†‡† From the wordkirkein ver. 159, this hath been thought to be a Scottish Ballad, but it must be acknowledged that the line referred to is among the additions supplied by the Editor: besides, in the Northern counties of England,kirkis used in the common dialect forchurch, as well as beyond the Tweed.
†‡† From the wordkirkein ver. 159, this hath been thought to be a Scottish Ballad, but it must be acknowledged that the line referred to is among the additions supplied by the Editor: besides, in the Northern counties of England,kirkis used in the common dialect forchurch, as well as beyond the Tweed.
[The following thirty-nine lines are the whole of the fragment which Percy used as the groundwork of his poem. They are taken fromBishop Percy's Folio Manuscript, vol. i. p. 133.
[The following thirty-nine lines are the whole of the fragment which Percy used as the groundwork of his poem. They are taken fromBishop Percy's Folio Manuscript, vol. i. p. 133.
Sayes, Christ thee save, good child of Ell!Christ saue thee and thy steede!My father sayes he will noe meate,Nor his drinke shall doe him noe good,till he have slaine the Child of EllAnd have seene his harts blood.I wold I were in my sadle sett,And a mile out of the towne,I did not care for your fatherAnd all his merry men!I wold I were in my sadle sett,And a little space him froe,I did not care for your fatherAnd all that long him to!He leaned ore his saddle bowTo kisse this Lady good;The teares that went them two betweeneWere blend water and blood.He sett himselfe on one good steedThis lady of one palfrayAnd sett his litle horne to his mouthAnd roundlie he rode away.He had not ridden past a mileA mile out of the towne,Her father was readye with her seven bretherHe said, sett thou my daughter downe!For itt ill beseemes thee, thou false churles sonne,To carry her forth of this towne!But lowd thou lyest, Sir John the Knight!That now doest lye of me;A knight me gott and a lady me bore;Soe never did none by thee.But light now downe, my lady gay,Light downe and hold my horsseWhilest I and your father and your bretherDoe play us at this crosse;But light now downe, my owne trew loue,And meeklye hold my steede,Whilest your father [and your brether] bold.]
Sayes, Christ thee save, good child of Ell!Christ saue thee and thy steede!
My father sayes he will noe meate,Nor his drinke shall doe him noe good,till he have slaine the Child of EllAnd have seene his harts blood.
I wold I were in my sadle sett,And a mile out of the towne,I did not care for your fatherAnd all his merry men!
I wold I were in my sadle sett,And a little space him froe,I did not care for your fatherAnd all that long him to!
He leaned ore his saddle bowTo kisse this Lady good;The teares that went them two betweeneWere blend water and blood.
He sett himselfe on one good steedThis lady of one palfrayAnd sett his litle horne to his mouthAnd roundlie he rode away.
He had not ridden past a mileA mile out of the towne,Her father was readye with her seven bretherHe said, sett thou my daughter downe!For itt ill beseemes thee, thou false churles sonne,To carry her forth of this towne!
But lowd thou lyest, Sir John the Knight!That now doest lye of me;A knight me gott and a lady me bore;Soe never did none by thee.
But light now downe, my lady gay,Light downe and hold my horsseWhilest I and your father and your bretherDoe play us at this crosse;
But light now downe, my owne trew loue,And meeklye hold my steede,Whilest your father [and your brether] bold.]
[Half a page missing.]
FOOTNOTES:[643][bedecked.][644][churlish.][645][into captivity.][646][no advantage.]
[643][bedecked.]
[643][bedecked.]
[644][churlish.]
[644][churlish.]
[645][into captivity.]
[645][into captivity.]
[646][no advantage.]
[646][no advantage.]
A Scottish Ballad,
Wasprinted at Glasgow, by Robert and Andrew Foulis, MDCCLV. 8vo. 12 pages. We are indebted for its publication (with many other valuable things in these volumes) to Sir David Dalrymple, Bart., who gave it as it was preserved in the memory of a lady that is now dead.
The reader will here find it improved and enlarged with several fine stanzas, recovered from a fragment of the same ballad, in the Editor's folio MS. It is remarkable that the latter is entitledCaptain Adam Carre, and is in the English idiom. But whether the author was English or Scotch, the difference originally was not great. The English Ballads are generally of the North of England, the Scottish are of the South of Scotland, and of consequence the country of ballad-singers was sometimes subject to one crown, and sometimes to the other, and most frequently to neither. Most of the finest old Scotch songs have the scene laid within twenty miles of England, which is indeed all poetic ground, green hills, remains of woods, clear brooks. The pastoral scenes remain: of the rude chivalry of former ages happily nothing remains but the ruins of the castles, where the more daring and successful robbers resided. The house or castle of theRodesstood about a measured mile south from Duns, in Berwickshire: some of the ruins of it may be seen to this day. TheGordonswere anciently seated in the same county: the two villages of East and West Gordon lie about ten miles from the castle of the Rodes.[647]The fact, however, on which the ballad is founded, happened in the north of Scotland,[648]yet it is but too faithful a specimen of the violences practised in the feudal times in every part of this Island, and indeed all over Europe.
From the different titles of this ballad, it should seem that the old strolling bards or minstrels (who gained a livelihood by reciting these poems) made no scruple of changing the names of the personages they introduced, to humour their hearers. For instance, if a Gordon's conduct was blameworthy in the opinion of that age, the obsequious minstrel would, when among Gordons, change the name to Car, whose clan or sept lay further west, andvice versâ. The foregoing observation, which I owed to Sir David Dalrymple, will appear the more perfectly well founded, if, as I have since been informed (fromCrawford's Memoirs), the principal Commander of the expedition was aGordon, and the immediate agent aCar, orKer; for then the reciter might, upon good grounds, impute the barbarity here deplored, either to a Gordon or a Car, as best suited his purpose. In the third volume the reader will find a similar instance. See the song ofGil Morris, wherein the principal character introduced had different names given him, perhaps from the same cause.
It may be proper to mention that, in the folio MS., instead of the "Castle of the Rodes," it is the "Castle of Bittons-borrow," and also "Dractons-borrow," and "Capt. Adam Carre" is called the "Lord of Westerton-town." Uniformity required that the additional stanzas supplied from that copy should be clothed in the Scottish orthography and idiom: this has therefore been attempted, though perhaps imperfectly.
[Percy's note, which goes to prove that the historical event referred to in this ballad occurred in the north of Scotland, negatives the view which is expressed just before, that the borders are theexclusive country of the ballad singers, at all events in this particular instance. Sir David Dalrymple appears to have altered the place of action from Towie to Rodes under a misconception. An extract fromCrawford's Memoirs(an. 1571, p. 240, ed. 1706), is a proper companion to the passage from Spotswood, and explains the title in the folio MS. The person sent was "one Captain Ker with a party of foot.... Nor was he ever so much as cashiered for this inhuman action, which made Gordon share in the scandal and the guilt." Gordon, in hisHistory of the Family of Gordon, informs us that, in the true old spirit of Scottish family feuds, the Forbes's afterwards attempted to assassinate Gordon in the streets of Paris.Percy showed good taste in rejecting the termination given in Dalrymple's version, which certainly does not improve the ballad, and has moreover a very modern flavour. The husband is there made to end his days as follows:—
[Percy's note, which goes to prove that the historical event referred to in this ballad occurred in the north of Scotland, negatives the view which is expressed just before, that the borders are theexclusive country of the ballad singers, at all events in this particular instance. Sir David Dalrymple appears to have altered the place of action from Towie to Rodes under a misconception. An extract fromCrawford's Memoirs(an. 1571, p. 240, ed. 1706), is a proper companion to the passage from Spotswood, and explains the title in the folio MS. The person sent was "one Captain Ker with a party of foot.... Nor was he ever so much as cashiered for this inhuman action, which made Gordon share in the scandal and the guilt." Gordon, in hisHistory of the Family of Gordon, informs us that, in the true old spirit of Scottish family feuds, the Forbes's afterwards attempted to assassinate Gordon in the streets of Paris.
Percy showed good taste in rejecting the termination given in Dalrymple's version, which certainly does not improve the ballad, and has moreover a very modern flavour. The husband is there made to end his days as follows:—
"And round and round the wa's he wentTheir ashes for to view.At last into the flames he flewAnd bad the world adieu."
"And round and round the wa's he wentTheir ashes for to view.At last into the flames he flewAnd bad the world adieu."
This ballad is found in various versions, which proves how wide-spread was the popularity of the striking story which it relates. In the version given from the Cotton MS. by Ritson in hisAncientSongs(vol. ii. p. 38, ed. 1829) the husband takes no vengeance on Captain Car. Another version, entitledLoudoun Castle, is reprinted inChild's English and Scottish Ballads(vol. vi. p. 254), from theBallads and Songs of Ayrshire, where the scene is changed to Loudoun Castle, which is supposed to have been burnt about three hundred and sixty years ago by the clan Kennedy. In Ritson's version the castle is called Crechcrynbroghe, and in theGenealogyof the Forbes, by Matthew Lumsden, of Tullikerne, written in 1580 (Inverness, 1819, p. 44), the name is changed to Cargaffe. From this latter source we learn that the lady of Towie was Margaret Campbell, daughter of Sir John Campbell, of Calder, and that the husband, far from flying into the flames, married a second wife, a daughter of Forbes of Reires, who bare him a son named Arthur.]
This ballad is found in various versions, which proves how wide-spread was the popularity of the striking story which it relates. In the version given from the Cotton MS. by Ritson in hisAncientSongs(vol. ii. p. 38, ed. 1829) the husband takes no vengeance on Captain Car. Another version, entitledLoudoun Castle, is reprinted inChild's English and Scottish Ballads(vol. vi. p. 254), from theBallads and Songs of Ayrshire, where the scene is changed to Loudoun Castle, which is supposed to have been burnt about three hundred and sixty years ago by the clan Kennedy. In Ritson's version the castle is called Crechcrynbroghe, and in theGenealogyof the Forbes, by Matthew Lumsden, of Tullikerne, written in 1580 (Inverness, 1819, p. 44), the name is changed to Cargaffe. From this latter source we learn that the lady of Towie was Margaret Campbell, daughter of Sir John Campbell, of Calder, and that the husband, far from flying into the flames, married a second wife, a daughter of Forbes of Reires, who bare him a son named Arthur.]
It fell about the Martinmas,Quhen the wind blew shril and cauld,Said Edom o' Gordon to his men,We maun draw till a hauld.[649]And quhat a hauld sall we draw till,5My mirry men and me?We wul gae to the house o' the Rodes,To see that fair ladìe.The lady stude on hir castle wa',Beheld baith dale and down:10There she was ware of a host of menCum ryding towards the toun.[650]O see ye nat, my mirry men a'?O see ye nat quhat I see?Methinks I see a host of men:15I marveil quha they be.She weend[651]it had been hir luvely lord,As he cam ryding hame;It was the traitor Edom o' Gordon,Quha reckt nae sin nor shame.20She had nae sooner buskit[652]hirsel,And putten on hir goun,But Edom o' Gordon and his menWere round about the toun.They had nae sooner supper sett,25Nae sooner said the grace,But Edom o' Gordon and his men,Were light about the place.The lady ran up to hir towir head,Sa fast as she could hie,30To see if by hir fair speechèsShe could wi' him agree.But quhan he see this lady saif,And hir yates[653]all locked fast,He fell into a rage of wrath,35And his look was all aghast.Cum doun to me, ye lady gay,Cum doun, cum doun to me:This night sall ye lig[654]within mine armes,To-morrow my bride sall be.40I winnae[655]cum doun, ye fals Gordòn,I winnae cum doun to thee;I winnae forsake my ain dear lord,That is sae far frae me.Give owre your house, ye lady fair,45Give owre your house to me,Or I sall brenn[656]yoursel therein,Bot and[657]your babies three.I winnae give owre, ye false Gordòn,To nae sik traitor as yee;50And if ye brenn my ain dear babes,My lord sall make ye drie.[658]But reach my pistoll, Glaud, my man,[659]And charge ye weil my gun:[659]For, but an[660]I pierce that bluidy butcher,55My babes we been undone.She stude upon hir castle wa',And let twa bullets flee:[659]She mist that bluidy butchers hart,And only raz'd his knee.60Set fire to the house, quo' fals Gordòn,All wood wi' dule[661]and ire:Fals lady, ye sail rue this deid,As ye bren in the fire.Wae worth,[662]wae worth ye, Jock my man,65I paid ye weil your fee;Quhy pu' ye out the ground-wa' stane.[663]Lets in the reek[664]to me?And ein[665]wae worth ye, Jock my man,I paid ye weil your hire;70Quhy pu' ye out the ground-wa stane,To me lets in the fire?Ye paid me weil my hire, lady;Ye paid me weil my fee:But now I'm Edom o' Gordons man,75Maun either doe or die.O than bespaik hir little son,Sate on the nurses knee:Sayes, Mither deare, gi' owre this house,For the reek it smithers me.80I wad gie a' my gowd,[666]my childe,Sae wald I a' my fee,For ane blast o' the western wind,To blaw the reek frae thee.O then bespaik hir dochter dear,85She was baith jimp[667]and sma:O row[668]me in a pair o' sheits,And tow me[669]owre the wa.They rowd hir in a pair o' sheits,And towd hir owre the wa:90But on the point of Gordons spear,She gat a deadly fa.O bonnie bonnie was hir mouth,And cherry were hir cheiks,And clear clear was hir yellow hair,95Whereon the reid bluid dreips.Then wi' his spear he turnd hir owre,O gin hir face was wan![670]He sayd, ye are the first that eirI wisht alive again.100He turnd hir owre and owre againe,O gin hir skin was whyte![670]I might ha spared that bonnie faceTo hae been sum mans delyte.Busk and boun,[671]my merry men a',105For ill dooms I doe guess;I cannae luik in that bonnie face,As it lyes on the grass.Thame, luiks to freits, my master deir,[672]Then freits wil follow thame:[672]110Let it neir be said brave Edom o' GordonWas daunted by a dame.But quhen the ladye see the fireCum flaming owre hir head,She wept and kist her children twain,115Sayd, Bairns, we been but dead.The Gordon then his bougill[673]blew,And said, Awa', awa';This house o' the Rodes is a' in flame,I hauld it time to ga'.120O then bespyed hir ain dear lord,As hee cam owr the lee;He sied[674]his castle all in blazeSa far as he could see.Then sair, O sair his mind misgave,125And all his hart was wae;Put on, put on, my wighty men,So fast as ye can gae.Put on, put on, my wighty[675]men,Sa fast as ye can drie;[676]130For he that is hindmost of the thrang,Sall neir get guid o' me.Than sum they rade, and sum they rin,Fou fast out-owr the bent;[677]But eir the foremost could get up,135Baith lady and babes were brent.He wrang his hands, he rent his hair,And wept in teenefu' muid:[678]O traitors, for this cruel deidYe sall weep teirs o'bluid.140And after the Gordon he is gane,Sa fast as he might drie;[679]And soon i' the Gordon's foul hartis bluid,He's wroken[680]his dear ladie.
It fell about the Martinmas,Quhen the wind blew shril and cauld,Said Edom o' Gordon to his men,We maun draw till a hauld.[649]
And quhat a hauld sall we draw till,5My mirry men and me?We wul gae to the house o' the Rodes,To see that fair ladìe.
The lady stude on hir castle wa',Beheld baith dale and down:10There she was ware of a host of menCum ryding towards the toun.[650]
O see ye nat, my mirry men a'?O see ye nat quhat I see?Methinks I see a host of men:15I marveil quha they be.
She weend[651]it had been hir luvely lord,As he cam ryding hame;It was the traitor Edom o' Gordon,Quha reckt nae sin nor shame.20
She had nae sooner buskit[652]hirsel,And putten on hir goun,But Edom o' Gordon and his menWere round about the toun.
They had nae sooner supper sett,25Nae sooner said the grace,But Edom o' Gordon and his men,Were light about the place.
The lady ran up to hir towir head,Sa fast as she could hie,30To see if by hir fair speechèsShe could wi' him agree.
But quhan he see this lady saif,And hir yates[653]all locked fast,He fell into a rage of wrath,35And his look was all aghast.
Cum doun to me, ye lady gay,Cum doun, cum doun to me:This night sall ye lig[654]within mine armes,To-morrow my bride sall be.40
I winnae[655]cum doun, ye fals Gordòn,I winnae cum doun to thee;I winnae forsake my ain dear lord,That is sae far frae me.
Give owre your house, ye lady fair,45Give owre your house to me,Or I sall brenn[656]yoursel therein,Bot and[657]your babies three.
I winnae give owre, ye false Gordòn,To nae sik traitor as yee;50And if ye brenn my ain dear babes,My lord sall make ye drie.[658]
But reach my pistoll, Glaud, my man,[659]And charge ye weil my gun:[659]For, but an[660]I pierce that bluidy butcher,55My babes we been undone.
She stude upon hir castle wa',And let twa bullets flee:[659]She mist that bluidy butchers hart,And only raz'd his knee.60
Set fire to the house, quo' fals Gordòn,All wood wi' dule[661]and ire:Fals lady, ye sail rue this deid,As ye bren in the fire.
Wae worth,[662]wae worth ye, Jock my man,65I paid ye weil your fee;Quhy pu' ye out the ground-wa' stane.[663]Lets in the reek[664]to me?
And ein[665]wae worth ye, Jock my man,I paid ye weil your hire;70Quhy pu' ye out the ground-wa stane,To me lets in the fire?
Ye paid me weil my hire, lady;Ye paid me weil my fee:But now I'm Edom o' Gordons man,75Maun either doe or die.
O than bespaik hir little son,Sate on the nurses knee:Sayes, Mither deare, gi' owre this house,For the reek it smithers me.80
I wad gie a' my gowd,[666]my childe,Sae wald I a' my fee,For ane blast o' the western wind,To blaw the reek frae thee.
O then bespaik hir dochter dear,85She was baith jimp[667]and sma:O row[668]me in a pair o' sheits,And tow me[669]owre the wa.
They rowd hir in a pair o' sheits,And towd hir owre the wa:90But on the point of Gordons spear,She gat a deadly fa.
O bonnie bonnie was hir mouth,And cherry were hir cheiks,And clear clear was hir yellow hair,95Whereon the reid bluid dreips.
Then wi' his spear he turnd hir owre,O gin hir face was wan![670]He sayd, ye are the first that eirI wisht alive again.100
He turnd hir owre and owre againe,O gin hir skin was whyte![670]I might ha spared that bonnie faceTo hae been sum mans delyte.
Busk and boun,[671]my merry men a',105For ill dooms I doe guess;I cannae luik in that bonnie face,As it lyes on the grass.
Thame, luiks to freits, my master deir,[672]Then freits wil follow thame:[672]110Let it neir be said brave Edom o' GordonWas daunted by a dame.
But quhen the ladye see the fireCum flaming owre hir head,She wept and kist her children twain,115Sayd, Bairns, we been but dead.
The Gordon then his bougill[673]blew,And said, Awa', awa';This house o' the Rodes is a' in flame,I hauld it time to ga'.120
O then bespyed hir ain dear lord,As hee cam owr the lee;He sied[674]his castle all in blazeSa far as he could see.
Then sair, O sair his mind misgave,125And all his hart was wae;Put on, put on, my wighty men,So fast as ye can gae.
Put on, put on, my wighty[675]men,Sa fast as ye can drie;[676]130For he that is hindmost of the thrang,Sall neir get guid o' me.
Than sum they rade, and sum they rin,Fou fast out-owr the bent;[677]But eir the foremost could get up,135Baith lady and babes were brent.
He wrang his hands, he rent his hair,And wept in teenefu' muid:[678]O traitors, for this cruel deidYe sall weep teirs o'bluid.140
And after the Gordon he is gane,Sa fast as he might drie;[679]And soon i' the Gordon's foul hartis bluid,He's wroken[680]his dear ladie.
⁂
[The following is the version of the ballad in the Percy Folio, which is entitledCaptaine Carre. Bishop Percy's Folio MS., ed. J. W. Hales and F. J. Furnivall, 1867, vol. i., pp. 79-83.
ffaith, Master, whither you will,whereas you like the best,Unto the castle of Bittons borrow,and there to take your rest.But yonder stands a Castle faire,is made of lyme and stone,Yonder is in it a fayre lady,her lord is ridden and gone.The lady stood on her castle wall,she looked upp and downe,She was ware of an hoast of mencame rydinge towards the towne.See you not my merry men all,and see you not what I doe see?Methinks I see a hoast of menI muse who they shold be.She thought it had beene her lovly Lord,he had come ryding home:it was the traitor, Captaine Carrethe Lord of Westerton towneThey had noe sooner super sett,and after said the gracebut the traitor Captaine Carrewas light about the place.Give over thy house, thou lady gayI will make thee a band [i.e.bond]all night within mine armes thoust lye,to-morrow be the heyre of my land.Ile not give over my house, shee saidneither for ladds nor man,nor yet for traitor Captaine Carre,Untill my lord come home.But reach me my pistoll pee [i.e.piece]and charge you well my gunne,Ile shoote at the bloody bucherthe lord of westerton.She stood uppon her castle walland let the bulletts flee,and where shee mist....
ffaith, Master, whither you will,whereas you like the best,Unto the castle of Bittons borrow,and there to take your rest.
But yonder stands a Castle faire,is made of lyme and stone,Yonder is in it a fayre lady,her lord is ridden and gone.
The lady stood on her castle wall,she looked upp and downe,She was ware of an hoast of mencame rydinge towards the towne.
See you not my merry men all,and see you not what I doe see?Methinks I see a hoast of menI muse who they shold be.
She thought it had beene her lovly Lord,he had come ryding home:it was the traitor, Captaine Carrethe Lord of Westerton towne
They had noe sooner super sett,and after said the gracebut the traitor Captaine Carrewas light about the place.
Give over thy house, thou lady gayI will make thee a band [i.e.bond]all night within mine armes thoust lye,to-morrow be the heyre of my land.
Ile not give over my house, shee saidneither for ladds nor man,nor yet for traitor Captaine Carre,Untill my lord come home.
But reach me my pistoll pee [i.e.piece]and charge you well my gunne,Ile shoote at the bloody bucherthe lord of westerton.
She stood uppon her castle walland let the bulletts flee,and where shee mist....
[Half a page missing.]
But then bespake the little childthat sate on the nurses knee,saies, mother deere, give ore this housefor the smoake it smoothers me.I wold give all my gold, my childe,soe wold I doe all my fee,for one blast of the westerne windto blow the smoke from thee.But when shee saw the fiercame flaming ore her head,She tooke them upp her children twoSayes, babes we all beene dead!But Adam then he fired the house,a sorrowfull sight to see:now hath he burned this lady faireand eke her children threeThen Captain Carre he rode away,he staid noe longer at that tide,he thought that place it was to warmesoe neere for to abideHe calld unto his merry men allbidd them make hast awayfor we have slaine his children threeall, and his lady gay.Word came to lovly loudon[1]to loudon[681]wheras her lord lay,his castle and his hall was burnedall and his lady gay.Soe hath he done his Children three,More dearer unto himthen either the silver or the goldthat men soe faine wold win.But when he looket this writing on,Lord in is hart he was woe!saies, I will find thee, Captain Carre,wether thou ryde or goe!Buff yee, bowne yee, my merry men allwith tempered swords of steele,for till I have found out Captaine Carre,My hart it is nothing weele.But when he came to dractons Borrow,soe long ere it was day,and ther he found him, Captaine Carre;that night he ment to stay.]
But then bespake the little childthat sate on the nurses knee,saies, mother deere, give ore this housefor the smoake it smoothers me.
I wold give all my gold, my childe,soe wold I doe all my fee,for one blast of the westerne windto blow the smoke from thee.
But when shee saw the fiercame flaming ore her head,She tooke them upp her children twoSayes, babes we all beene dead!
But Adam then he fired the house,a sorrowfull sight to see:now hath he burned this lady faireand eke her children three
Then Captain Carre he rode away,he staid noe longer at that tide,he thought that place it was to warmesoe neere for to abide
He calld unto his merry men allbidd them make hast awayfor we have slaine his children threeall, and his lady gay.
Word came to lovly loudon[1]to loudon[681]wheras her lord lay,his castle and his hall was burnedall and his lady gay.
Soe hath he done his Children three,More dearer unto himthen either the silver or the goldthat men soe faine wold win.
But when he looket this writing on,Lord in is hart he was woe!saies, I will find thee, Captain Carre,wether thou ryde or goe!
Buff yee, bowne yee, my merry men allwith tempered swords of steele,for till I have found out Captaine Carre,My hart it is nothing weele.
But when he came to dractons Borrow,soe long ere it was day,and ther he found him, Captaine Carre;that night he ment to stay.]
[Half a page missing.]
FOOTNOTES:[647]This ballad is well known in that neighbourhood, where it is intitledAdam O'Gordon. It may be observed, that the famous freebooter whom Edward I. fought with, hand to hand, near Farnham, was namedAdam Gordon.[648]Since this ballad was first printed, the subject of it has been found recorded in Abp. Spotswood'sHistory of the Church ofScotland, p. 259, who informs us that, "Anno 1571. In the north parts of Scotland,Adam Gordon(who was deputy for his brother the earl of Huntley) did keep a great stir; and under colour of the queen's authority, committed divers oppressions, especially upon the Forbes's.... Having killed Arthur Forbes, brother to the lord Forbes.... Not long after he sent to summon the house of Tavoy pertaining to Alexander Forbes. TheLadyrefusing to yield without direction from her husband, he put fire unto it, and burnt her therein, with children and servants, being twenty-seven persons in all."This inhuman and barbarous cruelty made his name odious, and stained all his former doings; otherwise he was held very active and fortunate in his enterprizes."This fact, which had escaped the Editor's notice, was in the most obliging manner pointed out to him by an ingenious writer who signs his name H. H. (Newcastle, May 9) in theGentleman'sMagazinefor May, 1775.[649][to a hold.][650][dwelling-house.][651][thought.][652][dressed.][653][gates.][654][lie.][655][will not.][656][burn.][657][and also.][658][suffer.][659]These three lines are restored from Foulis's edition, and the fol. MS., which last readsthe bullets, in ver. 58.[660][unless.][661][mad with sorrow.][662][woe betide.][663][ground-wall stone.][664][smoke.][665][even.][666][gold.][667][slender.][668][roll.][669][let me down.][670]Ver. 98, 102.O gin, &c.a Scottish idiom to express great admiration.[671][make ready to go.][672]V. 109, 110.Thame, &c.i.e.Them that look after omens of ill luck, ill luck will follow.[673][bugle.][674][saw.][675][nimble.][676][endure.][677][full fast over the meadows.][678][in wrathful mood.][679][bear.][680][revenged.][681][printedLondonin the edition of the MS.]
[647]This ballad is well known in that neighbourhood, where it is intitledAdam O'Gordon. It may be observed, that the famous freebooter whom Edward I. fought with, hand to hand, near Farnham, was namedAdam Gordon.
[647]This ballad is well known in that neighbourhood, where it is intitledAdam O'Gordon. It may be observed, that the famous freebooter whom Edward I. fought with, hand to hand, near Farnham, was namedAdam Gordon.
[648]Since this ballad was first printed, the subject of it has been found recorded in Abp. Spotswood'sHistory of the Church ofScotland, p. 259, who informs us that, "Anno 1571. In the north parts of Scotland,Adam Gordon(who was deputy for his brother the earl of Huntley) did keep a great stir; and under colour of the queen's authority, committed divers oppressions, especially upon the Forbes's.... Having killed Arthur Forbes, brother to the lord Forbes.... Not long after he sent to summon the house of Tavoy pertaining to Alexander Forbes. TheLadyrefusing to yield without direction from her husband, he put fire unto it, and burnt her therein, with children and servants, being twenty-seven persons in all."This inhuman and barbarous cruelty made his name odious, and stained all his former doings; otherwise he was held very active and fortunate in his enterprizes."This fact, which had escaped the Editor's notice, was in the most obliging manner pointed out to him by an ingenious writer who signs his name H. H. (Newcastle, May 9) in theGentleman'sMagazinefor May, 1775.
[648]Since this ballad was first printed, the subject of it has been found recorded in Abp. Spotswood'sHistory of the Church ofScotland, p. 259, who informs us that, "Anno 1571. In the north parts of Scotland,Adam Gordon(who was deputy for his brother the earl of Huntley) did keep a great stir; and under colour of the queen's authority, committed divers oppressions, especially upon the Forbes's.... Having killed Arthur Forbes, brother to the lord Forbes.... Not long after he sent to summon the house of Tavoy pertaining to Alexander Forbes. TheLadyrefusing to yield without direction from her husband, he put fire unto it, and burnt her therein, with children and servants, being twenty-seven persons in all.
"This inhuman and barbarous cruelty made his name odious, and stained all his former doings; otherwise he was held very active and fortunate in his enterprizes."
This fact, which had escaped the Editor's notice, was in the most obliging manner pointed out to him by an ingenious writer who signs his name H. H. (Newcastle, May 9) in theGentleman'sMagazinefor May, 1775.
[649][to a hold.]
[649][to a hold.]
[650][dwelling-house.]
[650][dwelling-house.]
[651][thought.]
[651][thought.]
[652][dressed.]
[652][dressed.]
[653][gates.]
[653][gates.]
[654][lie.]
[654][lie.]
[655][will not.]
[655][will not.]
[656][burn.]
[656][burn.]
[657][and also.]
[657][and also.]
[658][suffer.]
[658][suffer.]
[659]These three lines are restored from Foulis's edition, and the fol. MS., which last readsthe bullets, in ver. 58.
[659]These three lines are restored from Foulis's edition, and the fol. MS., which last readsthe bullets, in ver. 58.
[660][unless.]
[660][unless.]
[661][mad with sorrow.]
[661][mad with sorrow.]
[662][woe betide.]
[662][woe betide.]
[663][ground-wall stone.]
[663][ground-wall stone.]
[664][smoke.]
[664][smoke.]
[665][even.]
[665][even.]
[666][gold.]
[666][gold.]
[667][slender.]
[667][slender.]
[668][roll.]
[668][roll.]
[669][let me down.]
[669][let me down.]
[670]Ver. 98, 102.O gin, &c.a Scottish idiom to express great admiration.
[670]Ver. 98, 102.O gin, &c.a Scottish idiom to express great admiration.
[671][make ready to go.]
[671][make ready to go.]
[672]V. 109, 110.Thame, &c.i.e.Them that look after omens of ill luck, ill luck will follow.
[672]V. 109, 110.Thame, &c.i.e.Them that look after omens of ill luck, ill luck will follow.
[673][bugle.]
[673][bugle.]
[674][saw.]
[674][saw.]
[675][nimble.]
[675][nimble.]
[676][endure.]
[676][endure.]
[677][full fast over the meadows.]
[677][full fast over the meadows.]
[678][in wrathful mood.]
[678][in wrathful mood.]
[679][bear.]
[679][bear.]
[680][revenged.]
[680][revenged.]
[681][printedLondonin the edition of the MS.]
[681][printedLondonin the edition of the MS.]
THE END OF THE FIRST BOOK.
RELIQUES OF ANCIENT POETRY, ETC.
SERIES THE FIRST.
Our great dramatic poet having occasionally quoted many ancient ballads, and even taken the plot of one, if not more, of his plays from among them, it was judged proper to preserve as many of these as could be recovered, and, that they might be the more easily found, to exhibit them in one collective view. This Second Book is therefore set apart for the reception of such ballads as are quoted by Shakespeare, or contribute in any degree to illustrate his writings: this being the principal point in view, the candid reader will pardon the admission of some pieces that have no other kind of merit.
Werethree noted outlaws, whose skill in archery rendered them formerly as famous in the north of England, as Robin Hood and his fellows were in the midland counties. Their place of residence was in the forest of Englewood, not far from Carlisle (called corruptly in the ballad Englishwood, whereas Engle, or Ingle-wood, signifies wood for firing). At what time they lived does not appear. The author of the common ballad on "The Pedigree, Education and Marriage of Robin Hood," makes them contemporary with Robin Hood's father, in order to give him the honour of beating them, viz.:
"The father of Robin a Forester was,and he shot in a lusty long-bow,Two north-country miles and an inch at a shot,as the Pinder of Wakefield does know:For he brought Adam Bell, and Clim of the Clugh,and William a Clowdéslee,To shoot with our Forester for forty mark;and the Forester beat them all three."
"The father of Robin a Forester was,and he shot in a lusty long-bow,Two north-country miles and an inch at a shot,as the Pinder of Wakefield does know:
For he brought Adam Bell, and Clim of the Clugh,and William a Clowdéslee,To shoot with our Forester for forty mark;and the Forester beat them all three."
Collect. of Old Ballads, vol. i. (1723), p. 67.
This seems to prove that they were commonly thought to have lived before the popular hero of Sherwood.
Our northern archers were not unknown to their southern countrymen: their excellence at the long-bow is often alluded to by our ancient poets. Shakespeare, in his comedy ofMuch adoeabout nothing, act i., makes Benedick confirm his resolves of not yielding to love, by this protestation, "If I do, hang me in abottle like a cat,[682]and shoot at me, and he that hits me, let him be clapt on the shoulder, and calledAdam:" meaningAdam Bell, as Theobald rightly observes, who refers to one or two other passages in our old poets wherein he is mentioned. The Oxford editor has also well conjectured, that "Abraham Cupid" inRomeo and Juliet, act ii. sc. 1, should be "AdamCupid," in allusion to our archer. Ben Jonson has mentionedClym o' the Cloughin hisAlchemist, act i. sc. 2. And Sir William Davenant, in a mock poem of his, called "The long vacation in London," describes the Attorneys and Proctors, as making matches to meet in Finsbury fields.
"With loynes in canvas bow-case tyde:[683]Where arrowes stick with mickle pride; ...Like ghosts ofAdam BellandClymme.Sol sets for fear they'l shoot at him."
"With loynes in canvas bow-case tyde:[683]Where arrowes stick with mickle pride; ...Like ghosts ofAdam BellandClymme.Sol sets for fear they'l shoot at him."
Works, 1673, fol. p. 291.
I have only to add further concerning the principal hero of this Ballad, that theBellswere noted rogues in the North so late as the time of Q. Elizabeth. See in Rymer'sFœdera, a letter from lord William Howard to some of the officers of state, wherein he mentions them.
As for the following stanzas, which will be judged from the style, orthography, and numbers, to be of considerable antiquity, they were here given (corrected in some places by a MS. copy in the Editor's old folio) from a black-letter 4to.Imprinted at London in Lothburyeby Wyllyam Copland(no date). That old quarto edition seems to be exactly followed inPieces of Ancient Popular Poetry, &c.Lond. 1791,[684]8vo., the variations from which that occur in the following copy, are selected from many others in the folio MS. above-mentioned, and when distinguished by the usual inverted 'comma,' have been assisted by conjecture.
In the same MS. this Ballad is followed by another, intitledYounge Cloudeslee, being a continuation of the present story, and reciting the adventures of Willian of Cloudesly's son: but greatly inferior to this both in merit and antiquity.