Broadside ballad entitled 'The Hansel Poem of the Deliverers of the Mid-Lothian Advertiser'

Commentary

Verse 1: 'Respectit Freen's, baith great an' sma', / In hamely rhyme we greet ye a', / Sincerely hopin' Sixty-twa, / Whan dead an' gane, / May leave within ilk hoose an' ha' / Nae grief or pain.' The authorship of the poem is credited to 'one of themselves', 'themselves' being a reference to the 'Deliverers' of the title. The sheet carries no publication details.

A 'hansel' or 'handsel' is a gift given to celebrate the start of something new. It can also refer to the first instalment of a payment. In Scotland, the first Monday after New Year's Day was traditionally known as 'Hansel Monday' or 'Handsel Monday', and gifts were given at this time. The poem shown on this broadside was one apparently written by one of the Midlothian Advertiser's paper-boys, and was presumably delivered, along with the newspaper, on Hansel Monday.

Early ballads were dramatic or humorous narrative songs derived from folk culture that predated printing. Originally perpetuated by word of mouth, many ballads survive because they were recorded on broadsides. Musical notation was rarely printed, as tunes were usually established favourites. The term 'ballad' eventually applied more broadly to any kind of topical or popular verse.

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