Inglis Collection of printed music > Printed music > Songs of Scotland adapted to their appropriate melodies > Volume 2

JENNY DANG THE WEAVER.
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Jen - ny dang the weav - er ; But soon the fool his fol - ly kent, For Jen - ny dang the weav - er.
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At ilka country dance or reel,
Wi' her he would be bobbin' ;
When she sat down — he sat down,
And to her would be gabbin' ;
Where'er she gaed, baith butt and ben, :
The coof * would never leave her ;
Aye kecklin' like a clockin' hen,
But Jenny dang the weaver.
And Jenny dang, Jenny dang,
Jenny dang the weaver ;
Aye kecklin' like a clockin' hen,
But Jenny dang the weaver.
Quo' he, My lass, to speak my mind,
In troth I needna swither ;
You've bonnie een, and if you're kind,
I'll never seek anithcr ;
He humm'd and haw'd, the lass cried, Peugh !
And bade the coof no deave her;
Syne snapt her fingers, lap and leugh,
And dang the silly weaver.
And Jenny dang, Jenny dang,
Jenny dang the weaver ;
Syne snapt her fingers, lap and leugh,
And dang the silly weaver.
1 Head-dresses for females.
» To be on one's guard.
3 Outer and inner apartments of a house.
1 Simpleton.
" Jenny dang the Weaver." This humorous song was written by the late Sir Alexander Boswell, Bart., of
Auchinleck, mentioned before, p. 49 of this volume, and regarding whom we shall state some further particulars
in the Appendix. As to the air, Mr. Stenhouse and others make no mention of its origin ; but we quote the
following very amusing Note from pp. 308, 309, of Mr. Hugh Paton's " Contemporaries of Burns," &c, Edin-
burgh, 1840 : — " The origin of the air of ' Jenny dang the weaver,' is somewhat curious. The Rev. Mr. Gardner,
minister of the parish of Birse in Aberdeenshire, well known for his musical talent and for his wit, was, one
Saturday evening, arranging his ideas for the service of the following day, in his little study, which looked into
the court-yard of the manse, where Mrs. Gardner, seaunda — for ho had been twice married — was engaged in the
homely task of 'beetling' the potatoes for supper. To unbend his mind a little, he took up his Cremona, and
began to step over the notes of an air he had previously jotted down, when suddenly an altercation arose between
Mrs. Gardner and Jock, the 'ministers-man'— an idle sort of weaver from the neighbouring village of Marywell,
who had lately been engaged as man-of-all-work about the manse. ' Here, Jock,' cried the mistress, as he had
newly come in from the labours of the field, ' gae wipe the minister's shoou.' ' Na,' said the lout, ' I'll do nae sic
thing: I cam' here to be yir ploughman, but no yir flunky, and I'll be d d gif I'll wipe the minister's shoon!'
'Deil confound yir impudence!' said the enraged Mrs. Gardner, as she sprung at him with a heavy culinary
instrument in her hand, and giving him a hearty beating, compelled him to perform the menial duty required.
The minister, highly diverted with the scene, gave the air he had just completed the title of ' Jcuny dang the
weaver.' This is supposed to have occurred about the year 174G." Se non e vero, fc ben trovato !