Sweet William [My title]- Stockton (TN) 1916 Sharp A
[My title. From: English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians; 1917 Sharp/Campbell and 1932 edition, edited by Karpeles. All of Sharp's versions use the generic title, Fair Margaret and Sweet William. Fair Margaret is not the name that is sung, usually it's Lady (Liddy/Lydia) Margaret (Marget/Margret).
Notes from the 1932 edition follow.
R. Matteson 2012, 2014]
No. 20. Fair Margaret and Sweet William.
Texts without tunes: — Child's English and Scottish Popular Ballads, No. 74. Ashton's Century of Ballads, p. 345. W. R. Mackenzie's Ballads and Sea Songs from Nova Scotia, No. 7. Journal of American Folk-Lore, xix. 281; xxiii. 381; xxviii. 154; xxx. 303.
Texts with tunes : — Christie's Traditional Ballad Airs, i. 117. Journal of the Folk-Song Society, ii. 289; iii. 64. Folk-Songs of England, i, No. 14. Rimbault's Musical Illustrations of Percy's Reliques, pp. 117 and 118. Kidson's Garland of English Folk Songs, p. 30. ChappelPs Popular Music of the Olden Times, i. 382. C. Sharp's English Folk Songs (Selected Edition), ii. 13. Cox's Folk Songs of the South, pp. 65 and 522 (see also further references). Wyman and Brockway's Lonesome Tunes, p. 94. journal of American Folk-Lore, xxxi. 74; xxxv. 340. Musical Quarterly, January 1916. British Ballads from Maine, p. 134. Davis's Traditional Ballads of Virginia, pp. 221 and 570. McGilPs Folk Songs of the Kentucky Mountains, p. 71.
Sweet William [My title]- Stockton (TN) 1916 Sharp A
1 Sweet William, he rose in the month of May,
He decked himself in blue;
Saying: I long to know that long, long love has been,
Betwixt Lady Marget and me.
2 No harm, no harm of Lady Marget,
Nor she knows none by me,
But before tomorrow morning at eight o'clock
Lady Marget a bride shall see.
3 Lady Marget was a-sitting in her bowing room
Combing back her yellow hair,
And she saw Sweet William and his new wedded bride,
To church they did draw nigh.
4 And it's down she stood her ivory comb
And back she threw her hair.
And it's you may suppose and be very well assured
Lady Marget was heard no more.
5 The time has passed away and gone
For all men to be asleep,
And something appeared to Sweet William and his new wedded bride
And stood up at their bed feet.
6 Saying : How do you like your bed making?
Or how do you like your sheets?
Or how do you like that new wedded bride
That lies in your arms and sleeps?
7 Very well do I like my bed making,
Much better do I like my sheets;
But the best of all is the gay lady
That stands at my bed feet.
8 The time was passed away and gone
For all men to be awake.
Sweet William he said he was troubled in his head
By the dreams that he dreamed last night.
9 Such dreams, such dreams cannot be true,
I'm afraid they're of no good,
For I dreamed that my chamber was full of wild swine
And my bride's bed a-floating in blood.
10 He called down his waiting-men,
One, by two, by three, Saying:
Go and ask leave of my new wedded bride
If Lady Marget I mayn't go and see.
11 It's he rode up to Lady Marget's own bowing room,
And he knocked so clear at the ring ;
And who was so ready as her own born brother
For to rise and let him in.
12 Is Lady Marget in her own bowing room?
Or is she in her hall ?
Or is she high in her chambry
Amongst her merry maids all?
13 Lady Marget's not in her bowing room,
Nor neither is she in her hall;
But she is in her long coffin,
Lies pale against yon wall.
14 Unroll, unroll the winding-sheets,
Although they're very fine,
And let me kiss them cold pale lips
Just as often as they've kissed mine.
15 Three times he kissed her ivory cheeks,
And then he kissed her chin,
And when he kissed them cold pale lips
There was no breath within.
16 Lady Marget she died like it might be to-day,
Sweet William he died on tomorrow;
Lady Marget she died for pure, true love,
Sweet William he died for sorrow.
17 Lady Marget were buried in yons churchyard,
Sweet William was buried by her;
From her there sprung a red, red rose,
From his there sprung a briar.
18 They both growed up the old church wall
Till, of course, could grow no higher,
And they met and they tied in a true love's knot,
For the rose rolled round the briar.