The Laird of Waristoun (corrected draft manuscript)

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Rossetti Archive Textual Transcription

Document Title: The Laird of Waristoun (corrected draft manuscript)

Author: Dante Gabriel Rossetti

Author: Algernon Charles Swinburne

Date of Composition: 1861

Type of Manuscript: corrected draft

Scribe: DGR and Swinburne

The full Rossetti Archive record for this transcribed document is available.

Transcription Gap: cover and front matter (to be added later)

page: [1]

Note: The manuscript transcription commences in DGR's hand.

The Laird of Waristoun

Down by yon garden green
Sae merrily as she gaes
She has twa weel made feet
And she trips upon her taes.

She has twa weel made feet
Far better is her hand,
She is as jimp in the middle
As any birken wand.

As a little birken wand
10For a boy's body to w bear,
All the gowd she has upon
It's made of Yellow hair.

As a little birken wand wand of birk
That gars a young boy greet
And the gowd her hair upon
It reaches to her feet.

As a little birken wand rod of birk
That gars a young boy bleed
The gold cloth her body on
20It was a goodly weed.

O there was nae kin' ill
Her fair body within
But the heart in her body
And that was full of sin.

And a' her fair body
It I wot it was made right right well
But the heart in her body
And that was made in hell.

And a' her fair body
30It was made full sweet,
But the heart in her body
It was made of hell's heat.

page: [2]

Gin you will do my bidding
At my bidding for to be
It's I will make you lady
Of a' my good lands and me.

He's made to her a bonny fair bed
He's streekit it adown
Added TextA bed to streek down,
It was a' for the lairid sake
40The laird of Waristoun.

A' the cups the gold wine was in
They were of the red gold fine
There was good mirth between thae twa
In the drinking of the wine.

All the cups the wine was in
They were of the fine gold red
And there between thae twa
There was an ill word said.

Andthere between thae twa
50An ill word there fell in
The lord smote her on the mouth
He garred the red blood rin.

And there between thae twa
An ill word there fell out
The lord smote her on her mouth
He garred the blood spin out

She wasna frae her chamber
A step but barely one
When up there started a lodly fiend
60A man's body her had on.

She wasna frae her chamber
A step but barely three
When there stood a fiend at her right hand
The Like a lodly man to see body

page: [3]

Note: After line 80 the text breaks into two columns and the transcription is in Swinburne's hand.

Gin you will do my bidding
At my bidding for to be,
I'll learn you a wile
To be wroken of his body.

And aye she poured the wine out over
70She made the wine gae run—
It was aye for the laird is of Waristoun sake
The Laird of Waristoun.

The nurice she knet the knot,
And O she knet it sicker;
The ladie did gie it a twig,
Till it began to wicker.

But word has gane to Leith to Leith
And up to Embro town,
That the lady she has slain the laird
80The laird of Waristoun.

Word's gone to her father the great Dunipace
And a bitter father was he
Says—fie gar mak a barrel of pikes
To row in her fause body.

Take off the black for me, maidens,
Do on the red, the red;
For I'm bidden up to Edinburgh
I think it maun be de my dead

Take off the robes of black, maidens,
90Do on the green, the green,
For I'm bidden up to Edinburgh
I think it maun be my teen.

Take off the black for him, maidens,
Do on the gowd for me
I maun put on my gowd cleiding
For this feast I'm bidden tee.

And first she came to Leith, to Leith,
And weel she war within
And neist she cam to Edinburgh
100To the first to burn her in.

Says—Wae be to you, Waristoun, Waristoun
I wish ye may sink in for sin;
And a' for yr bonny bower-chamber
My fair body was in.

And wae be to you. Waristoun, Waristoun,
I wish ye may sink for sorrow;
And a' for the dead man that is yon within
On earth I wot he had nae morrow.

Pull off my hood, maidens,
110But let my gown be:
Pull off my gown, maidens,
But leave my smock on me.

Ye'll bind my hair up frae my face
And ye'll bind it over my een;
And ye'll tak word to my auld father,
I bid God give him a bitter teen.

God's mercy I wish Lord Waristoun,
God's mercy to his share,
For he gave me but a very little ill
120For my body to bear.

page: [4]

The peace of God I give Lord Waristoun,
The peace of God to have
For the goodly gowd & the goodly land
The goodly gifts that he gave.

Thr curse of hell I give my father
For this gift he's given me;
The fire of hell I give wish my father
For the burning of my body.

Transcription Gap: remainder of bound volume (to be added later)

Electronic Archive Edition: 1

Source File: 4-1861.troxms.rad.xml

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