And past the birks and meikle stane,
Whare drunken Charlie brak 's neck-bane;
And thro' the whins, and by the cairn,
Where hunters fand the murdered bairn;
And near the thorn, aboon the well,
Whare Mungo's mither hanged hersel.
Before him Doon pours all his floods:
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;

Thro' ilka bore the beams were glancing,
And loud resounded mirth and dancing.
Inspiring bold John Barleycorn!

What dangers thou canst make us scorn
Wi' tippenny we fear nae evil;

Wi' usquabae we'll face the Devil!

The swats sae ream'd in Tammie's noddle,
Fair play, he cared na Deils a bodle.
But Maggie stood right sair astonished,
Till, by the heel and hand admonished,
She ventured forward on the light;
And, wow! Tam saw an unco sight-
Warlocks and witches in a dance:
Nae cotillion brent new frae France,
But hornpipes, jigs, strathspeys, and reels
Put life and mettle in their heels.
A winnock-bunker in the east,

There sat auld Nick, in shape o' beast—
A towzie tyke, black, grim, and large-
To gie them music was his charge;

;

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

Coffins stood round like open presses,

That shaw'd the dead in their last dresses;
And by some devilish cantrips sleight,
Each in its cauld hand held a light-

By which heroic Tam was able
To note upon the haly table,

A murderer's banes in gibbet airns;
Twa span-lang, wee, unchristen'd bairns;
A thief, new cutted fra a rape,
Wi' his last gasp his gab did gape;
Five tomahawks, wi' bluid red rusted;
Five scymitars, wi' murder crusted;
A garter which a babe had strangled;
A knife a father's throat had mangled,
Whom his ain son o' life bereft-
The gray hairs yet stack to the heft;
Three lawyers' tongues turned inside out,
Wi' lies seamed like a beggar's clout;
And priests' hearts, rotten, black as muck,
Lay stinking, vile, in every neuk:
Wi' mair o' horrible and awfu',

Which ev'n to name wad be unlawfu'.

As Tammie glowr'd, amazed, and curious, The mirth and fun grew fast and furious;

The piper loud and louder blew;

The dancers quick and quicker flew ;

They reeled, they set, they crossed, they cieckit,

Till ilka carlin swat and reekit,

And coost her duddies to the wark,

And linket at it in her sark.

Now, Tam, O Tam! had they been queans
A' plump and strapping in their teens:
Their sarks, instead o' creeshie flannen,
Been snaw-white seventeen-hunder linen;
Thir breeks o' mine, my only pair,
That ance were plush, o' guid blue hair,
I wad hae gi'en them aff my hurdies
For ae blink o' the bonnie burdies!

But withered beldams, auld and droll,
Rigwoodie hags wad spean a foal,
Lowping an' flinging on a crummock-
I wonder did na turn thy stomach.

But Tam kenn'd what was what fu' brawlie.
There was ae winsome wench and walie,
That night inlisted in the core

(Lang after kenn'd on Carrick shore!
For monie a beast to dead she shot,
And perished monie a bonnie boat,
And shook baith meikle corn and bear,
And kept the country-side in fear),
Her cutty-sark o' Paisley harn,
That while a lassie she had worn-
In longitude though sorely scanty,
It was her best, and she was vauntie.
Ah! little kenn'd thy reverend grannie
That sark she coft for her wee Nannie,
Wi' twa pund Scots (twas a' her riches)——
Wad ever graced a dance o' witches!

But here my Muse her wing maun cower-
Sic flights are far beyond her power-
To sing how Nannie lap and flang

(A souple jad she was and strang);

And how Tam stood, like ane bewitched,
And thought his very een enriched.

Ev'n Satan glowr'd, and fidged fu' fain,

And hotched and blew wi' might and main
Till first ae caper, syne anither—
Tam tint his reason a'thegither,

And roars out, Weel done, Cutty-sark!

And in an instant a' was dark;

And scarcely had he Maggie rallied,
When out the hellish legion sallied.
As bees bizz out wi' angry fyke,
When plundering herds assail their byke;
As open pussie's mortal foes,

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 skreech and hollow.

;

Ah, Tam! ah, Tam! thou'll get thy fairin'! In hell they'll roast thee like a herrin'!

In vain thy Kate awaits thy comin'-
Kate soon will be a waefu' woman!
Now, do thy speedy utmost, Meg,
And win the key-stane o' the brig;
There at them thou thy tail may toss—
A running stream they dare na cross.
But ere the key-stane she could make,
'The fient a tale she had to shake;
For Nannie, far before the rest,
Hard upon noble Maggie prest,
And flew at Tam wi' furious ettle;
But little wist she Maggie's mettle-

Ae spring brought aff ner master hale,
But left behind her ain gray tail:
The carlin claught her by the rump,
And left poor Maggie scarce a stump.
Now, wha this tale o' truth shall read,
Ilk man and mother's son take heed;
Whene'er to drink you are inclined,
Or cutty-sarks run in your mind,
Think, ye may buy the joys o'er dear--
Remember Tam o' Shanter's mare.

MY LUVE IS LIKE A RED, RED ROSE.

MY Luve's like a red, red rose
That's
's newly sprung in June:

O my Luve's like the melodie
That's sweetly played in tune.
As fair art thou, my bonnie lass,
So deep in luve am I:

And I will luve thee still, my dear,
Till a' the seas gang dry:

Till a' the seas gang dry, my dear,
And the rocks melt wi' the sun;
I will luve thee still, my dear,

While the sands o' life shall run.
And fare thee weel, my only Luve!
And fare thee weel awhile!
And I will come again, my Luve,

Tho' it were ten thousand mile.