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But soon cam' in, and stapt her study,
A silly, faichless, beggar bodie.
The tattered remnants o' her claes
Looked like remains o' better days:
Though young in years, seemed auld in grief,
And faintly sought some sma' relief.
Within her withered, wearied arm,
There lay a silly, thrawart bairn,
Wi' cauld and hunger black and blue,
That seemed to swap some face she knew.
The waefu' thing began to greet;
She bade her come and warm its feet;
Then sighed and pitied sair her lot,
And gae her kail, warm frae the pot.
Then in cam Kate and did her e'e,
Says, “Honest woman, where live ye?
Hae ye a man; or is he dead,
That ye've sae early tried the trade?”
The waefu' body hung her head.
“Indeed, gudewife, I've neist to nane,
Although I chanced to hae this wean.
Some's born to poortith, some to plenty;
Some ne'er do weel, though e'er so tentie.
My fouks a' died when I was wee,
And now I'm come to what ye see;
And a' by a fause merchant loon,
Lives het and fou within the town.
He has brought me to meikle shame,
And hurt my peace, my health, and name.”
Quo Kate, “Can that be Mister Din?”
“Indeed,” quo she, “the vera ane.
My gutcher, too, now he's awa,
That lived within the Rattan Raw—
Ye aiblins kent him—Andro Reid—
He seldom saw the faut I did.
Sae I got plenty o' my will;—
We lived by selling hame-brewed yill.
Rab aft cam owre at gloamin's e'e,
To tak a drap, and crack wi' me.
He soon turned mair than common kind;
But I could never bow my mind,
Though he would vow and praise my face,
Till ance the priest had said the grace.
But by his devilish Judas skill
He soon brought a' things to his will:
He said he had some secret en's,
Forbye the angerin' o' his frien's;
But for to show that he was kind,
And put a' doubts out o' my mind,
He kent a priest that lived near by,
Wha soon our han's and hearts would tie;
But I should stay at hame as yet,
Till ance we saw a time mair fit.
Alas! I sawna where I ran,
Like ithers, fond to get a man:
Owre deep for me the scheme was laid,
I deemed it gospel a' he said;
For what we wish we soon believe,
Which gars me now baith greet and grieve.
The priest turned out—what need I tell,
A maskëd villain like himsel'.
I o' him now began to doubt,
For he cam seldomer about;
And when I rued, and vowed, and grat,
He soothed me on wi' this and that.
We carried on a time o' sinnin',
(For evil needs but a beginnin',)
Till, by our frequent being thegither,
I fand I soon would be a mither,
Sae when it could nae mair be hid,
'Twas then I o' my spark got rid;
He shunned me now where'er we met,
And scarce a word I e'er could get:
Then when I gaed to speak to him,
He aye was thrang, or no within.
So now my gutcher I maun tell,
When I could hardly gang mysel',
His time-worn cheek yet paler grew,
The dim red frae his fa'en lip flew;
‘Oh! luckless bairn—this for my care!’
He saw my tears, and said nae mair,
But took his staff, and awa' he set,
But an unholy welcome gat.
Rab would do nought but curse and swear,
And ca' me names I ill could bear;
Denied our marriage, time and place,
And said he hardly kent my face,
And would advise us, as a friend,
To gang to some I better kend,
For gif we gae him mair abuse,
He'd tak us to a bigger house.
We tried the law—the law was vain,
It only brought expense and pain;
He took it to a higher court;
We hadna siller to gie for't;
A poind was ca'd, we maun remove,
For saying things we couldna prove.
Feeble, in want and sair disgrace,
We wistna where to show our face.
My gutcher cheered me, said his prayers;
But grief brought down his auld grey hairs,
And ere this wee thing saw the light,
His e'en were closed in endless night,
And left us, at its luckless birth,
Twa waefu' outcasts on the yirth.”

Nae mair she said, wi' grief opprest,
But sighs and sabs made out the rest.
The bairnie looked wi' piteous e'e,
And screeched, and wailed, and clasped her knee.
So feeble ivy round doth clim'
Yon leafless tree hang's o'er the linn.

“His presence bless us a'!” quo Kate,
“The creature's in an unco state;
If a' be true that she has said,
He's a debauched and devilish blade.”
While Betty's wheel ceased to gang roun',
She jimply 'scapit frae a swoon:
Her rock turned yellow, green, and blue;
She fand hersel' she kentna how;
And cried out loud, “I winna hae him!”
Quo Kate, “The Lord defend us frae him!
Or ony ane o' sic like kind
Should e'er be boun' to me or mine.”

So John was tauld o' a' that passed,
And a' took out a full protest.