University of Virginia Library

OF THE CHAUNTERS.

" As the minstrel's art," writes Mr. Strutt, in
his "Sports and Pastimes," "consisted of several
branches, the professors were distinguished by
different denominations, as `rimours, chanterres, conteours, jougleours or jongleurs, jestours, le-
eours, and troubadours or trouvers:' in modern
language, rhymers, singers, story-tellers, jug-
glers, relaters of heroic actions, buffoons, and
poets; but all of them were included under the
general name of minstrel. An eminent French
antiquary says of the minstrels, that some of
them themselves composed the subjects they
sang or related, as the trouvers and the con-
teurs; and some of them used the compositions
of others, as the jougleours and the chanteurs. He
further remarks, that the trouvers may be said
to have embellished their productions with
rhyme, while the conteurs related their histories
in prose; the jougleours, who in the middle ages
were famous for playing upon the vielle" [a
kind of hurdy-gurdy], "accompanied the songs
of the trouvers. These jougleours were also
assisted by the chanteurs; and this union of
talents rendered the compositions more harmo-
nious and more pleasing to the auditory, and
increased their rewards, so that they readily
joined each other, and travelled together in large
parties. It is, however, very certain that the
poet, the songster, and the musician were fre-
quently united in the same person." My ac-
count of the authors, &c., of street literature
shows that the analogy still holds.

The French antiquary quoted was Fauchet,
in his "Origine de la Langue et Poësie Fran-
coise" (1581); and though he wrote concerning
his own country, his descriptions apply equally
to the English minstrels, who were principally
Normans, for many reigns after the Conquest,
and were of the same race, and habits, and
manners as on the French side of the Channel.

Of the minstrels, I shall have more to say
when I treat of the ballad-singers and the bands
of street and public-house musicians of to-day,
between whom and the minstrels of old there is,
in many respects, a somewhat close resemblance.
Minstrelsy fell gradually from its high estate,
and fell so low that, in the 39th year of Eliza-
beth's reign — a period when the noblest poetry
of any language was beginning to command the
ear of the educated in England — the minstrels
were classed in a penal statute with rogues,
vagabonds, and sturdy beggars! Putenham, in
his " Arte of English Poesie" (1589), speaks of
" taverne minstrels that give a fit of mirth for
a groat." One of the statutes enacted in
Cromwell's Protectorate was directed against
all persons " commonly called fidlers or min-
strells."

In the old times, then, the jougeleurs and
jestours were assisted by the chanteurs. In
the present day the running patterer — who, as I
have shown, is the sufficiently legitimate de-
scendant of the jestour, and in some respects of
the mountebank — is accompanied generally by
a chaunter, so presenting a further point of
resemblance between ancient and modern street-
folk. The chaunter now not only sings, but
fiddles, for within these few years the run-
ning patterers, to render their performances
more attractive, are sometimes accompanied by
musicians. The running performer then, instead
of hurrying along with the members of his mob,
making sufficient noise to arouse a whole street,
takes his stand with the chaunter in any promis-
ing place, and as the songs which are the most
popular are — as is the case at many of the
concert-rooms — sometimes " spoken" as well as
sung, the performers are in their proper capa-
city, for the patterer not only " speaks," but
speaks more than is set down for him, while the
chaunter fiddles and sings. Sometimes the one
patters while the other sings, and their themes
are the same.

I am told, however, that there are only fifty
running patterers who are regularly their own
chaunters, fiddling to their songs, while the mob
work as usual, or one man sings, or speaks and
sings, with the chaunter. Two of these men
are known as Brummagem Jack, and the
Country Paganini. From twenty to thirty pat-
terers, however, are chaunters also, when they
think the occasion requires it.

Further to elucidate chaunting, and to show
the quality of the canticles, and the way of pro-
ceeding, I cite a statement of his experience as
a chaunter, from the running patterer, whose
details of his more especial business I have
already given, but who also occasionally
chaunts: —