07

Sir James Dowglas theare was slayne,

That daye that he could dye.

185 [The 30] The earlle of Mentay he was slayne,

190

Grifly groned uppon the grounde;

Sir Davie Scotte, Sir Walter Stuard,
Sir James of Agurstonne.*

Sir Charles Murrey in that place

That never a foote wold flye;

Sir Hughe Maxwell, a lord he was,
With the Dowglas did he dye.

Theare was slayne upon the Scottishe syde,
For southe as I you saye,

195 Of four and forty thousand Scotts

200

Went but eighteene awaye.

Theare was slain upon the Englishe syde,
For southe and sertenlye,

A gentle knighte, Sir John Fitz-hughe,
Yt was the more pittye.

Sir James Harbotle ther was slayne,
For him their harts weare soare,
The gentle 'Lovelle' thear was slayne,
That the Percyes standard boare.

205 Theare was slayne uppon the Englyshe parte,

For soothe as I you saye;

[Of 31] Of nine thousand Englishe mene

Fyve hondred came awaye:

The other weare slayne in the feeld,

210 Christe keepe thear sowles from wo, Seeinge thear was so fewe frendes

Against so manye foo.

Then one the morowe they made them beeres
Of byrche, and haselle graye;

215 Many a wydowe with weepinge teeres

Their maks they fette away.

V. 184. i. e. He died that day. V. 193. Scotts. MS.

v. 197. V. 203. Covelle. MS.

in

For the names in this page and page 14 see the ADDITIONS, &c. at the end of vol. 3. V. 213.

one, i. e. on.

* [Vgl. hiezu ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS in Vol. III. p. 334 f.}

5

This fraye begane at Otterborne
Betweene the nighte and the daye:
Theare the Dowglas loste his lyfe,
And the Percye was leade away*.

Then was theare a Scottyshe prisonere tane,
Sir Hughe Mongomerye was his name,
For soothe as I you saye

220

He borowed the Percye home agayne.

Nowe let us all for the Percye praye

225

10

15

[32]

To Jeasue moste of might,

To bringe his sowle to the blyss of heven,
For he was a gentle knight.

THE JEW's DAUGHTER,

A SCOTTISH BALLAD.

- Is founded upon the supposed practice of the Jews in crucifying or otherwise murthering Christian children, out of hatred to the religion of their parents: a practice, which hath been always alledged in excuse for the cruelties exercised upon that wretched people, but which probably never happened 20 in a single instance. For if we consider, on the one hand, the ignorance and superstition of the times when such stories took their rise, the virulent prejudices of the monks who record them, and the eagerness with which they would be catched up by the barbarous populace as a pretence for plunder; 25 on the other hand, the great danger incurred by the perpetrators, and the inadequate motives they could have to excite them to a crime of so much horror, we may reasonably conclude the whole charge to be groundless and malicious.

The following ballad is probably built upon some Italian 30 Legend, and bears a great resemblance to the Prioresse's Tale in Chaucer: the poet seems also to have had an eye to the known story of HUGH OF LINCOLN, a child said to have been there murthered by the Jews in the reign of Henry III. The conclusion of this ballad appears to be wanting: what 35 it probably contained may be seen in Chaucer. As for MIRRYLAND TOWN, it is probably a corruption of MILAN (called

OL.

.D

I

by the Dutch MEYLANDT) TOUN; since the PA is evidently the river Po.

Printed from a MS. copy sent from Scotland.

[THE 33] THE rain rins doun through Mirry-land toune,

5

10

Sae dois it doune the Pa:

Sae dois the lads of Mirry-land toune,
Quhan they play at the ba'.

Than out and cam the Jewis dochtèr,
Said, Will ye cum in and dine?

I winnae cum in, I cannae cum in,
Without my play-feres nine.

Scho powd an apple reid and white
To intice the zong thing in:
Scho powd an apple white and reid,

And that the sweit bairne did win.

And scho has taine out a little pen-knife,

15

20

And low down by her gair,

Scho has twin'd the zong thing and his life;

A word he nevir spak mair.

And out and cam the thick thick bluid,
And out and cam the thin;

And out and cam the bonny herts bluid:
Thair was nae life left in.

Scho laid him on a dressing borde,
And drest him like a swine,

And laughing said, Gae nou and pley
With zour sweit play-feres nine.

25 [Scho 34] Scho rowd him in a cake of lead,
Bade him lie stil and sleip.

309

Scho cast him in a deip draw-well,

Was fifty fadom deip.

Quhan bells wer rung, and mass was sung,

And every lady went hame:

Than ilka lady had her zong sonne,

Bot lady Helen had nane.

Scho rowd hir mantil hir about,

And sair sair gan she weip:

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

And she ran into the Jewis castèl,

35

Quhan they wer all asleip.

My bonny sir Hew, my pretty sir Hew,

The lead is wondrous heavy, mither,
The well is wondrous deip,

45

A keen pen-knife sticks in my hert,
A word I dounae speik.

15 [Gae 35] Gae hame, gae hame, my mither deir,
Fetch me my windling sheet,

And at the back o' Mirry-land toun,
Its thair we twa sall meet.

50

20

SIR CAULINE.

This old Romantic tale was preserved in the Editor's folio MS, but in so defective and mutilated a condition that it was necessary to supply several stanzas in the first part, and still more in the second, to connect and compleat the 25 story.

There is something peculiar in the metre of this old ballad: it is not unusual to meet with redundant stanzas of six lines; but the occasional insertion of a double third or fourth line, as ver. 31, 44, &c. is an irregularity I do not remem30 ber to have seen elsewhere.

It may be proper to inform the reader before he comes to Pt. 2. v. 106. that the ROUND TABLE was not peculiar to the reign of K. Arthur, but was common in all the ages of Chivalry. Any king was said to "hold a round table" when 35 he proclaimed a tournament attended with some peculiar solemnities. See Mr. Warton's Observations, Vol. 2. p. 44.

As to what will be observed in this ballad of the art of healing being practised by a young princess; it is no more than what is usual in all the old Romances, and was conD2 formable to real manners: it being a practice derived from [the 36] the earliest times among all the Gothic and Celtic na- 5 tions for women, even of the highest rank, to exercise the art of surgery. In the Northern Chronicles we always find the young damsells stanching the wounds of their lovers, and the wives those of their husbands; from the prince down to the meanest of his followers. See L'Introd. à l'Hist. de 10 Dannemarc. L. v. p. 199. Memoires de la Chevalerie. Tom. I. p. 44. [Vgl. hiezu ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS in Vol. III. p. 334 f.] THE FIRST PART.

4

5

10

N Ireland, ferr over the sea,

IN

There dwelleth a bonnye kinge;

And with him a yong and comlye knighte,
Men call him syr Caulìne.

The kinge had a ladye to his daughter,
In fashyon she hath no peere;

And princely wightes that ladye wooed
To be theyr wedded feere.

Syr Cauline loveth her best of all,
But nothing durst he saye;

Ne descreeve his counsayl to no man,
But deerlye he lovde this may'.

Till on a daye it so beffell,

Great dill to him was dight;

15 The maydens love removde his mynd,

To care-bed went the knighte.

[One 37] One while he spred his armes him fro, One while he spred them nye:

20

25

And aye! but I winne that ladyes love,
For dole now I mun dye.

And whan our parish-masse was done,
Our kinge was bowne to dyne:

He says, Where is syr Cauline,
That is wont to serve the wyne?

Then aunswerde him a courteous knighte,
And fast his handes gan wringe: