Glen Collection of printed music > Printed text > Popular music of the olden time > Volume 1

REIGN OF JAMES I. 253
universality of ballads, as well as their influence upon the public mind ; but limit-
ing myself to dramatists, to Shakespeare's contemporaries, and to one passage
from each author.
In Ben Jonson's Bartliolomew Fair, Avhen Trash, the gingerbread-woman,
quarrels with Leatherhead, the hobby-horse seller, she threatens him —
" 111 find a friend shall right me, and make a ballad of thee, and thy cattle all over."
In Hey wood's A Ohallenge for Beauty, Valladaura says —
" She has told all ; I shall be balladed —
Sung up and down by minstrels."
In Fletcher's Queen of Oorintli, Euphanes says —
. " and whate'er he be
Can with unthankfulness assoil me, let him
Dig out mine eyes, and sing my name in verse,
In ballad verse, at every drinking-liouse."
In Massinger's Parliament of Love, Chamont threatens Lamira —
. " I will have thee
Pictured as thou art now, and thy whole story
Sung to some villainous tune in a lewd ballad,
And make thee so notorious in the world,
That boys in the streets shall hoot at thee."
In Chapman's Monsieur (T Olive, he says —
"I am afraid of nothing but I shall be balladed."
In a play of Dekker's (Dodsley, iii. 224) Matheo says —
" Sfoot, do you long to have base rogues, that maintain a Saiut Anthony's fire in
their noses by nothing but two-penny ale, make ballads of you V "
In Webster's DeviPs Law Case, the officers are cautioned not to allow any to
take notes, because —
" We cannot have a cause of any fame.
But you must have some scurvy pamphlets and lewd
Ballads engendered of it presently."
In Ford's Love''s Sacrifice, Fiormonda says —
. . " Better, Duke, thou hadst been born a peasant ;
Now Tjoys will sing thy scandal in the streets, —
Tune ballads to thy infamy."
In Marlow's Mheard 11. , Mortimer says to the King —
" Libels are cast against thee in the street;
Ballads and rhymes made of thy overthrow."
In Machui's The Dumb Knight —
" The slave will make base songs on my disgrace."
In Middleton's Tlie Roaring Crirl —
" 0, if men's secret youthful faults should judge 'em,
'Tvvould be the general'st execution
That e'er was seen in England !
, There would be few left to sing the ballads,
There would be so much work."
This is in allusion to the ballads on last dying speeches.