Volume IV, song 341, page 351 - 'The bonny wee thing' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)

Verse 1: 'Bonie wee thing, canie wee thing, Lovely wee thing was thou mine; I wad wear thee in my bosom, Least my Jewel I should tine. Wishfully I look and languish In that bonie face of thine; And my heart it stounds wi' anguish Lest my wee thing be na mine.' The 'Scots Musical Museum' is the most important of the numerous eighteenth- and nineteenth-century collections of Scottish song. When the engraver James Johnson started work on the second volume of his collection in 1787, he enlisted Robert Burns as contributor and editor. Burns enthusiastically collected songs from various sources, often expanding or revising them, whilst including much of his own work. The resulting combination of innovation and antiquarianism gives the work a feel of living tradition. The melody for this piece was first published in James Oswald's 'Caledonian Pocket Companion' in volume nine. The lyrics are attributed to Robert Burns, under the title of the song. Whilst this is not always accurate Burns confirms his authorship in his commentary on the 'Museum'. Here he wrote 'Composed on my little idol, 'The charming, lovely Davies'.' This song accompanied a letter sent on 6 April 1782 to Deborah Duff Davies. Deborah was a family friend of the Riddells, who in turn were close friends of Burns, and so the two met in Dumfriesshire. Due to her social position, Deborah was completely beyond Burns's reach and so a lot of the surviving material between the two is stilted and calculated to impress. This poem, however, believed by some to be one of Burns's finest works, expresses the real passion behind their friendship.

Collection

Scots Musical Museum

Inventory Number

4503537

Title

Volume IV, song 341, page 351 - 'The bonny wee thing' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)

Object Type

PhysicalObject

Measurements

- 132 x 211 mm