. to the inspection of this gentleman. A +cordial recommendation to publish his verses was the result; and a +large number of subscribers being procured, through the exertions of his +medical friend, he appeared, in 1806, as the author of an octavo volume +of "Poems," chiefly in the Scottish dialect. The publication yielded a +profit of one hundred pounds. + +Douglas was possessed of a weakly constitution; he died on the 21st +November 1821. He was twice married, and left a widow, who still +survives. Three children, the issue of the first marriage, died in early +life. A man of devoted piety and amiable dispositions, Douglas had few +pretensions as a poet; some of his songs have however obtained a more +than local celebrity, and one at least seems not undeserving of a place +among the modern national minstrelsy. + + + + +FIFE, AN' A' THE LAND ABOUT IT.[70] + +TUNE--_"Roy's Wife o' Aldivalloch."_ + + + Fife, an' a' the land about it, + Fife, an' a' the land about it; + May health, an' peace, an' plenty glad, + Fair Fife, an' a' the land about it. + + We 'll raise the song on highest key, + Through every grove till echo shout it; + The sweet enchantin' theme shall be, + Fair Fife, an' a' the land about it. + Fife, an' a' the land about it, &c. + + Her braid an' lang extended vales + Are clad wi' corn, a' wavin' yellow; + Her flocks an' herds crown a' her hills; + Her woods resound wi' music mellow. + Fife, an' a' the land about it, &c. + + Her waters pastime sweet afford + To ane an' a' wha like to angle; + The seats o' mony a laird an' lord, + Her plains, as stars the sky, bespangle. + Fife, an' a' the land about it, &c. + + In ilka town an' village gay, + Hark! Thrift, her wheel an' loom are usin'; + While to an' frae each port an' bay, + See wealthy Commerce briskly cruisin'. + Fife, an' a' the land about it, &c. + + Her maids are frugal, modest, fair, + As lilies by her burnies growin'; + An' ilka swain may here repair, + Whase heart wi' virt'ous love is glowin'. + Fife, an' a' the land about it, &c. + + In peace, her sons like lammies mild, + Are lightsome, friendly, an' engagin'; + In war, they 're loyal, bauld, an' wild, + As lions roused, an' fiercely ragin'. + Fife, an' a' the land about it, &c. + + May auld an' young hae meat an' claes; + May wark an' wages aye be plenty; + An' may the sun to latest days + See Fife an' a' her bairnies canty. + + Fife, an' a' the land about it, + Fife, an' a' the land about it; + May health, an' peace, an' plenty glad, + Fair Fife, an' a' the land about it. + + +[70] A song of this title was composed by Robert Fergusson. + + + + +WILLIAM M'LAREN. + + +William M'Laren, a poet of some merit, and an associate and biographer +of Robert Tannahill, was born at Paisley about 1772. He originally +followed the occupation of a handloom weaver, but was more devoted to +the pursuits of literature than the business of his trade. Possessing a +considerable share of poetical talent, he composed several volumes of +verses, which were published by him on his own account, and very +frequently to considerable pecuniary advantage. In 1817, he published, +in quarto, a poetical tale, entitled, "Emma; or, The Cruel Father;" and +another narrative poem in 1827, under the title of "Isabella; or, The +Robbers." Many of his songs and lyrical pieces were contributed to +provincial serials. His genius as a poet was exceeded by his skill as a +prose writer; he composed in prose with elegance and power. In 1815, he +published a memoir of Tannahill--an eloquent and affectionate tribute to +the memory of his departed friend--to which is appended an _eloge_ on +Robert Burns, delivered at an anniversary of that poet's birthday. In +1818, he published, with a memoir, the posthumous poetical works of his +relative, the poet Scadlock. His other prose writings consist of +pamphlets on a diversity of subjects. + +At one period, M'Laren established himself as a manufacturer in Ireland; +but, rendering himself obnoxious by the bold expression of his political +opinions, he found it necessary to make a hasty departure for Scotland. +He latterly opened a change-house in Paisley, and his circumstances +became considerably prosperous. He died in 1832, leaving a family. He is +remembered as a person of somewhat singular manners, and of undaunted +enterprise and decision of character. He was shrewd and well-informed, +without much reading; he purchased no books, but was ingenious and +successful in recommending his own.[71] + + +[71] Mr James Bowie, of Paisley, to whom we are under obligations for +supplying curious and interesting information regarding several of the +bards of the west, kindly furnished the particulars of the above memoir. + + + + +NOW SUMMER SHINES WITH GAUDY PRIDE. + + + Now summer shines with gaudy pride, + By flowery vale and mountain side, + And shepherds waste the sunny hours + By cooling streams, and bushy bowers; + While I, a victim to despair, + Avoid the sun's offensive glare, + And in sequester'd wilds deplore + The perjured vows of Ella More. + + Would Fate my injured heart provide + Some cave beyond the mountain tide, + Some spot where scornful Beauty's eye + Ne'er waked the ardent lover's sigh; + I 'd there to woods and rocks complain, + To rocks that skirt the angry main; + For angry main, and rocky shore, + Are kinder far than Ella More. + + + + +AND DOST THOU SPEAK SINCERE, MY LOVE? + +TUNE--_"Lord Gregory."_ + + + And dost thou speak sincere, my love? + And must we ever part? + And dost thou unrelenting see + The anguish of my heart? + Have e'er these doating eyes of mine, + One wandering wish express'd? + No; thou alone hast ever been + Companion of my breast. + + I saw thy face, angelic fair, + I thought thy form divine, + I sought thy love--I gave my heart, + And hoped to conquer thine. + But, ah! delusive, cruel hope! + Hope now for ever gone! + My Mary keeps the heart I gave, + But with it keeps her own. + + When many smiling summer suns + Their silver light has shed, + And wrinkled age her hoary hairs + Waves lightly o'er my head; + Even then, in life's declining hour, + My heart will fondly trace + The beauties of thy lovely form, + And sweetly smiling face. + + + + +SAY NOT THE BARD HAS TURN'D OLD. + + + Though the winter of age wreathes her snow on his head, + And the blooming effulgence of summer has fled, + Though the voice, that was sweet as the harp's softest string, + Be trem'lous, and low as the zephyrs of spring, + Yet say not the Bard has turn'd old. + + Though the casket that holds the rich jewel we prize + Attracts not the gaze of inquisitive eyes; + Yet the gem that 's within may be lovely and bright + As the smiles of the morn, or the stars of the night; + Then say not the Bard has turn'd old. + + When the tapers burn clear, and the goblet shines bright, + In the hall of his chief, on a festival night, + I have smiled at the glance of his rapturous eye, + While the brim of the goblet laugh'd back in reply; + Then say not the Bard has turn'd old. + + When he sings of the valorous deeds that were done, + By his clan or his chief, in the days that are gone, + His strains then are various--now rapid, now slow, + As he mourns for the dead or exults o'er the foe; + Then say not the Bard has turn'd old. + + When summer in gaudy profusion is dress'd, + And the dew-drop hangs clear on the violet's breast, + I list with delight to his rapturous strain, + While the borrowing echo returns it again; + Then say not the Bard has turn'd old. + + But not summer's profusion alone can inspire + His soul in the song, or his hand on the lyre, + But rapid his numbers and wilder they flow, + When the wintry winds rave o'er his mountains of snow; + Then say not the Bard has turn'd old. + + I have seen him elate when the black clouds were riven, + Terrific and wild, by the thunder of heaven, + And smile at the billows that angrily rave, + Incessant and deep o'er the mariner's grave; + Then say not the Bard has turn'd old. + + When the eye that expresses the warmth of his heart, + Shall fail the benevolent wish to impart-- + When his blood shall be cold as the wintry wave, + And silent his harp as the gloom of the grave, + Then say that the Bard has turn'd old. + + + + +HAMILTON PAUL. + + +A man of fine intellect, a poet, and an elegant writer, Hamilton Paul +has claims to remembrance. On the 10th April 1773, he was born in a +small cottage on the banks of Girvan Water, in the parish of Dailly, and +county of Ayr. In the same dwelling, Hugh Ainslie, another Scottish +bard, was afterwards born. Receiving his elementary education at the +parish school, he became a student in the University of Glasgow. Thomas +Campbell, author of "The Pleasures of Hope," was a college contemporary; +and their mutual love of poetry drew them closely to each other; they +competed for academical rewards offered for the best compositions in +verse, till frequent adjudication as to the equality of their merits, +induced them to forbear contesting on the same subjects. At least on one +occasion the verses of Paul were preferred to those of the Bard of Hope. +The following lines, exhibiting a specimen of his poetical powers at +this period, are from a translation of Claudian's "Epithalamium on the +Marriage of Honorius and Maria," for which, in the Latin class, he +gained a prize along with his friend:-- + + "Maria, now the maid of heavenly charms, + Decreed to bliss the youthful monarch's arms; + Inflames Augustus with unwonted fires, + And in his breast awakens new desires. + In love a novice, while his bosom glows + With restless heat, the cause he scarcely knows; + The rural pastimes suited to his age, + His late delight, no more his care engage; + No more he wills to give his steed the reins + In eager chase, and urge him o'er the plains; + No more he joys to bend the twanging bow, + To hurl the javeline, or the dart to throw; + His alter'd thoughts to other objects rove, + To wounds inflicted by the god of love. + How oft, expressive of the inward smart, + Did groans convulsive issue from his heart! + How oft did blushes own the sacred flame, + How oft his hand unbidden wrote her name! + Now presents worthy of the plighted fair, + And nuptial robes his busy train prepare-- + Robes wherewith Livia was herself attired, + And those bright dames that to the beds aspired + Of emperors. Yet the celestial maid + Requires no earthly ornamental aid + To give her faultless form a single grace, + Or add one charm to her bewitching face." + +The circumstances of the young poets were far from affluent. Campbell +particularly felt the pressure of poverty. He came hastily one morning +to the lodgings of his friend to request his opinion of some verses; +they were immediately printed, and the copies sold to his +fellow-students for a halfpenny each. So Paul sometimes told his +friends, quoting the following lines as all he could remember of the +production:-- + + "Loud shriek'd afar the angry sprite, + That rode upon the storm of night, + And loud the waves were heard to roar + That lash'd on Jura's rocky shore." + +After several sessions of attendance at college, Paul became tutor to a +family in Argyleshire, and Campbell obtained a similar situation in the +island of Mull. They entered into a humorous correspondence in prose +and verse. "Your verses on the Unfortunate Lady," writes Campbell to +his friend, "I read with sweet pleasure; for there is a joy in grief, +when peace dwelleth in the breast of the sad.... Morose as I am in +judging of poetry, I could find nothing inelegant in the whole piece. I +hope you will in your next (since you are such a master of the +plaintive) send me some verses consolatory to a hermit; for my +sequestered situation sometimes stamps a firm belief on my mind that I +am actually an anchorite. In return for your welcome poetical effusion, +I have nothing at present but a chorus of the Jepthes of Buchanan, +written soon after my arrival in Mull:-- + + "Glassy Jordan, smooth meandering + Jacob's grassy meads between, + Lo! thy waters, gently wandering, + Lave thy valleys rich and green. + + "When the winter, keenly show'ring, + Strips fair Salem's holy shade, + Then thy current, broader flowing, + Lingers 'mid the leafless glade. + + "When, O! when shall light returning + Gild the melancholy gloom, + And the golden star of morning + Jordan's solemn vault illume? + + "When shall Freedom's holy charmer + Cheer my long benighted soul? + When shall Israel, proud in armour, + Burst the tyrant's base control?" &c. + +"The similarity of the measure with that of your last made me think of +sending you this piece. I am much hurried at present with my comedy, the +'Clouds of Aristophanes.' I have already finished my translation of the +Choephoroe of AEschylus. I dreamt a dream about your being before +Parnassus upon your trial for sedition and contumacy. I thought Thalia, +Clio, &c. addressed you. Their speeches shall be nonsensified into +rhyme, and shall be part of some other scrawl from your affectionate +friend, + + "THOMAS THE HERMIT." + +In another epistle Campbell threatens to "send a formal message to the +kind nymphs of Parnassus, telling them that, whereas Hamilton Paul, +their favourite and admired laureate of the north, has been heard to +express his admiration of certain nymphs in a certain place; and that +the said Hamilton Paul has ungratefully and feloniously neglected to +speak with due reverence of the ladies of Helicon; that said Hamilton +Paul shall be deprived of all aid in future from these goddesses, and be +sent to draw his inspiration from the dry fountain of earthly beauty; +and that, furthermore, all the favours taken from the said Hamilton Paul +shall accrue to the informer and petitioner!" + +After two years' residence in the Highlands, both the poets returned to +Glasgow to resume their academical studies: Campbell to qualify himself +as a man of letters, and Paul to prepare for the ministry of the +Scottish Church. "It would have been impossible, even during the last +years of their college life," writes Mr Deans,[72] "to have predicted +which of the two students would ultimately arrive at the greatest +eminence. They were both excellent classical scholars; they were both +ingenious poets; and Campbell does not appear to have surpassed his +companion either in his original pieces or his translations; they both +exhibited great versatility of talent; they were both playful and witty; +and seem to have been possessed of great facilities in sport. During +his latter years, when detailing the history of those joyous days, Mr +Paul dwelt on them with peculiar delight, and seemed animated with +youthful emotion when recalling the curious frolics and innocent and +singular adventures in which Campbell and he had performed a principal +part." + +While resident at Inverary, Mr Paul composed several poems, which were +much approved by his correspondent. Among these, a ballad entitled "The +Maid of Inverary," in honour of Lady Charlotte Campbell, afterwards Lady +Bury, was set to music, and made the subject of elaborate criticism. On +his return to the university, he composed with redoubled ardour, +contributing verses on every variety of topic to the newspapers and +periodicals. Several of his pieces, attracting the notice of some of the +professors, received their warm commendation. + +Obtaining licence to preach, the poet returned to his native county. +During a probation of thirteen years, he was assistant to six parish +ministers, and tutor in five different families. He became +joint-proprietor and editor of the _Ayr Advertiser_, which he conducted +for a period of three years. At Ayr he was a member of every literary +circle; was connected with every club; chaplain to every society; a +speaker at every meeting; the poet of every curious occurrence; and the +welcome guest at every table. Besides editing his newspaper, he gave +private instructions in languages, and preached on Sabbath. His metrical +productions became widely known, and his songs were sung at the cottage +hearths of the district. His presence at the social meeting was the sure +indication of a prevalent good humour. + +In 1813, Mr Paul attained the summit of his professional ambition; he +was ordained to the pastoral office in the united parishes of Broughton, +Glenholm, and Kilbucho, in Peeblesshire. Amidst due attention to his +clerical duties, he still found leisure to engage in literary pursuits, +and continued to contribute to the public journals both in prose and +poetry. Of the poet Burns he was an enthusiastic admirer; he was +laureate of the "Burns' Allowa' Club," and of the Glasgow Ayrshire +Friendly Society, whose annual meetings were held on the Bard's +anniversary; and the odes which he composed for these annual assemblages +attracted wide and warm admiration. He therefore recommended himself as +a suitable editor of the works of Burns, when a new edition was +contemplated by Messrs Wilson and M'Cormick, booksellers in Ayr. In the +performance of his editorial task, he was led, in an attempt to palliate +the immoralities of Burns, to make some indiscreet allusions respecting +his own clerical brethren; for this imprudence he narrowly escaped +censure from the ecclesiastical courts. His memoir, though commended in +_Blackwood's Magazine_, conducted by Professor Wilson, was severely +censured by Dr Andrew Thomson in the _Christian Instructor_. + +The pastoral parish of Broughton was in many respects suited for a +person of Hamilton Paul's peculiar temperament and habits; in a more +conspicuous position his talents might have shone with more brilliancy; +but, after the burst of enthusiasm in his youth was past, he loved +seclusion, and modestly sought the shade. No man was less conscious of +his powers, or attached less value to his literary performances.[73] Of +his numerous poetical compositions each was the work of a sitting, or +had been uttered impromptu; and, unless secured by a friend, they were +commonly laid aside never to be recollected. As a clergyman, he +retained, during a lengthened incumbency, the respect and affection of +his flock, chiefly, it may be remarked, from the acceptability of his +private services, and the warmth and kindliness of his dispositions. His +pulpit discourses were elegantly composed, and largely impressed with +originality and learning; but were somewhat imperfectly pervaded with +those clear and evangelical views of Divine truth which are best +calculated to edify a Christian audience. In private society, he was +universally beloved. "His society," writes Mr Deans, "was courted by the +rich and the poor, the learned and the unlearned. In every company he +was alike kind, affable, and unostentatious; as a companion, he was the +most engaging of men; he was the best story-teller of his day." His +power of humour was unbounded; he had a joke for every occasion, a +_bon-mot_ for every adventure. He had eminent power of satire when he +chose to wield it; but he generally blended the complimentary with the +pungent, and lessened the keenness of censure by the good-humour of its +utterance. His anecdotes are familiar over a wide district, and many of +his witty sayings have become proverbial. He was abundantly hospitable, +and had even suffered embarrassments from its injudicious exercise; +still he was always able, as he used to say-- + + "To invite the wanderer to the gate, + And spread the couch of rest." + +It was his earnest desire that he might live to pay his liabilities, and +he was spared to accomplish the wish. He died on the 28th of February +1854, in the 81st year of his age. + +In appearance, Hamilton Paul presented a handsome person, tall and +erect; his countenance was regular and pleasant; and his eyes, which +were partially concealed by overhanging eye-lashes, beamed with humour +and intelligence. In conversation he particularly excelled, evincing on +every topic the fruits of extensive reading and reflection. He was +readily moved by the pathetic; at the most joyous hour, a melancholy +incident would move him into tears. The tenderness of his heart was +frequently imparted to his verses, which are uniformly distinguished for +smoothness and simplicity. + + +[72] We are indebted to Mr W. Deans, author of a "History of the Ottoman +Empire," for much of the information contained in this memoir. Mr Deans +was personally acquainted with Mr Hamilton Paul. + +[73] "He never took any credit to himself," communicates his friend, Mr +H. S. Riddell, "from the widely-known circumstance of his having carried +off the prize from Campbell. He said that Campbell was at that period a +very young man, much younger than he, and had much less experience in +composition than himself." + + + + +HELEN GRAY. + + + Fair are the fleecy flocks that feed + On yonder heath-clad hills, + Where wild meandering crystal Tweed + Collects his glassy rills. + And sweet the buds that scent the air, + And deck the breast of May; + But none of these are sweet or fair, + Compared to Helen Gray. + + You see in Helen's face so mild, + And in her bashful mien, + The winning softness of the child, + The blushes of fifteen. + The witching smile, when prone to go, + Arrests me, bids me stay; + Nor joy, nor comfort can I know, + When 'reft of Helen Gray. + + I little thought the dark-brown moors, + The dusky mountain's shade, + Down which the wasting torrent pours, + Conceal'd so sweet a maid; + When sudden started from the plain + A sylvan scene and gay, + Where, pride of all the virgin train, + I first saw Helen Gray. + + * * * * * + + May never Envy's venom'd breath, + Blight thee, thou tender flower! + And may thy head ne'er droop beneath + Affliction's chilling shower! + Though I, the victim of distress, + Must wander far away; + Yet, till my dying hour, I 'll bless + The name of Helen Gray. + + + + +THE BONNIE LASS OF BARR. + + + Of streams that down the valley run, + Or through the meadow glide, + Or glitter to the summer sun, + The Stinshar[74] is the pride. + 'Tis not his banks of verdant hue, + Though famed they be afar; + Nor grassy hill, nor mountain blue, + Nor flower bedropt with diamond dew; + 'Tis she that chiefly charms the view, + The bonnie lass of Barr. + + When rose the lark on early wing, + The vernal tide to hail; + When daisies deck'd the breast of spring, + I sought her native vale. + The beam that gilds the evening sky, + And brighter morning star, + That tells the king of day is nigh, + With mimic splendour vainly try + To reach the lustre of thine eye, + Thou bonnie lass of Barr. + + The sun behind yon misty isle, + Did sweetly set yestreen; + But not his parting dewy smile + Could match the smile of Jean. + Her bosom swell'd with gentle woe, + Mine strove with tender war. + On Stinshar's banks, while wild-woods grow, + While rivers to the ocean flow, + With love of thee my heart shall glow, + Thou bonnie lass of Barr. + + +[74] The English pronouncing the name of this river _Stinkar_, induced +the poet Burns to change it to Lugar. + + + + +ROBERT TANNAHILL. + + +Robert Tannahill was born at Paisley on the 3d of June 1774. His father, +James Tannahill, a silk-gauze weaver, espoused Janet Pollock, daughter +of Matthew Pollock, owner of the small property of Boghall, near Beith; +their family consisted of six sons and one daughter, of whom the future +poet was the fourth child. On his mother's side he inherited a poetical +temperament; she was herself endowed with strong natural sagacity, and +her maternal uncle Hugh Brodie of Langcroft, a small landowner in +Lochwinnoch, evidenced poetic powers by composing "A Speech in Verse +upon Husbandry."[75] When a mere youth, Tannahill wrote verses; and +being unable, from a weakness in one of his limbs to join in the active +sports of his school-fellows, he occasionally sought amusement by +composing riddles in rhyme for their solution. As a specimen of these +early compositions, we submit the following, which has been communicated +to us by Mr Matthew Tannahill, the poet's surviving brother. It was +composed on old grumbling Peter Anderson, the gardener of King's Street, +a character still remembered in Paisley:-- + + "Wi' girnin' and chirmin', + His days they hae been spent; + When ither folk right thankfu' spoke, + He never was content." + +Along with poetry Tannahill early cultivated the kindred arts of music +and song; a mere youth, he occasionally earned the payment of ten +shillings for playing on the fife at the Greenock parades; he afterwards +became eminent for his skill in the use of the flute. Having completed +his education at school, which consisted of instruction in the +elementary branches, he became apprenticed to a cotton-weaver. +Collecting old or obscure airs, he began to adapt to them suitable +words, which he jotted down as they occurred, upon a rude writing-desk +he had attached to his loom. His spare hours were spent in the general +improvement of his mind. For a period of two years at the commencement +of the century, he prosecuted his handicraft occupation at Bolton in +England. Returning to Paisley in the spring of 1802, he was offered the +situation of overseer of a manufacturing establishment, but he preferred +to resume the labours of the loom. + +Hitherto Tannahill had not dreamt of becoming known as a song-writer; he +cultivated his gift to relieve the monotony of an unintellectual +occupation, and the usual auditor of his lays was his younger brother +Matthew, who for some years was his companion in the workshop. The +acquaintance of Robert Archibald Smith, the celebrated musical composer, +which he was now fortunate in forming, was the means of stimulating his +Muse to higher efforts and of awakening his ambition. Smith was at this +period resident in Paisley; and along with one Ross, a teacher of music +from Aberdeen, he set several of Tannahill's best songs to music. In +1805 he was invited to become a poetical contributor to a leading +metropolitan periodical; and two years afterwards he published a volume +of "Poems and Songs." Of this work a large impression was sold, and a +number of the songs soon obtained celebrity. Encouraged by R. A. Smith +and others, who, attracted by his fame, came to visit him, Tannahill +began to feel concerned in respect of his reputation as a song-writer; +he diligently composed new songs and re-wrote with attention those which +he had already published. Some of these compositions he hoped would be +accepted by his correspondent, Mr George Thomson, for his collection, +and the others he expected would find a publisher in the famous +bookselling firm of Constable & Co. The failure of both these +schemes--for Constable's hands were full, and Thomson exhibited his +wonted "fastidiousness"--preyed deeply on the mind of the sensitive +bard. A temporary relief to his disappointed expectations was occasioned +by a visit which, in the spring of 1810, he received from James Hogg, +the Ettrick Shepherd, who made a journey to Paisley expressly to form +his acquaintance. The visit is remembered by Mr Matthew Tannahill, who +describes the enthusiasm with which his brother received such homage to +his genius. The poets spent a night together; and in the morning +Tannahill accompanied the Shepherd half-way to Glasgow. Their parting +was memorable: "Farewell," said Tannahill, as he grasped the Shepherd's +hand, "we shall never meet again! Farewell, I shall never see you more!" + +The visit of the Ettrick Bard proved only an interlude amidst the +depression which had permanently settled on the mind of poor Tannahill. +The intercourse of admiring friends even became burdensome to him; and +he stated to his brother Matthew his determination either to leave +Paisley for a sequestered locality, or to canvass the country for +subscribers to a new edition of his poems. Meanwhile, his person became +emaciated, and he complained to his brother that he experienced a +prickling sensation in the head. During a visit to a friend in Glasgow, +he exhibited decided symptoms of insanity. On his return home, he +complained of illness, and took to bed in his mother's house. He was +visited by three of his brothers on the evening of the same day, and +they left him about ten o'clock, when he appeared sufficiently composed. +Returning about two hours afterwards to inquire for him, and for their +mother, who lay sick in the next apartment, they found their brother's +bed empty, and discovered that he had gone out. Arousing the neighbours, +they made an immediate search, and at length they discovered the poet's +lifeless body at a deep spot of the neighbouring brook. Tannahill +terminated his own life on the 17th May 1810, at the age of thirty-six. + +The victim of disappointments which his sensitive temperament could not +endure, Tannahill was naturally of an easy and cheerful disposition. "He +was happy himself," states his surviving brother, "and he wished to see +every one happy around him." As a child, his brother informs us, his +exemplary behaviour was so conspicuous, that mothers were satisfied of +their children's safety, if they learned that they were in company with +"_Bob_ Tannahill." Inoffensive in his own dispositions, he entertained +every respect for the feelings of others. He enjoyed the intercourse of +particular friends, but avoided general society; in company, he seldom +talked, and only with a neighbour; he shunned the acquaintance of +persons of rank, because he disliked patronage, and dreaded the +superciliousness of pride. His conversation was simple; he possessed, +but seldom used, considerable powers of satire; but he applied his +keenest shafts of declamation against the votaries of cruelty. In +performing acts of kindness he took delight, but he was scrupulous of +accepting favours; he was strong in the love of independence, and he had +saved twenty pounds at the period of his death. His general appearance +did not indicate intellectual superiority; his countenance was calm and +meditative, his eyes were gray, and his hair a light-brown. In person, +he was under the middle size. Not ambitious of general learning, he +confined his reading chiefly to poetry. His poems are much inferior to +his songs; of the latter will be found admirers while the Scottish +language is sung or understood. Abounding in genuine sweetness and +graceful simplicity, they are pervaded by the gentlest pathos. Rich in +description of beautiful landscapes, they softly tell the tale of man's +affection and woman's love.[76] + + +[75] See Semple's "Continuation of Crawford's History of Renfrewshire," +p. 116. + +[76] Tannahill was believed never to have entertained particular +affection towards any of the fair sex. We have ascertained that, at +different periods, he paid court to two females of his own rank. The +first of these was Jean King, sister of his friend John King, one of the +minor poets of Paisley; she afterwards married a person of the name of +Pinkerton; and her son, Mr James Pinkerton, printer, Paisley, has +frequently heard her refer to the fear she had entertained lest "Rob +would write a song about her." His next sweetheart was Mary Allan, +sister of the poet Robert Allan. This estimable woman was a sad mourner +on the poet's death, and for many years wept aloud when her deceased +lover was made the subject of conversation in her presence. She still +survives, and a few years since, to join some relations, she emigrated +to America. Some verses addressed to her by the poet she continues to +retain with the fondest affection. + + + + +JESSIE, THE FLOWER O' DUMBLANE.[77] + + + The sun has gane down o'er the lofty Benlomond, + And left the red clouds to preside o'er the scene, + While lanely I stray in the calm simmer gloamin' + To muse on sweet Jessie, the flower o' Dumblane. + How sweet is the brier, wi' its saft faulding blossom, + And sweet is the birk, wi' its mantle o' green; + Yet sweeter and fairer, and dear to this bosom, + Is lovely young Jessie, the flower o' Dumblane. + + She's modest as ony, and blithe as she 's bonny; + For guileless simplicity marks her its ain; + And far be the villain, divested of feeling, + Wha 'd blight, in its bloom, the sweet flower o' Dumblane. + Sing on, thou sweet mavis, thy hymn to the e'ening, + Thou 'rt dear to the echoes of Calderwood glen; + Sae dear to this bosom, sae artless and winning, + Is charming young Jessie, the flower o' Dumblane. + + How lost were my days till I met wi' my Jessie, + The sports o' the city seem'd foolish and vain; + I ne'er saw a nymph I would ca' my dear lassie, + Till charm'd with sweet Jessie, the flower o' Dumblane. + Though mine were the station o' loftiest grandeur, + Amidst its profusion I 'd languish in pain; + And reckon as naething the height o' its splendour, + If wanting sweet Jessie, the flower o' Dumblane. + + +[77] "Jessie, the flower o' Dumblane" was published in 1808, and has +since received an uncommon measure of popularity. The music, so suitable +to the words, was composed by R. A. Smith. In the "Harp of Renfrewshire" +(p. xxxvi), Mr Smith remarks that the song was at first composed in two +stanzas, the third being subsequently added. "The Promethean fire," says +Mr Smith, "must have been burning but _lownly_, when such commonplace +ideas could be written, after the song had been so finely wound up with +the beautiful apostrophe to the mavis, 'Sing on, thou sweet mavis, thy +hymn to the e'ening.'" The heroine of the song was formerly a matter of +speculation; many a "Jessie" had the credit assigned to her; and +passengers by the old stage-coaches between Perth and the south, on +passing through Dunblane, had pointed out to them, by the drivers, the +house of Jessie's birth. One writer (in the _Musical Magazine_, for May +1835) records that he had actually been introduced at Dunblane to the +individual Jessie, then an elderly female, of an appearance the reverse +of prepossessing! Unfortunately for the curious in such inquiries, the +heroine only existed in the imagination of the poet; he never was in +Dunblane, which, if he had been, he would have discovered that the sun +could not there be seen setting "o'er the lofty Benlomond." Mr Matthew +Tannahill states that the song was composed to supplant an old one, +entitled, "Bob o' Dumblane." Mr James Bowie, of Paisley, supplies the +information, that in consequence of improvements suggested from time to +time by R. A. Smith and William Maclaren, Tannahill wrote eighteen +different versions of this song. + + + + +LOUDOUN'S BONNIE WOODS AND BRAES.[78] + +AIR--_"Lord Moira's Welcome to Scotland."_ + + + Loudoun's bonnie woods and braes, + I maun lea' them a', lassie; + Wha can thole when Britain's faes + Wald gi'e Britons law, lassie? + Wha would shun the field of danger? + Wha frae fame wad live a stranger? + Now when Freedom bids avenge her, + Wha would shun her ca', lassie? + Loudoun's bonnie woods and braes + Hae seen our happy bridal days, + And gentle Hope shall soothe thy waes, + When I am far awa', lassie. + + "Hark! the swelling bugle sings, + Yielding joy to thee, laddie, + But the dolefu' bugle brings + Waefu' thoughts to me, laddie. + Lanely I may climb the mountain, + Lanely stray beside the fountain, + Still the weary moments countin', + Far frae love, and thee, laddie. + O'er the gory fields of war, + When Vengeance drives his crimson car, + Thou 'lt maybe fa', frae me afar, + And nane to close thy e'e, laddie." + + O! resume thy wonted smile! + O! suppress thy fears, lassie! + Glorious honour crowns the toil + That the soldier shares, lassie; + Heaven will shield thy faithful lover, + Till the vengeful strife is over, + Then we 'll meet nae mair to sever, + Till the day we die, lassie; + 'Midst our bonnie woods and braes, + We 'll spend our peaceful, happy days, + As blithe 's yon lightsome lamb that plays + On Loudoun's flowery lea, lassie. + + +[78] Tannahill wrote this song in honour of the Earl of Moira, +afterwards Marquis of Hastings, and the Countess of Loudoun, to whom his +Lordship had been shortly espoused, when he was called abroad in the +service of his country. + + + + +THE LASS O' ARRANTEENIE.[79] + + + Far lone amang the Highland hills, + 'Midst Nature's wildest grandeur, + By rocky dens, and woody glens, + With weary steps I wander. + The langsome way, the darksome day, + The mountain mist sae rainy, + Are nought to me when gaun to thee, + Sweet lass o' Arranteenie. + + Yon mossy rosebud down the howe, + Just op'ning fresh and bonny, + Blinks sweetly 'neath the hazel bough, + And 's scarcely seen by ony; + Sae, sweet amidst her native hills, + Obscurely blooms my Jeanie, + Mair fair and gay than rosy May, + The flower o' Arranteenie. + + Now, from the mountain's lofty brow, + I view the distant ocean, + There Av'rice guides the bounding prow, + Ambition courts promotion:-- + Let Fortune pour her golden store, + Her laurell'd favours many; + Give me but this, my soul's first wish, + The lass o' Arranteenie. + + + +[79] This song was written on a young lady, whom a friend of the author +met at Ardentinny, a retired spot on the margin of Loch Long. + + + + +YON BURN SIDE.[80] + +AIR--_"The Brier-bush."_ + + + We 'll meet beside the dusky glen, on yon burn side, + Where the bushes form a cosie den, on yon burn side; + Though the broomy knowes be green, + And there we may be seen, + Yet we 'll meet--we 'll meet at e'en down by yon burn side. + + I 'll lead you to the birken bower, on yon burn side, + Sae sweetly wove wi' woodbine flower, on yon burn side; + There the busy prying eye, + Ne'er disturbs the lovers' joy, + While in ither's arms they lie, down by yon burn side, + Awa', ye rude, unfeeling crew, frae yon burn side, + Those fairy scenes are no for you, by yon burn side; + There fancy smoothes her theme, + By the sweetly murm'ring stream, + And the rock-lodged echoes skim, down by yon burn side. + + Now the plantin' taps are tinged wi' goud, on yon burn side, + And gloamin' draws her foggy shroud o'er yon burn side; + Far frae the noisy scene, + I 'll through the fields alane, + There we 'll meet, my ain dear Jean, down by yon burn side. + + +[80] The poet and one of his particular friends, Charles Marshall (whose +son, the Rev. Charles Marshall, of Dunfermline, is author of a +respectable volume, entitled "Lays and Lectures"), had met one evening +in a tavern, kept by Tom Buchanan, near the cross of Paisley. The +evening was enlivened by song-singing; and the landlord, who was +present, sung the old song, beginning, "There grows a bonny brier-bush," +which he did with effect. On their way home together, Marshall remarked +that the words of the landlord's song were vastly inferior to the tune, +and humorously suggested the following burlesque parody of the first +stanza:-- + + "There 's mony a dainty cabbage-stock in our kail-yard, + There 's mony a dainty cabbage-stock in our kail-yard, + They were set by Charlie Marshall, + And pu'd by Nannie Laird, + Yet there 's mony a dainty cabbage-stock in our kail-yard." + +He added that Tannahill would do well to compose suitable words for the +music. The hint sufficed; the friends met after a fortnight's interval, +when the poet produced and read the song of "Yon burn side." It +immediately became popular. Marshall used to relate this anecdote with +much feeling. He died in March 1851, at the age of fourscore. + + + + +THE BRAES O' GLENIFFER.[81] + +AIR--_"Bonny Dundee."_ + + + Keen blaws the wind o'er the braes o' Gleniffer, + The auld castle's turrets are cover'd wi' snaw; + How changed frae the time when I met wi' my lover, + Amang the broom bushes by Stanley-green shaw: + The wild flowers o' summer were spread a' sae bonnie, + The mavis sang sweet frae the green birken tree; + But far to the camp they hae march'd my dear Johnnie, + And now it is winter wi' nature and me. + + Then ilk thing around us was blythesome and cheery, + Then ilk thing around us was bonny and braw; + Now naething is heard but the wind whistling dreary, + And naething is seen but the wide-spreading snaw. + The trees are a' bare, and the birds mute and dowie, + They shake the cauld drift frae their wings as they flee, + And chirp out their plaints, seeming wae for my Johnnie, + 'Tis winter wi' them, and 'tis winter wi' me. + + Yon cauld sleety cloud skiffs alang the bleak mountain, + And shakes the dark firs on the stey rocky brae; + While down the deep glen bawls the snaw-flooded fountain, + That murmur'd sae sweet to my laddie and me. + + 'Tis no its loud roar on the wintry winds swellin', + 'Tis no the cauld blast brings the tears i' my e'e, + For, O, gin I saw but my bonny Scots callan', + The dark days o' winter were summer to me! + + +[81] The Braes of Gleniffer are a tract of hilly ground, to the south of +Paisley. They are otherwise known as Stanley Braes. + + + + +THROUGH CROCKSTON CASTLE'S LANELY WA'S.[82] + +AIR--_"Crockston Castle."_ + + + Through Crockston Castle's lanely wa's + The wintry wind howls wild and dreary; + Though mirk the cheerless e'ening fa's, + Yet I hae vow'd to meet my Mary. + Yes, Mary, though the winds should rave + Wi' jealous spite to keep me frae thee, + The darkest stormy night I 'd brave, + For ae sweet secret moment wi' thee. + + Loud o'er Cardonald's rocky steep, + Rude Cartha pours in boundless measure; + But I will ford the whirling deep, + That roars between me and my treasure. + Yes, Mary, though the torrent rave, + Wi' jealous spite, to keep me frae thee, + Its deepest flood I 'd bauldly brave, + For ae sweet secret moment wi' thee. + + The watch-dog's howling loads the blast, + And makes the nightly wand'rer eerie; + But when the lonesome way is past, + I 'll to this bosom clasp my Mary! + Yes, Mary, though stern winter rave, + With a' his storms, to keep me frae thee, + The wildest dreary night I 'd brave, + For ae sweet secret moment wi' thee. + + +[82] The ruin of Crockston Castle is situated on the brow of a gentle +eminence, about three miles south-east of Paisley. The Castle, in the +twelfth century, was possessed by a Norman family, of the name of Croc; +it passed, in the following century, by the marriage of the heiress, +into a younger branch of the House of Stewart, who were afterwards +ennobled as Earls of Lennox. According to tradition, Queen Mary and Lord +Darnley occasionally resided in the castle; and it is reported that the +unfortunate princess witnessed from its walls the fall of her fortunes +at the battle of Langside. Crockston Castle is now the possession of Sir +John Maxwell, Bart., of Pollock. + + + + +THE BRAES O' BALQUHITHER.[83] + +AIR--_"The Three Carls o' Buchanan."_ + + + Let us go, lassie, go + To the braes o' Balquhither, + Where the blaeberries grow + 'Mang the bonnie Highland heather; + Where the deer and the rae, + Lightly bounding together, + Sport the lang summer day + On the braes o' Balquhither. + + I will twine thee a bower + By the clear siller fountain, + And I 'll cover it o'er + Wi' the flowers o' the mountain; + I will range through the wilds, + And the deep glens sae dreary, + And return wi' their spoils + To the bower o' my dearie. + + When the rude wintry win' + Idly raves round our dwelling, + And the roar of the linn + On the night breeze is swelling; + So merrily we 'll sing, + As the storm rattles o'er us, + Till the dear sheiling ring + Wi' the light lilting chorus. + + Now the summer is in prime, + Wi' the flow'rs richly blooming, + And the wild mountain thyme + A' the moorlands perfuming; + To our dear native scenes + Let us journey together, + Where glad innocence reigns, + 'Mang the braes o' Balquhither. + + +[83] A clerical friend has communicated to us the following stanza, +which he heard sung by an old Highlander, as an addition to the "Braes +o' Balquhither:"-- + + "While the lads of the south + Toil for bare worldly treasure-- + To the lads of the north + Every day brings its pleasure: + Oh, blithe are the joys + That the Highlandman possesses, + He feels no annoys, + For he fears no distresses." + + + + + + +GLOOMY WINTER 'S NOW AWA'. + +AIR--_"Lord Balgonie's Favourite."_ + + + Gloomy winter 's now awa' + Saft the westling breezes blaw, + 'Mang the birks of Stanley-shaw, + The mavis sings fu' cheery, O! + Sweet the crawflower's early bell + Decks Gleniffer's dewy dell, + Blooming like thy bonny sel', + My young, my artless dearie, O! + + Come, my lassie, let us stray + O'er Glenkilloch's sunny brae, + Blithely spend the gowden day, + 'Midst joys that never weary, O! + Towering o'er the Newton woods, + Laverocks fan the snaw-white clouds, + Siller saughs, wi' downy buds, + Adorn the banks sae briery, O! + + Round the sylvan fairy nooks, + Feath'ry breckans fringe the rocks, + 'Neath the brae the burnie jouks, + And ilka thing is cheery, O! + Trees may bud, and birds may sing, + Flowers may bloom, and verdure spring, + Joy to me they canna bring, + Unless wi' thee, my dearie, O! + + + + +O! ARE YE SLEEPING, MAGGIE? + +AIR--_"Sleepy Maggie."_ + + + O! Are ye sleeping, Maggie? + O! are ye sleeping, Maggie? + Let me in, for loud the linn + Is roaring o'er the warlock craigie. + + Mirk and rainy is the night, + No a starn in a' the carry;[84] + Lightnings gleam athwart the lift, + And winds drive wi' winter's fury. + O! are ye sleeping, Maggie? &c. + + Fearful soughs the bourtree bank, + The rifted wood roars wild and dreary, + Loud the iron yate does clank, + And cry of howlets makes me eerie. + O! are ye sleeping, Maggie? &c. + + Aboon my breath I daurna' speak, + For fear I rouse your waukrife daddie, + Cauld 's the blast upon my cheek, + O rise, rise, my bonny lady! + O! are ye sleeping, Maggie? &c. + + She opt the door, she let him in, + He cuist aside his dreeping plaidie: + "Blaw your warst, ye rain and win', + Since, Maggie, now I 'm in aside ye." + + Now, since ye 're waking, Maggie! + Now, since ye 're waking, Maggie! + What care I for howlet's cry, + For bourtree bank, or warlock craigie? + + +[84] This expression commonly means, the direction in which the clouds +are carried by the wind, but it is here used to denote the firmament. + + + + +NOW WINTER, WI' HIS CLOUDY BROW. + +AIR--_"Forneth House."_ + + + Now Winter, wi' his cloudy brow, + Is far ayont yon mountains; + And Spring beholds her azure sky + Reflected in the fountains: + Now, on the budding slaethorn bank, + She spreads her early blossom, + And wooes the mirly-breasted birds + To nestle in her bosom. + + But lately a' was clad wi' snaw, + Sae darksome, dull, and dreary; + Now laverocks sing to hail the spring, + And Nature all is cheery. + Then let us leave the town, my love, + And seek our country dwelling, + Where waving woods, and spreading flowers, + On every side are smiling. + + We 'll tread again the daisied green, + Where first your beauty moved me; + We 'll trace again the woodland scene, + Where first ye own'd ye loved me; + We soon will view the roses blaw + In a' the charms of fancy, + For doubly dear these pleasures a', + When shared with thee, my Nancy. + + + + +THE DEAR HIGHLAND LADDIE, O! + +GAELIC AIR--_"Mor nian a Ghibarlan."_ + + + Blithe was the time when he fee'd wi' my father, O! + Happy were the days when we herded thegither, O! + Sweet were the hours when he row'd me in his plaidie, O! + And vow'd to be mine, my dear Highland laddie, O! + + But, ah! waes me! wi' their sodgering sae gaudy, O! + The laird's wys'd awa my braw Highland laddie, O! + Misty are the glens, and the dark hills sae cloudy, O! + That aye seem'd sae blythe wi' my dear Highland laddie, O! + + The blaeberry banks now are lonesome and dreary, O! + Muddy are the streams that gush'd down sae clearly, O! + Silent are the rocks that echoed sae gladly, O! + The wild melting strains o' my dear Highland laddie, O! + + He pu'd me the crawberry, ripe frae the boggy fen: + He pu'd me the strawberry, red frae the foggy glen; + He pu'd me the row'n frae the wild steeps sae giddy, O! + Sae loving and kind was my dear Highland laddie, O! + + Fareweel, my ewes, and fareweel, my doggie, O! + Fareweel, ye knowes, now sae cheerless and scroggie, O! + Fareweel, Glenfeoch, my mammy and my daddie, O! + I will leave you a' for my dear Highland laddie, O! + + + + +THE MIDGES DANCE ABOON THE BURN. + +AIR--_"The Shepherd's Son."_ + + + The midges dance aboon the burn, + The dews begin to fa'; + The pairtricks down the rushy holm, + Set up their e'ening ca'. + Now loud and clear the blackbirds' sang + Rings through the briery shaw, + While flitting, gay, the swallows play + Around the castle wa'. + + Beneath the golden gloamin' sky, + The mavis mends her lay, + The redbreast pours his sweetest strains, + To charm the ling'ring day. + While weary yeldrins seem to wail, + Their little nestlings torn; + The merry wren, frae den to den, + Gaes jinking through the thorn. + + The roses fauld their silken leaves, + The foxglove shuts its bell, + The honeysuckle and the birk + Spread fragrance through the dell + Let others crowd the giddy court + Of mirth and revelry-- + The simple joys that Nature yields + Are dearer far to me. + + + + +BARROCHAN JEAN.[85] + +AIR--_"Johnnie M'Gill."_ + + + 'Tis haena ye heard, man, o' Barrochan Jean? + And haena ye heard, man, o' Barrochan Jean? + How death and starvation came o'er the hail nation, + She wrought sic mischief wi' her twa pawky e'en. + + The lads and the lasses were deeing in dizzins, + The tane kill'd wi' love and the tither wi' spleen; + The ploughing, the sawing, the shearing, the mawing, + A' wark was forgotten for Barrochan Jean! + + Frae the south and the north, o'er the Tweed and the Forth, + Sic coming and ganging there never was seen; + The comers were cheerie, the gangers were blearie, + Despairing or hoping for Barrochan Jean! + + The carlines at hame were a' girning and graning, + The bairns were a' greeting frae morning till e'en; + They gat naething for crowdy, but runts boil'd to sowdie, + For naething gat growing for Barrochan Jean! + + The doctors declared it was past their descriving, + The ministers said 'twas a judgment for sin; + But they lookit sae blae, and their hearts were sae wae, + I was sure they were deeing for Barrochan Jean! + + The burns on road-sides were a' dry wi' their drinking, + Yet a' wadna slockin' the drouth i' their skin; + A' around the peat-stacks, and alangst the dyke-backs, + E'en the winds were a' sighing, "Sweet Barrochan Jean!" + + The timmer ran done wi' the making o' coffins, + Kirkyards o' their sward were a' howkit fu' clean; + Dead lovers were packit like herring in barrels, + Sic thousands were deeing for Barrochan Jean! + + But mony braw thanks to the Laird o' Glen Brodie, + The grass owre their graffs is now bonnie and green, + He sta' the proud heart of our wanton young lady, + And spoil'd a' the charm o' her twa pawky e'en. + + +[85] Writing to his friend Barr, on the 24th December 1809, Tannahill +remarks:--"You will, no doubt, have frequently observed how much some +old people are given to magnify the occurrences of their young days. +'Barrochan Jean' was written on hearing an old grannie, in Lochwinnoch +parish, relating a story something similar to the subject of the song; +perhaps I have heightened her colouring a little." + + + + +O, ROW THEE IN MY HIGHLAND PLAID! + + + Lowland lassie, wilt thou go + Where the hills are clad with snow; + Where, beneath the icy steep, + The hardy shepherd tends his sheep? + Ill nor wae shall thee betide, + When row'd within my Highland plaid. + + Soon the voice of cheery spring + Will gar a' our plantin's ring, + Soon our bonny heather braes + Will put on their summer claes; + On the mountain's sunny side, + We 'll lean us on my Highland plaid. + + When the summer spreads the flowers, + Busks the glens in leafy bowers, + Then we 'll seek the caller shade, + Lean us on the primrose bed; + While the burning hours preside, + I 'll screen thee wi' my Highland plaid. + + Then we 'll leave the sheep and goat, + I will launch the bonny boat, + Skim the loch in canty glee, + Rest the oars to pleasure thee; + When chilly breezes sweep the tide, + I 'll hap thee wi' my Highland plaid. + + Lowland lads may dress mair fine, + Woo in words mair saft than mine; + Lowland lads hae mair of art, + A' my boast 's an honest heart, + Whilk shall ever be my pride;-- + O, row thee in my Highland plaid! + + "Bonny lad, ye 've been sae leal, + My heart would break at our fareweel; + Lang your love has made me fain; + Take me--take me for your ain!" + Across the Firth, away they glide, + Young Donald and his Lowland bride. + + + + +BONNY WOOD OF CRAIGIE LEA.[86] + + + Thou bonny wood of Craigie lea! + Thou bonny wood of Craigie lea! + Near thee I pass'd life's early day, + And won my Mary's heart in thee. + + The broom, the brier, the birken bush, + Bloom bonny o'er thy flowery lea, + And a' the sweets that ane can wish + Frae Nature's hand, are strew'd on thee. + + Far ben thy dark green plantin's shade, + The cooshat croodles am'rously, + The mavis, down thy bughted glade, + Gars echo ring frae every tree. + Thou bonny wood, &c. + + Awa, ye thoughtless, murd'ring gang, + Wha tear the nestlings ere they flee! + They 'll sing you yet a canty sang, + Then, O, in pity, let them be! + Thou bonny woods, &c. + + When winter blaws in sleety showers, + Frae aff the norlan' hills sae hie, + He lightly skiffs thy bonny bowers, + As laith to harm a flower in thee. + Thou bonny wood, &c. + + Though Fate should drag me south the line, + Or o'er the wide Atlantic sea; + The happy hours I 'll ever mind, + That I, in youth, hae spent in thee. + Thou bonny wood, &c. + + +[86] Craigie Lea is situated to the north-west of Paisley. + + + + +GOOD NIGHT, AND JOY.[87] + +AIR--_"Good night, and joy be wi' you a'."_ + + + The weary sun 's gaen down the west, + The birds sit nodding on the tree; + All nature now prepares for rest, + But rest prepared there 's none for me. + The trumpet sounds to war's alarms, + The drums they beat, the fifes they play,-- + Come, Mary, cheer me wi' thy charms, + For the morn I will be far away. + + Good night, and joy--good night, and joy, + Good night, and joy be wi' you a'; + For since its so that I must go, + Good night, and joy be wi' you a'! + + I grieve to leave my comrades dear, + I mourn to leave my native shore; + To leave my aged parents here, + And the bonnie lass whom I adore. + But tender thoughts maun now be hush'd, + When danger calls I must obey. + The transport waits us on the coast, + And the morn I will be far away. + Good night, and joy, &c. + + Adieu, dear Scotia's sea-beat coast! + Though bleak and drear thy mountains be, + When on the heaving ocean tost, + I 'll cast a wishful look to thee! + And now, dear Mary, fare thee well, + May Providence thy guardian be! + Or in the camp, or on the field, + I 'll heave a sigh, and think on thee! + Good night, and joy, &c. + + +[87] We have been favoured, by Mr Matthew Tannahill, with a copy of the +above song of his late gifted brother. It is not included in any edition +of his poems, but has been printed, through the favour of Mr M. +Tannahill, in the "Book of Scottish Song." + + + + +HENRY DUNCAN, D.D. + + +Dr Henry Duncan the distinguished founder of Savings' Banks, and the +promoter of various schemes of social economy, we are enabled to record +among the contributors to Caledonian minstrelsy. He was descended +through both parents from a succession of respectable clergymen of the +Scottish Church. His father George Duncan, was minister of Lochrutton in +the stewartry of Kircudbright, and the subject of this memoir was born +in the manse of that parish, on the 8th October 1774. After a period of +training at home under a private tutor, he was sent to the Academy of +Dumfries to complete his preparation for the University. At the age of +fourteen, he entered as a student the United College of St Andrews, but +after an attendance of two years at that seat of learning, he was +induced, on the invitation of his relative Dr Currie, to proceed to +Liverpool, there to prepare himself for a mercantile profession, by +occupying a situation in the banking office of Messrs Heywood. After a +trial of three years, he found the avocations of business decidedly +uncongenial, and firmly resolved to follow the profession of his +progenitors, by studying for the ministry of the Church of Scotland. He +had already afforded evidence of ability to grapple with questions of +controversial theology, by printing a tract against the errors of +Socinianism, which, published anonymously, attracted in the city of +Liverpool much attention from the originality with which the usual +arguments were illustrated and enforced. Of the concluding five years of +his academical course, the first and two last were spent at the +University of Edinburgh, the other two at that of Glasgow. In 1797, he +was enrolled as a member of the Speculative Society of the University of +Edinburgh, and there took his turn in debate with Henry Brougham, +Francis Horner, Lord Henry Petty afterwards Marquis of Lansdowne, and +other young men of genius, who then adorned the academic halls of the +Scottish capital. With John Leyden, W. Gillespie afterwards minister of +Kells, and Robert Lundie the future minister of Kelso, he formed habits +of particular intimacy. From the Presbytery of Dumfries, he obtained +licence as a probationer in the spring of 1798, and he thereafter +accepted the situation of tutor in the family of Colonel Erskine +afterwards Earl of Mar, who then resided at Dalhonzie, near Crieff. In +this post he distinguished himself by inducing the inhabitants of the +district to take up arms in the defence of the country, during the +excitement, which then prevailed respecting an invasion. In the spring +of 1799, the parishes of Lochmaben and Ruthwell, both in the gift of the +Earl of Mansfield, became simultaneously vacant, and the choice of them +was accorded to Mr Duncan by the noble patron. He preferred Ruthwell, +and was ordained to the charge of that parish, on the 19th September. + +In preferring the parish of Ruthwell to the better position and wider +field of ministerial usefulness presented at Lochmaben, Mr Duncan was +influenced by the consideration, that the population of the former +parish was such as would enable him to extend the pastoral +superintendence to every individual of his flock. In this respect he +realised his wishes; but not content with efficiently discharging the +more sacred duties of a parochial clergyman, he sought with devoted +assiduity, the amelioration of the physical condition of his people. +Relieving an immediate destitution in the parish, by a supply of Indian +corn brought on his own adventure, he was led to devise means of +preventing the recurrence of any similar period of depression. With this +intention, he established two friendly societies in the place, and +afterwards a local bank for the savings of the industrious. The latter +proved the parent of those admirable institutions for the working +classes, known as _Savings' Banks_, which have since become so numerous +throughout Europe and the United States of America. The Ruthwell +Savings' Bank was established in 1810. Numerous difficulties attended +the early operation of the system, on its general adoption throughout +the country, but these were obviated and removed by the skill and +promptitude of the ingenious projector. At one period his correspondence +on the subject cost him in postages an annual expenditure of one hundred +pounds, a sum nearly equal to half the yearly emoluments of his +parochial cure. The Act of Parliament establishing Savings' Banks in +Scotland, which was passed in July 1819, was procured through his +indomitable exertions, and likewise the Act of 1835, providing for the +better regulation of these institutions. + +At Ruthwell, Dr Duncan introduced the system of popular lectures on +science, which has since been adopted by Mechanics' Institutes. Further +to extend the benefits of popular instruction and entertainment, he +edited a series of tracts entitled "The Scottish Cheap Repository," one +of the first of those periodicals devoted to the moral improvement of +the people. A narrative designated "The Cottager's Fireside," which he +originally contributed to this series, was afterwards published +separately, and commanded a wide circulation. In 1809, Dr Duncan +originated the _Dumfries and Galloway Courier_, a weekly newspaper which +he conducted during the first seven years of its existence. He was a +frequent contributor to "The Christian Instructor," and wrote the +articles "Blair" and "Blacklock" for the _Edinburgh Encyclopaedia_. At +the request of Lord Brougham, he composed two treatises on Savings' +Banks and Friendly Societies, for publication by the "Society for the +Diffusion of Useful Knowledge." In 1819, he published the "Young Country +Weaver," a tale calculated to disseminate just political views among the +manufacturing classes; and in 1826 a tale of the times of the Covenant +in three volumes, with the title of "William Douglas, or the Scottish +Exiles." Deeply interested in the question of Slave Emancipation, he +contributed a series of letters on the subject to the _Dumfries +Courier_, which, afterwards published in the form of a pamphlet, excited +no inconsiderable attention. His most valuable and successful +publication, the "Sacred Philosophy of the Seasons" appeared in 1836-7 +in four duodecimo volumes. + +As a man of science, the name of Dr Duncan is associated with the +discovery of footprints of four-footed animals in the New Red-Sandstone. +He made this curious geological discovery in a quarry at Corncocklemuir, +about fifteen miles distant from his parochial manse. In 1823, he +received the degree of D.D. from the University of St Andrews. In 1839, +he was raised to the Moderator's chair in the General Assembly. In +church politics, he had early espoused liberal opinions; at the +Disruption in 1843, he resigned his charge and united himself to the +Free Church. He continued to minister in the parish of Ruthwell, till +the appointment of an assistant and successor a short time before his +decease. Revisiting the scene of his ministerial labours after a brief +absence, he was struck with paralysis while conducting service at a +prayer-meeting, and two days afterwards expired. He died at Comlongon, +the residence of his brother-in-law Mr Phillips, on the 12th February +1846, and his remains were committed to the church-yard of Ruthwell, in +which he had ministered during an incumbency of upwards of forty-six +years. + +Dr Duncan was twice married; first in 1804, to Miss Craig, the only +surviving daughter of his predecessor, and secondly in 1836, to Mrs +Lundie, the relict of his friend Mr Lundie, minister of Kelso. His +memoirs have been published by his son, the Rev. George John C. Duncan, +minister of the Free Church, Greenwich. A man of fine intellect, +extensive and varied scholarship, and highly benevolent dispositions, Dr +Duncan was much cherished and beloved alike by his parishioners and his +gifted contemporaries. Pious and exemplary as became his profession, he +was expert in business, and was largely endowed with an inventive +genius. Though hitherto scarcely known as a poet, he wrote verses so +early as his eleventh year, which are described by his biographer as +having "evinced a maturity of taste, a refinement of thought, and an +ease of diction which astonished and delighted his friends," and the +specimens of his more mature lyrical compositions, which we have been +privileged to publish from his MSS. are such as to induce some regret +that they were not sooner given to the public. + + + + +CURLING SONG. + + + The music o' the year is hush'd, + In bonny glen and shaw, man; + And winter spreads o'er nature dead + A winding sheet o' snaw, man. + O'er burn and loch, the warlike frost, + A crystal brig has laid, man; + The wild geese screaming wi' surprise, + The ice-bound wave ha'e fled, man. + + Up, curler, frae your bed sae warm, + And leave your coaxing wife, man; + Gae get your besom, tramps and stane, + And join the friendly strife, man. + For on the water's face are met, + Wi' mony a merry joke, man; + The tenant and his jolly laird, + The pastor and his flock, man. + + The rink is swept, the tees are mark'd, + The bonspiel is begun, man; + The ice is true, the stanes are keen, + Huzza for glorious fun, man! + The skips are standing at the tee, + To guide the eager game, man; + Hush, not a word, but mark the broom, + And tak' a steady aim, man. + + There draw a shot, there lay a guard, + And here beside him lie, man; + Now let him feel a gamester's hand, + Now in his bosom die, man; + Then fill the port, and block the ice, + We sit upon the tee, man; + Now tak' this in-ring, sharp and neat, + And mak' their winner flee, man. + + How stands the game? Its eight and eight, + Now for the winning shot, man; + Draw slow and sure, and tak' your aim, + I 'll sweep you to the spot, man. + The stane is thrown, it glides along, + The besoms ply it in, man; + Wi' twisting back the player stands, + And eager breathless grin, man. + + A moment's silence, still as death, + Pervades the anxious thrang, man; + When sudden bursts the victor's shout, + With holla's loud and lang, man. + Triumphant besom's wave in air, + And friendly banters fly, man; + Whilst, cold and hungry, to the inn, + Wi' eager steps they hie, man. + + Now fill ae bumper, fill but ane, + And drink wi' social glee, man, + May curlers on life's slippery rink, + Frae cruel rubs be free, man; + Or should a treacherous bias lead + Their erring course ajee, man, + Some friendly in-ring may they meet, + To guide them to the tee, man. + + + + +ON THE GREEN SWARD.[88] + +TUNE--_"Arniston House."_ + + + On the green sward lay William, in anguish extended, + To soothe and to cheer him his Mary stood near him; + But despair in the cup of his sorrows was blended, + And, inwardly groaning, he wildly exclaim'd-- + + "Ah! look not so fondly, thou peerless in beauty, + Away, I beseech thee, no comfort can reach me; + A martyr to love, or a traitor to duty, + My pleasure is sorrow, my hope is despair. + + "Once the visions of fancy shone bright and attractive, + Like distant scenes blooming which sunbeams illumine; + Love pointed to wealth, and, no longer inactive, + I labour'd till midnight, and rose with the dawn. + + "But the day-dreams of pleasure have fled me for ever, + Misfortune surrounds me, oppression confounds me; + No hope to support, and no friend to deliver, + Poor and wretched, alas! I must ever remain. + + "And thou, my soul's treasure, whilst pitying my anguish, + New poison does mix in my cup of affliction, + For honour forbids (though without thee I languish) + To make thee a partner of sorrow and want." + + "Dear William," she cried, "I 'll no longer deceive thee, + I honour thy merit, I love thy proud spirit; + Too well thou art tried, and if wealth can relieve thee, + My portion is ample--that portion is thine." + + +[88] Composed in 1804. This song and those following, by Dr Duncan, are +here published for the first time. + + + + +THE RUTHWELL VOLUNTEERS.[89] + + + Hark! the martial drums resound, + Valiant brothers, welcome all, + Crowd the royal standard round, + 'Tis your injured country's call. + See, see, the robbers come, + Ruin seize the ruthless foe; + For your altars, for your homes, + Heroes lay the tyrants low! + + He whom dastard fears abash, + He was born to be a slave-- + Let him feel the despot's lash, + And sink inglorious to the grave. + See, see, &c. + + He who spurns a coward's life, + He whose bosom freedom warms, + Let him share the glorious strife, + We 'll take the hero to our arms. + See, see, &c. + + Spirits of the valiant dead, + Who fought and bled at Freedom's call, + In the path you dared to tread, + We, your sons, will stand or fall. + See, see, &c. + + Bending from your airy halls, + Turn on us a guardian eye-- + Lead where Fame or Honour calls, + And teach to conquer or to die! + See, see, &c. + + +[89] Written in 1805, when the nation was in apprehension of the French +invasion. + + + + +EXILED FAR FROM SCENES OF PLEASURE.[90] + +TUNE--_"Blythe, Blythe and Merry was she."_ + + + Exiled far from scenes of pleasure, + Love sincere and friendship true, + Sad I mark the moon's pale radiance, + Trembling in the midnight dew. + + Sad and lonely, sad and lonely, + Musing on the tints decay, + On the maid I love so dearly, + And on pleasure's fleeting day. + + Bright the moonbeams, when we parted, + Mark'd the solemn midnight hour, + Clothing with a robe of silver + Hill, and dale, and shady bower. + + Then our mutual faith we plighted, + Vows of true love to repeat, + Lonely oft the pale orb watching, + At this hour to lovers sweet. + + On thy silent face, with fondness, + Let me gaze, fair queen of night, + For my Annie's tears of sorrow + Sparkle in thy soften'd light. + + When I think my Annie views thee, + Dearly do I love thy rays, + For the distance that divides us + Seems to vanish as I gaze. + + +[90] Composed in 1807. + + + + +THE ROOF OF STRAW. + + + I ask no lordling's titled name, + Nor miser's hoarded store; + I ask to live with those I love, + Contented though I 'm poor. + From joyless pomp and heartless mirth + I gladly will withdraw, + And hide me in this lowly vale, + Beneath my roof of straw. + + To hear my Nancy's lips pronounce + A husband's cherish'd name, + To press my children to my heart + Are titles, wealth and fame. + Let kings and conquerors delight + To hold the world in awe, + Be mine to find content and peace + Beneath my roof of straw. + + When round the winters' warm fireside + We meet with social joy, + The glance of love to every heart + Shall speak from every eye. + More lovely far such such scenes of bliss + Than monarch ever saw, + Even angels might delight to dwell + Beneath my roof of straw. + + + + +THOU KEN'ST, MARY HAY.[91] + +TUNE--_"Bonny Mary Hay."_ + + + Thou ken'st, Mary Hay, that I loe thee weel, + My ain auld wife, sae canty and leal, + Then what gars thee stand wi' the tear in thine e'e, + And look aye sae wae, when thou look'st at me? + + Dost thou miss, Mary Hay, the saft bloom o' my cheek, + And the hair curling round it, sae gentie and sleek? + For the snaw 's on my head, and the roses are gane, + Since that day o' days I first ca'd thee my ain. + + But though, Mary Hay, my auld e'en be grown dim, + An age, wi' its frost, maks cauld every limb, + My heart, thou kens weel, has nae cauldness for thee, + For simmer returns at the blink o' thine e'e. + + The miser hauds firmer and firmer his gold, + The ivy sticks close to the tree, when its old, + And still thou grows't dearer to me, Mary Hay, + As a' else turns eerie, and life wears away. + + We maun part, Mary Hay, when our journey is done, + But I 'll meet thee again in the bricht world aboon, + Then what gars thee stand wi' the tear in thine e'e, + And look aye sae wae when thou look'st at me? + + +[91] Composed in 1830. + + + + +ROBERT ALLAN. + + +Robert Allan was the son of a respectable flax-dresser in the village of +Kilbarchan, Renfrewshire. The third of a family of ten children, he was +born on the 4th of November 1774. Inheriting a taste for music, he early +evinced talent in the composition of song, which was afterwards fostered +by the encouragement of Tannahill and Robert Archibald Smith. With +Tannahill he lived on terms of the most cordial friendship. He followed +the occupation of a muslin weaver in his native place, and composed many +of his best verses at the loom. He was an extensive contributor to the +"Scottish Minstrel," published by R. A. Smith, his songs being set to +music by the editor. In 1820, a number of his songs appeared in the +"Harp of Renfrewshire." His only separate volume was published in 1836, +under the editorial revision of Robert Burns Hardy, teacher of elocution +in Glasgow. + +In his more advanced years, Allan, who was naturally of good and +benevolent dispositions, became peculiarly irritable; he fancied that +his merits as a poet had been overlooked, and the feeling preyed deeply +upon his mind. He entertained extreme political opinions, and conceived +a dislike to his native country, which he deemed had not sufficiently +estimated his genius. Much in opposition to the wishes of his friends, +he sailed for New York in his 67th year. He survived the passage only +six days; he died at New York on the 1st June 1841. + +Robert Allan is entitled to an honourable position as a writer of +Scottish song; all his lyrics evince a correct appreciation of the +beautiful in nature, and of the pure and elevated in sentiment. Several +of his lays are unsurpassed in genuine pathos.[92] + + +[92] We have to acknowledge our obligations to Mr John Macgregor, of +Paisley, son-in-law of Mr Allan, for most of the particulars contained +in this short memoir. Mr Macgregor prepared an extended life of the poet +for our use, which, however, was scarcely suited for our purpose. A +number of Mr Allan's songs, transcribed from his manuscripts, in the +possession of his son in New York, were likewise communicated by Mr +Macgregor. These being, in point of merit, unequal to the other +productions of the bard, we have not ventured on their publication. + + + + +BLINK OVER THE BURN, MY SWEET BETTY. + + + Blink over the burn, my sweet Betty, + Blink over the burn, love, to me; + O, lang hae I look'd, my dear Betty, + To get but a blink o' thine e'e. + The birds are a' sporting around us, + And sweetly they sing on the tree; + But the voice o' my bonny sweet Betty, + I trow, is far dearer to me. + + The ringlets, my lovely young Betty, + That wave o'er thy bonnie e'ebree, + I 'll twine wi' the flowers o' the mountain, + That blossom sae sweetly, like thee. + Then come o'er the burn, my sweet Betty, + Come over the burn, love, to me; + O, sweet is the bliss, my dear Betty, + To live in the blink o' thine e'e. + + + + +COME AWA, HIE AWA. + +AIR--_"Haud awa frae me, Donald."_ + + + Come awa, hie awa, + Come and be mine ain, lassie; + Row thee in my tartan plaid, + An' fear nae wintry rain, lassie. + A gowden brooch, an' siller belt, + Wi' faithfu' heart I 'll gie, lassie, + Gin ye will lea' your Lawland hame, + For Highland hills wi' me, lassie. + Come awa, &c. + + A bonnie bower shall be thy hame, + And drest in silken sheen, lassie. + Ye 'll be the fairest in the ha', + And gayest on the green, lassie. + Come awa, &c. + + +ANSWER. + + Haud awa, bide awa, + Haud awa frae me, Donald; + What care I for a' your wealth, + And a' that ye can gie, Donald? + + I wadna lea' my Lowland lad + For a' your gowd and gear, Donald; + Sae tak' your plaid, an' o'er the hill, + An' stay nae langer here, Donald. + Haud awa, &c. + + My Jamie is a gallant youth, + I lo'e but him alane, Donald, + And in bonnie Scotland's isle, + Like him there is nane, Donald; + Haud awa, &c. + + He wears nae plaid, or tartan hose, + Nor garters at his knee, Donald; + But oh, he wears a faithfu' heart, + And love blinks in his e'e, Donald. + + Sae haud awa, bide awa, + Come nae mair at e'en, Donald; + I wadna break my Jamie's heart, + To be a Highland Queen, Donald. + + + + +ON THEE, ELIZA, DWELL MY THOUGHTS. + +AIR--_"In yon garden fine and gay."_ + + + On thee, Eliza, dwell my thoughts, + While straying was the moon's pale beam; + At midnight, in my wand'ring sleep, + I see thy form in fancy's dream. + + I see thee in the rosy morn, + Approach as loose-robed beauty's queen; + The morning smiles, but thou art lost, + Too soon is fled the sylvan scene. + + Still fancy fondly dwells on thee, + And adds another day of care; + What bliss were mine could fancy paint + Thee true, as she can paint thee fair! + + O fly, ye dear deceitful dreams! + Ye silken cords that bind the heart;-- + Canst thou, Eliza, these entwine, + And smile and triumph in the smart? + + + + +TO A LINNET. + +AIR--_"M'Gilchrist's Lament."_ + + + Chaunt no more thy roundelay, + Lovely minstrel of the grove, + Charm no more the hours away, + With thine artless tale of love; + Chaunt no more thy roundelay, + Sad it steals upon mine ear; + Leave, O leave thy leafy spray, + Till the smiling morn appear. + + Light of heart, thou quitt'st thy song, + As the welkin's shadows low'r; + Whilst the beetle wheels along, + Humming to the twilight hour. + Not like thee I quit the scene, + To enjoy night's balmy dream; + Not like thee I wake again, + Smiling with the morning beam. + + + + +THE PRIMROSE IS BONNY IN SPRING. + +AIR--_"The Banks of Eswal."_ + + + The primrose is bonnie in spring, + And the rose it is sweet in June; + It 's bonnie where leaves are green, + I' the sunny afternoon. + It 's bonny when the sun gaes down, + An' glints on the hoary knowe; + It 's bonnie to see the cloud + Sae red in the dazzling lowe. + + When the night is a' sae calm, + An' comes the sweet twilight gloom, + Oh! it cheers my heart to meet + My lassie amang the broom, + When the birds in bush and brake, + Do quit their blythe e'enin' sang; + Oh! what an hour to sit + The gay gowden links amang. + + + + +THE BONNIE LASS O' WOODHOUSELEE. + +AIR--_"Hey the rantin' Murray's Ha'."_ + + + The sun blinks sweetly on yon shaw, + But sweeter far on Woodhouselee, + And dear I like his setting beam + For sake o' ane sae dear to me. + It was na simmer's fairy scenes, + In a' their charming luxury, + But Beauty's sel' that won my heart, + The bonnie lass o' Woodhouselee. + + Sae winnin', was her witchin' smile, + Sae piercin', was her coal-black e'e, + Sae sairly wounded was my heart, + That had na wist sic ills to dree; + In vain I strave in beauty's chains, + I cou'd na keep my fancy free, + She gat my heart sae in her thrall, + The bonnie lass o' Woodhouselee. + + The bonnie knowes, sae yellow a', + Where aft is heard the hum of bee, + The meadow green, and breezy hill, + Where lambkins sport sae merrilie, + May charm the weary, wand'rin' swain, + When e'enin' sun dips in the sea, + But a' my heart, baith e'en and morn, + Is wi' the lass o' Woodhouselee. + + The flowers that kiss the wimplin' burn, + And dew-clad gowans on the lea, + The water-lily on the lake, + Are but sweet emblems a' of thee; + And while in simmer smiles they bloom, + Sae lovely, and sae fair to see, + I 'll woo their sweets, e'en for thy sake, + The bonnie lass o' Woodhouselee. + + + + +THE SUN IS SETTING ON SWEET GLENGARRY. + + + The sun is setting on sweet Glengarry, + The flow'rs are fair and the leaves are green; + O bonnie lassie, ye maun be my dearie, + And the rose is sweet in the dew at e'en. + + Doun yon glen ye never will weary, + The flow'rs are fair and the leaves are green; + Bonnie lassie, ye maun be my dearie, + And the rose is sweet in the dew at e'en. + + Birds are singing fu' blythe and cheery, + The flow'rs are fair and the leaves are green; + Bonnie lassie, on bank sae briery, + And the rose is sweet in the dew at e'en. + + In yonder glen there 's naething to fear ye, + The flow'rs are fair and the leaves are green; + Ye canna be sad, ye canna be eerie, + And the rose is sweet in the dew at e'en. + + The water is wimpling by fu' clearly, + The flow'rs are fair and the leaves are green; + Oh! ye sall ever be my dearie, + And the rose is sweet in the dew at e'en. + + + + +HER HAIR WAS LIKE THE CROMLA MIST. + +_Gaelic Air._ + + + Her hair was like the Cromla mist, + When evening sun beams from the west, + Bright was the eye of Morna; + When beauty wept the warrior's fall, + Then low and dark was Fingal's hall, + Sad was the lovely Morna. + + O! lovely was the blue-eyed maid + That sung peace to the warrior's shade, + But none so fair as Morna. + The hallow'd tears bedew'd the brake, + That waved beside dark Orna's lake, + Where wander'd lovely Morna. + + Sad was the hoary minstrel's song, + That died the rustling heath among, + Where sat the lovely Morna; + It slumber'd on the placid wave, + It echoed through the warrior's cave, + And sigh'd again to Morna. + + The hero's plumes were lowly laid; + In Fingal's hall each blue-eyed maid + Sang peace and rest to Morna; + The harp's wild strain was past and gone, + No more it whisper'd to the moan + Of lovely, dying Morna. + + + + +O LEEZE ME ON THE BONNIE LASS. + +AIR--_"Hodgart's Delight."_ + + + O leeze me on the bonnie lass + That I lo'e best o' a'; + O leeze me on my Marion, + The pride o' Lockershaw. + O weel I like my Marion, + For love blinks in her e'e, + And she has vow'd a solemn vow, + She lo'es na ane but me. + + The flowers grow bonnie on the bank, + Where doun the waters fa'; + The birds sing bonnie in the bower, + Where red, red roses blaw. + An' there, wi' blythe and lightsome heart, + When day has closed his e'e, + I wander wi' my Marion, + Wha lo'es na ane but me. + + Sic luve as mine an' Marion's, + O, may it never fa'! + But blume aye like the fairest flower, + That grows in Lockershaw. + My Marion I will ne'er forget + Until the day I dee, + For she has vow'd a solemn vow, + She lo'es na ane but me. + + + + +QUEEN MARY'S ESCAPE FROM LOCHLEVEN CASTLE. + +_Highland Boat-air._ + + + Put off, put off, and row with speed, + For now 's the time, and the hour of need! + To oars, to oars, and trim the bark, + Nor Scotland's queen be a warder's mark! + Yon light that plays round the castle's moat + Is only the warder's random shot! + Put off, put off, and row with speed, + For now is the time, and the hour of need! + + Those pond'rous keys[93] shall the kelpies keep, + And lodge in their caverns dark and deep; + Nor shall Lochleven's towers or hall, + Hold thee, our lovely lady, in thrall; + Or be the haunt of traitors, sold, + While Scotland has hands and hearts so bold; + Then, steersmen, steersmen, on with speed, + For now is the time, and the hour of need! + + Hark! the alarum-bell hath rung, + And the warder's voice hath treason sung; + The echoes to the falconet's roar, + Chime swiftly to the dashing oar. + Let town, and hall, and battlements gleam, + We steer by the light of the tapers' beam; + For Scotland and Mary, on with speed, + Now, now is the time, and the hour of need! + + +[93] The keys here alluded to were, at a recent period, found in the +lake. + + + + +WHEN CHARLIE TO THE HIGHLANDS CAME. + +AIR--_"The bonnie Mill-dams o' Balgonie."_ + + + When Charlie to the Highlands came, + It was a' joy and gladness, + We trow'd na that our hearts sae soon + Wad broken be wi' sadness. + + Oh! why did Heaven sae on us frown, + And break our hearts wi' sorrow; + Oh! it will never smile again, + And bring a gladsome morrow! + + Our dwellings, and our outlay gear, + Lie smoking, and in ruin; + Our bravest youths, like mountain deer, + The foe is oft pursuing. + + Our home is now the barren rock, + As if by Heaven forsaken; + Our shelter and our canopy, + The heather and the bracken. + + Oh! we maun wander far and near, + And foreign lands maun hide in; + Our bonnie glens, we lo'ed sae dear, + We daurna langer bide in. + + + + +LORD RONALD CAME TO HIS LADY'S BOWER. + + + Lord Ronald came to his lady's bower, + When the moon was in her wane; + Lord Ronald came at a late, late hour, + And to her bower is gane. + He saftly stept in his sandal shoon, + And saftly laid him doun; + "It 's late, it 's late," quoth Ellenore, + "Sin ye maun wauken soon. + + "Lord Ronald, stay till the early cock + Shall flap his siller wing, + An' saftly ye maun ope the gate, + An' loose the silken string." + "O Ellenore, my fairest fair, + O Ellenore, my bride! + How can ye fear when my merry men a' + Are on the mountain side." + + The moon was hid, the night was sped, + But Ellenore's heart was wae; + She heard the cock flap his siller wing, + An' she watched the morning ray: + "Rise up, rise up, Lord Ronald, dear, + The mornin' opes its e'e; + Oh, speed thee to thy father's tower, + And safe, safe may thou be." + + But there was a page, a little fause page, + Lord Ronald did espy, + An' he has told his baron all, + Where the hind and hart did lie. + "It is na for thee, but thine, Lord Ronald, + Thy father's deeds o' weir; + But since the hind has come to my faul', + His blood shall dim my spear." + + Lord Ronald kiss'd fair Ellenore, + And press'd her lily hand; + Sic a comely knight and comely dame + Ne'er met in wedlock's band: + But the baron watch'd, as he raised the latch, + And kiss'd again his bride; + And with his spear, in deadly ire, + He pierced Lord Ronald's side. + + The life-blood fled frae fair Ellenore's cheek, + She look'd all wan and ghast; + She lean'd her down by Lord Ronald's side, + An' the blood was rinnin' fast: + She kiss'd his lip o' the deadlie hue, + But his life she cou'dna stay; + Her bosom throbb'd ae deadlie throb, + An' their spirits baith fled away. + + + + +THE LOVELY MAID OF ORMADALE. + +AIR--_"Highland Lassie."_ + + + When sets the sun o'er Lomond's height, + To blaze upon the western wave; + When peace and love possess the grove, + And echo sleeps within the cave; + Led by love's soft endearing charms, + I stray the pathless winding vale, + And hail the hour that gives to me + The lovely maid of Ormadale. + + Her eyes outshine the star of night, + Her cheeks the morning's rosy hue; + And pure as flower in summer shade, + Low bending in the pearly dew: + Nor flower sae fair and lovely pure, + Shall fate's dark wintry winds assail; + As angel-smile she aye will be + Dear to the bowers of Ormadale. + + Let fortune soothe the heart of care, + And wealth to all its votaries give; + Be mine the rosy smile of love, + And in its blissful arms to live. + I would resign fair India's wealth, + And sweet Arabia's spicy gale, + For balmy eve and Scotian bower, + With thee, loved maid of Ormadale. + + + + +A LASSIE CAM' TO OUR GATE. + + + A lassie cam' to our gate yestreen, + An' low she curtsied doun; + She was lovelier far, an' fairer to see, + Then a' our ladies roun'. + + Oh, whare do ye wend, my sweet winsome doo? + An' whare may your dwelling be? + But her heart, I trow, was liken to break, + An' the tear-drap dimm'd her e'e. + + I haena a hame, quo' the bonnie lassie-- + I haena a hame, nor ha'; + Fain here wad I rest my weary feet, + For the night begins to fa'. + + I took her into our tapestry ha', + An' we drank the ruddy wine; + An' aye I strave, but fand my heart + Fast bound wi' Love's silken twine. + + I ween'd she might be the fairies' queen + She was sae jimp and sma'; + And the tear that dimm'd her bonnie blue e'e + Fell ower twa heaps o' snaw. + + Oh, whare do ye wend, my sweet winsome doo? + An' whare may your dwelling be? + Can the winter's rain an' the winter's wind + Blaw cauld on sic as ye? + + I haena a hame, quo' the bonnie lassie-- + I haena a ha' nor hame; + My father was ane o' "Charlie's" men, + An' him I daurna name. + + Whate'er be your kith, whate'er be your kin, + Frae this ye mauna gae; + An' gin ye 'll consent to be my ain, + Nae marrow ye shall hae. + + Sweet maiden, tak' the siller cup, + Sae fu' o' the damask wine, + An' press it to your cherrie lip, + For ye shall aye be mine. + + An' drink, sweet doo, young Charlie's health, + An' a' your kin sae dear; + Culloden has dimm'd mony an e'e + Wi' mony a saut, saut tear. + + + + +THE THISTLE AND THE ROSE. + + + There grew in bonnie Scotland + A thistle and a brier, + And aye they twined and clasp'd, + Like sisters, kind and dear. + The rose it was sae bonnie, + It could ilk bosom charm; + The thistle spread its thorny leaf, + To keep the rose frae harm. + + A bonnie laddie tended + The rose baith ear' and late; + He water'd it, and fann'd it, + And wove it with his fate; + And the leal hearts of Scotland + Pray'd it might never fa', + The thistle was sae bonny green, + The rose sae like the snaw. + + But the weird sisters sat + Where Hope's fair emblems grew; + They drapt a drap upon the rose + O' bitter, blasting dew; + And aye they twined the mystic thread,-- + But ere their task was done, + The snaw-white shade it disappear'd, + And wither'd in the sun! + + A bonnie laddie tended + The rose baith ear' an' late; + He water'd it, and fann'd it, + And wove it with his fate; + But the thistle tap it wither'd, + Winds bore it far awa', + And Scotland's heart was broken, + For the rose sae like the snaw! + + + + +THE COVENANTER'S LAMENT. + +TUNE--_"The Martyr's Grave."_ + + + There 's nae Covenant now, lassie! + There 's nae Covenant now! + The Solemn League and Covenant + Are a' broken through! + There 's nae Renwick now, lassie, + There 's nae gude Cargill, + Nor holy Sabbath preaching + Upon the Martyrs' Hill! + + It 's naething but a sword, lassie! + A bluidy, bluidy ane! + Waving owre poor Scotland, + For her rebellious sin. + Scotland 's a' wrang, lassie, + Scotland 's a' wrang-- + It 's neither to the hill nor glen, + Lassie, we daur gang. + + The Martyrs' Hill 's forsaken, + In simmer's dusk sae calm; + There 's nae gathering now, lassie, + To sing the e'ening psalm! + But the martyr's grave will rise, lassie, + Aboon the warrior's cairn; + An' the martyr soun' will sleep, lassie, + Aneath the waving fern! + + + + +BONNIE LASSIE. + + + Bonnie lassie, blythesome lassie, + Sweet 's the sparkling o' thine e'e; + Aye sae wyling, aye beguiling, + Ye hae stown my heart frae me. + + Fondly wooing, fondly sueing, + Let me love, nor love in vain; + Fate shall never fond hearts sever, + Hearts still bound by true love's chain. + + Fancy dreaming, hope bright beaming, + Shall each day life's feast renew; + Ours the treasure, ours the pleasure, + Still to live and love more true. + + Mirth and folly, joys unholy, + Never shall our thoughts employ; + Smiles inviting, hearts uniting, + Love and bliss without alloy. + + Bonnie lassie, blythesome lassie, + Sweet 's the sparkling o' thine e'e; + Aye sae wyling, aye beguiling, + Ye hae stown my heart frae me. + + + + +ANDREW MERCER. + + +Andrew Mercer was born at Selkirk, in 1775. By his father, who was a +respectable tradesman, he was destined for the pulpit of the United +Secession Church. He became a student in the University of Edinburgh, in +1790, and was the class-fellow and friend of John Leyden, and of Dr +Alexander Murray, the future philologist. At the house of Dr Robert +Anderson, he formed the intimacy of Thomas Campbell; he also numbered +among his early associates Thomas Brown and Mungo Park. Abandoning +theological study, he cultivated a taste for the fine arts; and he +endeavoured to establish himself in the capital in the twofold capacity +of a miniature-painter, and a man of letters. With respect to both +avocations, he proved unfortunate. In 1804, a periodical entitled the +_North British Magazine_ was originated and supported by his friends, on +his behalf; but the publication terminated at the end of thirteen +months. At a subsequent period, he removed to Dunfermline, where he was +engaged in teaching, and in drawing patterns for the manufacturers. In +1828, he published a "History of Dunfermline," in a duodecimo volume; +and, at an interval of ten years, a volume of poems, entitled "Summer +Months among the Mountains." A man of considerable ingenuity and +scholarship, he lacked industry and steadiness of application. His +latter years were clouded by poverty. He died at Dunfermline on the 11th +of June 1842, in his 67th year. + + + + +THE HOUR OF LOVE. + + + When the fair one and the dear one-- + Her lover by her side-- + Strays or sits as fancy flits, + Where yellow streamlets glide; + Gleams illuming--flowers perfuming + Where'er her footsteps rove; + Time beguiling with her smiling, + Oh! that 's the hour of love. + + When the fair one and the dear one, + Amid a moonlight scene, + Where grove and glade, and light and shade, + Are all around serene; + Heaves the soft sigh of ecstasy, + While coos the turtle-dove, + And in soft strains appeals--complains, + Oh! that 's the hour of love. + + Should the fair one and the dear one + The sigh of pity lend + For human woe, that presses low + A stranger, or a friend, + Tears descending, sweetly blending, + As down her cheeks they rove; + Beauty's charms in pity's arms-- + Oh! that 's the hour of love. + + When the fair one and the dear one + Appears in morning dreams, + In flowing vest by fancy drest, + And all the angel beams; + The heavenly mien, and look serene, + Confess her from above; + While rising sighs and dewy eyes + Say, that 's the hour of love! + + + + +JOHN LEYDEN, M.D. + + +John Leyden was born on the 8th September 1775, at Denholm, a hamlet in +the parish of Cavers, Roxburghshire. His ancestors, for several +generations, were farmers, but his father followed the humble occupation +of a shepherd. Of four brothers and two sisters, John was the eldest. +About a year after his birth, his father removed to Henlawshiel, a +solitary cottage,[94] about three miles from Denholm, on the margin of +the heath stretching down from the "stormy Ruberslaw." He received the +rudiments of knowledge from his paternal grandmother; and discovering a +remarkable aptitude for learning, his father determined to afford him +the advantages of a liberal education. He was sent to the parish school +of Kirkton, and afterwards placed under the tutorship of a Cameronian +clergyman, in Denholm, reputed as a classical scholar. In 1790, he +entered the University of Edinburgh, where he soon acquired distinction +for his classical attainments and devotedness to general learning. His +last session of college attendance was spent at St Andrews, where he +became a tutor. By the Presbytery of St Andrews, in May 1798, he was +licensed as a probationer of the Scottish Church. On obtaining his +licence, he returned to the capital, where his reputation as a scholar +had secured him many friends. He now accepted the editorship of the +_Scots Magazine_, to which he had formerly been a contributor, and +otherwise employed himself in literary pursuits. In 1799, he published, +in a duodecimo volume, "An Historical and Philosophical Sketch of the +Discoveries and Settlements of the Europeans in Northern and Central +Africa, at the Close of the Eighteenth Century." "The Complaynt of +Scotland," a curious political treatise of the sixteenth century, next +appeared under his editorial care, with an ingenious introduction, and +notes. In 1801, he contributed the ballad of "The Elf-king," to Lewis' +"Tales of Wonder;" and, about the same period, wrote several ballads for +the "Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border." The dissertation on "Fairy +Superstition," in the second volume of the latter work, slightly altered +by Scott, proceeded from his pen. In 1802, he edited a small volume, +entitled, "Scottish Descriptive Poems," consisting of a new edition of +Wilson's "Clyde," and a reprint of "Albania,"--a curious poem, in blank +verse, by an anonymous writer of the beginning of the eighteenth +century. + +A wide circle of influential friends were earnestly desirous of his +promotion. In 1800, the opposition of the aged incumbent prevented his +appointment as assistant and successor in the ministerial charge of his +native parish. A proposal to appoint him Professor of Rhetoric in the +University of Edinburgh also failed. He now resolved to proceed to +Africa, to explore the interior, under the auspices of the African +Association; but some of his friends meanwhile procured him an +appointment as a surgeon in the East India Company's establishment at +Madras. During his course at the University, he had attended some of the +medical classes; and he now resumed the study of medicine, with such an +amount of success, that in six weeks he qualified himself for a +surgeon's diploma. About the same time, the degree of M.D. was conferred +on him by the University of St Andrews. + +Before his departure for the East, Leyden finished his longest poem, the +"Scenes of Infancy," the publication of which he entrusted to his +friend, Dr Thomas Brown. His last winter in Britain he passed in London, +enjoying the society of many distinguished men of letters, to whom he +was introduced by his former friend, Mr Richard Heber. He sailed for +India[95] on the 7th April 1803, and arrived at Madras on the 19th +August. In Hindostan, his talents and extraordinary capabilities in +forming an acquaintance with the native tongues gained him numerous +friends. He was successively appointed surgeon to the commissioners for +surveying the provinces in Mysore, recently conquered from Tippoo +Sultan; professor of Hindostan in the College of Calcutta; judge of the +twenty-four pargunnahs of Calcutta; a commissioner of the Court of +Requests in Calcutta; and assay-master of the mint. His literary +services being required by the Governor-General, he left Calcutta for +Madras, and afterwards proceeded along with the army in the expedition +against Java. On the capture of the town of Batavia, having gone to +examine the library of the place, in which he expected to find some +curious Indian MSS., he caught a malignant fever from the tainted air of +the apartment. He survived only three days, terminating a life of much +promise, on the 28th of August 1811, in the thirty-sixth year of his +age. + +In John Leyden an unconquerable perseverance was united to remarkable +native genius, and a memory of singular retentiveness. Eminent as a +linguist, he was an able and accurate philologist; in a knowledge of the +many languages of India he stood unrivalled. During his residence in the +East, he published a "Dissertation on the Languages and Literature of +the Indo-Chinese Nations," in the tenth volume of the "Asiatic +Researches," and he left numerous MSS. on subjects connected with +oriental learning. He was early a votary of the Muse; and, in youth, was +familiar with the older Scottish bards. In April 1795, he appeared in +the _Edinburgh Literary Magazine_ as author of an elegy "On the Death of +a Sister;" and subsequently became a regular contributor of verses to +the periodicals of the capital. His more esteemed poetical productions +are the "Scenes of Infancy," and the ballads which he composed for the +"Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border." Of the latter, the supernatural +machinery is singularly striking; in the former poem, much smooth and +elegant versification is combined with powerful and vigorous +description. There are, indeed, occasional repetitions and numerous +digressions; but amidst these marks of hasty composition, every sentence +bears evidence of a masculine intellect and powerful imagination. His +lyrical effusions are pervaded with simplicity and tenderness. + +Like some other sons of genius, Leyden was of rather eccentric habits. +He affected to despise artificial manners; and, though frequenting +polished circles in Edinburgh, then in London, and afterwards in Madras +and Calcutta, he persevered in an indomitable aversion to the use of the +English tongue, which he so well knew how to write with precision and +power. He spoke the broadest provincial Scotch with singular +pertinacity. His voice was extremely dissonant, but, seemingly +unconscious of the defect, he talked loud; and if engaged in argument, +raised his voice to a pitch which frequently proved more powerful than +the strength of his reasoning. He was dogmatical in maintaining his +opinions, and prone to monopolise conversation; his gesticulations were +awkward and even offensive. Peculiar as were his habits, few of the +distinguished persons who sought his acquaintance ever desired to +renounce his friendship.[96] In his domestic habits, he was temperate +often to abstinence; he was frugal, but not mean--careful, but not +penurious. He was generous towards his aged parents; was deeply imbued +with a sense of religion, and was the foe of vice in every form. He was +of a slight figure, and of middle stature; his countenance was +peculiarly expressive of intelligence. His hair was auburn, his eyes +dark, and his complexion clear and sanguine. He was considerably robust, +and took delight in practising gymnastics; he desired fame, not less for +feats of running and leaping, than in the sedate pursuits of literature. +His premature death was the subject of general lamentation; in the "Lord +of the Isles," Scott introduced the following stanza in tribute to his +memory:-- + + "His bright and brief career is o'er, + And mute his tuneful strain; + Quench'd is his lamp of varied lore, + That loved the light of song to pour; + A distant and a deadly shore + Has Leyden's cold remains." + + + +[94] We lately visited the spot. Not a vestige of the cottage remains. A +wilder and more desolate locality hardly ever nourished the youthful +imagination of a poet. + +[95] Leyden was assisted in his outfit for India by Sir Walter Scott and +Sydney Smith, the latter contributing forty pounds. (See "Memoir of the +Rev. Sydney Smith," by his daughter, Lady Holland, vol. i. p. 21. +London: 1855. 2 vols. 8vo.) + +[96] Thomas Campbell was one of Leyden's early literary friends; they +had quarrelled, but continued to respect each other's talents. The +following anecdote is recorded by Sir Walter Scott in his diary:--"When +I repeated 'Hohenlinden' to Leyden, he said, 'Dash it, man, tell the +fellow that I hate him; but, dash him, he has written the finest verses +that have been published these fifty years.' I did mine errand as +faithful as one of Homer's messengers, and had for answer:--'Tell Leyden +that I detest him, but I know the value of his critical +approbation.'"--_Lockhart's Life of Scott._ + + + + +ODE TO THE EVENING STAR. + + + How sweet thy modest light to view, + Fair star! to love and lovers dear; + While trembling on the falling dew, + Like beauty shining through a tear. + + Or hanging o'er that mirror-stream, + To mark that image trembling there, + Thou seem'st to smile with softer gleam, + To see thy lovely face so fair. + + Though, blazing o'er the arch of night, + The moon thy timid beams outshine + As far as thine each starry light, + Her rays can never vie with thine. + + Thine are the soft, enchanting hours + When twilight lingers on the plain, + And whispers to the closing flowers + That soon the sun will rise again. + + Thine is the breeze that, murmuring bland + As music, wafts the lover's sigh, + And bids the yielding heart expand + In love's delicious ecstasy. + + Fair star! though I be doom'd to prove + That rapture's tears are mix'd with pain, + Ah, still I feel 'tis sweet to love-- + But sweeter to be loved again. + + + + +THE RETURN AFTER ABSENCE. + + + Oh! the breeze of the mountain is soothing and sweet, + Warm breathing of love, and the friends we shall meet; + And the rocks of the desert, so rough when we roam, + Seem soft, soft as silk, on the dear path of home; + The white waves of the Jeikon, that foam through their speed, + Seem scarcely to reach to the girth of my steed. + + Rejoice, O Bokhara, and flourish for aye! + Thy King comes to meet thee, and long shall he stay. + Our King is our moon, and Bokhara our skies, + Where soon that fair light of the heavens shall arise-- + Bokhara our orchard, the cypress our king, + In Bokhara's fair orchard soon destined to spring. + + + + +LAMENT FOR RAMA. + +FROM THE BENGALI. + + + I warn you, fair maidens, to wail and to sigh, + For Rama, our Rama, to greenwood must fly; + Then hasten, come hasten, to see his array, + Ayud'hya is dark when our chief goes away. + + All the people are flocking to see him pass by; + They are silent and sad, with the tear in their eye: + From the fish in the streamlets a broken sigh heaves, + And the birds of the forest lament from the leaves. + + His fine locks are matted, no raiment has he + For the wood, save a girdle of bark from the tree; + And of all his gay splendour, you nought may behold, + Save his bow and his quiver, and ear-rings of gold. + + Oh! we thought to have seen him in royal array + Before his proud squadrons his banners display, + And the voice of the people exulting to own + Their sovereign assuming the purple and crown; + But the time has gone by, my hope is despair,-- + One maiden perfidious has wrought all my care. + + Our light is departing, and darkness returns, + Like a lamp half-extinguished, and lonely it burns; + Faith fades from the age, nor can honour remain, + And fame is delusive, and glory is vain. + + + + +JAMES SCADLOCK. + + +James Scadlock, a poet of considerable power, and an associate of +Tannahill, was born at Paisley on the 7th October 1775. His father, an +operative weaver, was a person of considerable shrewdness; and the poet +M'Laren, who became his biographer, was his uterine brother. Apprenticed +to the loom, he renounced weaving in the course of a year, and +thereafter was employed in the establishment of a bookbinder. At the age +of nineteen he entered on an indenture of seven years to a firm of +copperplate engravers at Ferenize. He had early been inclined to +verse-making, and, having formed the acquaintance of Tannahill, he was +led to cultivate with ardour his native predilection. He likewise +stimulated his ingenious friend to higher and more ambitious efforts in +poetry. Accomplished in the elegant arts of drawing and painting, +Scadlock began the study of classical literature and the modern +languages. A general stagnation of trade, which threw him out of +employment, checked his aspirations in learning. After an interval +attended with some privations, he heard of a professional opening at +Perth, which he proceeded to occupy. He returned to Paisley, after the +absence of one year; and having married in 1808, his attention became +more concentrated in domestic concerns. He died of fever on the 4th July +1818, leaving a family of four children. + +Scadlock was an upright member of society, a sincere friend, a +benevolent neighbour, and an intelligent companion. In the performance +of his religious duties he was regular and exemplary. Desirious of +excelling in conversation, he was prone to evince an undue formality of +expression. His poetry, occasionally deficient in power, is uniformly +distinguished for smoothness of versification. + + + + +ALONG BY LEVERN STREAM SO CLEAR.[97] + + + Along by Levern stream so clear, + When Spring adorns the infant year, + And music charms the list'ning ear, + I 'll wander with my Mary, + My bonny blooming Mary; + Not Spring itself to me is dear, + When absent from my Mary. + + When Summer's sun pours on my head + His sultry rays, I 'll seek the shade, + Unseen upon a primrose bed + I 'll sit with little Mary, + My bonny blooming Mary, + Where fragrant flowers around are spread, + To charm my little Mary. + + She 's mild 's the sun through April shower + That glances on the leafy bower, + She 's sweet as Flora's fav'rite flower, + My bonny little Mary, + My blooming little Mary; + Give me but her, no other dower + I 'll ask with little Mary. + + Should fickle fortune frown on me, + And leave me bare 's the naked tree, + Possess'd of her, how rich I 'd be, + My lovely little Mary, + My bonny blooming Mary; + From gloomy care and sorrow free, + I 'd ever keep my Mary. + + + +[97] Set to music by R. A. Smith. + + + + +HARK, HARK, THE SKYLARK SINGING. + +WELSH AIR--_"The rising of the Lark."_ + + + Hark, hark the skylark singing, + While the early clouds are bringing + Fragrance on their wings; + Still, still on high he 's soaring, + Through the liquid haze exploring, + Fainter now he sings. + Where the purple dawn is breaking, + Fast approaches morning's ray, + From his wings the dew he 's shaking, + As he joyful hails the day, + While echo, from his slumbers waking, + Imitates his lay. + + See, see the ruddy morning, + With his blushing locks adorning + Mountain, wood, and vale; + Clear, clear the dew-drop 's glancing, + As the rising sun 's advancing + O'er the eastern hill; + Now the distant summits clearing, + As the vapours steal their way, + And his heath-clad breast 's appearing, + Tinged with Phoebus' golden ray, + Far down the glen the blackbird 's cheering + Morning with her lay. + + Come, then, let us be straying, + Where the hazel boughs are playing, + O'er yon summits gray; + Mild now the breeze is blowing, + And the crystal streamlet 's flowing + Gently on its way. + On its banks the wild rose springing + Welcomes in the sunny ray, + Wet with dew its head is hinging, + Bending low the prickly spray; + Then haste, my love, while birds are singing, + To the newborn day. + + + + +OCTOBER WINDS. + +AIR--_"Oh, my love's bonnie."_ + + + October winds, wi' biting breath, + Now nip the leaves that 's yellow fading; + Nae gowans glint upon the green, + Alas! they 're co'er'd wi' winter's cleading. + As through the woods I musing gang, + Nae birdies cheer me frae the bushes, + Save little robin's lanely sang, + Wild warbling where the burnie gushes. + + The sun is jogging down the brae, + Dimly through the mist he 's shining, + And cranreugh hoar creeps o'er the grass, + As Day resigns his throne to E'ening. + Oft let me walk at twilight gray, + To view the face of dying nature, + Till Spring again, wi' mantle green, + Delights the heart o' ilka creature. + + + + +SIR ALEXANDER BOSWELL, BART. + + +Alexander Boswell was the eldest son of James Boswell, the celebrated +biographer of Dr Johnson, and grandson of Lord Auchinleck, one of the +senators of the College of Justice. He was born on the 9th October 1775. +His mother, a daughter of Sir Walter Montgomery, Bart., of Lainshaw, was +a woman of superior intelligence, and of agreeable and dignified +manners. Along with his only brother James, he received his education at +Westminster School and the University of Oxford. In 1795, on the death +of his father, he succeeded to the paternal estate of Auchinleck. He now +made the tour of Europe, and on his return took up his residence in the +family mansion. + +Inheriting his father's love of literature, and deriving from his mother +a taste for elegant accomplishments, Alexander Boswell diligently +applied himself to the cultivation of his mind, by an examination of the +stores of the famous "Auchinleck Library." From his youth he had been +ardent in his admiration of Burns, and had written verses for the +amusement of his friends. A wooer of the lyric Muse, many of his lays +rapidly obtained circulation, and were sung with a gusto not inferior to +that inspired by the songs of the Bard of Coila. In 1803 he published, +without his name, in a thin octavo volume, "Songs, chiefly in the +Scottish Dialect," and subsequently contributed a number of lyrics of +various merit to the Musical Collection of Mr George Thomson, and +Campbell's "Albyn's Anthology." Several other poetical works proceeded +from his pen. In 1803, shortly after the appearance of his songs, he +published a ballad entitled "The Spirit of Tintoc; or, Johnnie Bell and +the Kelpie," with notes, 16 pp. 8vo: Mundell and Son, Edinburgh. This +performance, in which are humorously related the adventures of a drunken +tailor with the brownies and other denizens of the unseen world, on the +summit of Tintoc Hill, was followed in 1810 by another amusing poem, +bearing the title of "Edinburgh, or the Ancient Royalty, a Sketch of +Former Manners, with Notes by Simon Gray." In this poem, the changes +which had occurred in the habits of the citizens of Edinburgh are +pourtrayed in a colloquy between an old farmer and his city friend. In +1811 appeared "Clan-Alpin's Vow, a Fragment," with the author's name +prefixed. This production, founded upon a horrible tragedy connected +with the history of the Clan Macgregor, proved one of the most popular +of the author's works; it was reprinted in 1817, by Bentley and Son, +London. His future publications may be simply enumerated; they were +generally issued from a printing press which he established in the +mansion of Auchinleck. In 1812 he printed, for private circulation, a +poetical fragment entitled "Sir Albon," intended to burlesque the +peculiar style and rhythm of Sir Walter Scott; in 1815, "The Tyrant's +Fall," a poem on the battle of Waterloo; in 1816, "Skeldon Haughs, or +the Sow is Flitted," a tale in verse founded on an old Ayrshire +tradition; and in the same year another poetical tale, after the manner +of Allan Ramsay's "Monk and Miller's Wife," entitled, "The Woo'-creel, +or the Bull o' Bashun." From his printing office at Auchinleck, besides +his poetical tales and pasquinades, he issued many curious and +interesting works, chiefly reprints of scarce tracts on different +subjects, preserved in the Auchinleck Library. Of these the most +remarkable was the disputation between John Knox and Quentin Kennedy, at +Maybole, in 1562, of which the only copy then known to exist was +deposited in his paternal library.[98] + +Amidst his devotedness to the pursuits of elegant literature, Mr Boswell +bestowed much attention on public affairs. He was M.P. for the county of +Ayr; and though silent in the House of Commons, was otherwise +indefatigable in maintaining his political sentiments. He supported +strict conservative principles, and was not without the apprehension of +civil disturbance through the impetuosity of the advocates of reform. As +Lieutenant-Colonel of the Ayrshire Yeomanry Cavalry, he was painstaking +in the training of his troops; the corps afterwards acknowledging his +services by the presentation of a testimonial. In 1821, his zeal for the +public interest was rewarded by his receiving the honour of a Baronetcy. + +One of the most substantial of Sir Alexander's patriotic achievements +was the erection of an elegant monument to Robert Burns on the banks of +the Doon. The mode in which the object was accomplished is sufficiently +interesting. Along with a friend who warmly approved of the design, Sir +Alexander advertised in the public prints that a meeting would be held +at Ayr, on a particular day, to take into consideration the proposal of +rearing a monument to the great national bard. The day and hour arrived, +but, save the projectors, not a single individual attended. Nothing +disheartened, Sir Alexander took the chair, and his friend proceeded to +act as clerk; resolutions were proposed, seconded, and recorded, thanks +were voted to the chairman, and the meeting separated. These resolutions +being printed and circulated, were the means of raising by public +subscription the sum of nearly two thousand pounds for the erection of +the monument. Sir Alexander laid the foundation stone on the 25th of +January 1820. + +The literary and patriotic career of Sir Alexander Boswell was brought +to a sudden termination. Prone to indulge a strong natural tendency for +sarcasm, especially against his political opponents, he published, in a +Glasgow newspaper, a severe poetical pasquinade against Mr James Stuart, +younger of Dunearn, a leading member of the Liberal party in Edinburgh. +The discovery of the authorship was followed by a challenge from Mr +Stuart, which being accepted, the hostile parties met near the village +of Auchtertool, in Fife. Sir Alexander fell, the ball from the pistol of +his antagonist having entered near the root of his neck on the right +side. He was immediately carried to Balmuto, a seat of his ancestors in +the vicinity, where he expired the following day. The duel took place on +the 26th March 1822. + +The remains of the deceased Baronet were solemnly deposited in the +family vault of Auchinleck. In personal appearance, Sir Alexander +presented a powerful muscular figure; in society, he was fond of +anecdote and humour. In his youth he was keen on the turf and in field +sports; he subsequently found his chief entertainment in literary +avocations. As a poet, he had been better known if his efforts had been +of a less fragmentary character. The general tendency of his Muse was +drollery, but some of his lyrics are sufficiently touching. + + +[98] Another copy has since been discovered. + + + + +JENNY'S BAWBEE. + + + I met four chaps yon birks amang, + Wi' hanging lugs and faces lang; + I spier'd at neighbour Bauldy Strang, + Wha 's they I see? + Quoth he, Ilk cream-faced, pawky chiel' + Thinks himsel' cunnin' as the deil, + And here they cam awa' to steal + Jenny's bawbee. + + The first, a Captain to his trade, + Wi' ill-lined skull, but back weel clade, + March'd round the barn, and by the shed, + And papped on his knee: + Quoth he, My goddess, nymph, and queen, + Your beauty 's dazzled baith my e'en! + Though ne'er a beauty he had seen + But Jenny's bawbee. + + A Norland Laird neist trotted up, + Wi' bawsint naig and siller whup; + Cried--There 's my beast, lad, haud the grup, + Or tie it to a tree. + What 's gowd to me? I 've wealth o' lan', + Bestow on ane o' worth your han': + He thought to pay what he was awn + Wi' Jenny's bawbee. + + A Lawyer neist, wi' bleth'rin' gab, + Wha speeches wove like ony wab; + O' ilk ane's corn aye took a dab, + And a' for a fee; + Accounts he owed through a' the toun, + And tradesmen's tongues nae mair could drown; + But now he thought to clout his goun + Wi' Jenny's bawbee. + + Quite spruce, just frae the washin' tubs, + A fool came neist; but life has rubs; + Foul were the roads, and fu' the dubs, + And jaupit a' was he: + He danced up, squintin' through a glass, + And grinn'd, i' faith, a bonnie lass! + He thought to win, wi' front o' brass, + Jenny's bawbee. + + She bade the laird gae kaim his wig, + The sodger not to strut sae big, + The lawyer not to be a prig; + The fool he cried, Te-hee! + I kenn'd that I could never fail! + But she pinn'd the dishclout to his tail, + And soused him frae the water-pail, + And kept her bawbee. + + Then Johnnie came, a lad o' sense, + Although he had na mony pence; + And took young Jenny to the spence, + Wi' her to crack a wee. + Now Johnnie was a clever chiel', + And here his suit he press'd sae weel + That Jenny's heart grew saft as jeel, + And she birl'd her bawbee.[99] + + + +[99] The last stanza does not appear in the original version of the +song; it is here added from Allan Cunningham's collection. The idea of +the song, Cunningham remarks, was probably suggested to the author by an +old fragment, which still lives among the peasantry:-- + + "And a' that e'er my Jenny had, + My Jenny had, my Jenny had, + A' that e'er my Jenny had, + Was ae bawbee. + There 's your plack and my plack, + And your plack and my plack, + And my plack and your plack, + And Jenny's bawbee. + + We 'll put it in the pint stoup, + The pint stoup, the pint stoup, + We 'll put it in the pint stoup, + And birl 't a' three." + + + + +JENNY DANG THE WEAVER.[100] + + + At Willie's weddin' o' the green, + The lasses, bonnie witches, + Were busked out in aprons clean, + And snaw-white Sunday mutches; + Auld Mysie bade the lads tak' tent, + But Jock wad na believe her; + But soon the fool his folly kent, + For Jenny dang the weaver. + + In ilka country dance and reel + Wi' her he wad be babbin'; + When she sat down, then he sat down, + And till her wad be gabbin'; + Where'er she gaed, or butt or ben, + The coof wad never leave her, + Aye cacklin' like a clockin' hen, + But Jenny dang the weaver. + + Quoth he, My lass, to speak my mind, + In troth I needna swither, + Ye 've bonnie e'en, and, gif ye 're kind, + I needna court anither! + He humm'd and haw'd, the lass cried "pheugh," + And bade the coof no deave her, + Syne crack'd her thumb, and lap and leugh, + And dang the silly weaver. + + +[100] The origin of the air is somewhat amusing. The Rev. Mr Gardner, +minister of Birse, in Aberdeenshire, known for his humour and musical +talents, was one evening playing over on his Cremona the notes of an air +he had previously jotted down, when a curious scene arrested his +attention in the courtyard of the manse. His man "Jock," who had lately +been a weaver in the neighbouring village, had rudely declined to wipe +the minister's shoes, as requested by Mrs Gardner, when the enraged +matron, snatching a culinary utensil, administered a hearty drubbing to +the shoulders of the impudent boor, and compelled him to execute her +orders. The minister witnessing the proceeding from the window, was +highly diverted, and gave the air he had just completed the title of +"Jenny Dang the Weaver." This incident is said to have occurred in the +year 1746. + + + + +THE LASS O' ISLA. + + + "Ah, Mary, sweetest maid, farewell! + My hopes are flown, for a 's to wreck; + Heaven guard you, love, and heal your heart, + Though mine, alas, alas! maun break." + + "Dearest lad, what ills betide? + Is Willie to his love untrue? + Engaged the morn to be his bride, + Ah! hae ye, hae ye, ta'en the rue?" + + "Ye canna wear a ragged gown, + Or beggar wed wi' nought ava; + My kye are drown'd, my house is down, + My last sheep lies aneath the snaw." + + "Tell na me o' storm or flood, + Or sheep a' smoor'd ayont the hill; + For Willie's sake I Willie lo'ed, + Though poor, ye are my Willie still." + + "Ye canna thole the wind and rain, + Or wander friendless far frae hame; + Cheer, cheer your heart, some other swain + Will soon blot out lost Willie's name." + + "I 'll tak my bundle in my hand, + An' wipe the dew-drop frae my e'e; + I 'll wander wi' ye ower the land; + I 'll venture wi' ye ower the sea." + + "Forgi'e me, love, 'twas all a snare, + My flocks are safe, we needna part; + I 'd forfeit them and ten times mair + To clasp thee, Mary, to my heart." + + "How could ye wi' my feelings sport, + Or doubt a heart sae warm and true? + I maist could wish ye mischief for 't, + But canna wish ought ill to you." + + + + +TASTE LIFE'S GLAD MOMENTS.[101] + + + Taste life's glad moments, + Whilst the wasting taper glows; + Pluck, ere it withers, + The quickly-fading rose. + + Man blindly follows grief and care, + He seeks for thorns, and finds his share, + Whilst violets to the passing air + Unheeded shed their blossoms. + Taste life's, &c. + + When tim'rous Nature veils her form, + And rolling thunder spreads alarm, + Then, ah! how sweet, when lull'd the storm, + The sun shines forth at even. + Taste life's, &c. + + How spleen and envy anxious flies, + And meek content, in humble guise, + Improves the shrub, a tree shall rise, + Which golden fruits shall yield him. + Taste life's, &c. + + Who fosters faith in upright breast, + And freely gives to the distress'd, + There sweet contentment builds her nest, + And flutters round his bosom. + Taste life's, &c. + + And when life's path grows dark and strait, + And pressing ills on ills await, + Then friendship, sorrow to abate, + The helping hand will offer. + Taste life's, &c. + + She dries his tears, she strews his way, + E'en to the grave, with flow'rets gay, + Turns night to morn, and morn to day, + And pleasure still increases. + Taste life's, &c. + + Of life she is the fairest band, + Joins brothers truly hand in hand, + Thus, onward to a better land, + Man journeys light and cheerly. + Taste life's, &c. + + +[101] These verses, which form a translation of _Freut euch des Libens_, +were written at Leipsig in 1795, when the author was on his continental +tour. He was then in his twentieth year. + + + + +GOOD NIGHT, AND JOY BE WI' YE A'. + + + Good night, and joy be wi' ye a', + Your harmless mirth has cheer'd my heart; + May life's fell blasts out o'er ye blaw; + In sorrow may ye never part! + My spirit lives, but strength is gone, + The mountain-fires now blaze in vain; + Remember, sons, the deeds I 've done, + And in your deeds I 'll live again! + + When on yon muir our gallant clan, + Frae boasting foes their banners tore; + Wha shew'd himself a better man, + Or fiercer waved the red claymore? + But when in peace--then mark me there-- + When through the glen the wand'rer came, + I gave him of our lordly fare, + I gave him here a welcome hame. + + The auld will speak, the young maun hear; + Be cantie, but be gude and leal; + Your ain ills aye hae heart to bear, + Anither's aye hae heart to feel. + So, ere I set, I 'll see ye shine; + I 'll see ye triumph ere I fa'; + My parting breath shall boast you mine-- + Good night, and joy be wi' ye a'! + + + + +OLD AND NEW TIMES.[102] + +AIR--_"Kellyburn Braes."_ + + + Hech! what a change hae we now in this town! + The lads a' sae braw, the lasses sae glancin', + Folk maun be dizzie gaun aye in the roun' + For deil a haet 's done now but feastin' and dancin'. + + Gowd 's no that scanty in ilk siller pock, + When ilka bit laddie maun hae his bit staigie; + But I kent the day when there was nae a Jock, + But trotted about upon honest shank's naigie. + + Little was stown then, and less gaed to waste, + Barely a mullin for mice or for rattens; + The thrifty housewife to the flesh-market paced, + Her equipage a'--just a gude pair o' pattens. + + Folk were as good then, and friends were as leal, + Though coaches were scant, wi' their cattle a-cantrin'; + Right air we were tell 't by the housemaid or chiel', + Sir, an' ye please, here 's your lass and a lantern. + + The town may be clouted and pieced, till it meets + A' neebours benorth and besouth, without haltin'; + Brigs may be biggit ower lums and ower streets, + The Nor' Loch itsel' heaped heigh as the Calton. + + But whar is true friendship, and whar will you see, + A' that is gude, honest, modest, and thrifty? + Tak' gray hairs and wrinkles, and hirple wi' me, + And think on the seventeen hundred and fifty. + + +[102] Contributed to the fourth volume of Mr George Thomson's +Collection. + + + + +BANNOCKS O' BARLEY MEAL.[103] + +AIR--_"Bannocks o' Barley Meal."_ + + + Argyle is my name, and you may think it strange + To live at a court, and yet never to change; + To faction, or tyranny, equally foe, + The good of the land 's the sole motive I know. + The foes of my country and king I have faced, + In city or battle I ne'er was disgraced; + I 've done what I could for my country's weal, + Now I 'll feast upon bannocks o' barley meal. + + Ye riots and revels of London, adieu! + And folly, ye foplings, I leave her to you! + For Scotland, I mingled in bustle and strife; + For myself, I seek peace and an innocent life: + I 'll haste to the Highlands, and visit each scene, + With Maggie, my love, in her rockley o' green; + On the banks of Glenary what pleasure I 'll feel, + While she shares my bannock o' barley meal! + + And if it chance Maggie should bring me a son, + He shall fight for his king, as his father has done; + I 'll hang up my sword with an old soldier's pride-- + O! may he be worthy to wear 't on his side. + I pant for the breeze of my loved native place; + I long for the smile of each welcoming face; + I 'll aff to the Highlands as fast 's I can reel, + And feast upon bannocks o' barley meal. + + +[103] This song was contributed by Sir Alexander Boswell to the third +volume of Thomson's Collection. It is not wholly original, but an +improved version of former words to the same air, which are understood +to be the composition of John Campbell, the celebrated Duke of Argyle +and Greenwich, who died on the 4th October 1743. + + + + +WILLIAM GILLESPIE. + + +William Gillespie was born in the manse of Kells, in Galloway, on the +18th February 1776. His father, John Gillespie, minister of Kells, was +the intimate friend of Robert Burns; and likewise an early patron of +John Low, the ingenious, but unfortunate author of "Mary's Dream." +Receiving the rudiments of education at the parish school, William +proceeded, in 1792, to the University of Edinburgh, to prosecute his +studies for the Church. Obtaining licence as a probationer, he was, in +1801, ordained assistant and successor to his father, on whose death, in +1806, he succeeded to the full benefits of the charge. Inheriting from +his father an elegant turn of mind and a devotedness to literary +composition, he was induced to publish, in his twenty-ninth year, an +allegorical poem, entitled "The Progress of Refinement." A higher effort +from his pen appeared in 1815, under the title of "Consolation, and +other Poems." This volume, which abounds in vigorous sentiment and rich +poetical description, evincing on the part of the author a high +appreciation of the beauties of nature, considerably extended his +reputation. He formed habits of intimacy with many of his poetical +contemporaries, by whom he was beloved for the amenity of his +disposition. He largely contributed to various periodicals, especially +the agricultural journals; and was a zealous member of the Highland +Society of Scotland. + +In July 1825, Mr Gillespie espoused Miss Charlotte Hoggan. Soon after +this event, he was attacked with erysipelas,--a complaint which, +resulting in general inflammation, terminated his promising career on +the 15th of October, in his fiftieth year. The following lyrics evince +fancy and deep pathos, causing a regret that the author did not more +amply devote himself to the composition of songs. + + + + +THE HIGHLANDER.[104] + + + From the climes of the sun, all war-worn and weary, + The Highlander sped to his youthful abode; + Fair visions of home cheer'd the desert so dreary, + Though fierce was the noon-beam, and steep was the road. + + Till spent with the march that still lengthen'd before him, + He stopp'd by the way in a sylvan retreat; + The light shady boughs of the birch-tree waved o'er him, + The stream of the mountain fell soft at his feet. + + He sunk to repose where the red heaths are blended, + On dreams of his childhood his fancy past o'er; + But his battles are fought, and his march it is ended, + The sound of the bagpipes shall wake him no more. + + No arm in the day of the conflict could wound him, + Though war launch'd her thunder in fury to kill; + Now the Angel of Death in the desert has found him, + And stretch'd him in peace by the stream of the hill. + + Pale Autumn spreads o'er him the leaves of the forest, + The fays of the wild chant the dirge of his rest; + And thou, little brook, still the sleeper deplorest, + And moistens the heath-bell that weeps on his breast. + + + +[104] Many years ago, a poor Highland soldier, on his return to his +native hills, fatigued, as was supposed, by the length of the march and +the heat of the weather, sat down under the shade of a birch tree on the +solitary road of Lowran, that winds along the margin of Loch Ken, in +Galloway. Here he was found dead; and this incident forms the subject of +these verses.--_Note by the Author._ "The Highlander" is set to a Gaelic +air in the fifth volume of R. A. Smith's "Scottish Minstrel." + + + + +ELLEN. + + + The moon shone in fits, + And the tempest was roaring, + The Storm Spirit shriek'd, + And the fierce rain was pouring; + Alone in her chamber, + Fair Ellen sat sighing, + The tapers burn'd dim, + And the embers were dying. + + "The drawbridge is down, + That spans the wide river; + Can tempests divide, + Whom death cannot sever? + Unclosed is the gate, + And those arms long to fold thee, + 'Tis midnight, my love; + O say, what can hold thee?" + + But scarce flew her words, + When the bridge reft asunder, + The horseman was crossing, + 'Mid lightning and thunder, + And loud was the yell, + As he plunged in the billow, + The maid knew it well, + As she sprang from her pillow. + + She scream'd o'er the wall, + But no help was beside her; + And thrice to her view + Rose the horse and his rider. + She gazed at the moon, + But the dark cloud pass'd over; + She plunged in the stream, + And she sunk to her lover. + + Say, what is that flame, + O'er the midnight deep beaming? + And whose are those forms, + In the wan moonlight gleaming? + That flame gilds the wave, + Which their pale corses cover; + And those forms are the ghosts + Of the maid and her lover. + + + + +THOMAS MOUNSEY CUNNINGHAM. + + +Thomas Mounsey Cunningham, an elder brother of Allan Cunningham, is +entitled to commemoration among the modern song-writers of his country. +His ancestors were lords of that district of Ayrshire which still bears +their family name; and a small inheritance in that county, which +belonged to his more immediate progenitors, was lost to the name and +race by the head of the family having espoused the cause and joined the +army of the Duke of Montrose. For several generations his forefathers +were farmers at Gogar, in the parish of Ratho, Midlothian. John +Cunningham, his father, was born at Gogar on the 26th March 1743, whence +he removed in his twenty-third year to fill the situation of +land-steward on the estate of Lumley, in the parish of Chester, and +county of Durham. He next became overseer on the property of Mr Mounsey +of Ramerscales, near Lochmaben, Dumfriesshire. He married Elizabeth +Harley, a lady of good connexions and of elegant personal +accomplishments, and with the view of acquiring a more decided +independence in his new condition, took in lease the farm of Culfaud, in +the stewartry of Kirkcudbright. Of a family of ten, Thomas was the +second son; he was born at Culfaud on the 25th June 1776. During his +infancy the farming speculations of his father proved unfortunate, and +the lease of Culfaud was abandoned. Returning to his former occupation +as a land-steward, John Cunningham was employed in succession by the +proprietors of Barncaillie and Collieston, and latterly by the +ingenious Mr Miller of Dalswinton. + +Thomas was educated at the village-school of Kellieston, and +subsequently at the academy of Dumfries. The circumstances of his +parents required that he should choose a manual profession; and he was +apprenticed by his own desire to a neighbouring mill-wright. It was +during his intervals of leisure, while acquiring a knowledge of this +laborious occupation, that he first essayed the composition of verses; +he submitted his poems to his father, who mingled judicious criticism +with words of encouragement. "The Har'st Home," one of his earliest +pieces of merit, was privileged with insertion in the series of "Poetry, +Original and Selected," published by Brash & Reid, booksellers in +Glasgow. Proceeding to England in 1797, he entered the workshop of a +mill-wright in Rotherham. Under the same employer he afterwards pursued +his craft at King's Lynn; in 1800 he removed to Wiltshire, and soon +after to the neighbourhood of Cambridge. He next received employment at +Dover, and thence proceeded to London, where he occupied a situation in +the establishment of Rennie, the celebrated engineer. He afterwards +became foreman to one Dickson, an engineer, and superintendent of +Fowler's chain-cable manufactory. In 1812 he returned to Rennie's +establishment as a clerk, with a liberal salary. On leaving his father's +house to seek his fortune in the south, he had been strongly counselled +by Mr Miller of Dalswinton to abjure the gratification of his poetical +tendencies, and he seems to have resolved on the faithful observance of +this injunction. For a period of nine years his muse was silent; at +length, in 1806, he appeared in the _Scots Magazine_ as the contributor +of some of the best verses which had ever adorned the pages of that +periodical. The editor was eloquent in his commendations; and the +Ettrick Shepherd, who was already a contributor to the magazine, took +pains to discover the author, and addressed him a lengthened poetical +epistle, expressive of his admiration. A private intimacy ensued between +the two rising poets; and when the Shepherd, in 1809, planned the +"Forest Minstrel," he made application to his ingenious friend for +contributions. Cunningham sanctioned the republication of such of his +lyrics as had appeared in the _Scots Magazine_, and these proved the +best ornaments of the work. + +Impatient of criticism, and of a whimsical turn of mind, Cunningham was +incapable of steadfastly pursuing the career of a man of letters. Just +as his name was becoming known by his verses in the _Scots Magazine_, he +took offence at some incidental allusions to his style, and suddenly +stopped his contributions. Silent for a second period of nine years, the +circumstance of the appropriation of one of his songs in the "Nithsdale +Minstrel," a provincial collection of poetry, published at Dumfries, +again aroused him to authorship. He made the publishers the subject of a +satirical poem in the _Scots Magazine_ of 1815. On the origin of the +_Edinburgh Magazine_, in 1817, he became a contributor, and under the +title of the "Literary Legacy," wrote many curious snatches of +antiquities, sketches of modern society, and scraps of song and ballad, +which imparted a racy interest to the pages of the new periodical. A +slight difference with the editor at length induced him to relapse into +silence. Fitful and unsettled as a cultivator of literature, he was in +the business of life a model of regularity and perseverance. He was much +esteemed by his employer, and was ultimately promoted to the chief +clerkship in his establishment. He fell a victim to the Asiatic cholera +on the 28th October 1834, in the 58th year of his age. During his latter +years he was in the habit of examining at certain intervals the MSS. of +prose and poetry, which at a former period he had accumulated. On those +occasions he uniformly destroyed some which he deemed unworthy of +further preservation. During one of these purgations, he hastily +committed to the flames a poem on which he had bestowed much labour, and +which contained a humorous description of scenes and characters familiar +to him in youth. The poem was entitled "Braken Fell;" and his ingenious +brother Allan, in a memoir of the author, has referred to its +destruction in terms of regret.[105] The style of Thomas Cunningham +seems, however, to have been lyrical, and it may be presumed that his +songs afford the best evidence of his power. In private life he was much +cherished by a circle of friends, and his society was gay and animated. +He was rather above the middle height, and latterly was corpulent. He +married in 1804, and has left a family. + + +[105] See _Scottish Monthly Magazine_, August 1836. + + + + +ADOWN THE BURNIE'S FLOWERY BANK.[106] + + + Adown the burnie's flowery bank, + Or through the shady grove, + Or 'mang the bonnie scroggie braes, + Come, Peggy, let us rove. + See where the stream out ower the linn + Deep headlong foamin' pours, + There let us gang and stray amang + The bloomin' hawthorn bowers. + + We 'll pu' the rose frae aff the brier, + The lily frae the brae; + We 'll hear the birdies blithely sing, + As up the glen we gae. + His yellow haughs o' wavin' grain + The farmer likes to see, + But my ain Peggy's artless smile + Is far mair dear to me. + + +[106] Written when the author was quite a youth. + + + + +THE HILLS O' GALLOWA'.[107] + +TUNE--_"The Lea Rig."_ + + + Amang the birks sae blithe an' gay, + I met my Julia hameward gaun; + The linties chantit on the spray, + The lammies loupit on the lawn; + On ilka swaird the hay was mawn, + The braes wi' gowans buskit bra', + An' ev'ning's plaid o' gray was thrawn + Out ower the hills o' Gallowa'. + + Wi' music wild the woodlands rang, + An' fragrance wing'd alang the lea, + As down we sat the flowers amang, + Upon the banks o' stately Dee. + My Julia's arms encircled me, + An' saftly slade the hours awa', + Till dawning coost a glimm'rin' e'e + Upon the hills o' Gallowa'. + + It isna owsen, sheep, an' kye, + It isna gowd, it isna gear, + This lifted e'e wad hae, quo' I, + The warld's drumlie gloom to cheer; + But gie to me my Julia dear, + Ye powers wha rowe this yirthen ba', + An' oh, sae blithe through life I 'll steer, + Amang the hills o' Gallowa'. + + When gloamin' daunders up the hill, + An' our gudeman ca's hame the yowes, + Wi' her I 'll trace the mossy rill + That through the muir meand'ring rowes; + Or tint amang the scroggie knowes, + My birken pipe I 'll sweetly blaw, + An' sing the streams, the straths, and howes, + The hills an' dales o' Gallowa'. + + An' when auld Scotland's heathy hills, + Her rural nymphs an' jovial swains, + Her flowery wilds an' wimpling rills, + Awake nae mair my canty strains; + Where friendship dwells an' freedom reigns, + Where heather blooms an' muircocks craw, + Oh, dig my grave, and lay my banes + Amang the hills o' Gallowa'. + + +[107] Like many other Scottish songs composed early in the century, and +which at the time of publication were unacknowledged by their authors, +the "Hills o' Gallowa'" came to be attributed to Burns. It is included +among his songs in Orphoot's edition of his poetical works, which was +published at Edinburgh in 1820. In the "Harp of Caledonia," the editor, +Mr Struthers, assigns it to the Ettrick Shepherd. Along with those which +follow, the song appeared in the "Forest Minstrel." The heroine was +Julia Curtis, a maiden in Galloway, to whom Cunningham was early +attached. She is also celebrated by the poet in the "Braes of Ballahun," +and her early demise is lamented in the tender stanzas of "Julia's +Grave." The latter composition first appeared in the _Scots Magazine_ +for 1807, p. 448. + + + + +THE BRAES OF BALLAHUN.[108] + +TUNE--_"Roslin Castle."_ + + + Now smiling summer's balmy breeze, + Soft whispering, fans the leafy trees; + The linnet greets the rosy morn, + Sweet in yon fragrant flowery thorn; + The bee hums round the woodbine bower, + Collecting sweets from every flower; + And pure the crystal streamlets run + Among the braes of Ballahun. + + Oh, blissful days, for ever fled, + When wand'ring wild, as fancy led, + I ranged the bushy bosom'd glen, + The scroggie shaw, the rugged linn, + And mark'd each blooming hawthorn bush, + Where nestling sat the speckled thrush; + Or, careless roaming, wander'd on + Among the braes of Ballahun. + + Why starts the tear, why bursts the sigh, + When hills and dales rebound with joy? + The flowery glen and lilied lea, + In vain display their charms to me. + I joyless roam the heathy waste, + To soothe this sad, this troubled breast; + And seek the haunts of men to shun, + Among the braes of Ballahun. + + The virgin blush of lovely youth, + The angel smile of artless truth, + This breast illumed with heavenly joy, + Which lyart time can ne'er destroy. + Oh, Julia dear! the parting look, + The sad farewell we sorrowing took, + Still haunt me as I stray alone, + Among the braes of Ballahun. + + +[108] Ballahun is a romantic glen, near Blackwood House, on the river +Nith. + + + + +THE UNCO GRAVE.[109] + +TUNE--_"Crazy Jane."_ + + + Bonnie Clouden, as ye wander + Hills, an' haughs, an' muirs amang, + Ilka knowe an' green meander, + Learn my sad, my dulefu' sang! + Braes o' breckan, hills o' heather, + Howms whare rows the gowden wave; + Blissful scenes, fareweel for ever! + I maun seek an unco grave. + + Sair I pled, though fate, unfriendly, + Stang'd my heart wi' waes and dules, + That some faithfu' hand might kindly + Lay 't among my native mools. + Cronies dear, wha late an' early + Aye to soothe my sorrows strave, + Think on ane wha lo'es ye dearly, + Doom'd to seek an unco grave. + + Torn awa' frae Scotia's mountains, + Far frae a' that 's dear to dwall, + Mak's my e'en twa gushin' fountains, + Dings a dirk in my puir saul. + Braes o' breckan, hills o' heather, + Howms whare rows the gowden wave, + Blissful scenes, fareweel for ever! + I maun seek an unco grave. + + +[109] The Clouden is a stream which flows into the Nith, at Lincluden +College, near Dumfries. + + + + +JULIA'S GRAVE. + +TUNE--_"Logan Water."_ + + + Ye briery bields, where roses blaw! + Ye flowery fells, and sunny braes, + Whase scroggie bosoms foster'd a' + The pleasures o' my youthfu' days! + Amang your leafy simmer claes, + And blushing blooms, the zephyr flies, + Syne wings awa', and wanton plays + Around the grave whare Julia lies. + + Nae mair your bonnie birken bowers, + Your streamlets fair, and woodlands gay, + Can cheer the weary winged hours, + As up the glen I joyless stray; + For a' my hopes hae flown away, + And when they reach'd their native skies, + Left me amid the world o' wae, + To weet the grave where Julia lies. + + It is na beauty's fairest bloom, + It is na maiden charms consign'd, + And hurried to an early tomb, + That wrings my heart and clouds my mind; + But sparkling wit, and sense refined, + And spotless truth, without disguise, + Make me with sighs enrich the wind + That fans the grave whare Julia lies. + + + + +FAREWEEL, YE STREAMS. + +AIR--_"Lassie wi' the Yellow Coatie."_ + + + Fareweel, ye streams sae dear to me, + My bonnie Clouden, Kith, and Dee; + Ye burns that row sae bonnily, + Your siller waves nae mair I 'll see. + Yet though frae your green banks I 'm driven, + My saul away could ne'er be riven; + For still she lifts her e'en to heaven, + An' sighs to be again wi' thee. + + Ye canty bards ayont the Tweed, + Your skins wi' claes o' tartan cleed, + An' lilt alang the verdant mead, + Or blithely on your whistles blaw, + An' sing auld Scotia's barns an ha's, + Her bourtree dykes an mossy wa's, + Her faulds, her bughts, an' birken shaws, + Whare love an' freedom sweeten a'. + + Sing o' her carles teuch an' auld, + Her carlines grim that flyte an' scauld, + Her wabsters blithe, an' souters bauld, + Her flocks an' herds sae fair to see. + Sing o' her mountains bleak an high; + Her fords, whare neigh'rin' kelpies ply; + Her glens, the haunts o' rural joy; + Her lasses lilting o'er the lea. + + To you the darling theme belangs, + That frae my heart exulting spangs; + Oh, mind, amang your bonnie sangs, + The lads that bled for liberty. + Think o' our auld forbears o' yore, + Wha dyed the muir wi' hostile gore; + Wha slavery's bands indignant tore, + An' bravely fell for you an' me. + + My gallant brithers, brave an' bauld, + Wha haud the pleugh, or wake the fauld, + Until your dearest bluid rin cauld, + Aye true unto your country be. + Wi' daring look her dirk she drew, + An' coost a mither's e'e on you; + Then let na ony spulzien crew + Her dear-bought freedom wrest frae thee. + + + + +JOHN STRUTHERS. + + +John Struthers, whose name is familiar as the author of "The Poor Man's +Sabbath," was born on the 18th July 1776, in the parish of East +Kilbride, Lanarkshire. His parents were of the humbler rank, and were +unable to send him to school; but his mother, a woman of superior +intelligence, was unremitting in her efforts to teach him at home. She +was aided in her good work by a benevolent lady of the neighbourhood, +who, interested by the boy's precocity, often sent for him to read to +her. This kind-hearted individual was Mrs Baillie, widow of the Rev. Dr +Baillie of Hamilton, who was then resident at Longcalderwood, and whose +celebrated daughter, Joanna Baillie, afterwards took a warm interest in +the fame and fortunes of her mother's _protege_. From the age of eight +to fourteen, young Struthers was engaged as a cowherd and in general +work about a farm; he then apprenticed himself to a shoemaker. On the +completion of his indenture, he practised his craft several years in his +native village till September 1801, when he sought a wider field of +business in Glasgow. In 1804, he produced his first and most celebrated +poem, "The Poor Man's Sabbath," which, printed at his own risk, was well +received, and rapidly passed through two editions. On the recommendation +of Sir Walter Scott, to whom the poem was made known by Joanna Baillie, +Constable published a third edition in 1808, handing the author thirty +pounds for the copyright. Actively employed in his trade, Struthers +continued to devote his leisure hours to composition. In 1816 he +published a pamphlet "On the State of the Labouring Poor." A more +ambitious literary effort was carried out in 1819; he edited a +collection of the national songs, which was published at Glasgow, under +the title of "The Harp of Caledonia," in three vols. 18mo. To this work +Joanna Baillie, Mrs John Hunter, and Mr William Smyth of Cambridge +contributed songs, while Scott and others permitted the re-publication +of such of their lyrics as the author chose to select. + +Struthers married early in life. About the year 1818 his wife and two of +his children were snatched from him by death, and these bereavements so +affected him, as to render him unable to prosecute his labours as a +tradesman. He now procured employment as a corrector of the press, in +the printing-office of Khull, Blackie, & Co. During his connexion with +this establishment he assisted in preparing an edition of "Wodrow's +History," and produced a "History of Scotland" from the political Union +in 1707 to the year 1827, the date of its publication. These works--the +latter extending to two octavo volumes--were published by his employers. +On a dissolution of their co-partnership, in 1827, Struthers was thrown +out of employment till his appointment, in 1832, to the Keepership of +Stirling's Library, a respectable institution in Glasgow. This +situation, which yielded him a salary of about L50 a-year, he retained +till 1847, when he was led to tender his resignation. In his +seventy-first year he returned to his original trade, after being thirty +years occupied with literary concerns. He died suddenly on the 30th July +1853, at the advanced age of seventy-seven. + +A man of strong intellect and vigorous imagination, John Struthers was +industrious in his trade, and persevering as an author, yet he failed to +obtain a competency for the winter of life; his wants, however, were +few, and he never sought to complain. Inheriting pious dispositions from +his parents, he excelled in familiarity with the text of Scripture, and +held strong opinions on the subject of morality. Educated in the +communion of the Original Secession Church, he afterwards joined the +Establishment, and ultimately retired from it at the Disruption in 1843. +He was a zealous member of the Free Church, and being admitted to the +eldership, was on two occasions sent as a representative to the General +Assembly of that body. An enthusiast respecting the beauties of external +nature, he was in the habit of undertaking lengthened pedestrian +excursions into the country, and took especial delight in rambling by +the sea-shore, or climbing the mountain-tops. His person was tall and +slight, though abundantly muscular, and capable of undergoing the toil +of extended journeys. Three times married, he left a widow, who has +lately emigrated to America; of his children two sons and two daughters +survive. + +Besides the works already enumerated, Struthers was the author of other +compositions, both in prose and verse. He wrote an octavo pamphlet of 96 +pages in favour of National Church Establishments; contributed memoirs +of James Hogg, minister of Carnock, and Principal Robertson to the +_Christian Instructor_, and prepared various lives of deceased worthies, +which were included in the "Illustrious and Distinguished Scotsmen," +edited by Mr Robert Chambers. At the period of his death, he was engaged +in preparing a continuation of his "History of Scotland," to the era of +the Disruption; he also meditated the publication of a volume of essays. +His poetical works, which appeared at various intervals, were +re-published in 1850, in two duodecimo volumes, with an interesting +autobiographical sketch. Of his poems those most deserving of notice, +next to the "Sabbath," are "The House of Mourning, or the Peasant's +Death," and "The Plough," both evincing grave and elevated sentiment, +expressed in correct poetical language. The following songs are +favourable specimens of his lyrical compositions. + + + + +ADMIRING NATURE'S SIMPLE CHARMS. + +TUNE--_"Gramachre."_ + + + Admiring Nature's simple charms, + I left my humble home, + Awhile my country's peaceful plains + With pilgrim step to roam. + I mark'd the leafy summer wave + On flowing Irvine's side, + But richer far 's the robe she wears + Within the vale of Clyde. + + I roam'd the braes o' bonnie Doon, + The winding banks o' Ayr, + Where flutters many a small bird gay, + Blooms many a flow'ret fair. + But dearer far to me the stem + That once was Calder's pride, + And blossoms now the fairest flower + Within the vale of Clyde. + + Avaunt, thou life-repressing north, + Ye withering east winds too; + But come, thou all-reviving west, + Breathe soft thy genial dew. + Till at the last, in peaceful age, + This lovely flow'ret shed + Its last green leaf upon my grave, + Within the vale of Clyde. + + + + +OH, BONNIE BUDS YON BIRCHEN TREE. + +TUNE--_"The mill, mill, O."_ + + + Oh, bonnie buds yon birchen tree, + The western breeze perfuming; + And softly smiles yon sunny brae, + Wi' gowans gaily blooming. + But sweeter than yon birchen tree, + Or gowans gaily blooming, + Is she, in blushing modesty, + Wha meets me there at gloaming. + + Oh, happy, happy there yestreen, + In mutual transport ranging, + Among these lovely scenes, unseen, + Our vows of love exchanging. + The moon, with clear, unclouded face, + Seem'd bending to behold us; + And breathing birks, with soft embrace, + Most kindly to enfold us. + + We bade each tree record our vows, + And each surrounding mountain, + With every star on high that glows + From light's o'erflowing fountain. + But gloaming gray bedims the vale, + On day's bright beam encroaching; + With rapture once again I hail + The trysting hour approaching. + + + + +RICHARD GALL. + + +Richard Gall was born in December 1776, at Linkhouse, near Dunbar. His +father was a notary; but, being in poor circumstances, he apprenticed +his son, in his eleventh year, to a relative, who followed the conjoined +business of a builder and house-carpenter. The drudgery of heavy manual +labour proved very uncongenial; and the apprentice suddenly took his +departure, walking a long distance to Edinburgh, whither his parents had +removed their residence. He now selected the profession of a printer, +and entered on an indenture to Mr David Ramsay of the _Edinburgh Evening +Courant_. At the close of his apprenticeship, he became Mr Ramsay's +travelling clerk. + +In the ordinary branches of education, young Gall had been instructed in +a school at Haddington; he took lessons in the more advanced departments +from a private tutor during his apprenticeship. He wrote verses from his +youth, and several of his songs became popular, and were set to music. +His poetical talents attracted the attention of Robert Burns and Hector +Macneill, both of whom cherished his friendship,--the former becoming +his correspondent. He also shared the intimacy of Thomas Campbell, and +of Dr Alexander Murray, the distinguished philologist. + +His promising career was brief; an abscess broke out in his breast, +which medical skill could not subdue. After a lingering illness, he died +on the 10th of May 1801, in his twenty-fifth year. He had joined a +Highland volunteer regiment; and his remains were accompanied by his +companions-in-arms to the Calton burial-ground, and there interred with +military honours. + +Possessed of a lively and vigorous fancy, a generous warmth of +temperament, and feelings of extreme sensibility, Richard Gall gave +promise of adorning the poetical literature of his country. Patriotism +and the beauties of external nature were the favourite subjects of his +muse, which, as if premonished of his early fate, loved to sing in +plaintive strains. Gall occasionally lacks power, but is always +pleasing; in his songs (two of which have frequently been assigned to +Burns) he is uniformly graceful. He loved poetry with the ardour of an +enthusiast; during his last illness he inscribed verses with a pencil, +when no longer able to wield the pen. He was thoroughly devoid of +personal vanity, and sought to advance the poetical reputation of his +country rather than his own. In his lifetime, his pieces were printed +separately; a selection of his poems and songs, with a memoir by +Alexander Balfour, was published in 1819. + + + + +HOW SWEET IS THE SCENE. + + + How sweet is the scene at the waking o' morning! + How fair ilka object that lives in the view! + Dame Nature the valley an' hillock adorning, + The wild-rose an' blue-bell yet wet wi' the dew. + How sweet in the morning o' life is my Anna! + Her smiles like the sunbeam that glints on the lea; + To wander an' leave the dear lassie, I canna; + Frae Truth, Love, an' Beauty, I never can flee. + + O lang hae I lo'ed her, and lo'ed her fu' dearly, + For saft is the smile o' her bonny sweet mou'; + An' aft hae I read in her e'en, glancing clearly, + A language that bade me be constant an' true. + Then ithers may doat on their gowd an' their treasure; + For pelf, silly pelf, they may brave the rude sea; + To lo'e my sweet lassie, be mine the dear pleasure; + Wi' her let me live, an' wi' her let me die. + + + + +CAPTAIN O'KAIN. + + + Flow saftly, thou stream, through the wild spangled valley; + Oh green be thy banks, ever bonny an' fair! + Sing sweetly, ye birds, as ye wanton fu' gaily, + Yet strangers to sorrow, untroubled by care. + The weary day lang + I list to your sang, + An' waste ilka moment, sad, cheerless, alane; + Each sweet little treasure + O' heart-cheering pleasure, + Far fled frae my bosom wi' Captain O'Kain. + + Fu' aft on thy banks hae we pu'd the wild gowan, + An' twisted a garland beneath the hawthorn; + Ah! then each fond moment wi' pleasure was glowing, + Sweet days o' delight, which can never return! + Now ever, wae's me! + The tear fills my e'e, + An sair is my heart wi' the rigour o' pain; + Nae prospect returning, + To gladden life's morning, + For green waves the willow o'er Captain O'Kain. + + + + +MY ONLY JO AND DEARIE, O'. + + + Thy cheek is o' the rose's hue, + My only jo an' dearie, O; + Thy neck is like the siller dew + Upon the banks sae briery, O; + Thy teeth are o' the ivory, + O, sweet 's the twinkle o' thine e'e! + Nae joy, nae pleasure, blinks on me, + My only jo an' dearie, O. + + The birdie sings upon the thorn, + Its sang o' joy, fu' cheerie, O, + Rejoicing in the simmer morn, + Nae care to make it eerie, O; + But little kens the sangster sweet, + Ought o' the care I hae to meet, + That gars my restless bosom beat, + My only jo an' dearie, O. + + Whan we were bairnies on yon brae, + An' youth was blinking bonny, O, + Aft we wad daff the lee lang day, + Our joys fu' sweet an' mony, O; + Aft I wad chase thee o'er the lea, + An' round about the thorny tree; + Or pu' the wild flowers a' for thee, + My only jo an' dearie, O. + + I hae a wish I canna tine, + 'Mang a' the cares that grieve me, O; + I wish that thou wert ever mine, + An' never mair to leave me, O; + Then I wad dawt thee night an' day, + Nae ither warldly care wad hae, + Till life's warm stream forgat to play, + My only jo an' dearie, O. + + + + +THE BONNIE BLINK O' MARY'S E'E.[110] + + + Now bank an' brae are clad in green, + An' scatter'd cowslips sweetly spring; + By Girvan's fairy-haunted stream, + The birdies flit on wanton wing; + By Cassillis' banks, when e'ening fa's, + There let my Mary meet wi' me, + There catch her ilka glance o' love, + The bonnie blink o' Mary's e'e. + + The chiel' wha boasts o' warld's wealth + Is aften laird o' meikle care; + But Mary she is a' my ain, + An' Fortune canna gie me mair. + Then let me stray by Cassillis' banks, + Wi' her, the lassie dear to me, + An' catch her ilka glance o' love, + The bonnie blink o' Mary's e'e. + + +[110] Cromeck in his "Reliques," erroneously attributes this song to +Burns. + + + + +THE BRAES O' DRUMLEE. + + + Ere eild wi' his blatters had warsled me down, + Or reft me o' life's youthfu' bloom, + How aft hae I gane, wi' a heart louping light, + To the knowes yellow tappit wi' broom! + How aft hae I sat i' the beild o' the knowe, + While the laverock mounted sae hie, + An' the mavis sang sweet in the plantings around, + On the bonnie green braes o' Drumlee. + + But, ah! while we daff in the sunshine of youth, + We see na' the blasts that destroy; + We count na' upon the fell waes that may come, + An eithly o'ercloud a' our joy. + I saw na the fause face that fortune can wear, + Till forced from my country to flee; + Wi' a heart like to burst, while I sobbed, "Farewell, + To the bonnie green braes o' Drumlee! + + "Fareweel, ye dear haunts o' the days o' my youth, + Ye woods and ye valleys sae fair; + Ye 'll bloom whan I wander abroad like a ghaist, + Sair nidder'd wi' sorrow an' care. + Ye woods an' ye valleys, I part wi' a sigh, + While the flood gushes down frae my e'e; + For never again shall the tear weet my cheek, + On the bonnie green braes o' Drumlee. + + "O Time, could I tether your hours for a wee! + Na, na, for they flit like the wind!"-- + Sae I took my departure, an' saunter'd awa', + Yet aften look'd wistfu' behind. + Oh, sair is the heart of the mither to twin, + Wi' the baby that sits on her knee; + But sairer the pang, when I took a last peep, + O' the bonnie green braes o' Drumlee. + + I heftit 'mang strangers years thretty-an'-twa, + But naething could banish my care; + An' aften I sigh'd when I thought on the past, + Whare a' was sae pleasant an' fair. + But now, wae 's my heart! whan I 'm lyart an' auld, + An' fu' lint-white my haffet-locks flee, + I 'm hamewards return'd wi' a remnant o' life, + To the bonnie green braes o' Drumlee. + + Poor body! bewilder'd, I scarcely do ken + The haunts that were dear ance to me; + I yirded a plant in the days o' my youth, + An' the mavis now sings on the tree. + But, haith! there 's nae scenes I wad niffer wi' thae; + For it fills my fond heart fu' o' glee, + To think how at last my auld banes they will rest, + Near the bonnie green braes o' Drumlee. + + + + +I WINNA GANG BACK TO MY MAMMY AGAIN. + + + I winna gang back to my mammy again, + I 'll never gae back to my mammy again; + I 've held by her apron these aught years an' ten, + But I 'll never gang back to my mammy again. + I 've held by her apron, &c. + + Young Johnnie cam' down i' the gloamin' to woo, + Wi' plaidie sae bonny, an' bannet sae blue: + "O come awa, lassie, ne'er let mammy ken;" + An' I flew wi' my laddie o'er meadow an' glen. + "O come awa, lassie," &c. + + He ca'd me his dawtie, his dearie, his doo, + An' press'd hame his words wi' a smack o' my mou'; + While I fell on his bosom heart-flicher'd an' fain, + An' sigh'd out, "O Johnnie, I 'll aye be your ain!" + While I fell on his bosom, &c. + + Some lasses will talk to their lads wi' their e'e, + Yet hanker to tell what their hearts really dree; + Wi' Johnnie I stood upon nae stapping-stane, + Sae I 'll never gae back to my mammy again. + Wi' Johnnie I stood, &c. + + For many lang year sin' I play'd on the lea, + My mammy was kind as a mither could be; + I 've held by her apron these aught years an' ten, + But I 'll never gang back to my mammy again. + I 've held by her apron, &c. + + + + +THE BARD. + +IRISH AIR--_"The Brown Maid."_ + + + The Bard strikes his harp the wild valleys amang, + Whare the tall aiken trees spreading leafy appear; + While the murmuring breeze mingles sweet wi' his sang, + An' wafts the saft notes till they die on the ear; + But Mary, whase presence sic transport conveys, + Whase beauties my moments o' pleasure control, + On the strings o' my heart ever wantonly plays, + An' each languishing note is a sigh frae my soul! + + Her breath is as sweet as the sweet-scented brier, + That blossoms and blaws in yon wild lanely glen; + When I view her fair form which nae mortal can peer, + A something o'erpowers me I dinna weel ken. + What sweetness her snawy white bosom displays! + The blink o' her bonny black e'e wha' can thole! + On the strings o' my heart she bewitchingly plays, + An' each languishing note is a sigh frae my soul! + + + + +LOUISA IN LOCHABER. + + + Can ought be constant as the sun, + That makes the world sae cheerie? + Yes, a' the powers can witness be, + The love I bear my dearie. + But what can make the hours seem lang, + An' rin sae wondrous dreary? + What but the space that lies between + Me an' my only dearie. + + Then fare ye weel, wha saw me aft, + Sae blythe, baith late and early; + An' fareweel scenes o' former joys, + That cherish life sae rarely; + Baith love an' beauty bid me flee, + Nor linger lang an' eerie, + But haste, an' in my arms enfauld, + My only pride an' dearie. + + I 'll hail Lochaber's valleys green, + Where many a rill meanders; + I 'll hail wi' joy, its birken bowers, + For there Louisa wanders. + There will I clasp her to my breast, + An' tent her smile fu' cheerie; + An' thus, without a wish or want, + Live happy wi' my dearie. + + + + +THE HAZELWOOD WITCH. + + + For mony lang year I hae heard frae my grannie + Of brownies an' bogles by yon castle wa', + Of auld wither'd hags that were never thought cannie, + An' fairies that danced till they heard the cock caw. + I leugh at her tales; an' last owk, i' the gloamin', + I daunder'd, alane, down the hazelwood green; + Alas! I was reckless, and rue sair my roamin', + For I met a young witch, wi' twa bonnie black e'en. + + I thought o' the starns in a frosty night glancing, + Whan a' the lift round them is cloudless an' blue; + I looked again, an' my heart fell a-dancing, + When I wad hae spoken, she glamour'd my mou'. + O wae to her cantrips! for dumpish I wander, + At kirk or at market there 's nought to be seen; + For she dances afore me wherever I daunder, + The hazelwood witch wi' the bonnie black e'en. + + + + +FAREWELL TO AYRSHIRE.[111] + + + Scenes of woe and scenes of pleasure, + Scenes that former thoughts renew; + Scenes of woe and scenes of pleasure, + Now a sad and last adieu! + Bonny Doon, sae sweet at gloamin', + Fare thee weel before I gang; + Bonny Doon, whare, early roamin', + First I weaved the rustic sang. + + Bowers, adieu! where, love decoying, + First enthrall'd this heart o' mine; + There the saftest sweets enjoying, + Sweets that memory ne'er shall tine. + Friends sae near my bosom ever, + Ye hae render'd moments dear; + But, alas! when forced to sever, + Then the stroke, O how severe! + + Friends, that parting tear reserve it, + Though 'tis doubly dear to me; + Could I think I did deserve it, + How much happier would I be. + Scenes of woe and scenes of pleasure, + Scenes that former thoughts renew; + Scenes of woe and scenes of pleasure, + Now a sad and last adieu! + + +[111] This is another song of Richard Gall which has been assigned to +Burns; it has even been included in Dr Currie's edition of his works. It +was communicated anonymously by Gall to the publisher of the "Scots +Musical Museum," and first appeared in that work. The original MS. of +the song was in the possession of Mr Stark, the author of a memoir of +Gall in the "Biographia Scotica." + + + + +GEORGE SCOTT. + + +George Scott was the son of a small landowner in Roxburghshire. He was +born at Dingleton, near Melrose, in 1777; and after attending the +parish-schools of Melrose and Galashiels, became a student in the +University of Edinburgh. On completing a curriculum of classical study, +he was in his twenty-second year appointed parochial schoolmaster of +Livingstone, West Lothian; and in six years afterwards was preferred to +the parish-school of Lilliesleaf, in his native county. He was an +accomplished scholar, and had the honour of educating many individuals +who afterwards attained distinction. With Sir Walter Scott, who +appreciated his scholarship, he maintained a friendly correspondence. In +1820, he published a small volume of poems, entitled, "Heath Flowers; +or, Mountain Melodies," which exhibits considerable poetical talent. +Having discharged the duties of an instructor of youth for half a +century, he retired from his public avocations in November 1850. He +survived till the 23d of February 1853, having attained his +seventy-sixth year. + + + + +THE FLOWER OF THE TYNE. + +AIR--_"Bonnie Dundee."_ + + + Now rests the red sun in his caves of the ocean, + Now closed every eye but of misery and mine; + While, led by the moonbeam, in fondest devotion, + I doat on her image, the Flower of the Tyne. + Her cheek far outrivals the rose's rich blossom, + Her eyes the bright gems of Golconda outshine; + The snow-drop and lily are lost on her bosom, + For beauty unmatched is the Flower of the Tyne. + + So charming each feature, so guileless her nature, + A thousand fond voices pronounce her divine; + So witchingly pretty, so modestly witty, + That sweet is thy thraldom, fair Flower of the Tyne! + Thine aspect so noble, yet sweetly inviting, + The loves and the graces thy temples entwine; + In manners the saint and the syren uniting, + Bloom on, dear Louisa, the Flower of the Tyne. + + Though fair, Caledonia, the nymphs of thy mountains, + And graceful and straight as thine own silver pine, + Though fresh as thy breezes, and pure as thy fountains, + Yet fairer to me is the Flower of the Tyne. + This poor throbbing heart as an offering I give her, + A temple to love is this bosom of mine; + Then smile on thy victim, Louisa, for ever, + I 'll kneel at thine altar, sweet Flower of the Tyne. + + + + +THOMAS CAMPBELL. + + +Thomas Campbell, author of the "Pleasures of Hope," was descended from a +race of landed proprietors in Argyleshire, who claimed ancestry in +Macallummore, the great head of clan Campbell, and consequent +propinquity to the noble House of Argyle. Alexander Campbell, the poet's +father, had carried on a prosperous trade as a Virginian merchant, but +had suffered unhappy embarrassments, at the outbreak of the American +war. Of his eleven children, Thomas was the youngest. He was born on the +27th July 1777, in his father's house, High Street, Glasgow, and was +baptised by the celebrated Dr Thomas Reid, after whom he received his +Christian name. The favourite child of his parents, peculiar care was +bestowed upon his upbringing; he was taught to read by his eldest +sister, who was nineteen years his senior, and had an example of energy +set before him by his mother, a woman of remarkable decision. He +afforded early indication of genius; as a child, he was fond of ballad +poetry, and in his tenth year he wrote verses. At the age of eight he +became a pupil in the grammar school, having already made some +proficiency in classical learning. During the first session of +attendance at the University, he gained two prizes and a bursary on +Archbishop Leighton's foundation. As a classical scholar, he acquired +rapid distinction; he took especial delight in the dramatic literature +of Greece, and his metrical translations from the Greek plays were +pronounced excellent specimens of poetical composition. He invoked the +muse on many themes, and occasionally printed verses, which were +purchased by his comrades. From the commencement of his curriculum he +chiefly supported himself by teaching; at the close of his fourth +session, he accepted a tutorship in the island of Mull. There he +prosecuted verse-making, and continued his translations from the Greek +dramatists. He conducted a poetical correspondence with Hamilton Paul; +and the following lines addressed to this early friend, and entitled "An +Elegy written in Mull," may be quoted in evidence of his poetical talent +in his seventeenth year. These lines do not occur in any edition of his +works: + + "The tempest blackens on the dusky moor, + And billows lash the long-resounding shore; + In pensive mood I roam the desert ground, + And vainly sigh for scenes no longer found. + Oh, whither fled the pleasurable hours + That chased each care, and fired the muse's powers; + The classic haunts of youth, for ever gay + Where mirth and friendship cheer'd the close of day, + The well-known valleys where I wont to roam, + The native sports, the nameless joys of home? + Far different scenes allure my wondering eye: + The white wave foaming to the distant sky; + The cloudy heavens, unblest by summer's smile; + The sounding storm that sweeps the rugged isle, + The chill, bleak summit of eternal snow, + The wide, wild glen, the pathless plains below, + The dark blue rocks, in barren grandeur piled, + The cuckoo sighing to the pensive wild! + Far different these from all that charm'd before, + The grassy banks of Clutha's winding shore: + The sloping vales, with waving forests lined; + Her smooth blue lakes, unruffled by the wind. + Hail, happy Clutha! glad shall I survey + Thy gilded turrets from the distant way! + Thy sight shall cheer the weary traveller's toil, + And joy shall hail me to my native soil." +He remained at Mull five months; and subsequently became tutor in the +family of Sir William Napier, at Downie, near Loch Fyne. On completing a +fifth session at the University, he experienced anxiety regarding the +choice of a profession, chiefly with the desire of being able speedily +to aid in the support of his necessitous parents. He first thought of a +mercantile life, and then weighed the respective advantages of the +clerical, medical, and legal professions. For a period, he attempted +law, but soon tired of the drudgery which it threatened to impose. In +Edinburgh, during a brief period of legal study, he formed the +acquaintance of Dr Robert Anderson, through whose favour he became known +to the rising wits of the capital. Among his earlier friends he reckoned +the names of Francis Jeffrey, Henry Brougham, Thomas Brown, James +Graham, and David Irving. + +In 1798, Campbell induced his parents to remove to Edinburgh, where he +calculated on literary employment. He had already composed the draught +of the "Pleasures of Hope," but he did not hazard its publication till +he had exhausted every effort in its improvement. His care was well +repaid; his poem produced one universal outburst of admiration, and one +edition after another rapidly sold. He had not completed his +twenty-second year when he gained a place among the most distinguished +poets of his country. For the copyright Mundell and Company allowed him +only two hundred copies in quires, which yielded him about fifty pounds; +but they presented him with twenty-five pounds on the appearance of each +successive edition. He was afterwards permitted to publish an edition on +his own account,--a privilege which brought him the sum of six hundred +pounds. Resolving to follow literature as a profession, he was desirous +of becoming personally acquainted with the distinguished men of letters +in Germany; in June 1800 he embarked at Leith for Hamburg. He visited +Ratisbon, Munich, and Leipsic; had an interview with the poet Klopstock, +then in his seventy-seventh year, and witnessed a battle between the +French and Germans, near Ratisbon. At Hamburg he formed the acquaintance +of Anthony M'Cann, who had been driven into exile by the Irish +Government in 1798, on the accusation of being a leader in the +rebellion. Of this individual he formed a favourable opinion, and his +condition suggested the exquisite poem, "The Exile of Erin." After some +months' residence at Altona, he sailed for England; the vessel narrowly +escaping capture by a privateer, landed him at Yarmouth, whence he +proceeded to London. He had been in correspondence with Perry of the +_Morning Chronicle_, who introduced him to Lord Holland, Sir James +Macintosh, and Samuel Rogers. Receiving tidings of his father's death, +he returned to Edinburgh. Not a little to his concern, he found that +warrants had been issued for his apprehension on the charge of high +treason; he was accused of attending Jacobin clubs at Hamburg, and of +conspiring with General Moreau and the Irish exiles to land troops in +Ireland! The seizure of his travelling trunk led to the ample +vindication of his loyalty; it was found to contain the first draught of +the "Mariners of England." Besides a magnificent quarto edition of the +"Pleasures of Hope," he now prepared a work in three volumes, entitled +"Annals of Great Britain;" for which the sum of three hundred pounds was +paid him by Mundell and Company. Through Professor Dugald Stewart, he +obtained the friendship of Lord Minto, who invited him to London, and +afterwards entertained him at Minto. + +In 1803, Campbell resolved to settle in London; in his progress to the +metropolis he visited his friends Roscoe and Currie, at Liverpool. On +the 10th September, 1803, he espoused his fair cousin, Matilda Sinclair, +and established his residence in Upper Eaton Street, Pimlico. In the +following year, he sought refuge from the noise of the busy world in +London, by renting a house at Sydenham. His reputation readily secured +him a sufficiency of literary employment; he translated for the _Star_, +with a salary of two hundred pounds per annum, and became a contributor +to the _Philosophical Magazine_. He declined the offer of the Regent's +chair in the University of Wilna, in Russian-Poland; but shortly after +had conferred on him, by the premier, Charles Fox, a civil-list pension +of two hundred pounds. In 1809, he published his poem, "Gertrude of +Wyoming," along with the "Battle of the Baltic," the "Mariners of +England," "Hohenlinden," "Glenara," and others of his best lyrics. This +volume was well received, and added largely to his laurels. In 1811, he +delivered five lectures on poetry, in the Royal Institution. + +Campbell was now a visitor in the first literary circles, and was +welcomed at the tables of persons of opulence. From the commencement of +his residence in London, he had known John Kemble, and his accomplished +sister, Mrs Siddons. He became intimate with Lord Byron and Thomas +Moore; and had the honour of frequent invitations to the residence of +the Princess of Wales, at Blackheath. In 1814, he visited Paris, where +he was introduced to the Duke of Wellington; dined with Humboldt and +Schlegel, and met his former friend and correspondent, Madame de Stael. +A proposal of Sir Walter Scott, in 1816, to secure him a chair in the +University of Edinburgh, was not attended with success. The "Specimens +of the British Poets," a work he had undertaken for Mr Murray, appeared +in 1819. In 1820, he accepted the editorship of the _New Monthly +Magazine_, with a salary of six hundred pounds per annum. A second +visit to Germany, which he accomplished immediately after the +commencement of his editorial duties, suggested to him the idea of the +London University; and this scheme, warmly supported by his literary +friends, and advocated by Lord Brougham, led in 1825 to the +establishment of the institution. In the year subsequent to this happy +consummation of his exertions on behalf of learning in the south, he +received intelligence of his having been elected Lord Rector of the +University of Glasgow. This honour was the most valued of his life; it +was afterwards enhanced by his re-election to office for the third +time,--a rare occurrence in the history of the College. + +The future career of the poet was not remarkable for any decided +achievements in literature or poetry. In 1831, he allowed his name to be +used as the conductor of the _Metropolitan_, a short-lived periodical. +He published in 1834 a "Life of Mrs Siddons," in two volumes, but this +performance did not prove equal to public expectation. One of his last +efforts was the preparation of an edition of the "Pleasures of Hope," +which was illustrated with engravings from drawings by Turner. +Subsequent to the death of Mrs Campbell, which took place in May 1828, +he became unsettled in his domestic habits, evincing a mania for change +of residence. In 1834, he proceeded to Algiers, in Africa; and returning +by Paris, was presented to King Louis Philippe. On his health failing, +some years afterwards, he tried the baths of Wiesbaden, and latterly +established his residence at Boulogne. After a prostrating illness of +several months, he expired at Boulogne, on the 15th of June 1844, in his +67th year. + +Of the poetry of Thomas Campbell, "The Pleasures of Hope" is one of the +most finished epics in the language; it is alike faultless in respect +of conception and versification. His lyrics are equally sustained in +power of thought and loftiness of diction; they have been more +frequently quoted than the poems of any other modern author, and are +translated into various European languages. Few men evinced more +jealousy in regard to their reputation; he was keenly sensitive to +criticism, and fastidious in judging of his own composition. As a prose +writer, though he wrote with elegance, he is less likely to be +remembered. Latterly a native unsteadiness of purpose degenerated into +inaction; during the period of his unabated vigour, it prevented his +carrying out many literary schemes. A bad money manager, he had under no +circumstances become rich; at one period he was in the receipt of +fifteen hundred pounds per annum, yet he felt poverty. He had a strong +feeling of independence, and he never received a favour without +considering whether he might be able to repay it. He was abundantly +charitable, and could not resist the solicitations of indigence. Of +slavery and oppression in every form he entertained an abhorrence; his +zeal in the cause of liberty led him while a youth to be present in +Edinburgh at the trial of Gerard and others, for maintaining liberal +opinions, and to support in his maturer years the cause of the Polish +refugees. Naturally cheerful, he was subject to moods of despondency, +and his temper was ardent in circumstances of provocation. In personal +appearance he was rather under the middle height, and he dressed with +precision and neatness. His countenance was pleasing, but was only +expressive of power when lit up by congenial conversation. He was fond +of society and talked with fluency. His remains rest close by the ashes +of Sheridan, in Westminster Abbey, and over them a handsome monument has +lately been erected to his memory. + + + + +YE MARINERS OF ENGLAND. + + + Ye mariners of England, + That guard our native seas; + Whose flag has braved a thousand years + The battle and the breeze! + Your glorious standard launch again + To match another foe; + And sweep through the deep, + While the stormy winds do blow; + While the battle rages loud and long, + And the stormy winds do blow. + + The spirit of your fathers + Shall start from every wave; + For the deck it was their field of fame, + And ocean was their grave: + Where Blake and mighty Nelson fell + Your manly hearts shall glow, + As ye sweep through the deep, + While the stormy winds do blow; + While the battle rages loud and long, + And the stormy winds do blow. + + Britannia needs no bulwarks, + No towers along the steep; + Her march is o'er the mountain-waves, + Her home is on the deep. + With thunders from her native oak, + She quells the floods below,-- + As they roar on the shore, + When the stormy winds do blow; + When the battle rages loud and long, + And the stormy winds do blow. + + The meteor flag of England + Shall yet terrific burn; + Till danger's troubled night depart, + And the star of peace return. + Then, then, ye ocean warriors! + Our song and feast shall flow, + To the fame of your name, + When the storm has ceased to blow; + When the fiery fight is heard no more, + And the storm has ceased to blow. + + + + +GLENARA. + + + Oh! heard ye yon pibroch sound sad in the gale, + Where a band cometh slowly with weeping and wail? + 'Tis the chief of Glenara laments for his dear; + And her sire, and the people, are call'd to her bier. + + Glenara came first, with the mourners and shroud; + Her kinsmen they follow'd, but mourn'd not aloud: + Their plaids all their bosoms were folded around; + They march'd all in silence, they look'd on the ground. + + In silence they reach'd, over mountain and moor, + To a heath where the oak-tree grew lonely and hoar. + "Now here let us place the gray stone of her cairn; + Why speak ye no word?" said Glenara the stern. + + "And tell me, I charge you, ye clan of my spouse! + Why fold ye your mantles, why cloud ye your brows?" + So spake the rude chieftain. No answer is made, + But each mantle unfolding, a dagger display'd. + + "I dreamt of my lady, I dreamt of her shroud," + Cried a voice from the kinsmen, all wrathful and loud; + "And empty that shroud and that coffin did seem. + Glenara! Glenara! now read me my dream." + + Oh! pale grew the cheek of that chieftain, I ween, + When the shroud was unclosed, and no lady was seen; + When a voice from the kinsmen spoke louder in scorn-- + 'Twas the youth who had loved the fair Ellen of Lorn: + + "I dreamt of my lady, I dreamt of her grief, + I dreamt that her lord was a barbarous chief; + On a rock of the ocean fair Ellen did seem. + Glenara! Glenara! now read me my dream!" + + In dust low the traitor has knelt to the ground, + And the desert reveal'd where his lady was found; + From a rock of the ocean that beauty is borne-- + Now joy to the house of fair Ellen of Lorn! + + + + +THE WOUNDED HUSSAR. + + + Alone to the banks of the dark-rolling Danube, + Fair Adelaide hied when the battle was o'er. + "O, whither," she cried, "hast thou wander'd, my lover, + Or here dost thou welter and bleed on the shore? + + "What voice did I hear? 'twas my Henry that sigh'd!" + All mournful she hasten'd, nor wander'd she far, + When, bleeding and low, on the heath she descried, + By the light of the moon, her poor wounded hussar! + + From his bosom, that heaved, the last torrent was streaming, + And pale was his visage, deep mark'd with a scar, + And dim was that eye, once expressively beaming, + That melted in love, and that kindled in war! + + How smit was poor Adelaide's heart at the sight! + How bitter she wept o'er the victim of war! + "Hast thou come, my fond love, this last sorrowful night, + To cheer the lone heart of your wounded hussar?" + + "Thou shalt live," she replied; "Heaven's mercy relieving + Each anguishing wound shall forbid me to mourn!" + "Ah, no! the last pang of my bosom is heaving; + No light of the morn shall to Henry return! + + "Thou charmer of life, ever tender and true! + Ye babes of my love, that await me afar!" + His faltering tongue scarce could murmur adieu, + When he sank in her arms--the poor wounded hussar. + + + + +BATTLE OF THE BALTIC. + + + Of Nelson and the North, + Sing the glorious day's renown, + When to battle fierce came forth, + All the might of Denmark's crown, + And her arms along the deep proudly shone; + By each gun the lighted brand, + In a bold determined hand, + And the Prince of all the land + Led them on. + + Like leviathans afloat, + Lay their bulwarks on the brine; + While the sign of battle flew + On the lofty British line: + It was ten of April morn by the chime, + As they drifted on their path, + There was silence deep as death, + And the boldest held his breath + For a time. + + But the might of England flush'd + To anticipate the scene; + And her van the fleeter rush'd + O'er the deadly space between. + "Hearts of oak!" our Captain cried; when each gun + From its adamantine lips + Spread a death-shade round the ships, + Like the hurricane eclipse + Of the sun. + + Again! again! again! + And the havoc did not slack, + Till a feeble cheer the Dane + To our cheering sent us back; + Their shots along the deep slowly boom; + Then ceased, and all is wail, + As they strike the shatter'd sail, + Or in conflagration pale + Light the gloom. + + Out spoke the victor then, + As he hail'd them o'er the wave-- + "Ye are brothers! ye are men! + And we conquer but to save. + So peace instead of death let us bring; + But yield, proud foe! thy fleet, + With the crews, at England's feet, + And make submission meet + To our King." + + Then Denmark bless'd our chief + That he gave her wounds repose; + And the sounds of joy and grief + From her people wildly rose, + As Death withdrew his shades from the day. + While the sun look'd smiling bright + O'er a wide and woeful sight, + Where the fires of funeral light + Died away. + + Now joy, Old England, raise! + For the tidings of thy might, + By the festal cities blaze, + Whilst the wine-cup shines in light; + And yet amidst that joy and uproar, + Let us think of them that sleep, + Full many a fathom deep, + By thy wild and stormy steep, + Elsinore! + + Brave hearts! to Britain's pride, + Once so faithful and so true, + On the deck of fame that died, + With the gallant good Riou, + Soft sigh the winds of Heaven o'er their grave! + While the billow mournful rolls, + And the mermaid's song condoles, + Singing glory to the souls + Of the brave! + + + + +MEN OF ENGLAND. + + + Men of England, who inherit + Rights that cost your sires their blood! + Men whose undegenerate spirit + Has been proved on field and flood, + + By the foes you 've fought uncounted, + By the glorious deeds ye 've done, + Trophies captured, breaches mounted, + Navies conquer'd, kingdoms won. + + Yet, remember, England gathers + Hence but fruitless wreathes of fame, + If the freedom of your fathers + Glow not in your hearts the same. + + What are monuments of bravery, + Whence no public virtues bloom? + What avail in lands of slavery, + Trophied temples, arch and tomb? + + Pageants!--Let the world revere us + For our people's rights and laws, + And the breasts of civic heroes, + Bared in Freedom's holy cause. + + Yours are Hampden's, Russell's glory, + Sidney's matchless shade is yours, + Martyrs in heroic story, + Worth a hundred Agincourts! + + We 're the sons of sires that baffled + Crown'd and mitred tyranny; + They defied the field and scaffold + For their birthrights--so will we! + + + + +MRS G. G. RICHARDSON.[112] + + +Caroline Eliza Scott, better known as Mrs G. G. Richardson, the daughter +of a gentleman of considerable property in the south of Scotland, was +born at Forge, her father's family residence, in the parish of Canonbie, +on the 24th of November 1777, and spent her childhood and early youth +amidst Border scenes, Border traditions, and Border minstrelsy. It is +probable that these influences fostered the poetic temperament, while +they fed the imaginative element of her mind, as she very early gave +expression to her thoughts and feelings in romance and poetry. Born to a +condition of favourable circumstances, and associating with parents +themselves educated and intellectual, the young poetess enjoyed +advantages of development rarely owned by the sons and daughters of +genius. The flow of her mind was allowed to take its natural course; and +some of her early anonymous writings are quite as remarkable as any of +her acknowledged productions. Her conversational powers were lively and +entertaining, but never oppressive. She was ever ready to discern and do +homage to the merits of her contemporaries, while she never failed to +fan the faintest flame of latent poesy in the aspirations of the timid +or unknown. Affectionate and cheerful in her dispositions, she was a +loving and dutiful daughter, and shewed the tenderest attachment to a +numerous family of brothers and sisters. She was married to her cousin, +Gilbert Geddes Richardson, on the 29th of April 1799, at Fort George, +Madras; where she was then living with her uncle, General, afterwards +Lord Harris; and the connexion proved, in all respects, a suitable and +happy one. Her husband, at that time captain of an Indiaman, was one of +a number of brothers, natives of the south of Scotland, who all sought +their fortunes in India, and one of whom, Lieutenant-Colonel Richardson, +became known in literature as an able translator of Sanscrit poetry, and +contributor to the "Asiatic Researches." He was lost at sea, with his +wife and six children, on their homeward voyage; and this distressing +event, accompanied as it was by protracted suspense and anxiety, was +long and deeply deplored by his gifted sister-in-law. + +Young, beautiful, and doubly attractive from the warmth of her heart, +and the fascination of her manners, Mrs Richardson was not only loved +and appreciated by her husband, and his family, but greatly admired in a +refined circle of Anglo-Indian society; and the few years of her married +life were marked by almost uninterrupted felicity. But death struck down +the husband and father in the very prime of manhood; and the widow +returned with her five children (all of whom survived her), to seek from +the scenes and friends of her early days such consolation as they might +minister to a grief which only those who have experienced it can +measure. She never brought her own peculiar sorrows before the public; +but there is a tone of gentle mournfulness pervading many of her poems, +that may be traced to this cause; and there are touching allusions to +"one of rare endowments," that no one who remembered her husband's +character could fail to recognise. Her intense love of nature happily +remained unchanged; and the green hills, the flowing river, and the +tangled wildwood, could still soothe a soul that, but for its +susceptibility to these beneficent charms, might have said in its +sadness of everything earthly, "miserable comforters are ye all." +Continuing to reside at Forge while her children were young, she devoted +herself to the direction of their education, the cultivation of her own +pure tastes, and the peaceful enjoyments of a country life; and when she +afterwards removed to London, and reappeared in brilliant and +distinguished society, she often reverted, with regret, to the bright +skies and cottage homes of Canonbie. In 1821, Mrs Richardson again +returned to Scotland, and took up her abode at Dumfries, partly from the +desire of being near her connexions, and partly for the sake of the +beautiful scenery surrounding that pretty county town. In 1828 she +published, by subscription, her first volume of miscellaneous poems, +which was well received by the public, favourably noticed by the leading +journals, and received a circulation even beyond the range of 1700 +subscribers. A second edition, in a larger form, soon followed; and, in +1834, after finally settling in her native parish, she published a +second volume, dedicated to the Duchess of Buccleuch, and which was also +remarkably successful. From this time she employed her talents in the +composition of prose; she published "Adonia," a novel, in three volumes; +and various tales, essays, and fugitive pieces, forming contributions to +popular serials. Her later poems remain in manuscript. She maintained an +extensive correspondence with her literary friends, and spent much of +her time in reading and study, and in the practice of sincere and +unostentatious piety. Her faculties were vigorous and unimpared, until +the seizure of her last illness, which quickly terminated in death, on +the 9th October 1853, when she had nearly completed her seventy-sixth +year. She died at Forge, and was laid to rest in the church-yard of her +own beloved Canonbie. + + +[112] The memoir of Mrs G. G. Richardson has been kindly supplied by her +accomplished relative, Mrs Macarthur, Hillhead, near Glasgow. + + + + +THE FAIRY DANCE. + + + The fairies are dancing--how nimbly they bound! + They flit o'er the grass tops, they touch not the ground; + Their kirtles of green are with diamonds bedight, + All glittering and sparkling beneath the moonlight. + + Hark, hark to their music! how silvery and clear-- + 'Tis surely the flower-bells that ringing I hear,-- + The lazy-wing'd moth, with the grasshopper wakes, + And the field-mouse peeps out, and their revels partakes. + + How featly they trip it! how happy are they + Who pass all their moments in frolic and play, + Who rove where they list, without sorrows or cares, + And laugh at the fetters mortality wears! + + But where have they vanish'd?--a cloud 's o'er the moon, + I 'll hie to the spot,--they 'll be seen again soon-- + I hasten--'tis lighter,--and what do I view?-- + The fairies were grasses, the diamonds were dew. + + And thus do the sparkling illusions of youth + Deceive and allure, and we take them for truth; + Too happy are they who the juggle unshroud, + Ere the hint to inspect them be brought by a cloud. + + + + +SUMMER MORNING. + + + How pleasant, how pleasant to wander away, + O'er the fresh dewy fields at the dawning of day,-- + To have all this silence and lightness my own, + And revel with Nature, alone,--all alone! + + What a flush of young beauty lies scatter'd around, + In this calm, holy sunshine, and stillness profound! + The myriads are sleeping, who waken to care, + And earth looks like Eden, ere Adam was there. + + The herbage, the blossoms, the branches, the skies, + That shower on the river their beautiful dyes, + The far misty mountains, the wide waving fields, + What healthful enjoyment surveying them yields! + + Yes, this is the hour Nature's lovers partake, + The manna that melts when Life's vapours awake; + Another, and thoughts will be busy, oh how + Unlike the pure vision they 're ranging in now! + + Lo! the hare scudding forth, lo! the trout in the stream + Gently splashing, are stirring the folds of my dream, + The cattle are rising, and hark, the first bird,-- + And now in full chorus the woodlands are heard. + + Oh, who on the summer-clad landscape can gaze, + In the orison hour, nor break forth into praise,-- + Who, through this fair garden contemplative rove, + Nor feel that the Author and Ruler is love? + + I ask no hewn temple, sufficient is here; + I ask not art's anthems, the woodland is near; + The breeze is all risen, each leaf at his call + Has a tear drop of gratitude ready to fall! + + + + +THERE 'S MUSIC IN THE FLOWING TIDE. + + + There 's music in the flowing tide, there 's music in the air, + There 's music in the swallow's wing, that skims so lightly there, + There 's music in each waving tress of grove, and bower, and tree, + To eye and ear 'tis music all where Nature revels free. + + There 's discord in the gilded halls where lordly rivals meet, + There 's discord where the harpers ring to beauty's glancing feet, + There 's discord 'neath the jewell'd robe, the wreath, the plume, the crest, + Wherever Fashion waves her wand, there discord rules the breast. + + There 's music 'neath the cottage eaves, when, at the close of day, + Kind-hearted mirth and social ease the toiling hour repay; + Though coarse the fare, though rude the jest, that cheer that lowly board, + There loving hearts and honest lips sweet harmony afford! + + Oh! who the music of the groves, the music of the heart, + Would barter for the city's din, the frigid tones of art? + The virtues flourish fresh and fair, where rural waters glide. + They shrink and wither, droop and die, where rolls that turbid tide. + + + + +AH! FADED IS THAT LOVELY BLOOM. + +_Written to an Italian Air._ + + + Ah! faded is that lovely bloom, + And closed in death that speaking eye, + And buried in a green grass tomb, + What once breathed life and harmony! + Surely the sky is all too dark, + And chilly blows the summer air,-- + And, where 's thy song now, sprightly lark, + That used to wake my slumb'ring fair? + + Ah! never shalt thou wake her more! + And thou, bright sun, shalt ne'er again, + On inland mead, or sea-girt shore, + Salute the darling of the plain. + Maiden! they bade me o'er thy fate + Numbers and strains mellifluous swell, + They knew the love I bore thee great,-- + They knew not what I ne'er can tell. + + The unstrung heart to others leaves + The music of a feebler woe, + Her numbers are the sighs she heaves, + Her off'ring tears that ever flow. + Where could I gather fancies now? + They 're with'ring on thy lowly tomb,-- + My summer was thy cheek and brow, + And perish'd is that lovely bloom! + + + + +THOMAS BROWN, M.D. + + +Illustrious as a metaphysician, Dr Thomas Brown is entitled to a place +in the poetical literature of his country. He was the youngest son of +Samuel Brown, minister of Kirkmabreck, in the stewartry of +Kirkcudbright, and was born in the manse of that parish, on the 9th +January 1778. His father dying when he was only a year old, his +childhood was superintended solely by his mother, who established her +abode in Edinburgh. Evincing an uncommon aptitude for knowledge, he +could read and understand the Scriptures ere he had completed his fifth +year. At the age of seven he was committed to the charge of a maternal +uncle in London, who placed him at the schools of Camberwell and +Chiswick, and afterwards at two other classical seminaries, in all of +which he exhibited remarkable precocity in learning. On the death of his +relative he returned to Edinburgh, and in his fourteenth year entered +the University of that city. During a visit to Liverpool, in the summer +of 1793, he was introduced to Dr Currie, who, presenting him with a copy +of Dugald Stewart's "Elements of Philosophy," was the means of directing +his attention to metaphysical inquiries. The following session he became +a student in Professor Stewart's class; and differing from a theory +advanced in one of the lectures, he modestly read his sentiments on the +subject to his venerable preceptor. The philosopher and pupil were +henceforth intimate friends. + +In his nineteenth year, Brown became a member of the "Academy of +Physics," a philosophical association established by the scientific +youths of the University, and afterwards known to the world as having +given origin to the _Edinburgh Review_. As a member of this society he +formed the intimacy of Brougham, Jeffrey, Leyden, Logan, Sydney Smith, +and other literary aspirants. In 1778 he published "Observations on the +Zoonomia of Dr Darwin,"--a pamphlet replete with deep philosophical +sentiment, and which so attracted the notice of his friends that they +used every effort, though unsuccessfully, to secure him the chair of +rhetoric in the University during the vacancy which soon afterwards +occurred. His professional views were originally directed to the bar, +but disgusted with the law after a twelve-month's trial, he entered on a +medical course, to qualify himself as physician, and in 1803 received +his diploma. His new profession was scarcely more congenial than that +which he had abandoned, nor did the prospects of success, on being +assumed as a partner by Dr Gregory, reconcile him to his duties. His +favourite pursuits were philosophy and poetry; he published in 1804 two +volumes of miscellaneous poems which he had chiefly written at college, +and he was among the original contributors to the _Edinburgh Review_, +the opening article in the second number, on "Kant's Philosophy," +proceeding from his pen. An essay on Hume's "Theory of Causation," which +he produced during the struggle attendant on Mr Leslie's appointment to +the mathematical chair, established his hitherto growing reputation; and +the public in the capital afterwards learned, with more than +satisfaction, that he had consented to act as substitute for Professor +Dugald Stewart, when increasing infirmities had compelled that +distinguished individual to retire from the active business of his +chair. In this new sphere he fully realised the expectations of his +admirers; he read his own lectures, which, though hastily composed, +often during the evenings prior to their delivery, were listened to with +an overpowering interest, not only by the regular students, but by many +professional persons in the city. Such distinction had its corresponding +reward; after assisting in the moral philosophy class for two years, he +was in 1810 appointed to the joint professorship. + +Successful as a philosopher, Dr Brown was desirous of establishing a +reputation as a poet. In 1814 he published anonymously the "Paradise of +Coquettes," a poem which was favourably received. "The Wanderer of +Norway," a poem, appeared in 1816, and "Agnes" and "Emily," two other +distinct volumes of poems, in the two following years. He died at +Brompton, near London, on the 2d April 1820, and his remains were +conveyed for interment to the churchyard of his native parish. Amidst a +flow of ornate and graceful language, the poetry of Dr Brown is +disfigured by a morbid sensibility and a philosophy which dims rather +than enlightens. He possessed, however, many of the mental concomitants +of a great poet; he loved rural retirement and romantic scenery; well +appreciated the beautiful both in nature and in art; was conversant with +the workings of the human heart and the history of nations; was +influenced by generous emotions, and luxuriated in a bold and lofty +imagination.[113] + + +[113] Margaret Brown, one of the three sisters of Dr Brown, published +"Lays of Affection." Edinburgh, 1819, 12mo. She was a woman of gentle +and unobtrusive manners and of pious disposition. Her poems constitute a +respectable memorial of her virtues. + + + + +CONSOLATION OF ALTERED FORTUNES. + + + Yes! the shades we must leave which my childhood has haunted, + Each charm by endearing remembrance improved; + These walks of our love, the sweet bower thou hast planted,-- + We must leave them to eyes that will view them unmoved. + + Oh, weep not, my Fanny! though changed be our dwelling, + We bear with us all, in the home of our mind; + In virtues will glow that heart, fondly swelling, + Affection's best treasure we leave not behind. + + I shall labour, but still by thy image attended-- + Can toil be severe which a smile can repay? + How glad shall we meet! every care will be ended; + And our evening of bliss will be more than a day. + + Content's cheerful beam will our cottage enlighten; + New charms the new cares of thy love will inspire; + Thy smiles, 'mid the smiles of our offspring, will lighten; + I shall see it--and oh, can I feel a desire? + + + + +THE FAITHLESS MOURNER. + + + When thy smile was still clouded in gloom, + When the tear was still dim in thine eye, + I thought of the virtues, scarce cold in the tomb, + And I spoke not of love to thy sigh! + + I spoke not of love; yet the breast, + Which mark'd thy long anguish,--deplore + The sire, whom in sickness, in age, thou hadst bless'd, + Though silent, was loving thee more! + + How soon wert thou pledged to my arms, + Thou hadst vow'd, but I urged not the day; + And thine eye grateful turn'd, oh, so sweet were its charms, + That it more than atoned the delay. + + I fear'd not, too slow of belief-- + I fear'd not, too proud of thy heart, + That another would steal on the hour of thy grief, + That thy grief would be soft to his art. + + Thou heardst--and how easy allured, + Every vow of the past to forsware; + The love, which for thee would all pangs have endured, + Thou couldst smile, as thou gav'st to despair. + + Ah, think not my passion has flown! + Why say that my vows now are free? + Why say--yes! I feel that my heart is my own; + I feel it is breaking for thee. + + + + +THE LUTE. + + + Ah! do not bid me wake the lute, + It once was dear to Henry's ear. + Now be its voice for ever mute, + The voice which Henry ne'er can hear. + + Though many a month has pass'd since Spring, + His grave's wan turf has bloom'd anew, + One whisper of those chords would bring, + In all its grief, our last adieu. + + The songs he loved--'twere sure profane + To careless Pleasure's laughing brow + To breathe; and oh! what other strain + To Henry's lute could love allow? + + Though not a sound thy soul hath caught, + To mine it looks, thus softly dead, + A sweeter tenderness of thought + Than all its living strings have shed. + + Then ask me not--the charm was broke; + With each loved vision must I part; + If gay to every ear it spoke, + 'Twould speak no longer to my heart. + + Yet once too blest!--the moonlit grot, + Where last I gave its tones to swell; + Ah! the _last_ tones--thou heardst them not-- + From other hands than mine they fell. + + Still, silent slumbering, let it keep + That sacred touch! And oh! as dim + To life, would, would that I could sleep, + Could sleep, and only dream of _him_! + + + + +WILLIAM CHALMERS. + + +William Chalmers was born at Paisley in 1779. He carried on the business +of a tobacconist and grocer in his native town, and for a period enjoyed +considerable prosperity. Unfortunate reverses caused him afterwards to +abandon merchandise, and engage in a variety of occupations. At +different times he sought employment as a dentist, a drysalter, and a +book distributor; he sold small stationery as a travelling merchant, and +ultimately became keeper of the refreshment booth at the Paisley railway +station. He died at Paisley on the 3d of November 1843. Chalmers wrote +respectable verses on a number of subjects, but his muse was especially +of a humorous tendency. Possessed of a certain versatility of talent, he +published, in 1839, a curious production with the quaint title, +"Observations on the Weather in Scotland, shewing what kinds of weather +the various winds produce, and what winds are most likely to prevail in +each month of the year." His compositions in verse were chiefly +contributed to the local periodicals and newspapers. + + + + +SING ON. + +AIR--_"The Pride of the Broomlands."_ + + + Sing on, thou little bird, + Thy wild notes sae loud, + O sing, sweetly sing frae the tree; + Aft beneath thy birken bow'r + I have met at e'ening hour + My young Jamie that 's far o'er the sea. + + On yon bonnie heather knowes + We pledged our mutual vows, + And dear is the spot unto me; + Though pleasure I hae nane, + While I wander alane, + And my Jamie is far o'er the sea. + + But why should I mourn, + The seasons will return, + And verdure again clothe the lea; + The flow'rets shall spring, + And the saft breeze shall bring, + My dear laddie again back to me. + + Thou star! give thy light, + Guide my lover aright, + Frae rocks and frae shoals keep him free; + Now gold I hae in store, + He shall wander no more, + No, no more shall he sail o'er the sea. + + + + +THE LOMOND BRAES. + + + "O, lassie, wilt thou go + To the Lomond wi' me? + The wild thyme 's in bloom. + And the flower 's on the lea; + Wilt thou go my dearest love? + I will ever constant prove, + I 'll range each hill and grove + On the Lomond wi' thee." + + "O young men are fickle, + Nor trusted to be, + And many a native gem + Shines fair on the lea: + Thou mayst see some lovely flower, + Of a more attractive power, + And may take her to thy bower + On the Lomond wi' thee." + + "The hynd shall forsake, + On the mountain the doe, + The stream of the fountain + Shall cease for to flow; + Ben-Lomond shall bend + His high brow to the sea, + Ere I take to my bower + Any flower, love, but thee." + + She 's taken her mantle, + He 's taken his plaid; + He coft her a ring, + And he made her his bride: + They 're far o'er yon hills, + To spend their happy days, + And range the woody glens + 'Mang the Lomond braes. + + + + +JOSEPH TRAIN. + + +A zealous and respectable antiquary and cultivator of historical +literature, Joseph Train is likewise worthy of a niche in the temple of +Scottish minstrelsy. His ancestors were for several generations +land-stewards on the estate of Gilmilnscroft, in the parish of Sorn, and +county of Ayr, where he was born on the 6th November 1779. When he was +eight years old, his parents removed to Ayr, where, after a short +attendance at school, he was apprenticed to a mechanical occupation. His +leisure hours were sedulously devoted to reading and mental improvement. +In 1799, he was balloted for the Ayrshire Militia; in which he served +for three years till the regiment was disbanded on the peace of Amiens. +When he was stationed at Inverness, he had commissioned through a +bookseller a copy of Currie's edition of the "Works of Burns," then sold +at three half-guineas, and this circumstance becoming incidentally known +to the Colonel of the regiment, Sir David Hunter Blair, he caused the +copy to be elegantly bound and delivered free of expense. Much pleased +with his intelligence and attainments, Sir David, on the disembodiment +of the regiment, actively sought his preferment; he procured him an +agency at Ayr for the important manufacturing house of Finlay and Co., +Glasgow, and in 1808, secured him an appointment in the Excise. In 1810, +Train was sometime placed on service as a supernumerary in Perthshire; +he was in the year following settled as an excise officer at Largs, +from which place in 1813 he was transferred to Newton Stewart. The +latter location, from the numerous objects of interest which were +presented in the surrounding district, was highly suitable for his +inclinations and pursuits. Recovering many curious legends, he embodied +some of them in metrical tales, which, along with a few lyrical pieces, +he published in 1814, in a thin octavo volume,[114] under the title of +"Strains of the Mountain Muse." While the sheets were passing through +the press, some of them were accidentally seen by Sir Walter Scott, who, +warmly approving of the author's tastes, procured his address, and +communicated his desire to become a subscriber for the volume. + +Gratified by the attention of Sir Walter, Mr Train transmitted for his +consideration several curious Galloway traditions, which he had +recovered. These Sir Walter politely acknowledged, and begged the favour +of his endeavouring to procure for him some account of the present +condition of Turnberry Castle, for his poem the "Lord of the Isles," +which he was then engaged in composing. Mr Train amply fulfilled the +request by visiting the ruined structure situated on the coast of +Ayrshire; and he thereafter transmitted to his illustrious correspondent +those particulars regarding it, and of the landing of Robert Bruce, and +the Hospital founded by that monarch, at King's Case, near Prestwick, +which are given by Sir Walter in the notes to the fifth canto of the +poem. During a succession of years he regularly transmitted legendary +tales and scraps to Sir Walter, which were turned to excellent account +by the great novelist. The fruits of his communications appear in the +"Chronicles of the Canongate," "Guy Mannering," "Old Mortality," "The +Heart of Mid Lothian," "The Fair Maid of Perth," "Peveril of the Peak," +"Quintin Durward," "The Surgeon's Daughter," and "Redgauntlet." He +likewise supplied those materials on which Sir Walter founded his dramas +of the "Doom of Devorgoil," and "Macduff's Cross." + +When Sir Walter was engaged, a few years previous to his death, in +preparing the Abbotsford or first uniform edition of his works, Mr Train +communicated for his use many additional particulars regarding a number +of the characters in the Waverley Novels, of which he had originally +introduced the prototypes to the distinguished author. His most +interesting narrative was an account of the family of Robert Paterson, +the original "Old Mortality," which is so remarkable in its nature, that +we owe no apology for introducing it. Mr Train received his information +from Robert, a son of "Old Mortality," then in his seventy-fifth year, +and residing at Dalry, in the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright. According to +the testimony of this individual, his brother John sailed for America in +1774, where he made a fortune during the American War. He afterwards +settled at Baltimore, where he married, and lived in prosperous +circumstances. He had a son named Robert, after "Old Mortality," his +father, and a daughter named Elizabeth; Robert espoused an American +lady, who, surviving him, was married to the Marquis of Wellesley, and +Elizabeth became the first wife of Prince Jerome Bonaparte.[115] + +On his first connexion with the Excise, Mr Train turned his attention to +the most efficient means of checking illicit distillation in the +Highlands; and an essay which he prepared, suggesting improved +legislation on the subject, was in 1815 laid before the Board of Excise +and Customs, and transmitted with their approval to the Lords of the +Treasury. His suggestions afterwards became the subject of statutory +enactment. At this period, he began a correspondence with Mr George +Chalmers, author of the "Caledonia," supplying him with much valuable +information for the third volume of that great work. He had shortly +before traced the course of an ancient wall known as the "Deil's Dyke," +for a distance of eighty miles from the margin of Lochryan, in +Wigtonshire, to Hightae, in Lochmaben, Dumfriesshire, and an account of +this remarkable structure, together with a narrative of his discovery of +Roman remains in Wigtonshire, greatly interested his indefatigable +correspondent. In 1820, through the kindly offices of Sir Walter, he was +appointed Supervisor. In this position he was employed to officiate at +Cupar-Fife and at Kirkintilloch. He was stationed in succession at South +Queensferry, Falkirk, Wigton, Dumfries, and Castle-Douglas. From these +various districts he procured curious gleanings for Sir Walter, and +objects of antiquity for the armory at Abbotsford. + +Mr Train contributed to the periodicals both in prose and verse. Many of +his compositions were published in the _Dumfries Magazine_, _Bennett's +Glasgow Magazine_, and the _Ayr Courier_ and _Dumfries Courier_ +newspapers. An interesting tale from his pen, entitled "Mysie and the +Minister," appeared in the thirtieth number of _Chambers' Edinburgh +Journal_; he contributed the legend of "Sir Ulrick Macwhirter" to Mr +Robert Chambers' "Picture of Scotland," and made several gleanings in +Galloway for the "Popular Rhymes of Scotland," published by the same +gentleman. He had long contemplated the publication of a description of +Galloway, and he ultimately afforded valuable assistance to the Rev. +William Mackenzie in preparing his history of that district. Mr Train +likewise rendered useful aid to several clergymen in Galloway, in +drawing up the statistical accounts of their parishes,--a service which +was suitably acknowledged by the writers. + +Having obtained from Sir Walter Scott a copy of Waldron's "Description +of the Isle of Man," a very scarce and curious work, Mr Train conceived +the idea of writing a history of that island. In the course of his +researches, he accidentally discovered a M.S. volume containing one +hundred and eight acts of the Manx Legislature, prior to the accession +of the Atholl family to that kingdom. Of this acquisition he transmitted +a transcript to Sir Walter, along with several Manx traditions, as an +appropriate acknowledgment for the donation he had received. In 1845 he +published his "History of the Isle of Man," in two large octavo volumes. +His last work was a curious and interesting history of a religious sect, +well known in the south of Scotland by the name of "The Buchanites." +After a period of twenty-eight years' service in the Excise, Mr Train +had his name placed on the retired list. He continued to reside at +Castle-Douglas, in a cottage pleasantly situated on the banks of +Carlingwark Lake. To the close of his career, he experienced pleasure in +literary composition. He died at Lochvale, Castle-Douglas, on the 7th +December 1852. His widow, with one son and one daughter, survive. A few +months after his death, a pension of fifty pounds on the Civil List was +conferred by the Queen on his widow and daughter, "in consequence of his +personal services to literature, and the valuable aid derived by the +late Sir Walter Scott from his antiquarian and literary researches +prosecuted under Sir Walter's direction." + + +[114] Mr Train published, in 1806, a small volume, entitled "Poetical +Reveries." + +[115] Sir Walter Scott was convinced of the accuracy of the statement, +regarding the extraordinary connexion between the Wellesley and +Bonaparte families, and deferred publishing it only to avoid giving +offence to his intimate friend, the Duke of Wellington. + + + + +MY DOGGIE. + +AIR--_"There 's cauld kail in Aberdeen."_ + + + The neighbours a' they wonder how + I am sae ta'en wi' Maggie, + But ah! they little ken, I trow, + How kind she 's to my doggie. + Yestreen as we linked o'er the lea, + To meet her in the gloamin'; + She fondly on my Bawtie cried, + Whene'er she saw us comin'. + + But was the tyke not e'en as kind, + Though fast she beck'd to pat him; + He louped up and slaked her cheek, + Afore she could win at him. + But save us, sirs, when I gaed in, + To lean me on the settle, + Atween my Bawtie and the cat + There rose an awfu' battle. + + An' though that Maggie saw him lay + His lugs in bawthron's coggie, + She wi' the besom lounged poor chit, + And syne she clapp'd my doggie. + Sae weel do I this kindness feel, + Though Mag she isna bonnie, + An' though she 's feckly twice my age, + I lo'e her best of ony. + + May not this simple ditty show, + How oft affection catches, + And from what silly sources, too, + Proceed unseemly matches; + An' eke the lover he may see, + Albeit his joe seem saucy, + If she is kind unto his dog, + He 'll win at length the lassie. + + + + +BLOOMING JESSIE. + + + On this unfrequented plain, + What can gar thee sigh alane, + Bonnie blue-eyed lassie? + Is thy mammy dead and gane, + Or thy loving Jamie slain? + Wed anither, mak nae main, + Bonnie, blooming Jessie. + + Though I sob and sigh alane, + I was never wed to ane, + Quo' the blue-eyed lassie. + But if loving Jamie's slain, + Farewell pleasure, welcome pain, + A' the joy wi' him is gane + O' poor hapless Jessie. + + Ere he cross'd the raging sea, + Was he ever true to thee, + Bonnie, blooming Jessie? + Was he ever frank and free? + Swore he constant aye to be? + Did he on the roseate lea + Ca' thee blooming Jessie? + + Ere he cross'd the raging sea, + Aft he on the dewy lea, + Ca'd me blue-eyed lassie. + Weel I mind his words to me, + Were, if he abroad should die, + His last throb and sigh should be, + Bonnie, blooming Jessie. + + Far frae hame, and far frae thee, + I saw loving Jamie die, + Bonnie blue-eyed lassie. + Fast a cannon ball did flee, + Laid him stretch'd upo' the lea, + Soon in death he closed his e'e, + Crying, "Blooming Jessie." + + Swelling with a smother'd sigh, + Rose the snowy bosom high + Of the blue-eyed lassie. + Fleeter than the streamers fly, + When they flit athwart the sky, + Went and came the rosy dye + On the cheeks of Jessie. + + Longer wi' sic grief oppress'd + Jamie couldna sae distress'd + See the blue-eyed lassie. + Fast he clasp'd her to his breast, + Told her a' his dangers past, + Vow'd that he would wed at last + Bonnie, blooming Jessie. + + + + +OLD SCOTIA. + + + I 've loved thee, old Scotia, and love thee I will, + Till the heart that now beats in my bosom is still. + My forefathers loved thee, for often they drew + Their dirks in defence of thy banners of blue; + Though murky thy glens, where the wolf prowl'd of yore, + And craggy thy mountains, where cataracts roar, + The race of old Albyn, when danger was nigh, + For thee stood resolved still to conquer or die. + + I love yet to roam where the beacon-light rose, + Where echoed thy slogan, or gather'd thy foes, + Whilst forth rush'd thy heroic sons to the fight, + Opposing the stranger who came in his might. + I love through thy time-fretted castles to stray, + The mould'ring halls of thy chiefs to survey; + To grope through the keep, and the turret explore, + Where waved the blue flag when the battle was o'er. + + I love yet to roam o'er each field of thy fame, + Where valour has gain'd thee a glorious name; + I love where the cairn or the cromlach is made, + To ponder, for low there the mighty are laid. + Were these fall'n heroes to rise from their graves, + They might deem us dastards, they might deem us slaves; + But let a foe face thee, raise fire on each hill, + Thy sons, my dear Scotia, will fight for thee still! + + + + +ROBERT JAMIESON. + + +An intelligent antiquary, an elegant scholar, and a respectable writer +of verses, Robert Jamieson was born in Morayshire about the year 1780. +At an early age he became classical assistant in the school of +Macclesfield in Cheshire. About the year 1800 he proceeded to the shores +of the Baltic, to occupy an appointment in the Academy of Riga. Prior to +his departure, he had formed the scheme of publishing a collection of +ballads recovered from tradition, and on his return to Scotland he +resumed his plan with the ardour of an enthusiast. In 1806 he published, +in two octavo volumes, "Popular Ballads and Songs, from Tradition, +Manuscripts, and Scarce Editions; with Translations of Similar Pieces +from the Ancient Danish Language, and a few Originals by the Editor." In +the preparation of this work, he acknowledges his obligations to Dr +Jamieson, author of the "History of the Culdees," Dr Robert Anderson, +editor of the "British Poets," Dr John Leyden, and some others. On the +recommendation of Sir Walter Scott he was received into the General +Register House, as assistant to the Deputy-Clerk-Register, in the +publication of the public records. He held this office till 1836, during +a period of thirty years. Subsequently he resided at Newhaven, near +Edinburgh, and ultimately in London, where he died on the 24th of +September 1844. Familiar with the northern languages, he edited, +conjointly with Sir Walter Scott and Henry Weber, a learned work, +entitled "Illustrations of Northern Antiquities from the Earlier +Teutonic and Scandinavian Romances." Edinburgh, 1814, quarto. In 1818 he +published, with some contributions from Scott, a new edition of Burt's +"Letters from the North of Scotland." + +Mr Jamieson was of the middle size, of muscular form, and of +strongly-marked features. As a literary antiquary, he was held in high +estimation by the men of learning in the capital. As a poet he composed +several songs in early life, which are worthy of a place among the +modern minstrelsy of his country. + + + + +MY WIFE 'S A WINSOME WEE THING. + +TUNE--_"My Wife 's a wanton wee Thing."_ + + + My wife 's a winsome wee thing, + A bonnie, blythesome wee thing, + My dear, my constant wee thing, + And evermair sall be; + It warms my heart to view her, + I canna choose but lo'e her, + And oh! weel may I trow her + How dearly she lo'es me! + + For though her face sae fair be, + As nane could ever mair be; + And though her wit sae rare be, + As seenil do we see; + Her beauty ne'er had gain'd me, + Her wit had ne'er enchain'd me, + Nor baith sae lang retain'd me, + But for her love to me. + + When wealth and pride disown'd me, + A' views were dark around me, + And sad and laigh she found me, + As friendless worth could be; + When ither hope gaed frae me, + Her pity kind did stay me, + And love for love she ga'e me; + And that 's the love for me. + + And, till this heart is cald, I + That charm of life will hald by; + And, though my wife grow auld, my + Leal love aye young will be; + For she 's my winsome wee thing, + My canty, blythesome wee thing, + My tender, constant wee thing, + And evermair sall be. + + + + +GO TO HIM, THEN, IF THOU CAN'ST GO. + + + Go to him, then, if thou can'st go, + Waste not a thought on me; + My heart and mind are a' my store, + And they were dear to thee. + But there is music in his gold + (I ne'er sae sweet could sing), + That finds a chord in every breast + In unison to ring. + + The modest virtues dread the spell, + The honest loves retire, + The purer sympathies of soul + Far other charms require. + The breathings of my plaintive reed + Sink dying in despair, + The still small voice of gratitude, + Even that is heard nae mair. + + But, if thy heart can suffer thee, + The powerful call obey, + And mount the splendid bed that wealth + And pride for thee display. + Then gaily bid farewell to a' + Love's trembling hopes and fears, + While I my lanely pillow here + Wash with unceasing tears. + + Yet, in the fremmit arms of him + That half thy worth ne'er knew, + Oh! think na on my lang-tried love, + How tender and how true! + For sure 'twould break thy gentle heart + My breaking heart to see, + Wi' a' the wrangs and waes it 's tholed, + And yet maun thole for thee. + + + + +WALTER WATSON. + + +Walter Watson was the son of a handloom weaver in the village of +Chryston, in the parish of Calder, and county of Lanark, where he was +born, on the 29th March 1780. Having a family of other two sons and four +daughters, his parents could only afford to send him two years to +school; when at the age of eight, he was engaged as a cow-herd. During +the winter months he still continued to receive instructions from the +village schoolmaster. At the age of eleven his father apprenticed him to +a weaver; but he had contracted a love for the fields, and after a few +years at the loom he hired himself as a farm-servant. In the hope of +improving his circumstances, he proceeded to Glasgow, where he was +employed as a sawyer. He now enlisted in the Scots Greys; but after a +service of only three years, he was discharged, in June 1802, on the +reduction of the army, subsequent to the peace of Amiens. At Chryston he +resumed his earliest occupation, and, having married, resolved to employ +himself for life at the loom. His spare hours were dedicated to the +muse, and his compositions were submitted to criticism at the social +meetings of his friends. Encouraged by their approval, he published in +1808 a small volume of poems and songs, which, well received, gained him +considerable reputation as a versifier. Some of the songs at once became +popular. In 1820 he removed from Chryston, and accepted employment as a +sawyer in the villages of Banton and Arnbrae, in Kilsyth; in 1826 he +proceeded to Kirkintilloch, where he resumed the labours of the loom; in +1830 he changed his abode to Craigdarroch, in the parish of Calder, from +which, in other five years, he removed to Lennoxtown of Campsie, where +he and several of his family were employed in an extensive printwork. To +Craigdarroch he returned at the end of two years; in other seven years +he made a further change to Auchinairn which, in 1849, he left for +Duntiblae, in Kirkintilloch. He died at the latter place on the 13th +September 1854, in his seventy-fifth year. His remains were interred at +Chryston, within a few yards of the house in which he was born. His +widow, the "Maggie" of his songs, still survives, with only four of +their ten children. + +Besides the volume already mentioned, Watson published a small +collection of miscellaneous poems in 1823, and a third volume in 1843. A +selection of his best pieces was published during the year previous to +his death, under the superintendence of several friends in Glasgow, with +a biographical preface by Mr Hugh Macdonald. The proceeds of this +volume, which was published by subscription, tended to the comfort of +the last months of the poet's life. On two different occasions during +his advanced years, he received public entertainments, and was presented +with substantial tokens of esteem. Of amiable dispositions, modest +demeanour, and industrious habits, he was beloved by all to whom he was +known. His poems generally abound in genuine Scottish humour, but his +reputation will rest upon a few of his songs, which have deservedly +obtained a place in the affections of his countrymen. + + + + +MY JOCKIE 'S FAR AWA'. + + + Now simmer decks the fields wi' flowers, + The woods wi' leaves so green, + An' little burds around their bowers + In harmony convene; + The cuckoo flees frae tree to tree, + While saft the zephyrs blaw, + But what are a' thae joys to me, + When Jockie 's far awa'? + When Jockie 's far awa' on sea, + When Jockie 's far awa'; + But what are a' thae joys to me, + When Jockie 's far awa'? + + Last May mornin', how sweet to see + The little lambkins play, + Whilst my dear lad, alang wi' me, + Did kindly walk this way! + On yon green bank wild flowers he pou'd, + To busk my bosom braw; + Sweet, sweet he talk'd, and aft he vow'd, + But now he 's far awa'. + But now, &c. + + O gentle peace, return again, + Bring Jockie to my arms, + Frae dangers on the raging main, + An' cruel war's alarms; + Gin e'er we meet, nae mair we 'll part + While we hae breath to draw; + Nor will I sing, wi' aching heart, + My Jockie 's far awa'; + My Jockie 's far awa,' &c. + + + + +MAGGIE AN' ME. + +AIR--_"The Banks o' the Dee."_ + + + The sweets o' the simmer invite us to wander + Amang the wild flowers, as they deck the green lea, + An' by the clear burnies that sweetly meander, + To charm us, as hameward they rin to the sea; + The nestlin's are fain the saft wing to be tryin', + As fondly the dam the adventure is eyein', + An' teachin' her notes, while wi' food she 's supplyin' + Her tender young offspring, like Maggie an' me. + + The corn in full ear, is now promisin' plenty, + The red clusterin' row'ns bend the witch-scarrin' tree, + While lapt in its leaves lies the strawberry dainty, + As shy to receive the embrace o' the bee. + Then hope, come alang, an' our steps will be pleasant, + The future, by thee, is made almost the present; + Thou frien' o' the prince an' thou frien' o' the peasant, + Thou lang hast befriended my Maggie an' me. + + Ere life was in bloom we had love in our glances, + An' aft I had mine o' her bonnie blue e'e, + We needit nae art to engage our young fancies, + 'Twas done ere we kent, an' we own't it wi' glee. + Now pleased, an' aye wishin' to please ane anither, + We 've pass'd twenty years since we buckled thegither, + An' ten bonnie bairns, lispin' faither an' mither, + Hae toddled fu' fain atween Maggie an' me. + + + + +SIT DOWN, MY CRONIE.[116] + + + Come sit down, my cronie, an' gie me your crack, + Let the win' tak the cares o' this life on its back, + Our hearts to despondency we ne'er will submit, + We 've aye been provided for, an' sae will we yet; + An' sae will we yet, an' sae will we yet, + We 've aye been provided for, an' sae will we yet. + + Let 's ca' for a tankar' o' nappy brown ale, + It will comfort our hearts an' enliven our tale, + We 'll aye be the merrier the langer that we sit, + We 've drunk wi' ither mony a time, an' sae will we yet, + An' sae will we yet, &c. + + Sae rax me your mill, an' my nose I will prime, + Let mirth an' sweet innocence employ a' our time; + Nae quarr'lin' nor fightin' we here will permit, + We 've parted aye in unity, an' sae will we yet, + An' sae will we yet, &c. + + + +[116] The last stanza of this song has, on account of its Bacchanalian +tendency, been omitted. + + + + +BRAES O' BEDLAY.[117] + +AIR--_"Hills o' Glenorchy."_ + + + When I think on the sweet smiles o' my lassie, + My cares flee awa' like a thief frae the day; + My heart loups licht, an' I join in a sang + Amang the sweet birds on the braes o' Bedlay. + How sweet the embrace, yet how honest the wishes, + When luve fa's a-wooin', an' modesty blushes, + Whaur Mary an' I meet amang the green bushes + That screen us sae weel, on the braes o' Bedlay. + + There 's nane sae trig or sae fair as my lassie, + An' mony a wooer she answers wi' "Nay," + Wha fain wad hae her to lea' me alane, + An' meet me nae mair on the braes o' Bedlay. + I fearna, I carena, their braggin' o' siller, + Nor a' the fine things they can think on to tell her, + Nae vauntin' can buy her, nae threatnin' can sell her, + It 's luve leads her out to the braes o' Bedlay. + + We 'll gang by the links o' the wild rowin' burnie, + Whaur aft in my mornin' o' life I did stray, + Whaur luve was invited and cares were beguiled + By Mary an' me, on the braes o' Bedlay. + Sae luvin', sae movin', I 'll tell her my story, + Unmixt wi' the deeds o' ambition for glory, + Whaur wide spreadin' hawthorns, sae ancient and hoary, + Enrich the sweet breeze on the braes o' Bedlay. + + + +[117] The braes of Bedlay are in the neighbourhood of Chryston, about +seven miles north of Glasgow. + + + + +JESSIE. + +AIR--_"Hae ye seen in the calm dewy mornin'."_ + + + Hae ye been in the North, bonnie lassie, + Whaur Glaizert rins pure frae the fell, + Whaur the straight stately beech staun's sae gaucy, + An' luve lilts his tale through the dell? + O! then ye maun ken o' my Jessie, + Sae blythesome, sae bonnie an' braw; + The lassies hae doubts about Jessie, + Her charms steal their luvers awa'. + + I can see ye 're fu' handsome an' winnin', + Your cleedin 's fu' costly an' clean, + Your wooers are aften complainin' + O' wounds frae your bonnie blue e'en. + I could lean me wi' pleasure beside thee, + Ae kiss o' thy mou' is a feast; + May luve wi' his blessins abide thee, + For Jessie 's the queen o' my breast. + + I maun gang an' get hame, my sweet Jessie, + For fear some young laird o' degree + May come roun' on his fine sleekit bawsy, + An' ding a' my prospects agee. + There 's naething like gowd to the miser, + There 's naething like light to the e'e, + But they canna gie me ony pleasure, + If Jessie prove faithless to me. + + Let us meet on the border, my Jessie, + Whaur Kelvin links bonnily bye, + Though my words may be scant to address ye, + My heart will be loupin' wi' joy. + If ance I were wedded to Jessie, + An' that may be ere it be lang, + I 'll can brag o' the bonniest lassie + That ere was the theme o' a sang. + + + + +WILLIAM LAIDLAW. + + +As the confidential friend, factor, and amanuensis of Sir Walter Scott, +William Laidlaw has a claim to remembrance; the authorship of "Lucy's +Flittin'" entitles him to rank among the minstrels of his country. His +ancestors on the father's side were, for a course of centuries, +substantial farmers in Tweedside, and his father, James Laidlaw, with +his wife, Catherine Ballantyne, rented from the Earl of Traquair the +pastoral farm of Blackhouse, in Yarrow. William, the eldest of a family +of three sons, was born in November 1780. His education was latterly +conducted at the Grammar School of Peebles. James Hogg kept sheep on his +father's farm, and a strong inclination for ballad-poetry led young +Laidlaw to cultivate his society. They became inseparable friends--the +Shepherd guiding the fancy of the youth, who, on the other hand, +encouraged the Shepherd to persevere in ballad-making and poetry. + +In the summer of 1801, Laidlaw formed the acquaintance of Sir Walter +Scott. In quest of materials for the third volume of the "Border +Minstrelsy," Scott made an excursion into the vales of Ettrick and +Yarrow; he was directed to Blackhouse by Leyden, who had been informed +of young Laidlaw's zeal for the ancient ballad. The visit was an +eventful one: Scott found in Laidlaw an intelligent friend and his +future steward, and through his means formed, on the same day, the +acquaintance of the Ettrick Shepherd. The ballad of "Auld Maitland," in +the third volume of the "Minstrelsy," was furnished by Laidlaw; he +recovered it from the recitation of "Will of Phawhope," the maternal +uncle of the Shepherd. A correspondence with Scott speedily ripened +into friendship; the great poet rapidly passing the epistolary forms of +"Sir," and "Dear Sir," into "Dear Mr Laidlaw," and ultimately into "Dear +Willie,"--a familiarity of address which he only used as expressive of +affection. Struck with his originality and the extent of his +acquirements, Scott earnestly recommended him to select a different +profession from the simple art of his fathers, especially suggesting the +study of medicine. But Laidlaw deemed himself too ripe in years to think +of change; he took a farm at Traquair, and subsequently removed to a +larger farm at Liberton, near Edinburgh. + +The sudden fall in the price of grain at the close of the war, which so +severely affected many tenant-farmers, pressed heavily on Laidlaw, and +compelled him to abandon his lease. He now accepted the offer of Sir +Walter to become steward at Abbotsford, and, accordingly, removed his +family in 1817 to Kaeside, a cottage on the estate comfortably fitted up +for their reception. Through Scott's recommendation, he was employed to +prepare the chronicle of events and publications for the _Edinburgh +Annual Register_; and for a short period he furnished a similar record +to _Blackwood's Magazine_. He did not persevere in literary labours, his +time becoming wholly occupied in superintending improvements at +Abbotsford. When Sir Walter was in the country, he was privileged with +his daily intercourse, and was uniformly invited to meet those literary +characters who visited the mansion. When official duties detained Scott +in the capital, Laidlaw was his confidential correspondent. Sir Walter +early communicated to him the unfortunate event of his commercial +embarrassments, in a letter honourable to his heart. After feelingly +expressing his apprehension lest his misfortunes should result in +depriving his correspondent of the factorship, Sir Walter proceeds in +his letter: "You never flattered my prosperity, and in my adversity it +is not the least painful consideration that I cannot any longer be +useful to you. But Kaeside, I hope, will still be your residence, and I +will have the advantage of your company and advice, and probably your +services as amanuensis. Observe, I am not in indigence, though no longer +in affluence; and if I am to exert myself in the common behalf, I must +have honourable and easy means of life, although it will be my +inclination to observe the most strict privacy, the better to save +expense, and also time. I do not dislike the path which lies before me. +I have seen all that society can shew, and enjoyed all that wealth can +give me, and I am satisfied much is vanity, if not vexation of spirit." +Laidlaw was too conscientious to remain at Abbotsford, to be a burden on +his illustrious friend; he removed to his native district, and for three +years employed himself in a variety of occupations till 1830, when the +promise of brighter days to his benefactor warranted his return. Scott +had felt his departure severely, characterising it as "a most melancholy +blank," and his return was hailed with corresponding joy. He was now +chiefly employed as Sir Walter's amanuensis. During his last illness, +Laidlaw was constant in his attendance, and his presence was a source of +peculiar pleasure to the distinguished sufferer. After the funeral, Sir +Walter's eldest son and his lady presented him with a brooch, their +marriage gift to their revered father, which he wore at the time of his +decease; it was afterwards worn by his affectionate steward to the close +of his life. The death of Scott took place on the 21st of September +1832, and shortly thereafter Laidlaw bade adieu to Abbotsford. He was +appointed factor on the Ross-shire property of Mrs Stewart Mackenzie of +Seaforth,--a situation which he subsequently exchanged for the +factorship of Sir Charles Lockhart Ross of Balnagowan, in the same +county. Compelled to resign the latter appointment from impaired health, +he ultimately took up his residence with his brother, Mr James Laidlaw, +tenant at Contin, near Dingwall, in whose house he expired on the 18th +of May 1845, having attained his sixty-fifth year. At an early age he +espoused his cousin, Miss Ballantyne, by whom he had a numerous family. +His remains were interred in the churchyard of Contin, a sequestered +spot under the shade of the elevated Tor-Achilty, amidst the most +interesting Highland scenery. + +A man of superior shrewdness, and well acquainted with literature and +rural affairs, Laidlaw was especially devoted to speculations in +science. He was an amateur physician, a student of botany and +entomology, and a considerable geologist. He prepared a statistical +account of Innerleithen, wrote a geological description of Selkirkshire, +and contributed several articles to the "Edinburgh Encyclopedia." In +youth, he was an enthusiast in ballad-lore; and he was especially expert +in filling up blanks in the compositions of the elder minstrels. His +original metrical productions are limited to those which appear in the +present work. "Lucy's Flittin'" is his masterpiece; we know not a more +exquisitely touching ballad in the language, with the single exception +of "Robin Gray." Laidlaw was a devoted friend, and a most intelligent +companion; he spoke the provincial vernacular, but his manners were +polished and pleasing. He was somewhat under the middle height, but was +well formed and slightly athletic, and his fresh-coloured complexion +beamed a generous benignity. + + + + +LUCY'S FLITTIN'.[118] + +AIR--_"Paddy O'Rafferty."_ + + + 'Twas when the wan leaf frae the birk tree was fa'in', + And Martinmas dowie had wind up the year, + That Lucy row'd up her wee kist wi' her a' in 't, + And left her auld maister and neebours sae dear. + For Lucy had served in "The Glen" a' the simmer; + She cam there afore the flower bloom'd on the pea; + An orphan was she, and they had been gude till her, + Sure that was the thing brocht the tear to her e'e. + + She gaed by the stable where Jamie was stan'in', + Richt sair was his kind heart the flittin' to see. + Fare-ye-weel, Lucy! quo' Jamie, and ran in, + The gatherin' tears trickled fast frae his e'e. + As down the burnside she gaed slaw wi' the flittin', + Fare-ye-weel, Lucy! was ilka bird's sang. + She heard the craw sayin 't, high on the tree sittin', + And robin was chirpin 't the brown leaves amang. + + Oh, what is 't that pits my puir heart in a flutter? + And what gars the tears come sae fast to my e'e? + If I wasna ettled to be ony better, + Then what gars me wish ony better to be? + I 'm just like a lammie that loses its mither; + Nae mither or friend the puir lammie can see; + I fear I hae tint my puir heart a' the gither, + Nae wonder the tear fa's sae fast frae my e'e. + + Wi' the rest o' my claes I hae row'd up the ribbon, + The bonnie blue ribbon that Jamie gae me; + Yestreen, when he gae me 't, and saw I was sabbin', + I 'll never forget the wae blink o' his e'e. + Though now he said naething but Fare-ye-weel, Lucy! + It made me I neither could speak, hear, nor see, + He cudna say mair but just, Fare-ye-weel, Lucy! + Yet that I will mind till the day that I dee. + + The lamb likes the gowan wi' dew when it 's drowkit; + The hare likes the brake, and the braird on the lea, + But Lucy likes Jamie;--she turn'd and she lookit, + She thocht the dear place she wad never mair see. + Ah, weel may young Jamie gang dowie and cheerless, + And weel may he greet on the bank o' the burn; + For bonnie sweet Lucy, sae gentle and peerless, + Lies cauld in her grave, and will never return. + + +[118] This exquisite ballad was contributed by Laidlaw to Hogg's "Forest +Minstrel." There are two accounts as to the subject of it, both of which +we subjoin, as they were narrated to us during the course of a recent +excursion in Tweedside. According to one version, Lucy had been in the +service of Mr Laidlaw, sen., at Blackhouse, and had by her beauty +attracted the romantic fancy of one of the poet's brothers. In the other +account Lucy is described as having served on a farm in "The Glen" of +Traquair, and as having been beloved by her master's son, who afterwards +deserted her, when she died of a broken heart. The last stanza was added +by Hogg, who used to assert that he alone was responsible for the death +of poor Lucy. "The Glen" is a beautiful mountain valley opening on the +Tweed, near Innerleithen; it formerly belonged to Mr Alexander Allan, +but it is now the possession of Charles Tennent, Esq., Glasgow. + + + + +HER BONNIE BLACK E'E. + +AIR--_"Saw ye my Wee Thing."_ + + + On the banks o' the burn while I pensively wander, + The mavis sings sweetly, unheeded by me; + I think on my lassie, her gentle mild nature, + I think on the smile o' her bonnie black e'e. + + When heavy the rain fa's, and loud, loud the win' blaws, + An' simmer's gay cleedin' drives fast frae the tree; + I heedna the win' nor the rain when I think on + The kind lovely smile o' my lassie's black e'e. + + When swift as the hawk, in the stormy November, + The cauld norlan' win' ca's the drift owre the lea; + Though bidin' its blast on the side o' the mountain, + I think on the smile o' her bonnie black e'e. + + When braw at a weddin' I see the fine lasses, + Though a' neat an' bonnie, they 're naething to me; + I sigh an' sit dowie, regardless what passes, + When I miss the smile o' her bonnie black e'e. + + When thin twinklin' sternies announce the gray gloamin', + When a' round the ingle sae cheerie to see; + Then music delightfu', saft on the heart stealin', + Minds me o' the smile o' her bonnie black e'e. + + Where jokin' an' laughin', the lave they are merry, + Though absent my heart, like the lave I maun be; + Sometimes I laugh wi' them, but aft I turn dowie, + An' think on the smile o' my lassie's black e'e. + + Her lovely fair form frae my mind 's awa' never, + She 's dearer than a' this hale warld to me; + An' this is my wish, may I leave it if ever + She rowe on anither her love-beaming e'e. + + + + +ALAKE FOR THE LASSIE! + +AIR--_"Logie o' Buchan."_ + + + Alake for the lassie! she 's no right at a', + That lo'es a dear laddie an' he far awa'; + But the lassie has muckle mair cause to complain + That lo'es a dear lad, when she 's no lo'ed again. + + The fair was just comin', my heart it grew fain + To see my dear laddie, to see him again; + My heart it grew fain, an' lapt light at the thought + O' milkin' the ewes my dear Jamie wad bught. + + The bonnie gray morn scarce had open'd her e'e, + When we set to the gate, a' wi' nae little glee; + I was blythe, but my mind aft misga'e me richt sair, + For I hadna seen Jamie for five months an' mair. + + I' the hirin' richt soon my dear Jamie I saw, + I saw nae ane like him, sae bonnie an' braw; + I watch'd an' baid near him, his motions to see, + In hopes aye to catch a kind glance o' his e'e. + + He never wad see me in ony ae place, + At length I gaed up an' just smiled in his face; + I wonder aye yet my heart brakna in twa, + He just said, "How are ye," an' steppit awa'. + + My neebour lads strave to entice me awa'; + They roosed me an' hecht me ilk thing that was braw; + But I hatit them a', an' I hatit the fair, + For Jamie's behaviour had wounded me sair. + + His heart was sae leal, and his manners sae kind! + He 's someway gane wrang, he may alter his mind; + An' sud he do sae, he 's be welcome to me-- + I 'm sure I can never like ony but he. + + + + +METRICAL TRANSLATIONS + +FROM + +The Modern Gaelic Minstrelsy. + + + + +METRICAL TRANSLATIONS + +FROM + +The Modern Gaelic Minstrelsy. + + + + +ALEXANDER MACDONALD. + + +Alexander Macdonald, who has been termed the Byron of Highland Bards, +was born on the farm of Dalilea, in Moidart. His father was a non-juring +clergyman of the same name; hence the poet is popularly known as +_Mac-vaistir-Alaister_, or Alexander the parson's son. The precise date +of his birth is unknown, but he seems to have been born about the first +decade of the last century. He was employed as a catechist by the +Society for Propagating Christian Knowledge, under whose auspices he +afterwards published a vocabulary, for the use of Gaelic schools. This +work, which was the first of the kind in the language, was published at +Edinburgh in 1741. Macdonald was subsequently elected schoolmaster of +his native parish of Ardnamurchan, and was ordained an elder in the +parish church. But the most eventful part of his life was yet to come. +On the tidings of the landing of Prince Charles Edward, he awoke his +muse to excite a rising, buckled on his broadsword, and, to complete +his duty to his Prince, apostatised to the Catholic religion. In the +army of the Prince he bore an officer's commission. At the close of the +Rebellion, he at first sought shelter in Borodale and Arisaig; he +afterwards proceeded to Edinburgh, with the view of teaching children in +the Jacobite connexion. The latter course was attended with this +advantage; it enabled him by subscription to print a volume of Gaelic +poetry, which contains all his best productions. Returning to his native +district, he attempted farming without success, and ultimately he became +dependent on the liberality of his relations. He died sometime +subsequent to the middle of the century. + +Macdonald was author of a large quantity of poetry, embracing the +descriptive, in which his reading made him largely a borrower; the +lyrical in which he excelled; the satirical, in which he was personal +and licentious; and the Jacobitical, in which he issued forth treason of +the most pestilential character. He has disfigured his verses by +incessant appeals to the Muses, and repeated references to the heathen +mythology; but his melody is in the Gaelic tongue wholly unsurpassed. + + + + +THE LION OF MACDONALD. + +This composition was suggested by the success of Caberfae, the clan song +of the Mackenzies. Macdonald was ambitious of rivaling, or excelling +that famous composition, which contained a provoking allusion to a +branch of his own clan. In the original, the song is prefaced by a +tremendous philippic against the hero of Caberfae. The bard then strikes +into the following strain of eulogy on his own tribe, which is still +remarkably popular among the Gael. + + Awake, thou first of creatures! Indignant in their frown, + Let the flag unfold the features that the heather[119] blossoms crown; + Arise, and lightly mount thy crest while flap thy flanks in air, + And I will follow thee the best, that I may dow or dare. + Yes, I will sing the Lion-King o'er all the tribes victorious, + To living thing may not concede thy meed and actions glorious; + How oft thy noble head has woke thy valiant men to battle, + As panic o'er their spirit broke, and rued the foe their mettle! + Is there, thy praise to underrate, in very thought presuming, + O'er crested chieftainry[120] thy state, O thou, of right assuming! + I see thee, on thy silken flag, in rampant[121] glory streaming, + As life inspired their firmness thy planted hind feet seeming. + The standard tree is proud of thee, its lofty sides embracing, + Anon, unfolding, to give forth thy grandeur airy space in. + A following of the trustiest are cluster'd by thy side, + And woe, their flaming visages of crimson, who shall bide? + The heather and the blossom are pledges of their faith, + And the foe that shall assail them, is destined to the death. + Was not a dearth of mettle among thy native kind? + They were foremost in the battle, nor in the chase behind. + Their arms of fire wreak'd out their ire, their shields emboss'd with gold, + And the thrusting of their venom'd points upon the foemen told; + O deep and large was every gash that mark'd their manly vigour, + And irresistible the flash that lighten'd round their trigger; + And woe, when play'd the dark blue blade, the thick back'd sharp Ferrara, + Though plied its might by stripling hand, it cut into the marrow. + Clan Colla,[122] let them have their due, thy true and gallant following, + Strength, kindness, grace, and clannishness, their lofty spirit hallowing. + Hot is their ire as flames aspire, the whirling March winds fanning them, + Yet search their hearts, no blemish'd parts are found + all eyes though scanning them. + They rush elate to stern debate, the battle call has never + Found tardy cheer or craven fear, or grudge the prey to sever. + Ah, fell their wrath! The dance[123] of death sends legs and arms a flying, + And thick the life blood's reek ascends of the downfallen and the dying. + Clandonuil, still my darling theme, is the prime of every clan, + How oft the heady war in, has it chased where thousands ran. + O ready, bold, and venom full, these native warriors brave, + Like adders coiling on the hill, they dart with stinging glaive; + Nor wants their course the speed, the force, + --nor wants their gallant stature, + This of the rock, that of the flock that skim along the water, + Like whistle shriek the blows they strike, as the torrent of the fell, + So fierce they gush--the moor flames' rush their ardour symbols well. + Clandonuil's[124] root when crown each shoot of sapling, branch, and stem, + What forest fair shall e'er compare in stately pride with them? + Their gathering might, what legion wight, in rivalry has dared; + Or to ravish from their Lion's face a bristle of his beard? + What limbs were wrench'd, what furrows drench'd, + in that cloud burst of steel, + That atoned the provocation, and smoked from head to heel, + While cry and shriek of terror break the field of strife along, + And stranger[125] notes are wailing the slaughter'd heaps among! + Where from the kingdom's breadth and length might other muster gather, + So flush in spirit, firm in strength, the stress of arms to weather; + Steel to the core, that evermore to expectation true, + Like gallant deer-hounds from the slip, or like an arrow flew, + Where deathful strife was calling, and sworded files were closed + Was sapping breach the wall in of the ranks that stood opposed, + And thirsty brands were hot for blood, and quivering to be on, + And with the whistle of the blade was sounding many a groan. + O from the sides of Albyn, full thousands would be proud, + The natives of her mountains gray, around the tree to crowd, + Where stream the colours flying, and frown the features grim, + Of your emblem lion with his staunch and crimson[126] limb. + Up, up, be bold, quick be unrolled, the gathering of your levy,[127] + Let every step bound forth a leap, and every hand be heavy; + The furnace of the melee where burn your swords the best, + Eschew not, to the rally where blaze your streamers, haste! + That silken sheet, by death strokes fleet, and strong defenders manned,-- + Dismays the flutter of its leaves the chosen of the land. + + +[119] The clan badge is a tuft of heather. + +[120] The Macdonalds claimed the right wing in battle. + +[121] A lion rampant is their cognizance; gules. + +[122] Their original patronymic, from, we suppose, _Old King Coul_; +Coll, or Colla, is a common name in the tribe. + +[123] The "Mire Chatta," or battle-dance, denotes the frenzy, supposed +to animate the combatants, during the period of excitement. + +[124] The clan consisted of many septs, whose rights of precedence are +not quite ascertained; as Sleat, Clanronald, Glengarry, Keppoch, and +Glencoe. + +[125] _Lit._ Lowland or stranger. Killiecrankie and Sheriff Muir, not to +mention Innerlochy and Tippermuir, must have blended the dying shrieks +of Lowlanders with the triumphant shouts of the Gael. The image is a +fine one. + +[126] The armorial emblem was gules. + +[127] Prince Charles Edward was expected. + + + + +THE BROWN DAIRY-MAIDEN. + + +Burns was fascinated with the effect of this song in Gaelic; and adopted +the air for his "Banks of the Devon." + + My brown dairy, brown dairy, + Brown dairy-maiden; + Brown dairy-maiden, + Bell of the heather! + + A fetter beguiling, dairy-maiden, thy smiling; + Thy glove[128] there 's a wile in, of white hand the cover; + When a-milking, thy stave is more sweet than the mavis, + As his melodies ravish the woodlands all over; + Thy wild notes so cheerie, bring the small birds to hear thee, + And, fluttering, they near thee, who sings to discover. + To fulness as growing, so liquid, so flowing, + Thy song makes a glow in the veins of thy lover. + My brown dairy, brown dairy, &c. + + They may talk of the viol, and its strings they may try all, + For the heart's dance, outvie all, the songs of the dairy! + White and red are a-blending, on thy cheeks a-contending, + And a smile is descending from thy lips of the cherry; + Teeth their ivory disclosing, like dice, bright round rows in, + An eye unreposing, with twinkle so merry; + At summer-dawn straying, on my sight beams are raying, + From the tresses[129] they 're playing of the maid of the dairy. + My brown dairy, brown dairy, &c. + + At milking the prime in, song with strokings is chiming, + And the bowie is timing a chorus-like humming. + Sweet the gait of the maiden, nod her tresses a-spreading + O'er her ears, like the mead in, the rash of the common. + Her neck, amber twining, its colours combining, + How their lustre is shining in union becoming! + My brown dairy, brown dairy, &c. + + Thy duties a-plying, white fingers are vying + With white arms, in drying the streams of the heifer, + O to linger the fold in, at noonday beholding, + When the tether 's enfolding, be my pastime for ever! + The music of milking, with melodies lilting, + While with "mammets" she 's "tilting," and her bowies run over, + Is delight; and assuming thy pails, as becoming + As a lady, dear woman! grace thy motions discover. + My brown dairy, brown dairy, &c. + + +[128] Dress ornaments are much prized by the humbler Gael, and make a +great figure in their poetry. + +[129] The most frequent of all song-images in Gaelic, is the description +of yellow or auburn hair. + + + + +THE PRAISE OF MORAG. + +This is the "Faust" of Gaelic poetry, incommunicable except to the +native reader, and, like that celebrated composition, an untranslatable +tissue of tenderness, sublimity, and mocking ribaldry. The heroine is +understood to have been a young person of virtue and beauty, in the +humbler walks of life, who was quite unappropriated, except by the +imagination of the poet, and whose fame has passed into the Phillis or +Amaryllis _ideal_ of Highland accomplishment and grace. Macdonald was +married to a scold, and though his actual relations with Morag were of +the Platonic kind, he was persuaded to a retractation, entitled the +"Disparagement of Morag," which is sometimes recited as a companion +piece to the present. The consideration of brevity must plead our +apology with the Celtic readers for omitting many stanzas of the best +modern composition in their language. + + +URLAR. + + O that I were the shaw in,[130] + When Morag was there, + Lots to be drawing + For the prize of the fair! + Mingling in your glee, + Merry maidens! We + Rolicking would be + The flow'rets along; + Time would pass away + In the oblivion of our play, + As we cropp'd the primrose gay, + The rock-clefts among; + Then in mock we 'd fight, + Then we 'd take to flight, + Then we 'd lose us quite, + Where the cliffs overhung. + + Like the dew-drop blue + In the mist of morn + So thine eye, and thy hue + Put the blossom to scorn. + All beauties they shower + On thy person their dower; + Above is the flower, + Beneath is the stem; + 'Tis a sun 'mid the gleamers, + 'Tis a star 'mid the streamers, + 'Mid the flower-buds it shimmers + The foremost of them! + Darkens eye-sight at thy ray! + As we wonder, still we say + Can it be a thing of clay + We see in that gem? + + Since thy first feature + Sparkled before me, + Fair! not a creature + Was like thy glory.[131].... + + + +[130] We must suppose some sylvan social occupation, as oak-peeling or +the like, in which Morag and her associates had been employed. + +[131] Here follows a catalogue of rival beauties, with satirical +descriptions. Cowley has such a list, which may possibly have been in +the poet's eye. + + + +SIUBHAL. + + Away with all, away with all, + Away with all but Morag, + A maid whose grace and mensefulness + Still carries all before it. + You shall not find her marrow, + For beauty without furrow, + Though you search the islands thorough + From Muile[132] to the Lewis; + So modest is each feature, + So void of pride her nature, + And every inch of stature + To perfect grace so true is.[133] + + * * * * * + + O that drift, like a pillow, + We madden to share it; + O that white of the lily, + 'Tis passion to near it; + Every charm in a cluster, + The rose adds its lustre-- + Can it be but such muster + Should banish the Spirit! + + +URLAR. + + We would strike the note of joy + In the morning, + The dawn with its orangery + The hill-tops adorning. + To bush and fell resorting, + While the shades conceal'd our courting, + Would not be lack of sporting + Or gleeful _phrenesie_; + Like the roebuck and his mate, + In their woodland haunts elate + The race we would debate + Around the tendril tree. + + +SIUBHAL. + + Thou bright star of maidens, + A beam without haze, + No murkiness saddens, + No disk-spot bewrays. + The swan-down to feeling, + The snow of the gaillin,[134] + Thy limbs all excelling, + Unite to amaze. + The queen, I would name thee, + Of maidenly muster; + Thy stem is so seemly, + So rich is its cluster + Of members complete, + Adroit at each feat, + And thy temper so sweet, + Without banning or bluster. + My grief has press'd on + Since the vision of Morag, + As the heavy millstone + On the cross-tree that bore it. + In vain the world over, + Seek her match may the rover; + A shaft, thy poor lover, + First struck overpowering. + + When thy ringlets of gold, + With the crooks of their fold, + Thy neck-wards were roll'd + All weavy and showering. + Like stars that are ring'd, + Like gems that are string'd + Are those locks, while, as wing'd + From the sun, blends a ray + Of his yellowest beams; + And the gold of his gleams + Behold how he streams + 'Mid those tresses to play. + In thy limbs like the canna,[135] + Thy cinnamon kiss, + Thy bright kirtle, we ken a' + New phoenix of bliss. + In thy sweetness of tone, + All the woman we own, + Nor a sneer nor a frown + On thy features appear; + When the crowd is in motion + For Sabbath devotion,[136] + As an angel, arose on + Their vision, my fair + With her meekness of grace, + And the flakes of her dress, + As they stream, might express + Such loveliness there. + When endow'd at thy birth + We marvel that earth + From its mould, should yield worth + Of a fashion so rare. + + +URLAR. + + I never dream'd would sink + On a peak that mounts world's brink, + Of sunlight, such a blink, + Morag! as thine. + As the charmings of a spell, + Working in their cell, + So dissolves the heart where dwell + Thy graces divine. + + +SIUBHAL. + + Come, counsel me, my comrades, + While dizzy fancy lingers, + Did ever flute become, lads, + The motion of such fingers? + Did ever isle or Mor-hir,[137] + Or see or hear, before her, + Such gracefulness, adore her + Yet, woes me, how concealing + From her I 've wedded, dare I? + Still, homeward bound, I tarry, + And Jeanie's eye is weary, + Her truant unrevealing. + The glow of love I feel, + Not all the linns of Sheil, + Nor Cruachan's snow avail + To cool to congealing.[138].... + + +CRUNLUATH. + + My very brain is humming, sirs, + As a swarm of bees were bumming, sirs, + And I fear distraction 's coming, sirs, + My passion such a flame is. + My very eyes are blinding, sirs, + Scarce giant mountains finding, sirs, + Nor height nor distance minding, sirs, + The crag, as Corrie, tame is.... + + +[132] Mull. + +[133] Morag's beauties are so exquisite, that all Europe, nay, the Pope +would be inflamed to behold them. The passage is omitted, though worthy +of the satiric vein of Mephistopheles. + +[134] The gannet, or the _stranger-bird_, from his foreign derivation +and periodic visits to the Islands. + +[135] A snowy grass, well known in the moors. + +[136] _Lit._, On the day of devotion. + +[137] The mainland, or _terra firma_, is called Morir by the islanders. + + + + +NEWS OF PRINCE CHARLES. + +Though this, in some respects, may not rank high among Macdonald's +compositions, it is one of the most natural and earnest. His appeal to +the hesitating chiefs of Sleat and Dunvegan, is a curious specimen of +indignation, suppressed by prudence, and of contempt disguised under the +mask of civility. + + + Glad tidings for the Highlands! + To arms a ringing call-- + Hammers storming, targets forming, + Orb-like as a ball.[139] + Withers dismay the pale array, + That guards the Hanoverian; + Assurance sure the sea 's come o'er, + The help is nigh we weary on. + From friendly east a breeze shall haste + The fruit-freight of our prayer-- + With thousands wight in baldrick white,[140] + A prince to do and dare; + Stuart his name, his sire's the same, + For his riffled crown appealing, + Strong his right in, soon shall Britain + Be humbled to the kneeling. + Strength never quell'd, and sword and shield, + And firearms play defiance; + Forwards they fly, and still their cry, + Is,[141] "Give us flesh!" like lions. + Make ready for your travel, + Be sharp-set, and be willing, + There will be a dreadful revel, + And liquor red be spilling. + O, that each chief[142] whose warriors rife, + Are burning for the slaughter, + Would let their volley, like fire to holly, + Blaze on the usurping traitor. + Full many a soldier arming, + Is laggard in his spirit, + E'er his blood the flag is warming + Of the King that should inherit. + He may be loon or coward, + That spur scarce touch would nearly-- + The colours shew, he 's in a glow, + Like the stubble of the barley. + Onward, gallants! onward speed ye, + Flower and bulwark of the Gael; + Like your flag-silks be ye ruddy, + Rosy-red, and do not quail. + Fearless, artless, hawk-eyed, courteous, + As your princely strain beseems, + In your hands, alert for conflict, + While the Spanish weapon gleams.-- + Sweet the flapping of the bratach,[143] + Humming music to the gale; + Stately steps the youthful gaisgeach,[144] + Proud the banner staff to bear. + A slashing weapon on his thigh, + He tends his charge unfearing; + Nor slow, pursuers venturing nigh, + To the gristle nostrils sheering. + Comes too, the wight, the clean, the tight, + The finger white, the clever, he + That gives the war-pipe his embrace + To raise the storm of bravery. + A brisk and stirring, heart-inspiring + Battle-sounding breeze of her + Would stir the spirit of the clans + To rake the heart of Lucifer. + March ye, without feint and dolour, + By the banner of your clan, + In your garb of many a colour, + Quelling onset to a man. + Then, to see you swiftly baring + From the sheath the manly glaive, + Woe the brain-shed, woe the unsparing + Marrow-showering of the brave! + Woe the clattering, weapon-battering + Answering to the piobrach's yell! + When your racing speeds the chasing, + Wide and far the clamours swell. + Hard blows whistle from the bristle + Of the temples to the thigh, + Heavy handed as the land-flood, + Who will turn ye, or make fly? + Many a man has drunk an ocean + Healths to Charlie, to the gorge, + Broken many a glass proposing + Weal to him and woe to George; + But, 'tis feat of greater glory + Far, than stoups of wine to trowl, + One draught of vengeance deep and gory, + Yea, than to drain the thousandth bowl! + Show ye, prove ye, ye are true all, + Join ye to your clans your cheer! + Nor heed though wife and child pursue all, + Bidding you to fight, forbear. + Sinew-lusty, spirit-trusty, + Gallant in your loyal pride, + By your hacking, low as bracken + Stretch the foe the turf beside. + Our stinging kerne of aspect stern + That love the fatal game, + That revel rife till drunk with strife, + And dye their cheeks with flame, + Are strange to fear;--their broadswords shear + Their foemen's crested brows, + The red-coats feel the barb of steel, + And hot its venom glows. + The few have won fields, many a one, + In grappling conflicts' play; + Then let us march, nor let our hearts + A start of fear betray. + Come gushing forth, the trusty North, + Macshimei,[145] loyal Gordon; + And prances high their chivalry, + And death-dew sits each sword on. + + +[138] Here Morag's musical performance on the flute, form the subject of +a panegyric, in which Urlar, Siubhal, and Crunluath are imitated. + +[139] "Round as the shield of my fathers."--_Ossian_. + +[140] The French military costume, distinguished by its white colour, +was assumed by the Jacobites. + +[141] "Come, and I will give you flesh," a Highland war-cry invoking the +birds and beasts of prey to their bloody revel. + +[142] Macdonald of Sleat, Macleod, and others, first hesitated, and +finally withheld themselves from the party of the white cockade. + +[143] Flag. + +[144] Warrior. + +[145] Lovat and his clan. + + + + +JOHN ROY STUART. + + +John Roy Stuart was a distinguished officer in the Jacobite army of +1745. He was the son of a farmer in Strathspey, who gave him a good +education, and procured him a commission in a Highland regiment, which +at the period served in Flanders. His military experiences abroad proved +serviceable in the cause to which he afterwards devoted himself. In the +army of Prince Charles Edward, he was entrusted with important commands +at Gladsmuir, Clifton, Falkirk, and Culloden; and he was deemed of +sufficient consequence to be pursued by the government with an amount of +vigilance which rendered his escape almost an approach to the +miraculous. An able military commander, he was an excellent poet. His +"Lament for Lady Macintosh" has supplied one of the most beautiful airs +in Highland music.[146] In the second of his pieces on the battle of +Culloden, translated for the present work, the lamentation for the +absence of the missing clans, and the night march to the field, are +executed with the skill and address of a genuine bard, while the story +of the battle is recited with the fervour of an honourable partisan. +Stuart died abroad in circumstances not differing from those of the best +and bravest, who were engaged in the same unhappy enterprise. + + +[146] See the Rev. Patrick Macdonald's Collection, No. 106. + + + + +LAMENT FOR LADY MACINTOSH. + +This is the celebrated heroine who defended her castle of Moy, in the +absence of her husband, and, with other exploits, achieved the surprisal +of Lord Loudon's party in their attempt to seize Prince Charles Edward, +when he was her guest. Information had been conveyed by some friendly +unknown party, of a kind so particular as to induce the lady to have +recourse to the following stratagem. She sent the blacksmith on her +estate, at the head of a party of other seven persons, with instructions +to lie in ambush, and at a particular juncture to call out to the clans +to come on and hew to pieces "the scarlet soldiers," as were termed the +royalist troops. The feint succeeded, and is known in Jacobite story as +the "Route of Moy." The exploit is pointedly alluded to in the Elegy, +which is replete with beauty and pathos. + + + Does grief appeal to you, ye leal, + Heaven's tears with ours to blend? + The halo's veil is on, and pale + The beams of light descend. + The wife repines, the babe declines, + The leaves prolong their bend, + Above, below, all signs are woe, + The heifer moans her friend. + + The taper's glow of waxen snow, + The ray when noon is nigh, + Was far out-peer'd, till disappear'd + Our star of morn, as high + The southern west its blast released, + And drown'd in floods the sky-- + Ah woe! was gone the star that shone, + Nor left a visage dry + For her, who won as win could none + The people's love so well. + O, welaway! the dirging lay + That rung from Moy its knell; + Alas, the hue, where orbs of blue, + With roses wont to dwell! + How can we think, nor swooning sink, + To earth them in the cell? + + Silk wrapp'd thy frame, as lily stem, + And snowy as its flower, + So once, and now must love allow, + The grave chest such a dower! + The fairest shoot of noble root + A blast could overpower; + 'Tis woman's meed for chieftain's deed, + That bids our eyes to shower. + + Beseems his grief the princely chief, + Who reins the charger's pride, + And gives the gale the silken sail, + That flaps the standard's side; + Who from the hall where sheds at call, + The generous shell its tide, + And from the tower where Meiners'[147] power + Prevails, brought home such bride. + + + +[147] She was a daughter of Menzies of that Ilk, in Perthshire. The +founder of the family was a De Moyeners, in the reign of William the +Lion. The name in Gaelic continued to testify to its original, being +_Meini_, or _Meinarach_. + + + + +THE DAY OF CULLODEN. + + + Ah, the wound of my breast! Sinks my heart to the dust, + And the rain-drops of sorrow are watering the ground; + So impassive to hear, never pierces my ear, + Or briskly or slowly, the music of sound. + For, what tidings can charm, while emotion is warm + With the thought of my Prince on his travel unknown; + The royal in blood, by misfortune subdued, + While the base-born[148] by hosts is secured on the throne? + Of the hound is the race that has wrought our disgrace, + Yet the boast of the litter of mongrels is small, + Not the arm of your might makes it boast of our flight, + But the musters that failed at the moment of call-- + Five banners were furl'd that might challenge the world, + Of their silk not a pennon was spread to the day; + Where is Cromarty's earl, with the fearless of peril, + Young Barisdale's following, Mackinnon's array? + Where the sons of the glen,[149] the Clan-gregor, in vain + That never were hail'd to the carnage of war-- + Where Macvurich,[150] the child of victory styled? + How we sigh'd when we learn'd that his host was afar! + Clan-donuil,[151] my bosom friend, woe that the blossom + That crests your proud standard, for once disappear'd, + Nor marshall'd your march, where your princely deserts + Without stain might the cause of the right have uprear'd! + And now I say woe, for the sad overthrow + Of the clan that is honour'd with Frazer's[152] command, + And the Farquharsons[153] bold on the Mar-braes enroll'd, + So ready to rise, and so trusty to stand. + But redoubled are shed my tears for the dead, + As I think of Clan-chattan,[154] the foremost in fight; + Oh, woe for the time that has shrivell'd their prime, + And woe that the left[155] had not stood at the right! + Our sorrows bemoan gentle Donuil the Donn, + And Alister Rua the king of the feast; + And valorous Raipert the chief of the true-heart, + Who fought till the beat of its energy ceased. + In the mist of that night vanish'd stars that were bright, + Nor by tally nor price shall their worth be replaced; + Ah, boded the morning of our brave unreturning, + When it drifted the clouds in the rush of its blast. + As we march'd on the hill, such the floods that distil, + Turning dry bent to bog, and to plash-pools the heather, + That friendly no more was the ridge of the moor, + Nor free to our tread, and the ire of the weather + Anon was inflamed by the lightning untamed, + And the hail rush that storm'd from the mouth of the gun, + Hard pelted the stranger, ere we measured our danger, + And broadswords were masterless, marr'd, and undone.[156] + Sure as answers my song to its title, a wrong + To our forces, the wiles of the traitor[157] have wrought; + To each true man's disgust, the leader in trust + Has barter'd his honour, and infamy bought. + His gorget he spurns, and his mantle[158] he turns, + And for gold he is won, to his sovereign untrue; + But a turn of the wheel to the liar will deal, + From the south or the north, the award of his due. + And fell William,[159] the son of the man on the throne, + Be his emblem the leafless, the marrowless tree; + May no sapling his root, and his branches no fruit + Afford to his hope; and his hearth, let it be + As barren and bare--not a partner to share, + Not a brother to love, not a babe to embrace; + Mute the harp, and the taper be smother'd in vapour, + Like Egypt, the darkness and loss of his race! + Oh, yet shall the eye see thee swinging on high, + And thy head shall be pillow'd where ravens shall prey, + And the lieges each one, from the child to the man, + The monarch by right shall with fondness obey. + + +[148] George the First's Queen was a divorcee. The Jacobites retorted +the alleged spuriousness of the Chevalier de St George, on George II., +the reigning Sovereign. + +[149] _Glengyle_, and his Macgregors, were on their way from the +Sutherland expedition, but did not reach in time to take part in the +action. + +[150] Macpherson of Clunie, the hero of the night skirmish at Clifton, +and with his clan, greatly distinguished in the Jacobite wars. + +[151] Macdonald of the Isles refused to join the Prince. + +[152] Of the routed army, the division whereof the Frazers formed the +greater number fled to Inverness. Being the least considerable in force, +they were pursued by the Duke of Cumberland's light horse, and almost +entirely massacred. + +[153] The Farquharsons formed part of the unfortunate right wing in the +battle, and suffered severely. + +[154] The Mackintoshes, whose impetuosity hurried the right wing into +action before the order to engage had been transmitted over the lines. +They were of course the principal sufferers. + +[155] An allusion to the provocation given to the Macdonalds of +Clanranald, Glengarry, and Keppoch, by being deprived of their usual +position--the right wing. Their motions are supposed to have been tardy +in consequence. The poet was himself in the right wing. + +[156] The unfortunate night-march of the Highlanders is described with +historic truth and great poetic effect. + +[157] Roy Stuart lived and died in the belief (most unfounded, it +seems), that Lord George Murray was bribed and his army betrayed. + +[158] Military orders received from the Court of St Germains. + +[159] The Duke of Cumberland. + + + + +JOHN MORRISON. + + +John Morrison was a native of Perthshire. Sometime before 1745 he was +settled as missionary at Amulree, a muirland district near Dunkeld. In +1759 he became minister of Petty, a parish in the county of Inverness. +He obtained his preferment in consequence of an interesting incident in +his history. The proprietor of Delvine in Perthshire, who was likewise a +Writer to the Signet, was employed in a legal process, which required _a +diligence_ to be executed against one of the clan Frazer. A design to +waylay and murder the official employed in the _diligence_ had been +concerted. This came to the knowledge of a clergyman who ministered in a +parish chiefly inhabited by the Lovat tenantry. The minister, afraid of +openly divulging the design, on account of the unsettled nature of his +flock, begged an immediate visit from his friend, Mr Morrison, who +speedily returned to Perthshire with information to the laird of +Delvine. The Frazers found the authority of the law supported by a +sufficient force; and Mr Morrison was rewarded by being presented, +through the influence of the laird of Delvine, to the parish of Petty. +Amidst professional engagements discharged with zeal and acceptance, +Morrison found leisure for the composition of verses. Two of his lyrics +are highly popular among the Gael; one of them we offer as a specimen, +and an improved version of the other will afterwards appear in the +present work. Mr Morrison died in November 1774. + + + + +MY BEAUTY DARK. + +The heroine of this piece was a young lady who became the author's wife, +upon an acquaintance originally formed by the administration of the +ordinance of baptism to her in infancy. + + + My beauty dark, my glossy bright, + Dark beauty, do not leave me; + They call thee dark, but to my sight + Thou 'rt milky white, believe me. + + 'Twas at the tide of Candlemas,[160] + Came tirling at my door, + The image of a lovely lass + That haunts me evermore. + + Beside my sleeping couch she stood, + And now she mars my rest; + Still as I try the solemn mood, + She hunts it from my breast. + + At lecture and at study + That ankle white I span, + Its sandal slim, its lacings trim,-- + A fay I seem to scan. + + Thy beauty 's like a drift of spray + That dashes to the side, + Or like the silver-tail'd that play + Their gambols in the tide. + + As heaps of snow on mountain brow + When shed the clouds their fleece, + Or churn of waves when tempest raves, + Thy swelling limbs in grace. + + Thy eyes are black as berries, + Thy cheeks are waxen dyed, + And on thy temple tarries + The raven's dusk, my pride! + + Gives light below each slim eye-brow + A swelling orb of blue, + In April meads so glance the beads, + In May the honey-dew. + + Dark, tangled, deep, no drifted heap, + But sheaf-like, neatly bound + Thy tresses seem, in braids, or stream + As bright thine ears around. + + Those raven spires of hair, that fair, + That turret-bosom's shine! + False friends! from me that banish'd thee, + Who fain would call thee mine. + + No lilts I spin, their love to win, + The viol strings I shun, + But lend thine ear and thou shalt hear + My wisdom, dearest one! + + +[160] Evidently a Valentine morning surprise. + + + + +ROBERT MACKAY. + +THE HIGHLANDER'S HOME SICKNESS. + +We have been favoured by Mr William Sinclair with the following spirited +translation of Mackay's first address to the fair-haired Anna, the +heroine of the "Forsaken Drover" (vol. i. p. 315). In the enclosures of +Crieff, the Highland bard laments his separation from the hills of +Sutherland, and the object of his love. + + + Easy is my pillow press'd + But, oh! I cannot, cannot rest; + Northwards do the shrill winds blow-- + Thither do my musings go! + + Better far with thee in groves, + Where the young deers sportive roam, + Than where, counting cattle droves, + I must sickly sigh for home. + Great the love I bear for her + Where the north winds wander free, + Sportive, kindly is her air, + Pride and folly none hath she! + + Were I hiding from my foes, + Aye, though fifty men were near, + I should find concealment close + In the shieling of my dear. + Beauty's daughter! oh, to see + Days when homewards I 'll repair-- + Joyful time to thee and me-- + Fair girl with the waving hair! + + Glorious all for hunting then, + The rocky ridge, the hill, the fern; + Sweet to drag the deer that 's slain + Downwards by the piper's cairn! + By the west field 'twas I told + My love, with parting on my tongue; + Long she 'll linger in that fold, + With the kine assembled long! + + Dear to me the woods I know, + Far from Crieff my musings are; + Still with sheep my memories go, + On our heath of knolls afar: + Oh, for red-streak'd rocks so lone! + Where, in spring, the young fawns leap, + And the crags where winds have blown-- + Cheaply I should find my sleep. + + + +END OF VOL. II. + + + + +GLOSSARY. + + +_Aboon_, above. + +_Ava_, at all. + + +_Baldron_, name for a cat. + +_Bauld_, bold. + +_Bawbee_, halfpenny. + +_Bawsint_, a white spot on the forehead of cow or horse. + +_Bawtie_, name for a dog. + +_Beild_, shelter, refuge, protection. + +_Ben_, the spence or parlour. + +_Blethers_, nonsensical talk. + +_Blewart_, a flower, the blue bottle, witch bells. + +_Bob_, nosegay, bunch, or tuft; also to curtsey. + +_Bobbin_, a weaver's quill or pirn. + +_Bonspiel_, a match at archery, curling, golf, or foot-ball. + +_Bourtree_, the elder tree or shrub. + +_Braggin_, boasting. + +_Braken_, the female fern (_pterisaquilina_, Linn.) + +_Bree_, the eyebrow. + +_Brochin_, oatmeal boiled in water till somewhat thicker than gruel. + +_Brogues_, shoes made of sheepskin. + +_Bught_, a pen for sheep. + +_Burn_, a stream. + +_Buskit_, dressed tidily. + +_Buss_, a bush. + + +_Cairny_, heap of stones. + +_Camstrarie_, froward, cross, and unmanageable. + +_Cantrips_, spells, charms, incantations. + +_Carline_, an old woman. + +_Chap_, a blow, also a young fellow. + +_Cleading_, clothing. + +_Cleck_, to hatch, to breed. + +_Clout_, to strike with the hand, also to mend a hole in clothes or +shoes. + +_Coof_, a fool. + +_Coost_, cast. + +_Corrie_, a hollow in a hill. + +_Cosie_, warm, snug. + +_Cower_, to crouch, to stoop. + +_Cranreugh_, the hoarfrost. + +_Croodle_, to coo as a dove, to sing with a low voice. + +_Crowdy_, meal and cold water stirred together. + + +_Dab_, to peck as birds do. + +_Daddy_, father. + +_Daff_, to make sport. + +_Dantit_, subdued, tamed down. + +_Dawtie_, a pet, a darling. + +_Doo_, dove. + +_Dool_, grief. + +_Doops_, dives down. + +_Downa_, expressive of inability. + +_Dreeping_, dripping, wet. + +_Drucket_, drenched. + +_Drumly_, muddy. + +_Dub_, a mire. + +_Dumpish_, short and thick. + + +_Eild_, old. + +_Eirie_, dreading things supernatural. + +_Eithly_, easily. + +_Ettled_, aimed. + + +_Fardin_, farthing. + +_Feckly_, mostly. + +_Fend_, to provide for oneself, also to defend. + +_Fleeched_, flattered, deceived. + +_Forby_, besides. + +_Freenge_, fringe. + +_Fremmit_, strange, foreign. + + +_Gabbin_, jeering. + +_Ganger_, a pedestrian. + +_Gar_, compel. + +_Gaucie_, plump, jolly. + +_Gawkie_, a foolish female. + +_Gie_, give. + +_Glamour_, the influence of a charm. + +_Glint_, a glance. + +_Gloaming_, the evening twilight. + +_Glower_, to look staringly. + +_Glum_, gloomy. + +_Gowd_, gold. + +_Graffs_, graves. + +_Graith_, gear. + +_Grane_, groan. + +_Grat_, wept. + +_Grecie_, a little pig. + +_Grup_, grasp. + + +_Haet_, a whit. + +_Hauds_, holds. + +_Hecht_, called, named. + +_Heftit_, familiarised to a place. + +_Hie_, high. + +_Hinney_, honey, also a term of endearment. + +_Hirple_, to walk haltingly. + +_Howe_, hollow. + +_Howkit_, dug. + +_Howlet_, an owl. + +_Hurkle_, to bow down to. + + +_Ilka_, each. + + +_Jaupit_, bespattered. + +_Jeel_, jelly. + +_Jimp_, neat, slender. + + +_Kaim_, comb. + +_Ken_, know. + +_Keust_, threw off. + +_Kippered_, salmon salted, hung and dried. + +_Kith_, acquaintance. + +_Kittle_, difficult, uncertain. + +_Kye_, cows. + + +_Laigh_, low. + +_Laith_, loth. + +_Lapt_, enwrapped. + +_Leeve_, live. + +_Leeze me_, a term of congratulatory endearment. + +_Lift_, the sky. + +_Loof_, the palm of the hands. + +_Lowe_, flame. + +_Lucken_, webbed. + +_Lugs_, ears. + +_Lum_, a chimney. + +_Lure_, allure. + +_Lyart_, of a mixed colour, gray. + + +_Mawn_, mown, a basket. + +_May_, maiden. + +_Mense_, honour, discretion. + +_Mickle_, much. + +_Mim_, prim, prudish. + +_Mirk_, darkness. + +_Mools_, dust, the earth of the grave. + +_Mullin_, crumb. + +_Mutch_, woman's cap. + + +_Naig_, a castrated horse. + +_Neive_, the fist. + +_Niddered_, stunted in growth. + +_Niffer_, to exchange. + +_Nip_, to pinch. + + +_Oons_, wounds. + +_Opt_, opened. + +_Outower_, outover, also moreover. + +_Owk_, week. + +_Owsen_, oxen. + + +_Paitrick_, partridge. + +_Pawkie_, cunning, sly. + +_Pleugh_, plough. + +_Pliskie_, a trick. + + +_Rax_, reach. + +_Rede_, to counsel--advice, wisdom. + +_Reefer_, river. + +_Reft_, bereft, deprived. + +_Rocklay_, a short cloak or surplice. + +_Roke_, a distaff, also to swing. + +_Rowes_, rolls. + +_Runts_, the trunks of trees, the stem of colewort. + + +_Saughs_, willow-trees. + +_Scowl_, to frown. + +_Scrimpit_, contracted. + +_Scroggie_, abounding with stunted bushes. + +_Shanks-naigie,_ to travel on foot. + +_Sheiling_, a temporary cottage or hut. + +_Sinsyne_, after that period. + +_Skipt_, went lightly and swiftly along. + +_Sleekit_, cunning. + +_Slockin_, to allay thirst. + +_Smoored_, smothered. + +_Soughs_, applied to the breathing a tune, also the sighing of the wind. + +_Sowdie_, a heterogeneous mess. + +_Speer_, ask. + +_Spulzien_, spoiling. + +_Squinting_, looking obliquely. + +_Staigie_, the diminutive of staig, a young horse. + +_Starn_, star. + +_Swither_, to hesitate. + + +_Tane_, the one of two. + +_Tent_, care. + +_Tether_, halter. + +_Teuch_, tough. + +_Theek_, thatch. + +_Thole_, to endure. + +_Thraw_, to throw, to twist. + +_Thrawart_, froward, perverse. + +_Timmer_, timber. + +_Tint_, lost. + +_Toom_, empty. + +_Tout_, shout. + +_Tramps_, heavy-footed travellers. + +_Trig_, neat, trim. + +_Trow_, to make believe. + +_Tyne_, lose. + + +_Wabster_, weaver. + +_Wae_, sad, sorrowful. + +_Warsled_, wrestled. + +_Wat_, wet, also to know. + +_Waukrife_, watchful, sleepless. + +_Weir_, war, also to herd. + +_Whilk_, which. + +_Wysed_, enticed. + + +_Yate_, gate. + +_Yeldrin_, a yellow hammer. + +_Yird_, earth, soil. + +_Yirthen_, earthen. + + +EDINBURGH: PRINTED BY BALLANTYNE AND COMPANY. + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Modern Scottish Minstrel, Volume +II., by Various + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MODERN SCOTTISH MINSTREL *** + +***** This file should be named 18619.txt or 18619.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: 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