by Patrick Birnie (flourished late 17th - early 18th centuries)
The auld man's mear
Language: Scottish (Scots)
The auld man's mear's dead! The puir man's mear's dead! The auld man's mear's dead, A mile aboon Dundee! She was cut-luggit, painch-lippit, Steel-waimet, staincher-fittet, Chanler-chaftit, lang-neckit, Yet the brute did dee! The auld,... The auld man's mear's dead! The puir man's mear's dead! The peats, and neeps, and a' to lend, And she is gane - waes me! The auld, ... The puir man's head's sair Wi' greetin' for his gray mear; He's like to dee himsel' wi' care, Aside the green kirk-yard. The auld, ... He's thinkin' on the bygane days. And a' her douce and canny ways: And how his ain gudewife, auld Meg, Micht maist as weel been spaired. The auld, ...
Confirmed with, The Book of Scottish Song, edited by Alexander Whitelaw, Blackie and Son, Glasgow, 1843, page 128. This is the second version.
Authorship:
- by Patrick Birnie (flourished late 17th - early 18th centuries), "The auld man's mear" [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):
- [ None yet in the database ]
Set in a modified version by Francis George Scott.
Researcher for this page: Iain Sneddon [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2018-11-22
Line count: 24
Word count: 116