WHISTLE O'ER THE LAVE O'T.
FIRST When Maggy was my care,
Heaven, I thought, was in her air;
Now we're married-spier nae mair-
Whistle o'er the lave o 't.-
Meg was meek, and Meg was mild,
Bonnie Meg was Nature's child-
Wiser men than me's beguiled ;-
Whistle o'er the lave o 't.
How we live, my Meg and me,
How we love and how we 'gree,
I carena by how few may see ;—
Whistle o'er the lave o 't.
Wha I wish were maggots' meat,
Dish'd up in her winding sheet,
I could write-but Meg maun see't-
Whistle o'er the lave o't.
FLOW gently, sweet Afton! among thy green braes;
Flow gently, I'll sing thee a song in thy praise;
My Mary's asleep by thy murmuring stream:
Flow gently, sweet Aftou! disturb not her dream.
Thou stock-dove, whose echo resounds thro' the glen, Ye wild whistling blackbirds in yon thorny den, Thou green-crested lapwing, thy screaming forbear, I charge you, disturb not my slumbering fair.
How lofty, sweet Afton! thy neighbouring hills, Far mark'd with the courses of clear, winding rills! There daily I wander as noon rises high,
My flocks and my Mary's sweet cot in my eye.
How pleasant thy banks and green valleys below, Where wild in the woodlands the primroses blow! There oft, as mild evening weeps over the lea, The sweet-scented birk shades my Mary and me.
Thy crystal stream, Afton! how lovely it glides,
And winds by the cot where my Mary resides!
How wanton thy waters her snowy feet lave,
As gathering sweet flowerets she stems thy clear wave!
Flow gently, sweet Afton! among thy green braes;
Flow gently, sweet river! the theme of my lays;
My Mary's asleep by thy murmuring stream:
Flow gently, sweet Afton ! disturb not her dream.
TUNE-Gilderoy.
FROM thee, Eliza! I must go,
And from my native shore;
The cruel fates between us throw
A boundless ocean's roar :
But boundless oceans, roaring wide
Between my love and me,
'They never, never can divide
My heart and soul from thee.
Farewell, farewell, Eliza dear,
The maid that I adore!
A boding voice is in mine ear,
We part to meet no more!
But the last throb that leaves my heart,
While death stands victor by,
That throb, Eliza! is thy part,
And thine that latest sigh!
MY BONNIE MARY.
Go fetch to me a pint o' wine,
An' fill it in a silver tassie;
That I may drink, before I go,
A service to my bonnie lassie.
The boat rocks at the pier o' Leith;
Fu' loud the wind blaws frae the ferry;
The ship rides by the Berwick-law,
And I maun leave my bonnie Mary.
The trumpets sound, the banners fly,
The glittering spears are ranked ready;
The shouts o' war are heard afar,
The battle closes thick and bloody;
But it's no the roar o' sea or shore
Wad mak me langer wish to tarry; Nor shouts o' war that's heard afar,— It's leaving thee, my bonnie Mary!
Green grow the rashes, O!
Green grow the rashes, O!
The sweetest hours that e'er I spent,
Were spent amang the lasses, O!
THERE'S nought but care on every han',
In every hour that passes, O;
What signifies the life o' man,
An' 'twerena for the lasses, O?
Green grow, &c.
The warly race may riches chase,
An' riches still may fly them, O;
An' tho' at last they catch them fast,
Their hearts can ne'er enjoy them, O.
Green grow, &c.
But gie me a cannie hour at e'en,
My arms about my dearie, O;
An' warly cares, an' warly men,
May a' gae tapsalteerie, O!
For you sae douse, ye sneer at this,
Ye're nought but senseless asses, O!
The wisest man the warl' e'er saw,
He dearly lo'ed the lasses, O.
Green grow, &c.
Auld Nature swears, the lovely dears
Her noblest work she classes, 0:
Her 'prentice han' she tried on man,
An' then she made the lasses, O.
Green grow, &c.
HAD I a cave on some wild distant shore,
Where the winds howl to the waves' dashing roar;
There would I weep my woes,
There seek my lost repose,
Till grief my eyes should close,
Ne'er to wake more.
Falsest of womankind, canst thou declare
All thy fond plighted vows-fleeting as air?
To thy new lover hie,
Laugh o'er thy perjury,
Then in thy bosom try
What peace is there!
HERE awa, there awa, wandering Willie !
Here awa, there awa, haud awa hame!
Come to my bosom, my ain only dearie!
Tell me thou bring'st me my Willie the same.
|