The Cruel Mother- Buchan 1828; Child F
[Peter Buchan's notes are as follows:
THE CRUEL MOTHER - Page 222.
This pathetic ballad will remind many of my readers on the "Minister's Daughter of New York," previously given in page 217 of this Collection. The incidents and narrative are nearly the same. Sir Walter Scott gives a few straggling lines of this ballad in his note to "Lady Anne," vol. ii. p. 234, of the Border Minstrelsy, where he says, he had heard a fragment of it sung in his childhood. And in vol. iii. p. 80, of the same work, in the note to the "Cruel Sister," he gives a few additional lines. The burden of the piece is nearly the same, such as—"Edinborough, Edinborough—Stirling for aye," and "Bonny St Johnston stands upon Tay."—In Wotherspoon's Collection, vol. ii. p. 237, are a few mutilated stanzas.
This is the only complete copy of the ballad with which I have ever been able to meet.
Buchan gives the first refrain as:
Edinbro', Edinbro'
The version in Early English poetry, ballads, and popular literature: Volume 17 - Page 96; Percy Society - 1846 has the refrain: Edinburgh, Edinburgh
See that version with notes version at bottom of page.
R. Matteson 2012]
The Cruel Mother- Child; Version F
a. Buchan's MSS, II, 98.
b. Buchan's Ballads of the North of Scotland, II, 222.
1. IT fell ance upon a day,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh
It fell ance upon a day,
Stirling for aye
It fell ance upon a day
The clerk and lady went to play.
So proper Saint Johnston stands fair upon Tay
2. 'If my baby be a son,
I'll make him a lord of high renown.'
3. She's leand her back to the wa,
Prayd that her pains might fa.
4. She's leand her back to the thorn,
There was her baby born.
5. 'O bonny baby, if ye suck sair,
You'll never suck by my side mair.'
6. She's riven the muslin frae her head,
Tied the baby hand and feet.
7. Out she took her little pen-knife,
Twind the young thing o its sweet life.
8. She's howked a hole anent the meen,
There laid her sweet baby in.
9. She had her to her father's ha',
She was the meekest maid amang them a'.
10. It fell ance upon a day,
She saw twa babies at their play.
11. 'O bonny babies, gin ye were mine,
I'd cleathe you in the silks sae fine.'
12. 'O wild mother, when we were thine,
You cleathd us not in silks so fine.
13. 'But now we're in the heavens high,
And you've the pains o hell to try.'
14. She threw hersell oer the castle-wa,
There I wat she got a fa'.
______________
The Cruel Mother [from: Early English poetry, ballads, and popular literature: Volume 17 - Page 96; Percy Society - 1846]
VI. The Cruel Mother
It fell ance upon a day,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
It fell ance upon a day, Stirling for aye,
It fell ance upon a day,
The Clerk and Ladye went to play,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
If my babie be a son,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
If my babie be a son,
Stirling for aye,
If my babie be a son,
I'll make him a lord o' high renoun,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
She's lean'd her back to the wa',
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
She's lean'd her back to the wa',
Stirling for aye,
She's lean'd her back to the wa',
Pray'd that her pains might fa',
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
She's lean'dher back to the thorn,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
She's lean'd her back to the thorn,
Stirling for aye,
She's lean'd her back to the thorn,
There were her babies born,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
O! bonnie babies gin ye souch sair,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
O! bonnie babies gin ye souch sair,
Stirling for aye,
O! bonnie babies, gin ye souch sair,
You'll never souch by my side mair,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
She's riv'n the muslin free her head,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
She's riv'n the muslin frae her head,
Stirling for aye,
She's riv'n the muslin frae her head,
Hand an' foot, the babies tied,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
Out she took her wee pen knife,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
Out she took her wee pen knife,
Stirling for aye,
Out she took her wee pen knife,
Twyn'd the young things o' the sweit life,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
She's howkit a hole anent the green,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
She's howkit a hole anent the green,
Stirling for aye,
She's howkit a hole anent the green,
There laid her sweet babies in,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
It fell ance upon a day,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
It fell ance upon a day,
Stirling for aye,
It fell ance upon a day,
She saw twa babies at their play,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
O! bonny babies gin ye were mine,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
O! bonny babies gin ye were mine,
Stirling for aye,
O! bonny babies gin ye were mine,
I'd cleathe you i' the silks sae fine,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
O! wild mother, when we were thine,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
O! wild mother, when we were thine,
Stirling for aye,
O! wild mother, when we were thine,
You cleath'd us na i' silks so fine,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
But noo we're in the heavens high,
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
But noo we're in the heavens high,
Stirling for aye,
But noo we're in the heavens high,
And you've the pains o' hell to try,
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
She hied her to her father's ha',
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
She hied her to her father's ha',
Stirling for aye,
She hied her to her father's ha',
She look'd the meekest may amang them a',
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
She threw hersel' o'er the castle wa',
Edinburgh, Edinburgh,
She threw hersel' o'er the castle wa',
Sterling for aye,
She threw hersel' o'er the castle wa',
Sair, I wat, was her fa',
So proper St. Johnstoun stands fair upon Tay.
Notes from: Early English poetry, ballads, and popular literature: Volume 17 - Page 96; Percy Society - 1846
This wild and very curious poem is of great antiquity, and probably the original of different ballads in the same metre, with similar titles, and having the same strange chorus. The beautiful ballad of the "Twa Sisters" or " Binnorie" is in some copies called "The Cruel Sister," and in Mrs. Brown's version commences—
"There were twa sisters sat in a bour,
Edinborough, Edinborough,
There were twa sisters sat in a bour,
Stirling for aye.
There were twa sisters sat in a bour,
There cam a knicht to be their wooer,
Bonnie St. Johnstoun stands upon Tay."
Mr. Sharp's version of the "Twa Sisters" (see his Ballad Boole, 1824) has the same burden with a slight variation, viz.,
"Hey Edinbruch, howe Edinbruch."
St. Johnstoun is an ancient name of Perth.
P. 47, v. 1.—Souch. This is the same word as sough, the meaning of which is given in note to p. 26, v. 5. The orthography of Scottish words is very arbitrary. Such words as "night," "plight," "light," &c. are by some authors spelt as above, and by others the c is placed before the h, instead of the g, as in the English mode of spelling. The ch is no doubt the most correct, and is adopted by all the old authors, as Barbour, Wyntoun, Douglas, <fee. as well as by the most esteemed and modern writers in the language.