Below the bridge and to the left side of the window we see a hare. This reminds us of Burns’ poem “The Wounded Hare”. On 21st April, 1789 Burns wrote to his mentor Mrs Dunlop: “Two mornings ago, as I was at a very early hour, sowing in the fields, I heard a shot, and presently a poor little hare limped by me, apparently very much hurt. You will guess, this set my humanity in tears, and my indignation in arms. The first verse of the poem exemplifies Burns’ anger:
“Inhuman man! Curse on thy barb’rous art,
And blasted be thy murder-aiming eye;
May never pity soothe thee with sigh,
| Nor never pleasure glad thy cruel heart!”
Over the river to the right, we see the farmer Burns ploughing a field. Thus we have exhibited ‘The Ploughman Poet’, who at 14 years old was the main labourer on his father’s tenanted farm of Mount Oliphant about 2 miles south of Alloway. In his poem ‘The Brigs of Ayr’ Burns starts by saying:
“The simple Bard, rough at the rustic plough”.
Coming over the river again to the left, we see the hawthorn flower and the linnet in its nest. In his poem ‘Now Westlin Winds’ Burns mentions;
“the spreading thorn the linnet”