For science, for virtue, or for blood, Getsnane1 the kirk, but baith for gold and good.2 Thus, great excellent King! the Holy Ghaist Out of your men of good away is chast: And were not that, doubtless, I you declare, That now, as then, would heal both sick and sare. Sic wickedness there is this world within, That simony is counted now nae sin; And this (Sir) is the cause, both all and sum, Why blind nae sight, nor speaking gets nae dumb. And this (als) is the cause, the sooth to say, Why holiness frae kirk men is away." "Then," quoth the King, "well understand I you, THE WOWING OF JOK AND [THIS ludicrous but humorous song, or ballad, is the most ancient of those remains of Scottish minstrelsy that have been preserved by tradition. Modern versions of it are found in most collections of Scottish song; it is therefore given here in the exact words and spelling of the Bannatyne MS., as published by Lord Hales. The note in the MS. attributing the authorship to Clerk has been obliterated, evidently by the transcriber. To prevent encumbering the text with too many references, an alphabetical glossary of the items of mutual plenishing, by Lord Hales, is And here to God I make ane oath and added at the end]. III. My berne, scho sayis, hes of hir awin, Come ye to wow our Jynny, Jok? IV. Ane blanket, and ane wecht also, VII. I haif ane helter, and eik ane hek, Twa lusty lippis to lik ane laiddill, VIII. Ane schule, ane scheit, and ane lang Ane brechame, and twa brochis fyne, flail, Ane ark, ane almry, and laidills two, Ane milk-syth, with ane swyne taill, Ane rowsty quhittil to scheir the kaill, Ane quheill, ane mell the beir to knok,' Ane coig, ane caird wantand ane naill ; Come ye to wow our Jynny, Jok? V. Ane furme, ane furlet, ane pott, ane pek, Ane tub, ane barrow, with ane quheil band, Ane turs, ane troch, and ane meil-sek, And cryd, ane feist; and slew ane cok, VI. Now, deme, I haif your bairne mareit ; 1 A mallet to crush pot-barley. 2 Was married up the country. 3 An old horse that fell over a cliff. Weill buklit with a brydill renye, Ane sark maid of the linkome twyne,3 Ane gay grene cloke that will nocht steyne,4 And yit for mister I will nocht fenye,5 Fyve hundreth fleis❝ now in a flok Call ye nocht that ane joly menye,7 To gang to giddir, Tynny and Jok. And als the laverok is fust and loddin ;1 Quhen ye haif done tak hame the brok,2 The rost wes tuche, sa wer thay bodin; Syne gaid to gidder bayth Jynny and Jok. GLOSSARY OF CHATTELS. Almry, cupboard; ark, corn or meal chest ; blasnit - ledder, probably basnit, tanned leather; brechame, a horse's collar; brochis, clasps; brydill-reyne, bridle rein; coig, a pail or trough; creill, basket; dulbaris, probably dishes with covers; elwand, an ellmeasure, or rod; fetterit-lok, fetter-lock; fidder, 128 hundred-weight; flaik, hurdle, furem, form or bench; furlet, a fourth of a boll measure; fute-braid sawing, corn sufficient to sow a foot breadth; graith, girth; gryce, pig; guss, goose; hek, raik; hobbil-schone, clouted shoes; hog, a sheep of two years old; jak, that piece of warlike dress called a doublet of fors, or defence; kaill, coleworts; kirn, churn; laid-saddill, load-saddle; maskene fatt, vessel to boil malt in for brewing; milksyth, milk strainer; nok, button of a spindle; pek, a sixteenth of a boll measure; polk, poke, bag; quhittill, knife; raip, rope; rok, distaff; sark, shirt; schule, shovel; spounge, probably spung, purse; spurtle, spattula for turning cakes; thraw-cruk, a crooked stick for twisting straw ropes; trene, spout; truncheour, trenchar, platter. THE WIFE OF AUCHTER MUCHTY. [THE earliest version of this poem, of which it is no exaggeration to say that it has been a universal favourite, has been preserved in the Bannatyne Ms. It has also been transmitted by tradition, and consequently there are con 1 Meaning obscure : leveret (?). |