'My lord Barnard shall knowe of this, Whether I sink or swim'; And ever where the bridges were broake He laid him downe to swimme.

10.

'A sleepe or wake, thou Lord Barnard, As thou art a man of life, For Little Musgrave is at Bucklesfordbery, A bed with thy own wedded wife.'

11.

'If this be true, thou little tinny page, This thing thou tellest to me, Then all the land in Bucklesfordbery I freely will give to thee.

12.

'But if it be a ly, thou little tinny page, This thing thou tellest to me, On the hyest tree in Bucklesfordbery Then hanged shalt thou be.'

13.

He called up his merry men all: 'Come saddle me my steed; This night must I to Bucklesfordbery, For I never had greater need.'

14.

And some of them whistled, and some of them sung, And some these words did say, And ever when my lord Barnard's horn blew, 'Away, Musgrave, away!'

15.

'Methinks I hear the thresel-cock, Methinks I hear the jaye; Methinks I hear my Lord Barnard, And I would I were away!'

16.

'Lye still, lye still, thou little Musgrave, And huggell me from the cold; 'Tis nothing but a shephard's boy A driving his sheep to the fold.

17.

'Is not thy hawke upon a perch, Thy steed eats oats and hay, And thou a fair lady in thine armes, And wouldst thou bee away?'

18.

With that my lord Barnard came to the dore, And lit a stone upon; He plucked out three silver keys And he open'd the dores each one.

19.

He lifted up the coverlett, He lifted up the sheet: 'How now, how now, thou Little Musgrave, Doest thou find my lady sweet?'

20.

'I find her sweet,' quoth Little Musgrave, 'The more 'tis to my paine; I would gladly give three hundred pounds That I were on yonder plaine.'

21.

'Arise, arise, thou Little Musgrave, And put thy clothes on; It shall nere be said in my country I have killed a naked man.

22.

'I have two swords in one scabberd, Full deere they cost my purse; And thou shalt have the best of them, And I will have the worse.'

23.

The first stroke that Little Musgrave stroke, He hurt Lord Barnard sore; The next stroke that Lord Barnard stroke, Little Musgrave nere struck more.

24.

With that bespake this faire lady, In bed whereas she lay: 'Although thou'rt dead, thou Little Musgrave, Yet I for thee will pray.

25.

'And wish well to thy soule will I, So long as I have life; So will I not for thee, Barnard, Although I am thy wedded wife.'

26.

He cut her paps from off her brest; Great pitty it was to see That some drops of this ladies heart's blood Ran trickling downe her knee.

27.

'Woe worth you, woe worth, my mery men all, You were nere borne for my good; Why did you not offer to stay my hand, When you see me wax so wood?

28.

'For I have slaine the bravest sir knight That ever rode on steed; So have I done the fairest lady That over did woman's deed.

29.

'A grave, a grave,' Lord Barnard cry'd, 'To put these lovers in; But lay my lady on the upper hand, For she came of the better kin.'

[Annotations: 3.2: 'pall,' a cloak: some versions read _pale_.

6.2: 'deight,' _i.e._ dight, decked, dressed.

15.1: 'thresel-cock,' throstle, thrush.

27.4: 'wood,' wild, fierce.]

THE BONNY BIRDY

+Text.+--From the Jamieson-Brown MS. Jamieson, in printing this ballad, enlarged and rewrote much of it, making the burden part of the dialogue throughout.

+The Story+ is much the same as that of _Little Musgrave and Lady Barnard_; but the ballad as a whole is worthy of comparison with the longer English ballad for the sake of its lyrical setting.

THE BONNY BIRDY

1.

There was a knight, in a summer's night, Was riding o'er the lee, _(diddle)_ An' there he saw a bonny birdy, Was singing upon a tree. _(diddle)_

O wow for day! _(diddle)_ An' dear gin it were day! _(diddle)_ Gin it were day, an' gin I were away, For I ha' na lang time to stay. _(diddle)_

2.

'Make hast, make hast, ye gentle knight, What keeps you here so late?

Gin ye kent what was doing at hame, I fear you woud look blate.'

3.

'O what needs I toil day an' night, My fair body to kill, Whan I hae knights at my comman', An' ladys at my will?'

4.

'Ye lee, ye lee, ye gentle knight, Sa loud's I hear you lee; Your lady's a knight in her arms twa That she lees far better nor thee.'

5.

'Ye lee, ye lee, you bonny birdy, How you lee upo' my sweet!

I will tak' out my bonny bow, An' in troth I will you sheet.'