"What wilt thou leave to thy poor wife? Son Davie ! son Davie!' "Grief and sorrow all her life, And she'll never get mair frae me O.” “What wilt thou leave to thy auld son? Son Davie! son Davie !" 40 "The weary warld to wander up and down, And he'll never get mair o' me 0.” “What wilt thou leave to thy mother dear? 5 Son Davie! son Davie!" “A fire o' coals to burn her wi' hearty cheer, And she'll never get mair o' me O.” THE CRUEL SISTER. THE earliest printed copy of this ballad is the curious piece in Wit Restor'd, (1658,) called The Miller and the King's Daughter, improperly said to be a parody, by Jamieson and others. (See Appendix.) Pinkerton inserted in his Tragic Ballads, (p. 72,) a ballad on the subject, which preserves many genuine lines, but is half his own composition. Complete versions were published by Scott and Jamieson, and more recently a third has been furnished in Sharpe's Ballad Book, p. 30, and a fourth in Buchan's Ballads of the North of Scotland (given at the end of this volume). The burden of Mr. Sharpe's copy is nearly the same as that of the Cruel Mother, post, p. 372. Jamieson's copy had also this burden, but he exchanged it for the more popular, and certainly more tasteful, Binnorie. No ballad furnishes a closer link than this between the popular poetry of England and that of the other nations of Northern Europe. The same story is found in Icelandic, Norse, Faroish, and Estnish ballads, as well as in the Swedish and Danish, and a nearly related one in many other ballads or tales, German, Polish, Lithuanian, etc., etc. See Svenska Folk-Visor, iii. 16, i. 81, 86, Arwidsson, ii. 139, and especially Den Talende Strengeleg, Grundtvig, No. 95, and the notes to Der Singende Knochen, K. u. H. Märchen, iii. 55, ed. 1856. Of the edition in the Border Minstrelsy, Scott gives the following account, (iii. 287.) "It is compiled from a copy in Mrs. Brown's MSS., intermixed with a beautiful fragment, of fourteen verses, transmitted to the Editor by J. C. Walker, Esq. the ingenious historian of the Irish bards. Mr. Walker, at the same time, favored the Editor with the following note: I am indebted to my departed friend, Miss Brook, for the foregoing pathetic fragment. Her account of it was as follows: This song was transscribed, several years ago, from the memory of an old woman, who had no recollection of the concluding verses; probably the beginning may also be lost, as it seems to commence abruptly.' The first verse and burden of the fragment ran thus :— 'O sister, sister, reach thy hand! And you shall be heir of all my land, THERE were two sisters sat in a bour; By the bonny milldams of Binnorie. He courted the eldest with glove and ring, But he lo❜ed the youngest abune a' thing ; By the bonny milldams of Binnorie. 5 He courted the eldest with broach and knife, But he lo❜ed the youngest abune his life; 10 Binnorie, O Binnorie; The eldest she was vexed sair, And sore envied her sister fair; By the bonny milldams of Binnorie. The eldest said to the youngest ane, Binnorie, O Binnorie; 15 "Will ye go and see our father's ships come in?” By the bonny milldams of Binnorie. 20 She's ta'en her by the lily hand, Binnorie, O Binnorie ; And led her down to the river strand; By the bonny milldams of Binnorie. Binnorie, O Binnorie; 30 And dash'd her bonny back to the jaw ; “O sister, sister, reach your hand, Binnorie, O Binnorie; And ye shall be heir of half my land.” By the bonny milldams of Binnorie. 35 Binnorie, O Binnorie; "O sister, I'll not reach my hand, And I'll be heir of all your land; By the bonny milldams of Binnorie. 40 "Shame fa' the hand that I should take, Binnorie, O Binnorie; It's twin'd me and my world's make.” "O sister, reach me but your glove, Binnorie, O Binnorie ; And sweet William shall be your love.” “Sink on, nor hope for hand or glove! Binnorie, O Binnorie; And sweet William shall better be my love, "Your cherry cheeks and your yellow hair, Binnorie, O Binnorie, Garr'd me gang maiden evermair.” By the bonny milldams of Binnorie. |