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Sweet Willie

FAIR JANET—G

[_]

Finlay's Scottish Ballads, II, 61.

1

‘Will you marry the southland lord,
A queen of fair England to be?
Or will you burn for Sweet Willie,
The morn upon yon lea?’

2

‘I will marry the southland lord,
Father, sen it is your will;
But I'd rather it were my burial-day,
For my grave I'm going till.

3

‘O go, O go now, my bower-wife,
O go now hastilie,
O go now to Sweet Willie's bower,
And bid him cum speak to me.’
[OMITTED]

4

And he is to his mother's bower,
As fast as he could rin:
‘Open, open, my mother dear,
Open, and let me in.

5

‘For the rain rains on my yellow hair,
The dew stands on my chin,
And I have something in my lap,
And I wad fain be in.’
111

6

‘O go, O go now, Sweet Willie,
And make your lady blithe,
For wherever you had ae nourice,
Your young son shall hae five.’

7

Out spak Annet's mother dear,
An she spak a word o' pride;
Says, Whare is a' our bride's maidens,
They're no busking the bride?

8

‘O haud your tongue, my mother dear,
Your speaking let it be,
For I'm sae fair and full o flesh
Little busking will serve me.’

9

Out an spak the bride's maidens,
They spak a word o pride;
Says, Whare is a' the fine cleiding?
It's we maun busk the bride.

10

‘Deal hooly wi my head, maidens,
Deal hooly wi my hair;
For it was washen late yestreen,
And it is wonder sair.’
[OMITTED]

11

And Willie swore a great, great oath,
And he swore by the thorn,
That she was as free o a child that night
As the night that she was born.

12

‘Ye hae gien me the gowk, Annet,
But I'll gie you the scorn;
For there's no a bell in a' the town
Shall ring for you the morn.’

13

Out and spak then Sweet Willie:
Sae loud's I hear you lie!
There's no a bell in a' the town
But shall ring for Annet and me.
[OMITTED]
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