Page:The poetical works of Robert Burns.djvu/63

This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
THE POEMS OF BURNS.
17
What signifies his barren shine Of moral pow'rs an' reason?His English style, an' gesture fine, Are a' clean out o' season.Like Socrates or Antonine, Or some auld pagan Heathen,The moral man he does define, But ne'er a word o' faith inThat's right that day.
In guid time comes an antidote Against sic poison’d nostrum;For Peebles, frae the water-fit, Ascends the holy rostrum:See, up he's got the word o' God An' meek an' mim has view'd it,While Common Sense has ta'en the road, An' aff, an' up the CowgateFast, fast, that day.
Wee Miller, neist, the Guard relieves, An' Orthodoxy raibles,Tho' in his heart he weel believes, An' thinks it auld wives' fables:But, faith! the birkie wants a Manse, So, cannilie he hums them;Altho' his carnal wit an' sense Like hafflins-wise o'ercomes himAt times that day.
Now, butt an' ben, the Change-house fills, Wi' yill-caup Commentators:Here's crying out for bakes an' gills, An' there the pint-stowp clatters;While thick an' thrang, an' loud an' lang, Wi' logic, an' wi' Scripture,They raise a din, that in the end, Is like to breed a ruptureO'wrath that day.
Leeze me on Drink! it gi'es us mair Than either School or College:It kindles Wit, it waukens Lair, It pangs us fou o' Knowledge.Be't whisky gill, or penny wheep, Or ony stronger potion,It never fails, on drinkin' deep. To kittle up our notionBy night or day.
This article is issued from Wikisource. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.