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Be frank now and kindly: I'll busk' ye aye finely,
To kirk or to market there'll few gang sae braw;
A bien house to bide in, a chaise for to ride in,
And flunkies to 'tend ye as aft as ye ca'.

'My father's aye tauld me, my mither an a',
Ye'd mak' a gude husband, and keep me aye braw:
It's true I lo'e Johnnie-he's gude and he's bonnie,
But, wae's me! ye ken he has naething ava.

I ha'e little tocher: you've made a good offer:
I'm now mair than twenty-my time is but sma';
Sae, gi'e me your plaidie, I'll creep in beside ye,
I thocht ye'd been aulder than threescore and twa.'

She crap in ayont him, aside the stane wa'.
Where Johnnie was list'nin, and heard her tell a';
The day was appointed: his proud heart it dunted,"
And strack 'gainst his side as if bursting in twa.
He wandered hame weary: the night it was dreary;
And, thowless," he tint" his gate 'mang the deep snaw:
The owlet was screamin'; while Johnnie cried,' Women
Wad marry Auld Nick if he'd keep them aye braw!'

344

SIR WILLIAM JONES

[1746-1794]

AN ODE

In Imitation of Alcaeus

WHAT constitutes a State?

Not high-raised battlement or laboured mound,
Thick wall or moated gate,

Not cities proud with spires and turrets crowned;
Not bays and broad-armed ports,

Where, laughing at the storm, rich navies ride;
Not starred and spangled courts,

'Dress.

Comfortable. • Dowry. 20 Throbbed violently.

11 Enfeebled.

13 Lost.

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346

Where low-browed baseness wafts perfume to pride.

No-men, high-minded men,

With powers as far above dull brutes endued

In forest, brake, or den,

As beasts excel cold rocks and brambles rude;
Men, who their duties know,

But know their rights, and, knowing, dare maintain,
Prevent the long-aimed blow,

And crush the tyrant while they rend the chain:
These constitute a State,

And sovereign Law, that State's collected will,
O'er thrones and globes elate,

Sits Empress, crowning good, repressing ill.

Smit by her sacred frown,

The fiend, Dissension, like a vapour sinks,

And e'en the all-dazzling crown

Hides her faint rays, and at her bidding shrinks.
Such was this heaven-loved isle,

Than Lesbos fairer and the Cretan shore!
No more shall Freedom smile?

Shall Britons languish, and be men no more?
Since all must life resign,

Those sweet rewards, which decorate the brave,
'Tis folly to decline,

And steal inglorious to the silent grave.

ON PARENT Knees a Naked New-born CHILD

ON parent knees, a naked new-born child,
Weeping thou sat'st while all around thee smiled:
So live, that sinking to thy life's last sleep,

Calm thou may'st smile, whilst all around thee weep.

SUSANNA BLAMIRE

[1747-1794]

AND YE SHALL WALK IN SILK ATTIRE

AND ye shall walk in silk attire,

And siller1 hae to spare,

: Money.

(H) HC XLI

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347

Gin ye'll consent to be his bride,
Nor think o' Donald mair.
Oh, wha wad buy a silken goun
Wi' a puir broken heart?
Or what's to me a siller croun,
Gin frae my love I part?

The mind wha's every wish is pure

Far dearer is to me;

And ere I'm forced to break my faith,
I'll lay me doun and dee:

For I ha'e pledged my virgin troth
Brave Donald's fate to share;
And he has gi'en to me his heart,
Wi' a' its virtues rare.

His gentle manners wan my heart,
He gratefu' took the gift;
Could I but think to tak' it back,
It wad be waur' than theft.
For langest life can ne'er repay
The love he bears to me;

And ere I'm forced to break my troth
I'll lay me doun and dee.

ANNE HUNTER

[1742-1821]

MY MOTHER BIDS ME BIND MY HAIR

My mother bids me bind my hair
With bands of rosy hue,

Tie up my sleeves with ribbons rare,
And lace my bodice blue.

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'For why,' she cries, sit still and weep,

While others dance and play?'

Alas! I scarce can go or creep

While Lubin is away.

2 Worse.

348

'Tis sad to think the days are gone
When those we love were near;

I sit upon this mossy stone

And sigh when none can hear.

And while I spin my flaxen thread,
And sing my simple lay,

The village seems asleep or dead,
Now Lubin is away.

JOHN DUNLOP

[1755-1820]

THE YEAR THAT'S AWA'

HERE'S to the year that's awa'!

We will drink it in strong and in sma';

And here's to ilk bonnie young lassie we lo'ed,
While swift flew the year that's awa'

And here's to ilk, etc.

Here's to the sodger who bled,

And the sailor who bravely did fa';
Their fame is alive though their spirits are fled
On the wings o' the year that's awa'.

Their fame is alive, etc.

Here's to the friends we can trust

When storms of adversity blaw;

May they live in our song and be nearest our hearts,
Nor depart like the year that's awa'.

May they live, etc.

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349

SAMUEL ROGERS

[1763-1855]

A WISH

MINE be a cot beside the hill;

A bee-hive's hum shall soothe my ear;
A willowy brook, that turns a mill,
With many a fall shall linger near.

The swallow, oft, beneath my thatch,
Shall twitter from her clay-built nest;
Oft shall the pilgrim lift the latch,
And share my meal, a welcome guest.

Around my ivy'd porch shall spring
Each fragrant flower that drinks the dew;
And Lucy, at her wheel, shall sing
In russet gown and apron blue.

The village-church among the trees,
Where first our marriage-vows were given,
With merry peals shall swell the breeze,
And point with taper spire to heaven.

350

THE SLEEPING BEAUTY

SLEEP on, and dream of Heaven awhile—
Tho' shut so close thy laughing eyes,
Thy rosy lips still wear a smile
And move, and breathe delicious sighs!

Ah, now soft blushes tinge her cheeks
And mantle o'er her neck of snow:
Ah, now she murmurs, now she speaks
What most I wish-and fear to know!

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