And she thocht the Bible might ward aff skaith;
Be it benshee, bogle, ghaist, or wraith—
But it fear'd na' Aiken-drum.
"His presence protect us!" quoth the auld gudeman;
"What wad ye, where won ye,—by sea or by Ian'?
I conjure ye—speak—by the Beuk in my han'!"
What a grane gae Aiken-drum!
"I lived in a Ian' whar we saw nae sky,
I dwalt in a spot whar a burn rins na by;
But I'se dwall noo wi' you if ye like to try—