Chapter II: Part 2

Meaning that friends are best separate.

A wad is a fule's argument.

"Fools, for argument, lay wagers."--_Butler._

A waited pat's lang o' boiling.

A wamefu's a wamefu' wer't but o' bare cauf.

A bellyful is a bellyful, no matter what kind of meat is taken. A
variation occurs in _St Ronan's Well_:--"A wamefu's a wamefu'
whether it be o' barley meal or bran."

A wee bush is better than nae beild.

"Dame Elspeth is of good folk, a widow, and the mother of
orphans,--she will give us house-room until something be thought
upon. These evil showers make the low bush better than no
beild."--_The Monastery._

A wee house has a wide throat.

A wee house weel fill'd, a wee piece land weel till'd, a wee wife weel will'd, will mak a happy man.

A wee mouse will creep beneath a muckle corn stack.

A wee spark maks muckle wark.

A wee thing fleys cowards.

A wee thing puts your beard in a bleeze.

A wee thing ser's a cheerfu' mind.

A wet May and a winnie, brings a fu' stackyard and a finnie.

"Implying that rain in May and dry winds afterwards produce a
plentiful crop, with that mark of excellence by which grain is
generally judged of by connoisseurs--a good feeling in the
hand."--_Robert Chambers._

A whang off a cut kebbuck's never miss'd.

A wife is wise enough when she kens her gudeman's breeks frae her ain kirtle.

Kelly gives a very indifferent version of this proverb, and says,
"This is old, and a good one if rightly understood: that is, she is
a good wife who knows the true measure of her husband's authority
and her obedience."

A wight man ne'er wanted a weapon.

A wild goose ne'er laid tame eggs.

A wilfu' man maun hae his way.

"'Reuben Butler! Reuben Butler!' echoed the Laird of Dumbiedykes,
pacing the apartment in high disdain,--'Reuben Butler, the dominie
at Liberton--and a dominie-depute too!--Reuben, the son of my
cottar!--Very weel, Jeanie, lass, wilfu' woman will hae her
way--Reuben Butler! he hasna in his pouch the value o' the auld
black coat he wears.'"--_Heart of Midlothian._

A wilfu' man ne'er wanted wae.

"It has been said, and may be sae,
A wilfull man wants never wae,
Thocht he gets little gains."--_Cherrie and the Slae._

A wilfu' man should be unco wise.

A willing mind maks a light foot.

A winking cat's no aye blind.

A winter day and a wintry way is the life o' man.

A winter night, a woman's mind, and a laird's purpose, aften change.

"Women, wind, and luck soon change."--_Portuguese._

A wise head maks a close mouth.

A wise lawyer ne'er gangs to law himsel.

A wise man carries his cloak in fair weather, an' a fool wants his in rain.

"An encouragement to care, caution, and foresight, and especially
not to leave your cloak, be the weather e'er so
encouraging."--_Kelly._

"Chiels carry cloaks, when 'tis clear,
The fool when 'tis foul has nane to wear."--_Ramsay._

A wise man gets learning frae them that hae nane o' their ain.

A wise man wavers, a fool is fixed.

A woman's gude either for something or naething.

A word is enough to the wise.

A working mither maks a daw dochter.

Another rendering of "A light-heeled mother," &c.

Aye as ye thrive your feet fa's frae ye.

"Unexpected interruptions occur in business."--_Kelly._

"The farther you go, the farther behind."--_English._

Aye flether away;--since I'll no do wi' foul play, try me wi' fair.

A yeld sow was never gude to gryces.

This more expressive than elegant proverb means that those people
who have no family of their own are rarely inclined to be kind to
the children of others.

Aye takin' out o' the meal pock and ne'er puttin' in't soon comes to the bottom.

Aye tak the fee when the tear's in the ee.

Aye to eild, but never to wit.

That is, he is always growing older, but never any wiser.

A' you rin you win.

"Taken from playing at bowls: applied to endeavours about a project
that seems not feasible, where what you can make is clear
gain."--_Kelly._

A Yule feast may be done at Pasche.

Bachelors' wives and auld maids' bairns are aye weel bred.

Bad legs and ill wives should stay at hame.

Bairns are certain care, but nae sure joy.

Bairns speak i' the field what they hear i' the ha'.

Baith weal and woe come aye wi' world's gear.

"'And I positively must not ask you how you have come by all this
money?' said the clergyman.... 'Is it anything that distresses your
own mind?' 'There is baith weal and woe come wi' warld's gear,
Reuben: but ye maun ask me naething mair.--This siller binds me to
naething, and can never be speered back again.'"--_Heart of
Midlothian._

Baked bread and brown ale winna bide lang.

Bannocks are better than nae bread.

"Half a loaf is better than no bread."--_English._

Barefooted folk shouldna tread on thorns.

"Those who live in glass houses should not throw
stones."--_English._

Bare gentry, bragging beggars.

Bare words mak nae bargain.

Bastard brood are aye proud.

Be a friend to yoursel, and others will.

Bear and forbear is gude philosophy.

Bear wealth weel, poortith will bear itsel.

Beauty, but bounty's but bauch.

Beauty is but skin deep.

Beauty's muck when honour's tint.

Beauty is worthless when honour is lost.

Be aye the thing you would be ca'd.

"Because" is a woman's reason.

"I have no other but a woman's reason: I think him so, because I
think him so."--_Shakespeare._

Beds are best, quo' the man to his guest.

We presume he said so on the score of economy, _i.e._, to evade
supplying supper.

Beefsteaks and porter are gude belly mortar.

Bees that hae honey in their mouths hae stings in their tails.

Before an ill wife be gude, even if she was a' turned to tongue.

Before, I ween'd; but now, I wat.

Before, I only suspected; now, I am certain. "Spoken on the full
discovery of some malefice, which before we only
suspected."--_Kelly._

Before the deil gaes blind, and he's no blear e'ed yet.

Before ye choose a friend, eat a peck o' saut wi' him.

Be gaun, the gate's before you.

Be going, the road lies before you. A jocose or surly hint to go.

Beg frae beggars and you'll ne'er be rich.

Beggars breed, and rich men feed.

Beggars downa bide wealth.

Beggars shouldna be choosers.

Begin wi' needles and preens, and end wi' horn'd nowte.

That is, beginnings apparently trifling may lead to very great
results. Used here as a caution against dishonesty.

Be it better, be it worse, be ruled by him that has the purse.

Be it sae, is nae banning.

Used in yielding a point in dispute because you are either unwilling
or unable to argue further; but also indicating that you do not
admit yourself to be in the wrong.

Be lang sick, that ye may be soon hale.

Believe a' ye hear, an' ye may eat a' ye see.

Belyve is twa hours and a half.

A jocular allusion to the fact that if a person says he will be
back, or done with anything "belyve," that is, immediately, or in a
little, the probability is he will be longer than expected.

Be ready wi' your bonnet, but slow wi' your purse.

Be slow in choosing a friend, but slower in changing him.

Best to be off wi' the auld love before we be on wi' the new.

Be thou weel, or be thou wae, yet thou wilt not aye be sae.

Better a bit in the morning than a fast a' day.

Better a clout in than a hole out.

That is, a patched garment is better than one with holes in it.

Better a dog fawn on you than bark at you.

Better ae e'e than a' blind.

Better ae wit bought than twa for nought.

Better a finger aff as aye wagging.

"The first night is aye the warst o't. I hae never heard o' ane that
sleepit the night afore the trial, but of mony a ane that sleepit as
sound as a tap the night before their necks were straughted. And
it's nae wonder--the warst may be tholed when it's kend: Better a
finger aff as aye wagging."--_Heart of Midlothian._

Better a fremit friend than a friend fremit.

Better have a stranger for your friend than a friend turned
stranger.

Better a gude fame than a fine face.

Better alane than in ill company.

Better a laying hen than a lying crown.

Better a lean horse than a toom halter.

Better a poor horse than no horse at all.

Better a mouse in the pat than nae flesh.

Better an auld man's darling than a young man's warling.

"Used as an argument to induce a young girl to marry an old man, to
the doing of which no argument should prevail."--_Kelly._

Better an even down snaw than a driving drift.

Better an ill spune than nae horn.

Better a saft road than bad company.

"'I redd ye, Earnscliff' (this Hobbie added in a gentle whisper),
'let us take a cast about, as if to draw the wind on a buck--the bog
is no abune knee-deep, and better a saft road than bad
company.'"--_The Black Dwarf._

Better a sair fae than a fause friend.

Better a shameless eating than a shamefu' leaving.

Better a sma' fish than an empty dish.

Better at a time to gie than tak.

Better a thigging mither than a riding father.

Better a tocher in her than wi' her.

That is, better that a wife have good qualities without money than
_vice versa_.

Better a toom house than an ill tenant.

Better auld debts than auld sairs.

Better a wee bush than nae beild.

Better a wee fire to warm you than a big fire to burn you.

Better bairns greet than bearded men.

Better be a coward than a corpse.

"Discretion is the better part of valour."--_English._

Better be at the end o' a feast than at the beginning o' a fray.

Better be before at a burial than ahint at a bridal.

Better be blythe wi' little than sad wi' naething.

Better be envied than pitied.

Better be friends at a distance than enemies at hame.

Better be happy than wise.

Better be idle than ill doing.

Better be John Tamson's man, than Ring and Dinn's, or John Knox's.

"John Thomson's man is he that is complaisant to his wife's humours;
Ring and Dinn's is he whom his wife scolds; John Knox's is he whom
his wife beats."--_Kelly._

Better be kind than cumbersome.

Better belly burst than gude meat spoil.

A plea for gluttony on the score of economy.

Better bend than break.

Better be out o' the warld than out o' fashion.

Better be sonsy than soon up.

Better be the head o' the commons than the tail o' the gentry.

"To reign is worth ambition, though in hell;
Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven."--_Milton._

Better be the lucky man than the lucky man's son.

Better bow to my faes than beg frae my friends.

Better buy than borrow.

Better cry "Feigh, saut," than "Feigh, stink."

The first can be remedied or improved in cooking; but a putrid
article cannot.

Better day the better deed.

Better do it than wish it done.

Better eat brown bread in youth than in eild.

Better fed than bred.

Better find iron than tine siller.

Better fleech a fool than fight him.

"'I have as much mind as ever I had to my dinner, to go back and
tell him to sort his horse himself, since he is as able as I am.'
'Hout tout, man!' answered Jasper, 'keep a calm sough: better to
fleech a fool than fight with him.'"--_The Monastery._

Better gang about than fa' in the dub.

Rather a long road and safety than a short one attended with danger.

Better gang to bed supperless than rise in debt.

Better gie the slight than tak it.

Better greet ower your gudes than after your gudes.

Meaning that it is better not to sell goods at all than to sell and
not be paid for them.

Better gude sale than gude ale.

Better guide weel than work sair.

Better hae than want.

Better hain weel than work sair.

Better half egg than toom doup.

"Better half an egg than empty shells."--_German._

Better half hang'd than ill married.

Better hand loose nor bound to an ill bakie.

"_Bakie_, the stake to which an ox or cow is bound to the
stall."--_Jamieson._

Better hands loose than in an ill tethering.

Better happy at court than in gude service.

Better haud at the brim than at the bottom.

Better haud by a hair than draw by a tether.

Better haud out than put out.

"Prevention is better than cure."--_English._

Better haud wi' the hounds than rin wi' the hare.

The policy of the Vicar of Bray. It is better to side with the
strongest or winning party.

Better keep the deil out than hae to put him out.

Better keep weel than make weel.

Better lang little than soon naething.

Better late thrive than never do weel.

Better laugh at your ain pint stoup, than greet and gather gear.

It is better to be merry spending money, than sorrowful acquiring
it.

Better learn frae your neebor's skaith than frae your ain.

Learn experience rather from the misfortunes of others than from
your own.

Better leave to my faes than beg frae my friends.

Better leave than lack.

That it is better to have too much of some things than too little.

Better live in hope than die in despair.

Better marry ower the midden than ower the muir.

Rather marry among those whom you know than go among strangers for a
wife. "Marry over the mixon, and you will know who and what she
is."--_German._ "Your wife and your nag get from a
neighbour."--_Italian._

Better master ane than fight wi' ten.

Better my bairns seek frae me than I beg frae them.

Better my friends think me fremit than fashious.

Better visit friends seldom than so often as to prove troublesome.

Better nae ring nor the ring o' a rash.

Better ne'er begun than ne'er ended.

Better ower 't than in 't.

Better beyond the fear of danger than in it.

Better plays the fu' wame than the new coat.

A man may be well dressed but still have a hungry belly, and _vice
versa_. He that has the "fu' wame" is the more likely to be in good
spirits.

Better rough an' sonsy than bare an' donsy.

It is better to be rough in manners, if coupled with prosperous
circumstances, than be "genteel" and at the same time poverty
stricken.

Better rue sit than rue flit.

Better not remove at all than do so and then regret it.

"Didna I see when gentle Geordie was seeking to get other folk out
of the Tolbooth forby Jocky Porteous? but ye are of my mind,
hinny--better sit and rue, than flit and rue--ye needna look in my
face sae amazed. I ken mair things than that, maybe."--_Heart of
Midlothian._

Better saucht wi' little aucht than care wi' mony cows.

Better comfort and peace of mind with little, than care and
contention with much.

Better saut than sour.

Better say "Here it is" than "Here it was."

Better short and sweet than lang and lax.

Better sit idle than work for nought.

Better sit still than rise an' fa'.

Better skaith saved than mends made.

Better that offence should not be given than committed and then
apologized for.

Better sma' fish than nane.

Better soon as syne.

"I tell'd your honour a while syne, that it was lang that I hae been
thinking o' flitting, may be as lang as frae the first year I came
to Osbaldistone Hall; and now I'm o' the mind to gang in gude
earnest--better soon as syne--better a finger aff as aye
wagging."--_Rob Roy._

Better spared than ill spent.

Better speak bauldly out than aye be grumphin'.

If a complaint requires to be made, make it openly and
straightforwardly, instead of continuing to fret about it in an
indirect manner.

Better the barn filled than the bed.

Because a full barn denotes prosperity, a full bed trouble.

Better the end o' a feast than the beginning o' a fray.

Better the mother wi' the pock, than the faither wi' the sack.

"The mother, though in a low condition, will be more kindly to, and
more careful of, orphans, than the father can be, though in a
better."--_Kelly._

Better the ill ken'd than the gude unken'd.

Better the nag that ambles a' the day than him that makes a brattle for a mile and then's dune wi' the road.

Better thole a grumph than a sumph.

Be troubled rather by an intelligent, though surly man, than by a
stupid one.

Better tine life than gude fame.

"I might hae fled frae this Tolbooth on that awfu' night wi' ane wha
wad hae carried me through the warld, and friended me, and fended
for me. But I said to them, Let life gang when gude fame is gane
before it."--_Heart of Midlothian._

Better tine your joke than tine your friend.

Better to haud than draw.

Better to rule wi' the gentle hand than the strang.

Better twa skaiths than ae sorrow.

"Losses may be repaired, but sorrow will break the heart and ruin
the constitution."--_Kelly._

Better unkind than ower cumbersome.

Better unmarried than ill married.

Better wade back mid water than gang forward and drown.

Rather withdraw from a bargain or position found likely to prove bad
or dangerous than proceed with either in hopes of improvement.

Better wait on cooks than leeches.

Better wear shoon than wear sheets.

Better you laugh than I greet.

Meaning, I would rather be ridiculed for not doing a thing, than do
it and be sorry for it.

Better your feet slip than your tongue.

Between Martinmas and Yule, water's wine in every pool.

Between the deil and the deep sea.

Between two extremes equally dangerous.

"I fell into Claverhouse's party when I was seeking for some o' our
ain folk to help ye out o' the hands o' the whigs; sae, being atween
the deil and the deep sea, I e'en thought it best to bring him on
wi' me, for he'll be wearied wi' felling folk the night, and the
morn's a new day."--_Old Mortality._

Between three and thirteen, thraw the woodie when it's green.

Train the minds and principles of children when young.

Between you and the lang day be'it.

Be what ye seem and seem what ye are.

Bid a man to a roast and stick him wi' the spit.

Pretend to show kindness to a man while your intention is to injure
him.

Bide weel, betide weel.

Wait well or patiently and you will fare well; or at least as well
as those who are hasty.

Biggin and bairns marrying are arrant wasters.

"Building is a sweet impoverishing."--_Spanish._

Bind the sack ere it be fou.

Do not tax any person or thing to the utmost.

Birds o' a feather flock thegither.

Birk will burn be it burn drawn; sauch will sab if it were simmer sawn.

Literally, wood will burn even if drawn through water, and the
willow will droop if sown out of season. Figuratively, natural will
and inclination will predominate and exhibit themselves, although
submitted to the most antagonistic influences.

Birth's gude but breeding's better.

Bitter jests poison friendship.

Black's my apron, and I'm aye washing 't.

When a man has got a bad character, although he may endeavour to
redeem it, he will find great difficulty in doing so.

Black will tak nae ither hue.

Blaw the wind ne'er sae fast, it will lown at the last.

Blind horse rides hardy to the fecht.

"Who so bold as blind Bayard?"--_French._

Blind men shouldna judge o' colours.

Blue and better blue.

"That is, there may be difference between things of the same kind
and persons of the same station."--_Kelly._

Blue's beauty, red's a taiken, green's grief, and yellow's forsaken.

Examples of the "Poetry of colour."

Blue is love true.

Bluid's thicker than water.

"'Weel, weel,' said Mr Jarvie, 'bluid's thicker than water; and it
liesna in kith, kin, and ally, to see motes in ilk other's een if
other een see them no.'"--_Rob Roy._

Bode a robe and wear it, bode a pock and bear it.

According as our aspirations are high or low, so do we succeed or
fail. "As you make your bed, so you must lie on it."

Bode for a silk gown and ye'll get a sleeve o't.

That is, if we "bode" or earnestly wish for an article or result, we
will get at least something approaching to it. An Aberdeenshire
parallel to this is, "They never bodet a house o' gowd, but aye got
a caber o't."

Bode gude and get it.

Boden gear stinks.

The theory of the fox and grapes.

Bonnet aside! how sell you your maut?

Bonny birds are aye the warst singers.

Bonny sport, to fare weel and pay nothing for't.

"Diogenes is said to have thought that the best wine which cost him
nothing."--_Kelly._

Bourdna wi' bawty lest he bite ye.

Bourdna wi' my e'e nor wi' mine honour.

Do not jest or trifle with subjects of delicacy, character, &c.

Bread and cheese is gude to eat when folk can get nae ither meat.

Bread and milk is bairns' meat: I wish them sorrow that loe it.

Bread's house skail'd never.

A full or hospitable house never wants visitors.

Break my head and syne draw on my how.

Breeding wives are aye beddie.

Bridal feasts are soon forgotten.

Broken bread maks batet bairns.

Broken friendships may be souther'd, but never sound.

Burnt bairns dread the fire.

Busy folk are aye meddling.

But middlin' bonny, like Boles' gudemither.

Butter and burn trouts are kittle meat for maidens.

Butter's king o' a' creesh.

Butter to butter's nae kitchen.

Like to like is no improvement or relish.

Buy a thief frae the widdie and he'll help to hang ye.

"Save a rogue from the gallows, and he will hang you up."--_French._

Buy friendship wi' presents, and it will be bought frae you.

Buy in the market and sell at hame.

Buy what you dinna want and ye'll sell what you canna spare.

By chance a cripple may grip a hare.

By doing naething we learn to do ill.

Ca' a cow to the ha' and she'll rin to the byre.

"Set a frog on a golden stool;
Off it goes again to the pool."--_German._

Ca' again: you're no a ghaist.

An intimation that your visits are agreeable.

Ca' canny and flee laigh.

Ca' canny, and ye'll break nae graith.

Literally, drive slowly, and you will not overstrain the harness.

Ca' canny, lad, ye're but a new-come cooper.

A caution to those who are new or inexpert at an occupation,--a hint
that more experience or information is desirable.

Cadgers are aye cracking o' creels.

Cadgers hae aye mind of lade saddles.

The conversation of most men turns more or less on their own
business.

Caff and draff is gude eneuch for aivers.

Chaff and draff, _i.e._, brewers' grains, are good enough for
horses. Common food suits common people.

Can do is easily carried.

"At this moment the door opened, and the voice of the officious
Andrew was heard,--'A'm bringin' in the caunles--ye can light them
gin ye like--can do is easily carried about wi' ane.'"--_Rob Roy._

Ca'ing names breaks nae banes.

"Sticks and stanes 'll break my banes,
But names will never hurt me."--_Schoolboy Rhyme._

Ca' me what ye like, but dinna ca' me ower.

Canna has nae craft.

To an unwilling person, or one who will _not_ learn, instruction is
of little or no use.

Canny stretch, soon reach.

Care will kill a cat, yet there's nae living without it.

Careless folk are aye cumbersome.

Carena would hae mair.

"Carena" refers here to an answer that may be construed into either
"yes" or "no," and is treated accordingly. "'I don't want it, I
don't want it,' says the friar; 'but drop it into my
hood.'"--_Spanish._

Carles and aivers win a'; carles and aivers spend a'.

"Servants' wages, buying and keeping of horses, and purchasing other
utensils, eat up the product of a farm."--_Kelly._

Carrick for a man, Kyle for a cow, Cunningham for corn and ale, and Galloway for woo'.

"This old rhyme points out what each of the three districts of
Ayrshire, and the neighbouring territory of Galloway, were
remarkable for producing in greatest perfection. The mountainous
province of Carrick produced robust men; the rich plains of Kyle
reared the famous breed of cattle now generally termed the Ayrshire
breed; and Cunningham was a good arable district. The hills of
Galloway afford pasture to an abundance of sheep."--_Robert
Chambers._

Carry saut to Dysart and puddings to Tranent.

This proverb, the meaning of which is obvious enough, is paralleled
in all languages. The English say, "To carry coals to Newcastle."
The French and German suggest that it is not necessary "To send
water to the sea." The French also say, "To carry leaves to the
wood;" and the Dutch are wise enough not "To send fir to Norway."
Neither will the Asiatic "Carry blades to Damascus."

Cast a bane in the deil's teeth.

Cast a cat ower the house and she'll fa' on her feet.

Cast nae snawba's wi' him.

That is, do not trust him too much; he is churlish or dangerous.

Cast not a clout till May be out.

Cast the cat ower him.

"It is believed that when a man is raging in a fever, the cat cast
ower him will cure him; applied to them whom we hear telling
extravagant things, as if they were raving."--_Kelly._

Cast ye ower the house riggin', and ye'll fa' on your feet.

"Throw him in the Nile, and he will rise with a fish in his mouth,"
says the Arab; and we have met somewhere with this saying, that "If
he lost a penny he would find a ducat."

Castna out the dowed water till ye get the clean.

Cat after kind.

Cats and carlins sit i' the sun, but fair maidens sit within.

A rhyming intimation that exposure to the sun is not favourable to
beauty.

Cats eat what hussies spare.

Cauld grows the love that kindles ower het.

Cauld kail het again is aye pat tasted.

Cauld kail het again, that I liked never; auld love renewed again, that I liked ever.

Cauld parritch are sooner het than new anes made.

Cauld water scauds daws.

Chalk's no shears.

"Taken from tailors marking out their cloth before they cut it,
signifying that a thing may be proposed that will never be
executed."--_Kelly._

Change o' deils is lightsome.

Change your friend ere ye hae need.

Changes are lightsome, and fools like them.

Changes o' wark is lightening o' hearts.

Charge nae mair shot than the piece 'll bear.

Charity begins at hame, but shouldna end there.

Cheatery game will aye kythe.

"Kythe," to appear. That is, cheatery or evil-doing will almost
invariably come to light. A qualified version of the English saying,
"Murder will out."

Choose your wife on Saturday, not on Sunday.

This saying suggests that a wife should rather be chosen for her
good qualities and usefulness, which are seen in her daily labours,
than for her fine dress or her Sunday manners.

Claw for claw, as Conan said to the deil.

"In the Irish ballads relating to Fion (the Fingal of MacPherson),
there occurs, as in the primitive poetry of most nations, a cycle of
heroes, each of whom has some distinguishing attribute; upon these
qualities, and the adventures of those possessing them, many
proverbs are formed, which are still current in the Highlands. Among
other characters, Conan is distinguished as in some respects a kind
of Thersites, but brave and daring even to rashness. He had made a
vow that he would never take a blow without returning it; and
having, like other heroes of antiquity, descended to the infernal
regions, he received a cuff from the archfiend who presided there,
which he instantly returned: hence the proverb."--_Sir Walter Scott,
Note to Waverley._

Claw me and I'll claw thee.

Speak well of me and I will speak well of thee, whether, we presume,
it is deserved or not.

Clawing and eating needs but a beginning.

Clean pith and fair play.

Clear in the south beguiled the cadger.

Cadgers (beggars, or gipsy pedlars), from their out-of-door
experience, are allowed to be good judges of coming weather. The
proverb means that even the best judges may be occasionally mistaken
in their opinions. The one following is of similar import.

Clear in the south drown'd the ploughman.

Clecking time's aye canty time.

Good cheer and mirth in the house when a birth has taken place.

"'Perhaps,' said Mannering, 'at such a time a stranger's arrival
might be inconvenient?' 'Hout, na, ye needna be blate about that;
their house is muckle enough, and clecking time's aye canty
time.'"--_Guy Mannering._

Clippet sheep will grow again.

Clout upon a hole is gude gentry, clout upon a clout is gude yeomanry, but clout upon a clouted clout is downricht beggary.

"Facetiously spoken to those who quarrel with a patch about
you."--_Kelly._

Come a' to Jock Fool's house and ye'll get bread and cheese.

Spoken sarcastically of those who invite every person
indiscriminately to dine or sup with them.

Come day, go day, God send Sunday.

"Spoken to lazy, unconscionable servants, who only mind to serve out
their time, and get their wages."--_Kelly._

Come it air, or come it late, in May will come the cow-quake.

Come not to council unbidden.

"Thair is a sentence said be sum,
Let nane uncalled to counsell cum,
That welcum weins to be;
Zet I haif hard anither zit,
Quha cum uncallt, unserved suld sit,
Perhaps, sir, sae may ze."--_Cherrie and the Slae._

Come unca'd, sits unserved.

Come when ye are ca'd and ye'll no be chidden.

Come wi' the wind and gang wi' the water.

Common saw sindle lies.

Common fame seldom lies; but another proverb says, "Common fame is a
common liar."

Condition makes, condition breaks.

Confess and be hang'd, and syne your servant, smith.

Confess debt and crave days.

Confess'd faut is half amends.

Content's nae bairn o' wealth.

Contentibus, quo' Tammy Tamson, kiss my wife, and welcome.

"Spoken facetiously when we comply with a project."--_Kelly._

Corbies and clergy are kittle shot.

Corbies dinna gather without they smell carrion.

"Where the carrion is, there do the eagles gather."--_Danish._

Corbies dinna pike out corbies' een.

One rogue does not wrong another. "Crows do not peck out crows'
eyes."--_Portuguese._

Corn him weel, he'll work the better.

Counsel is nae command.

"Quod _Danger_, Sen I understand
That counsell can be nae command,
I have nae mair to say,
Except gif that he thocht it good;
Tak counsell zit or ze conclude
Of wyser men nor they."--_Cherrie and the Slae._

Count again is no forbidden.

Count like Jews and 'gree like brithers.

Count siller after a' your kin.

Courtesy is cumbersome to him that kens it na.

Crabbit was and cause hadna.

Crab without a cause, mease without mends.

That is, if you are peevish and ill-pleased without cause, you must
regain your good nature without amends.

Craft maun hae claes, but truth gaes naked.

Credit is better than ill-won gear.

Credit keeps the crown o' the causey.

Creep before ye gang.

"Ye will never make your bread that way, Maister Francie. Ye suld
munt up a muckle square of canvass, like Dick Tinto, and paint
folk's ainsells, that they like muckle better to see than ony craig
in the haill water; and I wadna muckle objeck even to some of the
Wallers coming up and sitting to ye. They waste their time war, I
wis--and, I warrant, ye might mak a guinea a-head of them. Dick made
twa, but he was an auld used hand, and folk maun creep before they
gang."--_St Ronan's Well._

Cripples are aye better planners than workers.

Cripples are aye great doers--break your leg and try.

People who are always very ready to give advice are generally slow
in giving assistance.

"Crookit carlin," quo' the cripple to his wife.

"Oh wad some power the giftie gie us
To see oursels as others see us!
It wad frae mony a blunder free us,
And foolish notion."--_Burns._

Cry a' at ance, that's the way to be served.

Curses mak the tod fat.

So long as he is cursed only, not hunted, does he thrive; for "A
curse will not strike out an eye unless the fist go with
it."--_Danish._

Cut your coat according to your cloth.

Daffin' and want o' wit maks auld wives donnart.

"Daffin'" is defined by Ramsay as "folly in general;" so the proverb
means that foolish conduct in the aged is inconsistent or "donnart,"
_i.e._, stupid.

Daffin' does naething.

Playing accomplishes nothing.

Daily wearing needs yearly beiting.

Literally, clothes that are worn daily, require to be renewed
annually.

Dame, deem warily, ye watna wha wytes yoursel.

"Deemer," one who judges.--_Jamieson._ That is, judge other people
cautiously; we know not who blames ourselves.

Dammin' and lavin' is gude sure fishing.

"'Dammin' and lavin',' a low poaching mode of catching fish in
rivulets, by _damming_ and diverting the course of the stream, and
then _laving_ or throwing out the water, so as to get at the devoted
prey."--_Jamieson._

Danger past, God forgotten.

Daughters and dead fish are kittle keeping wares.

A suggestion that daughters should be married, and dead fish eaten,
otherwise they will both spoil on the hands of their possessors.
"Daughters are brittle ware."--_Dutch._ "Marry your son when you
will, and your daughter when you can."--_Spanish._

Daughters pay nae debts.

Dawted bairns can bear little.

Dawted daughters mak daidling wives.

Daughters who have been too much indulged or petted at home before
marriage make but indifferent wives.

Daylight will peep through a sma' hole.

Dead men are free men.

Dead men do nae harm.

Deal sma' and ser' a'.

Death and drink-draining are near neighbours.

In allusion to the drinking usages formerly common at burials.

Death and marriage break term-day.

Death at ae door and heirship at the other.

Death comes in and speirs nae questions.

"Death does not blow a trumpet."--_Danish._

Death defies the doctor.

Death pays a' scores.

Death's gude proof.

Deil be in the house that ye're beguiled in.

A compliment, meaning that a person is so shrewd that no less a
person than his Satanic majesty can deceive him.

Deil be in the pock that ye cam in.

Deil mend ye if your leg were broken.

The two last sayings are directly opposed to the preceding one, as
they wish all manner of evil to the agencies that bring any
particular person, whose presence is disagreeable.

Deil speed them that speir, and ken fu' weel.

That is, shame befall those who ask questions upon subjects with
which they are perfectly well acquainted; and who, by cross
questioning, &c., lead people to commit themselves.

Deil stick pride--my dog died o't.

Deil's in our bairns: they'll no bed when their belly's fu'.

"Spoken with indignation, when people who are already well enough
cannot hold themselves so, or be satisfied."--_Kelly._

Delays are dangerous.

Did ye ever fit counts wi' him?

Do not boast of your friend, or consider his friendship too
stedfast, until you have had money transactions with him.

Diet cures mair than doctors.

Ding doon Tantallan, and big a road to the Bass.

Ding down the nest, and the rooks will flee away.

"Destroy the places where villains shelter, and they will disperse.
This proverb was unhappily apply'd at the Reformation to the
destroying of many stately cathedrals and collegiate
churches."--_Kelly._

Dinna bow to bawtie, lest he bite.

Be careful how you are familiar with your superiors. "Too much
familiarity breeds contempt."

Dinna cast awa' the cog when the cow flings.

Do not throw away the milking pail if the cow should kick it over:
do not be discouraged if a misfortune should occur.

Dinna dry the burn because it may wat your feet.

Do not remove a public good or convenience because of an individual
objection.

Dinna empty your ain mouth to fill other folk's.

Dinna gut your fish till ye get them.

This saying is common to many countries. "Don't cry herrings till
they are in the net."--_Dutch._ "Don't sell the bearskin before you
have caught the bear."--_Italian._ "Unlaid eggs are uncertain
chickens."--_German._

Dinna lee for want o' news.

Dinna lift me before I fa'.

"'Weel, I've keepit a house this mony a year, and I never heard o'
warm plates to a hot dinner before.' 'Then you refuse to give us
them?' 'By no manner o' means, Dr Seggie, so ye needna lift folks
before they fa'--you're welcome to any plates you please; and a'
that I have to say is, that the langer a body lives they see the
mair ferlies.'"--_Laird of Logan._

Dinna meddle wi' the deil and the laird's bairns.

Dinna scaud your mouth wi' other folk's kail.

Be cautious in interfering with the affairs of neighbours or
strangers.

Dinna sigh for him, but send for him: if he's unhanged he'll come.

Do not speak about a thing, or wish it done, but do it. "Talking is
easier than doing, and promising than performing."--_German._

Dinna speak o' a raip to a chield whase father was hanged.

Dinna straik against the hair.

"Ony way, I wadna hae liked to have offended Mr Treddles; he was a
wee toustie when you rubbed him again the hair--but a kind,
weel-meaning man."--_The Highland Widow._

Dinna stretch your arm farther than your sleeve 'ill let ye.

"'I'll no let ye rest if ye dinna mak me a bailie's wife or a' be
done.' I was not ill pleased to hear Mrs Pawkie so spiritful; but I
replied, 'Dinna try to stretch your arm, gudewife, farther than your
sleeve will let you; we maun ca' canny mony a day yet before we
think of dignities.'"--_The Provost._

Dinna tell your fae when your foot sleeps.

Dinna touch him on the sair heel.

Do not speak to him on a subject on which he is known to be
sensitive.

Dirt bodes luck.

Dirt defies the king.

Dirt parts gude company.

Dit your mouth wi' your meat.

"Dit," close. A suggestion intended to put a stop to idle
conversation.

Do a man a good turn, and he'll never forgie you.

"'Are you mad?' cried Bryce Snailsfoot, 'you that lived sae lang in
Zetland to risk the saving of a drowning man? Wot ye not, if you
bring him to life again, he will be sure to do you some capital
injury?'"--_The Pirate._

Do as the cow o' Forfar did, tak a stannin' drink.

"A cow in passing a door in Forfar, where a tub of ale had been
placed to cool, drank the whole of it. The owner of the ale pursued
the proprietor of the cow for the value of the ale; but a learned
bailie, in giving his decision, decreed, that since the ale was
drank by the cow while standing at the door, it must be considered
_deoch an dorius_, or stirrup cup, for which no charge could be
made, without violating the ancient hospitality of Scotland."--_Sir
Walter Scott, Note to Waverley._

Do as the lasses do--say No, but tak it.

"Maids, in modesty, say 'No' to that which they would have the
profferer construe 'Ay.'"--_Shakespeare._

Do as the miller's wife o' Newlands did--she took what she had and she never wanted.

Dogs and bairns are fain o' fools.

That is, fools attract the attention of children and dogs.

Dogs bark as they are bred.

Dogs will redd swine.

"Redd," is here used in the sense of to put in order.

Dolour pays nae debts.

Dool and an ill life soon mak an auld wife.

"Sorrow and an evil life maketh soon an old wife."--_English._

Do on the hill as ye wad do in the ha'.

Let your private character be consistent with your public one.

Do't by guess, as the blind man fell'd the dog.

Do the likeliest and hope the best.

Double charges rive cannons.

That is, surfeits are dangerous; but the proverb which follows
shows, as usual, that there is no rule without an exception.

Double drinks are gude for drouth.

Do weel, an' doubt nae man; do ill, an' doubt a' men.

Do weel and dread nae shame.

Do weel and hae weel.

Do what ye ought and come what can; think o' ease, but work on.

The first clause of this is common to many countries; but as the
second only occurs in Henderson's collection, we suspect it is an
addition of his own.

Do what ye ought, and let come what will.

Do your turn weel, and nane will speir what time ye took.

Meaning, that work should rather be done well than quickly.

Draff he sought, but drink was his errand.

That is, while pretending to ask for one thing, his great object was
to get another.

Draff is gude enough for swine.

Dree out the inch when ye have tholed the span.

Since you have suffered patiently, or submitted to injustice for a
long time, bear on quietly when there is a prospect of early relief.

Driest wood will eithest lowe.

Drink and drouth come na aye thegither.

Drink little, that ye may drink lang.

Drive the swine through't.

"You should sift Jamie's tender passion--that's the novelle-name for
calf-love; and if it's within the compass o' a possibility, get the
swine driven through't, or it may work us a' muckle dule, as his
father's moonlight marriage did to your ain, worthy man!"--_The
Entail._

Drunk at e'en and dry in the morning.

Drunk folk seldom tak harm.

The French say, "God helps three kinds of people: fools, children,
and drunkards;" and another of our own states that "God's aye kind
to fu' folk and bairns."

Dry bargains bode ill.

A bargain in times gone by was not "lucky," unless ratified by a
drink.

Dummie canna lee.

Dunse dings a'.

"It may be mentioned that this is only the opinion which the people
of Dunse entertain of the town, as their neighbours, in general,
scout the idea with great indignation."--_Robert Chambers._ There
are several local additions to this saying, such as "Dunse dings a'
for braw lads and drucken wives;" "for gude yill and bonnie lasses,"
&c.

Eagles catch nae fleas.

Spoken of conceited people who affect disdain for petty details.

Eagles flee alane, but sheep herd thegither.

Early birds catch the worms.

Early crooks the tree, that good cammock should be.

Early maister, lang servant.

Early sow, early mow.

East or west, hame is best.

East and wast, the sign o' a blast; north and south, the sign o' a drouth.

Easy learning the cat the road to the kirn.

When the natural inclination tends towards any particular subject,
it assists the learner greatly.

Eat and welcome--fast and twice as welcome.

Eaten meat is ill to pay.

"Eaten bread is soon forgotten."--_Italian._

Eating, drinking, and cleaning need but a beginning.

Eat in measure and defy the doctor.

Eat peas wi' the prince and cherries wi' the chapman.

Eats meat, an's never fed; wear claes, an's never cled.

Of some people it may be said, that "they put their meat in an ill
skin;" for, notwithstanding that they live well, they appear always
thin and hungry, and not at all, to use a Scotticism, "like their
meat." Some people are equally unfortunate with regard to their
clothing; always amply dressed, they seem the very reverse.

Eat till ye sweat and work till ye freeze.

Eat-weel's Drink-weel's brither.

Signifying that good drinking must necessarily go hand in hand with
good eating.

Eat your fill and pouch nane, is gardener's law.

E'en as ye won't, sae ye may wear't.

As you won it, so you may wear it; applied either in a good or bad
sense.

E'ening grey and a morning red, put on your hat or ye'll weet your head.

E'ening orts are gude morning's fodder.

"Orts," rejected provender. Meaning that a thing which is rejected
or despised at present may be acceptable or valuable at another
time.

E'ening red an' a morning grey is taiken sure o' a bonnie day.

E'en pickle in your ain pock-neuk.

"'Ye'll find the stane breeks and the iron garters--ay, and the hemp
cravat, for a' that, neighbour,' replied the bailie. 'Nae man in a
civilised country ever played the pliskies ye hae done; but e'en
pickle in your ain pock-neuk--I hae gi'en ye warning.'"--_Rob Roy._

Eident youth maks easy age.

"Industry is the parent of fortune."--_German._

Eild and poortith are a sair burden for ae back.

"Eild and poortith," age and poverty. "Poverty on an old man's back
is a heavy burden."--_English._

Eild and poortith's sair to thole.

This saying is of similar import to the preceding one. Literally,
age and poverty are hard to bear.

Eild should hae honour.

Either live or die wi' honour.

Either prove a man or a mouse.

Either win the horse or tine the saddle.

Win the horse or lose the saddle. "Neck or nothing."

Eith keeping the castle that's no besieged.

"It is easy to sit at the helm in fair weather."--_Danish._

Eith learned soon forgotten.

"Easy come, easy go."--_English._

Eith to that thy ain heart wills.

Eith working when will's at hame.

The two preceding maxims have a similar meaning to the French
sayings, that "Will is power;" and "A willing heart helps work."
"Where the will is ready the feet are light."--_German._

Ell and tell is gude merchandise.

Ell and tell is ne'er forgotten, and the best pay's on the peck bottom.

"Ell and tell," if we mistake not, refers to good measure and prompt
payment; and the latter saying may be construed thus:--The grain is
emptied from the "peck" measure, the measure is inverted, and
payment for the grain is "told" on the bottom of it.

Enough's as gude as a feast.

Enough's enough o' bread and cheese.

Meaning, that too much of one thing is not good. The French and
Dutch say, "Enough is better than too much," while the Italians are
of opinion that "Enough is enough, and too much spoils."

Envy shoots at a high mark.

Even stands his cap the day, for a' that.

"It took its rise from a minister in our country, who, in a sermon
preached most fiercely against the supremacy of the Pope, at the
conclusion said, 'Even stands his cap for all that I have said,
drinking good Romany wine this day.' Applied when we signify that
all we can say against any great man can do him no harm."--_Kelly._

Ever busy, ever bare.

"Great cry and little wool."--_English._

Every ane loups the dyke where it's laighest.

Every one leaps the wall at the lowest part,--a man may "loup the
dyke" by oppressing those who are unable to resist.

Every bird thinks its ain nest best.

Every cock craws crousiest on his ain midden head.

"Every cock crows loudest on his own dunghill," is a saying common
to all nations.

Every craw thinks his ain bird whitest.

All think well of their own offspring. "Every mother's child is
handsome," say the Germans. They also have, "No ape but swears he
has the finest children."

Every day is no Yule day; cast the cat a castock.

The first half of this proverb is used literally by the Italians and
Dutch. A "castock" is the stalk or core of a cabbage.

Every dog has its day.

Every dud bids anither gude-day.

Every fault has its fore.

Every flow has its ebb.

Every Jack will find a Jill.

"'Never you fash your thumb about that, Maister Francie,' returned
the landlady with a knowing wink, 'every Jack will find a Jill, gang
the world as it may; and, at the warst o't, better hae some fashery
in finding a partner for the night, than get yoked with ane that you
may not be able to shake off the morn.'"--_St Ronan's Well._

Every land has its laigh; every corn has its ain caff.

Meaning that everything may be found fault with; and silly
objections be raised against the most valuable and useful things.

Every man bows to the bush he gets beild frae.

"Every one pays court to him who gives him protection."--_Jamieson._

Every man buckles his belt his ain gate.

Every man does his work after his own fashion.

Every man can guide an ill wife weel but him that has her.

Every man can tout best on his ain horn.

"Tout," to blow. Meaning, that every man knows best how to tell his
own story.

Every man for himself, and God for us a'.

Every man for his own hand, as Henry Wynd fought.

"Two great clans fought out a quarrel with thirty men of a side, in
presence of the king, on the North Inch of Perth, on or about the
year 1392; a man was amissing on one side, whose room was filled by
a little bandy-legged citizen of Perth. This substitute, Henry
Wynd--or, as the Highlanders called him, _Gow Chrom_, that is, the
bandy-legged smith--fought well, and contributed greatly to the fate
of the battle, without knowing which side he fought on;--so, 'To
fight for your ain hand, like Henry Wynd,' passed into a
proverb."--_Sir Walter Scott, Note to Rob Roy._

Every man has his ain bubbly-jock.

Every man has his ain draff poke, though some hang eider than others.

The two last sayings are similar in meaning, viz., that every man
has his imperfections or faults. The latter qualifies the proverb by
admitting that in some these appear more prominently than in others.

Every man kens best where his ain sair lies.

Every man kens best where his ain shoe binds him.

Every man's blind to his ain cause.

Every man's man had a man, and that gar'd the Threave fa'.

"The Threave was a strong castle belonging to the Black Douglases.
The governor left a deputy, and he a substitute, by whose negligence
the castle was taken."--_Kelly._

Every man's no born wi' a siller spoon in his mouth.

Every man's nose winna be a shoeing horn.

Certain things can only be used for certain purposes.

Every man's tale's gude till anither's tauld.

Every man thinks his ain craw blackest.

"Every man to his ain trade," quo' the browster to the bishop.

Every man to his taste, as the man said when he kiss'd his cow.

Every maybe hath a may not be.

Every miller wad weise the water to his ain mill.

"Every miller draws the water to his own mill."--_English._

Every play maun be played, and some maun be the players.

Every shoe fits not every foot.

Every sow to her ain trough.

People should keep their own place; or, according to Ray, "Every man
should support himself, and not hang upon another."

Everything has a beginning.

Everything has an end, and a pudding has twa.

Everything has its time, and sae has a rippling-kame.

"Rippling-kame," a coarse comb used in the preparation of flax. The
proverb means that there is a time _proper_ for everything.

Everything is the waur o' the wear.

That is, worse for wearing.

Everything wad fain live.

Every wight has his weird, and we maun a' dee when our day comes.

Evil words cut mair than swords.

Experience keeps a dear school, but fools will learn in nae ither.

Facts are chiels that winna ding.

Faint heart ne'er wan fair lady.

Fair an' foolish, black an' proud, lang an' lazy, little an' loud.

How far this proverb is borne out by fact is certainly open to
question. It appears in Ray's collection as English, and as a remark
upon it he says, "Beauty and folly do often go hand in hand, and are
often matched together."

Fair and softly gangs far.

"Who goes softly goes safely, and he that goes safely goes
far."--_Italian._

Fair exchange is nae robbery.

Fair fa' gude drink, for it gars folk speak as they think.

"Fair fa'," well betide; good luck to. This is the Scotch version of
the common saying, "When the wine is in, the wit is out;" or, "What
is in the heart of the sober man is on the tongue of the drunken
man."--_Latin._

"Leeze me on drink! it gi'es us mair
Than either school or college,
It kindles wit, it waukens lair,
It pangs us fu' o' knowledge:
Be't whisky gill, or penny wheep,
Or ony stronger potion,
It never fails, on drinking deep,
To kittle up our notion,
By night or day."--_Burns._

Fair fa' the wife, and weel may she spin, that counts aye the lawin' wi' a pint to come in.

Literally, good luck to the hostess who includes a pint _still to
come_ when the reckoning is called for. This saying, so far as we
can discover, is exclusively Scottish.

Fair fa' you, and that's nae fleaching.

"Fleach," to flatter. A good wish sincerely expressed.

Fair folk are aye foisonless.

Kelly says of the word "foisonless," that it means "without strength
or sap; dried up; withered." Scott, in _Old Mortality_, uses it in
the moral sense, "unsubstantial."

Fair gae they, fair come they, and aye their heels hindmost.

Meaning that they go and come regularly, decently, and in order.

Fair hair may hae foul roots.

Fair hechts mak fools fain.