Wedderburn book; a history of the Wedderburns in ... - waughfamily.ca

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16 THE WEDDERBURN BOOK.
Part I. Sect. III.— His third .son, Ruhert Weddfrhum, Vicar of Dundef. His claim, to the
Chap. I.
authorship of " The Comj.laynt of Scotland." His d>'sceiidai,ts in Dundee and at
Burntisland. Hin male line extinct.
RoberfWedderburn, Vicar of Dundee [1503-10?— 1555-60]. ^ I have already,
in the preceding; section of this chapter, ;,'iveu Calderwood's account of Robert
- Wedderbuni, and alhuled both to liis share in the Gude and Godlie Baltates, and to hia
claim to the authorshi[) of the famous Compluynt of Scotland. Mr. Lain" thinks that if
Johnston's expression " trcs paribus studiis. trcs pietate pares" may be taken to mean that
each of tlie tiiroe brothei-a liad a share in the former work, it is to Robert, the Vicar, tiiat
we should assign tiic adaptations or parodies of secular songs. There seems, however,
little reason to press Joiuiston's lino to such a meaning. As well might we insist that each
of the three brothera had .a share in the Complaijnt, and far more reasonably mav we take
the line as referring to the l)lays of James, the psalms of .lohu, and the Compl'aynt of Robert.
That Robert's share in the (Jude and Gudlie Ballates was small is farther clear from
the prefatoj-y " Epistil " in The Complaynt in which he speaks of that work as beino- " ane
tracteit of the fyi-st laubir of my peu.' Mr. Maxwell, however, makes an interesting
suggestion as regards one of the poems. In the 1507 edition of the Gude and Godlie
Ballates, of which only one copy is known to exist, are some verses, which " stand apart
in subject and character from the other ballates," and which in the 1578 edition were
altered to a sacred strain. From the fact that, as we shall see, Robert Wedderburn,
although a priest, was at one time the lover of one Isobell Lovell,-aud by her the father
of two sons, legitimatized by the Crown, Mr. Maxwell assumes, and :—
one wishes it could be
proved, that he must be the author of this song. It is as follows
Welcuni fortoun ! welcuni agane ! Quhat suld I do and scho war gone ?
Ihe day and hour I may weill blia, Allace ! zit had I lever die.
Thcw has exilit all my paine,
Quhilk to my hart ^'reit plesour is.
To me scho is baith trew and kynde,
Worthie it war scho had the praise,
For I max say that few men may, For na disclane in hir I find,
Seing of paine 1 am (re-)drest,
I hest,
Bot onlie thuw, nane was, nor is.
For uiy tresspas, I seik no moir.