Page:The dialect of the southern counties of Scotland - Murray - 1873.djvu/47

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THE EARLY PERIOD—SPECIMENS.
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for Ags. o), but the other vowels generally remain simple. The qu and sc of Cursor Mundi have become quh and sch; and ch is seen generally taking the place of gh as the symbolisation of the guttural. Final e also becomes more abundant, but, upon the whole, the language approaches closely to that of the former specimen.

3.—Andro of Wyntown's Extracts from Barbour's Brus in the "Cronykil," (ab. 1440.)

Qwhen Alysandyre oure kyng wes dede,
Þat Scotland had to stere and lede,
Þe land, sex yhere and mayr perfay,
Wes desolate eftyr his day.
Þe barnage off Scotland, at þe last,
Assemlyd þame and fandyt fast
To cheß a kyng þare land to stere,
Þat off Awncestry cummyn were
Off kyngis þat aucht þat Reawte,
And mast had rycht þare kyng to be.
Bot Inwy þat is fellowne
Amang þame mad dissensiown.


A! blynd folk, fulle of all foly,
Had yhe wmbethowch[t] yowe inkyrly
Quhat peryle to ȝowe mycht appere,
Yhe had noucht wroucht on þis manere.
Had yhe tane kepe how þat þat kyng,
Off Walys, for-owtyn sudiowrnyng,
Trawalyd to wyn þe Senhowry,
And throw his mycht till occupy
Landys, þat ware till hym merchand,
As Walys wes and als Irland,
Þat he put till sic threllage,
Þat þai þat ware off hey parage
Suld ryn on fwte als rybalddale,
Quhen ony folk he wald assale
Durst nane off Walis in batale ryd,
Na yhit fra evyn fell, a-byde
Castell or wallyd towne wyth-in,
Þan he suld lyff and lymmis tyne,
In till swylk thryllage þame held he
Þat he oure-come wyth his powstè.
Yhe mycht se, he suld occupy
Throwch slycht, þat he na mycht frow maystri.
Had yhe tane kepe quhat was threllage,
And had consydryd his oysage,
Þat grypyd ay, but gayne-gyvyng,
Yhe suld, for-owtyn his demyng,

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