Ossian Collection > Gaelic bards

DUNCAN BAN MACINTYRE. 73
Oh ! could I but take thee and hide thee
In a place well secured from decay ;
For now, should deatli leave me without thee,
I'd love not another for aye ;
But ne'er shall the hearth's harsh wrangling tease thee^
Nor make thy clear temper its prey
Thou shall hear but the choice of clear measures
My mouth can sing or can say.
I'd plough or drive in the spring-time for thee,
When the young horse in harness is dress' d,
Or seek on the shore with the fishers
Whate'er to the hook wileth best ;
I'd kill for thee swans, seals, and wild geese.
And birds on the bough that rest ;
Nor e'er shall thou want while a forest,
Lies near with one antler's crest.
On occasion of some visit to Edinburgh, Duncan Ban
composed a song in praise of Dnnedin, in which he
chronicles minutely everything he thought worth noticing
in the city ; but, as will be seen, he regards all the
novelties he speaks of with that clear intelligence and
steadfast heart, neither attracted or repelled by the mere
strangeness of the scenes and habits he refers to, which
indicate of themselves no small amount of talent. The
song on Edinburgh is as follows ; —
THE PRAISE OF DUNEDIN.
'Tis a great town Dunedin,
It charmed me to be there ;
A broad and hospitable place,
And pleasant everywhere :