’Tis ay good to be sober and douce,
To live in peace,
For many I see, for being o’er crouse,
Gets broken face.
[JOHN HIGHLANDMAN’S
REMARKS ON GLASGOW.]
[The following is what may be termed a ‘Chap-book Version’ of John Highlandman’s Remarks on Glasgow. It is taken from a chap-book published anonymously in Glasgow in 1823. In no material respect does it differ from the other copies still to be found. M‘Vean was the first to attribute the verses to Graham. The assumption has generally been that in point of time this is one Graham’s earliest productions, after his History of the Rebellion, and it is certainly the most popular of his metrical pieces. It furnishes an interesting description of Glasgow about the middle of last century.]