The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #145512 Message #3366500
Posted By: GUEST
21-Jun-12 - 11:42 PM
Thread Name: Origins: Child Ballads: US Versions Part 3
Subject: RE: Origins: Child Ballads: US Versions Part 3
Hi,
I assume this is the first known US version from c. 1816- which is Child A c.:
Lady Alice- Uneda (PA) c. 1816 Child A c. from Notes and Queries, 1856.
1 Lady Alice was sitting in her bower window,
A-mending her midnight coif,
And there she saw the finest corpse
That she ever saw in her life.
"Fal-de-ral"
2 'What bear ye, what bear ye, ye six men tall,
Upon your shoulders strong?'
'We bear the corpse of Sir Giles Collins,
An old and true lover of yours.'
"Fal-de-ral"
3 Lady Alice was buried all in the east,
Giles Collins all in the west,
A lily grew out of Giles Collins's grave,
And touched Lady Alice's breast.
"Fal-de-ral"
To view the original document look on my site here:http://bluegrassmessengers.com/lady-alice--uneda-pa-c1816-child-a-c.aspx
I pose the question who is Uneda from Philadelphia and where did he learn this version in 1816?
Anyone hazard a guess?
Richie