English and Scottish Ballads, Volume V

Ballads, English -- England -- Texts; Ballads, Scots -- Scotland -- Texts

Al day wentyn tho chylderin too,
    And fleych fowndyn he non,                                      10
  Til it were ageyn euyn,
    The chylderin wold gon hom:

  Half a honderid of fat falyf der
    He comyn azon,
  And all he wern fayr and fat inow,                                15
    But markyd was ther non.
  "Be dere Gode," seyde gode [Robyn],
    "Hereof we xul haue on."

  Robyn bent his joly bowe,[L19]
    Therin he set a flo,                                            20
  The fattest der of alle [the herd]
    The herte he clef a-to.

  He hadde not the der islawe
    Ne half out of the hyde,[L24]
  There cam a schrewde arwe out of the west,                        25
    That felde Roberts pryde.

  Gandeleyn lokyd hym est and west
    Be euery syde;
  "Hoo hat myn mayster slayin,
    Ho hat don this dede?                                           30
  Xal I neuer out of grene wode go,
    Ti[l] I se [his] sydis blede."

  Gandeleyn lokyd hym est and lokyd west,
    And sowt vnder the sunne,
  He saw a lytil boy                                                35
    He clepyn Wrennok of Doune:

  A good bowe in his hond,
    A brod arewe therine,
  And fowre and xx goode arwys
    Trusyd in a thrumme.                                            40
  "Be war the, war the, Gandeleyn,
    Herof thu xalt han summe:

  "Be war the, war the, Gandeleyn,
    Herof thu gyst plentè."
  "Euere on for an other," seyde Gandeleyn,                         45
    "Mysaunter haue he xal fle."

  "Qwerat xal our marke be?"
    Seyde Gandeleyn:
  "Eueryche at otheris herte,"
    Seyde Wrennok ageyn.                                            50

  "Ho xal zeue the ferste schote?"
    Seyde Gandeleyn:
  "And I xal zeue thè on beforn,"
    Seyd Wrennok ageyn.

  Wrennok schette a ful good schote,                                55
    And he schet not too hye;
  Throw the sanchothis of his bryk,
    It towchyd neyther thye.

  "Now hast thu zouyn me on beforn,"
    Al thus to Wrennok seyde he,                                    60
  "And throw the myzt of our lady[L61]
    A bettere I xal zeue the."

  Gandeleyn bent his goode bowe,
    And set therin a flo,
  He schet throw his grene certyl,                                  65
    His herte he clef on too.

  "Now zalt thu neuer zelpe, Wrennok,
    At ale ne at wyn,
  That thu hast slawe goode Robyn
    And his knaue Gandeleyn.                                        70

  "Now xalt thu neuer zelpe, Wrennok,
    At wyn ne at ale,
  That thu hast slawe goode Robyn
    And Gandeleyyn his knave."[L74]
        _Robyn lyzth in grene wode bow[n]dyn._

    4, MS. gynge.

    19, MS. went.

    24, cut of, Ritson.

    61, MS. thu.

    74, MS. knawe.




A LYTELL GESTE OF ROBYN HODE.

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

English and Scottish Ballads, Volume V

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