Volume II, song 169, page 177 - 'Lass wi' a Lump of Land' -...
Volume II, song 169, page 177 - 'Lass wi' a Lump of Land' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)
Verse 1: 'Gi'e me a lass wi' a lump o' land, And we for life shall gang thegither, Tho' daft or wise, I'll never demand, Or black, or fair, it makesna whether: I'm aff wi' wit, and beauty will fade, And blood alane is no worth a shilling, But she that's rich her market's made, For ilka charm about her is killing.' 'Ilka' is Scots for every or each.
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.
This humorous song written by Allan Ramsay (1686-1758) is about a man looking for a wealthy woman. He refuses to be taken in by beauty, wit or virtue alone, and is committed to finding 'a lass wi' a lump of land'. Ramsay included it in the second volume of his 'Tea-Table Miscellany' (1724-7). The tune featured in a number of early song collections, including the second edition of William Thomson's 'Orpheus Caledonius', published in 1733.
Volume II, song 169, page 177 - 'Lass wi' a Lump of Land' - Scanned from the 1853 edition of the 'Scots Musical Museum', James Johnson and Robert Burns (Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood & Sons, 1853)