What’s a dab o’ the pen ? Weel, a dab o’ the pen
Is a very wee thing as ye surely maun ken ;
But a deal may be dune to mar or to men’,
Wi’ a very sma’ dab o’ a very sma’ pen.
Ye may fasten your friens or embitter your foes,
Ye may add to your comforts or fill up your woes,
An’ a word in gude season is better than ten
That we sometimes let slip wi’ a dab o’ the pen.
By a dab o’ the pen ye may get a gude wife,
Or may get ane wha’ll mak’ ye be sick o’ your life ;
And its better off-han’ in a way ye suld ken
To say a kind word than to tak’ up a pen.
Some tak’ up the pen an’ write to a lass,
And say that a minute they canna’ let pass,
Withoot dreams o’ their dearie—an’ richt oot comes then,
A proposal to marry by dab o’ the pen.
An’ dab comes the pen by return o’ the post,
She says that in wonder an’ trouble she’s lost,
Sin’ the day she was born she couldno bide men,
But noo she’ll be Jamie’s—by a dab o’ the pen.
