Reliques of Ancient English Poetry consisting of Old Heroic Ballads, Songs, and other Pieces of our earlier Poets, (Chiefly of the Lyric kind.) Together with some few of later Date |
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| III. | III. THE JEW'S DAUGHTER, |
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 | Reliques of Ancient English Poetry |  |
III. THE JEW'S DAUGHTER,
A Scottish Ballad,
—Is founded upon the supposed practice of the Jews in
crucifying or otherwise murthering Christian children; out of
hatred to the religion of their parents: a practice, which
hath been always alledged in excuse for the cruelties exercised
upon that wretched people, but which probably never happened
in a single instance. For if we consider, on the one
hand, the ignorance and superstition of the times when such
stories took their rise, the virulent prejudices of the monks
who record them, and the eagerness with which they would
be catched up by the barbarous populace as a pretence for plunder;
on the other hand, the great danger incurred by the
perpetrators, and the inadequate motives they could have to
The following ballad is probably built upon some Italian Legend, and bears a great resemblance to the Prioresse's Tale in Chaucer: the poet seems also to have had an eye to the known story of Hugh of Lincoln, a child said to have been there murthered by the Jews in the reign of Henry III. The conclusion of this ballad appears to be wanting: what it probably contained may be seen in Chaucer. As for Mirryland Toun, it is probably a corruption of Milan (called by the Dutch Meylandt) Town; since the Pa is evidently the river Po.
Printed from a MS. copy sent from Scotland.
Sae dois it doune the Pa:
Sae dois the lads of Mirry-land toune,
Quhan they play at the ba'.
Said, Will ye cum in and dine?
I winnae cum in, I cannae cum in,
Without my play-feres nine.
To intice the zong thing in:
Scho powd an apple white and reid,
And that the sweit bairne did win.
And low down by her gair,
Scho has twin'd the zong thing and his life;
A word he nevir spak mair.
And out and cam the thin;
And out and cam the bonny herts bluid:
Thair was nae life left in.
And drest him like a swine,
And laughing said, Gae nou and pley
With zour sweit play-feres nine.
Bade him lie stil and sleip.
Scho cast him in a deip draw-well,
Was fifty fadom deip.
And every lady went hame:
Than ilka lady had her zong sonne,
Bot lady Helen had nane.
And sair sair gan she weip:
And she ran into the Jewis castèl,
Quhan they wer all asleip.
I pray thee to me speik:
‘O lady, rinn to the deip draw-well
‘Gin ze zour sonne wad seik.’
And knelt upon her kne:
My bonny sir Hew, an ze be here,
I pray thee speik to me.
The well is wondrous deip,
A keen pen-knife sticks in my hert,
A word I dounae speik.
Fetch me my windling sheet,
And at the back o' Mirry-land toun,
Its thair we twa sall meet.
| Reliques of Ancient English Poetry | |