+The Story+ will be familiar to many as _Johnie of Breadislee_, a title given by Sir Walter Scott to his version, the first that was published, in the _Minstrelsy_ (1802). In the present version, however, Johnny certainly belongs to Cockley’s Well, Bradyslee being only the name of his hunting-ground. In other variants, his name is Johnny Cock, Johnny Cox, Johnny o’ Cockis, o’ Cockerslee, of Cockielaw, of Cocklesmuir, or Johnny Brad. The name of the hunting-ground varies also, though not so widely; and, as usual, the several editors of the ballad have carefully noted that its topography (though the nomenclature is corrupted) connects it with this district or that--Percy’s ballad is Northumbrian, Scott’s is of Dumfriesshire. Percy considered that the mention of wolves (17.1) was an indication of the antiquity of the ballad; whereupon Child quotes Holinshed (1577) as saying that ‘though the island is void of wolves south of the Tweed, yet the Scots cannot boast the like, since they have grievous wolves.’ Yet how can one reconcile the mention of wolves with the reference to ‘American leather’ (13.3)? Professor Child calls this a ‘precious specimen of the unspoiled traditional ballad,’ and Professor Gummere points out that ‘it goes with a burden, this sterling old song, and has traces of an incremental repetition that has been reduced to lowest terms by impatient transcribers’ (_The Popular Ballad_, p. 268). In his _Old English Ballads_ Gummere gives a text very ingeniously compounded of Percy’s and Kinloch’s; and Professor Brandl has attempted to restore the original text. JOHNNY O’ COCKLEY’S WELL 1. Johnny he has risen up i’ the morn, Call’d for water to wash his hands; And he has called for his good grey-hounds That lay bound in iron bands, _bands_, _That lay bound in iron bands_. 2. Johnny’s mother has gotten word o’ that, And care-bed she has taen. ‘O Johnny, for my benison, I beg you’ll stay at hame; For the wine so red, and the well-baken bread, My Johnny shall want nane. 3. ‘There are seven forsters at Pickeram Side, At Pickeram where they dwell, And for a drop of thy heart’s bluid They wad ride the fords of hell.’ 4. Johnny he’s gotten word of that, And he’s turned wondrous keen; He’s put off the red scarlet, And he’s put on the Lincoln green. 5. With a sheaf of arrows by his side, And a bent bow in his hand, He’s mounted on a prancing steed, And he has ridden fast o’er the strand. 6. He’s up i’ Bradyslee, and down i’ Bradyslee, And under a buss o’ broom; And there he found a good dun deer Feeding in a buss of ling. 7. Johnny shot, and the dun deer lap, And she lap wondrous wide, Until they came to the wan water, And he stem’d her of her pride. 8. He has taen out the little pen-knife, ‘Twas full three quarters long, And he has taen out of that dun deer The liver but and the tongue.