Broadside ballad entitled 'Barney Ligget's Misfortunes'

Commentary

Verse 1 begins: 'It's from the harvest I took my way, / After four weeks of hard shearing'. There are no publication details given, but this is one of two songs printed by James Lindsay on this sheet. The lyrics are set in Glasgow's Briggate area.

There are many poems contained in the National Library of Scotland's collection which address the topic of country lads being duped by loose con women. This does seem to have been a concern amongst eighteenth- and nineteenth-century societies. There are other broadsides held, which describe the colourful Briggate in more detail. Undressed, gossiping, tipsy women seem to feature quite heavily.

Broadsides, cheap and accessible, were often used as moral forums with 'lessons of life' included in the narrative. Broadside authors tended to see themselves as moral guardians and teachers in society. As such, publishers often disseminated 'educational' texts outlining the social and personal consequences of undisciplined or immoral behaviour.

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