expression of kindliness, pity, en-
dearment; less frequently of ridi-
cule and contempt: 'the little wee
wifikie,' 'a little wee (wee) bit
thing(ie) o' a lassockie.'

21. Big, ancient byggan, build, 'appears
in the second member of so many of
our Danish town-names in the form
of by, as Rugby, Whitby' (Earle).
37. Thy lane. Alane [=alone] pro-
perly all-ane [= all-one] seems to
have been taken as al-lane, or a-

lane, and then lane separated and used by itself as an adjective, as in 66 a leane wumman" [= a lone woman]. . . . Lane was next treated like sel, self, and accompanied by the possessive pronouns' (Murray, Dialect of the Southern Counties of Scotland, page 228). We have also 'him lane.'

46. Prospects: what he sees before him when he turns to look backward on the past events of his life.

In his Commonplace-Book, the poet described himself as a man of 'unbounded good-will to every creature, rational and irrational.'

TAM O' SHANTER.

A TALE.

Of Browneis* and of Bogillis+ful this Buke.‡

5

GAWAIN DOUGLAS..

When chapman 1 billies 2 leave the street,
And drouthy3 neibors,1 neibors meet,
As market-days are wearing late,
An' folk begin to tak the gate;
While we sit bousing at the nappy,"
An' gettin' fou and unco9 happy,
We think na on the lang Scots miles,
The mosses, waters, slaps, 10 and stiles,11
That lie between us and our hame,12
Whare 13 sits our sulky sullen dame,
Gathering her brows like gathering storm,
Nursing her wrath to keep it warm.

This truth fand 14 honest Tam o' Shanter,
As he frae 15 Ayr ae 16 night did canter
(Auld Ayr, wham 17 ne'er a town surpasses
For honest men and bonny lasses).

5

10

15

1 Pedlar. 2 Fellows. Thirsty. 4 Neighbours. 5 Road. 6 Drinking deeply. 7 Ale. 8 Full, tipsy. 9 Extraordinarily, very. 10 Breaches in dykes or hedges. "Rough steps whereby to get over dykes, walls, or fences; sparred gates. 12 Home. 13 Where. 14 Found. 15 From. 16 One. 17 Whom, which.

Spirits; especially those supposed to be connected with old farm-houses.

† Bogles, ghosts, spectres.

+ Book.

O Tam! hadst thou but been sae wise

As ta'en thy ain1 wife Kate's advice!

She tauld 2 thee weel 3 thou was a skellum,*
A blethering, blustering, drunken blellum;6
That frae November till October,

Ae market-day thou was na sober;
That ilka melder, wi' the miller,
Thou sat as lang as thou had siller; 9
That every naig 10 was ca'd 11 a shoe on,
The smith and thee gat roaring fou on ;
That at the Lord's house, even on Sunday,
Thou drank wi' Kirton Jean till Monday.
She prophesied that, late or soon,

Thou would be found deep drowned in Doon, 30
Or catched wi' 12 warlocks in the mirk,13

By Alloway's auld haunted kirk.

14

Ah, gentle dames! it gars me greet,15
To think how monie 16 counsels sweet,
How monie lengthened sage advices,
The husband frae the wife despises !

But to our tale :-Ae market-night,
Tam had got planted unco right,
Fast by an ingle,17 bleezing 18 finely,

Wi' reaming 19 swats,20 that drank divinely;
And at his elbow, Souter 21 Johnny,

40

10wn.

24

His ancient, trusty, drouthy crony ; 22
Tam lo'ed him like a vera 23 brither;
They had been fou for weeks thegither ! 25
The night drave on wi' sangs and clatter,
And aye the ale was growing better:
The landlady and Tam grew gracious,
Wi' favours secret, sweet, and precious;
The souter tauld his queerest stories,
The landlord's laugh was ready chorus:

45

50

6 Idle

2 Told. 3 Well. 4 Worthless fellow. 5 Nonsense-talking. gossiping fellow. 7 Each. Quantity of grain sent to be ground at one time; 10 Nag, horse. 11 Driven. 12 With, = by. 16 Many. 17 Fire (or fire-place).

multure. 9 Money.

14 Makes, causes. 15 Weep.
19 Creaming. 20 Ale.
21 Shoemaker,
mate companion. 23 Very. 24 Brother.

13 Dark. 18 Blazing.

cobbler (Lat. sutor). 22 Comrade, inti25 Together.

The storm without might rair1 and rustle-
Tam didna mind the storm a whistle.

Care, mad to see a man sae happy,
E'en drowned himself amang the nappy!
As bees flee 2 hame wi' lades 3 o' treasure,
The minutes winged their way wi' pleasure :
Kings may be blest, but Tam was glorious,
O'er a' the ills o' life victorious!

55

But pleasures are like poppies spread,
You seize the flower, its bloom is shed;
Or like the snowfall in the river,

60

A moment white-then melts for ever;
Or like the borealis race,

That flit ere you can point their place;
Or like the rainbow's lovely form

65

Evanishing amid the storm.

Nae man can tether time or tide,

The hour approaches Tam maun ride;

That hour, o' night's black arch the keystane,1

That dreary hour he mounts his beast in;

70

1 Roar.

"Devil.

5

And sic a night he taks the road in

As ne'er poor sinner was abroad in.

The wind blew as 'twad blawn its last;

The rattling showers rose on the blast;
The speedy gleams the darkness swallowed,

Loud, deep, and lang the thunder bellowed:
That night, a child might understand,
The Deil 7 had business on his hand.
Weel mounted on his gray mare, Meg-
A better never lifted leg-

8

Tam skelpit on thro' dub and mire,
Despising wind, and rain, and fire;

Whiles holding fast his guid9 blue bonnet,

Whiles crooning 10 o'er some auld Scots sonnet;
Whiles glowering 12 round wi' prudent cares,
Lest bogles catch him unawares.

2 Fly. 8 Loads. 4 Keystone.

8 Dashed.

5 Such.

6 It would (have) blown.

9 Good. 10 Humming low. 11 Song (generally), tune.

12 Staring, looking earnestly.

6

Kirk-Alloway was drawing nigh,
Whare ghaists and houlets 1 nightly cry.
By this time he was cross 2 the ford,
Whare in the snaw 3 the chapman smoored; 4
And past the birks 5 and meikle stane,
Whare drunken Charlie brak 's neck-bane ;7
And thro' the whins,8 and by the cairn 9
Whare hunters fand the murdered bairn ;
And near the thorn, aboon 10 the well,
Whare Mungo's mither 11 hanged hersel'.
Before him Doon pours all his floods;

90

95

The doubling storm roars thro' the woods;
The lightnings flash from pole to pole,
Near and more near the thunders roll;
When, glimmering thro' the groaning trees,
Kirk-Alloway seemed in a bleeze;

100

Thro' ilka bore 12 the beams were glancing,

And loud resounded mirth and dancing.
Inspiring bold John Barleycorn!

105

But Maggie stood right sair 17 astonished,
Till, by the heel and hand admonished,
She ventured forward on the light;
And, vow! Tam saw an unco sight!
Warlocks and witches in a dance;

115

Nae cotillon 18 brent 19 new frae 20 France,

But hornpipes, jigs, strathspeys, and reels,

Put life and mettle in their heels:

A winnock-bunker 21 in the east,

There sat auld Nick, in shape o' beast ;

120

1 Owlets, owls. 2 Across. 3 Snow. 4 Smothered, was smothered. 5 Birches. 6 Mickle, large. 7 Broke his neck-bone. 8 Furze-bushes. 9 Heap of stones. 10 Above. 11 Mother. 12 Small hole. 13 Two-penny (ale). 14 Whisky. 15 Head. 16 Small coin (of English penny). 17 Sore. 18 Lively fashionable dance (of eight persons). 19 Quite (new). 20 From. 21 Window-seat.

A towzie1 tyke,2 black, grim, and large,
To gie3 them music was his charge;

4

5

He screwed the pipes and gart them skirl,"
Till roof and rafters a' did dirl.7

[The dread surroundings are now described in ghastly detail. Meanwhile Tam is intent on the proceedings; and

'As Tammie glowered, amazed and curious,
The mirth and fun grew fast and furious:

The piper loud and louder blew ;

The dancers quick and quicker flew.'

'Ae winsome wench,' in particular, Nannie by name, won our hero's admiring attention.]

12

But here my Muse her wing maun cour,s
Sic flights are far beyond her power;
To sing how Nannie lap and flang 10
(A souple 11 jade she was and strang),1
And how Tam stood like ane bewitched,
And thought his very een 13 enriched;
Even Satan glowered and fidged 14 fu' 15 fain,
And hotched 16 and blew wi' might and main :

Till first ae caper, syne 17 anither,

Tam tint 18 his reason a' thegither.

...

180

185

[No longer able to contain himself, Tam shouted approval. Instantly the lights went out, and scarcely had Tam put spurs to Maggie when the whole company were in full pursuit.]

As bees bizz out wi' angry fyke,19

When plundering herds 20 assail their byke;

As open pussie's 22 mortal foes,

21

195

When, pop! she starts before their nose;

As eager runs the market-crowd,

When 'Catch the thief!' resounds aloud;

So Maggie runs, the witches follow,

Wi' monie an eldritch 23 screech and hollow.24

200

scream.

4

1 Rough, shaggy. 2 Dog. 3 Give. Bagpipes. 5 Made, caused. 6 Shriek, 7 Vibrate, quiver. 8 Cower, droop. Leaped. 10 Flung, threw (her limbs). 11 Supple. 12 Strong. 18 Eyes. 14 Fidgeted. 15 Full. 16 Swayed his body up and down, especially with sudden jerks. 17 Then. 18 Lost. 19 Fuss. 20 Herd-boys. 21 Hive, nest (in earth, moss, &c.). 22 Dimin. of 'puss' (hare). 23 Frightful, unearthly. 24 Hollo, holloa.