Maggie's Farm

Green Grow the Rashes O!

Chorus:
Green grow the rashes O!
Green grow the rashes O!
The sweetest hour that e'er I spent
Were spent among the lasses O!

There's naught but care on ev'ry han',
In ev'ry hour that passes, O!
What signifies the life o' man,
An' 'twere na for the lasses O?

The war'ly race may riches chase,
An riches may fly them, O!
An tho at last they catch them fast,
Their hearts can ne'er enjoy them, O!

But gie me a cannie hour at e'en
My arms about my dearie, O!
An war'ly cares and warldly men,
May a' gae tapsalteerie, O!

For you sae douce wha sneer at this,
Ye're not but senseless asses, O!
The wisest man the warl' e'er saw,
He dearly loved the lasses, O!

Auld Nature swears the lovely dears,
Her noblest work she classes, O!
Her prentice han' she tried on man,
An' then she made the lasses, O!

Meaning of unusual words:
rashes= rushes, reeds
war'ly=worldly
cannie=quiet
tapsalteerie=topsy-turvy
douce=respectable