Aaaargh !! No Cap'n, don't go there! "Genuine ballads?" 'Tis a voyage with no safe port at the end of it, but endlessly drifting from our course in the doldrums of circlar talk. 'Tis a search for a rainbow's end, wi no chest of treasure to be found, but naught but a can o' worms.

Steve : Having never seen an original volume of Child's I don't know if he quoted his sources either. But before the great English song collectors at the end of 19th C, did anyone? Avoiding the question of "what is a genuine ballad", I am not sure how most of them can be dated. There are occasional references to what we now call ballads from the late medieval period (I am thinking of the 14thC - 17thC) which quote the names by which they were then known. If those names are the same as some which have survived then the assumption is that they are the same ballads. Whether or not that assumption is reasonable is another question. On balance I think so, but others might well disagree. And some are about historical events, so "The Battle of Otterburn" cannot be older than 1388, and "Kinmont Willie" not before the late 17thC (or whenever that raid on Carlisle Castle occurred). I suppose this kind of ballad from this approximate 300-yr period is your particular interest, and is what you feel to be the genuine article.

The question of "fake songs" is a very thorny one of course, and was recently discussed (and discussed, and discussed ... ) in the recent threads about Bert Lloyd's compositions. If anyone wants to revive it, perhaps it deserves it own permathread because this one will run and run. My own feeling is that there is no such thing as a fake song. And yes, when it comes to narrative song, I *would* rather sing a good story. Even if it could be proved that "Eppie Morrie" was written by Cole Porter I would still enjoy singing it, and would prefer to sing it in preference to the 150+ verses of "The Geste of Robin Hood". But there you are, different strokes for different folks.

As for "Eppie Morrie" itself, I suspect that the scene of action has been changed from an original one, but I would not care to guess its age. It would need an expert studying the original Mss available to Child for us to have an opinion as to a minimum age, and it would still be an opinion.

CarolMG : Have a look at Robinia's comment above. She has written/ is writing a dissertation of Rob Roy and Eppie Morrie. It's way above my head, so until I 've re-read it I cannot comment on it, but I am sure you will find it interesting.