And when she saw the red, red blude,
A loud scrich scriched she:
'O monster, monster, spare the child
Wha never skaithed thee.
'O spare, gif in your bluidy briest
Albergs not heart of stane;
O spare, and ye sall hae of gould
What ye can carry hame.'
'Dame, I want not your gowd,' he sayd,
'Dame, I want not your fee;
I hae been wronged by your lord,
Ye sall black vengence drie.
'Here are nae serfs to guard your halls,
Nae trusty spearsmen here;
They sound the horn in good greene wode,
And chase the doe and deer.
'Tho merry sounds the gude greene wode,
Wi huntsmen hounds and horn,
Your lord sall rue eer sets yon sun
He hes done me skaith and scorn.'
* * * * *
For quha, ze, etc., wha, ye are printed.
Q.
Of the thirty-five stanzas printed by Finlay, seventeen, or 2, 3, 5-9, 12 (?), 14, 16 (?), 18, 19, 21-25, are derived from Herd's version, P, all his spurious verses being retained. There are some variations, due to imperfect recollection. Of the remaining eighteen, 4, 28, 29, 31, 34 are clearly by a modern pen. There are some twelve genuine stanzas, 1, 10, 11, 13, 15, 17, 20, 26, 27, 30, 32, 33, which are independent of Herd. Two more, Finlay's 12, 16, have been left with these because they vary considerably from Herd, and may possibly be traditional. So may the following be, Finlay's 35 and last; but I think it is not.