The Shirburn Ballads, 1585-1616by Andrew Clark

The Shirburn Ballads, 1585-1616 by Andrew ClarkReview by: A. E. H. SwaenThe Modern Language Review, Vol. 3, No. 1 (Oct., 1907), pp. 76-80Published by: Modern Humanities Research AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3712894 .

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REVIEWS.

The Shirburn Ballads, 1585-1616. Edited from the MS. by ANDREW CLARK. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1907. 8vo. viii + 380pp.

This is one of the most interesting publications of the year. It appeals to the antiquarian, to the historian, to the student of music, and above all to the student of Elizabethan and Jacobean literature. Not that the Shirburn collection brings only new ballads: on the contrary, the number not known from other sources forms only a small part of the eighty songs it contains. The interest lies ih the fact that at this time of day it brings so many new ballads, that the collection is so repre- sentative, and that it offers new texts of well-known ballads. The title is, in reality, not quite correct, the volume containing more than the title-page promises. After the Shirburn Ballads come, Lb way of supplement, a number of ballads taken from the Bodleian MS. Rawlinson poet. 185. Mr Clark prints these evidently under the impression that they have not been published before. In this, however, he is mistaken: Herr Wilhelm Bolle published the whole collection in the Archiv far das Studiurm der neueren Sprachen und Literaturen, Vol. cxiv, p. 326 ff. Mr Clark omits eight of the ballads without saying so. His text proves to be far more correct than Herr Bolle's; most of the mistakes in that text, pointed out by me in the Archiv, cxvI, p. 374, do not occur in the present edition, which appears to be very accurate and to reproduce the original exactly.

The Shirburn Ballads are printed from a manuscript in the Earl of Macclesfield's library at Shirburn Castle. In his Introduction, the editor says that the present volume 'exhibits the actual text of the MS. in its present order with the minimum of change or omission,' and further on that he 'left the text practically untouched.' In these words 'minimum' and'practically' lurks a danger; there are then changes and omissions, if only a minimum of them. Personally I object in these cases to any change or omission, but I am aware that though omissions are always unwarranted, there may be reasons for changes; but-and here Mr Clark differs from the majority of modern editors-if alterations have to be made, they must be scrupulously indicated as such. I am practically



convinced that this edition is a very accurate one, but I have not. absolute certainty. In the Introduction Mr Clark gives particulars about the MS., about the relation of the Shirburn Ballads to other collections of ballads, and about the contents of the poems and their dates. Each of the ballads is prefaced by a separate introduction giving many historical and, above all, antiquarian details, mentioning the occurrence of the songs in other collections, and sometimes offering information on the subject of the metres and the tunes. This information is supplemented by an alphabetical list of tunes with references to, Chappell's Old English Popular Music (old edition), and Oxenfoord Macfarren's Old English Ditties, followed by an 'Index of First Lines.' On the whole, more stress is laid upon the antiquarian and historical importance than upon the literary and musical. No, or hardly any, attempt is made to find parallels or connections between these and other ballads, neither as regards contents, nor as regards form and tune. Little notice has been taken of the various collections of ballads that. have appeared in print, with the exception of the Roxburqghe Collections The book is excellently printed and illustrated with facsimiles of old prints, about which the editor, however, gives no further information. The ballads are, of course, given in the order in which they appear in the MS.; this involves in a few cases separation of companion pieces, for instance in the case of xxx and L, LI and LXXVI. Of the many new ballads which the collection brings, a few may be mentioned here. No. x 'Of a maide nowe dwelling at the towne of Meurs in Dutchland, that hath not taken any foode this 16 yeares, and is not yet neither hungry nor thirsty' is, as the editor says, probably nothing but a pamphlet put in metre. The subject was a well-known one on the continent. That in England also the story enjoyed popularity is. evident from the frontispiece which is a facsimile of a contemporary print; the stanza on it shows that the text must have been different. No. IV is a spirited love-song which Mr Clark, while acknowledging that it is tuneful, rather harshly condemns. No. XXI is a roaring drinking- song, beginning 'Come hither, mine host, come hither!' No. xxIx is interesting for its intricate stanza and lively story 'of the mery miller's wooing of the Baker's daughter of Manchester.' Religious ballads are not wanting, e.g., XL and XLIII, but they are inferior in form and music to the secular songs. The historical ballad is represented by No. LX on the capture of Calais, and by No. LXVII, a song on the taking of Berg on July 30 by' Grave Maurice.' It is evidently a rimed translation of a faithful report of this important feat of arms, which was also sung in one of the so-called 'Geuzenliederen,' that is, 'Songs of the Beggars' (No. CLXVI of Lummel's Collection). I do not believe, however, that the English ballad is a translation of one of these songs, it being altogether different in spirit. Perhaps the most interesting number is LXI, ' Mr Attowel's Jigge: betweene Francis, a Gentleman; Richard, a farmer; and their wives,' a very spirited dramatic sketch in four parts set to four different tunes. As Mr Clark points out the Mr Attowel is in all probability the actor Attewell who died in 1621. In the:

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Appendix there is a similar ballad-drama, written to one tune only for the four acts. Only a small number of the poems rise above mediocrity, regarded from a purely literary point of view.

A few words may be said on the history of some of the ballads and their tunes. Nos. III, x, xvI, XLIX, LXXI, and LXXII are all written to the tune of The Lady's Fall. There is a great deal of information about this tune in Chappell's Old English Popular Music, edited by H. E. Wooldridge, under The Hunt is up, Peascod time, and Chevy Chase (I, 86-92). Chappell and his editor have, however, failed to point out the similarity of this tune to that of Gather ye Rosebuds (Chappell, J, 196). In the song of The Hunt is up, printed by Chappell, there is internal rime in the first and third lines of each stanza; this, however, is not essential: none of the songs in the Shirburn Ballads written to this tune show a similar arrangement. Internal rime is absent in the song of Gather ye Rosebuds, which differs from The Hunt is up, etc., in having a weak rime at the end of the second and fourth line. In the Rump Songs, Part I, there is on p. 350 a song entitled ' The four Legg'd Elder; or a Relation of a Horrible Dog and an Elders Maid. To the Tune of The Ladies fall; Or Gather your Rose Buds, and 50 other Tunes.' It has no internal rime. In Monsieur Thomas, II, 3, the fiddler mentions among the ballads he can sing, Ye Dainty Dames; these are the first words of 'A Warning for Maidens, to the tune of The Ladies fall,' Roxb. Coll., I, 501. Cp. Notes and Queries, 10th S., vI, 224.

No. ix, Labandalashot. This puzzling tune is also found in Clement Robinson's A Handful of Pleasant Delights (Arber's Reprint, p. 57): A sorrowfull Sonet, made by M. George Mannington, at Cambridge Castle. To the tune of Labandala Shot. Both the poems set to this tune are serious in tone. Of course, the name is a corruption; I hesitate to suggest 'La branle a la Scot' which may have found its way back to England by way of Holland, where 'branle' became 'brande' (see Land, Luitboek van Thysius, pp. 347 ff.). No. xx consists of a second part only, which is to be regretted, for the measure is lively, and the whole rather sweet. The refrain is formed by 'With a Hononanero hone'; a similar refrain, 'O hone, hone, o no nera,' is referred to in Eastward Hoe, v, 1, 9. In Shirburn Ballads, LXXVII, written to another tune, we have the refrain, 'O hone, honinonero, tarrararara, tarrararara hone'; and in xxxv written to the tune of Oh hone the refrain is 'Oh hone, hone analergo, alergo, tararalergo hone.' Similar to this again is the refrain of Upon the Gun-powder Plot, in Choice Drollery, p. 40. Cp. The Irish Ho-Hoane in Chappell, I, 85 (1893). No. I is written to the tune of Bragandary. 'A newe songe of the triumphe of the Tilt,' in the Stationers' Registers for March 28, 1604, is to the tune of Braggendarty.

No. xxvIII, In Creete. The fiddler in Monsieur Thomas, III, 3, says he can sing: In Creet when Dedimus first began. The opening lines of the song are: 'In Crete when Daedalus first began His strait and long exile to wail.' According to a correspondent in Notes and Queries (10th S., VI, 1906, 223) the song may be found in Harl. MS. 7578, fol. 83.

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No. xxix, Nutmegs and Ginger. In The Knight of the Burning Pestle (I, 4) Merrythought sings:

Nose, nose, jolly red nose, And who gave thee this jolly red nose? Nutmegs and ginger, cinnamon and cloves; And they gave me this jolly red nose.

(iMermaid Series.)

It deserves notice that No. LXXV is written to the tune of The Miller would a wooing ride, reminding us of the opening lines of xxIx, 'The miller, in his best array, would needs a wooing ride.' The metre, however, is altogether different. No. xxxii, Pagginton's Round. This popular dance tune is invariably called Packington's Pound, but from being used in dancing'rounds' may have come to be named Packington's Round. In Starter's Friesche Lusthof it is called Peckington's pond (p. 14 of Van Vloten's edition). In Het Luitboek van Thysius the name has been corrupted to Pacce touspon (No. 74). In the Roxburghe Ballads (Ebsworth, v, 37) occurs a song to the tune of On the Banks of a River, or Packington's Pound. From Bartholomew Fair it appears that country- dances were danced to this tune (cp. Chappell, I, 2.59; Land, Luitboek, p. 84). No. LII begins 'All in a garden green,' but is altogether different from the song in Chappell, I, 79, that begins with the same line:

All in a garden green, Two lovers sat at ease: Withdrawn where they could scarce be seen, Among the leafy trees.

The Excellent Song of an outcast Lover in A Handful of Pleasant Delights to the tune of All in a Garden Green, is also in the stanza of the song in Chappell.

No. LIII, Pitty, pittye me. This is perhaps connected with A pleasant new Ballad of Daphne. To a new tune. Roxburghe Ballads (Ebsworth), II, 529-31, with its refrain:

Pittie, O Daphne, pittie, O pitty me: Pittie, 0 Daphne, pittie me.

The words are by Thomas Deloney, and may be found in his Garland of Delight (1681); also in The Royal Garden of Love and Delight (1674). The tunes cannot have been identical; compare those in Valerius' Nederlandtsche Gedenck-Clanck (1626) under the title of Prins Dafne, p. 212, and in Starter's Friesche Lusthof (1634), p. 155. See, on the variation of tunes, Chappell's Old English Popular Music, edited by H. E. Wooldridge, p. 86, editor's note in the text. In the introductory note to No. LIX (What if a day, or a month, or a year) the editor says that 'the verses are found also in a Bodleian MS., MS. Rawlinson poet. 112, fol. 9, and are there attributed to "E. of E." ? Robert Devereux, second Earl of Essex.' This statement is not quite correct: the poem is on f. 10 and f. 11. The verses attributed to the E. of E. are on f. 9, and are probably in a different hand. For full particulars about this popular song.I refer the reader to my article

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in Modern Philology, IV, pp. 397-422, in which periodical I shall also deal at greater length with the form of this poem in the Shirburn Ballads. No. LXXIV is written to the tune of An Oyster Pye, or Robinson's Galliard. There is another dance that bears Robinson's name, viz., Robinson's Allemande. In 1603 there appeared in London The Schoole of Musicke, by Thomas Robinson. Cp. Land, Luitboele van Thysius, p. 285.

In conclusion, a word about the footnotes. They contain partly corrections of the text, partly elucidations. As regards the explana- tions, more might have been expected. To give a few examples, poore peat on p. 303, tole-dish on p. 217, courtnoules on p. 218, should have been explained. Occasionally the editor would seem to have misunder- stood the Elizabethan idiom; for instance, he corrects 'even soone at night' into 'even this very night.' All lovers of the old ballads and all students of Elizabethan and Jacobean literature owe Mr Andrew Clark a debt of gratitude for this interesting volume.

A. E. H. SWAEN.

The Rhetoric of John Donne's Verse. By W. F. MELTON. A Disser- tation submitted to the Board of University Studies of the John Hopkins University. Baltimore: J. H. Furst Co., 1906. 8vo. 206 pp.

It may be remembered that the volume called An English Mis- cellany, compiled in honour of Dr Furnivall in 1901, contained a paper Concerning Grammatical Ictus in English Verse, by Professor J. W. Bright, in which some remarkable views of English verse-construc- tion were expounded. These views were combated in a letter written by Professor H. C. Beeching to the Athenaeum of June 1, 1901, but. apparently with little effect in modifying Professor Bright's standpoint. They have also recently been discussed by Mr Omond in his English Metrists in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. It is not possible here to give an exposition of Professor Bright's teaching as regards English verse. In brief, it may be said that he will not allow there is such a thing as 'inversion of stress' in English iambic verse1. Every second syllable must have a stress, whether this is in accordance with the ordinary pronunciation of English or not. We must not scan:

Be in their flowing cups freshly | remembered, but:

Be in their flowing cups | freshly [ remembered; nor:

To be or not to be I thAt is t the question, but:

To be or not to be that is the question.

in Modern Philology, IV, pp. 397-422, in which periodical I shall also deal at greater length with the form of this poem in the Shirburn Ballads. No. LXXIV is written to the tune of An Oyster Pye, or Robinson's Galliard. There is another dance that bears Robinson's name, viz., Robinson's Allemande. In 1603 there appeared in London The Schoole of Musicke, by Thomas Robinson. Cp. Land, Luitboele van Thysius, p. 285.

In conclusion, a word about the footnotes. They contain partly corrections of the text, partly elucidations. As regards the explana- tions, more might have been expected. To give a few examples, poore peat on p. 303, tole-dish on p. 217, courtnoules on p. 218, should have been explained. Occasionally the editor would seem to have misunder- stood the Elizabethan idiom; for instance, he corrects 'even soone at night' into 'even this very night.' All lovers of the old ballads and all students of Elizabethan and Jacobean literature owe Mr Andrew Clark a debt of gratitude for this interesting volume.

A. E. H. SWAEN.

The Rhetoric of John Donne's Verse. By W. F. MELTON. A Disser- tation submitted to the Board of University Studies of the John Hopkins University. Baltimore: J. H. Furst Co., 1906. 8vo. 206 pp.

It may be remembered that the volume called An English Mis- cellany, compiled in honour of Dr Furnivall in 1901, contained a paper Concerning Grammatical Ictus in English Verse, by Professor J. W. Bright, in which some remarkable views of English verse-construc- tion were expounded. These views were combated in a letter written by Professor H. C. Beeching to the Athenaeum of June 1, 1901, but. apparently with little effect in modifying Professor Bright's standpoint. They have also recently been discussed by Mr Omond in his English Metrists in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. It is not possible here to give an exposition of Professor Bright's teaching as regards English verse. In brief, it may be said that he will not allow there is such a thing as 'inversion of stress' in English iambic verse1. Every second syllable must have a stress, whether this is in accordance with the ordinary pronunciation of English or not. We must not scan:

Be in their flowing cups freshly | remembered, but:

Be in their flowing cups | freshly [ remembered; nor:

To be or not to be I thAt is t the question, but:

To be or not to be that is the question.

1 He apparently makes an exception in favour of the first foot, and so, as Mr Omond says, gives away his case.

1 He apparently makes an exception in favour of the first foot, and so, as Mr Omond says, gives away his case.

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The Shirburn Ballads, 1585-1616by Andrew Clark