Air,—“Morneen I Gaberland.” 1803.
BLYTHE was the time when he fee'd wi my faither, O,
Happy war the days when we herded thegither, O,
Sweet war the hours when he row'd me in his plaidie, O,
An vowed tae be mine, my dear Hielan laddie, O.
But, ah I waes me ! wi their sodg'ring sae gaudie, O,
The laird's wyst awa my braw Hielan laddie, O ;
Misty are the glens, and the dark hills sae cludie, O,
That aye seemt sae blythe wi my dear Hielan laddie, O.
The blaeberry banks, noo, are lanesome an dreary, O,
Muddy are the streams that gusht doun sae clearly, O,
Silent are the rocks that echoed sae gladly, O,
The wild meltin strains o my dear Hielan laddie, O,
He pu'd me the cranberry, [1] ripe frae the boggy fen,
He pu'd me the strawberry, [2] red frae the fuggy glen,
He pu'd me the row'n [3] frae the wild steep sae giddy, O,
Sae lovin an kind was my dear Hielan laddie, O.
Fareweel my ewes ! an fareweel my doggie, O,
Fareweel ye knowes ! noo sae cheerless an scroggie, O;
Fareweel, Glenfeoch ! my mammie an my daddie, O,
I will lea ye a for my dear Hielan laddie, O.
Note by R. A. Smith in the “Harp of Renfrewshire,” page xxxiv.—“My first introduction to Tannahill was in consequence of hearing his song ‘Blythe was the time’ sung while it was yet in manuscript. I was so much struck with the beauty and natural simplicity of the language that I found means shortly afterwards of being introduced to its author. The acquaintance thus formed between us gradually ripened into a warm and steady friendship that was never interrupted in a single instance till his lamented death.”
Note by Lamb.—“R. A. Smith, in his Scottish Minstrel calls the air to which this song is sung ‘Mor nian a Ghibarlan.’ The first, second, third, and last verses are those of the Interlude; the fourth verse appeared in the 1815 edition.”
The whole of this song first appeared in 1805, in Millar's Paisley Repository, No. III. See Notes to this song in the "Soldier's Return," page 59, and first Note to No. 16. Both Tannahill and Smith have written the words phonetically from hearing them pronounced. The proper Gaelic orthography is Mor nighean a Ghiobarlan, and means Sarah the daughter from Giberland. Tannahill seems to have understood the meaning when he made Jean continue the dialogue—
“Thro' distant touns I'll stray a hapless stranger,
In thochts o' him I'll brave pale want and danger,
An as I go, puir weepin mournfu pond'rer,
Still some kind heart will cheer the weary wand'rer.”—
by recognising and naming her ‘Jean the daughter from Glenfeoch.’—Ed.
[1] Cranberry. Vaccinium Ozycoccos. Grows in bogs or marshes on Gleniffer Braes. Stems from 5 to 10 inches high. Leaves evergreen. Flowers drooping of s, beautiful flesh colour, singularly elegant. Berriee pale red, mottled or purplish, red when ripe.—Ed.
[2] Wood Strawberry. Fragaria Vesca. Found in hedges and woods on Gleniffer braes. Leaves usually serrulats. Flowers corymbose. Fruit red, drooping. The berries are fragrant and juicy.—Ed.
[3] Row'n tree or mountain ash. Pyrus Aucuparia. Abundant in woods and on precipices in Gleniffer braes. A small handsome tree. Flowers white, small with considerable odour. Fruit orange red, size of a pea, acid and austere. Branches used by the credulous to prevent witchcraft.—Ed.
[Semple 82]