Ballads of Robin Hood and other Outlaws Part 10

191.

Sone he was to souper sette, And served well with silver white, And when the sherif sawe his vessell, For sorowe he myght nat ete.

192.

'Make glad chere,' sayde Robyn Hode, 'Sherif, for charite, And for the love of Litill Johnn Thy lyfe I graunt to thee.'

193.

Whan they had souped well, The day was al gone; Robyn commaunded Litell Johnn To drawe of his hosen and his shone;

194.

His kirtell, and his cote of pie, That was fured well and fine, And toke hym a grene mantel, To lap his body therein.

195.

Robyn commaundyd his wight yonge men, Under the grene-wode tree, They shulde lye in that same sute That the sherif myght them see.

196.

All nyght lay the proude sherif In his breche and in his schert; No wonder it was, in grene wode, Though his sydes gan to smerte.

197.

'Make glad chere,' sayde Robyn Hode, 'Sheref, for charite; For this is our ordre i-wys Under the grene-wode tree.'

198.

'This is harder order,' sayde the sherief, 'Than any ankir or frere; For all the golde in mery Englonde I wolde nat longe dwell her.'

199.

'All this twelve monthes,' sayde Robin, 'Thou shalt dwell with me; I shall thee teche, proude sherif, An outlawe for to be.'

200.

'Or I be here another nyght,' sayde the sherif, 'Robyn, nowe pray I thee, Smyte of min hede rather to-morrowe, And I forgyve it thee.

201.

'Lat me go,' than sayde the sherif, 'For saynte charite, And I woll be the beste frende That ever yet had ye.'

202.

'Thou shalt swere me an othe,' sayde Robyn, 'On my bright bronde; Shalt thou never awayte me scathe By water ne by lande.

203.

'And if thou fynde any of my men, By nyght or by day, Upon thyn othe thou shalt swere To helpe them that thou may.'

204.

Now hath the sherif sworne his othe, And home he began to gone; He was as full of grene-wode As ever was hepe of stone.

[Annotations: 145.2: 'shete,' shoot.

145.3: 'fet,' fetched.

148.1: 'wight,' strong, active.

148.4: 'wonynge wane': both words mean dwelling or habitation.

153.4: To give him his full reward.

154.2: 'leutye,' loyalty.

155.4: 'foriete,' forgotten.

160.4: 'go' = walk.

161.3: 'lyveray,' purveyance.

168.2: 'Two myle way' = the time it takes to go two miles.

See _Early English Lyrics_, cxxvi. 55, and note.

168.4: 'mountnaunce,' duration.

172.2: 'nowmbles,' entrails: cf. 32.4.

175.3: 'Pecis,' cups; 'masars,' bowls.

177.2: Cf. _Child Waters_, 2.2 (First Series, p. 37).

183.2: See 177.2 and note.

183.3: 'shryef' may be a misprint, but 'shreeve' is another spelling of 'sheriff.'

185.4: 'bydene,' together.

186.1: 'tyndes' = tynes, forks of the antlers.

186.4: 'slo,' slay.

194.3: 'toke,' gave.

198.2: 'ankir,' anchorite, hermit.

200.1: 'Or,' ere.

202.3: 'awayte me scathe,' lie in wait to do me harm.

204.4: _i.e._ as ever a hip (berry of the wild rose) is of its stone.]

THE FOURTH FYTTE (205-280)

+Argument.+--Robin Hood will not dine until he has 'his pay,' and he therefore sends Little John with Much and Scarlok to wait for an 'unketh gest.' They capture a monk of St. Mary Abbey, and Robin Hood makes him disgorge eight hundred pounds. The monk, we are told, was on his way to London to take proceedings against the knight.

In due course the knight, who was left at the end of the second fytte at the wrestling-match, arrives to pay his debt to Robin Hood; who, however, refuses to receive it, saying that Our Lady had discharged the loan already.

The admirable, navely-told episode of Our Lady's method of repaying money lent on her security, is not without parallels, some of which Child points out (III. 53-4).

THE FOURTH FYTTE

205.

The sherif dwelled in Notingham; He was fayne he was agone; And Robyn and his mery men Went to wode anone.

206.

'Go we to dyner,' sayde Littell Johnn; Robyn Hode sayde, 'Nay; For I drede Our Lady be wroth with me, For she sent me nat my pay.'

207.

'Have no doute, maister,' sayde Litell Johnn; 'Yet is nat the sonne at rest; For I dare say, and savely swere.

The knight is true and truste.'

208.

'Take thy bowe in thy hande,' sayde Robyn, 'Late Much wende with thee, And so shal Wyllyam Scarlok, And no man abyde with me.

209.

'And walke up under the Sayles, And to Watlynge-strete, And wayte after some unketh gest; Up chaunce ye may them mete.

210.

'Whether he be messengere, Or a man that myrthes can, Of my good he shall have some, Yf he be a pore man.'