he wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees,
The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas,
The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor,
And the highwayman came riding—
Riding—riding—
The highwayman came riding
Up to the old inn-door.

He’d a French cocked-hat on his forehead, a bunch of lace at his chin,
A coat of the claret velvet, and breeches of brown doe-skin,
They fit him with never a wrinkle. His boots were up to the thigh;
And he rode with a jewelled twinkle,
His pistol butts a-twinkle,
His rapier hilt a-twinkle,
Under the jewelled sky.

Over the cobbles he clattered and clashed into the dark inn-yard,
And he tapped with his whip on the shutters, but all was locked and barred,
He whistled a tune to the window, and who should be waiting there
But the landlord’s black-eyed daughter,
Bess, the landlord’s daughter,
Plaiting a dark red love-knot
Into her long black hair.

[This poem is SPECTACULAR. I’ve only reproduced part one above, but it goes on for many more stanzas, relating the heart-stirring tale of Bess and her robber lover. I first read it when I was 8 or 9 years old and promptly memorised it; I can still recite it now. Its combination of doomed love, thrilling action, and rollicking rhyme scheme has assured its place among the poetical greats.]

O my Luve is like a red, red rose
That’s newly sprung in June;
O my Luve is like the melody
That’s sweetly played in tune.

So fair art thou, my bonnie lass,
So deep in luve am I;
And I will luve thee still, my dear,
Till a’ the seas gang dry.

Till a’ the seas gang dry, my dear,
And the rocks melt wi’ the sun;
I will love thee still, my dear,
While the sands o’ life shall run.

And fare thee weel, my only luve!
And fare thee weel awhile!
And I will come again, my luve,
Though it were ten thousand mile.

[Unsurprisingly, this one is a favourite at weddings. Though Burns himself was no great lover, being part of a long poetic tradition of men who swear eternal devotion in their verses whilst roving far and wide in real life, the simple eloquence of this poem has captured many an imagination.]