For a' that, and a' that;

An' twice as muckle's a' that;
My dearest bluid, to do them guid,
They're welcome till't for a' that.

RECITATIVO.

So sung the bard-and Nansie's wa's
Shook with a thunder of applause,
Re-echo'd from each mouth;

They toom'd their pocks, an' pawn'd their duds,
They scarcely left to coor their fuds,
To quench their lowan drouth.

Then owre again the jovial thrang
The poet did request,

To lowse his pack an' wale a sang,
A ballad o' the best :

He rising, rejoicing

Between his twa Deborahs,
Looks round him, an' found them
Impatient for the chorus.

AIR.

Tune-Jolly Mortals fill your Glasses.

See! the smoaking bowl before us,
Mark our jovial ragged ring!
Round and round take up the chorus,
And in raptures let us sing.

CHORUS.

A fig for those by law protected!
Liberty's a glorious feast!
Courts for cowards were erected,
Churches built to please the priest.

What is title? what is treasure?
What is reputation's care?

If we lead a life of pleasure,
"Tis no matter how or where !
A fig, &c.

With the ready trick and table,
Round we wander all the day;
And at night in barn or stable
Hug our doxies on the hay.

A fig, &c.

Does the train attended carriage
Through the country lighter rove?
Does the sober bed of marriage
Witness brighter scenes of love?

Life is all a variorum,

A fig, &c.

We regard not how it goes;
Let them cant about decorum,
Who have characters to lose.

A fig, &c.

Here's to budgets, bags, and wallets!
Here's to all the wand'ring train!
Here's our ragged brats and callets!
One and all cry out, Amen!

A fig for those by law protected;
Liberty's a glorious feast!
Courts for cowards were erected,
Churches built to please the priest.

EPIGRAM.

Burns, accompanied by a friend, having gone to Inverary at a time when some company were on a visit to his Grace the Duke of Argyle, finding himself and his companion entirely neglected by the Iuu-keeper, whose whole attention seemed to be occupied with the visitors of his Grace, expressed his disapprobation of the inci vility with which they were treated in the following lines.

~N

WHOE'ER he be that sojourns here,

I pity much his case,
Unless he come to wait upon

The Lord their God, his Grace.

There's naething here but Highland pride,
And Highland scab and hunger;
If Providence has sent me here,
'Twas surely in an anger.

EPIGRAM

ON

Elphinstone's Translation of Martial's Epigrams. O THOU, whom Poetry abhors,

Whom Prose has turned out of doors, *Heard'st thou that groan-proceed no further, 'Twas laurell'd Martial roaring murder.

EPIGRAM

ON

CAPTAIN FRANCIS GROSE,

THE CELEBRATED ANTIQUARIAN.

The following Epigram, written in a moment of festivity by Burns, was so much relished by Grose, that he made it serve as an excuse for prolonging the convivial occasion that gave it birth to a very late hour.

THE Devil got notice that GROSE was a dying,
So whip at the summons, old Satan came flying:
But when he approach'd where poor FRANCIS lay
moaning,

And saw each bed-post with its burden a groaning,*
Astonish 'd! confounded! cried Satan, By G-d!
I'll want 'im, ere I take such a d-

ble load.

* Mr. Grose was exceedingly corpulent, and used to rally himself with the greatest good humour, on the singular rotundity of his figure,

GLOSSARY.

THE ch and gh have always the guttural sound. The sound of the English diphthong oo is commonly spelled ou. The French u, a sound which often occurs in the Scotish language, is marked oo, or ui. The a in genuine Scotish words, except when forming a diphthong, or followed by an e mute after a single consonant, sounds generally like the broad English a in wall. The Scotish diphthong ae, always, and eu, very of. ten, sound like the French e masculine. The Scotish diph. thong ey sounds like the Latin ei.