And, continuing, in a bit of glowing dialogue:—
“‘Walk in, gentlemen, and partake of the cup of joy in my puir dwalling,’ quoth Kitty Rutherford as they came down the Burn Wynd, ‘the bairns that are unborn will rise up and call ye blessed for this day’s wark. Cum in, Watty Boyd, cum in, Rob Hastie, to the kitchen,’” etc.
Watty Boyd and Rob Hastie were respectively town drummer and town piper of Jedburgh.
The “Piper’s House” in Jedburgh was No. 1 Duck Row, at the foot of the Canongate, and the fact that it was always known by this name goes to show that it was the house in which the town pipers resided. The Robin Hastie referred to by Sir Walter Scott is supposed to have occupied the house, which was altered in 1896 in order to meet modern requirements.
The instrument with which, according to tradition, one of the Jedburgh pipers, John Hastie by name, played at Flodden, existed till very lately, perhaps still exists, in the keeping of some antiquarian. That burgh pipers were, on the Borders, where they rivalled in fame those of the Highlands, greatly respected, is shown by the Elegy on John Hasty, an excellent dirge which elucidates much of the manners of the Border pipers. The name of the author is unknown, but as the piece was out of print before 1730, the piper must have been dead before that time:—
“O death! thou wreck of young and auld,
How slie, and O how dreadfu’ bald!
Thou came unlooked for, nor anes tald
What was the crime;
But Hastie at the mouth turned cald