The poems of Alexander Montgomery: with biogr. notices, by D. IrvingJames Ballantyne and Company, 1821 - 319 pages |
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Common terms and phrases
Adeu agane alace appeir aspyre auay baill baith Bannatyne's befoir beir beutie breist byde cair Cherrie culd Curage dairt dayis deid deidly deir delyte desyre dispair dois dolour doth Dreid Edinburgh euerie evin eviry feir flie Flyting frie fyre grace gude haif hairt hald harte haue heid heir hevin hope King kneu kynd leist Lord Love mair maist maister meit micht Montgomery mony mynd myne nane neir neuer nevir nixt nocht ouer pairt plesur poem poets printed PSALME Quha Quhair Quhat Quhen Quhilk Quhy Quod quyt Robert Scot scho shyning Slae sonnet speid spreit sueet suld Syne teirs thair Thairfor thame thay thee thing thoght thou art thou sall throu thyn trew tyme vane vhair vhat vhen vhilk vhill vhom vnto vpon wald weill wryt zour
Popular passages
Page xxi - Among the ancients, plain-speaking was the fashion ; nor was that ceremonious delicacy introduced, which has taught men to abuse each other with the utmost politeness, and express the most indecent ideas in the most modest language.
Page 112 - Some hobland on a hemp-stalk, hovend to the hight ; The king of Pharie and his court, with the Elf Queen, With many elfish incubus was ridand that night. There an elf on an ape, an ursel begat, Into a pot by Pomathorne ; That bratchart in a busse was born ; They fand a monster on the morn, War faced nor a cat.
Page 274 - LET dread of pain for sin in after-time, Let shame to see thyself ensnared so, Let grief conceived for foul accursed crime, Let hate of sin the worker of thy woe, With dread, with shame, with grief, with hate enforce To dew thy cheeks with tears of deep remorse. So hate of sin shall cause God's love to grow, So grief shall harbour hope within thy heart, So dread shall cause the flood of joy to flow, So shame shall send sweet solace to thy smart : So love...
Page xiii - Iflose of guids, if gritest grudge or grief, If povertie, imprisonment, or pane, If for guid will ingratitude agane, If languishing in langour but relief, If det, if dolour, and to become deif, 5 If travell tint, and labour lost in vane, Do properly to poets appertane — Of all that craft my chance is to be chief.
Page 81 - Bot vhen the danger of my death I dred, To seik my spreit I sent my harte to thee ; Bot it wes so inamored with thyn ee, With thee it myndit lykuyse to remane : So thou hes keepit captive all the thrie, More glaid to byde then to returne agane.
Page xviii - It is a very poor production; and yet I know not how, it has been frequently printed, while far superior works have been neglected. The stanza is good for a song, but the worst in the world for a long poem. The allegory is weak and wire-drawn; and the whole piece beneath contempt.
Page 3 - Quhilk caussit me to stay. I lay and leynit me to ane bus To heir the birdis beir ; Thair mirth was sa melodius Throw nature of the yeir ; Sum singing, sum springing With wingis into the sky : So trimlie and nimlie Thir birdis they flew me by. I saw the hurcheoun and the hair...
Page 79 - My plesuris past procures my present pain ; My present pain expels my plesurs past ; My languishing, alace ! is lyk to last ; My greif ay groues, my gladenes wants a grane ; My bygane joyes I can not get agane, Bot, once imbarkit, I must byde the blast. I can not chuse ; my kinsh is not to cast : To wish it war, my wish wald be bot vane...
Page 18 - Wisdome wischis the to wey This figour of philosophey — A lessoun worth to leir — Quhilk is, in tyme for to tak tent, And not, when tyme is past, repent, 425 And buy repentance deir.
Page 86 - Zit thoght thou sees not, sillie, saikles thing ! The piercing pykis brods at thy bony breist. Euin so am I, by plesur lykuyis preist, In gritest danger vhair I most delyte : Bot since thy song, for shoring, hes not ceist, Suld feble I, for feir, my conqueis quyt ? Na, na, — I love the, freshest Phoenix fair, In beuty, birth, in bounty but compair.