And clear clear was hir zellow hair, Then wi' his spear he turnd hir owre, He sayd, Ze are the first that eir He turnd hir owre and owre againe, I might ha spared that bonnie face, Busk and boun, my merry men a', I cannae luik in that bonnie face, Thame, luiks to freits, my master deir, Let it neir be said brave Edom o' Gordon But quhen the lady see the fire She wept and kist her children twain, The Gordon then his bougill blew, And said, 'Awa', 'awa'; This house o' the Rhodes is a' in flame, I hauld it time to ga'. O then bespyed hir ain dear lord, As hee cam owr the lee; He sied his castle all in blaze So far as he could see. Then sair, O sair, his mind misgave, And all his hart was wae; Put, on, put on, my wighty men, So fast as ze can gae. Put on, put on, my wighty men, 95 100 105 115 120 125 130 tit Since the foregoing ballad was first printed, the subject of it has been found recorded in Abp. Spotswood's History of the Church of Scotland, p. 259; who informs us, that "Anno 1571. In the north parts of Scotland, Adam Gordon (who was deputy for his brother the Earl of Huntley) did keep a great stir; and, under colour of the queen's authority, committed divers oppressions, especially upon the Forbes. . . Having killed Arthur Forbes, brother to the Lord Forbes. . . . Not long after he sent to summon the house of Tavoy, pertaining to Alexander Forbes. The lady refusing to yield without direction from her husband, he put fire unto it, and burnt her therein, with children and servants, being twenty-seven persons in all. "This inhuman and barbarous cruelty made his name odious, and stained all his former doings; otherwise he was held very active and fortunate in his enterprizes." This fact, which had escaped the Editor's notice, was in the most obliging manner pointed out to him by an ingenious writer who signs his name H. H. (Newcastle, May V. 98, 102, O Gin, &c., a Scottish idiom to express, great 9,) in the Gentleman's Magazine for May, admiration. V. 109, 110, Thame, &c., i. e. Them that look after omens of ill luck, ill luck will follow. SERIES THE FIRST. BOOK II. I. Ballads that Illustrate Shakspeare. it may be, with a few short speeches; at length they grew into a regular series of connected dialogues, formally divided into acts and scenes. Specimens of these in their most improved state (being at best but poor artless OUR great dramatic poet having occasion- | probably a kind of dumb shows, intermingled, ally quoted many ancient ballads, and even taken the plot of one, if not more, of his plays from among them, it was judged proper to preserve as many of these as could be recovered, and, that they might be the more easily found, to exhibit them in one collect-compositions) may be seen among Dodsley's ive view. This second book is therefore set apart for the reception of such ballads as are quoted by Skakspeare, or contribute in any degree to illustrate his writings: this being the principal point in view, the candid reader will pardon the admission of some pieces that have no other kind of merit. The design of this book being of a dramatic tendency, it may not be improperly introduced with a few observations on the origin of the English Stage, and on the conduct of our first Dramatic Poets; a subject which, though not unsuccessfully handled by several good writers already, will yet perhaps admit of some further illustration. Old Plays and in Osborne's Harleyan Miscel. How they were exhibited in their most simple form, we may learn from an ancient novel, often quoted by our old dramatic Poets, entitled "a Merye Jest of a man that was called Howleglas,"† &c., being a translation from the Dutch language, in which he is named Ulenspiegle. Howleglass, whose waggish tricks are the subject of this book, after many adventures comes to live with a priest, who makes him his parish-clerk. This priest is described as keeping a Leman or concubine, who had but one eye, to whom Howleglass owed a grudge for revealing his rogueries to his master. The story thus proceeds: "And than in the meane season, while Howleglas, was parysh clarke, at Easter they should play the Ressurrection of our Lorde: Ir is well known that dramatic poetry in and for because than the men wer not learned, this and most other nations of Europe owes nor could not read, the priest toke his leman, its origin, or at least its revival, to those re- and put her in the grave for an Aungell: and ligious shows, which in the dark ages were this seing Howleglas, toke to him iij of the usually exhibited on the more solemn festi-symplest persons that were in the towne, vals. At those times they were wont to represent in the churches the lives and miracles of the saints, or some of the more important stories of Scripture. And as the most mysterious subjects were frequently chosen, such as the Incarnation, Passion, and Resurrection of Christ, &c., these exhibitions acquired the general name of Mysteries. At first they were ON THE ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH STAGE, ETC. * Bp. Warburton's Shakespeare, vol. v. p. 338.-Pref. to Dodsley's Old Plays.-Riccoboni's Acct. of Theat. of Europe, &c. &c. These were all the author had seen when he first drew up this Essay. that played the iij Maries; and the Person [i. e. Parson or Rector] played Christe, with a baner in his hand. Than saide Howleglas to the symple persons, When the Aungell asketh you, whome you seke, you may saye, The parsons leman with one iye. Than it fortuned that the tyme was come that they * See Ben Johnson's Poetaster, act iii. sec. 4, and his Masque of The Fortunate Isles. Whalley's edit. vol. ii. p. 49, vol. vi. p. 190. † Howleglass is said in the preface to have died in MCCCCL. At the end of the book, in MCCCL. must playe, and the Aungel asked them whom they sought, and than sayd they, as Howleglas had shewed and lerned them afore, and than answered they, We seke the priests leman with one iye. And than the prieste might heare that he was mocked. And whan the priestes leman herd that, she arose out of the grave, and would have smyten with her fist Howleglas upon the cheke, but she missed him and smote one of the simple persons that played one of the thre Maries; and he gave her another; and than toke she him by the heare [hair]; and that seing his wyfe, came running hastely to smite the priestes lempan; and than the priest seeing this, caste down hys baner and went to helpe his woman, so that the one gave the other sore strokes, and made great noyse in the churche. And than Howleglas seyng them lyinge together by the eares in the bodi of the churche, went his way out of the village, and came no more there."'* tors to the Prologue on their rude stage): then God is represented; who, after some general complaints on the degeneracy of mankind, calls for Death, and orders him to bring before his tribunal Every-man, for so is calle the personage who represents the Human Race. Every-man appears, and receives the summons with all the marks of confusion and terror. When Death is withdrawn, EveryMan applies for relief in this distress to Fellowship, Kindred, Goods, or Riches, but they successively renounce and forsake him. In this disconsolate state he betakes himself to Good Dedes, who after upbraiding him with his long neglect of her,† introduces him to her sister Knowledge, and she leads him to the "holy man Confession," who appoints him penance: this he inflicts upon himself on the stage, and then withdraws to receive the sacraments of the priest. On his return he begins to wax faint, and, after Strength, Beauty, Discretion, and Five Wits (g) have taken their final leave of him, gradually expires on the stage; Good Dedes still accompanying him to the last. Then an Aungell descends to sing his Requiem; and the Epilogue is spoken by a person, called Doctour, who recapitulates the whole, and delivers the moral: and Discretion, As the old Mysteries frequently required the representation of some allegorical personage, such as Death, Sin, Charity, Faith, and the like, by degrees the rude poets of those unlettered ages began to form complete dramatic pieces consisting entirely of such personifications. These they entitled Moral Plays or Moralities. The Mysteries were very inartificial, representing the Scripture". This memoriall men may have in mynde, stories simply according to the letter. But Ye herers, take it of worth old and yonge, the Moralities are not devoid of invention; And forsake Pryde, for he deceyveth you in they exhibit outlines of the dramatic art: thende, they contain something of a fable or plot, And remembre Beautè, Five Witts, Strength and even attempt to delineate characters and manners. I have now before me two that were printed early in the reign of Henry VIII.; in which I think one may plainly discover the seeds of Tragedy and Comedy: for which reason I shall give a short analysis of them both. One of them is entitled "Every Man."+ The subject of this piece is the summoning of Man out of the world by Death; and its moral that nothing will then avail him but a well-spent life and the comforts of religion. This subject and moral are opened in a monologue spoken by the Messenger (for that was the name generally given by our ances *¶. IMPRINTED.. BY WYLLYAM COPLAND: without date, 4to. bl. let. among Mr. Garrick's Old Plays, K. vol. X. This play has been reprinted by Mr. Hawkins in his 3 vols. of Old Plays, entitled, "The Origin of the English Drama," 12mo. Oxford, 1773. See vol. i. p. 27. They all at last do Every Man forsake; From this short analysis it may be observed, that "Every Man" is a grave solemn piece, not without some rude attempts to excite terror and pity, and therefore may not impro perly be referred to the class of Tragedy. It is remarkable that in this old simple drama the fable is conducted upon the strictest model of the Greek tragedy. The action is simply *The second person of the Trinity seems to be meant, †The before-mentioned are male characters. i. e. The Five Senses. These are frequently exhibited as five distinct personages upon the Spanish stage (see Riccoboni, p. 98); but our moralist has represented them all by one character. one, the time of action is that of the perform- | companion Imaginacioun from their vicious ance, the scene is never changed, nor the course of life: and then the play ends with a stage ever empty. Every-Man, the hero of few verses from Perseverance by way of epithe piece, after his first appearance never logue. This and every morality I have seen withdraws, except when he goes out to re- conclude with a solemn prayer. They are ceive the sacraments, which could not well be all of them in rhyme; in a kind of loose stanza, exhibited in public; and during his absence intermixed with distichs. Knowledge descants on the excellence and power of the priesthood, somewhat after the manner of the Greek chorus. And indeed, except in the circumstance of Every-Man's expiring on the stage, the Sampson Agonistes of Milton is hardly formed on a severer plan.* It would be needless to point out the absurdities in the plan and conduct of the foregoing play: they are evidently great. It is sufficient to observe, that, bating the moral and religious reflection of Pity, &c., the piece is of a comic cast, and contains a humorous display of some of the vices of the age. Indeed the author has generally been so little attentive to the allegory, that we need only substitute other names to his personages, and we have real characters and living manners. We see then that the writers of these moralities were upon the very threshold of real tragedy and comedy; and therefore we are not to wonder that tragedies and comedies in form soon after took place, especially as the revival of learning about this time brought them acquainted with the Roman and Grecian models. The other play is entitled "Hick-Scorner," and bears no distant resemblance to Comedy its chief aim seems to be to exhibit characters and manners, its plot being much less regular than the foregoing. The Prologue is spoken by Pity, represented under the character of an aged pilgrim; he is joined by Contemplacyon and Perseverance, two holy men, who, after lamenting the degene racy of the age, declare their resolution of stemming the torrent. Pity then is left upon the stage, and presently found by Frewyll, representing a lewd debauchee, who, with his dissolute companion Imaginacion, relate their II. Ar what period of time the moralities manner of life, and not without humour de- had their rise here, it is difficult to discover. scribe the stews and other places of base re- But plays of miracles appear to have been sort. They are presently joined by Hick- exhibited in England soon after the Conquest. Scorner, who is drawn as a libertine returned Matthew Paris tells us that Geoffrey, afterfrom travel, and agreeably to his name, scoff's wards Abbot of St. Albans, a Norman, who at religion. These three are described as ex- had been sent for over by Abbot Richard to tremely viscious, who glory in every act of take upon him the direction of the School of wickedness: at length two of them quarrel, that monastery, coming too late, went to Dunand Pity endeavours to part the fray; on this staple and taught in the abbey there; where they fall upon him, put him in the stocks and he caused to be acted (probably by his schothere leave him. Pity, thus imprisoned, des- lars) a miracle play of St. Catherine, composed cants, in a kind of lyric measure, on the by himself. * This was long before the fligacy of the age, and in this situation is year 1119, and probably within the 11th cenfound by Perseverance and Contemplacion, tury. The above play of St. Catherine was, who set him at liberty and advise him to go for aught that appears, the first spectacle of in search of the delinquents. As soon as he this sort that was exhibited in these kingis gone, Frewill appears again; and, after re-doms: and an eminent French writer thinks lating in a very comic manner some of his it was even the first attempt towards the rerogueries and escapes from justice, is rebuked by the two holy men, who, after a long altercation, at length convert him and his libertine pro * See more of every man, in Series the Second, Pref. to B. ii., note. "Imprynted by me Wynkyn de Worde," no date; in 4to. bl. let. This play has also been reprinted by Mr. Hawkins in his "Origin of the English Drama," vol. i. p. 69. * Apud Dunestapliam.... quendum ludum de sancta Katerina (quem miracula vulgariter appellamus) fecit. Ad quæ decoranda, petiit a sacrista sancti Albani, ut sibi Capœ Chorales accommodarentur, et obtinuit. Et fuit ludus ille de sancta Katerina. Vitæ Abbat. ad fin. Hist. Mat. Paris, fol. 1639, p. 56.--We see here that Plays of Miracles were become common enough in the time of Mat. Paris, who flourished about 1240. But that indeed appears from the more early writings of Fitz-Stephens: quoted below.. |