A Last Word on Ballad-singers. N our General Introduction we give a few woodcut sketches of ballad-singers. It may not be without value that we here add the "Character" of one belonging to the craft, which appeared in 1631, as the second of twenty-four portraitures bearing the title of "Whimzies: Or, A new Cast of Characters." Clitvs Alexandrinvs, the author of these 117 leaves, was identified by Joseph Haslewood, in 1820, as Richard Brathwaite. Dr. P. Bliss, in 1811, and Sir Egerton Brydges, in 1816, had directed attention to the Whimzies. Haslewood is at his best when editing Brathwaite, whose works are again taking a position among students of olden manners. His Character of Nick Ballader, in 1631, illustrates many points in the Bagford Ballads of a few later years :— "A Ballad-monger is the ignominious nickname of a penurious poet, of whom he partakes in nothing but in povertie. His straine (in my opinion) would sort best with a funerall Elegie, for hee writes most pittifully. Hee has a singular gift of imagination, for hee can descant on a man's execution long before his confession. Nor comes his Invention farre short of his Imagination; for want of truer relations, for a neede he can finde you out a Sussex Dragon, some Sea or Inland monster, drawne out by some Shoe-lane man in a Gorgon-like feature, to enforce more horror in the beholder.3 Hee has an excellent facultie 1 Unfortunately, we can never depend on his reproducing any text with sufficient exactitude: a fault he shares with with Brydges, Uttersen, Park, and many others. We go to the fountain-head. 2 Thus, in the closing scene of Tom Idle's progress towards Tyburn, we see a ballad-singer chaunting his "Last Farewell" before he reaches the gibbet. Compare Introduction, p. XLVII, where we give a woodcut sketch of it. 3 See an example in our Bagford broadsheet, the "Account of a Very Large Sea-Monster [porpoise] found in Fleet Ditch," p. 59. Compare pp. 60 and 82. in this. Hee has one tune in store that will indifferently serve for any ditty. Hee is your onely man in request for Christmas Carols. His workes are lasting-pasted monuments upon the insides of Country Ale-houses,' where they may sojourne without expence of a farthing: which makes their thirstie Author crie out in this manner, if he have so much Latin: Qui licuit chartis, nō licet ire mihi. "He stands much upon Stanzas, which halt and hobble as lamely as that one legg'd Cantor that sings them: It would doe a man's heart good to see how twinne-like hee and his songman couple. Wits of equal size, though more holding vailes befall the voyce. Now you shall see them (if both their stockes aspire to that strength) droppe into some blinde ale-house, where these two naked Virginians will call for a great potte, a toast, and a pipe. Where you may imagine the first and last to be only called for out of an humour; but the midst out of meere necessitie, to allay hunger. Yet to see how they will hug, hooke, and shrugge over these materials in a Chimney corner (0 Polyhymnia) it would make the Muses wonder! But now they are parted and Stentor has fitted his Batillus with a Subject: whereon he vowes to bestow better Lines than ever stucke in the Garland of good will. By this time with botches and old ends,3 1 Thus pasted up on walls, like the Cottage Almanack and British Workman of our own day, they were conned awhile, then covered by fresh sheets, and lost for ever. Compare p. XXI of our General Introduction, and motto on p. 1112. 2 Thomas Deloney's "Garland of Good Will" is believed to have been printed so early as 1596. Even of the 1604 edition an entire copy is not known. One, imperfect, of 1631, is at the Bodleian, as also are editions of 1678, 1685, 1688. There are elsewhere some of 1659, circa 1700, and 1760. It was reprinted in 1851 for the Percy Society, edited by James Henry Dixon, from late editions. The book is mentioned by John Ford, in his Broken Heart, and by W. Rowley in A Match at Midnight, both belonging to 1633. 3 These "old ends' are doubtless what were termed "the foote of Songes," in William Wager's "The longer thou liuest the more foole thou art" (circa 1568). There, after the prologue, Moros enters, "counterfaiting a vaine gesture and a foolish countenance, Synging the foote of many Songes as fooles were wont." Fortunately for all of us, and as may be seen in the Ballad Society's reprint of "Robert Laneham's Letter, with Captain Cox, his Ballads and Books," edited by the Director, F. J. Furnivall, 1871, a dozen examples of these are therein recorded. We see by them not alone the tag or refrain, the recurring burden which was borne by the man who sang a basso accompaniment, but also the beginning of the song itself. Indeed, to this day, many of the popular old Scottish songs show the same construction (as do several of the Processional Hymns), where the chorus-verse not only follows each stanza, but is sung earliest of all, to lead off with spirit. Thus first line and burden or tag or refrain virtually agree. We have ourselves for convenience used the word BURDEN throughout (without reference to it being the bass accompaniment). this Ballad Bard has expressed the Quintessence of his Genius, extracted from the muddie spirit of Bottle-Ale and froth. But all is one for that; his Trinkilo' must have it, if he will come to his price, yet before hee have it, it must suffer the Presse. By this, Nick Ballad has got him a Quarterne of this new Impression; with which hee mounts Holborne as merry as a Carter; and takes his stand against some eminent Bay-window; where he vents his stuffe. Hee needs not dance attendance; for in a trice you shall see him guarded with a Ianizairie of Costermongers, and Countrey Gooselings: while his Nipps, Ints, Bungs and Prinado's of whom he holds in fee, oft times prevent the Lawyer, by diving too deepe into his Clients pocket; while hee gives too deepe attention to this wonderfull Ballad. But stale Balladnewes, like stale fish, when it beginnes to smell of the Panyer, are not for queasie stomacks. You must therefore imagine, that by this time they are cashier'd the Citie, and must now ride poast for the Countrey: where they are no lesse admir'd than a Gyant in a pageant: till at last they grow so common there too, as every poore Milk-maid can chant and chirpe it under That this name was generally used to designate a tippler without any particular application to Shakespeare's Trinculo of "The Tempest" seems demonstrable. It was, however, often employed with a side-reference to the Trincalo of Richard Tomkins's "Albumazar;' as it was by Milton, and by Richard Brathwaite himself in his "Strappado for the Deuill," 1615. This, incidentally, is an additional indication of the correctness of the Whimzies being assigned to him. Compare our pp. 804 and 1081 (Trinculo in Second Index). 2 Varieties of sharpers. A nipa thief, cut-purse or pickpocket. In Brathwaite's "Honest Ghost," p. 231, is a passage with three of these words-"Flankt were my troupe, with bolts, bauds, punks, and panders, Pimps, nips, and ints, prinados, highway standers, All of which were my familiars." "Filthy Bung" is used by that chaste virgin Doll Tearsheet, as one of the names expressive of aversion for Pistol: "Away, you cut-purse rascal! you filthy bung, away!" She also marks him as a "damned cheater." In Edward Guilpin's Skialetheia,"1598, pp. 55, 56, is a similar hint to our text, of the thieves being busy in a crowd gathered by any of the ballad-singers: rotten-throated slaues Engarlanded with coney-catching knaues, Bung was used for the purse or pocket, beside the thief; but we remember no instance of "nipt a bung" meaning captured a pick-pocket. In those days cutpurses were dreaded by men, "a knife and a throng, you rogue!" owing to the openly-worn girdle-wallet. See Ben Jonson's "Bartholomew-Fair,' 1614, Act ili. scene 1, where Nightingale is in league with the cut-purse Edgworth, and receives the plunder from him, after having drawn a crowd by pretending to warn them against rogueries, to the tune of Packington's Pound. her Cow; which she useth as an harmlesse charme to make her let downe her milke.' Now therefore you must suppose our facetious Ballad-monger, as one nectar-infused with some poetical Liquor, re-ascending the horse-hoof'd mount, and with a cuppe of sixe (for his token-pledge will bee taken for no more) hee presum's to represent unto the world a new conceite, intitled; A proper new Ballad, to the tune of Bragadeery round. Which his Chantecleere sings with varietie of ayres (having, as you may suppose, an instrumetall Polyphon in the cranie of his nose). Now he counterfeits a natural Base, then a perpetuall Treble, and ends with a Counter-tenure. You shall heare him feigne an artfull straine through the Nose, purposely to insinuate into the attention of the purer brother-hood. But all in vaine; They blush at the abomination of this knave, and demurely passing by him, call him the lost childe. Now, for his Author, you must not take him for one of those pregnant criticke Suburbane wits, who make worke for the fidlers of the Citie. For those are more knaves, than fooles, but these quite contrary. In those you shall finde salt, sense, and verse; but in these none of all three. What then is to bee expected from so sterile a Pernassian, where impudence is his best conductor, Ignorance his best Instructor, and Indigence his best Pro[te]ctor? Shall we then close with him thus? Hee is constant in nothing but in his Clothes. He never casts his slough but against Bartholomew Faire: where hee may casually endanger the purchase of a cast suite: Else, trust me, hee is no shifter. In a word, get his poore corpes a sheete to shrowd them in at his dying, they get more than his Muse could ever make him worth while hee was living." There had been general disparagement of the professional ballad-makers and ballad-singers among the fine gentlemen who wrote verses for private circulation, and wished not to be in favour with the mob. Musicians caught this infection of super 1 Milk-maidens were known to be the chief purchasers of ballads (and a penny ballad was in those days as expensive a luxury as a shilling book in ours), see Introduction, XVI, and woodcut on p. 759. Brathwaite here gives us a good explanation of their motives for purchase. Queen Elizabeth's envy of the blithe-singing milkmaid (while herself an imprisoned princess) is well known, and has not been left unemployed in Tennyson's Queen Mary. 2 We have had occasion to notice this very tune, sometimes called "Bragandary down." See pp. 923, 972, and Second Index, 1057. Ayres not meaning tunes here, but simply intonations, different keys or octaves, to suit dialogues, with contrasted voices. The Puritanical "Saints" indulged stealthily in these forbidden pleasures. 5 Even so was it with Falstaff's followers, backbiters, but "no worse than they are back bitten, for they have marvellous foul linen." "Well conceited, Davy!" ciliousness, and feared to have their Choyce Ayres profaned by such wandering minstrels as Nightshade and Crowdero, who haunted wakes or fairs. Probably Brathwaite's sneer at the poverty of ballad-mongers was justified by their improvidence, not by their inability to get money.' On the whole, Ballad-singers made a fair profit. When persecution from the Puritans had slackened, there were still dues to pay for licences, and bribes to constables. Before 1675 began, the Master of the Revels, Charles Killegrew (son of hearty old Thomas, who survived until 1684), rented to a London bookseller, John Clarke, "the Licensing of all Ballad Singers for five years." The London Gazette, April 13th, 1682, referring to this, continues : "These are, therefore, to give notice to all Ballad Singers that they take out Licences at the Office of the revels at Whitehall, for Singing and Selling of Ballads, and small Books, according to an ancient custom. And all persons concerned are hereby desired to take notice of, and to suppress all Mountebanks, Rope-Dancers, Prize-Players, Ballad-Singers, and such as make shew of Motions and strange Sights, that have not a Licence in Red and Black Letters, under the Hand and Seal of the said Charles Killegrew, Esq., Master of the Revels to his Majesty; and, in particular, to suppress one Mr. Irish, Mr. Thomas Varley, and Mr. Thomas Yates, Mountebank, who have no Licence, that they may be proceeded against, according to Law.” John Clarke was himself a publisher of ballads, who is often named throughout our pages: a successor to Richard Harper, at the sign of the Bible and Harp in West Smithfield, from 1650 to 1682 inclusive. He had no distance to travel when looking after his purchased rights, at beginning of each September, while ballad-singing was rife at Bartholomew Fair. 1 People who minister to the amusement of others seldom pass without fee or reward. Cash can always be found for junketting, when it is beyond reach for payment of debts, food, or lodging. One May-pole fiddler (in our Westminster Drollery, 1671-1672,) uttered a complaint, but even he was at eventide requited for his pleasant toil: Yet there they sate, until it was late, And tyr'd the Fidler quite, With singing and playing, without any paying, From morning untill night. They told the Fidler then, they'd pay him for his play, And each a two-pence, two-pence, two-pence gave him, and went away. |