Handsome Nell, also known as 'Once I loved a bonie Lass'

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Song. - Tune, I am a man unmarried -
The following, Song is only valuable to those who would
wish to see the Author's first [page torn] in verse.- It
was composed when he was a few months more than
his sixteenth year. -

O once I lov'd a bonie lass,
Ay and I love her still;
And whilst that Honor warms my breast,
I love my handsome Nell.
Fal lal & c.

As bonie lasses I hae seen,
And monie full as braw;
 

But for a modest gracefu' mien,
The like I never saw.

A bonie lass, I will confess,
Is pleasant to the e'e;
But without some better qualities
She's no a lass for me.

But Nelly's looks are blyth and sweet,
Good-humor'd, frank and free;
And still the more I view them o'er.
The more they captive me.

A gaudy dress and gentle air
May [page torn] touch the heart;
But it's innocence and Modesty
That polishes the dart.

Tis this in Nelly pleases me,
Tis this enchants my soul;
For absolutely in my breast
She reigns without control.










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