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In simmer when the hay was mawn, And corn wav'd green on ilka field, While claver blooms white o'er the lea, And roses blaw in ilka bield Blythe Bessie in the milking shield Says, I'll be wed come o't what will: Out spak a dame in wrinkled eild, O' gude advisement comes nae ill. Its ye ha'e wooers mony ane, And, lassie, ye're but young, ye ken, Then wait a wee, and cannie wale [A routhie butt, a routhie ben.]1 There's Johnie o' the Buskie-glen, Fu' is his barn, fu' is his byre. Tak this frae me, my bonnie hen, Its plenty heets the luver's fire : " For Johnie o' the Buskie-Glen I dinua care a single flie : He lo'es sae weel his craps and kye, He has nae love to spare for me. But blythe 's the blink o' Robie's e'e, And weel I wat he lo'es me dear: Ae blink o' him I wad na gie For Buskie-Glen and a' his gear." " O thoughtless lassie, life 's a faught ! The canniest gate, the strife is sair. But ay fu'-han't is fechtin best: A hungry care 's an unco care. But some will spend, and some will spare, An' wilfu' folk maun hae their will. Syne as ye brew, my maiden fair. Keep mind that ye maun drink the yill !" O! gear will buy me rigs o' land, And gear will buy me sheep and kye; But the tender heart o' leesome loove, The gowd and siller canna buy. We may be poor, Robie and I, Light is the burden loove lays on; Content and loove brings peace and joy; What mair hae queens upon a throne?
J. Haydn sets stanzas 1-2, 5
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)Confirmed with The Complete Poetical Works of Robert Burns, Cambridge edition, Boston and New York, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1897, page 241.
1 Haydn moves this to the last line of the stanza.
GLOSSARY
Ilka = every
Lea = untilled ground, pasture
Bield = sheltered yard
Shield = shed
Eild = old age
Ken = know
Cannie wale = wait a while, and choose carefully
Routhie ben = a well-furnished house with two rooms, an outer
room or kitchen (butt) and an inner sitting room or
parlour (ben)
Gear = wealth, money
Kye = cows
Leesome = agreeable
Authorship:
- by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), "In simmer when the hay was mawn" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by (Franz) Joseph Haydn (1732 - 1809), "A country lassie", Hob. XXXIa no. 144, JHW. XXXII/2 no. 144, stanzas 1-2,5. [text verified 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , title unknown, copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Ferdinando Albeggiani , Pierre Mathé [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2013-03-25
Line count: 40
Word count: 283
En été quand on fauchait le foin Et que le blé ondulait en vagues vertes dans chaque champ, Tandis que le trèfle fleurissait de blanc les pâturages Et que les roses s'épanouissaient sous chaque auvent, La joyeuse Bessie dans le bercail Dit : « Je me marierai, quoiqu'il arrive ! » À quoi rétorqua une vieille dame ridée : « — Un bon conseil ne fait pas de mal. C'est que tu as plus d'un soupirant, Et, ma fille, tu sais que tu es bien jeune, Alors attends un peu et choisis avec soin, Une généreuse cuisine, un opulent salon. Il y a Johnie du val de Buskie, Sa grange est pleine, son étable est pleine. Tu peux m'en croire, ma belle poulette, C'est l'abondance qui attise le feu de l'amant ! — Johnie du val de Buskie, Je m'en soucie comme d'une guigne : Il aime tant ses récoltes et vaches Qu'il ne lui reste plus d'amour pour moi. Mais les yeux de Robie brillent de joie, Et je sais bien qu'il m'aime tendrement : Je ne donnerais pas un regard de lui Pour le val de Buskie et toutes ses richesses. — Ô fille écervelée, la vie est un combat ! Sur la voie la plus tranquille la lutte est rude Mais la main pleine se bat toujours bien mieux : Le souci de se nourrir est un notable souci. Mais certains dépensent et d'autres épargnent, Et les gens volontaires doivent réaliser leurs volontés. Alors, après avoir brassé, ma jolie fille, Rappelle-toi que tu devras en boire la bière ! — Oh ! L'argent m'achètera des arpents de terre Et l'argent m'achètera moutons et vaches ; Mais le tendre cœur d'un adorable amour, L'or et l'argent ne peuvent l'acheter. Nous pouvons être pauvres, Robie et moi, Léger est le fardeau de l'amour ; Contentement et amour procurent paix et joie ; Qu'ont de plus les reines sur leur trône ?
About the headline (FAQ)
Authorship:
- Translation from Scottish (Scots) to French (Français) copyright © 2014 by Pierre Mathé, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
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Based on:
- a text in Scottish (Scots) by Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), "In simmer when the hay was mawn"
This text was added to the website: 2014-07-28
Line count: 40
Word count: 322