Originally published 31 July 1786 | ||
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Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect commonly known as the Kilmarnock volume or Kilmarnock edition, is a collection of poetry by Robert Burns, first printed and issued by John Wilson of Kilmarnock on 31 July 1786. It was the first published edition of Burns' work. It cost 3 shillings and 612 copies were printed. The volume was dedicated to Gavin Hamilton. The Kilmarnock volume contained, besides satire, a number of poems like "Halloween" (written in 1785), "The Twa Dogs" and "The Cotter's Saturday Night," which are vividly descriptive of the Scots peasant life with which he was most familiar; and a group like "Puir Mailie" and "To a Mouse", which, in the tenderness of their treatment of animals, revealed one of the most attractive sides of Burns' personality.
Six of the original manuscript versions of the poems from the book are in the possession of the Irvine Burns Club.
A miniature facsimile issued in a protective case with a magnifying glass was produced for the benefit of troops in World War I.