Classic Poem

Come , all ye jolly shepherds
—That whistle through the glen,
I'll tell ye of a secret
—That courtiers dinna ken:
What is the greatest bliss
—That the tongue o' man can name?
'Tis to woo a bonnie lassie
—When the kye comes hame.
——When the kye comes hame,
———When the kye comes hame,
——'Tween the gloamin and the mirk,
———When the kye comes hame.

'Tis not beneath the coronet,
—Nor canopy of state,
'Tis not on couch of velvet,
—Nor arbor of the great—
'Tis beneath the spreading birk,
—In the glen without the name,
Wi' a bonnie, bonnie lassie,
—When the kye comes hame.

There the blackbird bigs his nest
—For the mate he lo'es to see,
And on the topmost bough,
—O, a happy bird is he!
Then he pours his melting ditty,
—And love is a' the theme,
And he'll woo his bonnie lassie
—When the kye comes hame.

When the blewart bears a pearl,
—And the daisy turns a pea,
And the bonnie lucken gowan
—Has fauldit up her e'e,
Then the laverock frae the blue lift
—Draps down, and thinks nae shame
To woo his bonnie lassie
—When the kye comes hame.

See yonder pawkie shepherd
—That lingers on the hill—
His ewes are in the fauld,
—And his lambs are lying still;
Yet he downa gang to bed,
—For his heart is in a flame
To meet his bonnie lassie
—When the kye comes hame.

When the little wee bit heart
—Rises high in the breast,
And the little wee bit starn
—Rises red in the east,
O there's a joy sae dear,
—That the heart can hardly frame,
Wi' a bonnie, bonnie lassie,
—When the kye comes hame.

Then since all nature joins
—In this love without alloy,
O, wha wad prove a traitor
—To Nature's dearest joy?
Or wha wad choose a crown,
—Wi' its perils and its fame,
And miss his bonnie lassie
—When the kye comes hame?
——When the kye comes hame,
———When the kye comes hame
——'Tween the gloamin' and the mirk,
———When the kye comes hame!