The Highlandmen Came Down The Hill

The Highlandmen came down the hill,
And owre the knowe wi' right gude will;
Now Geordie's men may brag their fill,
For wow but they were braw, man!
They had three gen'rals o' the best,
Wi' lairds, and lords, and a' the rest,
Chiels that were bred to stand the test,
And couldna rin awa, man.

The Highlandmen are savage loons,
Wi' barkit houghs and burly crowns;
They canna stand the thunder-stoun's
Of heroes bred wi' care, man-
Of men that are their country's stay,
These Whiggish braggarts of a day.
The Highlandmen came down the brae,
The heroes were not there, man.

Says brave Lochiel, "Pray, have we won?
I see no troop, I hear no gun."
Says Drummond, "Faith, the battle's done,
I know not how or why, man.
But my good lords, this thing I crave,
Have we defeat these heroes brave?"
Says Murray, "I believe we have:
If not, we're here to try, man."

But tried they up, or tried they down,
There was no foe in Falkirk town,
Nor yet in a' the country roun',
To break a sword at a', man.
They were sae bauld at break o' day,
When tow'rd the west they took their way;
But the Highlandmen came down the brae,
And made the dogs to blawe, man.

A tyke is but a tyke at best,
A coward ne'er will stand the test,
And Whigs at morn wha cocked the crest,
Or e'en had got a fa', man.
O wae befa' these northern lads,
Wi' their braidswords and white cockades!
They lend sic hard and heavy blads,
Our Whigs nae mair can craw, man.

From Jacobite Songs & Ballads, ed. G.S. MacQuoid

Malcolm