Ancient Poems [79]
and all the day thorough Their legs do never fail, For they nimbly their feet do ply, And bravely try the victory, In honour o' the milking-pail.
If any think that I Do practise flattery, In seeking thus to raise the merry milkmaids' praise, I'll to them thus reply:- It is their desert inviteth my art, To study this pleasant tale; In their defence, whose innocence, And providence, gets honest pence Out of the milking-pail.
Ballad: THE MILKING-PAIL.
[THE following is another version of the preceding ditty, and is the one most commonly sung.]
YE nymphs and sylvan gods, That love green fields and woods, When spring newly-born herself does adorn, With flowers and blooming buds: Come sing in the praise, while flocks do graze, On yonder pleasant vale, Of those that choose to milk their ewes, And in cold dews, with clouted shoes, To carry the milking-pail.
You goddess of the morn, With blushes you adorn, And take the fresh air, whilst linnets prepare A concert on each green thorn; The blackbird and thrush on every bush, And the charming nightingale, In merry vein, their throats do strain To entertain, the jolly train Of those of the milking-pail.
When cold bleak winds do roar, And flowers will spring no more, The fields that were seen so pleasant and green, With winter all candied o'er, See now the town lass, with her white face, And her lips so deadly pale; But it is not so, with those that go Through frost and snow, with cheeks that glow, And carry the milking-pail.
The country lad is free From fears and jealousy, Whilst upon the green he oft is seen, With his lass upon his knee. With kisses most sweet he doth her so treat, And swears her charms won't fail; But the London lass, in every place, With brazen face, despises the grace Of those of the milking-pail.
Ballad: THE SUMMER'S MORNING.
[THIS is a very old ditty, and a favourite with the peasantry in every part of England; but more particularly in the mining districts of the North. The tune is pleasing, but uncommon. R. W. Dixon, Esq., of Seaton-Carew, Durham, by whom the song was communicated to his brother for publication, says, 'I have written down the above, VERBATIM, as generally sung. It will be seen that the last lines of each verse are not of equal length. The singer, however, makes all right and smooth! The words underlined in each verse are sung five times, thus:- THEY AD-VAN-CED, THEY AD-VAN-CED, THEY AD-VAN-CED, THEY AD-VAN-CED, THEY AD-VAN-CED ME SOME MONEY, - TEN GUINEAS AND A CROWN. The last line is thus sung:- WE'LL BE MARRIED, (as the word is usually pronounced), WE'LL BE MARRIED, WE'LL BE MARRIED, WE'LL BE MARRIED, WE'LL BE MARRIED, WE'LL BE MAR- RI-ED WHEN I RETURN AGAIN.' The tune is given in POPULAR MUSIC. Since this song appeared in the volume issued by the Percy Society, we have met with a copy printed at Devonport. The readings are in general not so good; but in one or two instances they are apparently more ancient, and are, consequently, here adopted. The Devonport copy contains two verses, not preserved in our traditional version. These we have incorporated in our present text, in which they form the third and last stanzas.]
IT was one summer's morning, as I went o'er the moss, I had no thought of 'listing, till the soldiers did me cross; They kindly did invite me to a flowing bowl, and down, THEY ADVANCED me some money, - ten guineas and a crown.
'It's true my love has listed, he wears a white cockade, He is a handsome tall young man, besides a roving blade; He is a handsome young man, and he's gone to serve the king, OH! MY VERY heart is breaking for the loss of him.
'My love is tall and handsome, and comely for to see, And by a sad misfortune a soldier now is he; I hope the man that listed him may not prosper night nor day, FOR I WISH THAT the Hollanders may sink him in the sea.
'Oh! may he never prosper, oh! may he never thrive, Nor anything he takes in hand so long as he's alive; May the very grass he treads upon the ground refuse to grow, SINCE HE'S BEEN
If any think that I Do practise flattery, In seeking thus to raise the merry milkmaids' praise, I'll to them thus reply:- It is their desert inviteth my art, To study this pleasant tale; In their defence, whose innocence, And providence, gets honest pence Out of the milking-pail.
Ballad: THE MILKING-PAIL.
[THE following is another version of the preceding ditty, and is the one most commonly sung.]
YE nymphs and sylvan gods, That love green fields and woods, When spring newly-born herself does adorn, With flowers and blooming buds: Come sing in the praise, while flocks do graze, On yonder pleasant vale, Of those that choose to milk their ewes, And in cold dews, with clouted shoes, To carry the milking-pail.
You goddess of the morn, With blushes you adorn, And take the fresh air, whilst linnets prepare A concert on each green thorn; The blackbird and thrush on every bush, And the charming nightingale, In merry vein, their throats do strain To entertain, the jolly train Of those of the milking-pail.
When cold bleak winds do roar, And flowers will spring no more, The fields that were seen so pleasant and green, With winter all candied o'er, See now the town lass, with her white face, And her lips so deadly pale; But it is not so, with those that go Through frost and snow, with cheeks that glow, And carry the milking-pail.
The country lad is free From fears and jealousy, Whilst upon the green he oft is seen, With his lass upon his knee. With kisses most sweet he doth her so treat, And swears her charms won't fail; But the London lass, in every place, With brazen face, despises the grace Of those of the milking-pail.
Ballad: THE SUMMER'S MORNING.
[THIS is a very old ditty, and a favourite with the peasantry in every part of England; but more particularly in the mining districts of the North. The tune is pleasing, but uncommon. R. W. Dixon, Esq., of Seaton-Carew, Durham, by whom the song was communicated to his brother for publication, says, 'I have written down the above, VERBATIM, as generally sung. It will be seen that the last lines of each verse are not of equal length. The singer, however, makes all right and smooth! The words underlined in each verse are sung five times, thus:- THEY AD-VAN-CED, THEY AD-VAN-CED, THEY AD-VAN-CED, THEY AD-VAN-CED, THEY AD-VAN-CED ME SOME MONEY, - TEN GUINEAS AND A CROWN. The last line is thus sung:- WE'LL BE MARRIED, (as the word is usually pronounced), WE'LL BE MARRIED, WE'LL BE MARRIED, WE'LL BE MARRIED, WE'LL BE MARRIED, WE'LL BE MAR- RI-ED WHEN I RETURN AGAIN.' The tune is given in POPULAR MUSIC. Since this song appeared in the volume issued by the Percy Society, we have met with a copy printed at Devonport. The readings are in general not so good; but in one or two instances they are apparently more ancient, and are, consequently, here adopted. The Devonport copy contains two verses, not preserved in our traditional version. These we have incorporated in our present text, in which they form the third and last stanzas.]
IT was one summer's morning, as I went o'er the moss, I had no thought of 'listing, till the soldiers did me cross; They kindly did invite me to a flowing bowl, and down, THEY ADVANCED me some money, - ten guineas and a crown.
'It's true my love has listed, he wears a white cockade, He is a handsome tall young man, besides a roving blade; He is a handsome young man, and he's gone to serve the king, OH! MY VERY heart is breaking for the loss of him.
'My love is tall and handsome, and comely for to see, And by a sad misfortune a soldier now is he; I hope the man that listed him may not prosper night nor day, FOR I WISH THAT the Hollanders may sink him in the sea.
'Oh! may he never prosper, oh! may he never thrive, Nor anything he takes in hand so long as he's alive; May the very grass he treads upon the ground refuse to grow, SINCE HE'S BEEN