Mr. Stirling’s (now Sir W. Stirling-Maxwell’s) address, like everything he writes, indicates a minute and profound knowledge of his subject, and is full of picturesque and just views of human nature.  He attaches much importance to the teaching conveyed in proverbial expressions, and recommends his readers even still to collect such proverbial expressions as may yet linger in conversation, because, as he observes, “If it is not yet registered, it is possible that it might have died with the tongue from which you took it, and so have been lost for ever.”  “I believe,” he adds, “the number of good old saws still floating as waifs and strays on the tide of popular talk to be much greater than might at first appear.”

One remark is applicable to all these collections—­viz., that out of so large a number there are many of them on which we have little grounds for deciding that they are exclusively Scottish.  In fact, some are mere translations of proverbs adopted by many nations; some of universal adoption.  Thus we have—­

A burnt bairn fire dreads.  Ae swallow makes nae simmer.  Faint heart ne’er wan fair lady.  Ill weeds wax weel.  Mony sma’s mak a muckle.  O’ twa ills chuse the least.  Set a knave to grip a knave.  Twa wits are better than ane.  There’s nae fule like an auld fule.  Ye canna mak a silk purse o’ a sow’s lug.  Ae bird i’ the hand is worth twa fleeing.  Mony cooks ne’er made gude kail.

Of numerous proverbs such as these, some may or may not be original in the Scottish.  Sir William remarks that many of the best and oldest proverbs may be common to all people—­may have occurred to all.  In our national collections, therefore, some of the proverbs recorded may be simply translations into Scotch of what have been long considered the property of other nations.  Still, I hope it is not a mere national partiality to say that many of the common proverbs gain much by such translation from other tongues.  All that I would attempt now is, to select some of our more popular proverbial sayings, which many of us can remember as current amongst us, and were much used by the late generation in society, and to add a few from the collections I have named, which bear a very decided Scottish stamp either in turn of thought or in turn of language.

I remember being much struck the first time I heard the application of that pretty Scottish saying regarding a fair bride.  I was walking in Montrose, a day or two before her marriage, with a young lady, a connection of mine, who merited this description, when she was kindly accosted by an old friend, an honest fish-wife of the town, “Weel, Miss Elizabeth, hae ye gotten a’ yer claes ready?” to which the young lady modestly answered, “Oh, Janet, my claes are soon got ready;” and Janet replied, in the old Scotch proverb, “Ay, weel, a bonnie bride’s sune buskit[130].”  In the old collection, an addition less sentimental is made to this proverb, A short horse is sune wispit[131].