BEHAVE YOURSEL' BEFORE FOLK

Behave yoursel' before folk,
Behave yoursel' before folk;

Nor heat my cheeks wi' your mad freaks,
But aye be douce before folk.

Ye tell me that my lips are sweet,
Sic tales, I doubt, are a' deceit;
At ony rate, it's hardly meet,
To pree their sweets before folk.
Behave yoursel' before folk,
Behave yoursel' before folk;
Gin that's the case, there's time and place,
But surely no before folk.

But, gin you really do insist
That I should suffer to be kiss'd,
Gae get a license frae the priest,
And mak' me yours before folk.
Behave yoursel' before folk,
Behave yoursel' before folk;

And when we're ane, bluid, flesh and bane,
Ye may tak' ten before folk.

I CANNA SLEEP

CXXXIII

I CANNA SLEEP

(WILLIAM ANDERSON)

I CANNA sleep a wink, lassie,
When I gang to bed at night,
But still o' thee I think, lassie,
Till morning sheds its light.
I lie an' think o' thee, lassie,
And I toss frae side to side,
Like a vessel on the sea, lassie,
When stormy is the tide.

My heart is no my ain, lassie,
It winna bide wi' me;
Like a birdie it has gane, lassie,
To nestle saft wi' thee.

I canna lure it back, lassie,

Sae keep it to yoursel';

But oh! it sune will break, lassie,

If you dinna use it well.

Where the treasure is, they say, lassie,

The spirit lingers there;

An' mine has fled away, lassie

You needna ask me where.

NANNY

I marvel oft if rest, lassie,

On my eyes and heart would bide,
If I thy troth possess'd, lassie,
And thou wert at my side.

CXXXIV

NANNY

(ALEXANDER HUME)

THERE'S mony a flower beside the rose,
And sweets beside the honey;
But laws maun change ere life disclose
A flower or sweet like Nanny.
Her ee is like the summer sun,
When clouds can no conceal it,
Ye're blind if it ye look upon,
Oh! mad if ere ye feel it.

I've mony bonnie lassies seen,

Baith blythesome, kind, an' canny;
But oh! the day had never been
I've seen another Nanny!
She's like the mavis in her song,
Amang the brakens bloomin';
Her lips ope to an angel's tongue,
But kiss her, oh! she's woman.

GLOSSARY

Aboon, above.

A-low, on fire.

Auld-farrant, sagacious.

Aumry, a store-place.

Ava, at all.

Ayont, beyond.

Ban, to swear.

Bang, to change place hastily.

Bangster, a violent person.

Baudrons, a cat.

Bauld, bold.

Baum, balm.

Bawbee, halfpenny.

Bawks, the cross-beams of a roof.

Bawsint, a white spot on the forehead of cow or horse.

Bawtie, name for a dog.

Beild, shelter.

Bein, good, suitable.

Beltane, the first of May, old style.

Ben, the spence or parlor.

Beuk, book.

Bicker, a drinking-vessel.

Bink, a bank of earth.

Birk, birch.

Blae, blue.

Blethers, nonsensical talk.

Blewart, a flower, the blue-bottle, witch bells.