Bonie Lesley

Robert Burns 1759 (Alloway) – 1796 (Dumfries)



O saw ye bonie Lesley
As she gaed o'er the Border?
She 's gane, like Alexander,
To spread her conquests farther.

To see her is to love her,
And love but her for ever;
For Nature made her what she is,
And ne'er made sic anither!

Thou art a queen, fair Lesley,
Thy subjects we, before thee:
Thou art divine, fair Lesley,
The hearts o' men adore thee.

The Deil he couldna scaith thee,
Or aught that wad belang thee;
He'd look into thy bonnie face
And say, 'I canna wrang thee!'

The Powers aboon will tent thee,
Misfortune sha'na steer thee:
Thou'rt like themsel' sae lovely,
That ill they'll ne'er let near thee.

Return again, fair Lesley,
Return to Caledonie!
That we may brag we hae a lass
There 's nane again sae bonie!

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

43 sec read
98

Quick analysis:

Scheme ABBB BBXB AAAA AAXA AAAA ACXC
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 704
Words 138
Stanzas 6
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4

Robert Burns

Robert Burns was a Scottish poet and lyricist. more…

All Robert Burns poems | Robert Burns Books

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