Robert Burns

The Duns association

Robert Burns set out on his tour of the Scottish Borders in the spring of 1787 having just published the second edition of his works. His was the first of three tours which Burns was to embark upon travelling subsequently to the south and west and then perhaps most famously to The Highlands.

Burns no doubt had a personal interest is seeing areas of Scotland previously unknown to him although in many ways it could be said he went more to meet and to socialize than as a tourist looking to visit sites of historic interest or natural beauty. He kept a detailed diary but fails to mention as he must have done seeing Hadrian's Wall or Melrose Abbey. Also he could so easily have visited Holy Island or the Yarrow Valley but chose not to do so.

As well as travel his publishers were anxious to raise publicity and awareness of his latest publication and he took with him three dozen copies of his publication complete with the well known Buego frontispiece portrait. There were also on occasion subscriptions to collect.

His companion on the first part of his Borders tour was Mr. Robert Ainslie of Berrywell Duns then an apprentice lawyer in Edinburgh with the firm of Samuel Mitchelson. Ainslie was then 21 and Burns seven years older. Both shared a common interests in a love of song, good living and it has to be said an eye for the ladies and they soon became boon companions.

Prior to setting out on his journey Burns purchased a new suit of cloths and also bought a mare for which we paid "over £4 sterling". Burns named the mare Jenny Geddes after the dissident lady who in 1637 had set in motion the events leading up to the signing of the National Covenant by aiming a creepy stool at the head of the Bishop of Edinburgh trying on the orders of Charles 1 to introduce the book of Common Prayer into Scottish Churches.

Burns was later to describe Jenny Geddes (the mare) as;

The Ainslies were a well known and respected family in Duns, Robert Ainslie senior being a land-steward of Lord Douglas’s Berwickshire Estates at Berywell near Duns. Burns seems to have got on well with the whole family, describing. Robert Ainslie senior as an "uncommon character" and his wife as "an excellent, sensible, cheerful amiable old woman" In latter life in the law young Robert  did acquire a somewhat serious and formidable reputation. The family is buried in Duns Churchyard where a fine monument survives. Burns and Ainslie set out from Edinburgh on the 5th. of May travelling to Berrywell via Haddington.

Robert Ainslie in later life

After crossing the Lammermuirs which Burns described as "miserably dreary but at times picturesque" Burns first caught site of the fertile lands of the Merse stretching out before him from a spot at Langtonedge above Duns on the Longformacus Road where the Duns Burns Club has subsequently erected a memorial

	Burns was very attracted to Robert Ainslie's sister Rachel but for obvious reasons she was 'off limits' On the first Sunday of his visit Burns accompanied the Ainslies to the Parish Church at Duns where he and Rachel were seated together in the family pew. The minister the rather formidable Rev. Bowmaker (also buried in Duns Churchyard)  described by Burns as "a man of strong lungs and pretty judicious remark, but ill skilled in propriety and altogether unconscious of his want of it" pursued a particular text which the congregation felt compelled to follow. As Rachael fumbled to find the appropriate chapter and verse Burns took the Bible from her and penned the undernoted verse in the flyleaf;
Ainslie Memorial Stone in Duns Church yard	"fair maid you needna tak the hint Nor idle texts pursue; T'was guilty sinners that he meant Not angels such as you";	Memorial Cairn

It has been suggested  although there is probably no hard and fast evidence that it was also during a service at Duns Kirk that Burns garnered the idea for his famous poem "To a louse" when he saw the eponymous bug crawl from the hair of a well coiffured lady.

It has also been suggested that while at Duns he may have composed the beautifully melodious song "A Rosebud by the early Morn" while he walked at Briery Baulk near Duns. This poem is dedicated to Carmichael daughter of the rector of Edinburgh High School. Again though this claim has not been substantiated.

One poem however although referring to Duns Robin Shure in Hairst was probably written later but the Robin referred to was not the poet but Robert Ainslie referring to a later incident when Robert Ainslie would appear to have rather disappointed a young lady in his promises.

The following day Burns and Ainslie set off to Coldstream where Burns crossed into England for the first time in his life. Rather though than compiling some appropriate stanza Burns threw himself on the ground and recited some verses from "A Cottar's Saturday Night"

They returned to Duns the same day and on the Tuesday set out for Jedburgh. Approximately ten days later after a Borderswide pilgrimage the duo returned to Duns

When Burns arrived back at Berrywell he found awaiting him a package from a certain Mr. Symon Gray, a London businessman and public benefactor who had retired to Duns.

Symon Gray had some pretensions as a poet and sought Burns' opinion of his works

Burns however was less than impressed and returned the package with the comment;

Mr. Gray however was not to be put off and a second parcel duly arrived which Burns dismissed as brusquely as he had dismissed the first with the words;

Symon Gray was nothing if  not persistent and a third package duly arrived.

This Burns dismissed and returned with the following rather scurrilous verses;

Ainslie was now due to return to Edinburgh and two days later he and Burns set off via Eyemouth to Dunbar where Burns took his leave of Ainslie and returned to Duns accompanied by a Mr. Charles Lorimer an Excise man from Dunbar with whom Burns does not seem to have got along.

The following morning Burns made his final departure from the Borders setting off again on his travels crossing over into England and visiting Alnwick and Newcastle before travelling across country to Carlisle and then back into Scotland. His companion on this stage of the journey was a Mr. Hood from Wooler.

During his stay in Duns Burns met with Andrew Meikle a millwright at Houston Mill, near Dunbar and inventor of the Threshing Mill which he was to patent the following year.

With his farming background couldn't but compare the land and farming practice noting "the climate and soil of Berwickshire ever Roxburgh superior to Ayrshire"- "husband and sheep farming their great improvement" -"magnificence of farmers and farm houses" He did however complain of the bad roads.

The above was the subject a talk to the Society in October 2009 by Hawick historian and raconteur Mr. Ian Landells.

Mr. Landells noted ruefully that during his tour Burns seems to have visited every major town in the Borders with the exception of Hawick an oversight he suggested on Burns' part which  "he rued to his dying day"

There is a very active Burns Club in Duns.

In 2010 the Annual Supper will be held in the Royal British Legion Club Langtongate Duns on Friday 15th.. January when the Immortal Memory will be proposed by Mr. Ron Duncan of Elgin. For further particulars contact Iain Lothian Club Secretary.