"As Joseph was a walking, He heard an angel sing: 'This night shall be born Our heavenly king. "'He neither shall be born In housen nor in hall, Nor in the place of Paradise, But in an ox's stall. "'He neither shall be clothed In purple nor in pall, But all in fair linen, As were babies all. "'He neither shall be rock'd In silver nor in gold, But in a wooden cradle, That rocks on the mould. "'He neither shall be christen'd In white wine nor in red, But with the spring water With which we were christened.'" The strange, wild ballad beginning,-- "I saw three ships come sailing in, On Christmas day, on Christmas day; I saw three ships come sailing in, On Christmas day in the morning,"-- and the still stranger one of "The Holy Well," we would have copied at length, as examples of these curious relics, if we could have spared the space. Of the latter, however, we will give our readers some account, to show the singular liberties which were taken with sacred personages and things in these old carols. In the one in question, the boy Jesus, having asked his mother's permission to go and play, receives it, accompanied with the salutary injunction,-- "And let me hear of no complaint At night when you come home. "Sweet Jesus went down to yonder town, As far as the Holy Well, And there did see as fine children As any tongue can tell." On preferring, however, his petition to these children,-- "Little children, shall I play with you, And you shall play with me?" he is refused on the ground of his having been "born in an ox's stall," they being "lords' and ladies' sons." "Sweet Jesus turned him around, And he neither laugh'd nor smil'd, But the tears came trickling from his eye Like water from the skies." Whereupon he returns home to report his grievance to his mother, who answers,-- "Though you are but a maiden's child, Born in an ox's stall, Thou art the Christ, the King of Heaven, And the Saviour of them all;" and then proceeds to give him advice neither consistent with the assertion in the last line, nor becoming her character:-- "Sweet Jesus, go down to yonder town, As far as the Holy Well, And take away those sinful souls, And dip them deep in hell. "Nay, nay, sweet Jesus said, Nay, nay, that may not be; For there are too many sinful souls Crying out for the help of me." Both these latter carols are given by Sandys as amongst those which are still popular in the West of England; and we remember to have ourselves heard them both many and many a time in its Northern counties.