Glen Collection of printed music > Printed music > Jacobite relics of Scotland > [First series]

NOTES. 261
By this, though hinged on a vile pun, I take to be meant the
Lord Cowper, keeper of the great seal,
" And after him two shallow knights,
To help to play the game, sir."
These might be the earl of Wharton and Lord' Townsend ;
the one made keeper of the privy-seal, and the other secretary of
state.
" A duke that daddled long in blood,
A dog without the nose, sir."
These are doubtless the duke of Marlborough, appointed at this
time colonel of the first regiment of foot and master of the horse,
as well as head of the cabinet-council, and Mr Pulteney, who was
made secretary of war ; but whether the latter had a long or short
nose, or no nose at all, I have been unable to learn.
" And four braw norland pipers' sons,
From traitor race that rose, sir."
These are likely the dukes of Argyle, Roxburgh, Montrose,
and Mr Stanhope, all of whom got offices at that time, and made
use of them to thwart the designs of the Tories to the utmost of
their power : but that all their fathers should have been pipers is
rather an extraordinary coincidence.
" And when this dog's game will be done,
There is no one can tell, sir ;
• Or whether this man came from the moon.
Or if he came from hell, sir."
In this verse the rascally Jacobite doubts that the special pro-
vidence which brought about the deposing of the rightful heir,
and raising the Whigs over their heads, came from heaven at all,
and slyly suggests that it came from the other place.
This, I think, is a solution of the song throughout : if it is not
the true one, there is a strong similarity. But I have always
found, that the more closely these party songs are searched into,
the more plainly do the dark allusions contained in them appear,
and the more pointed at individuals of the other party.