’Twas said I shunn’d thee, dearest, Ere hither I was borne; My kiss that I denied thee While leaving thee forlorn. Let no such tale, dear, grieve thee, Reject their speech with scorn; Thy breath to me smells sweeter Than dewy grass in morn. Some of the most popular songs are anonymous. _Ho-ro Eileinich_ belongs to this class, and is a great favourite at large Highland gatherings on account of the swinging character of the air and metre. Here are a few verses:— O, green island of the sea! Native home, I love but thee: Fairest fields of earth that be,— The bonnie braes of Landai. There afar I see Ardmore, Home of game that I adore; There my heart is evermore Among the hills of Landai. Thy dark brow though rocky be, Early shines the sun on thee; Heights of deer! I long to see Beyond the shore of Landai. Oft there fell beneath my hand, Spotted seal upon the sand; Snowy swans upon the strand, And heathcocks in fair Landai. O! I love thee, Islay green, Of my youthful days the scene; Where the best of men have been Who loved the songs of Landai. One of the finest songs in the language is _Muile nam Mor Bheann_, or Mull of the High Hills. On account of its peculiarity of metre, it does not lend itself readily to easy translation. Some of its verses run thus:— In Mull of the woods there lives the maiden For whom my poor heart is now love-laden: Though dead be that love like joys of Eden I woo no lasses in Cowal. CHORUS. All cheerless and lonely here I sorrow; No fond ray of hope is seen each morrow, My heart has refused fresh love to borrow; It turns to the wood-crowned island. Like beautiful sheen of rosy morning The glow of thy cheek is sweetly burning; The troth of my love if thou art spurning Soon linen and sods will shroud me. For thine is the charm that wins devotion The graces of form that wake emotion, As bright as the sea-gull on the ocean, Or cannach on brows of Morven. Were mine thy fond kiss I’d cease repining, Thy love would restore my health declining, O! let me behold the beauties shining Around the maiden of Morven. A glance into the _Oranaiche_ and other collections of Gaelic songs will reveal to the casual student of Gaelic literature what vast treasures of lyrics the language contains. These songs admirably exhibit the emotional lyrical spirit of the Gael, and leads us to much of the source of the genius of song which has rendered Scotland so deservedly renowned.