'But ye maun gi' up the English lord, Whan youre young babe is born; For, gin you keep by him an hour langer, Your life sall be forlorn.'

16.

'I will gi' up this English blood, Till my young babe be born; But the never a day nor hour langer, Tho' my life should be forlorn.'

17.

'O whare is a' my merry young men, Whom I gi' meat and fee, To pu' the thistle and the thorn, To burn this wile whore wi'?'

18.

'O whare will I get a bonny boy, To help me in my need, To rin wi' hast to Lord William, And bid him come wi' speed?'

19.

O out it spake a bonny boy, Stood by her brother's side: 'O I would run your errand, lady, O'er a' the world wide.

20.

'Aft have I run your errands, lady, Whan blawn baith win' and weet; But now I'll rin your errand, lady, Wi' sa't tears on my cheek.'

21.

O whan he came to broken briggs, He bent his bow and swam, An' whan he came to the green grass growin', He slack'd his shoone and ran.

22.

O whan he came to Lord William's gates, He baed na to chap or ca', But set his bent bow till his breast, An' lightly lap the wa'; An', or the porter was at the gate, The boy was i' the ha'.

23.

'O is my biggins broken, boy?

Or is my towers won?

Or is my lady lighter yet, Of a dear daughter or son?'

24.

'Your biggin is na broken, sir, Nor is your towers won; But the fairest lady in a' the lan'

For you this day maun burn.'

25.

'O saddle me the black, the black, Or saddle me the brown; O saddle me the swiftest steed That ever rade frae a town.'

26.

Or he was near a mile awa', She heard his wild horse sneeze: 'Mend up the fire, my false brother, It's na come to my knees.'

27.

O whan he lighted at the gate, She heard his bridle ring; 'Mend up the fire, my false brother, It's far yet frae my chin.

28.

'Mend up the fire to me, brother, Mend up the fire to me; For I see him comin' hard an' fast, Will soon men' 't up to thee.

29.

'O gin my hands had been loose, Willy, Sae hard as they are boun', I would have turn'd me frae the gleed, And castin out your young son.'

30.

'O I'll gar burn for you, Maisry, Your father an' your mother; An' I'll gar burn for you, Maisry, Your sister an' your brother.

31.

'An' I'll gar burn for you, Maisry, The chief of a' your kin; An' the last bonfire that I come to, Mysel' I will cast in.'

[Annotations: 5.1: 'ha'd' = _haud_, hold.

9.2: 'mailison,' curse.

11.1: 'is aught,' owns.

15.4: 'forlorn,' forfeit.

20.2: _i.e._ in driving wind and rain.

21: A stock ballad-stanza.

22.2: 'baed,' stayed; 'chap,' knock.

22.4: 'lap,' leapt.

23.1: 'biggins,' buildings.

29.3: 'gleed,' burning coal, fire.

30.1: 'gar,' make, cause.]

[Illustration]

THE CRUEL BROTHER

+The Text+ is that obtained in 1800 by Alexander Fraser Tytler from Mrs.

Brown of Falkland, and by him committed to writing. The first ten and the last two stanzas show corruption, but the rest of the ballad is in the best style.

+The Story+ emphasises the necessity of asking the consent of a brother to the marriage of his sister, and therefore the title _The Cruel Brother_ is a misnomer. In ballad-times, the brother would have been well within his rights; it was rather a fatal oversight of the bridegroom that caused the tragedy.

Danish and German ballads echo the story, though in the commonest German ballad, _Graf Friedrich_, the bride receives an _accidental_ wound, and that from the bridegroom's own hand.

The testament of the bride, by which she benefits her friends and leaves curses on her enemies, is very characteristic of the ballad-style, and is found in other ballads, as _Lord Ronald_ and _Edward, Edward_. In the present case, 'sister Grace' obtains what would seem to be a very doubtful benefit.

THE CRUEL BROTHER

1.

There was three ladies play'd at the ba', _With a hey ho and a lillie gay_ There came a knight and played o'er them a', _As the primrose spreads so sweetly_.

2.

The eldest was baith tall and fair, But the youngest was beyond compare.

3.

The midmost had a graceful mien, But the youngest look'd like beautie's queen.

4.

The knight bow'd low to a' the three, But to the youngest he bent his knee.