\ § 4 ^-ri]33Nvsm^ '/.i ^mimoA^ <^ 1 ? 3 S %il^'j ^.0F-CAIIF0% ^ XWClJINlVcKV/^ ^laoNvsoi^ "^ '^/J ■% AWEUNIVERJ/a AOSANCEL/ MllBRARYOr ^^ #1 \(-% ^ •>- 1 i 11 ^ % ' ^-s. ^ %
  • - ^^clOS•ANCEI:fJ> ^^LIBRARYOc;^ ^l-UBRARYfi). >- <: ;i, >^lOSANCElf;y. ^^ > ^OFCAllFO/?^ ""O/ —9^ og=t, i 1^ 11 Si o li- -< tii c: by •17- -^ ^ 3 V i I 5? 25 c*> =3 i«Li ^ ^, lljiv >z -p o ,■ =? O li. lOSANCEl^y. ^lUBRARYOr ^I-IIBRARYQ^ THE BALLAD MINSTRELSY SCOTLAND. ROMANTJC AND HISTORICAL. COLLATED AND ANNOTATED. «ew ano "Rcvlfle^ EDItloii. ALEXANDER GARDNER. PUBLISHER TO HER MAJESU THE QUEEN, PAISLEY AND PATERNOSTER SQUARE. LONDON, 1893. 3a\ PEEFATORY NOTE. ^ The Flotsam of owr old Traditionary Ballad Lore, which came <^ drifting dowu the bLrcam of Time — much of it startms; no one know=: when, and coming from no one knows where— was diligently sought after and collected from time to time by those who took pleasure therein, or Avho soiight to derive profit therefrom. Beginning with Cbepman and Alyllor, whose issues have been so admirably reproduced in Juc-shnUe by that still — and long may he continue to be so — hale and efncient veteran Editor and Illustrator o of oui- ancient Scotish Literature, Mr. David Laiug. ' ^ Passing over the greater and darker portion of the long dark night Q of civil broil and literary darkness which settled down on Scotland during the reigns of the later Stuarts, we come towards it? close, and t as the harbingar of the dawn of a brighter period, to Watson, the celebrated "undertaker" of several elegantly printed uatioiial works, whose Choice Collection of Comic and Serious Scots Poems has been pro- duced in/ac-simile under the auspices of the Publishers of this work.t Watson probably stimulated, and certainly was followed immediatelj- after by Kamsay, who, in his turn, was followed at intervals by ot'iers whose names are recorded in the bead-roll of fame with which the General Introduction to this work terminates. Mothei-well, after stating "that of every old traditionary ballad ^ known, there exists what may be called different versions," next "s^ proceeds to classify and describe the different raudes of editing them V which had been practised by different Ballad Editors, thus : — ^ Ist. He who contents "himself with merely sHectiug that one of * his copies which appears the most complete and least vitiated." '^ 2nd. He who, " by selecting the most beautiful and striking ■ passages which present themselves in " two or more versions, "suc- ceeds in producing from the conflicting (?) texts of his various authorities a third version, more perfect and ornate than any indi- vidual one as it originally stood." .3rd. He or they "who, under no authority of written or recited copy, but merely to gratify [his or] their ov,ti insatiate rage for innovation and improvement, recklessly and injudiciously cut and carve a-s they list, on these productions, and in some cases entirely re-write them." 4th. "There is yet another class of old Song Editors," or rather Forgers, on "whose dishonest propensities " Mr. Motherwell poura the scorching vials of his sarcastic scorn.J It is a sad commentary on human consistency to state, and that ou the authority of evidence furnished by himself, that the theory of Mr. Motherwell, who highly commends the first, and unqualifiedly condemns the three other "modes," is at variance with his practice; as it can easily be shown from Mr. Motherwell's own statemeut?, • EdinLurgli, lIDccc.xx^•lI. t Glasgow, 1869. ♦ Motherwell's Mimtre'sy, Introdnction, pp. vl -Ix. /I «-»v! o 9 PREFATORY NOTK. thut he carefully collated — in accordance with his definition of class 2nd* — every previously unpriuted Ballad of which more tlutn one set came into his [icssession, and which he thought worthy of a place in his Atiji^trelni/. I'lic Editor of the present work has followed in the same, and, as he rcjjMrds it, commendable patli, going, however, a step further, altliough quite in the same direction, by removing what appeared to be obvious inconsistencies and errors introduced through the ignorance or la])se of memory of oral reciters ; in performing which delicate and diflicult work, it is not at all necessary to deface or vitiate the ancient Story which the Ballad tells ; because, as is '•granted "by even ^I^. Motherwell himself, "the ' expressions and allusions ' of the.-ic compositions fluctuate, and that frequently ; but these changes never alter entirely the venerable aspect of the whole ballad. It is like repairing gradually the weather-worn face of an ancient cathedral by the insertion here and there of a freshly-hewn stone, as need may require. The outline of the building and the effect of the whole remain unchanged." t The work of Restoration, however, necessarily brhigs the restorer within the scojie of criticism; and amid the great diversities of tastes which prevail, it would be passing strange if some were not very far from being satisfied with respect to many points, and few or none thoroughly pleased with regard to all. It is probable that some portions have been rejected which should have been retained, and others letained which should have been rejected ; but it is consoling to know that nothing has been destroyed, and that those who wisli to gaze upon the originals, in all their rugged and fragmentary simplicity, may find in this work a complete and ready reference to tlic different versions of the various ballads. In conclusion, the Editor has to express his indebtedness, and to lender his thanks, to Dr. Patrick Buchan — son of the eminent collector to wliose zeal and industry ScotLsh liallad Literature is so largely indebted, as this work so ainply testifies — for the kind and patriotic interest which lie has manifested in this (collection in the course of its progix-ss through the press, nearly tlie whole of the proof sheets of the First Part having been submitted to him, and returned with raanj' valuable suggestions and emendations. The removal of Dr. Buchan to England has, much to tho Editor's regret, deprived him of the same valuable advice and assistance in the Second Part ; but he is glad to learn that Dr. Buchan, although far from being well, has made cons-iderable progress towards the completion of a work on the Proverbs of .Scotland, as illustrated and explained by similar proverbs current among the peojjle of other nations, by etymological definitions, by literaiy quotations, and by Scotish Anecdotes and Stories. The Editor has also to acknowled.re his indebtedness to Messrs. Griffin & Co., Publishers, London, for permission to include "The Brave Earl Brand and the King of England's Daughter," post, p. 32. * For example, Bee post, p. V2'i, and post, p. 4o2. t Motherwell's i/instreisy, Introduction, p. xl. Oi.ASGOW, March, 1871, CONTENTS. PAGE INTRODUCTION, ix ALISON GROSS, 215 ANDREW LAMMIE 625 ANNAN WATER, 605 ARCHIE OF CA'FIELD 5S8 ARMSTRONG'S GOOD-NIGHT 592 AS I WENT ON AE MONDAY, I96 AULD MAITLAND 401 niNNORIE, 295 BONNIE ANNIE, 342 BONNIE GEORGE CAMPBELL, 529 BONNIE SUSIE CLELLAND, 78 BOTHWELL, 227 BROWN ADAM, 339 BROWN ROBYN'S CONFESSION 34I BURD HELEN, 24O CHIL ETHER, 251 CHILD ROWLAND AND BURD ELLEN 207 CLERK COLVILL AND THE MERMAID, 212 CLERK SAUNDERS, 44 CLERK TAMMAS 268 COSPATRICK, 222 DICK O' THE COW, 57O DUKE OF Perth's three daughters 312 EARL RICHARD, 232 EARL RICHARD'S DAUGHTER, 1 33 EDOM O' GORDON, 515 EDWARD ! EDWARD ! 293 ERLINTON, 26 FAIR ANNIE'S GHOST, 267 FAIR ANNIE OF LOCHRYAN, I FAUSE FOODRAGE, I28 FINE FLOWERS IN THE VALLEY, 285 CEORDIE, 654 GILDEROY, 632 CIL MORICB, 313 VI BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. PACE GLENKINDIK, 256 GLENI.OGIE 506 GUDE WALLACt, 418 HARnVKNUTK 357 HonniE NOBLt. 583 HYNDE ETIN, 199 HVNDE HORN, I25 HUGHIE THE GR^ME, 495 JAMIE TEI.IER OF THE FAIR DODIIKAD, .... 564 JELLON GRAME, 335 JOCK 0' THE SIDE 57^ JOHNNIE ARMSTRANG, 487 JOHNNIE OF BREADISLEE, 471 JOHNNIE FAA, 616 JOHNNIE SCOT, 432 JOHN THOMSON AND THE TURK, 252 KATHERINE JANFARIE, 85 KEMPY KAYE, 220 KEMP OWYNE; OR, KEMPION, 21 KINMONT WILLIE, 555 KING HENRIE, 21 7 KING MALCOLM AND SIR COLVINE, I50 LADYE ANNE, S°4 LADY ANNE BOTHWELL'S BALOW, 6l2 LADY ELSPAT, 39 LADY ISABEL, I6 LADY ISABEL AND THE ELF KNIGHT, 165 LADY MAISRY 74 LAMENT FOR FLODDEN 47^ LANG JOHNNIE MOIR, 648 LEESOME BRAND, 59 LORD BEICHAN AND SUSIE PYE, 112 LORD DONALD, 3o8 LORD INGRAM AND CHILDE WET 80 LORD LUNDIE'S DAUGHTER AND SQUIRE WILLIAM, ... 89 LORD maxwell's COOD-NIGHT 593 LORD RANDAL 3^5 LORD THOMAS AND FAIR ANNIE, IO3 LORD THOMAS OF WINESBERRY, 44' LORD WILLIAM, 27O MAY COLVINE AND FAUSE SIR JOHN, 159 PRINCE ROBERT, »3 CONTENTS. vu PROUD LADY MARGARET AND THE COURTEOUS KNIGHT, RARE WILLIE DROWNED IN YARROW, REEDISDALE AND WISE WILLIAM, , ROSE THE RED AND WHITE LILY, . SIR CAWLINE, SIR HUGH LE BLOND, SIR HUGH AND THE JEW's DAUGHTER, SIR JAMES THE ROSE, SIR PATRICK SPENS, .... SIR ROLAND, SIR WILLIAM WALLACE, . SWEET WILLIE AND FAIR JANET, SWEET WILLIE AND FAIR ANNIE, SWEET WILLIE AND LADY MARGERIE, SWEET WILLIAM'S GHOST, TAMLANE, TAMMIE DOODLE, .... THE BATTLE OF BALRINNES, . THE BATTLE OF CORICHIE, THE BATTLE OF HARLAW (EVERGREEN VERSION), THE BATTLE OF HARLAW (TII,\D1TI0NARY VERSION THE BATTLE OF OTTERBOURNE, THE BATTLE OF ROSLINE, .... THE BENT SAE BROWN, THE BIRTH OF ROBIN HOOD, .... THE BONNIE BANKS OF FORDIE, THE BONNIE EARL OF MURRAY, THE BRAVE EARL BRAND AND THE KING OF ENGLAND'S DAUGHTER, THE BROOM BLOOMS BONNIE AND SAYS IT IS FAIR, THE BROOMFIELD HILL, THE BUCHANSHIRE TRAGEDY; OR, SIR JAMES THE ROSS THE CLERKS OF OXENFORD, THE CRUEL BROTHER THE CRUEL MOTHER, THE DEMON LOVER, THE DOUGLAS TRAGEDY, THE DOWIE DENS OF YARROW, .... THE DROWNED LOVERS; OR, WILLIE AND MAY MARGAKE THE DUKE OF GORDON'S DAUGHTER, THE EARL OF DOUGLAS AND DAME OLIPHANT. THE EARL OF MAR's DAUGHTER, THE EARL OF MURRAY, . . . . , h PAGE 603 246 327 347 352 478 368 171 412 67 261 41 SO 1 85 198 538 503 443 450 424 420 35 322 310 530 32 62 229 481 53 286 300 167 29 599 9 548 63 98 53« BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. THE I'.I.IIN KNIGHT, .... THE ENCHANTED RING, .... THE FIRE OF FRENDRAUGHT, . THE GAY GOS-HAWK, .... THE HEIR OF LINNE (PERCY MS. VERSION), THE HEIR OF LINNE (TRADITIONARY VERSION THE knight's ghost, THE LADS OF WAMPHRAY, THE LAIRD O' LOGIE, THE LAIRD OF MUIRHEAD, THE LAMENT OF THE BORDER WIDOW, THE LAIRD OF WARISTOUN, THE LOCHMABEN HARPER, THE MAID AND FAIRY, THE MERMAID, .... THE miller's son, .... THE NEW-SLAIN KNIGHT, THE queen's marie, THE RAID OF THE REIDSWIRE, THE SANG OF THE OUTLAW MURRAY, THE TWA BROTHERS, THE TWA CORBIES THE WATER O' WEARIE's WELL, THE YOUNG LAIRD OF OCHILTREE, . THE WEE, WEE MAN, THE WIFE OF USHER'S WELL, . THOMAS OF ERCILDOUNE, THOMAS THE RHYMER— PART I., THOMAS THE RHYMER— PART II., . THOMAS O' YONDERDALE, WILLIE'S FATAL VISIT, WILLIE'S LADYE, .... WILLIE MACINTOSH; OR, THE BURNING OF AUCHI WILLIAM AND MARGARET (BY DAVID MALLET), WIT AT NEED, , YOUNG BEARWELL, . YOUNG BEKIE, . YOUNG BENJIE, . YOUNG HASTINGS, YOUNG JOHNSTONE, . YOUNG RONALD, YOUNG WATERS, GENERAL INTRODUCTION. Ballads may be described as short narrative poems, each celebrating some real or fancied event, and suitable for singing or chanting to some simple natural melody. They often are, but ought not to be, confounded with songs, which, properly speaking, are the more polished and artistic vehicles of " senti- ment, expression, or even description." ' Ballads may therefore be reasonably regarded as the earlier, nay, probablj', as the very earliest, form of literarv composition,^ and more especially as the earliest expression of the Historic Muse; an opinion eloquently set forth and amply illustrated by Lord Macaulay, in the preface to his Lays of Ancient Rome. The same, or a similar opinion, appears to have commended itself to other distinguished writers and scholars, as the following quotations indicate. The Booh of Jasher, quoted by name in two of the Earlier Historic Books of The Bible, and probably still more largely incorporated in their narratives, is, by an eminent Biblical scholar and critic, described as " apparently a national collection, in the form of ballads, containing the record of great men and great deeds."* Homer, the historian of the Trojan War, " though the early poet of a rude age," writes Sir Walter Scott, " has purchased for the era he has celebrated, so much reverence, that not daring to bestow on it the term barbarous, we distinguish it as the heroic period ; " and though " no other poet (sacred and inspired a'ltliorsexcepted) ever did,orever will, possessthcsame influence over posterity, in so many distant lands, as has been acquired by the blind old man of Chios, yet we are assured that his works, collected hy the pious care of Pisistratus, who caused to be united into their present form those divine poems, would otherwise, if preserved at all, have appeared to succeeding generations in the humble slate of a collection of detached ballads, connected only as referring to the same age, the same 1 Rituon's HiBtorical Essay on National Song, prefixed to English Songs. 2 "Tho Narmlive Ballad wo believo to ho the oldest of all compositions; and wo ar.' not indii<;cd to alter our opiniun by all that has been waid of love and innoooncc, mid of goldnn, pastfinil, and ](atriarchal ages." — U. Jamicson, in Illustrations of ^■riliern Antii/uities, I'opiilar J'allads. Introduction, p. 'jy?. ' /hUlical Cyclopedia, edited by John Eodio, D.D., LL.D., &c., article " Jophor." GENERAL INTKODUCTION. general subjects, and the samo cycle of lierocs, like the motriciil poems of the Cid in Spain, or of Robin Hood in England." ' Among the Latins, " In the middle of the third century B.C., we have a few trcncliant relics of the Saturniniau epic of NiBvius celebrating the main events of tlie lirst, and the moro poliBlicd hexameters of Knniua celebrating tiie Second Punic War. But tlioy aro rather reflections after the event than incentives to action. Ennius, however, elsewhoro alludes to the existence of older writers, or an earlitr literature which had treated of the same or similar tliemes in a more popular style : and Cicero, in his ' Brutus,' quoting the passage, laments the loss of those moro primitive strains. From tliese and other passages Macaiday, buikb'ng on a tlieory of Niebuhr's, has imagined that a wliole series of Roman national ballads, . . . had existed and passed away previous to the date of the Punic Wars, lie maintains that these early poems were expelled from poetic literature by the flowing tide of Greek influence (which passed over Latiimi as that of the Normans did over England), but that the substance of them is preserved in the more fauciful pages of Livy. . . . " The first light that falls on the Gothic race all over Europe, by the shores of the Baltic, or under the shadow of the Ilartz, reveals the old singers along with the old soldiers exalted by the same apotlieosis into gods and lieroes. The Norwegian chiefs took their liarpers Avith tliem to battle, and when the Norse armies invaded England they used to pass free from camp to camp. "The earliest ballads — as the lays out of which grew the ' Nibelungen Lied,' the ' Song of Roland,' the ' Death Song of Regner Lodbrog,' half the Eddas, [and] the old Norse legend of the ' Sword Tyrjing,^ . . belong to the Pagan period of our own history, and that of the countries with which we were most closely connected. " Their general character of wild defiance is admirably represented in Mr. Longfellow's ' Challenge of Tlior,' and Mr. Motherwell's ' Sword Cliaunt of Thorstein Raudi.' [But] the Conquest broke the stream of our early minstrelsy, [and] the more elaborate Romance took the place of the Ballad among the higher circles.'"' The view expressed in the last sentence fully accords with that advanced by Mr. Motherwell, who argues, "that the Romance of Chivalry was the legitimate descendant of the 1 Sir Walter Scott's Introductory Remarks on Popular Poetiy, &o., prefixed to Mintlrelsy oftlie ScoUish Border, edit. isyu. » Professor Nichol, of Glasgow University, in a recent Lecture on "War Songs," as reported in the Glasgow Nev/Bpaper Press. GENEHAL IXTnODUCTION. Heroic Ballad.' The heroes whom the minstrels chose for_ their versifications, were uniformly selected from those worthies of antiquity whose names and jpamous actions the traditions and ancient songs of the land still kept in remembrance. These, again, were occasionally supplanted by others who flourished in more recent times ; and even contemporary warriors at last came in for their share of adulation, and of_ that glory with which the muse can arrest and halo an otherwise fleeting name. But the origin of Romantic* Fiction, instead of being thus sought lor in the traditions of each particular land where it obtained, and being looked upon as the natural intellectual growth of that land, at a certain st'ige of its progress towards refine- ment and the courtesies of life; and as, step by step, advancing from the simple narrative ballad to the more elaborate composi- tion, which embraced a variety of such narratives, and at length bourgeoned and branched out into all those complicated and fictitious adventure?, and singular poetic creations, for which the Metrical Romance is distinguished, has, with much learning and ingenuity, been by different writers traced to a variety of opposite and' contradictory sources. One hatli assigned it a Scandinavian,' another an Arabian,* a third an Armorican origin;' while others have claimed this distinction for Nor- 1 Dr. Leyden, on the other hanl. supposes that "many of the wild romantic ballade which are still commou in tlie Lowlands of Scotland, have the appearance of episodes which, in the pro;;i-ess of traditional recitation, have br^en detached from tl:o romances of which tiicv originally formed a part. '—Co m/j'nyni. Preliminary D ssertatioD, p. 271. This may have occurred in some instances, but seems to have been the exception, and the other the rule. t "Under the head of Eomant ■•, a phrase we are obliged to employ for lack of some- thing more sipuiilcant and precise mavbe ranged a num'>rous and highly interesting body of short metrical tales, cliictly ofa tragic complexion, which, though possessing all the features of real incident a"nd probably originating in I act, cannot now, after the lapp.e of many ages, be with certainty traced to any historical source, piibUc or l)rivate. With these may also bo classed that description of Ancient Song which treats of incredible achievements, and strange adventures by flood and fipUi — deals largely with the marvellous in all its multiform aspects, — and occasionally pours a brief but intense glare of 8upcm;itural light over those dim and untr;ivelled realms of doubt and dread, whoso every nook the giant super.stition of elder days has colonized with a prodi.'^al profusion of mysterious and spiritual inhabitants. And, in short, under this coinprohensive head, we must include every le;.'end relating to person, pi tfe, thin.', or ocvurrence, to e-tablish whose existence it would be vain to FOflc for other evidence than that which popular tradition supplies." — Motherwell's ihmtrelsij, Introduction, ]). iv. Sir Walter Scott's definition of the word ■'llomance" Is:— "A fictitious narrative in pro'-e or verse, the interest of which tarns upon marvellous and uncommon incidents ; " ii It "the word 'liomamo,' in its original me,.niug, signifies merely one or other of llie popular dialoct-x of Europe, founded, as almost all those dialects were, upon the Tioman toi gue. th it is upon the Latin."— A'-way on Ilomance. First published in tho .Supplement to the Encyclopivjlia Briiannica [1824], and now mcludod in his i/i.'cellaneous Works, vol. vi., p. 12'J. « By Mallet, by his translator Bishop Percy, and by Pin'ierton. ♦ "Bv Warburtnn, in his remarks on Lore's Labour Loft. and supported with coploun lllustra'tions bv Warton, in hie Preliminary Dissertation to tho History of English I'odry." — Leyden. ■'• Favonred by Dr. Lcvdcn in his Prcliminnry Dissertation to Tht Complaint of GFXF.RAL IXTPODUCTIOM. niandy and Provence.'" ["Ami a later sj'stcm, patronized hy later authors, lias derived them, in a p;reat measure, from tho Fragments of Classical Superstition vvliicli continued to be pre- served after the fall of tlio Roman empire."]^ _ " To examino into the merit of these respective hypotheses is foreign from our present purpose; but to ascribe to any one of tliem the solo origin of that stupendous fabric of poetical invention which delighted the jMiddle Ages, would be as foolish as tho shep- herd's thought, who, alter tracing with aff: ctionate fondness tho windings of his slender native stream, till he found it termi- nate in the ocean sea, deemed tho boundless expanse of waters before him no other than the accumulations of the small well- spring, which, in the solitude of the far uplands, he knew full well, did morning and evening luim its tiny song, and gush with tlio gladness of new-born life, in a silver-like thread, down the dark hill side. Each of the systems, it is true, does in part account for this species of poetic compositions; but it would require them all blended together to obviate every objection which applies to cacli singly."* Nor would even this suffice, as the flood of light more recently thrown upon comparative philology and mythology by tliat distinguished scholar ]\Iax Muller, aiid by other labourers in the same interesting and important field, reveals the broader and truer doctrine of later times, which carries back the date of much of tJiis wide-spread traditionary lore, and assigns to it an origin prior to the disjuuctioa of the different branches of our race from the one primeval stem.* Subsequent to such disjimctions, changes of scene and cir- cumstance introduced modilications and divergences resulting in the course of time in something like a Babel of tradition, which, ;ige by age, grew greater and wider, until the traces of a common origin among the more divergent branches were 1 Ellis, in the Introduction to his Specimens of Early English Metrical Romances, con- tenfts that the Karliest Romances, properly so eallod, were composed in Nxrnum French by mintjtrels pertaining to the court of ihe Anglo-Nomian lungs; while ha regards tiie southern portion of Scotland as the birthplace of tha EngUsh language, and the earliest Englih Romances aa the productions of "ycotlish minstrels." Sir Walter Scolt, referring to this seeming paradox, remarks: — "Upon this hypothesis, it is curious to oliserve that, as the earliest French Bomancoa were written in England, so the earliest English Ilomances were composed in Scotland." - Sir Walter Scott, in his Essay on Romance, Miscellaneous Works, voL vL, p. 174. 3 Motherwell's MinxtreUy, Introduction, p. xxxv. * Mr. Motherwell rises "to the height of this great argument" in the following pas-sage: — "As to the original source from whence these stoiies have flowed, iho reader need scarcely be told, how utterly useless all conjecture becomes; the same stories, or but slightly varied, we lind everywhere, and in every language, tho popular vehicles of amusement or instruction to the people. Countries far separated from each other, and having no alfiniiy of languag'-, still preserve this identity in their popular tales; and where these have disappeared in a measure from tiio litera- ture of the jiCOple, wo may rest asisured that their vestiges can still bn traced in tiie legends of the nursery." — Minstrelsy, Introduction, pp. xxxii.-xxxiii. See also Intro duction to " Lord Ilandal," post, p. "3(i0. GF.XERAL IXTKODUCTION. all but lost.* But by far the most fruitful source of confusion and mystification appears to have arisen from what seems to have been a common practice of the later bards, ska'ds, or minstrels — namely, the adaptation and application of the older stories and traditions to new persons and events^— a practice, by the way, of which the careful reader will find several examples in this collection. Originality is a God-given gift conferred on few; but the capacity to imitate, to copy, or to reconstruct more or less skilfully under varied forms and in new combinations from pre-existent materials, are qualities possessed by multitudes. Nor does this apply to hards or ballad-writers merely, as much of our current literature in every department, and the bulk of our pulpit prelections, most amply and sadly testify. Literary patchwork in the press, and mosaic discourses in the pulpit, are leading characteristics ot this age of shoddy.^ The use made of the old material gleaned or pilfered, and re-constructed or re-dressed, is usually abuse of such a nature as finds its fitting analogy in the conduct of such Goths as ignorautly and wantonly lay sacrilegious hands on the remains of some stately Old Edifice, in order that they may, without much expenditure of labour or money, construct a barn, or rear a dry-stone wall. These remarks are not directed against honest v/ork in the form of compilation, or the introduction of quotation honestly acknowledged, but against those counterfeiters who seek to stamp their own impress on the coinage of other men's brains — those pilferers or forgers who take or convey over to themselves the intellectual property of other and better endowed minds. At the same time, it must be acknow- ledged that originality becomes in every succeeding age much more difficult; mental phenomena, or the principles of human thoug?d, as developed by the intellectual iaculties; o^ feeling, aa manifested in tho emotions and passions; or of vnll, as 1 "With re^fpect to vtiJgar poetry, preserved by tradition." writes Ilitson, "it is almost irapijssible to discriminato "the ancient from t)io modern, the true from the false. Obsolete phrases will be perpetually changing for thoso better understood: and what the memory loses the invention must nupply. So that a porformauce of genius and merit, as the purest stream becomes pollute that which shall bo done: and tluTe if no n -w l/ii:>'i uu.'.cr the son," ic, li.c.—£ccltsutites, chap. 1,, verbea U-IO. See also nolo, post, p. SV .,. GENERAL INTRODUCTION. displayed in tlio actions; as woll as physical phenomena, as exhibited in the material universe, are, in their general characteristics, tlio same in every age, and conseqnently available to those who had, or have, the intnition and opportunitj' first to use iheni; priority of appropriation conferring a right of possession, and constituting in this, a-^ in other matters, a material advantage. The general truth tlius indicated has been admirably and elegantly expressed by Sir Walter Scott, with special reference to poetic themes and similes: — "The earlier poets," says he, "have the advantage, ai!(l it is not a small one, of having the first choice out of the stock of materials which are proper to the art; and thus they compel later autliors, if they would avoid slavishly imitating the fatliers of verse, into various devices, often more ingenious than elegant, that they may establish, if not an absolute claim to originality, at least a visible distinction betwixt themselves and their predecessors. Thus it happens, that early poets almost uniformly display a bold, rude, original cast of genius and expression. They have walked at free-will, and with un- constrained steps, along the wilds of Parnassus, while their followers move with constrained gestures and forced attitudes, in order to avoid placing their feet where their predecessors have stepped before them. The first bard who compared liis hero to a lion struck a bold and congenial note, though the simile, in a nation of hunters, be a verj^ obvious one; but every subsequent poet who shall use it, must either struggle hard to give his lion, as heralds say, with a difference, or lie under the imputation of being a servile imitator.'" It may be reasonably infetred tliat the closer and more numerous the instances of aftinity between the traditions of any two or more nations to each other, or vice versd, are, so in proportion will be their more immediate or remote identity as a conmiunity. Keeping this preliminary basis in view, let us now proceed to inquire into tbe origin of the ample, rich, and varied store of traditionary Ballad Lore which pertains to Scotland, or, to speak more precisely, to the Lowland Scots. As is well known to every one wlio has paid any attention to early Scotish History, the origin and language, or languages, of the Caledonians, Picts, and Scots, have formed the fruitful themes of much learned disquisition and vehement controversy. It forms no part of the writer's plan to trace elaborately, to examine minutely, or to discuss virulently the evidence pi'o and con advanced vj the respective advocates of the Celtic or 1 Intrortnctory Benssrks on Fopolur Poetry, preflsed to Ssott's Minstrelsy, toL i., p. C, edit. 183U, aud Bince. GENERAL INTRODUCTION. tlie Gothic origin of tbe nation or nations known under the designations named above. Nor is it necessary to do so. It is quite sufficient for us to know that the earliest dawn of Scotish History reveals to the student of its early annals two apparently different races, speaking two different languages, occupying, the one the North-western, and the other the Eastern and Southern portions of the country, the former speak- ing a Celtic and the other a Gothic language; that the relative positions thus disclosed continued to subsist during the various wars and mutations which the country has passed through; and that they still continue to exist down to the present day, although, as is well known, the Lowlanders of the East and South have, like an advancing tide, slowly but steadily enlarged their boundaries by encroachments on the territories of the no less heroic and chivalrous Highlanders of the North-West. It would ill become a modr-rn Scot, in whose veins the blood of both those ancient and distinguished races probably mingles and courses, to institute odious comparisons between them, or to exalt one to the disparagement of the other. Such an un- grateful task is, however, fortunately altogether foreign to the purpose of this Essay, which has, if not purely and solely, at least more immediately to do with the Ballads preserved by the Lowland Scots. Affinity of language, of physical and mental characteristics, and of Folk or Traditionary Lore, all concur in identifying the Lowlanders of Scotland with the Northern or Scandinavian branch of the great Gothic famil}-, which in the fifth and suc- ceeding centuries subverted the Roman empire and established (■othic kingdoms, not only over the whole of Northern and "Western Europe, but also on the North-western shores of Africa. But in addition to such positive evidence of the most direct and convincing kind, we may add the negative evid3nce furnished by the fact, that Fingal and the other heroes of Ossian, as well as the other Traditions or Traditionary Stories current among the Gaelic Celts, find no place whatever in the popular traditions of the Lowlanders. Tlio remains of Cymric traditions, such as of Artiiur and the Knights of his Round Table, are likewise scanty, scattered, and obscure.' Although it is quite possible that the New-year's Mummers, who in the South- 1 A few literary notices oocnr In the works of Sir David Lindsay, &c., regarding "f'cr.wraacmome, ' "Fynmakcoul," "Arthour," anil "Gawane." Tiie following curious reforenccs to two of thoae heroes occur in the Croniklis of {•'■oland: — "It is said that Fynniakcoule, the sonne of Coehis Scottisman, was in tliir dayes; ane man of huse statiiore, of xviL cubits of hicht. lie was ano grot himtor, and richt tcrritiil, for his hu;;o quantite, to the pepill: of quhomo ar niony Tu'par fabillis amanj; uh, noiht unlike to tliir fabilin that are rohcr.sit of King Artlinre, and becaus his doilis is no'-Mi authorist be autheutik aulhoris, I will rohors na thing thalrof.' — Secent lltjke, chaj). H. " Arthuro " and "The Bound Tabil " are also referred to in the same work.— A'liU /•i*i', chap. 11. GKNEUAL INTKODUCnoN. west of Scotland, tlie old lioiiio of tlic Scotish Cj-mri,' are dosis'iiatcd " Lialatiaiis," or " Galashius," may derive tlieir naiiio from "Galashiu,"" who is said to l.avc been tlie brother of tlio suiiposcd licro of tlio ballad of "Kemp Owyiie" (p. 21), and conseciuontly ncplicw to King Arthur; yet it is somewhat sin- gular lo liuil the term "Kcnii)" prefixed to the name of the hero; a circumstance whicli renders it all but certain that tlio Ballad referred to has come to us from a Scandinavian source. To Robert Jamieson belongs the honour of being the first to ])oint out "the singular coincidence which exists betwixt the i)allads of Scotland and those of Denmark and Sweden, not only in their incidents, but also in those characteristic peculiarities of phraseology and expression which distinguish our Traditionary Songs. "To those fond of tracing the obvious connection thus existing in the traditions and popular poetry of countries long separated from each other, the writings of Mr. Jamieson must ever prove both pleasing and prolitable ; and there are few who know any- tliing of the subject, on which he has bestowed so much attention and rellected so much light, but will readily subscribe to almost every one of the philosophic and ingenious views ho has so well expressed in the Dissertation which precedes his masterly translations. To point out some of tlie striking resemblances between the Scottish and Scandinavian Ballad, it is only necessary to refer the reader to the translation of 'Skion Annie,' given in Popular Ballads, &c.,^ for comparison with the Ballad of ' Fair Annie,' founded on the same incidents (post, p. 103). To the ballads, ' Young Child Dyring' (in lllustratiuns, &c., page 1 Mr. Jamieson appears to identify them with the Cimbrl of the Cimbric Cherson- esns. Otiiors, liowovor, conieml tliat they \s'eio of the same race as those who are now 8tyl-(l Welsh. If the luticr, llicir entire (lisa))pearunco from the South-west of ScoUand and North of Kuglauil, is, to say the least, remarkahlo. * Tho speech with which he usually introduces himself is in these words: — " Here comes X Oalasliin, (Jalashiu is my uamo. Sword and buckler I,y my side, I hope to win the game.' s Popuhir I^'iUmk and .'^ongs. /rem Tia h'tions, Manuscripts, and Scarce Editions, with TrunsMlions of .•iiinHur Pieces from the Ancient Danish Lamjiiage, and a Jew OriijinoU by i.e Editor, Eobcrt Jamieson, A.M. and F.A.S., Kdinburgh, 1806, "2 vo'.t;. 8to. Tlio work passed through tho press while its editor was resident on the Con- tinent; and the llrst intunation of his " discovery " is contained in a letter written at "Biga, Dec. :;i, old style, a.d. lSO.5-6," and prellsed to his translation of " Skiouu Anna,' voL U., p. 09. The fuller, more matured, and accurate result of his researches may be found in his Popular, J/eroic, and llouiantic Ballads, translated from the Noriliern Languaijts, tpxth Xotet and Illustrations, by U. Jamieson. A.M. and F.A.S., which forms Mr. Jamieson'a contribution to Illustrations of Nortliern Antiquities, from the earli,r Teutonic and Hcanninanan Ilomances: being an Abstract of the Book of Heroes and Sibelungen Lay, with Translations of iJet'icaf Tales, Jrom the Old German, Danish, tiicedish and Is'andic Ijinguayes. Edinburgh, 1S14, 4to. 1 his valuable work was the joint productioa of Henry Weber, Kobert Jamieson, and Sir 'Walter Scott. GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 335), and 'Catherine Janfarie' {post, page 85). To 'Ingefre'l and Gudrune' {Illustrations, page 340), the subject of which is the same with that of ' Cospatrick,' 'Bothwell,' or 'Gil Brenton ' {post, pages 222-8). To 'Elbolt and GuMborg,' page 317, whose affinity to the ' Cl)ild of Elle,' 'Erlington,' and the 'Douglas Tragedy,' cannot be mistaken, (post, pages 26-34, &e.) To 'Sir Stig and Lady Torelild,' page 344, which re- sembles 'Willie's Lady' {post, page 18). To 'Sir Wal and Lisa Lyle,' ' Fair Midel and Kirsten Lyle,' which ballads find a counterpart in a Scottish ballad called ' Leisome Brand,' though their catastrophes differ" ' (see^os^, page 59). Sir Walter Scott also refers to ^Ir. Jamieson's Popular Ballads, &c., in the following terms: — " This work, which was not greeted by the public with the attention it deserved, opened a new discovery respecting the original source of the Scottish Ballads. Mr. Jamieson's ex- tensive acquaintance with the Scandinavian literature enabled him to detect not only a general similarity betwixt these and the Danish Ballads preserved in the Kicrnpe Viser, an early collection of heroic ballads published in that language [1591 and 1G95], but to demonstrate that, in manj' cases, the stories and songs were distinctly the same, — a circumstance which no antiquary had hitherto so much as suspected." - And yet, in the face of the circumstantial account given by Motherwell, and the approval and acquiescence expressed by both him and Sir Walter Scott, as just quoted, and by him- self, as undernoted,^ Dr. Robert Cliambers had the assurance to pen tlie following grossly inaccurate statement : — " Robert Jamieson found in the Kcetnpe Viser, a Danish collec- tion of ballads, published in 1695, one resembling the Scottish ballad of Fair Annie (otl.erwise called Lady Jane); and on this ground he became convinced that many of our traditionary ballads were of prodigious antiquity, tiiongh they had been intermediately subjected to many alterations. "Mr. Jamieson's belief seems remarkably ill-supported; and as it has never obtained any adherents among Scottish ballad editors, I feel entitled to pass it over with but this slight notice."* > Motherwell's ifimtrelsy. Introduction, p. Ixxxix. » Sir Walter Scott's Introductory Remarks on Popular Poetry, Minstrelsy o/ the Scottish liorder, vol. ii., p. SI. Edit. lS:!i», iinil siuco. See a.\&o post, p. 1U3. * "The Tale of P'air Annie," wrote Dr. (thon Himply Mr) Ch». OKNEUAL INTRODUCTION. The reader who has peniscd tlie extracts from ^Motherwell and Scott, wliicli prcceile that from Dr. Cliambcrs, will not require to have tlie erroneous assumption of tlie statement made by the latter specifically exposed. It may, however, prove interesting, if not instructive, to note the ballads whicii Dr. Robert Chambers manifested such a Quixotic anxiety to lay as a literary guerdon on the tomb of Lady Wardlaw, the reputed authoress of " Ilardyknute" (p. 357). They are as follows:' — "The Lass o' Locliryan " [p. 1]. "Willie and ]\[ay Margaret ; or, The Drowned Lovers" [p. 9]. "The Doufflas Tracedy" [p. 29]. "Clerk Saunders" [p. 44]. " Sweet William's Ghost " [p. 50]. " The Clerk's Twa Sons o' Uwsenford" [p. 53]. "Lady Maisry " [p. 74]. "The Gay Gos-hawk" [p. 93]. "Fair Annie" [p. 103]. " Fausc Foodrage " [p. 128]. "Tamlane" [p. 186], "BurdElh;n"[i.. 248]. " S\veet Willie and Fair Annie " [p. 261]. " Young Huntin" ["Earl Richard"or "Lord William,"p. 270]. "Edward! Edward!" [p. 293]. "GilMorrice"*[p. 313]. 1 The references within bracliots are to tlio pages of this work. 2 "In the middle of the last century," writes Dr. Chambers, "appeared two editions of a b/'ocliin-e containing the now well-known ballad of 'Gil Morrice;' the date of the Bccomi was 17&.J. Prefixed to both was an advertisement Bettuig forth tliiit the preservation of this poem was owinjr to a lady, who favoured the jjrinters with a copy, as it was carefully collected fiom the mouths of old women and nurses Who was the 'lady' that favoured the printers with the copy? I strongly suspect that the reviser was Lady Wardlaw, and that the poem was communicated to the printers either by her or by some of her near relations." — 7V/e Komantie ScoUisk Ballads, &c., p. 11. Xow, as Lady Wardlaw died in 1727, the "copy" conld hardly be communicated by her. unless "the printers" were " favoured " with it through the medium of npirit-rapping ! At the same time it in quite evident, as stated by Curus, who apparently refer.i to, if he does not quoio from, a coniniunication of Captain Biddel'p, "that the present ballad is a modern composition; perhaps not much above the age of the middle of the la^-t century; at least I should bo glad to see or hear of a copy of the present words prior to Iti.'.O. That it was taken from an old ballad called ' Child Maurice.' now lost, 1 am inclined to believe ; but the present one may be classed with 'Ilardyknute,' 'Kenneth,' 'Duncan,' 'Lord Woodhouselee,' 'Lord Livingston,' 'Binnorio' [Pinkerton s verhion], 'The Death of Monteitii,' and many other production-! wiiich have been swallowed by many readers as ancient fragmenta of old poems.' —Cromek's lieliqucn. The .substantial accuracy of tbis opinion Is borne out by the more specific state- ment made on the authority of Sir Walter Scott, and approved by Mothei-well [pott, p. 315]. But whether any one of the rud'r, althfpugli in some res^pects more vigorous ver.-iions, more recently printed, can be regarded as the original used by the reviser, or who that personage may be, are matters which, like the authorship of Junius' Letter*, are never likely to be determined. GENERAL INTRODUCTIOX. "The Jew's Daughter" [p. 352]. " Sir Patrick Spens"' [p. 368]. "Young Waters" [p. 45-i]. "Johnnie of Braidislee " [p. 471]. "Mary Hamilton" [p. 509]. "Edom o' Gordon"^ [p. 515]. 1 Dr. Chambers objects to the antiquity of the ballad of "Sir Patrick Spens" on account of "the want of any aneieut manuscript, the absence of the least trait of an ancient style of composition, the palpable modernness of the diction: for example, ' Our ship must sail the faem,' a glaring specimen of the poetical language of the reign of Queen Anne," p. 7. And again, "Sir Patrick tells his friends before starting on his voyage, 'Our ship must sail the faem; 'and in the descrip- tion of the consequences of his shipwreck, we find, ' llony was the feather-bed that flattered on tlie faem.' No old poet would use foam as an equivalent for the sea; but it was just such a phrase as a poet of the era of Pope would love to use in that sense."— TAe Romantic Scottish Ballads, &c., p. 23. As to the first objection, Dr. Chambers, to be logically consistent, ought to deny the possibiUty of all transmission by oral tradition, which, as might be easOy shown, he does not do. Sea post, p. Gi'2. As to the second objection, style, words, and phrases are, in oral transmission, somewhat like a shifting quicksand, and liable to such constant change, that to found thereon an argument either pro or con, resembles the conduct of " the foolish man who built his house upon the sand. ' And as to the alleged "palpablo modernness of the diction," as exemplitied in the use of the word " faem," it ia only necessary to cite the two lines of an old song, as given by Gawin Douglas In one of the prologues to his celebrated Bcotish translation of Virgil's ^neid, which appeared in 1613. The lines referred to are — " The schip sails ower the saut fame, Will bring thir merchandis and my leman hame." * Curiously enough, Mr. Motherwell, who in the main is as reliable as Dr. Chambers is the reverse, specially refers to " Edom o' Gordon,' as an example of " how excellently well tradition serves as a substitute for more efTieieut and less mutable channels of communicating the things of past ages to posterity. In i roof of this. It is only necessary to instance the well-known ballad of 'Edom o' Gordon,' which is traditionally preserved in Scotland, and of which there is foi^unately extant a copy in an English MS., apparently coeval with the date of the subject of the ballad. The title of this copy is ' Captain Care.' We owe its publication to tha late Mr. lliteon, in whose Ancient Songs it will be found, printed from a MS. in tho Cottonian Library. Between the text of the traditionary vei>ion uud that of the MS., a Blight inspection will satisfy us that the variations are neither very numerous nor very important. This is taking tho MS. as the standard of the original text, although it can scarcely be considered as such, seeing it has been transcribed by an English clerk, who, perhaps, took it ilo^vn from the imperfect recitation of some wandering Scottish minstrel, and thereafter altered it to suit his own ideas of poetical beauty." And in a note, Mr. Motherwell adds, " Uitson styles it the undoubted original of the Scottish ballad, and one of the few specimens now extant of the proper old English ballad, as composed, not by a Grub Street author for the ntaUs of London, but to be chaunted up au2]. "The lloir ot'Linne" (Scolish version) [p. Gil].' " All of which," says Dr. Chambers, " besides others wliicli must rest unnamed, boar traces of the same autiiorsliip." The reader may perceive (see note [*], preceding page) that Dr. Chambers reg-ards a certain liackneycd repetition of stock pliraseolog}'^ as originating with and peculiar to Lady Wardlaw's alleged imitations of the ancient ballads, which phraseology •"And what a hauld shall we draw till, My morry uien and ine? We will (.ao to tho house o' llodeB, To Bce that lair ladye.' " The ladye stood on her castio wa', Beheld baitli dale and down; There she was 'ware of a host of men, Come riding towards the town. * " ' Oh, see ye not, my merry men a', t Oh, see ye not what I see 't ' '— &c. Now, let it bo observed that stanza 3 and the first two lines of stanza 4, ns here quoted, do not occur in the version of the ballad flist issued at Glasgow, in 1755. And to show the justice of the eslimate here expressed, as to the relative merits of Mr. Motherwell and Dr. Chamlicr.s, it may be mfliriont to quote the tirst five stauz.Ts of the version referred to by tho former, as j)nbUHhe(l by Mr. Bitson from the MS. in the Cotton Library, wliioh stanzas the iutolliKent reader may, if he or she chooses, compare with the stanzas and lines quoted above, and then form his or her own conclusion. The first five stanza^ jriven by Mr. Ritson are as follows : — " It befell at Martynmas, When wether waxed colde, Gaptaine Care saide to his men, ' Wo must go take a holde.' " ' JTaiUe, master, and wether you will, And wether ye hke best.' 'To the castle of Crecrynbroghe; And there we will take our reate. " ' I know wher is a gay castle, Is build of lyme aud stone, Within there is a pay ladic, Iler lor J is ryd from horn.' " The ladle lend on her castlo-walle. She loked upp and downo ; There was ^he ware of an host of men. Come riding to the towne. " ' Come you hethcr, my meri men all, And look what 1 do see; Yonder is ther a host of men, I musen who they bee.'" 1 Dr. Chambers ought to have known that the " Scotch Heir of Linne" was not •'refovoied by Mr. J II. Dixon," but by Mr. Peter IJuchan. It appears however, for tlie first time, in the iScoltish Traditional Versions of Ancient Ballads, edited by Mr. Dixon, for Ihe Percy Society. Dr. Chambers'B notes are: — * We have seeu tbe eame description In botli " Yuuiig Waters" and "The Bonnie B.irl at Murray." t Compare thla with "81r Patric'K Spcncc," — " Mak hut«, luak hs«te, my uerry ueu a'.* GENERAL rSTRODUCTION. really does not occur in the version of the ballad " Edom o' Gordon," which he w-es as the basis of an argument wherewith to bring in " Young AVaters," &c., within his charmed circle, but which phraseology occurs in two MS. copies, anterior to Lady Wardlaw's day, and these MSS. it is probable she never heard of, and more than probable she never saw, although Dr. Chambers apparently assumes her knowledge of one of them, but how, when, or where it was obtained, he does not condescend to show. As the Sceptical theory of Dr. Robert Chambers has been fully, perhaps even too verbosely, answered by Mr. Nerval Cljme of Aberdeen,' and by Mr. James Hutton Watkins of this City;* as it has been since virtual! j' abandoned by its advocate; as the Introductions prefixed to the respective ballads, taken in connection with what has here been said, quoted, and referred to, will enable each reader to form his or her own judgment on the matter; and, as the space at disposal is somewhat limited, the writer feels " entitled to pass it over with but this slight notice," which is perhaps more than it is "entitled" to receive. Most of the ballads assigned to Lady Wardlaw by Dr. Chambers belong to the class of Romantic Ballads included in Part First of this work. A few, however, lielong to the class of balhids usually designated Historical,' which latter form the larger portion of the ballads comprehended in Part Second. The Historical and other ballads included in Part Second, are, as nearly ;;8 it can possibly be made out, or inferred, arranged * 7We li&manfic Scottish Ballads and the Lady Wardlaw Ueresij. By Nerval Clyne, Aber- deea mdcccmx. As shovrn by Dr. Chambers s notes to the stanzas quoted by him from " E.l'im o" Gordon," ani there fi re as accurately stated by Mr. Nerval Clyne, " H<' "—i.e., Dr. C. — " dwells .'^trongly on points of resemblance 1 etween the ballads in dispute, and urKuen somewhat in this la-hion. Number one has expressions similar to those in ' llardyknute; ' number ttco contains lines or words wonderfully hke some in number one; nmnber thre^ has, In a similar way, a resemblance to nimibers one and tiro,- and so forth through the whole twenty-five pieces. Take away number one therefore — to wit, 'Sir Patrick Sjience,' the comer-stone of tlie structure raised by Mr. Chambers — and Mr. Chambers's lopic [ ! ], unsound enough before, becomes too defective to be maintained with gravity." (P. 13.) It is painful to be undor the necessity of passing censure on one vrho has done so much on behalf of a healthy popular literature. 2 Early Scottish Ballads. By James Hutton Watkins, Member of the Archseological Society of Qlas-'ow. Being a revised paper read at a meeting of the Society, 8th January, 18G6. — Printed, Glasgow, mdccclxvii. » This class, according to Mr. MothTwcH'R definition, "Emb-nces all those na lativo 8ori;,M which derive their origin from hifitorical facts wlielher of a public or private nature. Tlie subjects of these nro nnlional or personal cot illicts, family feuds, public or domestic transactions, personal advoiitiiro, or local incidents, which in Homo hliapo or other, have fallen under the observation of contemporary and authentic ami ilists. In general, those coniposiiions may be considered as coeval with the ovciilH which tlicy commemorate; l)ut, with this elnss as villi that which has been styled the Itomantic balliid, it is not to be expected that, in thei»- progress to our day, they have umlergono no modillc itioiis of form, and these very considor- Hiilft. from that in which thi-y wore originally produced a*id promulgated among the r'eo]>lo.'— J/ini Mothorwoil B Minstrelsy, Introduction, p. xxx., note [♦]. * "Edgobucklin," near Muniielburgh.— Scott. Ii GENERAL INTRODUCTION, 37j6 Complayiit of Scotland (1549) furnishes us with a curious and iutcrcstiiif^- list of the " [Stories and . . flet taylis, . . sura . in {irose, and sum . in verse: . [quliilk] the Scheiphirdis, ' thir vj'uis and saruadis [rehcrseit] ane by ane. . . . Thir v;ir tlic names of tlicm as cftir followis, the taylis of Cantirbcrryc." Robert le d3'abil due of Norniadie, the tayle of the volfe of the varldis end,' Ferrand crl of Flandris that mareit the deuyl/ the taij'l of the reyde cyttyn vitht the thre hoydis,' the tail quhou pcrseus sauit andromada fra the cruel mostir, the projiliysie of merlyne," the tayl of the giantis that eit quyk men" on fut by fortht as i culd found, vallace,* the bruce," ypomedon, the tail of the thre futtit dog of narrouay, the tayl quhou Hercules sleu the sarpent hidra that lied vij heydis, the tail quhou the kyng of est mure land mareit the kyngis dochter of vest mure land," Skail gillenderson the kyngis sone of skellye, '" the tayl of the four sonnis of aymon, the tail of the brig of the mantribil, " the tail of Sir euan arthours knycht, '* rauf collzear, " the siege of milan, gauen and I The author of 77i« Complaynt states that " euyrio scheiphenl lied ane home spune in the lug of there bonet," p. GG. [Apparently after the same fashion as the tobacco pipo which flgnres in the hat-band of an Irishman, as depicted or caricatured by Erskine Nicol and the Punch artists.] He also relates how " the prencipal scheip- hirde maid ane orisone tyll al the laif of his companRzons" [p. 66]; wherein he "indoctryne his nychtbours as he had studeit ptholeme, auerois, aristotcl, galicn, ypocritPs" or Cicero, quliilk var expert practicians in mothamatic art," and yet Btran^'ely enough this learned " Scheiphirde" is described as "ane rustic pastour of bestialite, distitut of vrbanite, and of speculatione of natural philosophe " [p. i»7]. * By Chaucer. 3 Post, p. 185. * Referred to in Barbour's Bruce, Buke Thryd, v. 468, &c.— Jamieson's edition. 6 Post, p. 199. 6 Prist, pp. 208-9, 382, and SS.")-". 7 Pust, p. 200. 8 Henry the Minstrel, and Barbour, appear to have done for the Scotlsh Heroea ■what Pisistratus is credited wth having done for those of Greece, who are celebrated in the Homeric Bhapsodies.— See ante, p. ix., and^oit, p. 414. « Post, p. 128. I" Mr. Pinkerton suggests, and Mr. Motherwell supposes, that the outline of this tale is " to bo found in Wintown." — Cronykii, a.d. 11-58. II Also referred to in Barbour's Bruce, where it is said that Charlemagne "Wan ifantryt/ill, and passed Flagot."— Buke Secuud, v. 860 (Jamieson's edition). W Pott, p. 21. l« Mentioned by Gawln Douglas in his Palace of Honovr, quoted, post, p. 403; and by Dunbar in hla '" Address to the King : " — " Quhen servit is all udir man, Gentill and sempill of every clan, Kyne of Raul Colyar I, and Johne the Helf ; Natliing I get, na conquest than; Kxcess ofthochl dois me mischeif.' It was printed at St. Andrews by Lekprevlck, 16mo, 1678. GENEHAL INTRODUCTION. gollogras, ' lancelot da lac, ^ Arthour knj'cht he raid on nycht vitht gyltin spur and candil Ijcht,' the tail of floremond of albanye that sleu the drago be the see,* the tail of syr valtir the bald leslye, * the tail of the pure 1 Wyntoun mentions Huchowne of the " Awle ryall," or royal palace, as a poet— " That curmand wes in literature. He made the gret Gest of Arthm-e, And the Awntyre of (Jawane, The Pystyl als of Swete Susane. He wes c'uryws in his Stvlo, Fayre of facund, and subule." Dunbar, in his "Lament for the Deth of the Makkirs," mentions Clerk of Tranent, who made the Arenl.r-s of Sir Gatcane; bat whether Huchowne and Clerk be one and the same, or " different persons, and whether ttiis romance be the com- position of either, is quite nucertain." It fo'-med one of a series of popular tracts, printed at Edinburgh "by Walter Chepman and Andrew Myhar, in the year itDViii." Ante, p. xxiii., and post, p. 3-22. Pinkerton, in his Scolish Poems (1792). reprinted Gatrin and Gollogras, and aX'^o printed, for the first time, another poem under tho title of -Sir Gaican and Sir Galoran of Gallotmy; bat the earlier title of the latter is the Awniyrs of .^rlhure al the Term Walhelyn. - One of the most celebrated of the Arthurian Knights. See "Ze ifort Arthur, The A /ventures of Sir Launcelot Du Lake. 1819," printed for the Roxburghe Club. " The SeoUish Metrical Romance of Lancelot Du Lak. Now first printe i from a manuscript of the fifteenth century, belonging to the Universi y of Cambridge &c., &c., edited by Joseph Stevensoa. Edinb., is:jy, ' printed for th j Maitland Club. ''Lancelot of the Laik. Editod from tho unique MS. in the Cambridge UniversHy Library (ab. 1500 a.d.) by the Bev. Walter W. Skeat, M. A, 1865," printed tor the Early Englisii Text Society. A copy of the extremely rare edition of Lancelot Du Lac, 3 vols., black letter, wood- cnte, foUo, Paris, 1-513-20, was latoly sold by auction In London. [1871.] 5 L'-yden, in the Preliminary Dissertation prefixed to his edition of the Compiaynt or Scotland (p. 229), mentions that he had heard these lines " repeated m a nursery tale, of which I only recollect," says he, "the following ridiculous verses:— ' Chick my nagfrie! chick my naggie! How mouy miles to Aberdeagie? Tis eight, and eight, and other eight; WeTl no win there wi' candle light.' " * " The name of this hero occurs in Romall and Lillian, a metrical romance, which was lately sung as a ballad in the streets of Edinburgh.'" Leyden. Ibid. '' "Sir Walter Lesley accompanied his brother Norman to the east, to assist Peter, King of Cyprus; where, ace rding to Fordun, Cceperunt civitatem Alexandrinim tempore ultinii regis Datid.' Leyden. /friA p. 230. Bu 'Mr. Fi' lay seeks to connect witti this a tradition preserved by Verstegan, in his Rp.siHution of Oeraued Inle'H- gtnce, Lond., ICM, p. 292: 'A combat being once fou,'ht in Scotland, bawpon a grntleman of tho :amily of Leslyes, and a knig .t of Hungary, whe ein the Scottish (fenileman wae victor; in memory th rcof, and of the place where U happened, these ensuing veises doe in Scotland yet remaine: — Bntweene the lesseley, and the mare. He slew the Knight, and left him there.' Mackenzie, In hi8 life of John Lesley, Bishop of Boss, gives a different account of this tradition. After mf'ntioning that the family of Lpsl'^y sprung tioin Barthole:r!y Lesley, a Hungarian gentleman who acompanled Queen Margaret from Hungary to England, and from thence to Scotland, w loro ho married oii" of her Muids of Honour, about KIT,;, by whom he h.'id a son, Malcolm ; which Malcolm, havin;,' boen appointed Governor of Edinburgh CaHtle, dcfeudifd the Fame so valiantly, that tho king first kolghted him, and then made liim Governor thereof for life. In reward for hli service". ' But this waa not all, 'says our historian, 'for he desired him to ride a GENERAL INTRODUCTION. tlio tayl of tlie goUlin appil, tlic tayl of tlie tlire vierd systirs,* tlie tnyl quliou that dedaliiB inaiij the laborynth to keip the iiioatir niiiiotaiinis. tlie tail qiihciu kynp midaa gat tua asse luggis oil his hede bo cause of his aucvois." ^1 Qiihen thir Schciphyrdis lied tald al tliyr pleysand storeis, Hum they and tiieir vyuis began to sing sueit nielodius sangis of natural music of the antiqnite, as cftir follouis. (See The Songs of Scotland, Chronologically An-anged, p. xxvii.) [Some of the pieces enumerated among the "sueit melodiua sangis" are, however, properly speaking, ballads. For ia- btauce: — "The frog cam to the myl dur."' " the yang of gilquliiskhar."* "god sen the due, bed byddin in Franco, And delabaute had neuyr cum hame."* "the battel of the hayrlau " [post, p. 44:3]. "The hunttis of cheuet" [jMst, p. 425-6]. " The persee and the mongiimrye met that day, that gentil day " [post, p. 424]. "my luf is laid upon ane knight" [iwst, p. 476]. ] ^ Thir Scheiphirdis ande there vyuis sang mony vthir melodi' eangis, the quhilkis i hef nocbt in memorie. than eftir this sueit celest arnionyi', tha began to dance in ane ring, euyrie aid scheipherd led his vyfe be the hand, and euyrie zong scheip- lierd led her quhome he lufQt best. Ther vas viij. schciphyrdis, iT'served in the Ashmolean MSS., LX., No. 38. One of Henryson's poems, inspired by tlie same theme, was printed by Chepman and Myllar, in the year 1008, under tuiB title:— " Heire b'gynnis the traiie of Orpbeeus Kyng, and how he yeid to hewyn and to hel to beik his queno." — Post, p. xxxi. 1 Mr. Motherwell supposes the outline of this story to bo given in the following liner<, relatiiig to a dream which was dreamt, or vision which waa eeua, by Macbeth:— "Thre werd sy-styns most lyk to be The first he iiearJ say, jsMngand ■ by, lo honder the T/tuyne o/Crumi achly! Tlie Tulhor woman said agayn, 0/ MiJiTjy yonder I :e the Thaijn ! Tho Thriii than said, / se the kijnfj! " This is the fountain-head of the Moi-y wliich tho immortal Shakespeare introduces ■with such effect in his : ublime tragedy of " Macbeth."— Act I., Scene iii. 2 The " Stories ami flet taylis " not referred to in the notes are, with the exception ct tv,-o, either French or Clasaical. 3 This is probably one of the numerous veriious of Die nm-sery ballad, "A frog bo would a-wooing go." * Is Bupposed to have bein au historic ballad, but time, place, circumstance, and person are alike unknown. 5 This appears to have been a ballad on tho Chevalier Ue la Beaufo, whom the liegeut Joan, Duke of Albany, left as his deputy when bo raturuod to France. The unforuinatc Frenchman was savagely nuadored by the Laird of WcJderbam and other.'!, JL.v. 1017 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. and ilk ane of them bed ane sj-ndry instrament to play to the laif. the fyrst hed ane drone bag pipe, the nyxt hed ane pipe maid of ane bleddir and of ane reid, the third playit on ane trump, the feyrd on ane corue pipe, the fyft playit on ane pipe maid of ane gait home, the sext playt on a recordar, the seuint plait on ane fiddil, and the last plait on ane quhissil. ' . . . . in the f3n-st thai dancit, al cristyn mennis dance, the northt of Scotland, huntis np, the comout entray, • lang plat fut of garian, Robone hudc, thom of lyn, freris al ennj^rnes, the loch of slcno, the gosscps dance, leuis grene, makky, the speyde, the flail, the lamraes vynde, soutra, cum kyttil me naykyt vantounly, schayke leg fut befor gossep, Rank at the rute, baglap and al, johnue ermistrangis dance, the alman baye, the bace of voragon, dangeir, the beye, the dede dace, the dance of kylrynne, the vod and the val, schaik a trot. — The Complaynt of Scotland, edited by John Leyden, 8vo, 1801, pp. 98, 99, 100, 101, 103. [Among the dances enumerated, the following are named after ballad heroes: — " Robene hude " [post, p. 322]. " thom of lyn " [post, p. 186]. " johnne ermistrangis dance " [post, p. 489]. ] In addition to the " Storeis and flet Taylis" already named, the author of T/te Complaynt (p. 223) refers to the " Tale of the Priests of Peblis."^ But, as remarked by Leyden, the list " cannot be considered ..s complete, though it marks the peculiar taste of the author." No reasonable argument against the antiquity of " Sir Patrick Spens," or any other presumedly ancient ballad or song, can therefore be founded on the silence of The Complaynt regarding them. In fact, it must be obvious to the most superficial reader, that many of the pieces enumerated could never have been popular among Scotish shepherds'* and their wives, while 1 The musical powers of " kyng amphiou," " appollo," " al the sfheipherdis that virgil makkis mention in his bucolikis," "orplieus,' "the scheiphyrd pan," "nor racrcurius,'" "culd nocht bo comparit to thir foir said scheipUyrdis."— t'oHic/ajt/ii, p. 102. The snperlativo eri:ellenec nf their dancing is also graphically descrihed : — "for fyrst thai bega vitlit tua bokkis and vltht a kysse. ciiripides, iuuenal, per;,-p- l?-*; Smith's bcoltish Minstrel, vol. iv., p. 78; and in Buchan's Ancient Ballads, vol. ii., p. 155, under tho title of " Donald oi the Islea." GENERAL INTRODUCTION. The principal printed Collections contaiuiug Scottish Ballads or Poems, which have been printed and classed as such, are as follows : — " A Clioicc Collection of Comic and Serious Scots Poems, Both Ancient and Modern, By several Hands. Edinburgh, printed by Jamc.^ Watson: Sold by John VnHnngey [Three Parts, 17U6, 1709, and 1711. Second ed. of Part i.. 1713.]i "The Everji^reen, Being a Collection of Scots Poems, Wrote by the Ingenious before 1600. Published by Allan Kamsay. Edinburgh, 172J-.'' 2 vols.^ "The Tea Table Miscellany: A Collection of Choice Songs, Scotcli and Euglisli. Edinburgh, 1724, and after." 4 vols,' " Kcliques of Ancient English Poetry, &c., By Thomas Percy, Lord Bishop of Dromore." Loudon, 1st cd., 1765,, 4tli ed. (im- proved), 1794.* "Ancient and Modern Scottish Songs, Heroic Ballads, &c.," [Edited by Uavid Herd, assisted by George Paton.] Edinburgh, 1769. 2d ed., in 2 vols., 1776.' "The Scots Musical Museum," &c., by James Johnson. Edinburgh. 6 vols., 1787-1803. [3d ed., "With copious Notes and Illustrations. ... by the late William Steuhouse," and " with additional Notes and Illustrations by David Laing and C. K. Sharpe, Edinburgh, 1853." 4 vols.]" "Minstrelsy of the Scottish Horder," i&c. [1st and 2d vols., 1802 ; 3d 1803. Last ed. revised by Sir Walter Scott, Caddell, Edinburgh, 1830. 4 vols.]' " Popular Ballads and Songs ... by Robert Jamieson." Edinburgh, 1806. 2 vols.* 1 This in tLe earliest collection of Scots Poems issued in book form. i Most of the poems contained in The Evergreen were printed from the Bannatyne .MS ; bnt they are piveu very inaccurtttely. It contains also " Hardykuute," "The Vision," &c., which had uo right to a place under such a title as the above. 8 The earliest C'olleclion of Seals Songs, and the basis of all subsequent collectioua. < The Retiques contain a larger nuiiber of Scotish Ballads than had previously appeared in print, at least in a collected form. Most, if not all of them, wera trauHmitted by Lord Hailes. 5 Contributes larKely lo our stock of ballads; many fragments being also gleaned up and preserved which might otherwise have perished. « The Nolet and JVustrations were added to this last edition, of which they form the 4ih volume; bnt in other respects the editions are the same, both beiUiC paged contiiitiou-ly; vols. i. to vi. oi thu l^t ed. corrc-ponding with vos i. to iii. of tiie 3d ed. Mu.sic, Words, and Notes all combine to render this the most valuable compendium of Scotish Song prior to the beginning of the pre.sont century, and iijdi.fi>ensablo to tho.se who wish to know nearly all that is known or can bo ascer- tained regarding our Xatiooal Song and Music up to that period. " Mr. Motherwell, referrin"; to "this ^rcat national work," remarks,— " Fortnnato it was for the Ileroick and Legendary Song of Scotland that thi- work was under- taken, and Htill mom fortun-Ue that iis execution devolved upon ono so well qualilled In every rospuct to do its subject the most ample justice." The present work coa- talnn, with very few (■x';o|piiODH, all the genuine relics of Traditionary Ballads first Kiven to the world by Tho Great Wizard of the North, who won his spurs as collector and editor oi tho above-named work. * For Bome account of Mr. Jamleaon's contributions to tho Ballad Literaturo of bcotlaad, see antt, p. xvl GENERfVL INTnODUCTIOJT. " Jlinstrclsy, Ancient and ^lodern, with an Historical Intro- rluction and Notes. B}-- William ^lotherwcll." Glasgow, 1827. ' " Ancient Ballads and Songs of tlio North of Scotland, Hitherto Unpublished, "With Explnnnt<3ry Notes by Peter Ihichan." Kdinl)in-gh: printed for W. & D. Laing, and J. Stevenson, &c., 1828. 2 vols." Nnniorona collections, many of them of considerable value, although of minor importance, compared with those just named, are referred to under: — ^ 1 Tho "Historical Introduction and Notes" by Mr. Motherwell cannot be too hishly praiseil, iinil rendered his Minslre'si) really invaluable to all who desired a. conipreliensive, and, at iho same tiino. niinuto acquainttiuco wiili almost every- tliinit pertaininK to or known rojiardiug Sootish Ballade, up to the date of publication, and prior to the issue of the present work, in wliich the iniormatioii he so industri- ously and mtellisently gathered toyother and imparted is nearly all incorporated and Eiiliplemcaied. 3 " Tho most extensive and valuable adrlitions," writes Sir Walter Scott, "which have been of lato made to this branch of ancient literature, are the collections of Mr. Peter Buchan, of Peterhead, a person of indefatigable research in that depart- ment, and whose industry has been crowned with tho most successful results;" and again — "Of tho originality of the ballads in Mr. Buchan's collection, we do not onter- nin the .slightest doubt." After stating several good and valid reasons for this opinion, he further adds, — " Accordingly, we have never soon any Collection of Scottish Poeti-y appearing, from internal evidence, so decidedly and indul)itably origmal. It is perliaps a pity that Sir. Buchan did not remove some obvious errors and corruptions; but in truth, though their remaining on record is an injury to the effect of the ballads in point of composition, it is, in some degree, a proof of their authenticity." — Introductory Eemarks on Popular Poetry, Minstrelsy, vol. :., pp. 85-S. 3 "Aberdeen Cantus; 1st. ed., 1GG2; 2ud. ed., IGiiC; 3rd. ed., 1C82. Pinkerton"3 Scottish Tragic IkiHads, 1781, and Select Scottish Ballads, 2 vols., 1783. Caw's Poetical Museum, Hawick, 1781. Eitsons Scottish Somj, 2 vols., 1791. Scottish Poems of the Sixte nth Centurii, Edited by J. G. Dalzell, 1801. Finlay's Scottish Historical and Romantic Ballads, 2 vols., 1808. Evan's Old Ballads, &c., 2 vols., 1777; 4 vols., 1784; new ed., revised, 1810. Cromek's /Sete<'iLUE stands in liis stable door, Clapping liis coal-black steed; And looking o'er his Avliite lingers, His nose began to bleed. 2 " Gi'e corn to my liorsc, inotlicr, And meat to my man, Jolin; And I'll awa to Marg'ret's bower, Before the niglit comes on." C '•■ C)li, bide this night with me, Willie, 01), bide this night M-ith nic ; The best, an' fowl of all il;c roost At your supper t,liall Lr." 4 '' All your fowls, ami a!I your roosts, I value not a jiriii ; Sac I'll awa to ^Iarg"rct'.s bower, Before tlie night sets in." 10 BALLAD MINSTRELSY Oi SCOILAND. 6 " Stay tliia night with me, Willie, Oh, stay tliis night willi nio; The best, an' sheep in all tlic tloek, At your supper shall be." G " All your sheep, and all your flocks, I value not a prin ; Sae I'll nwa to Marg'ret's bower, I maun be there this e'en." 7 " Oh, stay at homo, my son, Willie, The wind blawa cauid and shrill; The night will be baitli mirk and late, Ere her bower ye win till." 8 " Oh, tho' the night were e'er sae mirk, Or the wind blew e'er sae cauld, I will be in May Itlarg'ret's bower Before twa hours be tauld." 9 '' Oh, an' ye gang to Marg'ret's bower, Without the leave of me, In the deepest pot* of Clyde's water, My malison drown thee." 10 " The gude steed that I ride upon Cost me thrice threttie pound ; And I'll put trust in his swift feet. To take me safe and sound." 11 He mounted on his coal-black steed. And fast he rode awa; But ere he came to Clyde's water, Full loud the wind did blaw, 12 As he rade o'er yon high, high hill, And down yon dowie den, The noise that was in Clyde's water Wou'd fear'd live hunder men. 13 " Oh, roaring Clyde, ye roar ower loud, Your streams seem wondrous Strang; Make me your wreck as I come back, But spare me as I gang." 14 His heart was warm, his pride was up; Sweet Willie kentna fear; But yet his mother's malison Aye sounded in his ear. • "Pot: " hole, or eddy-pooL TU£ UKOWNED L0Y£11S. 11 15 Oh, he has swam through Clyde water, Though it was wide aud deep; And he came to May Marg'ret's door When all were fast asleep. 16 Oh, he 's gane round and round about, And tid'd at the pin; But doors were stcek'd, and windows barr'd, Aud nane would let him in. 17 •' Oh, open the door to me, Marg'ret — Oh, open and let me in I For my boots are full of Clyde's water, And frozen to the brim." 18 '■ Oh, wha is this at my bower door That calls me by my name?" " It is your lirst love, sweet Willie, This night newly come liame." 19 " I ha'e some lovers without, without, And I ha'e some within ; But the best lover that e'er I had, He was here late yestreen." 20 " Oh, if ye winna open tho door. Nor yet be kind to me, Now tell me of yome out-chamber Where I this night may be." 21 '• My barns are full of corn, Willie ; My stables are full of hay ; My bowers are full of merry youug men. They winna remove till day." 22 " Oh, fare ye weel, then, May Marg'ret, Since better maunna be ; I've won my mother's malison Coming this night to thee." 23 He 's mounted on his coal-black 8t6eriN9TRF.Lss,* and a bell to ring. This gvulely gift shall be her ain, And let me be lighter of my bairn." 8 " Of her young bairn she 's ne'er be lighter, Nor in licr bow'r to shine the brighter; But she shall die, and turn to clay, And ye shall wed another may." 9 " Another may I'll never wed, Another may I'll never bring hame." But, sigliing, said that weary wight — " I wish my life were at an end! " 10 " Yet gae ye to your mother again, That vile rank witch, of rankest kind ! And say, your ladye has a girdle, It 's all red gowd to the middle ; 11 " And aye, at ilka siller hem, I-Iang fifty siller bells and ten; This gudely gift shall be her ain. And let me be lighter of my bairn." 12 " Of her young bairn she 's ne'er be lighter, Nor in your bow'r to shine the brighter ; For she shall die, and turn to clay, And thou shall wed another may." 13 " Another may I'll never wed, Another may I'll never bring hame." But, sighing, said that Aveary wight — " I wish my days were at an end ! " 14 Then out and spak the Billy Blind, t He spak aye in good time [his mind] : — "Yet gae ye to tlic market place, And there do buy a loaf of wace ; | Do shape it bairn and bairnly like. And in it two glasscn ecn you'll put. • " Chess "—should probably be joss— the uame of a hawk's bell.— Scott. fBillv Blind" a familiar genius, or propitious spirit, somewhat similar fo the Ei'o\\-iiio He is meutiouod repeatedly in Mrs. Bi'ovvii's ballads; but 1 h.ave not met with him anvwhere eho, altliough he is alluded to in the rustic game of Bogle ((. fc, goblin) Billy Blind. The word is, indeed, used m Sir David Lindsay s Plays, but apparently in a different sense;— " PrieBts sail leid you like ane Bill^ Blinde." Plnkerton'B Scottish Poems, 1792, vol. 11., p. 232. {''Wace:" wax. K£MP OWYNE. 21 15 '•Then to your motlior j'ou sliall go, And bid her your hoy's christening to ; But do j'ou stand a little away, And notice weel ^Yhat she may say." IC Th.cn to his mother he did go, And bade her his boy's christening to ; And he did stand a little away, To notice wccl what she miglit say. 17 '• Oil, wha has loosed the nine witch-knots That were amang that ladye's locks? And -wha's ta'en out the kames of care, That were amang that ladye's hair? 18 " And wha has ta'en down that bnsh of woodbino That hung between her bow'r and mine ? And wha has kill'd the master kid That ran beneath that ladye's bed? And wha has loosed her left foot shee, And let that ladye lighter be ? " 19 Syne, Willie 's loosed the nine witch-knots That were amang that ladj'e's locks ; And Willie 's ta'en out the kames of care That were into that ladye's hair; And he 's ta'en down the bush of woodbine, Hung atween her bow'r and the witch carlire. 20 And he has killed the master kid Tliat ran beneath that ladye's bed; And he has loosed her left foot shee, And latten that ladye lighter be; And now he lias gotten a bonnie son. And meikle grace be him upon. KEMP OWYNE; or, KE^IPION. The following ballad is collated from two different versions, namely: — T. " Kempion," printed in The Minstrelsy of the Scotlish Border, vol. iii., p. 'J.m "(Jhieily from Mra. Browu'a M.S., witli corrections from a recited fragment.'' II. " Kemp Owyne," printed in Minstr':Uy, Arirlcnt and Modern, p. 373. D n.VLLAD MIKSTRKI.SY OF SCOTL\KD. Tu a note to "Young Hastiii£;s," Mr. Buoliau states that it, aiul tho five follo\vin!?-nainca ballads, "Rccdlsdalo and Wise William," "Billie Archie," "Youn;^ Bearwell, ' '• Kciiiit Owyiio," and "Earl Richard," were sent to him, "in MS., by Mr. Kicol, Strichen, who wrote them from menior}', as he had learned them in earlier years from old pcoi)lc." Buchan sent thooc MSS. to iSIotlierwell, in whose work, above-named, they llrst appeared. They were all shortly afterwards included in Bi'.clian's Ancient Jl illads and Songs, &c. "The talc of ' Kerapion,'" says Sir Walter Scott, "seems, from the names of the person:iges and the nature of the adventure, to have beeu an old metrical romance, de,2;raded into a ballad by the lap.se of time and the corruption of reciters. "Such ti-ansformations as the song narrates are common in the annals of chivalry. In the 25th and 'JGth cantos of the second book of the Orlando Inamorato, the paladin, Brandimarte, after sur- mountiug many obstacles, penetrates into the recesses of an enchanted palace. Here he linds a fair damsel seated upon a tomb, who aunounces to him that, in order to achieve her deliverance, he must raise the lid of the sepulchre, and kiss whatever beiug should issue forth. The knight, having ]jledged his faith, proceeds to open the tomb, out of which a monstrous snake issues forth -svith a tremendous hi.ss. Brandimarte, with much reluctance, fullils the bharre con- ditions of the adventure, and the monster is instantly changed into a beautiful faiiy, who loads her deliverer with benefits. "There is a ballad somewhat resembling 'Kempion,' called 'The Laidley Worm of Spindleston-heugh,' which is very popular upon tho Bordei'S. The most common version was either entirely composed, or re-written, by the Reverend Mr. Lamb of Norhara." — MinUrelsy, vol. iii., p. 230. Mr. Motherwell considers that the copy given by him "preserves in greater purity the name of the hero than any other j'et published ;" and adds, "He was, no doubt, the same Ewcin, or Owain, ap Urieu, the king of Reged, who is celebrated by the bards Taliessin ami Llywarch-Hen, as well as in the Welch Historical Triades." — J^linHtrelHy, Introduction, p. Ixxxiii., note 92. Sir Ewein was nephew to King Arthur, and cousin of Sir Gawein^ who "loved" him " beste of alle other."* Segramour is styled "nevew to the Emperour of Constantynnoble ;"t and both are cele- brated among the knights of Kino: Arthur. 1 IIr:i: mother died when she was young, Wliicli gave her cause to make great moan ; Her father roarriod tlic warst woman That eves- lived in Christendom. -iferUn; a-. The JEarl* EUtory of King Arthur, p. 455. P-iVJiBh?^ ^ Early i-nglish Text .Sooioty, '• ; Sooioty. t Same work, p. 373. KF.MP OWYNE. 23 2 Dove Isabel, whh foot and hand, In every thin;;- tliat she could do, Did Korve her v.-icked stepmother With servitude baith leal and true •. o 'J'ill ance in an unlucky time, When nane were near to hear nor see, This wicked v.-itch to her did call, "Corae Iiere, dove Isabel, to me. 4 " C(i!ne here, come hero, ye freely feed,* And lay yom' head low on my knee; The heaviest weird I will you read That ever v.-as read to gay ladye. " Oh, meikle dolour ahall ye dree, And aye the salt seas shall ye swim; And far mair dolour shall ye dree, On Estmere crags, when ye them climb. G "I weird 3-e to a fiery beast, And boi row'd shall yc never be, Till Kemp Owyne, the king's own son, Come to the crag, and thrice kiss thee." 7 The wicked witch, her stepmother, Then threw her in the craigy sea. Saying — " Lye you there, dove Isabel, And all my sorrows lye with thee. 8 " Let all the world do what they will, Else borrow'd shall j'ou never be. Till Kemp Owyne come o'er the sea, And borrow you with kisses three." 9 Iler breath grew Strang, her hair grew laug. And twisted thrice about the tree ; And all the people far and near Thought that a savage beast was she. 10 Oh, rneikle dolour did she dree, And aye the salt seas o'er slie swam; And far mair dolour did she dree On Estmere crags, cro she them clamb. n And aye she cried for Kemp Owyne, " Kemp Owyne, come and borrow mo ! " Till word has gane to Kemp Owyne, Whore he lived far beyond the sea. •,S'iV f'colfg Alin.'trihij; but sthoiiM probably rciiil "frcly |V;,<1 : " i.e., "frely," a soble or bnautiful woman; "feyd," or doomed to dc.ilructlon. 24 BALLAD MINSTHELSY OF SCOTLAND. 12 "Now. l>v my sootli," saiil Ktiup Owyue, "ThisViery benst I'll ix-^w^ ;uul seo." "And, by my sooth," said Hegramoiir, ":My tic bVother, I'll gaiii!; with tlicc." ir> Then bi.<;i;t^l lia'o tlicy :i boiinie boat, And thoy ha'o sot her to the sea; But a mile" before they reach'd tbc shore, lloiuul them slie gart the red fire ileo. U " Oil, Regrainour, ply weel your oar, And inind ye wcel how ye do steer; For this wicked beast will fire the boat, If we to it do come owcr near." 15 Syne he has bent an arblast bow, And aim'd an arrow at her head ; And swore, if !;he did not hold back. With that same shaft to shoot her dead. IG " Oh, out of my stythe I winna rise (And it is not for the awe of tliec). Till Kemp Owyno, the king's own son, Come to the crag, and thrice kiss me." 17 Her breath was Strang, her hair was lang. And twisted thrice about the tree ; And with a swing she came about, — " Kemp Owyne, come and kiss with me. 18 " Here is a royal belt," she cried, " That I have found in the green sea ; And while your body it is on, Drawn shall your blood never be ; But if you touch me tail or lin, I vow my bult your death shall be." 10 He louted o'er, gave her a kiss, The royal belt he brought him wi' • Her breath was Strang, her hair was lang, And twisted twice al)out the tree; And with a swing she came about, — " Kemp Owyne, come and kiss with me, 20 " Here is a royal ring," she said, "That I have found in the green sea; And while your finger it is on, Drawn shall your blood never be ; But if you toucli me tail or fin, I swear my ring youi death shall be." KEMP OWYNE, 21 He louted o'er, gave her a kiss, Tlie royal ring lie brought him Avi' ; Iler hreath Avas Strang, her hair was lung, And twisted ancc around the tree; And witli a swing she came about, — "Kemp Owvne, come and kiss witli iiig. 22 "Here is a roya! brand." she said, "That I have found in the green sea; And while yonr body it is on, Drawn shall your blood never be; lint if 3'ou toucli me tail or fin, I swear my brand your death shall be." 23 He louted o'er, gave her a kiss, The royal brand he brought him wi'; Her breatli was sweet, her hair grew short, And twisted nane about the tree ; And smilingly she came about. As fair a woman as fair could be. 21 "And by inj' sooth," saj-s Kemp Owync, " My ain true love (for this is she), Tliey surely had a heart of stane Could put thee to such miscrie. 25 " Oh, was it warwolf in the wood, Or was it mermaid in tlie sea? Or was it man, or vile woman, My ain true love, that misshaped thee?" 2G " It was na Avarwolf in tlie wood, Nor was it mermaid in the sea ; But it was my wicked stepmother, And wae and weary may she be ! " 27 '■ Oh, a heavier weird shall light her on Tlinn ever she made liglit on thee; Her hair sliall grow rougii, and her teetli gruw laug, And on lior four feet gang shall she. ">i "Xniie shall take pity licr upon, And borrow'd shall she never be; T>ut in Wormcswood she aye shall won, Till St. Mungo* come o'er the sea." And, sighing, said tbat weary wight — "I doubt tliat day I'll never see!" •Or St. Kc-.'.l'gcru; the patron saiut of Ulafgow. U6 HALLAD MlNbTHELSY OK SCOTLAND. ER LINTON. " This lnll.\cl is published from the collation of two copies, obtaiiuil from recitation. It seems to be tlie rude original, or perhaps a corrnpteil and imiiorfcct cojjy, of ' The Cliild of Ellc,' a beautiful legendary tale, published in Percy's liiUguei^ of Ancient, Poctrj/. It is"sinc;u!ar that this charming ballad should have been translated or imitated by tlie celelirated Burner, •without acknow]ed;i;mcnt of tb * English original. As 'The Child of EUe' avowedly received correc- tions, we may ascribe its greatest beauties to the poetical taste of the ingenious editor." — Sir Walter Scott, Minstrelfs;/, vol. ii., p. 351. It is now quite certain tliat the Percy folio MS. " merely suggested the poem which the editor of the Bdiqiu's wrote and printed." The fragment, as it appears in the MS. (p. 57), and in the genuine text, as ])rintcd by t!;e Earl}- I'lnglish Text Society (vol. i., p. 132), extends to only 31) linos, but iu tlio Rdique.s it is "puffed out" to 200. "Erlin^ton," "The Child of EUe," "Tlic Douglas Tragedy," "The Brave Earl Brand," "Pobin Hood and the Tanner's Daughter," &c., are Scotish and English ballad versions, corresponding to "llibolt og Guldborg," or the kindred ballad, " Iliklebrand og Hilde," of both which numerous versions exist in Danish and Swedish ; ■while of the former there are also three in Icelandic, and two in Norse. An inferior copy of "Iliboltog Guldborg," translated into Scotish verse by Janiles m, was printed in Illustrations of Northern Antiquities, Tj)- 317; and " Hildebrand og Hilde " has recently been admirably rendered in English verse by Mr. Eobert Buchanan, in Ballad Stoi-ies of the Ajf'xtions, p. 15. In the Introduction to his translation of "Ribolt and Guldborg," jSIr. Jaraiesou remarks, that "those who wish to see from what kind of materials these tales [it, ' Erlinton,' &c.] have been fabricated, may compare this piece with the I'oniantie story of Sir Sampson and Hildesvida, the daagliter of Jarl Rudgeir, with which the 'Wilkina Saga' commences.'' " 'Erlington' is much mutilated, and has a perverted conclusion, but retains," in linc! 59 and GO, " a faint trace of one charac- teristic, and even fundamental trait of tlie older forms of the story, which is not found in any of the other [Scotish or] English versions." It is founded on " a northern superstition, that to call a man by name while he was engaged in tight was a f\tal omen ; and hence a phrase, ' to name-to-deatli.' To avert this <1 nr^^er, I'ibolt, in nearly all the Scandinavian ballads, entreats G\x\A\>.n'. 3. Motherwell ado-pted " the copy given in the work from which the above extract has been taken;" and says, " any recited coi)y that vc have heard has been incomplete, wanting not only the circum- stance of the lovers halting at the stream, but likewise that of their death and burial." The latter editor appended to his iirefatory note, above quoted, live verses of an incomplete " recited cojiy," such as he refers to. This fragment " supplies variations," some of which arc here adopted in vcr.scs 4, C, anfl 8. Otlier slight alterations have been made on the verses named, and also on mrst of the subsequent verses — generally by repetition of one or two words from j)rcceding lines — so as to restore the uniform harmony of the metre ; but in no case has the sense, or ordinary |iliiaseology of the iiallad, been tampered M'ith. With reference to Sir Walter Scott's remarks on the localities of this ballad, as above quoted, and a similar identilicatiou as to placo 30 BALLAD MINSTltliLSY OF SCO'JLANO. of some of tlic incidents in " Eibolt and Ouldliory," by Grnndtvip; (pp. 34'2-;}), the following observation of .Taniicsoii, relative to the transposition of person, and of the nnitics of time and place, to widely dilTcrcut scenes and periods of action, is peculiarly apiilicable: — "Popular tales and anecdotes of every kind s')on obtain locality wherever tbey r.rc told ; and tlic intelligent and attentive traveller •will not be siirpri-scd to find the same story which he had learned when a child, witli every aiipropriafo eircnmstance of names, time, and place, in a glen of ^lorven, Lochal>cr, or ilannoch, ccjually domesticated aniom; tlic mountains of Norway, Cancasns, or Thibet." — Jliuf:(rations of yvrtliern Aut'iquH'iea, p. 817. 1 "Rise up, rise up, now-, Lord Douglas," she aays, "And put on your armour so bright; Lot it never bo said that a daugliter of thine Was married to a lord under night. 2 "Rise up, rise up, my tcveu bold sons, And put on your armour so bright; And take better cave of yonr youngest sister, For yonr eldest 's away the last night." u He's mounted her on a milk-white steed. And himself on a daj)ple gray, With a bugclet horn lunig down by his side. And lightly they baitli rade away. 4 Lord William look'd over his left shoulder — He look'd to see what he could see — And ho spy'd her father and brethren bold. Come riding hastily over the lea. 5 "Light down, light down, Lady Marg'ret," he said, "And hold my steed in your hand, Until that against your seven brethren bold. And yonr father I make a stand." G She held his steed in her milk-white hand, Bnt spake not, nor shed not a tear, Until that she saw her seven brethren fall, And the blood of her father so dear. 7 "Oh, hold your hand, Lord William!" she said, "For 3'our strokes they are wondrous sair; True lovers I can get many a ane. But a father I can never get mair." 8 Oh, she 's ta'en her kerchief from off her neck — It was of the holland sac fine — And aye she wiped her father's bloody wounds, That were redder than the wine. TIIK DOUGLAS TP.AGEUT. "1 9 "Oh chuse, oh chusf, Lady Marg-'ret," lie said, "Oh, whether Avill ye gan.c,' or bide?" "I'll gang, I'll gang, Lord AVilliam," she said, "Ye have left me no other guide." 10 He's lifted her on a milk-white steed, And himself on a dapple gray, With a hugelet horn hung down by liis yidc, And slowly they baith rade away. 11 Oh, they rade slowly and sadly on. And all by the light of the moon ; They rade till they came to yon wan water, ATid there they alighted tliem down. 12 They alighted them down to take a driidc Of the water that ran so clear; And down the stream ran his gude heart's blood, And sair Lady j\Iarg'ret did fear, I'd " Hold up, hold up, Lord William," she says, " For 1 fear me tliat you arc slain!" " 'Tis but the shadov,- of my scarlet cloak That shines in the water sae plain." ]-l Oil, they rade slowly and sadly on. And all by the light of the moon, Until they came to liis mother's hall door, And there they alighted them down. 15 " Get up, get up, lady inotlicr," he says, " Get up, get up and let me in ! — Get up, get up, lady mother," he says, " For tills night my fair lady I've win. 10 " Oh, ma]:e my bed, lady mother," ho sa^-n, " Oh, make my bed baith braid and deep! And lay Lady Marg'ret close at my back, And the sounder we baith will sleep." 17 Lord William was dead lang ere midnight, Lady Marg'ret was dead lang ere day; And all true lovers that go thegither, May they have better luck than they! 18 Lord William was buried in St. Marie's kirk, J^ady Mar/r'rot in S(. Marie's quire; Out of the lady's grave grew a red rose, And out of the knight's grew a brier. PALLAU MI.Nbll:l.LSV OF SCOTLAND. 19 Ami (hoy twa tlicy met, ami they twa tliey pl;>.t, As if i'lill fain they wouM bo near; ISac tliat all the world mi.^lit ken ri<;ht wool That tlicy grew frao twa lovers dear.* 20 Tut liy ehanoc tliat way the Black Douglas rade, And wow but lie was rude and rough ! For he ]iidrd up the bounie, bonnie brier, And ilanjr it in St. Mario's Loch. Tlir: BRAVE EARL BRAND AND THE KING OF ENGLAND'S DAUGHT!:!!. "Taken down from the recitation of an old tiddler in Northnm- berland. The refrain should be rejjeated in every verse."— Boll's Anckiit Pocmx, BallaJn, coiil Songs, &c., p. 1'22. Verse 2 has been slightly altered in the interest of delicacy and ]iers[>icnity. Verses .'5 and 6 are here inserted in place of verse 5 of the original, which reads, — "Oh, Karl Brand, but iny father hn^ two, And thou sha,U have the best of tho'." An hkilus, in verse 11, has been filled by the addition of the four last words, while the last word, of the lirst line of the same verse, has been changed for the sake of the rhyme. Three words have al-;o been added to verse 26. The alterations and additions referred to are sanctioned by, and mostly derived from, a similar ballad, named " Leesome Brand," which njipears in a subsetpicnt portion of this v/ork. 1 On, did you ever hoar of the brave Earl Brand, Hey lillio, ho lillic lallie; He courted tlie king's daughter of fair England, In the brave niglits so early. 2 She was scarcely fifteen years old, Wiien to Earl Brand she came right bold. • If the testimoDy of nnmerous minstrels in different lands and ages may bo credited, the miracle here narrated in stanzas 18 and 1!) was " frequently witnessed over the graves of faitliful lovers. King Jlarlc, aecordins to the (ierraiui romance, planted a rose on Tristan's grave, and a vine on that of Isold. The roots ssruck down into the very hearts of tlio dead lovers, and tho stems twined lovin^'ly together. The Froncli account is somewhat different. An eglantine sprung from the tomb of Tristan, and twisted itself round t!io momnncnt of Isold. It was cut down three times, but grew up evei-y morning fresher than before; so tliat it was alfowed to stand.'" Several other instances of this miraculous phenomenon occur in this volume; in Swedish, Danish, anct Breton ballad lore; "in a Servian tale, cited by Salvi {Vert'irh. &e., p. iy:>); and in an Afghan poem, described by Elphin- none" (Account of the Kinwlm o/ C'ai)u(, vol. i., p. 'J'JJ).— I'rof. Child's Enghsh and Scottish Ballads, voL ii., p. li'J. THE BRAVE EARL BRAXD. 3 '• Oil, Earl Brand, how fain would I see A pack of l:ouuds let loose on the lea." 4 " 01), ladj' fair, I liavc no steed bat one; But thou shalt ride, and I will run." o "Go. Earl Brand, to my father's stable, And bring me a palfrey wight and able." C Earl Brand he did as the lady bade, And when they v.erc mounted, away tliey rade. 7 Now they have ridden o'er moss and moor. And they have met neither rich nor poor ; 8 Till at last they met with old Carl Hood,— ■ He 's aye for ill, and never for good. 9 " Now, Earl Brand, an' ye love me, Slay this old carl, and gar him doe." 10 " 01), lady fair, but that would be sair, _ To slay an old carl that wears gray hair; 11 '• lly own lady fair, I'll not do so ; I'll pay him his fee, and let him go." 12 " Oh, where have ye ridden this lee-lang day. And where have yc stown this fair lady away?'' 13 "I have not ridden this lee-lang day, Nor yet have I stown tliis lady away; 14 '• Etjr slie is, I trow, my sick sister, ^Vllom I have been bringing frae Winchester," If) "If she 's been sick, and like to die, \\\iut makes her wear the gold so high ? " IC When came the carl to her father's yett, lie loudly and rudely rapp'd thereat. 17 "Now, where is the lady of this hall ? " " She 'a out with her maids a-playing at the ball." l.S " Ha, ha, ha ! ye are all mista'en, Yc may count your maidens o'er again. 19 "I met lier far beyond the lea, With the young Eorl Brand, liis leman to be." nAI.I.AD iriN'STUELSV OP SCOTLAND. 20 lie:- father of liis best men armed fifteen, And they're ridden jiftor them bideao. ■21 The lady h)ok'd o'er her left slionldor tlicii, And saw lier father and his fifteen men; 22 Says—" Oh, Earl Brand, we are both of us ta'en, Aiid it fears mo mucli that you will bo slain." 23 " Oh. if thev conic on nio one by one, Yon may siand by till tlie lights be done, 24 " But if they cume on me one and all. Then you may stand by and see me fall." 25 They came upon him one by one, Tilffourteen battles he has won; 26 And fourteen [brave] men he has them slain, Each after each [they fell] on the plain. 27 But the fifteenth man behind him stole round, And dealt him a deep and a deadly wound; 28 But though he was wounded to the deid, He set his fair lady again on her steed. 20 They rode till they came to the river Doune, And there they alighted to wash his wound. 30 " Oh, Earl Brand, I see your heart's blood 1 " " It's nothing but the glent and my scarlet hood." 31 They rode till they came to his mother's yett ; So iaiutly and feebly ho rapp'd thereat. 32 " Oh, my son 's slain, he is falling to swoon. And it's all for the sake of an English loon." 33 " Oh, say not so, my dearest mother, But marry her to my youngest brother." 31 To a maiden true he will give his hand, Hey lillie, ho lillio lallie; To the king's daughter of fair England, To a prize won by a slain brother's braml, In the brave nights so early. T'lr, BENT SAF. nROWN. 85 THE BENT SAE BROWN. From Buchau's Ancl^.nt Ballads and Songs, vol. i., p. 30. In some portions of the story this ballad resembles "The Doiiglaa Tra^'edy," and other kindred ballads, -which immediately precede this"; and also " Lady Elspat," " SweetWillie and Lady Margerie," rnd "Clerk Saiuidcrs," M'hich immediately follow this, in the order uamed. 1 " TiiERt: are sixteen lang nuicj;, I'm sure, Between my love and me; There are eight of them on gude dry land, And other eight by sea. 2 " Betide me life, betide me death, },\y love I'll gang and see; Altho' her friends th-y do me hato, Her love is great for me. 3 " Of my coat I'll make a boat, And of my sark a yail ; And of my cane a gude topmast, Dry laud till I come till." 4 Tlien of his coat lie made a boat, And of his park a sail; And of his cane a gude topmast, Dry land till he come till. 5 Then he is on to Annie's bow'r. And tirl'd at the \nn ; " Oh, sleep ye, wake ye, love Annie? Rise up, and let me in." 6 "Oh, who is this at my bow'r door, Sae well tliat kens my name?" "It is your true love, sweet Willie ; For you I've cross'd the faem." 7 "I am deeply sworn, Willie, By father and by mother, At kirk or market wlicre we meet, We darcna own each otlier. V) •' And I am deeply sworn, Willie, By rny bauld Ijrothcrs tiiree, At kirk or market where we meet, I darena speak to thco. 86 BATXAD MIXSTRKLSY OK SCOTLAND. [) '• Yo take your red ftm in your liand, Your wliito fan o'er your ccn, And yc may swear, and save your uatli, You saw na nie come in." 10 She's ta'cn lior rod l';in in lier hand, Tlic white fan o'er her een ; It was to swear and save her o;i(h, Slie saw na hhn come in. U They hadna lassM, nor yet love clapp'd, As hivers do wlien they meet, Till n]i it starts her auld mithcr At iier bauld sons' bed feet. 12 " Win up, win up, my three bauld sons, V\'in up, and make yc boun' ; Your sister's lover's in her bow'r, As ye lye sleeping soun'." 13 Then up it raise her three bauld sons, With swords baith sharp and Strang, And they are to their sister's bow'r As fast as they could gang. 14 When they came to tlieir sister's bow'r, They sought it up and down; But there was neither man nor boy In her bow'r to be foun'. 15 Then out it speaks the first of them— " We'll gang and let her be ; For there is neither man nor boy Infill her companie." IG Then out it speaks the second son — '• Our travel 's all in vain ; But mother dear, nor father dear, Shall break our rest again." 17 Then out it speaks the third of them, (An ill deatli mat he die !) — " We'll lurk amang the bent sae brown, That Willie we may see." 18 He stood behind his love's curtains, His goud rings show'd him light; And by this ye may all \yeel guesa He was a renowu'd knight. THE BENT SAE BnO'WX. 19 He 's done him to his love's stable, Took out his beny-brown steed ; His love stood in lier bow'r door, Her heart was like to bleed. 20 " Oh, mourn ye for my coming, love? Or for my short staying? Or mourn ye for our safe sind'ring, Case we never meet again?" 21 " I mourn nae for your here coming, — To meet ye I am fain ; Nor mourn I for our safe sind'ring, — I hope Ave'll meet again. 22 " I wish ye may wcm safe away. And safely frae the town ; For ken ye not my brothers three Are 'mang the bent sae brown?" 23 " If I were on my nut-brown steed, And three miles frae the town, I wouldna fear your bauld brothers, Amang the bent sae brown." 21 He lean'd him o'er his saddle bow, And kiss'd her lips sae sweet; The tears that fell between these twa. They wet his groat steed's feet. 2') But he wasna on his nut-brown steed. Nor twa miles frae the town. Till up it starts these three fierce men, Amang the bent sae brown. 2G Tlien up they came, these three fierce men, "When one did loudly say, — " Bide still, bide still, ye cowardly youth, Wliat makes you haste away? 27 " For I must know before j'ou go, Tell me, and make nae lie; If ye've been in my sister's bow'r, My hands shall gar ye die." 2S " Tliough I've been in your sister's bow'r, I have nae fear of tliee ; I'll stnnd my ground, and fiercely fight, And .shall gain viclorio." 1-, J)8 nALLAD MINSTIUILSY OF SCOTlANn. 29 " Now I L'ulrcat yon for to stay, Unto us give i;iulc lieod; If yc our words do not obey, I'so gar your body bleed." CO " I liavc nac armour," says Willie, " Unless it be my brand ; And tliat shall giuird my i'air body, 'J'ill I win frac your hand." ol Tlicn twa of them stepp'd in behind, All in a furious meed ; The third of them came him before, And seiz'd his nut-brown steed. 32 Oh, then he drew his trusty brand, That hung down by his gare ; And he has slain these three fierce men, And left them sprawling there. 03 Then word ha;! gane to their mother, In bed where she slept soun', That Willie had kill'd her three bauld soni- Amang the bont sae brown. 34 Then she has cut the locks that hung Sae low down by her e'e ; Sae has she kiltit "her green claithing A little aboon her knee. 35 And she has on to the king's court. As fast as gang could she ; When fair Annie got word of that. Was there as soon as siie. 3G Her mother went before the king, Fell low down on i:er knee ; " Win up, win up, my dame," he said, " What is your will with me ? " 37 " My wills they are not small, my liege, The truth I'll tell to thee : There is ane of your courtly knights That last night has robb'd me." S8 "And has he broke your bigly bow'rs, Or has he stole your fee ? There is me knight into my court Last night has been frae me ; LADY ELSPAT. 89 39 " Unless 'twas Willie of Lauderdale, Forbid that it be he ! " "And by my sooth," says the aiild woman, " That very man is he. 40 " For he has broke my bigl}^ bow'rs. And he has stole my fee; And made my daugiiter his leman, And an ill woman is she. 41 " That was not all he did to me, Ere he went frae the town ; My sons sae true he fiercely slew, Araang the bent sae brown." 42 Then out it spake her daughter Ann, — She stood by the king's knee, — " Ye lie, ye lie, m}'' mother dear, Sae loud 's I hear you lie. 43 " He has not broke your bigly bow'rs. Nor has he stole your fee; Nor made your daughter his leman, — A good woman I'll bo. i'L " And he might be forgiven, though Your three bauld sons he's slain ; They were Avell clad in armour bright, My love with brand alane." 45 " Well spoke, well spoke," the king replied, "This talking pleases me; For ae kiss of j-our lovely mouth I'll set your true love free." 46 She's ta'en the king in her arms twa, And kiss'd him clieek and chin; He then set her behind her love, And they went singing hamo. LADY ELSPAT. From Jainieson's Popuin- Balladu, vol. ii., p. KM, Avliore it is «aid to be given " from the recltat'.on of Mrs. Brown.'" 1 " How brent 's your brow, my Lady Elspat 1 How gowdcn yellow is your hair! Of all the maids of fair Scotland, Tliere 's nanc like Lady Elspat fair." 40 BALLAD SriNSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 2 " I'cM-form your vows, sweet William," she Ray:^, '• Tlie vows wliii'h you liave made to mc; Ami at the haolc of my mi(lier''s castle This night I'll surely meet with thee." n r.ut wae be to licr brother's i)agc, That heard the words the twa did say; lie tanld them to lier lady mithcr, Wha wrought sweet William mickle v.-ae. 4 For she lias ta'eu bim, sweet AVilliam, And she gar'd bind him with his bow string, Till the red bluid of his fair body Frae ilka nail of his hand did spring. f) Oh, it fell ance npon a time, Tliat the Lord-justice came to town; Out has slie ta'cn bun, sweet William,^ Brought him before the Lord-justice b.-nn'. C " And what is the crime now, lady," he says, " That has l)y this young man been done?" " Oh, he has broken my bunuie castle, That was weel biggit with lime and stone; 7 " And he has broken my bonnie coffer, That was weel bandit with aiken band; And he has stown my rich jewels. Illy jewels costly rare and grand." 8 Then out it spake fair Lady Elspat, As she sat by Lord-justice knee; " Now ye ha'e told your tale, mither, I jiray, Lord-justice, ye'll now hear me. 9 " He hasna broken her bonnie castle, That was weel biggit with lime and stone; Kor has he stown her rich jewels; For I wot she has them every one. 10 But though he was my first true love, And thougii I had sworn to be his bride, Because he hasna a great estate, She wou'd this day our loves divide." 11 Syne out and spake the Lord-justice — I wot the tear was in his e'e, — " I see na faut in this young man; Sae loose his bands, and set him free. SAVLET V.ILLIE AKD LAt)Y MAHGLntE. 41 12 '• And take your love, now, Lady Elspat, And my best blessini^ ye baith upon; For if he be your first true love, lie is my eldest sister's son, 13 '■ There stands a steed in my stable, Cost me baith gold and v,-hite money; Ye's get as mickle of my free land As he'll ride about in a summer's day." SWEET WILLIE AND LADY MAEGEEIE. " This ballad," says Mr. Motherwell, "which possesses consideratile beauty nnd pathos, is rivcu from the recitation of a lady now far ailvanccd in years, v.ith whoso grandmother it was a deserved favourite. It is now for the first time printed." — Ilinstrdsy, Ancknt and Modern, p. iJ70. Buchan styles Motherwell's "an imperfect cojDy," and gives another and longer ballad " on a similar subject," under the title of "Willie and Lady Maisry." — Ancient Ballads and ijotij-s, vol. i., p. 1.55. The present version is compiled from both. It not only resembles "The Bent sae Brown,' p. 35, but also "Clerk Saunders," the ballad which follows thir, as well as "Johnnie Scott," and "Lang Johcnie Moir," which subsequently appear. 1 Sv.EET Willie was a widow's son, And lie Avore a mi'k-wliite v,-eed, 0; And wecl could Willie read and write, Far better ride on steed, 0. 2 Lady Margeric war, the first ladye That drank to him the wine, 0; A.nd aye as tlie healths gacd round and round, " Laddie, your love is mine, 0." G Lady Margcrie was the first ladyo Tisat drank to him the beer, 0; And aye as the healths gaed round and roui:d, " Laddie, ye're welcome here, 0. 4 " Yon must come intill my bow'r, Wiion the cvoniug bells do ring, 0; And you nuist come intill my bow'r. When the evening mass doth sing, 0." 5 lie 's ta'en four-and-twenty braiil arrow.-^, And laced them in a Avhang, 0; And ho 's awa to Lady ^Margeric's bow'r^ Ab fast as he can gang, 0. IJ li.U.L.VD MlNSTliELbY Ol- SCOTLAND. C He set his ao foot on tlui wall, And the other on a staiie, 0; Anil lie "s kill'd all the king's life guards?, lie 's kiird them evciy man, 0. 7 Then he is on to i\Iari;'crie's bow'r, And tirl'd at tlic pin, 0; "Oh, open, open, Lady jMargerio, Open and let me in, 0." 8 V.'ith her feet as white as sleet, She strode her bow'r within, 0; And with her fingers lang and small, She's looten sweet Willie in, 0. 9 She's looted down nnto his foot. To lonze sweet AVillie's shoon, 0; The buckles they were stiff with bluid, That on them had drapt doon, 0. 10 " What frightful sight is this, my love. Is this that I do'see, 0? What bluid is this ye're cloated with, I pray you tell to me, 0." 11 " As I came thro' the woods this night, A wolf maist worried me, 0; Oh, shou'd I slain the wolf, Margerie? Or shou'd it worried me, 0? " 12 " O Willie, Willie, I fear that thou Hast bred me dule and sorrow; The deed that thou hast done this night, Will kythe upon the morrow." 13 They had no'S kiss'd, nor yet love clapp'd, As lovers when they meet, 0; Till up it starts her auld father Out of his drowsy sleep, 0. 14 Then he is on to Margeric's bow'r, And tirl'd at the pin, 0; Saying — "Wake ye, daughter Margerie, Wake up, and let me in, 0." 15 l;ctwecn the curtains and the wall, She had her lover in, ; Then hooly to the door she went, And let her father in, 0. SWEET WILLIE AXD LAbY MARGKftlE. 43 16 "What's become of your Maries all, That nane your bow'r are in, 0? What 's become of your green covering, That your beds they are sae thin, 0? " 17 " Oh, Gude forgi'e you, father," she said, " That you even me to sin, ; Tliat you dread me for, and watch me for, But never find me in, 0." 18 He turn'd liim right and round about, As he'd been gauu awa, ; But stealthily he slippet in Behind a screen sae sma', 0. 19 Sweet Willie came frae his retreat, And ere they were avrare, 0, Her auld father did give to him A deep wound and a sair, 0. 20 "Oh. Gude forgi'e you, father," she said, "Forgi'e this deadly sin, 0; That thus my ain true love is slain By you, my bow'r within, 1 " 21 " This night he slew my gude bold watch, Thirty stout men and twa, ; And likewise slew your ae brother. To me was worth them a', 0." £2 "If he has slain my ac brother, The blame it was his ain, 0; For many a day he plots contriv'd To ha'e sweet Willie slain, 0. 23 "Tho' he has slain your gude bold watch, lie might ha'e been forgi'en, 0; For tlioy came on him in armour bright, As alane lie cross'd the green, 0. 21 ''Oh, Gude forgi'e you, my auld father, For the ill you've made me dree, 0; For yc've killed Willie, the widow's son, And lie v.'ould have married me, 0." 25 She tum'd her back unto the room, Her face unto tho wa', ; Ami with a deep and heavy sigli, Her heart it brake in twa, 0. 44 DALLAD MLNSJUI.LSY OF SCOTLAND. CLERK SAUNDETiR. First published by Sir Walter Scott, Ji[ins(rclsi/ of the Scolthh Bonltr, vol. iii., y. 17.">. " This romantic ballad," says Sir Walter, " is taken from Mr, Herd's MSS., with several corrections from a shorter and more im- perfect copy, in the same volume, and one or two conjectural cniendatious in the r.rrangcmeut of the stanzas. The resemblance of the conclusion to the ballad be^innint^, ' There came a ghost to Margaret's door,' M'ill strike every reader. The tale is uncommonly vild and beautiful, and apparently very correct. The custom of the passing bell is still kept up in many villages in Scotland. The sexton goes through the town ringing a small bell, and announcing the death of the departed, and the time of the funeral. The three concluding verses have been recovered since the lirst edition of this work ; and I am informed l)y the reciter, that it was usual to separate from the rest that part of the ballad which follovi's the death of the lovers, as belonging to another story. For this, however, there seems no necessity, as other authorities give the whole as a complete tale." A second version was i)ublislicd by Mr. Jamieson, Popular Ballads, &c., vol i., p. SO, "which, though of inferior beauty, is not the less valuable, as illustrating the transmutations to which tradi- tionary song is inevitably subjected." "Nothing," says Jamieson, "coiud have been better imagined tlian the circumstance in ilr. Scott's copy, of killing Clerk Saunders while his mistress was asleep (stanza 13) ; nor can anything be more natural or pathetic than the two stanzas that follow. They might have charmed a wliole volume of bad poetry against the ravages of time ; in Mr. Scott's volumes they shine but like pearls among diamonds." Jamicson's version was, as he states, mainly "transmitted by Mrs. Arrott, of Aberbrothick." Stanzas 1 and 2 arc thence taken, "because," as stated by Motherwell, "they supply information as to the rank in society respectively licld by these ill-fated lovers; and by hinting at the scholastic acquirements of Clerk Saunders, they prepare us for tlic casuistry by which he seeks to i-econcile May I^.Iargarct's conscience to a most Jesuitical oath." For verses extracted "from Jamicson's version, see following ballad. A third version of Part I. was published by Kinloch — Ancient Scottish Ballads, \). 2.33— and is there styled "the North Country version of this ])opular and iiathetic ballad." It is followed by an imperfect copy of " Sweet William and May Margaret," which Mr. Kinloch confounds with the concluding portion of Scott's version of this present ballad. A fourth version, named " Clerk Sandy," was [mblished by Buchan, Ancient Ballads and Songs, &c., vol. i., ip. IGO. Scott's version is greatly superior to any of tlie others, and is here generally followed / but stanzas 10, 12, 17, and IS, of the ^jreseut CLERK SAUKDERS. 45 co'lated version, are either -wholly or partly derived from Kinloch's ; and stauzas 21, 22, 23, from Suchan's versions, .ibove referred to. Part I. resembles the preceding ballad, and has its counterpart in the Swedish ballad, "Den Grymma Brcdcrn," Svenska Folk- ]^!sor, No. 86 (translated in Literature ami Boraance of N'orlh Europe, p. 519) ; and in the Sx)anish ballad, " De la Blanca Miiia," in the 1,'omanccro de Amheres. Part II. resembles the ballail v.hicli folloAvs, and " Aage og Else," Grundtvlg, No. 90 (translated by Pvobei-t Buchanan,' in Ballad Storie>i of the Affections, jroin the Scnndinavian, p. 112). Variations to stanzas 3-1 and 35, from the following ballad — *' Sweet William's Ghost" — are noted vmder those stanzas,' p. 48. PAET I. 1 Clkrk Saunders was an carl's son, Ho lived upon the salt sea strand ; ^lay Margaret was a king's daugliter, She lived away in upper land. 2 Clerk Saunders was an earl's son, lie was weel learn'd at the sclicel; May Margaret v»-as a king's daughter; — Tliey baith did lo'e each itlicr Aveel. 3 Clerk Saunders and May Margaret Walk'd fondly o'er 3"on garden green ; And sad and heavy was the love That fell the Clerk and May between. 4 "A bed, a bed," Clerk Saunders said, " A bed, fair IMmv, for you and ine ! " " Fye na, fye na," .said Jlay j\Iargaret, '' Till ancc that we twa married be. 5 " For in may come my seven brothers, V.'itli torches burning red and bright; They'll say — ' Wc ha'e but ae sister. And, behold, she's sleeping with a knight!'" G " Then take the brand frae out my hand, And with it slowly lift the pin ; And you may swear, and safe your aith, Ye never let Ci'jrk Sainidcrs in. 7 " And take a napkin in your hand, And tie up baitli your boiinie een ; And you may swear, and safe your aith, Ye saw me na since late yestreen." 46 BALLAD MINSTIJELSY OK SCOTLAND. 8 It w:is about tlio inicliiii;;lit hour, Wlion soundly tlicj'' asleep were laid, That in and came her seven brothers, AVith torclies burning bright and red. 9 AVhcu in and came her seven brothers, With torches burning red and bright, They said — " We ha'e but ae sister. And beliold her sleeping with a knight I" 10 Oh, out it speaks the first of thein, " We will awa and let them be; " Tlien out it speaks the second of them, " His father has nac niair but he." 11 And out and spake tlie third of thcin, " I wot that they are lovers dear ; " And out and spake the fourtli of them, "They ha'e been in love this mony a year." 12 Then out it speaks the fifth of them, " It Avere a sin to do them ill ; " Then out it spake the sixth of tliem, " 'Twere shame a sleeping man to kill." 13 Then up and gat the seventh of tbem, And never a word spake he ; Cut he has striped his bright brown brand Out through Clerk Saunders' fair bodye. 11 Clerk Saunders he started, and Margaret she turn'd Into his arms, as asleep she lay ; And sad and silent was the night That was atween these lovers twae. 15 And she lay still and sleeped sound, Until the day began to daw ; Then kindly to him she did say, " It is time, true love, you were awa." IG But he lay still, as sleeping sound. Albeit the sun began to sheen; S!ie looked atween lier and the wall, And dull and drumlie were his een. 17 May Margaret turn'd the blankets down, The sheet she turn'd it to the wall; And wlien she saw his bluidy wound, Her tears they bitterly did fall. CLi:nK SAUNDERS. 47 18 '■ Ob, wae be to ye, my fause brothers. Ay, and an ill death may ye dee, Ye have slain Clerk SauntUrs, my true love, That loved and would ha'c wedded me." 19 Tlien in and came her father dear; Said — " Margaret, let your mourning be; I'll carry the dead corpse to the clay, And then come back and comfort thee." 20 " Comfort ye weel your seven sons, For comforted v.-ill I never be ; I ween 'twas neither knave nor lowu Was in the bow'r last niglit with me." 21 " Oh, hold your tongue, ni}^ dangliter dear, Oh, hush, and let your mourning be; I'll wed you to a higher match Thau e'er his father's son could be." 22 " Wed well, wed well your seven sons, I wish ill wedded they may be; For they have kill'd my ain true love, Wha loved and would ha'o wedded me. 23 " Wed well, wed well yonr fcven pons, But ill deaths may the dastards dee; For they have slain my ain true love, And wedded shall I never be." 21 Tart II. The clinking bell gaed through the town. The corpse was laid in kindred clay ; And the ghost at Margaret's window stood An hour before the dawn of day. 25 " Oh, if ye sleep, then Avakc, Margaret, Or if ye wake, then list to me; Give mc my faith and troth again, I wot, true love, I gave to thee." 2G " Your faith and troth ye shall never got, Xor our true love shall never twin, Until ye come within my bow'r, And kiss mc ance mair cheek and chin." 27 " My mouth it is full cold, Margaret, Itssmcll is now both rank and Strang; And if I kiss thy comely mouth, Tiiy days of life will not be lang. 48 BALLAD MINSTULLSY OF SCOTLAND. 28 '' (Ml, cocks arc crowing a merry niidniglit; I wot, llic -wild-fowla arc boding day ; Give mc my faith and troth again, And let nic fare npon my wa3\ 29 " Oh, cocks are crowing a merry midnight; I wot. tlic wild-fowls are boding day; The psalms of heaven Avill soon be sung, And 1 ere now will be missed away." 30 Then she has ta'cn a crystal wand. She has strokcn her troth thereon, And given it out at the shot window, With mony a sigh and heavy groan. 51 " I thank ye, TdargVet, I thank yc, Marg'rot, And aye I thauk ye lieartilie ; If ever the dead come for the quick, Be sure, Marg'ret, I'll come for thee." 52 She waited not for gown nor hose, Nor yet for shoon, to put them on ; But up she got and follow'd him, And to the kirkyard she has gone. 03 She climbVl the wall and follow'd him Into the kirkyard all alone ; Then stood beside his new-made grave, And thus she made her heavy moan : Si " Is there ony room at your head, Saunders? Is there ony room at your feet? Or ony room at your side, Saunders, "Where fain, fain I would sleep? " * 35 " There is nae room at my head, r>iarg"ret, And there is nae room at my feet; My bed it is full lowly now : Amang the hungry worms I sleep. f 26 '* Cauld mould it is my covering now, And cauld mould my winding sheet: The dew it falls nae sooner down, Than my resting-place is weet. ♦ " Wherein that I may cre''p." t " There 'h nae room at my sido, Marg'ret, My coffin 'h made so meet" WIT AT NEED. 49 37 " But plait a wand of bomiie birk, And lay the wand upon my breast ; And shed a tear upon my grave, And wish ye for my saul gude rest. 83 " And fair Marg'ret, and rare Marg'rct, And fair Marg'ret of vcritie, If ever ye love another man, Never love liim as ye did me." 39 Tlien np and crew the milk-white cock, And lip and loudly crew tlie gray ; Her lover vanish'd in the air, And slie gaed sadly weeping awaj'. WIT AT NEED. The following verses are takeu fi'om Jainieson's version of " Clerk S:iunders," into which they appear to have been introduced errone- ously by some reciter, as similar verses occur apart in Danish (Danske, v., No. 204, arid Arwklsson, I., 358). They also resemble the iScotish son", " Hame cam' our gudeman at e'en," first ]u-intcd by Herd (vol. ii., p. 74), and one of the same description in the Danish (K'l^mpe V'tser, p. 7U9), translated by Jamieson, in Northern Avti- ray thee, for cliaritie, To give me back my faith and troth, As I gave them to thee," 14 '' Yonr faith and troth ye shall not get, Nor will I twin with thee, Till ye tell me of heaven's joys. Or hell's pains, how they be," 15 " The joys of heaven I wot not of, The pains of hell I dree; Bnt I hear the cocks begin to craw, Sae I must hence frae thee, IG "The cocks are crawing, dear Marg'ret, The cocks arc crawing again; The dead innst now part frae the quick, And sae I must be gane." 17 No more the ghost to INfarg'ret said, But with a grievous groan l^vanished in a cloud of mist. And left her all alone. 13 Now she has kilted her robes of green A ])iece below her knee. And all the live-lang winter night The dead corp follow'd she, 19 SIio follow'd high, she follow'd low, To yonder kirkyard lone, And there the deep grave open'd up, 7\nd V/illiam he sank down. 20 '" Oh, what three things are these, William, That stand here at j'our head?" " Oh, it 's three maidens, SAveet Marg'ret, I promised once to wed." TnE CLEEKS OF OXEXFORD. 53 22 "Oil, what three things are these, William, Tliat stand close at your side?" " 01), it is three babies, Marg'ret, Tiiat these three maidens had." 2.3 "Oil, vdiat three tilings are those, William, That lye close at your I'eet?" "Oh, it is three hell-hounds, Marg'rct, Waiting my saul to keep." 24 Then she 's ta'en up her white, white hand, And struck him on the breast, " Have there again your faith and troth, And I v.ish your saul good rest," THE CLERKS OF OXENFORD. Abiidi^ed, and slightly emeiulated, from Buchan's Anchnt Ballads, &c., vol i., p. 2S1. -Mr. Bucban (note, p. 319) describes the two clerks as "sons of the Laird of Oxcnford," in the county of Ttlid-Lotliian ; the place, " Billsbury," as "a famous tov/n, at that time celebrated for its seminaries of learning;" and the period, to "have been in the time of the feudal law." !Mr. Chambers jtrints the ballad under the title of " The Clerk's Twa Sons o' OwsenforJ — Part First," Scottith Jiallads, p. 345, and states it to be " chielly taken from the recitation of the editor's grand- mother (who learned it, when a girl, nearly seventy years s.%o [about 17G0], from Miss Anne Gray, resilient at Ncid'path Castle, Peebleshire) ; some additional stanzas, and a few various readings, being adopted from a less j^erfect, and far less poetical copy, published in Mr. Buchan's Ancient and Moilern Ballads^ The reader may, however, be surprised to learn that the ballad, as given by Mr. Chambers, is almost identical v.'ith the stanzas here given from Mr. Buchan's ballad ; but the scene of the tragedy is transferred by him from "Billsbury" to " Parish," or, as he notes it, "Paris," — which latter is not, however, within a day's journey or sail of Oxen- ford, in Mid-Lothiau. Oxciif.)rd gave the title of Viscount— now dormant— to one of the MacgiU family, in the reign of Charles IL It is now a seat of the Earl of Stair. Mr. Chambers's "Second Part" contains two stanzas slightly altered from Mr. Buchan's ballad ; the others, with the exception of two or tliree additional stanzas, being almost identical with "The Wife of I'sher's Well," tirst published in Scott s MinMrelxij. The ballads tlius luiitcd were regarded by Professor Aytoun — Ballada of Scotland, vol. i., p. 110— as ouitc distinct; and even Mr. Chambers virtually admits it, when ne refers to "the great F rA BALLAD MINSTRKLST OF SCOTLAND. superiority of what folloios over what hoi's he/ore" — i.e., of "Part .Second" over " Tart First;" and to " the. latter portion a.i in a f/vfat measure independent of the other. ^' The extracts are quoted in italics as given by Professor Cliild, English and Scottish Ballads, vol. ii., p. 63 ; the last-named editor addiii'j; his opinion, " that the two parts originally had no connection, [butj were arbitrarily united, to suit the inirposes of some unscru])ul()U3 rhajisodist. " He also mentions that "there is to a certain extent a resemblance bet\^('eu this ballad and tlie German ballad, ' Das Schloss in Ocsterrich,' found in most of lii!^ German collections, and in Swedish and Danish." 1 T wd.T. sin'^ to 3'(iu a waufiil sang-, Will grieve your heart lull sair, How the twa boniiie clerks of O.xciiford Went afTto learn their lear. 2 Tlieir father loved them very weel, Their inotlier nieikle mair, And tliey sent thoni on to Billsbury To learn deeper lear, 3 They hadna been in Billsbury .V Iwclvemonth and a day, Till the mayor's twa daughters of Billsbury Ou tlicm tlioir loves did la3\ 4 And aye as the twa clerks sat and wrote, Tiie ladies sew'd and sang; There was mair mirth in that chamber Than in all Ferrol's land. 5 But word has gane to the haughty mayor, As o'er his lands he rade, Tliat the twa boniiie clerks of Oxenford His daughters had betray'd. C "Oh, have they betray'd my daughters dear, The heirs of all my land? Then the morn, ere I eat or drink, I'll hang them with my hand." 7 Then he has ta'en the twa bonnie clerks, Bound them frae tap to tae, Till the reddest bluid within their veins Out o'er their nails did gae. 8 Then word has gane to Oxenford, Frae the clerks in prison Strang, Tliat ere the morn at twelve o'clock, The mayor he would them hang. T.';2 CLERKS OF OXEXFOnD, 55 9 Then up spake Lady Oxenford, While tears fell fast and free — " husband, take good store of gold, And let them borrow'd be. 10 '• husband, take good store of gold. And bring them back with thee; But if you get not hynde Henry, Bring Gilbert hamo to me." 11 Out then spake auki Oxenford, A waeful man wa.? he — "Your strange wish it docs me surprise, They ai-e baith alike to mc." 12 Oh. sweetlj' sang the nightingale, As she sat on the wand; But sair, sair mourn'd Oxenford, As he gacd to the strand. 13 When he came to the piisoa Strang, He rade it round about, And at a little shot-window His sons Avere looking out. 14 "Oh, lye ye there, my sons," he said, " For oxen or for kye? Or for a cast of dear-b.ught love, Do ye in prison lye ? " 15 ''We lye not here, father," they .said, "For oxen or for kye; But for a cast of dear-bought love, We are condemned to die." 16 " Oh, borrow us, borrow us, father, For the love we bear to thee! " "Oh, never I'oar, my bunnie sons, Wecl borrow'd yc shall be." 17 Then he has gane to the haughty mayor, And hail'd him cmirteouslie — "Good day, good day, good Billsbury, God make you safe and free ! 18 "Good day, good day, good Billsbury, A boon I crave frac thee." Come, sit yc down, brave O.xpnford, What is your will with me?" 56 HA!. I. AD MIXSTHELSY OF SCOTLAXD. 19 " Vv ill ye gi'e me my sona ngaiii, l'\)r gold or yet for fee? Will yo gi'e uie my sons again For's sake that died on tree? " 20 " I Avinna gi'e 3'e your sons again, For gold nor yet for fee; But if ye stay a little while, Ye'll see them baith hang'd hie." 21 In then came the mayor's daughters, With kirtle, coat alone; Their ej-es they sparkled like the gold, As they tripp'd o'er the stone. 22 "Oh, will ye gi'e us our loves, father, For gold or yet for fee? Or will ye take our own sweet lives, And let our true loves be? " 23 lie 's ta'on a whip into his hand, And lash'd them wondrous sair ; "Gae to your bow'rs, ye vile k'Uiaus, Ye'll never see them mair." 2t Then out and spake auld Oxenford, A waelul man was he — " Gang to your bow'rs, ye lily flowers. For, oh, this maunna be." 25 Then out and spake him hynde Ilemie — " Come here, Janet, to me ; Will ye gi'e me my faith and troth, And love, as I gave thee? " 2G "Oh, ye shall ha'e your faith and troth. With God's blessing and mine ! " And twenty times she kiss'd his mouth. Her father looking on. 27 Then out and spake him gay Gilbert — "Come here, Marg'ret, to me; Will ye gi'e me my faith and troth, And love, as I gave thee?" 28 " Yes, ye shall get j'our faith and troth, With God's blessing and mine !" And twenty times she kiss'd his mouth, JTor father looking on. THE WIFE OP usher's WELL. 57 20 " Ye'll take aff your twa black hats, And lay them on that stone, Tliat naue may ken that ye arc clerks When ye are putten down." 30 The bonnie clerks they died that morn, Their loves died lang ere noon; And baith their fathers and mothers died For sorrow very soon. 31 Six of the souls went up to heaven, (I wish sae may we a' !) But the cruel mayor Aveiit down to hell, Forjudging unjust law. THE AVIFE OF USHER'S WELL. From Scott's MinstreUy, vol. iii., p. 258. Stanza 4 is adapted from Euchan's ballad, " The Clerks of Oxen- ford ;'■ and stanza 5 from Chambers's ballad, " The Clerk's Twa Sons o" Owsenford — Part Second." The explanatory notes [marked S.] are from the pen of Sir Walter Scott. 1 Tiri:i:K lived a wife at Usher's Well, And a vs-calthy wife was she; She had three stout and stalwart sons, And sent tiicm o'er the sea. 2 They hadna been a week from her, A week but barely ano, When word came back to the carliuc wife, That her three sons were gane. They hadna been a week from her, A week but barely tliree, When word came to the carline wife, Tiiat her sons she'd never sec: 4 Tliat they were learning a deeper lear, And at a higher schnle; But them she wou'd never sec again. On the holy days of Yule. 58 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. " I wish tlio wind may never coasc,* Nor lislies"!" in the Hood, Till my three sons come lianie to mo In earthly flesh and blood." It fell abont the ^ilarlinnias, When ni;^hts ai e lang and mirk, The carlinc wife's three sons came hamo, And their hats were of the birk. It neither v;vo\v in ;>yke nor ditch, Nor yet in ony shough; But at the gates of Paradise That birl: grev/ fair eneuch.lj: 8 "Blow up the lire, my maidens, and Bring water iVom the well; For all my house shall feast this night, Since my three sons are well. II " Oh, eat and drink, my merry men all, The better shall ye fare; For my three sons they are come hame To me for evcnnair." 10 And she has made to them a bed, She 's made it larg-c and v/ide; And she 's ta'en her mantle her about, Sat down at the bedside. 11 Up then crew the red, red cock. And up and crew the gray; The eldest to the youngest said— " 'Tis time wc were away." l:i The cock he hadna craw'd but auee, At dawning of the day, When tlie eldest to the youngest said— " Brother, we must away." ♦ The Ecuse of tliis verse is obsouvc, owius probably to corruption by reciters. [3 ] t Subsequent editors hava changeil "n.-she3" to " fasl-.es," "freshes," anJ "i'reshelB. 1 The notion, that tUs souls of the Wessed wear garlands, seems to bo of Jevvish ovi^nn. At least, in tlio "M.insJ-booU," there is a Rabbinical tradition to tiiat effect— See Jeicish TraiW.ioiu, ahviJyedfrom liuxtorf, London, 1732, toI ii., p. 19. 1^* LEESOIIE BRAND. 59 13 "The cock dotli ciaw, the day doth daw, The channcriii'" worm doth chide; If we be miss'd out of our place, A sair pain we raaim bide.f 14 " Then fare ye weel, my mother dear! Farcweel to barn tind byre ! And fare ye weel, tl;o bonnie lass That hindles my mother's fire!" LEE SOME BRAND. From Euclian's Ancient Ballads and Songs, vol. i., p. 41; wit le exception of verse 2, wLicli is inserted from a kindred portion i , itk the exception of verse 2, wLicli is inserted from a kindred portion of "The Brave Earl Brand and the Kintc of Ensiland's Dauohter," p. o2. Stanza 1 describes "an unco," or wonderful "land," bearing some resemblance to the "better land," or "oe."— i. e., island — of "Kibolt and Guldborg," as described in stanzas 3 to 9 inclusive, of the version translated by Jamieson. Stanzas 3 to S inclusive, represent ten stanzas of tlie oririnal, here abridged to avoid repetition and some objectionable details. These stanzas bear some resemblance to, but are more ample in narrative than, the portion of " The Brave Earl Brand," &c., above referred to. The succeeding seven stanzas are omitted entirelj-, because they merely represent— and that in a very corrupt form — several stauzas of " Herr Mrdelvold," and similar Danish aud S^vedisl^ ballads. In the Scandinavian ballad, the hero takes his lady's gold em- broidered shoe, and hastes to a distant rill in search of water to fjuench her thirst; but wlicn he reaches it, two nightingales sing to him of the death of tlic lady and her two new-born infants. He returns ; finds them dead ; buries them ; fixes his sword against a tree or stone, aud drives the blade through his heart. Two versions of this ballad — "Sir Wal and Lisa Lyle," and "Fair Midel and Kirsten Lyle " — as translated by Jamieson, appear in Illusirations of Xortlifrn Anliquitie,", p. 373 and p. 377. In the omitted stanzas of Buchan's ballad, the hero is anything but gallant. He is asked by tlie lady to leave her alone — to take liis "bow," and go to "hunt the deer and roc," but not to touch " the white hyiidc. " He obeys only too willingly, and (juite forgets Ilia lady until reminded by the passing of a "milk-white hynde," wlicu he returns and finds her "lying dead," with her "young sou at • " Channerin" : " fretting. [S.] t This will remind tlio Qennan readei of the comic adieu of a beavcaly apparition: — " Doch Hich! man RchliesHt -'ie liimmcis thtlr; Adicul dor lilmniliHcho Portlcr Ut Btrengiind liiilt auf ordnuug. "—/i/umaufr. [S.] 60 BALLAD MlNSinLlLSV OF SCOTLAXn. her head." Stanzas somewhat aiialouous to those desciibed occur also in two hallails which immediately foUow— viz., "The Earl of Don^'las ami Laily Oliphant," and " 8\veet Willie and Fair Janet." Tart II. narrates the scqnel, of which stanza 9 is common ballad ])ropcrty; while stanzas 10 to It ai-e almost identicMl with fonr stanzas of a ballad in Motherwell's JfiiistreUi/ (p. 189), luiilcr the title of "Tlie Ih-oom blooms Uonnie and says it is F.air," wliich four stanzas follow the jn-escnt halhul, and are all of MotliciwoU's ballad that are considered to be tit for publication in this collection. The four or five conclndini;:; stanzas of " Lccsome Brand" aiipcar to be the only original stanzas it contains. Part I. 1 Mv boy was scarcely ten years auld, Wlicn lie wc!it to an unco land, "Where wind never blew, nor cocks ever crew, Olion! for r.iy son, Lccsome Brand. 2 Oil, did you ever bear of brave Lecsome Brand? Ilcy lillie, Ijo lillie lallie; He courted the king's daughter of fair England, In the brave nights so early. 3 Awa to that king's court lie went, It w^as to serve for meat and fee; Gude red gowd it was his hire. And lang in that king's court stay'd ho. 4. lb' liadiia been in tliat king's court, But only twellinonths twa or three, Till by the glancing of bis e'o, lie gain'd the love of a gay ladyc. 5 This ladye was scarce fifteen years anld, AVlien on lier love she was right bauld; To Lccsome Brand she then did say — "In this place I can nae mair stay. G " Ye do you to my father's staT)lc, Yv'hcrc steeds do stand both wight and able; Get anc for you, another for me, And let us ride out o'er the lea. 7 " Ye do yon to my mother's coffer, And out of it yc'll take my tocher; Therein are sixty thousand pounds, Which all to me by right bclonga," LEESO.ME BRAKD. 61 8 He's done liiiu to lier fatlier's t^taMe, And waled twa steeds baith wightaiid able; He 's done him to her mother's coft'er, And there he's ta'en his lover's toclier. Part 11. 9 His mother lay o'er her castle wall, And she beheld baith dale and down ; And sl;c beheld young Lcesome Brand, As he came riding to the tov.n. 10 '' Get minstrels for to play," she said, " And dancers to dance in my room; For here comes my son, I^eesome Br;ind, And he comes mcrrilie to the town." 11 " Seek nae minstrels to j^lay, motlicr, Nor dancers to dance in your room; But tho' your son comes, Leesome Brand, Yet he comes sorry to the town. 12 " Oh, I ha'c lost my gowdcn knife, I rather had lost my ain sweet lift-; And I ha'e lost a better thing. The gilded sheath that it was in." 13 " Are there nae gowdsmiths here in Fife Can make to you another knife? Are there nae shcath-nial.:ers in the land Can make a sheath to Leesome Brand ? " 1 i " There are nae gowdsmiths here in Fife Can make me sic a gowden knife; Kor nae shcath-mak.crs in the land Can make me sic a sheath again. 15 "There ne'er v,-as man in Scotland born, Urdain'd to be so much forlorn ; I've lost my ladye I lov'd sne dear, Likewise the son she did me bear." 16 " But in your hand at my bed head, Tlicre ye'll find a gudc gray horn; In it three draps of Kaint Paul's ain bluid, That ha'c been there since he was born. 17 '' Drap twa of them on your ladye, .\nd iine npon your ncw-bnrn son; Then as lively tliey bnith will be As the tirfjt night ye brought them iiunic." 62 BALLAD MlNSliiELSY OF SCOTLAND. 18 lie i)ut Ilia liiinil at her bed head, And there lie Imiiid .1 gudc gray lioni, Witli three draps of Saint Paul's ain bhiid, Tliat liad been there since ho was born, I'J 'J'lien lie drajii^M twa on his hulye. And anc of thcin on Iiis young son ; And now tliey do as lively be, As tlic iirst day he brought them hanie. THE BHOO:\I BLOOMS BONNIE AND SAYS IT IS FAIR. From Motherwell's J^Iinstre.Uy, p. 191. See iutroductiou to pre- ccdinL; ballad, p. 59. The comiilete ballad is one of a class Avhich, following the judicioua example of Professor Child, are excluded from this collection, on account of the revolting nature of their theme. The other ballad3 of the class referred to are — "Lizie Wan," Herd, vol. i., p. 91. "The Bonnie Hynd," Scott's Minstrelsu, vol. iii., p. .307. "Castle Ha's Daughter," Buchan, vol. i., p. 211. "Bold Burnett's Dauc;hter " (which is merely referred toby Buchan in his note, vol. i., p. 315), and "Lady Jean," a stanza of whicli is given by Islotherwell, Appendix, p. xxi., note to music, xxiii. 1 When Willie came hame to his fatlior's court hall — The broom blooms bonnie and says it is fair; There was music and minstrels and dancing 'mangthem all — But he'll never gang down to the broom onie niair. L' " Willie ! Willie ! what makes then in pain ? "— The broom blooms bonnie and says it is fair; " I have lost a sheath and knife that I'll never see again — For we'll never gang down to the broom onie mair." ;.'> •' There are ships of your fatlier's sailing on the sea " — The broom blooms bonnie and says it is fair; " That will bring as good a sheath and a knife unto thee — And we'll never gang down to the broom onie mair." 4 '•' There are ships of my father's sailing on the sea" — The broom blooms bonnie and says it is fair; " But sic a sheath and knife they can never bring to mc — Now we'll never gang down to the broom onie mair." THE EARL OF DOUGLAS. 63 THE EARL OF DOUGLAS AND DAME OLIPHANT. Abridged from Buchan's Ancient Ballads, vol, ii., p. 181, It is probable that the name of the heroine, in place of " Oliphant " — ^which is a family surname, and not a lady's Christian name — should read " Eleanor," and that the ballad may relate to the second marria^^e of "William de Douglas, denominated the Hardy;" of the circum- stances attending -which marriage, we have the folio^^'ing account : — "His second vife appears to have been Eleanor, relect of Williani Ferrers of Groby, in the county of Leicester, a j'ounger son of William Earl Derbj-. This William Ferrers died 1287-S, leaving Eleanor, his second wife, surviving ; and she going to Scotland to obtain her dowry of such lands as by her husband belonged to her, being at Travernent [Tranent], the manor-house of Helen [or Allan] la Zuche [or Suche], in that realm, William de Douglas, in a hostile manner, took her thence against her A\-ill, and carried her to another place ; of which complaint being made to King Edward I., he sent his precept to the Sheriff of Northumberland, to sieze upon all the goods and chattels of the said William de Douglas, which then were in his bailiwick. But in 1290-1, in consideration of filuO line, the king granted to William de Douglas the benetit of her marriage." xVnd in a note we are further ' ' inforriied, that in a MS. collection of English records, the second wife of William Ferrers, who died IGth Edward I., is stated to have been Coinitissa de Fife, in Scotia, vidua Colbnni et mater Macduffi, Comitum de Fife." — Douglas's Peerarje of iicolland, second edition, edited by J. P. Wood, vol. i., p. 420. The ballad lesembles in some respects both " Leesome Brand" and the ballad wh'ch follows this. 1 Willie was an earl's ao son, An earl's ae son was he ; And lie is on to fair England, To serve for moat and fee. 2 But it was not for meat and feo Tliat Willie hied him there ; But for his love to Oliphant, Of beauty bright and r;ire. 3 Now, it fell ance upon a day, That Olipliant thought lang; And slic went on to good greenwood, As fast as she cou'd gang. 4 Willie lie stood in his chamber door, 111 a lovc-nmsiiig mood. And spy'd fair Lady Oliphant, Ah she liicd to the wood. 6i BALLAD SIIXSTHKLSY OF SCOTLAND. 5 lie took liis bow and arrows keen, His sword baith braid and lanj?; And lie is on to j^ood green wood, As fust as be oouM 'vanjjr. G And tboro lie found fair 01ii>liant, Asleep bcneatli a tree; But up she started at bis step, And llms iu fear ory'd sbe : 7 " Hold away from me, youn,-;- man. Hold I'ar away from mc ; I fear yon arc some false yonni^ kniglit, Begiiiles young ladies free." 8 " I am not sucli a false young knigbt As yon fear mo to be ; I am young Willie of Douglas-dale, And dearly I love tlice." 9 '-If ynu arc Willie of Douglas-dale, Your love is dear to mc, Tor oft I tbink, and in my sleep Full oft I dream oftbcc." 10 But tbc cocks tliey crew, and the liorns blew, And herds lowed on tiie hill; And Willie be hied him back again. Unto his daily toil, 11 Sae likewise did fair Oliphant, To her book and her scam ; But little she read, and little she sewed, For love was her day-dream. 12 Then it fell ance upon a night, Young AVillie he thought lang; And he went on to Oliphant's bow'r, As fast as he cou'd gang. 13 " Oh, are yon asleep, fair Oliphant? Oh, arc you asleep?" cried he; " Oil, waken, waken. Oliphant, Oh, waken and speak to me." 1-1 " Oh, much I do fear me, dear Willie, 01), nincli I fear," said she; " If my lather or his knights do hear, By them yon slain shall be." THE EAKL OF DOUGLAS. G5 15 " Oliphant, clear Olipliant, A king's daughter are ye ; But would you leave your father's court, To live and die with rue?" 16 " Oh, I would leave my father's court, Let weal or v/oe betide ; For I could raiig-e the warld o'er. If you were by my side." 17 She took a web of scarlet cloth, And tore it fine and small ; Then plaited it both long and strong, To let her down the wall. 18 She loworM herself in Willie's arms, Adown the castle wall ; And Willie was wight and well able To save her from a fall. 19 But the cocks they crew, and the horns blew, And herds low'd on tlio hill. As Willie's lady follow'd him Tho' her tears trickl'd still, 20 They lived together in good greenwood Some nine months and a day. When Willie to fair Oliphant Thus lovingly did say : 21 " Oh, want ye ribbons to j'our hair, Or roses to your shoon? Or want j'e chains about your neck? You'll get mair v.'hcn they're done." 22 " T want not ribbons to my liair, Nor roses to my shoon; And there are mair chains about my neck? Tlian ever I'll see done." 23 " Will ye gae to the cards or dice? Or to the table play? Or to a bed sae well down-spread, And sleep till it be day?" 21 "I've mair need of tho rodins, Willie, That grow on yonder thorn; Likewise a drink of spring water, Out of your grass-green hum. fifi r.AT.i.An iiiN'srr.KT.sY oi' scotlaxd. 25 '' I've mail- need of a fire, Willie, To heat my shivering IVaine; liikewiso a glass of good red v,-ino, ICro yonr young son come hanie." *JG 11' got a hush of i-odcns till her, That grew on yonder thorn; Likewise a drink of soring water, Out of his grass-;':r.';u horn. 27 lie carried the niati'h in his [lockot, That kindled to her the lire,_ Well set about with oaken spails, Tliat leamVl o'er Lincolnshire. 28 And he has brought to his lady A glass of good red wine; And he has likewise brought to hor A loaf of white bread fine. 29 The milk that he milk'd frae the goats, lie led his young son on; Thus he did tend and serve them baith, In greenwood all alone. CO Till it fell ance u])on a day, Fair Oliphant did plainer " Oh, if you have a place, Willie, I pray you have me hame." 31 He took his J'oung sou in his arms. When Oliphant grew Strang; And they went on through good greenwood, As fast as they cou'd gang. 02 They journey'd on through good greenwood, They journey'd northward on. Till they came to a shepherd May, Was feeding her flocks alone. 33 The lady said — " My bonnie May, If you will come with me. And carry my young son in your arms, Rewarded you will be. 34 " The gowns were shapen for mj'' wear, They shall be sewed for thee, And you will get a braw Scotsmau. Your husband for to be." SAVEET WILI.IE AXD FAIR JANET. 67 35 Wlieu they came on to AVillie's j'etts, Beyond the Sohvay sea, The news of their arrival spread Like wild iire o'er the lea. CG Then many a stout and stalwart kiii^:i]t, And many a stately darae, The lord and lady of Douglas-dale With joy did welcome hame. 37 And many a bold and warlike youth, And many a maiden fair, The lord and lady of Douglas-dale Riglit gaily welcomed there. 58 The bonn'e Jlay thej'' hroJight with them. She got a braw Scots man ; And the children that her lady bare, She nursed them every one. 59 Earl Willie and fair Oliphant Lang happy lived, I ween, Ere in the kirk of sweet Saint Bride Tlieir graves grew tresh and green. SWEET WILLIE AND FAIR JANET. The works in which, and the titles uuder which, versions of this ballad have appeared, are — I. Herd, vol. i., p. 1C2; under the title of "Willie and Annet." II. Finlay, vol. ii., p. Gl ; under the title of " Sweet Willie," where it is said to be made up fi-om different copies and fragments. It contains eleven stanzas, taken verbally from Herd's version, live sli;^'htly dilferent, leaves out three, and adds ten. III. Sharpe's Ballad Book, p. 1; under the title of "Fair Janet." " Is printed as it was suni^ by an old woman in Perthshire. The air is extremely beautiful." — C K. S. IV. Buchan, vol. i., p. 97 ; under the title of " Sweet Willie and Fair Maisry." ^Ir. Buchan states that "Mr. Findlay," notwithstanding " all his painful industry, came far short of completing or pcrfectini^ the ballad." Mf)therwcll, MinKtrdn]i, p. 1.30, copied Sharpe's version, inserting [in brackets] three stanzas from Herd, here nunibered 51, 6."{, and 50. The ballad, as here printed, is compiled from the four versions abovo 68 r.ALLAD .MlN'STni'LSY OF SCOTLAND. named, aud coutaiiis 120 lines more tliaii Finlay's, and eighty -ei;^!!* lines more than Motherwell's extended version. ]5oth this and the folhnviiii:; ballad, " Lady Maisry," are supposed to he derived from the J)anisli, and to owe their ori^'iu to the tragic story of "Kini^ Waldeinar and his Sister;" which "appears to lie foundeil on facts which occurred durin'4 tlie reii,'n and in the family of the Danish kin.r, samctimc hetwecn 11")7 and 1UJ7." There are numerous Danish, ISwcdish, Norse, Icelandic, Faroish, and Ciermau versions of the ballad. The journey on horseback and the dance are the incidents which are regarded as connecting " Sweet Willie and Fair Janet" with the Scandinavian ballad, in which particular.^ it follows or is related to the Icelandic aud Farliish versions ; while "Lady Maisry," tlie ballad which follows this, more closely resembles the Danish and otlier versions above referred to. See Professor Chihl's EicjUtih and HcoHl'sh Ballads, vol. ii., p. 78 and p. SG. 1 '• Yi: maun gang to your father, Janet, Ye maun gang to iiini sune; Ye maun gang to your fatlier, Janet, In case that his days are dune ! " 2 Janet's awa to her fatlier, As fast as she could liio ; " Oh, what's your will with me, fatlier? Oil, what 's your will with me ? " " " >\Iy will with you, fair Janet," he said, " It is both bed and board ; Some say that ye lo'e sweet Willie, But ye maun wed a I'Vencli lord." 4 " A French lord maun I wed, father, A French lord maun I wed? Then, b}' my sooth," quo' fair Janet, " He 's ne'er enter my bed. 5 " Ilcy, love W^illie, and how, love W^illie, And W^illie my love shall be; Tliev think to sinder our love, Willie, Ciit I'll love you till I dee." C " Now, will you marry this French lord, And with him cross the sea? Or will yon mourn for sweet Willie The morn upon yon lea?" 7 " Oh, I may marry tliis French lord, And bend me to your will ; But I'd rather it were my burial day. And my grave I went till." SWEET V.'ILLIE AND FAIP. JAXET. 69 8 Janet's awa to her chamber, As fast as she could go ; V/iia's the first ane that tupp'd there, Eut sweet Willie, her jo ! 9 " Oh, wo maun part this love, Willie, Tho' dear aboon all thin,^: ; There 's a French lord coniiug- o'er the sea To wed me with a ring. 10 " There 's a French lord coming o'er tlie sea, To wed and take me hame, And m}' father says, I maun him wed, And v.'ith him cross the faem." 11 "If we maun part this love, Janet, It will cause me meikle woe ; If we maun part this love, Janet, 12 " Now, Vriilie, if you love me v,-ecl, As sae it sce:ns to me, Gar build, ,<^ar build a bomiie ship, Gar build it specdilic 1 1;3 " And wc v.-iil sail the sea sae green, Unto some far countrie; Or sail unto some bonnic isle, Stands lanely midst the sea." 11 Uut lang or ere the ship was built, Or deck'd or weel rigg-'d out, Came sic a pain in Janet's back, That dov/n she couldna lout. 15 " Xow, 'Wiilie, if ye love me wcei, As sac it seems to me. Oh, haste and take mc to my bov.'r, In yonder greenwood free. IG " Willie, mount me on a steed, A milk-white steed or gray; And to my bow'r in yon greenwood Take mo ere it be day. 17 " Then gang yo to your sisters three, ^Icg, Clarion, ami Jean ; And bid llif-m come to fair JniH^t, At her bow'r iu yon green." BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. It) Mo. mounted her upon a stccil, Upon a steed ot Ki"iy» And to lier bow'r in good greenwood TuVni lier ere it was day. 19 lie's taV-n licr in liis arms twa, And kiss'd lier cheek and chin, And laid her in her ain sweet bow'r, But nao bow'r-maid was in. 20 Then hied he to his sisters three, j\Ieg, JIarion, and Jean ; Said—"' Haste, and gang to fair Janet, At her bow'r in yun green. 21 " Oh, haste, and gang to fair Janet, Dress and gang to her sune ; Oh, haste, and gang to fair Janet, I tear her days arc dune.'' 22 They drew to them their silken hose, Tiiey drew to them their shoon; They drew to them their silk mantclt-,, And quickly put them on: 23 And they hied awa to fair Janet, By the ae light of the mune ; But yet for all the haste they made. The}- came ua there ower sune. 24 For when they came to fair Janet's bow'.'*, In the greenwood fair and free, Tliey found fair Janet fcitting there. With her young son on her knee. 2i) '' Come in, come in now, sweet Willie, Take your young son frae me. And bear him to your mother's bow'r With speed and privacic. i'(j •■ Oh, I have born this babe, Willie, With meikle toil and pain; Take hamc, take hame yoiu- babe, Wiliit), For nurse. 1 dare be nane." 27 He 's ta'on his young son in his arms. And kiss'd him cheek and chin; And he is to his mother's bow'r As fast as he could rin. SWEET WILLIE MW FAIR JAXET. 71 28 " Oh, open, open, mother," he says, " Oh, open, and let me in ; The rain raius on my yellow hair, And the dew drops o'er my chin. 29 " Oh, open, open, mother," he says, " Oh, open the door to me ; Oil, open, and take my young son in, And get him nurses three." ? He carried fair Janet safely hame, And laid her safely in bed ; Then stole awa frae her father's towers Witii saft and stealthy tread. Hi Then in there came her father dear, Well belted with a brand; " It 's nac time for brides to lye in lud. When the bridegroom is at hand."' :lo " There 's a sair pain in my head, father, There 's a sair pain in my side; And ill, oh, ill am I, father, This day for to be a bride." "() " Oil, ye maun busk this bonnie luido, And put a gay mantle on; For she sliall wed tliis auld French In.d, Tho' she should die tlie morn." r.7 III came fair Janet's mother dear, And she spake out wlLli priclc — " Oh, where are all our bridesmaidcn.i? They're no liuskiiig the bride." 72 BALLAD MIKSTnELSY OF SCOTLAND. 38 " Oh, liauci your tongue, my motlier ilear, Your s])cakiii<^ let it lie, For I'm sac fnir ami full of flesli, Little busking- will serve inc." 39 Out then spake the bride's maidens, And they spake out with jiride — "Oh, where is all the fine cleoding? It 's we maun busk the bride." 40 " Deal hooly with my head, maidens, Deal hool}' with my hair. For it was wash en late yestreen, And it is wonder sair. 41 " My maidens, easy with my back, And easy with my side; And set my saddle saft, Willie, I am a tender bride." 42 Some put on the gay green robes. And some put on the brown ; But Janet put on the scarlet robes. To shine fcremost through the town. 43 And some they mounted the black steed, And some mounted the brown ; But Janet mounted the milk-white steed, To ride foremost through the town. 44 "Oh, wha will guide your Jiorse, Janet? Oh, wha Mill guide him best?" " Oh, wha but Willie, my true love ! I ken he lo'es me best." 45 And when they came to Marie's kirk. To tie the holy ban'. The colour fled iair Janet's cheeks, And they Icok'd deathly wan. 4G When dinner it was past and done, And dancing to begin, — "Oh, we'll go take the bride's maidens," And we'll go fill the ring." 47 Oh, ben then came the auld French lord, Saj-s — " Biide, come dance v.-ith mel" " Awa, awa, ye auld French lord, Your face I downa* see." •"Downa" means, generally, inulUilij; \M also, sometimes, ns here, 7:ant o; incUnalitm, or repugr'.wxQi. SW£1:T WILLIE AXD FAIR JAXKT. 73 48 Oh, ben then came now sweet William, He came with ane advance ; "Oh, I'll p-ae take the bride's maidens, And we'll gae take a dance."' •19 " I've seen other days with you, Willie, And sae ha'c mony mac, Ye wou'd ha'e danced with mc yoiirscll. Let all my maidens gae." 50 Oh. up then spake now sweet Willie, Saying — "Bride, v^•ill yc dance with nie?" '• Ay, by my sootli, and that I will, Tho' my back break in three I " 51 And she's ta'en Willie by the hand. The tear blinded her c'e : " Oh, I wou'd dance with my true love, Tho' burst my heart in three ! " 52 She hadna turn'd her through the dance. Through the dance but thrice. When she fell down at Willie's feet, And up did never rise! 53 She 's ta'en her bracelet frae her arm, Ilcr garter frae her knee, — "C4i'c that, gi'e that to my young son, He'll ne'er his mother see." 51 Willie 's ta'en the key of his coffer. And gi'cn it to his man, — "Gae hame and tell my mother dear, Jly liorse he has me slain. 55 " Bid her be kind to my young son, For they'll ne'er see me again; Bid her be kind to my young son, For father he has nane. 5G " (Jar deal, gar deal the bread," he cried, "Gar deal, gar deal the wine; This day has seen m.y true love's death, This night shall witness mine." 57 The anc was buried in Jlaric's kirk, And the ithcr in Clary's quicr, Out of tlie aiic there grew a birlc, And the itliur a bomiic brier.* * See nolo, p. S2. 74 I'.ALLAD MIXSTIIELSY OF §COTLAM). LADY MATRRY. " Tliis excellent old ballad is," says Tilotlierwcll, " very popular in many parts of Scotland. " — Min^trclvf, p. 71. It first appeared in Jamieson's Popular DalkuU, vol. i., p. 7.'?, vl'.cre it is " c;ivcn verbatim, as takeu down from the recitation of .Ni:-^. Arrott," pp. 60 and 59. Portions of anol'icr version ajipcared ill the ScoCs ilar/nzinc, June, 1S22. Llotherwell's ^fiu■^frcff:l/ contain? other two different versions — viz., "Lady Marjorie,' p. 23 K and '• Pjonnic Susie Cleland," p. 221. Which latter follows the present coHatcd version. Buchan furnishes yet another, named "Young Prince James." — Ancient Ballads, &c., vol. i., \). 103. .Lamicson's version is the one here chiefly folloAved ; but a few s'nnzas and some emendations have been adopted from "Lady ?.';'.rjorie" and "Young Prince James." For the prol)able ori;^in of the ballad, see introduction to tlie one prccedino; this. The prcjent ballad preserves th.e relationship of the ))viuc'pa! actor.?, sister and brother, and tlie death of t'lc former at the 1. mds of the latter; but the manner in which the sister suffers deatli diilers, as in the Danish, Swedish, and German ballads she is said to be beaten to death with leathern whips. See Old Danish Ballads, translated from Grimms' Colkcllon hy an Amateur, p. 90. 8vo. London, 1856. Motherwell's version, " Lady Marjoric," opens thus — "Lafly Jlcirjorie Wivs her mother's oulj" ilanc'.iter, Her fathers ouly heir; And she is awa to ^ trawberry C.;stlo. To get somo unco lair." 1 The young hn-ds of the North Country Have iiW a-wooing- gane, To win the love of Lad^' SL'iisiy, But of them she wou\l ha'e naue. - Oh, they lia'e sought her, Lady Maisry, With broaches and with rings ; And they ha'e courted her, Lady Maisry, With all kind of tilings. ;j And tlicy ha'e soriglit her, Lady Maisiy, Frac fatlicr and I'rae niitlier; And they lia'c souglit her, Laily Maisry, Frae sister and frae britlier. 4 And they ha'e followed her, Lady Maisry, Through cliamber and throngli ha'; Lilt all that they could say to her, ITer answer still was " Na." LADY MAISltY. i) •■ Oil, hand your tong'ncs, yonnp; men," she .said, ■' And think nae ni.iir on nic ; For I've gi'eu my love to an Englisli lord; Sae think nae mair on me." But -wnrd has to her i\ither ganc, And word imto her mother ; And word r.iiio her sister gane, And word unto her brother. 7 "i'vvas whisper'd hero, 'twas AvhispcrM there — 111 news aye travels soon — Tiint Lady Maisry gaes with bairn Unto an English loo;i. 8 Vriien her brother heard word of this, An angry man was he : " A niiiisoa light on the tongue Sic tidings tells to me! 9 " A malison light on the tongue, Tlio' true the tale may be ; r>i'.t if it bs a lie you tell, It's you sliall be hang'd hie." 10 He 's done him to his sister's bow'r, With meikle dool and care ; And there he saw Lad}"- Maisry Combing her yellov/ hair. 11 '' Oh, wha is audit that bairn," he says, " And brought this shame on thee? And if ye winna own the truth, This moment ye sliall dee." 12 S!ii) 's turn'd her right and round about, And tlie comb fell frae licr ban'; A trembling seized her fair bodic. And her rosy chock grew wan, 10 " Oil, pardon me, my brother dear, .\nd the truth I'll tell 1o thee ; My b lini it is to I.oid William, And lie is betiotii'd to mc." 1 i •■ Ol:. couldna ye gotleii ciuLe.^ or lords, Inlil your ain eonntric, That yo drew nn with an JCnglisli duj, To bring this ahamo on mcV 7P RALLAD MINsTr'al.SY OF SCOTf.AN'D. 15 " I'.nt ye inaun gi'c up your English lord Vriicn your young babe 13 born; For il yc banger kecj) by liim, Your lilo shall bo. i'orloru. IG '• V\\ canso my men build up a lire, And tic you to a slakr; ; And on the head of yon higli tuuxr I'll burn you for his sake." 17 " 1 will gi'e up this English lord, Till my young babe is bora ; But the 'never a day nor hour langcr, Though my life should be forlorn." 18 " Oh, where are all my merry young men "Whom I gi'e meat and fee, To pull the bracken and the thorn, To burn this vile ladyc?" I'J " Oh, where v/ill I get a bonnie buy To help me in my need, To rin with haste to Lord William, " And bid him come with speed?" 20 0!', out it spake a bonnie boy, Stood by her brother's side ; " It's I would rin your errand, lady, O'er all the worid wide. 21 " Oft ha'c I run your errands, lady, When blawin' baith wind and wcet ; But now I'll rin your errand, lady, With saut tears on my cheek." 22 Oh, when he came to broken brigs, lie bent his bow and sv/am ; And when he came to grass growin', lie slack'd his shoon and ran. 23 And wlien he came to Lord \Villiam'.-J yctls, He badena to chap or call , But set his bent bow to his breast, And lightly lap the v.all, And, or the porter was at the yett, The boy was in the Lull. LADY MAiSi;y. 77 2i " Oil, is my biggin broken, boy? Or have my towers been won ? Or is my lady lighter yet, Of a dear daughter or son? " 25 '■' Your biggin isna broken, sir, Xor have j'our towers been won; Nor is your lady lighter yet, Of dear daughter or sou. 2G " But her brother has gafd bi;i!d a liro, And tie licr to a stake, On the head of their highest tower, To burn her for your sake." 27 " Oil, saddle to me the black, the black, Or saddle to me the brown ; Or saddle to me tlie swiftest steed That e'er rade frae the town." 28 As he drev,' nigh unto tl:c tower, ohe licard his horn blaw : *' Mend up the fire, my fausc brother, I mind ye not a straw." 20 As he drew nearer to the tower. She heard his war-])orsc snce/.c : *' IMend up the tire, my fause brother, It 's nae come to my knees." SO WJien he alfg];ted at the yctt, iSlic heard his bridle ring: " ^lend up the lire, my fausc brother, It's far yet frae my chin. HI " Eut look about, my fausc brother, Ye see not what 1 see ; For I sec him comin' hard and fast, Will soon mend it for tlice. 02 " Oh, if my hnnds hnd been loose, "Willie, Sac hard as they are bouii', I wad ha'c turn'd inc frae the gleed, And casten out your son." 33 " Oh, I'll gar burn for you, ^Maisry, Your father and your mother; And I'll gar burn for you, Maisry, Your sister and your brotlicr; 78 tlALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 31 '• And I'll u'iir burn for you, ^luisiy, Tlio cliiet" of all yonr kin ;* And the last bonfire that I come to, Myself I will cast in ; But I'll reward the pretty boy, That did thine errand rin." BONNIE SUSIE CLELAND. First published by Motherwell, J^lin-'i/rt'lsi/, p. 221, He does not ni'eauou from whence it is derive.!, but in note 155, p. ci., he states, " I have been unable to trace this ballad to any historical source. In ibs subject it resembles ' Lady Maisiy. ' " (See introduction thereto, p. 7-t.) lu Ariosto's (lincvra, "it is mentioned that ladies guilty of incontinence wore, by the laws of Scotland, doomed to the ilames ; but this cruel enactment has no foundation, we bidieve, in the criminal code of the land, — at least, within historic times." 1 TiiEKE lived a lady in Scotland, Hoy, my love, and ho, my joy; There lived a lady in Scotland, And dearly she loved me ; There lived a lady in Scotland, And she's iallen in love with an iini;-lislr.nan, And bonnie Susie Cleland is to be huriit at Dundeo. 2 The father unto the dan^-hter camo, Iley, my love, and ho, my joy; The father unto the daughter came, And dearly she loved me; The father unto the daughter camo, Saying, " Will you forsake that Englishman?" And bonnie Susie Cleland is to be burnt at Dundee. " If you will not that Englishman forsake, IIcj-, my love, and ho, m}- joy; If you will not th.at Englishman forsake, So dearly loved by thee ; II you will not that Englishman forsake, Oh, I will burn you at a stake ! " And bonnie Susie Cleland is to be burnt at Dundee. * The sharo taken iii this auto-tls-M by "fal'uor," "motho!'," aud "sister," as iiiJicate 1 by the retribution tlircafcLecl, api;e>ivs to bavc eit'icr dropped out of .liinicBOus version of tho ballad, or to havo be3u added in Motherwell's "Lady JIarjorie," Minstvehy, p. 'i35, v.-hcre it is thus given : — " Tiov fatlicr he put on the pat, lier h-istor put on tho pan, Antl her brother lio i)ut uu a bauld, bauld fire, To burn Lady Maijoric in ; And her mother she pat in a golden chair. To see li. r daughter burn." The mi ntion of " tho pat," and "the pan," in tho first two of these Hues, savours of cookery: but thoro is HO othsr reason for suspecting the family to be inclined to anthropophagy BONNIE SUSIE CLELAND. 79 " I will not that Englisbinau forsake, Hey, my love, and ho, my joy ; I will not that Englishman forsake, Who dearly loveth me ; I will not that Englishman forsake. Though you should burn me at a stake ! " And bonnie Susie Cleland is to be burnt at Dundee. " Oil, where will I get a pretty little boj^, Hey, my love, and ho, m}'^ joy ; Oij, where will I get a pretty little boy, Who dearly lovetli me; 0!), where I will get a pretty little boy, W'ho will carry tidings to my joy. That bonnie Susie Cleland is to be burnt at ihuidoe?" •• Here am I, a pretty little boj', Hey, my love, and ho, my joy; Ilere am I, u pretty little boy, Who dearly loveth thee; Here am I, a pretty little boy, Who will carry tidings to thy joy, That bonnie Susie Cleland is to be burnt at Dundee." ■ (jive to him this ri-^'lit hand glove, Hey, my love, and lio, my joy; Give to him this right hand glove, Who dearly loveth ma; Give to him tliis right hand glove, Tell him to get another love, For bonnie Susie Cleland is to be burnt at Dundeo. '■ Give to him this little pen-knife, Hey, my love, and ho, my joy; Give to him this little pen-knife, Who dearly loveth mo; Give to him this little pan-knife, Tell him to get anotlier wife, Tor bonnie Susie Cleland ia to be burnt at Djiiidoe. " Give to him this gay gold ring, lley, my love, and ho, my joy; Give to him tliis gay goM ring, Who dearly lovetli rne ; Give to him this gay gold ring, Toll him I'm goisig to my burning. And bonnie Susie Cleland ia to be burnt at Diuidoo.' 80 r.ALr.Al) MINSTlMCr.SY OK SCOTLAND. 10 ITor lather lie caVl up the stake, llcy, my love, and Iio, my joy; Ilor I'atlicr lie caVl up tlic stake, So dearly slic loved me ; Ilor father he ca'd up tlie stake. Her lirother he the fire did make, And bonnic Susie Clcland was burnt in Dinidec. LORD INGRAM AND CIIILDE VYET. First ajjpcared, in an imperfect state, under the title of " Lord Wa'yates and Auld Ingram," in JamicsoTi's Fojudtir Ralladx, vol. ii., ]\ 2G5 ; and then, in a more complete form, in Rlaiduicnt's Norl.lb Couiilrie Garland, p. 24. The same gentleman contributed a slightly different copy to Motherwell's Mindrd>^ii, p. 173; and a longer version, containing a niimljcr of inferior stanzas, is given by Buchan, Ancient Ballads and Soii;;s, &c., vol. i., p. 231:. Jamieson's vcr.^ion -was ]iriutcd " from Herd's MS., [as] transmitted by .Sir. [afterwards Sir Walter] Scott." In it the rivals are repre- sented to be uncle and nephew ; while the incongruity and incomiiati- bility of the marriage are fully and graphically exhibited iu the following stanzas : — " \Vhen cVn v:aR pomf, nnd c'e;i bells rung, Aijfi a' men gone to bcfl, Xl"> briilc iir.t :vvl thr? silly brldogvoom la ae chamber were laid. " WaMia 't a fell thin;^ for to see Twa heads upon ne cod, — Lady Maisry's liko the molten goud, Auld Ingram's like a toad ? '■ He turn'd his face unto the stock, And Konnd hn fell asleep; She turn'd her I'ace unto tho wa'. And ,saut tears she did weep." ■^.r.iidmenb's version is the one here gci)cr;dly folI(;wcd ; but Some half-dozen stanrc-is of it have been oniitted ; while lifccen E'!;:in;;a3 or so have been added from the other versions — mostly from Euchan's, as, for instance, stanzas 27 to .".j inclusive, — while many of the others are, with the exception of sliglit verbal diftercnees, common to both versions. It will be seen that, by leaving out stanzas 27 to 35, the storj"- reads as if C'h.ilde Vyet had concealed himself in the bridal chamber, and that the bloody tragedy had been there enacted, — thus imparting a cast to the story resenibiing in some respects Sir Walter Scott's " Bride of Lr.mmcraiooi'." Stanzas 12 and 13 occur in the preceding ballad, "Lady Maisry " (stanzas 22 and 215), where they are fo]lowc my brother, Lord Ingrani, He'll not let my love be? What ails my brother, Lord Ingram, He taki's my love from me? 17 " Take four-and-twenty buck and roe, And t"ii Inn of the wine, And bid my love be blithe and glad, And I will ibllow sync." 18 Sweetly play'd the merry organ Intoher mother's bow'r; But silent stood Lady :Maisry, And let the tears down pour. LOKD INGIIAM AND ClIILDE VYI:T. 83 19 Sweetly play'd tlie barp sae fine, Into l;cr father's hall; But silent stood Lady llaisry, And let the tears down fall. 20 Her noble kinsmen gatlier'd were, Each with a hawk in hand ; And every lady in the jjlace Did wear a gay garland, 21 And each of the retainers In gay attire Avas clad ; And all were blithe and merry, But Lady Maisry sad. 22 'Tween Marjdcirk and that castle "Was all spread o'er with garl,* To keep the bride and her bridesmaids From tramping on the marl, 23 From ^larykirk to that castle Was spread a cloth of gold, To keep the bride and lier bridesmaids From treading on the mold. 2!: When mass was sung, and bells were rung, And all in bed were laid, Lord Ingram to Lady Maisry said — '* I fear you are no maid, 2.") " But if you father your bairn on me, And on no other man, Then I will give him to his dowry Full fifty ploughs of land." 23 " I will not father my bairn on you, Nor on no vvrongou?, man, Tho' you wou'd give him to his dov.iy Five thousand ploughs of land." 27 " Whoever be your bairn's father, If you father it on me, Tlif I'aircst castle of Snowdown Your morning gift shall be," •ShoulJ ellhor read "garcl"— a Btripo of noft prass on barren or hard rnonntain- 1r»n'l, fiom ">:arfl," or '"galr," a sttipo or straak — or "liarle," tlic reed or Btoiu of Uax; i.e., either lino grass or llax rccua wore Btrewo along tho imtiiwuy. 84 BALLAD JIINSTHKLSY OF SCOTLAND. 28 " Wliocver ho my bairn's father, I'll ne'er lather it on thee ; Fur better 1 love my bairn's latlier Nor ever I'll love thee." 29 Then ho 's ta'cn out a trusty brand, Laid it between them twac ; Says — " Lye ye there, ye ill wiiuian, A maid lor me till clay." SO Next morninp,- forth Lord In.'^-ram WH'ut, Well bolted with a brand; And forth fair Lady jMais-ry led To hor father by the hand. ol '• rfyonr daughter had been a good woman, As I thought she had been, Cold iron shou'd have never lain The long night us between." 32 "Ohon! alas! my daughter dear, What's this I hear of tliee? I thought no better woman lived Within the north countric!" SO " Oh, hold your tongue, my father dear, And cease upbraiding me ; I never lov'd Lord Ingram, But Vi'as forced his bride to be." oi Then in there came him Cliilde Vyet, Bearing a naked brand ; And up then raise him Lord Ingram, His brother to withstand. 35 " Win up, win up now. Lord Ingram, Win up immediately; That you and I the quarrel try, Vi'lio gauis the victory." GG Then forward darted Childo V^-et, Shed back his yellow hair. And gave Lord Ingram to the heart A deep wound and a sair. 07 Then forward darted Lord Ingram, Shed back his coal-black hair. And gave Cliilde Vyet to the heart A deep wound and a ?nir. EL:VTHERINE JA^'FAEIE. 85 G8 Tliere was uo pity for tbese t\vo knights, When they were lying dead; But all v/as for Lady Maisry, Who in that bov.'r went niad. C,9 " Oh, get to me a cloak of cloth, A staif of good liard tree ; If I have been an ill woman, Sore penance I tjhall dree. 40 " If I have been an ill woman, Alas ! and woe is me ; For up and down the Avarld vride, I shall beg till I dee. 41 " For ae bit I beg for Childe Vyet, For Lord Ingram Til beg three; All for the honour that he paid At Mary kirk to me," KATHEPJNE JANFARIE. " Bflon 59 to a numerous class of Danish and Scottish ballads." — Jaraiesou's lUiisirat'wns of Northern A)iti'juiik't>; p. 33.5. The words quoted form part of the Tnti-oduction to "Young Child Dyring," translated by Janiiesoa from the Ka.mpe Viser. The analogous Scotish ballads are as follows : — I. " The Laird of Laminton," Scott's Minstrelsy, first edition. II. " 'Catherine Janfaric,' from several recited copies," Scott's Jilinatrc'lsij, last edition, vol. iii., p. 122. III. "Catherine Jafferj'," Jilaidment's North Countrie Garla7iil, p. 34. IV. " ' Catherine .Tohnstone,' obtained from recitation in the West of Scotland," Motlicrv/eU's ]\dim!relsy, p. 225. '^'^. " Loch-in-var,'' Euchan's Glcaninrjs, p. 74. VI. " Kathcrine JafTray," a fragment of four stanzas, found in the handwriting of Burns. This fragment is not only printed as a song of his composition, and copyright in it cLiimed by the publisher of the Aldine edition of Burns'a Poclknl Worl:i>, IS.'jf), but the same error is perpetuated in all the Eubseiucnt reprints of tlio Aldine edition! Sir Walter Scott's spirited and popular ballad, " Lochinvar," whicli a])poni3 in Murrn'ton, is founded (ju this early ballad. The b;\lliid which follows next in order is also somewhat similar in incident. H 80 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND, The antiquity of this h.illad may bo infcn-cd from the numhcr of dilfcreut voi-sions iu Scotish and Daniah, irrespective of the supposed i-efcrence in "the tenth stanza," wliich, says Motlierwell, "seems to contain an alhisiou to the knights of the round table." "The rcbidenco of the lady, and the scene of the affray at her bridal, is said by old people to have been upon the banks of t'.io Cadden, nenr to v.'here ib joins the Tweed. Others say tiie skirmish was foun;ht near Traquair, and [that] Katharine Janlaric's dwelling •was in the glen about three miles above Traquair House."— Scott's IlinstreUij. Motherwell's version transfers the scene to tlie classic district of Cowdenknowes, on the banks of the Leader, and one of the stanzas in Scott's own version corroborates this transfer. (See note to stanza 20, p. S8.) In Scott's first and Motliorwell's versions, the hero is said to be the "Laird of Lamiuton," or "Laminc^ton," in Clydesdale; but in Scotfs second version tlie successful lover is said to be " Lord Lauderdale," and the disappointed rival "Lord Lochinvar;" which names are transposed iu Maulmcut's version. Burns's fragment also names the successful lover " Lord Lauderdale," while the rival " frae the English border" is named "Laird o' Loch- inton." The titles of the lover and rival, as given iu Buchan's version, ai-e here adopted, but Scott's and Motherwell's versions are those chiefly followed. Lockhart, who edited the last edition of Scott's Minstrelsy, suggests, with great plausibility, that the heroine "was a Johnstone of Wamphray, and that Katherine o' Wamphray had been blundered by the Ettrick reciters into Katharine JeS'ray, vulgarly pronounced Jaufray.'" — Xote, vol. iii., p. 125. It only remains to state that Lochinvar — a lake of three miles circuit, situate in Kirkcudbright, Galloway — gave name to the domain and title of Knights of Lochinvar to a branch of the Gordon family, which family acquired the title of Viscount Kenmure in 1G3.J, a title which was attainted on the execution of William, sixth Viscount, 171(5; restored by Act of Parliament, 1824; and which became dormant at the death of the ninth A^iscount, in 1847. Assuming Lockhart's conjecture with regard to the family of the heroine to be correct, and further, that the hei-o is correctly named " Lord Lochinvar," then the scene of the sanguinary encounter would neither be the river Caddon or its vicinity, as stated by Scott, nor Cowdenbrae, as given by ilotherwell, both of which localities lie to the eastward of Wamphray; but rather Cluden Water, a tributary of the river Kith, both of which Lord Lochinvar would require to cross on his homeward and westward flight. The probabilities arc so strongly in favour of this theory aa to warrant the alteration from the "Caddon," of Scott, and the " Couden," of Motherwell, to Cluden, ag here printed. katherint; janfarte, 87 1 There was a May, and a weel-far'd May, Lived liigh up in yon glen; Her name was Katherine Janfarie, Weel loved by mony men. 2 Then up came young Lord Loclnnvar, Up frae the Lawland border ; He came to court this bonnie May, All mounted in good order. 3 Lord Lochinvar he courted her, Unknown to all her kin ; Lord Locliinvar he courted her, And did her favour win. 4 Up then came Lord Lymiugton, Frae o'er the English border; He came to seek this bonnie May, All mounted in good order. 5 He sought her frae father and mother baith, And they did answer Yea; But he ask'd not the bonnie May hcrsell, Or the answer would been Nay. 6 She never heard a word of it Till on her wedding day, When her father he did order her To busk in bride's array. 7 She sent word to Lord Lochinvar, — " ^ly wedding come and see ; " And he sent ansAver back to her, — " I will not iail to be." 8 Then he has sent a messenger In haste tlu-oughout his land. And four-and-twenty stalwart men Were soon at his command. 9 But he has left his merry men Conceal'd in greenwood free. While he rade to the wedding-house As fast as fast cou'd be. 10 When he came to the wedding-house, He cnter'd there, and found Full four-and-twenty belted knightu Sot at a table round. BALLAD MIXSTP.ELSY OF SCOTLAND. 11 Tlii\v all ros;^ up to honour liiin, Fur lio was oi' liigli renown ; They all rose up to welcome liim, And bade him to sit down. 12 Oh, meilde was the good red wine Was iilled up them between ; r-nt the bride aye drank to Lochinvar, Wha her true love had been, 13 She pledg'd the health of Lochinvar, As toasts were circled round: While her kin grasp'd their gude sword-hilts, And wrathfully they IVownVl. 14 " Oh, came ye here for sport, young lord, Or came ye here for play ? Or came ye here to drink good wino Upon the wedding day?" 15 " I came not here for sport," he said, " I came not here ibr play ; But with the bride I'll lead a dance, Then mount and go my way." 16 They set her bridesmaids her behind, To hear what they would say ; But never a word to her he said. Save — " Mount and come away." 17 Then took her by the milk-white hand. And by the grass-green sleeve. And mounted her behind himsell, At her kin spiered nae leave. 18 " Now take your bride. Lord Lymington, Now take her if you may ! But if you take your bride again, We'll call it but foul play." 19 Thore were four-and-twenty belted knights, All clad in Johnstone gra}^,* Said they would take the bride again. By strong hand, if they may. iO Some of them were right willing men. But sae tliey were na all, When four-and-twenty Gordons gay Came at their leader's call.f • The livory of the ancient family of Johnstone. t " Anrt four-and-twenty Leader lads Bid them mount and ride awa."^ScoTT'B Version. LORD LUXDIE'S DAUGHTER. 89 21 Then swords were drawn frae out their sheaths, As they rush'd to the fray, And red and rosy was the bhiid Kan down ihe lily brae. 22 The bluid ran down by Cluden bank, And dovrn by Cluden brae ; Vv'inle the bride she made the truni|;eL sound, *' It is a Y>eel won p'ay." 23 Oh, mcikle was the bluid was shed Upon the Cluden brae ; And aye she made the trumpet sound, '• Oh, it is all fair play." 2i My blef.sing on j-our heart, sweet thing ! But v,-ae your wilful will ! There's mony a gallant gentleninn "Wliose bluid ye have gar'd spill. 25 Now, all ye lords of fair England, Across the Border born, Oh, come not here to seek a wife. For fear ye get the scorn. 26 They'll feed ye up with flattering words, And play ye foul, foul play ; Then dress ye frogs instead ofhsh. Upon your wedding day. LORD LUNDIE'S DAUGHTER AND SQUIRE WILLIAM. A'crsions of this ballad appeared in — I. !Mothcrv,-cirs Minxfrelv/, p. 307, under the title of " Sweet William," a.s " given from the cliaunting of an old woman.'' II. Buchan's Ancient Ballads and Songs, vol. ii., p. 57, under the title of " Lord Lundy." III. Scolthh Traditional Versions of Ancient Ballads, p. .'57; which la.st was "printed for the Percy Society," a.s selected from "two folio (MS.) volumes, consisting of ballads, soiil's, and poems, tal;cn down by" — the last- named industrious and hi'ddy successful collector and editor—" Mr. P. Buchan of Peterhead, North Britain, from the oral recitation of the peasantry of his country." 90 BALLAD MlNSTllELSY OF SCOTLAND. Tho ballad here printcil is collated from all three; Motherwell's Lc'iiig the one principally l\)lloweil. The ballad resembles, and in fact all the versions contain stanzas almost identical witli several in "Sweet Willie and Fair Janet," p. 07. It has also some features of resemblance to "Katherine Janfaric," which precedes, and to "TheGay Gos-hawk," which follows. The mention of ''pistol, powdei-, and lead," stanzas 18 and 19, and the relorcnce to shooting, stanzas 19 and 20, are probably anachronisms iutioduced by some modern reciter. With reference to the introduction of the " wee bird," as a love messenger, it may be noted, that "to ixnderstarid the language of birds was peculiarly one of the boasted sciences of the Arabians ; vvho l)rctend that many of their countrymen have been skilled in the knowledge of the language of birds ever since the time of King Solomon. Their writers relate tliat Balkis, the Queen of Sheba, or Saba, had a bird called Hudbud, that is, a lapwing, which she despatched to King Solomon ou various occasions; aud that this trusty bird was the messenger of their amours. We ai-e told that Solomon having been secretly informed by this winged confidant that Balkis intended to honour him with a grand embassy, inclosed a spacious square with a wall of gold and silver bricks, iu which he ranged his numerous troops and attendants in order to receive the ambassadors, who were astonished at the suddenness of these sjilendid and unexpected preparations." — Warton's History of English Poetry. See also quotation from Sir Walter Scott, at the close of the intro- duction to the ballad which comes after this. 1 Loud Vv'illiam had but ae dear son, For valour had nae peer; Lord Luudie had but ae daughter, For beauty uaue came near. 2 Upon ae book tlicy baith did read, On ither their love did lay; But when Lord Lundic got word of this, To his daughter he did say,— 3 " Oh, ye inauu marry the English prince. The Queen of England to be; And ye maun leave your love William, Or baith of you shall dee." 4 She walk'd up, and she walk'd down. Had nane to liear her moan; Nae creature but tlie pi-etty bird, Sat on the window stone. 6 "If tliou cou'dst speak, Avee bird," she said, " As weel as you can flee; A message to my love William, It 'b I wou'd send by thee." LORD LUNDIE'S DAUGHTER, 91 6 "Write a letter to Y7illiam," it said, " Aud seal it with thy ring; Then take a thread of the silk sae iiue, Aud round my neck it hing." 7 She wrote a letter to love William, And scal'd it with her ring; Then with a thread of the finest silk, Bound the bird's neck did it hing. 8 This bird flew high, this bird flew low, It flevr o'er hill and lea; This bonuie wee bird flew alang. As fast as it cou'd lice. 9 It flew to where young Squire William In a balcony did stand; And straight to him the wee bird flew And lighted on his hand. 10 '' Oh, here is a letter, Squire William, Frae thy true love to thee; Aud ere the morn at twelve o'clock. Your love shall married be," 11 " To horse, to. liorse,". Squire William cried, " At her bridal I maun be; And I'll never come back a living man, If the bride come not with me." J -' Then with a goodly ooippanie, Each n;iountcd on a steed. Squire William and the}', to Marykirk, Hade on at utmost speed. 13 When the. lady cnter'd the kirk style, Uer tears fell fast and free; But when s|io cnter'd the kirk door, A blithe sight she did see. 14 For. there she saw her love William, In armour shiniii' clear; And all his valiant eompanie. Full many a glitteriu' spear. 15 The parson he took book in hand, The marriage to begin; Then forward young Squire William strode, Bride and bridegroom between. 92 DALLAD MINSXnELSY OF SCOTLAND, 1(3 " Oh, lioltl a little, thou holy man, Oh, hold a littlo," 8aid he, " Till I speak with the boniiic bride — She 's 11 dear, dear friend to me. 17 " Stand off. stand off, yc hraw bridegroom, Stand oil", stand off," said he; " Stand off, stand off, yc braw bridegroom, The bride shall join with me." ly Up then spake tlie bride's father, And an angry man was he — " if I had pistol, powder, and lead, A dead man you v.ou'd be. 19 " If I had pistol, powder, and lead. With me at my command. It's I would shoot thee stiff and dead, In the place where thou dost stand." 20 Up and spake then Squire William, While blitliely blink'd his e'e — '' If j'c ne'er be shot till I shoot you, You'll ne'er be shot for me." 21 " Oh, if my daughter marries you AVithout the leave of me, I make a vow, and I'll keep it true, A portionless bride she'll be." 22 Up and spake then Squire William, And light he laugh'd with glee — " I'A-e got the best portion now, my lord. That ye cou'd gi'e to me. 23 " Your gude red gold I value not, Nor value I your fee; I ha'e her by the hand this day That 's dearer far to me. 21 " Let the young prince clasp your gold coffer, When he gangs till his bed; Let the young prince clasp your gold coffer, And I my bonnie bride. 25 " Commend me to my good mother, At night when you gang home; Come out, come out, my foremost njan, And lift ni}' lady on." THE GAT GOS-HAWK. 93 2u Out then spake him Lord Lundie, All augry man Avas he: " My daughter will marry Squire William, It seems, in spite of me." THE GAY GOS-HAWK. Tliree verdious of this ballad have been published : — I. By Sir Walter Scott, Alhi'^trelsy, vol. iii., p. 151, "partly from one under this title in Mrs. Browai's collection, and partly from a MS. of some antiquity, penes Edit."' II. By Motherwell, p. 353, imder the title of "The Jolly Gos-hawk," from a MS. sent to Mi". Peter Buchau, and •' forwarded " by him to his " good friend," the editor of Minstrelsy, Ancient and Modern. III. By Buchan, Ancient Ballads, &c., vol. ii., p. 245, under the title of " The Scottish Squire," from a copy which ho " took doAni from recitation." In this latter " the paiTot takes the place of the gos-hawk." It opens ,with the following stanza : — " "Wlien frrass grew ^een on Lanark plains, And fruit and flowers did spring, A Scottish squire, in cheerfu' strains, iSae merrily thus did sing." Followed by a stanza corresponding to stanza 4 of the present version, and to the one with which Mother- well s begins. The present version is compiled from all three. The simile, stanza 7, "resembles a passage in a MS. translation of an Irish fairy talc, called ' The Adventures of Faravla, Princess of Scotland, and Carral O'Daly, Son of Donogho More O'Daly, Chief Bard of Ireland.' Faravla, as she entered her bower, cast her looks upon the earth, which was tim;ed with the blood of a bird which a raven had newly killed. 'Like that snow,' said Faravla, ' was the complexion of ray beloved ; his cheeks like the sanguine traces thereon ; wbil&t the raven recalls to my memory the colour of his beautiful locks.* There is also some resemblance in the conduct of the story, betwixt the ballad and the tale just quoted. The princess Faravla, bcin::; desperately in love with Carral O'Dalj', despatches in search of him a faithful coniidante, who, by her magical art, trans- forms herself into a hawk, and perching iipon the windows of the bard, conveys to him information of the distress of the princess of Scotland. "In the ancient romance of 'Sir Tristrem,' the simile of the 'blood drops upon unow ' likewise occurs : — ' A bride bright thai ches Ab blod opou snowoing.' " Sir Walter Scott's Minstrelsy, vol. iii., p. 15-. 94 BALLAD MINSTUKLSY OF i;COTL.VND. 1 "Oil, wcel is me my s^ay gos-liawk, If your feutliering be sheen! " "Oh, waly, waly, my master dear, But ye look pale and lean ! 2 '• Oh, have ye tint, at tournament, Your sword, or yet your spear? Or mourn yo for the Southern lass Whom you may not win near?" 3 "I have not tint, at tournament, Jly sword nor yet my spear ; But sair I mourn for my true love, With mony a bitter tear. 4 " But weel is me my gay gos-hawk. That ye can speak and flee; Ye shall carry a letter to my love, Bring an answer back to me." 5 '■ Bui how shall I your true love iind, Or how shou'd I her know ? I bear a tongue ne'er with her spake. And eyes that ne'er her saw." 6 " Oh, weel shall ye my true love ken, Sae sune as ye her see ; For of all the flowers of fair England, The fairest flower is she. 7 *' Oh, what is red of her is red As biuid drapp'd on the snaw ; And what is white of her is white As milk, or wild sea-maw. 8 " And even at my love's bow'r door You'll find a bowing birk ; And ye maun sit and sing thereon. As she gangs to the kirk. 9 " And four-and-twenty fair ladyes Will to the mass repair; But AvcU may yc my ladye ken, The fairest ladye there. 10 " And when she goes into the house, Light ye upon the whin ; And sit ye there and sing our lovea, As she goes out and in." THE GAY GOS-HAAVK. 11 Lord William has written a love letter, Put it under bis pinion gray; And he is awa to Southern land As fast as wings can gae. 12 And even at that ladj^e's bow'r There grew a flowering birk ; And he sat down and sung thereon, As she gaed to the kirk. 13 And weel he kent that ladye fair, Amang her maidens free, For the flower that springs in May morning Was not sac sweet as she. 11 And when she came back from the mas8, He sat him on a whin, And sang full sweet the notes of love, Till all was cosh * within. 15 And first he sang a low, low note, And syne he sang a clear; And aye the o'erword of the sans Was — "Your love can no win here." IG " Feast on, feast on, my maidens all. The wine flows you amang, While I gang to my shot-window, And hear yon sweet bird's sang. 17 " Sing on, sing on, my bonnie bird, With feathering sae sheen; For weel I ken, by your sweet sang, You left my love yestreen." 18 Oh, first he sang a merry sang, And syne he sang a grave ; And syne he pcck'd his feathers gray, To her the letter gave. 19 " Have there a letter from Lord William; lie says he's sent ye three; He canna wait your love 1 anger. But for your sake he'll dee." £0 " I send him tlie rings from my white fingers, Tlie garlands off my hair ; I send him the heart that's in my breast, What wou'd my love have mair? * ".C0..I1:" buug; comfortable; quiet (»,', BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. L'l " CJac bill liim bake his bridal bread, And hruw his bridal alo, And I shall meet liini at ]\Iary's kirk, Lang, lung ere it be stale." 22 She hied her to her father dear, As fast as gang cou'd she: " A boon, a boon, my fatlicr dear, A l)oon I beg of thee!" 2o " Ask what you will, my dear daughter, And I will grant it thee; Unless to marry you Scottish squire ; That's Avliat shall never be." 24 " Oh, that 's the asking, father," she said, " That I'll ne'er ask of thee ; But if I die in merry England, In Scotland ye'il bury me. 25 " And the fir.st kirk that ye come to. Ye 's gar the mass be sung ; And the next kirk that ye come to, Yc's gar the bells be rung. 2G " At the tliird kirlv of fair Scotland, You'll deal gold for my sake ; And at that k'irk, St. Mary's kirk, All night my body wake." 27 " The asking's nac sae great, daughter, r>ut granted it shall be; And tho' ye die in merry England, In Scotlaiul we'll bury thee." 28 And she has ganc to her step-mother, Fell low down on her knee: " An asking, an asking, mother dear, I pray you grant it me." 29 " Ask what you please, my lily-white dovo, And granted it shall be." " If I do die in merry England, In Scotland gar bury me." 30 " Oh, had these words been to speak again, I'd not hove granted tliee; You ha'c a love in fair Scotland, With him you fain wou'd be." THE GAY GOS-H^iVTE. SI Slie has Lied her to her higly bow'r As fast as she cou'd fare; And she has drank a sleepy drauglit That she had mix'd with care. 32 And pale, pale grew her rosy cheek, That v.-as sae bright of blee, And she seem'd to Le as surely dead As any one cou'd be. S3 Then spake her cruel step-miunie, — " Take j'C the burning lead. And drap a drap on her bosom, To try if she be dead." Si They took a drap of boiling lead, And drapp'd it on her breast; " Alas! alas!" her father cry'd, " She's dead Avithout the priest." 85 She neither chatcer'd with her teeth, Nor shiver'd with her chin; " Alas! alas!" her father cry'd, '' There is nae breath within." 3G Then up arose her seven brethren, And hew'd to her a bier; They hew'd it frac the solid aik. Laid it o'er with silver clear. 37 Her sisters they went to a room, To make to her a sark; Tlie cloth of it was satin fine, And the stecking silken wark. C8 The first Scots kirk that they came to. They gar'd the bells be rung; The next Scots kirk that they came to, They gar'd the mass be sung. 50 But when they came to St. Mary's kirk, Tljcre stude spearmen all on a raw; And up and started Lord William, Tlie cliifftain o'er them a', 40 '• Set di)wn, set down the corpse," he said, '• Till I look on the dead; The last time that I saw her faco, She rudfly was and red. PR BALLAD MTNSTRELSY OP SCOTLAND, •il " Set down, set down tlio bier," ho said; '• Let mo look lior npon;" But as soon as Lord William toucli'd hov liand, Her colour 'gan to como. 42 She liri-htenVl like the lily flower, Till her pale colour was gpne; With rosy cheek and niby lip, She sniil'd her love upon. -13 "A morsel of your bread, my lord, And one glass of your wine; For I ha'e fasted these three lang days. All for your sake and mine. ■14 " Gae hame, gao hame, my ooven baiild brothers, Gae hame and blaw your horn! I trow ye wou'd ha'e gi'en mo the skaith, But I've gi'en you the scorn. 45 " I came not here to fair Scotland, To mix amang the clay; I came to be Lord William's wife. And wear the silks so gay. 46 " I came not here to fair Scotland, To lye amang the dead ; But I came here to fair Scotland, To wear the gold so red. 47 " Commend me to my gray father, That wish'd my saul gude rest; But wae be to my cruel stcp-dame, Gar'd burn me on the breast." 48 " Ah! woe to you, you light woman I An ill death may you die ! For we left father and sisters at hamo. Breaking their hearts for thee. 49 " But since ye ha'e gi'en to us this scorn. We shall gi'e you anither; For the only tocher you shall get Is the bier that brought ye hither." THE EAEL OF MAE'S DAUGHTER. From Bnchm's Ancient Ballads and Song-i, vol. i,, p. 49, and not?., p. 295. THE EARL OF MAR'S DAUGHTER. 99 " In the Oriental courts of tlie ancients, magic was a favourite study;" and " till within " a comparatively recent jieriod, " a belief in magic and witchcraft was cherished, not only by the ignorant, but the' learned, in our own" and other European countries. In Toledo, Seville, and Salamanca, and in various parts of Ital}', there were, during the middle ages, "public schools where magic was taught." In onr own country, the names of ISIerlin, Michael Scot, Lord SouUs, and Thomas the Rhymer, ai'e famous on account of their alleged magical and supernatural gifts ; and in more recent times it is stated, in con- nection with the Gowrie conspiracy, that "When he— i.e., Earl GoM^rie — went to Padua, there he studied necromancy ; and his o-\vn pedagogue. Master Rhind, testifies, that he had those characters aye upon him, which he loved so, that if he had forgot to put them in his breeches, he would run up and down like a madman; and he had them upon him when he was slain ; and as they testify that saw it, he could not bleed so long as they were upon him." Transformations are couunon to the mythology and early literature of all nations ; such as the metamorphosis of gods and men into "birds, boasts, tishes, woods, and water." '■This ballad has the highest claim to antiquity. The learned Lord Hailes says the title of I^Iar is one of the eai-ldoms whore origin is lost in its antiquity. It would therefore be vain for me to ascribe the date of the ballad to any precise period." The quotations are taken from Mr. Buchan's note above referred to, 1 It was intil a pleasant time, Upon a simmer's day, The noble Earl of Mar's daughter Went forth to sport and play. 2 As thus she did amuse hersel' Below a green aik tree, There she saw a sprightly doo Set on a tower sae hie. 3 "0 Cow-me-doo, my love sae true, If ye'll come down to mo, Ye'se ha'e a cage of gude red gowd. Instead of simple tree: 4 "I'll put gowd hingera rouu' your cage, And silver roun' your wall; I'll gar ye shine as fair a bird As ony of them all." 6 But she had not these words well spoke, Nor yet these words well said, Till Cow-mc-doo flew frae the tower, And lighted on her head, 100 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. G Tlien slic has brouglit this pretty bird llaiue to lier bow'rs and hall,_ And inadfi him sliiiic as fair a bird As oiiy of llicm all. 7 Wlicn day was .g-auc and night was come, About the evening tide, ♦ This lady spied a sprightly youth Stand" straight up by her side. 8 " From whence came ye, young man?" she said, "That does surprise me sair; Jily door was bolted right secure ; What way ha'e ye come hero?" 9 " Oh, baud your tongue, ye lady fair, Let all your folly be; jNIind ye not on your turtle doo. Last day yo brought with thee?" 10 " Oh, tell me mair, young man," she said; '• This docs surprise me now; But what country ha'e ye come frae? What pedigree are you?" 11 " y.y mither lives on foreign isles; She has nae mair but me; She is a queen of wealth, and state, And birth, and high degree. 12 " Likewise well skill'd iu magic spells, As ye may plairdy see ; And she transibrm'd me to yon shape, To charm such maids as thee. 13 " I am a doo the live-lang day, A sprightly youth at night; This aye gars me appear mair fair In a fair maiden's sight. 14 " And it was but this very day That I came o'er the sea; Your lovely face did me enchant: I'll live and dee with thee." 15 " Cow-me-doo, my luve sae true, Nae mair frae me ye'se gae." " That 's never my intent, my luve; As ye said, it shall be sae." TTIE EARL OF MAR'S DAUGIITKR, KH 16 Then he has staid in bow'r with her For sax lang years and ane, Till sax young sons to hun she bare, And the seventh she 's brought hame. 17 But aye as ever a child was born, He carried them away, And brought them to his mither's care, As fast as they cou'd fly. 18 Thus he has staid in bow'r with her For twenty years and three ; Then came a lord of high renoAAii To court this fair ladj-e. 19 But still his profler she refused, And all his presents too ; Says — " I'm content to live alane, With my bird, Cow-me-doo." 20 Her father sware a solemn oath Amang the nobles all, — " The morn, or ere I eat or drinlc. This bird I kill it shall." 21 The bird was sitting in his cage, And heard what they did say; And when he found they were dismiss'd, Says — "Waes me for this day. 22 '• Before that I do langer stay, And thus to be forlorn, I'll gang unto my mither's bow'r, A\here I Vv'as bred and born," 23 Then Cow-me-doo took flight and flew Beyond the raging sea; And lighted near his mither's castle, On a tower of gowd sac hie. 2i As his mither was walking out. To see what she cou'd see. It 'a there she saw her little son Set on the tower sae hie. 25 " Get dancers here to dance," slic said, " And minstrels for to play; For hero 's my youug son, Florcntuie, Conic here with mo to stay." I 102 BALLAD MrNSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 26 "Got nae dancers to dance, mithor, Nor minstrels for to play; For the niithcr of my seven sons, The morn's her vveddhig daj'." 27 " Oh, tell me, tell me, Florentine, Tell me, and tell me true ; Tell me this day, without a flaw, "What I will do for you." 28 "Instead of dancers to dance, mithor, Or minstrels for to play, Turn four-and-twenty wall-wight men, Like storks, in feathers gray; 20 " My seven sons to seven swans, Aboon their heads to flee ; And 1, mj-scl', a gay gos-hawk, A bird of high degree." 30 Then sighin', said the queen hersel', " That thing 's too high for me ; " But she applied to an auld woman. Who had raair skill than she, 31 Instead of dancers to dance a dance. Or minstrels for to play, Four-and-twenty wall-Avight men Turn'd birds of feathers gray ; 32 Her seven sons to seven swans, Aboon their heads to flee ; And he, himsel', a gay gos-hawk, A bii'd of high degree. 33 This flock of birds took flight and Hew Beyond the raging sea ; And landed near the Earl Mar's castle, Took shelter in every tree. 34 They were a flock of pretty birds. Plight comely to be seen ; The people view'd them with surprise As they danced on the green. 35 These birds ascended frae the tree. And lighted on the hall; And at the last with force did flee Amang the nobles all. LORD THOMAS AND FAIR ANNIE, 103 36 The storks there seiz'd some of the men, They cou'd neitlier fight nor flee ; Tlie swans they bound the bride's best man Below a green aik tree. 37 They lighted next on maidens fair, Then on the bride's o^vn head ; And with the twinkling of an e'e Tlic bride and them were fled. 33 There 's ancient men at weddings been, For sixty years or more ; But sic a curious wedding-day They never saw before. LOPvD THOMAS AND FAIR ANNIE. " This ballad is much the same with the Breton romance, called ' Lay le Frain,' or the 'Song of the Ash,' a copy of which ancient romance is preserved in the invaluable collection (W. 4. 1.) of tho Advocates' Library, and begins thus : — ' Wo roiieth oft and findeth ywrite And this clerkcs wele it wite Layes that ben iii harping Ben yfound of ferii thing Sum betU of wcr and some of wo Sum of joyo and mirthe also And sum of trechorie and gile Of old eventours that fel while. And Fum of bourdes and ribaudy And many ther beth of faery Of al thinges that men scth Maist o' love forsoth yai beth. 'In Breyteyce hi old time This layes were wrought to seithe this rime ■When iiinges might our y here Of ani mervailes that ther wer They token a harp in glee and game And maked a lay and gaf it name Now of thcf:e aventours that wercn y fallo Y can tell Bum ao nousrhtallo Ae liirkcnpth lordin.cjcs sothe to sain 1 cliil you tol Lay le lYain Befcl a can in Bietcyno Whereof was made Lay le Frain In Inglicho for to tollen y wis Of anc asho forcotlie it is On ane ens inimp o fair with alle That eumtymo was bifalle,' &c. " A ballad, agreeing in every respect wththat which follows, exists in the Danish crillection of ancient Kongs, entitled Kaivipe Vmr. It is called 'Skin?n Anna,' i. e.. Fair Annie; and has been trans- lated literally by my learned frif lul, Mr. Robert .Tamieson. Sec his Popvlttr Ji'iitrifLi, tidin., IHlG, vol. ii., p. 100. This work contains many original and curious observations on the connection between tho 104 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. iincient poetry of Britain and of lUc northern nations."— Scott, Minstrehij, vol. iii., p. 249. A'ersions of the ballad also exist in Swedish, Dutch, and German, but in the latter it ajipcars in a form " considerably changed." "The Scottish versions arc quite numerous. A frac;mcnt of eight stanzas was jjublislied in Herd's collection, 'Wha will bake my bridal bread,' Ed., 1770; i., 107. Sir Walter Scott gave a complete copy in the Miiistrcl'^-ij of the Scottish Border [' from the recitation of an old woman residing near Kirkhill, \\i West Lothian, the same from whom were obtained "the variations in the tale of " Tamlauo " and the frag- ment of the " Wife of Usher's Well " ']. Two other copies, also froin oral tradition, ■vvere inserted by Jamieson in the appendix to liis Popidur Ballads, 'Lady Jane' [from the recitation of Mrs. Brown], vol. ii., p. 371; 'Burd Helen' [from the recitation of Mrs. Arrot], vol. ii., p. 370 ; and from these he constructed the edition of 'Lady Jane,' printed at p. 73 of the same volume. Motherwell, M'lnMrelsu, p. 327, affords still another variety [under the title of 'Fair Annie'] ; and Chambers has compiled a ballad from all these sources, and a manuscript furnished by INIr. Kinloch, Scottish Ballads, p. 180." — Professor Child, Emjlish and Scottish Ballads, vol. iii., ]\ 192. The ballad here published has been collated from the various Scotish versions named above. Paiit I. 1 There liv'd a lord on yon sea-side, And lie thought on a wile, How he would go o'er the salt sea, A lady to beguile. 2 " It 's narrow make your bed, Annie, And learn to lye your lane ; For I'm gaun o'er the sea, Annie, A braw bride to bring hame. With her I will get gov.'d and gear; With you I ne'er got nanc." 3 " Oh, I maun make it wide, Thomas, Oh, I maun make it wide. If all your seven sons, and mine, Jtlaun lye down by my side. 4 " The first of your braw seven sons, lie rides a milk-white steed; The second of your seven sons, He wears a milk-white weed ; 5 '• The third ane of j-our seven sons, He draws baith ale and w-ine; The fourth ane of your seven sons, He serves you when you dine ; LORD THOMAS AXD FAIR AKNIE, 105 6 '"The fifth ano of your seven sons, He can baith read and ■write ; And the sixth ane of 3"our seven sons, He is all your heart's deliglit ; 7 " The youngest of j-our seven sons, He sleeps on my breast-bane ; He soundly sleeps, and sweetly smiles, Nor heeds his mother's mane." 8 *' But Avha will bake my bridal bread, Or brew my bridal ale ? And Avha Avill welcome my brisk bride, That I bring o'er the dale? " 9 " It 's I will bake your bridal bread. And brew your bridal ale ; And I will welcome your brisk bride. That you bring o'er the dale." 10 " But she that welcomes my brisk bride Maun gang like maiden fair ; She maun lace on her robe sae jimp, And braid her yellow hair." 11 " But how can I gang maiden-like, AVhcn maid I ne'er can be? Or I, the mother of seven sons. Look like a maiden free ? " Bart IL 12 Slie's dress'd her sons in the scarlet red, Herself in dainty green ; And tho' her clieeks look'd pale and wan, She well might been a queen. 13 She 's ta'en her j'oung son in her arms, Another in her hand ; And she's up to the highest tower, To see him come to land. ll " Come up, come up, my eldest son, And look o'er yon sea-strand, And see your lather's new-come bride Before she come to land." 15 "Come down, come down, my mother dear, Come frac the castle wall ; I fear, if langcr ye stand tliere, Ye'll let yourscl' down fall." 10(3 BALLAD MINSTRKLSY OF SCOTLAND. IG She 's ta'cn a cake of the best bread, A bottle of llic best wine, And all the keys upon her arm, And to the shore hied sync. • 17 She hied her down to the shore side, Her love's ship for to see ; The topmast and the mainmast baith, Shone like the silver free. 18 She hied her down, and farther down, The bride's ship to behold; The topmast and the mainmast baith, They shone just like the gold. 19 She 's ta'en her seven sons in bcr hand; I wot she didna fail! She met Lord Thomas and his bride. As they came o'er the dale. 20 "You are welcome liame, Lord Thomas, And welcome to your land; You are welcome, with your fair ladye. That you lead by the hand. 21 '' You are welcome to your halls, ladye. You are welcome to your bow'rs ; You are welcome to your hame, ladye, For all that 's here is yours." 22 "I thank thee, Annie," said the bride, " Sae dearlie I tliank thee ; While I am ladj^e in this place. Your good friend I will be." Paht III. 23 Fair Annie served the first table With wliite bread and with wine; And aye she drank the wan water. To keep licr colour fine. 24 Fair Annie served the next table With brown bread and with beer; But aye she drank the wan water. To keep her colour clear. 25 As she gaed by tlic first table, She Icucli amang them all; But e'er she reach'd the next table, She let the tears down fall. LORD TnOJUS AXD FAIR ANmE. 107 20 Fair Annie tum'd her round about, For fear she Avou'd be seen; And aye she wiped the tears trickling Fast frae her watery een. 27 Then she has ta'en a lang napkin, And hung it on a pin; And aye she wiped the tears trickling Adown her cheek and chin.* 28 And aye Lord Thomas turn'd lum round And smiled aniang his men, Says — ** Like ye best the old ladye. Or her that 's new come hamc? " 29 When bells were rung and mass was sung, And all men bound to bed. Lord Thomas and his new-come bride To their chamber they gaed. 80 Fair Annie ta'en her harp in hand. To harp the twa asleep ; And as she harp'd and as she sang. Full sorely she chd wcep.f ol " Oh, I have born seven fair sons To the good lord of this place; And I wish they were seven hares. That I might give them chase. Z2 '"I wish that they were seven hares, Running o'er yon lily lee, And I a good greyhound mysel' — Soon worried they shou'd be." C3 " Oh, I have born seven fair sons To the good lord of this hall ; I wish that they were seven rats, Running on the castle wall; And I were a gray cat mysel' — I soon wou'd worry them all." CI And wac and sad fair Annie sat. And drearie was her sang; And ever, as she sobb'd and grut, '" Wac to him that did the wraug! " • " It waB to dry her watery Hyea As Hbo gaod out and fu." Jninicson'ii Veraiou, vol. ii., p. 37i- t " Slin "b trt'cii a harp into her haud, Wfut Vj tliflr chauilxT door, Ad'I nyo she harp'd uiid aye ahe mura'd. With the tall tears falling o'or." UothcrweU'B ilimlrchi/, p. 331 108 BALLAD MIKSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 35 " My gown is on," the new bride said, " My elioou are on my feet, And I v/ill to lair Annie gang. And see what gars her greet. 3G '' What ails, what ails ye, fair Annie, That ye make sic a moan; Has your wine barrels cast the girds, Or is your white bread gone? 37 " I had a sister ance, Annie, By reivers stowu away ; Father and mother baith for hor Sair mourn'd many a day : A sister just like you, Aiinie, Then answer me, I pray. 38 " And say wha was your father, Annie, And say wha was your mother? And had you any sister, Annie? Or had you any brother? " 39 " The Earl of Wcmyss was my father. The countess was my mother: And all the bairns beside mysel' Were a sister and a brother." * * Motherwell's version reads:— " ' King Henry Tvas my father dear, Queen Esther was my mother, Prince Henry was my brother dear, And Fanny Oower my sister.' " ' If Kins Henry was your father dear, And Queen Esther was your mother, If Prince Henry was your brother dear, Then surely I'm your sister.' " 'Come to your bed, my sister dear, It ne'er was wraDg'd for me ; But ao kiss of his meiTy mouth, As we came o'er the sea.' " The as " Kin J recitation" of"Mrsr"Brown,"the~fatlier is styled '■"the Earl of Kichmond," mother, Bister, and brother being referred to, but not named. "The tradition which commonly accompanies this tale," as stated by Jamioson, "says that Lord Tliomaa was awaro of his bride being the sister of his mistress, and that ho had courted her, not witli a view of retaining her as his wife, but of Becuring from her father a portion for fair Annie, whom ho intended to marry. The Btmza which follows the three quoted above, from Motherwell's version, appears to favour this tradition. It reads— " Awa, awa, ye forenoon brido, Awa, awa frae me; I wadna hfar my Annie greet, For a' tlie gold I got wi' thee." There ia also a stanza of a similar tenor in the version from Mrs. Brown'a recltatloa THOMAS O' TONDERDALE. \00 40 '• Jf tLc Earl of "Wemyss* was your father, I -wot sae was he mine; Ami it shall Dot be for lack of gowd, That ye your love shall tyne. 41 " Oh, seven ships convey'd me here, "When I came o'er the faem; And four of them shall stay with you, And three convey mc hame. 42 '"But when I reach our father's house, They may laugh me to scorn, That I shoii'd leave a bride betroth'd, Gae hame a maid forlorn." THOMAS 0' YONDERDALE. Abridged from Buchan's Ancient Ballads and Sonjs, vol. i., p. •:2i. 'Ibis ballad resembles, in some respects, both "Lord Thomas and Fair Annie," which immediately precedes, and "Lord Beichan," v.hich immediately follows it. 1 Ladv Maisky lives intil a bower ; She never wore but what she wou'd ; Iler gowns were of tlie silk sae fine, Her coats stood up witli bolts of gowd. 2 Mony a knight there courted her, And gentlemen of higli degree; But it was Thomas o' Yonderdale That gain'd the love of this ladye. 3 He haunted her intil her bow'r, He liaunted her baith night and day; But when he gain'd her virgin love, To an unco land ho hied away. 4 He hadna been on unco ground, A month, a montli, but barely three, Till he has courted anithcr maid. And q\iite forgotten fair Maisry. • Tho family of WcmypH Ih, as elated by Sibbald, lineally doRcendctl from Macduff, Earl of l'lfi\ which Btatoiiiont of hiH BeemH to lio borno out by nni-iont rbartorn; but aM the tlilo of Karl of Wninyss wan llrHt couforrod in ICnil on Sir John WoniyHS, Lord Wcmyfw of Klcho, tho ballad, if it rofurs to ouo of that family at all, muNt lofor to an ancestor of the Karl's. ll() BALLAD MINSTKELSY OF SCOTLAND. 5 lUit ae night as ho lay in bed, A wao and ch-cnry dream drcam'd he, — Tliat Maisry Blood by his bed-side, Upbraiding him lor perfidie. G Then he call'd on his little boy, — " Bring" me candle, that I may see; And ye maun quickly rin this night Witli a letter to a gay ladj'e." 7 '■ It is my duty you to serve, To bring you coal and candle light; And fain wou'd I your errand rin, If 'twere to Lady Maisry bright. 8 "Tho' I were sae, I scarce cou'd gang; The night sae dark, I scarce cou'd see; I wou'd creep on my hands and knees With a message to her frae thee." 9 " Win up, win up, my bounic boy, To do mj' bidding ye blithe will be; To Maisry ye maun quickly rin. With this message to her frae me. 10 " Ye'U bid her dress in gowns of silk, Likewise in coats of cramasie; Ye'll bid her come alang with you, Lord Thomas' wedding for to see. 11 "Ye'll bid her graith her steed with gowd, And ye will likewise bid her hing On ilka tip of her horse mane Twa siller bells to sweetly ring. 12 "And on the tor of her saddle, A courtly bird to sweetly sing; Her bridle reins of siller fine. And stirrups by her side to hmg." 13 She dress'd her in the finest silk, Her coats were of the cramasie; And she 's away to unco land, Lord Thomas' wedding for to see. 14 At ilka tip of her horse mane Twa siller bells did sweetly ring; And on the tor other saddle A courtly bird did sweetly sing. THOMAS O' YOXDERDALE. Ill 15 The bells they rang, the bird he sang, As they rade o'er a pleasant plam. Where they met with Lord Thomas' bride Wending on vrith her bridal train. 16 The bride she turn'd her roimd about, — "I wonder much who this may be? It surely is the Scotish queen, Come here our wedding for to see." 17 Out then spake Lord Thomas' boy, — " She maunna lift her head sae hie; But it 's Lord Thomas' first true love Come here your wedding for to see." 18 Out then spake Lord Thomas' bride — I wyte the tear did blind her e'e, — "If this be Lord Thomas' first true love, I'm sair afraid he'll ne'er ha'e me." 19 Then in came Lady Maisry fair, Lovely and grand she did appear; "What is your will now, Lord Thomas, This day, ye know, ye call'd me here?" 20 "Come hither by me, ye lily flower, Come hither, and set ye down by me; Ye are the aue I've call'd upon, And ye my wedded wife maim be." 21 Then in it came Lord Thomas' bride. Primly and trimly in she came ; *' What is your will now, Lord Thomas, This day, ye know, ye call'd me hame?" 22 " Ye ha'e come on hired horseback. But ye'se gae hame in coach sae free; For here's the flower into my bower, I mean my wedded wife shall be." 23 "Then yc maun part your lands, Tlioiun?:, And part them in divisions three ; Gi'e twa of tliem to your ao brotlicr, And cause your brother marry me." 24 "I winna part my lands," he said, " For ony woman that I sec; My brother he is a landed knight, Will wed uane but he will lur nie." 112 BALLAD JlINbTIUXSY 01-' SCOI'LAND. LORD BEICHAN AND SUSIlil PYE. Versious of tliis liigWy popular aud apparently ancient l);illacl have appeared as under: — I. " Young Beichan and Susie Pye." ir. " Young Bekie." Both in Jamieson's Popular Ballads, vol. ii., pp. 117 and 127. Mr. Jamiesnn says that these ballads "(both on the same subject) are given froni copies taken from Mrs. Brown's recitation, collated with two other copies pro- cured from Scotland : one in MS. ; another very good ono printed for tlie stalls ; a third, in tlio possession of the late Reverend Jonathan Boucher, of Epsom, taken from recitation in the North of England ; and a fourth, about one-third as long as the others, which the editor picked oft" an old \vall in Piccadilly."— Prefatory note, p. 117. III. One in '' Scarce Ancient Ballads. Peterhead, 1819." [Aber- deen, 1S22?] IV. " Lord Beichan and Susie Pye." — Kinloch's Ancient Scottish Ballads, p. 260. V. A portion of a version, consisting of ' ' prose and rhyme intermixed," given from the recitation of "a stoiy-teller," by Motherv.-oli, ^Iinslrehy, Introduction, p. xv. Stanza 10 is derived from this source. YI. "Young Bondwell," in Scottish Traditional Versions of Ancient BalUuU, Percy Society, vol. xvii,, p. 1, and note, p. 82. This last and " Yoimg Bekie" (II.) are almost identical in incident. VII. "An English traditional version, communicated by " J. H. Dixon to The Local Historian'' s Table Book, vol. i., New- castle, 1842; and subsequently given in Ajicient Poems, Ballads, and Songs, Percy Society, vol. xvii., p. 85. VIII. "I>ord Bateman," the common English broadside, p. 95 of tlie Avork last cited. Probably identical with or similar to the ballad picked off the "wall in Piccadilly " by Jamieson. There is also an edition of " Lord Bateman," v/ith comic illustrations, three additional verses, and notes of a burlesque character, by Georgo Cruickshauk. The ballad which follows is collated chiefly from the versions numbered I. and IV., with the addition of two stanzas from recitation, from which source sundry emendations also are derived. In each of the two versions just specified the first line announces "London" as the birthplace of "Young Beichan." The first has the following curious anachronism : — " And they have made hlui trail tUe wine, And Bpices on bis fair bodie;" LORD BEICHAN AND SUSIE PYE, 113 although it is well known that the use of -wiue is fovhidden by the Koran," and could therefore only be indulged in clandestinely. The origin of the ballad was first pointed out by Motherwell; whose elaborate account of it and its hero is as follows : — " This jjopular ballad, which is unquestionably an English produc- tion (or, at all events, of English origin), exists in many different shapes in Scotland. It is of unquestionable antiquity ; and the young Beichan, or Bekie, whose captivity, sufferings, and subsequent marriage with his deliverer*, it records, is no less a personage thaia the father of the celebrated Thomas A Becket. In Tlie Life of Thomas Becket, quoted in Warton's llisiory of English Poetry, vol. i., p. 19, occurs this notice : — 'Ther was Gilbert, Thomas fadir, name the trewe man and gode, He loved God aud holi cherche setthe he vritte ondcrstode ; The cros3 to the holi cherche in his youth ho noni, . . . anyd on Rychard that was his inon to Jerlem come, Ther hy dede, here pylgrimage in holi etudes faste, So that among Sarazyns hy wer nom at laste.' ' ' When so nomed, it is probable that the Saracen lady fell in love with him. Gilbert Becket must have been a distinguished individual in his day. He appears to have been jiortgrave of London, a title now changed to that of maj'or. Sec A Brief Chronicle of the Success of Times, London, IGll, ix 574. That he was a person of great estate, Langtoft bears witness : — 'There was his chancelerc, Thomas of Loudon bom, Saint Thomas fader I fynd hight Thomas (Gilbert) Bcket; In London of noble kynd and mosto of alle was let, A riche man he was, mot spend thre himdreth pound.' — Langtoft's Chronicle, apndHerne, p. 128. " Hollingshed, speaking of the saint, saj^s: — 'This Becket was borne in I^ondon, his father hight Gilbert, but his mother was a S}'rian born, and by religion a Saracen.' To tlie same effect Baker : — ' The man was Thomas Becket, born in London. His father, one Gilbert Becket, — his mother an outlandish v/oman of the country of Sijria^ Fox, in his Acts and Monuments, vol. i., \>. 267, London, \i'A\, affords another notice: — 'And first here to omit the programe of him, and his mother named Eose, whom Polyd. Virgilius falsely namctli to be a Saracen, when indeed she came out of the parts bordering ncere to Normandy, &c.' Though she came from the quarter Fox says she came from, that did not prevent lier from being a Saracen, — a designation as general then as heathen is at the present day. "These notices will afford evidence sufficient to v/arrant us referring the ballad to the individual now pointed out. An inspection of some fif the numerous Icirouds touching the blessed martj'r. Saint Tliomas of Canterbury, will probably supply many other interesting par- ticulars, tending more completely to connect and identify them." — Mothcr^\cU'8 Minisirclvj, Introduction, note, p. xv. Professor Child corroborates Motherwell's opinion, and states, that " an inspection of the iirst hundred lines of I'obert of CJlouce.jtcr'.s Life and Martyrdom of Thomas Bcket (edited for tlie Percy Society 114 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. by W. H. Black, vol. xix.) will leave no doubt that the hero of this ancient and beaiitiful tale h veritably Gilbert Beckct, lather of the renowned Saint Thomas of Canterbury. "Robert of Gloucoster'o storj"- coincides in all essential particulars with the traditionary legend ; but Susie Pye is unfortunately spoken of in the chronicle b^' no other name than tlic daughter of the Saracen Prince Admiraud." — Professor Child's English and Scotthh Ballads, vol. iv., p. 1. After such convincing statements from two such reliable autho- rities, it is scarcely neccssaiy to notice the suggestion made to and noted by Jamieson, "that the names in" this and the "suc- ceeding romantic tales ought to be, not JJeichan [or Rekie], but Buchan" (Popular Ballads, vol. ii., p. 134) ; or the more lecent theory of the editor or annotator of Scottish Traditional Versions of Ancient Ba'lads (Percy Society, No. Iviii.), who surmises "that the hero was one of the ancient and noble border family of Bartram or Bertram" (note to "Young Bondwell," p. 8-1). 1 Lord Beichan was a noble lord, A noble lord of high degree; He placed himself on good shipboard, And sail'd away o'er the salt, salt sea. 2 lie sail'd far south, he sail'd far east, Until he pass'd all Christendie ; He sail'd far south, he sail'd far east, Until lie came to Pagandie. 3 He view'd the fashions of that land, Their way of worship too view'd he ; But to Mahound or Termagant, Lord Beichan wou'd not bend a knee. 4 For Beichan was a Christian born. And such resolved to live and dee, So he was la'en by a savage Moor, Who treated him right cruellie. 111 ilka shoulder was put a bore, In ilka bore was put a tree ; And heavy loads they made him draw, Till he was sick, and like to dee.* 6 Then he was cast in a dungeon deep, Where he coii'd neither liear nor see; And seven long years they kept him there, Botli cold and hunger sore to dree. • "Till of his lifohe was q\v.to wearic." — Variation. LOHD BEICHAN AND SUSIE PYE, 115 7 The Moor he had an only daughter, The damsel's name was Susie Pye ; And ilka day as she took the air, Lord Beichan's prison she pass'd by. 8 So it fell out upon a day, She heard Lord Beichan sadly sing; And this the sad and hopeless lay Of sorrow in her car did ring : 9 " My hounds they all go masterless, My hawks they flee from tree to tree, My younger brother heirs my land ; Fair England again I ne'er will see. 10 " But were I free as I have been, On good shipboard to sail the sea, I'd turn my face to fair England, And sail no more to a strange countrio.' 11 Young Susie Pyc had a tender heart, Tho' she was come of a cruel kin; And sore she sigh'd, she knew not wlij-, For him who lay that dungeon in. 12 " Oh, were I but the prison keeper, As I'm a ladj' of high degree, I soon wou'd set this youth at large,- And send him to his own coixntrie." l.'J The wliole night long no rest she got, Lord Beichan's song for thinking on; And when the morn began to dawn. She to liis prison door has gone. 14 She gave the keeper a piece of gold, And many pieces of white raonie, To unlock to her tho prison doors. That alie Lord Beichan might go see. 15 The keeper open'd the prison doors, I wot ho open'd two or three. Ere they came where Lord Beichan stood, Chain'd by the middle to a tree. 10 Lord Beichan lie did marvel sore. The Moor's fair daughter there to see; But took her for some captive maid, P.ronglit from some land in Cliristendio. IIG BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 17 For wlieii she saw his wretched plight, Her tears fell fast and bittcrlic; And thus the Moor's lair daughter spake Unto Lord Bcichan tendcrlie : 18 " Oh, l.avo ye any lands," she said, " Or castles in your own countrie, That ye cou'd give to a lady fair, From prison strong to set you free?" 19 ''Oh, I have lands both fair and braid, And I have castles fair to see ; But I wou'd give them all," he said, '' From prison strong to be set free." 20 " Plight me the truth of your right hand, The truth of it here plight to me. That till seven years are past and gone. No lady ye will wed but me." 21 " For seven long years I do make a vow, And seven long years I'll keep it true, If you wed with no other man, No other lady I'll wed but you." 22 Tlicn she lias bribed the prison-keeper, AVith store of gold and wliite monie. To loose the chain that bound him so. And set Lord Beichan once more free. 23 To eat she gave him good spice-cake, To drink she gave him blood-red wine; And bade him sometimes tliink of her, Who kindly freed him out of pine. 2 1 A ring she from her finger broke, And half of it to him gave she, — " Keep it, to mind you of the maid AYho out of prison set you free." 25 She had him put on good shipboard. That he might safely cross tlie main; Then said, "Adieu! my Christian lord, I fear wc ne'er may meet again." 20 Lord Beichan turn'd him round about, And lowly, lowly bent his knee; " Ere seven years are come and gone, I'll take yim to my own countrie." LORD BEICHAN AND SUSIE PYE. 117 27 But when he came to London town, A happy, happy man was he; Th.e ladies all around him throng'd, To see him come frae slaveric. 28 His mother she had died of grief, His kindred all were dead but he ; Kis lands they all were lying waste, In ruins were his castles free. 29 No porter stood to tend his gate, Ko human creature cou'd he see; Xonght but the screeching owls and bats, Had he to bear him companie. 30 But gold works like a magic spell, And he had gold and jewels free ; So soon his halls were richly deck'd, "While pages served on bended knee. 31 Both lords and ladies throug'd his halls, His table rang v>-ith mu'th and glee; And he soon forgot the eastern maid, Who freed him out of slaverie. 32 But Susie Pye con'd get no rest, Nor day nor night cou'd happy be; For something wliisper'd in her breast, " Lord Beichan will prove false to thee." 33 So she set foot on good shipboard. Well mann'd and fitted gallantlie ; She bade adieu to her father's towers. And left behind lier own countrie. 34 Then she sailed west, and she sailed north. She sailed far o'er the salt sea faem ; And after many weary dajs, Unto fair England's shore she came. 35 She landed there in wealth and state, And journey'd with a gallant tr.ain. Till she met with a shepherd youth, When thus she did accost the swain : 3G "Oh, whose are all those flocks of sheep. And whose are all those herds of kye. And whose arc all those lands so braid. With many more that I've pasa'd by ? " K 118 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 37 " Oil, those are all Lord Beichan's sheep, Oh, those are all Lord Beichairs kyc, And those are all Lord Beichan's lands, And many more that you've pass'd by." 88 " What news of him, thou shepherd youth, "What news hast thou to tell to me?" " Such news, such news, thou lady fair, Was ne'er before in this countrie. 39 " For he has betroth'd a lady gay, 'Tis now full thirty days and three; But will not mate with his fair bride, For love of one beyond the sea." 40 Then in her pocket she put her hand, And gave him gold and white monie; " Here, take ye that, my shepherd youth, For the good news ye tell to me." 41 Then she went to Lord Beichan's gate, And she tirl'd gently at the pin. And ask'd — " Is this Lord Beichan's hall, And is that noble lord within?" 42 The porter ready answer made, — '• Oh yes, this is Lord Beichan's hall; And he is also here within, AVith bride and guests assembled all." 43 " And has he betroth'd another love. And has he quite forgotten me, To whom he plighted his love and troth, When from prison I did him free ? 44 " Bear to your lord, ye proud porter. This parted ring, the plighted token Of mutual love, and mutual vows. By him, alas! now falsely broken. 45 " And bid him send one bit of bread. And bid him send one cup of wine, Unto the maid he hath betray'd, Tlio' she freed him from cruel inno." 46 The porter hasten'd to his lord. And fell down on his bended knee: " My lord, a lady stands at your gate, The fairest lady I e'er did see. LORD BEICHAN AND SUSIE PYE. 119 47 " On every finger she has a ring, And on her middle finger three; With as much gold above her brow As -won'd buy an earldom to me." 48 It's out then spake the bride's motht-r, Both loud and angry out spake she, — '• Ye might have excepted our bonnie bride, If not more of this companie." 49 " My dame, your daughter's fair enough, Her beauty's not denied by me; But were she ten times fairer still, With this lady ne'er compare cou'd she. 50 " My lord, she asks one bit of bread, And bids you send one cup of wine; And to remember the lady's love, AVho freed you out of cruel pine." 51 Lord Beichan liied him down the stair, — Of fifteen steps he made but three, Until he came to Susie Pye, Whom he did kiss most tenderlie. 52 He 's ta'en her by the lily hand, And led her to his noble hall. Whore stood his sore-bewilder'd bride," And wedding guests assembled all. 53 Fair Susie blushing look'd around, Upon the lords and ladies gay; Then with the tear-drops in her eyes, Unto Lord Beichan she did say: 54 " Oh, have ye ta'en another bride. And broke your plighted vows to me? Then faro thee well, my Christian lord, I'll try to think no more on thee. 55 " But sadly I will wend iny way. And sadly I will cross the sea, And sadly will with grief and shame Eeturn unto my own countrie." 5G " Oh, never, never, Susie Pye, Oh, never more shall you leave me; Tliis night you'll be my wedded wife, And lady of iny lands so free." 120 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 57 Syne up tlien spake the bride's mother, She ne'm- before did speak so free, — '■ You'll not forsake my dear dauglitor, For sake of her from Pagandie." 58 " Take liome, take home your daughter dear, She 's not a i)in the worse of me; She came to me on horseback riding, But shall go back in a coach and three." 59 Lord Beichan got ready another wedding, And sang, with lieart brimful of glee, — " Oh, I'll range no more in foreign lands, Since Susie Pye has cross'd the sea. CO " Then fy,* gar all my cooks make ready. And fy! gar all my minstrels play; Gar trumpets sound, and bells be rung, For this is my true wedding-day." YOUNG BEKIE. From .Tamieson's Popular Ballads, vol. ii., p. 127. With the addition of stanzas 4, '2') (first half), 26, 27, and 40 to 4.*? inclusive, fiom "Young Bondv.ell," but somewhat altered, so as to adapt theia to Jamieson's ballad. ISee introduction to preceding ballad, p. 112. 1 Young Bekie was as brave a knight As ever sail'd the sea; And he 's done him to the court of France, To serve for meat and fee. 2 He hadna been in the court of France A twelvemonth, nor sae lang. Till lie fell in love with the king's daughter, And was thrown in prison Strang. 8 The king he had but ae daughter, Burd Isbel was her name ; And she has to the prison gane, To hear tho prisoner's mane. 4 "Oh, if my father get word of this, At hame, in his ain countrie, He will send red gowd for my relief, And a bag of wiiite monie. »"Fy:"LoBto. YOUNG BEKIE. 121 5 "Oh, if a lady -svoii'd borrow me, At her stirruji I -wou'd rin ; Oh, if a -widow wou'd borrow me, I wou'd swear to be her son. G "Oh, if a virgin wou'd borrow me, I wou'd wed lier with a ring; I'd gi'e her halls, I'd gi'e her bow'rs, The bonnie towers of Liune." 7 01), barefoot, barefoot gaed she but, And barefoot came she ben; It was na for want of hose and shoon, Xor time to put them on ; 8 But all for fear that her father Wou'd hear her makin' din ; For she has stown the prison keys, And gane the dungeon in. 9 And when she saw him, young Bekie, Wow, but her heart was sair! For the mice but and the bauld rattona Had eaten his yellow hair. 10 She 's gotten him a shaver for his beard, A comber till his hair; Five hundred pounds in his pocket. To spend, and nae to spare. 11 She 's gi'en him a steed was good in need. And a saddle of royal bane; * A leash of homids of ae litter, And Hector called ane. 12 Alwcen thir twa a vow was made, 'Twas made full solemnlie. That or three years were cr)me and gane, Wcel married they shou'd be. 13 He hadna been in 's ain countrio A twelvemonth till an end. Till he's forced to marry a king's daughter, Or else lose all his land. 14 " Ohon, alas ! " says young Bekie, " I henna what to dee ; For I carina win to Burd Isbel, And slic canna come to me." * Viiriation: for"brD(3," read "bcml."— " Vouug Bondwoll." 122 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 15 Oil, it fell out upon a clay Burd Isbel fell asleep, And up it starts the Billy Blin, And stood at her bed feet. IG " Oh, waken, waken, Burd Isbcl ; IIow can ye sleep so soun', When this is Bekic's wedding-day, And the marriage going on?* 17 "Ye'll do ye till your mither's bow'r. As fast as ye can gang; And ye'll take three of your mither's I\Iarys, To baud ye unthocht lang. 18 "Ye'll dress yoursel' in the red scarlet, And your Marys in green attire; And ye'll put girdles about your middles. Well worth an earl's hire. 19 " Syne ye'll gang doAvn by yon sea-side. And down by yon sea-strand ; And bonnie will the Ilollans boats Come rowin' till your hand. 20 " Ye'll set your milk-white foot on board. Cry, ' Hail ye, Domine ! ' And I will be the steerer o't. To row you o'er the sea." 21 She 's ganc her till her mither's bow'r, As fast as she could gang ; And she 's ta'en twa of her mither's JMarys, To baud her unthocht lang. 22 She 's drest hersel' in the red scarlet. Her Marj's in green attire ; And they've put girdles about their middles. Well worth an earl's hire. 23 And thcj' gaed down by yon sea-side. And down by yon sea-strand ; And sae bonnie as the HoUans boats Came rowin' till their hand. 24 She set her milk-white foot on board. Cried, " Hail ye, Domino ! " And the Billy Blin was the steerer o't. To row her o'er the sea. * The countries conld not be far fipart, or the fair Isbpl and her Marys must Lave Had a marvelloufily quick passage under the pilotage of "the Billy Bliii." YOUKG BEKIE. 123 25 So they sail'd on, and farther on. Till they came to the Tay; And when she came to Bekie's gate, She heard the music play. 26 Wlien the porter came to her call, — "What news ha'e ye?" says she; "Is there any wedding in this place, Or any soon to be?" 27 " There is a wedding in this place, A wedding very soon ; For Bekie, lord of this domain, Marries this day ere noon." 28 She put her hand iu her pocket. And ga'e to hiin marks three; " Hae, take ye that, ye proud porter, Bid your master speak to me." 29 Oh, when that he came up the stair, He fell down on his knee : He hail'd the king, and he hail'd the queen. And he hail'd yoimg Bekie. 30 " Oh, I have been porter at your gates This thirty j-ears and three; But there are three ladies at them now, Their like I did never see. 31 " There 's ane of them drest in red scarlet. And twa in green attire ; And they ha'e girdles about their middles Well worth an earl's hire." 32 Then out and spake the bierdly brirle, Was all gowd to the chin : "If she be Tine without," she says, " We's be as line within." 33 Then up it starts him young Bekie, And the tear was in his e'c: "I'll lay my life it's ]5iird Isbel Come o'er the sea to me." 84 Oh, quickly lie ran down the stair; And when he saw 'twas she, He kindly took her in iiis aims, And kiss'd her tenderlie. 124 HALLAD MlNtTl:i:LSV OF SCOTLAND. 35 "Oil, lia'c ye forgotten now, young Bckic, Tlic vow ye made to me, Wlien I took yon out of prison strnng, Wlien ye was condemn'd to dec ? 3G "I ga'e you a steed was good in need, And a saddle of royal bane; A Icasli of liounds of ae litter, And Hector called anc." 37 It was well kenn'd what the lady said Was true as true cou'd be ; For at the fust word the lady spake, Tlie hound fell at her knee. 38 ''Take hamc, take hame your daughter dear; A blessing gang her wi'; For I maun marry her wha has Come o'er tlie sea to me." 39 " Is this the custom of your house, Or when was it brought in. To bring a maid here to be wed. To gac back a maid at e'en?" 40 " An asking, an asking, fair lady. If such ye'll grant to me ; " — " Ask on, ask on, my young Bekie ; What may your asking be? " 41 "Five hunder pound to you I'll gi'e, Of gowd and white monie. If ye'll wed John, my ain cousin, — He looks as braw as me!" 42 " Keep well your monie, Bekie," she said, "Nanc do I ask of thee; Your cousin John was my first love, My husband now he's be." 43 Young Bekie was married to Burd Isbel, And John, ere day was dune, Was married to the morning bride, In the merry halls of Linne. The kincr and queen, who were forcin-j,' " Youuc,' Bekie" to wed their d;iu"hter, suddenly subside, and witliout either note, comment, or protest^ jicrmit this interesting young couple to follow the bent of their respective inclinations. nVXDE HOEX. 125 HYNDE HOKN. "An imperfect copy of tLis very old ballad appeared in Sekd Scotfish Sonr/.^, A7K!e)d and Modern, edited by Mr. Cromek ; but that gentleman seems not to have been a-ware of the jewel ^he had Tiicked up, as it is passed over without a sintjle remark. AYe have been fortunate enough to recover two copies from recitation, which, joined to the stanzas preserved by Mr. Cromek, have enabled us to present it to the public in its present complete state. Tliongh ^ H>Tid Horn ' possesses no claims upon the reader's attention on account of its poetrj', yet it is highly valuable, as illustrative of the h-story of Romantic Ballad. In fact, it is nothing else than a portion ♦ i the ancient English Metrical Romance of ' Kyng Horn,' which 6ome benevolent pen, peradventure ' for luf of the lewed man,' hath stripped of its ' quante Inglis,' and given— 'In ! yuijile speclie as be conthe, That is lightest in manne's mouthe.' Of this the reader will be at once convinced, if he compares it \vith the Romance alluded to, or rather with the fragment of the one pre- served in the AuchinleckMS., entitled, 'Home Childe and Maiden Riminild,' both of which ancient poems are to be found in Ritson's Metriccl Romanca. "It is perhaps uimecossary to remind the reader that Hend, or Hynd, means 'courteous, kind, affable,' &c., an epithet which, we doubt not, the hero of the ballad was fully entitled to assume."— Motherwell's MhiHtrehy, p. 3/5. The opening stanza of Motherwell's version is as follows : — "Neor Edinburgh was a young child bom, With a heij-lille-lu, and a hoie-lo-!an; And his name it was called Young Ilynd Horn, And the Oirk and the brume blooms boniiie." The refrain, as given in italics, fonns the second and fourth lines of every stanza, — a form by no means rare in Scotish, and very common in Scandinavian ballads. Versions omitting the refrain were subsequently published by Kinloch, in Ancknt ScoUish Ballads, p. 135, as "recovered from recitation in the North;" and by Buchan, Ancient Ballads and Songs, V(d. ii., p. 2G3. " All the poems relating to Horn, in French and English, including the Scottish ballads above mentioned, are collected by Michel in a bcatitiful volume of the Bannatyno Club, Horn ft BiwcnhUd, Paris, IH }.=-,. '•_Profcs!?or Child, Evyllsh and Scottish Bolladu, vol. iv., p. 17. Kinloch'a and Bnchan's version are very similar. In fact, the latter : pears to be simply a more nerfect copy of the fomicr, and it is the • iiin here chielly used, with aAditions and emendations from Mother- McU's, and editorial enieudations on both. Tlic metrical romance of "King Horn," or "Home Childe, and Maiden Rymcnild," is thus summarized by Warton:— 126 BALLAD JIINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. " Mury, king of the Sar.accns, lands in the kingdom of Suddcnc, where he kills the king named AUof. The queen, Godylt, escapes ; but Ikliiry seizes on her sou Hornc, a beautiful youth, ar:;ed fifteea years, and puts him into a galley with two of his play-fellows, Athulph and Fykenyld: the vessel being driven on the kingdom of Westnesse, the young prince is found by Aylmcr, king of tliat country, brourjht to court, and delivered to Atlielhras his steward, to be educated in hawking, harping, tiltin?, and other courtly accom- plishments. Here the Princess Rymenild falls in love witli him, declares lu r passion, and is betrothed. Home, in conscquenco of this engagement, leaves the princess for seven years — to demonstrate, according to the ritual of chivalry, that by seeking and accomplishing dangerous enterprises he deserved her affection. He proves a most valorous and invincible knight; and at the end of fovcn years, having killed King Mury, recovered his father's kingdom, and achieved many signal exploits, recovers the Princess Rymenild from the hands of his treacherous knight and companion, Fykenyld, carries her in triumph to his own country, and there reigns with her in great splendour and prosperity." — Ilis'oryof Enrjlish Fcctvy, vol. i., p. 40. The ballad, even in its fragmentary and " mutilated state, still retains the couplet measure of the romance, though it is otherwise greatly altei-ed from its ancient text. It appears, however, to relate to that part of the romance where Home, after being betrothed to the princess, departs in search of adventures, and returns, after the lapse of his probationary exile, when he recovers the pi'incess from the hands of his rival." — Kinloch's Ancient Scottish Ballads, p. 137. 1 " On, it 's Hynde Horn fair, and it 's Hynde Horn free; Oh, where were you born, and in what countrie?" " In a far distant countrie I was born ; But of home and friends I am quite forlorn." 2 Oh, it 's seven long years he served the king, But wages from him he ne'er got a thing; Oh, it's seven long years be served, I ween, And all for love of the king's daughter Jean. 3 Oh, he gave to his love a silver wand, Her sceptre of rule over fair Scotland; With three singing laverocks set thereon, For to mind her of him wlien be was gone. 4 And liis love gave to liim a gay gold ring, Witli three shining diamonds set therein; Oh, liis love gave to him this gay gold ring, Of virtue and value above all thing; 6 Saying — " Wliile the diamonds do keep their hue, You will l;now that my love holds fast and true; But v/hen the diamonds grow pale and M'an, I'll be dead, or wed to another man." HTNDE HORN, 127 6 Then the sails were spread, and away sail'd lie; Oh, he sail'd away to a far countrie; And when he had been seven years to sea, Hynde Horn look'd to see how his ring might be. 7 Cut when Hynde TTorn look'd the diamonds upon, Oh, he saw that they were both pale and wan; And at once he knew, from their alter'd hue, That his love was dead or had proved untrue. 8 Oh, the sails were spread, and away sail'd he Back over the sea to his own countrie; Then he left the ship when it came to land, And he met an auld beggar upon the strand. 9 "What news, thou auld beggar man? " said he; " For full seven years I've been over the sea." Then the anid man said — "The strangest of all Is the curious wedding in our king's hall. 10 " For there 's a king's daughter, come frae the wast, Has been married to him these nine days past; But to the bride-bed the bride winna jee, For love of Hynde Horn, far over the sea." 11 " Now, auld man, give to me your begging weed, And I will give to thee my riding steed; And, auld man, give to me j^our staff of tree. And my scarlet cloak I will give to thee. 12 " And you must teach me the auld beggar's role, As he goes his rounds, and receives his dole." The auld man he did as young Hynde Horn said. And tauglit him the way to beg for his bread. 13 Tlien Hynde Horn bent him to his staff of tree, And to the king's palace away hobbled he; And when he arrived at the king's palace gate, To the porter he thus his petition did state: 14 "Good porter, I pray, for Saints Peter and Paul, And for sake of the Saviour who died for us all, For one cup of wine, and one bit of bread. To an auld man with travel and hunger bestead. 16 " And ask the fair bride, for the sake of Hynde Home, To hand thern to one so sadly forlorn." Then tho porter for pity the message convey'd. And told the fair bride all the beggar man said. 128 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 16 And wlicu she did hoar it, she tripp'd down tlic stair, And in licr fair liands did lovingly bear A cup of red wine, and a farlc of cake, To give the old man, for loved llynde Horn's sake. 17 And when ^he came to where Hynde Horn did stand, With joy he did take the cup from her hand; Then pledged the fair bride, the cup out did drain, Dropp'd in it the ring, and return'd it again. 18 " Oh, found you that ring by sea or on land, Or got you tliat ring off a dead man's hand?" " Oh, I found not that ring by sea or on land, But I got that ring from a fair lady's hand. 19 " As a pledge of true love she gave it to me, Full seven years ago, as I sail'd o'er the sea; But now that the diamonds are chang'd in their hue, 1 know that my love has to me proved untrue." 20 " Oh, I will cast off my gay costly gown. And follow thee on from town unto town. And I Avill take the gold combs from my hair. And follow my true love for ever mair." 21 "You need not cast off your gay costly gown, To follow me on iVom town utito to^vn ; You need not take the gold combs from j'our hair. For Hynde Horn has gold enough, and to spare." 22 He stood up erect, let his beggar weed fall, _ Aiid shone there the foremost and noblest of all; Then the bridegrooms were chang'd, and the lady re-wed. To Hynde Horn thus come back, like one from the dead. PAUSE FOODKAGE. From Mmstrehy of the Scoltkh Border, vol. iii., p. 220; in which work it was first publiblicd. •' This b.-i.llad," says Sir Walter Scott, "has been popular in riany parts of Scotland. It is chiefly given from Mrs. Brown of Falkland's MSS. The expression, 'The boy stared wild like a gray gos-hawk, ver.ee 31, stroncjly resembles that in ITardyknute, 'Nor.^o c'cu like gray gos-hav.-k tlnrod wild;' a circumstance which led the editor to make the slrictciit iu(iuiry into PAUSE FOODRAGE. 129 the authenticity of the song. But eveiy doubt was removed by the evidence of a lady of high rank, who not only recollected the ballad, as having amused her infancy, but could repeat many of the verses, particidarly those beautiful stanzas from the 20th to the 25th. The editor is therefore compelled to believe that the author of ' Hardyk- nute ' copied the old ballad, if the coincidence be not altogether accidental. " The King Easter and KingWester of the ballad were probably ]Jetty princes of Northumberland and Westmoreland. In the Complcupit of Scotland, an ancient romance is mentioned under the title, ' How the Kin^ of Estmureland married the King's Daughter of Westmure- land,' w-hich may possibly be the oiiginal of the beautiful legend of 'King Estmere,' in the Eeliques of Ancient Enrjlish Poetry, vol. i., p. 62, 4th edit. From this it may be conjectured, v,' ith some degree of plausibility, that the independent kingdoms of the east and west coast were, at an early period, thus denominated, according to the Saxon mode of naming districts from their relative positions, as Essex, Wessex, Sussex. But the geogi-aphy of the metrical romances sets all system at defiance ; and, in some of these, as ' Clariodus and Meliades,' Estmureland undoubtedly sigTiifies the laud of the Easterlings, or the Flemish proN^inces at which vessels airive in three daj's from England, and to which they are represented as exjporting wool." — Minstrehij of the Scottish Border, first edition. In the next and subsequent editions of the same work. Sir Walter adds : — " On this subject I have, since publication of the first edition, been favoured with the following remarks by Mr. Bitson, in opposition to the opinion above expressed : — " 'Estmureland and Westmureland have no sort of relation to Northumberland and Westmoreland. The former was never called Eastmoreland, nor were there ever any kings of Westmoreland ; unless we admit the authority of an old rhyme, cited by Usher : — " Here the King Westmer Slow the King Eothicger." " ' There is, likewise, a " King Estmere of Spain," in one of Percy's ballads. " ' In the old metrical romance of "KyngHorn," or "Horn Child," we find both Westnesse and Estnesse ; and it is somewhat singular, that two places, so called, actually exist in Yorkshire at this day. But ne»«, in that quarter, is the name given to an inlet from a river. There is, however, great confusion in this poem, as Horn is called king sometimes of one country, and sometimes of the other. In the Frencli ori;.'inal, Westir is said to have been the old name of Hirland or Ire- land ; which occasionally, at least, is called Westnesse, in tlie trans- lation, in which Britain is named Sudcnc; but here, again, it is inconsistent and confused. " ' It is, at any rate, highly probable, that the story, cited in the Complaynt of Scotland, was a romance of " King Horn," whether jjrose or verse ; and, consequently, that Estmureland and Westmureland should there mean lingland and Ireland ; though it is possible that no other instance can be found of thcso two names occurring with tho eame sense,* " 180 BALLiU) MINSTHKLSY OF SCOTLAND. "Without expressing any opinion on this controverted point," saya Mr. Motlitrweir, "1 may mention that I have a copy of this ballad, hi ■\vhicli tlio parties interested are styled — 'Tlio Eastinuic king, nnd the Westmuro king, Auil tlio kiu,-; of ONorio;' certainly a very near approximation to the names contained in tho above tale" (Introduction, pp. lix. and Ixxxiii., note 91). And in prefatory note, p. 1 :!1, he states: — "The ballad is popular in Scotland, aud there can be no reasonable doubt of its authenticity. Like others, however, it has lost none of its beauties by being distilled through the alembic established at Abbotsford for the purilication of ancient song." 1 King Easter wooed her for her lands, King Wester for licr fee, King Honour for her comely face, And for her fair bodic. 2 But they had not been four months wed, As I've heard often toll, Until the nobles of the land Against them did rebel. 3 And they cast kevils * them amang, And kevils them between; And they cast kevils them amang, Wha shou'd gae kill the King. 4 Oh, some said Yea, and some said Nay, Their words did not agree; Till up and got him Fausc Foodrage, Aud swore it shou'd be he. 5 When bells were rung, and mass was sung. And all men bound to bed, King Honour and his gay ladye In ae chamber were laid. 6 Then up and raise him Fause Foodrage, When all were fast asleep, And slew the porter in his lodge, That watch and ward did keep. 7 Oh, four-and-twenty silver keys Hang hie upon a pin ; And as each door he did unlock, He fasten'd it behin'. • "Kevils:" lots. Both words originally uieaut only a portion or share of any- thing. — Leges Burgorum, cap. 69, de lot, cut, or kavil. Statuta Oildx, cap. 20 KuV.us tmal lanatn, ice, nisi fuerit confrater Gildx, itc. Neque lot neque caTif habeat mm a'i'jvo ccnfratre mstro. In both these laws, lot and cavil signify a share in trado. FAUSE FOODRAGE. 131 8 Then up and raise liiin King Honour, Says — "What means all this din? Or what's the matter, Fause Foodrage? Or wha has loot you in ?" 9 '' Oh, ye my errand weel shall learn, Before that I depart ; " Then drew a knife, baith lang and sharp, And pierced him to the heart. 10 Then up and got Ihe Queen hersel', And fell low on her knee ; " Oh, spare my life now, Fause Foodrage ! For I ne'er injured thee. 11 " Oh, spare my life now, Fause Foodi-agw I Until I lighter be ; And see if it be lad or lass, King Honour 's left me wi'." 12 " Oh, if it be a lass," he saj'S, " It 's weel nursed it shall bo ; But if it be a lad bairn, It 'b he shall be hang'd hie. 13 " I winna spare for his tender age, Nor yet for his hie kin ; But soon as ever he born is, He'll mount the gallows pin." 14 Oh, four-and-twenty valiant knights Were sot the Queen to guard : And four stood aye at her bow'r door, To keep both watch and ward. 15 But when the time drew near an end That slie shoti'd lighter be, She cast about to find a wile To set her body free. IG Oh, she has birlcd these merry young men With the ale but and the wine, Until they were all deadly drunk As any wild-wood Hwine. 17 " Oh, narrow, narrow is this window, Ami big, big am I grown!" Yet through the might of Oiu- Ladye, Out at it she is gone. 132 BALLAD MINSTKELSY OF SCOTLAND. 18 She waiulcr'd up, she wandci-'d down, Slie wander'd out and in ; And at last, into the very swine's st^ilie, TliC Queen brought forth a son. 19 Then they cast kevils them amang, Wliich slum'd gac seek the Queen; And tlie kevil fell upon Wise William, And he sent his Avii'e fur him. 20 Oh, \vlien she saw Wise William's wife, The Queen fell on her knee : '•Win up, win up, madam!" she says; "What needs this courLesie?" 21 " Oh, out of this I winua rise, Till this boon ye grant me, — To change your lass for this lad bairn, King Honour left me wi'. 22 "And ye maun learn my gay gos-hawk Plight v.-cel to breast a steed ; And I shall learn your turtle dow * As weel to write and read. 23 " And ye maun learn my gay gos-hawk To wield both bow and brand ; And I shall learn your turtle dow To lay gowd f with her hand. 24 " At Idik and market, when we meet, We'll dare make nae avowe, But — 'Dame, how does my gay gos-h.awk?' J 'Madam, how does my dow?'" 25 When days were gane and years came on, Wise William he thought lang; And he has ta'en King Honour's son A-hunting for to gang. 20 It sae fell out, at this hunting. Upon a simmer's day. That they came by a fair castell, Stood on a sunny brae. 27 " Oh, dinna ye see that bonniecastell, With halls and tow'rs sae fair? If ilka man had back his ain, Of it you shou'd be heir." • " Dow : " (love. t " Lay gowd : " embroider in gold. J This metaphorical language was customary among the northern natlong. EAEL EICIIARD'S DAUGHTER. 133 23 " How I shouM be heir of that castell, In sootli, I canna see; For it belangs to Fause Foodrage, And he is nae kin to me." 29 '• Oil, if yon shou'd kill him, Fause Foodrage, You wou'd do but what was right; For I wot he kill'd your father dear. Or ever ye saw the light. 30 " And if ye shou'd kill him, Fause Foodrage, Tliere 's uo mau durst you blame; For he keeps your mother a prisoner. And she darena take yc hanic." 31 The boy stared wild like a gray gos-liawk; Says — '• What may all this meauV" " Jly boy, ye are King Honour's sou, Your mother our lawful Queen." 32 '•' Oh, if I be King Honour's son, By Our Ladye I swear, Tliis night I will that traitor slay, And free my mother dear!" 33 He set his bent bow to his breast, And leap'd the castell wall; And soon he seiz'd on Fause Foodrage, Wha loud for lielp 'gan call. 34 " Oh, baud your tongue now, Fause Foodrage, Frae me ye shanna flee;" Syne pierced him through the fause, fause lieart, And set his mother free. ?j') And he has rewarded Wise William With tiie best half of his land; And sae lias he tlie turtle dow, Willi tiie truth of his right liand. EARL lUCUARD'S DAUGHTER. From Euchan'a Ancient Ballads and Sony^, vol. i., p. 145, and note, p. :m'). "The Earl Richard, the lady's fatlier, ia said to have been one of the Earh of Weinyas. 134 n.M.LAD MIM.STltKLSY OF SCOTLAND, "There is such a striking and visible coincidence between this ballad aud ' Jfynd Horn,' that I ara apt to think they are coeval. "-- linchan. With reference to the family and the title of Earl of Wemyss, see note, (Dile, p. 109. 1 Earl Richard liad but ae daughter, A maid of birth and fame; She lov'd her father"^ kitchen boy, — The greater was her sliame. 2 But she cou'd ne'er her true love see, Nor Avith liini cou'd she talk, In towns where she had wont to go, Nor fields where slie cou'd walk. 3 But it fell ancc upon a daj', Iler father went from home; She's call'd upon the kitchen boy, To come and clean her room. 4 " Come sit ye down by me, Willie, Come sit ye down by me; There is nae lord in all the north, That I can love like thee." 5 " Let never the like be heard, lady, Forbid that it shou'dbe; For if your father get word of this, He will gae hang me hie." a " Oh, ye shall ne'er be hang'd, Willie, Your bluid shall ne'er be drawn; I'll lay my life in pledge of thine, Your body 's ne'er get wrang." 7 " Excuse me now, my comely dame, No langer here I'll stay; You know my time is near expir'd, And now I must away. 8 " The master-cook will on me call, And answcr'd he must be; If I am found in bow'r with thee. Great anger will there be." 9 " The master-cook will on you call, But shall not answcr'd be; I'll put you in a higher place Than any cook's degree. EAEL riCHAIlD'S DAUGHTER. 135 10 '• I have a coQ'er full of gold, Another of white monie; And I will build a Lonnie ship, And set my love to sea. 11 '• Silk shall be .your sailing clothes, Gold yellow in your hair; As white as milk shall be your hands, Your body neat and fair." 12 This lady, with her fair sijeeches, She made the boy grow bold; And he began to kiss and clap, And ou his love lay hold. 13 And she has built a bonnie ship, Sot her love to the sea, With seven score of brisk young men. To bear him companie. 14 Then she 's ta'en out a gay gold ring. To him she did it gi'e; " This will mind you on the lady, Willie, That 's laid her love on thee." lo Then he 's ta'en out a piece of gold, • And he brake it in two; " All I have in the world, ray dame. For love, I give to you." 16 So he is to his bonnie ship. And merrily ta'en the sea; The lady lay o'er castle wall, The tear blinded her e'e. 17 They had not sail'd upon the sea A week but barely three, When came a prosperous gale of wind, — On Spain's coast landed he. 18 A lady lay o'er castle wall, Beholding dale and down; And she belield the bonnie sliip Come sailing to the town. 10 " Come hero, como licre, my Marys all. Ye see not what 1 see; For hero I see the bonniest ship That ever sail'd tlie sea. 136 BALLAD MIXSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 20 " In her there is the bravest squire That e'er my eyes did see; All clad in silk and rich attire, A comely youth is he. 21 " Oh, buslc, oh, busk, my Marys all, Oil, busk and make ye fine; _ And wo will on to yon shore side, Invite yon squire to dine. 22 " Will ye come up to my castle With me, and take your dine? And ye shall eat the gude wliite bread, And drink the claret wine." 23 " I tliank you for your bread, lady, I thank'you for your wine; I thank you for your kind offer, But now I have not time." 2-i " I wou'd gi'c all my land," she says, " Your gay bride were I she; And then to live on a small portion, Contented I wou'd be." 25 '•' She 's far awa frae mc, lady. She 's far awa frae mo, That has my heart a-keeping fast, And my love still she'll be." 2G " But ladies they unconstant are, When their loves go to sea; And she'll be wed ere ye gae back; My love, pray stay with me." 27 " If she be wed ere I go back. And prove sac false to me, I shall live single all my life, — I'll ne'er wed one but she." 28 Then she 's ta'en out a gay gold ring, And ga'e him presentlie ; " 'Twill mind you on the lady, squire. That laid her love on thee." 29 " Tlic ring that 's on my mid-finger Is dearer far to mc. Though yours were of the gude red gold, And mine the metal free." EARL RICHARD'S DAUGHTER. 137 30 He view'd them all, baitli neat and small, As tliey stood on the shore ; Then spread the mainsail to the wind; '' Adieu, for evermore ! " 31 He had not sail'd upon the sea A week but barely three. Until there came a prosperous gale,— In Scotland landed he. 32 But he put paint upon his face. And oil upon his hair ; Likewise a mask above his brow, Which did disguise him sair. 33 Earl Richard lay o'er castle wall, Beholding dale and down ; And he beheld the bonnie ship Come sailing to the town. 34 " Come here, come here, my daughter dear, Ye see not what I see; For here I see the bonniest ship That ever sail'd the sea. 35 " In her there is the bravest squire That e'er my eyes did see ; Oh, busk, oh, busk, my daughter dear, Oh, busk and come to me. 36 '■ Oh, busk, oh, busk, my daughter dear, Oh, busk, and make ye fine ; And we v/ill on to the shore side, Invite yon squire to dine." 37 '• He's far awa frae me, father, He's lar awa frae me. Who has the keeping of my heart, And I'll wed nane but he." 38 " Whoever lias your heart in hand. Yon lad's the match for thee; And he shall come to my castle This day, and dine with me," 30 " Will yc come up to my castle ^ With me, and take your dine? And yo shall cat the gudo white bread, And drink the claret wine." 138 nALL.\D MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 40 '• Yes, I'll come up to your castle AVitli you, and take my dine ; For I wou'd give my boiinic ship, "Were your fair daugliter mine." 41 " I wou'd give all my lands," ho said, " That your bride she wou'd be ; Then to live on a small portion, Contented wou'd I be." 42 As they gaed up from j'on sea strand, And down the bowling green, He drew the mask out o'er his face, For fear he shou'd be seen. 43 He's done him down from bow'r to bow'r, Likewise from bower to hall; And there he saw that lady gay, The flower out o'er them all. 44 He's ta'en her in his arms twa. And hail'd her courteouslie ; " Excuse me, sir, no strange man shall Such freedom use with me." 45 Her father turn'd him round about, A light laugh then gave he ; " Stay, I'll retire a little while, Perhaps you may agree." 46 Now Willie's ta'eu a gay gold ring, And gave her presentlie ; Says — "Take ye that, ye lady fair, A love-token from me." 47 " Oh, got ye't on the sea sailing ? Or got ye't on the sand ? Or got ye't on the coast of Spain, Upon a dead man's hand?" 48 •' Fine silk it was his sailing clothes, Gold yellow was his hair ; It wou'd ha'e made a hale heart bleed To see him lying there. 49 " He was not dead as I pass'd by, But no remeid cou'd be ; And he gave me this ring to bear Unto a fair ladyc. THE miller's son. 139 60 " And by the marks that he descryved, I'm sure that you are she ; So take this token of free-will, For hirn yon'll never see." 61 In sorrow she tore her mantle, With grief she tore her hair ; " Now. since I've lost my own tnic love, I ne'er will love man mair." 52 He drew the mask from off his face, The lady sweetly smiled ; " Awa, awa, ye fause Willie, How have you me beguiled ? " 53 Earl Richard he went through the hall. The wine glass in his hand ; But little thought his kitchen boy Was heir o'er all his land. 54 But this she ke])t Avithin her heart And ncA'er told to one, Until nine months they were expir'd, And she brought home a son. 65 Then she has told her father dear ; He said — •' Daughter, well Avon ; You've married, not for gold, but love ; Your joys Avill ne'er be done." THE MILLER'S SON. From Luchan's Ancient Ballads, &c., vol. ii., p. 120, and note, p. S2(>. "Tills ballad, by the burden of its sent,', is," says Mr. Buchan, " undoul>tedly old." It has some poiuta of resemblance both to the ballad Avhich pre- cedes, and the one Avhich folloAVS it. The folloA\'ing stanza, which begins Part II., is oniitlcd in the text, aa it appears out of place, obscure, and modern. " A bonnie boy Uie ballad read, Forbado tiKin miir to lie; Sho was a lady in Southland lowu, Ilcr namo was Carbaiio." Paht I. 1 " Oh, woe is me ! the time draws nigh My love and I must i)art; No one doUi know the cares and fears Of my poor troubled heart. 140 BALLAD JIlKSrniiLSY OF SCOTLAND. 2 " Already I have suffered much; Our parting eost mc dear; Would that I couM have gone with him, Or he could tarry'd here, o " ]My heart is fixM within his hreast, And that he knows right well; For hitter were the tears I shed, AYhen I hid him farewell, 4 " AVhen I hid him farcv.-ell," she said, " Alas, and woe is me; For cauld and shrill the wind hlows still, Between my love and mo. 5 " The hat my love wears on his head, It 's not made of the woo' ; But it is of the silk so line, And well hccomes his brow. G " His eyes sae hllthcly they do hlink, His hair shines like the broom ; And I wou'd not gi'e my laddie's lovo For all tlie wealth in Rome. 7 " He said, ' Farewell, my dearest dear, Since from you I must go; Lot not your "heart be full of grief. Nor parting grieve you so. 8 " ' If life remains, I will return. And bear you companie;' But cauld and shrill the wind blaws still Between my love and mc. 9 " Ilis bonnie middle is well made, His shoulders brave and braid; Out of my mind he'll never be, Till in my grave I'm laid. 10 " Till Fm in grave laid low," she says, " Alas! and v/oe is me; Now cauld and raw the wind does blaw. Between my love and me. 11 '• Some do mourn for oxen," she said, " And others mourn for kye; And some do mourn for dowie death, But none for love like 1. THE miller's son. 14! 12 '• What need I make all this diu, Or Avhat gude will it dee? For cauld and shrill the wind blaws still Betv.-eeu my love raid me." 13 She 's ta'en her mantle her about, And sat do\\Ti by the shore, In hopes to meet Avith some relief But still her grief grew more. 14 '• Oh, I'll sit here while m\^ life 's in, Until the day I die; Oh, cauld and shrill the wind blaws still Between my love and me. 15 " Oh, see yc not yon bonnie ship? She's beauteous to behold; Her sails are taffet}- sae fine, Ilcr topmasts shine like gold. 16 '• In yonder ship my love does skip, And quite forsaken me; And cauld and shrill the wind blaws still Between my love and me. 17 '■ My love he 's neither laird nor lord, Nor ane of noble kin; But my bonnie love, the sailor bold, Is a poor miller's son. 18 " He is a miller's son," she says, "And v.-ill be till he die; And cauld and shrill the Avind blaws still Between m}- love and me. 19 '' My love ho 's bound to leave the land, And cross the watery facm; And the bonnie ship my love sails in, Tlie Coldspink is her name. 20 '■ She sails mair bright than Pha-bus fair Out o'er the raging sea; And cauld and shrill the wind blaws still Between my love and me. 21 " He promised I shou'd letters have, Krc six months they were gone; But now nine months they are expir'd. And yet I have got none. 142 BALLAD MINSTUELSY OF SCOTLAND. 22 " So I may eigh, and say, alas This day! nnd woe is me! And caulii and shrill the wind blaws still Between my love and me, 23 "I wish a stock-stone aye on earth, And high wings on the sea, To cause my true love stay at home, And no more go from me. 24 '• What needs mo for to wish in vain? Such things will never be; The wind blaws sair in every where Between my love and me." Part II. 25 She thought her love was still abroad, Beyond the raging sea ; But tlicre was nae mair between them tvva Than a green apple tree. 26 " Cheer up your heart, my dearest dear, No more from you I'll part ; I'm come to ease the cares and fears Of your poor troubled heart. 27 '' All for my sake ye've suffer'd much ; I'm home to cherish thee ; And now we've met, nae mair to part Until the day we die. 28 " I wish'd your face was set in glass, That I might it behold ; And the very letters of your name Were wrote in beaten gold; 29 " That I the same might bear about, Tliro' many strange countrie: But now we're met, nae mair to part Until the day we die. 30 '' Here is a ring, the pledge of love, 1 sLill will you adore; Likewise a heart that none can move; A prince can give no more. 31 " A prince can give no more, my love, Than what I give to thee ; Now we arc met, nae mair to part Until the day we die. THE ENCnAirrEr) RING. 143 32 "I promised letters to send tliee, Ere six montlis they were gone ; But now nine months they are expired, And I'm return'd home. 33 " Now from the seas I am retm-n'd, Mj- dear, to comfort thee ; And we are met, nae mair to part Until the day we die. 34 " Ye say I'm neither laird nor lord, Nor one of noble kin ; But ye say I'm a sailor bold, But and a miller's son. 35 '' When ye come to my father's mill, Ye shall grind mouterfree; For now we're met, nae mair to part Until the day we die. 36 '• Ye say I'm bound to leave the land, And cross the watery faem ; The ship that your true love commands, The Goldspink is her name. 37 " Though I were heir o'er all Scotland, Ye should be lady free ; And now we're met, nae mair to part Until the day we die." THE ENCHANTED KING. Two versions of this ballad have been published :— I. "Bonny Bee-ITo'm." — Jamiesou's Popular Ballads, vol. i., p. 1S5; where it is "given vcrhalim from Mrs. Brown's MS." II. "The Enchanted Ring." — Bucliau'a Ancient Ballads, Sic, vol. i., p. 169. The present version is collated from both, but Mr. Buchan's is the cue chiefly followed. 'J'his ballad, like "Hyndc Horn" and others, "is founded," says Mr. Buchan, "on the visionary belief of a supernatural agency in a piece of gold mid ])cbblc." Tlionc who arc any way curious to know the alleged "vcrtuog and qualitic.=! of sundrio prctious stones," &c., may consult the JJi-'comrlii of iVUchcni/t, by Beginald Scot, in which " antic^uatcd and cuiioua black-lcLtcr book, printed in 144 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 15S4, p. 231, we find the following receipt for making a ' Wastecote of Pi-op/e:' — 'On Christmas daic, at night, a thread must be sponno of flax, by a little virgin girle, in the name of the divell ; and it must be by her woven, and also wrought with the needle. In the breast, or fore-part thereof, must be made with nccdlo-v/ork, two heads ; on the head, at the right side, must be a liat and a long beard. The left head must have on a crown, and it must be so horrible that it maie resemble Bclzebub ; and on each side of the v>astccote murjt be made a cross.' " — Buchan's Ancient Ballads, vol. ii., p. 345. 1 Ix Laiulerdalo. as late I went/* I heard a lady's moan, Lamenting sadly for lier dear, And aye she cried — " Olion ! 2 " Sure never maid that e'er drew breath Had harder fate than me ; For I never loved but one on earth, And now lie 's forced to sea. 3 ''A handsome youth with shoulders broad, Gold 3'ellow is his hair; None other of our Scotish youtha Can with my love compare. 4 " But I will do for my love's sako Most ladies wou'd think sair; I'or seven years shall come and gae Ere kame gae in my hair. 5 " There shall neither shoe gae oji my feet, Nor kame gae in my hair, Nor ever coal or candle light Within my bow'r shine mair. G " And neither ale in Scotland brew'd, ' Nor wine frac foreign land, Shall ever cross my halse again, Till my love come to land." 7 She thought her love had been on sea, Fast sailing to Bahome; But in next chamber still was he, And heard his lady's moan. 8 "Be hush'd, be hush'd, my lady dear; I pray thee, moan not so; For I am deep sworn on a book, To Bahome for to go. • " lij Ai;lir.rri ciale."— Jamieson's version. THE EXCHAXTED RING. 145 9 " And traitors false there to subdue, O'er seas I make me bomi', For they Ve trepan'd our kindly Scots, Like dogs to ding- them down." 10 " Then take this ring, this royal tiling, Set Avith a ruby stone ; As long as 'tis your finger on, Your blood can ne'er be drawn, 11 '• Bnt if this ring shou'd fade or stain, Or the ruby change its hue, Bo sure your love is dead and gone, Or she has proved untrue." 12 This loving couple then did part, With sad and heavy moan ; The wind was fair, the ship was rare, And soon he reach'd Bahome. 13 But in Bahome he had not been A month but barely one. Till tarnish'd was his gay gold ring, And faded was the stone. 14: And in Bahome he scarce had been ' Some two months past and gone. Till black and ugly grew the ring, And lustreless the stone. 15 " Fight on, fight on, you merry men all, With you I'll light no more; Bnt I will gang to some holy place. Pray to the King of Glore." 10 Then to a chapel he has gone. And knelt upon his knee For seven days and seven nights, Then this bequest made he : 17 '' Wlien .you return to Scotland fair, Gi'e all I lia'e to gi'u To the young tliat canna, tlie auld llial maunna, And the bh"nd tliat downa see. 18 " But gi'e tlio niaist to women weak. Can neitiier liglit nor ilec. For the sake of licr — I trust in heaven — Wha died fur love of mo." 14G UALL.VD MINSIUELSY OK SCOTl.AND. 19 Then death did coiiio witli kindly dart, And split his heart in twain ; God grant their souls aro both in heaven, There ever to remain. YOUNG KONALD. Abridged from Buchan's Aiicient Ballads, &c., ^ oJ. ii., p. 282. This ballad has some points of analocjy witli the one which precedes it, with "Sir Cawline" which follows it, and with the Danish ballads, "Sir Olger the Dane," and "Sir Grimner," both of which last are translated in Old Danish Ballads, from Grimni's Collection, Loudon, 185G. Many of the names of persons and places in the early romantic ballads are such as it would puzzle the most leai-ned antiquary to identify; but the name of Windsor, which occurs in the present ballad, is not one of these. It is not, however, New Windsor, distant fully twenty miles west by south from London, and celebrated for its royal castle and domain ; but Old Windsor, situated about two miles south-east from the other, which is referred to in the ballad. At this latter place the Saxon kings had a palace which was named Windles-ofra, or Windleshora, from the winding of the Thames at this part of its course. Whether the Linne of the ballad refers, — to the ancient town of Lynn Reifis in Norfolk ; to the modern Lincoln, known under the Romans as Lindum, and under the Saxons as Lindseij, during a portion of which regime nearly, if not quite, the whole of the modern county appears to have existed as a subordinate state in connection with the Saxon kingdom of Mercia ; to some other place unknown ; or to some region purely imaginary, — is a problem which cannot now be solved ; and, fortunately, it is a matter of no great consequence. The name occurs in a preceding ballad, as designating the domain of "Young Bckie," and it gives title to "The Heir of Linne," a ballad which appears in a subsequent portion of this work. The name of the heroine's father," King Honour," also appears iu " Fause Foodrage, " ante, p. 128. 1 It fell upon the Lammas time, When flowers were fresh and green, And craig and cleugh were cover'd o'er With clothing that was clean. 2 'Tv\^as at that time a noble squire, Sprung from an ancient line, Laid his love on a lady fair, The king's daughter of Linne. YOUNG RONALD. 147 3 When codes did craw, aud day did daAv, And mint in meadows sprang, Young Konald, and bis little wee boy, They rode the way alang. ■! Ai.d v/Iien be unto Windsor came, And lighted ou the green. Young Eonald spy'd his mother dear Was walking there alane. 5 '• Where ha'e you been, my son Eonald, From gude school-house this day?" "Oh, I ha'e been at Linne, mother, Seeing yon bonnie May." G '■ Oh, waes me for you now, Ronald, For she will not you ha'e; For many a knight and bauld baron She's nick'd them aye with Nay." 7 Young Ronald 's done him to his bow'r, And he took bed and lay; Kae woman cou'd come in his sight, For thoughts of this fair May. 8 Tlicn Ronald call'd his stable groom To come right speedilie; Says — " Ye'll gang to yon stable, boy, And saddle a steed for me. 9 " His saddle of the good red gold, His bits of polish'd steel, His bridle of a glittering hue ; See that ye saddle him weel," 10 When cocks did craw, and day did daw, And mint in meadows sprang. Young Ronald, and his little wee boy, The way they rode alang. 11 So tliey rode on, and farther on, To yonder pleasant green; And tiicre they saw that lady fair. In her garden ah^ne. 12 He rais'd liis hat, and tlius ho spake, — ''Oil, pity have on me! For I cou'd pledge what is my right. All for the sake of thee." 143 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 13 "But I'm too young to wed, kind sir; You must not take it ill; Wliate'er my father bids me do, I nuiuu bo at his will. 1-i " King Honour is my father's name, The morn to war maun fare; He gangs to light a giant jM'oud, That's wrouglit him meikle care. 15 " Alang with him he is to take Baitli noble knights and squires; If you gac there a wcel-graith'd knight, You'll honour my desires. IG " And I'll give you a tliousand crowns, To part among your men; A robe upon your ain body, Weel sew'd with my aia hand. 17 " Likewise a ring, a royal thing, "Whose virtue is well known ; As lang 's this ring 's your finger on, Your bluid shall ne'er be drawn." IS He kiss'd her then, and took his leave; His heart was all in pride; And he is on to Windsor gone. With his boy by his side. 19 And when he unto Windsor came. And lighted on the green, Young llonald saw his auld father Was walking there alane. 20 " Vv'^here ha'e ye been, my son llonald, From gude school-house the day?" " Oh, I ha'e been at Linne, father, Seeking yon bonnie May." 21 " Oh, waes me for you now, Pionald, For she will not you ha'e; Tdany a knight and bauld baron She 's nick'd thein aye Avitli Nay." 22 '• Oh, hold your tongue, my father dear, Let all your folly be; The last words that I with her spake, Her love was granted me. YOUNG RONALD, 149 23 " The morn I join her father dear, His kniglits and noble squires, To fight against a giant proud, And honour her desires." 24 His father gave him a hundred men, To bear him compauie; Besides as meikle gude harness As carry them on the lea. 25 When cocks did craw, and day did daw, And mint in meadows spread, Young Ronald and his merry young men Were ready for to ride. 26 So tliey rode on, and farther on, To yonder pleasant green; And there they spy'd that lady fair, With love-tears in her ecu. 27 And twenty times before he ceased, He kis^^'d her lips sae clear; And said — " I'll fight the giant proud For your sake, lad}- dear." 28 Then to his great steed he set spur. Which being swift of feet, They soon aniv'd upon the plain, Where all the rest did meet. 29 Then flew the foul thief frae the west, His maik was never seen; He had three heads upon ae hause, Three heads on ae breast-bane. 80 He bauldly stepp'd up to the king; Says — " I'm a valiant man; Let you, or any in your train. Fight me now if ye can." 31 " Where is the man in all my train Will take this deed in hand? And he sliall ha'e my dauglitor dear, And third part i>f my land." 32 "Oh, hore am I," said voung Ronald, "Will take the deed in hand; If you give mo your daughter dear, I'll seek nano of your land." M 150 BALLAD MINSTIIKLSV OV SCOTLAXD. 1)3 '' I wou'dna for my life, Ronald, That you sliou'd perish licrc; Euiucinbcr that my daiii;hter fair For you shed many a tear." 34 Wlion he thouglit on tliat hidy fair He ne'er niig-ht sec again, He l)oldly coursed him to the fight, Like a lion frac a chain. o5 Then lie cut aff the giant's heads Witli ac sweep of Ins hand, Gaed hamo and niarry'd that lady fair, And heir'd her father's land. KING MALCOLM AND SIR COLVIN^. Tliis old romantic tale has appeared in print in the following voi-ks : — I. Under the title of "Sir Cauline," in Percy's Uellques, vol. i., p. 38, 2d edit., 1767. II. Under the above title, iu Buchan's Ancient Ballads and So)irjs, vol. ii., 1). G. III. Under the title of "Sir Cawline," in Bishop Percy's i^o/io Manuscript (printed copy), vol. iii., p. 1. The version given in the Reliques extends to 392 lines, while the last-named copy contains 201 lines, only 162 of v/hich are represented in the Reliques ; the concluding portion of the MS. copy being either omitted, or completely perverted by Bishop Percy in his version. These are facts which the apparently innate modesty of the ingenuous and venerable prelate led him, in this instance, to conceal under the in-efatory statement that the copy "preserved in the editor's folio MS." was "in so very defective and mutilated a condition (not from any chasm in the MS., but from great omission iu the transcript, proljably copied from the faulty recitation of some illiterate minstrel), and the whole a])poared so far short of the ])erfection it seemed to deserve, that the editor was tempted to add several stanzas in the first part, and still more in the second, to connect and complete the story in the manner v.diich appeared to him most interesting and affecting;" but which un- fortunately appears to others, as rather " most" stilted and affected. It is well, however, that tlie world, or at least the English reading portion of it, should nov/ be aware of the full extent of its or their indebtedness to the worthy prelate ; and this it or they are now en- abled to estimate by comparing the "Sir Cauline " of the jReliques with the "Sir Cawline" of the ]\IS., as it appears in the printed copy issued by or in connection ■with the Early English Text Society. Ivlr. Buchan's* "crsion comprises 27 stanzas, and numbers 110 lines. KING MALCOLM AND SIU COLVINE, 151 It omits the apocryphal billing and cooing which the taste and in- vention of the Bishop led him to tag on as a fitting finale to his first part ; and it entirely omits his second part, with its perverted termin- ation, but finishes Anth one stanza in accord with the denouement of the MS. copy. Yet the editor or editors of the ?rIS. copy, not satisfied with his or their exposure of the English prelate, which there is am])lc evidence to substantiate, cannot stop short, but must in the flush of victory proceed to play the role of literarj- bravo or bravos against the Scotish editor, by insinuating that " there can be little doubt that this [liis version] is one of that collector's many fabrications," — not a tittle of evidence being adduced in support of this, to say the least of it, most uncharitable accusation. Pi-obably the editor or editoi's thought something necessary iu order to appease the manes of the convicted prelate, and satisfy the genius of their country, — too often tremblingly and meanly jealous of Scot- land and of Scotsmen; but if so, it is much to be regretted that he or they could think of no other and better Avay than by this attempt to immolate the rcjuitation and outrage the memory of a deceased collector and editor, notoriously as honest as he was painstaking. Xor is it ou this ground alone that they are open to animadversion, as it can easily be shown that the ignorance and sycophancy of this contemptible coterie of padding manufacturers is quite on a par with their egotism, impertinence, and malignity. And that we do not need to travel far for proof of this, let the following fawning pai'agraph, which immediately precedes the attack jnade on the late Mr. Buchan, testify : — " As Mr. Furuival, in his oi-iginal proposal for the puWi cation of the folio, said :— ' With a true instinct Professor Child remarked in his Ballads (ed. 18G1, vol. iii., p. 172), it is dilficult to believe that this charming romance had so tragic and so sentimental a con- clusion.' " Now let us quote the words of Mr. Motherwell, the steadfast and aj)i)reciative friend of Mr. Buchan, and the precursor, if not the actual inspirer of this marvellous iutuition which Mr. Furnival and his coadjutors delight to honour. He says : — " How much it (Sir C'auline) owes to the taste and genius of its editor, we have not the means of ascertaining ; but that his inter-rela- tions and additions have Ijcen very considerable, any one acquainted with ancient minstrelsy will have little room to douljt. We suspect too that the original ballad had a less melaiiclioly catasti'ophe, and that the brave Syr (Jauline, after his combat with the 'hend soldan,' derived as much benefit frf)m the Iceclicraft of fair Christabelle as ho did after winning the Eldridge sword." Bcfciriiig to the tlieory of another accomplished, but prematurely cut oH', liallad editor and annotator, Mr. Motherwell adds : — "Between this IjaHad and some ])art8 of the metrical romance of iS'Jr Tristrcni, the late Mr. Finlay of (Glasgow affects to discover a resemblance; but he l;as not condjsccnded to trace a parallel lietween them. Indeed, wo cannot help tliinkii)'.r, for all lie says to the contrary, that liis reasoning is no whit superior to Fluellin's ; — ' Tliore 152 BALLAD MINSTUELSY OF SCOTLAND, I is a liver at Macedon, and there is also raoreovev a river at Mou- iiiouth :' and, according to Mr. Fiiday, ' there is an Irish kinc; and his diiuj^hter in "Sir C'auhne."' And tlicre is also, moreover, au Irisli Icing and his daughter in Sir Tristrem. The concealed love of Sir C'auline for one so much above him in station •will remind the reader of the gentle ' Squycr of low© do;:;!?! That loved the king's dougUtor of Ilungre.'" Minstrelsu, Ancient and Modern, p. 99. As regards the nationality of the ballad, it a])pears from the Percy Folio MS. (printed copy, vol. iii., p. 1, footnote), that Bishop Percy had indicated, and Ave believe correctly, his opinion in the following terms, as inscribed by him on the MS. : — " A strange romantic old song, — xevy defective and obscure. — K. B. This seemes to have been originally a Scotch song, which will account for its being so corrupted. — P." We presume his meaning to be that, on account of its being Scotch, the Euglish reciter and transcriber did not fully understand, and consequently corrupted it. " King Malcolm and Sir Colvine," .is here printed, is collated, with some editorial license, from " Sir Cawline," Bishop Percy's Folio MS., aintcd copy, vol. iii., i)p. 4-11, lines 31 to 129 inclusive, and from Jr. Buchan's ballad, "King Malcolm and Sir Colvin;" but tha latter is the one chiefly follovicd. The original version of the latter ends with the following stanza : — " Up he has ta'en that hluidy hand, Set it before the kiiiR; And the morn it was Wednesday, When he married his daughter Jean." As an appropriate prelude, the following stanzas, which form the beginning of the ballad of " Sir Cawline " in Bishop Percy's Folio MS., are here given verbatim from the printed copy, vol. iii,, pp. 'd and 4 : — " lesus : lord mickle of might, t/iat dyed ffor rs on the roode to maintaine vs in all our right, 4 that loues truo English blood. " ffor by a Knight I say my song, was bold & ffuU hardye; S/r Eobert Eriuse wold fforth to fflght 8 In-to Ireland ouer the sea ; " & in t?iat land dwells a king w//ich ouer all does bearo the bell, & with him there dwelled a eurteoua K/iits and lordcs they wood her both, 16 trusted to haue beene her peere. " Sir Cawline loues her best of on6, but nothing durst hee say to descreeue his counBell to noe man, 20 but Ueerlye loued thla mayd. KIXG MALCOLM AND SIR COLVINE. " till jtt beffell vpon a day, great dill to him vras dight, tlio maydena loue remoned his mind, 2-i to cafe bed -went the Knight ; " & one while he spread his armes him ffroe, & cryed soe pittyouslye fior the miydens loue t!iai I haue most minde, 28 this day may comfort mee, or else ore uoone I shal be dead! thus can Sir Cawline say." Compare, in particular, lines 21 to 28, with stanza 7 of " YouiK Ronald," on'e. p. 146. 1 There lived a king in fair Scotland, King Malcolm call'd by name, IJi'nown'd, as history doth record, For valour, -vvortli, and fame. 2 X Then hie ye to the Elrick hill, Near by yon sharp liawthorn. Where never man did walk all night Since Christ our Lord was born. 12 "Oh, hie ye there and waik all night, And boldly blaw your horn; And if with honour ye return, I'll marry yc the morn." 13 Then up Sir Colvine quickly raise, For battle has him boun'; And said — "' Fair lady, for your sake, I'll walk the bent sae brown. 14 " And I will bring a token back. Or never mair be seen ;" Then forth Sir Colvine proudly walk'd, Clad in his armour keen. 15 He hied him to the Elrick hill. To walk and waik all night; And the lady to her chamber went, With all her maidens bright. 1 6 At midnight mirk the moon did rise, While he walk'd up and down : And a lightsome bugle he heard suuini. Over the bent sae brown. 17 Tlien near him by, the knight did spy, Uy the twinkling of an c'e, A iicrcc-like knight and lady bright, Wha comely was to see. 18 This fierce knight call'd to Sir Colvine,— " man, I rede thee, flee; I bear a brand both sharp and broad, Will quarter you iu three; KING MALCOLM AKD SIR COLVINE. 155 19 " For there 's never man comes to this hill, But he maim light with me ; And if cr5-ance come thy heart intil, It's here that ye mauu dee." 20 Sir Colvhie said — '• I'm not afraid Of any here I see ; In Christ above I put my trust, And therefore dread not thee." 21 Sir Colvine then he drew his sword, The fierce knight drew his brand; And stiff and stoure and staik and doure, Eacli other did withstand. 22 But Colvine, with an awk^-ard stroke, Struck off the kuiglit's right hand, And down fell hand, and down fell brand, Upon the Elrick land. 23 The fingers of the hand that fell, AVere girt with iive rings round; And tiic rings that were these lingers on, Were worth five hundred pound. 24 " I yield, I yield," the fierce kuight said, "I fairly yield to thee ; No man e'er came to Elrick hill E'er gaiu'd such victorie. 25 ■' I and iny forbears here did haunt A thousand years and more; I'm safe to swear a folemu oath, We uc'er were beat before." 26 Then the knight's fair lady wrung her hand, And Colvine did implore: "For love other, whom you love most. Pray smite my lord no more, 27 " 15ut give me back my wounded knight, Let us fare on onr way; And never more, on Elrick hill, For rapine or for play; 28 " No, never more, on Elrick hill, By night nor yet by day, Shall we molest the race of men. On Christ their trust doth lay." J56 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLANt). 29 Sir Colvine set tlic Elrick kiiigbt Upon liis stood at;-nin, AVlio with liis lady loal and fair Eadc ofl'with niiglit and main. 80 Sir Colvine tlicn took up the hand, With tivo rings it upon, Likewise the brand as hard as flint, And homeward he lias gone. 31 There to the king's fair daughter gave Those tokens of his love, Won by the might of his right arm, And trust in Christ above. SIR CAWLTNE. The following stanzas, v.hicli narrate the adventures of " Sir Caw- line" after his return from liis combat with the " Elrick" or "E!dri(l!,'e king" or " knii.dit," are here given verbatim from the Percy Folio MS., printed co]iy, vol. iii., \}. 11. They begin abrujitly, wliicli led Bishop Percy to note on the MS., " Some very great omission hei'e," and induced him to tax his inven- tion to till tlie gap ; v, hich he accordingly did, to the extent, and in the manner, previously indicated. The fight with the " Gj'ant " or " Soldau " bears considerable re- semblance to the concluding portion of "Young Piouald " (ante, p. 149); and the adventure with the " Lion" finds its counterpart in the life of the Scotish patriot Sir WiUiam Wallace, as narrated by Henry the Minstrel. The incident is said to have occurred during the sojourn of Wallace in France, and to have been brought about through the jealousy of the French courtiers, who tliought, by means of this ])lot, to get rid of the indomitable Scot, whose superiority they could ill brook, but whose prowess they had seen, felt, and feared. The resemblance may be seen from the following extract, the ortho- graphy of which has been modernized, but which in other respects is given as it appears in the original. 235 " This thing admitted v!n% Thr.t Wallace Bhou'd on to the Lion pasfl. The king then char.-j'd to brins liim gude harness : And he ^aid, 'Nay, God fhicld mo fme F.io case. I wouM take woid, shou'd I tight with a man ; 240 But [tor] a dog, that nought of arms can, I will have nane, hut singular as I gaf.' A great mantle about his hand 'gan Xak.\ And his gudo Hword; with him ho took nae mair; Abandouly in barres cntor'd there. iSIR CAWLINE, 157 245 Great chains was wroueht in the gate with a gin. And puU'd it to when Wallace waa therein. The wud Lion, on Wallace where he stood, Kampant lie brayed, for he desirod blood; With his rudo paws in the mantle wrought sae. 230 Athwart the back then Wallace 'gan him ta^e. With his gude sword that was of burnish'd steel. His body in twa it thruschyt eiiiiHk deill " — Blind Harry's Wallace, p. 324, Janiieson's ed., Glasgow, 1869. The plottiu:^ of the courtiers, -which led to the combat between V\''allace and the lion, recalls to recollection the story of Daniel in the den of lions ; and variotis incidents in the tale of Sir Cawline remind us of circumstances in the history of David, King of Israel. Bishop Percy omitted the portion from line 163 onwards. .\s ex])lained by ^Ir. Furnivall, "The expansions of contractions are marked in the text by italics, after the German plan introduced (I believe) to the English public by Mr. Whitley Stokes, in his " edition of IVie Plan of (lie Sacrament for the Philological Society. — Fore- wards, p. 23, (Bishop Percy's FoUo Manuscript, printed copy, vol. i.) & a Gyant that was both Stifle [&J strong, lie lope now them amongo, 1.32 & vpon his squier 5 heads he bare, viimacldey made was Iico. & he dranke then ou the Kiiir/s wine, & Ik; ]mt tlie cup in his sleeue ; 13G & all tlie trembled & were wan llbr fearc he shold them greeffo. "He tell tlice mine Arrand, Kinff," he sayca, "mine errand what I doeheere; 140 flbr I Avill bren thy temples hye, or He hanc thy daughter deere; in, or else vpon, yond more soe brood thou shalt flind mee a ppeare." IM 111'! Kinf/ lie turned him round about, {Lord, in his heart ho was woe!) says, "is there noe \\n!fjht of the round ttihle this matter will vndergoc? 148 " I, & hoe shall hanc my broad Lands, & kcepe tlicm well his lino; I, and HOC he shall my d;iughter deero, to lie his weded wilfe." 152 & then stood vp S/r Cawliiio his owne crnuid llor to say : "ifaith, I wold to god, S/r," snyd Sir Cawline, "//i«t Soldan I will assay. 158 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 15G '"goo, ffeitcli mo downe my Eldrigo sword, IVor I wooiic itt att [a] flray." "but away, away!" sayd the lieud ISoldan, '■ tliou tarryest mce hore all day!" 160 bill Iho lioud Soldan & Sir Cawlinc tlie ii'ought a Sum?yiers day : now has hec slaino thai licud Soldan, & brought his 5 heads away. 164 & the \\!ny has betaken him his broade lamia & all his venison. ■'• "but take you too & yom- Lands [soc] broail, & brooke them well your liii'c, 168 I'lor you promised mo yowr daughter deero to be my weded ^\-it^e." " now by my llaith," then says our \\tii. G7), Mr. Motherwell printed "a coi)y ob- tained from recitation, collated with" the "copy to be found in" Herd's collection. In addition to the two ballads named by Mr. Motherwell, as re- covered by Mr. liuchan, the Ancient Ballads and Sonijs, &c., of the lidtir contain (vol. ii., p. 45) yet another Scotisih version of this M idcly-sprcad ballad. "The story of this ballad," says Professor Child, "has apparently some connection with Bluthcard, but it is hard to say what the con- nection is {ace Filch''r'--i Vorinted at Philadelphia (and called 'The House Carpenter')," as "given in Graham's Jllustrated Maallad, wliieh latter winds up with the two following verses : — "'I'he f.itnl (li^'lit of this wrct<-hod maid (?) I)ii| roacli licr own fciuntrio; Her hiiHl):iiid thou dlstractod ran, And tiiit Inment made he: 168 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. " ' Oil, wao bo to tho sliip, tho ship, Ami WHO bo to tho sen, Anil wao be to the niarinora, Took Jcaule Douglas I'rae met '" Mr. ^Motherwell's fiagnient ends thus :— " Thpy luvd not sailed a mile awa, Xover a mile but four, NVhon the little weo ship ran round about, And ucvcr was soea more 1 '' Professor Child remarks, that "The Devil (Auld jYid-) here takes tho place of the merman (Nix) of the ancient ballad," ante, p. 164 ; " and the same natural substitution [is] noted in K. U. H.—Mdrchen, 3d ed., iii., 2^->W—En(iUAh ami Scottish Ballads, vol. i., p. 201. Ho regards this and tlic two preceding ballads, "diverse as they may now ai)pear, after uudergoiug successive corruptions," as "pnmardy of the same ty^ie."— English and Scottish Ballads, vol. i., p. 198. 1 " On, where have you been, my lon,c;-lost love, This long seven years and more ?" " Oil, I'm come to seek my former vows, That ye granted mo Leibre." 2 " Oh, hold your tonc,-uc of your former vov/s, For they now will breed sad strife ; Oh. hold your tongue of your former vows, For I am become a wife." 3 He turn'd him right and round about, And the tear blinded his e'e: " I wou'd ne'er have trodden on Irish ground If it had not been for thee. 4 "I might have had a king's daughter, Far, far beyond the sea; I miglit have liad a king's daughter. Had it not been love of thee." 5 " If ye might have had a king's daughter, Ycrscl' vc had to blame ; Ye might "have taken tho king's daughter, For yc kcnn'd that I was uane." 6 " Oh, false are the vows of womankind, Ihit fair is tlieir false bodie ; I \vou'd ne'er have trodden on Irish ground Had it not been love of thee. 7 " For you I scorn'd the crown of gold, Tlie king's daughter also; And I am come for you, my love. So with me you must go. THE DEMON LOVER. 163 8 " You must forsake your dear hueLaud, And your young son also, "With me to sail the raging seas, AYhere the stormy winds do blow." 9 " Oil, what ha'e you to keep me with, If I shou'd with you go ? If I forsake my dear husband, And my young sou also ?" 10 " See ye not yon seven pretty ships— The eighth brought me to land— With merchandise and mariners, And Avealth in every hand ? 11 " And I have slippers for my love's feet, Cover'd with purest gold, And liueil with velvet soft and line, To keep you from the cold." 12 She turn'd her round upon the shore, Her love's ships to behold ; The sails were silk, the masts and yards Were cover'd o'er with gold. 13 Then she has gone to her young sou, And kiss'd him check and chin ; Xcxt to her sleeping husband gone, And done the same to him. 14 She 's drawn the slippers on her feet, Were cover'd o'er with gold. Well-lined within with velvet fino, To keep her frae the cold. 15 She 's set her foot upon the ship; 'Twas rigg'd Avith silk and gold; But no mariners, to sail the ship, On board cou'd she behold. 16 "Oh, how do you love the ship?" ho said; "Or how do you love tlic sea? And how do you love the mariners, That wait upon tlice and mo?"' 17 "Oh, I do love the ship," she said, "And I do love the sea; But woe bo to the mariners That nowhere I can see." 170 BALLAD MINSTIIELSY OF SCOTLAND. 18 They had not sailM a mile away, Never a mile but one, "When she 1)eg'an to weep and mourn, And to tliink on her young sou. 19 '"Oil, iCI were at land again, At land where I would be, The woman ne'er shou'd bear the sou iShou'd gar me sail the sea." 20 ''Oh, hold your tongue, my sprightly Hower, Let all your mourning be; I'll show you how the lilies grow On tlic'banks of Italy." 21 They had not sail'd away, away, It's miles but barely two. Until she espy"d his cloven foot, From his gay robes stickin' thro'. 22 "Oh, that gentle Death had cut my breath Ere I saw yester morn! I had been buried in Scotisli ground, Wliere I was bred and born.'' 23 "Ye'se ne'er be buried in Scotish ground, Nor land ye'se nae mair see; I brought you away to punish you. For breaking your vows to me. 24 " I said you shou'd see the lilies grow On the banks of Italy; But I'll let you sec the fishes swiin In the bottom of the sea." 25 She had not sail'd away, away, It 's leagues but barely three. When dismal grew his countenance, And raging grew the sea. 26 The masts, that were like tlie beaten gold, I'ent not on the heaving seas; And the sails, that were of the silk so fuic, Fill'd not in the east laud breeze. 27 "Oh, what are you pleasant hills," she said, "That the sun shines sweetlj' on?" " Oh, yon are the hills of heav'n," he said, " Where you will never wiu." SIR ROLAND. 171 28 "Oil, what grim mountaiu is yon," she said, "AH so dreary with frost and snoAV?" "Oh, j-on is the mountain of hell," he cried, "T\'here you and I -will go ! " 29 And aye when she turn'd hor round about, Aye taller he seemed to be: Until that the tops of that gallant ship Nae taller were than he. 30 The clouds grew dark, and the wind grew loud, And the leviu filled her e'e; And waesome wail'd the snow-white sprites Upon the raging sea. ol He sitruck the tap-mast with his hand. The fore-mast with his knee; And he brake that gallant ship in twain, And sank her in the sea. SIK ROLAND. From Motherwell's Mmstrelsi/, p. 124. Mr. Motlierwell states: — "This fragment, we believe, has never l)cfore been jmuted. It was comimmicated to us by an ingenious friend, who remembered having heard it sung in his youth. A good many verses at the beginning, some about the middle, and one or two at the end, seem to be wanting. More sanguuie antiquaries than wa are miglit, from the similarity of names, imagine they had in this ballad discovered the original romance whence .Shakespeare had given this line — ' Child Rowland to the dark tower ca,me.'— King Lear, Act III. "The story is of a very gloomy and superstitious texture. A young lady, on the eve of her marriage, invited her lover to a banquet, wliere she murders him, in revenge for some real or faucicd neglect. Alaimcd for her own safety, she betalies hci'self to flight, and in the course of her journey she sees a stranger knight riding slowly before her, whom she at lir.-,t seeks to shun, by pursuing an ojiposite direction ; but on finding that wheresoever she turned he still ai)pearcd between her and the moonli'.'ht, she resolves to mcrtako him. This, liowever, she finds in vain, till, of his om n accord, he stays for her at the brink of a broad river. They agree to cioss it ; and when in mid stream she inq -lores his help to save her from drowning, to her hormr f-ho finds lier fellow-traveller to be no other than the gaunt apparition of her dead lover." 1 Sjj; IiOL.\NU came to his ain love's bow'r, And lie tirl'd at the pin; Aiu[ sae ready wa^i his fau' fause lovo To ribc aud let hixn in. 172 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 2 '• Oil. welcome, welcome, Sir Ivoland," slie t^nys, "Thrice welcoino thou art to mc; For tliis ni,f;-ht ye shall least in my secret bow'r, And to-morrow we'll wedded be." 3 '• This night is Hallow-e'en," he said, " And to-morrow is IlalloAV-day; And I drcam'd a drcaric dream yestreen, That has made my heart full wae. 4 '• I drcam'd a drearie dream yestreen, I wish it may come to gude ; I dream'd that yc slew my best grey-houud, And gied me his lapi)er'd blude." * * ¥: -ft %■ * 5 "Unbuckle your belt, Sir Eoland," she said, " And set yon safely down." " Oh, your chamber is A'cry dark, fair maid, And the night is wond'rous lown." 6 " Yes, dark, dark is my secret bow'r. And lown the midnight may be; For there is none waking in all this tower. But thou, my true love, and mo." 7 She mounted on her true love's steed, By the ae light of the moon; Slie whipp'd him on, slie spurr'd him on, And roundly rade frae the toun. 8 She hadna ridden a mile of gate. It's never a mile but one, When she was aware of a tall young man liiding slowly o'er the plain. 9 She turn'd her to the right about. Then to the left turn'd she; But aye between her and the wan moonlight, That tall knight did she see. 10 And he was riding burd-alane, On a horse as black as jet; But though she follow'd him fast and lell, Xae nearer cou'd she get. 11 " Oh, stop! oh, stop! young man," who said, " For I in dule am dight; Oh, stop! and win a fair lady's luve, If ye be a leal true knight." SIR KOL-iLNT), 12 Cut notliing did the tall knight say, And nothing did he blin'; Still slow!)' rade he on before, And fast she rade bchin'. 13 She whipp'd her steed, she spurr'd her bteed, Till his breast was all in foam; Ent nearer nnto that tall young knight The ladye cou'd not come. 1 i '• Ob, if ye be a gay young kuigbt. As Avell I trow you be, Pull tight your bridle-reins, and stay Till 1 come up to thee." 15 But notliing did that tall knight say, And no whit did he blin', Until he reacli'd a broad river's side, And tliere he drew his rein. IG '■ Oh, is this v.-atrr deep? " she said, " As it is wond'rous dim; Or is it sic as a saikless maid And a leal true kuiglit may swim?" 17 '■ The water it is deep,"' ho said, '■ As it is Avond'rous dun; Uut it is sic as a saikless maid And a leal true knight may s\vim." 18 The knight spurr'd on his tall black steed, The lady spurr'd on her brown; And fast they rade into tlie flood. And fast tiiey baith swam down. 19 '' Tlie water wcets my feet," she said, '• The water wects my knee; Hold u]) my Inidle reins. Sir Knight, For the sake of Our Ladye." 20 " If I won'd liclp you now," he said, " It were a deadly sin ; For I've sworn ne'er to trust a fair May's word, Till the water wccts her chin." 21 "Oh, the water wccts my waist," slic said, " Sac does it wcct my skin; And my aching heart rins round about, — The burn makes eic a diu. 174 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 22 "The water is waxing deeper still, 8ac does it wax mair wide; And aye the farther that we ride on, Farther off is the other side. 23 " Oil, help mo now, thpu fause, fause kuightl Have pity on my youth; For no^^- the water jaws o'er my heid, And it gurgles in my mouth." 24 The knight turn'd slowly round about, All iu the middle stream; Then he streteh'd out his head to that ladye, And loudly she did sercam! 25 "Oh, this is Hallow-morn," he said, " And it is your bridal day; But sad would be that gay wedding, Were bridegroom and bride away. 26 " But ride on, ride on, proud Margaret, Till the water comes o'er your bree; For the bride maun ride duep and deeper yet, Wlia rides this foord with me! 27 '"Turn round, turn round, pruuJ I\Iarguret, Turn round, and look on me ! Thou hast kill'd a true knight under trust, And his chost now links with thee." WILLIE'S FATAL VISIT. The fullowii).; ballad forms the concluding portion of one under the above title, given by Mr. Buchan in his Ancient Ballads and kJjii'j.'^, vol. ii., \). 2oL). The prior ])ortion is simply a different and very inferior version of a well-kno\\n and highly ])opular ballad published by Herd, under the title of " The Gray Cock," and beginning — " Oil, fi.iw ye my fatlicr, or naw yc my mother, Or sa'w yo my truo love John." The connection between the portions i^robably resulted from the cou' fu.-;ed renicmlraiicc and accidental combination of some reciter. 1 As Willie gaed o'er yon high, high hill, And down yon dowic den, * Oh, there he saw a grievous ghost, Wou'd fear tea thousand men. THE kuight's guost. 175 2 As he gaed in by Mary kirk, And in by Mary stile, Wan and weary was the ghost On hun did grimly smile. 3 " Oft ha'e ye travell'd this road, Willie, Oft ha'e ye travell'd in sin; Nor thought what wouVl come of your puir soul, When your sinfu' life was dune. 4 " Oft ha'e ye travell'd this road, Willie, Your bounie new love to see; Oft ha'e ye travelled this road, Willie, Nor thought of pun- wrang'd me. 6 " Oft ha'e ye travell'd this road, Willie, Your bonnie new love to see; But ye'll never travel this road again, For this night avenged I'll be." 6 Then she has ta'en her perjured love, And rare him gair by gair ; And on ilka side of Mary's stile. Of him she huug a share. 7 His father and mother baith made moan, His nuv," love meikle mair; His father and mother baith nuule luoau, His new love rave her hair. THE KNIGHT'S GHOST. From Kuchaii's Amknl Ballads, &c., vol. i., p. 227. He reniarUd tlat "this ghost was a generous and liberal one iu many respects."— Note, p. 314. 1 *' TlIEUE is a fashion in this land, And even come to this countrie, Tliat every lady sliou'd meet her lord, When he is newly come frae sea. 2 " Some with hawks and some witli hounds, Or otlicr seemly thing to sec; But I will gac to meet my lord, And set his young son on his knee." 3 She 's ta'en Jier j'oimg son in lier arms, And nimbly walk'd l»y yon sea-strand; And there she npied her husband's ship. As it came sailing to the land. 176 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 4 " Where ha'e ye put my airi gudo lord? Oil, whereabout may my gudc lord l)c?" *' If ye be wanting your ain gudc lord, A sight of him ye'll never see." 6 '' Was he bund, or was he slain? Or was he drown'd in tlic deep sea? Or what's become of my ain gude lord, Tluit ho comes not to meet with me?" 6 " Oh, your guid lord he wasna burnt, Nor Avas'he drown'd in the deep sea; But lie was slain in Dunfermline, — A fatal day to you and me." 7 '■ Come in, come in, my merry young men, Come in and drink the wine with me; And all the better ye shall fare, For this gude news ye tell to me." 8 She brought them down to a low cellar, She brought them fifty steps and three; Blie birl'd them with the beer and wine, Till they were as drunk as drunk cou'd be. 9 Tijeu she has lock'd her cellar door, At the head of the fifty steps and three,— *' Lye there with my sad malison, For tliis bad news ye've tauld to me." 10 She's ta'eu the kej's into her hand, And threw them deep, deep in the sea, — " Lye there with my sad malison, Till my gude lord return to me." 11 Then she sat down in her ain room, And sorrow luU'd her fast asleep; When up it starts her ain gude lord, As she sat there in slumber deep. 12 " T;dce here the keys, Janet," he says, " That ye threw deep, deep in the sea. And gae relieve my merry young men, — They're nane to blame for death of me. 13 " Tliey shot tlie bolt, and drew the stroke, And in red blude waded to tlie knee; Kae sailors mair for their lord cou'd do, Nor my young men they did for me." VV.OXTD LADY MARGARET AND THE COURTEOUS KNIGHT. 177 14 " I ha'e a question at you to ask, Before that ye depart frae me; Tell me hov.' lan^- I ha'e to live, And the kind of death I ha'e to dec." 15 '' I ha'e nae mair of God's ain jDower Thau He has ,e;ranted unto me; But come to heaven when ye will, There porter to you I Avill be. IC '• But yc'll be vcd to a iiuer knight Thau ever Avas in my degree; Unto him yc'll ha'e cliildren nine. And six of them will be ladies free. 17 " The other three Mill be bold young men, To fight for king and for comitrie: The ane a duke, the second a knight, The third a laird of lands sae free." PROUD LADY JIAKGARET AND THE COURTEOUS KNIGHT. "Proud Lady Margaret" is the title of a ballad "communicated to " Sir Walter Scott, "b\^ Mr. Hamilton, musicseller, Edinburgh, with wlio.se mother it had beeu a favourite. Two verses and one line were Mantini:, which arc here supplied from a dilfei'cnt ballad, liaving a plot somewhat similar. These verses are the sixth aud ninth of the version in .Scott's Min.ifrcfsi/, vol. iii., p. o2, and correspond to the last four iinca respectively of stanzas 14 and 17, «.f here printed. "The Couitcous Knight" is the title of "a ballad similar in incident," but more complete "in narrative," printed in Buchan's Andcnt Ballads CLiid Soiirji, vol. i., i^p. 91-97. Another version, under the title of "The Bonny Hind Squire,'' is fiiven in Scottish TradHlonv.l Vcrshms of Ancient Ballads, p. 42. The present is collated fiom the two lirst-named versions. 1 'TwAS on a night, an evening bright, When the dew began to fall, Lady Margaret was walking up and down, Looking o'er her castle wall. 2 She looked east, and slie looked west, To see what she could spy, When a gallant knight came in her sight, And to the gate drew nigh. 178 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 3 " God make you safe and free, fair maid, (^lod make you safe and free! " " Oil, pae fall you, ye courteous knight, Wliat arc your wills with me?" 4 " Jily wills with you are not small, lady, My wills with you nae small, And since there 's nane your liow'r within, Ye'se ha'e ray secrets all. 5 " For here am I, a courtier, A courtier come to thee! And if ye winna grant your love, Ail for your sake I'll dee." 6 "If that ye dee for me, Sir Knight, Few for you will make meen. For mony gude lord's done the same, Their graves are growing green." 7 " Oh, winna ye pity me, fair maid? Oil, v.inna ye pity me ? Oil. winna ye pity a courteous knight, Whose love is laid on thee? " 8 " You seem to he no gentleman. You wear your boots so wide; But you seem some cunning hunter, You wear your horn so syde."* Q "I am no cunning hunter," he said, " Nor ne'er intend to be; liiit I am come to this castle To seek the love of thee." 10 " Ye sa}'' ye are a courteous knight, But I tliink ye are nane ; Yo seem to be some false young man, Sae I pray j'e begane." 11 " Indeed, I am a courteous knight. And of great pedigree ; Xao knight did mair for a lady bright Than 1 will do for thee. 12 " Oh, I'll put smiths in your smithy, To shoe for you a steed ; And I'll put tailors in your boAv'r, To make for you a Aveed. • "Sydo: " long or low. Pr.OrD LADY 5URGARET AND THE COURTEOUS KNIGHT. 17L) 13 " I will put cooks in your kitchen, And butlers in your ha' ; And on the tap of your father's castle, I'll big gude corn and saw." 14 " If ye be a courteous knight, As I trust not ye be, Ye'll answer me the three questions That I will ask at thee ; And but ye read them right," she said, " Gae stretch ye out and dee. 15 '' What is the flower, the fairest flower, That grows in mire or dale? Likewise, which is the sweetest bird Sings next the nightingale? Or what 's the linost thing," she says, '• That king or queen can M-ale?" 16 '■ The primrose is the fairest flower That grows in niuir or dale ; The mavis is the sweetest bird Next to the nightingale; And yellow gowd is the finest thing That king or queen can wale." 17 "Ye may be my match, kind sir, Your answers they are sound; But what 's the little coin," she said, •' Wou'd buy my castle bound ? And what 's the little boat," she said, ■' Can sail the world all round ? "' 16 " Oh liey, how many small pennies Make thrice three thousand pound ? Or hey, how many small fishes Swim all the salt sea round? " 19 "I think ye are my match," she said, "My match and something mair; You are the first e'er got the grant Of love frae my father's heir. L") " "My father was lord of nine castles, .My motlier lady of three; My father was lord of nine castles, And thrrn 's nano to lioir but mo. Unless it be Willie, my ac brother, But ho 'h far beyond the eea." 180 BALLAD MINSTHELSy OF SCOTLAND. 21 " Your fatlicr was lord of niiio castles, Your niotliur lady of tlirco; And I am Willie, your ae brother, • "Was iar heyoiid the sea: I come to humble your hauf^hty heart, lias garM sao 1110113' dee." 22 ■• If ye be my brother Willie," she said, " As I trow well ye be, Tlds night I'll neither cat nor drink. But gao alaug with thee." 23 '• Ye'vo ower ill-washen feet, Marg'rc t, And ower ill-washen hands. And ower coarse robes on your body, Alang with mc to gang. '-^ 24 " The worms they are my bedfellows, And the cauld clay my sheet; And the higher that the wind does blaw, The sounder I do sleep. 25 " My body 's buried in Dumfermliue, And far beyond the sea. But day nor night nae rest could get. All for the pride of thee. 2G " Leave aff your pride, Marg'ret," ho says, " Use it not ony mair; Or when ye come where I ha'e been, You will repent it sair. 27 " Cast aff, cast aff, sister," he says, " The gowd lace frae your crown; For if ye gang where I ha'e been, Ye'U wear it laigher down. 28 " When ye are in the gude church set. The gowd pins in your hair. Ye take mair delight in your feckless drgsa, Than ye do in your morning prayer. 29 " And when yc walk in the churchj-ani, A.nd iu your dress are seen, Tliere is nae lady that sees your face, But wishes your grave were green. * "Oh, no! oh, no! Margaret," he said, " Oh, uo! that cauiia lie; You've ower ill-washen foot and hands. To gang alang with me." —Slightly altered from i^tottish TrcuUtioual Versions n/ Aifient BaUads. THE ELFIX KNIGHT. 181 CO '■ You're strai.clit and tall, liaml^oino wllluil But your pride o'crgrows your wit; And if ye do not your \vays refrain, In pcerie* chair yo'll sit. 31 ''In peerie chair you'll sit, I say, The lowest seat of hell; If ye do not amend your ways, it's there that yc must dwell." ?)i With that he vanish'd frae her sight, With the twinkling of an eye; And naething niair the lady sav/, But the gloomy clouds and sky. THE ELFIN KNIGHT. This ballad may be foixnd as under:— 1. " In a volume iu the Pepysiau Library, bound uj) with IViind Harry's Wallace, Ediu. , 1G73. 12ino; ' Tlie Battle of Cjlenlivct,' a Scotish tragic ballad, printed 1(381, 12aio. In the same volume is the challenLje of Robert III. of Scotland, to Henry IV. of England, bei^inning, ' Duriuij the reij^ of the Hoy Robert, 'f Here is also ' The Huntiu'^ of t'hevy C'haee,' in lilackdetter, in the Scotish way dt reading the alteied stanzas. It is to the tune of ' The Yle of Kyle.'" — Piukeiton's Ancient Scotish Poems from the Maitland MSS., Appendix, vol. ii., p. 4t)o. The title of the present ballad, as there given, is, " ' The Wind liath Blawn my Plaid awa : or, a Discourse betwixt a Young Jylaid and the Elphin Knight,' black-letter, printed," says Pinkerton, " I suppose, about 1G70." "A literal copy from the origimd in the Pepysian Library, Cambridge," appears iu Motherwell's Minstrelan, Appendix i., p. 1. II. A second version is given in The Commonplace Booh of Ancient and Modern Jiallad.t, and Metrical Legendar!/ Tales, &.C. — " a jirojected work (edited by David Webster, Edinburgh) which reached no farther than the lirst • " Pi>erip. " Tlin origiual rendH " Pirio'd," a word which his completely nonpliisHCil Scotish ballad editors subHoqueiit to Sir. Buclian, iii whoso version it iippearH. It iihould bn spelled oh nbovo, and moans "fearful;" old French, peureux, "foaifiil." TliR word may alHo liavo uome connection with "pcary," inquisitive, disposed to eramine nnrrotchj; Knglish, to peer. Ah tho word "pirrio means trim, nice in ilress, or jifrntrHiir, the ghost may have meant, by a p!ay upon words, to warn "Proud Margaret" that her being ho "i)irno ' would end in a fato "peorio " — or fearful. t This poem Is mentioned in T/ie ljjmplint nf Scotland, \'i\^ ; occurs in tho Mait- land M.S., l.WS-Sfi; Included by Watsun in liis Collection 0/ Scots J'uenis, part ii., p. Iii.; and Romowhat dubiously referred to and uumboi'cd by Mr. Mothorwoll as a ballad In Ub Mimiretsi/, latruduclion, p. IxL 182 BALLAD >riN.«iTnFLSY OF SCOTLAND. number. Tlie only thing remarkable in which is," says Motherwell, " that the editor states he gives it from the recitation of two ladies, one of whom is his own nidther, and the otlier an honest fishwife of Musselburgh." — Minstrelsy, lutroduction, p. xcix., note 148. III. A third version appears in Kinloch's Ancient Scottish Ballads, p. 145, under the title of "The Elfin Knicht," as "given from the recitation of a native of Mearnshire." IV. A fourth version is furnished by Mr. Buchan, in Ancient Ballads and Soni/s, vol. ii., p. 29(5, under the title of "The Fairy Knight." Mv. Buchan states that he had "seen more than one (copy) in MS.," note, j). 346. 'J'he ballad, as hero given, is collated from the four versions named above. The different refrains are also here represented, — viz., that of versions I. and II. in stanza 1, Kinloch's in stanza 2, and Buchan's in stanza 3. " Similar collections of impossibilities " occur in other Scotish, English, and German ballad.j. — See Professor Child's English and iScoltish Ballads, vol. i., p. 128. 1 The elfiu kuiglit stands on yon hill — Ba, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba ; He blaws his horn baith loud and shrill — The wind hath bJawn my plaid awa. 2 He blaws it cast, be blaws it west — O'er the bills and far awa ; He blaws it where he liketli best — The -wind hath blawn my plaid awa. 8 Fair Is'bcl sits in her bow'r sewing — lilaw, blaw, blaw, ye cauld winds, blaw, And bears tlie elf kniglit bis horn blowing — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa. 4 " If I bad the horn that I hear blaw — Ba, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba, And had the kniglit here, in my arms twa — Tlie M'iiid hath blawn my i)laid awa. 5 "I won'd lock tlie horn np in my chest — Blaw, blaw, blaw, ye cauld winds, blaw, And till! kniglit wou'd lock me to bis breast — The wind iiath blawn my plaid awa." 6 She had no sooner these words said — Ba, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba, Than the elfin kniglit stood by her side— The wind hatb blawn my plaid awa. THE ELFIN KNIGHT. 183 7 " You are too young a May," quoth he — "Blaw, blaw, blaw, ye cauld -winds, Wa-w; Jlarried with me, you ill wou'd be — The ■wind liath blaAvn my plaid awa." u "I have a sister, a j-ounger May — Ba, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba, And she "was married ycsterdaj- — The wind hath blawn my plaid awn." 9 '• jNfarried with me, if you wou'd be — Blaw, blaw^, blaw, ye cauld winds, bl;;\\', A courtesy you must do me — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa. 1 '• You must make me a Holland sark — Ba, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba, Without any cutting or needle wark — Tlie wind hath blawn my plaid awa. 11 " And you must wash it in j'onder well — O'er the hills and far awa. Where dew never wet, nor rain ever fell — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa, 12 "And you must dry it on yon hawthorn — Blaw, blav/, Ijlaw, ye cauld winds, blaw. That never budded since man was born— The Avind hath blawn my plaid awa." 1 ?t " If that courtesie I do to thee — Ba, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba. Another you nuist do to me — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa, 14 " I iiave an acre of good lea land — Blaw, blaw, blaw, ye cauld winds, blaw, Which lycth low by yon sea strand — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa. l.'j " And you must till it witli your horn — Ba, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba; Atid you must sow it with pepper corn — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa. Hi " And you must harrow it with a thorn — I'.law, ])law, blaw, yc cauld winds, blaw, And ha'c your wark done ere the morn — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa. 184 BALl.An MIXSTIIELSV OK SCOTLAXD. 17 "And yon must shear it with your Icuifo — Ba, ba, l);i, lillio ba, b;i; Nor tyne a firain o't for your lifo — Tlie vind hath blawn iny plaid awa. 18 " You must bigg a cart of «lonc and lime — Bhnv, blaw, blaw, yo cavdd winds, blaw, And make Robin lledbreaat trail it bctinie— The wind hath blawu my plaid awa. 19 " And you must bring it frae the sea — Ba, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba. Fair, and clean, and dry, to me — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa. 20 " And 3'ou must barn it in yon mouse-hole — Blaw, blaw, blaw, ye canld whids, blaw ; And yon must thrash it in your shoe sole — 'J'lie wind hath blawn my plaid awa. 21 "' And you must winnow it in your looves — ■ Ba, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba ; And yoii must sack it in your gloves — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa. 22 " And you must dry it without a fire on — Blaw, blaw, blaw, ye cauld winds, blaw; And grind it without a mill or a quern — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa. 23 " And when you have well done your -wor!; — • Ba, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba, Come back to me and get your sark — The wind hath blawn my plaid awa." 2-1 " I wou'd not tyne my plaid for my life — Blaw, blaw, blaw, ye cauld winds, blaw; It haps my seven bairns and ni}^ wife — The wind shall not blaw my plaid awa." 25 " Then a maiden I will keep me still — 15a, ba, ba, lillie ba, ba ; Let the elfin knight do what he will — The wind shall not blaw my plaid awa. 2G " My plaid awa, my plaid awa, er the hills and far awa, And far awa, to Norrowa', My plaid bIjuII not be blawn awa." THE MAID AND FAIKY. 185 THE MAID AND FAIRY. From Buch^iu's Ancient BaJki.fIs and Sonfjn, voL i., p. 117; and note, p. 301. Leyclen, iii his "Preliminary Dissertation" to The Com- playnt of Scotland, p. 234, referring to " The Tale of the Wolf of the W^'arlais End," remarks: — ^"I have lieard fragments of songs repeated, in vhich the ' well of the ■warldis end ' is mentioned, and denominated 'the avcU Absalom,' and 'the cahl well sae weary.' According to the popular talc, a lady is sent by her stepmother to draw water from the well of the world's end. She arrives at the well after encountering many dangers, but soon perceives that her adventures have not reached a conclusion. A frog emerges from the well, and before it suffers her to draw Avater, obliges her to betroth herself to the monster, under penalty of being torn t > jiieces. The lady returns safe; but at midnight the frog-lover apjtears at the door and demands entrance, according to promise, to the great consternation of tlie lady and her nurse :— " 'Open the door, my hiiiny, my hart, Open tho door, mine afn wee thin^, An'l minJ the words that you and 1 spak DowTi in the meadow, at the well-spring.' " The frog is admitted, and addresses her — " 'Take me np on your knee, my dearie, Take me up on your knee, my dearie. And mind the words that you and I spak At the could well sae wearie.' "The frog is finally disenchanted, and appears as a prince in his original form." The story of "The Paddo,"' in Dr. Robert Chambers's Popular Ilhymcs of Scotmnrl, p. 87, last edition, is almost identical ; and Mr. Bnclian's story is also essentially the same, but terminates differently. His prose explanation is to the following efiect: — Shortly after the maid's return, the genius appeared "at the door, singing the first four lines of the song, and was admitted. In the second four lines he craves, as his due, tlie castock or stem, — having had coleworts for their fiu]>per, a dish common to the peasantry of Scotland. In the third four lines, he a^^ks his brofc (oatmeal, and the decoction of the coleworts stirred together). In the fourth four lines, he requests the kail; and in the fifth four lines, he petitions the maid to lay him down in a bed, jiutting her in mind at the same time of the favotir ho had done her at the 'well Fae wearie.' The old woman, who cro now had been a silent spectator to all that was passing, got enraged, and commanded her daughter to throw him out of the house — wliicli was instantly done. The sixth and last four lines conclude the jiieco with his prayers or malison for her woe, and an opportunity of having her again in his power at the 'well sae weary.' " 1 On, open 11)0 door, my linnoy, my heart, Oil, open the door, my ain kind dearie; For dinna j-e mind upon tiic time We met in the wood at the well sac wearie? ISG BALLAD MINSTKELSY OF SCOTLAND. 2 Oh, gi'e mo my castock, my dow, my clow, Oh, gi'e mc'my castock, my ain kind dearie; For dhina ye mind upon the time "Wc met m the wood at the well sac wearic? 3 Oh, gi'e me my brose, my dow, my dow, Oh, gi'e me my brose, my ain kind dearie; For dinna ye mind upon the time "We met in the wood at the well sac wearie? 4 Oh, gi'e me my kail, my dow, my dow, Oh, gi'e me my kail, my ain kind dearie ; For dinna ye mind upon the time We met in the wood at the well sac wearie? 6 Oh, lay me down, my dow, my dow, Oh, la}^ me down, my ain kind dearie; For dinna ye mind upon the time We met in the wood at the well sae wearie? 6 Oh, woe to you now, my dow, my dow. Oh, woe to you now, my fause, fause dearie; And oh for the time I had you again. Plunging the dubs at the well sae wearie. TAMLANE. " The foUoAviug ballad, still populra- iu Ettrick Forest, where the scene is laid, ia certainly of much greater antiquity than its phrase- ology, gradually modernized as transmitted by tradition, would seem to denote. The ' Tayl of the Young Tamlene ' h mentioned in the Complatjnt of Scotland [1548], and the air, to which it Avas chaiuited, seems to have been accommodated to a particular dance, — for the dance of 'Thorn of Lynn,' another variation of "J'homalin,' likewise occurs in the same performance. Like every popular subject, it seems to have been frequently parodied; and a burlesque ballad, beginnmg, 'Tom o' the Linn was a Scotsman born,' is still well known. "In a medley, contained in a curious and ancient MS. cantus, penes J. G. Dalyell, Esq., there is an allusion to our ballad:— 'Sing young Thomlin, be merry, lie meri-y, and twice so merry.' "In Herd's Scotihh So)if/s, vol. i., p. 150, a ])art of the original tale was published, under the title of 'Kerton Ha', '—a corruption of Carterhaugh. TAMLANE. 187 "In Johnston's Musical Museum, vol. v., p. 423, a more complete copy occurs, under the title of ' Tam Linn,' which, with some alterations, was reprinted in the Tales of Wonder, No. 58." — Scott's Minstrelsy, voL ii., p. 331. Sir Walter Scott 's edition was ' ' prepai-ed from a collation of tlio printed copies wth a very accurate one in GlenriddeU's MSS. , and with several recitals from tradition," but contains some stanzas "supplied by some ingenious gentleman residing near Langholm, [which] are clearly suppositious, and ought to be omitted." — Mother- well's Minstrelsy, Introduction, p. Ixxii., note 31. Subsequent to thepublication of Scott's Minstrelsy, a fragment, under the title of "Burd EUen and Young Tamlane," appeared in Maid' ment's North Countrie Garland, p. 21, as "taken down from the reoito/- tion of a lady who had heard it sung in childhood." Complete version.* are also given in Maidment's New Book of Old Ballads, p. 54, as " taken down from the recitation of an old woman ; " and in Scottish Traditional Versions of Ancient Ballads, p. 11, under the respectiva titles of "Tom Linn," and "Tam-a-Line, the Elfm Kuicht." Sir Walter Scott's version is the one here chiefly followed ; and tlia stanzas referred to by Mr. Motherwell are retained, but placed within brackets. Regarding the stanzas in question, Sir Walter Scott states : — " The editor has been enabled to add several verses of beauty and interest to this edition of 'Tamlane,' in consequence of a cop}', obtained from a gentleman residiug near Langholm, which is said to be very ancient, though the diction is somewhat of a modern cast. The manners of the fairies are detailed at considerable length, and in poetry of no common merit." "Carterhaucrh," continues Sir Walter Scott, "is a plain at the conflux of the Ettrick and Yarro\\-, in Selkirkshire, about a mile above Selkirk, and two miles below Newark Castle, a romantic ruin, ^Nhich overhangs the Yarrow, and which is said to have been the habitation of our heroine's father, though others place his residence in the tower of Oakwood. The peasants point out, upon the plain, those electrical rings which vulgar credulity Bupjjoses to lie traces of the fairy revels. Here, they say, were placed the stands of milk and of water in which Tamlane was dipped, in order to effect the disenchantment [as directed in stanza 35]; and ujion these spot.«, according to their mode of expressing theni- selve:-), the nr;'..ss will never grow. Miles Cross (perhaps a corruption of Mary's <.'ro.ss), where fair Janet awaited the arrival of the fairy train, is said to have stood near the Duke of Buccleuch's seat i i' How-hill, about half a mile from Carterhaugh. In no part of Scotland, iii(l(cj(1, has the belief in fairiet maintained its ground with more pertinacity than in Selkirksliire. The most scc])tical amoiii,' the lower ranks only venture to assei t that their appearances and mischievous exploits have ceased, or at least become infrequent, since the light of the gospel was diffused in its purity." 1 " On, I forbid ye. innidcns all, That wear gowd on your hair, To como or fi^au by Cartcrliaugli, For young 'i'iimlaue is there." 1F!8 BALLAD MINStHELSY OK SC(ni,ANP. 2 But up tlici) spake her, fair Janet, The fairest oflier kin: " I'll come and gang to Carterliaiigli, And ask nac leave of him." 5 Then slie has kilted her green kirtle * A little abune her knee; And she has braided her yellow hair A little abune her bree. 4 And to the wood of Carterhangli She hied her forth alane, To pull the roses frae the tree, In spite of young Tandane. 6 She hadna puU'd a red, red rose, A rose but barely three, AVhen up and starts a wee, wee man, At Lady Janet's knee! • 6 Says — " Why pull ye the rose, Janet? What gars ye break the tree? Or why come ye to Carterhaugh Witliout the leave of me?" 7 " Oh, I will pull the flowers," she said, "Or I will break the tree. And come and gang to Carterhaugh, Nor ask nae leave of thee." 8 He's ta'en her by the milk-white hand, Amang the leaves sae green; And meiklo, meikle was the love That fell the twa between. 9 He 's ta'en her by the milk-white hand, Amang the roses red; And they ha'e vow'd a solemn vow Ilk ither for to wed. 10 " The truth ye'll tell to mo, Tamlanc, A word ye maunna loo; If e'er ye was in haly kirk, Or sained f in Christcntie?" * "The ladies ore always reprcHcnleil, in Dunbar's poems, with gropn in.iiillv'^ nnl yellow hair." — rinker'.ou's Am-itnt i. t "SaineJ: " Wcsvcd; not lialloueJ, or m.ade holy, as often exjilainecL TAMLANE. 1 B9 11 " The truth I'll tell to tlice, Janet, A word I winna lee ; I was ta'cn to tlie lialy kirk, And sained as well as thee. 12 " Kaudolph, Earl ^.lurray, was my sire, Dunbar, Earl March, is thine; AVc lov'd when v,-e were children small, Which yet you well may min'. 13 " "When I was a boy just turn'd of nine, Jly uncle sent for mc, To hunt, and hawk, and ride with him, And keep him companie. I'l " There caine a wind out of the north, A sharp wind and a snell; A dead sleep then came over me. And frae my horse I fell. 15 " The fairy queen she keppit * me, And took me to hersel'. And ever since, in j-on green hill, With her I'm bound to dwell, 16 [" And v,-e that live in fairyland, Kae sickness know nor pain; I quit rny body when I Mill, And take to it again. 17 " I quit my body when I please, Or unto it repair ; We can inhabit at our case In either earth or air. 18 "Onr shape?, and size wc can convert To eiliier large or small; An old nut-shcU's the same to us As if} the lofty hall. 19 " Vv''c sleep in rosebuds soft and sweet, Wc revel in the stream. We wanton lightly on the wind, Or glide on a sunbeam. 20 " And all our wants are well supplied From every rieli man's store. Who tliaiddess sins the gifts he get8,f And vainly grasps for more.] * " Kppjiit:'" c.iu'jht. t To "Bin" our gifts and moruicB, ri'.cau.s vngratcfull}- lo liylit llioui iu lii{lit catcom. lyO BALLAD MINSTIJKLSV OF SCOTLAND. 21 " And it is sic a bonnie place, And I like it sae well, That I wou'd never tire, Janet, In fairyland to dwell. 22 " But aye, at ilka seven years, The}' pay the teind to hell; And I'm sae fat and fair of flesh, I fear 'twill be mysel'! 23 " Tills night is Hallow-e'en, Janet, Tlie morn isliallow-day, And if ye dare your true love win. Ye ha'e nac time to stay. 24 " The night it is good Hallow-e'en, When fairy folk will ride; And she tliat wou'd her true love win, At l^'iV.'j Cross she maun liid<.'. 25 " And ye maun gae to the Miles Crosn, Between twelve hours and one. Take haly water in your hand. And cast a compass roun'." 26 " And how shall I thee ken, Tamlane ? And how shall I thee knaw, Amang sae many fairy folk, The like I never saw ? " 27 "The first company tliat passes by, ytand still, and let them gae; The neist company that passes by, Stand still, and do right sae. 28 '' The third company that passes l)y, All clad in robes of green, It is the head ane of them all, For in it rides the queen. 29 " I'll there ride on the milk-white steed, With a gold star in ni}^ crown; Because I was a christen'd knight. They gi'e me that renov.ii. 30 " First let pass the black, Janet, And .syne let ])ass the brown ; But grip ye to tlic milk-white steed, And pull the rider down. TAMLANE. IS^l 31 " My right hand will be gloved, Janet, My left hand will be bare ; And these the tokens I gi'e thee, If ye wou'd win me there. 32 •• They'll turn me in your arms, -lanet, An adder and a snake ; But Laud mo fast, let me not pass. If ye wou'd be my maik.^"' So " They'll turn me in your arras, Janet, An adder and an aske ; "j" They'll turn me in your arms, Janet, A bale J that burns fast. 34 " They'll turn me in your arms, Janet, A red-hot gad of airn ; § But haud me fast, let me not pass, For I'll do you no harm. 35 '' First dip me in a stand of milk. And then in a stand of water; But haud me fast, let me not pass, — I'll be your bairn's father. 36 "And next, they'll shape me in your arms A tod, but and an eel ; But haud me fast, nor let me gang, As you do love me weel. 37 " Tlicy'll shape me in your arms, Janet, A dove, but and a swan; And last they'll shape me in your arms A mother-naked man. 38 " Cast your green mantle over me, I'll be mysel' again ; Cast your green mantle over me, And sae I will be wan." 39 Gloomy, gloomy was the night, And eerie jj was tiie way. As fair Janet, in her green mantle, To Miles Cross she did gae. ♦ "Maik:" hwcethcart, wifo. § "Gad of aim: " bar of iron. t "AhUo:" nowl. II "Ecrio:" proJudug Buperutilioup t "lialei'fagoL «l^ea(L 102 BALLAD jMlNSTllKLSY OF SCOTLAND, 40 [The licavens were black, the night was dark-, And dreary Avas the place ; But Janet stood with eager wish, Her lover to embrace. 41 I'etwixt Ibe hours of twelve and one, A north wind tore tlie bent; And straight siie heard strange elritcli tjound^, Upon that v/ind which went. 42 About the dead hour of the night, Slio heard the bridles ring; And Janet Avas as glad of that As any earthly thing. 43 Their oaten pipes blew wondrous shrill, The hemlock small blew clear, And louder notes from hemlock largo And bog-reed struck the ear ; But solemn sounds or sober though ta The fairies cannot bear. 44 Tl'.ey sing, inspired with love and joy, Like skylarks in the air; Of solid sense, or thought that 's grave, You'll find no traces there. 45 Fair Janet stood, with mind unmoved, 'j'he dreary heath upon; And louder, louder waxVl the sound. As they came riding on. 4G V>^ill of the Wisp before them went, Sent forth a twinkling light; And soon she saw the fairy bands All riding in her sight.] 47 AVith haly water in her hand, She cast a compass round, As she beheld the fairy band Come riding o'er the mound. 48 And first gacd by the black, black steed. And then gaed by the brown; But fast she gripp'd the milk-white steed. And pnll'd the rider down. 40 Sl:e ])uird him frae the inilk-v.hitc steed, And let the bridle fall ; THE WEE, WEE MAX. 1^3 Ami up tliore raise an elritch - cry, — " lie's won amang us all!" 50 Tliey shaped liim in fair Janet's anna An aske, but and an adder; She held him fast in every shape, To be her bairu's father. 51 They sliaped hiiu in her arms at last A mother-naked man ; She cuist j her mantle over him, And sae her true love wan. 52 Up then spake the fairy queen, Out of a bush of broom, — " She that has borrow'd young Tamlaao Has got a stately groom !" 5.3 Up then spake the fairy cpieen, Out of a bush of r3-e, — " Slie's ta'cu away the bonniest knight In all mj- companie! ui " But had I kenn"d, Tumlane," she says, " A lady wou'd borrow thee, I wou'd ha'o ta'cn out tliy twa gray een, Put in twa een of tree ! i)o '•Had I but kenn'd, Tamlane," slie says, " Before ye came frae hame, I wou'd ta'eu out your heart of llet?h, Put in a heart of stane ! 5G " Had I but had the wit yestreen Tiuit I ha'c coft J this day, rd paid niy kane§ seven times to hell, Ere you'd been won away!" THE WEE, WEE MAN. Four versions f'l this ballad, diircring only slightly from each other, have appciired in the undor-nanictl works: in the tliree firut, under the above title, and in the last, under the title of "The Litllu Man":- I. Herd's Scotti/ik Sonrjs, &c. , vol. i., p. 9.5, II. C&w^B Poetical Ji[useii7ii, p. 348. • Unoftrllil7. J "Coft:" bought. t Threw. { " Kane :" pajniont to TcuJal eupei lora. 194 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. III. IMotherwell's Minstrels;/, p. 343. IV. Buchan's Ancient Ballads, vol. i., p. 2G3. Herd's version is given in Johnson's Museum, vol. iv., p. 3S2, rvccompaniecl ^\•ith the old melody to which it was sung. Boh'i words and nmsic ^^crc copied by Eitson in his Scoltish Soin/s, vol. ii., p. l.'>9; andin his J fistoricalJEssaj/ on Scottish Son f/, j). Ixxxii. (prefixed to tlie same work), he refers to this piece in these terras: — "'J'here is one song, or rather fragment of one, which seems to merit l»nrticidar attention, from a singular evidence of its origin and iiTitiquity. It is inserted in the present collection under the title of ' The Wee, Wee Man,' and begins, — 'As I was walking all alono.' "The original of this song is extant in a Scottish or Northumbrian poem of Edward the First or Second's time, preserved in the British ]Museum, aud intended to be one day given to the public. The two pieces Avill bo found to afford a curious proof how poetry is preserved for a succession of ages by mere tradition ; for thougli t!ie imagery or description is nearly the same, the words are altogether different ; nor, had the Cantcrhury Tales of Chaucer been preserved to the jiresent time in the same manner, would there have remained on j single word which had fallen from the pen of that venerable bard ; they would have been as completely, though not quite so elegantly, modernized as they are by Dryden and Pope." This passage appears to have been unknown to, or forgotten by. Sir Walter Scott, when he published the tii-st edition of his Minstrelsjj ; as, in subsequent editions, he explains, in his introduction to "Tamlane," that "in one recital only the well-known fragment of ' The Wee, Wee Man ' was introduced in the same measure with the rest of the poem. It was retained in the first edition, but is now omitted, as the editor has been favoured, l)y the learned Mr. llitson with a copy of the original poem of which it is a detached fragment.' The poem here refci'recf to by Mr. Eitson and Sir Walter Scott follows "The Wee, Wee Man." 1 As I was walking all alane," Betv/een a w^atcr and a wa', There I espy'd a wee, wee man, — He was the least that e'er I saw. 2 His legs were scarce a shathmont's* length,. And small and nimble was his thie ; ^ Between his een there was a span ; Between his shoulders there were three.* " " Ab I gacd out to tak' the air, Between llidmar and bonnJe Craigha'." — Buchan '' "Shathmont,"in old Scottish, means the flst closed, with the thumb extended, and may be considered a measure of about six inches; Anglo-Saxon, "Sc£Drtmuni "Fair lady, will ye go ann Hyne we pass with wondering cheir."— Caw's Poetica' Mmtum. / "The rnflers wore o' the beaten gold, And silver wire were the keijurs all"— Motherwell. " Sac on wo lap, and awa wo rade. Till we came to yon little ha'; 'l"bo kii>|)lcB were o' tlio ^^udc rod Kowd, The roof was o' the prusoyla'." — Buchan. 1D6 BALLiVD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAXD. 'Wl cii wo canio tlii'i:', witli \\-eo, wc'' Icui^iits, Vn'itc ladies dauciiii;', jimp aiul kuih'; But ill tlu! twinldiug of an eV, My Avce, wee )nau was clean awa. AS I WENT ON AE MONDAY, f " In the mamiscript from which these verses are taken, they form the preface to a long strain of incomprehensible prophecies of the same description as those which are appended to 'Thomas of Ersyldoune.' Wliether the two portions belong together or not, the lirst alone requires to be cited here for the purpose of coui- pai'isou with 'The Wee, Wee Man.' The whole piece has beeu twice printed ; lirst by Finlay, in his ScoUish Ballade (vol. ii., p. 10.'}), and afterwards by a })ersou v.'ho was not aware that he had been anticinated, in the lietror-pecilce llevleu; second series, vol. ii. , p. " I>oth texts are in places nearly unintelligible, and are evidently full of errors, part of which Ave must ascribe to the incoiupetenc}- of the editors. Finlay's is on the whole the best ; but it has received a fuw corrections from the other, and one or two conjectural emenda- tions." — Professor Child, J^iKjlisk and Scottish Ballads, vol. i., p. 27.''. In order to facilitate "comparison" with "The Wee, Wee Man," the poem, as given by Professor Child, has been here somewhat iiKidernized, chielly in the orthogr.aijhy. The explanatory notes are mostly given from Professor Child's Glossary to Binjlish and Scoltish Ballade, vol. i. 1 As I went on ae Monday Between Wyltendcn and Wall, Tlic ane after braid wa^^ A little man I met witliall, The least that ever I, sooth to say, Either [saw] in bov/'r or in hall; His robe was neither green nor gi"ay, But all it was of rich pall.:{: • " \Vli"n we c-.iino to the stair foot."— Ilorcl. "Tliei'o wore pix)er.^ playin? in every nouk, Aud ladies daucing jimp and sma'; Au 1 aye tlie owreword o' tlieir tuno Was — ' Our weo, wee mau has bet;n laug awa.' " — llothe: \vc!l. Mr. Suchan's verbion concludes thus:— "Out gat tlie liglita, on cam' the mist, Ladies nor mannie mair cou'd see; I tura'd about and gao a looic Ju.st at the foot o' Uenacliio." ♦ The title, as given by Professor Child, from the first line of his text, ie, " Al3 y yod on ay Mouuday." t"Pall:" rich cloth. AS I WENT ON AE MONDAY. 197 2 On me he caU'd, and bade me bide; AVell still I stood a little space; Frae Lancaster the park side On he came, well lair his pace, lie hailed me with meikle pride; I had well meikle ferly " what he was; I said,—" Well mig-ht the ^ betide, That little man with large face." 3 I belield tliat little man By the street as we gon gae; * llis beard was long a large span, And gilded as the feather of pae;'' Ilis head was white as any swan, Ilis eyes was great and gray also; Brows lang, well I the * 'gan Mark it to five inches and mae.* 4 Anns short, for sooth I say, A span seem'd them to be; Hands braid withouten nay, And lingers lang, he shewed me. A stane he took up where it lay. And castit forth that I might see; A merk-shot of large way Before me strides he castit three. 6 "Well still I stood as did the stane. To look hiiii on though me not lang; Uis robe was all gold begane,-' Well craftlikc made I understand; Buttons azure every ane Frae his elbow unto his hand; Earth-like man was lie nane, That in my heart I uuderstaud. 6 Till him I said full soon on-ane, '' For furthcrniair I wou'd him fraine,'* " Glailly wou'd I Avit' thy name. And I wist wat mo mouthe gainc;-' Thou art so little of llesli and l)ano, And so meikle of might and main, • "Korly: " wouiUir. ff " On-ano: " anon. ' '-The: " thee or they. ,. uF,.ai„c: " question. "^ '•Gon gae: " wont along. , ,„. „, -••Pao:" peacock. '^^'^= ''"<'^^- ' "Mao:" more. ■* This lino, «ic "wist," moans Un'w; / "BcsaQO-" hodp^kei "war," usually know, but 1i.m-« iijilia- / Bcgaoo. Dcuc^tteo. rcntlywhati '•mouthe: ' niijjbL 198 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. "Wliere vones" thou, little man, .at haine? Wit of theo I wou'd full fain." '' Thouo-h I be little and litli,* Am I not withouten wane; " Fairly questioned thou w/iat I hith,"^ That " thou s/ialt not wit my name; My wonige stedc-'^fall well is dyght, ■'' Now soon thou s7(alt see at hauic." Till him I said,—" For God's might, Let mc forth mine errand gane." "Thee thar'^not of thine errand let,* Though thou come a stondc'' with i:i;;, Further s/ealt thou not be set, Be miles tvva neither be three." No langer durst I for him let, But forth I funded '' with that free; ' Stinted™ us brook nor beck;" Ferlich°me though how so might bj. lie Avent forth as I you say. In at a, gate, I understand; In till a gate withouten nay; It to see though me not lang. The bankers'' on the binkes » lay., And fail" lords set I found; In ilka liirn '' I heard a lay. And ladies soth' melody s'lng. TAMMIE DOODLE. The following lively little nursery piece is hei-e set down aora re- citation : — 1 Ta:mmii-; Doodle was a cantie chiel, Fu' c;intie and fu' cvouse; The fairies liked him unco weel, And built him a wee house. ""Vones:" wonos, dwoUest. fc "Fundetl:" went. 6 "Lith:" F^upplo, limber. I "Free: " fey— lord or fairy. = "Wane:" dwelling. ""'Stinted:" stopped. <* "mth:" named. " "Beck:" stream. " "That:" yet " "Ferlich:" wondered. / " Wonige stcdc : " dweUing-placo. P "Banlcers:" covers. s "Dyght:" decked, adorned. i "Binkes:" benches. » "Thar:" it needs. »■ "Ilim:" corner. < "Let:" hinder. • "Soth;" soothing, Hweet / "ABtonde:" astonished. HTNDE ETIN. 199 2 AitI when the house was all built up, And linish'd but the door, A fairy it came skippin' in, And danced upon the floor. 3 The fairy it whirl'd up and down, It loupit and it flang ; It fi-iskit and it whiskit roun', And croon'd a fairy sang. 4 At length it v.-liistled lend and shrill, And in came all the gang, Till puir little Tanimie Doodle Was maist smotiier'd in the thrang. HYNDE ETIN. Mr. Kinloch printed a fragment of this ballad, under the above title, in his Ancient Scottish Ballads, p. 225. Mr. Buchan next communicated a considerably different version, under the title of "Young Hastings the Groom," to his friend Mr. Motherwell, by whom it v/as given in Minstrelsy, Ancient and Modern, p. 287. It was afterwards included by Mr. Buchan in his Ancient Ballads and Sonrjs, vol. ii., p. 67. Another and more complete version, under the title of "Young Akin," appears in Mr. Buchan's Ancient Ballads and Songs, vol. i., p. 6. The present version has been diligently collated from all three, and has, as usual under such process, received what are considered some necessary alterations. The six opening, two intermediate, and three concluding, stanzas of "Young Hastings," as they differ greatly from the present version, arc given next in order. Mr. Kinloch's version of " Hynde Etin" is prefaced by the following remarks: — "A sanguine antifjuary might, perhaps, with some proba- bility, discover in this ballad a fragment of the talc or romance of ' The Rcyde Eyttyn vitht the Thrc Heydis,' mentioned in The Complaynl of Scotland. Dr. Leydcn, in his Preliminary Dissertation to that work, p. 235, speaking of such romances, remarks, tliat they are either lost or only exist as popular talus. Tho 'Ked Etin' is still a popular character in Scotland ; and, according to the vulgar etymology of his name, is always represented as an insatiable gormandizer on red or raw flesh, and exclaiming, as in the story of Jack and the Bean Stalk,— ' Snouk hult, Rnnulc bon, I find tho KmoU of earthly men.' " In this ballad, however, he bears a more courteous name and character, and gccms to have lost his ' thrc Jioydis,' and his appetite 200 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. for 'qiiyk men;' although his gonuaudizing qualities are proverbial in Mearnshire, -wlierc the phrase, ' Eoariug like a Red Etin,' is applied to any one who is clamorous for his victuals." Dr. Leydcn observes, that "the idea of the giants who devoured quick men is pi-obably derived from the Cyclops, as they are generally l»laccd in Etaland " [Etnalaud?]. The name Ufin, however, appears rather to be derived immediately from tlic Danish letle, which means giant. The above descrii>tion answers better the "foul tliicf " of "Young 'Ronald," ante, p. 149, stanza 29, and the " Gyant " or " Soldan " of "Sir Cawline," ante, p. 157, than it docs the hero of the following ballad. It may be mentioned that Dr. Robert Chambers's Popular lihymes of Scotland (p. 89, last edition) contains, under the same title as this ballad, a traditionary story iuter.spersed with snatches of rhyme. It, however, difFei's from this in incident, in which, as well as in structure, it closely resembles the succeeding "interesting relic of ancient Scottish song, entitled, ' Child Kowland and Fa!ir Bui'd Helen,' a legend still current in the nursery," says Motherwell, M'ui- strelsy, Introduction, p. xc. 1 May Margaret stood within her bow'r, Combing her yellow hair; Slie heard a note in Elmond wood, And wish'd that she was there. 2 May Margaret sat in her bow'r door, Sewing her silken seam; She heard a note in Elmond wood, Amang the leaves sae green. 8 She let the seam fall frae her side, The needle to her tae; And she 's awa to Elmond wood As fast as she coii'd gae. 4 She hadna piill'd a nut, a nut, A nut but barely ane, Till up started the Hynde Etin, Says — " Lady, let alane ! 5 " Oh, wliy pull ye the nut, the nut, Or why break ye the tree? For I am forester of tliis wood — Ye shou'd speir leave of inc." 6 Yet aye she puU'd the itiier berry, Ne'er thinking of the skaith, And said — "To wrang ye, Hynde Etin, I wou'd be unco laith. HrNT)E ETIN. 20 J 7 " But Elmond wood it is my aiii; Jly father gave it me, To sport and play when I thought lang; I'll speir nae leave of thee." 8 He 's ta'en her by the j'ellow locks, And tied her till a tree, And said — " For slighting my conimauds, My sair wcid ye shall dree." * 9 Then pnli'd a tree out of the wood, The biggest that was there, And houk'd a cave mouie fathoms deep, And put May JIargaret there. 10 " Now rest ye there, ye saucy May 1 My woods are free for thee; And if I take ye to mysel', The better ye'U like me! " 11 Nae rest, nae rest May Margaret took, Sleep got she never nane; Her back lay on the cauld, cauld floor, Her head upon a stane. 12 '■ Oh, lake nic out," May Margaret cried; '■ Oh, take me hame to thee; And I shall be your boitndcn page. Until the day I dee." 13 He took lier out of the dungeon deep, And awa with him she's gane; But sad was the day a king's daughter Was by Hynde Etin ta'en. 14 Oh, Ihoy ha'e lived in Elmond wood For nine lang years and ane. Till seven prcttic sons to Hynde F.liii May Margaret has brocht hauie. 15 I'-nt these Bcven bairns, sao fair and line, They got nae christening; And she was ne'er within kirk door, Nor e'er got gudc kirking. IG Tlicn it fell ance upon a day, Hyndo Etin 's hunting gane; And the eldest of his seven sons Ahing with him has ta'en. * lly gricTouB and furious roge ye Bhall cndurt>, or auffer. 202 BALLAD MINSTUELSY 01- SCOTLAND. 17 Aiul as tlioy haraeward liont tlicir way, And slowly on did walk, The boy's heart being somewhat wae, He tlius began to talk : 18 " A question 1 wou'd ask, father, If ye wou'dna angry be? " " Ask on, ask on, my bonnic boy, Ask what yc will at me." 19 " I see my mother's cheeks oft wet, Alas! they are seldom dry; " " Nae wonder, nac wonder, my bomiie boy, Though she shou'd oft-times cry. 20 " Your mother was a king's daughter, Sprung frae a high degree, And she might ha'e wed some noble prince. Had she nae been stown by me. 21 " But we'll shoot the laverock in the lift, The buntin' on the tree, And bear them to your mother dear, — See if she'll merrier be." 22 It fell upon anither day, Hynde Etin 's hunting gane, With bow and arrows by his side, In greenwood all alanc; And left May Margaret and her sons Within their cave of stanc. 23 Then she has ta'eii her harp in baud, And harp'd them all asleep. All but the eldest of her sons, Wha still did waking keep; And as she harp'd, it 's thus she sang. And bitterly did wccp : 2d " Oh, ten lang years ha'e o'er me flown, Of sorrow and of shame. Since in this greenwood I was stown, And Etin's wife became. 25 " And seven fair sons to him I've born, Wha nu'er got cln'istendame ; Oh, sad fate for a king's daughter, Of noble birth and fame I m-^-DE ETIN'. 203 26 " Oh, seven fair sons to him I've born, Yet ne'er got gude kirking; Aud ten years in this cave ha'e been, Nor e'er heard kirk bells ring." 27 It 's out then spake her eldest sou, A brisk young boy was he, — "There's something I wou'd tell, mother, If ye ■wou'dua angry be ; " " Speak on, speak on, my bonnia boy. Tell what ye will to me." 28 " The ither day, as we hunting gaed. And shot birds on the wing, Near to the verge of the wood we stray'd, And I heard sweet music ring." 29 " My blessings on you, my bonnie boy ; And oh, I fain wou'd be Alang with you all in holy kirk; There christen'd ye wou'd be." '60 Uli, out then spake her eldest son. And ho spake out with glee, — '■ Oh, weep nae mair, my mother dear, Aud I your guide will be. 31 " Take you the youngest in your arms. The rest can gang alane, And we will on to holy kirk. And leave this cave of stane." 32 They wistna weel where they were gaen, With their wee stratlin feet; They wistna weel where tlicy were gacn. Till near her father's yett; Ijiit May ^Margaret that weel-keiin'd s[)o{ She ne'er cou'd it forget. o'.j " I hue uac nujiiic," I^Iay Margaret said, " I3ut royiil ringa I've three : Here, take ye them, my oldest son, Aud gang ye there for me. 31 '■ Ye'll gi'e the first to the proud iiuiler, And he will let you in ; Ye'il gi'e llic next to the buLlcr boy, And ho will ohow you bou. 2<^\: r.\!.i.Ai> Mixsinr.i.sv of Scotland. 35 " Ye'll gi'e the next to the gude harper, That harps before the king; And he will sweetly tune hi.s harp, And success to you sing." 36 The boy went banldly to tlic yett, And did as lie was bade; And everything his motlier tauld, It happcn'd as she said. 37 And when he caine before the king, He fell low on his knee ; The king he turn'd him round ubuiit, V\'ith tcar-drajis in his e'e. 38 " \Yin up, win up, my bonnie boy, Gang I'rae my companie; Ye look sac like my daughter dear, My heart will burst in three." 39 " If I look like your daughter dear, Nae wonder it need be; If I look like your daughter dear, I\Iy mother dear is she." 40 " Oh, tell me now, my bonnie boy, Wliere may my Margaret be?" " Sue 's just now standing at your yett, With six sons forbye me." 41 " Oh, wliere are all my porter boys, That I pay meat and fee, To open my j-etts baith wide and braid? Let her come in to me." 42 When she came in before the king. She fell low on her knee; " Win up, win up, my daughter dear, This day yc'll dine with me." 43 " Ae bit I canna cat, father, Nor ae drap can I drink. Till I see my mother and sister dear, For lang for them I think. 41 " Ae bit I canna cat, father, Nor ae drap can 1 drink, Until I see my dear husband, For lang ou him I thiuk." HYNDE ETIN. 205 45 " Oh, -where are all my rangers bauld, That I pay meat and fee, To search the forest far and wide, And bring Etin to me?" 43 Oat then spake the bounie boy, — " Na, na, this mannna be; Without ye grant a free pardon, I hope ye'll ne'er him see." 47 " Oh, here I grant a free pardon, Weel seal'd with my ain han' ; Gae search and bring here Hynde Etin, As soon as e'er you can." 48 Tliey searched the country wide and braid, The forests far and near ; Till they found him in Elraond wood, Tearing his yellow hair. 49 " Win up, wiu up now, Hynde Etin, Win u\), and boun with me; We're messengers come frae the king, And he wants you to see." 50 " Oil, lot him take frae me my head. Or hang me on a tree; For since I've lost my dear ladye. Life has nae joy to me." 61 " Tom- head will nae be toucli'd, Etin, And hang'd y(m winna be; Yom- ladye 's in her father's court. And all he wants is tliee." 52 When he came in before the king, lie fell low on his knee ; " Arise, arise now, Ilynde Etin, This day ye'sc dine with me." 53 As tlicy were at the dinner set, Tiie young boy thus spake he, — " I wish we wore at holy kirk, To get our Christcntie ! " 51 " Your asking's nao sac great, my boy, Hut granted it sliall be ; This day to giidc kirk ye shali gang, — Your mother too with thee." iiOti BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 55 Wlien they unto the gude kirk cuiuc, She at the door did stan' ; She was sac sair sunk down with sliame, She wou'dna venture ben. 5G Tlien out and spake ih6 parisli priest, And a sweet smile ga'e he, — " Conic ben, come ben, my lilie flower, Present your babes to nie." 57 And he has ta'cn and sained them all, And gi'en them Cliristentie; And they staid in her lather's hall, And lived with mirth and glee. YOUNG HASTINGS. See lutroductiou to "HjrudeEtin," ante, p. 199. Oh, well like I to ride in a mist, And shoot in a northern win' ; And far better a lady to steal, That 's come of a noble kin. Four-and-twenty fair ladies Put on this lady's sheen; And as many young gentlemen Did lead her o'er the green. Yet she preferr'd, before them all, Him young Hastings the groom: He 's coosten a mist before them all, And away this lady has ta'en. He 's taken the lady on him behind, Spar'd neither grass nor corn, Till they came to the wood of Amonshaw, Where again their loves were sworn. And they ha'c lived Avithin that wood Full many a year and day; And were supported from time to time By what he made of prey. And seven bairiis, fair and fine, Tliere she has born to him; Yet never -was in gudc kirk door, Nor ever got gude kirking. CHILD ROWLAND AND BURD ELLEN, 207 Stanzas corresponding to 16 to 20 inclusive of "Hynde Etin" should evidentlj' follow, and then two stanzas, as gi\en in Mr, Buchan's "Young Akia," but which palpably belong properly to the present version. They are : — " I was her father's cup-bearer, Just at that fatal time; I catch'd her on a misty night, When summer was in prime. "My love to her was most sincere, Her love was great for me ; But when she hardships doth endure, Her folly she does see." Then come, next in order, stanzas corresponding • to 23 to 31 inclusive of the present text, and to five stanzas in "YouDg Hastings ;" after which succeed the following : — " Then go with us unto some kirk— You say tliey are built of stane — And let us all be cliristen'd [there], And you get gude kirking." She took the youngest in her lap, The next youngest by the hand, Set all the rest of them before, As slie learnt them to gang. And she has left the wood with them, And to the kirk lias gane; Where the gude priest them christened, And gave her gude kirking. CHILD llOWLAND AND BURD ELLEN. Given by Jamicsou in Illualraiions of Norihern Antiquities, p. Mr. .Taniieson alleges, and Professor Child thinks, "it is not im- )io.s.sible that this ballad should be the one quoted by Edgar m KUifj Lc.ar (act iii., ac. 4) : — ' Child Rowland to tho dark tower camo '.' " Mr. .Jamicson remarks, that, "lia%-ing the outline of the story so happily sketched to his liand, it would have required no very great exertion of talent? or industry, fi>r one exercised in tlicac studies, to have presented this Kon-iancc in a poetical dress, far jnore correct and generally engaging than that in which it can bo expected to be found ; 208 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND, l)Kt, as he accounts an origin.al, however imperfect, which bears the grnuine mai'ks of the age which produced it, and of the taste of thoso who liavc i>rcserved it, much more intcrestincj to the historian or antiquai'y tlian any mere modern tale of the same kind, however artfully constructed, he lias preferred suhjoiniug the t^!cottish legend 'ui2>trris nnturaUhus, in the hope that the publication of it may be the means of exciting curiosity, and procuring a more perfect copy of this singular relic." The ballad of " Eosmcr Hafmand," which is to be found in Danisli, Swedish, Faroish, and Norse, and three versions of which have been translated by Jamieson, 1)ears a considerable resemblance to " Child ilowlaud." The tale of the ]\ed Etin, which it also closely i-esemblc?;, has al- ready been alluded to at the close of the preceding introductory note, ante, p. 200. "The occurrence of the name of T'.Ierliu," writes Professor Child, " if} by no means a sufficient ground for connecting this tale, as Jamieson does, with the cycle of King A;-thur ; for Merlin, as Grundtvig has remarked (' Folkeviser,' vol. ii., p. 70), did not originally belong to that cycle ; and again, his name seems to have been given in Scotland to any sort of wizard or [warlock] proi)het." — EngJifili and Scottish Ballads, vol. i , p. 245. And in a prefatory note to "Eosmer Hafmand," Professor Child further states, that "all the questions bearing upon its origin, and the relations of the various forms in which the story exists, are anijily discussed by Grundtvig, vol. ii., p. 72." — Same work and vol., p. 253. [King Aktiiuh's sons of merry Car]i«lc] Were playing at the ball; And there was their sister Bnrd Ellen, I'the mids amang them all. Child Rowland kick'd it with liis foot, And kepjiit it with his knee. And aye, as he play'd out o'er them all, O'er the kirk he gar'd it llee. Bnrd Ellen round a!)out the isle To seek tlio ball is gane; But they bade lang and ay langer, And she came na back again. They sought her cast, they sought licr west, They sought her up and down; And wac were the hearts [in merry Carlisle], For she was nac gait foiuid! " At last her eldest brother M-cnt to the Warluck Merlin (Myrddin, Wj/'dt), and asked if he knew where his sister, the fair Burd Ellen, w as. ' The fair Burd Ellen,' said the Warluck Merlin, ' is carried away by the fairies, and is now in the castle of the king of ElHand ; and CHILD ROWLAND AND BURD ELLEN. 209 it were too bold an undertaking for the stoutest knight in Chi-ist- endom to bring her back.' ' Is it possible to bring her back ? ' said her brother ; ' and I will do it or perish in the attempt.' ' Possible, indeed, it is,' said the Warluck Merlin ; ' but woe to the man or mother's son who attempts it, if he is not sveU instructed beforehand of what he is to do.' " Influenced no less by the glory of such an enterprise than by the desire of rescuing his sister, the brother of the fair Burd Ellen re- solved to undertake the adventure ; and after proi)er instructions from J.Ierlin (which he failed in observing), he set out on his perilous ex- i)edition. But they bade lang and ay langer, With dout and mickle inaen ; And Avae were the hearts [in merry Carlisle], For he came na back again. " The second brother in hke manner set out ; but f;ilcd in observing the instructions of the Warluck Merlin ; and — They bade lang and ay langer, With mickle dout and maen ; And wae were the hearts [in merry Carlisle], For he came na back again. " Child Rowland, the youngest brother of the fair Burd Ellen, then resolved to go ; but T."a3 strenuously opposed by the good quceu [Gwene\Ta], who was afraid of losing all her children. " At last the good queen [Gwenevra] gave him her consent and her blessing; he girt on (in great form, and with all due solemnity of sacerdotal consecration) his father's good dai/more [Excalibar], that never struck in vain, and repaired to the cave of the Warluck Merlin. 'J'lic Warluck Merlin gave him all necessary instructions for his journey and conduct, the most important of which were, that he should kill every person he met with after entering the land of Fairy, and should neither cat nor drink of what was offered him in that country, whatever his hunger or tlurst might be; for if he tasted or touched in Elfland, ho must remain in the power of the Elves, and Lever see middle card again. " So Child Rowland set out on his journey, and travelled ' on and ay farther on,' till he came to where (as he had been forewarned by tiie Warluck Slerlin) he found the king of Elflaud's horse-herd feeding bi.s liorses. " ' Canst thou tell me,' said ChUd Rov.land to the horse-herd, 'where the king of Elllaiid'.s castle is?' 'I cainiot tell thee,' said the horse-herd ; ' but go on a little farther, and thon wilt come to the cow-herd, and lie, ijcrliap.'f, may tell thcc' So ( 'hild Rowland drew the good claymore | E.vcalibarJ, that never struck in vain, and hewed off the head f>f the horse-herd. Child Rowland then went on a litllo farther, till he came to tlie king of Ellhuul'.s cow-herd, who w;w feeding hi.s cows. 'Canst thou toll me,' said C'hild Row- land to the cow-herd, 'where the king of Ellland'.-j castle is?' 'I 210 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLA>fD. cannot tell thee,' said the cow-herd ; ' but go on a little farther, and thou ■\vilt come to the sheep-herd, and he, perliaps, may tell thee.' So Child Rowland drew the good claymore [Excalibar], that never struck in vain, and hewed off the head of the cow-herd. He then went on :\ little farther, till he came to the sheep-herd [The nhc'i-hcrd, goat-herd, and swine-herd are all, each in his turn, served in tlie same manner ; and lastly he is referred to the hen-wi/e.'\ " * Go on yet a little farther,' said the hen-wife, ' till thou come to a round green hill surrounded mth rings {te7~races) from the bottom to the top ; go round it three times vndershins, and every time saj'', Open, door ! open, door ! and let me come in ! and the third time the door will ojien, and you may go in.' So Child Rowland drew the good claymore [Excalibar], that never struck in vain, and hewed off the head of the hen-wife. Then went ho three times widershins round the green hill, crying, ' Open, door ! open, door ! and let me come in ; ' and the third time the door opened, and he went in. ' ' Tt immediately closed behind him, and he proceeded through a long passage where the air was soft and agreeably warm, like a May evening, as is all the air of Elfland. The light was a sort of twilight or gloaming ; but there were neither windows nor candles, and he knew not whence it came, if it was not from the walls and roof, which were rough and arched like a grotto, and composed of a clear transparent rock, incrusted with sheeps-silver and spar, and various bright stones. At last he came to two wide and lofty folding-doors, which stood ajar. He opened them, and entered a large and spacious hall, whose richness and brilliance no tongue can tell. It seemed to extend the whole length and height of the hill. The superb Gothic pillars by which the roof was supported were so large and so lofty (said my sennachy) that the pillars of the Chanry Kirk,* or of Pluscardin Abbey, are no more to be compared to them, than the Knock of Alves is to be compared to Balrinnes or Ben-a-chi. They were of gold and silver, and were fretted like the west window of the Chanry Kirk, with wreaths of flowers, composed of diamonds aud precious stones of all manner of beautiful colours. The key-stones of the arches above, instead of coats of arms and other devices, were ornamented with clusters of diamonds in the same manner. And from the middle of the roof, where the principal arches met, was hung by a gold chain an immense lamp of one liollowed pearl, perfectly transjJarent, in the midst of which was suspended a largo carbuncle, that by the power of magic continually turned round, and shed over all the hall a clear and mild light, like the setting sun ; but the hall was so large, and these dazzling objects so far removed, that their blended radiance cast no more than a pleasing lustre, aud excited no more than agreeable sensations in the eyes of Child Rowland. "The furniture of the hall was suitable to its architecture ; and at the farther end, under a splendid canopy, seated on a gorgeous sofa of velvet, silk, and gold, and ' kembing her yellow hair with a silver kemb,' — * The cathedral of Elgin naturally enough furniBhed similes to a man who had never in his life been twenty milos distant from it CHILD ROWLAKD AND BURD EIXEN. 211 There was his sister Burd Ellen; She stood up him before. Says,- ' God rue on thee, poor luckless Fodo !* What bast thou to do here ? * And hear ye this, my youngest brither, Why badena ye at hame? Had ye a bunder and thousand lives, Ye canna brook ane o' them. 'And sit thou down; and wae! oh wae! That ever thou was born; For come the king o' Elfland in, Thy leccam f is forlorn ! ' " A long conversation then takes place : Child llowland tells her the news of [merry Carlisle], and of his own expedition; and concludes with the oljservation, that, after this long and fatiguing journey to the castle of the king of Elfland, he is very hungnj. "Burd Ellen looked wistfully and mournfully at him, and shook her head, but said uothing. Actiug imder the influence of a magic V. hich she could not resist, she arose, and brought him a golden bowl fidl of bread and milk, which she pi-escnted to him with the same Liiuid, tender, aud anxious expression of solicitude. "Remembering the instructions of the \Yarluck IMerlin, 'Burd .'■JUen,' said Child Rowland, 'I will neither taste nor touch till I iave set thee free !' Immediately the folding-doors burst open with tremendous violence, and in came the king of Elfland, — With ' Fi, fi, fo and fum ! I smell the blood of a Christian man ! Be he dead, be he living, with my brand I'll clash his harns frae his harn-pan!' •' 'Strike, then, bogle of hell, if thou darest!' exclaimed the un- daunted Child Rowland, starting up, and drawing the good claymore [I'^xcalibar], that never struck in vain. "A fnrious combat ensued, and the king of Elfland was felled to the gionnd; but (Jhild Jtowland .spared him, on condition that he should restore to him his two brothers, who lay in a trance in a comer of the hall, and his sister, the fair Burd Ellen. The king of Elfland then iiroduocd a small cry.stal vial, containing a bright red liquor, witli wliich he anointed the lips, nostrils, eye-lids, ears, and lingcr-cnds of the two young men, who immediately awoke as from a profound sleep, during which their souls had quitted their hodies, i;i;r will you walk to your wedding. Or will you to it ride?" 47 '" I will not wvav the short. clothing. But I will wear the s^'de; I will not walk to my wedding, But I to it will ride." 48 When he w;is set upon the horse, Tlic lady him beliin'. Then cauld and ecrio were the words The twa had them between. 49 She saitl — " (jnde e'en, ye nettles tall, Where ye grow by the dyke; If the auld carline, my mother, was lioro, Sae weel 's she wou'd you pyko. >23S BALLAD MINSTUKLSY OF SCOTLAND. * 50 " How slic wou'd stap you in licr pock, I wot bIio -wou'dna fail; Ami lioil yu in lior auld brass pan, And of ye make gudc kail. 51 " And she wou'd meal you with mellerin< Tliat sho gathers at the mill, And make you thick as any dough, Till the pan it was brimfid. 52 " She wou'd mess you up with scuttlins, To sup till she were fa', Then hiy her head upon a pock, And snore like any sow." 53 " Oh, hold your tonguc_, ye beggar's brat, My heart will break in three!" " And so did mine in yon greenwood, When ye wou'dna let me be. 64 " Gude e'en, gude e'en, yeheather berries, There growing on the hill; If the aufd carle and his pocks were here, I wot he'd get his fill. 55 " Last night I sat till I was tired, And mended at their pocks ; But to-morrow morning I will bear The keys of an carl's locks. 56 '• Late, late last night, thiough baith their pocks, I drew the hempen strings; But to-morrow morning I will wear On my fingers gay gold rings." 57 "Away! away! ye ill woman, Your vile words grieve me sair; When you heed so little for yourself, For me still less ye'll care. 58 " But if you are a carle's daughter, As I take you to be, How did you get the gay clothing That on ye I do see?" b'J " My mother she is a poor woman, Nursed an earl's children three; And I got them from a foster-sister, To beguile such sparks as thee." ♦ " Mellering : " con-uption of ruddering. t " Scuttlius; " light flour made from Inferior graio. EARL lUCHAllD. 230 CO " But if you be a carle's daughter, As I take jou to be, How did ye learn the good Latin That ye sjjoke unto me?" 61 '■ My mother she is a mean woman, Nursed an earl's children three; I learn'd it from their chapelaiu, To beguile such sparks as thee." 62 Then to a beggar wife that pass'd, The ladye ilaug a crown; " Tell all your neighbours, when ye go hamo, ICarl Richard's your gude-son." * G3 '• Oh, hold your tongue, ye beggar's brat, ^ly heart will break in three !" '• And so did mine in yon greenwood, When ye wou'dua let me be." 61 And when they to Earl Richard's came, And were at dinner set, Tlien out and spake tlie bonnie bride, I wot she was not blatc. 65 "Go, take away tlie china plates, Go, take tliem far frae nic, And bring to me a wooden disli — It's that I'm best used wi'. 66 " And take awa}' tliese silver spoons, The like I ne'er did see, And bring to me the horn spoons — They're gude enough for me." 67 Wlien bells were rung and mass was sung, And all men bound for rest, Earl Richard and his bonnie bride In ae cliamber were placed. 68 " Oh, take away your slieets," she said, " Made of the llolland fine, And bring to me the liiisey clouts, That lang ha'c served as mine." 61) '• Keep lar away from me," he eaid, " Keej) lar a;\aj- fiom me; It is not meet a carline's brat My bedfellow nhou'd be." • "tiudc-Lori:' don-in-law. 2-iO nAI.I.AU MINSTKELSV OF SCOTLAND. 70 " It's niaybo Tin a carline's bra I, And niaj-bc I am none; But wlien wo inot in yon i^recnwdod, Why not let me alone?" 71 " Now rest content," said the Hilly lilin', " The one may serve the otlier; Tlie Earl of Stockford's fair daughter, And the queen o[" Scotland's brother." 72 " Oil, fair fall you, ye Cilly Blin', Smce such in her dee,'rce; For witli this vv-itty lady fair, How happy must I be!" BURD HELEN. " Earl IlicharJ," which precedes, and "Burd Helen," which follows, must titliev have had one common origin, or the one has borrov/ed JafLjoly from the other. The various versions of the latter ballad are as under: — I. " Child Waters," published by Percy from his folio i^lS. Jieliques, vol. iii., p. 94. II. " Burd EUon," in Jamieson's Popular Ballads, vol. i., p. 112 ; wlicre it is "given from Mrs. Brown's recitation," and " v.-ith Ecrupulous exactness, except where the varia- tions are pointed out." III. " An imperfect copy," prefixed to the last-named, and communicated to Mr. Jamieson by " Mrs. Arrot of Arbroath." IV, " Lady l\Iai'garet,'' in Ivinloch's Ancient Scottish Ballads, p. 179. V. "Burd Helen," in Biichau's Ancient Ballads and Soinjx, vol. ii., p. oO. VI. " Burd Helen," in Chambers's Scottish Bcdlads, p. 19.3 ; collated from the above-named, with additions and emendations, from a MS. supplied by Mi'. Kinloch. The text which follows is chiefly derived from Mr. Jamieson's and Mr. Buchan's versions. 1 Lord .Toiin stood at his stable door, While a groom his steed did kaim; Burd Helen sat at her bow'r door, Sewing her silken scam. 2 Lord John stood in his stable door, Said he was bound to ride; Biurd Helen stood in her bow'r door, Said she'd run by his side. BURD HELEN, 2J 1 3 " The corn is turning ripe, Lord John, The nuts are growing fu'. And j'e arc bound lor your ain couutriej — Fain wou'd I go with yon." 4 '-With me, Helen! witli me, Helen! What wou'd ye do with me? I've niair need ot" a little page, Than of the like of thee." 5 " Oh, I will be your little page, To wait upon your steed; And I will be your little page, Your leash of hounds to load." G " But my hounds will eat the bread of wheat, And ye the dust and bran; Tlien you will sit and sigh, Helen, That e'er our loves began." 7 " Oh, your dogs may eat the gude wheat broad, And I the dust and bran; Yet I will sing and say — ' Vf ell 's me. That e'er our loves began! '" 8 "Oh, I may drink the gude red wine. And you the water wan; TJien j'ou will sigh and say — 'Alas, Tliat e'er our loves began!'" 9 " Oh, you may drink the gude red wine, And I tlie water wan ; Yet I will sing and say — 'Well 's me, That our two loves began!'" 10 " Oh, you'd better stay at hame, Helen, And sew your silken seam. Than go with me o'er moss and moor, And many a foamhig stream." 11 "I will not stay at hame. Lord John, And sow my silken seam: I'll follow you o'er moss and moor. And o'er each foaming stream." 12 Lord John he mounted his white steed, And northward hame did ride; iJnrd Helen, dress'd in page attiro, I!;ii! onv.-ard by his side. 242 BALLAD MINSTftELSY OF SCOTLAND. 13 He ne'er was sic a courteous knight, As ask her for to ride; And she was ne'er so mean a May, As a'^k him for to bide. 14 Lord John lie rade, 13urd Helen ran, A live-long stunmer day; And when they came to Clyde water, 'Twas filled from brae to brae. 15 The first step that she waded in. She waded to the knee: "Alas! alas!" said Burd Helen, '' This water 's no for me." 16 The next step that she waded in, She waded to the neck; And then she felt her unborn bab« For cauld begin to quake. 17 " Lye still, lye still, my unborn babe, I can no better do; Your father rides on high horseback, But cares not for us two." 18 About the middle of the Clyde There stood an earth-fast stone ; And there she call'd to God for help, Since help from man came none. It) Lord John he turn'd him round aliout, And took Burd Helen on ; Then brought her to the other side, And there he set her down. 20 " Oh, tell me this now, good Lord John, In pity tell to me. How far is it to your lodging, "Where we this night shou'd be ? " 21 " It's thirty miles, Burd Helen," he said, "It's thirty miles and three." " Oh, wae is me," said Burd Helen, " It will ne'er be run by me!" 22 Then up and spake out in good time A pyet on a tree, — "Ye lee, ye lee, ye false, false knight, So loud as I hear you lee. BURD HELEN. 243 23 " For yonder stand your goodly tow'rs, Of miles scarce distant three." " Oil. well is me," said Burd Helen, " They shall be run by me." 24 " But there is a ladye in yon castlo Will sinder you and I." " Betide me weal, betide me woe, I shall go there and try. 25 " I wish no ill to your ladye, She ne'er did ill to me ; But I wish her most of your love, Who drees the most for thee. 26 "I wish no ill to your ladye, For sic I never thought ; But I wish her most of your love, Has dearest that love bought." 27 Lord John was welcom'd hame again By ladies fair and g^y; But a fairer ladye than any there Did lead his horse away. 28 Four-and-twenty ladies fair Sat with him in the hall ; But the fairest ladye that was there Did wait upon them all. 29 When bells were rung and mass was snug, And all were bound to meat, I'urd Helen was at the bye-table, Amang the pages set. 30 '• Oh, eat and drink, iny boniiio boy. The white brcid and the beer." " The never a bit can I cat or drink — My heart 'a sao full of fear." 31 ''Oh, eat and drink, my bonnie boy, The white bread and the wine." " Oh, how shall I eat or drink, master. With a heart 8ao full of pine?" 32 Then up and spake Lord John's sister, A sweet young maid was she: "My brother has brought tlie bonniest page That ever 1 did see." 211 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. S3 But out then spake Lord John's mother, A wise woman was slie : " "Where met ye with that honnio hoy, That looks so sad on thee ? 3-i " Sometimes his clieek is rosy red, And sometimes deadly Avan; He's hker a woman big- witli bairn, Than a young lord's serving man." "') " Oh, it makes me laugh, my mother dear. Sic words to liear frae thee; He is a 8(iuire's ac dearest son. That for love has follow'd me. 3G " Rise up, rise up, my bonnie boy. Give my horse baith corn and hay." " Oh, that I will, my master dear, As quickly as I may." ?)7 She 's ta'en the hay beneath her arm, The corn iutill her hand, And she's gane to the great stable As fast as e'er she can. 88 " Oh, room ye round, my bonnie brown steeds. Oh, room ye near the wall; For the pain that strikes through my twa sides, I fear, will gar me fall." 30 She leau'd her back against the wall. Strong travail came her on; And e'en amang the horses' feet, Bnrd Helen bare her son. 40 Lord John's mother infill her bow'r Was sitting all alane, "When, in the silence of the night, She lieard Burd Helen's mane. 41 " Won up, won up, my son," she said, " Go see how all docs fare; For I think I liear a woman's groans, And a bairnie greetin' sair!" 42 Oh, hastily he got him up, Staid not for hose nor shoon; But to the stable where she lay, He quickly hied him down. BURD HELEN. 245 43 " Oil, open tlie door, Bard Helen," he said, " Oh, open and let me in: I want to see if my steeds are fed. And what makes all this din." 44 '• How can I open, how shall I open, How can I open to thee? I'm lying amaug your horses' feet, Your j-oung son on my knee." 46 He hit the door then with his foot, Sae did he with his knee, Till door of deal and locks of steel In splinters he gar'd flee. 46 " An askin', an askin', Lord John," she said, " An askin' ye'U grant me : The warstcn bow'r in all j-our tow'rs For thy young son and me." 47 *• Oh yes, oh yes! Burd Helen," he .said, " All that and mair frae me; The very best bow'r in all my tow'rs For my young son and thee." 48 " An askin', an askin', Lord John," she said, " An askin' ye'll grant me : The meanest maid in all the place To wait on him and me." 49 " I grant, I grant, Burd Helen," he said, " All that and mair frae me: The very best bed in all the place To my young son and thee. 60 " The highest ladye in all the place Shall wait on him and thee; And that 's my sister, Isabel, And a sweet young maid is she. 51 '* Take up, take up, my bonnio young son. Gar wash him with the milk ; Take up, take up rriy fair ladye, Gar row her in the silk. i2 " And cheer thee up, Burd Helen," he said, " Look nae mair sad nor wae. For your wrdding and your kirking too Shall baith be in ac day." S ?46 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. REEDISDALB AND WISE WILLIAM. "This excellent ballad is from the recitation of Mr, Nicol, Strichen, and M-as communicated by Mr. P. Buchan, of Peterhead, to Mr. Llotherwell," in whose Minstrelsy, p. 298, it first appeared. See ante, p. 22. This ballad may also be found in Mr. Buchan's own collection of Ancient Ballade, vol. ii., p. 70. It resembles, in some respects, "The Twa Knights," which appears in the same work and volume, p. 271. A similar Scandinavian ballad, as translated by Mr, Robert Buchanan, may be found iu his volume. Ballad Stories of the Affec- tions, p. 45, under the title of " Maid Mcttelil.'' 1 When Reedisdale and Wise William Were drinking at the wine, There fell a roosing them amang, On an unruly time. 2 For some of them ha'e roosed their hawks, And some other their homids; And some other their ladies fair, As the roosing went the rounds. 3 Wlien out it spake him Reedisdale, And a rash word spake he ; Says — " There is not a ladye fair, In bow'r where'er she be, But I cou'd aye her favour win With one blink of my e'e." 4 Then out it spake him Wise William, And a rash word spake he; Says — "I have a sister of my own, In bow'r where'er she be. And ye will not her favour win With tliree blinks of your e'e." 5 "Wliat will you wager. Wise William? My lands I'll wad with thee; " " I'll wad my head against your land, Till I get more monie." C Then Reedisdale took Wise William, Laid him in prison Strang, That he might neither gang nor ride, Xor ao word to her send. REEDISDALE AND WISE WILLIA5I. 247 7 But he has written a braid letter, Between the night and day, And sent it to his own sister, By diui feather and gray. 8 When she had read Wise William's letter, She smiled and syne she leuoh; Said — "Very weel, my dear brother, Of this I have encuch." 9 She looked out at her west window. To see what she could see, And there she spied him Reedisdale, Come riding o'er the lea. 10 "Come here to me, my maidens all. Come hitherward to me; For here it comes him Reedisdale, Who comes a-courting me." 1 1 "Come down, come down, my ladye fair, A sight of you give me." "Go from my yetts now, Reedisdale, For me you will not see." 12 "Come down, come down, my ladyc fair, A eight of you give me; And bonnic are tlie gowns of silk That I will give to thee." 13 " If you have bonnie gowns of silk. Oh, mine is bonnie tee; Go from my yetts now, Reedisdale, For mo you shall not see." 14 " Come down, come down, my ladye fair, A sight of you give me; And bonnie jewels, brooches, rings, I will give unto thee." 15 " If you have boimie brooches, rings, Oh, mine arc bonnie tee; Go from my yetts now, Reedisdale, For mo you shall not bcc." IC " Coino down, come down, my lad^'o fair, Oik-, sight of j'oti give me; And bfiiinio nro tlio liallH and bow'rs Tliat I will give to tlieo." 248 BALLAD MINSTKELSY OF SCOTLAND, 17 " If you liavc bonnie halls and bow'rs, Oh, mhie aro bonnie tee; Go from my yetts now, Rcedisdale, For me you shall not see." 18 " Come down, come down, my ladyc fair, A sight of you give mo; And bonnie arc my lands so broad That I will give to thee." 19 " If you have bonnie lands so broad, Oh, mine are bonnie tec; Go from my yetts now, Eeedisdale, For me you will not see." 20 " Come down, come down, my ladye fair, A sight of you give me; And bonnie are the bags of gold That I will give to thee." 21 " If you have bonnie bags of gold, I have bags of the same ; Go from my yetts now, Eeedisdale, For down I will not come." 22 " Come down, come down, my ladye fair, One sight of you I'll see; Or else I'll set your house on lire, If better cannot be." 23 Then he has set the house on fire. And at tlie first it took; He turned his Aviglit horse head about, Said — " Alas! they'll ne'er get out." 24 " Look out, look out, my maidens fair, And see what I do see; How Eeedisdale has fired our house, And now rides o'er the leal 25 " Come hitherward, my maidens fair. Come hither unto me; For through this reek, and through this emeek, Oh, through it we must be!" 2G They took wet mantles them about. Their coffers by the band; And through the reek and through the flame Alive they all have yvan> TOUKG bear-?\t:ll. 2^9 27 \Vlien they had got out through the fire, And able all to stand, She sent a maid to Wise William, To bruik riccdisdale's land. 28 " Your lands are mine now, Eeedisdale, For I have won them free." " If there is a good -woman in the world, Your ain sister is she." YOUNG BEARWELL " Is a frasment, and now printed," says Mr. Motherwell, "in the hope that the remainder of it may hereafter be recovered. From circumstances, one would almost be inclined to trace it to a Danish source ; or it may be an episode of some forgotten metrical romance ; but this cannot satisfactorily be ascertained, from its catastrophe being unfortunately wanting." This fragment lirst appeared in Motherwell's Mbiftrdsy, p. ?Ao, and afterwards in Mr. Buchan's Ancient Ballads, vol. ii., p. 75, It appears here in a revised and amended form. 1 When two lovers love each other weel, 'Twere sin to have them twined ; And this I speak of young Bearwell, Who loved a ladye kind, — Tlie Mayor's daughter of Birktoun-lji'ac, Tliat lovely liesome thing. 2 One day, as she was looking out, Washing her milk-white hands. Then she beheld him, young Bearwell, As he came o'er the sands. .3 Says — " Wae's me for you, young Bearwell, Such tales of you are tauld ; Tiicy'U cause you sail the salt sea far, Beyond Orcados cauld." 4 " Oh ! shall I bide in good greenwood, Or licre in bow'r remain? " " Tiie leaves are thick in good greenwood, Woti'd hold you from the rain ; And if you stay in bow'r with me. You will be ta'en and slain. 5 " But I'll cause build a ship for you, Upon Saint Innocent's day; I'll pray Saint Innocent be your guido, And Our Ladyo, who raeiklc may. You arc a ladye's first true love, God carry you well away !" 250 BALLAD MINSTKELST OF SCOTLAND. 6 Then ho sailed east and he sailed west, B)' many a comely strand ; At leiigtii a pufl" of northern wiud Did blow him to the land, 7 Where he did see the king and court Were playing at the ball, Gave him a harp into his hand, And welcomed him withal. 8 He has ta'en up the harp in hand, And unto play went he; And young Bearwell was the lirst niau In all that companie. 9 He had not been in the king's court A twelvemonth and a day. Till there came many a lord and laird, To court that ladyc ga3\ 10 They wooed her baith with brooch and ring They nothing could keep back; The very charters of their lands Into her hands they pat. 11 She's done her down to her fiall,* With the ae light of the uume; Says — " Will ye do this deed for me. And will ye do it sune? 12 " Will ye go seek him, young Bearv/cll, On seas where'er he be ? And if I live and bruikf my life, Rewarded ye shall be." 13 "Alas! I am too young a skipper, So far to sail the faem ; ... But if I live and bruik my life, I'll strive to bring him hame." 14 So he sail'd east and then sail'd west, By many a comely strand. Till there came a blast of northern wind, And blew him to the land. 15 And there the king and all his court Were playing at tlie ball. And Bearwell, with his harp in hand, Play'd sweetly 'raang them all. ■A % * * -v.- ¥.- * *"FkiU:' feudal yasaaL f "Bruik:' cudure or oujay. CHIL ETUER. 251 CHIL ETHER.* From Buchan's Ancient Ballads, vol. ii., p. 22S. 1 Chil Ether and Ladye Maisry Were baitli born at ae birth; They lov'd each other tenderlie, 'Boon everything on earth. 2 '• The ley likesna the summer show'r, Nor girse the morning dew, Better, dear Ladye Maisry, Than Chil Ether loves you." 3 " The bonnie doo likesna its mate, Nor babe at breast its mither, Better, my dearest Chil Ether, Tlian Maisry loves her brither." 4 But he needs gae to gain renown, Into some far countrie; Sae Cliil Ether has gane abroad, To fight in Paynimie. 6 And he has been in Paynimie A twelvemonth and a day; But tidings ne'er to Maisry came. Of his welfare to say. 6 Then she 's ta'en ship awa to sail, Out ower the roaring faem, * All for to find hiin Chil lather. And for to bring him hame. 7 Siie hadna sail'd the sea a mouth, A month but barely three. Until she landed on Cyprus shore, By the mune-light sae hie. 8 I.adyc Maisry did on her green mantle, Took her purse in her hand. And call'd to her her mariners. Syne walk'd up thro' the land. 01), she walk'd up, and she walk'd down, Till she rcach'd a eastle high; And there sat down on the iloor-stane. And wept right bittcrlie. •CliiUlo Arth'-.i-, or A'lliur. Tho last is tho vulgar pronunciation in Edinburgh, wbero Arthur's !Scat in culled " A'tbur's Scat" 252 BALLAD MINSTUELSV OF SCOTLAND. 10 Tlion out it spake a sweet, sweet voico, Out o'er the castle wall: " Oh, isna that Lailj-e Maisry, That lets the tears down fall? 11 '' Jkit if tluit be Ladye Maisry, Let her make mirth and glee; For I'm her brother, Chil Ether, That loves her tender] ie. 12 " But if that be Ladye Maisry, Let her take purse in hand, And gang to yonder castle wall, — They call it Gorinand; 13 " Spier for the lord of that castle, (live him dollars thirty-three; Tell him to ransom Chil Ether, That loves you tcnderlie." 14 She 'b dune her up to that castle, Paid down her gude monic; And she has ransom'd Chil Ethei", Then hame baith cross'd the sea. JOHN THOMSON AND THE TURK. From Motherwell's M'mstrehy, appendix, p. ix. "This curious bal- lad, "says Mr. Motlierwell, "is of respectable antiquitj-. Duubarhas a pioverbial expression, meaning a henpecked husband. I have little doubt but the original proverb was /o«?j Thomson's man ; man, in Scotland, signiiies either hushand or servant.' Pinkerton was imo- raut of the "existence of the ballad : had he been acquainted with it, he would have saved himself the trouble of writing a fooUsh conjec- ture. Colvillc, in liis WliUja'' Supplication, or the Scotch Uudibras, alludes ivdce to John Thomson : — Again — 'Wo read in greatpst wari'ior.s' live?, 'J'hey oft were ruled by their wivc.-t, &c. And so the imporioua Roxalan Made the great Turk Johne Thomson's man. ' And these, we ken, IT ivo ever been John Thomson's men, Thai in still ruled by their wives.' " Pennicuik, in his ' Linton Address to the Prince of Orange,' also alludes to the proverbial expression : — 'Our IJiitovn Wives shall Uaw the coal, An'J women here, as weel we ken, Would have U.s all Jolm Thomsons men. JOHN THOMSON AND THE TURK. 253 " Two or three stanzas of the ballad were kuown to Dr. Leyclen when he ]mblishecl his edition of The Complaynt of Scotland. These he has given in the glossary appended to that work. "In Kelly's Proverbs, London, 1721, there is this notice of the proverb, — 'Better be John Thomson's man than Eingan Dinn's or John Knox's ; ' and Kellj^ gives this gloss, — 'John Thomson's man is he that is complaisant to his wife's humours ; Eingan Dinn's is he whom his wife scolds; John Knox's is he whom his wife beats.' In the West Country, my friend, Mr. A. Crawford, informs me that when a company are sitting together sociablj', and a neighbour drops in, it is usual to welcome him thus, — 'Come awa, we're a' John Tamson's bairns.' " There is a song about John Tamson's wallet, but whether this was the palmer's scrip, which the hero of the ballad must have borne, I know not. All that I have heard concerning the wallet is con- tained in these two verses : — ' John Tampon's wallet frae end to end, John Tamson's wallet frae end to end; And wh It waa in't ye fain would ken, — Whigmaleeries for women and men. 'About his wallet there was a dispute; Some said it was made o' the skm o' a bruto, But I believe it 's made o' the best o' bend, John Tamson's wallet, frae end to end." There is also a nursery rhyme which runs thus : — ' John Tamson and his man To the town ran ; They bought and they sold, And the penny down told. The kirk wa=i ane, The quire was twa; 1'hey gi'ed a skelp And cam' awa.' -Vnd this exhausts all I know respecting this worthy warrior." 1 John Thomson fonglit a.^-ainst the TnrlcH Tlirec years, intil a far countrie; And all tliat time, and something inair, Was absent from his gay ladyo. 2 But it fell ance upon .1 time, As this young chieftain sat alane, He spied his ladye in ricli array, As she walk'd ower a rural plain. 3 " Wliat brouglit ye hero, my ladye gay, So far awa from your ain countrie ? I've thought lang, find very lang, And all for your fair face to see." 4 Tor Honic daj-s she did witli him bide, Til! it rdl ance upon a day, — '• Fare yc wcei, for a time," she said, '• For no'vv I must boun hnnie nMay." 254 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 5 He 's gi'cn to licr a jewel fine, Was set with pearl and precious stano; Says — " My love, beware of these savages bold, Tliat's in your way as ye gang liame. 6 " Ye'll take the road, my ladye fair. That leads you fair across the lea: That keeps j^ou from wild Hind Soldan, And likewise from base Violeutrie." 7 With heavy heart they twa did part, She niintet as she wou'd gae hame; Hind Soldan by the Greeks was slain, But to base Violentrie she's gaue. 8 When twelve months they had expired, John Thomson lie thought wondrous lang, And he has written a braid letter. And seal'd it weel with his ain hand. 9 He sent it with a small vessel That there was quickly gaun to sea ; And sent it on to fair Scotland, To see about his gay ladye. 10 But the answer he received again — The lines did grieve his heart right sair: Nane of her friends there had her seen For twelve months and sometliing uiair. 1 1 Tlien lie put on a palmer's weed, And took a pike-staff in his hand; To Violentrie's castle he hied. But slowlj', slowly he did gang. 12 When within the hall he came, He jook'd and couch'd out ower his tree ; " If ye be ladye of tliis hall, Some of your good bountith give me." 13 " What news, what news, palmer?" she said, " And from what far countrie came ye?" " I'm lately come from Grecian plains. Where lies some of the Scots armie." 14 " If ye be come from Grecian plains. Some mair news I will ask of thee, — Of one of the chieftains that lies there. If he has lately seen his gay ladye." JOHN THOMSON AND THE TUKK. 255 15 " It is twelve months, and something mair, Since they did part on j-onder plain; And now this knight has began to fear One of his foes he has her ta'en." 16 " I was not ta'en by force norsHght; It was all by ray ain free will; He may tarry into the fight, For here I mean to tarry still. 17 " And if John Thomson ye do see, Tell him I wish him silent sleep; But he shall sleep alano for me. For where I am I mean to keep." 18 With that he threw aff his disguise, Laid by the mask that he had on; Said — '• Hide me now, my ladye fair, For Violentrie will soon be hame." 19 " For the love I bore thee ance, I'll strive to hide thee if I can." Then she put him down in a dark cellar, Wliere tliere lay many a new slain-mau. 20 But he hadna in the cellar been. Not an hour but barely three, "When hideous was the noise he heard, As in at the gate came Violentrie. 21 Says — " I wish you well, my ladye fair, It's time for us to sit to dine; Come, serve me with the good white bread, And likewise with the claret wine. 22 " That Scots chieftain, our mortal fac, Sae aft frae field has made us llec, Ten thousand zechins this day I'd give That I his face cou'd only sec." 23 " Oil, tliat same gift now give to me — I fairly hold you at your word — That chieftain's face you soon will see ; Come ben, John Thomson, to my lord." 24 Then from the vault John Thomson came. Wringing his hands most pitoouslie; " What wou'd ye do?" the Turk lie cried, " If yc had mc as I ha'o theo?" 256 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND, 25 " If I had you as ye lia'e me, I'll tell you what I'd do to thee; I'd hang- you up in ccood greenwood, And cause your ain hand wale tlic tree. L'G '* I meant to stick you witli ray knife, For kissing my beloved ladj'e." "But that same weed ye've shaped for mo, It quickly shall be sew'd for thee." 27 Then to the Avood they baith are gane; Jolm Thomson clamb frae tree to tree; And aye he sigh'd and said — " Och hone I Here comes the day that I must die." 28 He tied a ribbon on every branch, Put up a flag his men might see; But little did his false faes ken He meant them any injurie. 29 He set his horn unto his mouth, And he has blawn baith loud and shrill; And then three thousand armed men Came tripping all out o'er the hill. r-O " Give us our chief," they all did cry; " It's by our hand that ye must dee." " Here is your chief," the Turk replied, With that iell on his bended knee. 31 '• Oh, mercy, mercy, good fellows all, Mercy, I pray, you'll grant to me;" " Such inercy as you meant to give. Such mercy we shall give to thee." 32 This Turk they in his castle burnt, That stood upon yon hill so hie; John Thomson's gay ladyc they took, And hang'd her on the greenwood tree! GLENKINDIE. "The hero of this tale," -vrates Jamieson, "seems to bo tlio celebrated Wel^h bard, ' (ilaskirion,' or ' Kirion the Sallow ; ' of whom Eome notice will be found in Owen's Cambrian Bhgmphj. GLENKINDIE. 257 " In Cliaucer's * House of Fame,' he is classed with Orpheus, Arion, aud Chiron : — ' There herde I play on a harpe, That sownedbotli well aud sharpe, Hym Oi-pheus full craftily; And on this side fast by iSate the hai-per Orion; And Eaiides Chirion; And the Briton Glaskyrion.' " The Scottish writers, adapting the name to their own meridian, call him Glenkindy, Glenskeenie, &c." Douglas, the classic Bishop of Dunkeld, has, in his ' ' Palice of Honour," followed the father of Enghsh poetry in associating "the Briton Glaskyrion " with Orpheus. The only Scotish version of the LaUad is that printed under the above title by Jamieson, iu his Popular Ballads, vol. i., p. 92. He states that it is there " given," as " taken from the recitation of an old woman, by Professor tScott of Aberdeen, aud somewhat improved by a fragment communicated by the Rev. Wilham Gray of Lincoln." The ballad entitled " Glasgerion," as printed by Percy from his Folio MS., may be found in the Jieliques of Ancient Englisli Poetry, vol. iil ; and verbatim in the printed copy of the Folio MS., vol. i., p. 246. To complete the story, stanzas S, 27, and 28, are here added from Percy's copy. Stanzas 0, 14, 2U, 31, and 38, are also either altered or adapted from one or other, or both, of the versions named. It may be suggested, that something closer than a mere similarity of name, and of skill in music, may subsist between the classic Chiron and the British Glaskyrion. 1 Glen'KIXDIE lie was a harper gude, IIo liarpit to tlic king; Glcnkindie lie was the best harper That e'er harpit on string. 2 He'd harpit a fisli out of saut water, Or water out of a stane ; Or milk out of a maiden's breast, That bairn had never nane. lie's ta'cn liis harp intil liis liand, He liarpit and lie sang; And aye he harpit to the king. To haud him unthought lang. " I will gi'o you a robe, Glenkindie, A robe of the royal pall, If yo will harp in the winter's night Boforo me and my nobles all," 258 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 5 The king but and his nobles all Sat birling at the wine ; And lie wou'd ha'o nana but his ac daughter To wait on them at dine, 6 He 's ta'en his harp intil liis hand, He's harpit them all asleep, Except it was the young princess, That love did wauken keep. 7 And iirst he has harpit a grave tune, And syne he has harpit a gay ; And mony a sich* atween the tunes I wot the fair lady ga'e. 8 " Strike on, strike on, Glenkindie," slie said, " Of thy striking do not blin ; There 's never a stroke comes o'er thy harp, But it glads my heart within. 9 " And come ye to my bow'r," she said, " Come when the day it doth dawn ; Come when the cocks ha'e flappit their wings, Ha'e flappit their wings and crawn. 10 " But look ye tell na Gib your man, Of naething that ye may dee ; For, an ye tell him, Gib your man. He'll beguile baith you and me." 11 He 's ta'en his harp intil his hand, He harpit and he sang; And he is hame to Gib, his man. As fast as he cou'd gang. 12 "Oh, might I tell you, Gib, my man, If I a man had slain?" " Oh, that you might, my gude master, Tho' men ye had slain ten." 13 " Then take ye tent now, Gib, my man, My bidden for to dee, And, but an ye waken me in time. Ye shall be hangit hie. 14 '• For I maun haste to yon ladye's bow'r On the morn, when day doth dawn. As sune as the cocks ha'e flappit their wings, Ha'e flappit their wings and crawn." * "Sich: " a long-drawn Bigh. GLENKINDIE, 259 15 " Then gae to your bed, my gude master, Ye've waked, I fear, ower lang; But I'll waken you in as gude time As ony cock in the land." 16 He 's ta'en the harp intil his hand, He liarpit and he sang. Until he harpit his master asleep, Syne fast awa did gang. 17 And he is till that ladye's bow'r, As fast as he cou'd rin; And when he came till that ladye's bow'r He tirl'd at the pin. 18 " Oh, wba is this," says that ladye, " That tirls sae at the pin?" "It's I, Glenkindie, your ain true love, — Oh, open and let me in!" 19 She kenn'd he was nae gentle knight, That she had lettenin; For neitlier v/hen he gaed nor came, Kiss'd he her cheek nor chin. 20 He neither kiss'd her when he came, Nor clapp'd her when he gaed; And in and out at her bow'r window The moon shone like the gleed.* 21 " Oh, raggit are j'our hose, Glenkindie, And riven are your sheen,f And ravell'd is your yellow hair, That I saw late yestreen." 22 " The hose and sheen are Gib my man's, They came lirst to my hand; And I've ravell'd all my yellow hair, Coming against the Avind." 23 He 's ta'en the harp intil his hand, He harpit and he sang. Until he came to his master's bed. Ah fast as he cou'd gang. 24 " Win up, win up, my gude master, I fear yo sleep ower lang; ThfTf! is nao a cock in all the land PiUt has fiapp'd his wings and crawn." • LWe ombora. f Shoee. Abordoonshire dialect. 260 BALLAD MINSTKELSV Of SCOTLAND. 25 Gleiikindic 'r t.i'cn his liarp in lianri, And liastily l;o van, And he has rcacliM the kulyc's bow'r, Aforo that e'er he bhxn.* 2G When he came to tlic ladyc's bow'r, He there tirl'd at the pin. " Oil, wha is tliat at my bow'r door, Tliat tirls sac to get in?" "It's I, Glenkindie, j'our ain true lovo, And in I canna win." 27 " Oh, whether have you left w^ith me Your bracelet or your glove? Or are you return'd back again To know more of my love?" 28 Glenkindie swore a full great oath : " By oak, and ash, and thorn, Ladye, I was ne'er in your chamber Sith the time that I was born." 29 " Forbid it, forbid it," the ladye said, " That it as you say shou'd be; For if it be sae, then Gib, your man, Hath beguil'd baitli you and me. 30 " Forbid it. forbid it," the ladye said, " That e'er sic shame betide; That I shou'd first be a wild loon's lass, And then a young knight's bride." 81 Then she has ta'en a little penknife, Hung low down by her gair, And she has gi'eu herself with it A deep wound and a sair. 32 There was nae pity for that ladye, For she lav cauld and dead; But all was for him, Glenkindie — In bow'r he there gaed mad. 33 He 's ta'en his harp intil his hand, Sae mournfully it rang. And wae and weary it waa to hear Glenkindie's dowio sang. * "Blan:" ttoppeiL SWEET WILLIE AND FAIR ANNIE. 261 34 But cauld and dead was that ladye, Xor heeded of bis maen ; Tiio' he wou'd harp on till doomsday, She ne'er will speak again, 35 He 's ta'en his harp iutil his hand, He harpit and he sang; And he is hame to Gib, his man, As fast as he cou'd gang. 30 " Come forth, come forth now, Gib, my man, Till I pay you your fee ; Come forth, come forth now, Gib, my man, For weel paid ye shall be." 37 And he has ta'en him, Gib, his man, And he has hang'd In'm hie, And he's hang'd him o'er his aiii vett, .Vs high as high cou'd be. S8 Xi'xt set the pummil of his sword Against an earth-last stone; TIk-ij tlirew liimself upon the point, And died without a groan. SWEIOT WILLIE AND FAIR ANNIE. "Three ballads," says Mr. Jamieson, "all of them of considerable jnerit, on the same subject, are to be found in vol. iii. of the Ju'li'/urti of Ancient Eixjll-ih Po'J/nj, under tlic titles of 'Lord Thomas and Fair Elinor,' ' Fair Mari,'arct and Sweet William,' and ' Jjord Thomas and Fair Annet ;' the latter of which is in that work given with some correc- tions, ' from a M.S. copy transmitted from Scotland,' and sui)posed to bo Mijio.sed, not without improvements, out of the two former ancient 11,'lish ones. At thi.s distance of time, it Avould be in vain to '• inpt to a.scertain which was the ori>,'inal and which the imitation ; '1, I think it extremely ju-obablc tliat, in their ori;4in, they were . rfectly independent of each other, and both derived from some one of those fableaux, romances, or talcs, which, about four or live hun- dred years ;i,'o, were so famiharly known, in variou.s forms, over a great part of l]uroi)C, tiiat it would even then liave been difficult to §ay to whfit country or lani,'ua;'e tlu^y owed their birth. 1'hc text of ' I»rd Tliomas and Fair ^Vjiuct ' seems to have been adjusted, previoiifl to its leaving Scotland, by some one ^\■ho was more of a Ki holar tlian the rccitcrd of ballads generally arc; and, in attempting; .;ivc it an antique cast, it has been deprived of Honiewhat of tliat y facility which is the distinguished ciiaracteristic of tlio tra. 17 " No, I will take n\y mother's counsel, And niany luc out of hand; And I will take the nut-brown bride, And let fair Annie stand. 18 " 01), I i^liall wed the nut-brown maid, And I shall bring her hame ; But peace nor rest I ne'er shall ha'e, Till death part us again. 19 " Where will I get a bonnio boy, Wou'd fain win hose and shoon. That ■\\ill riu to fair Annie's bow'r, With the lee light of the moon? 20 " Ye'll tell her to come to Willie's wodilin* The morn, by twelve at noon; Ye'll tell her to come to Willie's weddia'. The heir of Duplin town.* 21 " She maunna jiut on the black, the black, Nor yet the dowie brown ; But the scarlet red, and the kerehes white, And her fair locks hangin' down." 22 The bonnie boy ran to Annie's bow'r, Ami tirl'd at the pin, And tauld his message to hcrsel', As she open'd to let him in. 23 " Oh, I will gang to Willie's weddin' The morn, by twelve at noon; Oh, I will gang to Willie's weddin', But I'll die ere day be dune. 24 " My maids, come to my dressin' room, And dress to me my hair ; Where'er ye laid a plait before, See ye lay ten times mair. 25 " Jly maids, come to my dressin' room, And dress to me my smock; The one-half is of the Holland fine, The other of needle-work. • " 2>uplin t aro common in churchyardH. and are probably of a jiho.-^phoric naturo. I^iit rustic RiipcrHtition derives them from Biipcmatural aRonoy, and Hunposrs tliaf, nn hoon as lifo lint depnrled, a pnle fliiino npinam at tlii window of the lioiiK) in whitli the jicrHon had died, and jtl'dcN towards the churchyard, trac.inK t)n'ouf{li rvorr wlndlnp llm rr.uto of ttio future funeral, aud pauHiug'whcro the biir i» lo r^'-l. Tlds and otiior ojiinlons, rolatlcg to the "tomt-flre'B livid gleam," Bcem to ti.'< of Bunic extraction. 276 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 31 Then up and spake tlie popinjay; Says — " Wliat needs all this din? It was his leman took hia life, And llirew him in the linn." 35 Yet still she swore by grass so green, By corn and by thorn, That she Lord William had not seen Since yesterday at morn. 80 " It must have been my bow'r-wuiaan; Oh, ill may her betide! For I ne'er wou'd slain Lord William, And thrown him in the Clyde." 87 Tli(! King he call'd upon his men, To hew down wood and thoi-n; And there to build a strong baile-hre, The bow'r-maiden to burn. 38 Then they built up a strong baile-fire, To burn that maiden in; But it would not liglit upon her cheek, Nor yet upon her chin; 39 Nor yet upon her yellow hair, To cleanse the deadlj'' sin; But it took upon the cruel hands That help'd to throw him in. 40 The maiden touch'd the clay-cold corpse, A drop it never bled ; But Avhen the Iad3'e touch'd the corpse, The blood came gushing red. 41 Then they've ta'en out the bow'r-womau, And they've put the lad3'e in: The flame took fast upon her cheek, And fast upon her chin ; 42 And faster on the cruel hand, That wrought the deadly sin; Until the ladye's fair body "Was burn'd like holyu green.* •"Holyn green:" preen holly. The Hues immediately preceding, "The maiden touched,''^ &o., and which are restored from tradition, refor to a Buperstition fomierly rcceired in most parts of Europe, and even rcsorfod to by judicial puthority, for the discoveiy of murder. In Germany, this experiment was calhd Eahr-rocht, or the law of the bier; because, the murdered body being stretched upon a bier, the suspected person was obliged to put one hand "upon the wound. YOUNG JOHXSTONE. 277 YOUNG JOHNSTONE. "A fra^'ment of this fiuo old ballad" was pnljlliroed by Herd, under the'title of " The Cruel Knight," in his i not unlikely to happen in tho course of I b'fl.ng or htirring the body— it w b held bufJlcient ovidenco ol tho guilt of tho party. Tho same s nmilar kind of evidence, although reprobated by Malthaeus and Carpzovlus, was admittort in the Scottish criminal courts, at the short diatuuce of ore century. fThf cases nnrrafed by Scott are those of Muir, laird of Auchlndrane, in AyrRhiro M'lU). from ^Vodrow'H '//i.(orv, vol. i., p. .'jl.T; and HumcH Criminal Lmrs, vol. i., p. 4-.'S: of Philip Standlleld (JJOIh Nov., 1CS7), from FounUlnhaU's Oerisioiif. vol. I., p. 4^!: snd another at the cliiKsic stream of Yarrow, as coniniunicatod to him by "cu ingenious corrf^pondCDt." An inslan'-o of the prevalecoe of this belief. In comparatively recent times, Is cKcd by Kinloch fp. 1'.'), from 'Irlfulr'.s True Relation or an Apjmrilinn, &e., 16'J!>; and one Htdl more recent, an ' practised at Aberdeen," within the recollection of Mr. Kinloch, lULmoly, some time about Uio beginning of the preitent contury.J U 278 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OK SCOTLAND. subjoined in the notes ; tlie iirsfc two lines of stanza 23 added, with the view of completing the sense; and a few verbal changes made, it is ho[)ed, nut only without violence, but rather with iniproveuient, to the text. 1 Young Johnstone and the j'onng Col'nel Sat drinkinp: at tlic w-inc : "Oil, if ye wou'd marry my sister, It's I wou'd marry tiiine." 2 '"I svou'dna marry your sister For all your houses and land; But I'll keep her for my leman, When I come o'er the strand. 3 "I wou'dna marry your sister For all your gowd and fee; But ril keep her for my leman, When I come o'er the sea." 4 Young Johnstone had a nut-brown sword, Hung low down by his gair, And he rittcd* it through the young Cornel, That word he ne'er spake mair. 5 But lie 's awa to his sister's bow'r, lie's tirl'd at the pin; " Where ha'e ye been, my dear brother, Sae late a-coming in? G " I've dreamed a dream this night," she says, "I wish it may be for good; They were seeking you with hawks and hounds, And the young Col'nel was dead." 7 ''With hawks and hounds they may seek me, As I trow well they be ; For I ha'e kill'd the young Col'nel, And tliy true love was ho." 8 ■'' If ye ha'e kill'd the young Col'nol, Oh, dule and wae is me ! But may ye hang on a high gallows. And ha'e nae power to flee." * " 'Eittcd: ' thmst violently. In A> Tristrem it is uso.l simply to cut [Vide Fytte L, stanza xliv.]— Finlay. In the copy obtained by tlie editor, the word 'rittod' did not occur; instead of whicli tbo word 'stabbed' was used. TIia 'nut-brown fiword' was also changed into 'a little Bmall sword' "— MothorweU. YOUNG JOHNSTONE. 27'J 9 Then he's awa to bis true love's bow'r, Pie 's tirl'd at the piu : " Where ha'e ye been, my dear Johnstone, Sae Lite a-coniiug in? 10 "I ha'e dream'd a dreary dream," she saj'S, '• I wish it may be for good ; They were seeking you with hawks and hounds, And the young Col'nel Avas dead." 11 " With hawks and liouuds they n^ay seek nio, As I trow well they be; For I ha'e kill'd the young CoFnel, And thy ae brother Avas he." 12 " if ye ha'e kill'd the young Col'nel, Oh, dulo and wae is me ! But I care the less for the young Cornel, If thy ain body bo free.* 13 " Come in, come in, my dear Johnstone, Come in and take a sleep ; And I will go to my casement. And careful watch I'll keep." 1-i She 's ta'eu him to her f^ecret bow'r, Pinn'd with a siller pin ; And she 's up to her highest tow'r, To watch that none come in. 15 He hadna weel got up the stair, And entor'd in her bow'r. When four-and-twenty belted knights Came riding to the door. ITi " Now God you save, my fair ladyo, I pray you tell to mc. Oh, did you Boe a bloody squire, A bloody squire was lie; Oh, did you sec a bloody squire Come riding o'er tlie lea':'" 17 " What colour were his hawks?" she snyR, " What colour wore his hounds? What colour was the gallant steed That bore him from tho bounds?" • " Bat If I Bayo yonr fair body, Tho bottor you a Uko mo. —Tho Cniol XCnight 280 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 18 " Blooily, bloody were liis liawks, Ami bloody were bis bounds; AihI inilk-wliite was tbe gallant steed That bore bim from tbe boiuids." 19 " Yes, bloody, bloody were bis bawks, And bloody were bis bounds ; And milk-wbite was tbe gallant steed That bore bim from the bounds. 20 " Yes, bloody, bloody was bis sword, And bloody Avere bis hands; But if the steed be rides be good, lie 's past fair Scotland's strands.* 21 "Light down, light down, then, gentlemen, And take some bread and wine; The better j'ou will him pursue, When you shall lightly dine." 22 " We thank you for your bread, ladye, We thank yon for your wine ; But till that bloody knight is ta'en, We cannot think to dine."f 23 Then up unto her secret bow'r She noiselessly did creep, — " Lye still, lye still, my dear Johnstone, Lye still and take a sleep; For thy enemies are past and gone. And careful watch I keep." j 24 But young Johnstone bad a sbarp woe sword, Hung low down by bis gair. And he stabb'd it in fair Annet's breast, A deep wound and a sair. 25 "What aileth thee now, mj' dear Johnstone? What aileth thee at mo? That for the service I ha'e done Ye pay me such a fee? " § • " ITe'R past the bridgo of Tyne." — Finlay. |^ Both occur In conuectlon with the " He 's past the brig o' Lyne."— Motherwell, t first two lines of stanza 21. t " But I warl fri'e thrice three thouF.in'l pound That bloody knight was ta'en.''- I\Iotherwoll. t One version ends hare. The concluding stanzas seom to have been added by another hand. J "Hast thou not got my father's gold, Bot and my motti«r'a fee? "—Both Finltiy and MothvrwelL TOUNG BEXJIE. 2«l 2G '' Alas ! alas ! my fair ladye, To come so hastilie: I took you for my deadly foe, Had come to captm-e me. 27 " Now live, now live, my dear ladye, Xow live but half an hour, Ar.d the skilliest leech in all Scotland Shall be brought to thy bow'r." 28 '• How can I live, how shall I live? My love, do not you see The red, red drops of my heart's blood Run trickling down my knee? 29 " But take thy harp into thy hand, And harp out o'er yon plain; And think nae mair on thy true love, Tlian if she ne'er had been." 30 He was scarce frae the stable gone, And on his saddle set, Till four-and-twcnty broad arrows Were thrilling in his heart. YOUXCr BENJIE. "In this liallad," writes Sir Walter Scott, "the reader will find traces of a s-in.,adar .superstition, not j'ct altogether discredited in the wilder parts of Scotland. The lykewake, or watching a dead V)ody, in itself a melancholy oflice, is rendered, in tlic idea of the assistants, more dismally awful, by the mj-stcrious horrors of sujier- Htition. In the interval hetwi.xt death and intcrnicut, the dis- cmVmdied sjiint is supposed to hover around its mortal Inhitation, and, if invoked by certain rites, retains the power of coinnumicating, through its organs, the cause of its dissolution. Such inquiries, liowever, are ahvajs dangerous, and never to he resorteil to, unless the deceased is suspected to have sutfercd foul ])lay, as it is c.illcd. It is the more unsafe to tim])cr witli tliis cliarin in ;in unautl.orize I manner, because tlie iidiabitants of the inforn;d regions arc at suc'i periods peculiarly active. One of the most potent ceremonies ni the cliann, for cau.sin;; the dead body to speak, is setting the door ajar or half open. On this account, tlic peasants of Scotland scdid- ously avoid leaving tlie door ajar, while a corpse lies in the liouse. The door nuist eitiier bo left wide open, or (juite pliut ; but tlio lirst is always profcrrcil, fin account of tlie exercise of hos])itnlity usual on such occasions. The attendants nuist be likewise carcfid iicvtr to leave the corpse for a moment alone, or, if it is left alojie, to avoid, with a degree of superstitious horror, the lint sight of it. 1:82 BALLAD MINSTRKLSY OF SCOTLAND. "The following story, which is frequently related by the peasants of Scotland, \\ ill iUnstrate the imaginary danger of leaving the door ajar. ' In former times, a man and his wife lived in a solitary cottage on one of the extensive Border fells. One day the husband died suddenly; and his wife, who was equally .afraid of staying alone by the corpse, or leaving the dead body by itself, repeatedly went to the door, and looked anxiously over the lonely moor for the sight of some person approaching. In hei* confusion and alarm, she accidentally left the door ajar, Avhen the corpse suddenly started up, and sat in the bed, fro^vning and grinning at her frightfullj-. She sat alone, crying bitterly, unable to avoid the fascination of the dead man's eye, and too much terrified to break the sullen silence, till a Catholic priest, passing over the wild, entered the cottage. He iirst set the door quite open, then put his little finger in his mouth, and said the pater- noster backwards ; when the hoiTified look of the corpse relaxed, it fell back on the bed, and behaved itself as a dead man ought to do.' "The ballad is given from tradition. I have been informed by a lady, of the highest literary emineuce, that she has heard a ballad on the same subject, in which the scene was laid upon the banks of the Clyde. The chorus was — ' Oh, Bothwell banks bloom bouuio,' and the watching of the dead corpse was said to have takeu place in Bothwell church." The ballad is hero piinted from Scott's Minstrelsy, vol. iii., p. 10, with the addition of stanzas 13 to 17 inclusive, from a diflerent version, published by Mr. Buchan, in Ancient Ballads, vol. ii., p. 265, under the title of "Boiidsey autl Maisry." The last two lines of stanza 17, and the first two of stanza 18, have, however, been very slightly altered. 1 Of all the maids of fair Scotland, The fairest was Marjoric ; And youn.tj Benjio was her ae true love, And a cleir txuo love was lie, 2 And wow but tiicy were lovers dear, And lov'd full coiistantlic; But aye tlie mair wlien they fell out, Tlie sairer was their jslea.* 3 And they ha'e quarrel: 'd on a day, Til! Marjorie's heart grew wae; And slic said she'd cliuse another luve, And let young Benjie gae. 4 And he was stoutf and proud-hearted. And thought o't bitterlie ; And he 's ganc by the wan moonlight, To meet his Marjorie. • '-Plea:" nsed obliquely for dispntp. t " Stout," tbrough this whole ballad, except in one instance (stanza 10), signifies haughty. TOUXG BEXJIE. 2bd 5 '• Oh. opeu, open, my true love, Oh, open and let me in! " " I darena open, young Benjie, My three brothers are within." 6 " Ye lee, ye lee, ye bonnie burd, Sae loud 's I hear ye lee; As I came by the L. uden banks, They bade gude e'en to me. 7 *' But fare ye weel, my ac fause love, That I have lov'd sae lang! It sets ye * chuse another love, And let young Benjie gang." 8 Then Marjorie turn'd her roimd about, The tear blinding her e'e; " I darena, darena let thee in, But I'll come down to thee." 9 Then saft she smil'd, and said to him — "Oh, what ill ha'e I done?" He took hor in his arms twa, And threw her o'er the linn. 10 The stream was sti'ong, the maid was stout, And laith, laith to be daug;f But ere j'e wan the Louden banks, Her fair colour was wan. 11 Then up bespake her eldest brother — " 01), see na ye w'hat I see ? " And out then spake lier second brother — " It is our sister Marjorie ! " 12 Out then spake her eldest brother — "Oh, how shall we her ken?" And out tlien spake her youngest brolln r — "There's a honey mark on her chin." 13 The eld(-:^t brother he stepp'd in, He stepp'd in to the knee; Then out he jump'd upon the bank — " This Avatcr 's no tor me." 14 The second brother he stepp'd in. He stepp'd in to the rineet; Then out lie jump'd upon the bank — " Tliis water's wond'rous deep." •"Scisyc:" becomes yoa; ironical. t " Dang: " doleatod. 284 BALLAD MINSTRELSY Of SCOTLAND. If) TliL'ii Uie tliiid lirollior lie steppVl in, lie ste]ipM in to the chin; But out again lie quick did wade, For fear of drowning hira. 16 The youngest brother he stepp'd in, Took his sister by the hand; He knew her by the honey drops, And brought her corpse to land. 17 Then ho has ta'en the comely corpse, And laid it on the ground; Saying — " Wha has kill'd our ae sister? And how can he be found? 18 " The night it is her low lykcwake, The morn her burial day; And w^e maun watch at mirk midnight, And hear what she will say." 19 With doors ajar, and candles liglit, And torches burning clear, The streekit corpse, till still midnight, They waked, but naething hear. 20 About the middle of the night The cocks began to craw; And at the dead hour of the night, The corpse began to thraw. 21 " Oh, wha has done thee wrang, sister, Or dared the deadly sin? Wha was sae stout, and fear'd nae dout, As throw ye o'er the linn?" 22 " Young Bcnjie was the lirst ae man I laid mj'- love upon; He was sae stout and proud-hearted, He threw me o'er the linn." 23 " Shall we young Benjie head, sister? Shall we young Benjie hang? Or shall we pike out his twa gray ceu. And punish him ere he gang? " 24 " Ye maunna Benjie head, brothers, Ye maunna Benjie hang; But ye maun pike out his twa gray een, And punish him ere lie gang. FIXE FLOW£I;S IN THE VALLEY. 285 25 " Tic a green gravat '^ round his neck, And lead him out and in, And the best ae servant about your lioiise To wait young Benjie on. 2G " And aye at every seven j-ears' end, Ye'll take him to the linn; For that's tlie penance he maun dree, To scug"j" his deadly sin." FINE FLOWERS IN THE VALLEY. This favouiite Scotish ballad first appeared in Herd's collection, voL i., p. 88. A more complete ver.sion subsequently appeared, in Jamiesoii's Popular Ballads, \(A. i., p. CG, under the title of "The Cruel Brother; or, The Bride's Testament," and wa.s there printed vtrlatim, as taken down from the recitation of Mrs. Arrott. Professor Aytoun, in \\\a Ballads of Scotland, 2d edition, vol. i., p. 232, prints, professedly "from recitation," what in reality is simply a collated vei"siou of the two above-named. As the difference between the two versions occurs chieily in the openinc; stanzas, those from Herd, with their i)eculiar refrain, are first given up to the point at which the versions become identical for four stanzas, which, with the remaining portion of the ballad, are next given under the title, and foll()^^■ing the text, of Jamieson's version ; in its earlier portion more consistent, and in its latter por- tion more ample and j^olished, than Herd's. The verses from this la^t which follow occur verbatim, and in the same order in Trofcssor Aytoun's copy. Both start with "three ladies " and " three lords," but one of the " ladies" and two of the " J(?rds " drop suddenly and unaccountably out of the storj'. The two following stanzas, which have a different refrain from the others, appear at the end of Herd'.s version : — '• Sho loutcil down to pi'e a kiss— Willi a lieii, and a lilij gay; He 6tuck lii'.s pcnlcnife in her liass— Avd llii: rote it smells so sweetly. " 'lllJo up. i-i'lo up,' cried Uio foremost man— M'ilh n Ik II, and a lily gay; '1 think our bride looks pale and wuu' — And the rose it imells so stcedhj." The concludin.', or tcstamcntaiy portion of tlie ballad, as given in "The Cruel iJrotlu.r," <^.c., occur.«, in slightly varied forms, in the t\\ o Ruccccding ballads, "The Twa Brothers," "Edward, Edward," and in another still further on, "Lord Donald." Analogous conclusions may also be found in Scandinavian and German ballads. * "Oravat" or craTtit: a worsted nock Bcarf. t "Scug:" coTtr or expiate. 286 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 1 There were throe ladies in a liall — Fine Jloto'rs in the valley : Tlicre came three lords anioiijj; them all — The red, green, and the yellow. 2 The tirst of them was clad in rod — "Oh, ladj'e fair, will ye be my bride?" 8 The second of them was clad in groeu — "Oh, ladyc fair, will yc be my queen?" •t The third of them was clad in yellow — "Oh, ladye fair, will ye be my marrow?" 5 " Oh, ye maun ask my father dear, Likewise the mother that did me bear; 6 " And ye maun ask my sister Ann, And not forget my brother John." 7 " Oh, I have ask'd thy father dear. Likewise the mother tliat did thee bear; 8 ''And 1 liavc ask'd thy sister Ann, But I forgot thy brother John." THE CRUEL BROTHER. 1 There were three ladies in u hall — With a heigh-ho I and a lily gay; There came a lord among them all — As the primrose spreads so sweetly. 2 The oldest was baith tall and fair; But the youngest was beyond compare. 3 The midmost had a graceful mien ; But the youngest look'd like beauty's queen. 4 The knight bow'd low to all the three; But to the youngest he bent his knee. 5 The ladye turn'd her head aside ; The knigjit he woo'd her to be his bride. C The ladye blush'd a rosy red, And said — " Sir Knight, I'm too young to. wed." THE CRUEL BROTHER. 287 7 " Oh, ladye fair, give me your hand, And I'll make you ladye of all my land." 8 " Sir Knight, ere you my favour Avin, Ye maun get consent frae all my kin." 9 He has got consent frae her parents dear, And likewise frae her sisters fair ; 10 He has got consent frae her kin each one, But forgot to speir at her brother John, 11 Now, when the wedding-day was come, The knight wou'd take his bonnie bride houT.\ 12 And many a lord and many a knight Came to behold that ladye bright. 13 And there was nae man that did her see. But wish'd himself bridegroom to be. 14 Her father dear led her down the stair, And her sisters twain they kiss'd licr there. 15 Her mother dear led her through the close, And her brother John set her on the horse. 16 She lean'd her o'er the saddle-bow, To give him a kiss ere she did go. 17 He has ta'en a knife, baith lang and sharp, And stabb'd the bonnie bride to the heart. 18 She hadna ridden half throndi the town, Until her heart's blood stain'd her gown. Vj " Hide saftly on," said the best young man, " For I think our bonnie bride looks pale and wan." 20 •' Oh, lead inc over into yon btilo, That I may stop and breathe awhile. 21 '• Oh, had mo gently up yon hill, And I'll there sit down and make my will." 1^2 " Oh, what will you leave to your father dear?" "The silver-sliod steed that brought me licre." 2P) "What will you Iravc to your motlicr dear?" " My velvet pall and silken gear." 288 BALLAD MINSTKELSY 01' SCOTLAKD. 2-1 " And what will yon leave to yonr slRter Ann?" " My silken scarf and my golden fan." 25 '' What will yon leave to yonr sister Grace?" " JI3- bloody clothes to wash and dress." 20 " What will yon leave to yonr brother John ?" " The gallows-tree, to hang him on." 27 '' What will yo leave to yonr brother John's wife?" " The wilderness, to end lier life." 28 This fair ladye in her grave was laid, And a muss was o'er her said. 2'.) But it wou'd have made yonr heart right sair — Vv'ith a heigh-ho! and a lily gay, To see the bridegroom rive his hair — As the primrose spreads so sweetly. THE TWA BEOTHERS. Three Scotisli versions of this ballad have appeared, as under: — I. In Jatniesdu's Popular Ballads and Su/i\o. 07; Aririii.tMO)i, No. 87, A. B. — a translation of which may be fouud in JJirratitre and Bomnvce of Northern. Eurojir, vol. i., p. 2GiJ. In Schroter's Finnhche Jiuiioi (Finnisch and Dcutseh), there is also given "a traditionary ballad known in Finland, entitled, ' Weriner Pojka,' " " ]-)cr Blutige Sohn," or "The Bloody Son," of which an all but literal translation may bo found in Professor Child's IJin/lish and Smttixh Ballads, vol. ii., \>. 3-50. There are also two other similar Scotish ballads, " Edward ! Edward!" wliich fallows next in order, but iu which the cnme is 290 BALLAD MrNSTBELSY OF SCOTLAND, parricide ; and " Sou Davio! Son Davie! " which is f^iven by Mother- well, "froiii the recitation of an old woman" {Minsti-e/si/, p. 339). This last closely resembles "Edward! Edward!" but the crime, as in all the other ballads named, is fratricide. Very curiously, too, the first of three stanzas, as quoted from it under, vindicates Mr. Jamieson's rendering of stanza 3, in opposition to Motherwell's, as given in the text of the collated ballad here printed, and makes havoc of his theory. They are — " What about did Ihe plea bcgiu? Son Pavio! son JJavie!" " Itbogau about the cutting o' a willow wauil, That would never ha'e been a tree, 0." " What death dost thou desird to die? Son Davie! son Davie! What deatli dost thou desire to die? And the truth come tell to me, 0." " I'll set my foot in a bottomless ship, Mother ladye ! mother lady e! I'll set my foot in a bottomless ship, And ye'U never see mair o' me, 0." 1 There were twa brothers at the f?knil; And when they got awa, — "It's v/ill ye play at the stane-chticking?* Or will ye play at the ba' ? Or will ye gae up to yon hill head, And there we'll warslef a fa'?" 2 "I winna play at the stane-chucking, Nor will I play at the ba' ; But I'll gae up to yon bonnie greou hill, And there we'll warsle a fa'." 3 They warsled up, they warsled down, Till John fell to the ground : A du-k fell out of Willijim's pouch. Gave John a deadly wound. J 4 " Oh, lift me, lift me on your back, Take me to yon well so fair, And Avasli the bluid frae aff my wouml, And it will bleed nae mair!" * " Stane-chncking : " stone-putting. t " Warsle : " wrestle. t " They warsled up, they warsled down, Tlie lee-lang simmer's day ; [And nana was near to part the strife 'Jliat raise atween them twae, Till out and Willie's (brawn Jiis sword, Ard did his brother sloy.] " — Jamiepc:^. THE TWA r.ROTHF.n?, 291 5 He 's lifted him upon bis back, Ta'eii him to yon Avell fair, And Avasli'd the bluid frae aff his v/ound, But aye it bled the nuiir. 6 " Oh, ye'U take aff my holyn sark, And rive it gair by gair, And stap it in my bluid}' wound, That it may bleed nac mair!" 7 Oh, he "s ta'en afl" his holyn sark, And rived it gair by gair ; He 's stapt it in the bluidy wound, But it bled mair and mair. 8 '• Oh, lift me, lift mo on your back, Take mo to Kirkland fair, And dig a grave baith wide and deep, And lay my body there. 9 " Ye'U lay my arrows at my head, My bent bow at my feet ; My sword and buckler at my side, As I was wont to sleep. 10 " But what will ye say to your father dear, When ye gae hame at e'en?" " I'll say ye'ro lying at yon kirk style, Where the grass grows fair and green." 11 " Oh no, oh no, my brother dear, Oh, you must not say so; But say that I'm gaiie to a foreign land, Where nae man docs me know. 12 " Or when yc gang hame to my father dear, And lio says — ' Willie, where 's Jolm?' Then Hay tiiat, to buy him a cask of wine, To England I liavo gone." 13 " And what will I Fay to my mother dear, When she says — 'Willie, where 's John?'" " Oh, say that, to buy her a now silk gown, To Engiund I have gone." 14 " And what will I say to my sister dear. When she says — ' Willie, where 's John?'" " Oh, say that, to bring her a lover true. To England I have gone," 202 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 15 " And wliat will I say to j'our true love, When she spoils lor lier love JoIjii?" " Oh, say tliat, to buy her a wedding ring. To England I have gone."* 10 [Oil, Willie he has hied liini hame, A waeful, waeful man;] And when he sat iu his father's chair, He grew baith pale and wan. 17 " Oh, what bluid 's that upon your brow? Oh, dear son, tell to me." " It is the bluid of my gude gray steed; lie wou'dna ride with me." 18 "Oh, thy steed's bluid was ne'er sae red. Nor e'er sae dear to me : Oh, what bluid 's this upon your cheek? Isly dear son, tell to me." "It is the bluid of my greyhound; He wou'dna hunt for me." 19 " Oh, thy hound's bluid was ne'er sae rod, Nor e'er sae dear to me : Oh, what bluid 's this upon your hand? My dear son, tell to me." "It is the bluid of my gay gos-hawk; He wou'dna flee for me." 20 " Oh, thy hawk's bluid was ne'er sae red, Nor e'er sae dear to me: Oh, what bluid 's this upon your dirk? Dear Willie, tell to mo." " It is the bluid of my ae brother; Oh, dule and wae is me." 21 " Oh, what will you say to your father? Dear Willie, tell to me." " I'll saddle my steed, and awa I'll ride, To dwell in some far eountrie." ' '• 'But what will I Bay to her you lo"e dear, Gin slie ci-v — Wliv tames my Jolin? 'Oh. tell her'l lie iu Kirk-land i:!iir, And home again will never come." — C. K. Sharpe's yernon. " Whon ye gae hame to my true love, She'll speir for licr lord John; Ye'll say, ye left him in Kirk-land fair, But hame ye fear he'll never come." — Jamieson's version. Edward! edwaed! 293 22 " Oh, when will ye come harae as;ain? Dear Willie, tell to me." " When snn and muno leap on yon hill ; * And that will never be." 23 She turn'd hersel' right round about, And her heart burst into three: " My ae best son is dead and gane, And my other I'll nae mair see!" EDWARD! EDWARD! This "terrible ballad," or, as Percy less appropriately terms it, *' this curious song, was transmitted" to him " by Sir D. DalrjTuple, Bart., late I^ord Hailes." Mr. Motherwell regards it as " rather a detached portion of a ballad," and thinks " there is reason to believe that his lordship made a few slight verbal improvements on the copy he transmitted, and altered the hero's name to Edward; a name which, by the bj% never occurs in a Scottish ballad, except where allusion is made to an English king." — Mimirchy, Introduction, p. Ixvii. The absurdly and affectedly antique orthography of the Reliqncfi is here discarded in favour of that now usually adopted, but which was not first introduced by Herd, as the following notice in Professor Aytoun's Ballads of Scotland, vol. ii., p. 19 ftirst edition), leads its readers to suppose. His words are: — "I adhere to the version first printed (i c, Percy's 'Edward! Edward!' iu preference to Motherwell's ballad of 'Son Davie'), more especially because it was after^vards adopted by Herd in hi;3 collection, with a i-easonablo change of orthography;" the fact being, that Herd printed verbatim et literatim from Percy. Nor is the other reason which the Professor gives for his choice of version less curious or irrelevant, as honest David Herd had no choice but to give the only version which then existed in print, uidcss ho had i)icked up a different copy from recitation; which he does not appear to have done. Stanzas 1 1 and 12 are here adapted from Mother- well's ballad of "Son Da\ic,"ia place of the stauzas noted under p. '295. 1 " Why does your brand sao drap with blnid? Edward 1 Edward ! Why does your brand sae drap with blnid, An(l why sao sad gang ye, 0?" " Oh, I ha'o kill'd my hawk sao glide, IMither! niithorl Oh, I ha'o kill'd my hawk sae gude, And I ha'o nao mair but he, 0." * " Wbi^n th" Iither! mither! BINNORIE. 295 Grief and sorrow all her life ; For her never niair will I see, 0."* •• And wliat V'.-ill ve leave to your young son? Edward! Edward I And what will ye leave to your young son, Wiien ye gang over the sea, 0?" "The wide warld, to wander up and down, Mither! raitlior! The v.ide war'd. to wander up and down; He will never get mair frae me, 0." "And what will ye leave to your ain uiither dear? Edward! Edward! And what will ye leave to your aiu mither dear. My dear son, now tell to me, 0? " " Tiie ciu'se of hell frae nie shall ye bear, Mither I mither 1 The curse of hell frae me sliall ye bear — F Miller and the King's Daughter," in Wit Restored (lG.;o). Mr. Jamieson and SirWalter Scott both designate this as a parody. Professor Child, however, contends that it is not, although he aihnits that "two or three Htanzas are ludicrous.'' "Mr. Eimbault has printed the same piece from a broad.side, dated 1(550, iu Azotes and Qurri'-s, v., 591." II. " Biunoric, ' in Pinkerton's . 48, given verbaltm from the recitation of Mrs. BroMn. Tlie refrain, however, was changed from that noted above to the one generally nsed, and several interpolated stanzas of Mr. Jaraieson's own were intro- dnceil, but "included within brackets." Mr. Jamieson's " copy, in the exact state in which it aj)pears " in his wori^, "was shown by the editor to Mr. (afterwards Sir ^\'alter) Scott, soiuo years before the pubhcation of the MimireJ.ii;, and before he (Scott) had any thoughts of adopting it.' V. " The Twa Sisters," in Sharpe's Ba/Iad Bool:, p. 30. The refrain is similar to that of Mrs. Brown's version, as may be seen from the first stanza, which reads — " There lived twa sisters in a liow'r— Hey Edinbruch, how Kdiubruch; Theie lived twa sisters in a bowr— Stiilin;; for aye: The yomigcst o' them, oh, she was a flowerl Bonnie Sanct Johnstouce that Mands upon Tay." Bi>;-\-oRiE. 297 VI. "The Bounie Bows o' London" (London?) in Buchan'a Ancient Balladti, vol. ii., p. 123. The refrain is — "Hey -wi' the gay and the fjnudiug, At the bonnie, bonnie bows o' Loudon." " The old woman from whose recitation" Jlr. Bnchan "took it down, says, she had heard another way of it, quite local, whose burden runs thus, — ' Even into Buchau- shire, van, vari, 0! ' " (Note, p. 321.) The text which follows is collated from Scott's and from Jamieson'a versions; but the latter, being on the whole the best, is the one generally adopted. ' ' The same story is found in Icelandic, Norse, Faroish, and Estnish ballads, as well as in the Swedish and Danish, and a nearly related one in many other ballads or tales— German, Polish, Lithuanian, &c. &c. See Srcns/ca Follc-viior, iii., 16 ; i., SI, SO ; Arv.i.bson, ii., 139 ; and 'Den Talende Strengeleg,' Grundtvig; Xo. 95; and the notes to 'Der Singende Knochen,' K. U. H. ISliirchen, iii., 5o, ed. 1856." — I'rofessor Child's English and Scotdih Ballad-; vol. ii., i^. 231. y.B. — "It may be necessary enphonice gralia to caution the English [or American] reader, that the burden is yironoiuiccd Binnorie, and not Binnorie, as it is accented in a beautiful little modern ballad bearing that nauic, which a]'pcarcd in the Morning Chronicle some time ago." — Jumicson (ISOGj. 1 TiiEKE were tAva sistors lived iu a bower — Binnorie, Binnorie! There came a kriicht to be their wooer, B'j the bonnie mili-dams of Binnorie . 13 He courted the eldest Avith glove and ring; iiut lie loved tlie youngest aboon a' thing. 3 lie courted the ehlcst with brooch and knife; But he loved llic youngest as his life. 4 The eldest slie was vexed sair, And sair envied her fiistor fair. b Intil lier bow'r she cou'dna rest; With grief and spite she maistly brast. C Upon a morniu' fair and clear, She cried upon her sister dear : 7 "Oh, siwter! eonic to the sca-slrand, And bee our fatlicr's sliips coino to land." 8 Slie 'b ta'cii her by the milk-white liand, And led her down to yon sca-titnind. 298 BALLAD MINSTRELSY 01" SCOTLAND. 9 The youngest stood upon a stanc, Tlie driest came and pushed lier in. 10 She took her by the middle suia', And dash'd her bonnie back to the jaw. 11 " sister, sister, reach your Ijiuid, And ye shall be heir of half i;iv land." 12 " sister, I'll not reach my hand, And I'll be heir of all your land." 13 " Shame fa' the hand that I shouM take, It's twin'd me, and my Avorhl's miik." 14 " sister, reach me but j'onr glove, And sweet AVilliam sliall be your love." 15 " Sink on, nor hope for hand or glove, And sweet William shall better be my love. 16 " Your cherry cheeks, and your yellow luur, Gar'd mo gang maiden evermair." 17 Sometimes she sunk, somethnes she swam, Until she came to the miller's dam. 18 Oh, out it caiae the miller's son, And saw the fair maid floating down. 19 " father, father, draw your dam — Binnorie, Binnorio! There's a mermaid or a milk-white swan In the bonnie mill-dams of Binnorie." 20 [The miller quickly drev/ the dam, And there he found a drown'd woman.* 21 " Sair will they be, whae'er they be. Their hearts that live to Vv'eep for thee.] 22 '• And sair and lang may their teenf last, That wrought thee sic a dowie cast." * staled bj' Jamieson in hid Iut:odnct!on to bs, ami bracketed by liiin in the Icxt as, one of his interpr.Iations. It occurs, however, in Kcott's copy without i;oi9 or coininoiit, the only difference being the Eubalitulion, in the llrit lino, of ''hasted and " in place of " quiclily." t "Teen:" remorse or Buffering. BINNOKIE. 2C9 23 You cou'dua see her yellow hair, For g-ow(l and pearl that Avere go rare. 24 You cou'dna see her middle sma', For her gowden girdle sae braw. 25 You cou'dna see her fingers white, For gowden rings that Avere sac brigiit. 2G By there came a harper line, That harp'id to the king at dine.'' 27 And when he look'd that ladye on, He sighed, and made a heavy moan. 28 [" Oh, wha shall tell, to tliy father dear, The sad and waefu' sight that's here? 29 " And wha in thy mother's how'r shall tell The weird her dearest bairn befell? SO " And wha to thy luckless lover speak The tidings will gar his heart to break?"! 31 He made a harp of her breast-bone. Whose sounds would inclt a heart of slonc. 82 He 's ta'en three locks of her yellow hair, And with them strung his harp sac iair.f 33 He bronght the harp to her father's hall ; And there v.as the court assembled all. 34 Pie laid the harp upon a stane. And straight it began to play alane. 85 " Oh, yonder sits my father, the king. And yonder pits my mother, tlic queen. 36 " And jondcr stands my brother Hugh, And by liiiii my William, sweet and true." * Vuviitliun. — " A faiiioarj liaiTier pavjaiug by, The Bwcot pale faco ho cliauceU to siij-."— .Scotl'b ver ion. t J'ariV(((;;i.— "Tho Htni);<« ho form'tl of her yellow hair, Th'.ir notes mado f.ail tho listening car."— ScoII'b vcrblya btusza.H SI and .13 to 37, inclii ivo, aro from the same. 300 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 37 But the last tune that the harp played then, Was — "'Woe to my sister, false Helen!"* THE CRUEL MOTHER. Various versions of this ballad, more or less varied, have appeared, as uuder: — , I. "A few mutilated stanzas," in Herd's Scottish Songs, vol. ii., p. 237, with the refrain of — "Oh, and alas-a-day! oh, and rlas-a-day! Ten thousand times good night and [joy] be wi' thee." II. "Fine Flowers in the Valley," Johnson's Musical Museum, vol. iv., p. 331, as communicated by the poet Burns. The title is taken from the first line of the refrain, the other line being — "And the grson leaves they grow rr.roly." The lines quoted below by Scott, from memory, are almost identical with stanzas 1, 2, 5, 6, and 7 of this version. in. "Ladye Anne," in Scott's MinstrcUy, vol. iii., p. 18, and "communicated" to him "by Mr. Charles Kirhpatrick Sharpe of Iloddom, who mentions havinjr copied it from an old magazine. Although it has probably received some modem corrections, the general turn seems to be ancient, * Mr. Jamieson's copy concludes as follows, the bracketed stanzas being his own acknowledged interpolations. They follow stanza o3 of text:— " [Tho harp untouch 'd to the Vi'iudes rang, Binnorio, O Cinnorie ! And sad and doleful was tho saug, By the bonoic mill-dams of Biunorie.] " The first tuno it did play and sing, Was— 'Farewell to my father the king;' " The nexten tune that it played bedene, Was—' Farewell to my mother the queon;' " The thirden tune that it played then. AVas— ' Wae to my sister, fair Ellen \ ' " [But the lasten tune it played sae small, Was saft and ^adly sweet o'er all. " The hardest hoart would ha'c })Ied to hoar, It nioaued with sic a dowie cheer. " And fari'weel, oh, fare\veel to theo, Binnorie, O Binnorie ! The dearest youth in life to me. By the bonnie mill-dams of Bmnorio.") THE CRUEL SIOTUER. 301 aud corresponds," saj's Scott, "with that of a fragment, containing the following verses, which I have often heard sung in my childhood : — "She Bet her back against a thorn. And there she has her younc son boru. 'Oh, smile na sao, my bonnie babe! An ye smile sae sweet, yell smile me dead.' ********* Au' when that ladyo went to the church, She spied a naked boy ia the porch. "'Ob, bonnie boy, an ye were mine, I'd clead ye in the silks sae fine.' 'Oh, mother dear, when I was thino, To rao ye were na half sae kind.'" "Ladye Aune" was reprinted by Buchan, with the addition of one stanza, in his Gleanings of Old Ballade, p. 90. IV. "The Ciuel Mother," in Motlierwell's Mins'relsi/, ]). IGl. The second and fourth hnes, composing the refrain, are respectively — "Three, three, and three by tlu'ee; " and, " Three, three, and thirty-three." V. "The Cruel Mother," in Kinloch's Ancient ScuttUh Ballads, p. 4t. The opeuin.; line de-crihes "Loudon" as the place of the lady's residence. Mr. Kinloch mentions that "the Scottish Parliament, in 1G90, had recourse to a severe law, which declared that a mother concealing her pregnancy, and not calling in aosistancc at the birth, should be pre- .•iumed guilty of murder, if the child wore" auii.ssing or found dead. .Sir Walter Scott's Heart of Midlothian is chiefly founded on a breach of tliis law. The refram of Mr. Kin- loch's version is the one liei'e adopted. VI. "The Miui.=iter'3 Daughter of New York," in Buchau'.s Ancient Ballads, vol ii., p. 217; or, "Tho Minister'.^ Dochter o' Xewarkc," as the title is given in an improved coi)y of the same, which a])pcars in Scottish Traditional Versiona of Ancient Ballads, Percy Society, vol. xvii., p. 51. The refrain is — "Hey v.i' Iho rose and tho liudie, ; " and, "Alane by tho green bum Bidie, 0." VII. " The Cruel Mother, " which also appears in Buchiu's Ancient Ballads, vol. ii., p. 222, and in the Percy Society series, vol. xvii., p. 40. It closes with this stanza — "She threw hcn;ell owrr tho oaMtle-wa' — r.Jinhro', L'dinbru; .'^lio threw herHoll owcr tho ca8tlo-wa'— ,Sii/-/i//j/yr iiyc; She threw hcri cU owcr the castlc-wa'; There I wat bho got a fa' — So proper Saint Johiukn lUmJifair vpon Tay." VIII. Smith's Scottish Minstrel, vol. iv., p. 33, contains a still different version under tlio same title, and with vhc same refrain as that contained in .Johnson'."? Mi's'irn/ Mas' uui. S02 llALLAD MliN.VfKl'XSV 01" SCOTLAND. Five GcniKUi :iiilace of puryatorial, is probably the more correct term. This feature is peculiar to version VI., which is the one chiefly folio ,ved in the text here printed. 1 The minister's docliter of Newarke, All alone, and alonie, lias fallen in love with her father's clerk, Down by the greenwood sae bonnie. 2 She courted him sax years and a day ; At length her false love did licr betray. 3 She has ta'en lior mantle her about, And sat her down on an auld tree root. 4 Slie leant her back unto an aik : First it bow'd, and syne it brake. 5 She leant her back unto a thorn, And there she has hor twa babes born. G "Oil, smile na sac, iny b.abos Kao, sweet, Smile ua sae, (or it gars me greet." THE CKUEL MOTHER. 7 She 's ta'en the ribbous frae her hair, And bound their bodies fast and sair. 8 Then she's ta'en out a little penknife. And twined each sweet babe of its life. 9 She 's houkit a grave baith deep and wide, And put them in baith side by side. 10 She 's cover'd them o'er ^\■itll a big whin stane, Thinking to gang like maiden hame. 11 She's gane back to her father's castle hall, And she seem'd the lealest maid of them all. 12 As she look'd o'er her father's castle wall. She saw twa pretty babes playing at the ball. 13 " Oh, bonnie babes, if ye v/ere mine, I wou'd feed and dead ye fair and fine. 14 '• I would feed you with the ferra cow's* milk, And dead you in the finest silk ! " 15 '"It's oh, cruel motlicr! when we were thine, Ye did neither feed nor dead us line; 16 "But oh, cruel mother! when wc were thine, Ye tied us witli ribboii.s and hempen twhie; 17 '"And then ta'en out your wee penknife. And twined us cacli of our sweet life." 18 "Oh, bunnic babcrf! can }'e tell me What sort of penance for this I maun dreeV" 19 "Yes, cruel mother! we will tell thee The penance ye for this maun dree : 20 " Seven years a fool in the woods, Seven years a fish in the floods ; 21 " Seven years to be a churdi boll, Pealing joy to us, but woe to yourscl'; 22 " Seven j'ears a ])i)rter to hell. And then overmair in its torments to dwell. • •' Fcrra cow : " a cow not witli calf, bat which coutinueH to yield uiilli. 304 ItALLAD MINSnitlLSV OK SCOTLAND. 23 '• Bill u c shall dwell in the heavens hie, While you yuur penance and torments dreo." 2-1 "Welcome! welcome! fuol in thi' woodg, Welcome! welcome! \hh in tlie Hoods; 25 "Welcome! w^clcome! to bo a chiufh hell, But Gude preserve mc out of hell! " LADYE ANNE. From Scott's ^'u'ulrehif, vol. iii., p. IS, M'ith the addition of the penultimate stanza from Buchau's O'leanl/ii/s, p. 91. See preceding introduction, (lit.) According to this version, the act of murder was not really comniittcd by the "cruel mother," but by a "fiuise nurse," or baby fanner of the olden time. 1 Fair Ladye Anne sat in her bovv'r, Down by the greenwood side; And the flovv''rs did spring-, and the birds did sing — 'Twas the pleasant May-day tide. 2 But fair Ladye Anne on Sir William call'd, With the tear grit in her e'e : '' Oh, tho' thou be fause, may heaven thee guard In tho wars ayont the sea!" 3 Oat of the wood came three bonnie boy.'!, Upon the sunnner's morn, And they did sing and play at the ba', As naked as they were born. 4 " Oh, seven lang years wou'd I sit here, Amang the irost and snaw, All to ha'e anc of these bonnie boys A-jjlaying at the ba'." 5 Then up and spake tho eldest boy — " Now listen, thou fair ladye, And ponder well the redo that I tell, Then make yc a choice of the three. 6 " 'Tis I am Peter, and this is Paul, And that ane, sae lair to see, But a twelve-month sinsync to paradise came, To join with our companic." LORD RANDAL. 305 7 '• oil, I will ha'e the snaw-wliite boy, The bonnicpfc of the three." " And if I were thine and in thy propine,* Oh, what AvouM ye do to uie? " 8 " It 's I wou'd dead thee in silk and gowd, And nourish thee on my knee." "0 mother! mother! when I was thine, Sic kindness I cou'dna see. 9 '■ At love's gay call, in the baron's hall, Ye quaff'd the laughing wine, Wliile foodless days and sleepless nights In a menial's hut were mine. 10 '• T.i-neath the turf, Avhero now I stand, The fi'.use nurse buried me; Th3 cruel penknife still sticks in my heart, And I come not back to thee." LORD EANDAL. Fcotish version.?, or fragments of versions, of this ballad have ajii.earcd as under : — I. Ill .Johnson's Munkal Museum, vol. iv., p. 337, consisting of two stanzas recovered by Burns. II. Ill .Scott's MlmtreUy, vol. iii., p. 43. "There i.s," writes ,^ir Walter, "a beautiful air to this old ballad. Tlie hero is more 'generally termed Lord Eonald; but I wilHngly follow the authority of an Ettrick Forest copy fur calling liiin Kandal, — because, though the circumstances .i.rc so very diliereiit, I think it not impossible that the ballad may liavc ori;,Hiially rcL'aidcd the death of 'J'iiomas Ilan- .saG fair and free !" 5 Then out he 's ta'en his wee penkjiife, And he 's parted her and her sv/ect life; And thrown her o'er a bank ef brume, Ne'er to be found till the crack of doom.f * "Loudon Bhcen: " Lolhian shoes.— Kinlodi. t Substlttilcdfor— 'There never more for to be found." GIL MORICE. 313 A repetition of stanzas 1 to 5 inclusive constitutes stanzas 6 to 10 inclusive, merely substituting in stanza G " Margaret's " name in place of "Elizabeth's," as in stanza 1, line 3 ; another repetition of stanzas 1 to 4 inclusive constitutes stanzas 11 to 14 inclusive, merely substitut- ing in that which, if given here, would be stanza 11, the name of the third sister, Marie or Mary, in place of the " Elizabeth " of stanza 1, or the " Margaret " of stanza G. The ballad then proceeds, and con- cludes as follows : — 15 r onnnACtiiiK link bflwopii tho vcrwioD (I.) ropriuto'l from IVrf.v'i /;.':r/!ics, mil "Cliiold Mnrifn" (lil.), whicli followH it Id MolherwcU'H ilimlrdty. It occurs on pngo 208. — liditor. 316 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. Xor did the tinkering end tbevc, as "some miserable vcrse-raakcr " took in hand the task of completing the ballad in accordance with the linal catastrophe of Home's "Tragedy of Donglasj" which "delectable continnation, extending to six stanzas," is here added from Mr. Jamieson's notes to " Childc Maurice." — Popular Ballade, voL i., p. 21. Mr. Jamieson states, that these stanzas " had been handed about in" or about Edinburgh, "and found their way into Mr. Herd's ]\IS. collection, fron\ whence they were extracted by Mr. (afterwards 8ir Walter) Scott," who transmitted them to him. He adds, that "they are given to show Avhat dispositions my good countrj'incn, v/lio can forge with address, and who caiuiot have iiianifested respecting this ballad." The stanzas referred to are those numbered 53 to the end. The poet G ray, in one of his letters, writes regarding this ballad in these terms : — "I have got the old Scotch ballad on which Douglas was founded ; it is divine, and as long as from hence (Cambridge) to Aston. Have you never seen it ? Ai-istotle's best rules are observed in it in a manner that shows the author had never read Aristotle. Jc begins in the iifth act of the play (viz., of Home's tragedy of Douglas) ; you may read it two-thirds through without guessing what it is about ; and yet, when you come to the end, it is im- I)Ossible not to understand the whole story." It only remains to add, that the text of Percy's R/'li'incs is the one here chiefly followed. The absurd orthography of that work is, how- ever, discarded. Lines 1 and 2 of stanza 2 arc added from a chap-liook version, as noted by Mr. Motherwell, Idinstrelv/, p. 2G0 ; while stanza 3 is added froni a fragment given by Mr. Jamieson (Popular Ballads, vol. i., p. 17). Slight verbal changes have been made on two of these added lines, and also as noted on the last line of stanza 4. Lines 100, 101, 109, and 170 of the Beliques text are omitted, tlic two last being almost a rcpetitiou of the lirst two lines of stanza 41, the last two lines of which arc transposed, as they form lines 171 ami 172 of the J'cH'/ia'.s text, in which they immediately precede tliose here nund)ercd stanza 44. 1 (llL ]\[oniCE Avas an carl's son; IILs iiainc it waxed wide ; It was nae for liis threat riches, Xor yet liis niciklc pride. 2 His face was fair, lang was liis hair, 111 p,'rocnwood he did bide; I'nt liis fame was for a lady gay, 'J Iiat lived on Carron side. Oil Moricc sal in gndc greenwood, He wliistled and lie sang: " Wiiero sliall I get a bonuie boy That will my errand gang? GIL MORICE. ol7 4 " ^^^lere shall I get a bounie boy, That will win hose and sboon : That will gae to Lord Barnard's hall, And tryst his ladye doon ? * 5 "And ye maun gae my errand, VN'illie; And ye maun gae with pride; When other boys gae on their foot, On horseback ye shall ride." C ■'• Oh no, oh no, my master dear I I dare nae, for my life; I'll no gae to tlie bauld baron's. For to tryst forth his wife." 7 " My bird, "Willie, my boy, Willie, My dear "Willie," he said; "How can ye strive against the slrc-i For I .shall be obey'd."' 8 •• But oh, my master dear,"' he cried, ''In greenwood ye'rc your lane; Gi'e o'er sic thocht.s, I wou'd ye rede, For fear ye shou'il be ta'en." 9 " Haste, haste, I say, gae to the hall, Bid her come here Avith speed : If ye refuse my high command. Til gar your body bleed. 10 " And bid her tal;e this gay niantle — 'Tis all gowd but the liem, — Bid her come to the gude greenwood, And bring nane but her lane. 11 '■ And there it is a silken sark, • Her aiii hand sew'd the sleeve; And bid her come to Gil Moricc- • Sjjeir nae bauld baron's leave." IJ " Yes, I will gae your black errand. Though it 1 e to your cost; Since ye by me will nae be wani'd, It's yc siiall liiid the frost. 13 ''The baron lie is a man of might, He ne'er cou'd bir/h, ch. ii." The fame of this illustrious outlaw, or mythic hero, "and his 3_»t r.Al.UAlJ .MINSTRELSY Or SCOTLAND. merry men," which had all but died out in Scotland, lias heen aQ;ain revived and extended by, and since, the publication of Sir Walter Scott's Icanhoc. With regard to the ballad which follows, and the one which comes next in onler, Professor Child remarks, that " in character they have no alHnity with the reco<,niized circle of Robin Hood ballads. The Btory is of a more ancient cast, and also of a type common to the northern nations; and we have no doulit that liobin Hood and Little John were, in the day of their popularity, made to displace heroes of immemorial prescrii)tion, in order to give cclnl to an old tale." — • EmjUsli and Scottish Ballads, vol. v., p. 173. The editor of the present work has much pleasure in quoting these ■words of Professor Child, as they so admirably express, in the languaee of an American of aV)ility and impartiality, ideas which he had independently arrived at ; but whicli, if expressed by a Scotsman, would certainly expose him to the vituperative abuse of some shallow and conceited English critic; a class as full of narrow and ignorant prejudice— particularly about and against everything Scotish— a:s an egg is full of meat. The grounds for the views e.xprcssed by Professor Child, and huie coincided in, may be found by consulting the jireceding ballads, — " Leesomo Ihand," p. M ; "Earl Douglas and Dame Oliphant," p. 63 ; and " Sweet Willie and Fair Janet,'' p. 67, with their respective introductions. Of the ballad which follows, two versions have appeared, both under the same title as the above. I. In Jamieson's Populnr Ballads, vol. ii., p. 'i4, as "taken down by the editor from the recitation of Mrs. BroM'n, and given," by him, "without the alteration of a single word." II. In'Bwcha.w^^ Ancient Ballads, vol. ii. , p. 1. The first five and the last two stan;!a3 of the text which follows are taken from Mr. Jamieson's version, the intermediate stanza.3 being chiefly from Mr. Euchan's version. Stanza r>, as here given from Mr. Jamieson's version, is similar to stanza 14 of "Earl Douglas and Dame Oliiuiaut," while the thret; which follow it evidently narrate the same incident as that described in stanzas 17 and IS of the same ballad. The three stanzas referred to run — " ' But j'p'II conio to my bow'r, WilUo, Just as the sun gaos down; And kep ni >. in your arms twa. And letna me fa' down.' "Oh, when the sun was now ffane down, He '8 done him till her bow'r; And there, by the lee lieht o' the moon, Her window she lookit o'er. "Intil a robe o' red scarlot She lap, ffiarless o' harm; And Willie was large o' lith nnd limb, ^nd kepit her in his ftrm." THE BIRTH OF ROBIN HOOD. 325 1 Oh, Willie's large of limb and litli, And come of high degree; And he is gane to Earl Richard, To serve for meat aud fee. 2 Earl Richard had but ae daughter, Fair as a lily flower; And they made uji their love-contract, Like jiroper paramour. 3 It fell upon a summer's night, When leaves were fair and green, That Willie met his gaj' ladye, Iiitil the woods alane. 4 •■ Oh, narrow is my gown, Willie, That wont to be sac Avide; And gane is all mj' fair colour, That wont to be iny pride. [> *' Hut if my father shou'd get word Wliat 's pass'd between us twa, Refore that he shou'd eat or drink, Ilf'd hang you o'er that wa'." C •• Will ye gac to my mother's bow'r, Stands on yon stately green? Or will ye bide in gude greenwood, Wliero ye will not be seen?" 7 She chose to bide in gude greenwood, 8ae on they Avalk'd miles three; When this ladye, being sair worn ont, Lay down beneath a tree. 8 " Oil, for a few of yon junipers, To chcor my lieart again; And likewise for a gude midwife, To ease me of my pain." " I'll bring to yon yon jiwiipers, To cheer your heart again; And I'll bo to you a gude midwife, Tu case you of yonr i)ain." 10 '• Haud far awa frao me, Willie, F( r sae it maunna be; That's nao the faHJiiori of our land; Sao haud awa frao xw, A. 32G BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 11 •• Yc'U take your sinall sword by your sido, Your buckler and your bow, And yo'll gae down tlu-o' gudo greonwooii, To'hunt tlio deer and roe. li' •' And you will stay iu gude greenwood, And with the chase go on, Until a white hind pass you by; Then straight to me you'll come." 13 He's girt his sword then by his side, Ta'cn buckler and ta'en bow; And he is on thro' gude greenwood, To hunt the deer and roc. 14 And in the greenwood he did stay, And there the chase he plied, Until a white hind pass'd him by; Then to his love he hied. 15 And there he found her lying dead, Beneath the green oak tree; i'>ut a sweet young son that she had born, Right lively seem'd to be. '• Alas, alas!'' young Willie said, '• A mournful scene to me! IC '• Altho' my sweet babe is alive, It but adds to my woe; For how to nourish this poor babe, Is more than I do know." 17 He look'd east, and he look'd west, To see what he could see; Then spied Earl Richard of Huntingdon, With a goodly companie. 18 Then Willie fled, and hid himself Amang the leaves sae green, That he might hear what might be said, And see, yet nae be seen. I'J For Earl Richard had drcam'd a dream About his daughter dear; He started wildly from his sleep. And sought her far and near. 20 They sought her back, they sought her fore, Tliey sought her up and down; Till they found her dead in gude greenwood, JJeside her new-bnrn son. ROSE THE EED -VXD WHITE LILT. 327 21 ICavl RicliarJ took up the bonnie l)oy, And kiss'd liiin tenderly; Says — "Tho' I would your father hang, Your mother was dear to me. 2'2 " And if ye live until I die, My bow'rs and lands you'll heir : You are my only daughter's child, But her I ne'er had mair." 23 His daughter ho buried in gude churchyard, In a dreary mournful mood ; And he brought the boy to church that day, And christen'd him Robin Hood. 24 This boy was bred in the earl's halls, Till he a man became ; But lov'd to hunt in gude greenwood, To raise his noble fame. 26 There's inony ane sings of grass, of grass. And mony anc sings of corn ; And mou)' ane sings of Robin Hood, Kens little where he was born! 26 It wasna in the gilded hall, Nor in the painted bow'r ; But it was in the gude greenwood, Amang the lily ilower. ROSE THE RED AND WHITE LILY. Of this ballad three versions have been jniVjlished : — I, In Scott's MinstrelKij, vol. ill., p. 208, "chiefly from Mrs. Brown's MS." Tiic name of I'obin Hood docs not occur in this ver.sioia ; but .Sir W.altcr surmised that it "originally related to" him, "as mention is made of Baruisdale, his favourite abode." TT. In Kinloch's Ancient ScoUkh Ballade, p. 69. HI. lu linchckii'a Ancient Ballarh, vol. i., p. 67. Scott's and Buchan's versions are published under tho same title as the above, and Kinloch's under the title of "The Wedding,' of Robin Hood and Ijittlo Jolin." Stanzas 1 to '.!(» incln^;ive, as Jioie printed, arc collated from versions I. and HI., the remaining stanzas iming from the former. 328 BALLAD MINSTUELSY OK SCOTLAND. 1 Now word is gane tlirougli all tlio land — Gude scilc that it sae spread! — To Rose the Red and White Lily, Their mother dear was dead. 2 Their father 's married a bauld woman, And brought her o'er the sea; Twa sprightly youths, her ain young sons, Intil her cunipanio. 3 And they were twa as gallant j'ouths As ever brake man's bread ; And the ane of them Jo'ed her, White Lily, And the other, Rose the Red. 4 They fix'd thoir eyes on those ladyes. On shipboard as they stood, And sware, if e'er they wan to land, Tliese ladyes they wou'd Aved. 5 Rut there was nae a cpiarter pass'd, A quarter pass'd but throe, Till these young lovers all were fond Of other's compauie. C Oh, bigg'd ha'e the}' a bigly bow'r Fast by the se^i-beat strand; And there was mair mirth tliat bow'r w ilhiii, Than in all their fatlier's laud. 7 The knights they harpit in their bow'r, The ladyes sew'd and sang ; The mirth that was in that chamber Through all the place it rang. 8 Then out it spake their step-raotlicr ; At the bigly bow'r stood she : " I'm sair plagu'd with your troubh'somr- noise, That ye call melodic. 9 "0 Rose the Red, ye sing too loud, While, Lily, your voice is Strang; But if I live and brook my life, I'se gar ye change your sang." 10 '• Vy''c m;anina change our loud, loud sang, That sae our hearts doth cheer; We winna change our loud, loud f;ang, But aye we'll sing the mair. ROSE THE RED AKD WHITE LILY. 320 11 " We never sung the sang, mother, But we'll sing o'ei* again ; "We'll take our harps into oiu- hands, And sing with might and main." 12 She 's call'd upon her eldest son ; " Come here, my son, to me ; It fears me sair, my Bauld Arthur, That ye maun sail tlie sea." 13 •' If sac it maun be, my dear mother. At your bidding I shall be ; But never be Avaur to Rose the Red Than ye ha'e been to me." 11 She 's call'd upon her youngest son ; " Come here, my son, to me ; It fears me sair, my Brown Robin, Tiiat ye maun sail the sea." 15 " If it fear ye sair, my mother dear. At your bidding I shall be; But never be waur to White Lily Tliau ye ha'e been to me." IG " Now, baud your tongues, ye foolish boys, For small shall be their part; Tiiey ne'er again shall see your face, Thougli their very hearts shou'd break. 17 '•^[ako hasto, make haste, my twa young sons, And bcun' yo for the sea; But Rose theRed and AVhitc Lily .Shall stay in bow'r with me." 18 " Cod forbid," said her eldest son, '• That we shou'd cross the sea, UnlcBS yc be to our twa loves As yc to them shou'd be." 19 " Yet, nevertheless, my pretty sons, Ye'll boun' ye for the facni; Let Rose the ited and White Lily Stay in their bow'r at hame." 20 " Oh, when with you avc came alang, Wc felt the stormy sea; But we shall now go wlicrc wo list, Nor spcir the leave of thee." 330 BALLAD MINSTIUILSY OF SCOTLAND. 21 Tlion MMtli lior liarsh ami boist'rous v/ords, Slic forced tlicsc lads away; While Hose the Red and White Lily Still ill their bow'rs did stay. 22 Iler twa sons hied to the king-'s court, His chainherlains to he; But Brown Robin has slain a knight, And to greenwood did flee. 23 When Rose the Red and White Lily Saw their twa, loves were ganc, Sune did they drop the loud, loud sang. And dowilly did macn. 2-1 And there was not a quarter pass'd, A quarter pass'd but ane, Till Rose the Red in rags she gacd, While Lily's claithes grew thin. 25 With bitter usage, every day The ladyes they thought fang; " Alas! alas! " sa'id Rose the Red, " She's gar'd us change our sang." 26 And out then spake her, White Lily; " My sister, we'll be gaue: Why shou'd we stay in Barnisdale, To mourn our bow'r within ? " 27 Oh, cutted ha'e they their green clailhiiig, A little abune their knee; And sac ha'e they their yellow hair, A little abune their bree. 28 And left ha'e they that bonnic bow'r, To cross the raging sea; And they ha'e gano to a holy chapel Was christened by Our Ladye. 29 And they ha'e changed their twa names, Sae far frae ony toun ; And the ane of them's bight Sweet Willie, And the other Rouge the Rounde. 30 Between the twa a iiromise is, They ha'e sworn it to fulfd; Whenever the ane blew a bugle-horn, The other shou'd come her till. EOSE THK RED AND WHITE LILT. 331 31 Sweet Willie 's gane to the king's court, Her true love for to see; And Rouge the Rounde to gude greenwood, Brown Robin's man to be. Vy2 Oh, it fell ance upon a time, They putted at the stane ; And seven foot ayont them all. Brown Robin's gar'd it gang. 33 She lifted the heavy putting-stane. And gave a sad " Ohon!" Then out bespake him, Brown Robin, " But that's a woman's moan!" 34 " Oh, kenn'd ye by my rosy lips. Or by my yellow hair ; Or kenn'd ye by my milk-white breast, Ye never yet saw bai'e?" 35 " I kenn'd na by your rosy lips. Nor by your yellow hair; But, come to your bow'r whaever lilces. They'll find a ladye there." 36 '• 01), if ye come my bow'r within. Through fraud, deceit, or guile, "Witli this same brand, that's in my hand, I vow T will thcc kill." 37 " Yet (luryt I come into your bow'r, And a«lc nae leave," quo' he; " And v/ith this brand, that's in my hand, Wave danger back on thee." ob About the dead hour of the night, The ladyc'a bow'r was broken; And, about the first hour of the clay, The fair knave bairn v,-.is gotten. 30 Whou daj-s were gane and months were CiMne, Tlic ladye wa;i sad and v,an; And aye sue cried for a Ijow'r-woman, Fur to wait iter upon. 40 Tiicn up and spake him, I'-rown Hohiii, "And what vi-vds this"'" (jmo' ho, "Or what can v»-onian do for yon, Tliat caiina be dyiic by incV" i]32 l;.VLl.Al) MLNSTKEl.SV OF SCOTI-AND. 41 " 'Twas never my mother's fashion," she said, '' Nor shall it e'er ho mine, Tiiat holteil kniglits slionhl e'lT roinain While ladyes dreeM tlu'ir piuo. 42 •' Ihit if yc take that hiixle-horn, And wind a Mast sac shrill, I lia'o a brother in yonder conrt, Will come me quickly till." 43 " 01), if ye lia'e a brother on earth That ye lo'o mair than me, Ye may blow the liorn yoiirsel'," he f=iay8, "For a blast I winna ii^i'c." 41 She's ta'en tlie bugle in her hand, And blawn baith loud and shrill; Sweet AVilliani started at the sound, And came licr ({uickly till. 45 Oil, up then starts him, Brown Robin, And swore by Our Ladyc, " No man shall come into this bow'r, Ihit first maun light with me." 4G Oh, they ha'e fought the wood within, Till the sun Avas going down; And drops of blood, IVae Kosc the Red, Came pouring to the groumh 47 She leant lier back against an aik, Said — "Robin, let me be; For it is a ladyo bred and born, lias fought this day with thee." •18 Oil, seven foot ho started back, Cried — "Alas and woe is me! For I wished never, in all my life, A woman's bhiid to see: 49 " And that all for the knightly vow I swore to Our Ladyc; But mair for the sake of ac fair maid, AVhose name was White Lily." 50 Then out and spake her, Rouge the Roiuide, And leugh right henrtilif: " She has been with ye this year and mair, Though yc wistna it was she." r.OSE THE RED AND WHITE LILT. 333 51 Now word has gane through all the haul, liefore a month Avas ganc, That a forester's page, in gude greenwood, Had born a bonnie son. 52 The marvel gaed to the king's court, And to the king himscl'; " Now, by m}^ fae," the king did say, " The like was never heard tell ! " 53 Then out and spake him, Bauld Arthur, And laugh'd right loud and hie : " I trovv' some May has plaid the loon,* And fled her aiu countrie." 54 '' Bring me my steed," the king 'gan say; "My bow and arrows keen; And ril gac hunt in yonder wood, And see what's to be seen." 55 '"If it please your grace," quo' Bauld Arthur, " ]\Iy liege, I'll gang with thee; And seek tiierc for a bonnie page. That 's stray 'd awa frae me." 5G And they ha'e chased in gude greenwood, The buck but and the rac, Till they drew near Brown Robin's bow'r, About the close of day. 57 Thru out and spake the king hinisel', [Says — "Arthur, look and see. If yon be not your favourite page 'J'liat leans against you tree?" 58 Oh, Arthur's ta'en a bugle-horn, And blav.ii a blast sae sljrill ; Sweet "Willie started to her feet, And ran hiiu quickly till. .59 "Oh, wanted ye your meat, Willie, Or wanted ye your fee; Or gat ye e'er an angry word, Tliat yc ran awa frae me?" GO '• I wanted nought, my master dear, — To mc yo aye was good; 1 e:uiie to see my ae brother, Tliat woiis in this greenwood." • "Luou:" ro,{uo. 334: liALLAIi MINSTIiia.SV OF SCOTLANt). Gl Then out bospako tlio kiii'!; again,— '' ^ly boy, now loll to iv.c, Wlio dwells into yon bi,. -'81. Mr. Motherwell mentions another version, "dilferinu: in a I'uw immaterial points " from Scott's, which he had " heard under the title of ' Hynde Henry and May Margerie.' " With reference to the first-named version, Sir Walter Scott states, tliat it "is jiublished from tradition, witli tome conjectural emenda- tions," and "corrected by a copy in Mrs. Brown's MS., from which it ditVera in the concluding stanzas. Some ver.ses arc apparently modernized. "Jellon seems to be the same name with Jyllian or Julian. 'Jyl of Brentford's Testament' is mentioned in Warton's History of Poetrii, vol. ii., p. '10. The name repeatedly occurs in old ballads, Bonietimes as that of a man, at other times a3 that of a M-oman. Of the former is an instance in the b.illad of 'The Kniirht and the Shep- herd's Du.\v^\i(ir.'—Rdiqnea of Ancient Poetry, vol. iii., p. 72; — ' Some do call mo Jack, swectlrart, And fcomo do call mo Jillc' " Witton Gilbert, a vUlagc four miles west of Durham, is, thnju^'h- f>ut the hishopric, pronounced Wittou Jdbert. We have also the coiinnou name of Giles, always in Scotland iirononnced Jill. For (;ilk-, or Juliana, as a female \wnw, we have Fair (Jillian of Croydon, and a thousaml authoiitics. Such being the case, the etjitor nuist enter hid protect agaiiibt the conversion of Cd Morricc into Child 336 B.MXAD JlIXbTKlCLSY OF SCOTLANP. Maurice, an epithet of chivnliy. All tlie circumstancca iu that ballad ar-uc, tliat the unfortuiiate hero was an obscnro and very young man, who had never received tlic honour of knighthood. At any rate, there can be no reason, even were internal evidence totally wanting, for altering a well-known proper name, which, till of lato years, hag been the uniform title of the ballad.' From ill J first portion of the a1)0ve extract we arc led to infer that Mr. B ich;m's is the more genuine text of the two. Stanzas 5 to 7 inclusive, 10, 13 to 15 inclusive, 17, 18, and 2S to 30 inclusive, are from J*lr. liuchan's version— the remaining IS stanzas being from Sir ^V alter Scott's. The ballad seems to Lave some connection with the Scotish Kobiu Hood series. 1 Oji, Jellon Grame sat ia SilverwooJ ; * He slifirp'd his broadsword lang ; And he has call'd his little foot-page, An errand for to gang. 2 " Win up, my bonuie boy," he says, " As quickly as ye may ; For ye maun gang for Lily Flower, Before the break of day." S The boy has buckled his belt about, And through the greenwood ran; And he came to the ladye's bow'r, Before the day did dawn. 4 '• Oh, sleep ye, wake ye, Lily Flower? The red sun's on the rain : Ye'rc bidden come to Silverwood; But I doubt yc'll never win hanie." 5 Fair Lily Flower lap on licr steed, And quickly rade away; She hadna ridden but half a mile, Till a warning voice did say, — 6 " Turn back, turn back, ye vent'rous maid, Nae farther must ye go ; For the boy who leads your bridle rein Leads you to your o'erthrow.' * Silverwood, mentioned iu tliis balliul, oci*ur3 iu a medley MS. song, which seems to have been copied from the lir.st edition of the Abcrdeeu cautuH, panes John G. balyell, E^q., advocate. One line only is cited, apparenily the beginning of soma song, — "Silverwood, g:u ye were mine." JELLOK GRAME, 337 7 Yet all these words she ne'er did mind, But fast away did ride ; And tlie little boy wlia came for her, He ran fast by her side. 8 She hadna ridden a mile, a mile, A mile but barely three, Ere she came to a new-made grave, Beneath a green ailc tree. 9 Oil, up then started Jellou Gramo, Out of a bush thereby : "Light down, light down now, Lily Flower, For it 's here tliat ye maun lye. 10 '' Light down, light down now, Lil}' Flower, For by my hand ye'se dec ; Yo married my brother, Brown Robin, When ye shou'd ha'e married me." 11 She lighted aff her milk-white steed. And kneel'd upon her knee : " Oh, mercy, mercy. Jell on Grame, For I'm no prepared to doe ! 12 " The bairn that stirs between ray sides Maun shortly see the light ; But to see it weltering in my blood, "Would be a piteous sight. 13 " Oh, mercy, mercy, Jellon Grame ! Until I lighter be, Ha'e mercy on your brother's bairn, Tho' ye ha'e naiie for me." 14 " Nao mercy is for thee, ladye, Nae mercy is for thee; Such mercy unto you I'll gi'o As what ye ga'e to inc." lo Then he's ta'cn out a trusty brand, And strokVl it o'er the strae ; And tliro' and thro' her fair body He 's gar'd cauld iron gae. IC Ho felt nae pity for Lily Flower, Where she was lying dead ; But he felt some for the bonnie bairn Lay weltering in lier bluid. 3;^^ BALLAD MINSTKELSY OF SCOTL.VND. 17 Then ho's ta'en up tlio bonnio bairn, Ilaiullofl liiin tiMulerly; And said — " Yo are of my aiii kin, Tho' your mother ill-used me." 18 ITc 's washen him at tho crystal stroam, And row'd him in a weed; And named liim after a bold robber, Who was call'd Robin Hood. 19 Up has he ta'en that bonnio boy, Given him to nurses nine : Three to sleep, and three to wake, And three to go between. 20 And ho bred up that bonnie boy, Call'd him his sister's son ; And he thought no eye cou'd ever see Tlie deed that he had done. 21 But so it fell upon a day, They ranged the greenwood free, And rested them at Silverwood, Beneath that green aik tree. 22 And many were the greenwood flowers Upon that grave that grew ; And marvell'd much that bonnie boy To see their lovely hue. 23 '• What 's paler than the primrose wan? Wiiat 's redder than the rose ? What 's fairer than the lily flower On this wee knowe* that grows?" 24: Oh, out and answer'd Jellon Grame, And he spake hastily: " Your mother was a fairer flower, And lies beneath this tree. 25 " More pale was she, when she sought my grace, Than primrose pale and wan ; And redder than rose her ruddy heart's blood, That down my broadsword ran." 2m With that (he boy has bent his bow. It Avas baith stout and lang; And thro' and thro' him, Jellon Grame, He gar'd an arrow gang. * "Wee linowo:' Utile hillock. BRO\VN ADAM. 339 27 Says — " Lye ye there, now, Jellon Grame! 5ly malison gang you v/i'! The place that my mother lyes buried in Is far too good for thee." 28 These news ha'e gacu thro' Stirling town. Likewise thro' Huntin-hall ; At last it reached the king's own court, Amang his nobles all. 29 And wlien the king got word of it, A light laugh then ga'e he ; And he has sent for little Robin To come right speedilie. 30 He 's put on little Eobin's head A ribbon and gowden crown, And made him one of his foremost knighta, For the valour he had done. BROWN ADAM. From Scott's Minstrelsy, vol. ill., p. 159. "There is," says Sir Walter Scott, " a copy of this ballad m Mrs. Brown's collection. The editor has seen one, printed on a sii)!,fUti)iij the. Cittie and Countrie Humours, to .7, ,'/, and 5 Ko?/ce», London, IGll, 4to," and reprinted by Mr. Ritson in his Ancient tiongs. • " Fey folk:" "people ou lUo verge of death."— Kinlooh. ♦ Stanza 3 Is taken from Mr. MotliciweU'B Miiis'rels>j, Introiiuction, p xti.v., uoto lt<;. The couplet it diaplacnu rcmtsi — "Ho niado IiIh lovo a colllii oti the goata of Ycrrow, And buried his buauio love down in a sea valley." On which ilr. KIii1ij<1i remarks:— " It would be dinicult to aHcertain where Yorrow U Bltuaied. It would Hcem, however, lo bo on iho sea coobi, aa 'goati ' tife'nifloH Inlotn where the sea entonit " 314 BALLAD MINSTKKLSY OF SCOTLAND. IL "The Twa Covl)ics," " comnmuicntecl to " Scott, Mlmtrehy, vol. ii., p. .'557, "l)yCl)arlosKiik]iatrickSharpe,Esq., Jiui., of ITotl.lain, as written down from tradition by a lady. It is a sini^ular circumstance," says Sir Walter, "that it shonld coincide so very nearly \\\t\\ the ancient dirge called ' 'i"he Three Eavcus,"' published by Mr. Ritson in lus Ancient Somjs; and that, at tlie same time, there should exist such a dilTereucc as to make the one appear rather a counterpart than copy of the other." III. "ThcTwa Corbies," a different version, which appears in Motherwell's Minsfrcby, p. 7, without note or comvnenfc. It is the one here printed, and is certainly the best version of the three, but is supposed to have been modernized. Variations from Scott's version are noted under the text. "The Three Kaveus " concludes thus :— "Down tliero comes a fallow doo, As great with young as slia might goe. " She lift up his blouJy hed, And kist hi.s wounda that were bo red. "She got him up upon her backe, And carried Lim to earthea lake. "She buried him before the prime, She was dead her eelfe ere enen-song tima. "God send euery gentleman Such haukes, such hoimdes, and such a leman." 1 There were Iwa corbies sat on a tree, Large and black as black might be ; And one until the other 'gan say — " Where shall Ave go and dine to-day? Shall we dine by the wild salt sea? Sliall we dine 'r'leath the greenwood tree?" 2 " As I sat on the deep sea sand, I saw a fair ship nigh at land ; I waved my wings, I bent my beak, The ship sunk, and I heard a shriek : There tliey lie, one, two, and three — I shall diiie by the wild salt sea." 8 " Come, I will show ye a sweeter sight, A lonesome glen, and a new-slain knight; His blood yet on the grass is hot, Ilis sword half-drawn, his shafts unshot, — And no one knows that he lies there, But his hawk, his hound, and liis ladye fair. THE N£W-SLAIX KN'IGHT. '• His hound is to the hunting gane, His hawk to fetcli the wild-fowl hame, His ladye's away witli another mate, So we shall make our dinner sweet; Our dinner "s sure, our feasting free : Come, and dine by the greenwood tree. " Ye shall sit on his white hause-bane, I will pick out his bonnie blue een ; Ye'll take a tress of his yellow hair. To theek* your nest Avhen it grows bare;f The gowdeu down on his young chin Vrill do to rowe my young ones in. " Oh, cauld and bare his bed will be, When winter storms sing in the tree; At his head a turf, at his feet a stone. He will sleep, nor hear the maiden's moan. O'er his v.'hite bones the birds shall fly, The M'iid deer bound, and foxes cry." J THE NEW-SLAIN KNIGHT. § From Buclnxii^s Ancir^nt BvJJads, vol. i., ]>. 197. There are other two ballads of a similar description iu the same collection— catiiely, "Blue Flowers and Yellow," vol. i., p. 185, and "Willie's Lyke Wake," vol. ii., )). 51. In the two labt-namcd the lovers feijrn death, in order to induce their respective lady-loves to attend and gaze upon their supposed remains. In both cases tliey prove buccessful in compassing their object. All three ballad.s contain stan/as which arc either ropetitions or mere echoes of stanzas in other ballads. In the following ballad, for example, stanzas 5 to 8, inclusive, repeat or echo a poiiion of "Young Johnstone," ante, p. 277 ; while stanzas 10 and 11 are similar to stan/.as in " Fair Annie of Lochi-yan," o«.V, ]'. 1 ; ttan/^ 12 is tiinilar to one in "Lord Ingram and Cliild Vyct," uiilr, ]i. SO; v/hilo etanzas 13 and 1-4 wiU recall to mind the denoue- ment of Hector Macneill's popular song, "Mary of Castlecary. " • "Theck:" thatcb. t " With ae lock of UL? gowden hair We'll theck our nest when it grows bare." — Scoll's vcrsioa X " Mony a nno for him makes Dinne, I'nt Dtino shall l;en wlirre he in ^nw . O'crhU white bancB, when they are bare, The wind shall blaw for evcrniair."— Scott'B version. { The Ullc Is rather llibcmiiui, as the "knight" wan not ' oluin." 346 BALLAD MINSTKELSV OF SCOTL.VND, The two ballads above referred to begin respectively as under:— " ' O Willie, my rod, wliat iiiake nwX Vellow.' " If my love loves me, she lets me not know, That is a dowio chance; I wish that I the same cou'd do, Tho' my love wore in France, Franco, Tho' ray love wove in France." — " Willie's I.yke Wake." 1 " My heart is lighter tliau the poll, My folly made mo glad, As on my rambles I went out, Near by a garden side. 2 "I walk'd on, and forther on, Love did my heart engage; For there I spied a ladye fair, Lay sleeping near a hedge. 3 " Then I kiss'd her with my lips, And stroked her witii my hand : ' Win up, win up, ye ladye gaj-, This day ye sleep ower lang. i " ' This dreary sight that I ha'e seen, Unto my heart gives pain; For by the side of yonder green, 1 see a knight lyes slain.' 5 " ' Oh, what like was his hawk, his hawk? Or what like was his hound? And what like was the trusty brand. This new-slain knight had on? ' 6 " ' His hawk and hound were from him gone, His steed tied to a tree ; A bloody brand beneath his head. And on the ground lyes he.' 7 " 'Oh, what like was his hose, his hose? And what like were his shoon? And what like was the gay clothing This new-slain knight had on? ' 8 " ' His coat was of tiie rod scarlet, His waistcoat of 1 lie same ; His hose were of the bonnie black, And shoon laced with cordin'. Sm HUGH LE BLOND. 347 '• * Bonuie was bis yellow hair, For it was new-comb'd down ; ' Tlieii, sighing sair, said the ladyc fair, ' I conib'd it late yestreen. 10 " ' Oil, vrha will shoe my bonnie foot ? Or wha will glove my band ? Or wha will father my dear bairn, Since my love 's dead and gane?' 11 '' ' Oh, I will shoe your bonnie foot, And I will glove your hand; And ni be father to your bairn, Since your love 's dead and gane/ 12 " ' I winna father luy buiru,' she said, ' Upon an unkenn'd man ; I'll father it on the King of Heaven, Since ray love's dead and gane.' " 13 The knight he knack'd his white fingers. The ladye tore her hair; He 's drawn the mask from oft" his face, Says — " Ladye, mourn nae mair ! J 4 '' For ye arc mine, and I am thine, I sec your lovo is true ; And if I love and brook my life, Yc'se ne'er ha'e cause to rue." SIR HUGH LE BLOND. From Scott's Mliifli'h;i, vol. iii., p. 51. '• This ballad," says Sir Walter Scott, "is a uorthern compositiou, and Kccms to have 1 con the original of the Icgeud called ' Sir Aldinpar,' ■which is piiatcd in the Rdiques of Ancient Poelri/. The incidents arc nearly the same in both ballads, excepting that in 'Aldingar' an angel combats for the Qiiccn, instead of a mortal cliamiaon. The names of ' Aldingar ' and ' llodingli;iin ' api)roach near to each other in sound, though not in orthography, and the one might, by reciters, be easily substituted for the other. I think I have eccn both tlie name and the story in au ancient prose clironicle, but am unable to make any reference in sujjport of uiy belief. "Tlie tradition up(.u Avhicli tl:c b.allad is founded is universally cuncnt in the Me;inin; and the editor i.s inforincil tiiat, till very lately, the sword with Vvhich Sir Hugh Ic Blond was believed to havo 343 BAIX.VD MINSmtLSY OF SCOTLAND, defended tlie life and honour of the Queen was carefully preserved liy his descendants, tlic Viscouut.s of Avbuthnot. That Sir Hugh of Arbuthnot lived in the thirteenth century, is proved by his having (1282) bestowed the i)atronago of tho churcli of Garvoch upon tho monks of Aberbrothwick, for tho safety of his soul. — Reii'ister of Aherhrothw'cl; i/uott'd hi/ Craif/onl in Peerarje. P>nt I find no instance in history in which the honour of a Queen of Scotland Avas committed to the chance of a duel. "But, true or false, the incident narrated in tho ballad is in the genuine style of chivalry. Romances abound witli similar instances, nor are they Avanting in real history. The most solemn part of a knight's oath was to defend ' all widows, orphelines, and maidens of gude fame.' — Lindsay's Heraldry MS. The love of arms was a real passion of itself, which blazed yet more fiercely when vinited with the enthusiastic admiration of the fair sex. The knight of Chaucer exclaims, with chivalrous energy — ' To flglit for a laxly! a hciicJicitGl It were a lusty sight for to see.' It was an argument, seriously urged by Sir John of Hcinault, for making war n])on Edward II. in behalf of his banished wife, Isabella, that knights were bound to aid, to their uttermost power, all dis- tressed damsels living witliout counsel or comfort. " Such was the readiness with which, in those times, heroes put their lives in jeopardy for honour and lady's sake. But, I doubt ■whether the fair clamcs of the present day will think that the risk of being burnt, iipon every suspicion of frailty, would be altoget'icr compensated by the proliability that a disinterested champion, like Hugh le Blond, w^ould take up the gauntlet in their behalf. I fear they Avill rather accord to the sentiiuent of the hero of an old romance, who expostidatcs thus with a certain duke: — ' Cortes, Sir Duko, tlxou doeat unriglit. To make a roast of your daugliter bright, I v.'ot you bou unkind.' — Amis and Amelion. " 1 was favoured with the following copy of Sir Hugli le Blond, by K. Williamson Burnet, Esq. of Mouboddo, who wrote it down from the recitation of an old woman, long in the service of the Arbuthnot £iuiily. Of course, the diction is very much humbled, and it lias, in all ])robability, undergone many corruptions ; but its antiquity is indubitable, and the storj% though indiiferently told, is in itself intei'esting. It is believed that there have been many more verses." 1 The birds sang sweet as ony bell, Tho world had not their niaik ; Tlic Queen she 's gone to her chamber, With Kodingham to talk. 2 "I love you well, my Queen, my dame, 'Bovc land and rents so clear; And for tlic love of j'ou, my Queen, Would thole* pain most severe." ♦ "Thole:" bear. SIR HUGH LE BLOND. 349 3 '' If well you love nie, Rodingham, I'm sure so do I thee ; I love you well as any man, Save the King's fail- bodye." 4 "I love you well, my Queen, my dame, 'Tis truth that I do tell; Your love and favour for to win, Tiie salt seas I wou'd sail." 5 '* Away, away. Rodingham! Speak not such words to me ; Nor plot such wrong against the King, Who puts such trust in thee.* G " To-morrow you'd be taken sure, And like a traitor slain ; And I'd be burned at a stake. Although I be the Queen." 7 He then stepp'd out at her room door, All in an angry mood ; Until he met a leper-man, Just by the ha' d wayside. 8 He intoxicate the leper-man, "With liquors very sweet, And gave him mora and more to drink, Until he fell asleep. 9 He took him in his arms twa. And carried him along, Till he came to tI:o Queen's i.wu bed. And there he laid him down. 10 He then stepp'd out of the Queen's bow'r, As swift as an}' roe. Till he came to the very place Where the King himself did go. 11 The King said unto Rodingham — " What news have you to me ?" He said — " Your Queen 's a false woman. As I did plainly see." 12 He hastcn'd to tlie Queen's chamljer. Ho costly and so line. Until he came to the Queen's own bed, That the leper-man lay in. • The third liue of bIbiizu 4 aud tho ihrcc Inut of ttanza 6 oic buUliluloU fortlLcra le«!(i delicate, as gl^cu in the original. 350 DALLAD JIINSTRELSY OV SCOTLAND. 13 He look'd upon tlio leper-man, Who lay on his Queen's bed; Ho lil'tod uj) tlic snaw-white sheets, And thus he to him said: 14 " Plooky,* plooky jire your clieeks, And plooky is your chin; And plooky are your arms twa, iVIy bonnie Queen 's lain iu. 15 " Since she has lain into your ai*ms, She shall not lye in mine ; Since she has kiss'd your ugsomef mouth, She ne'er mair shall kiss mine." 16 In anger he went to the Queen, Who lell upon her knee; He said — "You false, unchaste woman, What's this you've done to me? " 17 The Queen then turu'd herself about. The tear blinded her e'e: '' There 's not a knight in all your court Dare give that name to me." 18 He said—" 'Tis true that I do say, For I a proof did make : You shall be taken from my bow'r. And burned at a stake. 19 "Perhaps I'll take mj' word again, And may repent the same, If that you'll get a Christian man To fight that Rodingham." :.''J " Alas ! alas ! " then cried our Queen, "Alas! and woe to me! There 's not a man in all Scotland Will light witli him for me." 21 She breath'd vmto her messengers, Sent them south, east, and west; They cou'd find none to fight with him, Nor enter the contest. 22 She breath'd unto her messengers, Sent them unto the north; And there they found Sir Hugh le Blond, To fight him he came forth. • "Plooky: ' pimiily. t "Ugsome:" loatiiKome. SIR HUGH LE BLOND. 851 T3 "When uuto him they did unfold The circumstance all right, He bade them go and tell the Queeu That for her he wou'd fight. 24 The day came on that was to do That dreadful tragedy; Sir Hugh le Blond was not come up To fight for our ladye. 25 " Put on the i\ve,^^ the monster said: " It is twelve ou the bell." '"Tis scarcely ten, now," said the King; •' I heard the clock mysel'." 26 Before the hour the Queen is brought, The burning to proceed; In a black velvet chair she's set, A token for tlie dead. 27 She saw the flames ascending high, The tears blinded her e'e: ""Wliere is the worthy knight," she said, " Who is to fight for me? " 28 Tiieu up and spake the King himsel' — " My dearest, have no doubt, For yonder comes the man hiraseV, As bold as e'er set out." 29 Tliey then advanced to fight the dmd With swords of temper'd steel. Till down the blood of Kodingham Went running to his heel. 30 Sir Hugli took out a trusty sword, 'Twas of the metal clear. And lie has pierced Kodingham Till's heart-blood did appear. 31 "Confess your treachery now," he aaid, " This day before you die ! " "I do confess my treachery, I shall no longer lie: ?,2 " I like to wicked Human am, This day 1 shall be slain." The Queen was brou^;hL to her chamber, A good woman again. 352 BALLAD MINSTHELSY OF SCOTLAND. 33 Tlic Qncon then snid unto tlic King — '' Avbattlo'a nrar tlio sea; Give it mito the northern knight That this day Ibught for nie." 31 'J'hen said the King — "Come here, Sir Knight, And drink a gla^ss of wine; And, if Arliattle "s not enough, To it "vve'll Fordoun join." SIR HUGH AND THE JEW'S DAUGHTER. "The following ballad bears a great resemblance to the 'Prioresse's Talc ' in Chaucer : the poet seems also to have had an eye to the known story of ' Hu^h of Lincoln,' a child said to have been murdered by the Jews (a.d. I'io.j) in the reign of Henry III.," as related by Matthew Paris. One Jew, who received a promise of impunity, confessed to the crime ; on which, in spite of the promise made to him, he was tied to the tail of a horse and dragged to the gallows ; eighteen of the richest Jews in Lincoln being also hanged as partici- pants, while many more were imprisoned in the Tower of London. On the other hantl, the body of the child was buried v/ith the honours of martyrdom in Lincoln Cathedral ; but whether the Shrine of Saint Hugo in that Cathedral -was erected for the bishop of that name, or for the reputed martyr, cannot be determined. " The remains of a young person found near this spot, in 1791, v/ere at once taken for granted to be tho;ie of the sainted infant; and drawings were made of the relics, which may be seen among the works of the artist Grimm, in the British Museum." — Professor Child's Eixjlish and Scottish Ballads, vol. iii., p. 130. "Michel has published an Auglo-Nonnan ballad ('Hugo do Lin- colnia') on the subject, which appears to be almost contemporary with the event recorded by Matthew Paris, and is certainly of the times of Henry III. The whole subject is critically examined in the Athemcum for December 15, 1849."— 76^ pp. 137 and 138. The ballad here printed has been somewhat freely rendered from the versions which have appeared as under: — I, "The Jew's Daughter," in Percy's Relhiues, vol. i., where it is termed "A Scottish Ballad," and is said to bo "printed from a MS. copy sent from Scotland." It begins — " Tlie rain rins doune thro' Jlirry land toano, Sae dois It douno the Pa: Sac dois the lads of Mirry-land tonne, Quhau they play at the ha." II. " Sir Hugh," in Herd"s Scoltiah Sonys, vol. i., p. 96. SIR HUGH AND THE JEW'S DAUGHTER. 353 III. " Hugh of Lincoln," in Jamieson's Popular Ballads, vol. i., p. 139, v.'liere it is given verbatim as the editor took it down from 2ilrs. Brown's recitation. This version pre- serves the tradition that the " child's body" was thrown " into a well dedicated to the Virgin ilary ; and tradition says that it was through the might of ' Or.r Ladye' that the dead body was permitted to speak and to reveal tha horrid story to the disconsolate mother." "The volun- tary ringing of the bells, &c., at his funeral," belong to this veriiou, connected with which ' ' Blind Harry's account of the death of Sir William \Yallace" is referred to by the editor. IV. " Sir Hugh ; or, The Jev.'s Daughter," in Motherwell's Min- strehy^]}. 51, wliere it is "given as taken down from the recitation of a lady; and contains some additional circumstances not to be found in any of the [other] copies. " V. "Sir Hugh of Lincoln, an old Scottish ballad," in Sten- house's Notes to John-soil's Micsical Mustum, p. 500. VI. "Sir Hugh," in Hume's Sir llu-jh of Lincoln. This is a version obtained from recitation in Ireland. "Besides these," says Professor Child, "fragments have been printed in Sir Egertou Brydge's liesliiuta, I., 3S1, Halliweli's Ballads and Poems rc.-.peding Hiuik of Lincoln (1849), and m Notes and Queries, vol. viii., p. G14; ix.,'320; xii., idQ."—Ln(jli^h and Scottish Ballads, vol. iii., p. 137. The following, which went the round of the newspapers about Easter of the present jxar (1870), shows the firm hold which such superstitious prejudices have on the minds of the ignorant and credulous of all nations and times : — "The Eeligiox of Love.— The Cologne Gazette publishes a pastoral letter by the Greek Patriarch at Constantinople. The approach of Easter always induces the Christian population to persecute and annoy the .Tews, on which subject the document says: — 'Superstition is a detestable thing. Almost all the Christian nations of the East have taken up the extravagant idea that the Israelites enjoy shedding Christian blood, either to obtain thereby a blessing from Heaven, or to gratify tlieir national rancour against Christ. Hence contiicts and disturbances break out, by which the social harmony between the dwellers in the same land, yea, tlie same fatherland, is disturbed. Thus a reiiort was lately spread of the abduction of little Christian children in order to give a pretext for suspicion. We, on our side, abhor sucli lying fancies ; we regard them as the superstitions of men of weak faith and nairow minds ; and wc disavow them officially. We think that every pious Christian sliould think more favourably of his Jewish fellow-citizens. 2s cither the 2*losaic law, nor tlie present social AUGHTER, 355 10 And first cirae out the thick, thick blood, And syne came out the thin: It came frae the heart of sweet Sir Hugh, And left no life within. 11 She roll'd him iu a cake of lead, Bade him lie still and sleep; Then threw hna in Our Ladyo's well, TTas fifty fathom deep. 12 When bells were rung, and mass was sung, And all the boys went hoino; Then every ladj'e got her son, But Sir Hugh's mother alone. 13 She wrapp'd her mantle her about, And hied her up and down ; And till the dead hour of the night, She searcli'd through Lincoln town. 1-1 Then out she cried — " ]V[y sweet Sir Hugh, Oh, where, where can you be? If you speak to any one on earth, I pray thee speak to me. 16 " M)- bonnie Sir Hugh, my sweet Sir Hugh, I pray thee to me speak." " Oh, deep down in Our Ladye's well Your young sou you must seek." 16 Then she ran to Our Ladye's well. And knelt upon her knee: "My bonnie Sir Hugh, my sweet Sir Hugli, I pray thee speak to me." 17 "The lead is wond'rous heavy, mother, The well is wond'rous deep; A keen penknife sticks in my heart, But here I cannot sleep. \>i " Tiien hie you lioiu.', my motlior dear, Prepare my winding sheet; And at the back of Lincoln town, To-morrow we shall meet." 19 Ladye Helen rjuickly hii.d her home. Made him a winding sheet; Anrl at the back of Lincoln town. Next day the corpso did meet, 856 BALLAD MraSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND, 20 Then she had liiiii laid in liallow'd grouud, And tlio death-mass for liini sung; While all tlic bells of Lincoln town Without men's hands were rung. 21 And all the books of Lincoln town Were read without man's tongue ; There was never sueli a burial Of old nor yet of young ; There was never such a burial Since Adam's days begun. 22 Oh, the broom, the bonnio, bonnie broom, The broom that makes full sore : A woman's mercy is very little, But a man's mercy is more. BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND, ROMANTIC AND HISTORICAL. PART n.-HISTOPJCAL AXD MISCELLME0U3. Feom the Keigs of Alf.xaxder IIL HARDYKNUTE. A FRAGMENT. KDINBURGII : Prhiti'd lij James JIa'-OH, Printer to the Kln>/s Most Excellent Majesty. MDCCXIX. Tlie above is the title and imprint of the earliest dated edition of '• the celebrated poem or ballad of ' Hardyknute,' " * a copy of which, consistinc; of " 12 pac^es (folio), very neatly i)rinted," is preserved in the Advocates' Library; but the "original edition" is now, "from internal evidence,'' supposed to be "one in 12mo (i^p. 8), without date, of which a copy is in [the] possession of Mr. i)avid Laing, and socms never to have had a title. The poem ia styled ' " Hardiknute," a fragment of an old heroick ballail.' Besides an immense variety of minute differences, and some important and material alterations, the foho edition has three stanzas more than the one in 12mo"— viz., those here numbered 27, 28, and 4!). " The folio being more enlarged and i)olished, it is a fair presumjition that the less ample and nuler versio7i was a first attempt." t Allan Kamsay's Evp.rfjrenn (1721) puriiortcd to lie "a collection of .Scots pocnm, wrote hy the ingenious before IGOO;" and it contains, toward tlie end of the second volume, "Hardyknute," with the addition of the stanzas here numbered 17, 18, 20," 21, 22, 2\\, .^^, 35, • Ultson'H. t Letters from Ll.'liop Percy, &c., to Oeorge rototi. Koto to riefRt.'i? Notice, p. 1. 2lJ 358 BALLAP MIXSTllKLSY OF SCOTLAND. 36, 37, 41, and 42. " Many difTorent readings are given ; and Ramsay, to coulivin the authenticity of the whole, has everywhere changed the initial y to -," aud rcmlered the general orthography uncouthly antique. An edition "with modernized text, general remarks, and notes," from the editorial pen of John Moncrieff, s.ni\\OT oi App'ius : a Trofje.dy, was pnlijislicil, i.ondon, 1740. The Evenjreen text was reprinted l>y Foulis of Glasgow, 1748. It also apjiears "in a collection of Scots poems on several occasions, Ly the late Islv. Alexander renicuick, Gent., and others; Edinburgh, printed for James Reid, bookseller in Leith, 1750." "Lord President Forbes and Sir Gilbert Elliot of ^linto (Lord Justice Clerk for Scotland), who had believed it ancient, contributed to the exi)ense of publishing the" folio edition ; and it ajipears to have "generally passed for ancient," until VAv David Dalrymple, Lord Hailes, transmitted to Bishop Percy "the following pai-ticulars," as contained in a prefatory note to "this fine morsel of heroic poetry,"' in the second edition of the RcUqurs of Ancient Enr/lish Poefnj, vol. ii. (1767). Those "particulars," the editor states, " may be depended on," and are, that "one INIra. (Lady) Wardlaw, whose maiden name was [Elizabeth] Halket" (second daughter of Sir diaries Ilalket of Pitferran, Fifeshirc, and widow of Sir Plenry Wardlaw, Part, of Pitreavie and Balmule, near Dunfermline, in the same county), "pretended she had found this poem, written on shreds of pajjcr, employed for what is called the bottoms of clues. A suspicion arose that it M-as her own composition;" and "the lady did in a manner acknowledge it to be so. Being desired to show an additional stanza as a proof of this, she produced the two last [41 and 42], which were not in the copy tliat was lir.it printed."* Lord Hailes was, however, "of opinion that part of the ballad may be ancient, but retouched and much enlarged by the lady above mentioned. Indeed, he had been informed that the late William Thomson, the Scottish nuisician, who published the Orpheus Cnledonius, \lo?., 2 vols. 8vo, declared he had heard poi'tiona of it repeated in his infancy, before Lady Wardlaw's copy was heard of." Bishop Percy "was also informed, on the authority of Dr. David Clerk, M.D., of Edinburgh, that between the present stanzas, 36 and 37, the two following liad been intended, but were on maturer con. sideration omitted : — " ' Now Jai ti3 flew wavering through bLiw pppp:l, Scarce could they reach their aim; Or reach 'd, scarce blood the round point drew, 'Twas all hut shot in vain: Right Rtrengthy arms foic-fenbled gi-ew, Sair wreck'd wi' that day's toils; E'en flerce-born minds now lungd fur poneo, And curs'd war's cruel broils. '"Yet still war's horns sounded to char^o, Swords clash'd and han)C?B rang; But «aftlv sae ilk blastie blc.v The hiils end dales fr.io 'inan^. Nae echo hoard in double dint.-, Nor tho lang-windiiig liorn; Nne mair she blow out brade, ai she Did eir that summer's morn.'" • She wBB Vom, April, 1077; married, June, 1C06; and died in 1727 HARDYKNUTE. 350 In Scottish Tragic Ballads (1781), Pinkerton gave to the world " Haraykiiute,' in what he professed to regard as "its original perfection," .such " perfectiou" being the result of sundry improve- ipents on the previous text, and the addition of a second fart by himtcli"; although, in his Prefatorj^ Dissertation II. (p xxxv.), ho alleges his indebtedneps, "for most of the stanzas now recovered, to the memorj' of a lad}- in Lanarkshire." In the second edition of the same work, published as Select Scottish Ballads, vol i. (1783), and in "A List of the Scottish Poets," pre- fixed to Ancient Scotli.-ih Poems (1786), vol. i. (p. cxxvi.-viii.), he propounded, on the authority of an alleged communication from Lord Ilailes, an elaborate theory as to the assumed authorship of jmrt frst by Sir John Bruce, brother-in-law to Lady Wardlaw. He then proceeds (p. cxxviii.) to state, regarding " the second part of ' Hardyknute,' written in 1776 [when he was only eighteen years of agej, but not published till 1781, the editor must now confess himself guilt}-." With reference to the assumed authorship of the f.rst jmrt by Sii* .John Bruce, the literary correspondence of Pinkerton, published by .Mr. Dawson Turner, in 2 vols. 8vo, 1830, furnishes the following sulflcient refutation, in a letter from Lord Hailcs to Pinkerton, dated 2d December, 1785, wherein his lordship statr^s:--'" You mistook if yon suppose that I i-eckoned Sir John Bi'uce to be the author of ' Hardyknute.' It was his sister-in-law, Lady Wardlav.-, who is said to bave been the autliox'. All that I know on the subject is men- tioned in Bishop Percy's collection. If you want to have the original edition, with the supplementary stanzas in the handwriting of Dr. John Clerk, the copy is at your sennce." Bishop Percy was sub.?ef|ueutly "indebted" to Pinkerton "for the use'' of Dr. Clerk's copy, the "orthography" and "readings" of which v/ere "followed" in the fourth edition of the Beliques (1794), " excc]it in a few instances wherein the common edition appeared preferable;'' but to counterbalance this service, he shamefully ira- po^ed on the worthj- prelate's credidity, by foiit'ng on him the exploded theory a.s to Sir John Biiice'.s authorshiji; although, as we now know, he had received a contradiction of it under the hand of Ijord Hailcs, as above. "Hardyknute," wliich Sir Walter Scott terms "a most spirited and beautiful imitation of the ancient ballad," * and which, on its first apjicarance, was .so extravagantly lauded, has of late years been as unduly dejircciated. Its historical basis is rather haxy ; but it is usually 6upj>osed to refer to the battle of Largs — the Scotish Armada — foucrht on the 2d of rjrtober, 12G3, between the invrdii;;' force led by liaco, King of 2Sorway, and the Scotish army commanded in prnon bj- King Alexander IIL The total loss of tlie Xcrwegians in iiH n, in this, to them, most disastrous expedition, has bctn conijuited :ifc 20,000, and that of the Scots at 5,000. The victorj' rf the latter w as largely due to Alexander, Lord High Stewart of Scotland, who ' J'coit'.M itinxtrel.oj. vol. i. p. 43. "On tlio fly-leaf of his copy of Hanif.ay'a r,n'- i.n'in, U'Jl. In wliii-li iKo bnllml ni)pRareil in an nmen'lod form, lio Ravfl — ' Uoriliik- mile was tlio firs: lyxsm I ovor Inmnt— the l.-x'.l that I shall forget.'"— Mr. D. Ijxli-frj In Nntpa to.TohnFon s Slwicaf Mnitum. n. '.121. 360 BALT.AD MIXSTREI.SY OF SCOTI.AND. led the right wing of the Scotish arinj'^, anil who is supposed to he represented in the balhid as '• Hardy U nut e," or Honhiknkht. TXw results of this important hnttlc were the immediate and ])erinanent loss to Scandinavia of tlie 1 lebrides and tlie Isle of jNIan, which depen- dencies were relinquished to Alexander III. of Scotland, by terms of a treaty concluded in 1200, with Ma!];nus, the successor of Ilaco. Tho battle of Larus jtut an elfectual stop to Scandinavian aggressions upon Scotland, which thenceforth camo to be regarded as "tho grave of the Danes," whose descendants were consequently led to shun its i;ital shores. The text of the li'diques, fourth edition, is here adopted, except in a few instances. 1 Stately steppVl he east the wall, And stately stcpp'd he west; Full seventy years lie now had seen, With scarce seven years of rest. He lived when Britons' breach of i'aith Wrought Scotland nieikle wae ; And aye his sword taukl, to their cost, He was their deadly fae. 2 High on a hill his castle stood, With halls and tow'rs a height, And g :odly chambers fair to see, Whore he lodged many a knight. His dame, sae peerless ance and fair, For chaste and beauty deem'd, Nae marrow had in all the land, Save Elenor,'-* the queen. 3 Fall thirteen sons to Iiim she bare, All men of valour stout; In bluidy light, with sword in hand, Nine lost their lives but doubt. Four yet remain; long may they live To stand by liege and land! High was their fame, high was their might, And high was their command. 4 Great love they bare to Fairly fair, Their sister saft and dear; Her girdle show'd her middle jimp, And gowden glif-t her hair. What waefu' wae her beauty bred! Waefu' to young and auld ; Waefu', I trow, to kith and kin, As story ever tanld. • "Margaret" was tho name of the quern of Alexander III. Ifor mother was "Kletior," qvecn of England. HARDYKNUTE. 361 5 Tlie king of Norse, in summer tide, Puff' d vi\i with pow'r and might, Landed in fair Scotland the isle, With mony a hardy knight. The tidings to our gude Scots king Came, as he sat at dine, AYith noble chiefs, in brave array, Drinking the bluid-red wine. G ''To horse! to horse! my royal liege I Your faes stand on the strand; Full tv/enty thousand glitt'riug spears The king of Norse commands." '' Bring me my steed Madge, dapple gray,'' Our gude king rose and cry'd: " A trustier beast in all the land A Scots king never try'd. 7 " Go, little page, tell Hardj-knute, That lives on hill so hie, To draw his sword, the dread of faes, And haste and follow me." The little page ilew swift as dart Flung by his master's arm: " Come down, come down, Lord Ilanlyknute, And rid your king frae harm." 8 Tlien red, red grew his dark-brown cheeks, bae did his dark-brown brow; His looks grew keen, as they were wont In dangers great to do. He 's ta'en a horn as green as glass, And gi'en live sounds sae shrill. That trees iu greenwood shook thereat, Sac loud rang ilka hill. 9 lli< sons in manly sport and glee Had pass'd that summer's morn, When, lo ! down in a grassy dale, They heard tlicir father's horn. " That horn," cjuo' they, " ne'er sounds in peacc- We've other sjiort to bide;" And soon they hied tlicm up the hill. And soon were at his side. 10 " Late, late yestreen I ween'd in pcaco To end my lengthen'd life; Jly age might well excuse my arm Frae n)anly feate of strife ; 3()2 BALLAD MlNiillJKLSV OF SCOTLAND. But now that Norse do proudly boast Fair Scotland to enthrall, It 's ne'er be said ol' Ilardyknute, He fear'd to fight or fall. 11 «' Robin of Eothsaj', bend thy bow; Thy arrows shoot sac led, That inony a comely countenance They've tnrnM to dcadl}- ]jale. Brade'Tlionias, take ye but your lance; Ye need nac weapons mair, if you fight wi't as you did ance, 'Gainst Westmoreland's fierce heir. 12 " And Malcolm, light of foot as stag, That runs in forest wild. Get me my thousands three of men Well bred to sword and shield. Bring me my horse and harnesine, My blade of metal clear; If fac'S but kenn'd the hand it bare, They soon had filed for fear. 13 " Farewell, my dame, sao peerless gudc,"- And took her by the hand, — '' Fairer to me in age you seem, Than maids for beauty fam'd. My youngest son shall here remain To .^uard these stately towers. And shut the silver bolt that keeps Sae fast your painted bowers." 11 And first she wet her comely cheeks, And then her boddice green ; Her silken cords of twirtlc twist, Well plett with silver sheen ; And apron set with mony a dice Of needle-work sae rare. Wove by nae hand, as ye may guess, Save that of Fairly fair. 15 And he has ridden o'er muir and moss. O'er hills and mony a glen. When he came to a wounded knight, Making a heavy mane : '• Here must I lie, here must I die, By treachery's false guiles ; Witless 1 was, that e'er gave faith To wicked woman's srailes." H^UiDYKNUTE, 363 10 '• Sir Kiiiglit, if ye were iu my bow'r, To lean on silken seat, Ikty ladye's kindly care you'd prove, Who ne'er kenn'd deadly hate. Her self wou'd waieh you all the day, Her maids -svatch all the night ; And Fairly fair your heart wou'd cheer, As she stands in your sight. 17 '' Arise, young kuight, and mount your steed, Full lowns the shining daj' ; Choose frae my men Vv'hom you do please, To lead you on the way." Vv'ith smileless look, and visage wau, The wounded knight reply'd, — " Kind chieftain, j-our intent pursue, For here I maun abide. 18 "To me nae after day nor night Can e'er be sweet or fair ; But soon beneath some drapping tree, Cauld death shall end my care." With him nae pleading might prevail; Brave Hardy knute to gain, With fairest words and reason strong, Strave courteously in vain. 19 Syne he has gone far hynd out o'er Lord Chattan's land sac wide ; That lord a worthy wight was aye. When faes his courage try'd : Of Pictish race, by mothers side, When Picts rul'd Caledon, Lord Chattan claim'd the princely maid, Wlien he sav'd Pictish crown. 20 Nov.- with his fierce and stalwart train, lie rcach'd a rising height, Wliore, braid cncampit on the dale, The Norsemen lay in sight. " Yonder, my valiant sons and feirs, Our raging reivers wait Oil the unconquer'd Scotish Bward, To try with us tlieir fate. il •• Make orisons to Him that eav'd Our souls upon tiie rood. Sync V)raveiy show yonr voins arc fill'd With Cah'donian liliiid." 3u4 BALLAD JIINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. TlicMi forth he drew his trusty glave, Whilo thousands all around, Drawn frae tlieir sheaths, glanc'd in the sun, And loud the bugles sound. 22 To join his king, adown the hill In haste his march ho made, While, playin' pibrochs, minstrels meet, Before him stately strade. " Thriee welcome, valiant stoop of weir, Thy nation's shield and pride; Thy king nae reason has to fear, AVhen thou art by his side." 23 When bows were bent and darts were thrown, For thrang scarce could they flee. The darts clove arrows as they met, The arrows dart the tree. Lang did they rage and fight full fierce, With little scaith to man ; But bluidy, liluidy was the field, Ere that lang day was done. 21 The king of Scots that sindle brook'd The war that look'd like play, Drew his braid sword, and lirake his bow. Since bows seem'd but delay. Quoth noble Piothsay — " Mine I'll keep, I wot it 's bled a score." '• Plaste up, my merry men," cried the king, As he rode on before. 25 The king of Norse he sought to find, With him to 'mence the taught; But on his forehead there did light A sharp unsonsie shaft. As he his hand put up to find The wound, an arrow keen. Oh, waeful chance! there pinn'd his band In midst between his een. 26 "Eevenge! revenge!" cried Rothsay's heir, "Your mail-coat shall not bide The strength and sharpness of my dart;" Then sent it through his side. Another arrow well he mark'd. It piero'd his neck in twa : His hands then quat the silver reins — He low as earth did fa'. HARDYKNUTE. cbo 27 '' Sair bleeds my liege, sair, sair lie bleeds!" Again with might he drew. And gesture dread his sturdy bow, Fast the braid arrow flew. Wae to the knight he ettled at ! Lament now, queen Elgreid ! High dames, too, Avail your darling's fall, His youth and comely meid. 28 " Take aff, take aff his costly jnpe," (Of gold well was it twin'd. Knit like the fowlers not, through m Inch His steelly liarncss shin'd). " Take Norse that gift frae me, and bid Him venge the bluid it bears ; Say, if he face my bended bow, He sure nae weapon fears." 29 Proud Norse, with giant body tall. Braid shoulder, and arms strong, Cried — "Where is Hardyknute, sae fam'd And fear'd at Britain's throne? Tho' Britons tremble at his name, I soon shall make him wail That e'er my sword was made sac sharp, Sae saft his coat of mail." SO That brag his stout heart cou'dna bide, It lent hhn youthful niiglit : " I'm Hardyknute; this day," he cried, " To Scotland's king I heght To lay thee low as horses' hoof; My word I mean to keep:" Syne, with the first strolco e'er he strakc, lie gar'd his bo Tlie first line that Sir Patrick read, A loud, loud laugh laugh'd he; r)ut ere he read it to an end,* The tear blinded his e'e. tj "' Oh, wlia is this has done this deed, And tauld the king of me, — To send us out at this time of the year, To sail upon the sea? 7 '• Bc't wind, be't weet, be't hail, be't sloot, Our ship must sail the faem; The king's daughter to"* Noroway, 'Tis we must take* her hame."f " "Skecly." » "Of." '^ "Brin^." \- Scott's vereion. d "To." "Fofh." • Percy's version reads, — " The next line that Sir P.atrick read," ( r.ucban':: version has the following stanzas:— •" Y( '11 eat and driiik, my merry men a', An' F.ee ye be well thoiu; For bl:vw it weet, or h'.a'.v it wind, My glide sliip sails the morr!. ««*««*♦* " ' But 1 maun sail the seas the morn. And likewise pae maun you; To Noroway wi' our king's dauijhter.— A chosen queen she 'a now.' " SIR PATRICK SPENS, 871 8 Tliey hoysed their sails on Monenday morn, With all the speed they may. And they ha'e landed in Xomway Tpon a Wodonsday. Th?y hadna been a week, a week In Noroway, but twae, When that the lords of Xoroway Began aloud to say: * 10 " Ye Scottishmen spend all our king'" G'owd, And all our [young] queen's fee." "Ye lee, ye lee, ye liars loud! Full loud I hear yc lee! 11 " For I ha'e brought as much white monle As gane f my men and me ; I brought a half-fou J of gude red gowd Out o'er the sea with me. 12 " But betide me weil, betide me wae, This day I'se leave the shore ; And never spend my king's monie 'jMong Noroway dogs no more." 13 Then out it spake a gude auld man, [In Sir Patrick's companic:] § " Whatever ye do, my gude master, Take God your guide to he." 14 "Make ready, make ready, m}- merry men all, Our gude ship sails the morn." "Now, ever a!ake! my master dear, I fear a deadly storm! 1.5 "I saw Ihc new moon, late j-cstreen, With tlic auld moon in her arm; And if we gang to sea, master, I foar we'll come to harm." • "They liadua stayed into Ibat plnro A month but nnd a ('ny. Till he cauHcd the flip in mugs gao routi", And wine in cans sao gay. "Thp pipe and hnrp ta," Rweclly play'd, Tho tnimpels loudly wound; In every Imil wherein they stayed, Wi' their mirth did rebound."— Biichans version. t "Ghine: " serve or f ufflco. J "I brooght a half-fou o' gndo rod gowd"— Percy and Scotf. Seott explalDB " baU-fou " afi moaning " the eighth part of a peck." 5 "A gndc der.th mot ho doe."- Bnchan. 372 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. IG [Sir Patrii-k and lils mony inon nil Were anco mail- on the faem;] * Willi fivc-and-fifty Scots lords' pons, That laiig'd to be at hamo. 17 But they hadiia sallVl upon the sea A day but barely three, When the lilt grew dark, and the ^viiid blew loud, And gurly grew the sea. IS Tlic ankers brak, and the topmasts lap, It Avas sic a deadly storm ; And the waves came o'er the broken ship Till all her sides were torn. 19 "Oh, wliere will I get a gude sailor To take my helm in liand, Till I get up'to the tall topmast, To see if I can spy land?" 20 '' Oh, here am I, a sailor gude, To take the helm in hand, Till you go up to the tall topmast; But I fear ve'll ne'er spy land." spy 21 Then up and came a mermaid wild. With a siller cup in her hand : " Sail on, sail on, my gude Scots lords, For ye soon will see dry land." 22 " Awa, awa, ye inerniaid wild. And let your ilecchin' be; For, since your face we've seen the day, Dry land we'll never see." 23 He hadna gane a step, a step, A step Imt barely ane. When a bolt flew out of the goodly r^hip, f And the saut sea it came in. % * '• Yniing Patrick he is on the sea, And even ou the faem."— Buchan. t "I MioTfi n, modern seaman would Rfi y, ' a planU had stavled.' . . . Tsh: Finlay, however, liiiiiks it rather means that 'a bolt gave way.' "—Scott. On which sapient controversy Mr. ^Motherwell ^:agely remarks:— "It seems to iis particularly obvious, that 'if a bur or bolt (Scottice, Omil) had loosened,' a plank n^u-^t neeessttrdy liavo BtartetL " t " He hadna gane to his tapmast, A step but barely three, Till thro' and thro' the bonnie ship's side He saw the preen huw sea. SIR PATRICK SPENS. 37 J 24 " Gae fetch a web of the silken claitli. Another of the twine, And wap them into our giido ship's side, And let na the bca come in." "• 25 They fetch'd a web of the silken claitli, Another of the twine ; And tliey wapp'd them into the gude ship's t^iJe, But still the sea came in. 2G Oh, laith, laith were our gude Scots lords To weet their cork-hcel'd f shoon! But lang or all the play was play'd, They wet their hats aboon. 27 And raony was tlie feather bed Til at floated on the faeni; And mony v.-as tlie gude lord'a son That never mair came hame. 28 Oil, lang, lang may the ladies sit, And gaze with fan in hand,:}: Before they see Sir Patrick Spena Come sailing to the strand. 29 And lang, lang may the maidens sit, With their gowd kairns in tlicir hair, A-waiting for their ain dear loves; For tliem they'll see nae mair. " ' There are fivc-au'-Hity feather bftdn, Well packed in ae room; And yo'il get as niuckle gude canvas Aa wrap the ship a' rouu"; " ' Yo'll pict her well, and Bporo hor not, And mak' her hale and soun'; ' But ere he had tho word well fipoke, The bonnie thip was down. "Oh, laith, laith were our gude lords' sona To wi et their mllk-whito hand: ; But liing ere a' the play was owcr. They wat tlicir guwclen bauds." — Buchan'B Tcr^ioa • "TLe r-Mucdy niipliod BoeniH to be that mentioned In Cook's Voiiar/es, when, tipitn Rome occafcion, to Klop a leak, which could not be got at lu tho Innido. a quilted eiil wa.s brouKht under tho vchbcI, which, being drawn into tho leak by the suction, piu- ventcd the entry of more water. Chaucer say.',— ' There n'la na now guise that it na'as old.' "—Scott. ♦ "Coal-black."— P.iichan. t " Wl' th»lr fang Into (^'':f haml"- Percy and Scott. 2C 874 BALLAD SIINSTRFXSY OF SCOTLAND. 30 Half ower, half ower to Aberdour,* 'Tis fiftj' fathoms deep; And there lies gnde Sir Patrick Spens, With the Poot^ lords at hia feet. THOMAS THE RHYMER. pai;t iii;«t. — ancient. From. ScoiVa Mmsircl-!!/, vol. iv., p. 110. "Fev," personaf^es are so renowned in tradition as 'I'honias of Krcil- donnc, known by the appellation of 'The llhymer.' Unitini;, or supi)osing to unite, in his person the powers of poetical com])osition, f and of vaticination, his memory, even after the lapse of five hundred years, is regarded with veneration hy his countrymen. To give any- thing like a certain history of this remarkable man would be indeed difficidt; but the curious ninj' derive some satisfaction from the parti- culars here brought together. " It is agreed on all hands, that the residence, and probably the birthplace, of this ancient bard was Ercildoune, a village situated I'.pon the I^eader, two miles above its junction with the Tweed. The rums of an ancient tower are still pointed out as the Ehymer's castle. The uniform tradition bears, that his surname was Lermont, or Lear- mont ; and that the appellation of ' The llhymer ' was conferred on 1dm in consequence of his poetical comi>ositions. Tliere remains, nevcitheless, Sdme doubt upon the subject. In a charter, which is subjoined at length, t the son of our poet designed himself 'Thomaa • " In Scott's Border Minstrelsy, tUis line reads — 'Oh, forty miles off Aberdeen; but we are inclined Id favour the reading — 'Half owf r, half ower to Aberdour.' For, with eubmipsion to the opinion of Sir Walter Scott, the meaning of this line is not that the shipwreck took place in the Firih of Forth, but midway bol ween Aberdour and Norway. And, as it would ppom from the narrative, at the oonimoneenient of the ballad, that Sir Patrick sailed from ihe FortlL, it is Init fair to infer that, in hin disastrous voyage homeward, ho would endeavour to make the same port. This opinio;! will be corroborated if we arc correct in assigning the ballad to the histori- cal event mentioned in the introductDry rcmarlts." — Motherwell. t Sir Walter Scott, in his edition of ,S'i> Trutrem, not only claims the auihorship of that romance for " Thomas the Rhymer," but also ascribes to him lh!> romance of '•Kyng Horn."— See Scott's Introduction, p. lix. The ballad of " Ilyndc Horn" will be found ante, p. 12.5. t "From the Charttdary of the Trinity Bouse ofSoUra Advocates' Library, W. 4. 4i. '^EHSYLTON. "Omnibus has literas visnn's vel auditnris Thomas de Ercildoun fllius et heres Thoma; Itymour de Ercildoun silutem in Domino. Noveritis me per fustem e: boculum in pleno judicio resigna^se ac per prescntes quietem clamasse pro me ct lieredibus meis Magistro domus Sanctso Trinitatis do Soltre et fratribus ejusdem (kimus totam terram meain cum oimiibus pertinentibus suis quam in tonemento do Ercildoun hereditiirie tcnui renunciamlo de toto pro mo et horodibus meis omni jure ft clameo quaj ego seu antccessorcs mol in eadcm terra alioque tempore de perpetuo hobuimus sive do future habere pospumus. In cujus rci testimonio presentibuH Ilia Ripillum meun apposui data apud Ercihloun die Martis proximo post festuio yanctoruOT Av^-'olnrum Symonis et Jude Anno Domini 12ii9." THOMAS TITE imYMER. 375 of Ercildoun, sou and heir of Thomas Eymour of Ercildoun,' which seems to imply that the father did not bear the hereditaiy name of Learmont; or, at least, was better known and distinguished by the epithet, which he had acquired by his personal accomplishments. _ I must, however, remark, that, down to a very late period, the practice of distinguishing the parties, even in formal writings, by the epithets which had been bestowed on them from personal circumstances, in- stead of the proper surnames of their families, was common, and in- deed necessarj', among the Border clans. So early as the end of the thirteenth century, when surnames were hardly introduced in Scot- land, this custom must have been universal. There is, therefore, nothing inconsistent in supposing onr poet's name to have been actually Learmont, although, in this charter, ho is distinguished by the popular appellation of 'The Rhymer.' " We are better able to ascertain the period at which Thomas of Ercildoune lived, being the latter end of the thirteenth century. I am inclined to place his death a little further back than Mr. Pinker- ton, who supposes that he was alive in 1300 (List of Scottish Poets), which is hardly, I think, consistent with the charter already quoted, bv which his son, in 1299, for himself and his heirs, conveys to the convent of the Trinity of Soltra, the tenement which he possessed by inheritance (hereditarie) in Ercildoune, with all claim which he or his j)redeeessors could pretend thereto. From this we may infer, that the Ehymer was now dead, since we find the son disposing of the family property. Still, however, the argument of the learned historian will remain unimpe:ichcd as to the time of the poet's birth. For if, as we leani from Barbour, his proi)hecies were held in reputation ' as early as LSOi"., when Bruce slew the Red Cummin, the sanctity, and (let me add to Mr. Pinkerton's words) Ihe uncertainty of antiquity, must have already involved his character and v/ritings. In a charter of Peter de Ilaga de Bemersyde, which unfortunately wants a date, the Rhymer, a near neighbour, and, if we may trust tradition, a friend of the family, appears as a witness.— C/Va/Yu/rt/T/ of Melrose. " It cannot be doubted, that Thomas of Ercildoune was a remark- able and important person in his own time, since, very shortly after liis death, we lind him celebrated as a propliet ami as a poet. Whether he himself made ai»y pretensions to the first of these characters, or whether it was gratuitously conferred upon him by the credulity of Eisterity, it seems ditficult'to decide. If we may believe Mackenzie, iarihont only ver.-ified the prophecies delivered by Eliza, an insjiired nun of a convent at Haddington. But of this there seems not to lie the most distant proof. On the contrary, all ancient authors, who quote the Rhymer's prophecies, uniformly suppose theni to have been emitted by himself Thus, in Wintown 3 Chronicle : — ' Of thiH fycht quilum spak Thomns Of ErRyliioune, that Hayil In denio, There i« In UiiQ,' &c." !76 BAI-LAD >[IN-.sTI;FXSY of SCOTLAND. " There could liave been no ferly (marvel) in Wintown's eyes at least, how Tliomas cain(! hy \\\a knowlcdgo of future events, had he ever heard of the iusiiiicd nun of Haddington, which, it cannot be doubted, ^^uuld liave l)ceii a solution of the mystery, much to the tasto of the prior of Lochlcven.^* "Whatever doubts, howc\or, the learned might have as to the source of the Ivhyiner's ])ropiietic skill, the vulgar had no hesitation to ascnlie the whole to the intercourse between the bard and the Queen of Fiieiy. The popular tale bears, that Thomas was caniod olf, at an early ago, to the Fairy Land, -where he acquired all the knowledge which made him afterwards so famous. Alter seven years' residence, he was permitted to return to tlie earth, to enlighteii ami astonish his countrymen by his prophetic ]iowers; stdl, however, renuvining bound to return to his ri)yal mistress when she should intimate her ])leasure. Accordingly, while Thouias was making merry with his friends in the Tower of Ercildoune, a person came running in, and told, with marks of fear and astonishment, that a hart and hind had left the neighbouring forest, and were, composedly and slowly, parading the street of the village. -j- The prophet instantly arose, left his habitation, and followed the wonderful animals to the forest, whence he was never seen to return. According to the popu- lar belief, he still ' drees his weird ' in Fairy Land, and is one day expected to revisit earth. In the meanwhile, his memory is held in the most profound respect. The Eildon Tree, from beueath the shade of which he delivered his prophecies, now no longer exists; but the spot is marked by a large stone, called Eildon Tree Stone. A neighbouring rivulet takes the name of the Bogle Burn (Goblin Brook) from the Khymer's supernatural visitants. " It seemed to the editor unpardonable to dismiss a person so im- portant in Border tradition as the Bhjnner, without some further notice than a simple commentary upon the following ballad. It is given from a coi)y, obtained from a lady residing not far from Ercildoune, corrected and enlarged by one in Mrs. Brown's MSB. The former copy, however, as might be expected, is far more minute as to local description. To this old tale the editor has ventured to add a Second Part, consisting of a kind of canto, from the printed proi)hecies vulgarly ascribed to the Rhymer. J To make his peace with the moi'e severe antiquaries, the editor has prefixed to the *" Henry the llinptr.l, who intro luces Thonias into the History of Wallace, expres.ses the Hame doubt as to the source of his propheti,: knowledge:— ' Thomas Rhj-mer into the f.iilo was than ^^ ith the minister, wliich was a worthy man. lie used oft to that reHprioug place; Tl e p ojilc deemed of wit he meikle can, And so he tuld, llioiif,'li that tlicy bless or ban, In rule of wir whelhor lliey tint or wan; "Which happen d sooth in many divers case; I cannot say by wrong or righteousness. It may bo aeemcd by division of grace,' &c. — History 0/ Wailace, book 11." t "There Is a Blnjular resemblance betwixt this tradition, and an incident occurring In the Ufo of Merlin Caledonius, which the reader will llnd a few pages onwards." — S. X "And a Third Part entirely modom, founded upon the tradition of his having returned with the bart and h'nrt to the Land of Faery " Which third part is here omitted. THOMAS THE RHYMtR. 377 SecouJ Part some remarks on Learmont's prophecies." — Sir Walter Scott. Some additional stanzas and various readings are added in the notes, from a " copy x>rocn red in Scotland" by Mr. Jamieson, and given in his Popular Balkich, vol. ii., p. 7. 1 True Thomas lay on Hnutly bank; A ferlic'* he spied witli his e'e; And there he saw a ladye bri.t^ht, Came riding down by the Eildon tree.* 2 Ilcr skirt was made" of tho gr.ass-green silk, Her mantle of the velvet fine; At ilka telt of her horse's mane, Hung fifty siller bells and nine. 3 True Thomas he pnll'd a(T his cap, And lonted low down to his kneo:'' "All hail, thou mighty Qneen of Heaven, Tor thy peer on earth I never did see !" 4 " Oil no, oh no," Thomas," she said, "That name does not belong to me; I am but the Queen of fair Elfland, That am hither come to visit thee ! 5 " Harp and carp, True Thomas," she said, " Harp and carp along with me; And if 3'e dare to kiss my lips. Sure of your body I shall be I " C " P.ctidc me weal, betide me woe, That weird shall never daunton me 1 "-^ Syne he has kiss'd her ro^y lips. All underneath the Eildon tree.' 7 " Now ye maun go with me," she said, " Tru ) Tiiomas, ye maun go with me; And ye maun serve me seven j-ears, Thro' weal or woe, as chance may be." " "Forlie: " a wondor, a marvel. * Variations ou tstanzas 1 to 4, from Jamicson's fragment:— "True Thomas lay oVr yonder bank, And he beheld a ladyo Kay ; A ladye, thai was briBK and bold. Come riding o'er tho fern o broo." ' Oniita "made.' True TliomaH he look off his hat, And bow'd him Ioav down till his knee " • InnertJi "True." / "That woii-d," 4c.: 'That dcttiny shall never frighten mo."— bcotU » bt3uzai C and 6 do cot aprc:»r in Janiicson's fraguiouL M7S RALLAn MINST1U:LSY 01' SCOTLAND. 8 yhc turu'd about her milk-wliite steed, Ami took True Thomas up behind; And aye, whene'er Iier bridle rung, Tlie steed flew swifter than the wind." Oh, they rade on, and farther on, The steed gacd swifter than the wind, Until they reach'd a desert wide, And living land was left behind.'' 10 "Light down, light down, now. True Tliouias, And lean your head upon my knee; Abide, and rest a little space. And I will show you ferlies three. 11 "Oh, see ye na that braid, braid road, That lies across the lily leven? That is the path of wickedness, Tho' some call it the road to heaven. 12 " And see ye not yon narrow road, Sae thick beset with thorns and briers? That is the path of righteousness, Tho' after it but few inquires. 13 " And see ye not yon lonnie roatl, That winds about tho ferny brae? That is the way to fair Elfland, Where you and I this night maun gae. " The variations of stanza 8, here noted, are from Scott's version, Janileson's corresponding stanza being substituted in the text as x^referable:— 'She's mounted on,'' &c. (line 1). "And gued," &c. (line '.')■ l> Stanza 9 is not in Jamieson's fragment; but the following inferior and Irregular Btanzas come in bet^veen 9 and 10 of Scott's text : — "Oh. they rade on, and farther on. Until th'jy came to a garden green; 'Light down, light down, ye laclye free. Some of that fioiit let me pull to thee.' " ' Oil no. oh no, Trao Thomas,' she says, 'That liuit maun no be tou:-h'd by thee; For all -the plif;ues that are in hell Light on tho fruit of this count lie. " ' Bat I have a laef here in my lap, Likewise a bottle of clan-y wine; And now, ere we go farther on, We'll rest awhile, and ye may dine.' " 'W'lien he had eaten and drank his fill, The ladye said — ' Ere wc climb yon hill, Lay your head upon my kiico. And 1 will show theeferlies three.' " THOMAS THE RHYMEK. 379 14 " But, Thomas, ye maun bauld j^our tongue, Whatever ye may hear or see; For if ye speak a word in Elfin land, Ye'll ne'er get back to your ain countrie!"" 15 Oh, thev rade on, and farther on, And they waded through rivers abune the kneo, And they saw neither sun nor moon, But they heard the roaring of the sea.* 16 It was mirk, mirk iiii;ht, there was nae stern-light," And they waded through red bluid to the kuuc ; For all the bluid that 's shed on earth Rins through the springs of that countrie. 17 Syne they came on to a garden green, And she pull'd an apple frae a tree : " Take this for thy wages. True Thomas; It will give thee the tongue that will never lee!" 18 " My tongue is my ain," True Thomas said; " A gudely gift ye wou'd gi'c to me! I neither doughfto buy nor sell, At fair or tryste where I may be. 19 '• r dought neither speak to prince or peer, Nor ask of grace from fair ladye!" " Now, hauld thy peace," the ladye she said; '' For as I say, so it must be." " 20 He has gotten a coat of the even cloth, And a pair of shoon of the velvet green; And till seven j'ears were gone and past, True Thomas on earth was never seen.-' " Stenzas 11 to U, iaclu.sivo, occur almost verbatim In Janiicaon'B fiasmont- » -'For forty days ami forty nights IIo wade through red blude to the knee; Aud ho saw," &c. " " Stem-light: " fctarlight. d " Dought ; " dufrit. « "The tniiliiioiial commcufiii v ui'''-'n this ballad iiiforuw us, that the apple was thn produce of the fatal Tree of Knowledge, and that the garden was the torroHtnal Ttaradise. The repugnance of Thomas to be debarred the use of falachood, wlicu ho might find it convenient, has a comic effect." — .Scott. Sianzas 16, 17. 18. and 19— with the exception of lino 2, stanza 10— are not to be fuuud in Jamieson's fragment. /OccnrB almost teibalim in Jamioiioas fragment. 380 BALLAD MINSTRLLSY OF SCOTLAND. THOMAS Tlir: lUIYMER. ALTERED FHOM AXCIKNT rrvOPIlEClKS. PART SF.COND. " The prophecies ascribed to Thiinas of Ercildounc have hccn tho principal means of securing to hiin icniombrance ' amongst the sons of his people.' The author of 'J'rlublished in the printed copy of the Pvliymcr's su]>poscd prophecies. The verses are as follows : — 'La countesse de Donbar demande a Thomas de Esaedouno 'luiut hi gue:ra d'Escoce prendreit fyn. E yl I'a repoundy et dyt,— ' When man is mad a kyng of a capped man; When man is levcre other mones Ihyng than his ovrcn ; When londe thouys forest, ant forest is feldo; When h;irrr kenrilfs o' the hor'stann; When Wvt and Wille werres topcdero; When nion makes htables of kyrkes, and steles castels v-ith stye; Wlicn Kokcsl)oroup;he nys no burgh ant market is at Korwyleyo; When Bumbonnio is dongcd with dcde men; Wh'n men ledes men in ropes to biiyen and to solLn; When a quarter of whaty whete is ehauugcd for a col! of ton markc.i; When prudo (pride) prikes and pees is leyd in prisouu; When a Scot no me hym hudo ase hare in forme that tho English te shall hjnn fynd-; Whtn rycht ant wronge astcnte the togedcrc; When laddes weddeth lovetlies; When Scoites flen so faste, that, for faute of sh-^p, hy drownoth hemfielvej When shal this be? Nouthcr in tiiino tyme ne in mine; Ah comen ant gone Withinne twenty winter ant one.' —PM-eiton's Poems, from MaillamVs MSS. quolingfrom Ihtrl Lib. 22.j:J. F. l.'T. "As I have never seen the MS. from wliich Mr. I'inkerton makes hi.s extract, and as the date of it is fi.xed by liini (certainly one of the THOMAS THE RHYMER. 381 most able aDtiquaries of our age) to the reign of Edward I. or II., it is with great ditfidence that I hazard a contrary opinion. There can, however, I believe, be little doitbt, that these i)rophetic verses are a forgery, and not the production of our Thomas the Ehymer. But I araTinclined to believe them of a later date than the reit;n of Edward I. or II. " The sallant defence of the Castle of Dunbar, by Black Agnes, took place in the year 1337. The Bhj^mer died previous to the year 1299 (see the charter, by his son, in tl;c introduction to the foregoinc; liallad). It seems, therefore, very improbable that the Countess of Dunbar could ever have an opportunity of consulting Thomas the Ehymcr, since that would infer that she was married, or at least engaged in state matters, jirevious to 1299 ; whereas she is described as a young, or middle-aged woman, at the period of her being besieged in the fortress which she so well defended. If the editor might indulge a conjecture, he would sujjpose that the prophecy was con- trived for the encouragement of the English invaders, during the .Scottish wars ; and that the names of the Countess of Dunbar, and of Thomas of Ercildoune, were used for the greater credit of the forgery. According to this hypothesis, it seems likely to have been composed after the siege of Dunbar, which had made the name of the countess well known, and consequently in the reign of Edward III. The whole tendency of the prophecy is to aver that there shall be no end of the .Scottish war (concerning which the question was proposed), till a final conquest of the country by England, attended by all the usual severities of war. ' ^Yhen the cultivated country shall become forest,' fays the prophecy ;—' v/hen the wihl animals shall inhabit the abode of men ;— when Scots shall not be able to cscai:e the English, should they crouch as hares in their form,'— all these denunciations seem to refer to the time of Edward III., upon whose victories the prediction was ])robably founded. 'J'hc mention of the exchange betwixt a colt worth ten marks, and a quarter of ' whaty [indifferent] wheat,' seems to allude to the dreadful famine about the year 13SS. The indepei:dence of Scotland was, however, as impregnable to the minds of superstition as to the steel of our more powerfid and more wealthy neighbours. The war of 8cotlan. The ])ruphecy quoted is probably of the same date, and intended for the same purpose. " .V minute search of the records of the time would probably throw additional light upon the allusions contained in these ancient legends. Among various rliymcs of proi)hetic import, which are at this day cuncnt amongst the people of 'J'eviotdale, is one ,su)>poKed to be ])ro- iK.uncrd by Thomas the Khymer, presaging the destruction of his habitation and family : — 'The hare fall kittle [littor] on my hearth stone. And there will never bo a loird Learmont aguln.' Tlif tir.-'t of tiiefc lines is obviou«ly Ijorrowcd from that in the MS. of the Harl, Library, ' When hares kcndlcs o' the her'btane'— au 382 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. emphatic imane of desolation. It is also iuaccurately quoted in tho prophecy of WalJhave, published by Andre Hart, 1613 :— ''I'liis is a true talking' tlmt 'i'hoinns of tells, Tho haro shall hirple ou tho hard [hearth] stane." " Spottiswoode, an honest, but credulous historian, seems to have been a iirm believer in the authenticity of the i)rophetic wares vended in the name of Thomas of Ercildouuo. ' The prophecies yc t extant in Scottish rhymes, whereupon he was commonly called Tliomaa the .llhj'nier, may justly be admired ; havini,' foretold, so many ages before, the union of England and Scotland, in the ninth degree of the Bruce's blood, with the succession of Bruce himself to tho crown, being yet a child, and other divers particulars, which the event hath ratified and made good. Bccthius, in his story, relateth his prediction of King Alexander's death, and that he did foretell the same to tho Earl of March, the day before it fell out, saying, " That before the next day at noon, such a temjjest should blo^v as Scotland had not felt for many years before." Tho next morning, the day being clear, and no change appearing in the air, the nobleman did challenge Thomas of his sayins^, calling him an im])ostor. He replied that noon was not yet passed. About which time a post came to advertise the earl of the king his sudden death. "Then," said Thomas, "this is the tempest I fore- told; and so it shall prove to Scotland." Whence, or how, he had this knowledge, can hardly be affirmed, but sure it is, that he did divine and answer truly of many things to come.' — SpoUlmvoode, p. 47. licsides that notable voucher, Master Hector Boece, the good archbishop might, had he been so minded, have referred to Fordun for the prophecy of King Alexander's death. That historian calls our bard 'mralis ille vates.' — Fordun, lib. x., caj). 40. "What S]«)ttiswoodc calls 'the prophecies extant in Scottish rhyme,' are the metrical productions ascribed to the seer of Ercil- doune, Avhich, with many other compositions of the same nature, bearing the names of Bede, INIerliu, Gildas, and other approved soothsayers, are contained in one small volume, published by Andro Hart, at Edinburgh, 1615. Nisbet the herald (who claims the prophet of Ercildonne as a brother professor of his art, founding upon the various allegorical and emblematical allusions to heraldry), intimates the existence of some earher copy of his prophecies than that of Andro Hart, \vhich, hriwover, he does not pretend to have seen. The late excellent Lord liailcs made these compositions the subject of a disser- tation, imblished in his Remarks on the History of Scotland. His attention is chiolly directed to the celebrated prophecy of our bard, mentioned by Bishop Spottiswoode, bearing that the crowns of England aud Scotland should be united in the person of a king, sou of a French queen, and related to Bruce in the ninth degree. Lord Hailes ]ilainl3- proves, that this ]irop]ucy is perverted from its oriidnal purpose in order to apply it to the ^u.vcession of James YL The 'groundwork of the forgery is to be found in the prophecies of Bcrlington, contained in the same collection, aud runs thus : — ' Of Bruco's loft side sliall spring out a leafe, As nccro as tho ninlli doKreo; And shall be flocmcd of faire Scotland, In France farre beyond the sea. THOMAS THE EUYMKR. 383 And then shall come again ryding, With eyes that many men may see. At Aberladie he shall light, SVith hempen helteres and horse of tre. 'However it happen for to fall. The lyon ehaU be lord of all; The Frencii queu shall bearre the somie, Shall rule all Britaiuno to the sea; Ane from the Bruce s blood shal come also, As neere as the ninth degree. • ««*•«**•**« ' Yet shal there come a keene kuight over the salt sea, A keene man of coarage and bold man of armea ; A duke's son dowbled [i. e., dubbed], a born man in France, That shall our mirths augment, and mend all our harmes; After the date of our Lord 151-3, and thrice three thereafter; Which shall brooke all tl.e broad isle to hin-,?olf. Between 13 and thrice three the threip shall be ended, The Saxons shall never recover after.' "There caimot be any doubt that this ])rophecy was intended to excite the confidence of the Scottish nation in the Duke of Albanj-, Eegent of Scotland, who arrived from France in 1515, two years after the death of James IV. in the fatal field of Flodden. The regent was descended of Ijruce by the left, i. e., b}- the female side, within the ninth degree. His mother was daughter of the Earl of Boulogne, his father banished from his country — ' fleerait of fair Scotland. ' His arrival must necessarily be by sea, aud his landing was expected at Abcrlady, in the Frith of Forth. He was a duiie's son, dubbed knight; and nine years, from 1513, are allowed liim, bj' the pretended prophet, for the accomplishment of the salvation of his country, and the exaltation of Scotland over her sister and rival. All this was a pious fraud, to excite the confidence aud sjniit of the coimtry. " The prophecy put into the mouth of our Thomas the Khj^mer, as it stands in Hart's book, refers to a later period. The narrator meets the Rhymer upon a land beside a lee, who shows him many emble- matical visions, described in no mean strain of poetry. They chiefly relate to the fields of Flodden and Pinkie, to the rational distress which followed thciu defeats, aud to the future halcyon day 3 which are promised to Scotland. One quotation or two will be faufficieut to establish this fully : — ' Our ScottJHh king sal come ful keene, The red lyon beareth he ; A feddcrod arrow sharp, I weon, Shall make him wioke and v.arro to seo. Out of the neld ho shall bo led, When ho iH bludio and woe for blood; Yet to his iiiou shall ho say, "FfT ';...] L.v" tiim you ngnine, Ari.i ■ rrue folk a froy! Wl) iho I ight \K mine? My (I lie this day.'" " Who can doubt, for a moment, that tliis refers to the battle of Flodden, and to the popular reports conceraing the doubtful fate of JaaiCB IV. ? A'.huiou is immediately aftcnvards made to the death r.81 BALLAD MIN'STHELSY OF SCOTLAND. of George Douglas, heir-apparont of Angus, who fought and fell with his sovereign : — ' The stonies three that day shall die, That hoars Iho hiirte in silver sheen.' The well-known arms of the Douglas family are the heart and three Btars. In another place, the battle of Pinkie is expressly meutioncd liy name : — 'At Pinlcpn Cluoh there shall bo spilt Much gontle Wood that day; There shall the bear lose the guilt, And the cagill bear it away.' "To the end of all this allegorical and mystical rhapsody, is interpolated, in the later cditio:i by Andro Hart, a new edition of Berlinij;ton's verses, ])efore quoted, altered and manufactured, so as to bear reference to the accession of James VI., which had just then taken place. The insertion is made v/ith a jieculiar degree iif awkwardness, betwixt a question, put by the narrator, concerning the name and abode of tlie person v/ho showed him these strange matters, and the answer of the prophet to that question : — ' Then to the Tieirne could I say, Wliere dwells thou, or in what countrie? [Or who Khali rule (ho isle of Britane, From the north to the south sey? A French quf^eno shall bear the sonne, Shall rulo all Britaiuo to tho sea; Which of the Brace's blood shall come, As neere as (he niut degree : I frained fast what was his name, Where that ho came, from what countrie.] In Erslingtoun I dwell at hame, Thomas Rymour men cals me.' "There is surely no one, who will not conclude with Lord Ilailes, that the eight lines, inclosed in brackets, are a clumsy intcri)olation, borrowed from Bcrlington, with such alterations as might render the supposed prophecy applicable to the union of the crowns. "While we are on this subject, it may be proper brieliy to notice the scope of some of the other lu-cdictions in Hart's collection. As the prophecy of Berlington was intended to raise the spirits of the nation, durinu' the regency of All)any, so those of Sybilla and Eltraine refer to that of tlie Earl of Arran, afterwards Duke of Chatellierault, during the minority of Mary, a period of similar calamity. Tliis ia obvious from tlie follov.'ing verses : — ' Take a thousand in calculation, And the longest of the lyon, Four crescents under one crowne. With Saint Andrew's crocc thrise. Then thrrcsoore and thris three: I'aUe tent to Jlerliug truelj-, Tlien shall tho wars ended be, And never again rise. 1 u tliat yero there shall a k'ng, A duke, aud no crowned king : ]'.ceaus the prince slnll be yong, And tender of yeares.' TII05IAS THE RHYMER. 885 "The date, above hinted at, seems to be 1549, whea the Scottish Regent, by means of some succours derived from France, was en- deavouring to repair the consequences of the fatal battle of Pinkie. Allusion is made to the supply given to the ' Moldwarte [England] by the fained hart ' (the Earl of Angus). The regent is described by his bearing the antelope ; large supplies are ])romised from France, and complete conquest predicted to Scotland and her allies. Thus was the same hackneyed stratagem repeated -whenever the interest of the rulers appeared to stand in need of it. The regent was not, indeed, till after this ])eriod, created Duke of Chatelherault ; but that honour was the object of his ho])CS and expectations. "The name of our renowned soothsayer is liberallj' used as an authority througkout aU the prophecies published b}' Audro Hart. Besides 'those expressly put in his name, Gildas, another assumed personage, is supposed to derive his knowledge from him ; for he concludes thus : — ' True Thomas me told in a ti-oublesome time, In a harvest murn at Eldoim hiUs.'— The Prophecij of Gildas. " In the prophecy of Berlington, already quoted, we are told — ' JIarvellous Merlin, that many men of tells, And Thomas's sayings comes all at once' " While 1 am upon tlie subject of these prophecies, may I be per- mitted to call the attention of antiquaries to ^lerdwj-nn Wyllt, ( r Merlin the Wild, in whose name, and by no means in that of Ambrose Merlin, the friend of Arthur, the Scottish prophecies are issued? That this personage resided at Drummelzier, and roamed, like a second Nebuchadnezzar, the W(.o(ls of Tweeddale, in remorse for the death of his nephew, we learn from Fordun. In the Scoti-Chronicon, lib. iii. , cap. 31, is an account of an interview betwixt St. Kentigern and Merlin, then in this distracted and miserable state. He is said to have been called Lailoken, from his mode of life. On being commanded by the saint to give an account of himself, he says, that the penance which he performs was imposed on him by a voice from lieaven, during a bloody contest betwixt Lidel and Carwanolow, of which battle he had been the cause. According to his own prediction, he perished at once b}' wood, earth, and water ; for, being pursued with stones by the rustics, he fell from a rock into the river Tweed, and was transfixed by a sharp stake, fixed there for the puq>oso of extending a fishing-net : — ' Slide perfosRUP, Inpiilc porciissuf, ct unda. Ha-c tiia Mcrliiium fciiur itiire neceni. Sicque ruit. nurKUHquo fiiit lignoiiuo urehcnsiis, Et fecit vatem per lerua peiicula vciuui.' " But in a metrical history of Merlin of Caledonia, compiled by Oeoffrey of Monmouth, from the traditions of the Welsh bards, thij mode of death is attributed to a pa^'c whom Merlin's sister, desirous to convict the projihet of falsehood, because he had betrayed her intrigues, introduced to him, under throe various disguises, inquiriug each time in wliat manner the j)erson should die. To the lirst demand Merlin answered, the party should pei'ish by a fall from a rock ; to the second, that he should die by a tree; and to the third, that ho S86 PATXAD MmSTHFLSY OP SCOTLAND, should be drowned. The youth perished while hunting, in the mode imputed by Forduii to Merlin himself. " Fonlui), contrary to the French authorities, confounds this ])er- son with the Jilcrlin of Arthur ; but conchules by informing us, tliat many believed him to bo a different person. The grave of Merlin is 1 minted out at Druniaiclzier, in Tweeddale, beneath an aged thoni- tree. On the cast side of the churchyard, the brook, called Pausayl, falls into the Tweed ; and the following proi)hecy is said to have been current concerning their union : — ' When Tv.cod mul Paug.iyl join at Mcrlin'fi grave, .Scoiland and Knsland shall one mocarch have.' On the daj' of the coronation of James VI., the Tv/eed accord- ingly overflowed, and joined the Pausayl at the prophet's grave. — Peiinycuick's His'ory of Tiot'eddale, p. 20. These circamstauces ■would seem to infer a communication betwixt the south-west of Scotland and Wales, of a nature peculiarly intimate ; for I presume that Merlin wouhl retain sense enough to choose for the scene of his wanderings a country having a language and manners similar to his own. " Be this as it ma}', the memory of Merlin Sylvester, or the Wild, was fresh among the Scots during the reign of James V. Waldhave,* under whose name a set of pi-oi)hecie3 was published, describes him- self as lying upon Lomond Law; he hears a voice, which bids him stand to his defence; he looks around, and beholds a lloclv of hares ;!nd foxes pursued over the mountain by a savage figure, to whom he can hardly give the name of a man. At the sight of Waldhave, the apparition leaves the objects of his pursuit, and assaults him with a club. AValdhave defends himself with his sword, throws the savage to the earth, and i-efuses to let him arise till he swear, by the law and lead he lives upon, ' to do him no harm.' This done, he pennits him to arise, and marvels at his strange appearance : — 'He was foitned like a frclko [man] all his four quarters; And tlieu his chin and his face haired so thick, With hairo growiog so grime, fearful to see.' He answers briefly to Waldhave's inquiry concerning his name and nature, that he 'drees his weird,' i.e., does penance in that wood; and, having hinted that questions as to his own state are off"ensivo, he pours forth an obscure rhajjsody concerning futurity, and concludes, — 'Go muPing upon Merlin if thou wilt: For 1 mean no more, man, at this time.' " This is exactly similar to the meeting betwixt Merlin and Kon- tigern in Fordun. These prophecies of Merlin seem to have been in request in the minority of James V. ; for, among the amusements v/itli v.'hich Sir David Lindsay diverted that prince during his infancy, are, ' The prophecies of Rymer, Bedo, and Morlin.' — Sir David Lindsay's £pisf.!e to the Ki»a. And we find, in Waldhave, at least one allusion to the very ancioiit prophecy, addressed to the Countess of Dunbar : — ' This is a true token that Thomas of tells, When a laddo with a ladye shall go over the fields.' * " I do not know whether the person here meant be Waldhave, an abbot of Jlel- ro=r-, who died, in the odour of sanctity, about 1160."— S. THOMAS THE RHYMER. 387 The origiual stands thus : — ' When laddes wecideth love dies.' "Another prophecy of Merlm seems to have been ciu-rcnt about the time of the llcgeat Morton's execution. When that nobleman was committed to the charge of his accuser, Captain James Stewart, newly created Earl of An-an, to be conducted to his trial at Edinburgh, Spottiswoode says, that he asked, ' " Who was Earl of xVrran?" and beini; answered that Captain James was the man, after a short pause, ho said, " And is it so ? I know then what I may look for ! " mean- ing, as was thought, that the old prophecy of the " Fallincc of the heart' by the ruouth of Arran," should then be fulfilled. Whether this was his mind or not, it is not known ; but some spared not, at the time when the Hamiltous were banished, in which business he was held too earnest, to say that he stood in fear of that prediction, and ■went that course only to disappoint it. But if so it was, he did find himself now deluded; for he fell Ijy the mouth of another Arran than he imagined.' — Spottisiroode, 313. The fatal words alluded to seem to be these, in the prophec}' of Merlin : — ' In the niouthe of Arrane a eelcouth shall fall, Two blooi'.ie hearts shall be taken with a false trr.ine, And derlly duug down without any dome.' '• To return from these desultory remarks, into which I have been led by the celebrated name of Merlin, the style of all these prophecie.-;, published by Hart, is very much the same. The measure is allitera- tive, and soraewliat similar to that of Pierce Phnnntn's Visions: a circumstance which mi^jht entitle lis to ascribe to some of them an earlier date than the leicju of James V., did we not know that t'^ir (ialloran of GoUoway and Gaivaine and Gollograss, two romances rendered almost unintelligible by the extremitj' of affected allitera- tion, are perhaps not prior to that period. Indeed, although we may allow, that, during much earlier time.'--, prophecies, under the names of those celebrated soothsayers, have been current iu Scotland, yet tho.'ie published by iiart have obviously been so often vamped and revamped, to serve the political purposes of difi'erent periods, that it may be shrewdly suspected, that, as in the case of Sir John Cutler's transmigrated stockings, verj' little of the original materials now remains. I cannot refrain from indulging my readers with the publisher's title to the last prophecy, as it contains certain curious information concerning the Queen of Sheba, who is identilied with the Cumjean Sibyl : ' Here followeth a prophecie pronounced by a noble qucene and matron, called Sybilla, Ee.^ina Austri, that came to Solomon. Tlirou^ih tlic wliicli she compiled four bookes, at the instance of the said Kiug Sol, and others divers ; and the fourth book was directed to a nobU; kini:, called Baidwiiic, king of the broad isle of Britain ; in the which Kho maketh mention of two noble j)rinces and cinpcrours, tlio v/hich is called Lcoiies. How these two shall subdue and overcome all eartidie princes to their diademe and crowne, and also be glorilied and crowned in the heaven among saints. The first of these two is Constantinus MagiU'.r. ; that was JyO|)rosiis, the flon of Saint Helena, that found the croce. The second is the sixt king • "The hPnrt wan the cognlzanco of Morton."— 8. 388 BALLAD MIXSrnELSY OF SCOTLAND. of the name of Steward of Scotland, tlic which is our most nohle khig.' Witli such editors and commentators, wluvt wonder that tlio text became niiintollii^iblc, even Lcj-oad the usual oracular obscurity of jirodiction ? "If there still remains, therefore, amon;^ these predictions, any verses having a claim to real antinuit^-, it seems now impossible to discover them from those which are comparatively niodei-n. Never- theless, as there arc to be found, in those compositions, some un- commonly -wild and masculine expressions, the editor has been induced to throve a few passages together, into the sort of ballad to which this disquisition is i)reH.xod. It would, indeed, have been no (liihcult matter for hiiu, by a judicious selection, to have excited, in favour of TJiomas of Ercildonne, a share of the admiration bestowed by sundry wise persons upon Mass liobcrt ]''lcming. * For example ; — ' But theu tho lilye shall be lou ed wh.m they loast thiak; Theu clear kiug's blood slial quake iov fear of death; For churls shal chop off heads of thoir chief beirus, And carfe of tho crowns thai Christ hath appointed. Thereafter, on every side, sorrow shall arise; The barges of clear "barons do.vu shal Ijc sunken; Seculars shal sit in spiritual seats, Occupying cilices anointed as they wer.\' " Taking the lily for the emblem of France, can there be a more plain pro])hecy of the murder of her monarch, the destruction of her nobility, and the desolation of her hierarchy? "But, without looking further into the signs of the times, the editor, though the least of all the prophets, canuot help thinking, that every true Briton will ap[irove of his ajiplication of the lait prophecy quoted in the ballad. " Hart's collections of prophecicy were frequently reprinted during the last centurj^, probably to favour the i)retensions of the unfortunate family of Stuart. For the prophetic renown of Gildas and Bede, see Fordun, lib. iii. "Before leaving the subject of Thomas's predictions, it may be noticed, that sundry rhymes, passing for his ])rophetic effusions, are still current among the vulgar Thus, he is said to have prophesied of the very ancient family of Haig of Bemerside : — ' Petide, betide, whate'er betide, llaig shall be Haig of Bemerside.' "The grandfather of the present ]>roprietor of Bemerside had twelve daughters, before bis lady brougfht him a male heir. The common people trembled for tlie credit of their favourite soothsayer. The late Mr. Haig was at length born, and their belief in the pro- phecy confirmed bej'ond a shadow of doubt. "Another memorable prophecy bore that the Old Kirk at KcIpi, constructed out of the ruins of the abbey, should 'fall when at tlio fullest.' At a very crowded sermon, about thirty years ago, a piece • Author of Di'courses on the liise and Full of Papacy, London, 1701. The Ecvoiu- tlfDS of ITS!), lb:)0, and 1S43, attracted considerable attention to the work named. THOMAS THE KHYilEn. 389 of lims fell from the roof of the church. The alarm, for the fulfil- ment of the V ords of the seer, became universal, and happy were tb.ey who were nearest the door of the predestined editice. The chuicli v.'as in conjccjuence deserted, and has never ^ijice had an oppor- tunity of tuaihling upcn a full congregation. I hope, for the sake of a beautiful sjiecinien of Saxo-Gothic architecture, that the accom- plishment of tliis prophecy is far distant. " Another p'rediction, ascribed to the llhymer, see;ns to have been founded on that soi't of insight into futurity, possessed by most men of a sound and combining judgment. It runs thus : — ' At ElJou tree if you shall ba. A brigg ower Tweed you tlicre may see. "The spot in question commands an extensive prospect of the course of the river ; and it v.as easy to foresee, th.at when the country should become iu the least degree iinprovcd, a bridge would be some- Avhere thrown over the stream. In fact, you now see no less than tiiree biidgcs from that elevated situation. " Corspatrick (Comes Patrick), Earl of March, but more commonly taking his title from his castle of Dunbar, acted a noted part during the wars of Edward I. in Scotland. As Thomas of Ercildoune is said to have delivered to him his famous prophecy of King Alexanders death, the editor lias chosen to introduce him iuto the following ballad. All the prophetic verses arc selected from Hart's publica- tion.'' — Sir Walter Scott. The notes to the text are also his. 1 Vi'jiEN Bcvcn yours were come and gane, The aun blink'd fair on pool and stream; And Tliomas lay on Huntlie bank, Like one awakcu'd from a dream. 2 Tie heard the tramjding of a steed, lie saw the flash (jf armour lice, And he beheld a gallant kniglit, Come riding down by the i^ildon tree. 3 lie wa.s a stalwart kniglit, and strong, Of giant makr; he 'pear'd to be; lie stirr'd his liorse, as lie were wode, Witii gilded spnr.s of I'ashioii free. 4 Says — "Well mot, well met. True Thomas! Some uiiciinth ferlies show to mo." Says — " Clu'ist tliee save, Corspatrick brave! Thrico welcome, good Dunbar, to mo ! [> " Light down, light down, Corspatrick brave ! And I will show thee curses three, Slinll gar fair Seotland greet and grane. And change the green to tiie black liverie. •2 V 3(10 BALLiiD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. G " A storm shall roar tliia very hour, From Ross's hills to Solway sea." "Yo lied, ye lied, yc warlock hoar! For the sun shines sweet on fauld and lea." 7 Ho put his hand on the Ktirlie's head; He show'd him a rock beside the sea, AVIicro a king lay stiff beneath his steed,* And steel-dight nobles wiped their e'e. 8 '■ Tlio neist curse lights on Branxton hills : By Flodden's high and heathery side Shall wave a banner red as bluid, And chieftains throng with meikle pride. 9 " A Scottish king shall come full keen, The ruddy lion beareth he ; A feather'd arrow sharp, I ween, Shall make him wink and warre to see. 10 " Wlion he is bloody, and all to bledde. Thus to his men he still shall saj-, — ' For God's sake, turn ye back again, And give yon Southern folk a fray I Why should I lose the right is mine? ^My doom is not to die this day.'f 11 " Yet turn ye to the eastern liand. And woe and wonder ye sliall see; How forty thous:ind spearnicu stand, Where yon rank river mods the sea. 12 "There shall the lion lose the gylte, And the libbards bear it clean away; At Pinkyn Cleuch there shall be spilt JIuch gentil bluid that day." 1;^> " Enough, enough of cursi! and ban ; Some blessings show thou now to me. Or, by the faith of my body," Corspatrick said, '•Ye shall rue the day yc c'tr saw me ! " •"KingAlexandor, killea (^lareh IG, 12S5-r.) by nillin::; over a cliff, near Kinghorn, In Fife, and opposite Kdiiiljiii^ih." t " The uncertainty which long proTOiled in Scotland concerning the fato of Jamea IV. is well known." THOMAS OF ERCILDOUNE. 391 14 " The first of blossings I shall thee show, Is by a bum, tliat 's call'd of bread ; * Where Saxon men shall tine the bow, And find their aiTOws lack the head. 15 •• Beside that brigg, out ower that bui-n, Where the water bickereth bright and slieen, Shall many a fiilling courser spurn, And knights shall die in battle keen. 16 " Beside a headless cross of stone, The libbards there shall lose the gree ; The raven shall come, the erne shall go, And drink the Saxon bluid sae free. Tlie cross of stone they shall not know. So thick the corses there shall be." 17 '• But tell me now," said brave Dunbar, '• True Thomas, tell now unto me, What man shall rule the isle Britain, Even from the north to the southern sea ? " 18 "A French queen shall bear the son, Shall rule all Britain to the sea ; He of tlie Bruce's blood shall come. As near as in the ninth degree. 19 '' The waters worship shall his race, Likewise the waves of the farthest sea ; For they shall ride over ocean wide, With hempen bridles and horse of tree." THOMAS OF ERCILDOUNE. The following remarkable tale is preserved in three or more ancient manuKorijjts, all of them more or less mutilated. The verbal diil'er- tnces between the copies are numerous but uuinijiortant. The three princijial MS. copies arc deposited iu the libraries, and have been printed respectively in the works mentioned under: — I. The Cotton MS. co]iy, in the British Museum, first printed in Scott's Mindrd«y, vol. iv., p. 122. * " Ono of Thomas's rhymes, prcBerved by trarlitiou, runs thus ;— 'Tho burn of broid Shall run low roid.' nannockburn Ih tho brook hero meant Tho Scots givo tho namo of 'bannock' to a thick round cake of unleavened broad.'' ;192 BALLAD JIINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. II. Tlie Cambridge University Library MS. co]\y, fir.st printed in Mr. Janiieson's Popular Ballads, &c., vol. ii., p. 11, as "carefully deciphered," says Mr. Laing, "from a volume of no ordinary curiosity, .... written in a very illegible hand, about the middle of the 15th century." III. The Lincoln Cathedral Library MS. copy, lirst printed by JNIr. David Laing, in his Select P.cni.aui.t of the. Anchint Popular Poetry of Scotland. From " a volume compiled at a still earlier period " than the Cambridge MS. "In the Cambridge MS. none of the pieces have any titles; the Cotton copy is prefaced by Inc'qnt prophesla Thome de Erseldoun ; and the Lincoln ISIS, is entitled Thomas off Erseldoune, and is in- troduced in the following manner : — ' Lystnys, lordyngs, bothe grete and small, And takis gude tente what I will say: I Ball yow telle als trewc a talo, Als euor was herde by nyghte or daye. •And tlio niaste meruello fforowttyn naya, That euer was liorde byfore or syen, And therefore pristly I yow praye, That ye will of youre "talkyngblyn. 'It es an harde thyuge for to saye, Of doghety dedis that hase been done; Of felle feghtyngs and batells sere; And how that knyghtia liasse wonno thalr schone, *.But Thesu Christ, that syttis in trono, Safe luglysche bothe i'erre and ncre; And I sail telle yow tyto and sone, Of batells done sytheu many a yere; 'And of batolls that done sail bee; In what place, and how and wharej And wha shall have the hcghero gree; And whethir partye sail hale the werro. ' Wha sail take the flyghte and flee; And wha sail dye and byleue tliare: But Ihesu Christ, that dyed on tre, Saue Inglysche men whare so theyjare.' "From the jirayer with which this exordium concludes, it may fairly be inferred that the writer was an Englishman ; and the pro- Ijhetic part of the )>iece has been evidently intended to be used as an engine against the Scota. In the intruiluction to the prophecies, however, there is so much more fancy and elegance than in the proi)hecies themselves, that they can haj'dly be supposed to be the composition of the same person. Indeed, the internal evidence to the contrary almost amounts to a proof that they are not, and that the romance itself was of Scotish origin ; although no nndubitably Scotish copy, so far as the ciiitor knows, is now in existence. He has been told, Ijut upon what authority he knows not, that there was a copy in the late king's * library at Paris, Ijut uncertain of what coiii'.try. . . . It is remarkable, that in all the three copies nov/ before him, the poet begins the story in the firat person, and seems _* Louis XVL, victim of tho flrst French revolution. THOMAS OF ERCILDOUNE. 393 disposed to tell the incidents, as if tliey had really happened to himself. (See stanzas 1 to 10. ) And although he afterwards, awkwardly and un- naturally enough, speaks of Thomas as a third jierson, yet even then lie seems to insinuate, that the stor}'-, which he is garbling, was told liy another before him. (Ses stanza 14.) If he assumes the mask ■with a bad grace here, he shows still less address when he drops it agam at stauza 51. "Would it not be pardonable, from such instances as these, to suppose it at least pi'obable, that Thomas llyraour was reaUy the origiual author of this romance ; and that in order to give a sanction to his predictions, which seem all to have beeu calculated in oue way or other for the service of his country, he pretended to an intercourse ivith the Queen of Elflaud, as Numa Ponipilius did with the nymph J.Igeria? Such an intercourse, in the days of True Thomas, was accounted neither unnatural nor uncommon. "As both tlie En!.dish and the Scots availed themselves of the credit which his prophecies had obtained, in falsifying them, to servo their purposes against each other, it is now impossible to ascertain wliat the real prophecies of Thomas Eymour were, if ever he pub- lished auy such. But as it would have been a measure of good policy to preserve as entire as possible the orif/inal introduction, from which the predictions were to derive their authority, it may be presumed that fewer liberties were taken with it ; that, notwithstanding the mutilated state in which we have found it, tlie general symmetry, and many of the oi-iginal stamina, remain ; and that it has not suffered more from the license assumed by traascribcro and reciters than other romances of that age have done. "'As to the romance itself,' says Scott, 'it will afford great amusement to those v.'ho would study the nature of traditional poetry, and the changes effected by oral tradition, to com])are this ancient romance with the foregomg (traditional) ballad. The same incidents are narrated, even the expression is often the same ; yet the poems are as different in appearance as if the older tale had been rcgtilarly and systematically modernized by a poet of the present day.'" — Jamieson's Popular Ballads, vol. ii., pp. 3-7. Both Mr. Jamieson Jtnd ilr. David Laing print their respective versions of this ancient poem entire. But in the text which follows, and which has been collated from all three copies, only the introductory jiortiou, or rimt Fytte, is given, witli tlio addition of stanzas .09, 00, and 01, from the commencement of the Second Fytte ; and of 02, C.'J, and 01, from the close of t!ie Third Fyltc. The orthography has been modernized in the case of such words ni are still in use eitficr in England or Scotland, but the veritable words of the oi'iginals arc retained. 1 As I me went tliis Andrew's day, Fast ou iny way, making my moan, In a merry morn in;? of May, By lliintly'.s baiil;< nr. -i';!!' alouo, 394 BALLAD MINSTllELSy OF SCOIL.VND. 2 I heard the jaj' and the throstle, The mavis menycd" in her song, The wodewale bcryd'' as a bell, That all the wood about me rung. 3 Aloiio in Ionising thus as I lay, Underneath a seemly tree, Saw I where a ladye gay Came riding o'er a lonely lea. 4 If I shou'd sit till Domisday, All with my tongue to know and see, Certainly all her array It shall never be 'scryed" for me. 6 Her palfrey was a dapi^le gray, Like it saw I never none; As does the sun on summer's day, That fair ladye herself she shone. 6 Her saddle it was of royal bone, ^ Full seemly was that sight to see! Stiffly set with precious stone, Compass'd about with cramoisie. * 7 Stones of orience, great plentie, Her hair about her head it hung: She rode over that lonely-'' lea, Awhile she blew, awhile she sung. 8 Her girths of noble silk they were. The buckles they were of beryl stone ; Her stirrups were of crystal clear. And all with pearls o'er bedone. 9 Her patrel was of irale fine, " Her crupper was of orfard,* Her bridle was of gold [sae] fine ; On every side [there] hung bells three. '^ ''The mavis menyeJ:" the thrush lamented. f> ■• The wodewale beryd; " the woodpecker made a noise. "-' "Scryed:" deKcribod. ri 'Koyal bone: " pure ivory. <= "Crapotee," Lincoln MS.; "Crapste," Cotton MS. ' " Femyle " (ferny lee), Cotton MS. y •' Her patrel, &c. : " i. e., the plate protecting the chest of her steed was of tt^ei or iron fine. ft"0rfar6:'' embroidery. THOMAS OF ERCILDOUKE. 395 10 She led seven greyhounds in a leash, And seven raches" by her feet ran. To speak with her I wou'd not press; Her bree was as white as any swan. 11 She bare a liorn about lier halse, And under her girdle many a flonne.* Forsooth, lordlings, as I you tell, Thus was this ladye fair bedoue. 12 Thomas lay and saw that sight, Underneath a seemly tree; He said — " Yon is Mary of might, That bare the child that died for me. 13 " But I speak witli tliat ladye bright, I hope my heart will burst in three; But I will go with all my might, Her for to meet at Eildon tree ! " 11 Thomas rathely" up he raise. And ran over that mountain hie; And if it be sooth, as the story says, He her met at the Eildon tree. 15 He kneeled down upon his knee, Underneath the greenwood spray ; And said — ' Lovely ladye, rew'' oil mc, Queen of heaven, as thou well may!" 16 Then said that ladye, mild of thought, — " Thomas, let such wordSs be ; Queen of heaven am I not, — I took never so high degree. 17 " But I am ladye of another countrio ; If I be pareli'd most of price, I ride after the wilde foo,° My raciies rinnin' at my device." IH "If thou be pareli'd most of price, And ridest here in thy folly. Lovely ladye, as thou art wise, Tiieu give mc leave to lye by tliee." " "Kaclios: " scentiug bouudB. * "i'loune: " orrow. * " Eatholy: " readily, or quickly. d " Kc w," or " rue : " have pity. * "Foo:" door. 306 r.ALLAn MINSTliELSV 01' SCOTLAND. 19 "I lo way, Tlioinaw, " tliat were folly I 1 ]ivay tlicc heartily, lot me be, For I say thoo full sikcrly,'' That sin will fordo '^ all my boantio." 20 " Now, lovely ladyc, row on nie. And I shall over with tliec dwell ; Here my troth 1 pliglit to thee, Whether thou wilt to hca%-eii or hell!" 21 " Man of mold, thou wilt mc mar, And yet but you may have your will ; Trow you well thou choosPHt the waur, * For all my bcantie thou wilt spill." 22 Tlioii;as stood up in that stead. And beheld that ladyc p,My; Tb.e hair that hung upon her head, The one half black, the other gray. 23 All her rich clothing was av/aj'. That he before saw in that stead; Her een scem'd out, tluit were so gray, And all her body like the lead. 24 Then Thomas sigh'd and said—" Alas ! In faith, this is a doleful sight ; How art thou faded thus in the face, That shone before as the sun so bright?" 25 She said — '• Take thy leave of sun and moon, Of grass and leaves that grow on tree: . This twelvemonth shalt thou with me gone, And middle earth thou shalt not see." 20 He kneeled down upon his knee, To JIary mild he made his moan : " Ladye, but that thou row on me, All my games frae mc are gone! 27 " Alas !" he said, " and woe is m.e! I trow my deeds will work me woe: Jcsu! my soul beteche" I thee, Wlierctjocvcr my body go!" ' Scho haytle, ' The man." "— Liuculu IIS. ^ '' Waur: " worse. 'Sikerly:" certainly, inily. "'^Bcteche:" commend. ' Fordo;" nndo. THOMAS 01" KnOJI.DOCNE. 397 28 She led hitn in at Kildon hill, Uuderneath the greenwood tree," Where it was dark as midnight mirk-, And ever in water to the knee. 29 There the space of dayes three. He heard but soughing*" of the fiood; At the last, he said — " Full woe is me; Almost I die, for fault of food !'' 30 She led him into a fair herbere, Where fruit was growing in great plentie ; Pears and apples both ripe they were, The date, and also the damson tree. 31 The lig, and also the wine-berry. The nightingales lying on their nest; The popinjays fast about 'gan fly, And throstles song, wou'd have no rest. 32 lie press'd to pull the fruit with liis hanrl, As man for food that was near faint; She said — ■' Thomas, thou let them stand, Or else the fiend will thee attaint. 33 '• If thou [them] pull, the sooth to say, Thy soul goes to the fire of hell; It comes never out till Domisday, But there in pain aye for to dwell. 34 " [But] Thomas, soothly, I thee hight; Come, lay thy head down on my knee, And thou s'halt see the fairest sight That ever saw man of tliy countricl" 35 He did in haste as she him bade, His head upon lior knee he laid; Fur her to please he was full glad; And tlien that ladye to him said: 86 " See'st thou, Thomas, yon fair way That lyes over yonder high mountayne? Strait is the way to heaven for aye, When sinful souls have dree'd their pain. " "Undcmofttho a dfmo lee." — Lincoln ^FH. "UulUr nctho Uic ilcrnc lee. '— CoUoii MS. * "SooBblnp:"' Koumling. 'SwaRhynRO," Lincoln MS.; " swowynfr," Cotton MS. "There isnomcUiiriR uncommonly romantic anil poetical in Thomas's roIdk inulnr rr'incd with the queen of Kinnml, hh JEnrim doo.-i wiih the Sibyl,— marchiujf for llirca daVH In pitchy durkncHH, and hearing nothlnR hut tlio sirrchyn'j and iKOtri/iij—i.c., BWiDgiiig &nd booming— of the wavcH over his hcud."— Jam'cKon. 308 BALLA1> JIINSTKELSV Ol" SCOTLAND. 87 " See'Bt thou now, Thomas, yonder way, Tliat lyes so low under yonder rise? Yon is the way, tlie sooth to say, Unto tlie joy of Paradise. 38 " See'st thou yet yonder third way, That lyes over yon green plain? Yon is the way, the sooth to say. That sinful souls shall pass to pain. 39 " But see'st thou yonder fourth way. That lyes over yonder fell ?" Wide is the way, the sootli to say,'' Unto the burning fire of hell! 40 " Seo'st thou now j-onder fair castell, That stands upon j-on fair hill? Of town and tow'r it beareth the bell; In middle earth is none like ther' till." ■11 " In sooth, Thomas, yon is mine own. And the king's of this countrie; But me were better be hanged and drawn, Than he wist that thou lay by niel 42 " When thou comest to yon castell gay, I pray thee courteous man to be; And whatsoe'er any man to thee say. Look that thou answer none but me. 48 " My lord is served at ilka mess With thirty knights [sac] fair and free; And I shall say, sitting at the dais, I took thy speech beyond the sea."* 44 Thomas stood as still as a stone," And beheld that ladye gay; Then she was fair and ricli anon,-^ And also rode on her palfray. 45 Her greyhounds filltid with deer's blood. Her raches coupled, by my fay; She blew her horn with main and mood. And to the castell she took the way. " " Ouer yone'depe dello? "—Lincoln M.S. b " So waylawaye." — Lincoln MS. ' "In earthe es none lyk it vntill." — ^Lincoln MS. <• " Lee." — Cotton and Cambridge M:SS. * "Still als Btono ho slude."— Lincoln and Cambridge MS3. / " Scho came agayne als faire and gude."— Lincoln MS. THOMAS OF ERC11X)0UNE. 399 40 Into a liall sootlily she went, Thomas foUow'd at her hand; Ladyes came botli fair and gent, Full courteously to her kneeland." 47 Harp and fiddle both they fand, Ghittern, and also the psaltry, The lute and rebeck, both gaugand, And all manner of minstrelsy. 48 Knights were dancing by three and three; There was revel, both game and play; Lovely ladyes, fair and free, Dancing with them '' in rich array. 49 The greatest ferlie ■= there, Thomas thought, When thirty harts lay on [the] floor, And as many deer in were brought. That were both largely long and store. 50 Raches lay lappand in deer's blood; The cooks they stood with dressing-kuife, Brittliug the deer as they were wode,'' Revel was among them rife. 61 There was revel, both game and play, More than I you say, pardie, Till it fell upon a day My lovely ladye said to me: 52 " Busk thee, Thomas, for thou must be gone, For here no longer may'st thou be; Hie thee fast, witli miglit and main, I shall thee bring to the Eildou tree." 53 Thomas answered with heavy cheer, " Lovely ladye, thou let me be, For certainly 1 have been here Nouglit but the space of days three! " 64 "For sooth, Tlionias, as I thee tell, Thou hast been here ecvoii year aud more; But longer here thou uuvy not dwell. The skill I will tliee tell Mhereforc. " "Kneeland:" kneeling. » " Sat and sang."— Lincoln and Cotton MSS. « "Forlio:" wonder. tf "WoUo: " mad. 400 BALLAD MINSrUELSY OK SCOTLAKD. 65 "To-morrow of licll tlio foul fiend Among these folk shall choose his fee; Thou art ;i fair man and a hcnd, I trow full Avcll he wouM choose thee I 5G " For all the gold that ever might be, Frao heaven unto the world's end, Thou bc'st never betray'd for me; Therefore with me I rede thee wend." 57 She brought him again to the Eildon tree, Underneath the greenwood spray; In bluntly banks there for to be, Where birds sing both night and day. 58 " Far out over .yon mountain gray, Thomas, a falcon makes her nest; A falcon is an eagle's prcj^, For they in place will have no rest.* 59 "Farewell, Thomas; I wend my way; I maj- no longer stand with tliee." "Give me some token, ladye gay, That I may say I spake with thee." GO " To harp and carp, wheresoever ye gone, Thomas, take thee these with thee." " Harping," said ho, "ken I none, For tongue is the chiefof minstrelsiol " Gl " If thou wilt spell, t or tales tell, Thomas, thou never shall make lee: AVheresoever thou go, to frith or fell, I pray thee speak never no ill of me." 62 Then True Thomas a sorry man was ho, The tears ran out of his een gray: "Lovely ladye, yet tell to me, If we shall part for ever and aye? " 63 "Nay; when thou sittest at Ercildoune, To Iluntly bank thou take thy way, And then shall I be ready boun' To meet thee, Thomas, if that I may." * "Tliomas" Keems to bo Iiere repreaentnd by the "falcon," and the "foul flend" by the "eagle:" "Thomas" being in as much danger from the visitation of the one, aa the "falcon" would be from that of the other. "Theclfln queen, after restorim? Thomas to earth, pours forth a string of prophe- rics, in which wo distinguish references to the events and personages of the Scottish w^rs of Edward III. The battles of Duplin and Halidou are mentioned, and also jjlack Agnes, Countess of Dunbar."— Scott. t "This is the real word which iu Scotland has now taken the form of »pae."— JamiCEOn. AULD MAITLAXD, 401 64 She blew her horn on her palfray, And left Thomas at Eildon tree ; Till Helmesdale she took her way, And thus parted that ladye and he. AULD MAITLAND. From Scott's ilindrehy, vol. i., p. 30G. " This ballad, notwithstanding its present aj-pearanco, has a claim to very high antiquitj'. It has been preserved by tradition ; and i.s, perhaps, the .most aixthentic instance of a long and very old poem exclusively thus preserved. It is only known to a few old people upon the sequestered banks of the Ettrick; and is published as written down from the recitation of the mother of Mr. James Hogg,* who sings, or rather chants it, with great animation. She Icarued the ballad from a blind mau, who died at the advanced age of ninety, and is said to have been possessed of much traditionary knowledge. Although the language of this poem is much modernized, yet many words, which the reciters have retained without understanding them, still preserve traces of its antiquity. Such are the words itpringnl.i (corruptedly pronounced sprlnrjuiuUs), sotvies, portc.uUhe, and many other appropriate terms of war and chivalry, which could never have been introduced by a modern ballad-maker. The incidents are striking and well managed ; and they are in strict conlbrmity with the manners of the age in which they are placed. "The date of the ballad cannot be ascertained with any degree of accuracy. Sir Richard Maitland, the hero of the poem, seems to have been in possession of his estate about 1250 ; so that, as he survived the conunencement of the wars betwixt England and Scotland, in 1290, his prowess against the P^nglish, in defence of his castle of Lauder or Thirlestane, must have been exerted during his extreme old age. He seems to have been distinguished for devotion as well as valour; for, a.d. 1249, Dominus Kicardus de Mautlant gave to the Abbey of Dryburgh, 'Terras suas de Haubeutside, iu territorio suo de Thirlestane, pro salute animce suce, et sponsoe suon, antecessorum Buorum et successorum suorum, iu peqjctuum.'t He also gave to tlie Bame convent, ' Omncs terras, quas Waltcras de Gilling tenuit iu feodo suo de Thirlestane et pastura incommuni de Thirlestane. ad ([uadraginta ovcs, sexaginta vaccas, et ad vigiuti cquos.' — Carlalanj of Dnjburgh Ahhny, in the Advucalcti' Library. " From the following ballad, and from the family traditions referred to in the Maitland MSS., Auld Maitland ajipears tohavc hatl three Bons ; but we learn from the latter authority, that only one •TIiIb old woman i8 Btill alivp, und at prcffnt resides at C'rilg of Dousl^s. in Sclklrkbhire (180i).--Tho mother of tlio " KUrick yiiepherd " is now decoaBod (ISiO). t Thcro oxirtts also an indonturn, or bond, entered into by Patrick. Abbot of Kelsau, and lii» convent, reforrinK to un cngajtrmont betwixt tliniii and Sir Ilidianl Maitland, and Sir William, bis cldrH son, conconilng the lands of Hedderwicke and tiio paMiirasfoi of Thirlcstauo and IMytho. This Patrick was Abbot of Koho botwlxt Vi:i'< and I'.'UO. 402 BAT.LAP MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. survived him, vho was thence surnained Burd-alane, wliioh signifies either unpqunUed, or solitary. A 'Consolation,' addressed to Sir Kichard Maitland of Lethington, a poet and scholar who liourished about the middle of the sixteenth century, and who gives name to tho INIaitland MSS., draws the followin^parallel betwixt his domestii":; misfortunes and those of the first Sir Kichard, his great ancestor:— ' Sic destanio and Jerfo devoring deid Oft his own hous in hazard put of auld; Bot your forbeiris, fi-ovard fortunes Bteid And bitloi- blasles ay buir with breistis bauld; Luit wanwcirdis work and waller as they wald, Thair hardic liairtis, hawtio and horoik, For fortounes feid or force wald never fauld, But Btormis withstand with stomak stout and stoik. 'Eonowned Biehcrt of your race record, Quhai prais and prowis cannot be exprcst; Mairlustie lynyago novir haid ane lord, For he begat the bauldest baimis and best, Maist manful men, and madinls most modest, That ever wos syn Pyramus son of Troy, But piteouslie thai peirles herles a pest Bereft him all bot Buird-allaue, a boy. ' Himselfe was aiget, his hous hang bo a har, Duill and distres almaist to deid him draifo; Yet, Burd-allane, his only son and .lir. As wretched, vyiss, and -valient, as tlie laive, His hom uphaii'd, quhilk yo with honor halve. So nature that the lyk invyand name, In kindlio ('nir dois kindly courage craif,* To follow liim in fortoune and in fame. ' Kicherd ho wos, Bicherd yo are also, And Maitland als, and magnanime ar ye; In als great age, als wrappit are in wo, Sewin sonst ye haid might contra vaill his thrlo, Bot Burd-allane ye haivo behind as lie: The lord his linage so inlarge in lyno. And Diony hundreith ijppotis grie and griej Sen Richert wes as hnndre»h yeiris are hyne.' — An Consolalor Ballad, to the Richt Honorahill Sir Richert Maitland of Lethingtoune. — Maitland MSS. in Library of Edinburgh University. " Sir William Mautlant, or Maitland, the eldest and sole surviving son of Sir llicbard, ratified raid confirmed, to the monks of Dryburgh, ' Omnes terras cjuas Dominus Jlicardns de Mautlant pater suns fecit dictis mouachis in territorio .'luo de Thirlestane. ' Sir William h supposed to have died about 13L'J. — Crawford's Peerage, " Such were the heroes of the ballad. Tlie castle of Tliirlestane ia * /. e.. Similar family distress demands tho same family courage. t "Sewin sons"— this must include sons-in-law; for tho last Sir Richard, like his predecessor, had only three sons, namely,— I. William, tho famous secretary of Queen Mary; IL Sir John, who alone survived him, and is the Burd-allauo of tho Consolation; IIL Thomas, a youth of great liopes, who died in Italy. But he had four daughters married to gentlemen of fortune.— Pinkerton's List of Scottish PoeU p. 114. X " Grie and grie: " in regular descent; from gre, French. AULD MAITLAND. 403 situated upon the Leader, near the toAvn of Lauder. Whether the present buildincr, which -was erected by Chancellor Maitland, and impvoved by the Duke of Lauderdale, occupies the site of the ancient castle, I do not know ; but it still merits the epithet of a ' darksome house.' I find no notice of the siege in history ; but there is nothing improbable in supposing that the castle, duriusc the stormy period of the Baliol wars, uiay have held out against the English. The creation of a nephew of Edward I., for the' pleasure of slaying him l)y the hand of young ^Maitland, is a poetical license;* and may induce us to ])!ace the date of the composition about the reign of David II., or of his successor, when the real exploits of Maithind, and his sons, were in some degi-ce obscured, as well as magnified, by the lapse of time. The inveterate hatred against the English, founded upon the usurpation of Edward I. , glows in eveiy line of the ballad. " Auld JLaitland is ydaced by Gawaiu Douglas, bishop of Duukeld, !eisonal knowledge." The notes to the introduction and ballad are Sir Walter Scott's. 1 Tnr.iiE lived a king in southern land, King Edward liiglit his name; Unwordily lie wore tlie crown, Till fifty years were gane. AtTLD MAITLAKD. 405 2 He had a sister's son o's ain, Was large of blood and bane; And afterward, when he came up, Young Edward hight his name.* 3 One day he came before the king, And kneel'd low on his knee : "A boon, a boon, my good uncle, I crave to ask of thee! 4 "At our lang wars, in fair Scotland, I fain ha'e wish'd to bo; If fifteen hundred waled t wight men You'll grant to ride with me." 5 " Thou shall ha'e thae, thou shall ha'e mae; I say it sickcrlie; And I myself, an auld gray man, Array'd your host shall see." 6 King Edward radc, King Edward ran— I wish him dool and pynel J Till he had fifteen hundred men Assembled on the Tyne. 7 And thrice as many at Berwicke§ Were all for battle bound, [Who, marching forth with false Dunbar, A ready welcome found.] !| 8 Thoy lighted on the banks of Tweed, And blew their coals sae het, And fired the Merse and Teviotdalo, All in an evening late. 9 As they fared up o'er Lammermoor, They hnrn'd baith up and down, Until they carno to a darksome house. Some call it Leader-Town, * Wore It possible to find an nnlhorltv for railing this p'»rPonag« E4mnn<1, we ! bould be a step rearer hiBiory ; for- a brcher, though not a nephew of Edw ird I. so named, died In Oaacony, during an uusucoeBsful campaign aijalnst th9 Freuch-— Knighton, lib. liL. cap. 8. t "Waled:" chosen. t That Sp«ncer, In "Mother Hubcrd's Tale: "— "ThiiB Is the ape become a Bhepherd Bwaln, Ami tho falfe fox his dog, God give them pain! " } Xorth Berwick, according to some reciters. 1 These two linen havo b''ou inserf'^d by 3Ir. Hogg to complete the vorac. Dunbar, t}ie fonreBB of St. Patrick, Earl of March, wai too often opeued to the English, by tae treachery of that baron, during the rclKn of Edward I. 2e 406 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 10 " Wha hauds this house?" young Edward cried, " Or wha gi'est o'er to me? " A gray-hair'd knight set up his head, And crackit right crousely: 11 " Of Scotland's king I haud my house; He paj's nie meat and fee; And I will keep my gude auld house, While my house will keep me." 12 They laid their sowies to the wall. With mony a heavy peal ; But he threw o'er to them agen Baith pitch and tar ban-el. 13 With springalds, stanes, and gads of airn, Amang them fast he threw; Till mony of the Englishmen About the wall he slew. 14 Full fifteen daj^s that braid host lay, Sieging Auld Maitland keen; Syne they ha'e left him, hail and feir, Within his strength of stane. 15 Then fifteen barks, all gaily good, Met them upon a day. Which they did lade with as much spoil As they cou'd bear awaj'. 16 "England 's our ain by heritage ; And what can us withstand, Now we ha'e conquer'd fair Scotland, With buckler, bow, and brand?" 17 Then they are on to the land of France, Where auld king Edward lay, Burning baith castle, tower, and town. That he met in his Avay. 18 Until he came unto that town, Which some call Billop-Grace: * There were Auld Maitland's sons, all three. Learning at school, alas ! *If this be a Flemish or Scottish corruption for Villa de Grace, in Normandy, that to.vn was never boBieged by Edward I., whof-e wars in France were confined to the province of Gasconj'. The rapid change of Bcene, from Scotland to France, excites a suspicion, that Eome ycnses may have been lost In this place, AULD MAITLAND. 407 19 The eldest to the youngest said, "Oh, see 3'e what I see? If all be true yon standard says,* "We're fatherless all three. 20 "For Scotland's conquer'd up and down; Landmen we'll never be ! Now, will you go, my brethren two, And try some jeopardy? " 21 Then they ha'e saddled twa black horse, Twa black horse and a gray; And they are on to king Edward's host, Before the dawn of day. 22 When they arrived before the host. They hover'd on the lay: "Wilt thou lend me our king's standard, To bear a little way? " 23 "Where wast thou bred? where wast thou born? Where, or in what countrie?" " In north of England I was born; " (It needed him to lee.) 24 " A knight me gat, a ladye bore, I am a squire of high renown ; I well may bear't to any king That ever yet wore crown." 25 "He ne'er came of.an Englishman, Had sic an e'e or brce; But tliou art the likest Aiild Muitland, That ever I did see. 26 " But sic a gloom on ae browhead. Grant I ne'er see again! For mony of our men he slew, And mony put to pain." 27 When Maitland heard his father's name, An angry man was lie; Then, lilting up a gilt dagger, Hung low down l)y his kiu'e, 28 He stabb'd the knight the standard bore. He Btabb'd him cruellio; • EJwfini bn.i ni.flitfro.i .),« ,rnu of Bcotlood T^lth bla oi7n. 408 BALLAD MINSTRELSV OF SCOTLAND. Then caught the standard by the neuk, And fast away rode ho.* 29 "Now, is't na time, brothers," lie cried, " Now, ia't na time to flee ? " "Ay, by my sooth ! " they baith replied, "'We'll bear you companye." 30 The youngest turn'd him in a path, And drew a burnish'd brand. And fifteen of the foremost slew, Till back the lave did stand. 31 He spurr'd the gray into the path, Till baith his sides they bled : "Graj'I thou maun carry nie away, Or my life lies in wad I " 82 The captain lookit o'er the wall, About the break of day; There he beheld the three Scots lada Pursued along the way. 33 " Pull up portcullize ! down draw-brig I My nephews are at hand ; And'they shall lodge with me to-night. In spite of all England." M Whene'er they came within the yate. They thrust their horse them frae,t And took three lang spears in their hands, Saying — "Here shall come nae mael" S6 And they shot out, and they shot in, Till it was fairly day; When mony of the Englishmen About the draw-brig lay. 86 Then they ha'e yoked the carta and wains, To ca' their dead awaj'. And shot aidd dykes abune the lave. In gutters where they lay. • Thus Sir Walter Mauny, retrcatiuK into the fortress of Hanyboute, after a BaccesBfui Bally, was pui-sued by the besiPRcrs, who "ranne after them lyke madde men- than sir Gualtier paide, Let me never be beloved wyth my lady, wythout I liave a course wyth one of these followers'." and turning, with his lance in the Tr-9i, he overthrew several of his purauers, before ho condescended to continue hia retreat.— /Vowaart. t "The lord of Hangest (pureued by the Enellsh) came so to the b&rryrs (of Van- donne) that w«re open, as his happe wui, and so emred In thereat, and then toke his speare, ftnd turned him to defonce, riglit valiantly."— /"roissarJ, vol. 1., chap. 887. AULD MAITLAKD, 4^9 87 The king, at his pavilion door, Was heard aloud to srv: " Last night, three of the lads of France My standard stole away. 38 " With a fause tale, disguised they came, And with a fauser trayue; And to regain my gaye standard. These men were all down slaj'ne." 39 '• It ill befits," the youngest said, " A crownM king to lee; But, or that I taste meat and drink, Reprov&d shall he be." 40 Ho went before king Edward straight, And kncel'd low on his knee: " I wou'd ha'e leave, my lord," he said, *' To speak a word with thee." 41 The king he turn'd him round about. And v/istna what to say: Quo' he, " j\lan, thou 's ha'e leave to speak, Though thou should speak all day." 42 " Ye said that three young lads of France Your standard stole away, AVith a fause tale and fauser trayne, And mony men did slay; ■13 " But we are nanc the lads of Franco, Nor e'er pretend to be: We are three lads of fair Scotland, — Auld Maitland's sons are we. 44 " Nor is there men in all your host Daur light us three to three." " Now, by my sooth," j'oung Edward said, "Weel fitted ye shall be! 45 " Piercy shall with the eldest fight, And Ethert Lunn with thee; William of Lancaster the third. And bring yotu- fourth to mcl 46 " Remember, Piercy, aft the Scot Has cowcr'd beneath thy hand;* For every drap of Maitland blood, I'll gi'e a rig of land." * Modem, to Bupiily an imperfect Btanzik -110 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 47 He clanked Picrcy o'er the head A deep voiiiui and a sair, Till the best blood of his body Came ninuing duwn his hair. d8 " Now, I've slayne aue; slay ye tlie twa ; And tliat's gnde compauye; And if the twa shou'd slay ye baith, Yo'se get nae help Irae me." * 49 But Ethert Lunn, a baited bear, Had many battles seen ; He set the youngest wonder sair, Till the eldest he grew keen. 50 " I am nae king, nor nae sic thing: f My word it shanna stand! For Etliert shall a buffet bide, Come he beneath my brand." 51 He clankit Ethert o'er the head A deep wound and a sair. Till the best blood in his body Came running o'er his hair. 62 " Now, I've slayne twa; slay yo the ano; Isna that gude companye? And though the ane shou'd slay ye baith, Ye'se get nae help of me." 63 The twa-some they ha'e slayne the ane, They maul'd him cruellie ; J Then hung him over the draw-brig, That all the host might see. 54 They rade their horse, they ran their horse, Then hover'd on the lee: " We be three lads of fair Scotland, That fain wou'd fighting see." *Accor.Hng to the laws of chivalry, laws which were also for a long time observed In duels, when two or more persons were engaged on each side, he, who llrHt conquered his immediate antagoui-t, was at hberty, if ho pleased, to come to the asBistaiico of his companions. t Maitlan i's apology for retracting his promise to stand neuter is as curious as his doin" fo is natuial. The unfortunate John of France was wout to say, that if truth and faith were banished from all the rest of the universe, they fhould still reside in the breast and the mouth of kings. 1 This has a vulgar connd, but la actually a phrase of romance. Tant frappant et maillent lex deux vaflsaux I'un sur I'autre, one leui-s heaumes, ot leura hauboits, Ront toui oassez ot rompuz.— La Fleur des Battallos. AL'LD MAITLAND. 411 65 This boasting when young Edward heard, An angry man was he: " I'll take yon lad, I'll bind yon lad, And bring him bound to thee!" 66 "Now, God forbid," king Edward said, "That ever thou shou'd try! Three worthy leaders we ha'e lost. And thou the fourth wou'd lie. 67 " If thou shou'dst hang on yon draw-brig, Blythe wou'd I never be." But, with the poll-axe in his hand, Upon the brig sprang lie.* 58 The first stroke that young Edward ga'e, He struck %vith might and main; He clove the Maitland's helmet stout. And bit right nigh the brain. 69 When Maitland saw his ain blood fall, An angry man was he;f He let his weapon frae him fall, And at his throat did flee. •The Blcges. during the Middle Ages, frequently afforded opportunity for eingia combat, of wlilch the scene was usually the drawbridge, or barriers, of the town. The former, as the more desperate place of battle, was frequently chosen by knights, who chose to bri-ak a lance for honour and their ladies' lore. In 13S7, Sir William Douglas. Lord of Nithsdale, upon the drawbridge of the town of Carlisle, consiHtlng of two beams, hardly two feet in breadth, encountered and slew, first, a single champion of England, and afterwards two, who attacked him together.— Forduni Scotidironicon, lib. liv., chap. 61. " He brynt the suburbys of Carlelc, And at tho bareris he faucht sa wel. That on thare bryg he slew a man, The wychiast that in the town wes than; Quharc, on a planlc of twa feet bnide He stude, and swa gudo payment made. That he feld twa stout fecliteris, And but Bkath went till his feres." — Wyntomi's Cvonykil, book Ix., chap. 8. Theta combats at the barriers, or palisades, which formed the outer fortification of a town, were no frequent, that the mode of attack and defence was early taught to the future knight and continued long to bo practised In the games of chivalry. The cusUjm, theieforo. of defying tlie inliabltunw of a besieged t^Avn to this Kort of consent, was higliiy fashiou iblu in the Mid ilo Ages; and an anuy could hardly appear before a place, without giving rise to u variety of combat.s at the barriers, which were, in general, conducted without any unfair advantugo being taken on either part. t There Is a, oaylnff. that a Scotchman fights best aflor seeing his own blood. CamerariuH hast conirived to hit-h thi^ loullHh proverb into a uatimial conipllinent. for ho quotes it as an iuHtanco of the purkevcrlag gallantry of IiIh countrymen. " Hi in pugna prooriani effundi Hangiiiueni vMlshent, noii htuilui iiro.' "1 better like to boo the Southerou die, Than gold or land, that they can gl'e to me." In Blavios Edward, llaiiland acts intilesaly, but not contrary to the laws of arms, •which did not enjoin a knight to show mercy to his antagonist, until he yielded mm, "rtecne or no rescue." Sra WILLIAM WALLACE. 418 '• Dure gold wes changyd into lede.^ Ciyst, borne In-to virgynyte, Succour Scotland, and remede, That stad is in perplesyt^." * Well miglit the Scotisli nation stand agliast as it beheld, the mus- tering hosts marshal themselves in fierce array under the banner of one or other of the numerous aspirants after the vacant throne, and as it witnessed the trily and imprincipled policy of the able but unscrupulous English king, as such was hy him steadily and ruth- lessly developed. It ^^•as after this policy had culminated in the defeat, disgrace, and imprisonment of Baliol, the vassal king — vi-]ien the foi-tune of Scotland ■was at the lowest ebb, and her position as an independent nation seemed gone for ever — it was then that Wallace, one of the greatest and noblest patriots the ■world has ever seen, was raised up, like one of the deliverers and judges of the Hebrew people of old ; and it was this fondly-revei'ed champion of his country's liberty ■who, by the might of his strong right arm, and the force of his valiant and in- domitable example, rolled back the tide of Southern invasion, lea^ving Scotsmen as God created them to be — freemen. Modem critics may sneer and cavil at the apparently superhuman exploits of the Scotish champion, as sung by the Scotish Homer; but the fact remains, that Wallace, ■with his small but trusty band of kindred-souled compatriots, baffled the skill and might of one of the ablest monarchs at the head of one of the bravest and most powerful nations in the world ; and this in spite of the jealousy, treason, and mendacity of the Scotish nobles, who thwarted him to the utmost of their power, and by one of whom he was ultimately betrayed into the hands of his own and his country's enemy. The name of the "false Menteith." who basely thus, for English gold, did Judas -like betray " his countrj^'s saviour," is, and ever shall be, execrated and made a byeword of reproach as long as a Scotsman lives and breathes. It forms no part of our plan to follow the patriot-martyr through the chequered events of his career, until its fatal termination on an English KcaSbld, 2lj(l August, 130.", after wliicli his head was placed on a pole on London brfdge, and the quarters of his dismembered body sent respectively to Newcastle, Berwick, Perth, and Aberdeen. The crowned murderer, no doubt, exulted in the thought that Scotish independence had perished with his victim ; but it was not 80, for — " Freedom's hattlii onco begun, Bflqueath'd by bleeding sfi-e to son, Tho' baffled oft, is ever won." And thus — " From Wallace' blood, like precious seed-drops slied, {Sprang up fresh patriots in his steps to trcaa." Nay, the avenger was even then within the gates of the English king, in the person of Robert Bruce, who, on the 27th of March, 130G, was • Wlnton'» Oonvkit. vol. I., p. 4'il. Tho eleelno song tlum prenervcd is 8ui)po«od to bo the earllPMt Rpccimen of thoHcoiifih, ns dlKtlngulsnod from theOaoliclanguaga. But If Sir Walif r .Scott he correct In ascribing tho outhorBlilp of Sir Trhlrem 10 " Thomas the Hhymer, " that romance would of course tako preccdenoo. 414 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAKD. crowned at Scone as King of Scotland, and who, after many severe and trying struagles and vicissitudes, fixed the liberty and iudepen- dencc of his country on a firm and permanent basis by tho great and crowning victory of Banuockburn. "Tho industry of Heury the Minstrel has," says Motherv/oU, "done justice to the history of the Patriot fWallace] ; and it is believed that in his heroick poem * will be found incorporated all the detached songs, founded on real or f;xlnilous incident, which were living on the breath of ti'adition, rcgardintr the hero at the time Henry lived. The disappearance of these detached songs can be ascribed to no other cause than the extreme popularity which tlie work of Henry has acquired. I have heard it as a byeword, in some parts of Stirlingshire, that a collier's libi'ary consists but of four books : the Confession of Faith, the Bible, a bunch of ballads, and ' Sir William Wallace : ' the first for the gude--\vifc, the second for the gude-man, the third for their daughter, and the last for the son — a selection indicative of no mean taste in these grim mold warps of humanity. ' ' No ballads relative to the Bruce and his chivalry exist, the celebrity of Barbour's historick poem t having, in the course of time, wholly swept their memory away. That one, who, in his own person and fortunes, realized the most perfect picture we have of a ' Knight adventui'ous,' and who seems himself to have had a very lively relish for the compositions of the minstrel muse,i should fail being commemorated in song, is inconsistent with probability. We know that a herald, in a solemn feast, being desired by Edward of Carnarvon to say, what three knights then living were most approved in arms, unhesitatingly named Bruce as one of the number. The minstrel and the herald were at that period, oftentimes, one and the same profession. When Barbour wrote, ballads relative to this period appear to have been common ; for the ])oet, speaking of certain ' rhre worthi po^-ntis of wcr,' omits the particulars of the 'Thrid, which fell into Esdaill,' being a victory gained by ' Schyr Johne the Soullis' over ' Schyr Andrew Hardclay,' for this reason : — 'I will nocht rohers tho maiier, For wha sa likes thai may her, Young wemen quhen thai will play, Sing it amang thaim ilk day.' " 'The monkishe rymes, truffes, and roundes,' made alternately by the Scottish or English, as eitlacr side prevailed, and of which some specimens are preserved in the chronicles of the latter, do not properly belong to the class of narrative ballads. § These rhymes, it * Wallace, Dr. Jamieson's edition, reprint, Glasgow, 1S69. t T/ie Bruce, Dr. Jamiesous edition, reprint, Glasgow, 1869. X " Barbour gives an interesting account of him, in one iiifitanco comfortiug lils followers by reading to thorn portions of the Romance of ferumbrace, and on another occasion, of being accustometl to tell them ' Auld Btoryis of men that wer Kot in tyll assayis ser.' ' — Motherwell. { Tho ScotiRh portion of tho satirical songs or pasquils here referred to, may be found quoted hi the companion volume, Songi oj Scotland, Chronologically Arranged, tntroduotion, pp. lli. end Iv. SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 415 may be stated, are ■written in what is callecT the *ryme cowee,' and \vbich appears to have borne a marked resemblance to that descrip- tion of metrical abuse styled ' Flyting ' by our Scottish Makers, of which we have some notable examples in the poeticl encounters of Dunbar and Kennedy, *and Montgomery and Hume, "a — Motherwell's Minstrelsy, Introduction, pp. xlvi.-viii. Now that " these cruel wars are over," and Scotland imited with England and Ireland, on free and equal terms, as portions of one great nation, let us trust that every Enghshmau, Irishman, aj', and every American — yea, every lover of fair play and liberty all the world over— will respond to the poetic praj-er of the Scotish bard, Eobert Burns : — " Thou! who pour'd the patriotic tide That ftream'd thro' Wallace's undaunted heart; Who dared, so nobly, Ktem t\Tannic pride, Or nobly ui.-, the second glorious part, (The patriot's God peculiarly thou art, His friend, inspirer, guardian, and reward 1) Oh. never, never Scotia's realm desert : But still the patriot, and the patriot bard, In bright succession raise, her ornament and guard." J The two ballads which follow appear to be derived respectively from Blind Harry's Wallace, books iv. and v. Of that first .qiven, there are two versions, namely : — I. " Sir William Wallace," in the Thistle of Scotland, p. 100. II. ••Wallace and his Leman," in Buchan's Ancient Ballads, &.C., vol. ii., p. 226. The text is taken from version I., with the exception of stanza 15, which is given from version II., as are also other stanzas noted under liie text as vaiiations. 13oth conclude with portions of the ballad which comes next in ordir, and of which fuller versions appeared as under : — I. In Johnson's Mumcal Museum, vol. v., p. 498. As com- municated by Bui-ns. II. Ill the Illustrations or Notes to Johnson's Museum, p. 458', as given by Mr. D. Laing, from a co]iy which " a])peared ill a common chap form, along with some Jacobite ballads, printed about the year 1750." HI. Under the title of "Willie Wallace," in Buchan's Clean- intjs, ]>. 114, as " taken down from an itinerant tinker and Tlic same ballad is also given by Jaiiiies-m and hy Fiula-\-, in their rcs]iective collections, and by Allan Cunnliigliaui, with editorial additions and cmbellishiueiits, in 77(c' 6'o)i(/s of Scotland. Mr. Buchan's vcr.sion (III.) is the one hero printed under the title of "Gudc Wallace;" but it has received a fcv/ emendations. • See Dunbar'd I'oemi. edited by ^Ir. D -vil Lainf . t See Watson's Colltelion of HiOlt l'i.ci,i.. rci)rail, Glasgow, 13GU. \ "TheCottor'B Siturday Night," last Btaiu*. 416 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 1 Wou'd ye hear of William Wallao©, And seek liiin as lie goes, Into tho land of Lanark, Amang his mortal foes? 2 There were fifteen English Rogers Unto his ladvc came, Said—" Gi'e us Vrilliam Wallace, That we may have him slain. 3 " Won'd ye gi'e William Wallace, That we may have him slain? And j'e'se be wedded to a lord, The best in Christendeem." 4 " This very night, at seven. Brave Wallace will come in. And he'll come to my chamber door, Without or dread or din." 5 The fifteen English sogers Around the house did wait ; And four brave Southron foragers Stood hie upon the gait. 6 That very night, at seven, Brave Wallace he came in. And he came to his ladye's bow'r Withouten dread or din.* 7 When she beheld brave Wallace, And stared him in the face — " Ohon, alas!" said that ladye, " This is a woeful case. 8 " For I this night have sold you, This night you must bo ta'en; And I'm to be wedded to a lord, The best in Christendeem." 'Do you repent," said Wallace, " Tho ill you've done to me?" 'Ay, that I do," said that ladye, " And will do till I dee. • Mr. Bueban's rerfalon begins— " Wnllace wight, upon a night, Cuine riding o'er ti)o liunj And he ie to hl» leman'H bow'r, And tlrl'd at the pin." SIR WILLLV-M WALLACE, 41^ 10 " Ay, that I do," said that ladj-e, ''And will do ever still; And for the ill I've done to you, Let me burn upon a hill." 11 " Now, God forfend," says brave Wallace) " I should be so unkind; Whatever I am to Scotland's faes, I'm aye a -woman's friend. 12 " Will ye gi'e me your gown, your gowu, Your gown but and your kirtle, Your petticoat of bonnie brown, And belt about mj' middle? 13 " I'll take a pitcher in ilka hand, And do me to the well; They'll think I'm one of your maidens, Or think it is yourseP." 14 She has gi'en him her gown, her gown, Her petticoat and kirtle ; Her broadest belt with silver clasps, To bind about his middle. 16 [Then he ga'e her a loving kiss, The tear dropp'd frae his e'e; Says — " Fare ye As-ell for cverniair, Your face I'll nae mair see."]* IG He 's ta'en a pitcher in ilka hand. And done him to the well; They thought him one of her maidens, They kenn'd 'twas not horpel'.-j- 17 Said one of tlie Southron foragers, — " See ye yon lusty dame? 1 wou'd nae gi'o rneikle to thee, nocljor, To bring her back again." 18 Then all the Southrons follow'd him, They follow'd him all four; But he lias drawn his trusty bruiul, And slain them pair by pair. • Inserted from Mr. Bucban'a tgisIod. t " Blie drp-hi 1 him in h'^r nin cIollLlog, And frue her houte ho camo, 'Which made tho EuKlitbnien eidmlre To «o« this stalwart diimn."— HnchRTi'p TornlolL 418 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND, GUDE WALLACE. 1 Wallace was in tlio high Highlands, Neither meat nor drink got lie ; Said—" Fa'* me life, or fa' me death, Now to some town I maun be." 2 He has put on his short cleiding, And on his short cleiding put he; Says — " Fa' me life, or fa' me death, Now to Saint Johnstoun'sf I maun be." 8 Then he cross'd o'er the river Tay, On to the North Inch steppit he ; And ho was 'ware of a weel-faur'd May, Was washing there aneath a tree. 4 " Wliat news, what news, ye weel-faur'd May, What news ha'e ye this day to me? What news, what news, ye weel-faur'd May, What news ha'e ye in the South countric?" 5 " Nae news, nae news, ye gentle knight, Nac news ha'e I this day to thee ; But fifteen lords in yon hostler-house, Waiting Gude Wallace for to see." 6 " If I had but in my pocket The worth of one single penuie, I wou'd go to the hostler-house, These fifteen Englishmen to see." 7 She put her hand in her pocket, And she has puU'd out half-a-crown ; Says — " Take ye that, ye belted knight, And with it pay your lawin' down." 8 As he wont frae the weel-faur'd May, A beggar bauld I wot met he, Was cover'd with a clouted J cloak. And in his hand a trusty tree. 9 "What news, what news, ye silly auld man. What news ha'e ye this day to gi'c? What news, what news, ye silly auld man, What news ha'e ye in the South countrie?" • " Fa' : " befall t Perth. t " Clouted ; " patchecl, QUDE WALLACE. 419 10 •' 111 uews, ill news, ye belted knight, 111 news ha'e I to tell to thee ; For there 'e fifteen lords in yon hostler-house, Waiting Gude Wallace for to see." 11 " Ye'U lend to me your clouted cloak, That covers you frae head to knee, And I'll gang to the hostler-house, To ask of them for some supplie." 12 Now he 's gane to the West-muir wood, And there he pull'd a trusty tree. And then he's on to the hostler-house, Asking them there for charitie. 18 Down the stair the captain comes, Aye the puir man for to see; " If ye be a captain as gude as ye look, Ye'U gi'e a puir man some supplie." 14 " Where were ye born, ye crook&d carle? Where were ye born? in what countrie?" " In fair Scotland here I was born, Crook&d carle, as ye call me." 16 " Oh, I wou'd gi'e ye fifty pounds Of gold and of the white monie; Oh, I wou'd gi'e ye fifty pounds. If the traitor Wallace ye'd let me see." 16 " Tell down your monie," said Gude Wallace, " Tell down your monie, if it be gude; For I'm sure I ha'e it in my pow'r, And I never had a better bode.*' 17 " Tell down your monie, if it be gude, And let me see if it be fine ; I'm sure I ha'e it i?i my pow'r To l)ring the traitor, Wallace, in." 18 Tlje monie was told down on the table, Silver and gold of pounds Hftie ; " Now, here I stand," said Gude Wallace, "And what ha'e ye to say to me?" 19 IIo feli'd the captain where he stood, With a downright stroke upon the floor; He slew the rest aroiuid the room, And ask'd if there were any more, ♦ "iJode;' oa«r. 420 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 20 " Come, cover the table," said Gude Wallace, "Come, cover the table, uow make haste; For it will soon be throe lang days Since I a bit of meat did taste." 21 Tlie table it was scarcely covcr'd, Nor yet had he sat down to dine, Till fifteen more of the English lords Surrounded the house where he was in. 22 " Come out, come out, thou traitor, Wallace, This is the day tliat ye maun doc ! " " I lippen* nae sae little to God," he says, " Altho' I be but little wordie."t 28 The gudewife she ran but J the floor, An'd aye the gudeman he ran ben; From eight o'clock till four at noon, Wallace has kill'd full thirty men. 24 He put his faes in sic a swither,§ That five of them he stickit dead ; Five of them he drown'd in the river. And five he hung in the Wost-muir wood. 25 Then he is on to the North Inch gane, Wliere the May Avas washing tenderly: " Now, by my sooth," said Gucle Wallace, '' It 's been a sair day's wark to me! " 20 He 'a put his hand into his pocket, And he has pull'd out twenty pound; Says — " Take ye that, ye weel-faured Mav, For the gude luck of your half-crown I THE BATTLE OF EOSLINE. Copied from a Glasgow cliap-book, "printed by J. and M. Robert- son, Saltmarkct, 1803." It is prefaced thus :— " The famous battle of Rosline, fou;:;bt on the plains of Rosline, Anno Dom. 1303, || about five miles south of Edinburgh, where 10,000 • " Lippen : " trust. t This stanza is talten from Janiieson's version. t "But," the outer, and "ben," the inner apartment of a houpe or cottage. }"Swither:" perplexity- H "Langtoft la open and candid as to the entire defeat of the Engliah." For " tno carious and minute account given by " him, see his work, vol II., p. 319. THE BATTLE OP ROSLIXE, 421 Scots, led by Sir John Cummiu and Sir Simon Fraser, defeated iu three battles, in one day, 30,000 of their [English] enemies." Mr. Maidment, in his Scothsh Ballads and Songs, p. 148, printa the same ballad from one "dated Edinburgh, 1785." They agree minutely; but the Glasgow edition has three lines more than the other; which three lines are necessary, iu order to preserve the uniformity of the stanzas. Some of the early English historians state that Wallace led the Scotish army which achieved this triad of victories ; but others, aa also the Scotish historians, make no mention of him in connection therewith. The English armies seem to have been commanded respectively by John de Segrave ; by Ralph de Manton, called, from his office, Ralph the Cofferer ; and by Sir Robert Neville — all of whom appear to have fallen. Some of the Scotish nobles then in France, on hearing of this exploit, " addressed a letter to the governor and nobility of Scotland, in which they exhorted them to be of good courage, and to persevere in vindicating the liberties of their country. 'You would greatly rejoice,' they saj' in this letter, ' if you wei-e aware what a weight of honour this last conflict with the EngUsh baa conferred upon you throughout the world.' " * Sir Simon Fraser, the hero of this achievement, and compatriot of Wallace, was ultimately taken prisoner near Stirling, a.d. 1308. " He was carried to Loudon, heavily ironed, with his legs tied under his horse's belly, and, as he passed through the city, a garland of periwinkles was in mockery placed upon his head. . . Fraser was tried and condemned, after which he suffered the death of a traitor, with all its circumstances of refined cruelty. He was hanged, cut down when still living, and beheaded ; his bowels were then torn out and burned, and his head fixed beside that of Wallace, upon London Bridge." t "A long ballad against the Scotch, written upon the execution of Sir Simon Fraser, 13U6, from a manuscrijjt of that time, Harl. Lib. 2253, f. V. 59," ajipears in Avcitnt Scvtinh Foemn (])rinted by Pinker- ton, from the Maitland MSS.), voL ii., Appendix, article iv., p. 488. 1 Leave off your tittle tattle, And I'll tell you of a battle, Where clayuiore and targe did rattle, At Rosline on the Lee: Tea thousand Scottish laddies, Drest in their tartan plaidies, "With blue bonnets and cockadies — A pleasant sight to see. •"Kymer. Fad, toI. L, new edit., p. 966. Jono 8, 18oa," aR quoted by Tytler, Biitcry of Hcotland, Tol. I. (oew edit., 18G0), p- 1"2. t Tyiler'n //ij>lort of flcollanJ, voL 1., p. 217, edit. lacO; aa glvou ou lUo mttorHy of Matthew WeslniiUBlor. 2 r 422 BALLAD MINSTRELSr OF SCOTLAND. 2 Led* by Sir Simon Fraser, Who was as bold as Ctesar, Great Alexander never Could exceed that Hero bold.f And by bravo Sir John Cummin. Wlien he saw the foes a-coming, Set the bagpipes all a-bumming, " Stand firm, my hearts of gold 1 " 3 Ten thousand English advancing, See how their arras are glancing ; We'll set them all a-dancing At Rosline on the Lee. Like furies our bravo Highland men Most boldly they engaged them, On field they durst no longer stand, They soon began to flee. i They rush'd into the battle, Made sword and targe to rattle, Which made their foes to startle — ■ They fell dead on the ground. Our army gave a loud huzza, Our Higldand lads have won the day, On field they J durst no longer stay; See how the cowards run 1 6 This battle was no sooner over, Than ten thousand of the other Came marching in good order, Most boldly for to fight. Their colours were displaying, Their horse foaming and braying, Their generals are saying, " We'll soon put them to flight." 6 But our bowmen gave a volley, Made them repent their folly ; They soon turn'd melancholy. And stagger'd to and fro. * Tho chap copies read " commandod." t The late Mr. MacGi-cgor Simpfon, Scotish vocalist, dressed "In the garb of ohl Gaul," U'CJ to sing this piece wiih bagpipe prelude or accompiinimeut. If the writ' r remembnra rightly, it was aung with variations, the third and f earth lineB of Btatua '2 being changed to— ' Or as old Nebuchadnezzar, Those heroes Htout and boM." Or somethtag very similar. t The easmy. THE BATTLE OF ROSLINE, 423 Our spearmen then engaged, Their rage they soon assuaged,* Like lions our heroes raged, Death dealt at every blow. 7 For one hour and a quarter There was a bloody slaughter, Till the enemies cry'd quarter,f And in confusion flee. Our general says — '" Don't pursue ; Ten thousand more are come in view; Take courage, lads, our hearts are true, And beat yom- enemy! " 8 Then thinking for to cross us, They rallying all their forces, Both of foot and horse?;, To make the last attempt. The Scots cry'd out with bravery, " We disdain their English knavery, % We'll ne'er be brought to slavery, Till oiu- last blood is spent." 9 With fresh courage they did engage, And manfully made for the charge, Willi their broadsword and their targe, Most boldly then they stood. Tlie third battle it was very sore, Thousands lay reeking in their gore, The like v/as never seen before. The fields did swim with blood. 10 The English could no longer stay, In great confusion fled away, And sore they do lament the day That they came there to fight. Cummin cry'd — "Chase tliem, do not spare, Quick as tluj hound doth chase the haro;" And many were § ta'en prisoners [there], That day upon the flight. 11 The Douglas, Campbell, and the Hay, Tlie Gordons from the water Spey, So boldly as they fought that day With the brave Montgomery. • ThiR ond the prcf cding liuo do not appear in Mr. JIaidmont'a copy. t ThlH, It appears, ihey did not recolvo, the Scots bo'ng too numerically weal: to holil prisoncrH and light tho n'.w orniy. t This lino I'.ocs not appear In Mr. Maldment'a cjpy. } Tho oh»p eoplei ToeA " one" In pUco of " ware." 424 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. The Kevs and Murrny8 of renown, The Keiths, Boyds, and Ilamiltona, They brought their foes down to I lie ground, And foiight with bravery. 12 Sound, sound llie music, sound it, Let hills and dales rebound it, Fill up the glass, and round wi't. In praise of our heroes bold. If Scotsmen were always true, We'd make our enemies to rue; But, alas! we're not all true blue, As we were in days of old. BATTLE OF OTTEKBOURNE, "The Scottish edition," from Scott's Mins/rclsy, vol. i., p. 354 " The following ballad of the battle of Otterbourne, being essentially different from that which is published in the Rdiques of Anaent Poetry, vol. i., and being obviously of Scottish composition, claims a place in the present collection. The particulars of that noted action are related by Froissart, with the highest encomiums upon the valour of the combatants on each side. James, Earl of Douglas, with his brother, the Earl of Murray, in 1387, invaded Northumberland, at the head of 3,000 men, while the Earls of Fife aud Stratheru, sons to the king of Scotland, ravaged the western borders of England, ■nath a still more numerous army. Douglas penetrated as far as Newcastle, where the renowned Hotspur lay In garrison. In a .skirmish before the walls, Percy's lance, with the pemion, or guidon, attached to it, Mas taken by Douglas— as most authors affirm, in a personal en- counter betwixt the two heroes. The earl shook the pennon aloft, and swore he would carry it as his spoil into Scotland, and jilaut it upon his castle at Dalkeith. 'Tliat,' answered Percy, 'shalt thou never! ' Accordinglj^ having collected the forces of the marches, to a number equal, or (according to the Scottish historians) much superior, to the army of Douglas, Hotspur made a night attack upon the Scottish camp at Otterbourne, about thu-ty-two miles from New- castle. An action took place, fought by moonlight, with uncommon gallantry and dcsjieration. At len.crth, Douglas, armed A^ith an iron mace, which few but he could wield, rushed into the thickest of the English battalions, followed only by his chaplain, and two sriuires of his body.* Before his followers could come up, their brave leader was stretched on the ground, with three mortal wounds ; his squires lay dead by his side; the priest alone, armed with a lance, was pro- • Their names were Robert Ilai t nnd Simon Glendinning. The chaplain was Itichard Lundie, afterwards archdeacon of Aberdeen.— O'orf>('ro/Z. Hart, according \o Wintoun, was a Unight. That histoilan savs, no one knjw how Douglas fell. BATTLE OF OTTERBOURNE. 425 tecting his master fi-oin further injmy. ' I die like my forefathers,' said the expiring hero, ' in a field of battle, and not on a bed of sick- ness. Conceal my death, defend my standard,* and avenge my fall! it is an old prophecy, that a dead man shall gain a field, + and I hope it ^^dll be accomplished this night.'— G-'of/^o-o/C. With these words he expired ; and the light was renewed with doiible obstinacj'- around his body. When morning appeared, however, victoiy began to incline to the Scottish side. Ealph Pei'cy, brother to Hotspur, was made prisoner by the Earl Mareschal, and shortly after, Harry Percy t himself was taken by Lord Montgomery. The number of captives, according to Wintouu, nearly equalled that of the -victors. IJpon this the English retired, and left the Scots masters of the dear- bought honours of the field. Bnt the Bishop of Durham approaching at the head of a bodj' of fresh forces, not only checked the pursuit of the victors, but made prisoners of some of the stragglers, who had urged the chase too far. The battle was not, howe^'e^, renewed, as the Bishop of Durham did not venture to attempt the rescue of Percj'. The field was fought loth August, 1.SS8. — Fordun, Froissart, Holin- shed, Godscroft. "The ground on which this memorable engagement took place still retains the name of Battle-Cross. A cross, erroneously termed Percy's Cross, has been erected upon the spot where the gallant Earl of Douglas is supposed to have fallen. The Castle of Otterbourne, which was besieged by Douglas, with its demesne lands, . . . [and] a neighbouring eminence called Fawdoun Hill, on which may yet be discerned the vestiges of the Scottish camp, agreeing with the des- ciiption of the ballad, 'They lighted high on Otterbourn.' Earl's Meadows, containing a fine spring, called. Percy's Well, are a part of the same giounds, and jn-obably derive their name from the battle. The camp on Fawdoun Hill is a mile distant from Battle- Cross ; but it mu:jt be remembered that the various changes of position and of fortune, during so long and fierce an engagement between two contiderable armies, must have extended the conflict over all the vicinity. ' ' The ballad published in the Rnlhinc.^, is avowedly an English pro- duction, and the author, witli a natural partiality, leaus to the side of his countrymen ; yet that ballad, or some one similar, modified probably by national prejudice, must have been current in Scotland during tho i-eiga of James VI. ; for Godscroft, in treating of this battle, mentions its having been the .subject of popular fiong, and proceeds thus : ' Bnt tliat which is com;nonly sung of tho "Hunting of Cheviot," f-ecmcth indeed poetical, and a mere fiction, perhaps to stir up virtue; yet a fiction whereof there is no mention, either in the • The banner of Douslaio, When yeomen win their hay, Tlio dochty Douglas 'gan to ride, In Knglaud to take a prey." ' doclscrofl, ed. Edin., 1743, vol. i., p. 105. " I cannot venture to assert, that the stanzas, here published, belong to the balhid alluded to by Godscroft ; but they come much nearer to his description than the copy published iu the fir.st editiou,t which represented Douglas as falling by the poniard of a faithless page. Yet we learn from the same author, that the story of the assassination •was not without foundation in tradition. — 'There are that say, that he [Douglas] was not slain by the enemy, but by one of his own men, a groomof his chamber, Avhom he had struck the day before with a truncheon, in ordering of the battle, because he saw him make some- what slowly to. And they name this man John Bickerton of Luffness, who left a part of liis armour l>ehind unfastened, and when he was in the greatest conflict, this servant of his came behind his back, and slew him thereat.' — Godscro/t, ut supra. — 'But this narration,' adds the historian, ' is not so probable.' J Indeed, it seems to have no * [•' The Hunting of Cheviot," or '-Clievy Chace," of which, proi)erly speaking, only English versions now exi.st, probably refer.n to the battle of Pepponlen, fouKht between the Scots under tho Earl of Angus, and the English under tiio Earl of Northumber- land, A.D. 1400. The Scots were the victors, as at Otterbourne.] 1 "Out then spoko a bonny boy, That serv'd ane o' Earl Douglas' hiu— 'Mctbiuks I see an Euglish host A-coming bnmkiug us upon.' " ' If this bo true, thou little foot page. If this he true thou tells to me, The bra west bower in Otterbourne Shall be thy nioruiug's fee. " 'But if it be false, thou little boy! But and a lie thou tells to nie, On the highest tree in Otterbourne, Wi' my ain hands, I'll hang thee hie ! ' "The boy has ta'en out his little penknife That hung right low down by his gar.\ And he gave Lord Douglas a deadly wuand, I wot a deep wound and a sare. "Earl Douglas to the Montgomery said, ' Take thou tho vanguard of the three; And bury me by the braken bush. That grows upon yon lilyo lee.' " Minstrelsy, 1st edit , vol. i., p. 32. [And substantially the same in Herd.] X "Wintoun af-cigns another cause for Douglas being carelessly armed — " The Erie Jamys was sa besy. For till oidauo hit* company. And on his lays for to pas, That rcckle^i he of his anayiig was: The Erie of Mwirawys bassenet. Thai Bayd, at thot tyme was fenyhete." — Book vlli., chap. 7. The circunisliiuco of Douglas' omitting to put ou his helmet occurs in the bilkd. BATTLE OF OTTERBOURNE. 427 foundation, but the common desire of assigning some remote and extraordinary cause for the death of a great man. The follo'ndng hallad is also inaccui'ate in many other particulars, and is much shorter and more indistinct, than that printed in the ReUques, al- though many verses are almost the same. Hotspur, for instance, is called Earl Percj% a title he never enjoyed. Keitlier was Douglas buried on the field of battle, but in Melrose Abbey, where his tomb is Btill shown. ' ' This song was first published from !Mr. Herd's Collection of Scottish Songs and Ballach, Edinburgh, 1776, 2 vols, octavo; but for- tunatelj' two copies have since been obtained from the recitation of old persons residing at the head of Ettrick Forest, by which the story is brought out, and completed in a manner much more corre- spondent to the true history'. " I cannot dismiss the subject of the battle of Otterbourne without stating (with all the deference due to the father of this species of literature) some doubts which have occurred to an ingenious corre- spondent, and an excellent antiquary, concerning the remarks on the names subjoined to the ballads of ' Chevy Chace ' and ' Otterbourne,' in the Beli'jues of Ancient Poetry, vol. i., p. 34, 4th edition. " 'John de Lovele, sheriff of Northumberland, 34th Hen. VII.,' ia evidently a mistake, as Henry VII. did not reign quite twenty-four years ; but the person meant was probably John do Lavale, knight, of Deiavale Castle, who was sheriff, 34th Henry VIII. There seems little doubt that this was the person called in the ballad 'the gentil Lovel.' Sir Raff the rich Rugbe, was probal)ly Sir Ralph Neville of Raby Castle, son of the first Earl of Westmoreland, and cousin-german to Hotspur. In the more modern edition of the ballad, he is expressly called Sir Ralph Raby, i. e., of Raby. " With respect to the march of Douglas, as described in the ballad, it appears that he entered Northumberland from the westward. Rcdesdale, Rothely-crags, and Green Leighton, arc a few miles east- ward of Otterbourne. Otterscope HiU lies south-west from Green Leighton. "The celebrated Hotspui-, son of the first Earl of Northumberland, was, in 1385, Governor of Berwick and Warden of the East Marches; in which last capacity it was his duty to repel the invasion of Douglas. "Sir Henry Fitzhugh, mentioned in the ballad, was one of tho Earl of Northumberland's commanders at the battle of Homeldown. " As to the local situation of Otterbourne, it is thirty statute miles from Newcastle, though Buchanan has diminished the distance to eight miles only. "The account ^ven of Sir John of Agurstone seems also liable to some doubt. This personage is supposed by Bishop Percy to havo been one of the Hagerstons of Hager.ston, a Northumbrian family, who, according to the fate of war, were sometimes sulijccts of Scot- land. I cannot, however, think, th.it at this period, while the Engli.'jh were in possession both of Berwick and Roxburgh, with the intermediate fortresses of Wark, Comhill, and Norhani, the Scots possesiicd any part of Northumberland, much leas a manor which 428 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. lay within that strong chain of castles. I should presume the per- son alluded to rather to have been one of the Eutherfords, Barons of Edgerstanc, or Edgerston, a warlike family, which has long flourished on the Scottish Borders, and who were, at this very period, retainers of the house of Douglas. The same notes contain an account of the other Scottish warriors of distinction who were present at the battle. These were, the Earls of Monteith, Buchan, and Huntly; the Barons of Maxwell and Johnston; Swinton of that ilk, an ancient family, which about that period produced several dis- tinguished warriors; Sir David (or rather, as the learned bishop well remarks, Sir Walter) Scott of Buccleuch, Stewart of Gariies, and Murray of Cockpool. " ' Eegibua et legibus, Scotici constantes, Vos clypeis et gladiis pro patriis pugnanteB, Vcstra est victoria, Te«tri est et gloria. In cantu et bistoria, perpes eat memorial ' " 1 It fell about the Lammas tide, When the muir-rnen win their hay, The doughty Douglas bound him to ride Into England, to drive a prey. 2 He chose the Gordons" and the Grajmes,* With them the Lindsays, light and gay," But the Jardiues w^ou'd not with him ride, And they rue it to this day.* 3 And he has burn'd the dales of Tyno, And part of Bambrough shire ; And three good tow'rs on Keidswire fella, He left them all on fire. 4 And he march'd up to Newcastle, And rode it round about: " Oh, wha 's the lord of tliis castle, Or wha's the ladye o't?" 5 But up spake proud Lord Percy then, And oh, but he spake hie! "I am the lord of this castle; My wife 's the ladj^e gay." 6 "If thou'rt the lord of this castle, Sae weel it pleases mcl For, ere I cross tlie Border fells, The ane of us shall dec." a » [Scott giTBB notes on those reppectivo clans or families, and their chiefs, v.-ho were present at O.tcrbourno; but ibey are too lengthy for insertion hore.J * The Jardinea were a clan of hardy West-Border mea Their chief was Jardino of Appletdrtti. Tneir refusal to ride v.ith Douglas was, probably, the result of ouo of those perpetual feudB, wUiuh usually rent to pieces a Scoltiiih army. BATTLE OF OTTERBOURNE. 429 7 He took a lang spear in his hand, Shod with the metal free ; And for to meet the Douglas there, He rode right furiouslic. 8 But oh, how pale his ladye look'd, Frae aff the castle wall, When down before the Scottish spear She saw proud Percy fall ! 9 " Had we twa been upon the green, And never an eye to see, I wou'd ha'e had you, flesh and fell; "^ But your sword shall gae with me." 10 " But gae ye up to Otterbourne, And wait there dayis three; And, if I come not ere three dayis end, A fause knight call ye me." 11 '' The Otterbourne 's a bonnie burn ; 'Tis pleasant there to be; But there is nought at Otterbourne To feed my men and me. 12 " The deer rins wild on hill and dale, The birds fly wild from tree to tree; But there is neither bread nor kale, To fend f my men and mo. 13 " Yet I will stay at Otterbourne, Where you shall wclcoiae be; And, if you come not at three dayis end, A fauso lord I'll call thee." 14 " Thither will I come," proud Percy said, " By the might of Our Ladj'c!" " There will I bide tliec," said the DouglaH, " My troth I plight to thee." 15 They lighted high on Otterbourne, Upon the bent eae brown; They lighted high on Otterbourne, And throw tiieir pallions down. • "Foil. " hide. DouglPB Inslnualos that Percy was resouO'A by his doldl«r». t "Fond:" sopport 430 BALLAD MINSTHELST OF SCOTLAND. IG And he that had a bonnie boy, Sent oiit liis horse to grass; And he that had not a bonnio boy, Kis ain servant lie was. * 17 But up then spake a little page, Before the peep of dawn: " Oh, waken ye, waken ye, my good lord, For Percy 's hard at hand," 18 " Ye lie, j'e lie, ye liar loud I Sae loud I hear ye lie; For Percy had not men yestreen To dight ray men and me. 19 " But I have dream'd a dreary dream, Beyond the Isle of Skye: I saw a dead man win a light, And I think that man was I." 20 He belted on his gude braid sword, And to the iield he ran; But he forgot the helmet good That shou'd have kept his brain. 21 When Percy with the Douglas met, I wat he Avas full fain ! They swakk'd their swords, till sair they swat. And the blood ran down like rain.f • Froif-sirt desciibes a Scottish boit, of tlio same period, as cousistins of " HU. M. men of annes, knightis, and squires, muunted on good liorses ; an, and 29 of "UU Morice," ante. p. STi 431 BAILAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. " As it is, ' Johnnie Scot ' is altogether a very spirited and interest- ing composition, highly national in its character, and full of bustle, action, and incident. It ia just such a one as we would always be glad to see transferred to more imperishable records, than the decaying memories of Ancient Women, and Time-crazed jNIen." — Motherwell's ^linstrclsi/, p. 204. Different versions of the same ballad subsequently appeared, as under : — I. "Lord John," in Buchan's Gleanings, p. 122. In this version the questions asked, as to the name and rank of the hero, are, — " Is this the DuUo of Marlboroush? Or James, the Scotti: h kiu.c ? Or is it else some Scottish lord, Come here a-visiting ? " n. "Johnie Buneftan," in Kinloch's Ancient Scottish Ballads, p. 77. In this version the hero is designated ' ' Jack, that little Scot;" and the questions asked regarding him, are, — " Is this the Dnke of Winesherria? Or James, the Scottish lung ? Or is it a young gentleman, That wants for to be in? " In both of the last-named versions the "Tailliant" is metamorphosed into an "Italian." Referring to Mr. Motherwell's statement, that he had "never met with the M'Ord 'Tailliant' before," Mr. Kinloch remarks :— "It would have been singular if he had, as 'Tailliant' is, in fact, nothing else but a corruption of ' Italian,' iu the recitation of the old people from whom he procured his versions. " III. "Lang Johnny Moir," in Buchan's Ancient Ballads, vol. i., p. 248 ; which marvellous production will be fouud iu the Appendix to this work. We are disposed to think that the "Johmiie Scot" or "M'Nauchton" of the following ballad is one of "the popular heroes of romance" referred to by Gawain Douglas, in the lines already quoted from his Palice of Honour, ante, p. 403. The line specially naming him reads — '■How Hay of Nauchton flew iu Madin land ; " and it is thus explained in a note by Sir Walter Scott : — "Hay of Xachton I take to be the knight, mentioned by Wyntown, whose feats of war and travel may have become the subject of a romance or ballad. He fought in Flanders, under Alexander, Earl of Mar, in 1408, and is thus described : — ' Lord of the Nachtane, Schire Williain, Ane hanest knycht, and of gud fame. A travalit knycht lang before than.' Aii 1 again, before an engagement, — • The Lord of Nachtane, Schire William, The Hay, a Iviivcht than of gud fame, Mad Schire Gilbert, the Hay, knycht.' —Cronpkil, b. Ix, c. 27. JOHN'>nE SCOT. 435 I apprehend we should read, ' How Hay of Xachton slew in Madin Land.' Perhaps Madin is a corruption for Mayliu Laud, or Milan."* With the exception of the first six stanzas, Motherwell's version of " Johnie Scot " is the one chiefly foUoAved. In a note to his Minstrelsy, Introduction, p. c, Mr. Motherwell inserts " the following passage, illustrative of the famous feat of ai-ius accomplished by Johnie Scot," which, says he, "was kindly pointed out to me by Mr. Sharpe :— James MacgiU of Lindores, having killed Sir Robert Balfour, of Denmiln, in a duel, immediately went up to London, in order to procure his pardon, which, it seems, the kintr (Charles II. ) offered to grant him, upon condition of his fighting an Italian gladiator, or bravo, or, as he was called, a bully, which, it is said, none could be found to do. Accordingly, a large stage was erected for the exhibition before the king and court. Sir Janies, it is said, stood on the defensive till the biilly had spent himself a little ; beincr a taller man than Sir James, in his mighty gasconading aud bravado- ing, he actually leaped over the kuight as if he would swallow him alive ; but, iu attempting to do this a second time. Sir James ran his sword up through him, and then called out, ' I have spitted him, let them roast him who wilh' This not only procured his pardon, but he was also knighted on the spot. — Small's Account of Roman Anti- quities, recently discovered in Fife, p. 217." Three different versions of a ballad, evidently belonging to the same circle, appear under the respective titles of " Lord Thomas of Winsberry," in Buchan's Gleaninys, p. 127 ; "Lord Thomas of Wiues- berrie," in Kinloch's Ancient Scottish Poew.s, p. b9 ; and "Lord Thomas of Winesberry and the King's Daughter," in Buch.-iu's Ancient Ballads, voL ii., p. 212. Mr. Kinloch siipposes it to refer to "the secret expedition of James V. to France, in 1530, in search of a wife," and quotes the account thereof from Pitscottie's Chronicles of Scotland, 8vo, vol. ii., p. 3C3, et seq. Mr. Buchan, however, combats this theory. A collated and slightly emendated copy of "Lord Thomas of Winesberry" follows " Johnnie Scot " next in order. 1 Johnnie has on to London gone, To London gone has lie ; Johnnie has on to London gono, King's bannerman to be. 2 He had not beeji in London town, It's but a little while, Till tlie King of England's loir drmgliter, On him did fondly Pinile. •But If the present ballafl relates to "Hay of Nauchfon," tha po»itloni of tlio eotnb itont* »«etn simply reveiHod by the text of Oawaln Douglas as It roadu- whilo Sir Walter Scott* Huggrsted oinendation would, by this ia«atiUcalIon kdJ rayergiil proT* not only unoeconsary, but orroneotis. 436 BALLAD MINSTnELST OF SCOTLAND, 3 But Johniiio 's back to Scotland gone, To hunt in the greenwood free ; And left his true love all alone, And a sorry ladyo was she. 4 For Johnnie 's on to Scotland gone, I wot he's on with speed; Oh, Johnnie's on to Scotland gone, And as great v as his need. 6 Then word unto the king has gone, His daughter mourn'd so; And word has also to him gone, Of what did cause her Avoe. 6 But when the king heard word of it, An angrj- man was he; And he cast her into prison strong, To pine there till she'd dee. 7 Then Johnnie thought upon his lovo He dare not go to see ; And he call'd on his waiting-man, His name was Germanic :* " It 's thou must to fair England go. Bring me that gay ladye. 8 " And here it is, a r-ilken sark, Her ain hand sew'd the sleeve; Bid her come to the merry greenwood, At her friends ask no leave." V He roi^e till he came to the castle gate, And he tirl'd at the pin ; " 01), wha is there? " f-aid the proud porter; " But I darena let thee in." 10 It 's he rode up, and he rode down, He rode the castle about, Until he spied a, fair ladye, At the window looking out. ♦ " ' Gemianle : ' all the co])ie.s •• hich mpntion Johnnie's waltlng-maii concur in c iviug this name, which is probably descriptive of his country. In one copy, he, in place of Johnnie 3 tmclo, is the person who heroically offerg wager of battle. But in another copy the waole words and actions ascribed to Johnnie's uncle, 'who 'spake so bitterlle," are transferred to 'Gude King JameB.'"— MothorweU JOHNNIE SCOT. 437 11 " Here is a silken sark," he said, '• Thine ain hand sew'd the sleeve ; And ye must go to the merrj'- greenwood, At your friends ask no leave." 12 " The castle it is high, young man, And well -wall'd round about ; My ieet they are in fetters strong, And how can I get out? 13 " My garters are the black iron, And oh, but they he cold I My girdle 's* of the sturdy steel, Instead of beaten gold. 14 '' But had I paper, pen, and ink, With candle at my command. It 's I would write a long letter To Johnnie, in fair Scotland." 16 Then she has written a braid letter, And eeal'd it with her hand; And sent it to the merry greenwood. With her ain boy at command. 16 The first line of it Johnnie read, A loud, loud laugh laugh'd he ; But he had not read a line but two, Till the tears did blind his e'e. 17 " Oh, I must up to England go, Whatever me betide. For to relieve my fair ladye, And claim her for my bride." 18 Then up spake Johnnie's auld mither, A well-spoken Avoman was she : " If you do go to England, Johnnie, I may take fareweel of thee." 19 And out and spake his father then, A noblr; lord was he : *' If tliou unto fair England go, You'll ne'er come hame to me." 20 But out and spake his uncle then, And he P)iako bittorlio : " Five Inindred of my good life-guards Shall boar him compauie." • "Mybr9aBtpla««'«,"&c.— MotherwelL 2 Q 438 BALLAD MTNSTRELST OF SCOTLAND. 21 When they Avcre all on saddle set, They were comely to behold ; The hair that hung o'er Johnnie's neck Shone like the links of gold. 22 Wlieu they went riding all* away, Most pleasant for to see, There was not so much as a married man In Johnnie's companie. 23 Johnnie himsel' was the foremost man In the company did ride ; His uncle was the second man, With his rapier by his side. 24 The first gude town that Johnnie came to, He made the bells be rung ; And when he rode the town all o'er, He made the massf be sung. 25 The next gude town that Johnnie came to, Ho made the drums beat round ; And the third gude town that he came to, He made the trumpets sound.J 26 And when they came to King Henry's tow'r.^, They rode them round about ; And who saw he but his own true love. At !, window looking out! 27 " Oh! the doors are bolted with iron and steel, So are the windows about ; And my feet they are in fetters strong. And how can I win out? " 28 But when they came to the castle yett. They scarce tirl'd at the pin, For the porter was ready waiting there, To open and let them in. •"Went riding all."— Motherwell's text reads, "Were all marching," which, loolting to the context, is an evident absurdity. Antiquarian precision is o II very w. 11 when it is really regulated by " judgment ; " but if not so regulated, it degenerate! into the worst kind of pedantry. t " llass."— Buchan. " Psalms."— Motherwell. X Motherwell s version adds — " Till King Henry and all blB merry men A-marvell'd at the sound." JOHNNIE SCOT, 439 29 " Art thou the King of Aulsherry ? * Or art tliou King of Spain? Or art thou one of our gay Scots lords, M'Nachton to thy name?" SO '■ I'm not the King of Aulsberry, Nor yet the King of Spain; But I am ( ne of our gay Scots lords, Johnnie Scot I am call'd by name." 31 ^Yhen Johnnie came before the king, He fell low down on his knee: " If Johnnie Scot be thy name," he said, " As I trow well it be; Then to-morrow mom, by eight o'clock, It 's high hang'd thou shalt be." • " It may puzzle the historian to give any account of this king's reign, or to fix the limits of his dominions; being associated, however, with the King of Spain, this circimiBtance may afford some cue for obtaining information on these important points. One copy of the ballad has, 'Art thou the Duke of Mulberry?' auothor, 'Art ihou the Duke of York?' but, for the sake of heraldic justice, the present reading wus preferred. This stanza, and that which precedes it, we give now as thoy occur in the three different copies of the ballad recovered by the editor, so that tho reader may have it in his power to choose tho reading which hits his fancy. " JOnxXlE SCOT. " ' Are you tho Duke of York?' ho said, ' Or James, our Scottish King? Or are you one of our Scotiish lords, From hunting new come home?" " ' I'm not the Duke of Yorlc,' he said, ' Nor James, your Scotiish King; But I'm one of tne Scottith lords, .. Earl Hector is my name.' " joiKKiE gcor. " 'Art thou the King of Aulsberry? Or art thou the King of Spain? Or art thou one of our gay Scots lords, M'Xachton to thy name?' " ' I'm not the King of Aulsberry, Nor yet tho King of Spain ; " But I am one of our gay Scots lords, Johnnie Scot I am call'd by name.' "jon>T«iE ji'machton. " 'Are yon the Duke of Mulberry? Or James, our Scottish King? Arn you the Dukoof Mulberry, From Scotland new come homo ? ' " ' I'm not tho Duke of Mulberry, Nor Jamc.4, our Scottish King; But I am a true Scotti.ihnian, It'Nccht'.ii i« niv imiir" '" — Motherwell 440 nAl.LAO MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 32 Out and spoke Johnnie's nncle then, And lie spake bitterlie : " Before that wo see fair Johnnie hang'd, We'll all fight till we die." 83 " But is there a Tailliant about your court Will tight a duel witli me? For ere I'd be hang'd," brave Johnnie eaid, *' On his sword 1 Avill die." 34: " Say on, say on," then said the king, " It is well spoken of thee; For there is a Tailliant in my court Shall fight you raanfuUie." 35 Oh, some are to the good greenwood, And some are to the plain; The Queen with all her ladyes fair, The King witli his merry men, Either to see fair Johnnie tiee. Or else to see him slain. 36 They fought on, and Johimie fouglit on, With swords of temper'd steel, Until the draps of red, red blood Ran trinkling down the field.* 37 And they began at eight of the morn, And they fought on till three ; When the Tailliant, like the swallow swift. O'er Johnnie's head did flee. 38 But Johnnie, being a clever young boy. He wheel'd him round about ; And on the point of Johnnie's broadsword The Tailliant he slew out. 39 " A priest, a priest," fair Johnnie cried, " To wed my love and me !" " A clerk, a clerk," her father cried, " To sum her tocher free," 40 " I'll none of your gold," fair Johnnie cried, " Nor none of your other gear; But I will have my own fair bride. For this day I've won her dear." * The followiug stanza occurs here in Motherwell's version :— "Tbev foDght on, and Johnie fought on, They fought rlglit tnanfuUie, Till they left not allvo In a' the USng'e ccurt A man but only three " LORD THOMAS OF WINESBERRT. 441 41 He 's ta'eu his true love by the hand, He led her up the plain : " Have you any more of your English dogs, That you want to have slain?" 42 He put a little horn to his mouth, He blew't baith loud and shrill ; And Honour is into Scotland gone, In spite of England's skill. 43 He put his little horn to his mouth, He blew it o'er again ; And aye the sound the good horn made, "Was — " Johnnie and his men ! " LORD THOMAS OF WINESBERRY. ?ee introduction to precedinc; ballad. 1 It fell upon a time, that the proud King of France Went a-hunting for five months and more, And his daugliter fell in love with Lord Winesberry, Who from Scotland was newly come o'er. 2 Wlien her father came home from hunting the deer, And his daughter before him came, Oh, she look'd sick, and very, very sick, For lier fair colour it was wan. 3 " What ails thcc, what ails thee, my daughter Jean ? What makes thee to look sae wan ? You've cither been sick, and very, very sick, Or yc are in love with a man." 4 " You're welcome, you're welcome, my dear fatlier, You're welcome hamc to ye're ain ; For I ha'o been sick, and very, very sick, Thinking long for your coming again. 5 " Yet pardon, yet pardon, my dear father, Your pardon I pray grant to mo; [For I am also in love with a man. Whom I wish my dear husband to be."] C " 01), is your love hiirl on a man of might? Or >« it on one that is mean ? Or is it to one of the rank robbers That I took prisoner in Spain?" 442 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 7 '• Oh, mj' love is not laid on a man of might, Nor on a prisoner from Spain ; But on Lord Thomas of Winesberry, Who serves me as chamberlain."* 8 Tlio king call'd ou his merry men all, Whom he paid meat and fee : " Go seize Lord Thomas of Winesberry, And bring him here to me. 9 " Go seize Lord Thomas of Winesberry, And bring him here to me ; For to-morrow, ere I eat or drink, It's high hang'd he shall be." 10 His daughter turn'd her round about, While the tear did blind her e'e : " If ye do any ill to Lord Thomas, Ye will never get glide of me."t 11 When Lord Thomas was brought before the king, His clothing was of the silk; His fine yellow hair like threads of gold, And his skin white as the milk. J 12 And when he came in before the king, He kneel'd low down on his knee; Saying — " What is your will with me, my liege? Oh, what is your Avill with me ? " 13 " No wonder, no wonder, Lord Thomas, That my daughter so loves thee; For were you a woman, as you are a man. My own love you wou'd be. § * " And for him I mnst suffer pain."— Buchaus Gleanings. t The following stanzas come iu at this place in the Gleanings version:— " 'Get up, get lip, Lord Thomns,' they said, ' Get up and bound your way, For the king has sworn, by bin honour'd cro'.vn. That to-morrow is thy dying day.' " ' Oh, what have I robb'd? or what havo I stolen ? Or what have 1 liill'd or slain? That I should be afraid to speak to your kinf,', For 1 have done him no wrong.' " t "HIb hair wan like the threads o' gowd, His eyes like crystal clear."— liuchau's Ancient Ballads. See "Gil Morice,' BtanzEiif. { Compare with stanza 34 of "Gil Moriue,'' ante, p. 3'20. THE BATTLE OF HARLAW. 443 14 " But if you will marry my daughter Jean, "V\'ith the truth of your right hand, You'll get part both of my gold and my gear, And the third part of my land." 15 '■ Yes, I will marry your daughter Jean, With the truth of my right hand ; But take none of your gold nor none of your gear, I've enough in fair Scotland. 16 " Yes, I will marry your daughter Jean, Tho' I care not for your land; For she will be queen, and I will be king, V.'heu we come to fair Scotland." THE BATTLE OF HARLAW. From Ramsay's Evergreen, vol. i., p. 78.* "Antiquaries have differed in opinion regarding the age of this compositiou; but tho best informed have agreed in looking upon it as of coeval j)roductioii, or nearly so, with the historical event ou which it is founded ; and in this opinion the present writer entireh- coincides.t No edition jnior to Ramsay's time has been preserved, thou!^h it was printed in 1G68, as we are uiformcd by Mr. Laing, in his Early Mutrkal Taktt, p. 14; an edition of that date having been in the curious library of old Robert Mylne. " In the Complaynt of Scotland, 1549, this ballad is mentioned. In the Polemo Mkldinia its tune is referred to : — ' Interea aiito alios iliix piperlarius hcros, Projcedoiis magnainquo gerens cum burdine jiypaiu, Tacipit Uurlai cuncUu sonaro Batellum.' And in a M.S. collection of tunes, written in the band of Sir William Mure of Rov.allau, which I have seen, occurs ' the battle of harlaw.'J From the extreme jjopularity of the song, it is not to *"?7ie Ever(/fecTt ; being a collection of Scots pooniR wrote by llie Int'enicua before 1600." a vola. l^mo, Edluburgb, 1T2-1. + In refprrini? to the "mielt mclodlus Rnnfis" moutlonod In tlif> Cnmplamt of Scot- land, KilHoii, wiio wuH iiBually Bcciitifal ro^^'iirdin;,' Scotish tradllie your mither dear, As I trust well sho bo ; Gafl hame. (ja" hame, Young Waters, Ye'so ne'er bo slain by mo." — Buchan's Tenion. t As tbli stanza has been altered from Mr. Buchan'v text, tho original is boro noted as under:— " Says— 'Strike Mio Wow, yo headsman boy, And that right speo lilio; It'H never be said, liore goes a knlgUt ^Va^ auce coudenin'd to die.' " 4.C0 BALLAD MINSTRKLSY OF SCOTLAND. Lave, at one period or other, during these commotions, refused allegiance to the feeble monarch of the day, and thus extorted from him some grant of territory or jurisdiction. It is also certain, that, by a charter from James IV., dated Nov. 30, 1509, John Murray of Phili]ihaugh is vested \vith the dignity of lieritahle sheriff of Ettrick Foi'est, an ollice held hy his descendants till the tinal aboli- tion of such jurisdictions by 2Sth (icorge II., cap. 2',i. But it seems difficult to believe, that the circumstances, mentioned in the ballad, could occur under the reign of so vigorous a monarch as James IV. It is true, that the Dramatis Pemonm introduced seem to refer to the end of the iifteenth, or beginning of the sixteenth, century; but from this it can only be argued, that the author himself lived soon after that period. It may, therefore, be supposed (lanless further evidence can be procured, tending to invalidate the conclusion), that the bard, willing to pay his court to the family, has connected the grant of the sherifiship by James IV., with some former dispute betwixt tho Murraya of Philiphaugh and their sovereign, occurring, either while they were engaged upon the side of Baliol, or in the subsequent reigns of David II. and Eobert II. and III., when the English possessed great part of the Scottish frontier, and tho rest was in so lawless a state as hardly to acknowledge any superior. At the same time, thia reasoning is not absolutely conclusive. James IV. had i)articular reasons for desii'ing that Ettrick Forest, which actually formed part of the jointure lands of Margaret, his queen, should be kept in a state of tranquillity. — Rymer, vol. xiii., p. GO. In order to accomplish this object, it was natural for him, according to the policy of his pre- decessors, to invest (jne great family with the power of keeping order among the rest. It is even probable, that tho Philiphaugh family may have had claims upon part of the lordship of EttricK Forest, which lay intermingled with their own extensive possessions; and, in the course of ari-anging, not indeed the feudal superiority, but the property, of theso lands, a dispute may have arisen, of sufficient importance to be the groundwork of a ballad. It is further probable, that the Murrays, like other Border clans, were in a very lawless state, and held their lands merely by occupancy, without any feudal right. Indeed, the lands of the various proprietors in Ettrick Forest (being a royal demesne) were held by the possessors, not in property, but as the kindly tenants, or rentallers, of the crown ; and it is only about one hundred and fifty years since they obtained chai-ters, striking the feu-duty of each proprietoi-, at the rate of the (juit-rent, which he formei-ly paid. This state of possession naturally led to a confusion of rights anfewark, upon Yarro^v. This is highly improbable, because Newark THE SAKG OF THE OUTLAW MURRAY, 461 was always a royal fortress. Indeed, the late excellent antiquarian, Mr. Phimmer, sheriff depute of Selkirkshire, has assured the editor that he remembered the insignia of the unicorns, &c., so often mentioned in the ballad, in existence upon the old tovrer of Hangiiii^fshaw, the seat of the Philiphaugh familj^ although, upon first perusing a copy of the ballad, he was inclined to subscribe to the popular opinion. The tower of Hangingshaw has been demolished for many years. It stood in a romantic and solitaiy situation, on the classical banks of the Yarrow. When the mountains around Hangin^shaw were covered with the wild copse which constituted a Scottish forest, a more secure strong- hold for an outlawed baron can hardly be imagined. "The tradition of Ettrick Forest bears, that the Outlaw was a man of prodigious strength, possessing a baton or club, with which he laid lee {i. e., waste) the country for man}' miles round ; and that he was, at length, slain by Bucclcuch, or some of his clan, at a little uiount, covered As-ith fir-trees, adjoining to Newark castle, and said to have been a part of the garden. A vaiying tradition bears the place of his death to have been near to the house of the Duke of Buccleuch's game-keejjer, beneath the castle; and, that the fatal arrow was shot by Scott of Haining, from the ruins of a cottage on the opix)site side of the Yarrow. There was extant, within these twenty years, some verses of a song on his death. The feud betwixt the ()utlaw and the Scotts may serve to explain the asperity, with which the chieftain of that clan is handled in the baUad. '• In publishing the following ballad, the copy principally resorted to is one, apparently of considerable antiquity, which was found among the papers of the late ^Irs. (Jockburn, of Etlinburgh, a lady whose memory will be long honoured by all who knew her." Another copy, much more imperfect, is to be found in Glenriddel's MS. The names are in this last miserably mangled, as is always the case when ballads are taken down from the recitation of persons, living at a distance from the scenes in which they are laid. Mr. Plummer also gave the editor a few additional verses, not contained in either copy, which are thrown into what seemed their projicr place. There is yet auother co]>y, in Mr Herd's MSS., which has been occasionally made use of Two verses are restored in the present edition from the recitation of I\Ir. Mungo Park, whose toils, during his jiatient and intrepid travels in Africa, have not eradicated from his recollection the legendary lore of his native country. "The arms of the Philiphaugh family are said by tradition to filludc to their outlawed state. They arc indeed those of a hunts- man, and arc blazoned thus : Argent, a hunting horn sable, stringed and garnished gules, on a chief azure, three stars of the first. Crest, a Demi Forrester, winding liis lioni, projier. !Motto, ' Hinc usque fiupcnia venabor.' " — Sir V/alter Scott. [Another cojiy, as given "from an old manuscript in the Piulip- haugh charter-chest," and supposed to have "beeo written " or copied "Ijetwcen the years 1(589 and 1702," appears in Aytoun's Ballads of iicotland, vol. ij., p. 129. The copy above referred to as "in Mr. • [AuthoroKS cf the "riowcrs of the Foreol,"— "I've seen the BmlUng," &•.] 462 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAm), Herd's MSS.," has since passed into the hands of Mr. Maidment, by whom it has been inserted in his Scotish Ballads and Songs, vol. ii., p. 66. The diflferences between these three copies are inimatcvial, but the Minstrelsy copy is the most complete, and therefore the preferable version. ] 1 EiTRiCK Forest is a fair forest, In it grows many a seemly tree ; There 's hart and hind, and dao and rao, And of all wild beasts great plentie, 2 There's a fair castle, bigg'd with lime and stane; Oh, gin it stands not pleasantlie! In the forefront of that castle fair, Twa unicorns ire braw to see. 3 There 's the picture of a knight, and a ladye briglit, And the green hollin abune their brie ; There an Outlaw keeps five hundred men, He keeps a royal corapanie ! 4 His merry men are all in ae livery clad, Of the Lincoln green sae gay to see; He and his ladye, in purple clad, Oh, gin they lived not royalliel 5 Word is gane to our noble king, In Edinburgh, where that iie lay. That there was an Outlaw in Ettrick Forest, Counted him nought, nor all his courtric gay. 6 "I make a vow," then the gude king said, " Unto the man that dear bought me, I'be either be king of Ettrick Forest, Or king of Scotland that Outlaw shall bel" 7 Then spake the lord, hight Hamilton,* And to the noble king said he, — " My sovereign prince, some counsel tako, First at your nobles, syne at me. 8 "I redd j-o, send j-on braw OntlaM' till, And see gif your man comn will he : Desire him come and be your man. And hold of you yon Forest free. * TbiB is, in most copies, tho Earl Light Hamilton, wliicli must be a mistake of the reciters, as the family did not oujoy ttat title till 1503. THE SANO OF THE OOTXAW MURRAT. 463 9 " Gif he refuses to do that, We'll conquess baith his lands and he ! Or else, we'll throw his castle down, And make a widow of his gay ladye." 10 The king then call'd a gentleman, James Boyd (the Earl of Arran his brother was he) ;* When James he came before the king, He knelt before him on his kuee. 11 " Welcome, James Boyd! " said our noble king, " A message ye maun gang for me ; Ye maun hie to Ettrick Forest, To yon Outlaw, where bideth he. 12 " Ask him of whom he halds his lands, Or man, wha may his master be ; And desire him come and be mj' man, And hald of me yon Forest free. 18 "To Edinburgh to come and gang, His safe warrant I shall gi'e ; And gif he refuses to do tluit. We'll conquess baith his lands and he. li " Thou may'st vow I'll cast his castle down, And make a widow of his gay ladye ; I'll hang his merry men, pair by pair. In ony frith where I may them see." 16 James Boyd took his leave of the noble king; To Ettrick Forest fair came he ; Down Birkendale Brae wlion that he came,"}" He saw the fair Forest with his e'c. 16 Baith dae and rae, and hart and hind, And of all wild beasts great plcntie ; He heard the bows that bauldly ring, And arroAvs whidderan' him near Ijy. • Thomas Boyd, Earl of Arraii, was forfcilecl, with his father and uncle, in 1460, for an Btlempt on the peri-on of James 111. Ue had a bou James, who was lestored, and in favour with JamcH IV'., about 1482. If this bo tho person hero meant, wo Mhonld read, " Tho Earl of Arran his rod wbb he." GlenridderB coju' reads, " A Highland laird I'm sure was ho." EeclterB BometimcR call the moRBeugor, tho Lain! of Skene. t Birkendale Brae, now commonly called BIrkendailly, Is a steep descent on the Hooth Bide of MincU-Moor, which Bopurafca Twooddalo from Ettrick Forest, and from the top of which you have tho OrBt viow of tho woods of Uuuglngskaw, Uie Caiitlo of Newark, and tho rotuautic dale of Yarrow. 464 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND, 17 Of that fair castle he got a Bight ; The liko he ne'er saw witli his e'e ! On the fore front of that castle fair Twa unicorns were gay to see. 18 The picture of a knight, and a ladye bright, And the green hollin abune their brie; Thereat he spy'd live hundred men, Shooting their bows on Newark Lee. 19 Thoy were all in ao liv'ry clad, Of the Lincoln green sae gay to see; His men were all clad in the green, The knight ^\'a8 armed capapie, 20 With a bended bow, on a milk-white steed, And I wot they rank'd right bonnilie ; Thereby Boyd kenn'd he was master man. And serv'd him in his ain degree : 21 " God mot thee save, brave Outlaw Murray! Thy ladye, and all thy chivalrie !" " Marrj', thou 's welcome, gentleman. Some king's messenger thou seems to bfs." 22 " Th' king of Scotland sent me here, And, gude Outlaw, I am sent to thee; I wou'd wot of whom ye hold your lands. Or man, wha may thy master be?" 23 " Thir* lands arc mine!" the Outlaw said; " I ken nae king in Christentie ; Frae Southron I this Forest wan. When the king nor his knights were not to seo.''' 24 " He desires you'll come to Edinburgh, And hold of him this Forest free; And, gif [that] ye refuse to do this. He'll conquess baith thy lands and thoe; He hatii vow'd to cast thy castle down. And make a widow of thy gay ladye. 25 " He'll hang thy merry men, pair by pair, In ony frith where he may them find." " Aye, by my troth ! " the Outlaw said, '• Then wou'd I think mo far behind. • "Xkii':'' these. THE SANG OF THE OUTLAW MURRAY. 465 26 " E'er the king my fair countrie get, This land that's nativest to me, Mony of his noWes shall be cauld, Their ladyes shall be right wearie." 27 Then spake his ladye, fair of face. She said — " Without consent of me That an Outlaw should come before a King ; I am right rad * of treasonrie : Bid him be gude to Iiis lords at hame, For Edinburgh my lord shall never see." 28 James Boyd took his leave of the Outlaw keen, To Edinburgh boun' is he ; And when he came before the king, He knelt lowly on his knee. 29 " Welcome, James Bovd ! " said our noble king ; " What Forest is Ettrick Forest free ?" "Ettrick Forest is the fairest Forest That ever man saw with his e'e. 80 " There 's the dae, the rae, the hart, the hynd, And of all wild beasts great plentie ; There's a pretty castle of lime and stane; Oh, gif it stands not pleasantliel 81 "There's in the forefront of that castle Twa unicorns, sae braw to see ; There 's the picture of a knight, and a ladyo bright, With the green hoUin abune their bree. 82 "There the Outlaw keeps five hundred men; He keeps a royal companie! His merry men in ae liv'ry clad. Of tlio Lincoln green sae gay to see; He and liis ladye, in purple clad, Oh, gin they live not royallie I 88 " He says, yon Forest is his own ; He wan it frae the Soutlironio ; Sao as he wan it, sao will lie keep it, Contrair all kings in Christentie." 84 " Gar warn me Perthshire, and Angus baith: Fife up and down, and the Lothiana throe, And graith my liorHc! " said the noble king, " For to Ettrick Forest hie will I me." • " Ra'l : '■ in drsad. 465 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 36 Thou word is gano the Outlaw till, In Ettrick Forest, where dwelleth he, Tliat the king was coming to his countrio, To conquess baith his lands and he. 86 "I make a vow," the Outlaw said, " I make a vow, and that trulie. Were there but three men to take my part. Yon king's coming full dear shou'd bel" 87 Then messengers he called forth. And bade them hie them speedily; " Ane of ye gae to Halliday, The laird of the Corehead is he. 88 "He certain is my sister's son ; Bid him come quick and succour me I The king comes on for Ettrick Forest, And landless men we all will be." 89 " What news? what news?" said Halliday, " Man, frae thy master unto me?" " Not as we wou'd ; seeking your aid; The king 's his mortal enemie." 40 " Aye, by my troth ! " said Halliday, "Even for that it repenteth me; For gif he lose fair Ettrick Forest, He'll take fair Moffatdalo frae me.* 41 I'll meet him with live hundred men. And surely mair, if mae may be ; And before he gets the Forest fair. We all will die on Newark Lee ! " 42 The Outlaw call'd a messenger. And bid him hie him speedilie, To Andrew Murray of Cockpool : f " That man 's a dear cousin to me; Desire him come, and make me aid, With all the power that lie may be." 43 " It stands me hard," Andrew Murray said, "Judge gif it stands na hard with me; • This ia a place at the liead of MoffaMvater, possessed of old by the family of Halliday. t This family were ancestors of the Murreys, Earls of Annandale; but the name of the representative in the time of James IV. was William, not Andrew. Glen- riddel's MS. reads, "the country-keeper." THE SAXO OF THE OUTLAW MCRRAY. 467 To enter against a king with crown, And set my lands in jeopard ie ! Yet, if I come not on the day, Surely at night he shall me see." 44 To Sir James Murray of Traquair,* A message came right speedilie : "What news? what news?" James ^lurray said, '• Man, frae thy master unto me ? " 45 " What needs I tell? for weel ye ken The king's his "mortal enemie; And now he is coming to Ettrick Forest, And landless men ye all will be." 46 " And, by my troth," James MuiTay said, " With that Outlaw will I live and die; The king has gifted my lands lang syne — It cannot be nae worse with me." 47 The king was coming thro' Caddon Ford,-]- And iull five thousand men was he ; They saw the dark Forest them before ; They thought it awesome for to see. 48 Tlien E^pake the lord, hight Hamilton, And to the noble king said he, — " ily sovereign liege, some counsel take, First at your nobles, syne at me. 49 '• Desire him meet thee at Penmanscore, And bring four in his companie ; Five earls shall gang yourself before, Gude cause that you shou'd honour'd bo. 60 '' And, gif he refuses to do that, We'll conquess baitli his lands and he; There shall never a Murray, after him, Hold land in Ettrick Forest free." • Before the Barony of Traquair l)ecQme tho property of the Stewarts, it belonged to a family of MumiyH, aft»!r wupIh Murrays of Black-barony, and anceHtorB of Lord Klibank. Tho old i iintlo was Hiluated on thoTweel. Tho lands of Tiaquoir were forfeltfld by Willielrnus do Moravia, pri'vious to 11C4; for, in that ^Cll^, a chart r, proceeding upon liis forfeituro, v.aH planted by Iho crown " Williolnio Douglas do Clnuy." Sir JiiiiiOM was, perhaps, th'3 hoir of William Murray. It would further ^eera, that tho Krant in UOl was not mado pffcctual by IJouglas, for another charter from the crown, dalf.'d tho :;d Fchnriry, lIT^i, convoys tho cstato of Traquair to JamoB Stewart, Karl of Bucban, koii to tho Black Knight of Lomo, and matornal uncio to Janio IIL. from whom is dcHcon ind tho prcicnt Karl of Traquair. Tha flret royal grant not being followed by possession, it is very possible that tho Murrays may hav coutinuo'l to occupy Traquair long after the date of that chttrler. Iloncc, Sir James might have reason to say, as in the ballad — " The king has gifted my lands laog Byne. t A ford on the Tweed, at the mouth of th« Oaddon Bam, near Tair. 468 BALLAD MINSTRKLSY OF SCOTLAND. 61 Then spake the keen laird of Buccleuch, A stalworth man and stern was he: " For a king to gang an Outlaw till, Is beneath his state and his dignitie. 52 " Tlie man that wons yon Forest intil, He lives by reif and felonie ! Wherefore, braid on, my sovereign Hegel With fire and sword we'll follow theo ; Or, gif your courtric lords fall back, Our borderers shall the onset gi'o." 68 Then out and spake the noble king, And round him cast a wilie e'e : " Now baud thy tongue. Sir Walter Scott, Nor speak of reif nor felonie ; For had every honest man his own kye, A right puir clan thy name wou'd be!" 64 The king then call'd a gentleman, Ro3'al banner-bearer there was he ; James Hop Pringle of Torsonse, by name ;* He came and knelt upon his knee. 55 " Welcome, James Pringle of Torsonse I A message ye maun gang for me; Ye maun gae to yon Outlaw Murray, Surely where bauldly bideth he. 66 " Bid him meet me at Penmanscore, And bring four in his companie ; Five earls sliall come with mysel', Gude reason I shou'd honour'd be. 57 " And, gif he refuses to do that. Bid him look for nae gude of me 1 There shall never a Murray, after him, Have land in Ettrick Forest free." 68 James came before the Outlaw keen, And serv'd him in his ain degree : "Welcome, James Pringle of Torsonse, What message frae the king to me?" • The bonom-able name of Pringle, or Hoppringlo, U of great antiquity In Roxburghshire and Selkirkshire. Tne old tower of Torsonse ia situated upon the banks of the Gala. There are tliree other ancient and distlnsriiiahed fanailies of this name— those of Whitebank, Clifton, and Torwoodlee. THE SANG OF THE OUTLAW MURRAY. 4G9 69 " He bids ye meet him at Penmanscore,* And bring four in your coinpanie; Five earls shall gang himsel' before, Nae mair in number ■will he bo. CO " And, gif you refuse to do that, (I freely here upgive with thee,) He'll cast yon bonnie castle down, And make a ^vido^y of that gay ladye. 01 " He'll loose yon bluidhound borderers, With tire and sword to follow thee; There will never a Murray, after thysel', Have land in Ettrick Forest free." 62 " It stands me hard," the Outlaw said; " Judge gif it stands ua hard with me! Wha rec.'c not losing of mysel', But all my offspring after me. 63 " My merry men's lives, my widow's tears — There lies the pang that pinches me I When I am straught in bluidie card, Yon castle will be right drearie. 64 " Auld Halliday, young Halliday, Ye shall be twa to gang with me; Andrew Murray, and Sir James ^lurray, We'll be nae mae in companie." 65 When that they came before the king, They fell before him on their knoe: " Grant mercie, mercie, noble king! E'en for his sake that died on tree." • Cominonly called Permnnpcore, in a hollow on the top of a high ridgo of hilla, dividing Iho vales of Tweed and Yarrow, a little to the eastward of Minch-SIoor. It iB the outermost point of the lands of Broadmeadowa. The Glcnriddol MS., which, In this inKtanco, is extrenifdy inaccurate as to nameR, calls tlio placo of rendezvous " The Poor Man's House," and hints that the Outlaw was surprised by the treachery of the k.ng: — " Then lie was aware of the King's coming, With hundreds throe in company. I wot the mucldo dcel .... lie. learned kings to lie! For to fetch me here frao amang my men, Here, like a dog, for to die.' I believe the reader will think, with me, that the catxiHtropho is belter, aa now printed from Mrs. Cockbum's copy. The deceit, suppoHcd to bo practised on tlio Outlaw, is unwonhy of the military monarch, as no is pulntud In the ballad; especially If we admit blm to bo King Jnmes IV. 2 I 470 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 06 " Siccen like ineici'^ slmll ye liavo: On gallows yo shall iiaiigit be!" ''Over God forbodo," ([uotli the Outlaw then, " I hope your <;raco will bolter be! Else ere ye coine to lulinburgh port, I trow thill guarded shall ye be. G7 " Thir lands of Ettrick Forest fair, I wan them from tlie enemio; Like as I wan them, sae will I keep them, Contrair all kings in Christentie." CS All the nobles the king about, Said — " Pitio it were to see him dee;" " Yet grant me mercie, sovereign Prince ! Extend your favour unto me ! C9 " I'll give thee the keys of my castle, With the blessings of my gay ladye, Gin thou'lt make me sheriff of this Forest, And all my offspring after me." 70 " Wilt thou give me the keys of thy castle, With the blessing of thy gay ladye? I'se make thee sheriff of Ettrick Forest, Surely while upwards grows the tree: If )'0U be not traitor to the king, Forfaulted shalt thou never be." 71 "But, Prince, what shall come of my men? When I gae back, traitor they'll call me. I had rather lose my life and laii'l, Ere my merry men rel)ul;ed me." 72 "Will your merry men amend their lives? And all their pardons I grant thee. Now, name thy lands where'er they lie, And here I hendep. them to thee." 73 " Fair Philiphaugh is mine by right,* And Lewinshopo still mine shall bo; I^ewark, Eoulshiells, and Tinnics baitli, My bow and arrow purchas'd me. • In this and Iho following vcrHO, the coi-cmony of fondal investifnro ia supposed to be gouo tliiough, hy Uic Outlaw rCKignin;; iiis pOK^cssinnH into tho hands of tho kinp. and receiving them back, to be held of him as sup?! ior. The lands of Philip- haugh are still possessed by the Outlaw's representative. Ilanfjingshaw and Lowlns- hor)e wore sold of late years. Newark. Foulshiels, and Tipnies, have long belonged tfi the family of Buccl'.'ucb,. JOHNNIE OF BREADISLEE. 471 74 " And I have native steads to me, The Newark Lee and Hangingshaw: I liave mony steads in the Forest shaw, But them by name I dinna knaw." 75 The keys of the castle he gave the king, With the blessing of liis fair ladye ; IIo was made shorilf of Ettrick Forest, Surely while upwards grows the tree, And if he was na traitor to the king, Forfaulted he shou'd never be. 76 Wha ever heard, in ony times, Sicceu an Outlaw in his degree, Sic favour get before a king, As did the Outlaw Muruay of the Forest free? JOHNNIE OF BREADISLEE. "History is silent with regard to this young Nimrod. ' He appears,' says the ed'itor of the Border Minstreby, 'to have been au outlaw and deer-stealer,— probably ore of the broken men residing upon the border. It is sometimes said that this outlaw possessed the old Castle of Morton, in Dumfriessliire, now ruinous.' Another tradition assigns Braid, in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh, to have been the scene of his 'woeful huutmg.'"— Motherwell's jVi«s<)c/«!/, p. 17. Versions of the ballad have appeared as under :— I. " Johnic of Breadislee," in Scott's MUiMrelvj, vol. iii., p. 114, collated from "several different co]iies, in one of which the principal personage is called ' Johnie of Cockielaw.' The stanzas of greatest merit have been selected from each coj>y." — Scott. li. ".Johny Cock," consisting of fragments of two versions, as given in Fry's Vl'ces of Ancknt Poetry, Bristol, 1814, p. III. "Johnie of Braidisbank," in Motherwell's JJfin8/re%, p. 17. IV. "Johnie of Cocklesmuir," in Kinloch's Ancient Scottish Ballads, p. 3G. • ThcRC fragmontfl are copied from a 4to MS. purchnsod In GlaRROw, " In tho year ISIO •• wliicii MS, appears to havo bfon "tho text-book of nomo Illiterate drumnior." The" editor, Mr. Fry, HiipiiOHcs, with (fro it probability, that thin Ih the ballad of 'Mohiiy Cox," mentioned by Ritsoii in IhOHO lfrin-<:— "Tho Itov. Mr. Boyd, the Inppnioiii trnnBlalor of I)unle, ha« a faint recolloftion of a ballad on Homo Arm- fitron« (not tho woU-known ballad of Mohny AmistronK,' in Jluinsiiy'B Kveryr^en); another, rallr-d 'Johny CnX;' and another, 'of a Seolch MiiiRtnil wlio Btolo a Iioiho from Kome "f tho llenrioM of England.' The (IrRt of theno balUulH in posHibly the famouH old border wong of 'Dick o' tho Cow,' ([uot^'d by .'^Ir. Tennant (Tour, 1772. I)art ii., p. Z'fi), and printed at length in the I'oetirril Mufeitm, ]fawick, 1784.' .-BItROo'H Scottish Song, llLstorical KHiay, p. xxxtI., DOt«. 472 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. V. " Johnnie of Cocklesmuir," in Scottish Traditional Va\dom of' Ancient Ballads (Percy Society, vol. xvii., p. 77). Thia last closely resembles Kiuloch's version ; both termin- ate happily for "Johnnie," and both repeat the last lino of each stanza, as a kind of refrain. Mr. llinloch's (IV.) concludes thus : — "IIo. has killed six o' Iho proud foresters, And ■\vouiidod the sevouth sair; lie, laid liis lop out owor his stood, Says — ' I will lull uae mair, mair.' " And Mr. Buchans (V.) :— " His mither's parrot i' the window sat, She whistled aud she saug; An' ayo tlie owcrturn o' the note, — ' Young Johnnie 's biding lan^;, lung." ** When this reachit the king's a in earn, It griev'd him wond'rous sair; Says — ' I'd rather they'd hurt my subjoots a', Thau Johmiie o' Cocklesmuir, muir. " ' But where are a' my wa'-wight men, That I pay meat an I fee? We'll gj'.nfi: the mora to Johnnie's castlo, Seo how the cause may be, be.' " Then he 's ca'd Johnnie up to court. Treated him handsomelie; An' noo. to hunt i' the Bride's Braidmuir, For life ho 's licence free, free." Dr. Chambers has also given a collated version, with some addi- tional stanzas, "taken from the recitation of a lady resident at Peebles, and from a manuscript copy submitted to" him "by Mr. Kinloch." — Scottish Ballads, p. 1S3. Scott's version is the one here followed ; one stanza, however, has been deleted, and stanzas 2 and 6, from Kinloch, IS from Motherwell, and 22 from Finlay, added. Some variations are also noted under the text. 1 JcHXNiE rose up in a May morning, Call'd for water to wash Lis hands: " Gae loose to ine tlie gude gray dogs, That are bound with iron bands. 2 " Yo'II busk, yc'll busk my noble dogs, Ye'll busk and make them boun', For I am going to Durisdcer, To ding the dun deer down." .*> \\'hen Johnnie's mitlicr gat -word of that, Her hands for dulc slie wrang: '• Oil, Johnnie, for my venison, To tlie greeuwood dinna gang. JOHNNIE OF BREADISLEE. 473 4 " Enough ye ha'e of gude wheat bread, And enough of the bluid-red wine; And therefore, for nae venison, Johnnie, I pray ye stir frae hame."* 5 Diit Johnnie busk'd up his gude bend bow, His arrows ane by ane ; And lie lias gaue to Dnrisdeer, To hunt the dun deer down. 6 Johnnie look'd east, and Johnnie look'd west, And a little below the sun ; And there he spied a dun deer sleeping Aneath a bush of broom. 7 Johnnie he shot, and the dun deer lap, And he wounded her on the side ; And atween tlie water and the wood, His hounds they laid her pride. 8 And Johnnie has brittled the deer sae weel. He 's had out her liver and lungs ; And on these he has feasted his bluidy hounds, As if they had been earls' sons. 9 Tlicy ate sac much of the venison, And drank sae much of the bluid, That Johnnie and all his bluidy hounds, Fell asleep, as they had been dead. 10 And by there came a silly auld carle — An ill death mote he dee ! For lie's awa to Hislinton,j" To toll what he did see. 11 " What news, what news, ye silly auld carlo, Wliat news lia'c ye to me ? " " Nae news, nae news," quo' the silly auld carlo, " k>avc wliat my een did see. • " ' Your r.mat hhall bo of the veiy, very best, Ami your drink of tho flnnht wine; Anfl yo" will win your milher b bcniKon, •Jin yo wail Btay at hanio.' " Ilifl niiUicr's counncl he wadra tak, iS'or wad he Rtay nl h:inie." — Kiniocli's Tcriiion. t ' And ho b aff to the proud forcaler'B," So.— Kiuloch. ■174 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLANT. 12 " As I came doun by Merrimass, And doun amang the scroggs,* The bonniest youth that e'er I saw, Lay sleeping amang his dogs. 13 " The shirt that was upon his back AVas of the Holland fine; And the doublet which was over that "Was of the Lincoln twine. 14 " The buttons that were on his sleeves Were of the gowd sae gude; The gude greyhounds he lay amang, Their mouths were dyed in bluid." 15 Then out and spake the first forester, The head man oAver Ihem a': "If this be Johnnie o' Braidislee, Nae nearer him we'll draw." 16 Then out and spake the next forester, (His sister's son was he) : "If this be Johnnie o' Braidislee, We soon shall gar him dee ! " 17 The first fiight of arrows the foresters shot, Thej' wounded him on the knee; And out and spake the seventh forester, — " The next will gar him dee." 18 They waken'd Johnnie out of his sleep. And ho 's drawn to him his coat : "My fingers five, save me alive, And a stout heart fail me not." f 19 Johnnie set his back against an aik, Ilis foot against a stane; And he has slain the seven foresters, lie has slain them all but ane. 20 Ho has broke three ribs in that anu's side. But and his collar-bane ; lie 's laid him twa-fold ower his steed. Bade him carry the tidings hame. J * " Scrogg3 : " Btunted trees. t " 'But fingers five, como hero [come here], And faint heart fail me nought! Auil Hilvcr sti'ings, value mo Bma' things, Till I get all this vcngoauce rought 1 ' " — Johnny Cook, X "Then Jolinnio ki.lJ six foresters, Anil wounded the seventh sair; Then drew a siroko at tlio hilly aidd man, That word ho ne'er bpak mair." — Duchau's verfciou. THE l^URD OF JIUIRHEAD. 21 '• Oil, is there no a bonuie bird, Can sing as I can say? Can flee awa to my mither's bow'r, And tell to fetch Johnnie away? 22 " [Is] there no a bird in all this Forest Will do as meikle for me, As dip its wing in the wan water, And straik it on my e'e-bree?"* 23 The starling flew to his mither's window, It whistled and it sang; And aye the oworword of the tmie Was — " John tarries lang! " 24 They made a rod of the hazel bush, Another of the slae-thorn tree; And mony, mony were the men At fetching our Johnnie. 25 Then out and spake his auld mither, And fast her tears did fa': '• Yc v.'ou'dna be warned, my son Jolinnie, Frae the hunting to bide awa. 26 " Aft ha'e I brocht to Braidislee The less gear and the mair; But I ne'er brocht to Braidislee What grieved my heart sae sair. 27 " But wac betide that silly auld carle, An ill death shall he dee; For the highest tree in Mcrrimass Shall be his morning fee." 28 Now Johnnie's gude bend-bow is broke, And his glide gray dogs are slain; And his body lies dead in Durisdeer, And Ills hunting it is done. TUE LAIED OF MUIRUEAD. From Scott's Minstrelsy, vol. iii., p. .341. "This ballad is a fragment from Mr. Herd's MS., communicated to him by J. Grossctt Miiirhead, Esq. of Brciuleshohn, near Glasgow; 11) re derived from Finlay'tt h vtlit/i JUullitdt, ToL i., r- *^^^- 476 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. who stated that he extracted it, as relating to his own family, from the complete Song, in which the names of twenty or thirty gentlemen wcro mentioned, contained in a large collection, belonging to Mr. Alexander jNIonro, merchant of Lisbon, but supposed now to be lost. " It appears, from the Appendix to Nisbet's JFeraldri/, p. 264, that INIuirhead of Lachop and BuUis, the person here called the Laird of ISIuirhead, was a man of rank, being rentaller, or perhaps feuar, of many crown-lands in Galloway ; and was, in truth, slain in ' Campo Belli de Northumberland sub vexillo Regis,' i. c, in the Field of Fiodden."— Scott. 1 Afore the king in order stude The stout laird of Muirhead, Wi' tliat same twa-hand muckle sword That Bartram fell'd stark dead. 2 He sware he wadna lose his right To fight in ilka field; Nor budge him from his liege's sight, Till his last gasp should yield. 3 Twa hunder mair of his ain name, Frae Torvvood and the Clyde, Sware they would never gang to hame, But a' die by his syde. 4 And wond'rous weel they kept their troth ; This sturdy royal band Eush'd down the brae, wi' sic a pith, That nane could them withstand. 5 Mony a bloody blow they dealt, The like was never seen; And hadna that braw leader faU'n, They ne'er had slain the king. LAMENT FOR FLODDEN, The following Lament relates to the death of a lover on the fatal field of Fiodden, where the gallant but quixotic James IV. fell, with the flower of the Scotish nobility, a.d. 1513. Two beautiful songs, under the title of "The Flowers of tlie Forest," the one written 1)y Miss Elliot, and the other by Mrs. Cockburn, 7iee Butlierford, appear in the companion volume of Scotish Songs. They are botli u-sually supposed to have the battle of Fiodden for tlie theme of their lamentation ; but the one by Mrs. Cockburn, beginning — " I've 80011 tlio smiling Cf Foi-tuno beguiling," LASIEKT FOR FLODDEN. 477 is stated not to liave been •s^Titten on that event. It, however, chimes in with it so naturally, that it is no marvel it should be supposed to relate thereto. Both of these songs may be found together in Herd's Scottish Songs, vol. i., p. 45, where they are conjoined under the title of " Flodden Field," along ^vith a doggrel prelude, beginning — " From Spey to the border, -was peace and good order, The sway of our monarch was mild as the May; Peace he adored, whilk Soudrons abhorred. Our inarches they plunder, our wardens they slay." Among the " sueit melodius sangis of natural music of the antiquite," mentioned in Tlie Complmjnt of Scotlayid, as sung by the " scheiphirdis and their vyuis," there occurs, " My Luf is laid apon ane Knycht," which very nearly coincides with the first line of the following Lament. It might very appropriately be begun and ended with the four beautiful lines of Loydeu's " Ode on visiting Flodden," which Scott adopted for the motto to " Alannion : a Tale of Flodden Field : " — " Alas ! that Scottish maid should sing The combat where her lover fell! That Scottish bard should wake the string, The triumph of our loes to tell." —Scott's Minsirelitj, vol. iii., p. 34& 1 My love was laid upon a knight, A noble knight of high degree; Upon a knight of valour bright, Who also laid his love on me. 2 I loved bun for liis manly form, Majestic port and noble mien; His glittering sword, in war's wild storm, Was ever lirst in battle keen. 8 For country, king, or ladj^e briglit, His blade he ever boldly drew; Yet, tho' he was a warlike knight, His heart was gentle, kind, and true. 4 But, ah! on Flodden's fatal plain, Where Scotland's best and bravest fell, My own true knight lay 'mid the slain. The gallant knight 1 loved so well. 5 The memory of tliat fatal day Deep graven on my heart Bhall bo, Till dcatli shall Bummon mo away, To join again my love and mo. 478 BALLAD MINSTKELSV OF SCOTLAND. yiR JAMES THE ROSE. "This old North Country ballad, which appears to be founded on fact, is well known in almost every corner of Scotland. Pinkerton printed it in his Trag'ic Ballads, 1781 (p. ()1), 'from,' as he says, ' a modern edition, in one sheet 12mo, after the old copy.' Notwith- standing this reference to authority, tlie ballad certainly I'eceived a few conjectural emendations from his own pen ; at least, the version wliich is given," by Mr. Motherwell, "as it occui's in early stall ))riuts, and as it is to be obtained from the recitations of elderly people, does not exactly correspond with his. " Two modern ballads have sprung; out of this old one — viz., ' Sir James the Ross,' and ' Elfrida and Sir James of Perth.' The first of these is said to have been written by Michael Bruce ; the latter is au anonymous production," which seems to have iirst appeared in Caw's Museum, 1784, and to have subsequently " found its way into Evan's Collection, vide vol. iv., edit. 1810. It might be curious to ascertain which of these mournful ditties is the senior, were it for nothing else than perfectly to enjoy the cool impudence with which the graceless youngster has appropriated to itself, Vv'ithout thanks or acknow- ledgment, all the best things which occur in the other." * — Mother- well's Minstrelsy, p. 321. Motherwell's version docs not differ materially from Pinkerton's. In the " Battle of Harlaw : Traditionary Version," ante, j). 450, a "James the Rose," and a "John the Graeme," both figure as combatants on the side of the royal forces ; but we can scarcely suppose the cowai'dly "James the Rose," or the heroic "John the Graeme." of that ballad, to be the parties here celebrated. The ballad is placed here because stanza 4.") of the modern version refers to the principal actors as having fought at Flodden. This, in the absence of better data, must therefore serve as our guide as to the period when the tragedy occurred. In a note to " Sir James the Rose," Mr. Pinkerton states that " a renovation of this ballad, composed of new and imjjrobable circum- stances, decked out with scraps of tragedies, may be found in the Annual Eerjlster for 1774, and other collections. " Rose is an ancient and honourable name in Scotland. Johnncs lie Hose is a witness to the famous Charter of Robert II. testifying his marriage M'ith Ellzaheth 3[urc, as appears in the rare edition of it printed at Paris, 1G95, 4to, p. 15." — Scottish Trayic Ballads, p. 114. The modernized ballad of "The Buchanshire Tragedy; or. Sir James the Ross," as referred to by Motherwell and Pinkerton, was written by Michael Bruce, and appears "in the Weekly Magazine, or Edinburgh Amusement, vol. ix., Sept. 20, 1770, p. 371. * The version by Jlichael Bruce irf apparently the earliest, and it is certainly by far the most popular. SIR JAMES THE ROSE. 479 " Pretixed Mas the follo'wiDg short note : — ' To the Publisher of the Weetly Magazine. 'Sib, — Some days ago I met with an old Scottish ballad, of whicU the following ts a copy; which, I dare say, you will be willing to preserve from oblivion by giving it a place in your entertairung Amusernent. There are few of your readers, I am per- suaded, but will be pleased to sec at once such a specimen of ancient Scottish poetry and valour.' " * The ballad was probably communicated, and the note written, by Logan, who, in this same year, issued a volume of Poems on sevi-ral Occasions, by Miclnel Bruce, which volume contained the ballad referred to, Avith several additions, deletions, and other alterations, doubtless by Logan himself. The ancient ballad, as collated from Piukerton's and ^lotherwell's versions, is here first given ; the orthograi^hy of the latter being generally adopted. It is followed by the modern version, as wi^itten by Michael Bruce; while an additional stanza and some variations from Logan's edition of 1770 are noted under the text. The version by Bruce seems to have superseded the ancient one as a chaj) book; and it may be mentioned that one of these, beai'ing the imprint, "Glasgow, ]>rinted by J. and M. Robertson, (No. 20) Salt- market, 1809," is professedly "printed from the original manu- script;" and that it agrees very closely with Bruce's text as here given. 1 Oh, heard ye of Sir James the Rose, The young heir of Baleighan? For he lias kill'd a gallant squire, Whose friends are out to take him. 2 Now he has gone to the house of Mar, Where none miglit seek to find him; To seek liis dear lie did repair, Thinking she wou'd befriend him. 3 " Wliere are ye going, Sir James?" she said, " Or where now arc yon riding? " " Oh, I am bound to a foreigu land, For now I'm under hiding. 4 "' Where shall I go, where shall I run, Where sliall I go to lay meV Fur I lia'e kill'd a gaUaut squire. And Ids friends seek to slay ine." 6 "Oh, go ye down to yon ale-house, And ril pay there your lawing; And as I am your Icman true, I'll meet ye at the dawing." • Tilt Works of Michntl Bruce, edited, with Memoir and Notes, by the Rov. Alexander B. Orosart. Kdinburgh, W-'i. Tlin Infnmoin coni'uct of Logon, who aflerwardM cluini''d unny of the best piocoa as bia own, Ib fully diBcu 'be I and ably cspobed by Mr. UruMart. 480 BALLAD MINSTKELSY OF SCOTLAND. 6 " I'll no gae clown to yon alc-liousc, For you to pay my lawing, But I'll lie down upon the bent, And bide there till the dawing." 7 Pic 's turn'd him right and round about, And row'd him in his brechan,* And he has gone to take a sleep In the lawlands of Baleighan. 8 He wasna well gone out of sight, Nor was he past Millstrethen^ "When four-and-twenty belted knights Came riding o'er the Lethan. 9 " Oh, ha'e yc seen Sir James the Rose, The young heir of Baleighan? For he has kill'd a gallant squire, And we are sent to take him." 10 " Yea, I ha'e seen Sir James," she said, " He pass'd by here on Monday ; If the steed bo swift that he rides on. He 's past the heights of Lundie." 11 But as witli sjieed they rode away, She loudly cried behind them, " If ye'U give me a worthy meid, f I'll tell ye where to find him." 12 " Oh, tell, fair maid, and, by our faith, Ye'se get his purse and brechan." " Seek yc the bank aboon the mill. In the lawlands of Baleighan." 13 They sought the bank aboon the mill. In the lawlands of Baleighan, And there they found Sir James the Rose, ^\''as lying in his brechan. 14 Then up and spake Sir John the Graeme, Who had the charge in keeping : " It shall ne'er be said, brave gentlemen, We kill'd him when a-sleeping." 15 They seized his broadsword and his targe, And closely him surrounded; And when lie waked out of his sleep. His senses were confounded. • " Brechan : " plaid. t " Meid : " reward THK EUCHAKSHIRE TRAGEDY; OR, SIR JAMES THE ROSS. 481 IG " Rise up, rise up, Sir James," he said, " Rise up, since now we've found ye ;_ We've ta'en tlie broadsword frae your side, And angry men are round ye." 17 " Oil, pardon, pardon, gentlemen, Ha'e mercy now upon me ! " " Such as you ga'e, such shall you ha'e, And so we fall upon thee." 18 Syne they've ta'en out his bleeding heart, And stuck it on a spear; Then took it to the house of Mar, And show'd it to his dear. 19 " We cou'dna give Sir James's purso, We cou'dna give his brechan; But ye shall ha'e his bleeding heart. But and his bleeding tartan." 20 " Sir James the Rose, oh, for tliy sake My heart is now a-breaking ! Curs'd be the day I wrought thy wae, Thou brave heir of Baleighan!" 21 Then up she raise, and forth she gaes, And, in that hour of tein. She wandered to the dowie glen, And never mair was seen. THE BUCHANSHIRE TRAGEDY ; OR, SIR JA^IES THE ROSS. BY MICHAEL BRUCE, BORN, 171G ; DIED, 17G7. 1 Of all the Scottish northern chiefs, Of high and warlike name, The bravest was Sir James the Ross, A knight of meikle fame. 2 His growth was as the tufted iir, That crowns the mountain's brow;* • Bruco'B poem, "The Complaint of Naluro," has a similar lino,— "Or trees, that crown the mountain's brow." And In the eighth of the "Scriptural TrauHlationH and ParnphrascR," as usod in the Presbytf-rian Churches of (Scotland, which "iiarajihraBe" is based on I.rucc u "Compiaiut," &c., there occurs the same line In stanza C. We note thete colnci(lpDce^ as they are somewhat curious, and form "u thitcfoia cord " of connection with Bnico. 482 PAI.I.AD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. And, waving o'er his shoulders broad, His locks of yellow llcw.* 3 The chieftain of the bravo clan Ross, A firm undaunted band ; Five hundred warriors drew their sworda. Beneath his high conwnand. 4 In bloody fight thrice had he stood, Ai^ainst the English keen, Ere two-and-tvventy opening springs This blooming youth had seen. 5 The fair Matilda dear he loved, A maid of beauty rare ; Ev'n Margaret, on the Scottish throne, Was never half so fair. 6 Lang had he wooed, lang she refused, With seeming scorn and pride ; Yet aft her eyes confess'd the love Her fearful words denied. 7 At last she bless'd his well-tried faith, Allow'd his tender claim ; She vow'd to him her virgin heart, And own'd an equal flame. 8 Her father, Buchan's cruel lord. Their passion disapproved ; And bade her wed Sir John the Graeme, And leave the youth slie loved. 9 Ae night they met, as they were wont, Deep in a shady wood. Where, on a bank beside a burn, A blooming saughf tree stood. 10 Conceal'd among the underwood, The crafty Donald lay, The brother of Sir John the Graeme, To hear what they would say. • Thli stanza follows in Brncs's Poems, Logan's edition of 1770:— " Wide were his fleUis, liia herds were large, And large his flocks of sheep ; And numerous were his goats and deer Upon the mountain's steep." f "Saiigh: " a willow. THE BUCIIAN'SHIRE TRAGEDY; OR, SIR JAMES THE ROSS. 483 11 When thus the maid began, — " My sire Your passion disapproves. And bids me wed Sir John the Graeme ; So here must end our loves. 12 "My father's will must be obey'd; Naught boots me to withstand ; Some fairer maid, in beauty's bloom, Must bless thee with her hand. 13 " Matilda soon shall be forgot, And from thy mind effaced : But may that happiness be thine, Which I can never taste." 14 " Wliat do I hear ? is this thy vow ?" Sir James the Ross replied : " And will Matilda wed the Graeme, Though sworn to be my bride? 15 " His sword shall sooner pierce my heart. Than reive me of thy charms;" Then clasp'd her to his beating breast, Fast lock'd into his arms. 16 " I spake to try thy love," she said ; " I'll ne'er wed man but thee : My grave shall be my l)ridal bed, Ere Graeme my husband be. 17 " Take then, dear youlli, this faitljfnl kiss, In witness of my troth ; And every plague become my lot. That day I break my oath !" 18 They parted thus ; tlie sun was set ; Up hasty Donald flics; And — " Tnrii thee, turn thee, beardless j'outhl lie loud insulting cries. 19 Soon tum'd about the fearless chief, And soon his sword ho drew; For Donald's blade, before his breast. Had pierced iiis tartans through. 20 " This for my brother's slighlfd love ; His wrongs sit on my arm :" Three paces back the youth retired. And saved liiuiBclf frae harm., 431 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAKD. 21 Rctuniing- swift, liis hand he rear'd, Fierce Donald's liead above, And tlirough tlio brain and crashing bones liis sharp-edged weapon drove. 22 He staggerhig reel'd, then tumbled down, A lump of breathless chiy : " So fall my foes!" quoth valiant Ross, And stately strode away. 23 Through the green vrood he ([uickly hied, Unto Lord Buchan's hall ; And at Matilda's window stood, And thus began to call : 24 " Art thou asleep, Matilda, dear? Awake, my love, awake ! Thy luckless lover on thee calls, A long farewell to take. 25 " For I have slain fierce Donald Ciraeme; His blood is on ray sword : And distant are my faithful men. Nor can assist their lord. 26 " To Skye I'll now direct my way, Where my two brothers bide, And raise the valiant of the Isles, To combat on my side." 27 " Oh, do not so," the maid replied; " With me till morning stay ; For dark and dreary is the night, And dangerous the way. 28 " All night I'll watch you in the park; My faithful page I'll send, To run and raise the brave clan Eoss, Their master to defend." 29 Beneath a bush he laid him down. And wrapp'd him in his plaid ; While, trembhng for her lover's fate, At distance stood the maid. 30 Swift ran the page o'er hill and dale. Till, in a lonely glen, He met the furious Sir John Graeme, With twenty of his men. THE EUCHANSHIRE TRAGEDY; OR, SIR JAMES THE ROSS. 485 31 " Wliere go'st thou, little page?" he said; " So late, "vvho did thee send ?" '• I go to raise the hrave clan Eoss, Their master to defend. 32 " For he hath slain fierce Donald Graeme, Whose blood now dims his sword : And far, far distant are his men, That should assist their lord."' 33 " And has he slain my brother dear?" The furious Graeme replies : '• Dishonour blast my name, but he By me, ere morning, dies ! 34 " Tell me, Avhere is Sir James the Hosa? I will thee well reward;" " He sleeps into Lord Buchau's park ; Matilda is his guard." 35 They spurr'd their steeds in furious mood, Then scour'd along the lee;* And reach'd Lord Buchau's lofty tow'rs, B}^ dawning of the day. 3G Matilda stood without the gate, To whom the Graeme did say,f — " Saw ye Sir James the Ross last night? Or did he pass this way? " 87 " Last daj', at noon," Matilda said, " Sir James the Boss pass'd by : lie furious prick'd his sweaty steed, And onward fast did hie. 38 " By this he is at Edinburgh, If horse and man hold good." " Your page, then, lied, who said he was Now sleeping in the wood." • " Thoy Bpurr'd their 'teeda, and furious flew, LiKo lightning, o'er the lea.'— Bruce's Foerns, Logan's e atioa t " Matilda. Btood without the gate, Upon a rising ground. And watch'd eacti object lu the davra. All car to every souud. " ' Whore KhepH the Ross?' began the Graeme, 'Or baH the felon lied? ThiH haml hhall lay the wretch on earth, ]!y whom my brother bled.' " — IbiJ. Stanzas 37, .■><, 30, and iiIbo Btanza 43, arc omillc 1 by Logan. 2 K 486 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. rtO She wnin.Gj her hands, and toro her liair : '• Bravo Ross, thou art betrayed; And riiiuM by those very means, I'rom whence 1 hoped thine aid!" 40 r>y this the valiant knight awoke, Tlie virgin's shrieks he lieard ; And np he rose and drew his sword, When the fierce band appeared. 41 " Your sword hist night my brother slow; His blood yet dims its shine ; And, ere the setting of the sun, Your blood shall reck on mine." 42 " You word it well," the chief replied; " But deeds approve the man : Set by your band, and, hand to hand, We'll try what valour can. 43 " Oft boasting hides a coward's heart ; My weighty sword you fear, Which shone in front of Flodd(Mi-ficld, When you kept in the rear." 44 With dauntless step he forward strode, And dared him to the fight; But Graeme gave back, and fear'd his arm; For well he knew its might. 45 Four of his men, the bravest four, Sunk down beneath his sword; But still he scorn'd the poor revenge, And sought their haughty lord. 46 Behind him basely came the Graeme, ' And pierced him in the side ; Out spouting came the purple tide, And all his tartans dyed. 47 But yet his sword qnat not the grip, Nor dropp'd he to the ground,^ Till thro' his enemy's heart his steel Had forced a mortal wound. 48 Graeme, like a tree with v/ind o'crthrown. Fell breathless on tiie clay; And down beside him sank the Ross, And faint and dying lay. ► " But yet his hand not dropp'd tho sword, Nor Runk he to tho grouad."— P.ruco's Por-w, Lofrnn's edition. JOHNNIE ARMSTRANG. 487 49 The sad Matilda saw hira fall : '•' Oh, spare liis life ! " she cried ; " Lord Bnchan's daughter begs his life, Let her not be deny'd." 50 Her well-known voice tlie hero heard; lie rais'd his death-closed eyes, And fix'd them on the weeping maid, And weakl}' tlms replies: 51 " In vain Matilda begs the life, By death's arrest deny'd: My race is run — adieu, mj' love ! " — Then clos'd his eyes and died. 52 The sword, yet warm, from his left side With frantic hand she drew: " I come, Sir James the Ross," she cried ; "I come to follow you!" 53 Slic lean'd the hilt against the ground, And bared her snowj^ breast ; Then fell upon her lover's face, And sunk to endless rest. JOHNNIE ARMSTRANG. From Ramsay's Evergreen, vol. ii., p. 190. "Ramsay mentions that this is the tnie old ballad of the famous .John Armstroncj of Giliiock-liall, in Liddisdale, and which he copied from a ccentleman's mouth of the name of Armstrong, who was tlio sixth feneration from this John, and who told liim that it was ever esteemed the ircnuinc ballad, the common one false. "The common ballad, alluded to by I'amsay, is the one, however, v.'hich is in the mouths of the people, liis fot [ never heard sung or rocited ; bub the other frequently. The conunon set is printed iu WU liestejred, London, 10.58 [p. \T.V[, under the title of ' A Northern Ballet,' and in the London Cullvction of Old Ballads, 172.3 [vol. i., p. 170], as '.Johney Armstrong's Last Good-night.' That Volkctlon has another ballatl ou the subject of Armstrong, entitled ' Armstrong and Mu.sgrave's Contention.' "In J. Stevenson's Catalogue, Edinburgh, 1827, is a copy on a broadside, with this title, 'John Armstrong's Last Farewell,' declaring hov.' he aiul ei^ht-scoi'e men fought a l)loo(ly battle at Kdinburgh ; to the tunc of 'Fare tliou well, Ijonny Cilt Knock Hall,' — an edition htiil adhered to in thu stall copies of the ballad. The version of the ballad, as given in the Evergreen, is followed by tlie editor of the 488 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. Border Mlntitvchy, in whose valuable comjulation it fuulsaplace, with suitable illustrations." — Motherwell's J/;«^-^?-cfey, Introduction, p. Ixii., note 3. From the " illustrations" referred to by Mr. Motherwell, the fol- lowiug account of this celebrated outlaw is extracted: — " Johnnie Arnistronjr, of Gilnockie, the hero of the following ballad, is a noted personage, both in history and tradition. He was, it would seem from the ballad, a brother of tlie Laird of Mangertoun, chief of the name. His ]ilacc of residence (now a rootless tower) was at the Hollows, a few miles from LanL^holm, where its I'uins still serve to adorn a scene which, in natural beauty, has few equals in Scotland. At the head of a desperate band of freebooters, this Armstrong ia said to have s[)read the terror of his name almost as far as Newcastle, and to have levied black-mail, or protection and forbearance money, for many miles round. James V., of whom it was long remembered by his grateful people that he made the ' rush-bush keep the cow,' about 1529, undertook an expedition through the Border counties, to suppress the turbulent sjjirit of the Marchmen. But before setting out upon his journey, he took the precaution of imprisoning the different Border chieftains, who were the chief protectors of the marauders. The Earl of Bothwell was forfeited, and confined in Edin- burgh castle. The lords of Home and Maxwell, the lairds of Buc- cleuch, Eairniherst, and Johnston, with many others, wcx-e also com- mitted to ward. Cockburn of Henderland, and Adam Scott of Tushielaw, called the King of the Border, were publicly executed. — Le.slei/, p. 430. The king then marched rapidly forward, at the head of a flying army of ten thousand men, through Ettrick Forest and Ewsdale. The evil genius of our Johnnie Armstrong, or, as others say, the i^rivate advice of some courtiers, prompted him to present himself before James, at the head of thirty-six horse, arraj'ed in all the pomp of Border chivalry. Pitscottie uses nearly the words of the ballad, in describing the splendour of his equipment, and his high expecta- tions of favour from the king. ' But James, looking upon him sternly, said to his attendants, " What Mauts that knave that a king should have?" and ordered him and his followers to instant execu- tion.' — 'But John Armstrong,' continues this minute historian, 'made great offers to the king. That he should sustain himself, with forty gentlemen, ever ready at his service, on their own cost, without wronging any Scottishman : secondly, that there was not a subject in England, duke, earl, or bai'on, but, within a certain day, he should bring him to his majestic, either c^uick or dead.* At length, he, * The Bortlcrerf, from their liabits of life, wei-o capable of most extraordinary exploits of this uature. In tlie year 1511, Sir Hobert Ker of Cessford, Warden of the Middle Marches of Scotland, was nim'dered at a Border meeting, by the Bastard Heron, Starhead, and Lilbiini. The Knglish monarch delivered up LUburn to justice in S^'olland, but lleron and Starhead e.^caped. The latter chose his resi- rien c in the very centre of England, to bafde the vengeance of Ker's clan and foUov.'eis. Two dependants of the deceased, called Tait, were deputed by Andrew Ker of CesHford to revenge his father's murder. They travelled through England in various disguises, till they discovered the ))Iace of Starhead's retreat, murdered him in his bed, and brought his head in triumph to Edinburgh, where Ker caused it to be exposed at the Cross. The Bastard Heron woidd have shared the same fate, hid he not spread .abroad a rejjort of his having died of the plague, and caused bis funeral obsequies to be perfonned. — lUdpath's History, p. 481. See also Metrical Aciouiit o/thc Ilcillk of Floddeii, published by the Eev. Mr. Lanibe. JOHNNIE ARMSTItVNG. 489 seeing no hope of favour, said very pi-oudly, " It is folly to seek grace at a graceless face ; but," said he, "had 1 knoMTi this, I shouldhave lived upon the Borders in despite of King Harry and you both ; for I know King Harry -would downweigh my best horse with gold to know that I were condemned to die this day.'" — Pitscottie's History, p. 1-15. Johnnie and all his retinue were accordingly hanged upon gro-ning trees, at a place called C'avlenrig Chapel, about ten miles above Ha^vick, on the high road to Langholm. The country people believe, that, to manifest the injustice of the execution, the trees withered away. Armstrong and his followers were buried in a deserted church- yard, where their graves are still shown. "As this Border hero was a person of gi-eat note in his way, he is frequently alluded to by the writers of the time. Sir David Lindsa}' of the Mount, in the curious play published by Mr. Pinker- ton, from the Bannatyne MS., introduces a pardoner, or knavish dealer in relics, who produces, among his holy rarities — 'The cordis baitli grit and lang, Quhilk hangit Johnie Annstrang, Of gude hempt, soft and sound. Gude haly pepil, I stand ford, Wha'evir beis hangid in this cord, Ncidis never to be drowned!' — Pinkerton's Scottish Poems, vol. il., p. 69. "In The Complai/nt of Scotland, John Anmstra.nrris' Dance, men- tioned as a popular tunc, has probably some reference to our hero. " The common peoi)le of the high parts of Teviotdale, Liddesdale, and the country adjacent, hold the memory of Johnnie Armstrong in very high respect. Ihty affirm, also, that one of his attendants broke through the king's guard, and carried to Gilnockie tower the news of the bloody catastroj)he. " It is fortunate for tlio admirers of the old ballad that it did not fall into Itamsay's hands when he was equipping with new sets of ^\orJs the old Scottish tunes in his Tea-Table Jli^celkmij. Since his time it has been often reprinted."* — Scotfs Minstrelsy, vol. i., p. 392. [The ballad which follows, resembles, in many respects, "The Sang of the Outlaw Murray," ante, p. 459. The conduct of the respective Icings towards, and the fate of, the two Outlaws, are, however, very different.] 1 Some speak of lords, some speak of lairds, And sio like men of higli degree; Of a gentleman I sing a sang, Some time call'd Laird of Gilnockie. 2 Tlie king he writes a loving letter, With ])is ain hand sae tonderlie, And he liatli sent it to JoJmnic Armstrang, To come and speak with him Bpecdilic. • \y\i\n rrniiiik will probaVily recall to the mind of its reader the woU-known ailaso about the pot calling the kettle black.] 490 BALLAD MINSl'KELSV OF SCOTLAND, S Tho Filliots and Armstrangs did convene, TIh'V voro a <;-all;nit coiviiianie : *'^YcMl lido and meet our lawrul king, And bring- him safe to Gilnockiu. 4 " Make kinnen * and capon ready, then, And venison in great plentie; WcW welcome liere our royal king; I hope he'll dine at Gilnockle!"' 5 They ran their horse on the Langholm howni, And brake their ^jjcars with nicikle main ; The ladies lookit frae their loft windows — "God bring our men weel hame again!" 6 When Johnnie came before the king, "With all his men sae brave to see, The king he moved his bonnet to him ; lie ween'd he was a king as well as he. 7 " May I find grace, my sovereign liege, Grace for my loyal men and me? For my name it is Jolmnie Armstrang, And a subject of yours, my liege," said liO. 8 "Away, away, thou traitor Strang! Out of my sight soon may'st thou bel I granted never a traitor's life. And now I'll not begin with thee." 9 " Grant me my life, my liege, my king 1 And a bonnie gift I'll gi'e to thee; Full four-and-twenty milk-white steeds, AVere all foal'd in ae year to me. 10 "I'll gi'e thee all these milk-white steeds, That prance and nieherf at a spear; And as meikle gude Inglish gilt,J As four of their braid backs dow § bear." 11 " Away, away, thou traitor Strang! Out of my sight soon may'st thou be! I granted never a traitor's life. And now I'll not begin with thee." • " Kinnen : " rabbits. i " G ilt : ' g^ .Id. 1 " Nicher : " noitjti- { " Do w : " are able to. JOIINKIE a!:msti:akg. 4'JJ 12 '• Grant me my life, my liege, my kiug! And a bonnie gift I'll gi'e to thee : Gmle four-uud-twenty ganging "*• milk, That gang thro' all the year to me. 13 '' These four-and-twcnty mills complete, Shall gang for thee thro' all the year; And as meikle of gude red wheat, As all their happcrs dov,- to bear." 1-4 " Away, away, thou traitor Strang! Out of my sight soon may'st thou be! I granted never a traitor's life, And now I'll not begin with thee." 15 '' Grant me my life, my liege, my king! And a great great gift I'll gi'e to thee : Bauld four-and-twenty sisters' sons Shall for thee fecht, tho' all shou'd flee." 16 " Away, away, thou traitor Strang! Out of my sight soon may'st thou bo! I granted never a traitor's life, And now I'll not begin with thee." 17 "Grant me my life, my liege, my king! And a brave gift I'll gi'e to thee : AH between here and Newcastle town Shall pay their yearly rent to thee." 18 ''Away, away, tJiou traitor Strang! Out of my sight soon may'st thou be! 1 granted never a traitor's life, "iind now I'll not begin with thee." 19 '• Ye lied, j-e lied, now, king," he says, " Altho' a king and prince ye be! For I've loved naething in my life, I weel dare say it, but lionestie. 20 " Save a fat horse, and a fair woman, Twa bonnie dogs to kill a deer; But England shou'd have found me meal and maull, Gif I had lived this hundred year. 21 '• She shou'd have found mc meal and mault, And beef and mutton in all plentie; iJut never a Scots wife oou'd have said, That e'er I skaith'd her a pair ilee. ♦ "Ganging: ' going. 402 15ALLAD MINSTHICLSY OK SCOTLAND. •22 " To seek liet water beneath cauld ice, Surely it is a great Ibllio : I liave ask'd grace at a graceless lace,* But there is nanc for my men and inc. 23 '• But had I kcnn'd, ere I came frae hamc, IIow unkind thou wou'dst been to uie, I Avou'd ha'e keepit the Border side, In spite of all tliy force and thee. 24 " Wist England's king tliat I was ta'en. Oh, gin a blythe man he wou'd be ! For ance I slew his sister's son, And on his breast-bane brak a tree." 25 John wore a girdle aboi:t his middle, Enibroider'd o'er with burning gold, Bespangled with the same metal, Maist beautiful was to behold. 26 There hang nine targats f at Johnnie's liat, And ilk ans worth three hundred pound: " What wants that knave that a king shou'd hare, But the sword of honour and the crown V 27 " Oh, Avhere got thee these targats, Johnnie, That blink sae brawly J aboon thy brie? " "I gat them in the field fechting,§ Where, cruel king, thou durst not be. 28 " Had I my horse and harness gude. And riding as I wont to be, It shou'd have been tauld this hmidred year, The meeting of my king and me ! 29 " God be with tlicc, Kirsty.]] my brother, Lang live thou l.-iird of Mangertoun ! Lang may'st thou live on the Border side. Ere thou see thy brother ride up and down! 30 " And God be with thee, Kirsty, my son, AVhcre thou sits on thy nurse's knee! But an thou live this hundred year. Thy father's better thou'lt never be. • See "Young Waters," stanza Co, and note, ante, p. diS. t " Targats : " tassols. X " Blink sao brawly: " glanco so bravely. § " Fcchting: " fighting. II "Kirsty:" Christopher. THE LAMENT OF THE BORDER WIDOW. 403 31 " Farewell, my bonnie Gilnock hall, "Where oil Esk side thou standest stoittl Gif I had lived biit seven years mair, I wouM ha'e gilt thee round about." 32 John murder'd was at Carlinrigg, And all his gallant companie; But Scotland's lieart was ne'er sae wae, To see sae mony brave men die ; 33 Because they saved tlieir country dear Frae Fnglislnnen! Nane were sae bauld; While Johnnie lived on the Border side, Nane of them durst come near his hauld. THE LAMENT OF THE BORDER WIDOW. From Scott's Minstrehy, vol. iii., p. 94. " This fragment, obtained from recitation in the Forest of Ettrick, is said to relate to the execution of Cockburue of Henderland, a Herder freebooter, lianycd over the gate of his ov.n tower, by James v., iu the course of that mcmoral)lc expedition, in 1529, which was fatal to Johnnie Anustrang, Adam Scott of Tushiehuv, and many other marauders. The vestiges of the castle of Henderland are still to be traced ujion the farm of that name, belonging to Mr. Murray of Ilendcrland. They are situated near the mouth of the river Meggat, which falls into the lake of St. Mary, in Selkirkshire. The adjacent country, which now hardly bears a single tree, is celebrated by Lesley, as, in his time, affording shelter to the largest stags in Scot- land. A mountain torrent, called Henderland Burn, rushes impetu- ously from the hills, through a rocky chasm, named the Dowglen, and passes near the site of the tower. To the recesses of this glen, tlie wife of Cockburne is said to have retreated, during the execution of her husband ; and a [)lacc, called the Lady's Scat, is still shown, where she is said to have striven to drown, amid the i-oar of a foam- ing cataract, the tumultuous noise which announced the close of his existence. In a deserted burial-place, which once surrounded the chapel of the castle, the monument of Cocicbin-nc and his lady are still shown. It is a large stone, broken in tln-ce ])arts ; but some armorjal bearings may yet be traced, and the foUowing inscription is still legible, though defaced :— Heue lyes Pery.s of Cokburne and his WvFE Marjory. "Tradition says that Cockburne was surjiriscd by tlic king while sitting at dinner. After tlie execution, James marched rajiidly forward to surprise Adam Scott of Tushiclaw, called tlic King of tlio Border, and sometimes the King of Thieves. A path through the 401 r.ALIAI) JIlNSTllELSY OF SCOTLAND. mountains, vhich separates the Vale of Ettrick fio;u tiie head of Yarrow, is still c:illcd tlie King's lload, and sucins to have been the route -whieli he followed. The remains of the tower of Tushiclaw are yet visililc, overhanging the wild banks of the Ettriek ; and are an objeet of terror to the" benighted peasant, from an idea of their being haunted by spectres. From these heights, and through the adjacent county of J'ecbles, passes a wild i)ath, called still the Thief's I'voad, from having been used chiefly by the marauders of the Border." — Scott. Mr. ^lothorv.e]! srys: — "I am passing loath to deprive Scotland of the least rcuniant of her song ; but this appears to mc to be nothing else than a fragment of the English ballad, entitled, 'The Famuius Flower of Serving-men; or, The Lady turn'd Serving-man." — Minsirel- BALLAD MINSTniXSY OF SCOTLAND, " I find no traces of this particular Hnghie Grrcmc of the ballad; hut, from the mention of the bisliop, I suspect ho may have been ono of about four Inuulred Borderers, against whom bills of complaint were exhibited to Itobcrt Aid rid^e,"" lord bishop of Carlisle, about ir)53, for divers incursions, burnin2;3, murders, mutilations, and spoils by them committed. — Nicolson's Jlidori/, Introduction, Ixxxi. There appear a number of Grremes in the specimen which we have of that list of delinquents. There occur, in particular, Pdtchie Grame of Eailie, Will's Jock Grame, Fariiue's Willie (iramc, Muckle AVillie Grainc, Will Grame of Rosetrces, Eitchie Grame, younger of Netherby, Wat Grame, called Flaughtail, Will Grame, Nimble Widie, Will Grame, INlickle Willie, with many others. "In Mr. Eitson's curious and valuable collection of legendary poetry, entitled, Ancient Sonrjs, he has pubUshed this Border ditty, from a collection of two old black dctter copies, one in the collection of the late John, Duke of Roxburghe, and another in the hands of John Bayne, Esq. The learned editor mentions another copy, be- ginning, 'Good Lord John is a-hunting gone.' The present edition was procured for me by my friend Mr. William Laidlav/, in Black- house, and has been long current in Selkirkshire ; but Mr. Rit- son's copy has occasionally been resorted to I'ur bettor readings." — Scott. The version referred to above, as appearing in Eitson's Ancient Songs (edit. 1790), p. 192, is entitled, "The Life and Death of Sir Hugh of the Grime." It first ajipeared in Durfey's Pills to Purge Melancholy, vol. iv., p. 289. The fii-st Scotish version was communicated to Johnson's Miisenm (p. ol2), by Burns, who states that he obtained it from oral tradition in Ayrshire. Mr. Cromek alleges that stanzas 3 and 8 were entirely composed, and that 9 and 10 were retouched, by Burns. The Miiceum version Avas followed b;/ Scott's ; while a still subsequent Scotish version may be found in Scottish Traditional Versions of Ancient Ballads, Percy Society, vol. xvii., p. 73, under the title of " Sir Hugh the (irreme." A note to this version (ji. lOG) truly states, " that it differs materially from all others, . . . and particularly in one respect, viz., that it has not a tragical ending, the hero making his escape," after his extraordinary leap. Thei-e seems to be no good ground for the allegations against the bishop and the wife of ifughie Grame. It is, however, quaintly and sarcastically stated by Anthony a Wood, that " there were many changes in his time, both in Church and State, but the worthy jjrelate retained his offices and jireferments during them all." So that he seems to have been a worthy exemplar of the notorious " A'icar of Bray." HUGHIE THE GREME. 497 According to the last-named version, the captor and judge of Sir Hugh is Lord Home. The concluding stanzas are as under; — " ' Ye"ll gi'e my lirotber John the sworda That's pointed wi' the metal clear, Au' bid him come at eight o'clock, An' see me pay the bishop's meai e. " ' An', brother James, tak' here the sworJa That's j-ointed wi' the metal brouu, Come up the morn at eight o'clock. An' see vuur brother pulton down. "'An', brotlier Allan, tak' this sworde That 's pointed wi' the metal tine, Come up the moru at eight o'clock, An' see the death o" Hugh the Grteme.* " ' Ye'll tell this news to Maggy, my wife, Kcist time ye gang to Strievliug tonn; She is the cause I lose my life. She wi' the bishop play'd the loon.' "Again he ower his shoulder look'd, It was to sec v.-hat he could see, And there he saw his little sou, ^Vas scieamiu' by his uourice knee. "Then out it spak' the little son: ' Sin' 'tis the morn that he maun dee, If that I live to be a man. My father's death reveng'd shall be.' " 'If I must dee,' Sir Hugh replied, 'My friends o' me they will thiuk lack; ' Ho leapt a wa' eighteen feet liigh, Wi' his han's boun' bohin' his back. "Lord Home then raised ten armed men, An' after him they did pursue ; But he has ti-udg'd out ower the plain, As fast as any bird that flew. "He leuk'd ower his left shoulder. It was to si',0 what ho could see; His brother Joliii was at his back. An' a' the rest o' his brothers three. "Some they woundit and some they slew, They foiiglit sae tierce and valiantlie; They made his enemies for to yield, Au' tent Sir Hugh out ower the sea." Tlic text wliich follows is derived from Scott's Minslrthy, as above indicated. Stanza 1.3 is inserted in the text from Burns's version; the rither principal variations being noted under. '1 lie nationalitj' of the ballad is apparently as "debateable" as tliat of the "land" occuj)ied in those days by this predatory tribe, iicott'a version i.s, on the whole, decidedly the best. 1 Gl'DE Lord Scroope 's to the hunting gane, He has ridden o'er moss and iiiuir;f And Le has grippit Lliit^liic the (inenie, For stealing of the bishop's mare. •The two flrnt of ihcpe quoted f^tanzas me nearly the Rauio as t\YO in Burus'g TerHioD, while the third resembles the last s:nnza of the text. t "A-huntlngu* the fallow deer."— tumd's version. 498 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OP SCOTLAND. 2 " Now, good Lord Scroopo, this may not bol Here liaiigs a broadsword by my side; And it' that tliou canst conquer me, TIio matter it may soon bo try'd." 3 ''I ne'er was at'r;iid of a traitor thief; Although thy name bo Ilughie the ClraMne, I'll make thee repent thee oftliy deeds, If God but grant me lite and time." 4 '■ Then do your worst now, good Lord Scroopo, And deal your blows as liard as you can ! It sliall bo tried within an hour, "Which of us two is the better man." 5 l>ut as they were dealing their blows sae free, And both sac bloody at the time. Over the moss can.e ten yconieu so tall, All for to take brave ilughie the Gramme. G Thou they ha'e grippit Hughie the Graeme, And brought him up through Carlisle town: The lasses and lads stood on the walls. Crying — "Hughie the Gramme, thou'se ne'er gae down !"* 7 Then they ha'e chosen a jury of men, The best that were in Carlisle town ; And twelve of them cried out at once, — " Hughie the Grajme, thou must gae down 1 " 8 Then up bespake him gude Lord Hume, f As he sat by the judge's % knee : "Twenty white owsen, my gude lord, If you'll grant Hughie the Grreme to me."§ 9 •• ()h no, oh no, my gude Lord Hume! For sooth and sae it maunna be ; For were there but three Graemes of the name, || They shou'd be hanged all for me." ■ " Ami they ha'e tied him hand and foot, And led liim up tliro' Stiritng town; The Lids and la;): ea met him ttiere, Cried— Iliighio Graham, thou art a lonn! ' " ' Oh, low.se my right hand free," he says, ' And put my braid sworil in tlio samo, lie':; no in Stirling town this day Daur tell the tale to Ilughie Grdliam.'"— Burns's Terslon. Cromek states that tlie last of these two stanzas is Burns's own composition, t "Tlien up bespake the bravo Whitefoord."— /6i'i. X 'Juilge's: " " bishop's."— /ijcJ § " If yell let Ilughio G rrcme gae l"rro '—Jbid. ) "For tho' ten Grahams were in his coat"— 7Md. HUGHIE THE 6ILEME. 499 10 'Twas up and spake the gnde Lady Hume,* As she sat by the judge's knee : " A peck of -white pennies, my gude lord judge, If you'll grant Hughie the Greeme to me." 11 " Oh no, oh no, my gude Lady Hume ! For sooth and so it must na be; "Were he but the one Grajme of the name, He shou'd be hanged high for me." 12 " If I be guilty," said Hughie the Gramme, " Of me my friends shall have small talk ; " And he has loup'd fifteen feet and three, Tho' his hands were tied behind his baek. 13 They've ta'en him to the gallows knowe ; He look'd [up] at the gallows tree, Yet never colour left his cheek. Nor ever did he Win' his e'e. "f 14 [But] he look'd over his left shoulder, And for to see what he might see; There was he aware of his auld father. Came tearing his hair most piteouslie. 16 " Oh, hald your tongue, my father," he says, " And see that ye dinna weep for me ! For they may ravish me of my life, But they cannot banish me frae Heaven hie. J 16 " Fair ye weel, fair Maggie, my wife! The last time we came ower the muir, 'Twas thou bereft me of my life. And with the Bishop thou play'd the whore. 17 " Here, Johnnie Armstrang, take thou my sword. That is made of the metal sae fine; And when thou comest to the English side, Remember the death of Hughie the Grceme." ♦ "Up then bespoke the fair Whitefoord."— Burna's Tersioo. t Cromek etatca that thia stanza is Bums's own composition. t " 'Oh, haud you'' tonguo, my father dear, And with yo'jr weopinj,' let mo be : Tliy weopinj; s saiier on my licart, Thao ii' ilml thoy can do to mo."'—ItiiJ. Cromek states that this stanza was re-tonched by Euros. 500 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. THE LOCHMABEN HARPER. " T]ie Castle of Lochmabcn was formerly a noble buildiiit;, situated «l)on a peninsula, projoctin lonKor at that tide, he thout^ht that piaoo it was to warma, BOO neere for to a' ido." X " Wighty : " valiant. Brent:" huruU THE RAID OF THE REIDSWIRE. 521 37 And after the Gordon lie has gane, Sae fast as he might drie ; And soon in the Gordon's foid heart's hluid lie 's wroken * his dear ladye. f] 88 And mony were the miulie J men Lay gasping on the green; And mony were the fair ladyes Lay lemanless at hame. 39 And mony were the mndie men Lay gasping on the green ; For of fifty men the Gordon hrocht, There were but five gaed hame. 40 And round, and round the walls he went, Tiieir ashes for to view; At last into the flames he flew, And bade the world adieu. THE RAID OF THE REIDSWIRE. From Scott's Btinstrehy, vol. ii., p. 15. " This poem is published from a copy in the Bauuatyne MS., in the har.dwritinj^ of the Hon. Mr. Carmichael, advocate. It first appeared ill Allan Itamsay's Evergreen, but some liberties have been taken by him in transcribing it ; and, what is altogether unpardonable, the M.S., which is itself rather inaccurate, has been interpolated to favour Ills readings ; of which there remain obvious marks. "The skirmish of the Reidswire lia])pencd upon the 7th of June, ].")75, at one of the meetings held by the \Vardcus of the Marches, for arrangements necessary upon the Border. Sir John Cai'micliael, ancestor of the present Earl of Hyndford,§ was the Scottish Warden, and Sir John Forster held that oiKce on the English Middle I^Iarch. In the course of the day, which was employed as usual in redi-essing wrongs, a bill, or indictment, at the instance of a Scottish complainer, was fouled ((. e., found a true bill) against one Farnstein, a notorious J'^nglish freebooter. Forster alleged that he had lied from justice: ( ':irniichael, considering this as a j)retext to avoid making compensa- tifji for the felony, bade hiui 'play fair!' to wliich the haughty English Warden retorted, by some injurious expressions I'especting (/armichaers family, and gave other open signs of resentment. Ilis retinue, chiefly men of IJedesilale and Tyncdale, the most ferocious of the English Borderers, glad of any pretext for a rpiarrel, discharged a • " Wrokrn :" rcvonjfotL t Tho two hlRhly-colourcd KtinzaB numbered oU aud 1)7 iipiicar to be rercy'ij owu a.i DO trace of tlicin can 1x5 found clscwhcro. J "Madie: ' bold. { Tho tltlo of Hyndford ia now cslinct (ISItO). 622 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. flight of arrows among the Scots. A warm conflict ensued, in which, Carmichacl being boat down and made prisoner, success sccnicd at lirst to incline to the Englisli side, till the Tyncdalo men, tlirowing themselves too greedily xijion the jilundei', fell into disorder; and a body of Jcdbnrgli citizens arriving at that instant, the skirmish ter- minated in a complete victory on the part of the Scots, who took prisoners, the English Warden, James Ogle, Cuthbert Collingwood, Francis linssell, son to tlie Earl of Hedfortl, and son-in-law to Forstcr, some of the Fcnwicks, and several fjtb.cr I'ordcr chiefs. They were sent to the Farl of Morton, then Itcgent, who detained them at Dalkeith for some days, till the heat of their resentment was abated ; which prudent precaution ])reveuted a war betwixt the two kingdoms. He then dismissed them with great expressinns of regard; and, to satisfy Queen ]!)lizabeth,* sent (Jarmichael to York, wlieuce he was soon after honourably dismissed. The licld of battle, called the Eeidswire, is a part of the Carter Mountain, about ten miles from Jedburgh. — See, for these particulars, Godscroft, Spottiswoode, and Johnstone's Historij. "The editor has adopted the modern spelling of the word Eeids- wire, to prevent the mistake in pronunciation which might be occasioned by the use of the Scottish 'qu ' for ' w.' The MS. reads ' Iveidsquair.' ' Swair,' or 'swire,' signities the descent of a hill; and the epithet ' Ecd ' is derived from the colour of the heath, or, per- haps, from the Reid Water, which rises at no great distance." — Scott. [The notes, which are also from the pen of Scott, arc, in one or two instances, abridged.] 1 Tiiic seventh of July, the suith to say, At the Eeidswire tlie tryst was set; Our wardens they aflixed the day, And, as they promised, so tlieymet. Alas! that day I'll ne'er fors^ctt! Was sure sae feard, and then sae faine — Tliey came theare justice for to gett, Will never green f to come again. 2 Carmicliael J was our ^v•ardcn then, He caused the country to conveen ; ♦ Uer ambassador at Edinburgh refused to lie in a bed of state, wliicli had been provided for him, till this "oudious fact" had been inquired into.— Murdin's iilaie Pupcii, vol. ii., p. 282. t "Green:" long. % Sii- John Carmichaol was a favouj-ito of the Regent Morion, by whom he waa rppoin'ed Warden of tho Middle Marches, iu prefercnfo 1o the Border Chieftains. [He] was murdered, Itith Juno, icoi), by a party of Borderers, at a place called Uaesknows, near Lochmabcn, whither ho was poins to hohl a court of justice. Two of the ringleaders in the slaughter, Thomas Armstron;;, called lliu'-'an's Tam, and Adam Scott, called the Pocket, were tried at ];dinburgh, at the instance of Cai-michacl of Edrom. They were eondenni'd to liavo their right hand struck off, thereafter to be banged, and their bodies gibbeted on the Borough Moor; which Bontence was executed, 14th November, lijol. "This Pecket," sa th Birrel, in his JJiaru, "was ane of the most notalrie thicfl'es that ever raid." Ho calls his name Hteili, which appears, from the record, to be n mistake. Four years afterwards, an Arnistroug, called Sandy of Kowanburn, and several others of that tribe, were executed for tliis and other exccsBCS.— .Zioois of Adjournal of l/iese dales. THE RAID OF TlIE REIDS\\aRE. 523 And the Laird's Wat, that worthie man," Brought in that sirname Aveel beseen:* The Annestranges, t'lat aj-e ha'e been A hardj- house, but not a hai!,"-" Tlie Elliots' honours to maintaine, Brought down the lave "^ of Liddesdale. o Then Tividale came to with speid; The Shcrilfe brought the Douglas down,* With Cranstane, Gladstain, good at need/ Baith Rewle Water, and Ilawick town. Beanjeddart bauldy made him bouu', With all the Trumbills, stronge and stout; The Rutherfoords, with grit renown, Convoy'd the town of Je '.brugh out.s' " The Chief who led out tho simame of S:ott upon this occasion waa (snith SatchellB) Walter Scolt of Ancnim, a nntural son of Walter of Buccleuch. Tho laird of Buccleuch -vtslB then a minor. The ballad seems to have been popular in Satchell's days, for he quotes it literally. He must, however, have been mistaken, in this particular; for the family of Scott of Ancrum, in all our books of genealogy, deduce their descent from the Scotts of Balweaiie, iii Fi:o, whom they repreirent. The first of this family, settled in Eoxburghshire, is s-tated in Douglas' BarovO'je to have been Patrick Scott, who purchased the lands of Ancrum in the reign of James VI. He therefore could not be ihe Laird's Wat of the ballad; indeed, from the li .t of Border families in 151i7, Ko;r appear.s to have been proprietor of Ancrum at the d.ue of the balla'i. It is plainly written in the MS. ihc laird's Wat, i.e., the laird's eon Wat: i.otwithstJinding which, it has always hitherto been printed the Laird Yt'al. If Douglas be accurate In his genealogy, the pcr.^on meant must be the young laird of Buccleuch, afterwards distingilihhe 1 f.,r the .iurpriso of Carlisle Castle. — See Kinmont Wii'lie. I am the mors conllrmod in this opinion, because Kerr of Ancrum was at this time a fugitive, for slaying one of the Eutherford.s, and the tower of Anci-um given in keepii.g to the Tuml)ul!.-i, his hereditai-y enemies. His mother, however, a daughter of Homo of Wedficrlurn, contrived to turn out the Turnbulls, and possess herself of the place by surpri.-e.— fforfjcro/Z, vol. ii., p. '.'50. I '-Weel beseen:" well appointed. Tlio word occurs in ilorle il Arthur: — "And Ti-hcn Sir Percival saw this, ho hied him ti.ither, and fouu.l the ship covered with bilko, more blacker than any beare; and therein was a gentlewoman, of great bcautie, and she was ri ;hly lereene, that none might be better." *•" This clan are here mentioned as not being licil, or whole, because they wfre outlawed or broken men. Indeed, many of them had become Englishm^L', as the phrase then went Accordin'ily wc find." from I'atten, that forty of them, under the Laird of Mangertoun, joined Somerset, upon hi.) expedition into Scotland. — Patten, in Dalyell's I'ratpnenls, p. 1. There was an old alliance betwixt the Eliots and Aim- Btiongs, here alluded to. l''or the cntci-priiC of tho Armstrongs, against their native country, when under English assurance, see JIurdin's filate Papers, vol. i., p. 43. I"r jm which it appears, that, by command of Sir Ralph Evers, this clan ravaged almost the whole West Border of Scotlan'l. rf"Lave:" remainder. « DouglaB of Cavers, hereditary Sheriff of Teviotdale, descended from Black Arehibald, who carried the stan, en- deavoured to counterpoise the power of B iccleuch and Foruiherst, during the civil v.-ar» attached to the Queon's faction. Tho lollowiug fragment of an old ballad is (juotcd in a letter fiom an aged gentleman of this name, residii-c iu New York, to iv friend in Scotland:— "Buiii.l n'vherfiir.l. be was fou i tout, Wi a' his n ne sons him round abouti He lo of God the game gacd right, Frae time the foremost of tliem fell ; Then o'er tli:; knowe, witliout goodnight, They ran Avith rr.ony a shout and yell. 15 But after thej' had turned backs, • Yet Tindail men they tnrn'd again, And had not been the merchant packs, -^ There had been mas of Scotland slain. " The gathcring-wonl iiceuMar to a certain n:i;r.e, or set of people, was termed "KloRan," or "fclujrliorn,'' and was always vepcatcil at an onset, as well as on many other occasions. The cu.stom of cryicf; the slogan or enseuzie, is often allurled t > in all our ancient histories and poem?. It was usually the name of the clan, or place cf rendezvous, or leader. In 133-5. the English, led by Thomas of Eoslync, and ■\Vilham Moufcray, assaulted Aberdeen. The former was mortally wounded iu the onset; find, as his t'ollowerB were presf,ing forward, shouting "Kosslyne: Rosslyne!" "Cry Mouljray," said the expiring chieftain: "Kosslyne is gone!" The Highland clans had also" their appropriate slogans. The JMacdonalds cried Frich (heather); the Macphersons, Craig-Ubh; tho Grants, Craig-Elachie ; and the Macfarlanes, Loch-SIoy. » " But," &c. : till once his anger was set up. "^ "Genzie: " ciigino of war. •^The Scots, on this occasion, seem to have had chiedy flrc-ruis; tho English re- taining Btill their partiality for their ancient weapon, the longbow. It also appeari, 1)y a letter from the Duke of Norfoll: to Cecil, that the English Borderers wore un- ekilful in flreann.s: oi\ as he says, " our countrymen be not so comniyng with shot.^ as I woolde wishe." — See Murdiu's iiiale Papers, vol. i., p. 319. * "Flain: " arrow.^; hitherto absurdly printed slain. /The ballad-maker here a.scribc.s the victory to tho real cause; for ihe Enffllsh Borderers, disper^^ing to plunder tiie merchandise, gave the opposite party time to recover from their surprise. It seems to huvo been usual for travelling m rciiants to attend Border meetings, although one would have thought tho kind of company usually assembled there might have deterred them. THE RAID OF THE REIDSWIRE. 527 But, Jesu! if the folks -wero fain To put the bussing on their thies; And so tliey fled, v.ith all their main, Down o'er the brae, like clogged bees. 16 Sir Francis Russell « ta'en was there, And hurt, as we hear men rehearse; Proud Wallinton ' was wounded sair. Albeit he be a Fennick fierce. But if you wald a souldicr search, Among them all were ta'en that night, Was uane sae wordie to put in verse. As Collingwood,'' that courteous knight. 17 Young Henry Schafton,'' he is hurt; A souldier shot him wi' a bow; Scotland has cause to mak' great sturt, For laiming of the Laird of Mov%-e. " The Laird's Wat did weel indeed; His friends stood stoutlie by himsoll. With little Gladstain, gudo in need, For Gretein/ kend na gude be ill. 18 The Sheriffe wanted not gude will, Howbeit he might not tight so fast; Beanjeddart, Hundlie, and Ilunthill, " Three, on they laid weel at the last. " Sou to the Earl of Bedford, and Warden of tho Eiist Marches. Ho wss, at this tinie, chamberlain of Berwick. He was afterwards killed in a fray of a similar naturo, at a Border meeting between the same Sir John Forsler (father-in-law to Ru.ssell) and Thomas Ker ol Faii'nihurst, a. d. Vj-^u. i> Fenwick of Wallington, a powerful Northumbrian chief. <^ Sir Cuthbert Collingwood of Esslington, Sheriff of Northumbsrland, the lOlh and 20th of Elizabeth. Besides these gentlemen, James Ogle, and many other Northumbrians of note, were made prisoners. Sir George Horoi), of Chipchase and Ford, was slain, to the gre.it regret of both parliep, b.-ing a man highly esteemed by the Scots as wc:l as the En;,'lish. When the prisoners were brought to Morton, at Dalkeith, and, among other presents, received from him some Scottish falcons, one of hia train ob-erved. that the English were nobly treated, since they got live hatrks for dead heroin. — (Judsa-ojt. dTbe Shaftoes aro an ancient family, settled at Bavington,in Northumberland, since the timo of Edward I.; of which Sir Cuthbart Shaftoo, Sheriff of Northumber- land In 17'j5, is the present leprcsontative. « An ancient family on tho Borders. Tie lands of Mowe ni c situated upon tJ.e river Bowmont, in Ro.xbmghshire. The family is now represented by William Molle, Esq., of Mains, who haa restored tho ancient spelling of tho name. The Laird of Mowe, here mentioned, was the only gentleman of note killed in the skirmish on the Scotti;jh side. / Oraden, a family of Kera. "Douglas of Bcanjed sin;?, if )"e will hearken, If ye will licarken unto me; Tiio king lias ta'en a poor prisoner, T!ie wanton laird o' young Logic. 2 Young IjOgic's laid in Edinbnrgli chapel; Cariiiicliael 's the keeper o' the key; * And may Margaret's lamenting sair, All for the love of young Logie. • Sir John Cannicbacl of Carmifhael, the hero of the ballad called "The Uuid of lh«( Keid.swire " was appo'i'd captain of the king's guard in 1088, and uBuall; had the keeping of state crioilnals of rank. 2n ',34 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLANn. 3 [May Margaret sits in the queen's bow'r, KiiiL'kiug her tingcrs auc bo aue, Cursing the day that e'er she was born, Or that she o'er heard o' Logic's name.*] 4 " Lament, lament na, may Margaret, And of your weeping let me be; For ye maun to the king himsel'. To seek the life of young Logie." 5 May INLargaret has kilted her green cleiding, And she has curled back lier yellow hair; " If I canna get young Logic's life. Farewell to Scotland for evermair." 6 When she came before the king, Slic knelt [down] lowly on her knee; "Oh, what's the matter, may Margaret? And what needs all this courtesie?" 7 "A boon, a boon, my noble liege, A boon, a boon, I beg of thee ! And the hrst boon that I come to crave, Is to grant me the life of young Logie." 8 " Oh na, oh na, may Margaret, Forsooth, and so it maunna be; For all the gowd of fair Scotland Shall not save the life of young Logie." 9 But she has stown the king's redding-kaini,f Likewise the queen her wedding-knife. And sent the tokens to Carmichaol, To cause young Logie get his life. 10 She sent him a purse of the red gowd, Another of the white monie ; She sent him a pistol for each hand. And bade him shoot when he gat free. 11 When he came 1o the tolbooth stair. There he let liis volley flee; It made the king in iiis chamber start, E'en in the bed where he might be. • ["The third Rtaiiza in tho prcsout copy was obtained from recitation; nnd, as It (inscribes very naturally the agitated liCliaviour of a person who, like May Miirarot, bad high ictcresta at slake, It was considered worthy of being preserved." — Mother- well, ilinstrel'if, p. 50.] t "Eeddiug kaim: " comb for the hair. THE YOUNG LAIRD OF OCHILTRIE. 535 12 '■ Gae out, gae out, my merry men all. And bid Carmichael come speak to me ; For ril lay my life the pledge of that, That yon's the shot of young Logic." 13 When Carmichael came before the king, He fell low down upon his knee ; The very first word that the king spake, Was — "Where's the laird o' young Logie?" 14 Carmichael turn'd him round about, (I wot the tear blinded his e'e,) " There came a token frae your grace. Has ta'en a^vay the laird frae me." 15 " Hast thou play'd me that, Carmichael ? And hast thou play'd me that?" quoth ha; " The morn the justice-court 's to stand, And Logic's place ye maun supplie." 16 Carmichael 's awa to Margaret's bow'r, E'en as fast as he may dree : " Oh, if young Logic be within. Tell him to come and speak with me ! " 17 May Margaret turn'd her round about, (I wot a loud [louil] l-iugh laugh'd she,) '■ Tlie egg is chipp'd, the bird is flown, Ye'Il see nae mair of young Logie." 18 The ane is shipp'd at the pier ji Leith, The other at the Queen's 1 errie ; [And may Margaret has gotten her love,*] The wanton laird of young Logie. THE YOUNG LAIRD OF OOmLTRIE. From Herd's Scottish Songs, vol. i., p. 21. Dr. (Jhainbers, in his Scottish Ballads, p. 80, gives a version collated from the followini^ aud the prcccdiiii^; but, notwithstanding some ad- mixture of his o^vTl, the result is not very satisfactory, as it makes, in several instances, a somewhat confused jumble. 1 On, listen, gude people, to my tale. Listen to what 1 tell to thee; The king has taken a poor prisoner, The wanton laird of Ocliiltrie. * [Slightly altered, In the Interest of truth and doUcaoy.] 63G BALLAD MINSTRELSY OP SCOTLAND. 2 "NVlien news came to our j^adoly queen, She sigli'd, and said right mourufullio, — - " Oil, wliat will come of Ladyc JMarg'rot, "\Ylia bears sic love to Ocliiltrie?" 3 Ladye Marg'rct tore her yellow hair. When as the queen told her the same: '' I wish that I had ne'er been born, Nor e'er had known Ochiltrie's name." 4 " Fie, na! " quoth the queen, " that inaunna lo^ Fie, na ! [lie, na!] that maunna be; I'll iind ye out a better way To save the life of Ochiltrie." 5 The queen she trippit up the stair, And lowly knelt upon her knee: " The first boon which I come to crave, Is the life of gentle Ochiltrie." C " Oh, if you had ask'd me castles or tow'rs, I wou'd ha'e gi'en them, twa or three; But all the money in fair Scotland Winna buy the life of Ochiltrie." 7 The queen she trippit down the stair. And down she gaed right mournfullie: " It 's all the money in fair Scotland Winna buy the life of Ochiltrie." 8 Ladye Marg'ret tore her yellow hair. When as the queen told her the same: " I'll take a knife and end my life, And be in the grave as soon as him." 9 " Ah ! fie, na ! fie, na ! " quoth the queen ; " Fie, na! fie, na! this maunna be; I'll set ye on a better way To save the life of Ochiltrie." 10 The queen she slippit up the stair, And she gaed up right privatlie. And she has stolen the prison keys, And gane and set free Ochiltrie. 11 And she 's gi'en him a purse of gowd, And another of [the] white money, She 's gi'en him twa pistols by his side. Saying to him — " Shoot when ye win free." WILLIE MACINTOSH; OR, THE BUHNING 01' AUCHINDOUN. 537 12 And Avlien he came to the queen's window, AVhateu a joyl'ul sliout ga'e he! " Peace be to onr roj'al queen. And peace be in her companie!" 13 " Oh, whaten a A-oice is that? " quoth the king, "^^^laten a voice is that?" quotli lie; " Wliaten a voice is that?" quoth the kin^'. — ■ " I think it 's the voice of Ochiltrie. 14 " Go call to nio my gaolers all, Callthcm by thirty and by three; For on the morn, at twelve o'clock, It's hangit shall tlicy ilk ane be." 15 " Oh, didna ye send j'our keys to us? Ye sent them be thirty and be three; And with them sent a straight command, To set at largv young Ochiltrie." 16 " Ah, na ! fie, na ! " quoth the queen, " Fie, my dear love, this maunna be ; And if ye're gaun to hang them all, Indeed, ye maun begin with me." 17 The ane was shippit at the pier of Leith, The other at the Queensferrie; And now the ladye has gotten her lovo, The Avinsome laird of Ochiltrie. WILLIE MACINTOSH ; OR, THE BURNING OF AUCHINDOUN. Mr. Finlay first published four stanzas of this ballad in his Scotlish Ballads, vol. ii., \}. 97. Other four stanzas were afterwards published by Mr. Laincj, in The. TlilsUe of Scotimd, p. 100. The same number of stanzas of a thiid version were copied by Mr. Wliiteiaw, iu 1S54, from "an Aberdeen newspaper;" in which, he fitates, they appeared "about thirty years ago, with the following note prelixed : — ' In ]r)92 the Mackiutoshcp, or clan Chattan, having offended Gordon of Huntly and Strathbo^de, to whom they were vassals, the latter vowed vcngcaDcc, which the former fcariu:;^, requested their chief to proceed to Auchindoun (.';istl(!, the rcsidcuco of their offended superior, and sue for jjcace. On Ids arriv.al there, Gordon was unfortunately from home : lie was, however, introduced to his Ir.dy, to whom he told (n v.hat errand he had come, and pleaded for her iutcrcession ; but she told Liiu tliat she was sure her 538 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. lord would not be satisfied until tlie head of the chief of the clan Chaltau was fixed on the castle gate. The chief despising her threat, ami bowing scornfully low before he should dojiart, she snatched a sword froni the wall, and severed his head from his body. His clan, on hearing of the "horrid deed," assembled under his son and successor, and marched to Auchindoun Castle in the dead of night, which they plnudcrcd and .«et on (ire. Tiie lady madj her escape, but several of the inmates perished in the tlaincs. The ruins of this baronial residence are still to be seen on the banks of the river riddich, in Banlldhire.'"— Whitelaw's Booh of Scot'hh Ballads, p. 2-[8. Stanza 1 is from Finlay ; 2 and ;> are nearly the same in all three ; 4 is from Laing, and 5 from AVhitclaw. It will be remenibered that Auchiudoun was the seat of xAdam o' Gordon. 1 As I came in by Fiddich-side, In a May morning, I met Willie Macintosh An hour before the dawning. 2 " Turn, Willie Maclntosli, Turn, turn, I bid ye; If ye burn Auchindoun, Huntly he will head ye." 3 " Head me, or hang me, That wnnna fley me; I'll burn Auchindoun, Ere the life lea'e me." 4 Coming o'er Cairn Groom, And looking down, man, I saw Willie Macintosh Burn Auchindoun, man. 5 Light was the mirk hour At the day dawning, For Auchindoun was in a Hame Ere the cock crawing. THE BATTLE OF BALRINNES. The Catholic I'^arls of ITuntly and Errol, with their associates and retainers in the North— then, as it seems, in the interest of and sub- sidized by gold from Spain— were opposed with all the bitterness of religious and party rancour, by the adherents of the Kirk, then dorninant at Court, and whose "avowed object was to depose Anil- dirkt," and to spoil the Egyptians, or Catholic lords, in the intcrcab of the Kirk, the Engli.sh alliauce, and, it may be, with some view, on the part of many, to their own special benefit. THE BATTLE OF BALRINNES. 539 "On the 21sfc of September, 1594, Argyle, having received the royal commission to piu-sue Huntly and his associates, set out on his expedition at the head of a force of six thousand men." This force consisted, for the most part, of hastily levied and poorly armed High- landers. But Argyle, v^'ho was only nineteen, ardent, and eager to revenge the murder of his brother-in-laAV, " the bounie Earl of Murray," pressed forward to meet Huntly ; " to whom he sent a message, that withiu three days he meant to sleep at Strathbogie. To th?s taunting challenge Huntly replied, that Argyle should be welcome: he would himself be his porter, and open all the gates of his palace to his young friend ; but he must not take it amiss if he rubbed his cloak against Argyle's plaid ere they parted." Argyle's army— augmented by a rabble of " rmcals and poJcebearerSf' as they are designated by Bowes, Queen Elizabeth's representative — num- bered about ten thousand men. On the other hand, the Catholic earls wei'e unable to muster more than fifteen hundred, or at most t-wo thousand men; " but of these the greater part were resolute and gallant gentlemen ; all well mounted and fully araicd ; and among them some officers of veteran experience, who had served in the Low Countries. They had, besides, sLx; pieces of ordnance, which were placed under the charge of Captain Andrew Gray, who afterwards commanded the English and Scottish auxiliaries in Bohemia." '" Having thus stated the circumstances which led to the battle, the ballad itself may be left to tell its own talc, as to the incidents of the fight. The action is variously styled "The Battle of Balriunes," of " Glenlivet," or " Strathaven." It was fought on the 3d of October, 1594. Two copies of an edition printed at Edinburgh, in 1681, 12mo, exist one in Pepys' collection {ante, p. 181), and the other in the Advocates' Library. A copy, pi-obably printed from the latter, appears in '^Scotliah Ponm, of the XVI. Centur;/, Edinburgh, 1801 ; one of the numerous useful iiublicatJons, illustrative of Scottish liistory, edited by Mr, Dalzell, Advocate." The first four stanzas appear in Jamieson's Popular Ballads, vol. ii., p. 144 Another version, obviously printed from a stall copy, occur.s in Scarce, Ancient Ballads, p. 29, Aberdeen, 1822. Stanza 3, from Jamieson's, and stanzas 27, 33, 34, 39, and 40, from Laing's versions, as here in.serted v/ithin brackets, do not occur in ii.ilzell's cojty. Tlic orthography has been modernized, and a few obvious errors corrected. 1 FnAE Dunnoter to Aberdeen, I rase and took the way, BclioviiiK wccl tliat it had been Not half ane hour to day. ♦ Tyller'B HUlory o/ Scotland, a. d. liOl. 640 BALLAD illNSTKELSY OF SCOTLAND. The lift was clad with cloudis gray, And ower niaskit was the moon, AVIiicli iiie deceived wlierc I lay, And made me rise ower soon. On Towic ]\Iount I met a man Well graithcd in his gear; Quoth I — " What news?" then lie began To tell a iitt of weir Quoth he — "The ministers, I fear, A bloody browst have brewn; For yesterday, withonten mair, On ane hill at Stradown, [" I saw three lords in battle fight Eight furiously awhile, lluntlic and Errol, as they hight, Were both against Argyle. Turn back with me and ride a mile, And I shall make it kcnn'd, How they began the form and stylo, And of the battle's end."] Then I, as any man would be, Desirous was to know Mair of that tale he told to mo, The which, he said, he saw. By then the day began to daw, And back with him I rade; Then he began the sooth to show, And on this wise he said : — MacCallen More came frae the west, With mony a bow and brand ; To waste the Rhinnes ho thought best, The Earl of Himtlie's land. He swore that none shou'd him gainstand. Except that he were fey, But all shou'd be at his command, That dwelt be north of Tay. Then Huntlie, to prevent that peril, Directit hastilie. Unto the noble Earl of Errol Besought hhn for supplie. Wlia said — " It is my dutie For to give Huntlie support, For if he loses Stratliljogie, My Slaines* will be ill hurt. • Slaines Castle, the seat of the Earl of Errol. TUE BATTLE OF BALRINNES. 6-11 7 " Therefore I liald the subject vain, Wou'd reave us of our riglit, First shall one of us be slain, The other tak' the flight. Suppose Argyle be much of might, By force of Hielandmen; "We 's be a mote into his sight, Or he pass hamc again. 8 " Be blithe, my merry men, be blithe, Argyle shall have the worse, Gif he into this country kythe,* I houp in God his cross ! " Then leap'd this lord upon his liorse, And witli warlike troop frae Turray, f To meet with Huntlie and his force. Bade to Elgin in the ]\Iurray. 9 Tlie same night that those two lords met, I wot 'twou'd bo thought long; To tell you all, (I have forgot,) The ruirth Avas them among. Then pipers play'd, and songsters sang, To glad the merry host; "Wlia fear'd not tlic foemen strong, Nor yet Argyle his boast. 10 They for two days wou'd not remove. But blithely drank the wine; Some to his lass, some to his love. Some to liis ladye iino. And he that thought not for to blyne,| His mistress' token tak's, They kiss'd it first, and set it syno Upon their helms and jacks. 11 They pass'd their time right wantonlio, Till word came at the last, Argyle, with ane great armic, Approached wond'rous fast. Tlien frae the toun those Barons pass'd, And Iluntlic to them said, — "Gude gentlemen, we will us c;ist To Strathbogic, but bccd."§ • "Kythc: " is fount 1 "Turray: " Turriff, in Abcrclecnsbiro. J " Blyue: " slop. ScemR (o mean here, not to Bhiink in llio bilUo. { "Bccd: " w'.tbout delay. 542 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND, 12 When thoy unto Strathbogie came, To council soon they gaed; Tl)evc to see how things might J'rame,* For they had nieikle need. They vowed them nnto a deed, As kirkincn cou'd devise, Syne ]>ray\l that they might find good speed Of their giide enterprise. 13 Then every man himself did arm, To meet JMacCallen More, Unto Stratlidouu, wlio did great liarm Tlie Wedeusdaj^ before. As lions do poor lambs devour. With bluidie teeth and nails, They brent the biggings, took the store, Syne slew the people's sells. 14 Beside all this hie crueltie, He said, ere he should cease. The slanding-stones of Strathbogie Should be his pallion's place. But Huntlie said — "With God his grace, First we shall fight them ones. Perchance that they may talc' the chase, Ere they come to the stones!" 15 Those Lords kept on at afternoon AVith all their weirmen wight, Tlien sped up to the Cabrach soon, Where they bade all that night. Upon the morn, when day Avas light. They raise and made them bonne, Iiilil ane castle that stood on height; They called it Auchindoun. 10 Beside that castle, on a croft, They stended pallions there; Then spak' a man that had been oft In jeopardie of weir: " i\Iy Lords, your foes they are to fuar, Though we were never so stout, Therefore command some men of Aveir To Avatch the rest about." 17 By this Avaa done, some gentlemen, or noble kin and bluid, To council Avith those Lords began, Of matters to conclude: * "Frame: " lake form. THE BATTLE OF BALEINNES. 543 For weel enengli they nnderetood The matter was of weight, They hadna so manie men of good, In battle for to fight. 18 The firstiu man in council spak', Good Errol, it was he; "Wiio says — " I will the vanguard tak'. And leading upon me. My Lord Huntlie, come succour me, Wlien ye see me opprest; For frae the field I Avill not flee, So lang as I may last." 19 Tliereat some Gordons waxed wraith, And said he did them wrong: To let this lord then they were laith, First to the battle gang. The meeting that was them among. Was no men that it heard ; But Huntlie, with ane troop full strong, Bade into the rear-guard. 20 This was the number of their force. Those Lords to battle led; Ane thousand gentlemen on horse. And some footmen they had; Three hundred that shot arrows braid. Four score that hagbuts bore; This was the number that they had, Of footmen with them sure. 21 Thus with their noble chivalry They marched into the field ; Argyle, with ane great arniie. Upon ane hill ta'en bield; Abiding them witli spear and shield, "With bullets, darts, and bows; The men could weel their weapons wield, To meet them was nae mows.* 22 Wiicn tliey so near other were come, Tliat ilk man saw his foe, " Go to, essay the game," said some; But Captain Kerf said, "No: • See "Battle of Harlaw,'' btanza 19, line H, ante, p. 448. f "Captain Kcr." This personoKO U usually tnpposod to bo the p'^rpctrntor of the Towlo trasc'lv, but Or.» iitpiiliUcation bpckih doubtful, n^ the latter l^ named "Andrew," while the "Car Uin Kcr ' here rclerr-id to Is named, by Tytler, "Thomas." 644 BALLAD WINSTiaaSY OV SCOTLAND. First let. the guns before us go, Tliat they may break the order." Quotli baitli the Lords — " Let it be so, Or ever we gae larder." * 23 Then Andrew Gray, upon anc horso, ]5etwixt the battles rade, I\Iaking the sign ol'liall}' cross, " /« mmms huis,^^ he said. lie lighted tliere the guns to lead, Till they came to the rest; Then Captain Ker nnto liim sped, And bade him shoot in haste. 24 " I will not shoot," quoth Andrew Gray, " Till they come o'er yon hill ; Wo ha'e an owcr gude cause this day, Thro' misgnidings to spill. Go back, and bid our men bide still, Till they come to the plain; Then shall my shooting do them ill; I will not shoot in vain." 25 " Shoot up, shoot up ! " quoth Captain Ker, " Shoot up to our comfort!" The firstin shot [it] was too near, It lighted all too short. The nextin shot their foes [it] hurt. It lighted wond'rous weel : Quoth Andrew Gray — " I see ane sport, When they begin to reel! 26 " Go to, good mates, and 'say the game, Yon folks are in a fray; Let see how Ave can mell with them. Into their disarray; Go, go, it is not time to stay, All for my benison ; Save none this day, ye may gar die, Till we the held ha'e won!" 27 [Then awful Errol he 'gan say: "Good fellows, follow me; I hope it shall be ours this day, Or else therefore to dee. Tho' they in number many be, Set on withouten Avords; Let ilk bravo fuUow brake his tree, And then pursue with swords."] * "Fari'er: " farther. THE EATTLE OF EALRINNES. 545 28 Then Errol hasted to the height Where he did battle hide, With him Avent Auchindomi and Gight, And Bonnitoun by his side; Wlicre many gentlemen did with him bide, Whose praise should not be smoor'd;* But Captain Kcr, that was their guide, Rade aye before my Lord. 29 They were not man}^ men of weir, But they were wondrous true ; With hagbuts, pistols, bow, and spear, They did their foes pursue ; Where bullets, darts, and arrows flew, As thick as hail or rain, Whilk many hurt ; and some they slew, Of horse and gentlemen. 30 Huntlie made haste to succour him, And charged furioushe, Wliere many [ane] man's siglit grew dim, The shots so thick did flee; Whilk gar'd right many doughty dee,f Of some on every side ; Argyle with his tald J host did flee, But MacLean § did still abide. 81 ^lacLean had on a habergeon. Ilk Lord had on ane jack. Together fiercely arc they run, With many a gun's crack. The splinters of their spears they brak' Flew up into the air. And bore doun many on their back. Again raise never mair. 82 " Alace, I see ane sorry sight! " Said the Laird of MacLean; " Our feeble folks have ta'en tlie flight, And left me mine alane. Now maun I flee or else bo slain. Since they will not return ; " With that he ran out o'er ane den. Alongside ane little burn. • "Smoor'd:" smothered; BuppresHcd. t " Doughty dee: " redoubtable men die. t "Tald" BeeniB to mean here, aforoHaid. 5 Sir I>aiichlan MacLean, of Duart, second in command. "This chieftain," snyM Tyiler, "wan coDHpicuouB from liiB great Htaturo and Btrengtli. lie waH covered with a Hhlrt of mall, wielded a double-edged DanlHh batllo-aso, and appears to Uavo been a more experienced ofllcer than tlio re»t." 546 BALLAD MINSTRKLSY OF SCOTLAND. 33 [Then soiuo men said- " Wo will be sure And tak' MucLoau by couihu." "t!o to! for we are men anew To bear him douti bj^ force." But noble Errol had rtiuorse, And said — " It is not best; For the Argylo has i;ot the worst, Let him gang witli tlie rest. .34 " AVhut greater honour coii'd yo wisb, In deeds of chivalry, Or braver victory than this, Where one haa chased thrice three? Therefore, good fellows, let him be ; He'll dee before he yield; For he with his small company Bade longest in the field."] 35 Then, after great Argylo his host, Some horsemen took the chase; They turn'd their backs, for all their boast, Contrair their foes to face. They cried out, " Oh ! " and some, " Alace ! " But never for mercy sought ; Therefore the Gordons gave no grace, Because they crav'd it not. 30 Then some good man pursued sharp, With Errol and Huntlie, And tliey with ane captain did carp, Whose name was Ogilvie. lie says — "Gentlemen, let's see Who maniest slain [hast] slaid; Save nane this day ye may gar dee, For plcadis nor ransom paid." * 37 Like harts, up howes and hills they ran, Where horsemen might not win ; "Retire again," quotli'lluntlic then, "Where we did first begin. Here lies many carv&d skins, And many ane bloody beard, For any help, with little din. Shall rot abune the ycard."f * For pleadings uor for promised rftripou). t " Teard: " earth. THE BATTLE OF BALRINNES. 547 38 When tbey came to tlie liill again, They set doun on tlieir knees; Syne thanked God that they had slain So many enemies.* They rose before Argyle his eyes, Made Captain Ker ane knight, Syne bade amang the dead bodies Till they were out of sight. 39 [Now I have you already told, Huntly and Errol's men Could scarce be thirteen hundred call'd, The truth if ye wou'd ken. And yet Argyle and his thousands ten Were they that took the race; And tho' that they were nine to ane. They caused [them] tak' the chase. 40 So Argyle's boast it was in vain (He thocht sure not to tyne),f That if he durst come to the plain, He would gar every nine Of his lay hold upon ilk man Huntly and Errol had ; And yet for all his odds he ran, To tell how ill he sped.] 41 This deed sae doughtilie was done, As I heard true men tell, Upon a Thursday afternoon, Sanct Francis' eve befell. Good Auchindoun was slain himsel'. With seven mair in battell, So was the laird of Loclienzell,J Great pitie was to tell. § • Such blasphomons exhibitiona of barbarona pioty are neither rare nor extinct,— wltncBs th •■ re piit notoriouH ili'spatches of a certain aged and pious monarch (Anrio Dfrm. ISTn;. The following lines, ascribed to our national bard, Kobert Burns, may be here quoted, afl peculiarly applicable : — "Yo hypocritcB, are these your pranks? To murder folks, and then give thanks ! Forbear, forbear, proceed no further, For God delights in no such murder. t " Tyne:" lose. t Archibald and James Campbell of I.nr-hno'.l, the nearef-t heirs of Argyle, were killed In thli battle. — Ayloun. 5 Tho poet oppoars to have boon imbued with a truer Idea, and purer spirit of Cbriatianiiy, than that above commented on.. 648 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. THE DUKE OF GORDON'S DAUGHTER. From Ritson^a Scottish Song, vol. ii., p. 169. ' ' Georo;c (( !orcloii) , fourth Earl of Huntley, who succeeded his grand- father, Eai-1 Alexander, in lo'io, and was killed at the battle of Cori- chl(i, in 1503, had actually three daughters : Ijady Elizabeth, the eldest, married to John, ICarl of Athole ; Lady Margaret, the second, to John, Lord Forhes ; and Lady Jean, the youngest, to the famous James, Earl of Bothvvell, from whom being divorced, anno 1508, she married Alexander, Earl of Sutherland, who died in 1594, and, sur- viving him, Alexander Ogilvie of Boyne. The dukedom of Gordon was not created till the year 1084 ; so that, if the ballad be older, instead of 'the Duke of Gordon,' the original reading must have been ' the Earl of Huntley.' As for Alexander Ogilvie, he appears to have succeeded his father. Sir Walter Ogilvie, in the barony of Boyne, about 1500, and to have died in 1000 : this Lady Jean being his lirst wife, l)y whom he seems to have had no issue. See Gordon's JFidorii of the Gordons, and Douglas's Peerage and Baronage." — llitson. [The lirst line should probably read as quoted by Burns in the fol- lowing note : — " There is a song apparently as ancient as the 'Ewe- bughts, Alariou,' which sings to the same tune, and is evidently of the North. It begins, ' The Lord o' Gordon had three daughters.' " — Cromek's Ediques.'] 1 The Duke of GorJon has three daughters, Elizabeth, Margaret, and Jean ; They wou'd not stay in bonnie Castle Gordon, But they wou'd go to bonnie Aberdeen. 2 They had not been in Aberdeen A twelvemonth and a daj', Till Lady Jean fell in love with Captain Ogilvie, And away with liim she v.'ou'd gae. 3 Word came to the Diike of Gordon, In the chamber where he lay, — " Lady Jane has fell in love with Captain Ogilvie, And away witli him slie wou'd gae." 4 " Go saddle me the Ijlack horse, And you'll ride on the gray; And I will ride to bonnie Aberdeen, VvHiere I have been many a day." 5 Tliey were not a mile from Aberdeen, A mile but only three, Till he met with his two daugliters walking, But away was Lady Jeanie. THE DUKE OF GORDON'S DAUGHTER. 549 C "Where is your sister, maidens? "Where is your sister, now ? Where is j^our sister, maidens, Tliat slie is not walking with j-ou?" 7 " Oh, pardon us, honoured father, Oh, pardon us," they did say ; '• Lady Jean is with Captain Ogilvie, And away witli him she will gae." 8 When he came to Aberdeen, And down upon tlie green, Tiiere did he see Captain Ogilvie, Training up his men. 9 " Oh, woe to you, Captain Ogilvie, And an ill death thou shalt die ; For taking to my daughter, Hanged thou shalt be." 10 Duke Gordon has wrote a broad letter, And sent it to the king. To cause hang Captain Ogilvie, ' If ever he hanged a man. 11 "I will not hang Captain Ogilvie, For no lord that I see ; But I'll cause him to put off the lace and scarlet. And put on the single livery." 12 Word came to Captain Ogilvie, In the chamber where he lay, To cast off the gold lace and scarlet, And put on the single livery. 13 " If this be for bonnie Jeanie Gordon, This penance I'll take wi' ; If this be for bonnie Jeanie Gordon, All this I will dree." 14 T,ady Jean had not been married. Not a year but three. Till she had a babe in every arm, Another upon her knee. 1 'i "Oh, but I'm weary of wandering I Oh, lint rny fortune is bad ! It sets not the Duke of Gordon's (huiglitnr To follow a soldier lad. 650 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 16 "Oil, but I'm weary of wandering! Oh, but I think lang! It sets not the Duke of Gordon's chiughler To follow a single man."* 17 When they came to the Highland hillrt, Cold was the frost and snow; Lady Jean's shoes they were all torn, No farther cou'd she go. 18 "Oh, woe to the hills and the mountains 1 "Woe to the wind and the rain! My feet is sore Avith going barefoot, No farther am I able to gang. 19 " Woe to the hills and the mountains! Woe to the frost and the snow! My feet is sore with going barefoot, No farther am I able for to go. 20 " Oh, if I were at the glens of Foudlen, Where hunting I have been, I wou'd find the way to bonnie Castle Gordon, Without either stockings or sheen." f 21 When she came to Castle Gordon, And down upon the green, The porter gave out a loud shout, " Oh, yonder comes Lady Jean !" 22 "Oh, you are welcome, bonnie Jeanie Gordon, You are dear welcome to me; You are welcome, dear Jeanie Gordon, But away with your Captain Ogilvie." 23 Now over seas went the Captain, As a soldier under command; A message soon followed after. To come and heir Lis brother's land. 24 " Come home, you pretty Captain Ogilvie, And heir your brother's land; Come home, ye pretty Captain Ogilvie, Be Earl of "Northumberland." • ■' Single man: " a private. t " Sheen." Aberdeenshire dialect THE DUKE OF GORDON'S DAUGHTER. 561 25 "Oh, what does this mean?" says the Captain, "Where's my brother's children three?" "They are [all] dead and buried, And the lands they are ready for thee." 26 "Then hoist up your sails, brave Captain, Let us bo jovial and free ; I'll to Northumberland, and heir my estate, Then my dear Jeanie I'll see." 27 He soon came to Castle Gordon, And down upon the green; The porter gave out with a loud shout, " Here comes Captain Ogilvie ! " 28 "You're welcome, pretty Captain Ogilvie, Your fortune's advanced, I hear; No stranger can come unto my gates, That I do love so dear." 29 " Sir, tlic last time I was at your gates. You wou'd not let me in; I'm come for my wife and children, No friendship else I claim." 30 "Come in, pretty Captain Ogilvie, And drink of tlie beer and the wine; And thou shalt have gold and silver. To count till the clock strike nine." 81 "I'll have none of your gold and silver, Xor none of your white money; But I'll have bonnie Jeanie Gordon, And she shall go now with me." 32 Then she came tripping down the stair, With the tear into her e'e; One [bonnie] babe was at her foot. Another upon her knee. 33 " You're welcome, bonnie Jeanie Cordon, With my young faniilie; Mount and go to Northumberland, Tiiere u countess thou shalt be." 552 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. THE LADS OF WAMPHRAY. From Scott's Minstrelsy, vol. ii., p. 148. "The following song celebrates the skirmish, in 1593, between the Johnstones and Crichtons, which led to the revival of the ancient quarrel betwixt Johnstone and Maxwell, and finally to the battle of Uryffe Sands, in which the latter lost his life. Wamphray is the name of a parish in Annandale. Lethenhall was the abode of John- stone of Wamphray, and continued to be so till of late years. William Johnstone of Wamphray, called the Galliard, was a noted freebooter. A place, near the head of Teviotdale, retains the name of the Galliard's fauld's (folds), being a valley, where he used to secrete and divide his spoil, with his Liddesdale and Eskdale associates. His nom de guerre seems to have been derived from the dance called ' The Galliard.' The word is still used in Scotland, to exjiress an active, gay, dissipated character.* Willie of the Kirlihill, nephew to the Galliard, and his avenger, was also a noted Border robber. Previous to the battle of Dryfi'e Sands, so often mentioned, tradition reports, that Maxwell had oft'ered a ten-pound-land to any of his party, who should bring the head or hand of tlie Laird of Johnstone. This being reported to his antagonist, he answered, he had not a ten-pound-land to offer, but would give a tive-merk-land to the man who should that day cut off the head or hand of Lord Maxwell. Willie of the Kirkhill, mounted upon a young gray horse, rushed upon the enemy, and earned the reward by striking down their unfortunate chieftain, and cutting off his right hand. ' ' From a pedigree in tho appeal case of Sir James Johnstone of Westeraw, claiming the honours and titles of Annandale, it appears that the Johnstones of Wamphray were descended from James, sixth son of the sixth Baron of Johnstone. The male line became extinct in 1657." — Scott. [See subsequent ballad, entitled " Lord Maxwell's Good-night."] 1 'TwiXT Girth-head f and the Langwood-end, Lived the Galliard, md the Galliard's men ; But and the lads of Leverhay, That drove the Crichton's gear away. 2 It is the lads of Lethenha', The greatest rogues among them a' : But and the lads of Stefenbiggin, They broke the house in at the rigging. ♦ Cleveland ap)jlies the phrape in a very different manner, in treating of the Assembly of Divines at Weatminster, 1G44 :— "And S' l(le') is a Gallianl by himself, And wel niight be; thoro 'h more divines in him, Tlian in all this their Jewish Sanhedrhn." Slcelton, in his railing poem against James IV., terms him Sir Skyr QalyarJ. t Leverhay, Stefenbiggin, Oiith-head, &c., are all Bitiiated in the parish of Wam- phray. THE LADS OF WAMPHKAT, 553 3 The lads of Fingland, and Helbeck-hill, They were never for good, but aye for ill; 'Twixt the Staywood-busli and Langside-hill, Tliey stcal'd the bvoked cow and the branded bull, 4 It is the lads of the Girth-head, The deil's in them for pride and greed; For the Galliard and the gay Galliard's men, They ne'er saw a horse but they made it their aiii. 5 The Galliard to Nithsdale is gane. To steal Sim Crichton's Avinsonie dun ; The Galliard is unto the stable gaue, But instead of the dun, the blind he has ta'en. 6 " Now Simmy, Simmy of the Side, Come out and see a Johnstone ride! Here's the bonniest horse in a' Nithside, And a gentle Johnstone aboon his hide." 7 Simmy Crichton 's mounted then, And Crichtons has raised mony a ane ; The Galliard trow'd his horse had been wight, But the Crichtons beat him out o' sight. 8 As soon as the Galliard the Crichton saw, Behind the saugh-bush he did draw; And there the Crichtons the Galliard lia'e ta'ea, And nane with him but Willie alane. 9 " Oh, Simmy, Simmy, now let me gang, And I'll never muir do a Crichton wrang! Oh, Simmy, Sinuny, now let me be. And a peck o' gowd I'll give to thee ! 10 " Oh, Simmj^, Simmy, now let me gang, And my wife shall lieap it with her hand." But the Crichtons wou'dna let the Galliard bo, But they hang'd him hie upon a tree. 11 Oh, think then Willie he was right wae, When he saw his uncle guided sae ; " But if ever I live Waniphray to see, My uncle's death avenged shall be!" 12 Back to Wamphray he is ganc, And riders has raised mony a ane; Saying — " My lads, if yc'U bo true, Ye shall all be clad in the noble blue." 554 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 13 Back to Nithsdale they have gane, And awa the Crichtons' nowt" ha'e ta'en; But when tliey came to tlio Wellpatli-hcad,* The Crichtons bade them 'light and lead. 14 And when they camo to Biddes-burn," The Crichtons bade them stand and turn; And when they came to the Biddes-strand, The Crichtons they were hard at hand. 15 But when they came to the Biddes-law,'' The Johnstones bade them stand and draw; "We've done nae ill, Ave'll thole" nao wrang, But back to AVamphray we will gang." 16 And out spoke WiUie of the Kirkhill,— " Of fighting, lads, j^e'se ha'e j^our fill." And from his horse Willie he lap, And a burnish'd brand in his hand he gat. 17 Out through the Crichtons, Willie he ran, And dang them down baith horse and man; Oh, but the Johnstones were wond'ruus rude, When the Biddes-burn ran three days blood ! 18 "Now, sirs, Ave have done a noble deed, We have revenged the Galliard's bleid; For every finger of the Galliard's hand, I vow this day I've kill'd a man." 19 As they came in at Evan-head, At Ricklaw-holm they spread abroad;'' " Drive on, mj^ lads, it will be late; We'll ha'e a pint at Wamphray gate.' 20 " For where'er I gang, or e'er I ride, The lads of Wamphray are on my side; And of all the lads that I do ken, A Wamphray lad 's the king of men." « "Nowt:" cattlo. 6 The Wellpath is a pass by which the Johnstones were retreating to their fast- Bosses in Annaiidalo. "^ The Biddes-burn, where the skirmish took place b.?twist the Johnstones and tlicir pursuers, is a rivulet which takes its course among the mountains on tlis confines of Nithsdale and Annandale [at the summit level of the Caledonian Riil- way]. <*"Law:" a conical hilL * "Thole: " endure. /Ricklaw-holm is a place upon the Evan Water, which falis into the Annan, below Moffat. f Wamphray gate was in those days an alehouse. felNMONT WILLIE. 555 KINMONT WILLIE. From Scott's Minstrelsy, vol. ii., p. 32. " In the following rude strains," says Scott, "our forefathers com- memorated one of the last and most gallant achievements performed upon the Border." [The events which the ballad records occurred in the year 1596, while Sir Walter Scott of Buccleuch, and Lord Scrope, were wardens of the West Marches of Scotland and England respectively ; Buccleuch's deputy being Kobert Scott of Haiuing, one of his own clan ; while Lord Scrope's deputy was a gentleman of the name of Salkeld. These deputies met on a day of truce, "at the Dayholme of Kei-shoup, where a burn divides England from Scotland, and Liddesdaill from Bew- castle." In contravention of Border law, William Armstroug of Kinmont, a renowned moss-trooper of great strength and stature, wliile returning home with but three or four in his company, was suddenly pursued by about two hundred of the English Bordei-ers, who chased hun for three or four miles, took him prisoner, brought him back to the deputy, and carried him in triumph to Carlisle Castle. "Such an outrageous violation of Border law" roused the wrath of the bold Buccleuch, who Avrote to Loi'd Scrope demanding the release of the prisoner ; but receiving no satisfactory reply, he ' ' swore that he would bring Kinmont Willie out of Carlisle Castle, quick or dead, with his own hand. The threat was esteemed a mere bravado ; for the castle was strongly garrisoned and well fortified, in the middle of a populous and hostile city, and under the command of Loi'd Scrope, as brave a soldier as in England. Yet Buccleuch was not intimidated. Choosing a dai'k tempestxious night (the L3th of April), he assembled two hundred of his bravest men at the tower of Morton, a fortalice on the debateable land, on the Water of Sark, about ten miles from Carlisle. Amongst these, the leader, whom he most relied on, was Watt Scott of Harden; but, along with him were Watt Scott of Branxholm, Watt Scott of Goldielands, Jock p]lliot of the Copshaw, S.nndie Armstrong, son to Hobljie, the Laird of Mangcrton, Kinmont's four sons — Jock, Francie, Sandie, and Geordie Annstrong, Bob of the Langholm, and Willie Bell the Bedcloak ; all noted and daring men. . . . They passed the river Esk; rode briskly through the Crahames' comitry; forded the Eden, then swollen over its banks, and came to the brook Caday, close by Carlisle, where Buccleuch made his men dismount, and silently led eighty of them to the foot of the wall of the base or outer coui-t of the castle, "Everything favoured them : the heavens were as black as pitch, the rain descended in torrents; and as they raised their ladders to fix tlicm on the cope-stone, they could hear the English sentinels challenge as they walked their rounds. To their rage and disai)pointment, the ladders proved too short ; but finding a postern in the wall, they undermined it, and soon made a breadi enough for a soldier to squeeze through. In this way a dozen stout fellows passed iuto the outer court (iJucclcuch himself being the fifth man who entered), 556 BALLAD MINSTKELSY OF SCOTLAKD. disarmed and boiuul the watch, wrenched opeu the postern from the inside, and thus admitting their companions, were masters of the place " Lord Scrope, believing, as he afterwards wrote to Burghley, that five hundred Scots wei-e in possession of the castle, kept himself close within his chamber. Kinmout Will himself, as he was carried on his friends' shoulders beneath the warden's window, roared out a lusty 'Good-night ' to his loi'dship; and in a wonderfidly brief space, Buccleuch had efifected his purpose, joined his men on the Caday, remounted his troopers, forded once more the Esk and the Eden, and. bearing his rescued favourite in the middle of his little band, regained the Scottish Border before sunrise." — Tytler's History of Scotland, 1596.*] " The Queen of England, having notice sent her of what was done, stormed not a little. [But] this aSair of Kinmont Willie was not the only occasion upon which the undaunted keeper of Liddesdale gave offence to the haughty Elizabeth. For even before this business was settled, certain of the English Borderers having invaded Liddesdale, and wasted the country, the Laird of Buccleuch retaliated the injury by a raid into England, in which he not only bi'ought off much spoil, but apprehended thirtj'^-six of the Tynedale thieves, all of whom he put to death. — Spottiswoode, ]). 450. How highly the Queen of England's resentment blazed on this occasion, may be judged from the preface to her letter to Bowes, then her ambassador in Scotland. ' I wonder how base-minded that king thinks me, that, with patience, I can digest this dishonourable .... Let him know, therefore, that I will have satisfaction, or else ' These broken words of ire are inserted betwixt the subscription and the address of the letter. — Rymer, vol. xvi., p. 318. Indeed, so deadly was the resentment of the English, on account of the affronts put upon them by this formid- able chieftain, that there seems at one time to have been a jjlan formed (not, as was alleged, without Elizabeth's privity) to assassinate Buccleuch. — B>/mer, vol. xvi., p. 107. The matter was at length arranged by the commissioners of both nations in Berwick, by whom it was agreed that delinquents should be delivered up on both sides, and that the chiefs themselves should enter into ward in the opposite countries till these were given up, and pledges granted for the future maintenance of the quiet of the Bordei's. I3uccleuch and Sir Robert Ker of Cessford (ancestor of the Duke of Roxburghe) appear to have struggled hard against complying with this regulation ; so much so, that it required all James's authority to bring to order these two powerful chiefs — Rymer, vol. xvi., p. 322; Spottiswoode, p. 448; Carey's Memoirs, p. 131, et sequen. * [The account of this gallant nchlevement, contained in Tytler, is here Bubstituted in place of that in Scott's Mimtrehv, where it is given from "a manuscript of the period, the property of Mr. Campbell, of Shawfleld, which gives a minute detail of this celebrated exploit. The SIS. [which] contains many curious articles relating to the Highlands and Borders, arranged in a mis 'cllaneous order; appear[s] to have been a collection made for the purpose of assisting Archbishop Spottiswoode in compiling his work." It is headed :— "Relation of the manor of sunnizeiug of (he castell of Cairlell, by the Lord of Buccleugh, in the later end of Q. Elizabeth's lleigne. (Anno lOUU.) " The subsequent information has been selected from the latter portion of Scott'3 introduction to this ballad.] KINMONT WILLIE. 657 "According to ancient family tradition, Buccleucli was presented to Elizabeth, -who, with her usual rough and peremptory address, demanded of him, ' How he dared to undertake an enterprise so desperate and presumptuous?' — 'What is it,' ansv/cred the un- daunted chieftain — 'what is it that a man dares not do?' Elizabeth, struck with the reply, turned to a lord in waiting; 'With ten thousand such men,' said she, 'our brother of Scotland might shake the firmest throue of Europe.' Lucidly, perhaps, for the murderess of Queen Mary, James's talents did not lie that way. "The articles, settled by the commissioners at Berwick, were highly favourable to the peace of the Border. They may be seen at large, in the Border Laws, p. 103. By article sixth, all wardens and keepers are discharged from seeking reparation of injuries, in the ancient hostile mode of riding, or causing to ride, in warlike manner against the opposite JIarch, and that under the highest penalty, unless authorized by a warrant under the hand of their sovereign. The mention of the word keeper, alludes obviously to the above-mentioned reprisals, made by Buccleuch, in the cajiacity of keeper of Liddesdale. "Scott of Satchells, in the extraordinary poetical performance, which he has been jtleased to entitle 'A History of the Name of Scott' (published IGSS), dwells, with great pleasure, upon this gallant achievement, at which, it would seem, his father had been present. He also mentions, that the Laird of Buccleuch employed the services of the younger sons and brothers only of his clan, lest the name should have been weakened by the landed men incurring forfeiture. But he adds, that three gentlemen of estate insisted upon attending their chief, notwithstanding this prohibition. These were, the Lairds of Harden and Commonside, and Sir Gilbert Elliot of the Stobbs, a relation of the Laird of Buccleuch, and ancestor to the present Sir William Elliot, Bart. In many things Satchells agrees with the ballads current in his time, from which, in all probability, he derived most of his information as to past events, and from which he sometimes pirates whole verses, as noticed in the annotations upon the ' Raid of the Eeidswirc.' In the present instance, he mentions the prisoner's large spurs (alluding to the fetters), and some other little incidents noticed in the ballad, which were therefore, probably, well known in his days. "All contemporary historians unite in extolling the deed itself as the. most daring and well-conducted achievement of that age. ' Avrlax facinuf, cum mndka manii, in urhe maniUms et multitudine oppidanorum munita, et callidre aiulacicc, vix ullo obsisti modo potuit.' — Johnstoni Historta, ed. Amstrcl., p. 214. Birrel, in his gossi])ing way, says, the exploit was performed 'with shouting and crying, and sound of trumpet, puttand the paid toun and countrie in sic anc fray, that the like of sic ane wassaladge was never done since the memory of man, no not in Wallace dayis.' — Birrel's Diary, April 6, l.'JOG. This good old citizen of Edinburgh also mentions another incident, which I think proper to insert liere, both as relating to the personages mentioned in the following ballad, and as tending to show the light in which the men of tlic Border were regarded, even at this late period, by their fellow-subjects. The author is talking of the king's return to Edinburgh, after the disgrace which he had sua- 658 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. taiued there, daring the riot excited by the seditious ministers, on December 17, 159G. Proclamation liad been made, that the P]arl of Mar should keep the West Port, Lord Seaton the Nether-Bow, and Bucclcuch, -with sundry others, the High Gate. ' Upon the morn at this time, and befoir this day, there was ane grate rumour and word among the toiiues-men, that the Kiuges M. sould send in Will KinmonGb 3 " What tidings, what tidings, my trust)'' guide?" " Xae tidings, uae tidings I ha'e to thee; But gin ye'll gae to the fair Dodhead,''- Mony a cow's calf I'll let thee see." ' 4 And when they came to the fair Dodhead, Eight hastily they clamb the peel: They loosed the kyc out, ane and all, And ranshackled '' the house right weel. 5 Kow Jamie Telfer's heart w'!eiiov/'r where that she lay, Tliat ler lord was prisoner in enemy's land, Since into Tividale he had led the way. 43 " 1 wad lourd § have had a winding-sheet, And lielp'd to put it o'er Ms liead, Ere he had been disgraced by the Border Scott, When he o'er Liddel his men did lead ! " — • Tho Diulay is a mountain la Liddcsdalo. t ["Nothing can bo moro strilcinR than the picture of old Harden, in tho flght for Jamio Telfer a caltlc." — Edinburgh /Icriew.] t Perhaps one of the ancient family of Brougham, In Cumberland. The editor has \v:cd pome freedom with tJin ori;;in;i,l in the Kubscqucnt verto. The account of tho Cupiain 8 disaKlcr {teste lima rulneruta) Is rather too riaive for literal publication. { " Lourd: " liefer; rather. 570 BALLAD MINSTlUiLSY OF SCOTLAND. 44 Tlii'ic was a wild R-allaiit amanj^ us all, His name was Watty with tlie Wudspurs,* Cried — " On for liis liouse in Stanegirthside.f If ony man will ride with us ! " 45 AVheu they came to the Stancgirthside, They dang with trees, and burst the door; They loosed out all the Captain's kye, And set them forth our lads before. 46 There was an auld wife ayont the fire, A wee bit of the Captain's kin : " Wlia dare loose out the Captain's kye, Or answer to him and his men?" 47 " It 's I, Watty Wudspurs, loose the kye, I winna layne my name frae thee ! And I will loose out the Captain's kye. In scorn of all his men and he." 48 When they came to the fair Dodhead, They were a welcome sight to see ! For instead of his ain ten milk kye, Jamie Teller has gotten thirty and three. 49 And he has paid the rescue shot, Baith with gowd and white mouie ; And at the burial of Willie Seott, I wat was mouy a weeping e'e.J DICK 0' THE COW. "This ballad, and the two which immediately follow it in the collection, were first jjublislied, 1784, in the Haioich Mwmnn, a provincial miscellany, to v/liich they were commnnicated by John EUiot, Esq. of Keidheugh, a gentleman well skilled in the antiquities of the Western Border, and 'to whose friendly assistance the editor is indebted for many valuable communications. * "Wudspurs:" hotspur, ormailspur. t A house belouging to the Foresters, situated on the English side of the Liddcl. 1 An article in the list of attempt". tr,)o i England, fouled by the Commissioncrji ut L'erwick, in the year 1587, may relate to the subject of the foregoing ballad. October, 1582. ThomasMusgrave, deputy) Walter Scott, Laird of> gso kino and oxen, SOO of Bewcastle, and the ten-V Bueklutb, and his com-[ .rait and sheep ants, against ) pUces; for ) ° —Introduction to the History of Wesimoreiand and Cumberland, p. 11- DICK O' THE COW. 571 " These ballads are connected ■with each other, and appear to have been composed by the same author. The actors seem to have flourished -nhile Thomas Lord Scroope, of Eolton, was Warden of the West Marches of England, and Governor of Carlisle Castle ; ■which offices he acquired upon the death of his father, about 1590, and retained till the union of the cro^wns. "Dick of the Cow, from the f)rivileged insolence which he assumes, seems to have been Lord Scroope's jester. The Border custom of assuming norames de guerre is exemplified in the follow- ing ballad, where one Armstrong is called the Laird's Jock (I. e., the Laird's son Jock), another fair Johnnie, a third Billie WiUifj (brother WilUe), &c. The Laird's .Jock, son to the Laird of Mauger- toun, appears, as one of the men of name in Liddesdale, in the list of the Border clans, 1597. " Dick of the Cow is erroneously supposed to have been the same with one Ricardus Coldall, do Plumpton, a knight and celebrated warrior, who died in 1462, as appears from his epitaph in the church of Penrith. — Nicholson's History of WesUnGreland and Cumberland, vol. ii., p. 408. " This ballad is very popular in Liddesdale, and the reciter always adds, at the conclusion, that poor Dickie's cautious removal to Burgh under Stanemore, did not save him from the clutches of the Arm- strongs : for that, having fallen iirto their power sevei'al years after this exploit, he was put to an inhuman death. The ballad was well knoNTO in England so early as 1596. An allusion to it occurs iii Pai'rot's Laqitei Bidictdosi, or Springes for WoodcocLs. London, 1613. 'Oweniis ■wondreth since he came to Wales, What the description of this isle should he, That nero had seen bat mountains, hills and dales, Yet would ho boast, and stand on pedigree, From Eice ap Kichard, sprung from Dick a Cow, Be cod, was right gud gentleman, look ye now ! ' — Epigr. 76.' - Scott's Minstrels]/, vol. ii., p. 61. [Elsewhere, Scott writes: — "In the sixteenth century, these Northern tales appear to have been popular even in London ; for tlic learned Mr. Piitson has obligingly pointed out to me the follow- ing passages, respecting the noted ballad of 'Dick o' the Cow:' — ' Dick o' the Cow, that mad demi-lance Northern Borderer, who ](laid his prizes with tlie Lord Jockey so bravely.'— Nashe's Have with you to Saffren Wa'dxn, or Gabriel Harvefs Hunt is vp, 1596, 4to. E[)istle Dcdicatoi-ie, sig. A.2.6. And in a list of books, printed for, and sold by, P. Brocksby (1668), occurs ' Dick-a-thc-Cow, containing North Country Songs.' Could this collection have been found, it would probal^ly have thrown much light on the present publication." — Minstrclsij, Introduction, vol. i., p. 222.] 1 Now Liddesdale lias liiycn laiig in, There is na rydiug there at all; The horses are all grown sae litlier fat, They downa stir out of the stall. 6?2 BALLAD IIINSTUELSY OK SCOTLANn, 2 Fair Joluinie Armstrong to Willie did say, — '' IJillic, n-riding- wc will gae ; England and us have been lang at feid; Aiblins we'll light on some bootie." 3 Then they are come on to Ilutton Ha'; They radc that proper place about; But the laird he was tlie wiser man, For he had left nae gear without. 4 For he had left nae gear to steal, Except sax sheep upon a lea: Quo' Johnnie — " Fd rather in England dee, Ere thir sax sheep gae to Liddesdale with mo. 5 " But how call they the man we last mot, Billie, as we came o'er the knowe?" " That same he is an innocent fule, And men they call him Dick o' the Cow." 6 " That fule has three as good kye of his ain As there are in all Cumberland, Billie," quo' he: " Betide me life, betide me death, These kye shall go to Liddesdale with me." 7 Then they have come to the puir fiile's house, And they ha'e broken his walls sae Avide; They have loosed out Dick o' the Cow's tliree kye And ta'en three coverlets frae his wife's bed. 8 Then on the morn, when the day was light, The shouts and cries raise loud and hie: " Oh, hand thy tongue, my wife," he says, " And of thy crying let me be! 9 " Oh, baud thy tongue, my wife," he says, " And of thy crying let me be; And aye, where thou hast lost ae cow, in gude sooth I shall bring thee three." 10 Kow Dickie 's gane to the gude Lord Scroopo, And 1 wat a drcario fule was he: " Now hand thj^ tongue, my fule," he says, " For I may not sland to jest with thee." 11 " Shame fall your jesting, my lord!" quo' Dickie, "For nae sic jesting 'grees with me; Liddesdale 's been in my house last night, AtuI they ha'e awa my three kye IVac me. DICK O' THE COW. 573 12 " But I may nae longer in Cumberland dwell, To be your puir fule and your leal, Unless 3'ou gi'enie leave, my lord, »• To gae to Liddesdale and steal." 13 "I pi'e thee leave, my fule! " he says; "Thou sjaeakest against my honour and nie, Unless thou gi'e me thy trowth and thy hand, Thou'lt steal frae nane but wha stole frao thee." 11 " There is my trowth, and my right hand ! iNIy head shall hang on Plairibee, I'll ne'er cross Carlisle sands again. If I steal frae a man but wha stole frae me." 15 Dickie's ta'cn leave of lord and master; I wat a merry fule was he! lie 's bought a bridle and a pair of new spurs, And pack'd them up in his breek thie.* IG Then Dickie 's come on to Pudding-burn house,t E'en as fast as he might dree; J Ti;cn Dickie's come on to Pudding-burn, Where there were thirty Armstrangs and three. 17 " Oh, what's this come of me now ? " quo' Dickie; " What meikle wae is this ? " quo' he; '• For here is but ae innocent fule, And there are thirty Armstrangs and three." IS Yet he has come up to the fair hall board ; Sae well he 's become his courtesie ! " Well may ye be, rr^y gude laird's Jock, But the deil bless all your conijianie. 19 '' I'm come to 'plain of your man, fair Johnnie Armstrang, And syne of his billie Willie," quo' he; " IIow they've been in my house last night, i\iid they ha'o tu'en my three kye frae me." 20 •' Ha ! " quo' fair Johnnie Armstrang, " we will him hang " " Na," quo' Willie, " we will him slay." Then up and spake anotlier young Armstrang, " We'll gi'e him his batts, and let him gae." § ♦ " Brcek thie:'" tho 8;de pocket of liis breeches. t Tlii.s wns a hoimo of BtrcuKth licld by the Ai-mstrongi. TIio ruins at present form a hlicrpfoll on tho furm of Hcidsmors, belonging to tho Uuke of J'.uecloucli. t " Dreo " I.e., cniluie. 5 ' Ui'c him his battn, ami let hiui gao: " dlamiss him with a bealitig. 574 BALLAD MINSTllELSY OF SCOTLAND. 21 But up and spake the gudo laird's Jock, The best falla in all the couipanie : " Sit down thy ways a little while, Dickie, And a piece of thy aiu cow's hough I'll gi'e yo." 22 But Dickie's heart it grew sae grit. That the ne'er a bit o't ho donght to eat ; Then he was aware of an auld peat-house, Where all the night he thought for to sleep. 23 Then Dickie was aware of an auld peat-house, Where all the night he thought for to lye; And all the prayers the puir fule prayed, Wcic — "1 wish I had amends for my gudc three !;yel" 24 It was then the use of Pudding-burn house, And tlic house of Mangerton/* all hail, Them that came na at the first call, Gat nae mair meat till the neist meal. 25 The lads, that hungry and Vvcary were, Abune the door-head they threw the key; Dickie he took gude notice of that ; Says — " There will be a bootie for me." 26 Then Dickie has into the stable gane, Where there stood thirty horses and three; He has tied them all Avith St. Mary's knot, All these horses but barel}' three. f 27 He has tied them all with St. Mary's knot, All these horses but barely three ; He 's loupen on ane, ta'en another in hand, And away as fast as he can hie. 28 But on the morn, when the day grew light, The shouts and cries rose loud and hie; " Ah ! wha has done this?" quo' the gude laird's Jock, Tell me the truth and the vcritie! 29 ■' Wha has done this deed?" quo' the gude laird's Jock; " See that to me ye dinna lie! " ' Dickie has been in the stable last niglit. And has ta'en my brother's horse and mine frac mo." * The Laird of Maugcrton was cliief of the clan AviiiHtrong. t HamstriDging a horse is termed, in the Border dialect, tyinj; him with. St. Mary's knot. Dickie need tliis cniel expedient to prevent a pursuit. It appears from the narration, th;it the horses left unhurt belonged to fair Johnnie Arnistrang, his brother ■Willie, and the laird's Jock; of which Dickie carricfl off two, aud left that of tlio laird'B Jock, probably out of gratitude for the protection he had afforded hinx on bis arrival. DICK O' THE COW. 575 30 *' Ye wou'cl ne'er be tauld," quo' the gude laird's Jock; "Ha'e ye not found ray tales fu' leal? Ye ne'er Avou'd out of England bide, Till crooked, and blind, and all wou'd steal." 31 " But lend me thy bay," fair Johnnie 'gan say; " There 's nae horse loose in the stable save he; And I'll either fetch Dick o' the Cow again, Or the day is come that he shall dee." ■]2 " To lend thee my bay !" the laird's Jock 'gan say ; " He 's baith Vv^orth gowd and gude monie : Dick o' the Cow has awa twa horse, I wish na thou may make him three." 33 He has ta'en the laird's jack on his back, A twa-handed sword to hang by his thie; He has ta'en a steel cap on his head, And galloped on to follow Dickie. 34 Dickie was na a mile frae aff the town. I wat a mile but barely three, When he was o'erta'en by fair Johnnie Arinstrang, Hand for hand, on Cannobie lee.* 35 "Abide, abide, thou traitor thief! The day is come that thou maun dee." Then Dickie iook't o'er his left shouther. Said — "Johnnie, hast thou nae mac in corapanie? 36 " There is a preacher in our chapell, And all the livc-lang day teaches he : When daj"- is gane, and niglit is come, There 's ne'er a word I mark but three. 87 " The first and second is— Faith and Conscience ; The third — Ne'er let a traitor free ; But, Johnnie, what faith and conscience was thine, When thou took awa my three kyc frae me? 38 "And when tliou had ta'en awa my three kye. Thou thought in thy heart thou wast not weel f^ped, Till thou sent thy billie Willie o'er the kuowe, To take three coverlets oO'my wife's bed!" 89 Then Johnnie let a spear fall laigh by his thie, Thought weel to ha'e slain the innocent, I trow; But the powers above v/ere mair Ihan he, Tor he ran but the pair fulc's jerkin tln-ongli. * A rising ground on Cannobie, on tho Dordors of Liddesdalo. 676 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 40 Together they ran, or ever they blan: * This was Dickie the fule and he! Dickie cou'd na win at him witli the blade of the sword, But I'cU'd liim witli tlio phuiiniet under the e'c. 41 Thus Dickie lias fellVl fair Johnnie Armstrang, The prettiest man in the soutli conntry : "Gramercy !" then 'gan Dickie say, *' I had but twa horse, thou hast made me three !" 42 He 's ta'en tlie steel jack aff Johnnie's back. The twa-handed sword that hung- low by big thie; He 's ta'en the steel cap aff his head, — "Johnnie, I'll tell my master I met with thee." 43 When Johnnie weakened out of his dream, I wat a drearie man was he: "And is thou gane? Now, Dickie, then The shame and dule is left with me. 44 " And is thou gane ? Now, Dickie, then The deil gae in thy companie! For if I shou'd live these hundred years, I ne'er shall fight with a fule after thee." 45 Then Dickie 's come hame to the gude Lord Scroope, E'en as fast as he might hie: "Now, Dickie, I'll neither eat nor drink, Till hie hanged thou shalt be," 4G " The shame speed the liars, my lord !" quo' Dickie; " This was na the promise ye made to me! For I'd ne'er gang to Liddesdale to steal. Had I not got my leave frae thee." '17 " But what gar'd thee steal the laird's Jock's horse? And, limmer, what gar'd ye steal him?" quo' he; "For lang thou mightst in Cumberland dwelt, Ere the laird's Jock had stolen frae thee."f ♦ " Blan: " blow, breathed. t The commendation of the lairds Jock's honesty seems but indifferently founded; for, in July, 10S6, a bill was fouled against him, Dick of Dryup, and others, by ihe deputy of Bewcastle, at a warden mooting, for 400 head of cattle taken in open foray from the Di-j-sike, in Bewcastle; and in September, 1587, another complaint appears at th3 instance of one Andrew Eutlege of the Noolt, against the laira'a Jock and his accomiiliccs, for fifty kino and oxen, besides furniture to the amoimt of 100 merks sterling. See l-ell s MSS., as quoted in the History oj Cumberland and ]f'(nl.moreland. lu Sir Eichard Maitland's poem against the thieves of Liddesdale, ho thus commemorates the laird's Jock: — "They spuilye pair men of their pakis, They leif them nocht on bed nor bakis; Baith hen and cok, With roil and rok, The lairdis Jock, All with him takis." DICK o' THE COW. 577 48 "Indeed, I wut j'e lied, my lord ! And e'en sae loud as I hear ye lie ! I wan the horse frae fair Johnnie Arnistrang, Hand to hand, on Cannobie lee. 49 " There is the jack was on his back ; This twa-handed sword hung laigh by his thie; And there's the steel cap was on his head; I brought all these tokens to let thee see." 50 "If that be true thou to me tells (And I think thou dares na tell a lie), I'll gi'e thee fifteen punds for the horse, Weel tauld on thy cloak lap shall be. 51 " I'll gi'e thee ane of my best milk kye. To maintain thy wife and children three ; And that may be as gude, I think, As ony twa of thine wou'd be." 52 " The shame speed the liars, my lord ! " quo' Dickie; " Trow ye aye to make a fule of me? I'll either ha'e twenty punds for the gude horse, Or he 's gae to Morton fair with me." 53 He 's gi'en him twenty punds for tlie gude horse, All in gowd and gude monie; He 's gi'en him ane of his best milk kye. To maintain his wife and children three. 54 Then Dickie's come down thro' Carlisle toun, E'en as fast as he cou'd drie ; The iirst of men that he met with Was my lord's brother, Bailiff Glozenburrie. 55 "Weel be ye met, my gude Pial))h Scroope ! " " Welcome, my brother's fule ! " quo' he : "Where didst thou get fair Johnnie Armstrang's horse? " "Where did 1 get him, but steal him," quo' he. Those who plumlered Dick had been bred up under an expert teacher. Tradition reports that the laird's Joclc survived to extreme old age, when he died in the following; extraordinary manner. A challenge had been given by an EngliKhman, named Fornter, to any Scottisli Borderer, to tight him at a plsice called Kersliopefoof, exactly upon the Borders. Tlie laird'H JocIc'h only Fon accepted the dellance, .■uul was armed by hiH father with his own two-hando97, Hector of Harelaw, with the Grief> and Cuts of Uarelaw, also figures as an inhabitant of the Dcbatcable Lnnd. It would appear, from a spirited invectiy.^ in t!ie Maitland MS., again'it tlie Hegont, and those who delivered up the un;'ortimatc carl to Elizabeth, that Hector had been guilty of this treachery, to redeem the pledge which had been exacted from him for his pea' eable demeanour. The poet Bays, that the perfldy of iMorlon and Lochlevin was worse than even that of— " The ti-aitour Eckie of Harelaw, That says ho .sould him to redeem his pledge; Your deed is war, as all the world does know — You nothing can but covatice allege." — Pinkei-ton's Maitland Poems, vol. i., p. 290. Eckie is the contraction of Hector among the vulgar. These little memoranda may serve btlll farther to illttttrato the beautiful b.^llad9, upon that "uhjfct, publiKhed in the lieHqiies. 584- BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. those numei'ous Eno;lisli outlaws, "vvho, being foi'ccd to fly tlieir own country, liacl established themselves on the Scottish Borders. As Hobble continued his depredations upon the English, they bi-ibed some of his hosts, the Armstrongs, to decoy him into England under pretence of a predatory expedition. He was there delivered, by his treacherous companions, into the hands of the oificers of justice, by whom he was conducted to Cax'lisle, and executed next morning. The Laird of Mangertoun, with whom Hobbio was in high favour, is said to have taken a severe revenge upon the traitors who betrayed him. The jn-incipal contriver of the scheme, called here Sim o' the Maynes, fled into England from the resentment of his chief; Init ex- perieuced tliere the common fate of a traitor, being himself executed at Carlisle, about two months after Hobble's death. Such is, at least, the tradition of Liddesdale. Sim o' the Mayues apj)ear3 among the Armstrongs of Whitauch, in Liddesdale, in the list of Clans so ofteu alluded to." — Scott's Minslrel.'nj, vol. ii., p. 90. 1 Foul fa' the breast first Treason bred inl That Liddesdale may safely say; For in it there was baith meat and drink, And corn unto our geldings gay. 2 And we were all stout-hearted men, As England she might often say; Bnt now we may turn our backs and fleo, Since brave Noble is sold away. 8 Now Hobbie was an English man, And born iu Bevvcastle dale; But his misdeeds they were so great, They banish'd him to Liddesdale. 4 At Kershope-foot the tryste was set, Kershope of tlie lilye lee ; * And there was traitour Sim o' the Mains, "f And with him a private companie. 5 Then Hobbie has graitlied his body fair, Baitli with the iron and with the steel; And he has ta'en out his fringed gray, And there, brave Hobbie, he rade him weal. 6 Then Hobbie is down the water gane, E'en as fast as lie cou'd hie ; Tho' all shou'd ha'e bursteti and broken their hearts, Frae that riding-tryst he wou'd na be. * Kershope-buni, where Hobbie mot his treacl'.erous companions, falls into the Lidtlel, from the KnKlish side, at a place called Turuersholni, where, according to tradition, tourneys and games of chivalry were often solemnized. t The Mains was anciently a Border keep, near Castletown, on the north side of the Liddel, but is now totally denaolishod. HOBBIE NOBLE, 685 7 " Well be ye met, my feres * five ! And now, what is your Avill Avith me?" Then they cried all, with ae consent, " Thou'rt welcome here, brave Noble, to me. 8 " Wilt thou with us into England ride, And thy safe warrand we will be? If we get a horse worth a hundred pound, Upcn his back thou sune shall be." 9 " I dare not by day into England ride ; The land-sergeant has me at feid : And I know not what evil may betide, For Peter of Whitfield, his brother, is dead. 10 "And Anton Shicl ho loves not me, For I gat twa drifts of his sheep ; The great Earl of Whitfield f loves me not, For nae gear frae me he e'er cou'd keep. 11 " Pmt will ye stay till the day gae down, Until the night come o'er the ground. And I'll be a guide worth ony twa That may in Liddesdale be found? 12 " Though the night be black as pick and tar, I'll guide thee o'er yon hill sae hie ; And bring ye all in safety back, If ye'll be true and follow me." 13 He has guided them o'er moss and muir. O'er hill and hope, and mony a down, Until they came to the Foulbogshiel, And there, brave Noble, he lighted down. 14: But word is gane to the land-sergeant, In Askerton t where that he lay : "Tiie deer, that yo ha'e hunted sae lang, Is seen into the Waste this day." * " Feres: " companious. t WhitflRld is explained by .Mr. Kllis of Otterbourne to bo a l.argo and rather ■wild manoridl district in the exlromo south-west part of Nortliumberland; the Sroprietor of which niifjht bo naturally called ttio lord, though not Earl of Whitfleld. ir Matthew Whitllold of Wliitllcid was Sherirf of Norlhiiinbnrland in li:!'i, and the estate continued in the family from the roign of Ilichard II., till about tifty years Blnco. X A?kerton la an old ciHtla, now ruinous, situated in the wilds of Cumberland, about Bevcnteen mlloB north-east of CarliKlo, amidst that mountainous and desolate tract of country borderins upon Liddcfidalo, emphatically termed the Waste of Bcwcastle. 586 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 15 " Tiic Ilobbie Noble is that deer ! I wat he carries the style full hie ; Aft has he driven our blnidhounrlR back,* And set ourselves at little lee. 16 " Gar warn the bows of Hartlie-buru ; See they sharp their arrows on the wall ! Warn Willcva and Speir Edom, f And see the morn they meet me all. 17 " Gar meet me on the Roderic-hangh, J And see it be by break of day ; And we will on to Conscouthart-green, For there, I think, we'll get oiu' prey." 18 Tlien Hobbie Noble has dreamit a dream, In the Foulbogshiel where that he lay ; He dreamit his horse was aneath him shot, And he himself got hard away. 19 The cocks 'goud§ craw, the day 'goud daw, And I wot sae even fell down the rain; Had Hobbie na wakened at that time, In the Foulbogshiel he had been ta'en or slain. 20 " Awake, awake, my feres five ! I trow here makes a full ill day ; Yet the worst cloak of this company, I hope, shall cross the Waste this day." * " The russet bloodhound, wont, uear Anuaud's stream, To trace the sly thief with avenging foot, Close as an evil conscience still at hand." Our ancient statutes inform us, that the bloodhound or sluith-hound (so called from its quaUty of ti-aciug the slot, or track, of men and animals) was early used in the pursuit and detection of marauders. NuUus perlurhi:! aut iiiipcdiai cunem trassQiitcm, aut homines trassaiites cum ipso, ad sequendum latrones. — Iltijian Majestalem, lib. 4tu.«i, cap. 32. And, so late as 1616, there was an order from the king's commissioners of the northern counties, that a certain number of slough- hounds should be maintained in every district of Cumberland, bordering upon Scotland. They wore of great value, being sometimes sold for a hundred crowns. — Exposition of Bleau's Atlas, voce Nil/isdale. The breed of this sagacious animal, which could trace the human footstep with the most unerring accuracy, is now nearly extinct. t Willeva and Speir Edom are small districts in Bewcastledale, through which also the Hartlie-burn takes its course. t Conscouthart-greon, and Eodric-haugh, and the Foulbogshiel, are the names of places in llio sanio wilds, through which the Scottish plunderers generally made their raids upon England, as appears from the following passage in a letter from WiUiam, Lord Dacre, to Cardinal Wolsey, 18th July, 1.3:.'8; Appendix to Pinkerton's finotland, v. 12, No. XIX. " Like it also your grace, seeing the disordour within Scotliumd, that all the myi-guydod men, Borderers of the same, inhabiting within E.'^kdalo, Ewsdalo, Walghopedale, Liddesdalo and a part of Tividalc, ioranempt Bewcastclldalo, and a part of the Middle Marches of this the King'.s r.ordour.-^, cntrcs not tliis We t pud Middle Marches, to do any attemptafe to the Jving our said Soveraino's subjects : but thaye como thorow Bewcastelldale, and retornea, for the most parte, the same waye agayno." J " Goud : '■ /. e., begoud ; began. HOBBLE NOELE. 587 21 Now Hobbie thought the gates were clear ; But, ever alas ! it was na sae ; They were beset by cruel men and keen, That away brave Hobbie might na gae. 22 '• Yet follow me, mj'- feres five, And sec ye keep of me gude ray ; And the worst cloak of this companie, Even yet may cross the Waste this day." 23 But the land-sergeant's men came Hobbie before, The traitor Sim came Hobbie bchiu'; So had Noble been wight as Wallace was, Away, alas ! he might na win. 24 Then Hobbie had but a laddie's sword ; But he did mair than a laddie's deed; For that sword had clear'd Conscouthart-grceu, Had it not broke o'er Jerswigham's head. 25 Then they ha'e ta'en brave Hobbie Noble, Wi 's ain bowstring they band him sae ; But his gentle heart was ne'er sae sair, As when his ain five bound him on the brae. 20 They ha'e ta'en him on for West Carlisle; They ask'd him if he kenn'd the way? Though much he thought, yet little he said; He knew the gate as weel as they. 27 They ha'e ta'en him up the Ricker-gate ; * The wives they cast their windows wide; And every wife to another can say, " That 's the man loosed Jock o' the Side!" 28 " Fy on ye, women ! why call ye me man? For it 's nae man that I'm used like ; I am but like a forfoughen f liound. Has been fighting in a dirty syke." 29 They ha'e had him up through Carlisle town, And sot him by the chimney fire; They gave brave Noble a loaf to cat, And that was! ittle his desire. 30 Tliey gave him a whcatcn loaf to cat, And after tliat a can of beer ; And they all cried, with one consent, " Eat, brave Noble, and make good cliocr. • ' llkUpr-cato : ' a street in Uurlialo. t ' Forfouglion : ' quito futlguoJ. 588 BALLAD JIINSrRELSY OP SCOTLAND. 81 " Confess my lord's horse, Hobbie," they said, "And to-morrow in Carlisle thoii's na dec." "How can I confess them," Ilobbie says, " When I ne'er saw them with my e'e ? " 32 Then Hobbie has sworn a full great aith, By the day that he was gotten and born, He never had onything of niy lord's That either cat him grass or corn, 33 ' Now fare tliee weel, sweet JIangerton 1 * For I think again I'll ne'er thee sec; I wou'd ha'e betray'd nae lad alive, For all the gowd of Christentie, 31 "And fare thee weel, sweet Liddesdalel Baith the hie land and the law; Keep ye weel frao the traitor litains! For gowd and gear he'll sell thee a'. 35 " Yet wou'd I rather be Hobbie Noble, In Carlisle wha suffers for his fau't, Than I wou'd be the traitor Mains, That eats and drinks of the meal and niantJ AECHIE OF CA'FIELD. From ficoiVa 31iiis[rdsi/, vol. ii., p. 11 G. "It may perhaps be tliouglit, that, from the near resemblance which this ballad bears to 'Ivinmont Willie' and 'Jock o' the Side,' the editor might have dispensed with inserting it in this Collection. But although the incidents in these t'lree ballads are almost the same, yet there is considerable variety in the language ; and each contains minute particulars, highly charactei-istic of Border manners, which it is the ol)ject of this publication to illustrate. Ca'licld, or Calfield, is a place in V»''auchopdale, belonging of old to the Arm- strongs. In the account betwixt the English and Scottish Marches, Jock and Geordie of C'a'iield, there called Calf-hill, are repeatedly marked as delinquents.— //JtS^ory of Weslmoreland and Cumhcrland, vol. i., Introduction, p. 'A'^. * Of the Castle of Mangcrfon, so often mentioned in these ballads, there are very few vestifres. It was situat/id on tho banks of the Liddell, bolow Castletouu. In the wall of a neijdiboiirin'.; mill, which has been entirely built from the ruins of tha tower, there is a remarliablc htune, bearing tho arms of tho Lairds of Mangertoun, and a long broadsword, with the fl^'urcs lo,s:!, probably the dato of building or repairing tho castle. On each side of tho shield aro tlie letters S. A. and E. E., Btanding probably for Symon Armstrong and Elizabeth P>lliott. Such is the only memorial of the Lairds of Mangertoun, except those rude ballads, which the editor now offers to the public. ARCHIE OF CA'fIELD, 589 " The editor has been enabled to add several stanzas to this ballad, since publication of the first edition. They were obtained from recitation ; and, as they contrast the brutal indifference of the elder brother with the zeal and spirit of his associates, tliey add consider- ably to the dramatic elfect of the whole." [A North Countiy version, under the title of "Billie Archie," as communicated by ^Ir. Buclian, appears in Motherwell's Mltistrelsii, p. 3.'i5; and a still different version, under the title of "The Three Brothers," is given by Mr. Buchan in his Ancient Ballads, vol. i, p. 111.] 1 As I was a-walking mine alane, It was by the dawnincj of tlie day, I hoard twabrithcrs niak' tlieir mane, And I listen'd weel to what they did say. 2 The youngest to the eldest said, — " Blythe and merrie how can we be ? Thore were three brithrcn of us born. And ane of us is condenni'd to dee." 3 " An ye wou'd be merrie, an ye wouVl be sad, _ What the better wou'd billy* Archie be? Unless I had tliirty men to myscl', And all to ride in my companie. 4 "Ten to Ijald tlie horses' lieads, And other ten the watch to be, And ten to break up tlje strong prison, Where billy Archie he does lie." 5 Tlien up and spak' him mettled Joiin Ilallf (The luve of Teviotdale aye was he), — " An I had eleven men to mysel', It 's aye tlie twalt man I wou'd be." 6 Tlicn up bespak' him coarse Ca'field (I wot and little gude worth was he),— " Tiiirty men is few anew. And ad to rii'e in our companie." 7 There was housing, horsing in haste. And there was marching on the lee, Until they came to IMurraywIiate, And they lighted tlicre right speedilie, • "Billy:" hroiher. t Mettled John IJall, from the I-ai^h TovioUlulo, is pcrhiiiiH J.ilin ir.ill of \ow- Wpfr njT. meiitlone< in tho liBt of Bonier clans, hh ono of tho chiof iiicu of name residing on the Middle Marches in V/Jl. ODO BALLAD MINSTUF.LSY OF SCOTLAND. 8 "A Pmitli ! a smith ! " Dickie he cries, " A smith, a smitli, riglit speedilie, To turn back the cankers of our horses' ehoon I For it 's unkensoivie * \vc wou'd be." 9 "There lives a smith on the water-side, "Will shoe ;ny little black marc for me And I've a crown in my pocket, And every groat of it I wou'd gi'e." 10 " Tlie night is mirk, and it 's very mirk. And bjj^ candle-light I canna weel see; The night is mirk, and it 's very pit mirk, And there will never a nail ca' right for me." 11 " Shame fall you and your trade baith, Canna beet f a good fellow by your mystery ; J But Iceze me on thee, my little black mare, Thou's worth thy weight in gold to me." 12 There was horsing, horsing in haste, And there was marching upon the lee, Until they cam' to Diuiifries port. And they lighted there right speedilie. 13 " There 's live of us will hold the horse, And other five will watchmen be ; But wha 's the man among you all, Will gae to the Tolbooth door with meV" 14 Oh, up then spak' him mettled John Hall (Frae the laigh Teviotdalc was he), — " If it shou'd cost my life this very night, I'll gae to the Tolbooth door with thee." 15 " Be of gudc cheer, now, Archie, lad ! Be of gude cheer, now, dear billie ! Work thou within, and we without, And the morn thou's dine at Ca'field with me." 16 Oil, Jockie Hall stepp'd to the door. And he bended low back his knee. And he made the bolts the door hang on Loup frae the wall right wantonlie. * " Unkensome : " unknown. t 'Beet:" abet, aid. t " Mystery : ' trade. (See Shakespeare.) ARCHIE OF CA'FIELD, 591 17 He took the prisoner on his back, And down the Tolbooth stair cann' he ; The black mare stood read}' at the door, — I wot a foot ne'er stirred she. 18 They laid the links out o'er her neck, And that was her gold twist to be ; * And they cam' douri thro' Dumfries toun, And wow, but the}- cam' speedilic ! 19 The live-lang- night these twelve men radc, And aye till they were right wearie, Until they cam' to tlic Murraywhate, And they lighted there right speedilie. 20 " A smith ! a smith ! " then Dickie he cries, " A smith, a smith, right speedilie, To file the irons frae my dear brither I For forward, forward we wou'd be." 21 They hadna filed a shackle of iron, A shackle of iron but barely three, When out and spak' young Simon brave, — " Oh, dinna you see what I do see ? 22 " Lo ! yonder comes Lieutenant Gordon, With a hundred men in his companie ; Tliis night will be our lyke-wake night. The morn the day we all maun die." 2." Oh, there was mounting, mounting in haste, And there was marching upon the lee. Until they cam' to Annan water. And it was flowing like the sea. 24 " My mare is young and vcrj'- skcigh, f And in o' the well J she will drown me; But yc'll tak' mine, and I'll tak' thine, And suno through the water we shall be." 25 Then up and spake him coarse Ca'ficld (I wot and little gude worth was he), — " Wc had better lose ane than lose all the lave ; We'll lose the prisoner, we'll gae free." ' Th" Gold Twinl mcana the Bmall gilded chains drawn across tho chcsl of u ^var hor 0. as a part of hm caparison, t "Skcigh." shy. $"WeU:" eddy. j92 BALLAD MlNSTitELSV 01' SCOTLAND. 26 " Slinnie fa' you and your lands baitli ! Wdu'd ye e'en * your lauds to youi* born billy? But hey ! bear up, my bonnie black marc, And yet through the -water we shall be." 27 Now they did swim that wan water, And wow, but they swam bonnilie! Until they cam' to the other side, And they wrang tlieir clothes right drunkily. 28 "Come thro', come thro'. Lieutenant Gordon! Come thro' and drink some wine with me ! For tliere is an ale-house here hard by, And it shall not cost thee ae penny." 29 " Throw mo my irons," quo' Lieutenant Gordon ; " I wot thej^ cost me dear eneugli." "Tiie. shame a ma," quo' mettled John Ila', " They'll be gude sliackles to my plough." 30 " Come thro', come thro'. Lieutenant Gordon ! Come thro' and drink some wine with me I Yestreen I was your prisoner. But now this morning I am free." ARMSTRONG'S GOODNIGHT. "The following verses are said to have been composed by one of the Armstrongs, executed for the murder of Sir John (Jarmichael of Edrom, Warden of the Middle Marches, 1600. (See Notes on 'The Eaid of the Eeidswire,' ante, p. 522.) The tune is popular in Scot- land ; but whether these are the original words, will admit of a doubt." — Scott's Minstrelsy, vol. ii., p. 123. They appear in Herd's Scottish Songs, vol. ii., p. 225, with only ;i slight difiereuce in the opening line, which reads— " Oh, this is my departing time." 'J'he words and music next appear in Johnson's Museum, p. 620. Three maudUn stanzas, under the title of^' The Laafc Gude-niglit," ra-c given in Buchan's Ancient Ballads, vol. ii., p. 127. 1 This night is my departing night, For here nae langer must I stay;_ There 's neither iriend nor foe of mine But wishes me away. 2 What I have done thro' lack of wit, I never, never can recall; I hope ye're all my friends as yet; Goodnight, and'joy be with you all! • "E'en:" even; put into comp;iribon. LORD maxwell's GOODNIGHT. 593 LORD MAXWELL'S GOODNIGHT.* From Scott's Minstrelvj, vol. ii., p. 133. "This beautiful ballad is published from a copy in Glenriddel's MSS., with some slight variatious from tradition. It alludes to one of the most remarkable feuds upon the West Marches. " A.D. 15S5, John Lord Maxwell, or, as he styled himself. Earl of IMorton, ha^^ng quarrelled ^\'ith the Earl of Arran, reigning favourite of James VL, and fallen, of course, under the displeasure of the court, was denounced rebel. A commission was also given to the Laird of Johnstone, then Warden of the West Marches, to pursue and apprehend the ancient rival and enemy of his house. Two bands of mercenaries, commanded by Captains Cranstoun and Lammio, v/ho were sent from Edinburgh to suppoi-t Johnstone, Avere attacked and cut to pieces at Crawford-muir, by Eobert Maxwell, natural brother to the chieftain ;t who, following uj) his advantage, burned John- stone's Castle of Lochwood, observing, with savage glee, that he would give Lady Johnstone light enough by which ' to set her hood.' In a subsequent conflict, Johnstone himself was defeated and made prisoner, and is said to have died of grief at the disgrace which he sustained. See Spottiswoode and Johnstone's Histories, and Moyse's Memoirs, ad annum 1585. "By one of the revolutions common in those days, Maxwell wag soon after restored to the King's favour in his turn, and obtained the Wardenry of the West Marches. A bond of alliance was sub- scribed hy him and by Sir James .Johnstone, and for some time the two clans lived in harmony. In the year 1593, however, the hereditary feud was revived, on the following occasion : — A band of marauders, of the clan Johnstone, drove a prey of cattle from the lands belonging to the Lairds of Crichton, Sanquliar, and Drum- lanrig; and defeated, with slaughter, the pursuers, who attempted to rescue their property. (See ' The Lads of Wamphray,' ante, p. 5.52. ) The injured parties, being api)rehensivc that Maxwell would not cordially embrace their cause, on account of his late reconciliation with the Johnstones, endeavoured to overcome his reluctance, by offering to enter into l)ond3 of manrent, and so to become hia followers and liegemen ; he, on the other hand, granting to them a bond of maintenance or protection, by which he bounfl himself, iu usual form, to maintain their quarrel against all mortals, saving his loyalty. Thus, the most ])0\verful and respectable families in Dum- friesshire became, for a time, the vassals of Lord ^laxweil. This secret alliance was discovered to Sir James Johnstone by the Laird of Cummertrees, one of his own clan, though a retainer to Maxwell. • [Lord Byron refers to this ballad, oh havins suggested the "Goodnight" In the flr.-t canto of "Chllde Harold." See Lije unci Works oj Byron, vol. viii. — Lockhart.] t It Im devoutly to be wished that this Lammie (who was killed in the nkinnish) may have boen the sarno miscreant who, in the day of Queen Mary's distress, " hcs ensign Ixdng of quhyt taflltae, had painted one it yo cruoll niurthor of King Ilonry, and laycd down befcjre her niajcstie, at quhat time she presented herself as [jrisoncr to ye lordis." — Birrel's iJiarii, Juno 10, 1.007. It would be some satisfaction to know that the gray hairs of this worthy porsonago did not go do^vn to tho grave in peace. 694 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAKD. Cummertrees even contrived to possess himself of the bonds of man- rent, which he delivered to his chief. The pcbfcy warfare betwixt the rival barons was instantly renewed. Bucclench, a near relation of Johnstone, came to his assistance with hia clan, ' the most renowned freebooters, the fiercest and bravest warriors amonc; the Border Tribes.'* With Bucclench also came the Elliots, Arm- strongs, and Grammes. Thus reinforced, Johnstone surprised and cut to pieces a party of the Maxwells, stationed at Lochmabea. On tlie other hand, Lord JNIaxwell, armed with the royal authority, and numbermg among his followers all the barons of Nithsdale, displayed liis banner as the king's lieutenant, and invaded Annandale at the head of 2,000 men. In those days, however, the royal auspices seem to have carried as little good-fortune as effective strength with them. A desperate coutlict, still renowned in tradition, took place at the Dryffe Sands, not far from Lockerby, in which Johnstone, although inferior in numbers, partly by his own conduct, partly by the valour of his allies, gained a decisive victory. Lord Maxwell, a tall man, and heavily armed, Avas struck from his horse in the flight, and cruelly s'ain, after the hand which he stretched out for quarter had been severed from his body. Llany of his followers were slain in the battle, and many cruelly wounded, especially by slashes in the face, which wound was thence termed a 'Lockerby lick.' The Barons of Lag, Closeburn, and Drumlanrig escaped by the fleetne?s of their horses ; a circumstance alluded to in the following ballad, "This fatal battle was followed by a long feud, attended with all the circumstances of horror proper to a barbarous age. Johnstone, in his diffuse manner, describes it thus: 'Abeo die ultra dtroque. in Annandia et Nithia magnis utnusque regionis jaduris certatum. Cades, incendia, rainnce, et nffanda facinora; liberi in maternis cjremiis trucidati, inariti in conspecta conjugum suarum; incensce villm; lamentabiles uUque querimonice, et horribiles armoriun fremitus' — Johnstoni Historia, ed. Amstasl., p. 182. " John, Lord Maxwell, Avith whose 'Goodnight ' the reader is here presented, was son to him Avho fell at the battle of Dryfie Sands, and is said to have early avowed the deepest revenge for his father's death. Such, indeed, was the fiery and uutameable spirit of the man, that neither the threats nor entreaties of the King himself could make him lay aside his vindictive purpose ; although Johnstone, the object of his resentment, had not only reconciled himself to the court, but even o))tained the wardenry of the Middle Marches, in room of Sir John Carniichacl, murdered by the Armstrongs. Lord Maxwell was therefore prohibited to approach the Border Counties ; and having, in contempt of that mandate, excited new disturbances, he was confined in the castle of Edinburgh. From this fortress, however, he contrived to make his escape ; and having repaired to Dumfriesshire, he sought an amicable interview with Johnstone, uuder a pretence of a wish to accommodate their differences. Sir Robert Maxwell, of Orchardstane (mentioned in the ballad, verse 1), who ■was married to a sister of Sir James Johnstone, persuaded his brother- in-law to accede to IMaxwcU's proposal. The folloAving relation of * " Inter accolas latrociniisfamosos, Scotos Succleuchi climles—fortissimos tribuHum tt /erocissimos."— J ohnatova Hislorw, ed. Auistsel., p. 182. LORD maxwell's GOODNIGHT, 695 what followed is taken frcni an article in Sliawfield's JiIS., men- tioned in the introduction to the ballad called ' Kiumont Willie :' — ' ' ' The simple truth and cause of the treasonable murther of um- quhile ISir James Jolmstoun of Dunskelie, knight, was as efter followes. To wit, John Lord Maxwell having dealt and useit his best means witli some nobilemeu and baronues within the cuntrey, and hkeways with sundry of the name of ^Maxwell, being refuised of them all to be partakers of so foull ane deed ; till at last he imhappily persuaded one Charles JNIaxwell, one of the brother of Kirkhouse,'to be Avith him, and having made him assuired to be pairtuer in that treasonable plot ; therefore, taking advantage of the weakness and unabiHtie of umquhill Sir Eobert Maxwell, of Orchyardtoun, knight, ]jresumiDg that he had power of the said Sir James, being brother-in-law to him, to bring him to anye part he pleased ; Maxwell, pretending he had special busines to do with Sir James, hearing he was going from the Court of England, so gave out by reasoun he was the king's rebell for the time, for breaking -weird out of the Castle of Edinburgh, that he had no other houpes to obtaine the king's favour but be his meanes. So upon this pretence, the said Sir James was moved to meet him at AuchnamhiU, near by Arthorstane, without the house of Bent, upon the 6th Aprile, 160S, with one man onlie with him as was with the utber, therselves two onlie and the forsaid Sir Eobert ]\Iaxwell with them, and their servantes being a little off. The forsaid Charles falls out with opprobrious and malicious speeches to Sir James his servant, ^\"illiam Johnstoune of Gunmenlie, and before he was aware shott him with ane pistoll. Sir James hearing the shott and his man's words, turning about to see what was past, immediatelie Max- well shott him behind his back with ane pistoll chairgit with two poysonit bulletts, at which shott the said Sir James fell from his horse. Maxwell, not being content therewith, raid about him ane lang tymc, and persued him farder, vowing to use him more cruelly and treacherouslie than he had done, for "which it is known suffi- ciently v.hat followed.' 'A fact,' saith Spottiswoode, 'detested by all honest men, and the gentleman's misfortune severely lamented, for he was a man full of wisdom and courage.' — Spottiiwoode, edit. 1677, pp. 467, 504. Johnstoni Hidoria, ed. Amstoel., pp. 254, 2S3, 449. "Lord Maxwell, the murderer, made his escape to France; but liaving ventured to return to Scotland, he was apprehended lurking in the wilds of Caithness, and brought to trial at Edinburgh. The royal- authority was now much strengthened by the union of the crowns, and James employed it in stanching the feuds of the nobility, with a lirmncss which was no attribute of his general character. Lut in the best actions of tliat monarch, there seems to have been an unfortunate tincture of that meanness, so visible on the present occasion. Lord Maxwell wa.s indicted for the murder of Johnstone ; but this wan combined with a charge of lire-raising, which, according to the ancient Scottish law, if perpetrated by a landed man, consti- tuted a species of treason, and inferred forfeiture. Thus the noble jjurposc of public justice was sullied by being united with that of cnricliing .some needy favourite. John, Lord Maxwell, was condemned, and beheaded, 2l8t May, 101.3. Sir Cideon Murray, Treasurer- depute, had a great shaie of bis forfeiture j but the attainder was 596 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. afterwards reversed, and the honours and estate wore conferred upon tlie brother of the deceased. — Laing's JHstonj of Scotland, vol. i., \\ 02. Johnston! Historia, p. 49;5. "The lady mentioned in the ballad was sister to the Marquis of Hamilton, and according to Johnstone the historian, had little reason to regret being separated from her husband, v/hose harsh treatment linaliy occasioned her dcatli. 15nt Johnstone ajipears not to be alto- gether untiiictured with the prejudices of his clan, and is probably, in this instance, guilty of exaggeration ; as the active share taken by the Marquis of Hannlton in'favour of Maxwell, is a circumstance inconsistent with such a report. "Thus was linaliy ended, by a salutary example of severity, the ' foul debate ' between the Maxwell's and Johnstonos, in the course of v/hich each family lost two chieftains, — one dying of a broken heart, one in the licld of battle, one by assassination, and one by the sword of the executioner. "It seems i-easonable to believe, that the following ballad must have been written before the death of Lord JJaxwell, in 1G13 ; other- wise there would have been some allusion to that event. It must therefore have been composed betwixt 1G08 and that period." 1 " Adieu, madame, my mother dear, But and my sisters three ! Adieu, fair Robert of Orchardstane ! My heart is Avae for thee. Adieu, the lily and the rose, The primrose, fair to sec; Adieu, my ladye, and only joy ! For I may not stay with thee. 2 " Though I ha'e slain the Lord Johnstone, What care I for their feid ? My noble mind their wrath disdains — He was my father's deid. Both night and day I labour'd oft Of him avenged to be ; But now I've got what lang I sought, And I may not stay with thee. 3 " Adieu ! Drumlanrig, false wert aye, And Closeburn in a band ! * The Laird of Lag, frae my father that fled, When the Johnstone struck aff his hand. * The reader will perceive, from tho Introduction, what connection the bond, sub- scribed by Douglas of Drumlanrig, KirkpiUrick of Closeburn, and Grierson of Lagg, had with the death of Lord Maxwell's father. For the .'•atist'action of those who may be curious as to tho form of these bonds, I have transcribed a letter of man- rent,t from a MS. collection of upwards of twenty deeds of that nature, copied from 1 "Maorcnt:" the proper spollinj is iminred. Thas, In the romance of "Florice and Blanche- Koure : "— " He will falle to thl fot, And bicoin the man gii'lie mot; His iiianred tiiuii Bchalt afonge, And tho trewthe of his hondo.." LORD maxwell's GOODNIGHT. 597 They were three brethren in a band — Joy may the}'' never see ! Their treacherous art, and cowardly heart, Has twined my love and me. 4 " Adieu! Dumfries, my proper place, But and Carlaverock fair ! Adieu ! my castle of the Thrieve,* the originals by the late John Syme, Esq., Writer to the Signet ; for .he use of which, with many other favours of a similar nature, I am indebted to Dr. Eobert Anderson of Edinburgh. The bond is granted by Thomas Kirkpatrick of Closebum, to Robert Lord Maxwell, father of him who was slain at the battle of the Dryffe Sands. BOND OF MANEENT. " Be it kend till aU men be thir present lettres, me, Thomas Kirkpatrick of Cloa- burn, to be bundin and oblLst, and be the tenor heirof, bindis and oWissis me, be the faith and treuth of my body, in manrent and service to aue nobil and mychty lord, Kobert lord Maxwell, "induring all the days of my lyfe; an J byndis and oblissis me, as said is, to be leil and trew man and servant to the said Robert lord Maxwell, my master, and sail nowthir heir nor se his skaith, but sail lat the samyn at my utir power, and warn him therof. And I sail conceill it that the said lord schawia to me, and sail gif him agane the best leiU and true counsale that 1 can, quhen he only a.'^kis at me; and that I Fall ryde with my kyn, freyndis, servandis, and allies, that wil do for me, or to gang with the said lords; and to do him sefauld, tiew, and thankful service, and take tefauld plane part with the said lord, my maister, in all and sindry his actionis, cansis, quarrellis, leful and honest, movir, or to be movit, be him, or aganis him, baiih in peace and weir, contrair or aganis all thue that loitfea or de may (ray allegeance to owr soverau ladye the queuis grace, her tutor and governor, allanerly except). And thir my lettres of niaurent, for all the dayis of my life foresaid to indure, all dissimulanons, fraud, or gyle, secludit and a>say put. In witness,'' &c. The deed is signed at Edinburgh, 3d of "February, l^iiJ. In the collection, from which this extract is made, there are bonds of a similar nature granted to Lord .Maxwell, by Douglas of Drumlanrig, ance.stor to the Dukes of Queensberry ; by Crichton Lord Sanquhar, ancestor of the Earls of Dumfries, and many of his kindred; by Stuart of Castlemilk; by Stuart of Garlics, ancestor of the Earls of Galloway; by Murray of L'ookpool, ancestor of the Murrays, Lords Annan- dale; by Giierson of Lagg, Gordon oi Lochmaben, and many other of the most anf;ient and respectable barons in the south-west of Scotland, binding themselves, in the most submissive terms, to become the liegemen and the vassals of the House of Maxwell; a circumstance which must highly excite our idea of the power of that family. Nay, even the rival chieftain, Johnstone of Johnstone, seems at one time to have come under a similar obligation to Maxwell, by a bond, dated 11th of Feb- ruary, 1.5i8, in which reference is made to the counter-obligation of the patron, in these words: — "Forasmeikle as the said lord has oblist him to supple, maintene, and defend me. In the peciabill brouking and joysing of all my landis, rentis, &c., and to take my Kfald, leill, and trew part, in all my good actionis, causis, and our Boveraigne lord the king allanerly excepted, as at mair length is contained in his letters of maintenance maid to me thereupon; therefore," &o., he proceeds to bind himself as liegeman to the Maxwell. I cannot dismiss the subject without observing, that in the dangerous times of Qaoen Mary, when most of the;;6 bouds are dated, many barons, for the sako of maintaining unanimii v and good order, mav have chosen to enrol themselves amon;? the clients of Lord Maxwell, then Warden of the Border, from which, at a less ttirbulent period, personal considerations would have deterred them. • This fortress is situated in the stewartry of Kirkcudbright, upon an Island Fcvcral acres in extent, formed by the river Dee. The walls are very thick and Htrong, and bear the marks of great antiquity. It was a loyal castle ; but the liccplng of It, agreeable to the feudal practice," was granted by charter, or some- times by a more temporary and precarious right, to different powerlul families, together with lands for their good service in maintaining and dotcnding the place. This office of heritable keeper remained with tho Nithcsdalo family (chief of the Maxwells) till their forfcitmo, 17I.''>. Tho garricon seems to hivc been victualled upon feudal principlcH; for each parish in the etowartry was burdened with tho yearly payment of 'a lardnrr marl rotr, i. <;., a cow Jit for being killed and salted at Martinmas for winter provisions. The right of levying these cattle was retained by the Nlthesdale family, when they sold tho castlo and estate in 1701, and they did not coafO to exorcise it till tholr attainder.— Fountaluhall's Decisions, vol. 1., p. C88. 2R 598 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND, With all my buildings there : Allien! Lochmabeii's gate sae fair, The Langholm-holni, where birka there be; Adieu ! my ladye, and only joy, For, trust me, I may not stay with thee. 5 " Adieu ! fair Eskdale, up and down, Where my puir friends do dwell ; The bangistcrs* will ding them dowu, And will them sair compel. But I'll avenge their feid mysel' When I come o'er the sea ! Adieu ! my ladye, and only joy, For I may not stay with thee." 6 " Lord of the land ! " that ladye said, "Oh, wou'd ye go with me, Unto my brother's stately tow'r, Where safest ye may be ? There Hamiltons, and Douglas baith, Shall rise to succour thee." " Thanks for thy kindness, my fair dame, But I may not stay with thee." 7 Then he took aff a gay gold ring, Thereat hang signets three ; •' Ha'e, take thee that, mine ain dear thing, And still ha'e mind of me: But if thou take another lord, Ere I come o'er the sea, His life is but a tlu'ee days' lease, Though I may not stay with thee." 8 The wind was fair, the ship was clear, That good lord went away ; And most part of his friends were there, f To give him a fair convey. They drank the wine, they didna spare, Even in that gude lord's sight ; Sae now he 's o'er the floods sae gray, J And Lord Maxwell has ta'en his Good-night. * " Bangistcrs : " the prevailing party. t The ancestor of the present Mr. Maxwell of Broomholin is particularly men- tioned in Gleariddol's MS. as having attended his chieftain in hia distress, and as having received a grant of lands, in i-e\vard of this mauifestatioii of attachment. t This teems to have been a favom-ite epithet in old romances. Tliua, in " Hom- cljilde, and Maiden liimuild," — " Thai saylcd owcr the f/oje so grav, In Inglbnd arrived were thay, Ther him levest ware " THE DOVTIE DENS OF YARROW. 599 THE DOWIE DENS OF YARROW. " This ballad, which is a very great favourite among tlao inhabi- tants of Ettrick Forest, is universally believed to be founded in fact. I found it easy to collect a variety of copies ; but very difficult indeed to select from them such a collated edition as might, in any degree, suit the taste of 'these more light and giddy -paced times.' ' ' Tradition places the event, recorded in the song, very earl3^ ; and it is probable that the ballad was composed soon afterwards, although the language has been gi-adually modernized, in the course of its transmission to us, through the inaccurate channel of oral tradition. The bard does not relate particulars, but bai-ely the striking outlines of a fact, apparently so well kno\VTi when be -^Tote, as to render minute detail as unnecessary as it is always tedious and unpoetical. "The hero of the ballad was a knight of great bravery, called Scott, who is said, to have resided at Kirkhope, or Oakwood Castle, and is, in tradition, tei-med the Baron of Oakwood. The estate of Kirkhope belonged anciently to the Scotts of Harden : Oakwood is still their property, and has been so from time immemorial. The editor was therefore led to suppose, that the hei'o of the ballad might have been identified with John Scott, sixth son of the Laird of Harden, murdered in Ettrick Forest by his kinsmen, the Scotts of Gilmanscleugh. (See notes to 'Jamie Telfer,' ante, p. 568.) This appeared the more probable, as the common people always aflfirm that this young man was treacherouslj- slain, and that, in evidence thereof, his body remained uncorrupted for many years; so that even the roses on his shoes seemed as fresh as when he was first laid in the family vault at Hassendean. But from a passage in Nisbet's Heraldry, he now believes the ballad refers to a duel fought at Deucharswjrre, of which Annan's Treat is a part, betwixt John Scott of Tushielaw and his brother-in-law, Walter Scott, third son of Robert of Thirlestane, in which the latter was slain. " In ploughing Annan's Treat, a huge monumental stone, with an inscription, was discovered; but being rather scratched than engraved, and the lines being run through each other, it is only possible to read one or two Latin words. It probably recoi'ds the event of the combat. The person slain was the male ancestor of the present Lord Napier. " Tradition affirms, that the hero of the song (be he who he may) was murdered by the brother, either of his wife or betrothed bride. The alleged cause of malice was the lady's father having proposed to endow her with half of his property, upon her marriage with a warrior of such renown. The name of the murderer is said to have been Annan, and the place of combat is still called Annan's Ti'eat. It is a low muir, on the banks of the Yarrow, lying to the Avest of Yarrow Kirk. Two tall unhewn masses of stone are erected, about eighty yards distant from each other; and the least child that can herd a cow will toll the passenger, that there lie * the two lords, who were slain in sinele combat ' 600 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. " It will be, witli many readers, the greatest recommemlatiou of these versos, that they arc supposed to have suggested to Mr. HauiLltoii of Bangour, the modern ballad, beginning — ' Busk ye, busk yo, my bonny bormy bride.' A fragment, apparently regarding the story of the following ballad, but in a different measure, occurs in Mr. Herd's MS., and runs thus: — ' When I look east, uiy heart ia sair, But when 1 look west, it's mair and mair; For then I see tiie braes o' V arrow, And there, for aye, I lost my marrow.'" — Scott's Minslrelsij, vol. iii., p. 14.3. A fragment of four stanzas, "to the tune of Leaderhaughs and Y.arrow," appears in Herd's Scott Lih Songs, vol. i., p. 145. Three of them correspond to the stanzas here numbered 15, 10, and 17; and one, v.'hif.h was reproduced in Scott's version of this ballad, seems, as pointed out by Professor Aytoun, to belong to the next ballad, to which it has therefore been transferred. Scott's version, which next appeared, forms the basis of the pi'csent collated version. The stanzas not bracketed are thence derived ; but a few emendations, chiefly on the last lines of some of the stanzas, have been introduced, and consist for the most part in the substitution of "dens" for "banks" or "houma," and of " dowio dens" for " bonnie banks." Motherwell's MinstreUy (p. 252) contains a version " taken from the recitation of an old woman in Kilbarchan." Stanzas 1 to 4 inclusive are from this source; but stanza 1 has been slightly emendated from Scott's. Buchan's Ancient Ballath (vol. ii., p. 203) contains a still different version, under the title of "The Braes o' Yarrow." It is repeated in vol. xvii. of the Percy Society Publications. Stanzas 15 and 22 are taken fi-om this version. Stanza 20 is derived from "Rare Willie's drown'd in Yarrow," in which it appears to be out of place. (See next ballad.) " 'The Dowy Den,' in Evan's (JoUection, vol. iii., p. .142, is," says Professor Child, " the cajiut mortuum of this s])irited ballad." Wordsworth's sympathy with, and appreciation of our Scotish ballad and song lore, is shown in several of his poems. " Yarrow Unvisitcd," "Yarrow Visited," and "Yarrow Bevisited," are instances in point. 1 [Late at evening, drinking the wine, Ou the dowie* dens of Yarrow, • ["Dowio:'' melaniholy;— "Meek loveliness is round thee spread, A softness still and holy; The grace of forest charms decayed, AiJd pastoral melancholy." — Var-row Yisiteonnie Forest thorough? Or come ye here to wield your brand, On the dowie dens of Yarrow?" * [SLinza 1, aB it appears In ScoU's vor^iion, re uls: — " Laic at e'en, drinkinf; tlio winn. And ere tlicy paid the lawinp. Thiy HOt a combat thorn butwooD, T(j Sight it in the dawliig "J t [Scott's text, in pI.i-::o of "marrow," rcada " Sarah," a name which, na ProfesRor Aytoun ju-Uy rcinarkB, " was belter linown in the Lund of Canaan than in Eltriclc Foreat"] C02 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 10 " I come not hero to part my land, And neither to beg nor borrow; I come to wield my noble brand, On the dowie dens of Yarrow. 11 " If I see all, yc're nine to ane ; And that 's unequal marrow : Yet will I light, while lasts my brand, On the dowie dens of Yarrow." 12 Four has he hurt, and five has slain, On the bloody braes of Yarrow ; Till a coward knight came him behind, And ran his body thorough. 13 " Gae hame, gae hame, good-brother* John, And tell my winsome marrow To come and "lift her leafu' lord, — He 's sleeping sound on Yarrow." 14 [As he gaed o'er yon high, high hill, As he had done before, 0, It 's there he met his sister dear. Fast running on to Yarrow.] 15 " Yestreen I dream'd a doleful dream; I fear there will be sorrow ! I dream'd I pull'd the birk sae green, "With my true love, on Yarrow." 16 ['' I'll read your dream, my sister dear, Your dream of dule and sorrow ; Ye pull'd tlic birk for your true love, — He 's kill'd, he 's kiU'd on Yarrow.] 17 " For in yon glen strave armed men ; They've wrought thee dule and sorrow ; They've slain, they've slain your noble lord ; He bleeding lies on Yarrow." 18 As she s])ed down yon high, high hill, She gaed witli dule and sorrow. And in the den spied ten slain men, On the dowie dens of Yarrow. 19 " She kiss'd his cheek, she kaim'd his hair, She searcli'd his wounds all thorough; She kiss'd them, till her lips grew red, On the dowie dens of Yarrow. • "Good-brother:" beau-frbre ; brother-in-law. RARE WILLIE DROWNED IN YARROW. COS 20 [" Yestreen I mnde my bed fii' braid, This night I'll make it narrow ; For all the live-lang winter night, I'll lie twin'd of my marrow."] 21 " Now, hand j'our tongue, my daughter dear! For all this breeds but sorrow ; ril wed ye to a better lord Tlian him ye lost on Yarrow." 22 " Oh, baud your ton;^ue, my father dear! Ye mind me but of sorrow : A fairer rose did never bloom Than now lies cropp'd on Yarrow." 23 [She kiss'd his lips, she kaira'd his bair, As aft she had done before, ; Syne, -with a crack, her heart it brak', On the dowie dens of Yarrow.] RARE WILLIE DROWNED IN YARROW. Four stanzas under the above title appear in Ramsay's Tea-Tahle Miscellany, vol. ii., \). 141. Three of them are given in the following collated ballad, and are numbered 2, 10, and 11. The other forma stanza 19 of the preceding; ballad, to ■n-hieli it seems i^roperly to belong, as it evidently speaks the language of a matron, while that here numbered stanza 2 is as evidently the language of a maid. (See also stanza 3. ) Stanza 9 is taken fiom " Willie's Drowned in Gamery ; " a similar ballad of the North, given in Buchan's Ancient BaUaih, vol. i., p. 245, and of which a fragment, difiering slightly from the complete copy, appears in the Percy Society, vol. xvii., already several times referred to. It was at lirst intended to insert the ballad just named in this collection ; but it is so similar in some of its stanzas to the foUoAving, and in others to "The Drowned Lovers," ante, p. 9, and so much inferior to both, that this intention has been abandoned. The remaining stanzas are from "The Haughs of Yarrow," — " another of Yarrow's inspired songs," given by Mr. Buchan in his A ncitnt BaUacl', vol. ii., p. 21 1. Scott's, or, more correctly sjieaking, Herd's version of stanza 4 has, however, been substituted for the corresponding stanza in Mr. Buchan's version, which is noted under the text. " Rare Willie 's Drowned in Yarrow " suggested Logan's admirable modern ballad, "The Braes of Yarrow," beginning — "Thy bracB were bonnic, Yarrow stream." 1 Down in yon garden, sweet and gay, Wiiere bonnie grows the lilie, I hoard a fair maid singing, say, '* My wish bo witli sweet Willie. CO I BALLAD MINSTUELSY OF SCOTLAND. 2 " [Oh,] Willie 's rare and Willie 's fair, And Willie 's woiuVroiis boiinic, And Willie 's hecht to marry me, Jf e'er he married onj'. 3 " [Bill] Willie's gane, wlioni I thought on, And does not hear mo weeping ; Nor see the tears frac true love's c'e,* When other maids are sleeping. 4 " Oh, gentle wind, that bloweth south, From where my love repaireth, Convey a kiss from his dear mouth, And tell me how he fareth. f 6 " Oh, tell sweet Willie to come down, And bid him not be cruel ; Oh, tell him not to break the heart Of his love and only jewel. 6 " Oh, tell sweet Willie to come down, To hear the mavis singing; To see the birds on ilka bush. And leaves around them hinging. 7 " The lav'rock there with her white breast, And gentle throat sae narrow; There 's sport enough for gentlemen On Leader Haughs and Yarrow. 8 " 01), Leader ILiughs are wide and braid. And Yarrow Haughs are bonnie ; There Willie hecht to marry me. If e'er he married ony. J ♦ Altered. The original reads :— " Draws mony a tear frae 's true love's e'o." t " Ye Bouth, south winds, blaw to the north, To the place where he's remaining; Convey these kisses to his mouth, And tell him how I'm faiiug." I liuchan's vcibiuii.— " The Haughs o' Yarrow " ends thus :— " 'But if he plays the prodigal, I freely could forgot him ; And if he choose auother brida, 1 ever mair will hate him.' "But now Kwoet Willie he's come down, And eas'd her of hor Korrow; And he s made her his lawful brida, Upon the braes o' Yarrow." ANNAN WATEE. 605 9 " [Oh,] Willie 's fair and Willie 's rare, And AVillie 's ■wond'rous bonnie ; There 's nane with liiin that can compare, I love him best of ony. 10 '"■ Oh, came yon by yon water-side ? PiiU'd ye the rose or lilie ? Or came ye by yon meadow-green? Or saw ye my sweet Willie ? " 11 She sought him east, she sought him west, She sought him braid and narrow ; Syne, in the cleaving of a craig, She found him drown'd in Yarrow.* ANNAN WATEE. From Scott's Minstrelsy, vol. iii., p. 2S2. "The following; verses are the original words of the tune of ' Allan Water,' by which name the song is mentioned in Eamsaj-'s Tea-Tahh 2liscelltnij. The ballad is given from tradition; and it is said that a bridge over the Annan was built in consequence cf the melancholy catastrophe which it narrates. Two verses are added in this edition, from another copy of the ballad, in Avhicli the conclusion proves fortunate. By the Gatehope-slack, is perhaps meant the Gate-slack, a pass in Annandale. The Annan and the Frith of Solwaj', into which it falls, are the frequent scenes of tragical accidents. The editor trusts he will be pardoned for inserting the following awfully impressive account of such an event, contained in a letter from Dr. Currie, of Liverpool, by whose corrjspondencc, ^\•hilc in the course of preparing these volumes for the p -ess, he has been alike honoui-ed and instructed. After stating that he had some recollection of the ballad which follows, the biographer of Burns proceeds thus : — ' I ODce in ray early days heard (lor it v/as night, and I could not see) a traveller drowning ; not iu the Annan itself, but in the Frith of Solway, close by the mouth of that river. The influx of the tide had unhorsed him, in the night, as he was passing the sands from Cumberland. The west wind blew a tempest, and, according to the common expression, brought in the water tlirce foot abreast. The traveller got upon a standing net, a little way from the shore. There he lashed him.self to the post, shouting for lialf an hour ft>r assistance — till the tide ro.se over his head! In tlie darkness of the night, and amid the pauses of the hurricane, his voice, heard at intervals, was • " Sho Rouglit it up, hIio iiou!?ht it down, Till Blie WHS wet (ind wcarie; And In tho middle part of it. There Hlie got hor dearie." Penultimate slanza of "Willie's Drowned in Gumcry." Tho "it" moans tho rl Tor. 606 BALLAD MlNSTKKLSy OF 8C0TLAKD. exquisitely uiournful. No one could go to his assistauce— no one knew where he was— the sound seemed to proceed from the spirit of the waters. But morning rose— the tide had ebbed— and the poor traveller was found lashed to the i)ole of the net, and bleaching in the wmd.'"— Scott. [The following bears some resemblance to the preceding ballad, and to " The Drowned Lovers," ante, p. 9.] 1 " Annan water 's wadinc; deep, And my love Annie 's wocd'rous bonnie; And I am laitli she shou'd west her feet, Because I love her best of ony. 2 " Gar saddle me the bonnie black. Gar saddle sune, and make him ready; For I will down the Gatebope-slack, And all to see my bonnie ladye." 8 He has loupen on the bonnie black, He stirr'd him vv'itli the spur right sairly ; But, or he wan the Gatehope-slack, I think the steed was wae and weary. 4 He has loupen on the bonnie gray, He rade the right gate and the ready; I trow he wou'd neither stint nor stay, For he was seeking his bonnie ladye. 5 Oh, he has ridden o'er field and fell, Thro' muir and moss, and mony a mire : His spurs of steel were sair to bide, And frae her fore-feet flew the fire. 6 " Now, bonnie graj', now play your part, If ye be the steed that wins my deary, With corn and hay ye'se be fed for aye, And never spur shall make yoa weary." 7 The gray was a mare, and a right good mare : But when she wan the Annan water. She cou'dna ha'e ridden a furlong mair. Had a thousand merks been wadded * at her. 8 " Oh, boatman, boatman, put off your boat I Put off your boat for gowden money ! I cross the drumly stream the night, Or never mair I see my honey." ♦ " Waddeil: " wagerert. THE LAIRD OF WARISTOUN, 607 9 " Oh, I was sworn sae late yesti-een, And not by ae aitli, but by many; And tor all the gowd in fair Scotland, I dare not take ye through to Annie." 10 The side was stey, and tlie bottom deep, Frae bank to brae the water pouring ; And the bonnie gray marc did sweat for fear, For she heard the water-kelp^^ roaring 11 Oh, he has puU'd aff his dapperpy * coat, The silver buttons glanced bonnie; The waistcoat bursted aff his breast, He was sae full of melancholy. 12 He has ta'en the ford at that stream tail ; I wot he swam both strong and steady; But the stream was broad, and his strength did fail, And he never saw his bonnie ladye ! 18 " Oh, wae betide the frush f saugh wand ! And wae betide the bush of brier ! It brake into my true love's hnnd, "When his strength did fail, and his limbs did tire. 14 " And wae betide ye, Annan water, This night that ye are a drumlie river ! For over thee I'll build a bridge, J That ye never more true love may sever." THE LAIRD OF WARISTOUN From the Records of Ju!stic'mry,% it appears that " Jeau Livingstone, guidewife of Waristoun, having sustained ane deadly rancour, hatred, and mahcc against" her husband, "John Kincaid, of Waristoun, for the alleged biting of her in the arm, and striking her divers times, the said Jean, in'the month of June, IGOO years, directed Janet Murdo, her 7iureis, to ' Robert Weir, sometime servant to the Laird of Duni- pace,' desiring him to come down to Waristoun and speak with her anent the cruel and unnatural taking av.ay of her husband's life. And the said Uobcrt, having come down twice or tlirico to the said umwhile Jean, to the said place of Waristoun, he could get no speech of her. At last, the said umwhile Jean, upon the lirst day of July. • Qtiery— cap-ii-pio. [Variegated woollen cloth or Tweed.] f'FruBh:" brittlo; without cohesion Of parts. } Soo Introduction to ballad, p. 605. } ThQ apelUng is here modernized. COS BALLAD JIINSTHELSy OF SCOTLAND. KiOO years, directed the said Janet Murdo her nureiss to him, desirinir him of new again to come down to her; whereto the said Ilohert granted. . . . And for performance " of the said murder " Robert Weir was secretly convoyed to anc. lakh celler withia the said phice, wherein he abadc iintil midnight ;" when "he, accompanied with the said Jean Livingstone, came forth of the said lakh celler, up to tho liall of the said ]ilace, and therefrom came to the chamber where tho said umwhilc John was lying in his bed, taking the night's rest, and having entered witliin the said chamber, perceiving the said John to be wakened out of his sleep by their din, and to press under his bed- stock, the said Robert came then running to him, and most cruelly, with the folded neives, gave him a deadly and cruel stroke on the vaine-orr/an [flank -vein], wherewith he danrj the said umwhile John to the ground out over his bed, and thereafter cruelly struck him on tho belly with his feet, whereupon he gave a great cry ; and the said Robert, fearing the cry should have been heard, he therefore most tyi-anously, barbarouslj'-, with his hand grippet him by the throat or iral-.cn, till he wearied him ; during the which time the said John Xincaid lay struggling and fcchtliifj in the pains of death under him." The lady and her nurse were quickly apprehended, and met with B^vift punishment ; as the lady "was ta'en to the Girth cross,* upon the fifth day of July [three days after tho murder], and her head struck /)-ae her body, at the Couongate foot, who died very patiently, f [and] her nurse was burnt at the sa.me time, at 4 hours in the morn- ing." — Birrel's Diary, p. 49. Weir, the actual perpetrator of the miirder, escaped at the time, but was apprehended three or four years thereafter, and "the Jury having found him guilty, he was sentenced to be broken alive on the Row, or AVheel, and be exposed thereon for twenty -four hours ; and thereafter the said Row, v.ith the body on it, to be placed between Leitli and V/aristoun, till orders be given to bury the body." — Records of Jiistkiary, as given bj' Mr. Buchan. Three different versions of this ballad have appeared as under: — I. " The Laird of "Wai'istoun," Popular Ballads, vol. i., p. 109, as communicated to Jamieson by Scott, and "given as it was taken down by the " latter ' ' from the recitation of his mother. " IL "The Laird of Waristouu," Kiuloch's Ancknt Scottish Ballads, p. 49. IIL "The Death of Lord Warriston," Buchan's Ancknt Ballads, voh i., p. 56. The two first are fragmentarj', and the thii-d seems rather apocry- phal in some portions. * "Girth Cross, bo called from having onco stood at the foot of the Canongate, near the Girth or Sanctuary of Holyrood Ilouae." — Kiuloch. t It appfurs from tho narrative of a contemporary Edinburgh clergyman, edited by C. K. Sharpo, Esq., and printed at Edinburgh, 18i'7, that tho wretched woman, who was then only twenty-one years of ago, improved what was almost literally her (Jny of grace, and died as if bho wcic a martyr, rather than a murderess, and grudging "every moment whieh she spent in this world as so much taken from that bum Of eternal felicity which she was to enjoy in the next" THE LAIRD OF -WARISTOUN. 609 The present versiou has been collated from all tliree, and retains some of the emeudalious introduced by Dr. Chambers in his collated version; dven in The Scotthh Ballads Collected and Illustrated, kc, p. 129. Stanzas 1, 2, 4, 5, G, 9, 10, 20, and 21, are mainly from Jamieson'a versiou; stanzas 3, 7, S, 19, and 24, from Kinloch's versiou; and the remainder from Buchan's version. 1 Down by you bouuie garden green, Sae merrily as she gaes! She has, I trow, twa weel-made feet, And she trips upon her taes. 2 Slie has twa weel-made feet, I trow; Far better is her hand; She is as jimp in tlie middle small As ony willow wand, 3 It was at dinner as they sat, And when they drank the wine, Eow happy were the laird and lady Of bouuie Waristoun ! 4 But Waristoun spake a word in jest; Her answer was not good; And lie has thrown a plate at her, !Made her mouth gush with bluid, 5 She wasua frae her eliamber door A step, but barely three, When straightway up at her richt liand There stood Man's Enemie ! C " Gif ye will do my bidding, lady, At my bidding for to be, I'll learn you a riclit skeely wile, Avenged for to be. 7 " At evening, wlien ye sit and sup, And when yo drink the wine, See that ye fill the glass weel up To tbe Laird of Wari;;toun."* • Thpfo Ih lets of the torriblo about Iho following, Init It Ih moro in accordauca with fuel :— " Slie 'r oonnsoU'rl wi' her father'n Btowanl, Whnt way bIjo could revenged be ; Bad was the counsel then ho pavo, It was to gar hor gude lord deo."— Buchan'a verHlou. 610 BALLAD >riNSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 8 So at the table as tliey sat, And wlieu tlicy drank the wine, She made the glass alt times gae round To the Laird of Waristoun, 9 The foul thief knotted the tether; She lifted his head on hie, And the iause nourice drew the knot That gar'd Laird Waristoun dee.* 10 Then word has gano to Leith, to Leith, And up to Edinhro' toun. That the lady she has kill'd the laird, The Laird of Waristoun. f 11 And they've ta'en her and the fause nourice, And in prison ha'e tiiem boun'; The nourice she was hard of heart, But the lady fell in a swoon. 12 Then in it came her brother dear; A sorry man was he : "I wou'd gi'e all the lands I ha'e, Bonnie Jean, to borrow thee." 18 " Oh, borrow me, brother! borrow me! Borrowed shall I never be; For I gar'd kill my ain gude lord, And life 's nae joy to me." 14 Then in it came her mother dear; A sorry woman was she : " I wou'd gi'e my white money and gowd, Bonnie Jean, to borrow thee." 16 " Borrow me, mother! borrow me! Borrowed shall I never be; For I gar'd kill my ain gude lord, And life's nae joy to me." • " The noui-ico took tho deed in hand ; I wat shf» was well paid her fee ; She kiest the knot, and the loop she ran, Which soon did gar this young lord dee."— Bnchan's version, t " Word 's gane to her father, the great Dunipace, And an angry man was ho, Cry's fyl gar male a barrel o' pikes. And row her do^vn some brae.'' — Kinloch's version. Contr.ist with stanzas ir, and 17, taken from Buchan's veraloa THE LAIRD OF WARISTOUN. 611 16 Then in it came her father dear; A sorry man was he : "Ochon, alas, my bonnie Jean, If I had you at hame with me. 17 " Seven daugliters I ha'e left at hame, As fair as fair can be ; But I wou'd gi'e them all ane by ane, Jean, to borrow thee." 18 '■ Oh, borrow me, father! borrow me! Borrowed shall I never be; I that is worthy of the death. It 's richt that I now shou'd dee. 19 " Waristoun, I Avas your wife, These nine years, running ten; And I never lo'ed ye half sae weel As when ye there lay slain! 20 " And oh, ye maidens j^oung and fair, Take warning now by me. And see ye never marry ane But wha pleases your e'e. 21 " For Waristoun married me for love, But I wed him for foe; And sae broke out the deadly feud, That gar'd my dearie dee. 22 " A boon, a boon, my liege the king, A boon, I ask of thee." " Ask on, ask on, my bonnie Jean, Your boon shall granted be." 28 " Cause take me out at nicht, at nicht; Let the sun not on me shine. And on yon heading hill strike aflf This dowic head of mine. 24 " But first take aft'my gowd brocade; Let only my petticoat be; And tic my mantle o'er my head, For my death I daurna see." 26 Sae they've ta'en her to the lieading hill, At morn, afore the sun; And with mournfu' siglis they've ta'en her life, For the death of Waristoun, CI 2 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. LADY ANNE BOTIIWELL'S BALOW. In Brome's "Northern Lass," 1G32, there are two stanzas of a Lament resembling portions of, but -which do not occur verbatim iu any extant version of the following ballad. They are : — "Peace, wayward barne! ob, cease thj' moanl Thy fane more wayward daddy 's goae, Auil uofer will recalled bo, By cryes of cither thee or me: Koi- should wo cry until wo dye, Wee could not scant bin cruelty. Ballotc, hallow, &c. " Ho needs might iu himselfe foresee, "What thou successively might'st be; And could ho then (though me forgoe) Hii infant leave, ere hee did know How like the dad would be the lad, Iu time to make fond maydens glad? Balloic, hallow. &!!■ " Four or five MS. versions exist, namely, — (L) Pinkerton's MS., 1625-49, now in tlie possession of Mr. David Laing, which contains two Balowes, named Palmer's and Allan's; (IL) Gamble's, 1G49 ; (in.) Percy's, 1650; and (IV,) Kogers', 1658. With the exception of the two stanzas quoted above, the earliest existing printed version appeared in Watson's Choice Collection of Comic and Serious Scots Poems, part iii., 1711, where it is given under the above title. It was followed by Ramsay's, in the Tea-Table Miscellanij, 1724. Both versions substantially agree ; but Professor Child justly regards " the latter as the better version of the two, and equally authentic ;" and it has, moreover, been adopted, with but slight alterations, by nearly all subsequent editors of Scotish ballad lore. Bishop Percy, in his Bellques, vol. ii., 1765, printed seven stanzas, professedly from his Folio MS., "corrected" by Eamsay's ver- sion. In the Jidiques it is styled "A Scottish Song;" and it is stated that " the editor once thouglit " it "might possibly relate to the Earl of Bothwell and his desertion of his wife, Lady Jean Gordon, to make room for his marriage with [Mai-y] Queen of Scots : but . . he has since been informed that it entirely refers to a private storj'. A young lady of the name of Bothwell, or rather Boswell, having been, together with her child, deserted by her husband or lover, composed these lines herself." An " account of the original personages of the ballad," confirmatory of tradition, of the title given by Watson, and of the circumstances narrated in his and Eamsay's versions, as derived from " a i)assage in Father Hay's Histori/ of the Jloli/roodhouse Family," appeared in Chambers's Scottish Ballads, 1S29, p. 1,3.3, and as a note to Johnson's Museum, song cxxx., in Illustrations of the Lyric Poetry of Scotland, LADY ANNE BOTHWELL'S BALOW, 613 1S53, p. 203.* The information in the one beins; derived, and the note in the other, from the pen of C. K. Sharpe, Esq. According to this account, the lady was a daughter (or grand-daughter) to Both- well, Bishop of Orkney ; her faithless lover was her cousin, Alexander, sou to the Earl of Mar. She is stated to have been very beautiful, and he extremely handsome. He served as i, colonel in the French army (as apparently referred to in stanza 8), but afterwards returned to Scotland, and engaged in the service of the Covenanters. He and many other persons of distinction belonging to the same partj' met their death in the castle of Dunglass, Berwickshire, by the explosion of a powder magazine, said to have " been ignited by a menial boy, out of revenge against his master " (a.d. 164U). It is said to have been "the general sentiment of the time, and long a traditionary notion in his family, that he came to this dreadful end on account of his treatment of the unhappy lady who indites the Lament." Stanzas 9 and 10, as well as another not given, appear to refer to his ti-agic end, and if so, must have been added by some Broadside hack of the period ; as the betrayal, and probably the composition of the original Lament, seem to date early in the seventeenth century. Two or more of the editors of the Percy Folio MS. (printed text, vol. iii., p. 515), in a long illiberal, illogical, and grossly inaccurate introduction to the version contained in that MS , cavil at the account furnished by C K. Sharpe, Esq., which, on the other hand, is vindi- cated by the writer of a note on " Lady Anne Bothwell's Balowe," prefixed to the facsimile reprint of Watson's Collection, Glasgow, 18C9. The text which follows is derived from Eamsay's version, but is slightly emendated from the others. One stanza, four lines of another, and tvro of a third have been left out, aa they are far from poetical, rather vulcar, and apparently interpolated by an inferior hand. Stanza (•, from which the two lines are deleted, has the remaining two of the other stanza transferred to it, so as to render it complete. The chief variations occurring in the Percy Folio ilS. version, are here noted under the text. 1 Balow, my boy, lye still and sleep ! It grieves me sore to hear thee weep I If thou'lt be silent, I'll be glad, Thy mourning makes my heart full sad.f Balow, my boy, tiiy mother's joy, Tliy fatlier bred me great annoy, Balow, my boy, lye still and sleep. It grieves me sore to hear thee weep. * It will be seen from the Introduction lo " TIio DulfS.., stanzft R t " Tbem " is here Eubstiiutod for "her." LADT ANNE BOTHWELL'S BALOW. 615 Balow, my child, thy mother mild, Shall wail, as from all bliss exiled. Balov,-, my boy, &c. 7 Balow, my boy, weep not for me. Whose greatest grief's for wronging thee. Nor pity her deserved smart, Who can blame none but her fond heart; For too soon trusting latest finds. With fairest tongues* are falsest minds. Balow, my boy, &c. 8 Balow, my boy, thy father 's fled. When he the thriftless son had play'd ; Of vows and oaths forgetful, he Preferr'd the wars to thee and me. But now, perhaps, thy curse and mine Make him eat acorns with the swine, Balow, my boy, &C. 9 But curse not him ; perhaps now he, Stung with remorse, is blessing thee : Perhaps at death; for who can tell Whether the Judge of heaven and hell, By some proud foe has struck the blow, And laid the dear deceiver low? Balow, my boy, &c. 10 I wish I were into the bounds. Where he lyes smother'd in his wounds, Repeating, as he pants for air. My name, whom once ho call'd his fair; No woman 's yet so fiercely set But she'll forgive, though not forget.f Balow, my boy, &c. •"TongueB' is stupidly chanced to "hearts" in Professor Aytonu's Ballads of Hcotland. In thin, his echo, Mr. J. S. Roberta, faitlifully follows him, as a matter of courtie; bat in order to show a little indopendoncf. the liint-iiamed editor has dis- iiiTanged the stanzas, and thrust into his toxt Bisboi) Percy's rendering of the three Btaozas noted under stauzas 2 and li) of Uie text liero given. And with such palpable poverty of judgment has he done this, that ho pei-petrates the absurdity of mriklnpc stanza H of the Bishop's copy precede stanza 5 of the present text t "I cannot chiise, but ener will, be louing to thy father si ill : where-oro he Koos, whore-ero he ryds, my lonn wiili him doth Btill nbydo; In wcale or woo. whern-fiie ha (?op, my hart can neoro depart him ffroo.— Percy M^.. !,tanz»4 Stanza 4 of John Oamble's ^fS. Book Is similar 616 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 11 Balow, my boy, I'll weep for thee; Too soon, alake, thou'lt weep for me : Tliy grief's are growing to ;i sum, C!od grant thee patience wlien tliey como ; Born to snstain tliy mother's shame, A hapless fate, a bastard's name. Balow, my boy, &c. JOHNNIE FAA. Great variety and coubruviety of opinion exists regarding the period of the following ballad. Mr. I'aterson, in his Ballads and Songs of Ayrshire, states that he is "inclined to date back the circumstance" to the time of James V., which monarch furnished "Johnnie h'aw, Lord and Erie of Little Egypt," with a letter, under the Privy Seal, dated February loth, 1540, "establishing his authority over the tribe, and calling upon all SheriUs and persons in authority in Scotland to 'assist him in exicutione of justice vpon his company and folkis.' " Another account brings it down to about one hundred years later, by assuming the heroine to be Lady Jean Hamilton, a daughter of Tliomas, first Earl of Haddington, who was married to " the grave and solemn " John, sixth Earl of Cassilis. One version of the story accords with the ballad, in alleging that the Countess eloped with a real gypsy; but other accounts state that the bold Lothario was a Sir John Fall, of Dunbar, a former and favoured lover of the lady. Those who are dis- posed to favour a later date are, however, at variance as to the precise time; some connecting it with the execution of Johnnie Faa, and seven of his tribe, who were tried and condemned at Edinburgh in January, 1G24; while Dr. Robert Chambers states that "the gallant young knight"* seized "an opportunity when the Earl was attending the Assembly of Divines at Westminster" (1643), that he came " disguised as a gypsy, and attended by a band of these desperate outcasts," or, as others say, by a party so disguised. With reference to the earlier date, it can scarcely be supposed that the lady, who was born in 1G07, had formed such an ardent attachment, abandoned, or been forced to abandon it, married, and given birth to two or three children, by or before she was seventeen years of age; while the latter date is disposed of by the fact that she died towards the close of lG4'i, as is shown by letters to and from the Earl, wherein his "great losse and heavy visitation" in the death of his "beloved yoke-fellow," as he pathetically styles her in one letter, or his "deir bed-fellow," as he touchingly designates her in another, is mutually and feelingly deplored. But these letters not only demolish tlie "Westminster Assembly of Divines" period theory, but also the allegation of Lady Jean Hamilton being "the frail fair one" at all. * He is also styled "Her youthful lover." But as tho Couuteas, if she had lived, would then have been in her thirly-sixth or thirty-seventh year, the youtli of her assumed lover does not appear very probable, althougli not impossible. JOHNNIE PAA. 617 They also show that the usually accurate Professor Child is iii erroi-, in stating that " letters are in existence, written by the Earl of CasRilig to the Lady Jean after the date of these events, which prove the sub- sistence of a high degree of mutual aifection and contidence," — the reference jirobably being to the letters anent her death. Another ballad editor, Mr. J. S. Roberts, in his Legendary Ballads, p. 510, refeiTing to the letter "issued under the Privy Seal by James the Fifth" in favour of "Johnnie Faa," pathetically and judicially, though neither accurately nor judiciously, adds that this did not save him from meeting a bad end ; as we find that, in 1624, Captain Johnnie Faa, and seven of his tribe, were tried as "vagaboundis, sorneris, common theieves, callit, kna^vin, repute, and halden Egiptianes," and hanged, as they no doubt deserved to lie. Whether any Lady or Coimtess of Cassilis eloped in the manner desci-ibed, was captured at "the Gypsies' Steps,"* brought back, doomed to witness the execution of her lover and his companions " upon the Dule Tree," divorced a nwrisa et thoro, imjirisoned for life in the Castle of Maybole, employed her leisure hours in working the story of her llight in tapestry, or in gazing on the stone repi-esenta- tion of the Gypsies' heads, carved at the instance of her outraged lord, are facts or fancies which it seems impossible to cxpiscate and demon- strate, so as to establish the accuracy of the one, or dispel the phantasy of the other. The music of " Lady Cassiles Lilt" occurs in fhe. Shine 2fS. (see Dauuey's Ancient Scutish Melodies, p. 228 and p. 268). The air is the same as that to which the ballad is sung ; but whether the air is anterior or posterior to the ballad, cannot be determined. Mr, Dauijcy, who considers the Skene MS., or MSS., to have been penned 161o-20,t contends for the former, both in this case and in that of "Ladye Piothemayis Lilt," refen-ed to in the introduction to the ballad of "The Burning of Frendraught," which follows, and nccessaiily so in the latter case, as Ih'; tragedy which that ballad commemorates was enacted, without doubt, in the year 1630. Different versions of this ballad have appeared in — I. Eamsay's Tea- Tulle Miscellany, \-ol. ii., p. 282. II. Finlay's Scottish Ballads, vol. ii., p. 3'J. IIL The tScots Mar/azine for November, 1S17, (contriljuted by C. K. Shar]ie, Esq.) IV. Chambers's Scottish Gypsies. ♦ Dr. Cliambors wrilcs: "Host nnfortunatolyO), ero they fiad proeccJcd very far, t'lo Emi c.iroo home, and, learning tho fact [of the cloiicnicm] imnicchatoly FCt out ill puii'iill." Ho al:-o rofrrs to the "Gyimifs' SitciiH," asdisumt 'a few miles troisi tlie Cnftlle," and tlin " capture" as occurring there, both of wliich Mr. Patorson conceits, Btatinz "that they are not half a mile. Be.sidos, traditiou dooB not say that iiicy were taken there." — BallaJi and fion'js of Ayrshire, part i., p. Hi. t Mr. Chappoll, who seemn dlHposi'd to date the MS., or 5ISS., a confm-y later, nppears to have the best of the argument lu this case.— !Sce J'opiii'ar iliisic of lla Oidm rime, pp. C13-1C. G18 BALLAD JIIN'STIIELSY OF SCOTLAND. V. MacTaggart's Scottish Oallov'idian Encyclopedia, p. 284. * VI. Smitli's Scottish Minstrel, vol. iii., \\ 90. VII. jMothenvell's Minstrelsy (under the title of "pear to be rather casual than intentionaL' Though the present set is not so faulty in this respect as in the copies which came under Mr. Jamieson's observation, it, as well as tlie othei's, has another peculiarity deservin:,' attention, — namely, the studied recurrence of rhjTue ia the middle of the first and third lines of a great many of the stanzas. "It may be stated, that the present set of the ballad agrees with any recitctl copy which the editor has hitherto met with in the West Country." — Motherwell. [From Mr. P. Buchan's OUaninrja, p. 197, we learn that this tragic story formed the plot of a di'ama acted in the North Country, in the year 1674. And the same editor states, that, "The luifortunate maiden's name was Annie, or Agnes (which are sj'nonymous iu some ])art3 of .Scotland) Smith, who died of a broken heart, on the 9th January, 1G31, — as is to be found on a roughly-cut stone, broken in many ))ieces, in the green church-yard of Fyvie." "The beauty, gallantry, and amiable qualities of 'Bonnie Andrew Lammic' seem," says Mr. Jamieson, "to have been proverbial wher- ever he went ; and the good old ' cummer ' in Allan llamsay, as the • [The writer po^sesRcs a volum's contaftiing flfty-elglitballati and song chap-books, "printed by J. an.t M. Uob0f Tifty's bonnie Annie. 18 " [RutJ woe betide Mill o' Tifty's pride, For it has ruin'd many ; He'll no ha'e 't said that she shou'd wed The Trumpeter of Fyvie. 10 " Where will I find a boy so kind, That'll carry a letter cannie ; Who will run on to Tifty's town. Give it to my love Annie ? " 20 " Here you shall find a boy so kind, Who'll carry a letter cannie ; V/ho will run on to Tifty's town, And gi'e 't to thy love Annie." 21 " It's Tifty he has daughters three. Who fdl are wond'rous bonnie ; But ye'll ken her o'er all the lave,— Gi'e that to bonnie Annie." 22 " It's up and down in Tifty's den, Where the burn rins clear and bonnie. There wilt thou come and meet thy love, Thy bonnie Andrew Lammie. ANDREW LAMMIE. C29 23 " When wilt thou come, and I'll attend, ]My love, I long to [greet] thee? " " Thou may'st come to the Bridge of Sleugh, And there I'll come and meet thee." 24 " My love, I go to Edinbro', And for a while must leave thee," She sighed sore, and said no more, — " But I wish that I were with thee." 25 "I'll buy to thee a bridal gown, My love, I'll buy it bonnie." *' But I'll be dead ere ye come back To see your bonnie Annie." 2G " If you'll be true, and constant too, As ray name 's Andrew Lammie, I sliall thee wed when I come back To see the lauds of Fy vie." 27 " I will be true, and constant too, To thee, my Andrev,- Larnmie ; But my bridal-bed will ere then be mado In the green churchyard of Fy vie." 28 " Our time is gone and now comes on, My dear, that I must leave thee; If longer here I shou'd appear, Mill o' Tifty he wou'd see mo. 29 "I now for ever bid adieu To thee, my Andrew Lammio Ere ye come back, I will be laid In tlie green churchyard of Fyvie." 80 lie liied him to the head of the house, To the house-top of Fyvie ; lie blew hirf trumpet loud and schilj, 'Twas heard at Mill o' Tifty. 31 Her father lock'd the door at niglit, Laid by the keys fu' cannie ; And when he heard the trumpet sound, Said — " Your cow is lowing, Annie." 82 " My father dear, I pray forbear, And reproach no more your Annie; For I'd rather hear that cow to low, Tlian ha'e all the kinc in Fyvie. 2 T C30 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTI-ANT>. 33 " I wou'd not for my braw new gown, And all your gifts sao many, That it were told in Fyvic's land, How cruel you are to Annie. 34 '• But if ye strike me, I will cry, And gentlemen will hear me; Lord Fyvie will be riding l\y. And he'll come in and see me." 35 At the same time, the Lord came in; He said — "What ails thee, Annie?" " 'Tis all for love now I must die, For bonnie Andrew Lammie." 36 " Pray, Mill of Tifty, gi'e consent, And let your daughter marry," " It will be with some higher match Than the Trumpeter of Fyvie." 37 " If she wore come of as high a kind As she 's adorn'd with beauty, I Avou'd take her unto myself, And make her mine own Ladye." 38 " It 's Fyvie's lands are fair and wide, And they are rich and bonnie ; I wou'd not leave my own true lovo For all the lands of Fyvie." 39 Her father struck her wond'rous sore. As also did her mother ; Her sisters always did her scorn, — But woe be to her brother I 40 Her brother struck her wond'rous sore, With cruel strokes and many ; He brake her back in the hall door, For liking Andrew Lannnie. 41 "Alas! my father and mother dear. Why so cruel to your Annie ? My heart was broken first by love,— My brother has broken my body. 42 " Oh, mother dear 1 make ye my bed. And lay my face to Fj'vie ; Thus will I lie, and thus will die. For my love, Andrew Lammie | ANDREW LAMMIE. 631 43 " Ye neighbours hear, both far and near, Ye pity Tifty's Annie; Who dies for love of one poor lad, For bonnie Andrew Lammie. 44 " No kind of vice e'er stain'd my life, Nor hurt my virgin honour; !N[y youthful heart was won by love, But death will me exoner." 45 Her mother then she made her bed, And laid her face to Fyvie; Her tender heart it soon did break. And ne'er saw Andrew Lammie. 46 But the word soon went up and down, Tlirough all the lands of Fyvie, That she was dead and buried, Even Tifty's bonnie Annie. 47 Lord Fyvie he did wring his handa; Said—" Alas, for Tifty's Annie ! The fairest flow'r's cut down by love, That e'er sprung up in Fyvie. 18 " Oh, woe betide Mill o' Tifty's pride 1 He might have let them marry; I shou'd have gi'en Ihcm both to live Into the lands of Fyvie." 49 Her father sorely now laments The loss of his dear Annie, And wishes he had gi'en consent To wed with Andrew Lammie. 60 Her mother grieves both air and late, Her sisters, 'cause they scorn'd her; Surely her brother doth mourn and grievei For the cruel usage he'd gi'en her. 51 But now, alas I it was too late. For the}' cou'd not recall her; Tlirough life unhappy is their fate, Because they did control her. 52 When Andrew hamo from Edinbro' came, With riiciklc grief nnd sorrow; •' My love has died for mo to-day, I'll die for her to-morrow. C32 BAIXAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 53 '• Now T Avill on to Tifty's den, When; tlie bum runs flear and bonnii^; Witli tears I'll view the Bridge of Sleugli,* Wlicre I parted last with Annie. 54 " Then will I sj^eed to the churchyard, To the green churchyard of Fyvie; AVith tears I'll water my love's grave, Till I follow Tifty'B Annie." 55 Ye parents grave, who children have, In crushing them be cannie, Lest, when too late, you do repent— Eemember Tifty's Annie. GILDEROY. "Gilleroy, in Gaelic, signifies the red-haired lad. Patrick Mac- Gregor, or Gilleroy, the subject of this ballad, suffered for his crimes in 1G38, and his fate was commemorated in song. 'The above- mentioned ballad,' says the author of Caledonia, 'was printed during the moment of Gilleroy's exiit. It was certainly reprinted at London, in the Black Letter, before 1G50.' There is another copy of it, with some variations, in Playford's Wit and Mirth, first edition of vol. iii., which Avas pi'iuted in 1702. There is also a copy of it, with variations, in A Collection \of Old Ballads], second edition, London, 1723, vol, ii. (vol. i.), p. 271. These coijies, though possessing several stanzas of poetic merit, contained some indelicacies that required suppression. An altered and delicate edition appeared in Thomson's Orpheus Caledonius. But before this appeared, the ballad had been altered by Sir Alexander Halket, said llitson, in his Scots Songs, vol. ii., p. 24 ;t yet, according to a truer account, this operation on the old ballad was performed by Mrs. Ehzabeth Halket, the daughter of Pitferan, and the wife of Sir Henry Wardlaw of Pittrevie, the real authoress of ' Hardyknute.' See Blackwood's Magazine, vol. i., p. 380.:;: The ballad of 'Gilderoy,' on that new cast, may be seen in Percy's Rdiques, vol. i., p. 321, with the exce^jtion of one stanza; also in Herd's Scots Songs, vol. i., p. 73; and in llitson's Scots Songs, vol. ii., p. 24, none of whom give the whole thirteen stanzas; Caledonia, vol. iii., p. 36. " I have seen a broadside, printed at Edinburgh before 1700, which differs from the copies mentioned above. In Lady Wardhiw's amended copy, a good many of the old stanzas are retained ; others are omitted, or in part retouched, and several from her * It is a received superstition in Scotland, that Tchen friends or lovers part at a bridge, they shall never again meet. — W. M. t [On the alleged authority of Johnson's Museum.'] X [The reference 1b to Stenhouse's note on this song, which is there given as a Bpecimen, twenty-tvro years before it appeared in his Illustrations, &c. No evidence ■whatever is adduced in support Of the claim made on bohp,lf of Lady Wardlaw as the reyiser of " Gilderoy. "j GILDEROT. G33 own pen arc added. It would seem that when Ritson consulted the Museum on this occasion, he had gone no farther than the index; for if he had turned to ]). G7, he would have found that the pieoa entitled in the index ' Gilderoy,' was the song written to the tune beginning — ' Ah, Cliloris, could I now but sit ! ' and not any copy of the ballad itself, which nowhere iu any of the six volumes of the Musatm has a place."-'— Motherwell's Minstrelsy, Introd., p. Ixiv., note 10. The original ballad is said to have been composed by a young woman of no mean talent, who unfoi'tunately became attached to this notorious freebooter : but all that can be confidently affirmed is, that it is written in that character. This notorious cateran appears to have been quite famous in the southern kingdom, as, in addition to the versions or copies already referred to, there was yet another given in a work entitled " Westminster Drollery; or, a Choice Collection of the Keicest Sonr/s and Poems, both at Court and Theatres, by a Person of Quality. With additions. London : Printed for H. Brome, at the Gun, in St. Paul's Churchyard, near the West End. 1671." This elegant effusion, which does much credit to the taste of the " Person of Quahty," is copied by Mr. Maidment in his Scotish Ballads and Sonys, Edin., 1859, p. 230. "Gilder Pioy" is also made the hereof certain apocryjAal atrocities, such as the murder of his mother and sister; the burning of their domicile, &c.; and of certain marvellous adventures, such as the picking of Cardinal Richelieu's pocket whilst he was celebrating high mass in the king's presence, at the Church of St. Denis, in Paris ; making off with the Duke of Medina-Celi's plate at Madrid ; the robbing of Oliver Cromwell near Glasgow, (fee. These sensational adventures are duly chronicled in A Compleat History/ of the Lives and liobberies of the most notorious Hiyhway- men, Footpads, Shop-Lifts, and Cheats of both Sexes, in and about London, Westminster, and all parts of Great Britain, for above an Hundred Years past, continued to the present time. By Captain Alexander Smith. London : 1719, 12mo. All of which is carefully reproduced in a work entitled. Lives and Exploits of English Hiyh- H-ai/men, Pirates, and Bobbers, by Captain Charles Johnson. London : 1731. Folio, 20 plates. The song which Burns puts in the mouth of the "raucle carliu," who bewails her "Gallant, braw John Hi^hlaudraan," in "The Jolly Beggars," may have been inspired by this ballad. 1 Gilderoy was a bonnic boy, Had roses till his shoon; Ilia stockings were of silken soy, With garters hanging doun. It was, 1 ween, a conielie sight To see sac trim a boy; lie was my jo, and heart's delight, My handsome Gilderoy. *[lt is not Tcry cirar what tho compiler of Johnson'H Museum index meant by iDBOrtiDg tho name of Sir Alexau'lcr JLialkct iu this (.onncction. Possibly ho did not know very well hiniEolf.] 684 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND, 2 Oh! sic twa charming- een he liad, Breath sweet as any rose ; He never wore a Highland plaid, But costly silken clothes. He gained the luve of ladies gay, Nane e'er to him was coy; Ah! wae is me, I mourn the day, For my dear Gilderoy. 8 My Gilderoy and I were born Baith in one town together ; We scant were seven years beforn We 'gau to luve each other. Our daddies and our mammies they Were fill'd with meikle joy, To think upon the bridal day Of me and Gilderoy. 4 For Gilderoy, that luve of mine, Gude faith, I freely bought A wedding aark of Holland fine, With dainty ruffles wi'ought ; And he gied me a wedding ring. Which I receiv'd with joy. Nae lad nor lassie e'er could sing Like me and Gilderoy. 6 With meikle joy we spent our prime, Till we were baith sixteen; And aft we pass'd the langsome time Amang the leaves sae green. Aft on the banks we'd sit us there. And sweetly kiss and toy ; While he with garlands deck'd my hair, My handsome Gilderoy. 6 Oh, that he still had been content With me to lead his life ! But, ah ! his manful heart was bent To stir in deeds of strife ; And he in many a vent'rous deed, His courage bauld wou'd try ; And now this gars my heart to bleed For my dear Gilderoy, 7 And when of me his leave he took. The tears they wet mine e'e ; I gave him sic a parting look, — " My beuison gang with thee. GILDEROT. 685 God speed thee weel, mine ain dear heart, For gane is all my joy ; My heart is rent, sith we maun part, My handsome Gilderoy." 8 The Queen of Scots possessed nought That my love let me want ; For cow and sow he to me brought, And e'en when they were scant, All these did honestly possess; He never did annoy Who never fail'd to pay their cess, To my love, Gilderoy. 9 My Gilderoy, baith far and near, Was fear'd in every toun ; And bauldly liore away the gear Of many a Lowland loun. For man to man durst meet him nana, He was sae brave a boy ; At length with numbers he was ta'en, My winsome Gilderoy. 10 Wae worth the louns that made the laws, To hang a man for gear ; To reave of life for ox, or ass. For sheep, or horse, or mare. Had not their laws been made sae strict, I ne'er had lost my joy ; With sorrow ne'er had wet my cheek For mj' dear Gilderoy. 11 Gif Gilderoy had done amiss, He might ha'e banish'd been ; , Ah ! wliat sair cruelty is tliis To hang sic handsome men ! To hang the flower of Scottish land, Sue sweet and fair a boy I Nao ladye had sae white a hand As thee, my Gilderoy. 12 Of Gilderoy sac fear'd they were. They bound him fast and strong; To Edinbro' tliey led him there. And on a gallows hung. They hung him high aboon the rest, He was sae trim a bov; There died the youth whom I lu'ed best. My handsome Gilderoy. 036 BALLAD JIINSTKELSY OK SCOTLAND, 13 Soon as he yielded up his breath, I bore liis corpse away ; Witli tears that trickled for his death, 1 Avash'd liis comclie clay. And sicker in a grave right deep I laid the doar-lnved boy ; And now for ever I maun weep My winsome Gilderoy. THE HEIR OF LTNNE. Percy FoVio 3fS. vei'sion, fol. 71-3, printed copy, vol. i., p. 174. Here emeudated and modernized in the orthogi-aphy. Prodif^al sons are unfortunately plants of every soil ; and bonnie Scotland's canny sons have furnished too many specimens. The subject of the following ballad was apparently one of these. Although it is evidently a Scotish ballad, the version here printed first has been preserved to us through the transcription of an English clerk, a circumstance in which it resembles many other Scotish pieces, and it is one for which Scotsmen should be duly thankfub Bishop Percy, in place of printing the ballad as it stood in his MS., or as is here done, with a few seemingly obvious corrections, noting the genuine readings under, according to his use and wont, preferred diluting the geniiine piece by extending the 125 lines of his Folio MS. to 216, as given in the IteUques. Many of the "supplemental stanzas," which the Bishop deemed "necessary," were, as he states, " suggested by a modern ballad on a similar subject." The ballad last referred to, being a])parently the one entitled "The Drunkard's Legacy," as contained in a volume edited for the Percy Society by Mr. James Henry Dixon, and subse- quently given in Ballads and Songs of the Peasantry, one of the volumes of Bell's Series of the Poets. The last-named volume is, how- ever, an almost rcrhatim i-ej^riut of Mr. Dixon's work, of which, as lately annoiinced in Notes and Queries, he (M.r. D.)is preparing a new edition. Mr. Paterson, editor oi Ballads and Songs of Ayrshire, has inserted in that work Bishop Percy's ballad, to which he has appended the following note : — "Linn, in Dairy parish, is supposed to be the scene of this line ballad. The tower, of which some trace still remains, overlooked a beautiful cascade or Ihm, on the Water of Caaf, near the village of Dairy. The family of Linne of that Ilk — now extinct — was of old standing. Walter de Lynne is mentioned in the Pvagman Rdl, 1290. No regular genealogical account of the family can be made out ; but they are traced in various documents, as the prnjirietors of Linn, down till nearly the middle of the seventeenth century. The last of the lairds of Linne, apparently, was ' Johne Lin of yt Ilk,' mentioned in the statement of ' Janet Jack, s])ous to John Crawfuird, in Eob- shielheid, Dairy,' December, 1036.* Soon after this the property * Commissar 1/ Records of Olatgow. THE HEIR OF LINNE. 637 Bcems to have been acquired by tbs Kilmarnock famil}', [as] Lord Kibnarnock was retoured heir to a portion of the lands in 1G41. " Although it is only conjectural that Liun, in Dairy, is the Linn of the ballad, the circumstance of the family being of tliat Ilk, accords with what Bishop Percy remarks, that ' the heir of Linne appears not to have been a Lord of Parliament, but a laird, whose title went along -N^-ith the estate.' Linne was the chief of all who bore the name — the title of that Ilk being appHcable only to such as are acknowledged to be the head of their race. The next possessor would have been called the Laird of Linn, but not Linn of that Uk."— Ballads and Soiujs of Ayrshire, first series, p. 33. The name of Magnew, or Aguew, the latter a well-known Galloway name, which occurs in stanza 21 of the traditionary version, seems, however, to point to that district as the locality of the ballad, and accordingly it is kno^vn that "A family of the name of Lynn, or Lin, possessed"" the property of Larg, in AVigtonshire, from a.d. 1G3-4, on till about the middle of the eighteenth century. "They were, in all likelihood, a branch of the Ljoies of that llk,"i biit like the parent stem, they too have become extinct, at least as proprietors. They are stUl remembered with odium as persecutors of the Cove- nanters ; but they were not all such, as we are informed that one " Alexander Lin was surprised and shot at Craigraodie, in 1G85, by Lieutenaut-Geueral Drummond, for bein^ a Covenanter. A me- morial stone was placed over his remains, which was renewed in 1827." :;: 1 Oi- all the lords in fair Scotland, A song I will begin; Amongst them all tliere dwelt a lord, Which was the unthrifty lord of Linne. 2 His father and mother were dead him i'roe, And so was the head of all his kin; lie did neither cease nor l)l[i]nne, To tlie cards and dice that he did run. 3 To drink the wine tliat was so clear, With ever}' man he would make merry, And then bespake him John of the Scales, Unto the heir of Linne said he. 4 Says — " How dost thou, lord of Linne, Doost either want gold or fee? Wilt thou not sell thy lands so broad, To such a good fellow as me ? " • JIhtory of (he Landt andlheir Owners in aallotcay. Edinburgh, 1870, vol. i., p- l*"'- \Ibid, p. 166. X Ibid, p. 1(57. 638 BALLAD JI1NS1KEL3Y OF SCOTLAND. 5 " For [gold] I [will sell my land,"] * lie said, "My land, take it unto thee;" "I draw you to record, my lords all," With that he cast him a gods-penny. f C He told him the gold upon the board, It wanted never a bare penny; " That gold is thine, the land is mine, The heir of Linne I will be." 7 " Here 's gold enough," saith the heir of Linne, " Both for mc and my company." He drank the wine that was so clear, And with every man he made merry. 8 Within three-quarters of a year, His gold and fee it waxed thin, His merry men were from him gone, [And left alone the heir of Linne.] J 9 He had never a penny loft in his purse, Never a penny [left] but three. And one was brass, and another was lead, And another was white money. 10 " Now well-a-day !" said the heir of Linne, " Now well-a-day, and woe is me ! For when I was the heir of Linne, I neither wanted gold nor fee. 11 " [But] § I have sold my land so broad, And have not left me one penny! I must go now and take some read || Unto Edinburgh and beg my bread." 12 He had not been in Edinburgh, Of a year not quarters three, ^| But some did give him, and some said " Nay," And some bid " To the deil gang ye ! 13 " For if we wou'd hang any land-seller. The lirst we wou'd begin with thee ; " " Now well-a-day," said the heir of Linne, " Now well-a-day and woe is me ! * Line 1, stanza 5, is imperfect in the MS. t" Gods-penny:" earnest-money: Northern.— HalUwelL t "& left him himselfe all alone."— ^/S'. § " For."— J/,?. II " Bead," (rede ?) counsel, decision ; or, road. T " Not three-quarters of a year."— i/S. THE HEIR OF LINNE. 689 14 "For now I have sold my lauds so broad, That merry man is irk Avith me ;^ But when that I was the lord of Liune, Then on my land I lived merrily. 15 " And now I have sold my lands so broad, That I have not left me one penny ! God be with my father! " he said, " On his land he lived merrily." 16 Still in a study there as he stood, He umbethought him of [a] bill, [Ho umbethought him of a bill* Vv hich his father had left him till.] 17 Bade him he should never on it look, Till he was in extreme need, " And by my faith," said the heir of Liune, [" That time hath come indeed."] f 18 He took the bill, and look'd it on, Good comfort that he found there; It told him of a castle wall Where there stood three chests in fere. 19 Two were full of the beaten gold. The third was full of white money ; He turned then down his bags of bread, [And full of red gold them filled he.]j 20 Then he did never cease nor blinne Till John of the Scales' house he did win. When that he came- to John [of the] Scales, Up at the speerc § he look'd then. 21 There sat three Lords upon a rowe, [Drinking merrily at the wine,] And John of the Scales sat at the board-head, Because he was the Lord of Linne. 22 And then bespake the heir of Linuc, To John of the Scales' wife thus said he; Said — " Dame, Avilt thou not trust me one shot, That I may sit down in this company? " • JW. reads bis, "Umbethought: " rofloct'jil or romombered, — "a bill "Which his father had left Avlth him."— MS. t " Till then I had novor more need." X "And flUed thorn full of gold so red."— J/,S'. } "Speere: " a wiclcot or "holo in the wall of a bouse, throngh which the fainilv rtcoivod ami auHwercd the inqulrioa of BtrangerB."— Eitson. "To Bpeor," In Scoti-h uieanR, " to aoU." 640 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 23 " Now Christ's curse on my head," she said, " If I do trust thcc one penny." Then [out] be-spake a g'ood fellow, Which sat by Jolm o' the Scales his knco. 2t Said — " Have thou here, tliou heir of Liinic, Forty pence I will lend thee, Sonic time a good fellow thou hast been, — And other forty if need bj." L'5 They drunken wine that was so clear, And every man they made merry; And then be-spoke him John o' the Scales, Unto the Lord of Linne said he. 2G Said — " How doest thou, heir of Linne, Since I did buy thy lands of thee? I will sell it to thee, twenty pounds better cheap Nor ever I did buy it of thee." 27 " I draw you to record, [good] lords all," With that he cast hiui gods-penny; Then he took to his bags of bread, [And the gold so red down counted he.]* 28 He told him the gold then over the board, It wanted never a broad penny: "That gold is thine, the land is mine, And the heir of Linne again I will be." 29 "Now well-a-day!" said John o' Scales' wife, "Well-a-day, and wao is me! Yesterday I was the Lady of Linne, And now but John o' Scales' wife [I be."] oO " [Now] have thou here, thou good fellow, Forty ponce thou did lend me; [Now have thou here, thou good fellow,] And forty pounds I will give thee." 31 [" Since forty pence thou did lend me. When begging to the specre I came,] I'll make thee keeper of mj^ forest, Loth of the wild deer and the tame." 32 [Then solemnly sware] the heir of Linne, These were the words, and thus said he, — " Christ's curse light upon my crown If e'er ray land stand in jeopardye! " • "And thoy were full of the goM so rod."— MS. THE HEIR OF LINNE. 641 THE HEIE OF LINNE. TRADITIONARY VERSION. From Scottish Traditional Versions of Ancient Ballads, Percy- Society, vol. xvii. The three first stanzas of the follov,-ing version were first printed by Mr. Motherwell in his Mlnstrelsji, Introduction, p. Ixviii., note 15, and were probably communicated to him by Mr. Buchan, froni whose MS. volumes, as formerly mentioned, the ballads contained ia the work above referred to were selected. 1 " The bonnie heir, the weel-faur'd heir, And the wearie heir o' Linne, Yonder he stands at bis father's yetts, And nobody bids him come in. 2 " 01), see for he sangs, and see for he stands, The wearie heir o' Linne; Oil, see Avhere he stands on the caiild causey,* And nae ane bids him come in. 3 " But if be had been his father's heir, Or yet the heir o' Linne, Ho wou'dua stand on the cauld causey, Some one wou'd ta'en him in." 4 " Shig o'er again that song, nourice, The song ye sang just noo." " I never sang a song in my life, But I wou'd sing o'er to you. T> " Oh, see for lie gangs, and see for he stands, The wearie heir o' Linne, Oh, see where he stands on the cauld causey, And nae ane bids him come in. C " But if lie liad been his father's heir, Or yet the lieir o' Linne, He wou'dna stand on the cauld causey; Some ane wou'd ta'en him in. 7 " Wlion his father's lands a-sellin' were, His claisef lay wcel in fauld; But now ho wanders on the shore, Baith hungry, weot, and cauld." • "Cauwy:" cavweway. t "Olalne:" clollies. 642 BALLAD MmSTRELST OF SCOTLAND. 8 [As Willio he gaed down the town, Upon liis sad Imp thinkin';] As Willio lio gacd down the town, The gentlemen were drinkin'. 9 Some bade gi'e Willie a glass, a glass, And some bade gi'e him nane; Some bade gi'e Willie a glass, a glass. The wearic heir o' Linne. 10 As Willie he came up the town, The fishers were all sittin'; [The fishers were all sittin' there. Busy mending their netting.] 11 Some bade gi'e AVillie a fish, a fish, Some bade gi'e him a pin; Some bade gi'e him a fish, a fish. The wearie heir o' Linne. 12 He turn'd him richt and round about, - As will* as a woman's son; And ta'en his cane into his hand, And on his way to Linne. 13 His nourice at her window look'd, Beholding dale and down; And she beheld this distress'd young n-an, Come walking to the town. 14 " Come here, come here, Willie," she said, " And set yoursel' with me, I ha'e seen you in better days. And in jovial companie." 15 " Gi'e me a sheave f of your bread, nourioe, And a bottle of your wine ; And I'll pay you it all o'er again When I am the Laird o' Linne." 16 " Ye'se J get a sheave of my bread, Willie, And a little of my wine; And ye'U ipay me when the seas gang dry; But ye'U ne'er be heir o' Linne." 17 Then he turn'd him richt and round about. As will as woman's son ; And off he set, and bent his way. And straightway came to Linne. • " 'WiU: '' probably means bewilflered. Sco Jamieson's Dictionary. t " Sheave: " Bllce. % " Ye'se : " yo shall. THE HEIR OF LINNE. 643 18 And when he came to that castle, Thej' were sat down to dine; A score of nobles there he saw, Sat drinkin' at the wine. 19 Then some bade gi'e him the beef, the beef, And some bade gi'e him the bane ; And some bade gi'e him uaething at all, But let the palmer gang. 20 Then out it speaks the new-come laird — A saucy word spake he, — "Put round the cup, gi'e my rival a sup, Let him fare on his way." 21 Then out it speaks Sir Ned Agnew,* Ane of young Willie's kin : "This youth was ance a sprightly boy. As ever lived in Linne." 22 He turn'd him richt and round about. As will as woman's son ; Then minded him on a little wee key, That his mither left to him. 23 His mither left him this little wee key A little before she dee'd; f And bade him keep this little wee key, Till he was in maist need. 24 Then forth he went, and these nobles left, A-drinkin' in the room ; With walkin' rod intill his hand He walked the castle roun'. 25 Till he found out a little door, Where tlie wee key fitted in; And there he got as muckle red gowd As free'd the lands of Linne. 26 Back through the nobles then he went, A SHUcy man was then. " I'll take the cup frae tliia new-come laird. For he ne'er bade mo sit down." 27 Then out it spake the new-come laird : He spake witli mock and jeer i "I'd gi'e a seat to the Laird of Linne, Sae be that he were here." • Afrnew in hero substituted In place of " Magnew." t "feed:" died. C4i BALLAD MINSTKKLSY OF SCOTL.VND. 28 " Wlicn the lands o' Linne a-sellin' wero, All men said tliey were free; This lad shall ha'e thoin i'rae me this day, If he'll gi'e the third ^Jennie." 29 " I take j'e witness, nohles all. Glide witnesses ye'll be; I'm promised the lands o' Linne this day, If I gi'e the third pennie." 30 " Ye've ta'en us witnesses, Willie," they said, " Gude witnesses we'll be. [But] buy the lands o' Linne wha likes, They'll ne'er be bought by thee." 81 He's done him to a gamin' table, Where it stood fair and clean ; Then he tauld down as much rich gowd As freed the lands o' Linne. 82 Thus having done, he tuinied about — A saucy man was lie — "Take up your money, my lad," he saya, " Take up your third pennie. 83 " Aft ha'e I gane with barefeet cauld Likewise with legs full bare; And mony day walked at these yetts With muckle dule and care. 34: " But now my sorrow 's past and gane, And joy 's returned to me ; And here I've gowd enough forbyo, Ahin* this third pennie." 35 As Willie he gaed down the town, There he craw'd wond'rous crouse. He call'd the May afore them all, The nourice of the house. 3G " Come here, come here, my nourice," he says, " I'll pay your bread and wine. Seas ebb and flow as they wont to do, Yet I'm the Laird o' Linne." 37 As he gaed up the Gallowgate port, His hose aboon his sheen ; f But lang ere he came down again, Was convoy'd by lords fifteen. * "Ahin: " behind; over and above. t " Sheen : " ehoon, or .shoeB. Aberdeenshire dialect 645 APPENDIX. WILLIAM AND MARGARET. BY DAVID MALLKT.* The following account of this beautiful ballad is given bj' the author in his ■works (3 vols., IToO). "In a comedy of FLETCiiEr., called 'The Knight of the Burning Pestle,' old Mekey -Thought enters, rejieating the following vei-ses : — ' Wlion it was grown to dark midnight, And all were fast asleep, In came Margaret's grimly ghost, And stood at "William's feet.' This was probably the beginning of some ballad, commonly known at the time when that author wrote (1611); and it is all of it, I believe, that is anywhere to be met with. These lines, naked of ornament and simple as they are, struck my fancy: and, bringing fresh into my miud an unhappy adventure, much talked of formerly, gave birth to the foregoing poem; which Mas written many years ago." "The entire ballad of which the above stanza had so fortunate an eflect, may be found in Dr. Percy's Beliques, vol. iii., and the Select Collection of English Song-:, vol. ii. The ' unhappy adventure ' here alluded to, was the real history of a young lady, whose hand having been scornfully rejected by her insolent seducer, ' the news was brought her when in a weak condition, and cast her into a fever ; and in a few days after, I,' says Mr. Mallet, ' saw her and her child laid in one grave together.' See the ' Plain Dealer ' (a periodical paper published by Mr. Aaron Hill and Mr. Bond, in 1724, and afterward reprinted in two vols. 8vo), Nos. 36 and 46." — Ritson's Scottish Songs, vol. ii., p. 201. In his Historical Essaj' jnxTixcd to the same work, p. xxviii., Eitson observes, — "It may be questioned whether any English writer liaa produced so fine a ballad as ' William and I^Iargaret.'" Bishop Percy also refers to it as "One of the most beautiful ballads in our own or any other language." On the other hand. Sir Walter Scott states that "The ballad, though the best of Mallet's writing, is certainly inferior to its original, • Ills real name was Malloch ; but, on removing from Scotland to Loudon, he cbaiiged it to Mallet, either because Slalloch wan unpronounccablo by Cocknoy lips, or I.ko BO many oihir cocknifled Scots — even ot the prcBi-nt day— ho mi^'ht ilms desire — as Dr. Johnson in^iinuntfd ho did — tlio Ijctter to conceal liis origin. Scuilaiid may poasibly gain, and certainly cannot Ioho much, by the defection of bucU Bmall- minded indirldaalfl a!> those indicated. 2 U 640 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. which I presume to be the very fine and even terrific old Scottish tale, beginning, ' TliPio came a ghost to Margaret's door.' "—(Ante, p. 51.) The editor of Andrew Marvell's works, London, 1776 (preface, A-ol. i., p. XX.), claims the authorship for Marvell; but this "bold assertion" has been refuted by Mr. David Laing. See Illusirationa of t lie Li/rw Poetry and Music of Scotland, p. 519. 1 'TwAS at t!io silent, solemn hour, When r.ight and morning meet, In glided Margaret's grimly ghost, And stood at William's feet. 2 Her face was like an April morn, Clad in a wintry cloud; And clay-cold was her lily hand, Tliat held her sable shroud. 8 So shall the fairest face appear, Wlien youth and years are flown : Such is the robe that kings must wear, When death has reft their crown. 4 Her bloom was like the springing flower, That sips the silver dew; The rose was budded in her cheek. Just opening to the view. 6 But Love had, like the canker-worm, Consum'd her early pinme : The rose grew pale, and left her cheek; She died before her time. 6 " Awake !" she cried, " thy true love callo, Come from her midnight grave ; Now let thy pity hear the maid Thy love refus'd to save. 7 " This is the dumb and dreary hour, When injur'd ghosts complain; When yawning graves give up their dead, To haunt the faithless swain. 8 " Bethink thee, William, of thy fault, Thy pledge and broken oath ; And give mc back my maiden-vow, And give me back my troth. WILLIAM AND MARGARET. 647 9 " WLy did you promise love to me, And not that promise keep? Why did you swear ray eyes were bright, Yet leave those eyes to weep? 10 '■ How could you say my face \vas fair, Aud j'et that face forsake? How could you win my virgin heart. Yet leave that heart to break? 11 " Why did you say my lip was sweet [red?J, And made the scarlet pale? [And] why did I, j'oung witless maid 1 Believe tlie flattering tale? 12 " That face, alas ! no more is fair; Those lips no longer red: Dark are my eyes, now clos'd in death. And every charm is fled. 18 " The hungry worm my sister is; This winding-sheet I wear : And cold and weary lasts our night, Till that last morn appear. 14 " But hark! the cock has warn'd me hence; A long and late adieu ; Come, see, false man, how low she lies, Who died for love of you." 16 The lark sang loud; the morning smil'd, With beams of rosy red : Pale William quak'd in every limb, And raving left his bed. 16 He hied him to the fatal place Where Margaret's body lay; And stretcii'd him on the grass-green turf, That wrapp'd lier breathless cTay. 17 And thrice he call'd on Margaret's name, And thrice he wept full sore: Then laid his check to her cold grave. And word spoke never more. 048 BALLAD SIINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. LANG JOHNNIE MOIR. From Buchan's Ancient Ballads, vol. i., i\ 248. "Geoffrey, of Moumoutli, in liis vei-acious Ilidory, informs us that vlien Brute or Brutus lauded, some three thousand years awo, on tho shores of Britain, then known as Albion, he found the Island 'in- habited by nouc but a few Giants. . . . Amoug the Eetit was one detestable JNlonster, named Gocmar/ot, in Stature twelve Cubits, and of such prodigious Strength, that atone Stroke he ])ullcdupau Oak as if it had been a Hazel Wand.' This Giant was taken Prisoner and reserved for a Single Combat with Corineus, the companion in arms of Brutus, ' who took a great Pleasure in such Pvcncountei-s. . . . At the beginning of the IJencountei-, Corineus' had ' three of his Pvibs ' broken, which enraged him so, that he snatched up the Giant on ' his Shoulders,' and ' ran with him as fixst as he was able for the Weight, to the next Shore, and there getting upon the Top of a high Hock, hurled down the Savage Monster into the sea ; where, falling by the sides of craggy Rocks, he was cruelly tore to Pieces, and coloured the Waves with his Blood. The place where he fell, taking its Name from the Giant's Fall, is called Lam-Go(imaijot—th.3it is, Goe- mar/ot's Leap — to this day." — Aaron Thompson's translation, London, 1718. Shortly after this event, Brutus built the city of Troy-Novant," now known as London, whose citizens still retain and exhibit so much civic pride in the Guildhall Giants, Gog and Magog, which statues are supposed to rei)resent the living prototypes who were vanquished by the valiant descendants of the Trojans. Whether the hero of the following ballad, and his relatives, belonged to the same gigantic race, cannot be definitely ascertained at this advanced period of the world's history. It is, however, quite as probable as any portion of the narrative quoted; and it may also be noted as asomewhatremarkablecoincidence, that the statues of Gog and Magog in Guildhall are exactly the lieight assigned to "Lang Johnnie Moir," in stanza 3 of the ballad, namely, "fourteen feet." If the origin of the ballad is dated back to the early period referred to, it may take precedence for antiquity over every other ballad in the Island. The names "London," "English," "Scot,"&c., would in that case have to be regarded as comparatively modern coiTuptions, introduced by reciters of a later age,— a mode of adaptation which we know to have been practised in diflerent lands and ages, and of which examples of the highest authority might be adduced. See, in this collection, the ballads of "King Henrie," ante, p. 217, " Kemjiy Kaye," p. 220, and especially "Johnnie Scot," p. 432, as this • This interesting event happened, as we are minutely informed, at the "Time Eli the priest governed in Juclea," &c. fcjo that Gooniagot, and the other Auakim of Souta Britain, appear to have been extii-pated one or two generations before David slew the degenerate Goliath of Oath, "whose height" was on'j/ "sis cubits and a Bpau." LANG JOHKNIE MOIR. 649 latter appears to have borrowed largely from the assumedly very aacient ballad which follows.* 1 There lives a man in Eyuic's land, Anither in Auchindore ; The bravest lad amang them all, V/as lang Johnnie Moir. 2 Young Johnnie was an airy blade, Full sturdy, stout, and Strang; The sword that hung by Johnnie's side, Was just full ten feet lang. 3 Young Johnnie was a clever youth, Full sturdy, stout, and wight, — Just full three yards around the waist, And fourteen feet in height. 4 Young Johnnie has to London gone, In the spring-time of the year; Young Johnnie has to London gone, The king's banner to bear. 6 lie hadna been in fair London, It's months but twa or three, Till the king's ain daughter young Johnnie Did love right tenderlic. 6 Then word has to the kitchen gane, And word is to the hall ; And word is to the king himsel'. Among his nobles all. 7 Out then spake tlio king himsel'; An angry man was he, — " 1 will put her in prison strong, And high hang'd he shall bo." 8 Oh, the king he was an angry man. And a solemn oath swore he, — " This weighty Scot shall strait a rope, For high hang'd he shall be." 9 When Johnnie heard the sentence pass'd, A light laugh then ga'o he, — " While I ha'e strength to wield my blade. There's nane will daur hang me." • The coDiplimrnt is here rctunipd, hs nevcrn cmcndalionH are introiluced Into tho prcBcnt text, from one or other of tlio vcriiona of "Johnnie Sect." 660 BALLAD MINSTKELSY OF SCOTLAND. 10 The Englisli dogs Avere cunning rogues, About him they did creep ; And they ga'e him drops of lodomy, That laid him fast asleep. 11 When Johnnie waken'd frae his sleep, A sorry heart had ho, With his twa hands in iron bauds, His feet in fetters three. 12 " Oh, where will I get a bonnie boy, Will work for meat and fee ; Wha will rin on to my auld uncle, At the foot of Benachie ? " 13 " Here am I, a little wee boy, Will work for meat and fee ; Wha will rin on to your av\ld uncle, At the foot of Benachie." 14 " When ye come where the grass grows green, Ye'll slack your shoes and rin ; And when ye come where water's strong, Ye'll bend your bow and swim. 15 " And when ye come to Benachie, Ye'll neither chap nor call ; But ye'll gae to auld Johnnie there. Three feet abeeu them all. 16 " Ye'll gi'e to him this braid letter, Seal'd with my faith and troth; (!) And bid him bring alang with him My kinsman, Jock o' Noth." 17 When the wee boy came to Benachie, He did neither chap nor call; But went straight to auld Johnnie there, Three feet abeen them all. 18 "What news, what news, my bonnie boy? Ye ne'er were here before ; " " Nae news, nae news, but a letter from Your nephew, Johnnie Moir. 19 " He sond.s y<; here tliis braid letter, Seal'd Avith his faith and troth; And he bids ye bring alang with ye His kinsman, Jock o' Noth." LANG JOHNNIE MOIR. 651 20 Benachie lyes very low, The tap o' Noth lyes high , For a' the distance that 's between, Jock heard auld Johnnie cry. 21 Then on the plain these champions met, Twa grisly sights to see ; There were three feet between their brows, Their shoulders were yards three. 22 They hied o'er hills, they hied o'er dales, O'er mountains steep hied they, Till they came on to London town, By dawn of the third day. 23 And when they came to London town, The yetts were lock'd with bands. And guarded well by armed men. With drawn swords in their hands. 24 " What is the matter, ye Warders all ? Oh, what's the matter within, That drums do beat, and bells do ring. And make sic doleful din ? " 25 " There 's naething the matter," a Warder said. "Naething that matters to thee, But a weighty Scot to strait the rope, And the morn he maun dec." 26 " Oh, open the yetts, ye proud Warders, And open without delay." The trembling Warder, faltering, said, " Oh, I ha'e not the key." 27 " Come, open the yetts, ye proud Warders, Come, open witliout delay; Or here is a body at my back Wha sune will clear tlie way." 28 " Ye'll onen the yetts," says Jock o' Noth, '• Ye'll open them at my call; " Then with his foot he has drave in Tln-ee yards braid of the wall. 20 As tlioy gacd in by Drury Lane, And down by the town's liall. It 's tliere tlicy saw young Johnnie Moir, Stand on the English wall. 652 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 30 " Ye're welcome hero, mj^ uncle dear, Ye're welcome imto inc ; Ye'll loose the knot and slack the rope, And free me frae tlie tree." 31 " Is it for murder, or for theft? Or is it for fclonie? If it is for any heinous crime, There's nae remcid for thee." 82 " It 's nae for murder, nor for theft, Nor yet for felonie ; But it 's for loving a gay ladye They ha'e doom'd me to dee." 33 " Oh, where 's thy sword," says Jock o' Noth, " Ye took frae hame with thee ; I never saw a Scotsman j^et But cou'd wield sword or tree." 31 "A pox upon their lodomy, On me had sic a sway; Four of their men, the bravest four,* They bore my blade away." 35 " Bring back his blade," says Jock o' Noth, " And unto him it gi'e ; Or I ha'e sworn a black Scots oath, I'll gar five million dee. 36 " And where 's the ladye," says Jock o' Noth, " For fain I wou'd her see? " " She 's lock'd up in her ain chamber; The king he keeps the key." 37 Then they ha'e gane before the king, With courage bauld and free; Their armour bright cast sic a light, That almost dimm'd his c'e. 38 " Oh, where 's the ladye," says Jock o' Noth, " For fain I wou'd her see? As we arc come to her wedding, Frae the foot of Benachie." * This line occiu.s all but verbatim in "The Buchaushiro Tragedy," Btanza 45, lino J, ante, p. 486. Of course, Michael Bruce, in whose version it is, must havo copied It from this ancient ballad. LANG JOHNNIE MOIR, 653 39 " Oh, take the h\dye," said the king, " Ye welcome are for me ; I never thought to see sic men Frae the foot of Benachie." 40 " If I had kenn'd," said Jock o' Noth, " Ye'd wonder'd sae at me, I wou'd ha'e brought ane larger far, By sizes three times three. 41 "Likewise, if I had thought I'd been Sic a great fright to tliee, I'd brought Sir John o' Erskine park, — ■ He 's thretty feet and three." 42 " Wae to the boj-," then said the king, " Brought tidings unto thee ; Let all England say what tliey will, It's high hang'd he shall be." 43 " Oh, if ye hang the bonnie wee boy Brought tidings unto me, We shall attend his burial, And rewarded ye shall be." 44 " Oh, take the ladye," said the king, " The boy, too, shall be free." "A priest, a ijriest," then Johnnie cried, " To join my love and me." 45 " A clerk, a clerk," the king replied, " To seal her tocher free." [But] out it speaks auld Johnnie then, These words pronounced he : — 46 " I want na lands and rents at hame, I'll take nae gowd frae thee; I am possess'd of riches great. Full fifly ploughs and three; And likewise heir to a great estate At the foot of Benachie. 47 " Ila'e ye ony masons in this place, Or ony at your call ; That yo may now send some of them To l)uild vour broken wallV'' C54 BALLAD MLVSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 48 '■ Yci^, there are masons in tliis place, And jjlcnty at my call ; But ye may gang frae whence ye came, Nor minfl my broken wall." 49 Tliey'vo ta'en the ladye by the hand, And set her prison free ; With drama beating and fifes playing, They spent the night with glee. 50 Then auld Johnnie Moir, and young Johnnie Moir, And Jock o' Noth, all three. The English ladye, and little boy, Went all to Benachie. GEORDIE. Different versions of this ballad have appeared, aa under : — I. "Geordie;" in Johnson's Musical Museum, p. 357, aa communicated by Burns. II. In Kinloch's Ancient Scottish Ballads, p. 192. Kinloch supposes it to refer to the disfavour or disgrace which befell George, fourth Earl of Huntly, on account of his failure to punish, and supposed complicity with "John Muderacb, chief of the family of the MacRonalds, a notorious robber, who had played many foul and monstrous pranks." The particulars are narrated by Buchanan in his History of Scotland. IIL "Gight's* Lady," in Buchan's Ancient Ballads, vol. i., p. 13.3, is a similar ballad. In this version, the Ae?"o crowns his gross and grievous iniquities by ungratefully and barbarously murdering his lady and deliverer : this version says by "stabbing;" but "one set" referred to by Motherwell, and probably communicated to him by Buchan, makes it to be by drowning. Motherwell also refers to a version, "styled 'Geoi'die Lucklie,'" while Eitson, in his N ortliumhcrland Garland, p. 4.3, gives " a lamentable ditty" on "the death of" one "George Stoole," &c., " to a dehcate Scottish tune," v.'liich, says Motherwell, is "evidently imitated from the Scottish song." — Minstrelsy, Introduction, p. Ixxvi., note 46. Allan Cunningham has reprinted the Museum copy, with but little variation, in his Songs of Scotland, vol. ii., p. 186. * Gight was the ancestor of Lord Byrou. Mr. Buchan, in bis Ancient Ballads, vol. i., p. 258, gives another ballad on " the manlago of 'MIbs Gordon of Gight' to John Byron, son of Admiral Byron," the poet's parents. GEORDIE. 655 1 There was a battle in the north, And nobles there were manie; And they ha'e kill'd Sir Charlie Hay, And they laid the wyte * on Geordie. 2 C)li, he has written a lang letter; He sent it to his ladye: " It 's ye maun come up to E'nbrugh tov/n, To see what word 's of Geordie." 8 When first she look'd the letter on, Slie was baith red and rosy; But she hadna read a word but twa, Till she wallow'tf like a lily. 4 " Gar get to me my gude gray steed, My menyie all gae with me; For I shall neither eat nor drink. Till E'nbrugh town shall see me." 5 And she has mounted her gude gray steed. Her menyie all gaed with her; And she did neither eat nor drink, Till E'nbrugh town did see her. 6 [And soon she came to the water broad, Nor boat nor barge was ready; Slie turn'd her horse's head to the flood. And swam through at Queensferry.] % 7 And first appear'd the fatal block. And syne the axe to head him; And Geordie comiii' down the stair, And bands of airn upon him. 8 But the' he was chain'd in fetters Strang, Of airn and steel sae heavy, Tliere wasna ane in all the court, Sae braw a man as Geordie. 9 Oh, she 's down on her bended knee, I wat she's pale and weario; " Oh pardon, pardon, noble King, And gi'o me back my dearie I • "Wyt?:" blame. t "Wallow't:" waxod palo. t InMrt<>(1 by Allan CunnlDgham from tbe recitatlOD of Mri. Oannlngbam. 656 BALLAD MINSTRELSY OF SCOTLAND. 10 " I lia'e born seven sons to my GeorcUo dear, Tlie seventh ne'er saw his daddie; Oil pardon, pardon, noble King, Pity a waefu' ladye ! " 11 " Gar bid the heading-man mak' haste! " Tlie King replied full lordly; " Oh, noble King, tak' a' that 's mine, But gi'e mo back my Geordie ! " 12 Tlie Gordons cam', and the Gordons ran, And they were stark and steady; And aye the word amang them all Was — " Gordons, keep you ready I " 13 An aged lord at the King's right hand Says — " Noble King, but hear me; Gar her tell down five thousand crowns, And gi'e her back her dearie." 14 [Then out and spak' the King again. And oh, but he spak' bonnie! " If ye'U tell down five thousand crowns, Ye'll buy the life of Geordie ! "] * 15 Some ga'e her merks, some ga'e her crowns, Some ga'e her dollars many; And she's tell'd down five thousand crowns, And she 's gotten again her dearie. IG She blinkit blythe in her Geordie's face; Says—" Dear I've bought thee, Geordie; But there wou'd ha'e been bluidy bouksf on the green. Or I had tint my lordie ! " 17 He claspit her by the middle sma', And he kiss'd her lips sae rosy; " The fairest flower of womankind Is my sweet bonnie ladye ! " • This stoBza has been slightly altorod from Kinloch's version, " King " being Biibstituted for " Baron." If the reading here given could be authenticated, it would {JO fur to fix the event in the reign of "James the Sapient and Sext," with the venality of whose administration oS justice it, accurately accords. It may iiossibly refer to the murder of the "Bonnie Karl of Murray," by George, Bisth £arl of JIuntly, and his retainers. t " Eouks : " bodies. See note c, ante, p. 448. ^ , UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. ^f 5 I CALIfO%, ,H.OF B 315 \V^EUNIVERS'//i -n ^-> mm"^' VV^^ < FO/?^ iifiii 1/58 noRRi 3 1158 00651 0118 ^A 000 723 794 MH"^' O li. -K-m^Avr.Firr A i5 < .v S^ \ ■in^aMrnrr =0 =:; a: > ^'1 Y< J i^ 5 5-1 ^(^Aavaaii^ ^, 0/:. ^ummo/:. ^" ^WEUNIVERi-/^ ^lOSANCElfj^ o '^-{/OJIIVJJO^^ '%OdliVj-jO'^ -r O '^aHAiNnawv* )fCAllfO% CI 3 .^WEUNIVER% ^lOSANCEEfj-;^ S .5 aavaaiii iil30NV-S01 ^'a3AiNa'3\^