B.

a.Buchan's Ballads of the North of Scotland,I, 22.b.Motherwell's MS., p. 563.

1Fair lady Isabel sits in her bower sewing,Aye as the gowans grow gayThere she heard an elf-knight blawing his horn.The first morning in May2'If I had yon horn that I hear blawing,And yon elf-knight to sleep in my bosom.'3This maiden had scarcely these words spoken,Till in at her window the elf-knight has luppen.4'It's a very strange matter, fair maiden,' said he,'I canna blaw my horn but ye call on me.5'But will ye go to yon greenwood side?If ye canna gang, I will cause you to ride.'6He leapt on a horse, and she on another,And they rode on to the greenwood together.7'Light down, light down, lady Isabel,' said he,'We are come to the place where ye are to die.'8'Hae mercy, hae mercy, kind sir, on me,Till ance my dear father and mother I see.'9'Seven king's-daughters here hae I slain,And ye shall be the eight o them.'10'O sit down a while, lay your head on my knee,That we may hae some rest before that I die.'11She stroakd him sae fast, the nearer he did creep,Wi a sma charm she lulld him fast asleep.12Wi his ain sword-belt sae fast as she ban him,Wi his ain dag-durk sae sair as she dang him.13'If seven king's-daughters here ye hae slain,Lye ye here, a husband to them a'.'

1Fair lady Isabel sits in her bower sewing,Aye as the gowans grow gayThere she heard an elf-knight blawing his horn.The first morning in May

2'If I had yon horn that I hear blawing,And yon elf-knight to sleep in my bosom.'

3This maiden had scarcely these words spoken,Till in at her window the elf-knight has luppen.

4'It's a very strange matter, fair maiden,' said he,'I canna blaw my horn but ye call on me.

5'But will ye go to yon greenwood side?If ye canna gang, I will cause you to ride.'

6He leapt on a horse, and she on another,And they rode on to the greenwood together.

7'Light down, light down, lady Isabel,' said he,'We are come to the place where ye are to die.'

8'Hae mercy, hae mercy, kind sir, on me,Till ance my dear father and mother I see.'

9'Seven king's-daughters here hae I slain,And ye shall be the eight o them.'

10'O sit down a while, lay your head on my knee,That we may hae some rest before that I die.'

11She stroakd him sae fast, the nearer he did creep,Wi a sma charm she lulld him fast asleep.

12Wi his ain sword-belt sae fast as she ban him,Wi his ain dag-durk sae sair as she dang him.

13'If seven king's-daughters here ye hae slain,Lye ye here, a husband to them a'.'

a.Buchan's MSS,II, fol. 80.b.Buchan's Ballads of the North of Scotland,II, 201.c.Motherwell's MS., p. 561.d.Harris MS., No 19.

1There came a bird out o a bush,On water for to dine,An sighing sair, says the king's daughter,'O wae 's this heart o mine!'2He 's taen a harp into his hand,He 's harped them all asleep,Except it was the king's daughter,Who one wink couldna get.3He 's luppen on his berry-brown steed,Taen 'er on behind himsell,Then baith rede down to that waterThat they ca Wearie's Well.4'Wide in, wide in, my lady fair,No harm shall thee befall;Oft times I've watered my steedWi the waters o Wearie's Well.'5The first step that she stepped in,She stepped to the knee;And sighend says this lady fair,'This water 's nae for me.'6'Wide in, wide in, my lady fair,No harm shall thee befall;Oft times I've watered my steedWi the water o Wearie's Well.'7The next step that she stepped in,She stepped to the middle;'O,' sighend says this lady fair,I 've wat my gowden girdle.'8'Wide in, wide in, my lady fair,No harm shall thee befall;Oft times have I watered my steedWi the water o Wearie's Well.'9The next step that she stepped in,She stepped to the chin;'O,' sighend says this lady fair,'They sud gar twa loves twin.'10'Seven king's-daughters I 've drownd there,In the water o Wearie's Well,And I'll make you the eight o them,And ring the common bell.'11'Since I am standing here,' she says,'This dowie death to die,One kiss o your comely mouthI'm sure wad comfort me.'12He louted him oer his saddle bow,To kiss her cheek and chin;She 's taen him in her arms twa,An thrown him headlong in.13'Since seven king's daughters ye 've drowned there,In the water o Wearie's Well,I'll make you bridegroom to them a',An ring the bell mysell.'14And aye she warsled, and aye she swam,And she swam to dry lan;She thanked God most cheerfullyThe dangers she oercame.

1There came a bird out o a bush,On water for to dine,An sighing sair, says the king's daughter,'O wae 's this heart o mine!'

2He 's taen a harp into his hand,He 's harped them all asleep,Except it was the king's daughter,Who one wink couldna get.

3He 's luppen on his berry-brown steed,Taen 'er on behind himsell,Then baith rede down to that waterThat they ca Wearie's Well.

4'Wide in, wide in, my lady fair,No harm shall thee befall;Oft times I've watered my steedWi the waters o Wearie's Well.'

5The first step that she stepped in,She stepped to the knee;And sighend says this lady fair,'This water 's nae for me.'

6'Wide in, wide in, my lady fair,No harm shall thee befall;Oft times I've watered my steedWi the water o Wearie's Well.'

7The next step that she stepped in,She stepped to the middle;'O,' sighend says this lady fair,I 've wat my gowden girdle.'

8'Wide in, wide in, my lady fair,No harm shall thee befall;Oft times have I watered my steedWi the water o Wearie's Well.'

9The next step that she stepped in,She stepped to the chin;'O,' sighend says this lady fair,'They sud gar twa loves twin.'

10'Seven king's-daughters I 've drownd there,In the water o Wearie's Well,And I'll make you the eight o them,And ring the common bell.'

11'Since I am standing here,' she says,'This dowie death to die,One kiss o your comely mouthI'm sure wad comfort me.'

12He louted him oer his saddle bow,To kiss her cheek and chin;She 's taen him in her arms twa,An thrown him headlong in.

13'Since seven king's daughters ye 've drowned there,In the water o Wearie's Well,I'll make you bridegroom to them a',An ring the bell mysell.'

14And aye she warsled, and aye she swam,And she swam to dry lan;She thanked God most cheerfullyThe dangers she oercame.

a.Herd's MSS,I, 166.b.Herd's Ancient and Modern Scottish Songs, 1776,I, 93.c.Motherwell's Minstrelsy, p. 67, ==b"collated with a copy obtained from recitation."

1False Sir John a wooing cameTo a maid of beauty fair;May Colven was this lady's name,Her father's only heir.2He wood her butt, he wood her ben,He wood her in the ha,Until he got this lady's consentTo mount and ride awa.3He went down to her father's bower,Where all the steeds did stand,And he 's taken one of the best steedsThat was in her father's land.4He 's got on and she 's got on,And fast as they could flee,Until they came to a lonesome part,A rock by the side of the sea.5'Loup off the steed,' says false Sir John,'Your bridal bed you see;For I have drowned seven young ladies,The eight one you shall be.6'Cast off, cast off, my May Colven,All and your silken gown,For it 's oer good and oer costlyTo rot in the salt sea foam.7'Cast off, cast off, my May Colven,All and your embroiderd shoen,For they 're oer good and oer costlyTo rot in the salt sea foam.'8'O turn you about, O false Sir John,And look to the leaf of the tree,For it never became a gentlemanA naked woman to see.'9He turnd himself straight round about,To look to the leaf of the tree;So swift as May Colven wasTo throw him in the sea.10'O help, O help, my May Colven,O help, or else I'll drown;I'll take you home to your father's bower,And set you down safe and sound.'11'No help, no help, O false Sir John,No help, nor pity thee;Tho seven king's-daughters you have drownd,But the eight shall not be me.'12So she went on her father's steed,As swift as she could flee,And she came home to her father's bowerBefore it was break of day.13Up then and spoke the pretty parrot:'May Colven, where have you been?What has become of false Sir John,That woo'd you so late the streen?14'He woo'd you butt, he woo'd you ben,He woo'd you in the ha,Until he got your own consentFor to mount and gang awa.'15'O hold your tongue, my pretty parrot,Lay not the blame upon me;Your cup shall be of the flowered gold,Your cage of the root of the tree.'16Up then spake the king himself,In the bed-chamber where he lay:'What ails the pretty parrot,That prattles so long or day?'17'There came a cat to my cage door,It almost a worried me,And I was calling on May ColvenTo take the cat from me.'

1False Sir John a wooing cameTo a maid of beauty fair;May Colven was this lady's name,Her father's only heir.

2He wood her butt, he wood her ben,He wood her in the ha,Until he got this lady's consentTo mount and ride awa.

3He went down to her father's bower,Where all the steeds did stand,And he 's taken one of the best steedsThat was in her father's land.

4He 's got on and she 's got on,And fast as they could flee,Until they came to a lonesome part,A rock by the side of the sea.

5'Loup off the steed,' says false Sir John,'Your bridal bed you see;For I have drowned seven young ladies,The eight one you shall be.

6'Cast off, cast off, my May Colven,All and your silken gown,For it 's oer good and oer costlyTo rot in the salt sea foam.

7'Cast off, cast off, my May Colven,All and your embroiderd shoen,For they 're oer good and oer costlyTo rot in the salt sea foam.'

8'O turn you about, O false Sir John,And look to the leaf of the tree,For it never became a gentlemanA naked woman to see.'

9He turnd himself straight round about,To look to the leaf of the tree;So swift as May Colven wasTo throw him in the sea.

10'O help, O help, my May Colven,O help, or else I'll drown;I'll take you home to your father's bower,And set you down safe and sound.'

11'No help, no help, O false Sir John,No help, nor pity thee;Tho seven king's-daughters you have drownd,But the eight shall not be me.'

12So she went on her father's steed,As swift as she could flee,And she came home to her father's bowerBefore it was break of day.

13Up then and spoke the pretty parrot:'May Colven, where have you been?What has become of false Sir John,That woo'd you so late the streen?

14'He woo'd you butt, he woo'd you ben,He woo'd you in the ha,Until he got your own consentFor to mount and gang awa.'

15'O hold your tongue, my pretty parrot,Lay not the blame upon me;Your cup shall be of the flowered gold,Your cage of the root of the tree.'

16Up then spake the king himself,In the bed-chamber where he lay:'What ails the pretty parrot,That prattles so long or day?'

17'There came a cat to my cage door,It almost a worried me,And I was calling on May ColvenTo take the cat from me.'

a.Sharpe's Ballad Book (1823), No 17, p. 45.b.Buchan's Ballads of the North of Scotland,II, 45.c.Motherwell's Minstrelsy, Appendix, p. 21, No.XXIV, one stanza.

1O heard ye of a bloody knight,Lived in the south country?For he has betrayed eight ladies fairAnd drowned them in the sea.2Then next he went to May Collin,She was her father's heir,The greatest beauty in the land,I solemnly declare.3'I am a knight of wealth and might,Of townlands twenty-three;And you'll be lady of them all,If you will go with me.'4'Excuse me, then, Sir John,' she says;'To wed I am too young;Without I have my parents' leave,With you I darena gang.'5'Your parents' leave you soon shall have,In that they will agree;For I have made a solemn vowThis night you'll go with me.'6From below his arm he pulled a charm,And stuck it in her sleeve,And he has made her go with him,Without her parents' leave.7Of gold and silver she has gotWith her twelve hundred pound,And the swiftest steed her father hadShe has taen to ride upon.8So privily they went along,They made no stop or stay,Till they came to the fatal placeThat they call Bunion Bay.9It being in a lonely place,And no house there was nigh,The fatal rocks were long and steep,And none could hear her cry.10'Light down,' he said, 'fair May Collin,Light down and speak with me,For here I've drowned eight ladies fair,And the ninth one you shall be.'11'Is this your bowers and lofty towers,So beautiful and gay?Or is it for my gold,' she said,'You take my life away?'12'Strip off,' he says, 'thy jewels fine,So costly and so brave,For they are too costly and too fineTo throw in the sea wave.'13'Take all I have my life to save,O good Sir John, I pray;Let it neer be said you killed a maidUpon her wedding day.'14'Strip off,' he says, 'thy Holland smock,That's bordered with the lawn,For it's too costly and too fineTo rot in the sea sand.'15'O turn about, Sir John,' she said,'Your back about to me,For it never was comely for a manA naked woman to see.'16But as he turned him round about,She threw him in the sea,Saying, 'Lie you there, you false Sir John,Where you thought to lay me.17'O lie you there, you traitor false,Where you thought to lay me,For though you stripped me to the skin,Your clothes you've got with thee.'18Her jewels fine she did put on,So costly, rich and brave,And then with speed she mounts his steed,So well she did behave.19That lady fair being void of fear,Her steed being swift and free,And she has reached her father's gateBefore the clock struck three.20Then first she called the stable groom,He was her waiting man;Soon as he heard his lady's voiceHe stood with cap in hand.21'Where have you been, fair May Collin?Who owns this dapple grey?''It is a found one,' she replied,'That I got on the way.'22Then out bespoke the wily parrotUnto fair May Collin:'What have you done with false Sir John,That went with you yestreen?'23'O hold your tongue, my pretty parrot,And talk no more to me,And where you had a meal a dayO now you shall have three.'24Then up bespoke her father dear,From his chamber where he lay:'What aileth thee, my pretty Poll,That you chat so long or day?'25'The cat she came to my cage-door,The thief I could not see,And I called to fair May Collin,To take the cat from me.'26Then first she told her father dearThe deed that she had done,And next she told her mother dearConcerning false Sir John.27'If this be true, fair May Collin,That you have told to me,Before I either eat or drinkThis false Sir John I'll see.'28Away they went with one consent,At dawning of the day,Until they came to Carline Sands,And there his body lay.29His body tall, by that great fall,By the waves tossed to and fro,The diamond ring that he had onWas broke in pieces two.30And they have taken up his corpseTo yonder pleasant green,And there they have buried false Sir John,For fear he should be seen.

1O heard ye of a bloody knight,Lived in the south country?For he has betrayed eight ladies fairAnd drowned them in the sea.

2Then next he went to May Collin,She was her father's heir,The greatest beauty in the land,I solemnly declare.

3'I am a knight of wealth and might,Of townlands twenty-three;And you'll be lady of them all,If you will go with me.'

4'Excuse me, then, Sir John,' she says;'To wed I am too young;Without I have my parents' leave,With you I darena gang.'

5'Your parents' leave you soon shall have,In that they will agree;For I have made a solemn vowThis night you'll go with me.'

6From below his arm he pulled a charm,And stuck it in her sleeve,And he has made her go with him,Without her parents' leave.

7Of gold and silver she has gotWith her twelve hundred pound,And the swiftest steed her father hadShe has taen to ride upon.

8So privily they went along,They made no stop or stay,Till they came to the fatal placeThat they call Bunion Bay.

9It being in a lonely place,And no house there was nigh,The fatal rocks were long and steep,And none could hear her cry.

10'Light down,' he said, 'fair May Collin,Light down and speak with me,For here I've drowned eight ladies fair,And the ninth one you shall be.'

11'Is this your bowers and lofty towers,So beautiful and gay?Or is it for my gold,' she said,'You take my life away?'

12'Strip off,' he says, 'thy jewels fine,So costly and so brave,For they are too costly and too fineTo throw in the sea wave.'

13'Take all I have my life to save,O good Sir John, I pray;Let it neer be said you killed a maidUpon her wedding day.'

14'Strip off,' he says, 'thy Holland smock,That's bordered with the lawn,For it's too costly and too fineTo rot in the sea sand.'

15'O turn about, Sir John,' she said,'Your back about to me,For it never was comely for a manA naked woman to see.'

16But as he turned him round about,She threw him in the sea,Saying, 'Lie you there, you false Sir John,Where you thought to lay me.

17'O lie you there, you traitor false,Where you thought to lay me,For though you stripped me to the skin,Your clothes you've got with thee.'

18Her jewels fine she did put on,So costly, rich and brave,And then with speed she mounts his steed,So well she did behave.

19That lady fair being void of fear,Her steed being swift and free,And she has reached her father's gateBefore the clock struck three.

20Then first she called the stable groom,He was her waiting man;Soon as he heard his lady's voiceHe stood with cap in hand.

21'Where have you been, fair May Collin?Who owns this dapple grey?''It is a found one,' she replied,'That I got on the way.'

22Then out bespoke the wily parrotUnto fair May Collin:'What have you done with false Sir John,That went with you yestreen?'

23'O hold your tongue, my pretty parrot,And talk no more to me,And where you had a meal a dayO now you shall have three.'

24Then up bespoke her father dear,From his chamber where he lay:'What aileth thee, my pretty Poll,That you chat so long or day?'

25'The cat she came to my cage-door,The thief I could not see,And I called to fair May Collin,To take the cat from me.'

26Then first she told her father dearThe deed that she had done,And next she told her mother dearConcerning false Sir John.

27'If this be true, fair May Collin,That you have told to me,Before I either eat or drinkThis false Sir John I'll see.'

28Away they went with one consent,At dawning of the day,Until they came to Carline Sands,And there his body lay.

29His body tall, by that great fall,By the waves tossed to and fro,The diamond ring that he had onWas broke in pieces two.

30And they have taken up his corpseTo yonder pleasant green,And there they have buried false Sir John,For fear he should be seen.

J. H. Dixon, Ancient Poems, Ballads, and Songs of the Peasantry of England, p. 74.

1An outlandish knight came from the north lands,And he came a-wooing to me;He told me he'd take me unto the north lands,And there he would marry me.2'Come, fetch me some of your father's gold,And some of your mother's fee,And two of the best nags out of the stable,Where they stand thirty and three.'3She fetched him some of her father's gold,And some of her mother's fee,And two of the best nags out of the stable,Where they stood thirty and three.4She mounted her on her milk-white steed,He on the dapple grey;They rode till they came unto the sea-side,Three hours before it was day.5'Light off, light off thy milk-white steed,And deliver it unto me;Six pretty maids have I drowned here,And thou the seventh shalt be.6'Pull off, pull off thy silken gown,And deliver it unto me;Methinks it looks too rich and too gayTo rot in the salt sea.7'Pull off, pull off thy silken stays,And deliver them unto me;Methinks they are too fine and gayTo rot in the salt sea.8'Pull off, pull off thy Holland smock,And deliver it unto me;Methinks it looks too rich and gayTo rot in the salt sea.'9'If I must pull off my Holland smock,Pray turn thy back unto me;For it is not fitting that such a ruffianA naked woman should see.'10He turned his back towards herAnd viewed the leaves so green;She catched him round the middle so small,And tumbled him into the stream.11He dropped high and he dropped low,Until he came to the side;'Catch hold of my hand, my pretty maiden,And I will make you my bride.'12'Lie there, lie there, you false-hearted man,Lie there instead of me;Six pretty maids have you drowned here,And the seventh has drowned thee.'13She mounted on her milk-white steed,And led the dapple grey;She rode till she came to her own father's hall,Three hours before it was day.14The parrot being in the window so high,Hearing the lady, did say,'I'm afraid that some ruffian has led you astray,That you have tarried so long away.'15'Don't prittle nor prattle, my pretty parrot,Nor tell no tales of me;Thy cage shall be made of the glittering gold,Although it is made of a tree.'16The king being in the chamber so high,And hearing the parrot, did say,'What ails you, what ails you, my pretty parrot,That you prattle so long before day?'17'It's no laughing matter,' the parrot did say,'That so loudly I call unto thee,For the cats have got into the window so high,And I'm afraid they will have me.'18'Well turned, well turned, my pretty parrot,Well turned, well turned for me;Thy cage shall be made of the glittering gold,And the door of the best ivory.'

1An outlandish knight came from the north lands,And he came a-wooing to me;He told me he'd take me unto the north lands,And there he would marry me.

2'Come, fetch me some of your father's gold,And some of your mother's fee,And two of the best nags out of the stable,Where they stand thirty and three.'

3She fetched him some of her father's gold,And some of her mother's fee,And two of the best nags out of the stable,Where they stood thirty and three.

4She mounted her on her milk-white steed,He on the dapple grey;They rode till they came unto the sea-side,Three hours before it was day.

5'Light off, light off thy milk-white steed,And deliver it unto me;Six pretty maids have I drowned here,And thou the seventh shalt be.

6'Pull off, pull off thy silken gown,And deliver it unto me;Methinks it looks too rich and too gayTo rot in the salt sea.

7'Pull off, pull off thy silken stays,And deliver them unto me;Methinks they are too fine and gayTo rot in the salt sea.

8'Pull off, pull off thy Holland smock,And deliver it unto me;Methinks it looks too rich and gayTo rot in the salt sea.'

9'If I must pull off my Holland smock,Pray turn thy back unto me;For it is not fitting that such a ruffianA naked woman should see.'

10He turned his back towards herAnd viewed the leaves so green;She catched him round the middle so small,And tumbled him into the stream.

11He dropped high and he dropped low,Until he came to the side;'Catch hold of my hand, my pretty maiden,And I will make you my bride.'

12'Lie there, lie there, you false-hearted man,Lie there instead of me;Six pretty maids have you drowned here,And the seventh has drowned thee.'

13She mounted on her milk-white steed,And led the dapple grey;She rode till she came to her own father's hall,Three hours before it was day.

14The parrot being in the window so high,Hearing the lady, did say,'I'm afraid that some ruffian has led you astray,That you have tarried so long away.'

15'Don't prittle nor prattle, my pretty parrot,Nor tell no tales of me;Thy cage shall be made of the glittering gold,Although it is made of a tree.'

16The king being in the chamber so high,And hearing the parrot, did say,'What ails you, what ails you, my pretty parrot,That you prattle so long before day?'

17'It's no laughing matter,' the parrot did say,'That so loudly I call unto thee,For the cats have got into the window so high,And I'm afraid they will have me.'

18'Well turned, well turned, my pretty parrot,Well turned, well turned for me;Thy cage shall be made of the glittering gold,And the door of the best ivory.'

Roxburghe Ballads,III, 449.

1'Go fetch me some of your father's gold,And some of your mother's fee,And I'll carry you into the north land,And there I'll marry thee.'2She fetchd him some of her father's gold,And some of her mother's fee;She carried him into the stable,Where horses stood thirty and three.3She leapd on a milk-white steed,And he on a dapple-grey;They rode til they came to a fair river's side,Three hours before it was day.4'O light, O light, you lady gay,O light with speed, I say,For six knight's daughters have I drowned here,And you the seventh must be.'5'Go fetch the sickle, to crop the nettleThat grows so near the brim,For fear it should tangle my golden locks,Or freckle my milk-white skin.'6He fetchd the sickle, to crop the nettleThat grows so near the brim,And with all the strength that pretty Polly hadShe pushd the false knight in.7'Swim on, swim on, thou false knight,And there bewail thy doom,For I don't think thy cloathing too goodTo lie in a watry tomb.'8She leaped on her milk-white steed,She led the dapple grey;She rid till she came to her father's house,Three hours before it was day.9'Who knocked so loudly at the ring?'The parrot he did say;'O where have you been, my pretty Polly,All this long summer's day?'10'O hold your tongue, parrot,Tell you no tales of me;Your cage shall be made of beaten gold,Which is now made of a tree.'11O then bespoke her father dear,As he on his bed did lay:'O what is the matter, my parrot,That you speak before it is day?'12'The cat's at my cage, master,And sorely frighted me,And I calld down my PollyTo take the cat away.'

1'Go fetch me some of your father's gold,And some of your mother's fee,And I'll carry you into the north land,And there I'll marry thee.'

2She fetchd him some of her father's gold,And some of her mother's fee;She carried him into the stable,Where horses stood thirty and three.

3She leapd on a milk-white steed,And he on a dapple-grey;They rode til they came to a fair river's side,Three hours before it was day.

4'O light, O light, you lady gay,O light with speed, I say,For six knight's daughters have I drowned here,And you the seventh must be.'

5'Go fetch the sickle, to crop the nettleThat grows so near the brim,For fear it should tangle my golden locks,Or freckle my milk-white skin.'

6He fetchd the sickle, to crop the nettleThat grows so near the brim,And with all the strength that pretty Polly hadShe pushd the false knight in.

7'Swim on, swim on, thou false knight,And there bewail thy doom,For I don't think thy cloathing too goodTo lie in a watry tomb.'

8She leaped on her milk-white steed,She led the dapple grey;She rid till she came to her father's house,Three hours before it was day.

9'Who knocked so loudly at the ring?'The parrot he did say;'O where have you been, my pretty Polly,All this long summer's day?'

10'O hold your tongue, parrot,Tell you no tales of me;Your cage shall be made of beaten gold,Which is now made of a tree.'

11O then bespoke her father dear,As he on his bed did lay:'O what is the matter, my parrot,That you speak before it is day?'

12'The cat's at my cage, master,And sorely frighted me,And I calld down my PollyTo take the cat away.'

Burden. Song xix of Forbes's 'Cantus,' Aberdeen, 1682, 3d ed., has, as pointed out by Motherwell, Minstrelsy, p. lx, nearly the same burden:The gowans are gay, The first morning of May. And again, a song in the Tea Table Miscellany, as remarked by Buchan,There gowans are gay, The first morning of May: p. 404 of the 12th ed., London, 1763.

No doubt furnished to Motherwell by Buchan, as a considerable number of ballads in this part of his MS. seem to have been.32. Then in.81. kind sir, said she.102. That we may some rest before I die.111. the near.132. to them ilk ane.1 is given by Motherwell, Minstrelsy, p. lx, but apparently to improve metre and secure rhyme, thus:

No doubt furnished to Motherwell by Buchan, as a considerable number of ballads in this part of his MS. seem to have been.

32. Then in.

81. kind sir, said she.

102. That we may some rest before I die.

111. the near.

132. to them ilk ane.

1 is given by Motherwell, Minstrelsy, p. lx, but apparently to improve metre and secure rhyme, thus:

Lady Isabel sits in her bouir sewing,She heard an elf-knight his horn blowing.

Bb.

Buchan's printed copy differs from the manuscript very slightly, except in spelling.43, 63. Aft times hae I.53. And sighing sair says.73, 93. And sighing says.142. Till she swam.143. Then thanked.144. she'd.

Buchan's printed copy differs from the manuscript very slightly, except in spelling.

43, 63. Aft times hae I.

53. And sighing sair says.

73, 93. And sighing says.

142. Till she swam.

143. Then thanked.

144. she'd.

LikeA b, derived by Motherwell from Buchan.41, 61, 81. wade in, wade in.143. And thanked.Dixon, Scottish Traditional Versions of Ancient Ballads, p. 63, printingBfrom the manuscript, makes one or two trivial changes.

LikeA b, derived by Motherwell from Buchan.

41, 61, 81. wade in, wade in.

143. And thanked.

Dixon, Scottish Traditional Versions of Ancient Ballads, p. 63, printingBfrom the manuscript, makes one or two trivial changes.

is only this fragment.

43Mony a time I rade wi my brown foalThe water o Wearie's Wells.'Leave aff, leave aff your gey mantle,It's a' gowd but the hem;Leave aff, leave [aff], it's far owre gudeTo weet i the saut see faem.'5She wade in, an he rade in,Till it took her to the knee;Wi sighin said that lady gay'Sic wadin's no for me.'* * * * *9He rade in, and she wade in,Till it took her to the chin;Wi sighin said that ladie gay'I'll wade nae farer in.'103'Sax king's dochters I hae drowned,An the seventh you sall be.'* * * * *13'Lie you there, you fause young man,Where you thought to lay me.'

43Mony a time I rade wi my brown foalThe water o Wearie's Wells.

'Leave aff, leave aff your gey mantle,It's a' gowd but the hem;Leave aff, leave [aff], it's far owre gudeTo weet i the saut see faem.'

5She wade in, an he rade in,Till it took her to the knee;Wi sighin said that lady gay'Sic wadin's no for me.'

* * * * *

9He rade in, and she wade in,Till it took her to the chin;Wi sighin said that ladie gay'I'll wade nae farer in.'

103'Sax king's dochters I hae drowned,An the seventh you sall be.'

* * * * *

13'Lie you there, you fause young man,Where you thought to lay me.'

Cb.

The printed copy follows the manuscript with only very trifling variations: ColvinforColven;131, up then spak;164, ere day;172, almost worried.

The printed copy follows the manuscript with only very trifling variations: ColvinforColven;

131, up then spak;

164, ere day;

172, almost worried.

21, 2. he's courted.23. Till once he got.Between 2 and 3 is inserted:

21, 2. he's courted.

23. Till once he got.

Between 2 and 3 is inserted:

She's gane to her father's coffers,Where all his money lay,And she's taken the red, and she's left the white,And so lightly as she tripped away.

31She's gane down to her father's stable,3And she's taken the best, and she's left the warst.

31She's gane down to her father's stable,

3And she's taken the best, and she's left the warst.

4He rode on, and she rode on,They rode a long summer's day,Until they came to a broad river,An arm of a lonesome sea.53, 4'For it's seven king's daughters I have drowned here,And the eighth I'll out make with thee.'61, 2'Cast off, cast off your silks so fine,And lay them on a stone.'71, 2, 3'Cast off, cast off your holland smock,And lay it on this stone,For it's too fine.' ...93, 4She's twined her arms about his waist,And thrown him into101, 2'O hold a grip of me, May Colvin,For fear that I should'

4He rode on, and she rode on,They rode a long summer's day,Until they came to a broad river,An arm of a lonesome sea.

53, 4'For it's seven king's daughters I have drowned here,And the eighth I'll out make with thee.'

61, 2'Cast off, cast off your silks so fine,And lay them on a stone.'

71, 2, 3'Cast off, cast off your holland smock,And lay it on this stone,For it's too fine.' ...

93, 4She's twined her arms about his waist,And thrown him into

101, 2'O hold a grip of me, May Colvin,For fear that I should'

3father's gates4and safely I'll set you down.

3father's gates

4and safely I'll set you down.

11'O lie you there, thou false Sir John,O lie you there,' said she,'For you lie not in a caulder bedThan the ane you intended for me.'

123. father's gates.4. At the breaking of the day.134. yestreen.Between 13 and 14 is inserted:

123. father's gates.

4. At the breaking of the day.

134. yestreen.

Between 13 and 14 is inserted:

Up then spake the pretty parrot,In the bonnie cage where it lay:'O what hae ye done with the false Sir John,That he behind you does stay?'153, 4'Your cage will be made of the beaten gold,And the spakes of ivorie.'171, 2'It was a cat cam ...I thought 't would have' ...

Up then spake the pretty parrot,In the bonnie cage where it lay:'O what hae ye done with the false Sir John,That he behind you does stay?'

153, 4'Your cage will be made of the beaten gold,And the spakes of ivorie.'

171, 2'It was a cat cam ...I thought 't would have' ...

Da.

21. Colin.

Buchan's copy makes many slight changes which are not noticed here.12. west countrie.After 1 is inserted:

Buchan's copy makes many slight changes which are not noticed here.

12. west countrie.

After 1 is inserted:

All ladies of a gude accountAs ever yet were known;This traitor was a baron knight,They calld him fause Sir John.

After 2:

'Thou art the darling of my heart,I say, fair May Colvin,So far excells thy beauties greatThat ever I hae seen.'

32. Hae towers, towns twenty three.72. five hunder.73. The best an steed.83. fatal end.84. Binyan's Bay.122. rich and rare.124. sea ware.After 12:

32. Hae towers, towns twenty three.

72. five hunder.

73. The best an steed.

83. fatal end.

84. Binyan's Bay.

122. rich and rare.

124. sea ware.

After 12:

Then aff she's taen her jewels fine,And thus she made her moan:'Hae mercy on a virgin young,I pray you, gude Sir John.''Cast aff, cast aff, fair May Colvin,Your gown and petticoat,For they're too costly and too fineTo rot by the sea rock.'

Then aff she's taen her jewels fine,And thus she made her moan:'Hae mercy on a virgin young,I pray you, gude Sir John.'

'Cast aff, cast aff, fair May Colvin,Your gown and petticoat,For they're too costly and too fineTo rot by the sea rock.'

134. Before her.144. to toss.183. her steed.233. What hast thou made o fause.283. Charlestown sands.Sharps thinks Carline Sands means Carlinseugh Sands on the coast of Forfarshire.After 30:

134. Before her.

144. to toss.

183. her steed.

233. What hast thou made o fause.

283. Charlestown sands.Sharps thinks Carline Sands means Carlinseugh Sands on the coast of Forfarshire.

After 30:

Ye ladies a', wherever you be,That read this mournful song,I pray you mind on May Colvin,And think on fause Sir John.Aff they've taen his jewels fine,To keep in memory;And sae I end my mournful sangAnd fatal tragedy.

Ye ladies a', wherever you be,That read this mournful song,I pray you mind on May Colvin,And think on fause Sir John.

Aff they've taen his jewels fine,To keep in memory;And sae I end my mournful sangAnd fatal tragedy.

Motherwell's one stanza is:

O heard ye eer o a bloody knightThat livd in the west countrie?For he has stown seven ladies fair,And drownd them a' in the sea.

32. of the.172. But so.

32. of the.

172. But so.

FOOTNOTES:[24]'The Elfin Knight' begins very much likeA, but perhaps has borrowed its opening stanzas from this ballad. See page 13.[25]The second stanza, which describes the harping, occurs again in 'Glenkindie' (st. 6).[26]Perhaps the change from wood,A, to water,B-F, was made under the influence of some Merman ballad, or by admixture with such a ballad; e.g., 'Nøkkens Svig,' Grundtvig, No 39. In this (A) the nix entices a king's daughter away from a dance, sets her on his horse, and rides with her over the heath to a wild water, into which she sinks. It is also quite among possibilities that there was originally an English nix ballad, in which the king's daughter saved herself by some artifice, not, of course, such as is employed inB-F, but like that inA, or otherwise. Maid Heiemo, in Landstad, No 39, kills a nix with "one of her small knives." Had she put him to sleep with a charm, and killed him withhis ownknife, as Lady Isabel does, there would have been nothing to shock credibility in the story.Aytoun, Ballads of Scotland,I, 219, 2d ed., hastily pronounces Buchan's ballad not authentic, "being made up of stanzas borrowed from versions of 'Burd Helen' ['Child Waters']." There are, indeed, three successive steps into the water in both ballads, but Aytoun should have bethought himself how natural and how common it is for a passage to slip from one ballad into another, when the circumstances of the story are the same; and in some such cases no one can say where the verses that are common originally belonged. Here, indeed, as Grundtvig remarks,IV, 7, note*, it may well be that the verses in question belonged originally to 'Burd Helen,' and were adopted (but in the processes of tradition) into 'The Water of Wearie's Well;' for it must be admitted that the transaction in the water is not a happy conception in the latter, since it shocks probability that the woman should be able to swim ashore, and the man not.[27]"This ballad appears modern, from a great many expressions, but yet I am certain that it is old: the present copy came from the housekeeper at Methven." Note by Sharpe, in Laing's ed. of the Ballad Book, 1880, p. 130, xvii. Motherwell, in his Minstrelsy, p. lxx, n. 24, says that he had seen a stall ballad as early as 1749, entitled 'The Western Tragedy,' which perfectly agreed with Sharpe's copy. But in his Note-Book, p. 5 (about 1826-7), Motherwell says, "The best copy of May Colean with which I have met occurs in a stall copy printed about thirty years ago [should we then read 1799 instead of 1749?], under the title of 'The Western Tragedy.' I have subsequently seen a posterior reprint of this stall copy under this title, 'The Historical Ballad of May Collean.' In Mr. Sharpe's Ballad Book, the same copy, wanting only one stanza, is given."[28]According to the variation given by Willems, and adopted by Hoffmann, Halewijn'ssoncame to meet her, tied her horse to a tree, and bade her to sit down by him and loose her hair. For every hair she undid she dropped a tear. But it will presently be seen not only that the time has not come for them to sit down, but that Halewijn's bidding her undo her hair (to no purpose) is a perversion of her offering to "red"his, to get him into her power, an offer which she makes in the German and Scandinavian ballads, where also there is good reason for her tears, but none as yet here.[29]J. W. Wolf, Deutsche Märchen u. Sagen, No 29, p. 143, gives the story according toB, apparently from a ballad like Snellaert's. So Luise v. Ploennies, Reiseerinnerungen aus Belgien, p. 38.Halewyn makes his appearance again in the Flemish ballad, 'Halewyn en het kleyne Kind,' Coussemaker, No 46, p. 149; Poésies populaires de la France, vol.I. A boy of seven years has shot one of Halewyn's rabbits, and is for this condemned to be hanged on the highest tree in the park. The father makes great offers for his ransom, but in vain. On the first step of the ladder the child looks back for his mother, on the second for his father, on the third for his brother, on the fourth for his sister, each of whom successively arrives and is told that delay would have cost him his life. It will presently be seen that there is a resemblance here to German ballads (G-X,Z).[30]"La chanson de Halewyn, telle à peu près que la donnent Willems, Snellaert et de Coussemaker, se vend encore sur le marché de Bruges. Quoiqu'elle porte pour titreHalewyn, jamais notre pièce n'a été connue ici sous ce nom. Le nom de Halewijn, Alewijn ou Alwin ... est réservé au héros de la pièce suivante" [Mi Adel en Hir Alewijn]. Lootens et Feys, p. 66. "Il est a regretter que Willems et de Coussemaker n'aient pas jugé à propos de donner cette pièce telle que le peuple l'a conservée; on serait sans aucun doute en possession de variantes remarquables, et les lacunes qui existent dans notre version n'eussent pas manqué d'être com blées. Il est bon d'insister sur la remarque faite à la suite de la chanson, qu'à Bruges et dans beaucoup de localités de la Flandre, elle n'est connue que sous le titre deRoland. Ajoutons que notre texte appartient au dernier siècle." L. et F., 295.[31]So in 'Liebe ohne Stand,' one of the mixed forms of the German ballad, Wunderhorn, ErkI, 41, Crecelius,I, 36,Und als es nun kam an den dritten Tag,Da gingen die Pfeiffen und Trommeln an.[32]E.g., the wonderland inA2-6, and the strict watch kept over the lady in 7-10 are repeated in 'Ribold og Guldborg,' Grundtvig, 82,B2-7, 8-11, and in 'Den trofaste Jomfru,' ib. 249,A3-6, 7-10. The watching inA,B,Cand the proffered gifts ofC,D,Fare found in 'Nøkkens Svig,' Grundtvig, 39,A,B, 12-18. The disguise inA11-14, the rest in the wood with the knight's head in the lady's lap,A16, 27,B11, 21,D14, 24,E11, 21, etc., recur in Ribold,B12-14,L9, 10,M19, 20,N11, 13,P12, 13. These resemblances, naturally, are not limited to the Danish copies.[33]So the princess in Asbjörnsen og Moe, N. Folkeeventyr, p. 153. Cf. Campbell's Tales of the West Highlands,III, 209;IV, 282, 283.[34]The binding and waking, with these words, are found also in a made-up text of 'Frændehævn,' Grundtvig, No 4,C51-53, but certainly borrowed from some copy of 'Kvindemorderen.'[35]All the German versions appear to have beenoriginallyin the two-line stanza.[36]The copies with this title in Simrock, No 6, p. 15, and in Scherer's Jungbrunnen, No 5 A, and his Deutsche V. L., 1851, p. 349, are compounded from various texts.[37]BothDandEhave attached to them this final stanza:'Odilia, why are thy shoes so red?''It is three doves that I shot dead.'This is a well-known commonplace in tragic ballads; and Grundtvig suggests that this stanza was the occasion of the story taking the turn which we find in ballads of the third class.[38]One scarcely knows whether this bribe is an imperfect reminiscence of splendid promises which the knight makes, e.g., in the Danish ballads, or a shifting from the maid to the knight of the gold which the elsewhere opulent or well-to-do maid gets together while the knight is preparing to set forth; or simply one of those extravagances which so often make their appearance in later versions of ballads.[39]The number eleven is remarkably constant in the German ballads, being found inG,H,J-L,N-W; it is also the number in SwedishB. Eight is the favorite number in the North, and occurs in DanishA-D,H-L, SwedishA,C, NorwegianG,H; again in GermanI. GermanM,X, DanishF, have ten; GermanA,B, DanishE, NorwegianI, have nine; GermanC,D, seven; DanishGhas nineteen. FrenchA,Bhave fourteen, fifteen, Italian ballads still higher numbers:A,B,C, thirty-six,D, fifty-two,E, thirty-three,F, three hundred and three.[40]This stroke of realism fails only inM,N,R, of this second class.[41]Apparently to a Ribold ballad, of which no other trace has been found in German. See further on in this volume.[42]13'Ach du schöne junkfraw fein,Du pfalzgrävin, du kaiserin!Der Adelger hat sich vor ailf getödt,Du wirst die zwölft, das sei dir gsait.15'So bitt mich nit, du junkfraw fein,So bitt mich nit, du herzigs ein!'Theliebkosungof this murder-reeking Adelger, o'ersized with coagulate gore, is admirably horrible.[43]Nimmersatt (All-begehrend) as interpreted by Meinert, not Adelger.[44]Verses which recur, nearly, not only inY17-19,W27, 28, but elsewhere, as in a copy of 'Graf Friedrich,' Erk's Liederhort, p. 41, No 15, st. 19.[45]There is no sense intwodoves. The single dove one may suppose to be the spirit of the last victim. We shall find theelevenappearing as doves inQ. There is no occasion to regard the dove here as a Waldminne (Vilmar, Handbüchlein für Freunde des deutschen Volkslieds, p. 57). Cf. the nightingale (and two nightingales) in the Danish 'Redselille og Medelvold:' see 'Leesome Brand,' further on in this volume.[46]This ballad has become, in Tübingen, a children's game, called 'Bertha im Wald.' The three cries are preserved in verse, and very nearly as inJ,M. The game concludes by the robber smothering Bertha. Meier, Deutsche Kinder-Reime, No 439.[47]K, or the editor, seeks to avoid the difficulty by taking the last line from the knight, and reading, "Mit Blut war er umronnen," an emendation not according with the simplicity of ballads. Another Swabian copy, Meier, p. 301, note, strophe 6, has:'Wir müssen zu selbigem BronnenWo Wasser und Blut heraus ronnen.'[48]The last verses are these, and not very much worse than the rest:Mein Bruder ist ein Jägersmann,Der alle Thierlein schiessen kann;Er hatt' ein zweischneidiges Schwerte,Und stach es dem Falschen ins Herze.Ihr Mädchen alle insgemein,Lasst euch doch diess zur Warnung sein,Und geht doch mit keinem so falschenIn einen so finsteren Walde.My brother is a hunting man,And all the small game shoot he can;He had a sword with edges two,And ran the heart of the false man throughYe maidens now in general,Let this be warning to you all;With man so false you never shouldGo toso verydark a wood.[49]So in Rochholz, Schweizer Sagen, No 14,I, 23, a man who had killed eleven maids would, if he could have made up the number twelve, have been able to pass through walls and mouseholes. Again, a certain robber in Jutland, who had devoured eight children's hearts, would have acquired the power of flying could he but have secured one more. Grundtvig, D. g. F.IV, 16, note.[50]What will those who are so troubled about cork-heeled shoon in 'Sir Patrick Spens' say to the fire-arms inL,N,S?[51]A variety ofW, cited in Schlesische Volkslieder, p. 26, has,'Ach Ulbrich, Ulbrich, Halsemann, Halsemann,Lass du mich nur drei Gale schrei'n!'Grundtvig, assuming that the name is Ulbrich Halsemann, would account for the second and superfluous character here [found also inW] by a divarication of Ulrich Halsemann into UlrichandHalsemann (Hanslein). Ansar, "bisher unverständlicher Vorname des Ritters Uleraich" inY(Meinert), would equally well yield Hanslein. Might not Halsemann possibly be an equivalent of Halsherr?[52]And in 'Der Mutter Fluch,' Meinert, p. 246, a ballad with whichYagrees in the first two and last four stanzas.[53]There is a dove inZ, butZ, as has been said, presents traits of all three classes.[54]'Da lyge, feyns Lybchen, unndt fawle,Meyn jungk Herze muss trawren.'Nicolai, vv 35, 36,'Da liege, du Häuptchen, und faule,Kein Reuter wird dir nachtrauern.'Simrock, vv 35, 36,are evidently derived from the apostrophe to the murderer's head inI,W,Y.Stolz Syburg is the hero of a very different ballad, from the Münster region, Reifferscheid, No 16, p. 32 (also No 17, and Simrock, No 9, p. 23, 'Stolz Heinrich'). And from this the name, in consequence of a remote resemblance in the story, may have been taken up by the Rhine ballad, though it has contributed nothing more. Margaret, a king's daughter, is wiled away by a splendid description of Stolz Syburg's opulence. When they have gone a long way, he tells her that he has nothing but a barren heath. She stabs herself at his feet.[55]'Wassermans Braut,' Meinert, p. 77; 'Die unglückliche Braut,' Hoffmann u. Richter, Schlesische V. L., p. 6, No. 2; 'Königs Töchterlein,' Erk u. Irmer, vi, 6, No 4; 'Der Wassermann,' Erk's Liederhort, p. 50, No 17. ('Die Nixenbraut,' "Norddeutschland," Zuccalmaglio, p. 192, No 92, seems to be Meinert's copy written over.)[56]The remarkable Norwegian ballad of the 'Wassermanns Brant' group, The Nix and Heiemo, Landstad, No 39, p. 350, has not been unaffected by the one we are now occupied with. There is even a verbal contact between stanza 19,'Heiemo tenkte með sjave seg:Tru mine smáknivar'ki hjelper meg?'and NorwegianF, stanza 9, cited by Grundtvig,IV, 4,Lengji stó Gullbjör, hó tenkte mæ seg:'Kann inkje mí'rúninnehjelpe meg?'[57]Kolberg'sb,h,k,v,x,bb,cc,hh,kk,ll,nn,xx,yy,zz, consist of only one or two initial stanzas, containing no important variation. Hisaaa, a fragment of six stanzas, Pauli, p. 147, No 6, Wojcicki,II, 169, though it begins like the rest, sounds like a different ballad.The ballad in Wojcicki,I, 38, is allied with the one we are engaged with, and the two fragments on p. 36, p. 37 with both this and that.[58]Anne inR,LL, and Kolberg'sh: Mary inI,U,II: Ursula,N: both Catherine and Alice,AA. John is found in all butN, where there is a nameless seigneur.[59]They are expressly said to go off in a carriage inI,O,Q,T,BB,DD,FF. Still, inI, John says, "Let the black horse have something to carry under us." InO,T,FF, the horses have a presentiment of evil to their mistress, and refuse to stir.[60]One version of 'The Two Sisters,'Q, has the same answer:'I did not put you in with the designJust for to pull you out again.'st. 9.This might be called a formula in Polish ballads: something of the kind occurs three times inX, four times inB, five times inP; in other ballads also. InQ25, Catherine clutches the river bank, and John pushes away her hands. Compare 'The Two Sisters,'F9, further on in this volume.[61]L,L*,M,N, as already said, confuse the two catastrophes. John says, inN, "Do you see that broad river? I will measure its depth by throwing you in." We may assume that he was as good as his word. But Ursula made her way home through woods and forests, weeping her eyes out on the way. Kind souls dug a grave for her. The conclusion ofMis absurd, but need not be particularized.Ghas a passage of the sternest theology. While Catherine is struggling in the water, her father comes by. She cries to him to save her. He says, "My dear Catherine, you have loved pleasure too much. Lord Jesus grant you drown!" Her mother appears, and makes the same reply to her daughter's appeal. There are stall-copy terminal morals to many of the ballads.[62]N1, "A lord came riding from his estate to a neighbor."[63]The place is high above the water inR10, 11, as in EnglishD9, 29,C4.[64]BB6, "My mother said that I had seen you; she willwatch me closely," may be an accidental coincidence with DanishA7-9,B6-8, etc.[65]The second, and more valuable, volume of Waldau's B. G. I have found it impossible to obtain. Reifferscheid cites the ballad at p. 166.[66]A few silly verses follow in the original, in which Thomas treats what he had said as a jest. These are properly rejected by Talvj as a spurious appendage.[67]'De achte de soll Helena sin,De achte de most he sölwer sin.'GermanA b13.[68]Another version of this double ballad, but much corrupted in the second part, was known to Gérard de Nerval. See Les Filles du Feu, Œuvres complètes,V, 132.[69]So far there is agreement in 'La Fille du Prince,' Paymaigre, No 32, p. 106; Poésies pop. de la France, MS.,III, fol. 133.[70]The Asturian romance communicated in two copies by Amador de los Rios to Jahrbuch für rom. u. eng. Literatur,III, 285, No 2, and the Portuguese 'Romance de Romeirinha,' Braga, Romanceiro, No 9, p. 24, 'A Romeira,' Almeida-Garrett,III, 11, are not parallels, though they have been cited as such.[71]Magyar Népköltési Gyüjtemény. Uj Folyam, szerkesztik és kiadják Arany László és Gyulai Pál. Collection of Magyar Popular Poetry, New Series, Pest, 1872, 2 vols. Aigner, has blended Nos 4 and 3 (C,A) in 'Martin und Aennchen,' Ungarische Volksdichtungen, p. 170, and has translated No 1 (E), at p. 120, 'Molnár Anna,' in each case obscuring or omitting one or two traits which are important for a comparative view.[72]Very little remains of the artifice in PolishA. The idea seems to be that the girl pretends to be curious about the sword in order to get it into her hands. But the whole story is told in ten stanzas.[73]I accept and repeat Grundtvig's views as to the relation of the three forms of the story. And with regard to the history of the ballad generally, this is but one of many cases in which much or most of the work had been done to my hand in Danmarks gamle Folkeviser.[74]Memering was required by his adversary to swear that he knew not of the sword Adelring, and took his oath that he knew of nothing but the hilt being above ground, which was accepted as satisfactory. Presently he pulls Adelring out of the ground, into which he had thrust the blade, and, being accused of perjury, triumphantly rejoins that he had sworn that he knew of nothing but the hiltbeing above ground. Dietrich does the same in his duel with Sigurd Swain.[75]MagyarAis entirely peculiar. Apparently the man lays his head in the woman's lap that he may know, by the falling of her tears, when she has disobeyed his command not to look into the tree. This is like 'Bluebeard,' and rather subtle for a ballad.[76]'Child Waters,' 'The Fair Flower of Northumberland.'[77]The murderer has a horn in SwedishC,D, as also in the Dutch Halewyn and the GermanA,B,C,E, and the horn may be of magical power, but it is not distinctly described as such.[78]The scenery of the halting-place in the wood—the bloody streams in DanishA,B,D,H,L,K, the blood-girt spring in GermanH,J,K,L,O,P,Q—is also, to say the least, suggestive of something horribly uncanny. These are undoubtedly ancient features, though the spring, as the Danish editor observes, has no longer any significancy in the German ballads, because in all of them the previous victims are said to have beenhanged.[79]The saga in Björner's Nordiska Kämpadater, c. 5-7.[80]DanishE,I,L, and evenA, make the knight suggest to the lady that she should get her gold together while he is saddling his horse; but this is a commonplace found in other cases of elopement, andby itselfwarrants no conclusion as to the knight's rapacity. See 'Samson,' Grundtvig, No 6,C5; 'Ribold og Guldborg,' No 82,C13,E14, etc.; 'Redselille og Medelvold,' No 271,A21,B20; 272, Bilag 3, st. 8; 270, 18, etc.[81]So perhaps a Polish ballad in Wojcicki,I, 38, akin to the other John and Katie ballads.[82]It is well known that in the Middle Ages the blood of children or of virgins was reputed a specific for leprosy (see, e.g., Cassel in the Weimar Jahrbücher,I, 408.) Some have thought to find in this fact an explanation of the murders in these ballads and in the Bluebeard stories, and, according to Rochholz, this theory has been adopted into popular tradition in the Aargau. So far as this cycle of ballads is concerned, there is as much ground for holding that the blood was wanted to cure leprosy as for believing that the gold was wanted foraurum potabile.[83]Det philologisk-historiske Samfunds Mindeskrift i Anledning af dets femogtyveaarige Virksomhed, 1854-79, Bidrag til den nordiske Balladedigtnings Historie, p. 75 ff.[84]Bugge cites the Old German Judith, Müllenhoff u. Scherer, Denkmäler, 2d ed., No 37, p. 105, to show how the Bible story became modified under a popular treatment.[85]Holefern might doubtless pass into Halewyn, but there is not the slightest need of Holefern toaccountfor Halewyn. Halewyn, besides being a well-known local and family appellation, is found in two other Dutch ballads, one of which (Lootens and Feys, p. 66, No 38; Hoffmann, p. 46, No 11) has no kind of connection with the present, and is no more likely to have derived the name from this than this from that. It shall not be denied that Adelger, Hilsinger, Rullemann, Reimvord might have sprung from or have been suggested by Holofern, under the influence of familiar terminations, but it may be remarked that Hildebrand, Ravengaard, Valdemar, Rosmer, if they had occurred in any version, would have occasioned no greater difficulty.[86]The Old German poem makes Holofernes kindle with desire for Judith the moment he sees her, and he bids his men bring her to his tent. They lift her up and bring her in.[87]It should be observed that these words are from the dove's warning.[88]Simply because he had no other apartment at his disposition. Shall we add, the Polish mother putting her daughter into the "new room," in which she kept her valuables?[89]Bugge holds that the ballad was derived by the Scandinavians from the Germans, more precisely by the Danes from a Low German form. This, he says, would follow from what he has maintained above, and he finds support for his view in many particular traits of Norse copies. Thus, one of the Norwegian names for the murderer is Alemarken. The first three syllables are very near to the Danish Oldemor; but -ken seems to be the German diminutive suffix, and can only be explained by the ballad having come from Germany.[90]This toilet derives importance solely from the agreement with Judith x, 3: for the rest it is entirely in the ballad style. Compare the toilets in 'Hafsfrun,' Afzelius, No 92,III, 148, Arwidsson, No 150,II, 320, Wigström, Folkdiktning, No 2, p. 11, Landstad, No 55, p. 494: 'Guldsmedens Datter,' Grundtvig, No. 245,IV, 481 ff, Wigström, ib., No 18, p. 37, Landstad, No 43, p. 437: Torkilds Riim, Lyngbye, Færøiske Qvæder, 534, 535, Afzelius,III, 202: 'Stolts Karin,' Arwidsson, No 63,I, 388: 'Liti Kerstis hevn,' Landstad, No 67, p. 559 == 'Lord Thomas and Fair Annet': in many of which there is a gold crown. There is a man's toilet in Grundtvig, No 207,IV, 201.[91]Bugge would naturally have seen the Assyrian scouts that Judith falls in with (x, 11) in Roland's father, mother, and brother, all of whom hail the maid as she is making for Roland's quarters (C30-38); still more "Holofernes jacebat in lecto" (xiii, 4), in "Roland die op zijn bedde lag,"C39.[92]Judith xiv, 1: "Suspendite caput hoc super muros nostros." The cutting off and bringing home of the head, as need hardly be said, is not of itself remarkable, being found everywhere from David to Beówulf, and from Beówulf to 'Sir Andrew Barton.'[93]DutchB, which, as before said, has been completely rewritten, makes the comparison with Holofernes:34'Ik heb van't leven hem beroofd,in mynen schoot heb ik zyn hoofd,hy is als Holofernes gelooft.'37Zy reed dan voort als Judith wys,zoo regt nae haer vaders paleis,daer zy wierd ingehaeld met eer en prys.

[24]'The Elfin Knight' begins very much likeA, but perhaps has borrowed its opening stanzas from this ballad. See page 13.

[25]The second stanza, which describes the harping, occurs again in 'Glenkindie' (st. 6).

[26]Perhaps the change from wood,A, to water,B-F, was made under the influence of some Merman ballad, or by admixture with such a ballad; e.g., 'Nøkkens Svig,' Grundtvig, No 39. In this (A) the nix entices a king's daughter away from a dance, sets her on his horse, and rides with her over the heath to a wild water, into which she sinks. It is also quite among possibilities that there was originally an English nix ballad, in which the king's daughter saved herself by some artifice, not, of course, such as is employed inB-F, but like that inA, or otherwise. Maid Heiemo, in Landstad, No 39, kills a nix with "one of her small knives." Had she put him to sleep with a charm, and killed him withhis ownknife, as Lady Isabel does, there would have been nothing to shock credibility in the story.Aytoun, Ballads of Scotland,I, 219, 2d ed., hastily pronounces Buchan's ballad not authentic, "being made up of stanzas borrowed from versions of 'Burd Helen' ['Child Waters']." There are, indeed, three successive steps into the water in both ballads, but Aytoun should have bethought himself how natural and how common it is for a passage to slip from one ballad into another, when the circumstances of the story are the same; and in some such cases no one can say where the verses that are common originally belonged. Here, indeed, as Grundtvig remarks,IV, 7, note*, it may well be that the verses in question belonged originally to 'Burd Helen,' and were adopted (but in the processes of tradition) into 'The Water of Wearie's Well;' for it must be admitted that the transaction in the water is not a happy conception in the latter, since it shocks probability that the woman should be able to swim ashore, and the man not.

Aytoun, Ballads of Scotland,I, 219, 2d ed., hastily pronounces Buchan's ballad not authentic, "being made up of stanzas borrowed from versions of 'Burd Helen' ['Child Waters']." There are, indeed, three successive steps into the water in both ballads, but Aytoun should have bethought himself how natural and how common it is for a passage to slip from one ballad into another, when the circumstances of the story are the same; and in some such cases no one can say where the verses that are common originally belonged. Here, indeed, as Grundtvig remarks,IV, 7, note*, it may well be that the verses in question belonged originally to 'Burd Helen,' and were adopted (but in the processes of tradition) into 'The Water of Wearie's Well;' for it must be admitted that the transaction in the water is not a happy conception in the latter, since it shocks probability that the woman should be able to swim ashore, and the man not.

[27]"This ballad appears modern, from a great many expressions, but yet I am certain that it is old: the present copy came from the housekeeper at Methven." Note by Sharpe, in Laing's ed. of the Ballad Book, 1880, p. 130, xvii. Motherwell, in his Minstrelsy, p. lxx, n. 24, says that he had seen a stall ballad as early as 1749, entitled 'The Western Tragedy,' which perfectly agreed with Sharpe's copy. But in his Note-Book, p. 5 (about 1826-7), Motherwell says, "The best copy of May Colean with which I have met occurs in a stall copy printed about thirty years ago [should we then read 1799 instead of 1749?], under the title of 'The Western Tragedy.' I have subsequently seen a posterior reprint of this stall copy under this title, 'The Historical Ballad of May Collean.' In Mr. Sharpe's Ballad Book, the same copy, wanting only one stanza, is given."

[28]According to the variation given by Willems, and adopted by Hoffmann, Halewijn'ssoncame to meet her, tied her horse to a tree, and bade her to sit down by him and loose her hair. For every hair she undid she dropped a tear. But it will presently be seen not only that the time has not come for them to sit down, but that Halewijn's bidding her undo her hair (to no purpose) is a perversion of her offering to "red"his, to get him into her power, an offer which she makes in the German and Scandinavian ballads, where also there is good reason for her tears, but none as yet here.

[29]J. W. Wolf, Deutsche Märchen u. Sagen, No 29, p. 143, gives the story according toB, apparently from a ballad like Snellaert's. So Luise v. Ploennies, Reiseerinnerungen aus Belgien, p. 38.Halewyn makes his appearance again in the Flemish ballad, 'Halewyn en het kleyne Kind,' Coussemaker, No 46, p. 149; Poésies populaires de la France, vol.I. A boy of seven years has shot one of Halewyn's rabbits, and is for this condemned to be hanged on the highest tree in the park. The father makes great offers for his ransom, but in vain. On the first step of the ladder the child looks back for his mother, on the second for his father, on the third for his brother, on the fourth for his sister, each of whom successively arrives and is told that delay would have cost him his life. It will presently be seen that there is a resemblance here to German ballads (G-X,Z).

[29]J. W. Wolf, Deutsche Märchen u. Sagen, No 29, p. 143, gives the story according toB, apparently from a ballad like Snellaert's. So Luise v. Ploennies, Reiseerinnerungen aus Belgien, p. 38.

Halewyn makes his appearance again in the Flemish ballad, 'Halewyn en het kleyne Kind,' Coussemaker, No 46, p. 149; Poésies populaires de la France, vol.I. A boy of seven years has shot one of Halewyn's rabbits, and is for this condemned to be hanged on the highest tree in the park. The father makes great offers for his ransom, but in vain. On the first step of the ladder the child looks back for his mother, on the second for his father, on the third for his brother, on the fourth for his sister, each of whom successively arrives and is told that delay would have cost him his life. It will presently be seen that there is a resemblance here to German ballads (G-X,Z).

[30]"La chanson de Halewyn, telle à peu près que la donnent Willems, Snellaert et de Coussemaker, se vend encore sur le marché de Bruges. Quoiqu'elle porte pour titreHalewyn, jamais notre pièce n'a été connue ici sous ce nom. Le nom de Halewijn, Alewijn ou Alwin ... est réservé au héros de la pièce suivante" [Mi Adel en Hir Alewijn]. Lootens et Feys, p. 66. "Il est a regretter que Willems et de Coussemaker n'aient pas jugé à propos de donner cette pièce telle que le peuple l'a conservée; on serait sans aucun doute en possession de variantes remarquables, et les lacunes qui existent dans notre version n'eussent pas manqué d'être com blées. Il est bon d'insister sur la remarque faite à la suite de la chanson, qu'à Bruges et dans beaucoup de localités de la Flandre, elle n'est connue que sous le titre deRoland. Ajoutons que notre texte appartient au dernier siècle." L. et F., 295.

[31]So in 'Liebe ohne Stand,' one of the mixed forms of the German ballad, Wunderhorn, ErkI, 41, Crecelius,I, 36,Und als es nun kam an den dritten Tag,Da gingen die Pfeiffen und Trommeln an.

[31]So in 'Liebe ohne Stand,' one of the mixed forms of the German ballad, Wunderhorn, ErkI, 41, Crecelius,I, 36,

Und als es nun kam an den dritten Tag,Da gingen die Pfeiffen und Trommeln an.

[32]E.g., the wonderland inA2-6, and the strict watch kept over the lady in 7-10 are repeated in 'Ribold og Guldborg,' Grundtvig, 82,B2-7, 8-11, and in 'Den trofaste Jomfru,' ib. 249,A3-6, 7-10. The watching inA,B,Cand the proffered gifts ofC,D,Fare found in 'Nøkkens Svig,' Grundtvig, 39,A,B, 12-18. The disguise inA11-14, the rest in the wood with the knight's head in the lady's lap,A16, 27,B11, 21,D14, 24,E11, 21, etc., recur in Ribold,B12-14,L9, 10,M19, 20,N11, 13,P12, 13. These resemblances, naturally, are not limited to the Danish copies.

[33]So the princess in Asbjörnsen og Moe, N. Folkeeventyr, p. 153. Cf. Campbell's Tales of the West Highlands,III, 209;IV, 282, 283.

[34]The binding and waking, with these words, are found also in a made-up text of 'Frændehævn,' Grundtvig, No 4,C51-53, but certainly borrowed from some copy of 'Kvindemorderen.'

[35]All the German versions appear to have beenoriginallyin the two-line stanza.

[36]The copies with this title in Simrock, No 6, p. 15, and in Scherer's Jungbrunnen, No 5 A, and his Deutsche V. L., 1851, p. 349, are compounded from various texts.

[37]BothDandEhave attached to them this final stanza:'Odilia, why are thy shoes so red?''It is three doves that I shot dead.'This is a well-known commonplace in tragic ballads; and Grundtvig suggests that this stanza was the occasion of the story taking the turn which we find in ballads of the third class.

[37]BothDandEhave attached to them this final stanza:

'Odilia, why are thy shoes so red?''It is three doves that I shot dead.'

This is a well-known commonplace in tragic ballads; and Grundtvig suggests that this stanza was the occasion of the story taking the turn which we find in ballads of the third class.

[38]One scarcely knows whether this bribe is an imperfect reminiscence of splendid promises which the knight makes, e.g., in the Danish ballads, or a shifting from the maid to the knight of the gold which the elsewhere opulent or well-to-do maid gets together while the knight is preparing to set forth; or simply one of those extravagances which so often make their appearance in later versions of ballads.

[39]The number eleven is remarkably constant in the German ballads, being found inG,H,J-L,N-W; it is also the number in SwedishB. Eight is the favorite number in the North, and occurs in DanishA-D,H-L, SwedishA,C, NorwegianG,H; again in GermanI. GermanM,X, DanishF, have ten; GermanA,B, DanishE, NorwegianI, have nine; GermanC,D, seven; DanishGhas nineteen. FrenchA,Bhave fourteen, fifteen, Italian ballads still higher numbers:A,B,C, thirty-six,D, fifty-two,E, thirty-three,F, three hundred and three.

[40]This stroke of realism fails only inM,N,R, of this second class.

[41]Apparently to a Ribold ballad, of which no other trace has been found in German. See further on in this volume.

[42]13'Ach du schöne junkfraw fein,Du pfalzgrävin, du kaiserin!Der Adelger hat sich vor ailf getödt,Du wirst die zwölft, das sei dir gsait.15'So bitt mich nit, du junkfraw fein,So bitt mich nit, du herzigs ein!'Theliebkosungof this murder-reeking Adelger, o'ersized with coagulate gore, is admirably horrible.

[42]

13'Ach du schöne junkfraw fein,Du pfalzgrävin, du kaiserin!Der Adelger hat sich vor ailf getödt,Du wirst die zwölft, das sei dir gsait.15'So bitt mich nit, du junkfraw fein,So bitt mich nit, du herzigs ein!'

13'Ach du schöne junkfraw fein,Du pfalzgrävin, du kaiserin!Der Adelger hat sich vor ailf getödt,Du wirst die zwölft, das sei dir gsait.

15'So bitt mich nit, du junkfraw fein,So bitt mich nit, du herzigs ein!'

Theliebkosungof this murder-reeking Adelger, o'ersized with coagulate gore, is admirably horrible.

[43]Nimmersatt (All-begehrend) as interpreted by Meinert, not Adelger.

[44]Verses which recur, nearly, not only inY17-19,W27, 28, but elsewhere, as in a copy of 'Graf Friedrich,' Erk's Liederhort, p. 41, No 15, st. 19.

[45]There is no sense intwodoves. The single dove one may suppose to be the spirit of the last victim. We shall find theelevenappearing as doves inQ. There is no occasion to regard the dove here as a Waldminne (Vilmar, Handbüchlein für Freunde des deutschen Volkslieds, p. 57). Cf. the nightingale (and two nightingales) in the Danish 'Redselille og Medelvold:' see 'Leesome Brand,' further on in this volume.

[46]This ballad has become, in Tübingen, a children's game, called 'Bertha im Wald.' The three cries are preserved in verse, and very nearly as inJ,M. The game concludes by the robber smothering Bertha. Meier, Deutsche Kinder-Reime, No 439.

[47]K, or the editor, seeks to avoid the difficulty by taking the last line from the knight, and reading, "Mit Blut war er umronnen," an emendation not according with the simplicity of ballads. Another Swabian copy, Meier, p. 301, note, strophe 6, has:'Wir müssen zu selbigem BronnenWo Wasser und Blut heraus ronnen.'

'Wir müssen zu selbigem BronnenWo Wasser und Blut heraus ronnen.'

[48]The last verses are these, and not very much worse than the rest:Mein Bruder ist ein Jägersmann,Der alle Thierlein schiessen kann;Er hatt' ein zweischneidiges Schwerte,Und stach es dem Falschen ins Herze.Ihr Mädchen alle insgemein,Lasst euch doch diess zur Warnung sein,Und geht doch mit keinem so falschenIn einen so finsteren Walde.My brother is a hunting man,And all the small game shoot he can;He had a sword with edges two,And ran the heart of the false man throughYe maidens now in general,Let this be warning to you all;With man so false you never shouldGo toso verydark a wood.

[48]The last verses are these, and not very much worse than the rest:

Mein Bruder ist ein Jägersmann,Der alle Thierlein schiessen kann;Er hatt' ein zweischneidiges Schwerte,Und stach es dem Falschen ins Herze.Ihr Mädchen alle insgemein,Lasst euch doch diess zur Warnung sein,Und geht doch mit keinem so falschenIn einen so finsteren Walde.My brother is a hunting man,And all the small game shoot he can;He had a sword with edges two,And ran the heart of the false man throughYe maidens now in general,Let this be warning to you all;With man so false you never shouldGo toso verydark a wood.

Mein Bruder ist ein Jägersmann,Der alle Thierlein schiessen kann;Er hatt' ein zweischneidiges Schwerte,Und stach es dem Falschen ins Herze.

Ihr Mädchen alle insgemein,Lasst euch doch diess zur Warnung sein,Und geht doch mit keinem so falschenIn einen so finsteren Walde.

My brother is a hunting man,And all the small game shoot he can;He had a sword with edges two,And ran the heart of the false man through

Ye maidens now in general,Let this be warning to you all;With man so false you never shouldGo toso verydark a wood.

[49]So in Rochholz, Schweizer Sagen, No 14,I, 23, a man who had killed eleven maids would, if he could have made up the number twelve, have been able to pass through walls and mouseholes. Again, a certain robber in Jutland, who had devoured eight children's hearts, would have acquired the power of flying could he but have secured one more. Grundtvig, D. g. F.IV, 16, note.

[50]What will those who are so troubled about cork-heeled shoon in 'Sir Patrick Spens' say to the fire-arms inL,N,S?

[51]A variety ofW, cited in Schlesische Volkslieder, p. 26, has,'Ach Ulbrich, Ulbrich, Halsemann, Halsemann,Lass du mich nur drei Gale schrei'n!'Grundtvig, assuming that the name is Ulbrich Halsemann, would account for the second and superfluous character here [found also inW] by a divarication of Ulrich Halsemann into UlrichandHalsemann (Hanslein). Ansar, "bisher unverständlicher Vorname des Ritters Uleraich" inY(Meinert), would equally well yield Hanslein. Might not Halsemann possibly be an equivalent of Halsherr?

[51]A variety ofW, cited in Schlesische Volkslieder, p. 26, has,

'Ach Ulbrich, Ulbrich, Halsemann, Halsemann,Lass du mich nur drei Gale schrei'n!'

Grundtvig, assuming that the name is Ulbrich Halsemann, would account for the second and superfluous character here [found also inW] by a divarication of Ulrich Halsemann into UlrichandHalsemann (Hanslein). Ansar, "bisher unverständlicher Vorname des Ritters Uleraich" inY(Meinert), would equally well yield Hanslein. Might not Halsemann possibly be an equivalent of Halsherr?

[52]And in 'Der Mutter Fluch,' Meinert, p. 246, a ballad with whichYagrees in the first two and last four stanzas.

[53]There is a dove inZ, butZ, as has been said, presents traits of all three classes.

[54]'Da lyge, feyns Lybchen, unndt fawle,Meyn jungk Herze muss trawren.'Nicolai, vv 35, 36,'Da liege, du Häuptchen, und faule,Kein Reuter wird dir nachtrauern.'Simrock, vv 35, 36,are evidently derived from the apostrophe to the murderer's head inI,W,Y.Stolz Syburg is the hero of a very different ballad, from the Münster region, Reifferscheid, No 16, p. 32 (also No 17, and Simrock, No 9, p. 23, 'Stolz Heinrich'). And from this the name, in consequence of a remote resemblance in the story, may have been taken up by the Rhine ballad, though it has contributed nothing more. Margaret, a king's daughter, is wiled away by a splendid description of Stolz Syburg's opulence. When they have gone a long way, he tells her that he has nothing but a barren heath. She stabs herself at his feet.

[54]

'Da lyge, feyns Lybchen, unndt fawle,Meyn jungk Herze muss trawren.'

Nicolai, vv 35, 36,

'Da liege, du Häuptchen, und faule,Kein Reuter wird dir nachtrauern.'

Simrock, vv 35, 36,

are evidently derived from the apostrophe to the murderer's head inI,W,Y.

Stolz Syburg is the hero of a very different ballad, from the Münster region, Reifferscheid, No 16, p. 32 (also No 17, and Simrock, No 9, p. 23, 'Stolz Heinrich'). And from this the name, in consequence of a remote resemblance in the story, may have been taken up by the Rhine ballad, though it has contributed nothing more. Margaret, a king's daughter, is wiled away by a splendid description of Stolz Syburg's opulence. When they have gone a long way, he tells her that he has nothing but a barren heath. She stabs herself at his feet.

[55]'Wassermans Braut,' Meinert, p. 77; 'Die unglückliche Braut,' Hoffmann u. Richter, Schlesische V. L., p. 6, No. 2; 'Königs Töchterlein,' Erk u. Irmer, vi, 6, No 4; 'Der Wassermann,' Erk's Liederhort, p. 50, No 17. ('Die Nixenbraut,' "Norddeutschland," Zuccalmaglio, p. 192, No 92, seems to be Meinert's copy written over.)

[56]The remarkable Norwegian ballad of the 'Wassermanns Brant' group, The Nix and Heiemo, Landstad, No 39, p. 350, has not been unaffected by the one we are now occupied with. There is even a verbal contact between stanza 19,'Heiemo tenkte með sjave seg:Tru mine smáknivar'ki hjelper meg?'and NorwegianF, stanza 9, cited by Grundtvig,IV, 4,Lengji stó Gullbjör, hó tenkte mæ seg:'Kann inkje mí'rúninnehjelpe meg?'

'Heiemo tenkte með sjave seg:Tru mine smáknivar'ki hjelper meg?'

and NorwegianF, stanza 9, cited by Grundtvig,IV, 4,

Lengji stó Gullbjör, hó tenkte mæ seg:'Kann inkje mí'rúninnehjelpe meg?'

[57]Kolberg'sb,h,k,v,x,bb,cc,hh,kk,ll,nn,xx,yy,zz, consist of only one or two initial stanzas, containing no important variation. Hisaaa, a fragment of six stanzas, Pauli, p. 147, No 6, Wojcicki,II, 169, though it begins like the rest, sounds like a different ballad.The ballad in Wojcicki,I, 38, is allied with the one we are engaged with, and the two fragments on p. 36, p. 37 with both this and that.

The ballad in Wojcicki,I, 38, is allied with the one we are engaged with, and the two fragments on p. 36, p. 37 with both this and that.

[58]Anne inR,LL, and Kolberg'sh: Mary inI,U,II: Ursula,N: both Catherine and Alice,AA. John is found in all butN, where there is a nameless seigneur.

[59]They are expressly said to go off in a carriage inI,O,Q,T,BB,DD,FF. Still, inI, John says, "Let the black horse have something to carry under us." InO,T,FF, the horses have a presentiment of evil to their mistress, and refuse to stir.

[60]One version of 'The Two Sisters,'Q, has the same answer:'I did not put you in with the designJust for to pull you out again.'st. 9.This might be called a formula in Polish ballads: something of the kind occurs three times inX, four times inB, five times inP; in other ballads also. InQ25, Catherine clutches the river bank, and John pushes away her hands. Compare 'The Two Sisters,'F9, further on in this volume.

[60]One version of 'The Two Sisters,'Q, has the same answer:

'I did not put you in with the designJust for to pull you out again.'

st. 9.

This might be called a formula in Polish ballads: something of the kind occurs three times inX, four times inB, five times inP; in other ballads also. InQ25, Catherine clutches the river bank, and John pushes away her hands. Compare 'The Two Sisters,'F9, further on in this volume.

[61]L,L*,M,N, as already said, confuse the two catastrophes. John says, inN, "Do you see that broad river? I will measure its depth by throwing you in." We may assume that he was as good as his word. But Ursula made her way home through woods and forests, weeping her eyes out on the way. Kind souls dug a grave for her. The conclusion ofMis absurd, but need not be particularized.Ghas a passage of the sternest theology. While Catherine is struggling in the water, her father comes by. She cries to him to save her. He says, "My dear Catherine, you have loved pleasure too much. Lord Jesus grant you drown!" Her mother appears, and makes the same reply to her daughter's appeal. There are stall-copy terminal morals to many of the ballads.

[62]N1, "A lord came riding from his estate to a neighbor."

[63]The place is high above the water inR10, 11, as in EnglishD9, 29,C4.

[64]BB6, "My mother said that I had seen you; she willwatch me closely," may be an accidental coincidence with DanishA7-9,B6-8, etc.

[65]The second, and more valuable, volume of Waldau's B. G. I have found it impossible to obtain. Reifferscheid cites the ballad at p. 166.

[66]A few silly verses follow in the original, in which Thomas treats what he had said as a jest. These are properly rejected by Talvj as a spurious appendage.

[67]'De achte de soll Helena sin,De achte de most he sölwer sin.'GermanA b13.

[67]

'De achte de soll Helena sin,De achte de most he sölwer sin.'

GermanA b13.

[68]Another version of this double ballad, but much corrupted in the second part, was known to Gérard de Nerval. See Les Filles du Feu, Œuvres complètes,V, 132.

[69]So far there is agreement in 'La Fille du Prince,' Paymaigre, No 32, p. 106; Poésies pop. de la France, MS.,III, fol. 133.

[70]The Asturian romance communicated in two copies by Amador de los Rios to Jahrbuch für rom. u. eng. Literatur,III, 285, No 2, and the Portuguese 'Romance de Romeirinha,' Braga, Romanceiro, No 9, p. 24, 'A Romeira,' Almeida-Garrett,III, 11, are not parallels, though they have been cited as such.

[71]Magyar Népköltési Gyüjtemény. Uj Folyam, szerkesztik és kiadják Arany László és Gyulai Pál. Collection of Magyar Popular Poetry, New Series, Pest, 1872, 2 vols. Aigner, has blended Nos 4 and 3 (C,A) in 'Martin und Aennchen,' Ungarische Volksdichtungen, p. 170, and has translated No 1 (E), at p. 120, 'Molnár Anna,' in each case obscuring or omitting one or two traits which are important for a comparative view.

[72]Very little remains of the artifice in PolishA. The idea seems to be that the girl pretends to be curious about the sword in order to get it into her hands. But the whole story is told in ten stanzas.

[73]I accept and repeat Grundtvig's views as to the relation of the three forms of the story. And with regard to the history of the ballad generally, this is but one of many cases in which much or most of the work had been done to my hand in Danmarks gamle Folkeviser.

[74]Memering was required by his adversary to swear that he knew not of the sword Adelring, and took his oath that he knew of nothing but the hilt being above ground, which was accepted as satisfactory. Presently he pulls Adelring out of the ground, into which he had thrust the blade, and, being accused of perjury, triumphantly rejoins that he had sworn that he knew of nothing but the hiltbeing above ground. Dietrich does the same in his duel with Sigurd Swain.

[75]MagyarAis entirely peculiar. Apparently the man lays his head in the woman's lap that he may know, by the falling of her tears, when she has disobeyed his command not to look into the tree. This is like 'Bluebeard,' and rather subtle for a ballad.

[76]'Child Waters,' 'The Fair Flower of Northumberland.'

[77]The murderer has a horn in SwedishC,D, as also in the Dutch Halewyn and the GermanA,B,C,E, and the horn may be of magical power, but it is not distinctly described as such.

[78]The scenery of the halting-place in the wood—the bloody streams in DanishA,B,D,H,L,K, the blood-girt spring in GermanH,J,K,L,O,P,Q—is also, to say the least, suggestive of something horribly uncanny. These are undoubtedly ancient features, though the spring, as the Danish editor observes, has no longer any significancy in the German ballads, because in all of them the previous victims are said to have beenhanged.

[79]The saga in Björner's Nordiska Kämpadater, c. 5-7.

[80]DanishE,I,L, and evenA, make the knight suggest to the lady that she should get her gold together while he is saddling his horse; but this is a commonplace found in other cases of elopement, andby itselfwarrants no conclusion as to the knight's rapacity. See 'Samson,' Grundtvig, No 6,C5; 'Ribold og Guldborg,' No 82,C13,E14, etc.; 'Redselille og Medelvold,' No 271,A21,B20; 272, Bilag 3, st. 8; 270, 18, etc.

[81]So perhaps a Polish ballad in Wojcicki,I, 38, akin to the other John and Katie ballads.

[82]It is well known that in the Middle Ages the blood of children or of virgins was reputed a specific for leprosy (see, e.g., Cassel in the Weimar Jahrbücher,I, 408.) Some have thought to find in this fact an explanation of the murders in these ballads and in the Bluebeard stories, and, according to Rochholz, this theory has been adopted into popular tradition in the Aargau. So far as this cycle of ballads is concerned, there is as much ground for holding that the blood was wanted to cure leprosy as for believing that the gold was wanted foraurum potabile.

[83]Det philologisk-historiske Samfunds Mindeskrift i Anledning af dets femogtyveaarige Virksomhed, 1854-79, Bidrag til den nordiske Balladedigtnings Historie, p. 75 ff.

[84]Bugge cites the Old German Judith, Müllenhoff u. Scherer, Denkmäler, 2d ed., No 37, p. 105, to show how the Bible story became modified under a popular treatment.

[85]Holefern might doubtless pass into Halewyn, but there is not the slightest need of Holefern toaccountfor Halewyn. Halewyn, besides being a well-known local and family appellation, is found in two other Dutch ballads, one of which (Lootens and Feys, p. 66, No 38; Hoffmann, p. 46, No 11) has no kind of connection with the present, and is no more likely to have derived the name from this than this from that. It shall not be denied that Adelger, Hilsinger, Rullemann, Reimvord might have sprung from or have been suggested by Holofern, under the influence of familiar terminations, but it may be remarked that Hildebrand, Ravengaard, Valdemar, Rosmer, if they had occurred in any version, would have occasioned no greater difficulty.

[86]The Old German poem makes Holofernes kindle with desire for Judith the moment he sees her, and he bids his men bring her to his tent. They lift her up and bring her in.

[87]It should be observed that these words are from the dove's warning.

[88]Simply because he had no other apartment at his disposition. Shall we add, the Polish mother putting her daughter into the "new room," in which she kept her valuables?

[89]Bugge holds that the ballad was derived by the Scandinavians from the Germans, more precisely by the Danes from a Low German form. This, he says, would follow from what he has maintained above, and he finds support for his view in many particular traits of Norse copies. Thus, one of the Norwegian names for the murderer is Alemarken. The first three syllables are very near to the Danish Oldemor; but -ken seems to be the German diminutive suffix, and can only be explained by the ballad having come from Germany.

[90]This toilet derives importance solely from the agreement with Judith x, 3: for the rest it is entirely in the ballad style. Compare the toilets in 'Hafsfrun,' Afzelius, No 92,III, 148, Arwidsson, No 150,II, 320, Wigström, Folkdiktning, No 2, p. 11, Landstad, No 55, p. 494: 'Guldsmedens Datter,' Grundtvig, No. 245,IV, 481 ff, Wigström, ib., No 18, p. 37, Landstad, No 43, p. 437: Torkilds Riim, Lyngbye, Færøiske Qvæder, 534, 535, Afzelius,III, 202: 'Stolts Karin,' Arwidsson, No 63,I, 388: 'Liti Kerstis hevn,' Landstad, No 67, p. 559 == 'Lord Thomas and Fair Annet': in many of which there is a gold crown. There is a man's toilet in Grundtvig, No 207,IV, 201.

[91]Bugge would naturally have seen the Assyrian scouts that Judith falls in with (x, 11) in Roland's father, mother, and brother, all of whom hail the maid as she is making for Roland's quarters (C30-38); still more "Holofernes jacebat in lecto" (xiii, 4), in "Roland die op zijn bedde lag,"C39.

[92]Judith xiv, 1: "Suspendite caput hoc super muros nostros." The cutting off and bringing home of the head, as need hardly be said, is not of itself remarkable, being found everywhere from David to Beówulf, and from Beówulf to 'Sir Andrew Barton.'

[93]DutchB, which, as before said, has been completely rewritten, makes the comparison with Holofernes:34'Ik heb van't leven hem beroofd,in mynen schoot heb ik zyn hoofd,hy is als Holofernes gelooft.'37Zy reed dan voort als Judith wys,zoo regt nae haer vaders paleis,daer zy wierd ingehaeld met eer en prys.

[93]DutchB, which, as before said, has been completely rewritten, makes the comparison with Holofernes:

34'Ik heb van't leven hem beroofd,in mynen schoot heb ik zyn hoofd,hy is als Holofernes gelooft.'37Zy reed dan voort als Judith wys,zoo regt nae haer vaders paleis,daer zy wierd ingehaeld met eer en prys.

34'Ik heb van't leven hem beroofd,in mynen schoot heb ik zyn hoofd,hy is als Holofernes gelooft.'

37Zy reed dan voort als Judith wys,zoo regt nae haer vaders paleis,daer zy wierd ingehaeld met eer en prys.

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