When Johnie's mother gat word o' that, 5 The buttons that were on his sleeve Her hands for dule she wrang "O Johnie! for my benison, To the greenwood dinna gang! "Eneugh ye hae o' gude wheat bread, But Johnie's busk't up his gude bend bow, As he came down by Merriemas, Johnie he shot, and the dun deer lap, His hounds they laid her pride. 10 Were o' the goud sae gude: The gude graie hounds he lay amang, Their mouths were dyed wi' blude. Then out and spak the first forester, But up and spak the sixth forester (His sister's son was he), 15"If this be Johnie o' Breadislee, We soon shall gar him die!" The first flight of arrows the foresters shot, They wounded him on the knee: 20 And out and spak the seventh forester, "The next will gar him die." Johnie's set his back against an aik, He has broke three ribs in that ane's side, He's laid him twa-fald over his steed, "O is there nae a bonny bird, Can sing as I can say ?— Could flee away to my mother's bower, And tell to fetch Johnie away?" 65 70 75 The starling flew to his mother's window stane, It whistled and it sang; And aye the ower word o' the tune Was-“ Johnie tarries lang!” They made a rod o' the hazel bush, Then out and spak his auld mother, 45" Aft hae I brought to Breadislee, The less gear and the mair; 80 85 90 But wae betyde that silly auld carle, An ill death shall he die! For the highest tree in Merriemas, Shall be his morning's fee." Now Johnie's gude bend bow is broke, And his gude graie dogs are slain ; 95 And his body lies dead in Durrisdeer, And his hunting it is done. 100 The Dowie Dens of Warrow. THIS ballad was first published in the "Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border;" but other versions of it were, previously, in circulation, and it is stated by Sir Walter Scott to have been "a very great favourite among the inhabitants of Ettrick Forest," where it is universally believed to be founded on fact. Sir Walter, indeed, "found it easy to collect a variety of copies;" and from them he collated the present edition-avowedly for the purpose of "suiting the tastes of these more light and giddy-paced times." A copy is contained in Motherwell's "Minstrelsy, Ancient and Modern ;" another, in Buchan's "Ballads and Songs of the North of Scotland:" it, no doubt, originated the popular composition beginning Busk ye, busk ye, my bonny, bonny bride, by Hamilton, of Bangour, first published in Ramsey's "Tea Table Miscellany ;" and suggested the ballad "The Braes of Yarrow," by the Rev. John Logan. In Herd's collection, in Ritson's "Scottish Songs," and in the "Tea Table Miscellany," are to be found fragments of another ballad, entitled "Willie's drowned in Yarrow," of which this is the concluding stanza: She sought him east, she sought him west, She found him drowned in Yarrow. Indeed, "Yarrow stream" has been a fertile source of poetry, and seems to have inspired the poets; the very sound is seductive: and, as Mr. Buchan remarks, "all who have attempted to sing its praise, or celebrate the actions of those who have been its visiters, have almost universally succeeded in their attempts." The ballad he publishes is entitled "The Braes of Yarrow;" it bears a close resemblance, in its more prominent features, to that collated by Sir Walter Scott, but is far more rugged and less poetic; take for example the opening verse: Ten lords sat drinking at the wine, The version preserved by Mr. Motherwell was taken down "from the recitation of an old woman in Kilbarcan," and is chiefly valuable as showing the state in which the song is preserved in the west of Scotland. It is entitled "The Dowie Downs of Yarrow." The main incidents are similar to those contained in the ballad of Scott; but the style is, as may be expected, much inferior. The two introductory verses may suffice as a sample of the whole : There were three lords birling at the wine, They would go fecht to-morrow. "Thou took our sister to be thy wife, And thou ne'er thocht her thy marrow; Thou stealed her frae her daddie's back, When she was the rose o' Yarrow." Another version was published by Robert Chambers, in his "Scottish Ballads," "chiefly taken from a fragment in Herd's collection (which we have introduced in a note), a few stanzas and lines from Buchan's copy, and part of a ballad printed by Jamie The son, entitled ‘Lizie Lindsay,"" which Jamie- | riage with a warrior of such renown. name of the murderer is said to have been "Where shall I gang, my ain true love, And there count o'er your lawin ; 66 That the several versions of the story, scattered among the people, and preserved by them in some form or other, had one common origin, there can be little doubt. "Tradition," according to Sir Walter Scott, "places the event recorded in the song very early, and it is probable the ballad was composed soon afterwards, although the language has been modernized in the course of its transmission to us, through the inaccurate channel of oral tradition." "The hero of the ballad," he adds, was a knight of great bravery, called Scott;" and he believes it refers to a duel fought at Deucharswyre, of which Annan's Treat is a part, betwixt John Scott, of Tushielaw, and his brother-in-law, Walter Scott, third son of Robert of Thirlstane, in which the latter was slain. Annan's Treat is a low muir, on the banks of the Yarrow, lying to the west of Yarrow kirk. Two tall unhewn masses of stone are erected about eighty yards distant from each other, and the least child, that can herd a cow, will tell the passenger, that there lie "the two lords who were slain in single combat." Sir Walter also informs us that, according to tradition, the murderer was the brother of either the wife or the betrothed bride of the murdered; and that the alleged cause of quarrel was, the lady's father having proposed to endow her with half of his property upon her mar LATE at e'en, drinking the wine "O stay at hame, my noble lord! O stay at hame, my marrow ! On the dowie houms of Yarrow." "O fare ye weel, my ladye gaye! O fare ye weel, my Sarah! She kissed his cheek, she kaimed his hair, As he gaed up the Tennies bank, 5 10 15 THIS Ballad is founded on a legend apper- [ taining to Thirlwall, whose proprietors in remote times were called Barons, and held under the Kings of Scotland as Lords of Tindale. The township and manor derives its name from the Roman thralling or barrier wall running through it. To "thirll," in the old Northumbrian dialect, means to bind or enthral. Thirlwall Castle stands on a rocky precipice above the river Tiffalt; there is no mention of it before 1369, in which year John de Thirlwall is called lord of it, and the manor of Thirlwall. *The following is the fragment given by Mr. Herd, "to the tune of Leaderhaughs and Yarrow:”— "I dream'd a dreary dream last night; I dream'd I pu'd the birk sae green, "I'll read your dream, my sister dear, Have wrought me dule and sorrow The legend on which part of the Ballad is founded is as follows. One of the Barons of Thirlwall returned from the foreign wars, laden with abundance of treasure, amongst which was a table of solid gold; his wealth was much spoken of, and often excited the cupidity of the numerous band of freebooters with which the Border abounded; but the well known bravery of the Baron and the strength of his followers prevented them from making an open attack. The gold table, it was affirmed, was guarded day and night by a hideous dwarf; some said it was the foul fiend himself. In a predatory excursion, the Baron was pursued home by the incensed Warden of the March, who stormed his castle, and slew the Baron and most part of his retainers. The castle was ransacked for the treasure; but the gold table, dwarf, and money bags had disappeared. Dungeons and vaults were searched, but nothing could be found: and after setting fire to the castle, the victors retired. The dwarf (according to tradition) during the heat of the engagement, removed the treasure, and throwing it into a deep well jumped in after it, when by his infernal art he closed the well over himself and his charge: and it is said that he still remains under the influence of a spell, only to be broken by the virtuous son of a widow. About fifty years And swatchers mony ane, The boldest ane o' a' his men Was Jockey of the Sheugh; ago, a man who was ploughing in an adjoin- | But the Baron hath retainers bold, Naworth Castle, the abode of that famous warrior Belted Will, stood near Brampton in Cumberland. It was burnt down in 1844. Lord Morpeth is erecting a stately edifice on its ashes. For a description of this Border soldier and his dwelling, see Scott's notes to his Lay of the Last Minstrel. In the Memoirs of Sir Robert Carey, then deputy for his father, Lord Hunsden, Warden of the Eastern Marches (and afterwards Earl of Monmouth), a singular picture will be found of the rude and lawless state of society, at the period when the scene of the Ballad is laid. They went along a close passage, Discoveries made during the removal of the ruins, corroborate this and other allusions made in the Ballad. THE Baron of Thirlwall came from the wars, Among the which a fayre tabel, All of the beaten gold. Jock could warsle, run or lap But Thirlwall's Baron heeded not He can rule all the Border roun', 15 20 25 30 So fast come tidings of ravin wrong "But he is like a wily tod, That taketh to his hole, "He reaves and harries ilka ane, Thirlwall's Baron heard his speech, 40 45 |