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Classic and Contemporary Poetry
HUGHIE'S WINTER EXCUSE FOR A DRAM, by JAMES LOGIE ROBERTSON First Line: Fra whaur ye hing, my cauldrife frien' Alternate Author Name(s): Haliburton, Hugh | |||
FRA whaur ye hing, my cauldrife frien', Your blue neb owre the lowe, A snawy nichtcap may be seen Upon Benarty's pow; An' snaw upon the auld gean stump, Whas' frostit branches hang Oot-owre the dyke abune the pump That's gane clean aff the fang. The pump that half the toun's folk ser'd, It winna gie a jaw, An' rouch, I ken, sall be your beard Until there comes a thaw! Come, reenge the ribs, an' let the heat Doun to oor tinglin' taes; Clap on a gude Kinaskit peat An' let us see a blaze. An' since o' watter we are scant Fess ben the barley-bree - A nebfu' baith we sanna want To wet oor whistles wi'! Noo let the winds o' Winter blaw Owre Scotland's hills an' plains, It maitters nocht to us ava - We've simmer in oor veins! The pooers o' Nature, wind an' snaw, Are far abune oor fit, But while we scoog them, let them blaw; We'll aye hae simmer yet. An' sae wi' Fortune's blasts, my frien', - They'll come an' bide at will, But we can scoog ahint a screen An' jook their fury still. Then happy ilka day that comes, An' glorious ilka nicht; The present doesna fash oor thooms, The future needna fricht! The future! - man, there's joys in store, An' joys ye little ken, The warld has prov'd them sweet afore, The warld will again! The lasses, min! the dearest gift An' treasure time can gie - Here's to the love that lichts the lift O' woman's witchin' ee! An' vainly till that licht expire Should storm or winter low'r - It's sune aneuch to seek the fire When simmer days are owre! *Note. - Kinaskit, as its inhabitants pronounce Kinnesswood, is a small village at the foot of the Lomond Hill and not far from Lochleven. In its neighborhood is a small peat moss, from which the surrounding villages and farm-towns used to be supplied with fuel. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest... |
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