A.

A.'Kemp Owyne.' Buchan's Ballads of the North of Scotland, II, 78; Motherwell's Minstrelsy, p. 373; 'Kemp Owayne,' Motherwell's MS., p. 448.B.'Kempion.'a.Jamieson-Brown MS., fol. 29.b.Scott's Minstrelsy, 1802, II, 93, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

A.'Kemp Owyne.' Buchan's Ballads of the North of Scotland, II, 78; Motherwell's Minstrelsy, p. 373; 'Kemp Owayne,' Motherwell's MS., p. 448.

B.'Kempion.'a.Jamieson-Brown MS., fol. 29.b.Scott's Minstrelsy, 1802, II, 93, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

It is not, perhaps, material to explain how Owain, "the king's son Urien," happens to be awarded the adventure which here follows. It is enough that his right is as good as that of other knights to whom the same achievement has been assigned, though the romance, or, as the phrase used to be, "the book," says nothing upon the subject. Owain's slaying the fire-drake who was getting the better of the lion may have led to his name becoming associated with the still more gallant exploit of thrice kissing a fire-drake to effect a disenchantment. The ring inA9 might more plausibly be regarded as being a repetition of that which Owain's lady gave him on leaving her for a twelvemonth's outing, a ring which would keep him from loss of blood, and also from prison, sickness, and defeat in battle—in short, preserve him against all the accidents which the knight suggested might prevent his holding his day—provided that he had it by him and thought on her. Ritson, Ywaine and Gawin, vv 1514-38.

But an Icelandic saga comes near enough to the story of the ballad as given inAto show where its connections lie. Alsól and a brother and sister are all transformed by a stepmother, a handsome woman, much, younger than her husband. Alsól's heavy weird is to be a nondescript monster with a horse's tail, hoofs, and mane, white eyes, big mouth, and huge hands, and never to be released from the spell till a king's son shall consent to kiss her. One night when Hjálmtèr had landed on a woody island, and it had fallen to him to keep watch, he heard a great din and crashing in the woods, so that the oaks trembled. Presently this monster came out of the thicketwith a fine sword in her hand, such as he had not seen the like of. They had a colloquy, and he asked her to let him have the sword. She said he should not have it unless he would kiss her. "I will not kiss thy snout," said Hjálmtèr, "for mayhap I should stick to it." But something came into his mind which made him think better of her offer, and he said he was ready. "You must leap upon my neck, then," she said, "when I throw up the sword, and if you then hesitate, it will be your death." She threw up the sword, he leaped on her neck and kissed her, and she gave him the sword, with an augury of victory and good luck for him all his days. The retransformation does not occur on the spot, but further on Hjálmtèr meets Álsól as a young lady at the court of her brother, who has also been restored to his proper form and station; everything is explained; Hjálmtèr marries her, and his foster-brother her sister. Hjálmtèrs ok Ölvers Saga, cc 10, 22, Rafn, Fornaldar Sögur, III, 473 ff, 514 ff.

In many tales of the sort a single kiss suffices to undo the spell and reverse the transformation; in others, as in the ballad, three are required. The triplication of the kiss has led inAto a triplication of the talisman against wounds. The popular genius was inventive enough to vary the properties of the several gifts, and we may believe that belt, ring, and sword had originally each its peculiar quality. The peril of touching fin or tail inAseems to correspond to that in the saga of hesitating when the sword is thrown up.

TheDanishballad, 'Jomfruen i Ormeham,' from MSS of the sixteenth and the seventeenth century, Grundtvig, No 59, II, 177, resembles both the first version of the Scottish ballad and the Icelandic saga in the points that the maid offers gifts and is rehabilitated by a kiss. The maid in her proper shape, which, it appears, she may resume for a portion of the day, stands at Sir Jenus's bedside and offers him gifts—five silver-bowls, all the gold in her kist, twelve foals, twelve boats—and ends with saying, "Were I a swain, as you are, I would betroth a maid." It is now close upon midnight, and she hints that he must be quick. But Jenus is fast asleep the while; twelve strikes, and the maid instantly turns into a little snake. The page, however, has been awake, and he repeats to his master all that has occurred.[296]Sir Jenus orders his horse, rides along a hillside, and sees the little snake in the grass. He bends over and kisses it, and it turns to a courteous maid, who thanks him, and offers him any boon he may ask. He asks her to be his, and as she has loved him before this, she has no difficulty in plighting him her troth.

A maid transformed by a step-mother into a tree is freed by being kissed by a man, in 'Jomfruen i Linden,' Grundtvig, II, 214, No 66, Kristensen, II, 90, No 31; 'Linden,' Afzelius, III, 114, 118, No 87. In 'Linden,' Kristensen, I, 13, No 5, a combination of two ballads, a prince cuts down the linden, which changes to a linden-worm; he kisses the worm, and a young maid stands before him.

A knight bewitched into the shape of a troll is restored by being kissed by a peasant's wife thrice [once], 'Trolden og Bondens Hustru,' Grundtvig, II, 142, No 52,A,B; a prince by a kiss from a maid, 'Lindormen,' Grundtvig, D. g. F., II, 211, No 65A, 'Slangen og den lille Pige,' Danske Folkeminder, 1861, p. 15.

The removal of a spell which compels man or woman to appear continuously or alternately as a monster, commonly a snake, by three kisses or by one, is a regular feature in the numerous German tales of Schlangenjungfrauen, Weissefrauen. Often the man is afraid to venture the third kiss, or even a single one. See Grimm, Deutsche Sagen, No 13, No 222; Dobeneck, Des deutschen Mittelalters Volksglauben, I, 18 == Grimm, No 13; Mone's Anzeiger, III, 89, VII, 476; Panzer, Bayerische Sagen u. Bräuche, I, 196, No 214; Schönhuth, Die Burgen u.s.w. Badens u. der Pfalz, I, 105; Stöber, Die Sagen des Elsasses, p. 346, No 277, p. 248, No 190; Curtze, Volksüberlieferungen aus Waldeck, p. 198; Sommer, Sagen, Märchen u. Gebräuche aus Sachsen u. Thüringen, p. 21, No 16; Schambach u. Müller, p. 104, No 132; Müllenhoff, p. 580, No 597; Wolf, Hessische Sagen, No 46; etc., etc.: also, Kreutzwald, Ehstnische Märchen, by Löwe, No 19, p. 270 f. So in some forms of 'Beauty and the Beast:' Töppen, Aberglauben aus Masuren, p. 142; Mikuličić, Narodne Pripovietke, p. 1, No 1; Afanasief, VII, 153, No 15; Coelho, Contos populares portuguezes, p. 69, No 29.[297]

Rivals or peers of Owain among romantic knights are, first, Lanzelet, in Ulrich von Zatzikhoven's poem, who kisses a serpent on the mouth once, which,after bathing in a spring(see 'Tam Lin'), becomes the finest woman ever seen: vv 7836-7939. Brandimarte, again, in Orlando Innamorato, lib.II., c.XXVI, stanzas 7-15; and Carduino, I Cantari di Carduino, Rajna, stanzas 49, 54 f, 61-64, pp 35-41. Le Bel Inconnu is an involuntary instrument in such a disenchantment, for the snake fascinates him first and kisses him without his knowledge; he afterwards goes to sleep, and finds a beautiful woman standing at his head when he wakes: ed. Hippeau, p. 110 ff, v. 3101 ff. The English Libius Disconius is kist or he it wist, and the dragon at once turns to a beautiful woman: Percy MS., Hales & Furnivall, II, 493f; Ritson, Romances, II, 84 f. Espertius, in Tiran le Blanc, is so overcome with fear that he cannot kiss the dragon,—a daughter of Hippocrates, transformed by Diana, in the island of Lango,—but Espertius not running away, as two men before him had done, the dragon kisses him with equally good effect: Caylus, Tiran le Blanc, II, 334-39. This particular disenchantment had not been accomplished down to Sir John Mandeville's time, for he mentions only the failures: Voyage and Travel, c. iv, pp 28-31, ed. 1725. Amadis d'Astra touches two dragons on the face and breast, and restores them to young-ladyhood: Historia del Principe Sferamundi, the 13th book of Amadis of Gaul, P. II, c. xcvii, pp 458-462, Venice, 1610. This feat is shown by the details to be only a variation of the story in Tiran le Blanc.[298]

The Rev. Mr Lamb, of Norham, communicated to Hutchinson, author of 'A View of Northumberland,' a ballad entitled 'The Laidley Worm of Spindleston Heughs,' with this harmless preamble: "A song 500 years old, made by the old Mountain Bard, Duncan Frasier, living on Cheviot,A.D.1270. From an ancient manuscript." This composition of Mr Lamb's—for nearly every line of it is his—is not only based on popular tradition, but evidently preserves some small fragments of a popular ballad, and for this reason is given in an Appendix. There is a copy deviating but very little from the print in Kinloch's MSS, I, 187. It was obtained from the recitation of an old woman in Berwickshire.[299]In this recited version the Child of Wynd, or Childy Wynd (Child O-wyne), has become Child o Wane (Child O-wayn).

Mr R.H. Evans, in his preface to this ballad, Old Ballads, 1810, IV, 241, says that Mr Turner had informed him "that a lady upwards of seventy had heard her mother repeat an older and nearly similar ballad."

Ais translated by Rosa Warrens, Schottische Volkslieder, p. 19;B bby Gerhard, p. 171, by Schubart, p. 110, by Knortz, Lieder u. Romanzen Alt-Englands, p. 201. 'Jomfruen i Ormeham' by Prior, III, 135.

Buchan, Ballads of the North of Scotland, II, 78, from Mr Nicol of Strichen, as learned in his youth from old people; Motherwell's Minstrelsy, p. 374; Motherwell's MS., p. 448.

1Her mother died when she was young,Which gave her cause to make great moan;Her father married the warst womanThat ever lived in Christendom.2She served her with foot and hand,In every thing that she could dee,Till once, in an unlucky time,She threw her in ower Craigy's sea.3Says, 'Lie you there, dove Isabel,And all my sorrows lie with thee;Till Kemp Owyne come ower the sea,And borrow you with kisses three,Let all the warld do what they will,Oh borrowed shall you never be!'4Her breath grew strang, her hair grew lang,And twisted thrice about the tree,And all the people, far and near,Thought that a savage beast was she.5These news did come to Kemp Owyne,Where he lived, far beyond the sea;He hasted him to Craigy's sea,And on the savage beast lookd he.6Her breath was strang, her hair was lang,And twisted was about the tree,And with a swing she came about:'Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me.7'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 fin,I vow my belt your death shall be.'8He stepped in, gave her a kiss,The royal belt he brought him wi;Her breath was strang, her hair was lang,And twisted twice about the tree,And with a swing she came about:'Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me.9'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 touch me, tail or fin,I swear my ring your death shall be.'10He stepped in, gave her a kiss,The royal ring he brought him wi;Her breath was strang, her hair was lang,And twisted ance about the tree,And with a swing she came about:'Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me.11'Here is a royal brand,' she said,'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 fin,I swear my brand your death shall be.'12He stepped in, gave her a kiss,The royal brand he brought him wi;Her breath 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.

1Her mother died when she was young,Which gave her cause to make great moan;Her father married the warst womanThat ever lived in Christendom.

2She served her with foot and hand,In every thing that she could dee,Till once, in an unlucky time,She threw her in ower Craigy's sea.

3Says, 'Lie you there, dove Isabel,And all my sorrows lie with thee;Till Kemp Owyne come ower the sea,And borrow you with kisses three,Let all the warld do what they will,Oh borrowed shall you never be!'

4Her breath grew strang, her hair grew lang,And twisted thrice about the tree,And all the people, far and near,Thought that a savage beast was she.

5These news did come to Kemp Owyne,Where he lived, far beyond the sea;He hasted him to Craigy's sea,And on the savage beast lookd he.

6Her breath was strang, her hair was lang,And twisted was about the tree,And with a swing she came about:'Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me.

7'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 fin,I vow my belt your death shall be.'

8He stepped in, gave her a kiss,The royal belt he brought him wi;Her breath was strang, her hair was lang,And twisted twice about the tree,And with a swing she came about:'Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me.

9'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 touch me, tail or fin,I swear my ring your death shall be.'

10He stepped in, gave her a kiss,The royal ring he brought him wi;Her breath was strang, her hair was lang,And twisted ance about the tree,And with a swing she came about:'Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me.

11'Here is a royal brand,' she said,'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 fin,I swear my brand your death shall be.'

12He stepped in, gave her a kiss,The royal brand he brought him wi;Her breath 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.

a.Jamieson-Brown MS., fol. 29.b.Scott's Minstrelsy, II, 93, 1802, from William Tytler's Brown MS., No 9, "with corrections from a recited fragment."

1'Come here, come here, you freely feed,An lay your head low on my knee;The hardest weird I will you readThat eer war read to a lady.2'O meikle dollour sall you dree,An ay the sat seas oer ye['s] swim;An far mair dollour sall ye dreeOn Eastmuir craigs, or ye them clim.3'I wot ye's be a weary wight,An releived sall ye never beTill Kempion, the kingis son,Come to the craig and thrice kiss thee.'4O meickle dollour did she dree,An ay the sat seas oer she swam;An far mair dollour did she dreeOn Eastmuir craigs, or them she clam;An ay she cried for Kempion,Gin he would come till her han.5Now word has gane to KempionThat sich a beast was in his lan,An ay be sure she would gae madGin she gat nae help frae his han.6'Now by my sooth,' says Kempion,'This fiery beast I['ll] gang to see;''An by my sooth,' says Segramour,'My ae brother, I'll gang you wi.'7O biggit ha they a bonny boat,An they hae set her to the sea,An Kempion an SegramourThe fiery beast ha gane to see:A mile afore they reachd the shore,I wot she gard the red fire flee.8'O Segramour, keep my boat afloat,An lat her no the lan so near;For the wicked beast she'll sure gae mad,An set fire to the land an mair.'9'O out o my stye I winna rise—An it is na for the fear o thee—Till Kempion, the kingis son,Come to the craig an thrice kiss me.'10He's louted him oer the Eastmuir craig,An he has gien her kisses ane;Awa she gid, an again she came,The fieryest beast that ever was seen.11'O out o my stye I winna rise—An it is na for fear o thee—Till Kempion, the kingis son,Come to the craig an thrice kiss me.'12He louted him oer the Eastmuir craig,An he has gien her kisses twa;Awa she gid, an again she came,The fieryest beast that ever you saw.13'O out o my stye I winna rise—An it is na for fear o ye—Till Kempion, the kingis son,Come to the craig an thrice kiss me.'14He's louted him oer the Eastmuir craig,An he has gien her kisses three;Awa she gid, an again she came,The fairest lady that ever coud be.15'An by my sooth,' say[s] Kempion,'My ain true love—for this is she—O was it wolf into the wood,Or was it fish intill the sea,Or was it man, or wile woman,My true love, that misshapit thee?'16'It was na wolf into the wood,Nor was it fish into the sea,But it was my stepmother,An wae an weary mot she be.17'O a heavier weird light her uponThan ever fell on wile woman;Her hair's grow rough, an her teeth's grow lang,An on her four feet sal she gang.18'Nane sall tack pitty her upon,But in Wormie's Wood she sall ay won,An relieved sall she never be,Till St Mungo come oer the sea.'

1'Come here, come here, you freely feed,An lay your head low on my knee;The hardest weird I will you readThat eer war read to a lady.

2'O meikle dollour sall you dree,An ay the sat seas oer ye['s] swim;An far mair dollour sall ye dreeOn Eastmuir craigs, or ye them clim.

3'I wot ye's be a weary wight,An releived sall ye never beTill Kempion, the kingis son,Come to the craig and thrice kiss thee.'

4O meickle dollour did she dree,An ay the sat seas oer she swam;An far mair dollour did she dreeOn Eastmuir craigs, or them she clam;An ay she cried for Kempion,Gin he would come till her han.

5Now word has gane to KempionThat sich a beast was in his lan,An ay be sure she would gae madGin she gat nae help frae his han.

6'Now by my sooth,' says Kempion,'This fiery beast I['ll] gang to see;''An by my sooth,' says Segramour,'My ae brother, I'll gang you wi.'

7O biggit ha they a bonny boat,An they hae set her to the sea,An Kempion an SegramourThe fiery beast ha gane to see:A mile afore they reachd the shore,I wot she gard the red fire flee.

8'O Segramour, keep my boat afloat,An lat her no the lan so near;For the wicked beast she'll sure gae mad,An set fire to the land an mair.'

9'O out o my stye I winna rise—An it is na for the fear o thee—Till Kempion, the kingis son,Come to the craig an thrice kiss me.'

10He's louted him oer the Eastmuir craig,An he has gien her kisses ane;Awa she gid, an again she came,The fieryest beast that ever was seen.

11'O out o my stye I winna rise—An it is na for fear o thee—Till Kempion, the kingis son,Come to the craig an thrice kiss me.'

12He louted him oer the Eastmuir craig,An he has gien her kisses twa;Awa she gid, an again she came,The fieryest beast that ever you saw.

13'O out o my stye I winna rise—An it is na for fear o ye—Till Kempion, the kingis son,Come to the craig an thrice kiss me.'

14He's louted him oer the Eastmuir craig,An he has gien her kisses three;Awa she gid, an again she came,The fairest lady that ever coud be.

15'An by my sooth,' say[s] Kempion,'My ain true love—for this is she—O was it wolf into the wood,Or was it fish intill the sea,Or was it man, or wile woman,My true love, that misshapit thee?'

16'It was na wolf into the wood,Nor was it fish into the sea,But it was my stepmother,An wae an weary mot she be.

17'O a heavier weird light her uponThan ever fell on wile woman;Her hair's grow rough, an her teeth's grow lang,An on her four feet sal she gang.

18'Nane sall tack pitty her upon,But in Wormie's Wood she sall ay won,An relieved sall she never be,Till St Mungo come oer the sea.'

Buchan gives 4-6 in two six-line stanzas. There are a few trivial diversities between Motherwell's manuscript, or my copy of it, and his printed text, which conforms to Buchan's.

B. a.

Written in long or double lines in the manuscript.22, 42. or.53. a besure.84. landy mair114. twice.163.wickedis inserted before stepmother, seemingly by Jamieson.

Written in long or double lines in the manuscript.

22, 42. or.

53. a besure.

84. landy mair

114. twice.

163.wickedis inserted before stepmother, seemingly by Jamieson.

The first stanza, as given by Anderson, Nichols, Literary Illustrations,VII, 177, is:

'Come here, come here, ye freely feed,And lay your head low on my knee;The heaviest weird I will you readThat ever was read till a lady.'

13. heaviest.14. gaye ladye.22. ye'se.24. when ye.31. I weird ye to a fiery beast.5 ==a45,6+a51,2:a53,4omitted:

13. heaviest.

14. gaye ladye.

22. ye'se.

24. when ye.

31. I weird ye to a fiery beast.

5 ==a45,6+a51,2:a53,4omitted:

And aye she cried for Kempion,Gin he would but cum to her hand;Now word has gane to KempionThat sicken a beast was in his land.

64. wi thee.7omitsa3,4.75. But a mile before.76. Around them she.82. oer near.83. will sure.84. to a' the land and mair.After 8 is inserted:

64. wi thee.

7omitsa3,4.

75. But a mile before.

76. Around them she.

82. oer near.

83. will sure.

84. to a' the land and mair.

After 8 is inserted:

Syne has he bent an arblast bow,And aimd an arrow at her head,And swore if she didna quit the land,Wi that same shaft to shoot her dead.

91. stythe.92. awe o thee.101. dizzy crag.102. gien the monster.111. stythe.112. And not for a' thy bow nor thee.121. Estmere craigs.131. my den.132. Nor flee it for the feir o thee.133. Kempion, that courteous knight.141. lofty craig.144. loveliest lady eer.151,2.After this is inserted:

91. stythe.

92. awe o thee.

101. dizzy crag.

102. gien the monster.

111. stythe.

112. And not for a' thy bow nor thee.

121. Estmere craigs.

131. my den.

132. Nor flee it for the feir o thee.

133. Kempion, that courteous knight.

141. lofty craig.

144. loveliest lady eer.

151,2.After this is inserted:

They surely had a heart o stane,Could put thee to such misery.

153-6make a separate stanza.153, 161. warwolf in the wood.154, 162. mermaid in the sea.156. my ain true.171. weird shall light her on.173. Her hair shall grow ... teeth grow.182. In Wormeswood she aye shall won.185,6.

153-6make a separate stanza.

153, 161. warwolf in the wood.

154, 162. mermaid in the sea.

156. my ain true.

171. weird shall light her on.

173. Her hair shall grow ... teeth grow.

182. In Wormeswood she aye shall won.

185,6.

And sighing said that weary wight,I doubt that day I'll never see.

FOOTNOTES:[296]The incident of a woman trying to move a man who all the while is in a deep sleep, and of his servant reporting what has been going on, can hardly have belonged to this ballad from the beginning. It is exceedingly common in popular tales: see 'The Red Bull of Norroway,' in Chambers's Popular Rhymes of Scotland, 3d ed., p. 99; Grimms, 'Das singende springende Löweneckerchen,' No 88, 'Der Eisenhofen,' No 127, and the notes in vol. iii; Leskien u. Brugman, Litanische V. l. u. Märchen, 'Vom weissen Wolf,' No 23, p. 438, and Wollner's note, p. 571.[297]But not in Mme Villeneuve's or in Mme de Beaumont's 'La Belle et la Bête.'[298]Lanzelet is cited by J. Grimm; Brandimarte by Walter Scott; Carduino by G. Paris; Espertius by Dunlop; Amadis d'Astra by Valentin Schmidt. Dunlop refers to a similar story in the sixth tale of the Contes Amoureux de Jean Flore, written towards the end of the fifteenth century.[299]"The Childe of Wane, as a protector of disconsolate damsels, is still remembered by young girls at school in the neighborhood of Bamborough, who apply the title to any boy who protects them from the assaults of their school-fellows." (Kinloch.)

[296]The incident of a woman trying to move a man who all the while is in a deep sleep, and of his servant reporting what has been going on, can hardly have belonged to this ballad from the beginning. It is exceedingly common in popular tales: see 'The Red Bull of Norroway,' in Chambers's Popular Rhymes of Scotland, 3d ed., p. 99; Grimms, 'Das singende springende Löweneckerchen,' No 88, 'Der Eisenhofen,' No 127, and the notes in vol. iii; Leskien u. Brugman, Litanische V. l. u. Märchen, 'Vom weissen Wolf,' No 23, p. 438, and Wollner's note, p. 571.

[297]But not in Mme Villeneuve's or in Mme de Beaumont's 'La Belle et la Bête.'

[298]Lanzelet is cited by J. Grimm; Brandimarte by Walter Scott; Carduino by G. Paris; Espertius by Dunlop; Amadis d'Astra by Valentin Schmidt. Dunlop refers to a similar story in the sixth tale of the Contes Amoureux de Jean Flore, written towards the end of the fifteenth century.

[299]"The Childe of Wane, as a protector of disconsolate damsels, is still remembered by young girls at school in the neighborhood of Bamborough, who apply the title to any boy who protects them from the assaults of their school-fellows." (Kinloch.)

A View of Northumberland, by W. Hutchinson, Anno 1776, Newcastle, 1778, II, 162-64. Communicated by the Rev. Mr Lamb, of Norham.

Kinloch's account of the tradition in relation to the queen, as it maintains itself in Berwickshire, is quite in accord with Germansagenabout enchanted ladies, innocent or guilty, and as such may be worth giving: Kinloch MSS, I, 187.

"Though the ballad mentions that the queen was transformed into 'a spiteful toad of monstrous size,' and was doomed in that form to wend on the earth until the end of the world, yet the tradition of the country gives another account of the endurance of her enchantment. It is said that in form of a toad as big as a 'clockin hen' she is doomed to expiate her guilt by confinement in a cavern in Bamborough castle, in which she is to remain in her enchanted shape until some one shall have the hardihood to break the spell by penetrating the cavern, whose 'invisible' door only opens every seven years, on Christmas eve. The adventurer, after entering the cavern, must take the sword and horn of the Childe of Wane, which hang on the wall, and having unsheathed and resheathed the sword thrice, and wound three blasts on the horn, he must kiss the toad three times; upon which the enchantment will be dissolved, and the queen will recover her human form.

"Many adventurers, it is said, have attempted to disenchant the queen, but have all failed, having immediately fallen into a trance, something similar to the princes in the Arabian tale who went in search of the Talking Bird, Singing Tree, and Yellow Water. The last one, it is said, who made the attempt was a countryman, about sixty years ago, who, having watched on Christmas eve the opening of the door, entered the cavern, took the sword and horn from the wall, unsheathed and resheathed the sword thrice, blew three blasts on the horn, and was proceeding to the final disenchantment by kissing the toad, which he had saluted twice, when, perceiving the various strange sleepers to arise from the floor, his courage failed, and he fled from the cavern, having just attained the outside of the door when it suddenly shut with a loud clap, catching hold of the skirt of his coat, which was torn off and left in the door.

And none since that timeTo enter the cavern presume."

1The king is gone from Bambrough castle,Long may the princess mourn;Long may she stand on the castle wall,Looking for his return.2She has knotted the keys upon a string,And with her she has them taen,She has cast them oer her left shoulder,And to the gate she is gane.3She tripped out, she tripped in,She tript into the yard;But it was more for the king's sake,Than for the queen's regard.4It fell out on a day the kingBrought the queen with him home,And all the lords in our countryTo welcome them did come.5'O welcome, father,' the lady cries,'Unto your halls and bowers;And so are you, my stepmother,For all that is here is yours.'6A lord said, wondering while she spake,This princess of the NorthSurpasses all of female kindIn beauty and in worth.7The envious queen replied: At least,You might have excepted me;In a few hours I will her bringDown to a low degree.8I will her liken to a laidley worm,That warps about the stone,And not till Childy Wynd comes backShall she again be won.9The princess stood at the bower door,Laughing, who could her blame?But eer the next day's sun went down,A long worm she became.10For seven miles east, and seven miles west,And seven miles north and south,No blade of grass or corn could grow,So venomous was her mouth.11The milk of seven stately cows—It was costly her to keep—Was brought her daily, which she drankBefore she went to sleep.12At this day may be seen the caveWhich held her folded up,And the stone trough, the very sameOut of which she did sup.13Word went east, and word went west,And word is gone over the sea,That a laidley worm in Spindleston HeughsWould ruin the north country.14Word went east, and word went west,And over the sea did go;The Child of Wynd got wit of it,Which filled his heart with woe.15He called straight his merry men all,They thirty were and three:'I wish I were at Spindleston,This desperate worm to see.16'We have no time now here to waste,Hence quickly let us sail;My only sister Margaret,Something, I fear, doth ail.'17They built a ship without delay,With masts of the rown tree,With fluttering sails of silk so fine,And set her on the sea.18They went aboard; the wind with speedBlew them along the deep;At length they spied an huge square tower,On a rock high and steep.19The sea was smooth, the weather clear;When they approached nigher,King Ida's castle they well knew,And the banks of Bambroughshire.20The queen looked out at her bower-window,To see what she could see;There she espied a gallant ship,Sailing upon the sea.21When she beheld the silken sails,Full glancing in the sun,To sink the ship she sent awayHer witch-wives every one.22Their spells were vain; the hags returnedTo the queen in sorrowful mood,Crying that witches have no powerWhere there is rown-tree wood.23Her last effort, she sent a boat,Which in the haven lay,With armed men to board the ship,But they were driven away.24The worm leapt up, the worm leapt down,She plaited round the stane;And ay as the ship came to the landShe banged it off again.25The Child then ran out of her reachThe ship on Budle sand,And jumping into the shallow sea,Securely got to land.26And now he drew his berry-brown sword,And laid it on her head,And swore, if she did harm to him,That he would strike her dead.27'O quit thy sword, and bend thy bow,And give me kisses three;For though I am a poisonous worm,No hurt I will do to thee.28'O quit thy sword, and bend thy bow,And give me kisses three;If I am not won eer the sun go down,Won I shall never be.'29He quitted his sword, he bent his bow,He gave her kisses three;She crept into a hole a worm,But stept out a lady.30No cloathing had this lady fine,To keep her from the cold;He took his mantle from him about,And round her did it fold.31He has taken his mantle from him about,And it he wrapt her in,And they are up to Bambrough castle,As fast as they can win.32His absence and her serpent shapeThe king had long deplored;He now rejoiced to see them bothAgain to him restored.33The queen they wanted, whom they foundAll pale, and sore afraid,Because she knew her power must yieldTo Childy Wynd's, who said:34'Woe be to thee, thou wicked witch,An ill death mayest thou dee;As thou my sister hast likened,So likened shalt thou be.35'I will turn you into a toad,That on the ground doth wend,And won, won shalt thou never be,Till this world hath an end.'36Now on the sand near Ida's tower,She crawls a loathsome toad,And venom spits on every maidShe meets upon her road.37The virgins all of Bambrough townWill swear that they have seenThis spiteful toad, of monstrous size,Whilst walking they have been.38All folks believe within the shireThis story to be true,And they all run to Spindleston,The cave and trough to view.39This fact now Duncan Frasier,Of Cheviot, sings in rhime,Lest Bambroughshire men should forgetSome part of it in time.

1The king is gone from Bambrough castle,Long may the princess mourn;Long may she stand on the castle wall,Looking for his return.

2She has knotted the keys upon a string,And with her she has them taen,She has cast them oer her left shoulder,And to the gate she is gane.

3She tripped out, she tripped in,She tript into the yard;But it was more for the king's sake,Than for the queen's regard.

4It fell out on a day the kingBrought the queen with him home,And all the lords in our countryTo welcome them did come.

5'O welcome, father,' the lady cries,'Unto your halls and bowers;And so are you, my stepmother,For all that is here is yours.'

6A lord said, wondering while she spake,This princess of the NorthSurpasses all of female kindIn beauty and in worth.

7The envious queen replied: At least,You might have excepted me;In a few hours I will her bringDown to a low degree.

8I will her liken to a laidley worm,That warps about the stone,And not till Childy Wynd comes backShall she again be won.

9The princess stood at the bower door,Laughing, who could her blame?But eer the next day's sun went down,A long worm she became.

10For seven miles east, and seven miles west,And seven miles north and south,No blade of grass or corn could grow,So venomous was her mouth.

11The milk of seven stately cows—It was costly her to keep—Was brought her daily, which she drankBefore she went to sleep.

12At this day may be seen the caveWhich held her folded up,And the stone trough, the very sameOut of which she did sup.

13Word went east, and word went west,And word is gone over the sea,That a laidley worm in Spindleston HeughsWould ruin the north country.

14Word went east, and word went west,And over the sea did go;The Child of Wynd got wit of it,Which filled his heart with woe.

15He called straight his merry men all,They thirty were and three:'I wish I were at Spindleston,This desperate worm to see.

16'We have no time now here to waste,Hence quickly let us sail;My only sister Margaret,Something, I fear, doth ail.'

17They built a ship without delay,With masts of the rown tree,With fluttering sails of silk so fine,And set her on the sea.

18They went aboard; the wind with speedBlew them along the deep;At length they spied an huge square tower,On a rock high and steep.

19The sea was smooth, the weather clear;When they approached nigher,King Ida's castle they well knew,And the banks of Bambroughshire.

20The queen looked out at her bower-window,To see what she could see;There she espied a gallant ship,Sailing upon the sea.

21When she beheld the silken sails,Full glancing in the sun,To sink the ship she sent awayHer witch-wives every one.

22Their spells were vain; the hags returnedTo the queen in sorrowful mood,Crying that witches have no powerWhere there is rown-tree wood.

23Her last effort, she sent a boat,Which in the haven lay,With armed men to board the ship,But they were driven away.

24The worm leapt up, the worm leapt down,She plaited round the stane;And ay as the ship came to the landShe banged it off again.

25The Child then ran out of her reachThe ship on Budle sand,And jumping into the shallow sea,Securely got to land.

26And now he drew his berry-brown sword,And laid it on her head,And swore, if she did harm to him,That he would strike her dead.

27'O quit thy sword, and bend thy bow,And give me kisses three;For though I am a poisonous worm,No hurt I will do to thee.

28'O quit thy sword, and bend thy bow,And give me kisses three;If I am not won eer the sun go down,Won I shall never be.'

29He quitted his sword, he bent his bow,He gave her kisses three;She crept into a hole a worm,But stept out a lady.

30No cloathing had this lady fine,To keep her from the cold;He took his mantle from him about,And round her did it fold.

31He has taken his mantle from him about,And it he wrapt her in,And they are up to Bambrough castle,As fast as they can win.

32His absence and her serpent shapeThe king had long deplored;He now rejoiced to see them bothAgain to him restored.

33The queen they wanted, whom they foundAll pale, and sore afraid,Because she knew her power must yieldTo Childy Wynd's, who said:

34'Woe be to thee, thou wicked witch,An ill death mayest thou dee;As thou my sister hast likened,So likened shalt thou be.

35'I will turn you into a toad,That on the ground doth wend,And won, won shalt thou never be,Till this world hath an end.'

36Now on the sand near Ida's tower,She crawls a loathsome toad,And venom spits on every maidShe meets upon her road.

37The virgins all of Bambrough townWill swear that they have seenThis spiteful toad, of monstrous size,Whilst walking they have been.

38All folks believe within the shireThis story to be true,And they all run to Spindleston,The cave and trough to view.

39This fact now Duncan Frasier,Of Cheviot, sings in rhime,Lest Bambroughshire men should forgetSome part of it in time.

283. son.

'Allison Gross,' Jamieson-Brown MS., fol. 40.

'Allison Gross' was printed by Jamieson, Popular Ballads, II, 187, without deviation from the manuscript save in spelling.

In a Greek tale, a nereid, that is elf or fairy, turns a youth who had refused to espouse her into a snake, the curse to continue till he finds another love who is as fair as she: 'Die Schönste,' B. Schmidt, Griechische Märchen, etc., No 10. This tale is a variety of 'Beauty and the Beast,' one of the numerous wildgrowths from that ever charming French story.[300]

An elf, a hill-troll, a mermaid, make a young man offers of splendid gifts, to obtain his love or the promise of his faith, in 'Elveskud,' Grundtvig, No 47, many of the Danish and two of the Norwegian copies; 'Hertig Magnus och Elfvorna,' Afzelius, III, 172; 'Hr. Magnus og Bjærgtrolden,' Grundtvig, No 48, Arwidsson, No 147 B; 'Herr Magnus och Hafstrollet,' Afzelius, No 95, Bugge, No 11; a lind-worm, similarly, to a young woman, 'Lindormen,' Grundtvig, No 65. Magnus answers the hill-troll that he should be glad to plight faith with her were she like other women, but she is the ugliest troll that could be found: Grundtvig, II, 121,A6,B7; Arwidsson, II, 303,B5; Afzelius, III, 169, st. 5, 173, st. 6. This is like what we read in stanza 7 of our ballad, but the answer is inevitable in any such case. Magnus comes off scot-free.

The queen of the fairies undoing the spell of the witch is a remarkable feature, not paralleled, so far as I know, in English or northern tradition. The Greek nereids, however, who do pretty much everything, good or bad, that is ascribed to northern elves or fairies, and even bear an appellation resembling that by which fairies are spoken of in Scotland and Ireland, "the good damsels," "the good ladies," have a queen who is described as taking no part in the unfriendly acts of her subjects, but as being kindly disposed towards mankind, and even as repairing the mischief which subordinate sprites have done against her will. If now the fairy queen might interpose in behalf of men against her own kith and kin, much more likely would she be to exert herself to thwart the malignity of a witch.[301]

The object of the witch's blowing thrice on a grass-green horn in 82is not clear, for nothing comes of it. In the closely related ballad which follows this, a witch uses a horn to summon the sea-fishes, among whom there is one who has been the victim of her spells. The horn is appropriate. Witches were supposed to blow horns when they joined the wild hunt, and horn-blower, "hornblâse," is twice cited by Grimm as an equivalent to witch: Deutsche Mythologie, p. 886.

Translated by Grundtvig, Engelske og skotske Folkeviser, No 19; by Rosa Warrens, Schottische Volkslieder, No 7; Knortz, Lieder und Romanzen Alt-Englands, No 9; Loève-Veimars, Ballades de l'Angleterre, p. 353.

1O Allison Gross, that lives in yon towr,The ugliest witch i the north country,Has trysted me ae day up till her bowr,An monny fair speech she made to me.2She stroaked my head, an she kembed my hair,An she set me down saftly on her knee;Says, Gin ye will be my lemman so true,Sae monny braw things as I woud you gi.3She showd me a mantle o red scarlet,Wi gouden flowrs an fringes fine;Says, Gin ye will be my lemman so true,This goodly gift it sal be thine.4'Awa, awa, ye ugly witch,Haud far awa, an lat me be;I never will be your lemman sae true,An I wish I were out o your company.'5She neist brought a sark o the saftest silk,Well wrought wi pearles about the ban;Says, Gin you will be my ain true love,This goodly gift you sal comman.6She showd me a cup of the good red gold,Well set wi jewls sae fair to see;Says, Gin you will be my lemman sae true,This goodly gift I will you gi.7'Awa, awa, ye ugly witch,Had far awa, and lat me be;For I woudna ance kiss your ugly mouthFor a' the gifts that ye coud gi.'8She's turnd her right and roun about,An thrice she blaw on a grass-green horn,An she sware by the meen and the stars abeen,That she'd gar me rue the day I was born.9Then out has she taen a silver wand,An she's turnd her three times roun an roun;She's mutterd sich words till my strength it faild,An I fell down senceless upon the groun.10She's turnd me into an ugly worm,And gard me toddle about the tree;An ay, on ilka Saturdays night,My sister Maisry came to me,11Wi silver bason an silver kemb,To kemb my heady upon her knee;But or I had kissd her ugly mouth,I'd rather a toddled about the tree.12But as it fell out on last Hallow-even,When the seely court was ridin by,The queen lighted down on a gowany bank,Nae far frae the tree where I wont to lye.13She took me up in her milk-white han,An she's stroakd me three times oer her knee;She chang'd me again to my ain proper shape,An I nae mair maun toddle about the tree.

1O Allison Gross, that lives in yon towr,The ugliest witch i the north country,Has trysted me ae day up till her bowr,An monny fair speech she made to me.

2She stroaked my head, an she kembed my hair,An she set me down saftly on her knee;Says, Gin ye will be my lemman so true,Sae monny braw things as I woud you gi.

3She showd me a mantle o red scarlet,Wi gouden flowrs an fringes fine;Says, Gin ye will be my lemman so true,This goodly gift it sal be thine.

4'Awa, awa, ye ugly witch,Haud far awa, an lat me be;I never will be your lemman sae true,An I wish I were out o your company.'

5She neist brought a sark o the saftest silk,Well wrought wi pearles about the ban;Says, Gin you will be my ain true love,This goodly gift you sal comman.

6She showd me a cup of the good red gold,Well set wi jewls sae fair to see;Says, Gin you will be my lemman sae true,This goodly gift I will you gi.

7'Awa, awa, ye ugly witch,Had far awa, and lat me be;For I woudna ance kiss your ugly mouthFor a' the gifts that ye coud gi.'

8She's turnd her right and roun about,An thrice she blaw on a grass-green horn,An she sware by the meen and the stars abeen,That she'd gar me rue the day I was born.

9Then out has she taen a silver wand,An she's turnd her three times roun an roun;She's mutterd sich words till my strength it faild,An I fell down senceless upon the groun.

10She's turnd me into an ugly worm,And gard me toddle about the tree;An ay, on ilka Saturdays night,My sister Maisry came to me,

11Wi silver bason an silver kemb,To kemb my heady upon her knee;But or I had kissd her ugly mouth,I'd rather a toddled about the tree.

12But as it fell out on last Hallow-even,When the seely court was ridin by,The queen lighted down on a gowany bank,Nae far frae the tree where I wont to lye.

13She took me up in her milk-white han,An she's stroakd me three times oer her knee;She chang'd me again to my ain proper shape,An I nae mair maun toddle about the tree.

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