minstrel: a poem I'd like help with

[Dick Eney]

This response from Tamar, sharing computer with dickeney.

On Wed, 29 Jul 1998, Fiona P. wrote:

> In a book I bought some time back, I found the following ballad.
> Apparently the songs and ballads in this book (Wright, Thomas.  1970
> reprint of an 1860 publication.  Songs and ballads with other short poems
> chiefly of the reign of Philip and Mary; edited from a manuscript in the
> Ashmolean Museum.  Lenox Hill Pub. & Dist. Co.) are transcribed from a
> manuscript which records songs and ballads actually performed by travelling
> minstrels.  The museum is in Oxford, and the manuscript is marked as MS.
> Ashm. No. 48.  Apparently.  (I've sent an email request to the Librarian at
> the Ashmolean Museum asking about the MS, but haven't yet received a
> reply).
> 
> Anyway. There's a very long ballad in this book, which I'd love to perform
> or something, but I can't get a handle on the scansion at all.  

Looking at it, I'd say at the very least you should give it a Frenchified
pronunciation.  Pronounce every "e", like reading Chaucer aloud (English
consonants, French vowels).  You'll still have to fudge a few lines, and
no doubt the tune varied a bit, but it works better that way.

> I'm sending the first few "verses" - it's not actually divided up - so as
> to get a good idea of how it goes.  If anyone would like the full text,
> give me some time to type it in (it's long) and I'll send it privately -
> unless everyone wants the full version.
> 
> Notes:
> there are some french acute accented e's in here.  I've marked them e'.
> Apparently iij. is shorthand for "three" and I've left it as it in the
> book.  Well, it rhymes, anyway.
> xvc xxc, (and other roman numerals) are actually the numbers with a
> superscript "c".

Allowing for rhetorical exaggeration, perhaps that means 15 hundred, and
20 hundred?  That could fill in the syllables a bit, too.

> The Perse' off Northombarlonde and a voew to God mayd he,

The Percy off Northumberland-eh, and a vow-eh to God made he

> That he wold hunte in the mowntayns off Chyviat within days iij.

That he would hunt-eh in the mountains of Cheviot within days three

> In the magger of doughte' Dogles and all that ever with him be;

In the (maugre) of doughty Douglas and all that ever with him be

("maugre" = roughly in spite of, I suspect)

> The fattiste hartes in all Cheviat he sayd he wold kyll and carry them away.

This might be an extra long line at the end of a verse.

> "Be my feth," sayd the dougheti Doglas agayn, "I wyll let that hontyng yf
> that I may."
> The[n] the Perse' owt off Banboroww cam, with him a myghtee meany,

Then The Percy out of Banborough came, with him a mighty me-any (dialect
pronunciation of many?)
(The Percy, as in head of the clan Percy)

> With xvc archardes bold off blood and bone, the wear chosen owt of shyars iij.

With fifteen hundred archer-des (?), bold of blood and bone, they were
chosen out of shires three.

> This begane on a Monday at morn, in Cheviat the hillys so he;

This began-eh on a Monday at morn, in Cheviot the hill-es so hie (dialect
"high" pronounced "hee")


And so on.  Scots dialect, Urk!

> The chylde may rue that ys unborn, it was the mor pitte'.
> The dryvars throrowe the woodes went for to reas the dear;
> Bomen byckarte uppone the bent with ther browd oros cleare;

Bowmen bickered? upon-eh the bent with their broad arrows cleare

> Greahondes thorowe the grevis glent for to kyll thear dear.
> The begane in Chyviat the hyls above yerly on a Monnynday;
> Be that it drewe to the oware off none, a hondrith fat hartes ded ther lay.

By that it drew-eh to the hour of noon-eh, a hundred fat hart-es dead
there lay.

> The blwe a mot uppone the bent, the semblyde on sydis shear,
> To the quyrry then the Perse' went to se the bryttlynge off the deare;
> He sayd, "it was the Duglas promys this day to met me hear,
> But I wyste he wolde faylle verament;" a great ithg the Perse' swear.
> At the laste a squyar off Northomberlonde lokyde at his hand full ny,
> He was war ath the doughetie Doglas commynge, with him a myghtte' meany,
> Both with spear, brylly, and brand, yt was a myghti sight to se;
> Hardyar men both off hart nar hande wear not in Christianite'.
> The wear xxc spear men goodm withiwte any feale;

They were twenty hundred spear men good without-eh any fell-eh ("fell" = a
bad thing)

> The wear borne along be the watter a Twyde yth bowndes of Tividale.

They were born-eh along by the water o' Twyde (Tweed River) with boundes
of Tividale.

> "Leave the brytlynge of the dear," he sayd, " and to your boys lock ye tyke
> good hed;

Take good heed

> For never sith ye wear on your mothars borne had ye never so mickle ned."

For never since you were on your mothers born-eh, had you never so mickle
need.  (another long line, no doubt a sort of "end verse" line)

> The dougheti Dogglas on a stede he rode all his men beforne;
> His armor glytteryde as dyd a glede, a boldar barne was never born.

The doughty Douglas on a steed-eh he rod-eh all his men before-n
His armor glittered-eh as (did) a gled-eh, a bolder bairn-eh was never
born.

(dunno what a glede is, might be a dialect word)

> 
> I admit to stopping there more because I wanted to include that lovely
> alliteration in the last line than any sense of ending, but the only rhythm
> I can see has two rhyming, scanning lines as a beginning, and the two lines
> following follow that "sense", so it seemed as good a place as any.
> 
> Suggestions, anyone?  I think I got all the spellings (inconsitencies and
> all) correct; please let me know if you think there are any glaring errors.
> 
> ... Macneil of Barra ...

Hope this helps some.

Tamar the Gypsy, student of English (BA)


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