O, that I Had Never Married

O, that I had ne'er been married,
I wad never had nae care;
Now l've gotten wife an' weans,
An' they cry 'crowdie' evermair.

cho: Aince crowdie, twice crowdie,
Three times crowdie in a day;
Gin ye 'crowdie' onie mair,
Ye'll crowdie a' my meal away,

Waefu' want and hunger fley me,
Glow'rin by the hallan-en':
Sair I fecht them at the door,
But ay l'm eerie they come ben.

From Folk Songs and Ballads of Scotland, MacColl
First verse, trad.; second by Robert Burns.
tune: Three Crowdys a Day: trad., published 1694

glossary:
crowdie: A kind of gruel or oatmeal
hallan-en': end of the porch
ben: in
RG