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Document 651

Dipper: 39 - Some Cumnock Burns Club Presidents: 1982 - Sheriff David B. Smith

Author(s): John Reid

Copyright holder(s): John Reid

Text

III. SHERIFF DAVID B. SMITH 1982

Nae siller staur adorns his breist,
Nae weel-worn guns hing at his waist.
Scots shirras dinna need sic graith,
They dinna deal in life an daith,
But though denied the raip an aixe
This ane gies Killie's neds their paiks.

Frae early days at Paisley schule
He speiled the brae tae Gilmorehill
Tae gether lear an classic knowledge
Before gaun on tae Embro College
Tae learn Scots law, baith braid an nerra
- A haundy thing for ony shirra!
Frae there he donned the wig an goun
As advocate in Embro toun
He maun hae been ane o their best
Tae win promotion tae the west,
An nou ilk dyvour in Auld Killie
Has cause tae fear this bearded billie,
Forbye a wheen North Ayrshire sinners
He's sent tae pree Barlinnie dinners.

Whiles, on a day o weel-earned leisure,
The kintra-side will gie him pleesure,
'Mang hills an wids an flooers an ferns
Or watchin huidie-craws an herons.
But the roarin gemm's his favourite ploy,
The birlin stane his greatest joy,
An granite clints, he kens them aa,
Frae Ailsa Craig tae Rubislaw.
A curlin expert, dinna doot it,
He's even screived a book( *) aboot it!
He cairries aye a sneeshin-mull
- It clears the heid an spreids guid-will.

But nou his legal mind he turns
Tae judge the case o Robert Bums
- Nae hasty verdict, waled at random,
But weel threshed oot at avizandum.

* "Curling: An Illustrated History" by D.B.Smith (John Donald)
___
shirras/sheriffs
raip an aixe/rope and axe
paiks/deserts, punishment
speiled/climbed
Gilmorehill/site of Glasgow University
lear/learning
Embro College/Edinburgh University
nerra/narrow
dyvour/rogue,good-for-nothing
Killie/Kilmarnock
Barlinnie/well-known Glasgow prison
roarin gemm/curling
clint/rough curling stone
Rubislaw/granite quarry in Aberdeen
sneeshin-mull/snuff-box
avizandum/further consideration

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APA Style:

Dipper: 39 - Some Cumnock Burns Club Presidents: 1982 - Sheriff David B. Smith. 2024. In The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. Glasgow: University of Glasgow. Retrieved 30 October 2024, from http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=651.

MLA Style:

"Dipper: 39 - Some Cumnock Burns Club Presidents: 1982 - Sheriff David B. Smith." The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. Glasgow: University of Glasgow, 2024. Web. 30 October 2024. http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=651.

Chicago Style

The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech, s.v., "Dipper: 39 - Some Cumnock Burns Club Presidents: 1982 - Sheriff David B. Smith," accessed 30 October 2024, http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=651.

If your style guide prefers a single bibliography entry for this resource, we recommend:

The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. 2024. Glasgow: University of Glasgow. http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk.

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Information about Document 651

Dipper: 39 - Some Cumnock Burns Club Presidents: 1982 - Sheriff David B. Smith

Text

Text audience

General public
Audience size 1000+

Text details

Method of composition Handwritten
Year of composition 1982
Word count 317
General description Anthology of prizewinning and other Scots poems, and short stories in Ayrshire Scots.

Text medium

Book
Radio
Other Audiocassette

Text publication details

Published
Publisher Luath Press
Publication year 1991
Place of publication Barr, Ayrshire
ISBN/ISSN 0946487227
Edition First
Part of larger text
Contained in The Dipper an the Three Wee Deils: Tales and Poems in Ayrshire Scots
Editor Authors: Dr. J. A. Begg and J. Reid
Page numbers 98-99

Text setting

Leisure/entertainment
Private/personal

Text type

Poem/song/ballad

Author

Author details

Author id 738
Forenames John
Surname Reid
Gender Male
Decade of birth 1910
Educational attainment University
Age left school 17
Upbringing/religious beliefs Protestantism
Occupation Retired Head Teacher
Place of birth Dalry
Region of birth N Ayr
Birthplace CSD dialect area Ayr
Country of birth Scotland
Place of residence Lockerbie
Region of residence Dumfries and Galloway
Residence CSD dialect area Dmf
Country of residence Scotland
Father's occupation Commmercial Traveller
Father's place of birth Dalry
Father's region of birth N Ayr
Father's birthplace CSD dialect area Ayr
Father's country of birth Scotland
Mother's occupation Housewife
Mother's place of birth Beith
Mother's region of birth N Ayr
Mother's birthplace CSD dialect area Ayr
Mother's country of birth Scotland

Languages

Language Speak Read Write Understand Circumstances
English Yes Yes Yes Yes Home, socially
French Yes Yes Yes Yes As necessary
Scots Yes Yes Yes Yes Home, socially

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