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STORIES OF
that she had been long suspected by her more intimate friends, and often questioned with re-spect to the mysterious ballad, but that she had always managed to keep her secret to her-self without a direct and absolute denial. She was induced to write the song by a desire to see an old plaintive Scottish air ("The bridegroom grat when the sun gaed down"), which was a favourite with her sister, fitted with words more suitable to its character than the ribaldry which had hitherto, for want of better, been sung to it. She had previously been endeavouring to while the tedium occasioned by her sister's marriage and departure for London by the com-position of verses; but of all she had written, either before or since, none have reached the merit of this admirable little poem. It struck her that some tale of virtuous distress in humble life would be most suitable to the plaintive melody of her favourite air; and she accordingly set about such an attempt, taking the name of " Auld Robin Gray" from an ancient herd of Balcarres. When she had written two or three of the verses, she called to her junior sister (afterwards Lady Hardwicke) who was the only person near her, and thus addressed her: " I have been writing a ballad, my dear; I have been oppressing my heroine with many mis-148 |
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