Through weary winter's wind and rain, The bonnie lass o' Ballochmyle. Then pride might climb the slippery steep, Where fame and honours lofty shine; And thirst of gold might tempt the deep, Or downward seek the Indian mine; Give me the cot below the pine, To tend the flocks, or till the soil, And every day has joys divine With the bonnie lass o' Ballochmyle. TO MR. JOHN KENNEDY. (Between 3d and 16th August, 1786.) FAREWELL, dear friend! may guid-luck hit you, And ony deil that thinks to get you, Good L-, deceive him. threaten R. B. THE FAREWELL. "The valiant, in himself, what can he suffer? To those whose bliss, whose being hangs upon him, THOMSON'S Edward and Eleanora. FAREWELL, old Scotia's bleak domains, A faithful brother I have left, My part in him thou'lt share! My Smith, my bosom frien'; Oh then befriend my Jean! remember What bursting anguish tears my heart! Thou, weeping, answ'rest "No!" All-hail then, the gale then, Wafts me from thee, dear shore ! It rustles, and whistles I'll never see thee more! LINES WRITTEN ON A BANK-NOTE.1 WAE worth thy power, thou cursed leaf, Fell source o' a' my wo and grief: 1 "The above verses, in the handwriting of Burns, are copied from a bank-note, in the possession of Mr. James F. Gracie of Dumfries. The note is of the Bank of Scotland, and is dated so far back as 1st March, 1780.” — MOTHER WELL. And, for thy potence, vainly wished For lack o' thee I leave this much-loved shore, Never perhaps to greet old Scotland more. R. B.-Kyle. WRITTEN ON A BLANK LEAF OF A COPY OF THE POEMS, PRESENTED TO AN OLD SWEETHEART,1 THEN MARRIED. ONCE fondly loved, and still remembered dear, Sweet early object of my youthful vows! Accept this mark of friendship, warm, sincere Friendship! 'tis all cold duty now allows. And when you read the simple artless rhymes, 1 According to Dr. Currie, this old sweetheart was a girl whom the poet had seen at Kirkoswald, when he was attending school there. If so, she was a Mrs. Neilson, living in Ayr. VERSES WRITTEN UNDER VIOLENT GRIEF.1 ACCEPT the gift a friend sincere Though 'twad my sorrows lessen. My morning raise sae clear and fair, You think I'm glad; oh, I pay weel Farewell! within thy bosom free ance gay like thee Now hopeless, comfortless, forsaken! 1 These verses were probably written, like the preceding, on a copy of the volume of poems. They were first published in the Sun newspaper, April, 1823. |