The Ballad of "Heer Halewijn". Its Forms and Variations in Western Europe: A Study of the History and Nature of a Ballad Tradition

Table of contents :
Chapter I. Approach to the Subject: Matters of Method and Source 7
The Pursuit of Sources: Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight as Exemplar 21
Chapter II. "Heer Halewijn", "Ulinger", and "Ulrich": the Ballad in Dutch, Flemish, and German 35
Chapter III. "Kvindemorderen": The Ballad in Scandinavia 89
1. The Ballad in Denmark 89
2. The Ballad in Swedish 138
3. The Ballad in Norway 152
4. The Ballad in Iceland 195
Chapter IV. "Renaud le Tueur de Femmes": the Ballad in French 200
1. The Ballad in France 200
2. The Ballad in French Canada 224
Chapter V. "Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight": the Ballad in Great Britain 256
The A and B Variants, with Animadversions upon Peter Buchan 297
Chapter VI. Conclusion: the Centre of the Tradition and its Narrative Changes 317
Notes
Chapter I 328
Chapter II 330
Chapter III 331
Chapter IV 333
Chapter V 335
Chapter VI 341
Bibliography 342

Citation preview

THE BALLAD OF HEER HALEWI JN

THE BALLAD OF HEER HALEWIJN ITS FORM S AND VARIATIONS IN W ESTERN EUROPE

A Study o f the History and Nature o f a B allad Tradition

BY

H O LG E R OL OF NYGÅRD

T H E U N IV E R S IT Y O F TE N N ESSEE PRESS K N O X V IL L E , TEN N ESSEE

1958

This study is published jointly with the Finnish Academy of Sciences (Folklore Fellows Communications). Copyright, 1958, by The University of Tennessee Press. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 58-12087.

PRINTED IN FINLAND by the H e ls in g i n L i i k e k i r j a p a i n o Oy

Dedicated to the Memory of M Y FATHER

FOREWORD The historian of ballad scholarship, Sigurd B. Hustvedt, a generation ago called for »a multitude of special enquiries in relatively limited fields, following as a rule a path of investigation from the present known toward the past unknown.» This study is written in the spirit of Hustvedt’s directive. The whole array of ballad riddles is no more shaped into a semblance of unity in our day than in 1930; the Lord Bacon of ballad learning predicted by Hustvedt as forthcoming with a conspectus of ballad learning must yet await the multitude of special enquiries. That attention in this work has been devoted to the ballad Heer Halewijn needs no apologies in spite of the spate of studies that this song perhaps more than any other in European oral traditions has evoked among scholars from the days of Svend Grundtvig and Sophus Bugge to our own time. The richness of the record, the breadth of spread of the song, the many involutions of change m word and narrative provide the investigator with an excellent laboratory sample of ballad tradition, and every investigator is afforded ample room for his experimentations and for the exercise of hypotheses and theories that readers must scruti­ nize and weigh. If a theoretical position is implicit in this work, it proceeds from the conviction that ballad texts are of necessity studied not from a priori assumptions of meaning and original content but from present known toward past unknown, and that conviction is best captured in the phrase that I have devised for the purpose, »the retention of verbal structure.» The pursuit of Heer Halewijn and the rather misnamed Elf-Knight and Lady Isabel through centuries and over boundaries has occupied me for some time. As a student of oral traditions international in scope I find myself indebted in many ways to the numerous collectors, editors, and scholars of many lands whose work substantially contributes to the success of my own, and to the archivists and custodians of collections who have provided me with the primary materials of study. For the many kindnesses they have shown me I express my gratitude in parti­ cular to the late H. Grüner N i^ en of the Dansk Folkemindesamling, the late Knut Liestøl and Professors Reidar Th. Christiansen and Svale Solheim of the Norsk Folkeminnesamling, Professor Dag Strömbäck of the University of Uppsala, Professor Otto Andersson of Åbo Akademi, Phil. lie. Ulf Peder Olrog of Svenskt Visarkiv, and Dr. Marius Barbeau

of the National Museum of Canada. It is my pleasant duty to record my debt of gratitude also to Professors Archer Taylor, Bertrand H. Bronson, and Arthur G. Brodeur, all of the University of California, under whose surveillance these pages first were written. To the American Council of Learned Societies and to the Humanities Research Council of Canada I give special thanks for the Fellowships which permitted me to pursue the study of comparative balladry for a space of two years in Europe. To the University of Kansas I extend my gratitude for a travel grant in the gift of the Endowment Association and for a research grant that has facilitated my preparation of this work for publication. The Finnish Academy of Sciences and The University of Tennessee Press have graciously borne the cost of publication. Parts of Chapter I and Chapter VI, which appeared in the pages of the Journal of American Folklore, and a part of the section on the Icelandic ballad, which appeared in Midwest Folklore, are here printed with the kind permission of the editors of these journals. Mr. John Lamb, M. A., has assisted me with the diagrams, and Phil. lie. Lauri Honko has seen the book through the press. I give my thanks to the many others who have helped me in my work. H. O. N.

CONTENTS Chapter I

Approach to the Subject: Matters of Method and Source.......... The Pursuit of Sources: Lady Isabel and the E lf-K n ig h t as E xem plar.......

C hapter II

Page 7 21

and U lrich: the Ballad in Dutch, Flemish, .............................................................................................

35

C hapter III Kvindemorderen: The Ballad in Scandinavia..................................

89

1. The Ballad in Denmark ...................................................................... 2. The Ballad in Swedish .......................................................................... 3. The Ballad in Norway .........................................................................

89 138 152

4. The Ballad in Iceland

......... ..............................................................

195

C hapter IV Renaud le Tueur de Femmes: the Ballad in F rench..........................

200

Heer H alewijn, Ulinger,

and German

1. The Ballad in France ........................................................................... 2. The Ballad in FrenchCanada ................................................... C hapter V

200 224

the Ballad in Great Britain .......

256

The A and B Variants, with Animadversions upon Peter Buchan .......

297

Lady Isabel and the E lf-K n ig h t:

C hapter VI Conclusion: the Centre of the Tradition and its Narrative

Changes

........................................................................................................

317

N otes

Chapter I ...................................................................................................... Chapter II .................................................................................................

328 330

Chapter III ................................................................................................. Chapter IV .................................................................................................

331 333

Chapter V ................................................................................................. Chapter VI .................................................................................................

335 341

Bibliography ............................................................................................................

342

M aps S howing D istribution of V ariants

Page

Germany and its Neighbouring Lands .................................................. Denmark .................................................................................................. Sweden and Finland ..................................................................................

39 91 139

Norway ...................................................................................................... France .......................................................................................................... French Canada .......................................................................................... Great Britain ..............................................................................................

153 202 228 259

CHAPTER I

AP P R O AC H TO THE S U B J E C T : MATTERS OF METHOD AND SOURCE

As a preliminary to the study of the dissemination and narrative changes of so well known and widespread a traditional ballad as No. 4 in Professor F. J. Child’s collection, the ballad he chose to call Lady Isabel and the El/~Knight, one must read and take account of all the varied and extensive scholarship which has been devoted to this ballad during the past three-quarters of a century. The gallery of scholars who have contributed to the discussion is impressive, for among them are, to begin with, the noted ballad editors : Svend Grundtvig of Denmark (1869),1 who gave the earliest survey of a great part of the international spread of the song, a survey remarkable for its soundness, considering that it was the first; Francis J. Child (1882), whose 32 lengthy pages in the Headnote to Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight made additions to the store of knowledge that Grundtvig had provided; Franz Böhme (1893) and George Doncieux (1904), who shifted the emphases of discussion in their Headnotes to the German and French forms of the song; and, finally, John Meier (1937), whose treatment of the German ballad is a masterly model in the art of ballad editing. Among the scholars who have discussed the ballad, in large or in small, appear other famous names: Sophus Bugge of Norway (1879), Jan de Vries of Holland (1922), Ernst von der Recke of Denmark (1906), and Marius Barbeau of French Canada (1952). Comprehensive studies have been undertaken of the international material by Friedrich Holz (1929) and Iivar Kemppinen (1954). And the ballad has figured prominently in every general discussion of balladry: significant notices, based primarily on previously published work, appear in G. H. Gerould’s Ballad of Tradition (1932) and William J. Entwistle’s European Balladry (1939). Variants, with brief customary notices, have appeared in nearly every collection of folk song from western Europe, with the result that the bibliography for a thorough study of the history of Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight reads like a fairly thorough Bibliography of European Traditional Balladry. With such a wealth of attention already devoted to this one traditional song, it might appear foolhardy to work yet again over such familiar

8

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

ground. But a number of reasons warrant a further search into the history of this song: first, many of the studies have been made from too narrow a point of view, in some instances the traditional material of the song having been used to illustrate or support some theory which the student has forces upon the ballad; second, the vast number of shorter notices are of necessity superficial observations and cursory conclusions based on imperfect knowledge of the history of the ballad in its largeness and entirety ; and third, the studies that have attempted comprehensive approaches, in particular the dissertations of Holz and Kemppinen (the latter furbished up with the form rather than the spirit and the assuredness of the historic-geographic method), have in fact treated the history of the ballad cursorily, and in both instances have been centred upon the revelation of source, the exposition of the song beyond its history. The song has engaged the attention of many undoubtedly because of its very prominence in the European ballad corpus, because of its wide geographical spread and rich number of variant forms in the many languages of Europe which make possible observations on the nature of oral transmission, and because the Drang nach Quelle is in itself a fascinating pursuit reminiscent of the solution of many a mystery. But what has in all instances been lost sight of in the uncertain solution of the riddle is the history of the ballad itself. Among the studies that have attempted to write the ballad’s history the pages of Grundtvig and Child are still paramount. It is the purpose of this work to expound that history more precisely and completely (and, in some instances, it is to be hoped, more correctly) than the masters had occasion to strive for in the imposed limitations of their Headnotes. Writing the history of a ballad’s movements and of its variations resulting from centuries of oral transmission and from wilful alterations by editors and self-styled ballad writers imposes questions of method upon the writer. The many variants of the song need cataloguing for purposes of easy and clear reference, and they need adequate presenta­ tion to enable the reader to follow the many shifts in narrative form and in phrasing, a matter difficult to do in brief space when variants number in the hundreds. One alternative is the discursive and very readable approach used by Paul Christophersen in his recently published discussion of The Ballad of Sir Aldingar: Its Origin and Analogues,* a treatment suited to his descriptive purpose and to the varied nature of the material (chronicle, romance, tale, ballad) with which he was confronted. As might be expected, Christophersen’s book has met with unkindly criticism from one quarter on the basis of its lack of orthodoxy in the eyes of advocates of the historic-geographic method,3 when in fact the degree of failure in the study rests in its lack of penetration, of close work, in dealing with the analogues, and also in its acceptance

Matters of Method and Source

9

of the dubious assumption that William of Malmesbury knew the ballad of Sir Aldingar in the twelfth century.4 A student of the Finnish school would advocate the method which has been tried in certain instances with great success. Walter Anderson’s Kaiser und Abt: Die Geschichte eines Schwankst suggests itself as the classic and imposing model for such studies. The theory upon which the method is based has been ably worked out in the writings of Kaarle Krohn, Antti Aarne, and that nucleus of folklore scholars who have continued and elaborated upon the beginning work of the Finns. The method has in itself become a tradition, a corporate venture; and the achievements it has fostered are not to be questioned. The dissemination and variations of many a folktale have been interpreted by the use of the Finnish method, and the popular ballad in the case of Edward, The Twa Sisters, and The Maid Freed from the Gallows6 has served as substance for study within the confines of the method. Although some of the achievements from the use of the method are not, then, to be questioned as reasonable conjectures, there are a number of matters that make one uneasy about the method as it has been described, and in some instances used. There are in addition rather special considerations that ballads of the nature of Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight impose upon procedure. Many criticisms can be and have been levelled against some aspects of the methodology of the school, some of them justly; practitioners of the method have in some instances been the sharpest critics, for efforts have been cooperative in the betterment of the method. But one of the disquieting characteristics, certainly, of the method has been the trust which it places in numbers, in percentages. The effective interpretation of the percentages is, of course, dependent upon the individual researcher, but it is precisely in such matters of judgement that the ‘science’ breaks down and the percentages lose their pretended sanctity. The panoply of percentages in tables does not inspire trust unless the variant material conforms to an ideal. Since a body of texts can never be expected to represent an even distribution through both time and space of an entire tradition, with nicely graduated changes inherent in its characteristics, the numerical data must be compensated by the judgement of the researcher, but compensated according to the degree of deviation of his material from the ideal. This ideal he does not know, of course, and is in fact attempting to discover. The procedure can thus be dangerously like begging the question. One might say that the method is as successful as the distribution, incidence, and content of the traditional variants of the narrative studied will make it. Although the careful worker using the Finnish method has no inten­ tions of losing a sense of the relative validity of the sources he is using, there cannot but be a neglect of evaluative considerations in a study in which the dubious items are relegated to numerals in a statistical scheme; the formal characteristics of these studies discourage evaluative

10

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

remarks, for such considerations are not amenable to ‘scientific’ treat­ ment. Some ballad editors of the nineteenth century, for example, are not so reliable as others, and an inadequate attention to the possibility of adulteration would tend to falsify the history one is writing. Many of the studies tend to be devoted to the exposition of the nature of the original and its place of origin, and the analysis of the texts is then devoted to this end. The individual texts and the national forms (the history along the way) are there for him who cares to dig them out, but they are treated as of lesser import in themselves. The formalism of the studies is designed to direct the analysis unwaveringly to the hypothetical archetypes. Since the method operates by the procedural steps of arriving at a tentative archetype and a final arche­ type, the interest of the researcher in such a study is indubitably centred upon beginnings. The Finnish school fosters a conformity in treatment of oral material, a matter less harmful in itself than its cause. It results from the adherents of the school erroneously invoking the fallacy of the single method, the only method as it were, the ‘scientific’ method, which has assumed a rigidity in its codified procedure. Science has in the time of our fathers as well as in our time so impinged itself upon the imagination of even those whose studies are in the realm of the conjectural and even the imaginative that such pursuits as textual criticism and folklore studies have been dubbed sciences. Sciences they are not in the strict sense of the term, for they are not based on theories that allow of ex­ perimental verification. Even in such matters as textual criticism so noted a scholar as R. B. McKerrow has belaboured the confusion of informed and intelligent conjecture with a parade of the machinery of pseudo-science, which is antipathetic to knowledge and true science. The pseude-science of which McKerrow speaks is the »parade of the machinent of demonstration when such machinery is inappropriate, the amassing of statistics in cases where the phenomena are too diverse in character to be properly treated as units in an enumeration, the pretence that by bringing together arguments which individually are invalid one can arrive at proof.»7 These characteristics are not absent from the writings of the Finnish school. The serious study of folklore will not be enhanced in worth and validity by the practices of a dubious science. The better practitioners of the Finnish school assert the merely conjectural validity of their findings. And the application of common sense and intelligent assessment remain still the best method for conjectural conclusions. This adherence to the single method is perhaps best understood if one considers the rise of the school in its historical perspective. The Finns before the turn of the century were a nation extraordinarily rich in oral traditions, and with the growing sense of nationhood the ethos of nationalism became peculiarly associated with the vast store of traditional song and tale, particularly the runes from which Elias

Matters of Method and Source

11

Lönnrot stitched together a national epic, the Kalevala. The study of the significance of these songs, and of the interrelations of the cyclical materials that concerned such legendary figures as Väinämöinen and Lemminkäinen became the consuming interest of Julius Krohn, whose working procedure emerged as the historic-geographic method and received its refinements at the hands of Kaarle Krohn and Antti Aarne. It was just previous to this period that the historical philologists of Europe had created a ‘science’ of their study of the history of the IndoEuropean languages. The Finnish scholars in an effort to deal syste­ matically and effectively with the oral traditions of their people worked out their Arbeitsmethode, and called it a Wissenschaft. Viewed as science the method was associated with verity and the verifiable. Professor Archer Taylor has noted that the principles and procedures of the Finnish school of folklore study are implicit in the work of the early editors of ballads, and he cites observations of Grundtvig, Child, and Doncieux that do in fact suggest the procedures and assumptions that are at the basis of Krohn’s and Aarne’s writings.8 Nevertheless, it was the Finns who first devised the rules and formalism of the methodology to the point of making it a ‘science.’ This ‘science’ of folklore is conceptually much akin to the work of the historical philo­ logists who had by comparative methods, both historical and geographic, managed during the nineteenth century to explain the interrelations of the Indo-European family of languages and to reconstruct hypotheti­ cal proto-languages from which the historical varieties had arisen and diffused. In Anderson’s Kaiser und Abtt as late as 1923, we see refinements of linguistic diffusion theories being applied to oral tales; Anderson argues for the Wellentheorie as an explanation of the mixture of forms of the narrative which the Stammbaumtheorie would not satisfactorily explain. Both of these theories were, of course, linguistic theories enunciated as early as 1866 and 1872 by August Schleicher and Johannes Schmidt respectively, Schmidt’s being the wave theory of language diffusion. The complexities of the method were the result of the recognition that orally transmitted material has predictable behaviour; the method was thus addressed to the problem of codifying the predictables. With time the method developed a nomenclature and matters of form in presentation. The oral songs and tales of Finland served as excellent material for such a study, for they came from a geographically circumscribed area which made for a kind of saturation of evidence by which the method operates best. Undoubtedly advocates of the Finnish method will continue to produce studies that clarify the diffusion of orally transmitted material. But it is hardly justifiable that all works that attempt to write the history of a traditional narrative be measured by their conformity to this single praxis. It is defensible, I believe, to say that the best results of the Finnish school have been in the study of folktales. It is my contention that

12

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

the nature of ballads and of a ballad tradition is sufficiently different from the nature of folktales to impose a necessity for modification of the procedures by which ballads are studied. Folktales and ballads are both orally transmitted in part, trans­ mitted by writing in part; both forms have formal characteristics, formulae, and commonplaces that mark the respective genres. Nevertheless, ballads are different from folktales in the degree to which they exhibit these characteristics; some ballad features are, moreover, strikingly different in essence from those of folktales. Ballads have sharply defined structural characteristics that keep them remarkably uniform and unchanged in spite of their oral transmission. Matters of stanzaic structure, musical accompaniment, verse length, rhyme pattern, interdependent patterns of dialogue and narrative, incremental repetition, and commonplaces of phrasing all help to maintain the language, the verbal structure of the ballad text, and to retard and check its change. This resistance to change because of formal character­ istics is different from the principle implied by Walter Anderson’s ‘law of self-correction.’ A folktale can be told wrongly and corrected by someone in the audience who remembers the ‘right* details, even by the teller himself. Nevertheless, even if a folktale is told ‘wrongly,* the teller will construct a narrative as coherent as he can make it. A ballad cannot readily be sung if the details are forgotten; the singer may change minor details and later change them back again, but the singer cannot usually be ready to make up new stanzas, complete with rhyme and verse length, on the spur of the moment. Changes in ballads are, relatively speaking, considered matters, closely associated with the relative sophistication of ballad makers, of printing and furbishing forth for a life more permanent than folktales. If a ballad narrative is changed in oral delivery, that change is likely to be of two sorts: the ballad may be intermixed with stanzas remembered from other ballads, or else with stanzas borrowed from other parts of the same ballad. (The pages below give ample illustration of both these processes at work.) In both instances of borrowing, from the same ballad or another ballad, no changes have been made, be it noted, in the ‘verbal structure’ of the part borrowed. The changes tend thus to be held in check by the formal characteristics that are peculiar to the ballad genre. The other type of change in ballads, it would appear, is a change brought about by calculated efforts of ballad makers; it must be recognized that ballads are in this respect somewhat akin to any other writings. Anderson’s study makes clear to us that folktales undergo revolutionary changes just as ballads do; in this respect the two genres do not exhibit great differences. But my contention is that the literary aspect of a ballad’s tradition must be given its full due. Balladmongers and enthusiasts work over traditional material, make it their own, and in turn give it a new momentary life in tradition. The notion of gradual

Matters of Method and Source

13

spread (expressed by the word ‘diffusion’) of oral tradition over the face of a continent implied by the methods of the Finnish school, a notion which has been criticized by C. W. von Sydow, is not as realistic in the case of ballads as the notion of sudden changes brought about by a relatively sophisticated tradition changer. And if the changes are recorded in manuscript commonplace books, in broadsides, and in chapbooks, the tradition can easily be transferred some distance, even great distances. The Italian L'Avvelenato is one instance that comes to mind; the Italian Lord Randal, printed in part in a Veronese broadside in 1629, is remarkably close to the English-Scottish ballad in phrasing and metrical structure, closer than the variants from countries that lie between Great Britain and Italy. Another is Our Goodman (No. 274 in the Child collection), which entered continental tradition from Friedrich Wilhelm Meyer’s translation and printing of the English B text in 1789-90. The B text is itself a broadside of the eighteenth century. The history of this ballad is in part sufficiently transparent to permit a scheme of dissemination to be readily constructed. One might do the same for many another ballad if only the Friedrich Wilhelm Meyers of the other cases had left clearer traces. The ballad student must not consider ‘literary variants’ as something apart from tradition, but as intermixed with oral tradition, and even as the source and abettor of that oral tradition (note British variant I in the English tradition, found verbatim from Kent and Herefordshire to Northumberland, to cite one instance). Linguistic boundaries must give rise to wilful changes in ballads, for there they are of necessity subjected to translation. It is of course recognized that bilingualism is the rule rather than the exception at the linguistic boundaries in Europe. But a ballad cannot be converted from one tongue to another as easily as can a folktale; such basic considerations as rhyme and metre would support this view. The metrical form of the French ballad differs from those of ballads from contiguous countries, and the same is true of the German and Hungarian forms as well. The structural characteristics of ballads demand, then, a translation and recasting of the song at language barriers, an act sufficiently sophisticated to lend a literary aspect to the song’s dissemina­ tion. Such translation may, moreover, account in some instances for the differences among national forms of the song. One indication of the checks against change exerted by the formal characteristics of ballads is the vast number of fragments that one finds printed in collections of ballads. The singers of fragments have tried to sing their narratives; but forgetting the verbal structure has meant relinquishment of the narrative at the point of forgetting. In the case of ballads, then, there is a greater measure of »all or nothing,» of near verbatim repetition or else extensive loss. We might put the words of W. P. Ker to a new use in this case: »Ballad is Form.» It is noteworthy that in general handbooks of ballad study the writers

14

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

(Gerould, Hodgart, Wells, Entwistle) do not mention the Finnish method as part of a program of study of ballads. And it is equally noteworthy that the Finnish method has been applied to the study of few ballads, but many folktales. Of greater significance is the fact that the Finnish method has been applied to a particular kind of ballad, one which proceeds by incremental repetition, one in which the succession of increments provides a series of striking variables. The ‘verbal structure’ in The Maid Freed from the Gallows is repetitive and simple, not taxing the memory of the singer. The primary variables are the single words that differ in a series of otherwise identical stanzas; for these increments easily undergo change with the passage of time and the changes of environment that the song passes through. The same is true of a significant last portion of The Twa Sisters; in this ballad the variables are the names of the parts of the truth-telling instrument and the physical parts of the drowned younger sister from which they are made. The ballad structure in its formal aspects will maintain itself without effort, in spite of many changes which may be worked in the naming of the increments. In Edward, similarly, the increment of change in the series of repeated stanzas has provided the opportunity for the development of the major variables in the tradition as a whole. If we may judge from these three studies of the popular ballad, it will be noted that they are, shall we say, peculiarly fitted for the synoptic treatment, a fixing upon such striking variables, which is characteristic of most studies using the Finnish method. Cumulative tales and songs, because they proceed by the addition of increments, are good substance for the schematics of the method; they have been treated by Martti Haavio in two numbers of the Folklore Fellows Communications.9 Anderson’s study of the jest of Kaiser und Abt deals with matter that is not unlike these ballads and songs, for the questions of the Kaiser and the answers of the Abt provide the repetitive framework in which appear the variations as particular minutiae that can be abstracted from the repeated and unvarying framework. But not all ballads are constructed along such lines. In a typical ballad (Edward and The Maid Freed from the Gallows are hardly typical) the narrative sequence does not have nexus of variation in a framework of fairly constant appearance. In ballads like Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight one verse is as variable as the next (with some modifications), every stanza as variable as the next. Variation in most ballads, then, is to be sought in every verse, not in highlighted increments. Furthermore, it must be remembered that ballads are frequently printed, and have been from the earliest days of printing, when ‘ballets’ and chapbooks were hawked about the streets as part of the early provender from a democratic press. Ballads were thus constantly worked upon by balladmongers of earlier days, and by ballad editors of later days, for the traditional ballad became an aesthetic specimen in the hands of a Herder or a Scott. Ballads as a genre are not so old, probably,

Matters of Method and Source

1')

as the earlier discussions on the subject have tried to make them; a ballad like Child No. 4, which had circulated about western Europe by 1550, is indeed an old ballad, but its age is not prehistoric or at any rate so ancient as the folktales of wide currency which are reflected in Classical literature and Biblical narrative. Ballads therefore require a special handling which is rarely given to them in folkloristic studies. They must be studied not in translation and not in abstracted résumés, but in their original languages, in their actual phrasing, and in their verse and stanzaic structure — not as abstracted details or redactions. Ballads need to be treated not as if they were composed of »unit-ideas,» to borrow a phrase from historians of ideas (a concept which is analogous to the folkloristic »motifs»), but as »unit-structures of language;» writing the ballad’s history becomes a matter of studying these structures and watching for the changes in the phrasing and language. Folklorists have rightly concerned them­ selves with the narrative content. They have neglected to consider that narrative content inheres in a total phrasal complex, a complex or structure which is of some significance, certainly, in the comparative study of folktales, but which is of primary significance in the comparative study of highly formalized ballad texts. The highly formal structure of ballad texts raises questions that concern the nature of dissemination of a ballad in tradition. Linguistic phenomena like words are diffused in a manner described by the Wellen­ theorie ofJohannes Schmidt. They are the prime example of oral material in so far as the language has been little influenced by a literary tradition until modem times, and even then that influence is less forceful and effective than is sometimes thought. Language is speech, and speech is transmitted by oral tradition primarily. In a body of folktale transmitted totally by oral means, with no literary influences present, the Wellen­ theorie of dissemination might again apply as in the instance of a linguistic phenomenon. At the other extreme are literary texts, medieval MSS. such as those of Chaucer’s and Boccaccio’s works. These literary works are transmitted totally by writing. They conform to a process of dissemin­ ation that must be represented by genealogical tables; a Stammbaum can then be drawn for the Filostrato texts or the texts of The Canterbury Tales. The dissemination of the ballads of western Europe is neither like the purely oral process of the spread^of a word like IE *bhrâtër, nor like the dissemination of the Filostrato MSS., each text a direct product of another. But if the ballad has been a popular one the chances are that print or at any rate writing has supported the transmission of the text, that some Danish court dames passed it about for copying into their manuscript books in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, that some ballad writer like William Elderton or Martin Parker furbished it up for the London presses in the same period, that a Peter Buchan dressed it up for Aberdeenshire cottars to sing of a Saturday night. In such wise the ballad is in great part a literary text which relapses

ló

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

into oral tradition at every other turn, a text that can be related in some measure to another in the fashion of the genealogical notion of dissemination, in spite of its oral circulation. The ballad of Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight conforms with my de­ scription of a popular piece that has had the fixing influence of writing or print applied to it every now and then. To mention only a few early instances of a lettered treatment of the ballad, it was entered in Karen Brahe’s MS. in c. 1550, and in a number of others of more recent date (H. Grüner Nielsen has informed us that these early MS. collections from Denmark are very much a literary tradition) ; (/linger, the significant representative of the south German form of the song, appeared in three broadsides dated about 1555, 1560, and 1570; the song was printed in Spain in the year 1550; and the Icelandic ballad is in a manuscript of 1665. The ensuing pages will attempt as far as possible to indicate the interdependence of literary and oral transmission. My strictures on the Finnish method are not meant to suggest that the method is in itself invalid. It will undoubtedly perform the function for which it is designed, with more or less success, dependent upon the suitability of the evidence and the capacities of the student. But quite apart from the emphases which it usually entails, its formalism, and its drive for the original, the method needs modification in its treatment of various kinds of material. Such modifications as I have suggested seem necessary in the treatment of the general run of traditional ballad, a ballad like Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight. We recognize that the method is based on common sense and operates by reasoned argument, both of which defy the constraints of partisanship or schools and the restrictive bonds of an immoderate systematization. My procedure in the pages that follow is certainly geographical, as the chapter headings for one thing indicate. I identify the national forms of the song and point out the geographic character of the differences. My study is equally historical, for I purport to write the history of the ballad; some national forms are earlier than others, some of later development. But I choose to work with the language of the variants themselves, rather than at one or more removes through an ‘abstract’ or ‘redaction,’ for only in this way can one perceive particular relationships between variants, the relationships that constitute the ‘events’ in the history. I would venture to say then that the methods I use are historical and geographic, although a student trained in the method of the Finnish school will find my work ordered perhaps a little differently. The concept of change through time and place is no one’s monopoly, and that change can be sought for in different ways. Svend Grundtvig was the first scholar to attempt a comparative study of ballad texts. His little Elveskud publication of 1881 is an order­ ing of variant phrasings, with some attempt to indicate the interrelations of phrasing among the national forms of the song. His treatment is not elaborate in its analysis, but it indicates an attitude to the ballad texts,

M atten of Method and Source

17

shared by Grundtvig and Child, that the relationships between variants and between national forms are recognizable and subject to study by considering a variant’s language structure in its entirety, much as variant literary texts can be related by comparison of wholes and the noting of minor deviations. My procedure is based in part, then, on the example of Grundtvig's comparative methods, textual comparison that is ponderous and lengthy, but one that treats the ballad realistically according to its nature. Since the variants from a single nation or linguistic area have family resemblances that render them recognizable as composing a national form, I choose to treat the variants from a linguistic area as a unit and to determine how the variants arrange themselves in groups, and how the groups are related to one another. Certain groups appear to have given rise to others, and this interdependence permits positing genealogical relations of the groups (and in some instances of the variants themselves). The older groups in contiguous countries reveal relationships that extend across linguistic boundaries and so permit one's positing the relative age of forms from different linguistic areas. Matters of narrative management and change, rationalizings of the supernatural, tendencies to change the nature of the motive of the prime agent in the narrative, all criteria familiar to readers of FFC and suggested by such generalizations as Olrik drew up as Episke Love, permit of further ordering of the narrative forms, and thereby, of the dissemination of the ballad. Contrary to the dicta of Aarne and Krohn, the history of the ballad can be determined by such procedures without undue stress upon the periphery of the tradition. The ballad's history at and near its centre of origin in northwest Europe can be written without undue concern for the extremities of development southward into Spain and Italy and eastward across Germany and into Hungary and the Slavic area of Europe. The national forms in these outlying parts of the tradition might elucidate matters in the complex centre of the tradition, but the evidence suggests that they are only further developments related to and evolved from national forms which exist between them and the centre of the tradition. Every ballad has, of course, its own history, independent of the movements of other songs; generalizations about the nature of the dissemination of all ballads must be attempted with caudon. The histories of too few ballads have been worked out to permit of any final conclusions regarding the behaviour of all popular song. The investigator is therefore obliged to consider the means by which the subject of his study may best be executed and to determine the procedure that the specific material at hand requires. Such a ballad as Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight reveals its movements outward from the centre of the tradition by the verbal and phrasal retentions and the narrative parallels 2

18

The Rallad of Heer Halewijn

(as well as changes) that appear in one national tradition derived from another. As for the mechanics of procedure in my own study, it has seemed best to divide the narrative of the ballad in a particular language into stages of narration. The variant phrasings lor each stage are entered in the text; they receive some indication of frequency of occurrence by a process of varied indentation, the very infrequent readings appearing toward the far right, the frequent readings (with occurrences in more than half of the variants) appearing toward the far left. A figure in parentheses after each quotation indicates the actual number of variants that have the phrasing quoted. Footnoting indicates the variants represented by each reading, as well as minor deviations of phrasing that are self-explanatory. Each stage of the narrative, after the readings have been tabulated, receives an analytic discussion in which are brought out the groupings of the variants and the degree of relationship among the variants in a group and among the groups themselves. The relations based on phrasal parallels and parallels of verbal structure serve to separate the various national forms of the song. The verbal echoes extend across language boundaries (as between France and England, or Denmark and Germany) and so help to relate the ballad of one linguistic area with that of another. The history of the ballad is to be interpreted from the phrasing of the texts themselves, and it is with the phrasing that I begin. Rather different in approach, method, and purpose is the work recently issued by Iivar Kemppinen entitled The Ballad of Lady Isabel and the False Knight, a work that has been in progress simultaneously with my own. Kemppinen’s study is not organized after chronologicalgeographical principles in spite of certain resemblances between his work and that of exponents of the Finnish school. His approach is holistic, as he terms it; he disregards the disseminational history and the derivational changes in the tradition and therefore the precedence of one body of variants over another. All variants become of equal value in such a procedure in shadowing forth original traits of the tradition. By fiat any detail in the tradition whatsoever may be used to support the particular thesis, a theory of origin and source for the ballad. The comparative analysis of variants is then by choice not dwelt upon with any thoroughness, and the redaction of the narrative and its events, and the descriptions of the persons in the ballad and their motives, extrapolated as these redactions and descriptions are from all variants in a process of arithmetic averaging, lead to no con­ vincing conclusions, for the method used proceeds along the surface of things. Kemppinen’s study does not, in fact, provide a history of ihe ballad, an adequate sketch of the movement of the song from one territory to another, or an account of the changes that have been worked in the narrative. The argument and evidence are weighted toward proving a theory of origin for the tradition. A great part of

Matters of Method and Source

19

this evidence, which contributes to the theory of origin, consists of Finnish, Esthonian, and Russian variants of a ballad which Kemppinen identifies with the tradition of Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight, but which Antti Aame, in two separate studies (see FFC No. 47, 1922, for one), chose not to do. Kemppinen’s critics find the identification unsubstanti­ ated, as does the present writer. The bibliographic aspects of his study are impressive (179 pages of variant enumeration and description). But his claim to have collected 1865 variants must be interpreted in the light of what to him is a variant. In his view a variant is a record of any sort and description. Thus Peter Buchan’s entry of British B into his MSS. constitutes a variant, the printing of that variant by Buchan constitutes a second, Svend Grundtvig’s translation into Danish of the text from the pages of Buchan constitutes a third, J. H. Dixon’s printing of the Buchan text some years later constitutes a fourth, the entry of the text from Buchan into a local-colour book about Edinburgh by Margaret Warrender constitutes a fifth, Professor Child’s inclusion of the same text in his earlier collection constitutes a sixth, the same editor’s printing of the text in his 1882 volume constitutes a seventh (he misses a variant here by unaccountably associating this 1882 copy in Child with William Motherwell’s MS. copy, which the latter received from Buchan), and, finally, the inclusion of the B text in the Sargent-Kittredge abridgement of the Child collection provides Kemppinen with an eighth variant. Needless to say, no variation exists here whatsoever (save in the Danish translation!). His variant numbering is thus by ‘the long count.’ Had he used ‘the short count’ he would still have more than one-eighth of the 1800 odd texts (for British B has been reprinted more than most texts) ; a count without duplications would yield, however, a far less impressive and more realistic figure. ‘The short count’ would maintain the significance of the term ‘variant,* for it would avoid duplication of a variant in such instances where it is known or recognizable that the text has been copied from another, printed from another, re-edited from another, and, of course, translated from another. Kemppinen’s theory of origin is a mythic interpretation of the song: a mortal vanquishes evil.10 In the forms in which the villain kills the maid (which are derivative and later forms, although he does not recognize them as such and does not take the trouble to determine the matter) we have, according to Kemppinen, a return to the old time-honoured conception of evil vanquishing the mortal. In shoring up his theory he draws indiscriminately from all parts of the tradition analogous details that might serve to illustrate that Halewijn is the devil’s son. A refrain in the British A variant (»The first morning in May») is to him proof of the song being part of May traditions, the worship of the sun, and the exorcism of evil spirits. He is ambivalent about whether the myths are Celtic or are associated with Finnish matter, specifically

20

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

the Lemminkàinen tradition. Nevertheless, the ballad, despite these disparate mythic bases, was composed by a Germanic minstrel. The Germanic minstrel has in'his view wriiten about the supernatural mythic son of the devil, who has become associated in tradition with the nocturnal raging host, led by Herlekin; the latter name is then argued to be the origin of ‘Halewijn,’ an etymology suggested as long ago as 1865 but never established with any certainty, as noted by Reidar Th. Christiansen.11 The latter writer further points out that the narrative of the ballad is rather out of keeping with traditional renderings of the wild host, »where the point stressed is always the utter futility of any attempt to escape these powers.» This theory of origin, to which the whole study is directed, is a mélange of only partially authenticated etymologies and complex analogies between the ballad on the one hand and mythic beliefs, early cultural influences of one people upon another, and mythic riles of spring and winter on the other. In the process he manages to identify the Finnish Lemminkàinen as an analogous counterpart of Halewijn and the Outlandish Knight (all this, over his claims to be making a scientific presentation).12 His study brings us back to the Zeitgeist of Max Müller and Léon Pineau, »un gout particulier.» Kemppinen’s thesis of origin gives us no greater basis for credence than the many origin theories propounded before his time, theories that we shall consider in the next section.

T H E P U R S U I T OF S O U R C E S : LADY ISABEL AND THE ELF-K N IGH T AS EXEMPLAR

Traditional ballads have interested people in many different ways, and this interest has variously obscured as well as enriched our understanding of ballads. One activity, certainly, the hunting of sources, has been relatively fruitless. We are all led by natural curiosity to wonder how this or that song originated, and in response to this natural interest vast amounts of energy and argument have been expended in efforts to trace the different ballads to their root ideas, with varying success. The question of origin may indeed not always be difficult to answer. The general impression is that historical ballads are, after all, history; they are songs that identify time, place, and person. The inference is therefore that these originated after the events they describe. By such reasoning the ballad of The Death of Queen Jane (No. 170 in the Child collection) originated not long after Jane Seymour’s giving birth to Prince Edward in October of 1537 ; Thomas Cromwell (No. 171) arose from events of the summer of 1540; Musselburgh Field (No. 172) celebrated the victory of the English over the Scots in the battle of 1547. With the well known Mary Hamilton (No. 173) we are on less firm ground, for despite the air of historicity about the song, there is no certainty as to the identity of the four Maries or the truth of the incident. Attempts have been made to underwrite the historical origin of the piece, notably by C. K. Sharpe and J. W. Courthope. But is the historical event necessarily the genesis of a song so traditional in outline and so classic in content? Is it not as conceivable that the historic event has merely reinvested a song of earlier date with new vigour through an adventitious historical applicability? A notorious event is able to give new life, another habitation and name, to the narrative which has passed current in tradition — much as anecdotes gravitate to the famous. Certainly some ballads are so lacking in circumstantial detail, so fraught with commonplace event and phrasing, that one must recognize the possibility that the single ballad often no better describes one historical event than another. The Scottish bride­ stealing ballads may be taken as cases in point. Robin Hood, who figures large in English balladry, has been fair game for those who have seen history between the lines. After it had

22

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

become unpopular to identify him as the Earl of Nottingham or as Robin Fitzooth, a more subtle historical approach was called for. The Gomme school chose to interpret ballads as history obscured, even as anthropologists like Andrew Lang prized the ballads for their obscured anthropological record. It may be illuminating and rewarding for us to think that the Robin Hood songs reflect social and cultural tensions between the lowly and aristocratic, between the English community and the Norman master, but the idea remains no more than an hypothesis. Robin Hood, insecure in the annals of history (despite the longish entry in the Dictionary of National Biography, and despite the recent effort to identify our ballad hero with the Robert Hood in the Wakefield Manor Court Rolls),13 can be interpreted as no more than a comment on historical event; where he came from, what he was originally, and what gave the tradition such vitality remain as puzzles for ballad scholars. If the attributed historical origins of a great many historical ballads are open to question, then certainly the beginnings of the non-historical material in folksong are shrouded in far greater mystery. Yet it is noteworthy that the ballads that have received the greatest attention as regards source are not the historical or quasi-historical songs but precisely those that have been recognized by Child, Grundtvig, and others as old and international, those which Child honoured with an early place in his collection. In dealing with the most ancient of ballads and those that least reflect time and place, source studies have the greatest room for speculation, and for error. Source studies deserve scrutiny, for they reveal patterns of approach and thought that might well be noted for their inherent virtues or dangers. These patterns are in themselves a chapter in the history of ballad scholarship. By way of contribution to that chapter I propose to review the various attempts that have been made to explain away, to lay the ghosts of Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight, the ballad which more than any other has led scholars to exercise their learning and ingenuity in this direction. During the past century many assertions and theories of origin lor Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight and its Continental analogues have been promulgated. Some have been highly provincial, innocently narrow in view, rather falling into the classification of local antiquarian mis­ information, and not deserving of the term »theory» at all; others have been rational and informed, even super-rational and symbolic in essence, partaking of a rationale beyond reason itself. The contributions have for the most part been made by men prominent in ballad scholarship who have all been motivated by the same desire, to demonstrate the ballad's antecedents, to reduce the ballad to its source or germinal idea. The narrowly provincial interpretations of the events described in the ballad need hardly concern us here (save for the amusement they

Matters of Method and Source

23

afford in their quaintness) ; for they are nothing more than local custom foisted upon the song or, perhaps more properly, legends that the song has foisted upon the locality. Robert Chambers reported how in Ayrshire the country people pointed to »a tall rocky eminence called Gamesloup, overhanging the sea,» where it is said the false Sir John »was in the habit of drowning his wives, and where he was finally drowned himself.» These people who look upon the ballad as a representation of fact »farther affirm that May Collean was a daughter of the family of Kennedy of Colzean.»14 The Scots of Ayrshire, not unlike ballad singers elsewhere, made the ballad vividly their own by framing the narrative as if the event did indeed happen »in these very parts.» Svend Grundtvig, in his informative Headnote to Kvindemorderen. the Danish form of the ballad (No. 183 in Danmarks gamle Folkeviser), gave little attention to the question of origin, for he found the matter beyond demonstration; but he tentatively suggested that to his mind some obscured elf song (»fordunklet Elvevise») lay behind the narrative.15 His suggestion was in great part predetermined by his belief, also held with reservations, that the ballad may have originated in the Scandinavian North, for he would read the names of the villain of the ballad as deviations from a Danish name. Grundtvig would have been hard put, however, to explain why this elf destroyed his victims, for elves in Scandinavian lore are not predatory and murderous; and Grundtvig’s critics have not missed the opportunity of raising this question.16 The villain in the Scandinavian variants is nowhere identified as an elf ; he is called an elf only in British variant A. : As a possible elf story suggested itself to the Dane Grundtvig, so a possible merman story suggested itself to the German Franz* .Böhme,17 for mermen are as characteristically north German as elves are Scandinavian. Rivers and seas are a constant feature in the ballad, and the villain of the piece drowns his victims in the variants of-France, England, and Poland. Professor Child in his first collection of ballads, following J. H. Dixon, had espoused his theory: »The Merman or Nix may be easily recognized.»18 But he quite dropped the idea for the 1882 edition after having been criticized by Grundtvig for suggesting that the heroine escapes from the merman by pushing him into the sea and so bringing about his death through drowning. This would amusingly permit us to think the ballad a variant of the Wise Men of Gotham who tried to drown the eel. There is insufficient reason for giving credence to either the obscured and distorted elf-tale or the submerged 'merman-tale. They are both shots in the dark, and we remain, and probably shall remain, ignorant of how far off the mark they in fact are. The association of Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight with the Bluebeard tale leads us to apparently firmer ground, for here we may consult the evidence and reach conclusions not entirely built on faith. Goethe was the first to make the association, and a number of scholars have

24

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

followed his example, including Ludwig Uhland, Franz Böhme, and Lutz Mackensen. It is not unusual to find references in German scholarship to the Blaubartlied, suggesting that the association is sound and proven. But, in point of fact, the association is all too readily made; the tale and ballad in all their multiple forms are distinct and separate in their histories, as far as the records dating from as far back as the mid-sixteenth century’ will permit us to judge. Ballad and tale do share a narrative idea; a man or demon murders a number of women and is in turn destroyed by one too clever for him. The startling thing is not, however, the similar narrative idea (similar only if sketched in such a summary way), but the complete difference of treatment and interpretation of the narrative. There appear to be no details in the total body of variants of either ballad or tale that would render possible a demonstration of relationship. Each appears sufficient unto itself and will reveal no affinities with the other. If the doctrine of polygenesis of a narrative idea commands respect its adherents might well cite this ballad and tale as instances. Both Franz Böhme19 and Paul Kretschmer20 have considered the possible relationship. The variance of their opinions is good de­ monstration of the difficulties involved. Böhme thought that the ballad was originally an elf-song (here he disconcertingly follows Grundtvig), into which had been stuffed the Bluebeard story of multiple murders, a story with a historical basis. Kretschmer thought that the tale was originally about an otherworld demon, a tale into which was stuffed the ballad narrative of multiple murders, a ballad with a historical basis. Although we must admit some sort of supernatural basis for the narrative of the ballad, both attempts to associate the tale and ballad and to describe their inception as part supernatural and part historical are sheer speculation. Just as there are no discernibly valid reasons for arguing the precedence of one form over the other, or for admitting the relationship itself, for that matter,21 so there is no reason for believing either tale or ballad to be historical in its inception. Kretschmer thinks the ballad may have derived from some possible broadside account of actual murders such as were perpetrated by the Frenchman Comorre in the early thirteenth century, or by the more notorious Breton Gilles de Laval in the early fifteenth century. The point is not very well taken when one considers by how much both of these gentlemen an­ tedated the printing of fliegende Blätter. But more significantly, Kretschmer failed to study the ballad’s history closely and so recognize that it was not »einfach ein Lustmord» (simply a sex murder); its motifs point back to an earlier supernatural content. This oversight would render Kretschmer’s position less secure than Böhme’s. Böhme, who would give precedence to the ballad, saw the tale as a tradition possibly relating to Gilles de Laval, a supposition that Kretschmer flatly denied. It is to my mind reasonable to consider this historical

Matters of Method and Source

25

attribution of source made by both Böhme and Kretschmer as akin to the naiveté of the Scottish country people with their Gamesloup. We move next to a study made about the time when the appearance of the copious Handwörterbuch des deutschen Aberglaubens focused attention upon superstitions. In 1929 Friedrich Holz22 presented the theory that the germinal idea of the ballad was the medieval belief that maiden’s blood cured leprosy. Holz cites tales which illustrate the superstition (Hartmann von Aue’s Der arme Heinrich is the best known example), as well as cases from medical history that prove the wide currency of the belief and the respect with which it had on occasion been held by medical practitioners. But when we turn to the variants of the ballad the idea does not inspire us with confidence. There are streams of blood and springs of blood in Scandinavian and Dutch variants as well as the more usual streams of water. But no variant from these areas gives the slightest hint of what the villain does with the maids, aside from hanging or burying them. No statement is made of his using their blood. And no indication is to be found of ill health on his part. It is perfectly true that the villain seems motiveless in the older tradition (gold and robbery are a latter-day tradition in the ballad), but that is no reason for attributing to him the motive that Holz suggests. Only one single variant in the entire tradition of the song furnishes him support for his idea, a variant from Switzerland clearly removed from the centre of the tradition. In this variant the knight promises to teach the maid the »Baderliedli» if she will come away with him. Holz interprets this song as a reference to a particular healing bath: »gemeint ist hier das Schongauerbad am Lindenberge.»23 H b case is bolstered by the fact that this ballad from Aargau in Switzerland has a parallel folktale from the same district, a tale in which leprosy is cured by baths in the blood of maidens. Linking the entire European tradition of Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight with this superstition on the basb of the single folktale and variant is questionable method. The chain of causation moves in the opposite direction; a well known and much sung ballad, having reached the dbtrict of Aargau, has probably submitted to the influence of a local tradition. The song has been maintained in tradition over all Europe for centuries without the awareness on the part of singers of such a reasonable motive for what is, after all, an other than human villain. Holz' demonstration of origin is a forced argument. The solar mythologists have had fair game with Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight, with Léon Pineau24 as spokesman. By a process of fabulous analogizing he identified the hero as the spirit of shadows, death, night, and winter, finally overcome by the warmth of summer. The murdered maids thus represent months of the year. Refrains from Scotland and Denmark are cited as final proof of the Ur-meaning of the song: Scottish variant A has the refrain, »Aye as the gowans grow gay, / The first morning in May;» and Danish variant A, »Men linden groer.» Such refrains are, of course, the most common of commonplaces in balladry

26

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

and cannot he interpreted as significantly related in idea to the narratives they accompany. Andreas Heusler has fittingly pointed out that Pineau went so far as to date the Scandinavian ballads of magic and the super­ natural much earlier than the Eddie poetry.26 The solar mythologists of the school of Max Midler have long since been laughed out of court with their poetic subjugation to their simple formula of all imaginative creations that seem to stand outside history. I have no interest in belabouring a dead issue; I have touched upon Pineau’s interpretation of the ballad only because it forcibly illustrates a common denominator among the source attributions, the tendency to write the ballad’s early history not on its own terms but on terms dictated by something else.26 Another theory of inception not unlike Pineau’s adventures of a soul among the masterpieces of folk poetry is Paul de Keyser’s27 psychoanalytic interpretation of the morphology of the ballad. Unmindful of the fact of change in ballads as they pass through tradition, and oblivious of the national variants outside his native Holland, de Keyser points out how in the usual Dutch ballad, the brother of the maid (in a passage of incremental repetition — itself a commonplace passage) gives his sister permission to follow Halewijn, the villain, provided she remain chaste. According to de Keyser Halewijn is, in the singer’s subconscious mind, the brother of the maid. The beheading of Halewijn by the maid is then interpreted as punishment by castration arising from the suppressed desires of the singer. The ballad is an expression of unconscious drives of sibling incest on the part of those who have given the song its narrative shape. De Keyser’s interpretation is not without its interest, and the reinterpretation of the events of the human scene by sexual symbol may not be without value, but does it in fact tell us what we wish to know about the origin of Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight? We must be prepared to rewrite the psychological correlatives with every major change that the ballad has undergone in its transmission. We cannot, for instance, be certain that the brother played a part in the ballad in its earliest form. Apart from the Dutch variants the brother enters the ballad only in a minor tradition in Germany, and then quite differently, as the protector of the maid at the close of the narrative. One is also forced to observe that a psychological interpretation such as de Keyser’s does not distinguish the song under consideration from a number of other songs that might be reduced to the same drives. The Cruel Brother (Child ballad No. 11 ) is undoubtedly read by many as an exhibition of sibling love; psychological explication makes good sense of the ballad story. But the psychological analogizing of Halewijn by de Keyser does not enrich and support our understanding in the same way.28 It must be admitted, of course, that de Keyser is not seeking the same kind of root that the literalists are attempting to find. De Keyser

Matters of Method and Source

27

cannot help us determine an early from a late form of the same narrative, but that is precisely what a source study must do. In defence of the literalists it must be remembered that whoever first fashioned the ballad, despite his troubles and joys, confused Halewijn no more with the brother than with winter. To say that he did so unwittingly is to undertake à proof hardly feasible within the limitations of the pragmatic foundations of the psychoanalytic science. These then are a goodly number of attempts to disclose the possible beginnings of one ballad. Their very number and the fundamental disagreements among them bring home to us the difficulty of the task. There is clearly room for more hypotheses, for none of the halfdozen so far reviewed has been widely accepted. But where so many have failed, there seems as little hope of success as in the turning of the sands of Egypt for the tomb of Sanakht. We have not in fact finished the review of source hypotheses for Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight; one remains, which will occupy our attention at greater length if only because it has gained credence among scholars by its deceptive plausibility. I call Sophus Bugge’s29 source theory deceptively plausible, for it makes its appeal to one’s reason, is supported by a show of linguistic techniques, and is the address of a scholar to his problem. What is more, Bugge’s conclusion has been accepted without questioning by George Doncieux, Knut Liestøl, W. J. Entwistle, and Marius Barbeau, to name a few. Bugge argued as long ago as 1879 that Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight is derived from the Book of Judith in the Apocrypha, that heroine and villain are Judith and Holofernes. Professor Child presents Bugge’s argument very fairly in his Headnote to the ballad, without comment, although he did have misgivings. The forcefulness of Bugge’s argument resides in the wealth of minute points he offers for the reader’s consideration. In our bid for scepticism we shall consider the nature of the minutiae, the premises of his argument, and its mainstays. Phrased in a general way the two narratives have a likeness: a man who stands in enmity to a woman is killed by her, and her method of killing him is by decapitation. But there are some major differences too: Holofernes does not intend to deprive Judith of her life, nor has he indulged in a series of murders. This multiple murder motif is the very heart of the ballad narrative, for it appears in all variants from all countries. It is difficult to conceive of the series of murders as absent from the ballad at its beginning. And Bugge would be hard put to explain how the supernatural element entered the ballad if the original was indeed a redaction of the Apocryphal tale. Analysis of Bugge’s argument reveals that it rests upon a number of assumptions that rather beg the question. He assumed, first, that any small detail in any of the many widespread variants from Iceland to Italy was »original» if it was in any way suggestive of a parallel with

28

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

the Judith story.80 He assumed, second, that an early German poem about Judith, another source of the ballad maker, is corrupt in its phrasing so that it differs from the ballad in the one significant instance in which the ballad shows a supposed direct borrowing from the poem. He assumed, third, that the ballad maker, in writing his ballad after the Vulgate account of Judith and Holofernes, misread and misinterpreted the Latin in such ways as account for particular details to be found in certain scattered variants of the ballad. He assumed, fourth, that the earliest form of the ballad, the original, differed greatly from the extant forms. This assumption looks innocent enough; we take the statement to be a truism. And yet a comparison of the national forms of the song during the last 400 years reveals an overall correspondence and consistency that do not permit us to think that prior to the mid-sixteenth century vast changes were being worked in the narrative outline. Fifth, he stretched the concept of parallels and echoes beyond the point permitted a careful student and one less enamoured of the argument. And sixth and finally, he assumed that the name Holofernes is the root name from which the various names of the villain have arisen. Let us look more closely at the arguments themselves. The High German poem from c. 1200, which follows the Vulgate in its outline and major details, has a pair of lines that read, du zûhiz wîblîchi un slabranihichi.31

The lines are part of the angel’s advice to Judith about dispatching Holofernes; they have been variously emended by editors, for they do not make good sense. Bugge translates these words as, »You draw it in a womanly fashion and strike . . . .»32 In one Danish variant we meet the lines, Saa qwindelig hun det suerd uddrog, saa mandelig hun til hannem hug.

These lines from Danish D are a commonplace in Danish balladry, a fact that Bugge does admit. But nevertheless he thinks a relationship with the old German poem is sufficiently clear to permit his making an editorial change in the text of the poem, thereby bringing it into conformity with the Scandinavian commonplace. He alters the poem to read, on the basis of what is in the Danish ballad, sû zôhiz wîblîchi undi sluoc mannlichi.**

His procedure is a clear begging of the question; he has not demonstrated a similarity between poem and ballad, but has instead made one. Bugge disarmingly suggests that some of the parallels he presents may be accidental agreements, but only after he has completed a

Klatters of Method and Source

29

lengthy barrage of citations that do not convince the reader. He does not recognize ballad commonplaces as such, but cites them as illustrations of how the ballad and the Apocryphal tale (also not devoid of traditional commonplaces) are related. In some Low German and Danish variants the principals ride for three days and three nights. The statement occurs in a great many ballads as a standard folksong description of a long ride. What is more, Grundtvig points out that the statement in the Danish variants has entered the ballad from Den farlige Jomfru (DgF No. 184); the nature of commonplaces is that they do wander. The figure three bears no singular significance in balladry, for most multiple things tend to three. Yet Bugge finds the three day ride revealing, for did not Judith kill Holofernes on her fourth day at his camp?34 Bugge disregards the changes incurred by traditional dissemination in the ballad. He draws his catalogue of parallels from any variant that suits his purpose. With him all motifs in the ballad are original which seem to echo the Judith story, and all other motifs are later interpolations and changes. In certain English variants the knight comes from the North; so must we infer that Holofernes did (Book of Judith, XVI, 5).36 The trait in the ballad is so distinctly confined to England (in a tradition that came from France, without mention of »North») that one can only assume that the North of the Outlandish Knight and the Assyria of Holofernes have nothing to do with one another. The same thing must be said of May Collin’s (variant D) leaving her home at night, and Judith’s doing the same thing.38 Holofernes* armies are to be seen as metamorphosed into the brothers, sisters, and followers of the villain found in certain variants.87 Surely such an interpretation takes advantage of; the most fortuitous details. The Scandinavian picture of a wonderlaQjl .to which the false knight will take the maiden and his offer in the„ English ballad of casdes over which she shall rule as lady are cited as correspondences for Holofernes* promise to Judith that she shall be great in the house of Nebuchadnezzar and her name shall be known in all the land (XI, 21).38 But such offers of attractive bait are to be met with in any story in which a seduction or artful vanquishment of a woman by a man is attempted. In the Danish ballad the heroine binds the murderer’s hands and feet; Bugge points out that in the German poem Judith’s handmaid stands by to restrain Holofernes if he should awake while she is preparing to take his life.39 The passages are hardly correspondences. The closing stanza of the Icelandic ballad, in which the heroine is described as retiring to a nunnery, is a Scandinavian commonplace, not original with this ballad; Bugge believes the stanza to be an echo of Judith’s living out the rest of her days as a chaste widow.40 One lone Swedish ariant gives the villain sisters who cry out when they find him dead; this suggests to Bugge the lamentation of Holofernes* lieutenants.41 In one English variant (D), the maid and her parents journey to the seashore to behold the body of the murderer; Judith and the Jews journey

30

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

to find the body of Holofernes after their victory at arms.42 Clearly such »parallels» do not convince. Bugge, searching about among the vast number of variants of the ballad that were available to him, has made a case by pointing out every fortuitous resemblance that a rich ballad tradition through the vagaries of oral transmission could provide. His method was not to sort out in the first place those things that could clearly be argued as original or old in the ballad’s tradition. To him, that which seemed closest to the Apocrypha was original. But now for the ballad maker’s misreading of the Vulgate text. At no point is the phrasing of the ballad like that of the Book~of Judith. The words of the one approach the words of the other most closely in the instances where the words do not mean the same thing. In the Scandinavian ballad the villain lifts the maid upon his horse and they ride away. Bugge suggests that this lifting is an echo of the verb »elevaverunt» in the description of Holofernes’ men carrying Judith into his tent (X, 20).43 He does not mention that lifting the maid upon the horse behind the rider is a commonplace in Scandinavian balladry. In the Dutch ballad the maid blew the horn like a man; Bugge compares this with »cum audissent viri vocem ejus» (XIII, 14), believing that the ballad maker read »viri» as being in the genitive case.44 Bugge believes that the couplet from a High German variant, Dor Ulingcr hat eilf junkJrawen gehangrn, Die zwölft hat er gefangen,

is a rendering of »Dixit se incessurum fines meos el juvenes meos occisurum gladio, infantes meos dare in praedam, et virgines in captivitatem» (XVI, 6).45 Bugge believes further (although he admits the idea is daring) that a High German form of the ballad in which the murderer is bound and himself hanged may stem from a misreading of the Vulgate »accessit ad columnam, quae erat ad caput lectuli ejus, et pugionem ejus, qui in ea ligatus pendebat, exsolvit» (XIII, 8). He believes the misreading came about by a misplacement of modifier, as in »She loosened the knife, which belonged to him, that hung on supports.»46 It is inconceivable how such an echo of the Vulgate (if we were to admit it as one) could remain intact through oral transmission of the ballad into southern Germany and reveal itself in one isolated variant that is not in the usual stream of the tradition. These are instances of the ingeniously drawn parallels between ballad and source. In the Apocryphal story an angel visits Judith to give her advice as to how to dispatch Holofernes. Bugge finds traces of the angel in two places in the tradition of the ballad: first, in the form of the white dove that warns the maid in the High German ballad that she is going to be killed, and second, in his reconstruction of the refrains of the Scandinavian variants. As others have pointed out, the talking dove is a commonplace in German ballad lore and folktales, and is, as one can best determine, a late entry into the tradition of the ballad. Bugge's

Matters of Method and Source

31

reconstruction of the refrain is the epitome of ingenious argument. As he expends an entire page47 in the demonstration, and as it is his closing point, we shall examine it here. Danish A has as its Indstev (refrain following the first narrative line of a stanza) the following: Men Iienden grorr,

or, less frequently, Men leinenn grodt.

Danish B has the fuller Se Vindelraad til ædele Herre din!

Danish C has an Indstev much like Danish B, in which both the gentleman’s and lady’s names are mentioned : Se Hollemen ind til Vendelraad!

Because Danish A has the same Efterstev (refrain following the second and last line of narrative text in the stanza) as has Danish G, Bugge believes that the Indstev of A should therefore be the same as that of C. »Men leinenn grodt» (the less usual form) is to his ear and understanding a corruption of the name of the maid as it is found in Danish B and C, Vindelraad, Vendelraad. He believes that »leinenn» in the Indstev represents the name of the maid, which originally must have been Lenel, Lennel, or Linnel. The »raad» (which »grodt» in A suggests to him) was in his view not part of the original name. Lenel or Linnel is, like Linnich of a Low German variant, the diminutive of the name Helena to be found in one German variant. And so Bugge reconstructs the Indstev for Danish A to read, Sc, Lennel, raad til Hollcvern ædele Herre din!

The Indstev in this form is then interpreted by Bugge as an admonition on the part of the angel to the heroine that she should bear a weapon against the villain. The phrase »raad til» is not as specific as Bugge would have it; the import of Bugge’s refrain might be, »Be advised regarding Hollevern your noble lord.» In terms of other Scandinavian ballads it would be very strange if the refrain were as explicitly a part of the action of the ballad as Bugge would make it. The B and G refrains are commonplaces that suggest the dance motions that once accompanied the singing of the Danish ballads. The A refrain as it appears in the Karen Brahe MS. of c. 1550 is understandable as a commonplace statement about the natural scene, much like the Scottish »Aye as the gowans grow gay.» But the reader will wonder how the name Hollevern entered the reconstructed refrain. Bugge put it there. For he argues that the mainstay of his source attribution is that the villain’s various names seem to have arisen from Hollevern, a name palpably suggestive of Holofernes.

32

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

In early Scandinavian variants we meet such strikingly Germanic names as Oldemor, Ohnor, Romor, Hollemen, Ulver, Alemarken, Rulleman, etc. The names in German variants are not unlike these: Ulinger, Ulrich, Adelger, Alleger, Helsinger, Halsemann, Olingen, Olbert, etc. Bugge thought that there was some obscured but ascertainable original form behind the series. He disagreed with Grundtvig's choice of Oldemor. He decided that the original name must have been Hollevem, Holevern, or Olevem. He explains that even before he had any thought about the source of the ballad’s theme, he had arrived at the decision, from a comparison of the names, that the root form was (H)ol(l)evern, although, as he admits, it appears nowhere unaltered, »skjønt dette ingensteds uforandret foreligger.»48 A counting of the frequencies of the successive phonemes that make up the 21 names Bugge had at his disposal gives us a choice among the following names: Olemor, Ulemor, Oleger, Uleger. Bugge suggests that an original v had given way to m, g, and b, an idea that is hard to accept without good reason. The v sound which he argues for appears in but three names, Ulver, Halewijn, and the English Elf (a questionable member in this company). None of the names end in double consonants as does his reconstructed name. The mainstay of his argument, as he calls the name derivation, is very insecure. Bugge admits that the extant ballad is much different from his postulated original, that the ballad is but a wild shoot of the Judith story. But in making his case he has asked us to dismiss all our native caution and to stretch our credulity beyond reason. Andrew Lang’s response was : »If so, the legend is diablement changé en route.» In Hoffmann von Fallersleben’s collection of Dutch ballads, which Bugge had to hand, appeared a nineteenth century broadside variant of Halewijn49 that von Fallersleben cites as an example of the depths to which the folk poetry of the Netherlands has fallen. A third line has been fashioned for every stanza, usually by merely vary ing the substance of the second line. Two of the stanzas read: 34. Ik heb van ’t leven hem beroofd, in mynen schoot heb ik zyn hoofd ; hy is als Holofernes, my gelooft. 37. Zy reed dan voord als Judith wys, zoo recht nae haer vaders paleys, daer zy wierd ingehaeld met eer en prys.

The vague similarity of the story of Halewijn and the Judith-Holofernes narrative had not escaped notice before Bugge. This mention of the two principals from the story in the Apocrypha lends no support to Bugge’s theory (he strangely makes no mention of this particular variant), for the names are clearly a late addition to the ballad. The names are

Matters of Method and Source

33

both introduced in unballad>like similes and as part of a line-filling process. Is it beyond the realm of probability that Bugge took his cue from this variant?50 We have now come to the end of a lengthy list of source studies for Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight. This ballad has been most richly endowed with sources, none of which can safely be accepted as valid, even though each is heralded by its author as a certitude. We may learn from the experience of others that the certitude is not with the findings but with the preconceptions and determination brought to the problem. It has become apparent in the course of this review that all the attributions of source considered have been fathered by world views, Zeitgeist, climates of opinion, attitudes, partialities, rather than by the evidence that the subject itself, the ballad, affords. The difficulty is undoubtedly in the paucity of information that the ballad does afford. But the facts and inferences that we may read in the variants of the ballad do provide strong grounds for doubting each suggested source. It would be singularly wrong-headed to neglect what the ballad record can offer as a guide and restraint. We are left with a handful of improbable possibilities as to the source of the ballad. And for these we may well be thankful, for their authors have trod the sands of surmise and have taught us how to avoid them, if we will but learn by example. It is true that Bugge’s argument, in its devious ingenuity in holding to the text, bears no outward mark of fashion, but nevertheless his position was much predetermined by other habits of thought. His addiction to Biblical parallels was noted by his Scandinavian colleagues. Grundtvig made a decidedly questioning appraisal of Bugge's theory in an addition to a letter to Professor Child dated January 29, 1880. Child’s reply gives a much clearer view of his judgement of Bugge than does the Headnote to Lady Isabel, which was printed two years later. The very important article of Sophus Bugge, I have not had time to consider, but should imagine that it was a corollary to his other theories which are now making such a stir. He will expect a Bible story in many a ballad, 1 dare say, and such suggestions being infectious, and not to be demonstrably refuted, many minds will be ready to follow him to any length.51

When Léon Pineau presented his theory of origin, he had this to say of Bugge: »Nous ne croyons pas qu’il se trouve encore quelqu* un pour défendre cette théorie.»62But his countryman George Doncieux defended the theory six years after Pineau’s words appeared in print. A number of scholars have accepted Bugge’s demonstration (possibly for lack of a better theory) : the late W. J. Entwistle on six different occasions in his European Balladry identifies the source of Halewijn as the Book of 3

34

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

Judith, and the identification has spread to other general accounts of balladry as well as to specific accounts of this ballad. A certain scepticism is a salutary thing in these matters, on the part of investigators and their readers alike. It may be gratifying for us to know that some ballads do have identifiable sources. That Lady Isabel is so unattached, as it were, should not disturb us, for the ballad is still with us in all its multifarious variety. We still have the adventure of Lady Isabel with a knight as full of mystery as ever.

C H A P T E R II

HEER HALEWIJN, ULINGER, AND ULRICH: THE BALLAD IN DUTCH, FLEMISH, AND OERMAN

We shall begin our study with an analysis of the tradition of Heer Halewijn and its German analogues, an arrangement which has been customary in previous discussions of this ballad, and, more important, which is in great part dictated by the nature of the material itself; for we appear to be as close to beginnings with the Flemish and Low German form of the song as we can get. In treating the Dutch and German ballads together we are dealing with a variety of forms of the song that have naturally crossed political boundaries in an area of Europe in which such boundaries have been most subject to the vagaries of political flux. This ballad as it appears in the Continental Germanic lands (The Netherlands, Flanders, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria) and parts of Yugoslavia, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Poland, is one tradition, the coherence of which has been maintained in time by virtue of the similarities in language and dialect. We are then dealing in this chapter with the ballad from the Continental Germanic area, a linguistic area which holds a great body of traditional song in common. In this considerable area, regional variations have occurred in our ballad as we shall see. That form of the song which most closely relates to other national forms derives from The Netherlands and northwest Germany in and near the Rhine basin. The term ‘Dutch* has tradi­ tionally been used in discussions of the ballad in English, and I also propose to use the term; but it must be borne in mind that the Heer Halewijn ballad is more clearly Flemish than Dutch, if one is to judge by the places of origin of the texts which have come to light. The ballad has been collected near Bruges (A), its printings as broadsides occurred in Ghent and Antwerp, and editors inform us that the song has been found in Flanders and Brabant. The term ‘Dutch* will for our purposes, then, serve to designate the ballad in its Flemish as well as Netherlandish form, a stipulation made necessary by the accident of language by which ‘Dutch’ has come to signify in English the post-Napoleonic territory popularly called Holland. The Halewijn song is Flemish rather than ‘Hollandish;* there is only very uncertain evidence of its traditional rendition in the area of the United Provinces.

36

The Ballad of Herr Halewijn

Since Svend Grundtvig first made a comparative study of the forms of this ballad it has been recognized that the German forms vary according to a geographical pattern. Grundtvig’s discussion is the basis for Child’s comments, and John Meier’s excellent treatment of the German forms of the song is no more than an amplification of the earlier arrangement. Meier specifies five forms of the song, and in this respect the present study follows him. Meier’s groupings are: I. Halewijn, II. Ältere Deutsche Form, III. Jüngere Deutsche Form, IV7. Nachwirkung im Kinderspiel, and V. Nicolai Form. Grundtvig described the variety of narratives (aside from the children’s game), and the differences among the forms are in fact very noticeable upon a first reading of the body of variants. What is not clear from the pages of Grundtvig, Child, or Meier is the degrees of relationship among the forms, and the question as to whether the forms represent a kind of continuum of change, or whether they represent different and individual reworkings, one from the other, the variants of which in some instances have taken over characteristics from this or that other form. The editorial procedure of Meier leads him to print ten arbitrarily chosen and to his mind representative texts revealing all the forms that the song has assumed. The variations and interconnections, the transmissional history of the ballad, are thus left out of his treatment.1 My study will first deal closely with the Halewijn form of the song, the song which comes closest to other national forms, specifically the French and the Danish songs. The variants of this form I have designated with the usual letter symbols, in this instance A to J, the order here being determined by the geographical distribution from north and west to south and east. The analysis of the Halewijn form will be followed by a thematic analysis of the Ulinger form (in which the maid is granted three cries and is saved by her brother), the Ulrich form (in which the maid makes three cries but is not saved), and the Nicolai form, named after the editor of Eyn Feyner, Kleyner Almanach of 1778, in which this form of the song first appeared. These derivative forms are arranged in a numerical sequence (1 to 75), once again after their geographical distribution. The German ballad has attracted to itself substance from other songs, and has likewise entered the tradition of other songs, as one might expect of a very popular ballad in a region as full of cross currents of oral tradition as Germany, centred in the land mass of Europe. The ballad has become mixed with the traditions of Die Wassermannsbraut, Graf Friedrich, Die Verkaufte Frau, to mention only a few. The German records of variants represent a time span of nearly four centuries, but only four texts date from before the nineteenth century. Two of these are Ulinger texts in broadsides of about 1566 and 1570. The other two are Ulrich and Nicolai variants, both printed in 1778. None of the Halewijn variants is earlier than the nineteenth century. The modern German variants are not nearly so long as are the broadsides

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German

37

of the sixteenth century or the Dutch variants of the Halewijn form. Professor Child remarks that the Dutch ballad is well preserved. What is most disturbing about the Dutch form of the song is that the many printings of Halewijn depend so much upon one another that one cannot be certain (even about Willems’ text, the earliest, printed in 1836) that traditional copies are represented by the variants we have to hand. This interdependence (and the editorial tamperings) may in great part explain why the Dutch song seems so well preserved. Coussemaker provides an example of the kind of editorial principles one finds at work in the textual renderings of nineteenth century editors. He chooses to present a single text. The variants which he claims to have heard from the mouths of ballad singers all naturally vary from one another, but he assures us that all of them resemble closely at most points the text given by Willems in 1836. Hence he reprints the Willems text. But he presents the text not in the spelling of Willems, but in the dialectal colouring of the Flamands of France and Belgium, whose songs he is ostensibly printing. The C text, which does have some individual strokes, has them by way of a broadside writer who expanded the twolined stanzas to three in order that the three-phrased tune to which the ballad is sung might be filled out with words. Hoffmann von Fallersleben decries the C text, which appears in his collection, as an example of the low state to which traditional song has descended in the Nether­ lands. The balladmonger is palpably present in the C text, for the incremental repetition to be found in the other texts has been altered to fresh and new phrased passages that remove what was to the writer no doubt tiresome, matters are explained more fully and precisely (in the telltale third line) than in the other variants, the. element of anticipation has been destroyed by some of the ill chosen third lines, and French loan words and Biblical allusions appear most unexpectedly. The Halewijn ballad in its Dutch-Flemish form is then not too richly represented by traditional renditions, in spite of its fame and many printings. The German variants from the other side of the Rhine, and in some instances from upstream, are less well ‘preserved’ but more clearly traditional. But, as we shall see, the Halewijn form, in spite of the vicissitudes of preservation, is marked with ancient and impressive traits. Catalogue of Variants of the Halewijn Form A Flanders (near Bruges?)

A. Lootens and J . M. B. Feys, Chants Populaires Flamands , No. 37, 1879; reptd. in FI. van Duyse, H et Oude Nederlandsche Lied, No. 1 C, 1903. 63 sts.

B Brabant / Flanders

F. J . Mone, Anzeiger, V (1836), cob .448—451; reptd. in L. Uhland, A lte hoch- und nieder­

38

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

B ii Brabant / Flanders

B iii Flanders (near Ghent?) C Flanders (Ghent and Antwerp)

D Holland

E Lower Rhine

E ii Lower Rhine F Westphalia (Münsterlande)

G Westphalia (Bökendorf)

H Rhineland (near Bonn)

deutsche Volkslieder , No. 74 D, 1844; reptd. with editorial changes in L. de Baecker, Chants , No. 9, 1855; reptd. in N ederl. Lieder­ boek , No. 44, 1891. 38 sts. J. F. Willems, Oude Vlaemsche Liederen, No. 49, 1848 (reworking of the Anzeiger text with additions); re-ed. in E. de Coussemaker, No. 45, 1856;re-ed. in Hoffmann von Fallers­ leben, No. 9,1856 (with variations that may be traditional); reptd. in F. Böhme, A lt­ deutsches Liederbuch , No. 15, 1877; reptd. from Coussemaker in Erk and Böhme, Deut. Liederh., No. 41k, 1893; re-ed. in Duvse, No. 1 A, 1903; reptd. in J. Meier, D eut. Volksl., No. 41:1, 1937. 38—40 sts.

F. A. Snellaert, Oude en Nieuwe Liedjes , No. 76, 1852. 45 sts. Broadside from betw. 1817—45, ptd. by L. van Paemel and J. Thys; reptd. in Hoflmann von Fallersleben, No. 10, 1856; reptd. in Duyse, No. 1 B, 1903. 38 sts. Prudens van Duyse, Nagelaten Gedichten, V, 39, 1883; reptd. in FI. van Duyse, No. 1 D, 1903; reptd. in Luc de Jaeger, Heer H alewyn, 1944. 48 sts. A. Kretzschmer and A. W. von Zuccalmaglio, Deut. Volksl ., II, 66—68, No. 28, 1840; reptd. in Mittler, No. 85, 1855. 26 sts. V. J. von Zuccalmaglio, D ie deut. Volksfeste, р. 45, 1854—58. 11 sts. Coll, by Freiin Annette v. Droste-Hülshoff с. 1830; ptd. in L. Uhland, Alte h.- und n.deut. Volksl., No. 74 C, 1844; reptd. in F. Mittler, Deut. Volksl., No. 79, 1865; reptd. in Erk und Böhme, Deut. Liederh., No. 41 f, 1893; reptd. in P. Alpers, D ie alten niederd. Volksl ., No. 5, 1924. 13 sts. Coll, by W. Grimm. 1813; ptd. in A. Reiffer­ scheid, Westfälische Volksl., No. 9 (Anhang), 1879. 7 sts. K. Simrock, Deut. Volksl., No. 7, 1851; reptd. in F. Mittler, Deut. Volksl., No. 86, 1855; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, Deut. Liederh., No. 41h, 1893. 28 sts.

T he Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German

39

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

40

G. Heeger and W. Wüst, Volksl., No. 3, 1909. 17 sts. A. Kretzschmer and A. W. von Zuccalmaglio, Deut. Volksl., I, 164—166, No 92, 1838; reptd. in F. Mittler, Deut. Volksl., No. 87, 1855. 14 sts.

I Rhine Palatinate (Hütschenhausen) J

Westphalia (bergisch)

Analysis of Variations 1. The knight and his song a

Heer Halewijn zong een liedekijn, Al wie dat hoorde wou bi hem sijn.

(3)

In expository fashion the Dutch ballad begins with Heer Halewijn and his little song which apparently exercises powers of attraction, not unlike the music of the Pied Piper of Hamelin, or the charms of Orfeo. The song is in itself the attraction: and that it is prob­ ably a very old trait in the history of the ballad is confirmed by its geographic spread, for in Iceland, in texts dating from 1665, the ‘thrall,’ who corresponds to Halewijn in the narrative, is represented as singing a tune. The theme, somewhat changed, occurs again in other forms of the German ballad, as we shall see. The song is Halewijn’s attraction, like the »appas» of the French ballad, the force which brings his maiden victims to him. In most of the international forms of the song the heroine is attracted away from her home by a process of courtship, a motif common to so very many popular ballads that one is led to assume that the song of enticement, reappearing as it does at such a distance from the Low Countries, is the older opening, one which in the course of transmission has given way to the commonplace of courtship. As we shall see in this study, the openings of ballads (and the closes too, for that matter) are less securely maintained in tradition than the central portion of the narrative. The a couplet is found in Dutch B, C, and D; the C variant is the worked over copy with a spurious third verse, hence the anticipatory remark about »pain» in C 1. The A variant, a very irregular piece stanzaically, and exceptional in many of its motifs, does not have the passage. Nor do the variants from the German side of the Rhine. 2. The maid's captivation a

En dat vernam eens konings kind, Die van haer ouders zoo werb bemind.

(3)

1 a B 1, D 1; Waer door dat er veel gekomen syn in pyn (3rd v.) C 1. 2 a B ii 2, B iii 2; Al van de schoonste die men vindt {3rd v.) C 2; Die was zoo schoo B 2, D 2.

The Ballad in Dutch» Flemish and German

41

b

Ab Odilia ein klein kind war, Da starb ihr Vater und Mutter ab.

(4)

c

Odilia wuchs auf und sie wurd’ gross, Sie wuchs dem Reiter wohl in den Schooss.

(3)

d

Da kam ein schöne Herrchen und wollte sie haben. Sie reichte ihr Händchen und zeigte es gleich an. ( 1) »Odilia, wilbt du mein eigen sein? Sieben Pfund Goldes werden dein. (2)

e ƒ g h

i

»In’s Fürstenschloss führt or dich heim.»( 1) Odilia dachte in ihrem Muth, Die sieben Pfund Goldes wären gut.

(2)

Er was een stoute Roland, Hij beminde een’ dochter uit Engeland. Hij en wist ze niet hoe krijgen, Met lezen of met schrijven, Met vechten of met kijven. ( 1) Wel will met Gert Olbert utriden gon De mot sick kleiden in samt un seiden, De mot sick snören int rode gold. Dat wull de sköne Helena don, Se wull met Gert Olbert utriden gon.

(2)

The Dutch ballad (B, C, D) continues with reading a: The song was heard by a king’s daughter, loved by her parents. German variants E, H, I, and J open with the statement that the maid’s father and mother are dead (b) ; as she grew up, a knight became enamoured of her (E, H, J), and she accepted his attentions (I). The mention of father and mother is suggestive of stage 3, and may be reminiscent of stage 4 of the Danish ballad, in which we are told that the girl is being watched by all her family. In e and ƒ (E, H) the maid is wooed with gold, or with promises of a prince’s castle, to which she b E 1; Schondilg H 1; Ottila schöns Mädchen I 1; Jungfrau Linnich J 1. ( £ 2 , H 2 ; Sie blüht als ein Hagröslein roth E ii 2; Sie freit einen Ritter aus Engelland J 2. d 12. e E 3; w. du den Ritter frein (Ist v. only) E ii 3; mein Hausfrau sein? Zehn Tonnen G. H 3. ƒ E ii 3. g E 4; Gemal und Schloss E ii 4; Zehn Tonnen G . . . Zehn Tonnen Goldes macht eine Kaiserin H 4—5. A A 1. i F 1—2; Es wollt sich ein Markgraf ausreiten, Wollt reiten in Sammt und Seiden,. . . in rothem Gold G i.

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

42

responds favourably (g). The E and H variants appear corrupted in their opening passages, or at any rate are latter-day phrasings. A similarly unimaginative enticement is offered the Norwegian maid by her lover; the similarity is not interpretable as a direct relationship but merely reveals that the art of sinking in popular poetry is to some degree predictable and the same in separate traditions. The opening (and a good deal else) of the A variant has no parallel in the tradition of the song (h). The variant is very long, highly repetitive, and singular in many of its motifs, to the point of suggesting a corrupted tradition. Roland, the gallant in the piece, loves an English girl but is uncertain as to how to win her. In F and G (i) the ballad’s opening has been lost and the dressing motif from stage 4 has been moved forward to take its place. In F we are told that Helena wishes to ride away with Gert Olbert, and those who do must dress richly. In G it is the Margrave who dresses in silks and satins to go riding. The groupings of variants have appeared fairly early in the ballad: Dutch B, C, and D are close; E, H, I, and J form another group; and F and G a third, less authentic than the others. 3. The maid's questions to her family a

Zy ging voor haren vader ståen »Och vader, mag ik naer Halewijn gaen?

(4)

b

»Mynheer Halewijn zingt zoo aengenaem.

c

»Want mynheer Halewijn staet my wel aen.

( 1)

d

»Ik wil mynheer Halewijn eens spreeken aen.

e

»Dit is al myn verzoek, wilt my toch toestaen.

ƒ

»Naar Roland henen, to kermes gaan, Waar al mijne vrieden passeeren en gaan?»

( 1)

(

1

)

(1 )

( 1)

The answers she receives g

»Och neen, gy dochter, neen gy niet, Die derwaert gaen, en keeren niet.

(3)

a A 2, B 3, G 3, D 3; hare moeder A 6, B 5, C 5, D 5; hare zuster B 7, C 7, D 7; haren broeder A 10, B 9, C 9, D 9; haren biechvader A 14; wandelen gaen C 3, 5, 7. 4C3. c C 5. dCl. eC9. f A 2, 6, 10, 14. g B 4, 6, D 4, 6, 8; zuster B 8, C 8; myn dochter vol van rom! . . . komt nooit wed’rom G 4, 6, 8.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German

43

h

»Wel 16 zynder dood gebleven met veel weedom. (1)

i

»Veel dochters lieten daer hun leven en blom (1)

j

»Van al de maegde die daer blyve staen de menschen stom. (1)

k

»Ba, neen je, mijn dochter Louise, Gij bioerne nooit volprezen, Gij en zult noch gaan noch reizen. Roland is een stoute kalant, Hij bedriegt de mooi maagden al waar hij kan, Hij staat met ’t blank zweerd in zijn hand, En al zijn soldaten hebben ’t harnas aan.» The maid: »’k Heb Roland meer als eens gezien, ’t En is d’ eerste keer noch de tweede niet; Met ’t blank zweerd en staat hij niet, Al die soldaten en zijn daar niet. (1)

l

m

The brother: »’t is my aleens, waer dat gy gaet, Als gy uw eer waer wel bewaerd, En gy uw kroon maer recht en draegt.

(4)

»Gy moogt vry by heer Halewyn gaen, Uw bede wil ik niet afslaen, Al wat gy my verzoekt wilik u toestaen.» ( 1)

This stage of the narrative occurs only in the Dutch ballad. The maid goes in turn to father, mother, sister, brother to request permission to go with Halewijn (in A the sister is missing, but the father confessor has been added). Readings b-eare third lines from the C variant. In A the maid wishes to go to the kermesse where Roland as well as her friends are (ƒ). The maid is told she may not go, by father, mother, and sister (g), for those who go do not return. Readings h-j, all from G, state the multiple murder motif explicitly and luridly. The reply the maid receives in A is that Roland is a wicked fellow who betrays maids; in addition we are told rather confusingly that Roland has troops dressed in armour, and he himself stands with drawn sword. The maid protests the falsity of the last allegations, for she has seen him more than once. h C 4. i G 6. j G 8. it A 3—5, 7—9, 11—13. / B 10; En dacr van en wil ik niet zyn vervaert G 10; Als die crone di rechte stået D 10; en ziel bewaert, Uw ouders in geen schande en laat, Uwe kroone van goud maar wel en spaart. A 15. m G 11.

44

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

In l-m the brother (in A the father confessor) gives the maid an affirmative answer; he little cares provided she retain her honour and wear the maiden crown, the »virgin crants» that Ophelia wears to her grave.2 The incremental repetition involving members of the maid’s family may be retained in an obscure way in reading 2 b (which represents the German variants). In the Danish ballad the maid is guarded by her relatives: the passage, also in incremental repetition, is a commonplace in Danish, but perhaps it entered Kvindemorderen because of an earlier passage about parents (like the one in the Dutch ballad). The matter must remain undecided, for where ballad maids are concerned, the parents are usually not far to seek. 4 Preparations for the journey a Si is al op haer kamer gegaen

(6)

b

(2)

Si deet haer besten kleedren aen

c

Ziert sich wie eine Braut soll seyn.

d

Deed aen een kleed van wit satyn, Waer door zy scheen een godin te zyn.

e

Und strählt das Haar und ziert den Leib. (1)

ƒ

Zij streek haar daar met zilver . . . Zij deed haar daar blanketten.

g h i j k

Wat deel si aen haren lijve? Een hemdeken fijnder als zijde. Wat deed zij aan haar hemdetje? Van steek tot steek een endetje. Wat deet si aen haer schoon korslijf? Van gouden banden stond het stijf. ’t Was meer weerd als honderd pond. Wat deet si aen haren rooden roe? Van steke tot steke een gouden cnop.

(1) ( 1)

(1) (3) ( 1) (4) (1) (4)

a B 11, D 11; slaepkamer fyn C 11, E 5, J 3; kelder . . . salette A 19—20. AB 11, D l l . (E5. d C 12. e j 3. ƒ A 19—20. g B 12; live, so blide? D 12; wie die Schnee so weiss H 6. A A 21. i B 13, D 13; roklijf rond? — (1st v. only) A 22; trug Schondilg über ihrem Hemdchen weiss? Einen Rock, der H 7. j A 22. AB 14, D 14; onderrok . . . zilver knop . . . bovenrok A 23—24; eenen camaten rok, Op ieder plooi een goude knop G 13.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German / m

En eenen alderkostelyksten voorschoot daer op. (1) Wat deet si aen haren keirle? Van steke tot steke een peirle.

n

o p

(3)

Wat deed zij aan haar ronden hals? Twaalf toeren perels, z’ en waren niet valsch. (1) Wat deet si aen haer schoon blond hair? Een croone van goude en die woeg swaer.

(4)

Si ging al in haers vaders stal, En koos darr ’t besten ros van al.

(3)

q r

45

Se dei sick kleiden in samt un seiden, Se dei sick snören int rode gold. Sie schaut darauf zum Fenster hinaus, »Nun komm, stolz Reiter, und hol* die Braut!»

(I) (4)

The preparations consist primarily of the maid’s dressing in splendid clothing (b —B, D), like a bride (c—E), as if she were a goddess (d—C). The dressing is found in nearly every variant; G and I, the shortest and least well preserved variants, lack the motif. Variant E disposes of the matter in summary fashion (a and c). The F variant also treats the dressing briefly ; passage q is the source of reading 2 i of F and G (in G, it will be recalled, the dressing has been transferred to the knight). Variant J is as direct and brief as these (a and e). Variant H is the only German text that resembles the Dutch variants in details of the clothing assumed by the maid, but it is nevertheless like other German variants in reading r. In r the maid shouts to the knight to come and fetch the bride (E, F, H, J). The explicit statement that the maid is a bride does not appear in the Dutch ballad, in which her journey with Halewijn is not motivated beyond her response to the compelling force of his song. Her clothing is worth a hundred pounds (j—A). The items she dons, and the variants in which they appear, are as follows: d garment of white satin ƒ

/ C oB pB rE

donned silver ornaments painted her face

C A A

13. m B 15, A 25, D 15. « A 26. 16, A 27, D 16; über ihr gehl kraus Haar? . . . Gold so klar H 8. 17, D 17, A 28. q F 2. 6, F 3, H 9, J 4.

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

46 g smock of silk

B

h stitches on her smock

A

i golden bands onher stays

A

B

k golden buttons on red coat AB C /

costly apron

D

H

D

H

D C

m pearls

A B

o crown of gold

A

D B

D

H

The variants which agree most frequently here are B, D, and H, to which group may be added A. The latter, as well as C, has some individual strokes. The king’s daughter is dressed in all the formal splendour that the ballad writer and traditional singing could muster. That the costume as a whole is suggestive of the garments and trappings of feminine fashions of the Middle Ages cannot be doubted; and the image of such garments was maintained in the minds of the peasantry in later centuries by the existence of such a medieval costume in Germanic lands among the lower orders, and for that most formal of occasions, a marriage. Nowhere in the Halewijn ballad is there a suggestion of ‘bride’ and ‘nuptials.* Erotic interests are there, certainly in A, and by innuendo in the other variants. But the brother’s admonition that the maid maintain her virginity is hardly consonant with the notion that she sets off for the woods as a bride. The splendid costume is donned by reasons of her station and place. Later centuries have interpreted the costume as a bridal dress, and this particularly in Germany where she asks that he fetch his bride.3 In variants A, B, and D she fetches the finest horse from her father’s stable (p). Her riding off alone is an exceptional circumstance in tradi­ tional song; usually, as in the German variants, the two ride off together, particularly if the two are represented as lovers or as a betrothed couple. The Dutch maid’s riding off alone would suggest a possible original trait, for the tendency in tradition would certainly be to anticipate their meeting by having them depart together as in readings b-e of stage 5. 5.

The departure a b

Si settc haer scrilincs up dat ros, Ende reet al singhen ende clinghen dorr’d bosch.

(4'!

Die Jungfrau war ihm lieb und werth. (2'!

a A 29, B 18. D 18; op haer vaders pacrd .. . Met een mannelyk hert heel onvervaerd C 14. b E 7, H 10.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German c d e

47

Er griff sic an ihrem seidenen Rock. (2) Sie schwang sich auf sein Ross behend,

(5)

Und schlang um ihn die weissen Hand. (2)

In the Dutch ballad, in all four variants, the maid rides off very manfully, astride the horse, singing and ringing through the woods (a). Readings b-e represent the German song, which does not afford such a unified appearance as the Dutch. The phrases are all commonplaces for mounting. Agreement between E and H is again to be noted (b), and also between 1 and J (e). 6. The meeting with the knight a

Als zij aan ’t eerste kwartiertje kwam, ’t Was Rolands vader die tegen haar sprak; »Waar gaat gij, w. g. g., gij stoute maagd? Zijt gij wel weerd wat dat gij draagt, Dat gij die schoone kroone draagt?» »Of ik het weerd ben ofte niet. Ga deure, g. d., *k en kenne u niet, Rij voort, r. v., ’k en geve u niet.» Als zij bij Roland binnenkwam, ’t Was Roland die op zijn bedde lag: »Ga daar aan mijn handen En lees drij rozenkransen. Ga daar aan mijn voeten En lees drie roozenhoeden.»

b c

Als si te midden ’t bosch mocht sijn, Daer vont si mijn heer Halewijn.

(1) (3)

Doen si dat bosch ten halven quam Halewijns soon haer tegen quam. Hy bondt sijn peerd aen eenen boom ; De joncvrouw was vol anxt en schroom. (1)

c I 3; bi er brunsidene kled F 3. d J 5; Und sch. sic für sich . . . Er setzte sie vor sich I 3—4; Pferd E 7, F 3, H 10. e J 5; Und reitet so stets den Wald hinaus I 3—4. S a A 30—41 with incremental repetition: tw eede... moeder A 33; derde .. . broeder A 36. Z» B 19, D 19; Hy sprak: »Schoon maegd, gy moet willekom zyn!» C 15. c B ii 19.

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

48 d

»Gegroet,» seide hi en quam tot haer, »Gegroet, schoon maegt, bruin oogen claer.

(2)

e

»Gomt, sit hier neer, ontbind u hair.» Soo menich hair dat si ontbondt, Soo menich traentjen haer ontron. (1)

ƒ

»Com met mi, tot onder die linden Ghi sulter goet gheselscap vinden.

g

(1)

»Ik hoop gy zult worden myn deel, Laet ons ryden nae myn kasteel, Daer zal ik u toonen menig schoon juweel. (1)

Only in the Dutch variants does the maid meet Halewijn after some travel. The A variant has the maid meeting father, mother, brother as well, a series of meetings ill suited here and moved from stage 15; each of these asks if the maid wears the virgin crown by right. Her reply is that whether she does or not, they must go away; she knows them not (a). Strangely, the maid does not meet Roland at the kermesse as we have been led to expect; she enters his house and finds him in bed. To bring the maid closer to him Roland asks that she gather the rose wreaths at his hands and feet. The events in A do not strongly cohere, and their lack of correspondence with other Dutch variants leads one to suppose the text a sport in the tradition. In B, C, and D the maid meets Halewijn in the woods. In B ii Willems supplied a variant reading (c-e) in which the knight is Halewijn’s son, who, after tying her horse to a tree, asks her to be seated and to unbind her hair. As Professor Child remarks, the time has not yet come for the two to sit down. We shall meet the e reading again later on. It may well be that Willems in composing his text entered the incident in the wrong place. In reading d (B, D) he welcomes her, and in ƒ (D) he offers her good fellowship under the linden, a remark which he must intend ironically, considering what is to be found there. In variant C he offers her the kind of bribe we noted in E and H earlier (2 *ƒ), for his bait is a castle and jewels (g). This material touch appears to be the work of the balladmonger. 7. The journey with Halewijn a

Sie ritten Berg auf, sie ritten Berg ab, Bis dass sie an einen hohen Berg kamen. ( 1)

d B 20; 1st v. and Die one goudine crone draghet D 20. e B ii 20. ƒ D 21. g C 16. 7 a E 8.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German b c

Si reden met elkander voort, En op den wech viel inenich woort.

49

(3)

Si ritten fort drei Tag und Nacht, Eh sie an Essen und Trinken gedacht.

(5)

d Maid: »Ach Reiter, lieber Reiter inein, Wo nimmst du Speise her und Wein.»

(5)

e

(5)

ƒ

Villain: »Dort hinten steht ein Lindenbaum, »Dran stehet dein Essen und Trinken schon.

(4)

,t>

»Dort an dem grünen Waldessaum.»

h

Maid:» Ach Reiter, steh herab, es ist schon Nacht, Wo sollen wir den Abend schlafen gan?» Villain: »Da wirst du finden dein Bettchen gespreit.» ( 1)

(1)

i

Se satten neder int grüne gras, Den kiilen win drunken ae ut dat glas. (1)

Halewijn and the maid journey some distance, for they exchange many words in the Dutch ballad (b—B, C, D); and the maid becomes anxious about food and drink (c-g— E, F, G, H, J), and about sleep (h — H) in the German. As we shall later see, these motifs all reappear in the French ballad of the older form. In the French ballad the ominous nature of the journey is made more prominent ; no words are spoken, the maid may drink her own blood, and eat her hand, and she may lie in the river with others. In the Dutch and German variants the maid is promised food, drink, and rest under the linden tree, a promise ominous enough in itself, but not as revealing as to the villain’s intentions as the brutal remarks the French Renaud makes. The a reading from E is not a part of the tradition of the song. In F (i) we have a corruption; the maid’s thirst is slaked with a cool drink of wine.

b B 21, D 22; te zamen . . . Want het was een langen weg ongehoord C 17. c J 6 ; sach G 1; den T. dreissig Meilen lang . . . fand H 11 ; 1st v. and Se ridden de grune heide entlank F 4; 2nd v. only, Vom S. und T. sprach die Braut E ii 8. d J 7; Hier muss gegessen und getrunken sein G 1, F 4; Wo sollen wir Essen und Trinken han! H 12; nicht absteigen? . . . uns laben an T. und S. E 9. e ] 8, E 10; giernter F 5; Wenn du unter den Tannenb. kommst G 2; Wohl in den breiten Lindenbreit H 13, 15. ƒ E 10; So sollst du e. F 5, G 2; finden dein Essen bereit H 13. g J 8. h H 14—15. i F 5. 4

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

50

8. The gallows a Si quamen al bi ecn galgen veld Daer aen hinc menich vrouwenbeeld. b

(6)

»Com, maghet scoon ende eerbaer, Sitte hier ende ombinde dijn haer.»

c

So menich haer dat si ontbon’, So menich traen die haer ontron.

( 1)

»Hier siehst du sieben Jungfräulein, Schondilg, willst du die achte sein?»

(1)

They come upon a gallows field, where hang the figures of many women (a). The number of dead is not specified in Dutch B, C, D; in German E, H, and I the number is stated as seven. The maid comes to her own realization of what is in store for her, as in the Scandinavian ballad, in which the villain begins to prepare a grave. In the French song Renaud states outright that she is to be drowned; she can hardly draw her own conclusions in the French song, for the dead are not to be seen. From this point of view the Dutch-German narrative is the more effective and satisfying one. The b reading from D repeats the passage we earlier met in B ii; Halewijn asks the maid to unbind her hair, and for every hair that she unbound she dropped a tear. This motif (‘hair* — ‘tears’) does not belong in the Halewijn form of the song but in the Ulinger form. The D variant may actually be an editing of the ballad, in which the B ii passage has been put in its proper place, where the maid has reason for tears. The Ulinger form of the song as well as the Scandinavian form of the ballad, have a delousing motif; as Grundtvig has suggested, this particular passage (b) is probably a reminiscence of the delousing. The c reading (H) serves as a transition from the sight of the gallows to the choice of the means of death. No such bridges are present in other German variants. The b reading is from one text in the DutchGerman ballad; but its counterpart in other languages is the most common feature of the ballad tradition. 9. The choice of deaths a

Alsdan heeft hy tot haer gezeid: »Mits gy de schoonste maget zyt, Zoo kieze uw dood, het is nog tyd.»

(3)

a H 22, D 23; Dent eens hoe dat zy was ontsteld . . . maegdenb. C 18; an den Lindenbaum . . . sieben Jungfräulein E 11, H 16; in den Wald hinein . . . Da steht ein hoher Kichenbaum 1 5 . b D 24—25. c H 17. 9 a B 23; Zoo last ik u kiezen met vlyt C 19; Hoe scone maghet ghi ooc sijt, and v. 3 D 26.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German b

c

d

(1)

»Of dat gy wilt gehangen zyn, Of sterven door het sweerd met pyn; Daerom wilt kiezen met vlyt.

(1)

(6)

»Dass dir dein Haupt vom Rumpfe fährt? (1 )

ƒ g

Hij gaf haar daar te kiezen, Of haar eer te verliezen, Of voor ’t blank zweerd te knielen.

»Und willst du klimmen den Lindenbaum? Or willst du schwimmen den Wasserstrom ? Or willst du sterben des blanken Schwerdts?

e

51

»Kein anderer Rath kannst du begehren.» ( 1) M a id :

»Wel als ik dan hier kiezen zal, Zoo kieze ik dan het zweerd voor al.

h »Ich will nicht klimmen den Lindenbaum, Ich will nicht schwimmen den'Wasserstrom, Ich will nun sterben des blanken Schwerdts.

(3)

(6)

i

»’k Was veel wijzer, ’k koos het zweerd, ’t Was voor mijn ouders meer eere weerd. (1)

j

»Dat is de eerelykste dood in dit geval. (1)

k

»Dat is Helena or häufd wol wert.

/

»Mag es durchbohren mein junges Herz. (1)

(1)

m

»Wenn gleich mein Haupt vom Rumpfe fährt.» (1)

In both the Dutch and German variants the maid is offered a choice of means by which she is to die. In Dutch the maid is told that she may choose because she is the fairest, and her choice is stated in G as either hanging or the sword (c). In A she may choose between the loss of her honour or kneeling before the naked sword (b). In German the choices enumerated are three in number (as in one form of the b A 42. c C 20. d E 12— 13; keisen .. . den danningbom F 6; hangen den Tannenbaum . .. fHessen .. . kiesen G 2; hangen . . . hohen Baum . . . fliessen . . . küssen H 18; hangen am hohen Baum . . . durchs Schwert umkommen? I 6; umklimmen den hohen Baum . . . schwimmen durch Meeresschaum . . . küssen J 9—10. ^ J 10. ƒ E 13. g B 24, C 21, D 27. h E 14—15; keisen . . . danningbom . . . Viel leiwér keis F 7; hangen am hohen Baum . . . fliessen . . . lieber kiesen G 3, H 19 (küssen); hangen am hohen Baum . . . durchs Schwert umkommen I 7 ; kann nich klimmen . . . schwimmen . . . ich küssen J 11— 12. i A 43. ; C 21. k F 7. / E 15. m J 12.

The Ballad of Herr Halewijn

52

Danish ballad), hanging, drowning, or the naked sword. The German maid repeats the stanza, refusing the first two, and choosing the last. The Dutch maid also chooses the sword, specifying that it is the most honourable death (i-j—A, C), an idea that may be present in German F (k) as well. Readings / and m (E, J) are later fabrications, as are e and ƒ from the same variants. 10. The maid's ruse (the undressing motif) a »Maer tred eerst uit u opperst kleet, Want maegdenbloet dat spreit soo breet.

(9)

b

(4)

»Soot u bespreide dat ware mi leet.»

Villain: »Nun zieh denn aus dein Seiden­

c

kleid, Nimm ab dein golden Halseschmeid.» (1)

The ruse in a is the most consistently maintained reading in the Halewijn form of the ballad, for only J departs significantly from the phrasing. After calmly choosing the sword, the maid asks that he first remove his outer garment (A, B, D, E, H, I), his best clothing (C), his silk garment (F, G), for maiden blood spirts far and wide. She would be sorry if it spattered him (B, C, F, G —b). The maid in other national forms of the song employs a ruse to put the villain off his guard, but this particular ruse is peculiar to the Halewijn form. The ruse is of special significance in the history of the song because it involves the removal of clothing, and also the villain’s momentarily looking away from the maid, matters we shall have occasion to refer to again. In variant J it is the villain who asks the maid to remove her silk garment and neck ornaments (r). The undressing request is then in J no longer a ruse, but implies that he is robbing her of her valuables, a notion which we shall see repeated in the oldest variants of the Ulinger form and in the French and English ballads. Variant J is from the Rhine area, as Kretzschmer tells us in the edition in which it is printed. The ruse has been forgotten, but the order to undress has been retained (and transferred to the villain), a change that we shall see paralleled in the French narrative. 11. The decapitation a

Sie griff sein Schwerdt wohl bei dem Knauf, Und hieb ihm ab das falsche Haupt. Er fiel wohl in das grüne Gras.

(2)

a B 25, D 28, H 20, I 8 ; beste kleed . . . zoo wreed C 22 ; stroop a f . . . springt er «»p A 44—45 (repeated) ; weit und breit E 16; Treck ut . . . din sidene kled . . . wit iin brei F 8; seiden Kleid G 3. b B 25, F 8, G 3; Daer mögt aenkomen eenig leed C 22. c J 13. 11 « E 17-18, H 21 (vv. 1—2).

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German b

c

Un as he sick had ter siden gekert Do nam Helena dat blanke schwert, Do flog sin hätifd wol über dat perd. En eer sijn kleet getogen was, Sijn hooft al voor sijn voeten lach.

53

(1) (6)

d

Der Jungfrau spritzte das Blut so roth. Die schone Linnich die war todt. (1)

e

Und als die Sternlein am Himmel klar, Ottilia die achte der Todten war.

(1)

Readings a-c present the same narrative, but in different words. Before his garment was off, his head lay at his feet (A, B, C, D, G, (I)) ; the maid grasped the sword by the pommel of its hilt and chopped off his false head, which fell into the green grass (E, H) ; as he turned aside (compare the French narrative) Helena took the naked sword, and his head flew over the horse (F). In J (d) the maid and the villain have exchanged roles ; since it is the maid who divests herself of her clothing, it is she who dies. The E ii variant at this point departs from the E variant ; Ottilia was the eighth dead one. These two variants (E ii and J) have come under the influence of the Ulrich or Nicolai form of the song, in which the maid dies. They are of the Halewijn form aside from the concluding stanzas. 12. The villain's pleas a

Und als der Stumpen auf dem Boden lag (1)

b Ayn tong nog deze woorden sprak. c

»Ga ginder daer in het koren En biaes daer op mynen horen, Dat alle myne vrienden het hooren!

(8)

(7)

b F 9. c B 26; kleed aftrok . . . voeten vloog A 46, G 4; kleed ten halven was . . . voeten ras, En hy het wel verdiend op dat pas C 23; utegethogen was . . . inné ’t gras D 29; spoken in singer's own words I 9. d J 14. e E ii 11. 12 a I 10. b B 26; Den kop s. levende nog half C 24; Sijn hooft. . . voor sijn levene draet afbrac D 30; Da lag E 18; dat falske hert F 10; die falsche Zung C 4, H 22 (lag), I 10 (dreimal). e B 27; oo. 1—2 only D 31, E 19 (An meinen Grauross hängt), F 10 (achter min perd), G 4 (An . . . Sattel und Zaume), H 22 (In meiner Tasche . . . so kommt du fort), I 11 (Dort in meinen Sack . . . eine P fe if.. . pfeif es nicht länger als eine Viertelstund).

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

54 d

»Ga ginder dan onder de galge, En neem daer een potje met zalve, En stryk dat aen myn rooden hals.»

(4)

In all the variants except the completed J, after the head is off the tongue still speaks. It asks that she blow his horn (c—B, D, E, F, G, H, I) so that all his friends might hear (B). That D is a rendition of B is suggested by the mention of ‘corn’ in the two variants. In the Dutch ballad she is asked to fetch from beneath the gallows-tree a pot of salve to be smeared on his red neck (B, D), his mouth (C), his wounds (A). The wonder working salve is found in no other national forms of the song. But the horn reappears in the Scandinavian ballad; its wider spread one might well expect, since it is not confined merely to the A—D variants. 13. The maid's retort a

Maer zy riep: »terft valschen grond!» En hy gaf zynen geest terstond.

( 1)

b

»Al in dat koren en ga ik niet, Op uwen horen en blaes ik niet.»

(2)

c

Odilia dacht in ihrem Muth, Viel warten und blasen ist nicht gut.

(2)

d

c ƒ

h

»Dorin to biosen dat wör nich god, Dan leipen mi alle de mörners no, As wie de hunde den hasen dot.»

(1)

Sie nahm das Horn und that es nicht, Was thun die falschen Mörners nicht!

(1)

»Al onder de galge en ga ik niet, Uw rooden hals en stryk ik niet.

(3)

»Moordenaers raed en doe ik niet.

(2)

»’t Is tooverij, ’k en leer het niet.»

(1)

In C (a) Halewijn gives up the ghost immediately upon the maid’s shouting that he die (the balladmonger’s touch of certainty). In B and D (b, ƒ) she refuses to blow the horn or to fetch the salve. In E and d B 29, D 33; Daer zult gy vinden . . . voort an mynen mond! C 24—25; aan de wonden van mij, Zij zullen terstond genezen zijn . . . onder den blauwen steen . . . potje met maagdezeem A 47, 49. 13 a C 25. b B 28, D 32. c E 20; Teuten und Blasen H 23. d F i l . * G 5. ƒ B 30, D 34; Het potje met zalf en haal ik niet . . . uw’ wonden A 48, 49 (Onder de blauwen steen . . . maagdezeem). g B 28, 30, A 48, 49. hrA 48, 49.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German

55

H we are told she considers how inadvisable it is to wait and to blow the horn, as also in F and G. The latter variant is the only one in which we are told that she takes the horn, so preparing us for her blowing the instrument when she finally reaches home. She will not do a murderer’s bidding (g—A, B), she thinks it is sorcery and will not learn it (A). The Dutch variants A, B, and D proceed by incremental repetition in stages 12 and 13, but not so the German. The Dutch variants are remarkably full of repetition of one kind and another. 14. The departure for home a

Zy nam dat hoofd al by den haire

(4)

b

En waschte ’t in een bronne klare.

(2)

c

Si ginc al aen sijnen hoofde En las daer het Geloove; Si ginc al aen sijne sijde En las daer de Getijde; Si ginc al aen sijne voeten En las dry Weesgegroeten.

(1)

d

Sie fasst das Pferd wohl an dem Zaum, Und schwang sich selber oben drauf.

(1)

e ƒ g

Zy zette haer schrylings op haer ros, Al zingend en klingend reed zy door ’t bosch.

(2)

Sie setzte sich wohl auf das Ross, Und ritt zum grünen Wald hinaus.

(4)

En rede op haer peerd zoo voort En liet het lichaem ligge in bloed versmoord. (1)

In the Dutch ballad the maid took the head by the hair (A, B, C, D) and washed it in a clear spring (A, B), or dipped it in a stream (B ii), a naturalistic touch that occurs in other decapitation narratives as well. The d and ƒ readings are commonplaces of mounting and riding away ; e is a repetition in B and D from stage 5. The g reading of G is from an author’s pen. The c passage which Willems provides as an addition to B ii smacks of the broadside press. The maid is represented as reading the Credo, breviary, and Hail Mary at the head, side, and feet of Halewijn. That a

b c ƒ g

B 31, D 35; pakte A 51; op heel verstoord G 26. B 31 ; dooptet in een revier B ii; fonteine A 51. B ii. d E 21. e B 32, D 36. I 12; frei lustig G 5; apfelbraun H 24; Zij r. daarmee dwars A 51 ( 1st v. G 26.

only).

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

56

religious touches have worked themselves into traditional song is merely a reflection of the dispositions of mind of those who have perpetuated the songs. This passage may well have had its inception from the suggestions of the tune to which Halewijn has been sung in Flemish territory, a tune based on the Credo. The Halewijn tune has occasioned some comment chiefly tending to the notion that the tune is proof of the ancient character of the Dutch-Flemish song. Iivar Kemppinen carries this notion one step further, arguing that the tune is part proof of the origin of the tradition with the Halewijn ballad. His assumption is that the song’s mythic substance is the defeat of demonic evil and that it would naturally therefore in its original form have been sung to music which was used, aside from its proper office, for the exorcism of evil spirits. His argument is so propped by assumptions that it is indeed very uncertain. The Credo tune need not have been part of the ballad from its beginning; it is now generally recognized how great an inter-influence has existed between church music and popular music from earliest times. The thematic stuff of a ballad can hardly exercise sufficient influence to determine the tune to which a traditional song has been sung, and the thematic origin of our ballad is in the realm of the un­ certain and cannot safely be used as an argument for the nature o( the tune to which it was sung some eight or nine centuries ago, the lime suggested for the beginnings of the tradition. The tune based on the Credo may have been associated with Halewijn for a long time; and John Meier informs us that the tune of the north French ballad is related to the Flemish tune.4 But it must be borne in mind that the collection of tunes and texts of the ballad from this area does not antedate 1836, a date so late as to make highly speculative the equation of the present tune and the tune of the original ballad. 15. The meeting with the villain's family a

Kn lorn zv was trr halver baen Kwam Halrwijns vader darr gegaen: »Schoon maegd, zaegt gy myn zoon niet gaen?»

^4)

b

»’k Heb hem gelaten wel gesteld, Darr zit hy in het groene veld, Met zestien maegden wel hy daer speelt.

(3)

a B i 33, B ii 33 (moeder), B iii 33; eerste kwartiertje . . . Waar hebt gij Roland . . . gejaagd? A 52—53; wat verder op de baen . . . broeder B iii 35, A 58—59; wat verder op de baen . . . zuster . . . Om van haer broeder iels te verstaen B iii 37, C 31 ; wat verder op de baen . . . moeder . . . zoon B iii 39, A 55—56, C 33 (is mynen zoon nog wel te pas); maget, hoe mag hel met heer Halewyngaen? C 27, 29 (zelve baen . . . broeder); broeder . . . hoe machet met H. (vv. 2—3.) D 37, 39 (suster), 41 (vader); Van den bossche sijn moeder quem ane D 43- 44. b B iii 34, G 28; maeghdenbelt D 38 (as 2 vv.)

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German c

d

e

ƒ

g

h

57

»Uw broeder is een heer vermacrd, Zyn konsten heeft hy my verklaerd, Met zestien maegden is hy wel bewaerd.

(3)

»Ga daer wat verder op het veld, Daer is uw broeder als een held, Aen zestien maegden gelyk gesteld.

(2)

»Uw zoon heer Halewijn is dood, Ik heb zyn hoofd in mynen schoot, Van bloed is myne voorschool rood.

(4)

»U soon, heer Halewijn, is gaen jagen, Gi en siet hem weer u levene dagen.

(1)

»Here Halewin seer moede was; Hi rustet stille inne ’t gras.»

(1)

Sic ritt da nur ein wenig fort, Begegnet ihr des Reiters Bot*. »Ich glaube, du hast Hilsingers Pferd, Hast in der Hand sein blutiges Schwerdt.» »Wo sollt ich haben Hilsingers Schwerdt, Er ist ja todt, und lebt nicht mehr. Er schläft bei sieben Jungfräuelein, Er dacht, ich sollte die achte seyn.» »Gottlob, mein schönes Jungfräuelein, So will ich als Stallknecht euch dienen getreu!» (1)

i

j

Frau Jutte de kek torn fenster herut: »Helena, wo ist mein sönelein? Helena, wo ist dein schätzelein?»

(1)

Als sic wohl vor die Brücke kam, Ihre Schwieger ihr entgegen kam. »Willkommen, willkommen Tochter mein, Wo Hess sie den Sohn Markgrafen mein?» (1)

c B iii 36, C 30, conste gheseit . . . mel menigher . . . hi reit D 40. d B iii 38; meiskens C 32. e B iii 40, B ii 35, B i 35; vv. 2—3 D 45; Ik heb van’t leven hem beroofd . . . Hy is als Holofernes gelooft! G 34; God heeft zijne ziel A 54, 57, 60. ƒ B i 34, B ii 34. g D 42. h E 22—26. * F 12. j G 5—6.

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

58 k

/

»Dein sönelein lebt und ist nicht tot, He sit unner giemter gent linjenbom Und spier It met sierwen junkfräulein skon, De achte de soll Helena sin, De achte de most he sölwer sin.»

(2)

Und als sie vor den Wald hinauskam, Schöns Herrchen seine Mutter entgegenkam. »Ottila, wo hast du mein Sohn gelassen? Es däucht mich, es sei sein graues Ross.» »Dort unten, dort oben im grünen Wald Dort spielt er mit sieben Jungfrauen bald.» »Ottila, von was sind deine Schuhe so rot? Es däucht mich, es sei meinen Sohn sein Blut.» »Gestern Abend hab ich gemacht Kapaunen tot, Davon sind meine Schuhe so rot.»

m

Maid: »Gy zyt gelukkig, leelyk wyf, Dat ik u laten wil uw lyf, En, als uw zone, u niet make styf.» n

(2)

De moeder weende zeer gestoord: »Hadt gy wat eer gezeid dit woord, Gy en waert zoo wyd niet geraekt voort.»

(2)

Father: »Das schadt meinem Sohn Markgrafe nicht, Er hat jetzt seinen Lohn gekriegt, Er hat genug darnach geritten!» (1)

The materials of this section of the narrative have parallels in the Scandinavian ballad. In the Dutch ballad the maid meets father, sister (not in A), brother, mother of Halewijn as she journeys homeward. They wish to know what has happened to him. To the first three she says that he is well situated, like a hero, with sixteen (B iii, C), many (D), maids to divert himself with (b, d); and the illustrious Halewijn has explained his arts to her and is well cared for by sixteen maids (r— B iii, C, D). To the mother the maid says that Halewijn is dead, and that she has his head in her lap, her apron all bloodied from it (e— A, B, C, D) ; he has gone hunting and she will never see him alive k F 13 ; neun Jungfräulein dort . . . ich sollt zehnte G 6. / I 13— 17; seiner Brüder drei. »Schondilg, wo ist mein Bruder fein, Dass du jetzt reitest ganz allein?» »In dem breiten Lindenbreit. . . Drei Täubchen hab ich geschlachtet (sts. 16—17 as one) H 25—28. ro B iii 41—42, C 35—36. n G 7.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German

59

again (ƒ—B i, B ii) ; he was tired and rests peacefully in the grass (g— D). The mother in a fury responds with the statement that if the maid had said as much earlier, she would not have got so near home. The maid replies that the wicked mother is fortunate in not being killed as was her son (m). The mother’s response is rather different from the father’s in the German G variant, for the father thinks the son has received his deserts (n). Needless to say, this is a fabrication in a much mutilated variant. In the German variants, stage 15 is not filled out with incremental repetition. In E (h) she meets Hilsinger’s servant, so impressed by the maid’s achievements that he wishes to be her stallboy. In F (i) the mother, Frau Jutte (from a window, borrowed from stage 4), asks after her son (as in Dutch); in G (j) the father-in-law enquires after his son; in H (/) three brothers ask after him; and in I (/) it is again the mother. In the Scandinavian ballad we have a treatment of this stage of the narrative much closer to the German than the Dutch variants; only brother, sisters, and servants appear in Scandinavian stage 18. The groupings among the German variants are H and I (to which E is closely allied) and F and G. The question in H and I, Why are your shoes so red?, reminiscent of the Edward ballad, is an intrusion from the Ulrich form of the song. Not until this stage in the narrative of the Dutch song do we discover how many victims have fallen to Halewijn, sixteen (in D, still only ‘many’). In all the German variants we have here a restatement of the number ‘seven,’ found also in stage 8 (the gallows). That the figure is repeated is probably a sign of the simplifications and repetitions that enter a song by virtue of oral transmission. In the Dutch ballad we are told of the »menich vrouwenbeeld» in stage 8, and must wait until near the end of the song, until the maid has had the leisure to count them, to discover how many there are. The effect achieved by stage 15 is enoblement of the heroine, who braves the family of Halewijn and parries their queries with taunting irony. 16. The triumphant arrival home a

Zy reed dan voort ak Judith wys Zoo regt nae haer vaders paleis, Daer zy wierd ingehaeld met eer en prys. Zy biaest den horen bly van zin Met victorie ak een heldin, En heel het hof ontfing haer in min.

a C 37—38.

(1)

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

60 b

c

Als sie wohl auf das Schiösslein kam, Sie nahm has Horn vor ihren Mund, Und blies Markgraf aus Herzensgrund. (1) En toen zy acn de poorte kwam, Zy blaesde den horen als een man. En als haer vader dat vernam, ’t Verheugde hem dat zy wederkwam. Daer werd gehouden een banket, Dat hoofd werd op de tafel gezet.

d

(2)

Als zij kwam al in de stad Trommels, trompetten zij gingen al op. Zij stak het hoofd te venstcren uit, Zij riep: »Nu ben ik Rolands bruid!»

t*

Zij trok het hoofd te vensteren in, Zij riep: »Nu ben ik een heldin!»

(1)

[Da kamen sie gucken um das Haus, Gleich wie die Katze zu der Maus.]

(1)

The false ring of the phrasing of C appears in reading a, in which the maid is compared to »Judith wise,» just as Halewijn has been compared in the same variant to Holofernes in 15 e. The French loan words ‘paleis’ and ‘victorie’ stand out prominently in the passage. The C variant reproduces the thematic substance of B and D (c), as has been the case all along. When the heroine came to the gateway she blew the horn like a man; her father was pleased with her return; a banquet was held, and the head was set on the table. The Dutch ballad is the only form of the song in which a social conclave in honour of the heroine takes place at the close. In G (b) we have a repetition of her blowing the horn; she blew thoughts of the^Margrave right out of her heart. In A (d) we have a repetition of [what amounts to civic celebration, with drums and trumpets. Her head’out of the window (a passage which has occurred twice before in the narrative, and which properly belongs in stage 4, thus accounting for the nonsense of verses 3 and 4 here), the maid declares herself in no modest fashion a heroine. The e passage from G is a fabrication that does not belong to the tradition of the song, as was recognized by Reifferscheid when he bracketed the verses. b G 7. c B i 36—38, B iii 43— 45; hielte hi se willecomen D 46—48. d A 61—63. e G 7.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German

G1

This final triumphant return appears only in the Dutch ballad and the imperfect G text in German. The French ballad has no comparable narrative; the Scandinavian song has turned the matter into more commonplace material. German variants H and I end with matter that belongs to the Ulrich tradition of the song; E ends in the appropriate mood with the villain’s servant joining her service; F, the Gert Olbert variant, is cut short with stage 15. Names: As we proceed with this study it will be noted that such matters as the names of the principals in the narrative are very slippery things, subject to easy change, particularly as the ballad is translated from one area to another. Individual variants that are themselves closely related will usually show a similarly close relationship in names, but otherwise variety is the rule. Much attention has been given to the names in this ballad, and elaborate theories have in fact been constructed upon the names.5 But it seems only reasonable that the names are no more than another detail in the complex of details that make up a variant. The belief that they, and they primarily, reveal the secrets of a ballad places too much trust in one detail that oral transmission usually effects great changes in. And precise philological method is hardly appropriate to the orally transmitted materials with which we are dealing. Words in a language are constantly subject to the ‘law of correction;’ their changes are not individual matters but follow the totality of change that the language or dialect undergoes. But the names in ballads undergo the vagaries of associational change, the individual preferences exercised by the singer and even the community, and simply the exercise of a poor ear and a weak memory. The variety of names and descriptive terms that we find for the villain in the Halewijn form is as follows: Halewijn Hilsinger Gert Olbert Roland Markgraf knight

B C D E F A G E

H

I J

The only name that is in any way constant is the Halewijn of the usual Dutch ballad, a name apparently to be found as a family name in Flanders, according to Coussemaker and other editors. As the most constant name from a form of the ballad that perhaps best preserves some original traits of the song, it has served for the title of this study. It is to be noted that only in the German variants is the villain called a ‘knight,’ a conventional term that we shall see repeated in many

fi2

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

other forms of the song. In the Dutch ballad the name individualizes him; and the extraordinary powers of his severed head in speaking suggests that we are not in fact faced with the usual ballad knight, but a supernatural being,* however vaguely that supernatural quality may now appear in the Dutch song. The villain has a name in Dutch B, C, and D, but not the maid. The maid remains nameless also in the older traditions of the ballad in France and Great Britain, as well as in most Scandinavian variants of older vintage. This would suggest that the villain has been thought of in special terms. It will be noted that in the Dutch song (aside from the wayward A text) the maid is the conventional king’s daughter of ballads (B, G, D). The names of the maid in the Halewijn form are as follows: Odilia Helena Louise Schön Anne king’s daughter Frau Jutte (the mother)

EEii F

H(Schondilg), I J (Linnich)

A G B C D F

Once again we note a relationship between E, H and I ; the connection between F and J may not be so certain. The interrelationship of the variants: 1 a liedckijn 2 a kind —bemind b starb Vater ab c sie wuchs auf e-g bribe i Sammt und Seiden 3 requests to go 4 a kamer gegaen b besten kleedren g hemdeken i gouden banden k rooden roc m>p peirle . . . besten ros o croone van goude r Fenster hinaus 5 a scrilincs up dat ros b sie war ihm lieb c (commonplace) d (commonplace) e um ihn die Händ

B C D B C D E E E

H H H

I J (J)

F G A B C D (A) B C D B D B D (A) B D (A) B C D A B D A B D

E

J H H

E F

H H

E

H

F E F

H

J

A B (C) D I I J I J

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German 6

vont sie Halewijn Gegroet 7 b reden voort c-e Essen und Trinken 8 a galgen veld Lindenbaum 9 a>g gy de schoonste

B C D B D B C D

b

d

E

a b

11

a c

opperst kleet silk bespreide . . . leet Haupt in das Gras hooft voor voeten

falsche Haupt 13 b koren an meinen Graurcss 13 c blasen nicht gut ƒ uw rooden hals g moordenaers raed 14 a hoofd by den haire b waschte e schrylings. . . reed ƒ ritt Wald hinaus 15 a wat verder b,c zyn konstenverklaerd k de achte sölwer / fro m Ulrich

E E D E (C)

A B B C C

16 c poorte. . . banket Names: Halewijn knight Odilia king’s daughter

F

G

J

F

FG G

H I H I

G (I) J

Eii F B

G

D E F G E

(A) A A A

B B B B B

J

H D

b

mother's threat

H H I

E A B

c,

m

G

B C D

d,e Ulrich close

12

F

B C D

dyh choice o f three

10

63

H

D C D D G

H

I

H

I

H H

I J I

A BiiiC Biii C (D) F

G

Biii C B D B C D E E B C D

Among the Dutch variants B i is the progenitor of B ii; B iii is the same tradition aside from a fuller stage 15. This long stage in B iii corresponds to the same passage in C, which is a reworked broadside copy (Thys, printer) of B. The A text is a modern reworking, considerably altered in the first half of the narrative; it corresponds in its second half more closely with the B tradition. The D text agrees in nearly every particular with B, although the verses have been distributed into regular two-lined stanzas (the B texts have a succession of irregular two- and three-lined stanzas). It is possible that the D text is a polishing and editing of the ballad by Prudens van Duyse, in whose Nagelaten Gedichten of 1883 it appeared.

G4

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

Among the German texts there is striking agreement between E and H; the latter is a tradition antecedent to I and J. The F and G texts have mutual correspondences, and of these two F resembles E and H more closely than does- the other. The J and E ii texts have taken the same narrative turn in permitting the maid to be killed. They are really the I and E variants which have adopted the close of the Ulrich form of the song. (It may be noted that H and I in 15 / reveal a phrasing from the Ulrich tradition also.) In a consideration of the interrelations of the Halewijn texts, two questions now present themselves: How do German F and G fit into the pattern of relationships? and Can either the Dutch or the German song be thought the antecedent of the other? The F and G texts are more corrupted than E and H (F less so than Ci). The former is closer to E than it is to H, as may be seen from 10 a and 12 c, although the matter is uncertain. The stanzaic structure of E and H is the couplet, which the Dutch ballad once undoubtedly had; F is in quatrains. This together with the number of departures in phrasing in F (e.g., the mother is Frau Jutte, the maid drinks her wine, the gallows tree is missing) would suggest a reworked copy from which has emerged by traditional singing the badly mangled G text. Only in one particular do the F and G texts share a reading with Dutch B and C that is not shared by the other German texts (10 b— »Wenn et di besprützte, dat de mi led»). In F and G alone among the German texts the murderer is not called conventionally a ‘knight;* this possibly reveals a resistance to a later turn of phrase. The F-G texts are then less close to the Dutch variants in spite of particular similarities which they do contain. The F-G and E-H groups are thus parallel rather than successive developments of the German song. As to the second question, Which came first, the Dutch Halewijn or the German Gert Olbert?, a final answer is not readily forthcoming. The original ballad, in spite of the many changes which it has undergone, is not to be thought entirely different from the substance that has been culled from tradition in later days; but an original we can never hope to recreate. The German E and H tradition may have original traits as surely as Dutch B; the latter is traditionally given the palm as regards age, but for no better reason than that the song is better preserved in Dutch than in German. It must be borne in mind that the German song has been altered considerably (witness the forms discussed in the following pages); these forms have worked upon one another, and the German tradition has consequently become fairly moribund. The opening of the German song (2 b-g) is certainly not an original trait. The conception of the villain as the betrothed of the maid (4 r) also appears to be late, in spite of the appearance of a courtship theme in Scandinavia, France, and Great Britain, which, like other common­ place and rationalized notions, has wrorked itself into the later forms of the Halewijn narrative. The maid’s complaint of her need of food

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German

65

and drink on the long journey (7 c-d) does, on the other hand, appear to be an old trait in spite of its absence from the Dutch song; it reappears in France, as we shall see, and in derivative German forms as well. Since it is the ominous indication to the maid of the villain’s intentions it is an integral part of the narrative. The choice of deaths is again more

explicitly stated in the German variants than in the Dutch, in in­ cremental repetition, it is true, but that need not rule out its antiquity. For the Dutch is itself a pastiche of incremental repetitions intermixed with some highly individualized touches. It is the individualized touches that make the Dutch ballad appear original. Only in the Dutch song, in the Halewijn form, does the villain attract the maid with his magic song; only in the Dutch song does she meet Halewijn in the wood (the riding off together is the conventional treatment); only in the Dutch song does the head request that the wound be smeared with a salve; only in the Dutch song does the maid carry home the head; and, finally, only in the Dutch ballad is the maid 5

66

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

celebrated for her heroism. These specific matters certainly give the Dutch song a highly particularized and original appearance. The German variants are not directly derived from the Dutch song as we have it, for the Dutch ballad itself has undoubtedly changed somewhat. But where the Dutch and German songs agree, as for example in the motifs of gallows field (stage 8) and choice of deaths (stage 9) or in particular phrasings of motifs, as in 4 a and 10 a, there we have more surely than elsewhere an early trait. We must postulate an earlier form closer to the Dutch song than to the German, but one from which both groups (A-D and E-J) have derived. This would account for the features in the German song which are undoubtedly old, but which have been lost from the Dutch. There seems little reason to doubt that we are dealing here with material that is at the very centre of the tradition, for, as we shall see, the national forms of the ballad from areas geographically contiguous to the Rhine basin appear to derive from the Halewijn form, which thus becomes the centre of a radial arrangement of relationships. If we may deduce the geographical movement of the earlier ballad from the evidence suggested by nineteenth century texts, revealing discrepant degrees of preservation and possible improvement in the case of the Dutch ballad, then it would seem that the ballad had its beginnings in the area of the Lower Rhine, moving eastward into Westphalia and southward up the river. There appears on page 65 a diagrammatic representation of the relations among the variants of the Halewijn form. Catalogue of Variants of the Ulinger, Ulrich and ‘Nicolai* Forms6 IN Holland or Flanders

Hoffmann von Fallersleben, Niederl. Volksl., No. 29, 1856; reptd. in FI. van Duyse, No. 2, 1903. 10 sts. 2 Lower Rhine A. Kretzschmer and A. W. von Zuccalmaglio, Deut. Volksl., II, 39—41, No. 15, 1840; reptd. in Mittler, No. 82, 1855; reptd. in W. Men­ zel, Die Gesänge der Völker, No. 451 (3rd ed., 1866). 20 sts. 3N Lower Rhine (near Bonn) K. Simrock, Die deut. Volksl., No. 8, 1851; reptd. in F. Mittler No. 88, 1855; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 42f, 1893. 20 sts. 4N Harz Mountains H. Pröhle, Volksl., No. 5, 1855; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 42 G, 1903. 10 sts. 4N ii Westphalia A. Reifferscheid, Westfäl. Volksl.y No. 18, 1879. 7 sts. 5 Nassau (Lahn district) M ittlers MS.; ptd. in J. Meier, Balladen, I, 121— 122, 1935. 9 sts.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German Nassau 7N Upper Hesse 8N Hesse (near Darmstadt)

67

E. Wolfram, N ass. Volksl., No. 33, 1894. 11 sts. F. Mittler, Deut. Volksl., No. 90, 1855. 7 sts. Erk’s Nachlass (coli. 1842); ptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 42h, 1893. 8 sts. 9 Hesse Nassau (Limburg) Erk and Böhme, Deut. Liederh ., No. 41i, 1903. 9 sts. 10 Rhine Palatinate G. Heeger and W. Wüst, Volksl., No. 2a, 1909. (Hanhofen) 14 sts. 11 Rhine Palatinate Heeger and Wüst, Volksl., No. 2b, 1909. 8 sts. (Gimmeldingen) 12N Baden (Heidelberg) / Fr. Nicolai, Eyn jeyn er , kleyner Almanach , II, Swabia 41—43, No. 21, 1888 (1st ed. 1778); reptd. in A. L. v. Arnim and C. Brentano, D es Knaben Wunderhom; reptd. in Fr. Erlach, Volksl. der deut., II, 120— 121, No. 11, 1835; reptd. in A. Kretzschmer and A. W. v. Zuccalmaglio, Deut. Volksl., II, 199—201, No. 95, 1840; reptd. in Mittler, Deut. Volksl., No. 89, 1855; reptd. in J. Bolte, Alte und neue Lieder, pp. 282—285, No. 3, 6th Heft; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, Deut. Liederh ., No. 42a, 1893. 10 sts. 13 Baden (Sommersdorf) A. Frank, D a s d. Volksl., XVI (1914), 189. lOsts. 14 Wurtemberg (Kisslegg G. Scherer, Jungbrunnen, No. 5B, 1875; reptd. in and Hirrlingen) Erk and Böhme, Deut. Liederh., No. 4 Id, 1893. 20 sts. 15 Wurtemberg (Hirrlingen E. Meier Schwäb. Volksl., No. 167, 1855. 10 sts. and Obernau) 16 Wurtemberg (Obernau E. Meier, Schwäb. Volksl., No. 168, 1855. 20 and Wangen) sts. 17 Wurtemberg (Hirrlingen) E. Meier, Schwäb. Volksl ., No. 168 Append., 1855. 10 sts. 18 Bavaria (near Kempten) A. Birlinger, Schwäb.-Augsburg. Wörterbuch, No. 8, 1864. 19 sts. 19N Bavaria (near Munich) W. Busch, Ul Oler W elt, No. 6, p. 147, 1910. 10 sts. 20 Bavaria (Augsburg?) Broadside by Mattheus Franck, about 1566; reptd. in L. Uhland, No. 74B (1844); reptd. in Mittler, No. 76, 1855; reptd. in F. Böhme, A ltd. Liederb., No. 13b, 1877; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 41b, 1893. 30 sts. 21 Bavaria (Sieggraben) R. Zoder, D a s d. Volksl., X X X III (1931), 53—62, No. 1. 15 sts. 22 Bavaria (Rohr) R. Zoder, D a s d. Volksl., XXX III (1931), 53—62, No. 2. 14 sts. 6

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

68 23

Bavaria (Nürnberg) / Switzerland (Basel)

24

Switzerland (Aargau)

25

Switzerland (Solothurn, Grindel) Switzerland (Lucerne, Wiggertal) Switzerland (Lucerne, Entlebuch) Switzerland (Bern)

Broadside by Sam. Apiario, about 1570, and by Joh. Schröter about 1605; reptd. in L. Uhland, No. 74A, 1844; reptd. in Mittler, No. 77, 1855; reptd. in Erk, No. 28b, 1856; reptd. in Böhme, No. 13a, 1877; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 41a, 1893; reptd. in Fr. Arnold, II, No. 8a (4th ed. 1927). 30 sts. G. Scherer, Jungbrunnen, No. 5C, 1875; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 4 le, 1893. 21 sts. S. Grolimund, Volks!., No. 8, 1910. 16 sts.

A. L. Gassmann, D as Volksl. im L u z. W iggert., No. 12, 1906. 16 sts. 27 L. Tobler, Schweiz. Volksl., No. 6, 1884; reptd. in J. Meier, Balladen , No. 17F, 1935. 24 sts. 28 Schweiz. Archiv f ü r Volkskunde, XI (1907), 17— 18, No. 18; reptd. in M. E. Marriage and J . Meier, Volksl. aus d. K a n t . Bern , Schw eiz. Archiv f ü r Volkskunde, V (1901), 8—9, No. 4. 10 sts. 29 Austria (Vorarlberg, A. Dörler and W. Dörler, Z eit, des Ver. f ü r Bregenz) Volkskunde, XVII (1907), 307—311. 16 sts. 30 Austria (Gaming-Rotte) A. Karasek, D a s d. Volksl., X X X III (1931), 121—124, No. 3. 19 sts. 31 Austria (Styria) Rosegger, Steir. Volksl., No. 20; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 41g, 1893; reptd. in Paul Kretschmer, M itth . der ontkrop. Gesells. in W ien, XXXI (1901), 62—70. 15 sts. 32 Austria (Styria) J. Bolte, D a s d. Volksl., X X IX (1927), 49—55, No. 1. 16 sts. 33 Austria (Styria, Kalwang) A. Schlossar, D eut. Volksl. aus Steierm ., No. 309, 1881 (coli. 1858). 16 sts. 34 Hungary (Styria, I. Thirring-Waisbecker, Z eit, f ü r ö s te n . VolksHeanzen) kunde, XX (1915), 159— 175, No. 4. 11 sts. 35 Yugoslavia (Gottschee, J. Meier, Balladen , No. 17D, 1935. 75 verses. Mitterdorf) 36N Hungary (Siebenbürgen) VV. Schuster, Siebenbürg. Volksl., p. 57; reptd. in Böhme, A ltd . Liederb., No. 14, 1877; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 42i, 1893; reptd. in G. Brandsch, Siebenb. -d . Volksl., pp. 10—12, 1931; reptd. i n j . Meier, Balladen , No. 17H, 1935. 10 sts. 37N Hungary (Kleinschelken) G. Brandsch, Siebenb. •d. Volksl., pp. 12— 13, 1931. 8 sts. 38N Hungary (Talmesch) G. Brandsch, Siebenb. -d. Volksl., p. 13, 1931. 8 sts.

26

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German 39N Hungary (Mühlbach) 40

Czechoslovakia (Kuhland)

41

Czechoslovakia (Kuhland)

42N Czechoslovakia (Kuhland)

43

Czechoslovakia(Kremnitz)

44

West Bohemia

45

47

North Bohemia (Aussiger Gau, Wannow) North Bohemia (Aussiger Gau, Wannow) Saxony (Oberlauz)

48

Saxony (Erzgebirge)

49

Silesia (Glatz, Hammer)

50

Silesia (Kapsdorf)

51

Silesia (Eckersdorf)

52

Silesia (near Breslau)

53

Silesia (Wilhelminenort)

46

54 Silesia (Namslau) 55

Brandenburg (Oderbruch, Gross Neuendorf)

69

G. Brandsch, Siebenb. -d. Volks!., p. 14, 1931. 5 sts. J. G. Meinert, D er Fylgie , pp. 61—65, 1817; reptd. in Mittler, No. 80, 1855; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 41c, 1893. 44 sts. J. G. Meinert, D er Fylgie, pp. 66—68, 1817; reptd. in Fr. Erlach, IV, 216—217, No. 4, 1835. 19 sts. J. G. Meinert, D er Fylgie , No. 37, 1817; reptd. in Fr. Erlach, IV, 16; reptd. in Mittler, No. 83, 1855; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 42c, 1893. 19 sts. A. Karasek, D a s d . Volksl., X X X III (1931), 121—124, No. 1. 14 sts. A. Hruschka and W. Toischer, Deut. Volksl. aus Böhmen, No. 35, 1891. 19 sts. A. Kirschner, Volksgesänge, pp. 53—54, 1898. 16 sts. A. Kirschner, Volksgesänge, pp. 54—55, 1898. 20 sts. Taschenbuch Jur Dichter, pp. 126—128, 1778; reptd. in Fr. Erlach, III, 450—451, No. 2, 1835. 9 sts. A. Müller, Volksl. aus dem E rzgeb., pp. 92—93 1891. 16 sts. G. Amft, Volksl. der Grafschaft G la tz , No. 17, 1911. 15 sts. Hoffmann v. Fallersleben and E. Richter, Schles. Volksl., No. 13, 1842. 20 sts. F. Pradel, M itt, der Schles. Ges. f å r Volksk., X (1908), 89—103. 52 verses. J . D. Gräter, Idunna und Hermode , I, 1812, No. 35; reptd. in Hoffmann v. Fallersleben and E. Richter, Schles. Volksl., No. 12, 1842; reptd. in Mittler, No. 81, 1855; reptd. in Erk, No. 28a, 1856; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 42d, 1893. 30 sts. Hoffmann v. Fallersleben and E. Richter, Schles. Volksl., p. 26, 1842. 23 sts. K. Gusinde, Mitt, der Schles. Ges. f ö r Volksk ., XVI (1914), 94. 9 sts. L. Erk and W. Irmer, D ie d. Volksl., 6th Heft, pp. 64—65, No. 56, 1843 (coll. 1840); Erk and Böhme, No. 42c, 1893; reptd. from M ittlers MS. in J . Meier, Balladen, No. 17G, 1935. 24 sts.

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

70

56N Brandenburg (Oranienburg) 57 Pomerania (near Köslin) 58

Pomerania (Wollin)

59

Pomerania (Wollin)

60

62

Holstein (Kienzen bei Eutin) Poland (Potolowek, near Nieszawa) East Prussia

63

East Prussia

64

East Prussia (Natungen)

65

East Prussia (Angerburg)

66

East Prussia (Burggarten)

67

East Prussia (Althof)

68

East Prussia (Kanoten)

61

69N East Prussia (Lengen and Althof) 70N East Prussia (Sieslack bei Landsberg) 71N East Prussia (Klein Kärthen) 72N East Prussia (Königsberg) 73

(origin unknown)

74 75

(origin unknown) (origin unknown)

L. Erk and W. Irmer, Die d. Volksl., 6th Heft, pp. 6—7, No. 4, 1843. 13 sts. H. Engel and F. M. Goebel, Pomm. Volks!., No. 8B (coli. 1880). 17 sts. H. Engel and F. M.Goebel, Pomm. Volksl., No. 8C (coli. 1929). 21 sts. H. Engel and F. M. Goebel. Pomm. Volksl., No. 8A (coli. 1892—94). 5 sts. W. Wisser, Zeit. d. Ver. J. Volksk., X V {1905), 331, No. 1. A. Karasek, Das d. Volksl., XXXIII (193H, 121— 124, No. 2. 28 sts. E. T. v. Batocki, 7/2 Schock alte ostpr. Volks/., No. 25, 1910. 15 sts. E. T. v. Batocki, 7/2 Schock alte ostpr. Volksl., pp. 68—69, 1910. 15 sts. H. Frischbier, Hundert ostpr. Volksl., No. 23, 1893. 20 sts. H. Frischbier, Hundert ostpr. Volksl., No. 22, 1893. 25 sts. E. Roese, Lebende Spinnstubenlieder, No. la I, 1911. 16 sts. E. Roese, Lebende Spinnstubenlieder, No. 4a III, 1911. 15 sts. E. Roese, Lebende Spinnstubenlieder, No. 4a II, 1911. 10 sts. E. Roese, Lebende Spinnstubenlieder, No. 4I>, 1911, 7 sts. E. Roese, Lebende Spinnstubenlieder, No. 4b III, 1911. 7 sts. E. Roese, Lebende Spinnstubenlieder, No. 4b II, 1911. 9 sts. L. Erk and F. Böhme, Deut. Liederh., No. 42k, 1893 (coli. 1858). 10 sts. J . G. Herder, Volkslieder, I, 79—82, No. 16, 1778; reptd. in Arnim and Brentano, Des Knaben Wunderhorn, with additions; reptd. in Mittler, No. 78, 1855; reptd. in Erk and Böhme, No. 42b, 1893. 13 sts. K. Simrock, Die d. Volksl., No. 6, 1851. 35 sts. G. Scherer, Jungbrunnen, No. 5A, 1875; reptd. in Fr. Arnold, Das d. Volksl., II, 22—24, No. 8b, 1927. 20 sts.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German

71

Analysis of Variations The three derivative German forms of our ballad have been distinguished in the Catalogue by the italicizing of the Ulinger family of texts and the addition of N to the Nicolai texts, the Ulrich variants appearing in roman type. As the map of German variants demonstrates, the Ulinger form is found chiefly in the southern German territories from the Rhine and Switzerland, across Bavaria, and into Austria; the Ulrich form is east German in its spread. The Nicolai form is less clearly localized than the other two, but has been collected from the far east and far west of Germany. We shall attempt to identify the relations of the derivative groups to the Halewijn form of the song by considering the phrasings and motifs that are common to the two (the stage numbers refer to the Halewijn song). In the process we shall determine the inter­ connections among the derivative forms of the ballad. Stages l a, 2 a Gut ritter der reit durch das riet, Er sang ein schönes tageliet, Er sang von heller stimme Dass in der burg erklinget. Die junkfraw an dem laden lag, Sie hört gut ritter singen. »Ja wer ist der da singet? Mit dem will ich von hinnen.»

T he above passage, the opening of 23, an old broadside text from Bavaria and Switzerland the early printings of which are dated 1570 and 1605, provides us with a representative passage parallelling the \ a, 2 a motifs in Dutch. The 20 broadside from Augsburg, dated 1560, reads very nearly in the same way. The passage above is in all the Ulinger forms of the ballad (except 11, 31, 49), a total of twenty-eight variants. The passage has thematic correspondence in only three Ulrich texts, 2, 74, and 75 (probably western texts from the area of the Rhine, certainly so in the case of 2). Once again thematic correspondence occurs in all the Nicolai texts except 36N, 37N, 39N, 42N, and 56N. The prevalence of the motif of attraction by song in the Dutch ballad (B, G, D), and in the Ulinger and Nicolai variants suggests that we have here an original trait which the German texts (E-J) have lost. One may note that the motif is more elaborated in the derivative forms than it is in Dutch B, G, and D; the latter treat the ‘song’ passage almost in a synoptic form. In most of the variants of the derivative forms the ballad is presented in quatrains (except for 40 and the Ulrich variants), but the quatrains

72

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

are invariably made up of two couplets joined together; the stanzaic pattern thus suggests that the early song did in fact have a two-lined stanza (as in the Dutch and Danish ballad). In the Ulinger form the villain is a ‘knight,’ but the maid is not de­ scribed as a ‘king’s daughter;’ the Ulinger variants in this respect agree with German E-J. The Ulrich variants that have the song motif (2, 74, 75) have a ‘king’s daughter,’ and not a knight, in which respect they agree with Dutch B-D. The usual Ulrich form, however, has neither the song nor ‘knight’ nor ‘king’s daughter.’ All the Nicolai variants have the commonplace ‘knight* - ‘king’s daughter’ (70N —adlige Dame). As we shall later see she must needs be a king’s daughter for the sake of the narrative. The ‘knight’ has entered the Ulinger and Nicolai forms by way of the commonplace opening, frequently met with in the form »Es ritt ein Reiter durch das Ried.» The absence of the ‘knight’ from the Dutch variants (B-D) as well as from the Ulrich form (and his conventional entry elsewhere) gives some support to the notion that the original Mädchenmörder was not a knight, but a figure sufficiently specialized so as to invite generalization of his nature in later tradition. In all the Ulinger variants that have the song the villain’s song is described as being of »dreierlei Stimmen» (except in 16, 23, 27, and 44, in which the song is usually in a »heller Stimme»). In 20 and 23 the song is described as a »Tagelied,» in 40 as a »Morgenlied,» the aubade of medieval poetry. Only in one Ulrich (75) and in three Nicolai variants (7N, 69N, 7IN) is the song described as of three voices. This singular trait is thus fairly confined to the Ulinger ballad. Since it is absent from one early form of Ulinger (23) and since in the other early form it appears as »Drei liedlein auf einer stimme» (20) we may assume that the security of the trait in the tradition is the work of later singing. In the Ulinger form the maid wishes to be taught how to sing in such a fashion (in all variants that have the song of enticement except 22) ; the knight will teach her so to sing (in all but 5, 9, 13, 15, 16, 21, 28, 32, 34). Her wish and his promise constitute a single motif; where both appear we have a repetition which merely states what is otherwise implied in curtailed variants. »O junkfraw, wölt ir mit mir gan,

Ich will euch lernen was ich kan, Ich will euch lernen singen Dass gegen der burg tut klingen.»

In nearly all later variants of the Ulinger form, those collected in the nineteenth century, the maid will give her troth and honour if she may learn to sing as he does. This bargain is not consonant with the narrative of the Dutch (and presumably earlier) ballad, in which she is not to give up her honour. And the offer »Ich gebe meine Treue and Ehre» does not appear in sixteenth century variants of the Ulinger ballad.

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German

73

In variants 73, 74, and 75 of the Ulrich form the maid wishes to be taught to sing the birds’ song. In 63, 65, 66, and 68, that the villain sings has been forgotten; but the maid hears birds singing in the woods. This song of birds has been moved forward in the narrative, for birds appear later in the usual rendition (of Ulinger, and to a lesser extent of Ulrich) as truth-tellers warning the maid of her impending fate. The wish to learn and promise to teach the art of the villain’s song never appear in the Nicolai group. The song of the villain, then, is presented most elaborately in the Ulinger ballad, and it serves likewise as his mode of attraction in the Nicolai group. In those variants of the latter group in which he does not attract the maid away with him by singing, he courts her (as in the Danish song) for the conventional seven or eight years (36N, 37N, 38N, 39N, 42N, 56N, a group primarily from Hungary). The courtship occurs also in 41. The connection of Ulinger and Dutch A-D is affirmed by the presence in the Ulinger variants of the verbs »klingen» and »erklinget» (applied to his song). In Dutch 5 a the maid rides »singend en klingend door ’t bosch (singing and echoing through the woods). In spite of the fact that the Ulinger opening is more elaborated than that of the Dutch ballad, it is probably a later amplification. The maid’s wish to learn to sing UUnger’s song appears to be a rationalization (we first meet it in the broadsides) of an earlier notion of the compelling and attractive force of his singing. Her bargaining with her honour is a later development stiU. The Nicolai form has its opening from the Ulinger ballad (except for the six south-eastern variants with the conventional courtship opening). The Ulrich ballad, on the other hand, has an independent beginning, Schön Ulrich wollt’ spazieren gehn, Traut Ännchen wollte mit ihm gehn.

'This opening, direct and stripped of the marvellous, is very strongly reminiscent of the »Allons, nous y promener» of the newer tradition in France. Finally, the German E-J variants have openings that bear no relationship to the derivative forms. Stage 3 The third stage of the Dutch Halewijn form, in which the maid asks successively the members of her family if she may go with Halewijn, is nowhere parallelled, except in one form of Die Wassermannsbraut.7 In that song the maid in fear asks not to be sent with the knight who has come over the Rhine, but to remain at home with her mother, father, sister, brother, for she has premonitions of harm befalling her. In the Halewijn song the heroic quality of the girl obviates such a request.

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

74

But we do find the frightened maid in three of the Nicolai variants, 36N, 37N, and 56N (Hungary and Brandenburg). As she enters the coach to depart from home (the lateness of the variants is suggested by the change from the ‘horse’ to the comforts of a ‘coach’) she asks if she may remain at home as daughter and sister rather than to depart with the knight. »Gut’ Nacht, gul’ Nacht, Vater und Mutter (Schwestern und Brüdern, dem Gesinde) mein! Ich werde längstens eure Tochter (Schwester, Jungfer) sein.»

In 56N, in crossing the bridge over the Rhine, the maid drowns, even as the swans, the Meerminnen, have forewarned. In 36N and 37N the knight brings the maid to a grave (compare the Danish ballad), into which he thrusts her, driving a pole through her heart. The swans of 56N correspond with the doves of Ulinger and Ulrich who serve as prophetic informants, Waldminnen, as the maid enters the woods with the knight. These three variants are not regular Nicolai songs but mixtures of ballad narratives. The request in 56N to remain with parents and relatives has undoubtedly been borrowed from Die Wassermannsbraut, and the contamination has been aided by the nature of the commonplace opening »Es ritt ein Reiter wohl durch das Ried» (the Ulinger opening), which in turn has given way in the Nicolai form to »Es ritt ein Reiter wohl über den Rhein.» The »Ried» and »Rhein» openings (and their variations) occur in the following variants : Ricci

Rhein

Wald Berg in ein schönes Land Haber und Klee Schriet am Wege Gass Hain Feld

IN, 12N 10, 14, 15, 16, 18, 20, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32, 33, 34, 44 74, 75 4N ii, 7N, 8N, 19N, 36N, 37N (Reng), 39N, 56N, 69N, 70N, 7IN 5, 6, 9, 43 (Ring) 2, 41 11, 22 13 (und Tal), 21 31 17 40 49 3N 4N i 72N

The »Ried» openings are predominantly from Ulinger variants, the »Rhein» openings predominantly from Nicolai variants. It is under­

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German

75

standable, therefore, why the Wassermannsbraut and Nicolai traditions have in some instances been confused with one another. The Ulrich opening is the curtailed »wollte spazieren gehn,» and consequently it lacks the »Ried»-»Rhein» commonplace of the others, except in the case of 2, 74, and 75, which also contain the motif of the song, and are thus contaminated with the Ulinger form. Stage 4 Both Dutch and German variants of the Halewijn form have a de­ scription of the maid’s dressing for the journey, although the treatment of the passage in German E-J is very brief. This same brevity is to be found in the derivative variants in which the maid dresses. Die junkfraw in ir kammer trat, Ir gelbes har in seiden flacht, Sie klaidt sich in silber und rotes golt Als eine die gern von hinnen wolt.

The above passage represents 20 and 23, the early variants. The motif occurs in only four of the Ulinger variants: 20, 23, 24, 27; in only four variants of the Ulrich form: 2, 52, 58, 75; and in seven variants of the Nicolai form, in which the motif is expressed as a plaiting of the maid’s hair in silk: 3N, 4N, 8N, 12N, 19N, 70N, 72N. The Ulinger form approaches the Halewijn form more closely than do the others; only the Ulrich form is there a suggestion of the maid’s being a bride (Schatz der Braut— 58), as in German E-J. In the Ulrich variants she brings gold with her, a commonplace motif that we shall see recurring in Danish and English. In none of the German derivative forms does she wear a maiden crown, as in German H and Dutch A-D. Stage 5 of the Dutch Halewijn song, the departure of the maid alone, is not found in the derivative forms of the song (in two Ulrich variants, 63 and 68, she does meet Ulrich in the woods). They depart together in the derivative forms, even as in German E-J ; but the phrasing is of such a commonplace sort that we may draw no inferences from it. Mounting and riding away are seldom expressed in ballads in as singular a fashion as in Dutch 5 a (»skrilinks . . . singend en klingend»). But even there it must be considered that the singing may originally have been only Halewijn’s, for in the Ulinger ballad it is he who will teach her.how to make the song ring out (»erklingen»). In the usual Ulrich form no horses are present: »Er nahm sie bei ihrer schneeweissen Hand / Und führt sie ’nein den grünen Wald.» It will be recalled that they wished to »gehen spazieren,» a verb that need not have been interpreted as'merely an act of walking, but which seems to have been so interpreted.

76

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

Stage 6 of the Dutch ballad, in which the maid meets Halewijn in the wood, is not found in the German derivative forms. Instead we move directly into stage 7, the journey. Stage 7 Und da sie in den wald ein kam, Und da sie leider niemand fand Dann nur ein weisse tauben Auf einer haselstauden: »Ja hör und hör, du Fridburg, Ja hör und hör, du junkfraw gut! Der Ulinger hat eilf junkfrawen ghangen, Die zwölft hat er gefangen.» »Ja hör so hör, du Ulinger, J a hör so hör, du trauter herr! Was sagt die weisse taube Auf jener haselstauden!» »Ja jene taube leugt mich an, Sie sicht mich für ein andern an, Sie leugt in iren roten Schnabel ; Ach schöne junkfraw, reitt für euch bass!» Sie kamen zu einem brunnen, Der war mit blut umbrunnen.

In the Ulinger ballad, when they come into the wood, the maid is warned by truth-telling turtledoves that perch in hazel branches (in all variants except 77,13, 25, 26, 28, 34, 43). The bird announces the multiple murder in 23, 30, 35, and 40, variants that preserve old traits; in others it warns the maid only against seduction. The maid wishes to know what the bird says (16, 20, 23, 24, 27, 40, 44), to which the villain replies that the bird is lying in its red beak and mistakes him for someone else. In 16, 24, and 27 the villain says the bird is complaining about its red feet which have gone bare in the winter. In later tradition her question and his reply have become merely a rebuke to the bird, admonishing it to be still (14, 18, 32). In some variants, continuing their journey, the principals arrive at a spring or well (14, 16, 18, 20, 21, 24, 27, 28, 30, 32, 35, 44, 49), a characteristic that is probably of some antiquity. For the maid in Halewijn washes the villain’s severed head in a spring; water as the locale of the main action occurs in French and English, and water must be close by in German E-J and the Danish ballad in the variants in which she is offered drowning as a means of death. The warning birds may be an early trait in the song ; the motif

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conveys the notion of murderous intent. In the Scandinavian, French, and English songs the villain makes an outright statement of his intentions of murdering the maid as he has murdered others, which may represent a simplification of the narrative. In Ulinger in its old form it is probable that the bird announces the villain’s intent and the count of the dead. That the mention of the spring so regularly accompanies the forewarning bird passage (only in 5, 23, 31, 40 do they not appear together) suggests that the combination is old. Another reason for assuming the passage to be old is that in the Dutch ballad the villain again does not state that he has murdered others but permits the gallows field to speak for him. The Dutch ballad has no corresponding them'e, and in that song the gallows field turns up rather suddenly. The age of the Ulinger variants is suggested further by the presence of the dove and hazel branch, which involve superstitions of some antiquity. The dove has been regarded in tradition as an omen of approaching death. And the dead have been thought reincarnated in the form of doves. In two variants eleven doves appear, and inform the maid that »Wir sind schon unser elfe, / Die zwölfte, die wirst du sein!» (30, 35). The hazel tree in which the dove perches has been universally recognized as having divining properties; in French and German tradition the hazel has served as a baguette divinatoire, which in addition to water and minerals discovers murderers and thieves.8 In the German variants of the Halewijn form (E-J) the maid makes complaints of hunger and thirst (repeated in the French ballad, thereby suggesting that the complaints may once have been a part of the Dutch song as well). The act of complaining is still maintained in the Ulinger tradition, but only in Switzerland (24, 27, 29). (In 49 we are told that the maid drinks water much as in German F.) The probable narrative changes are thus from an early complaint of hunger and thirst (lost in the Dutch ballad), replaced in Ulinger by the Waldminnen tradition, which, for all its suitability and prevalence in the Ulinger ballad, is a localized tradition possibly derived from some other song or tale. The warning bird has found its way into a number of variants of the Ulrich form (2, 57, 60, 61,62, 65, 74, 75 — all from the northeast except for 2). It will be recalled that 2, 74, and 75 begin like the Ulinger song; 74 and 75 also have the bloodied spring. The Ulinger form has had a contaminating influence over these eight variants. The maid does not complain of a want of food and drink in the Ulrich and Nicolai forms (in 45 we are told that she is warm and cold). In the Nicolai variants the principals journey for many miles. Stage 8 Er bat, sic solt im lausen, Sein gelbes härlein im erzausen; AU manich locken und lausen kam, Ein zäher dem andern nit entran.

78

The Ballad of Heer Hale wijn Er sach ir under die augen : »Was weinet ir, schöne junkfrawe? Weinend ir umb ewers vatters land, Oder seind.ir mir von herzen gramm?» »Ich wein nicht umb meins vatters land, So bin ich euch nit von herzen gramm, Dann dort an jener tannen Sich ich ailf schöne jungfräwlein hangen.» »Ach du schöne junkfraw fein, Du pfalzgrävin, du kaiserin! Der Adelger hat sich vor ailf getödt, Du wirdst die zwölft, das sei dir gsait.»

In the Ulinger ballad the maid is not made aware of the gallows on which hang eleven maids until the two have sat down upon his mantle and the maid has deloused the villain as he requests. This succession of incidents occurs regularly as in the stanzas above in all the Ulinger variants except 5, 6, 9, 10, //, and 13, curtailed variants from the Rhine basin. In 10 and 13 he announces outright that she is to be the twelfth. The delousing motif does not occur in the Halewijn form of the song, although in B ii and D Halewijn asks the maid to unbind her hair, a parallel incident. As she unbinds it, or as she delouses him, her tears fall. In the usual readings the villain asks if she cries for her father’s wealth or on account of her proud spirit. Her reply is that she cries on account of the maids she sees hanging. We learn here, then, the number of former victims of Ulinger, which is in nearly all instances eleven. Variants 2, 74, and 75 once again repeat the Ulinger passage. But in the usual Ulrich form the villain spreads his cloak and places his head on her lap. The word »lausen» is thus deleted from the narrative in this form of the song. Er breitet sein Mantel wol auf das Gras, Und bat, dass sie sich niedersass. Schön-Heinrich legt sein Haupt auf ihren Schoss, Mit heissen Thränen sie ihn begoss.

The »Gut»-»Muth» questions, »Bedauert dich des Vaters Gut? / Bedauert dich dein stolzer Mut?,» regularly follow, as well as the maid’s reply that she sorrows because she sees eleven maids hanging on the gallows. In the Nicolai form the delousing motif appears as in Ulinger in 3N, 4N, 8N, 12N, and 19N, the western Nicolai form. The »Gut»»Muth» questions occur only in 3N. In the usual reading of the Nicolai

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ballad the principals stop because the horse is tired (in Danish either he or she is tired). He looks his love in the face and asks her why she is sad. Her reply is that if she had stayed at home she might have been a Kaiserin (IN, 4N, 7N, 8N, 12N, 19N, 69N, 7IN). In 3N she cries over the loss of her honour. The multiple murder motif occurs only in 56N, 70N, and 71N in this group of variants, and the gallows has disappeared entirely. This central portion of the narrative establishes that the Ulrich and Nicolai forms are parallel developments from the Ulinger form, the Ulrich ballad standing a good deal closer to the parental form than does the Nicolai form. Stage 9 In the Halewijn song, in both German and Dutch, the maid is offered a choice of the means of death. This motif is absent from all the derivative forms, although a suggestion of it occurs, corrupted, in the sixteenth century broadside 23, and in the Ulrich variants 2 and 74 (which are mixed with Ulinger motifs). The choice of »trinken oder versinken» is offered in 41 and 42N. The sight of the gallows field informs the maid of her fate in the Halewijn song. Her realization is arranged a little more fully in the German derivative ballads. In the usual Ulinger form {14, 16, 18, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 43, 44, 49) the narrative sequence of delousing, questions of »Gut» and »Muth,» and sight of the gallows are followed by the villain’s remark that he has killed eleven and she will be the twelfth. Variants 10,13,17, and 28 are here curtailed, for no gallows appears; but after seating themselves on his cloak, he simply announces that she is to be his twelfth victim. In 5, 6, 9, 11, and 15, all westerly variants from the region of the Rhine, the narrative is even more curtailed, for after the warning from the bird the maid immediately makes three cries for help. In 40 the bird not only warns the maid but lets her know of the number of former victims; otherwise 40 follows the usual sequence of events. The Ulinger form is clearly best preserved in south Germany; and it can hardly be interpreted as fortuitous that its first printings occurred in Bavaria and Switzerland. In the Ulrich form the announcement of her impending death is managed as in the usual Ulinger ballad in the following variants: 46, 47, 48, 50, 52, 55, 57, 60, 61, 62, 65, 73, 74, 75. The only difference in the series of events is the customary third question in the sequence: Weinst du um deines Vaters Gut? Oder weinst du um deinen stolzen Muth? Oder bin ich dir night gut genug?

These three questions appear in all the above variants except 62. The other Ulrich variants are curtailed much after the fashion of the

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shorter Ulinger variants. The maid is told that she is to be the twelfth after she has seen the laden gallows tree (45, 51, 52, 53, 63, 68). A geographical division- emerges from these observations. In the geographical line traced by the numbers of the variants the Ulinger ballad gives over to the Ulrich ballad at about the ‘45’ mark, and at that point the motif of the »Gut»-»Muth» questions undergoes the rather mundane change of the addition of the third question (parallelled in Ulinger only in 20). The conclusion that one is led to is that the song has moved from south to north in eastern Germany. In the Nicolai form, which is devoid of multiple murder (except in 56N, 70N, and 7IN), there is no forewarning to the maid that she is to die. The nature of the narrative is that she enrages the villain and, having done so, loses her head. She enrages him because in answer to his question, Why are you sad?, she replies that if she had stayed home she would have been an empress. »Warum sollt ich denn nicht traurig sein? Ich bin ja dem könig sein Töchterlein. Ach hält ich meinen Vater seinem Rath gefolgt, Kinc Kaiserin war ich geworden.»

This motif strongly suggests a connection with Ulrich’s question: »Bin ich dir nicht gut genug?» In the following Nicolai variants, then, since the horse is tired, the principals stop to rest, the delousing request follows, the villain asks why she is sad, and she replies as in the stanza above: IN, 3N (um meine Ehre), 4N, 7N, 8N, 12N, 19N, and 69N. In 70N, 7IN, and 72N the passage is curtailed; after dismounting, the villain cuts off the maid’s head without apparent provocation. Stage 10 In all the Halewijn variants the maid employs the ruse of asking the villain to remove his outer garment. In the derivative forms the maid’s self-reliance suffers a setback, for her ruse has been replaced in all the variants of Ulinger and Ulrich (except 41, 58 and 59, which are only partial narratives) by a request that she may make three cries for help. These cries are granted, for the villain believes that the two of them are so deep in the woods that she cannot be heard (in Ulrich his granting her request is lost, save in a few instances). The maid’s cries are addressed to the following: father

No. Ulinger, all except 20, 23, 27, 33, 40 26 Ulrich, all except 46, 47, 50, 59, 62, 64, 66, 67, 68 15

The Ballad in Dutch, Flemish and German mother

parents brother sister God (Heaven) Jesus Mary

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Ulinger, all except 20, 23, 27, 28, 40 26 Ulrich, all except 46, 47. 48, 50, 55, 60, 64, 66, 67, 68,73, 74, 75 11 2, 45, 57, 65 4 Ulinger, all 31 Ulrich, all except 63 23 11, 28, 51, 52, 53,67 6 27, 33; Ulrich, all except 51, 52, 53, 54, 61, 63 20 23,47, 50, 64, 67, 68 6 20, 23, 27, 40 (repeated, »Mother ofGod»), 46 5

The cries to Mary are in the old broadsides of the Ulinger form as well as in 40, an excellent variant from Czechoslovakia. On the other hand, the cries to God appear in most of the Ulrich variants. This variation may reflect a Roman Catholic south Germany, as over against a Protestant east Germany, but the variation in religion may not necessarily explain the variation in its entirety. The religious names, however, are not as frequent as ‘father* (41 vars.), ‘mother’ (36 vars.), and ‘brother* (56 vars.). In the Ulinger and Ulrich ballads the brother hears the maid’s cry for him and arrives miraculously fast at the scene of the murder. In Ulinger he arrives in time, in Ulrich too late. It is uncertain how the brother has entered the narrative in the derivative forms of the German ballad. But his entry is not strange, for the youngest brother is often the protector of his sister in orally transmitted material. And in the Dutch ballad, it will be recalled, it was the brother that gave his consent to her venturing out with Halewijn. In Ulinger, even in the oldest variants, the brother is represented as a hunter, which perhaps rationalizes his being sufficiently near at hand to save the maid. The following stanzas are from the broad­ side 20. Der bruder zu seim knechte sprach : »So still es mir die hunde! Ich hör ein fräwlein schreien

Grad ob es mein Schwester seie.» Die hund die Hess er schwimmen, Er kert sich nach der stimme, Er stach in sein vil gutes ross Dass im das blut zum leib ausschoss. Da satzt er auf sein eisenhut, Er rant dass der schweiss oben zsamen schlug, Er rant ein kleine weile Des wegs wol dritthalben meile. 6

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He appears as a hunter in all the Ulinger variants except 24, 27 and 40. In the majority of variants the knightly accoutrement of »eisenhut» has given way to Ihr Bruder ein Jäger war, Und alle Thierlein schiessen kann.

On the brother’s arrival no words are exchanged except in the sixteenth century 20 and 23, in which the villain ironically repeats the earlier request of the maid that he be permitted to die in his clothing. This concern for clothing may lie a possible reminiscence of the divestment of garments in the earlier narrative (stage 10). It will be recalled that in German J the villain orders the maid to remove some articles of clothing before he kills her, another instance of confusion about the clothing. The request in 20 and 23 may also bespeak a wish to die respectably, unlike the naked wretch at the crossroads. In both variants the brother refuses the request, for the clothes will serve well for his kitchenboy (23), his squire (20). Ulinger is killed by hanging in the older tradition (with the withy he is preparing for the maid), by shooting in later tradition. The ballad ends with the brother conducting his sister to the fatherland, not without some admonishment about trusting in knights. In the Ulrich ballad the maid is killed before the brother’s arrival. But her death is not by decapitation as in the Halewijn and Nicolai ballads, but by the sword, if we may judge from the presence of blood mentioned in nearly every variant. The brother is no longer a hunter (except in 2 and 57). He is sitting at the cool wine when he hears the cry through the window. On arrival at the scene of murder he asks Ulrich, »Wo hast du mein lieb Schwesterlein?» to which Ulrich makes reply, »Sie sitzt im Wald unter einer Lind,» and even »Diett schenkt se ze Matten den kühle Wain.» The question and variant answers are reminiscent of the questions put by the villain’s family to the maid in the Halewijn ballad and the answers she there returns (stage 15). In every variant the brother presses for an explanation of why the villain’s sword, hand, or shoe is so red; he is told that Ulrich has been killing doves (a motif also found in German H and I, but not necessarily original there). Ulrich dies by the sword, or hanging, or most often by torture on the wheel (14 vars.), a depersonalized and social act indicative of a later tradition. Every Ulrich variant ends with a conventional stanza similar to the following: Roth-Acnnchcn ward ins Grab gelegt, Schön U lrich ward aufs Rad gelegt ; Roth-Aennchen klungen die Glocken fein, Schön Ulrich frassen die Raben sein Gebein.

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In the Nicolai song the maid is decapitated immediately she rouses the villain’s ire (IN, 3N, 4N, 7N, 8N, 12N, 69N, 7IN). The relevant stanza is reminiscent of the Halewijn readings 11 a, c. In the Hungarian variants of the Nicolai form a pole is driven through her heart (36N, 37N, 38N, 39N, 42N). In this same group the brother of the maid is rather surprisingly brought into the narrative, for no cries have been issued for his help. The ‘brother’ passage is borrowed from the Ulrich form and has some of its characteristic features. In the usual close the villain throws the maid’s head into water (the Nicolai form opens with mention of the Rhine). What happens to him is very uncertain in tradition: in some variants he drowns himself (12N, 7IN), hangs himself (3N) ; in some he takes another love (4N, 8N). In the Hungarian group he dies at the brother’s hands. In yet others the conclusion is left in­ determinate, the knight speaking abusively about the maid’s betrayal of trust (IN, 7N, 19N, 69N, 70N, 72N). Names: The names in the German derivative forms are as follows: The villain : Ulinger Adelger Ulrich Albrecht Heinrich Sieburg Fähnrich

23 20 2, 14, 42N, 45, 46, 47, 48, 50, 51 (Ulbrich), 52 (Ulbrich), 54, 59, 60 (Oterich), 65, 66, 67, 68, 73 64 55, 57, 58, 63, 67 3N 61

The maid: Annele Aennchen Hänselein Trautendelein Rodinchen Lorentinchen Mathildchen Fridburg

14, 16, 24, 25, 26, 27, 42N 41, 45, 46, 47, 50, 55 (Aennelein), 62, 63 (Hannchen), 65, 66, 68, 73 51, 52, 54, 64 48 58, 61 59 57 23

The Ulrich form of the song has the names of the principals most prominently: Ulrich is paired with Aennchen (or some related form) in nearly every variant. The names are probably derived from the names in the Ulinger group, which occur, however, not very frequently.

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The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

Ulinger (undoubtedly related to Adelger), has probably suggested Ulrich, which in turn has brought Albrecht and Heinrich into the narrative. Annele has suggested the Aennchen of the later form of the song. That Ulver and Vennelil of Danish A are related to UlingerUlrich and Annele is a strong possibility, particularly since the combina­ tions of names suggest each other. The Danish ballad has other characteristics suggestive of the Ulinger form of the German ballad. There is little if any connection between the names of the Halewijn and derivative forms of the song. The variations in narrative among the three derivative forms are so decisive and in every instance are so consistent among the variants of each group that we can only judge that the changes do not represent a series of slight variations in a continuous process of change, but sudden ones, indicative of major reworkings. Ths is particularly true of* the Nicolai form, which has probably felt the influence of other traditional songs. The Ulrich form follows the Ulinger ballad in narrative fairly closely; but somewhere in eastern Germany as the Ulinger tradition moved northward the narrative suffered the change in which the maid is killed rather than saved. The ballad in the process became pedestrian, more commonplace, and shorter. The change came about not un­ naturally, for the maid’s lack of heroic stature in the Ulinger song made possible her death in the reworked narrative. The process of change involved a loss of motifs, and a substitution of others, usually of a commonplace nature not as coherent to the narrative as the earlier traits. In the full ballad as we see it in the A to J group the villain is an active agent, a murderer of many; the maid is offered a choice of deaths; she exercises a ruse which gives her the heroic stature of one who has turned the tables on an evildoer. In Ulinger the villain plays a more passive role (a result of the lack of clarity as to what he is precisely up to). The maid's ruse has been replaced by the cries for help, which very likely were addressed to Mary and to the brother, if we may judge from sixteenth century copies (which lack cries for father and mother). In tradition the cries become generalized to the conventional ballad family, father, mother, sister, brother, a change possibly facilitated by the use of the religious circumlocutions »Mother of God,» »Father in Heaven.» The cries, in other words, may have had the nature of prayer in the refashioned Ulinger form, a notion supported by the maid's constant cry in the later Ulrich ballad to God. In the Ulrich song, the old motif of delousing has been expunged, and we have instead the reinterpretation of the act as love play, a rationalization suggested in nearly all variants of Ulinger as well: »Könnt Ihr mir nicht ein Weil lausen, Mein goldgelbes Haar erzausen?»

The rationalization has probably entered the song by virtue of the conversion of the earlier two-lined stanza form to the quatrains of the

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Ulinger ballad, and »erzausen» has provided a rhyme word for the earlier »lausen.» The Nicolai ballad is very considerably changed from the Ulinger ballad, from which it derives. The gallows has disappeared from the song, the brother as well (except where the Ulrich tradition has entered the song toward the close). Certain marks in the Nicolai form suggest retention of Halewijn characteristics as well: the pleas to father and mother not to let her go (in Halewijn to let her go), the decapitation, the head plunged into the spring or water. But the song has undergone such a great change that we have in effect a different ballad, whose relations to the rest of the tradition are assured only by the phrasal similarity at various points. Two children’s games have in later times been fashioned from the German ballad. One in dramatic form, entitled Bertha im Walde9, is from south Germany from the area of the Ulinger ballad upon which it is based. The maid utters three cries for help when confronted by the robber and is thereby saved. The other is much more widespread geographically, for nearly one hundred variants have been collected from all parts of Germany. »Als die wunderschöne Anna auf dem Breitensteine sass» is a complete song (unlike the other in which only the three cries are in verse) which is acted out by a group of children as they sing it. This children’s rhyme is a reduced form (7 to 9 couplet stanzas usually) of the Ulrich song, for Anna, who cries not over her father’s wealth or because of her proud spirit, but because she must die, is killed by the Fähnrich, and he is in turn killed by the avenging brother. The three cries have been lost from this song.10 In the foreshort­ ening of the Ulrich song the idea of Anna’s discovering that she is to die has been dropped; instead she is presented as aware of her impending death from the opening. In the analysis of the various narratives of the derived forms little has been said about the relative authenticity of the sources from which the texts have been drawn. As in the case of ballads in other languages, we are never far from the hand of the editor improving his text and in some instances, no doubt, making one; print and sophisticated reworking are never far from our purview. The 20 and 23 texts are broadsides which probably reflect sixteenth century traditions of Ulinger fairly closely; if they do not, we must suppose that they are the basis for the later Ulinger tradition in south Germany, a notion that is hardly tenable. But some of the later texts are from sources and editions that do not have a guarantee of authenticity or assurance of disinterested recording of traditional singing. Among the dubious texts are probably ‘2* from the Kretzschmer-Zuccalmaglio collection, 3N and 74 from Karl Simrock’s edition of songs, and 75 from Georg Scherer’s Jungbrunnen (a probable reworking of the Simrock text of Ulrich, which in turn may be based on the concoction by Kretzschmer and Zuccalmaglio). In such an instance as the subgroup represented by 2, 74, and 75 a

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The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

person receives the impression that one editor is merely repeating another in printing a mixed form of the Ulinger-Ulrich ballad, a form that is not vouched for by inclusion in a trustworthy collection. A very close study of the derived forms of the German ballad would undoubtedly expose the indebtedness of this or that reading, of this or that text, to another. The German derivative forms have been treated in a relatively brief space to avoid their occupying the centre of interest in the discussion of the German ballad, for the texts of Ulinger and Ulrich outnumber by far the variants of the German form represented by Gert Olbert. In spite of the dubiety of some of the texts, the number of variants involved in the thematic comparisons would support the general conclusions that the discussion leads us to. Admittedly, one cannot be certain that the Ulrich and Nicolai variants 2 and 3N represent genuine tradition from the area of the Lower Rhine, although the IN text from Hoffmann von Fallersleben’s collection should put one more at ease about the Nicolai ballad’s presence in the tradition of western Germany. The single Ulrich text (2) from the Rhine area is, however, questionable as genuine tradition. One cannot be too certain, likewise, of the Nicolai texts from East Prussia, for they all appear in the Roese collection, and he ‘improved’ his texts by reference to »a reliable source.» But in spite of such reservations as one must hold regarding specific texts and, in one instance, regarding the entire subgroup 2, 74, and 75, the interrelations of the various forms of the German ballad are sufficiently clear ; the considerable numbers of orally transmitted variants from trustworthy sources reveal the phrasal connections and narrative parallels that establish the order of dependence of the different forms. From the comparative analysis of the forms of Der Mädchenmörder in Dutch, Flemish, and German, we may draw up a scheme of relation­ ships among the forms as follows on page 87. The progress of the song in accordance with the scheme is traceable by the retentions of various themes and phrasings in particular forms or the substitution of new ones for those lost. The Dutch-Flemish ballad we have considered in some detail already; it is markedly distinguished from the German forms by its retention of supernatural qualities which must have belonged to the original ballad. We have the instance of the talking head of Halewijn and of his capacity to become whole again with the application of the salve which he has in a pot at the foot of the gallows. No such supernatural features are to be met with in the other forms of the song. The German E to j variants constitute a development of the song parallel to the Dutch rather than derived from it ; our previous discussion illustrated the downhill nature of this group of variants, which never­ theless follow the Halewijn song in its narrative outline in most of the sixteen stages. The Ulinger form of the song retains characteristics which are no longer present in German E to J although they probably once were

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there. The song of enticement is in Ulinger a retention of an old motif (absent from German E-J) ; German E-J has made the heroine a bride, a rationalization that does not occur in Ulinger. The motif of dressing grandly is still in the Ulinger ballad, but only in four variants, and in a

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The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

passage as brief as stage 4 of German E-J. The villain’s offer of a choice of the means of death has all but disappeared, but marks of its former presence assure us that Winger is derived from the Dutch-German A-J form. Much has been lost in the Ulinger ballad: the maid’s request to her parents, her ruse, and all that follows stage 10 in the Halewijn form. The motif of the three cries has been substituted for the ruse, and the hunting brother for her self-reliant action in Halewijn. The Ulrich ballad follows Ulinger in its narrative outline with mi­ nor departures that bespeak a later tradition. Where it differs chiefly is in the death of the maid at the villain’s hands, which has resulted in the ballad’s borrowing the Edward type of question for the meeting of brother and villain. In a minor subgroup (2, 74, 75) Ulinger variants have gone the way of Ulrich in their conclusion. The Nicolai form shows the greatest departures from the tradition, for in these variants from the east and west of Germany we have no gallows tree, and no multiple murder (except in the variants that have become mixed with Die Rheinbraut, which has the motif in its own right). Usually no events are recounted after the murder, a characteristic difference of this form of the song. The opening verse of the Nicolai form, however, is based on the opening verse of Ulinger. The journey is accomplished by horse (as in Ulinger, not as in Ulrich), the maid is enticed away by song (as in Ulinger, not as in Ulrich), the maid is tearful or sad (as in both other forms), and the villain perceives the tears while she delouses him (as in Ulinger). The Nicolai form is a great departure from the narrative of Der Mädchenmörder, but it does reflect a relationship with the Ulinger song. That relationship is most clear in the western variants of the Nicolai ballad (as may be seen in stage 8), indicating perhaps the provenience of this form in the area of the Rhine. The close of the Nicolai form is not very fixed in tradition. A special subgroup of the Nicolai variants has developed in Hungary, in which the villain drives a stake through the maid’s heart (presumably to prevent her returning as a revenant to plague him), and in which the close has been borrowed from the Ulrich ballad. The usual narrative in the Nicolai ballad reflects such a change of attitude on the part of singers toward the principals that it suggests a reworking possibly influenced by some other song; the maid has become the false one and the knight her disappointed lover. The song of Heer Halewijn and Ulinger and their related forms have had a variegated history in the centuries of their popular transmission. The variety of forms and the mixtures which have developed indicate the cross-currents at work upon German popular traditions resulting from the geographical situation of Germany as the crossroads of Europe. The history of the song is partly reflected in the relative fullness of narrative and lengths of variants, which have through time tended to diminish.

CHAPTER III

KVINDEMORDEREN: THE BALLAD IN SCANDINAVIA

Although we have evidence of a popular and unbroken tradition of the Scandinavian form of Lady Isabel and the Elf-Knight from the middle of the sixteenth century until our own day, and although the Danes have printed comprehensive ballad collections ever since A. S. Vedel first dedicated his Hundred to Queen Sophia in 1591, Kvindemorderen did not appear in a printed collection until Svend Grundtvig included it, under the title Jomfruens List, as a companion piece to his translation of May Colven in his Engelske og Skotske Folkeviser (1846). Grundtvig placed the ballad in his Fourth Volume (1883) of Danmarks Gamle Folke­ viser (DgF) as No. 183, and it was on this occasion that he gave the Danish ballad the name Kvindemorderen, a name taken over by other Scandinavians, and, in translated form, by ballad editors in other countries as well. Kvindemorderen has been sung in all parts of Scandinavia. As it has had an independent history in each of the Northern countries, I shall consider the different Scandinavian national forms separately. 1. THE BALLAD IN DENMARK

Catalogue of Variants A (Place indeterminate)

B (Place indeterminate)

Karen Brahe’s Folio MS., No. 2, 1548—83; recopied in Dorothea Thott’s MS., No. 183, c. 1650; recop. in Tegnér’s MS., No. 133, c. 1650; recop. in Reenberg’s MS., No. 107, c. 1650; recop. in Thott’s Folio MS., No. 107, c. 1650; recop. in Thott’s Quarto MS., No. 93, c. 1650; printed in Grundtvig, DgF, No. 183A, IV, 32—33. 41 sts. Kongelige Biblioteks Brudstykker, No. 2, 17th century; ptd. in Grundtvig, DgF, No. 183B, IV, 33—34. 30 sts.

90

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn C (Place indeterminate)

Grundtvig’s Quarto MS., No. 42, c. 1656; ptd. in Grundtvig, DgF, No. 183C, IV, 35. 24 sts. D (Place indeterminate) . Magdalene Barnewitz’ MS., No. 66, 17th cen­ tury; ptd. in Grundtvig, DgF, No. 183D, IV, 36—37. 37 sts. E Jylland (Haderslev) Broadside, c. 1780; ptd. in Grundtvig, DgF, No. 183E, IV, 37—39. 57 sts. F Jylland (Ribe Amt) Dansk Folkemindesamling (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1909). 8 sts. (and added prose parts). G Jylland (Rind, Hammerum) Kristensen, No. 47, I, 118—121, 1871. 30 sts. H Jylland (Hammerum) DFS (coll. Perry Grainger, 1923 and 1925; coll. H. Grimer-Nielsen, 1929). 30 sts. 1 Jylland (Gellerup, DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1903). 4 sts. Hammerum) J Jylland (Ikast, Hammerum) DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1870); J to P were the basis for an edited text in Kristensen, No. 85, II, 296 fî. 30 sts. K Jylland (Sunds, Hammerum) DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1874). 25 sts. L Jylland (Sunds, Hammerum) DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1871). 21 sts. M Jylland (Rind, Hammerum) DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1871). 27 sts. N Jylland (Ørre, Hammerum) DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1874). 16 sts. O Jylland (Karup, Lysgaard) DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1874). 16 sts. P Jylland (Haderup, Ginding) DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1874). 24 sts. Q Jylland (Gellerup, DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1869); ptd. in Hammerum) Kristensen, No. 91, I, 243—244. 26 sts. R Jylland (Gellerup, DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1869); ptd. in Hammerum) Kristensen, No. 46, I, 116—117. 23 sts. S Jylland (Assing, DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1877); ptd. in Hammerum) Kristensen, No. 33B, XI, 62—3. 4 sts. T Jylland (Kølvisa, Ginding) DFS (coll. E. T. Kristensen, 1874); ptd. in Kristensen, No. 33A, XI, 62. 2 sts. U Jylland (Nygaard, Aarup, Niels Christensens Visebog (MS.), 1729—34; Hardsyssel) ptd. in Hardsyssels Aarbog, XX V III (1934), 17. 4 sts., numbered 28—31. V Samso (Brundby, DFS (coll.Frederik Poulsen, 1884); ptd. in Tranebjerg) Skattegraveren, I (1884), Item No. 1199. 30 sts. W Samsø (Brundby, DFS (coll. Frederik Poulsen, 1884). 30 sts. Tranebjerg) W ii (Brundby, TraneDFS Fonogramsamling (coll. Frederik Poulsen, bjerg) 1909). 3 sts. X Sjælland (Vallekilde, Ids) DFS (coll. Sofie Jens Karbens); ptd. in Skatte~ graveren, I (1884), Item No. 1198. 23 sts. Y Sjælland (Hørsholm) Grundtvig, DgF, No. 183G, IV, 40—41, 1883 (coll. 1854). 35 sts. [This variant may be South Jylland (Fredericia) tradition, the earlier home of the singer’s family.]

The Ballad in Scandinavia Z Sjælland (København) AA Bornholm

91

Broadside, c. 1800; ptd. in Grundtvig, DgF, No. 183F, IV, 39—40. 30 sts. DFS (coll. Gerhard Homemann, 1871). 21 sts.

The Danish variants range in time from the mid-sixteenth century to the 1920’s; they distribute themselves in time as follows: 16th century A 17th century BCD 18th century E UZ late 19th century G J K L M N O P Q R S T V W X Y A A 20th century F H I

These variants, which total 27 in number, have been preserved for posterity in a number of ways. The first 4 in the Catalogue (A to D) are from early MS. collections made by members of the Danish nobility during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The U variant is from

a MS. collection of a less distinguished person of the eighteenth century, by which time the noble families had relinquished their interest in the ballad-dance; unfortunately, through the loss of a leaf in the MS. only the concluding 4 stanzas of the variant are left to us. Variants E and Z are broadside copies from the close of the eighteenth century; Grundtvig’s view is that these Gadeviser have not been subjected to

92

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

an arbitrary literary reworking1 despite the fact that J. T. SI. and I. C. Brestrup, Cand. theol., respectively claim authorship. The remaining 20 variants are traditional renderings of the ballad collected after Svend Grundtvig had initiated the movement for the preservation of songs and folk traditions. Variants of Kvindemorderen appear in 9 of the 40 odd MS. collections of ballads made by Danish noblemen and noblewomen in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The so-called Karen Brahe’s Folio MS. gives ils our earliest Scandinavian text, for the KBF can be dated from internal evidence as having been written between the years 1548 and 1583. Although not the earliest of these collections, the KBF is the richest, for it contains 200 ballads, of which Kvindemorderen is the second. It has not been possible to determine who put together the KBF. The practice of keeping such MS. collections was begun by the gentlemen at the court of Christian III; the practice passed from spear-side to distaff-side toward the close of the sixteenth century. The Karen Brahe Folio has taken its name from the noblewoman of the late seventeenth century in whose considerable library in Odense the MS. found its permanent home. From the Catalogue it may be seen that the KBF variant (A) is to be found in 5 additional MS. collections. These 5 recopyings of the A variant are all from the mid-seventeenth century. The relations of the KBF MS. and the other 5, as far as the Kvinde­ morderen texts are concerned, are as follows:

This relationship among the above collections holds not only for Kvinde­ morderen but for a great many other ballads as well.2 From such relations among the early MS. collections it is easily perceived that the form which they perpetuate of Kvindemorderen as well as of other ballads is some distance removed from an oral tradition. H. Griiner-Nielsen for one has argued that the KBF MS. and its companion collections while providing a valuable corpus of relatively early material nevertheless represents a literary tradition rather than an oral one.3 The length of the Danish variants is explained by this literary tradition; the nobles wished their ballads to be long in order that the dance, for which the ballad provided the music, might be of a comely length. Oral tradition in Denmark has perpetuated this length, for the oral tradition

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of the Danish ballads probably owes its form to the singing tradition of the nobles in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The average length of the Danish variants is 24 stanzas (although one must bear in mind that there are but 2 narrative verses in a Danish ballad stanza). Variants I, S, T, and U are fragmentary. An oral tradition, like the dialect of a language, is rooted and relatively fixed geographically; contrariwise, a written tradition is not limited by geographical considerations, but rather by considerations of social level or degrees of literacy. Because variants A, B, C, and D are from an aristocratic literary tradition which stemmed from court circles but had all Denmark as its province, no precise places of origin can be assigned to these texts. The KBF MS., which came into Karen Brahe’s possession at Odense on the island of Fyn sometime about 1700, was written in a distinctly Jutish dialect, but from this information we can safely infer no more than that the person who copied the ballads into the MS. spoke and wrote the Danish of Jylland. The majority of texts have been turned up by collectors during the last 100 years; and nearly three-quarters of this group from oral tradition we owe to E. T. Kristensen’s lifelong efforts to preserve the lore of Jylland, and particularly of the district he knew best, Hammerum Herred. Ballad collecting in Denmark is all but finished now, for collectors in this century find themselves directed to people who have already contributed to the store of the Dansk Folkemindesamling or to the descendants of those who had sung previously for E. T. Kristensen a generation or two ago. Thus Percy Grainger on two separate ex­ peditions collected variant H from Mette Kristensen, whose grand­ father, Iver Pedersen, had sung very nearly the same words (G) for E. T. Kristensen some 60 years before. Percy Grainger’s visits were followed a few years later by H. Griiner-Nielsen’s visit to the same person. E. T. Kristensen had himself collected a fragmentary variant (I) from another grandchild of Iver Pedersen. It is Griiner-Nielsen’s belief that the H text is not a case of genuine oral tradition; he points out that the H text is so close to G that one must suppose the grandchild had refreshed his memory of the song by consulting E. T. Kristensen’s printing of G.4 Despite a preponderance of texts from Jylland, and particularly from the district of Hammerum, various parts of Denmark are re­ presented, including the island of Bornholm, south of Sweden and at a considerable distance from the Danish archipelago proper. Analysis of Variations 1. The courtship a

Olmor voner om minn-natt, Hand teller sin sterche drømme saa offuerbrat.

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

94

»Jeg drømte om liden Vindell-rad, Jeg haffuer gillet i ate aar.» Oldemar beder leg sadell paa hest: »Och ieg will ride med Windel-raad at gieste.» (1) b

Hollemen laader sig kleder skeere, Hand siger, hand vill enn iomfru belle. (

c

Herr Ribold (han) tjener i Kongens Gaard

d

Og der tjent’ han i mangen Aar.

e

1

)

(11) (6)

Han tjent’ der ej for anden Løn, End for Guldborrig hun var saa skøn. (2)

ƒ

Guldborrig er en Jomfru god.

g

Der var en skøn Ridder saa magtig og saa bold Han bejled til en Jomfru saa dydig og saa skon. (2)

h i

Vllfuer han gyllde stollt Wenelild Han giljed Guldborg i otte Aar.

(2)

(1) (5)

j

Oldemar kom der ridendis i gaar

k

Ud stod Windel-raad och vor sobt i mor.

(3)

/

Ud stoed iomfruen och borste set haar. (1)

m

Liden Kirsten hun reder sit favre Guldhaar.

n

Han giljed hend’ med Liste, Slet ingen skon Ridder det vidste. Han giljed hend’ med Orde, Slet ingen skøn Ridder det torde.

(1)

Reim-word sidder offuer borde, Lerde han sine møer med orde.

(I)

(

2)

O)

o p a c d ƒ j / p

»Og hør du, Guldborg baade faver og fin!

(5)

B 1—3. 4 C l . J 1, K I, L 1, M 1, O 1, P 1,T 1; Rimmelil G 1—2, H 1—2, I 1; Herr Peder Z 1. G 1, H 1, I 1, K 1, L 1, M 1- -2. e K 2, L 2. G 2, H 2. f> V’ I ; og saa fin W 1. h A l. i J 1, M 2, O 1; Jomfruer P 1, T 1. B 4; Der band G 2; red op til skjon Jomfruens Bur E l . k B 4; Jomfru E 1. C 2. m Z 1. n J 2—3. o D l . G 3, H 3, Q 2; skøn Jomfru, saa dydig og saa skøn V’ 2, W 2.

The Ballad in Scandinavia q

»O Jomfru skjøn, o Jomfru fin!

95 (1)

r

»Vel y bliftue alerkeresle min?»

(7)

s

Herr Ribuld han rider i Rosenslund, Der mødte ham en Jomfru i samme Stund.

(3)

An Index of First Lines of Danish ballads would be of little service if one were looking for variants of Kvindemorderen. In the first place there is a great variety of openings; the various motifs of the 1st stage of the narrative range through the letters a to sf as set forth above. In the second place, not one of the motifs a to s can be considered the exclusive property of Kvindemorderen. The 21 variants (of the total 27) that have this 1st stage of the narrative express the idea »he courted her» in 6 different ways. (1) In reading b we are told that Hollemen has clothes made, for he is to go awooing (C). (2) In the group c-f Ribold serves in the king’s household in order to win Guldborg (G, H, I, J, K, L, M, O, P, T, Z). (3) In the group g-i the courtship is flatly stated in exposition (A, J, M, O, P, T, V, W) ; reading a is properly of this group, for a is reading i elaborated with the business about a dream (B). (4) In the group j-m Oldemor comes riding into the courtyard, and the maid is there to receive him (B, G, E, Z). (5) In group n-r the knight speaks to the maid, asks if she will be his truelove (A, D, E, G, H, J, Q,, V, W). (6) Reading s represents a curtailed opening, for the principals are represented as meeting quite without design in the greenwood; thus a number of the early stages of the narrative are missing from the 3 variants (N, Q,, R) that begin with s. Mention must also be made of three variants from Sjælland and Bornholm (X, Y, AA) which represent a separate tradition in that they do not open with the Courtship but begin with the Solicitation, stage 2. As one might expect, some motifs occur more frequently than others (e. g., reading c, 11 vars., and reading r, 7 vars.); but one must be cautious in drawing conclusions from simple arithmetic. We must bear in mind that of the 27 Danish variants, 15 derive from a small area in Vestjylland, and it is to be expected that there might be a considerable agreement among the 15. Reading c with its 11 variants represents Vestjylland tradition with the exception of Z from Sjælland. With particular reference to the 1st stage of the narrative we can mistrust numbers for another reason: as all the motifs above are commonplaces in Scandinavian ballad poetry, the relative frequencies of their occurrence in Kvindemorderen carry little weight in a consideration of which came first or represents most closely the original. The entire substance of the 1st stage of the narrative, and the content of a great many other stages as well, consists of commonplace materials, of formulae that appear time and again in different ballad contexts. q E 2. r A 1; vil du (nu) vært* E 2, G 3, H 3, Q 2, V I, W 1. r N 1; Guldborg Q. 1, R 1.

96

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

One is accustomed to formulae in the ballads of any country*, but nowhere in western Europe is the commonplace as constant a feature of ballad language as in Scandinavia. The Scandinavians like to think of the commonplaces, die formelhaftigen Elemente, as consisting of two types, the formula and the borrowed stanza. The formula is the common coin of ballad language to which we in English apply the term »common­ place.» The borrowed stanza or passage (for usually it consists of more than one stanza) is distinguishable from the formula by a greater individuality which renders it less promiscuously applicable and, as its name suggests, appears to have derived originally from one ballad. The distinction is less precise than appears on the surface, and much of the argument expended on borrowed stanzas still leaves in doubt where such passages have been borrowed from; but it is nevertheless true that efforts to identify the ballad to which originally might have belonged the commonplace turning on the phrases »thirled at the pin . . . None so ready as . . . To rise and let him in» would be a great deal more foolhardy than a consideration of the original place of the Oral Testament motif which concludes so many of our ballads. The first is a formula, the second partakes of the nature of a borrowed passage, of lånstrofer, for no better reason than that its presence in a limited number of places plainly raises the question of where it belonged first. In this study there is little to be gained by listing every parallel for a commonplace. Ernst von der Recke in his unpublished Parallelregister attempted to gather together in an organized way all the commonplaces in the Danish and other Scandinavian ballads, but even his prodigious efforts did not serve to track down all the parallels, as one soon discovers if one chooses to test his work by attention to any particular motif. Those motifs which are commonplaces will in the course of the Analysis of Variations be identified as such. Later in the chapter we shall review the separate cases for the considerable passages which this ballad has in common with others; as the problem of the commonplaces applies to all the Scandinavian variants we shall marshal the evidence prior to undertaking a discussion of the matter. Motifs a to s are formulae, or, in the cases of a and g, are elaborations of formulae. Reading a is an individual turn, described by von der Recke as an empty mannerism;6 reading g, with its paired adjectives, has the unauthentic ring of an ‘improvement’ upon conventional ballad phrasing. The 1st stage of the narrative makes clear to us that Danish singers have visualized the hero as the maid’s suitor. In no variant is there any suggestion that the hero is intent on evil, although in n (J) he is described as wooing deceptively. Grundtvig has suggested that the verb in »Lerde han sine moer med orde» in o (D) should read »Lokked,»6 probably to bring the action of the stanza into closer conformity with the ensuing story. But the change is a touch arbitrary, for the common­

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97

place is found in other ballads with either verb. In either case the verse suggests that something sinister is afoot, for he is making his addresses to more than one maid; but the interpretation is undermined by the knowledge that the verse is a variant of the commonplace in which a gentlewoman is »instructing» her maids (cf. DçF No. 266 E 14, F 16, G 16, H 17, II). 2. The solicitation

a d c g i 7

a

Og Svenden han lokked for den Jomfru i Lon. ( 1)

b

»Her stander i, Vindel-raad, en iomffru goed! (1)

c

»Og hor, du, skon Jomfru, hvad jag vill sige dig: (2)

d

»Will i drage aff landet med mig?»

(3)

e

»lomfru, iomfru, troloffuer i mig!

(3)

ƒ

»Ah til saa skjont et Land jeg fore skal dig. (1)

0

»Jeg skall forre eder till den oo, Som y skall loffue ochaldrigdoo.

h

»Jeg skall forre eder till thett land, Som eder skall aldrig kornesaarrig till haand. (2)

1

»Ja, i saadant et Land er det godt at bo, Og der kan I leve i Fred og iRo.» (1)

j

»Der groer icke andit greese ind log, Ther songer icke andre smaa fogle ind høgge. Ther er wielde-kelder, thcr sprenger aff win, Throer paa min thaile, aler-kereste min! (1)

k

»Otte guld borrig gifuer ieg dig.

/

»Och otte tieniste-moer at holde uden sorrig. (2)

(2)

(1)

AA 1. b B 5. c X 1; liden Kirsten Z 2. B 5; har du Lyst at følges af L. X 1; drage ud a f . . . Om du vil rejsa af Z 2—3. C 3, 6; loffue D 2; Skjøn Jomfru Y 1. ƒ Y 1. A 2 ; fore hende . . . hvor hun E 4. h A 3; føre hende . . . hvor ej nogen Sorg E 3. G 2. j A 4—5. k D 2—3. / D 3; otte skiøn iomfru skall tienne dig C 3.

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

98 m

»Di toe skall følge dig ud och ind, Di toe skall berre dit [skarlagenskind].

(1)

n

»Di tou skall vere din moelling-mordt, Die toe skal borsle dit faure haar. Die tou skall dine nøgle bere, Die tou skall til din tienist were. Der ganger i woris federne-skou Sølffue-harre och forgylte plow.

( 1)

o

»Saa goedt cl gukUbaand giffuer ieg dig. ( 1)

p

»Ti Guldtærninger dem vil jeg give dig. (1)

q

Rigbold vild’ sig ad Skoven gaa.

(2)

There is considerable variety of phrasing in the solicitation addressed to the maid. Readings û, b, c, and e (B, C, D, X, Y, Z, AA) are introductory and weakened line fillers. Reading a (from Bornholm) is an amalgamation of 1 e and 1 o (with the addition of the verb »lokked,» not found elsewhere in the Danish ballad). These variants are all presumably from the eastern part of Denmark. Reading d gives us a specific motif: »Will you leave the country with me?» The verse occurs in only 3 variants (B, X, Z), all of them probably from Sjælland. The request is very brief and straightforward, in no way as elaborate as one might expect a proposition of this sort to be; only in Z does the villain explain himself further. The motif does not help to characterize the villain; in its vagueness it might serve for any sort of lover, well-meaning or otherwise. The villain makes two sorts of offers to the girl. In readings f- j (A, E, G, Y) he proposes to take her to a wonderland where she will live forever, without sorrow, where grows only the leek and sings only the hawk (»høgge» corrupted from »gøgge» — cuckoo), and where springs run with wine. This wonderland motif, although it appears in only 4 variants, seems to be confined to no single part of Denmark. All 4 are older variants that were included in the Grundtvig collection. The other offer, more mundane but nevertheless poetically suggestive, is made in k-p (C, D, Z). The girl is told that she shall have eight ladies-inwaiting who perform their gentle functions two by two (G, D). These functions are enumerated in incremental repetition. This offer has been cheapened by the direct offer of gold dice (ƒ>), a gold band (o), and eight gold castles (k), the latter in all likelihood a corruption of / (if not eight maids, then eight castles).7 The substitutions may have occurred in some such way as this: m ( ’. 4.

n D 4—6.

» C(i,

p Z 3 (followed by d). q L 3; ad S. jav K 3.

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99

In both groups the villain elaborates the ofTer of a wonderland (4 vars.) or maid servants (2 vars.) in incremental repetition. Both traditions are old in the Danish ballad, for they both occur in early records from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries; only G in the total groups is recorded outside of the Grundtvig collection. Determining which of the two offers was first in the Danish ballad is made difficult by the fact that both passages are lånstrofer found also in other Scandinav­ ian ballads. The wonderland motif is found scattered in various parts of Denmark ; the other offers are presumably from a tradition confined to eastern Denmark. One is led to remark that the wonderland is consonant with the idea that the villain is a member of the otherworld, capable of offering the comforts of his Elysian fields. It is possible that the marvels of the wonderland are suggested by details from the medieval legend of the Land of Cockaigne, which is believed to have originated in some fabulous geographical notion. Certainly the rivers of wine suggest the luxury of Gluttons’ Land. It may be that the wonderland of our ballad stems from the same tradition as does medieval Cockaigne. But the knight of the ballad is inviting the maid to an Avalon, an island paradise of mysterious marvels and eternal life rather than to the gross luxuriousness of the tradition of Cockaigne, which is usually presented satirically and reflects a strong bourgeois character about it. Reading q (K, L) is a fabrication in which, the dialogue lost, the singer flatly states that Rigbold wished to journey into the wood. 3. The maid's reply to the solicitation a

»Ja, gerne vil jeg følge af Landet med dig. ( 1)

b

»Det tøchis mig veil at verre enn stoer roe. ( 1)

c

»Naar du saa ej i fremmed Land vil svige mig. (1)

d

»Om enn skiøn rider vilde holde sin troe. (1)

e

»Enn vnger-suends ord well ieg well thro, Men alt maa gresett paa iordit graa.» (1)

a X 2.

b C 5.

c X 2.

d C 5.

e A 6.

100

The Ballad of Herr Halevvijn ƒ

Villain: »Svig mig den Kristus af Himmerig, Om jeg agier nogen Tid ad svige dig.» (1)

g

Heroine: »Du forer mig aldrig til det Land, Mig kan jo engang komme Sorrig til Haand. Du fører mig aldrig paa den 0 , Jag er jo vor Herre skyldig at do.» (1)

h

»Og ti Guldtærninger hvor vil du faa dem fra? (1)

i

»Min Fader er en Konge, han ejer ikke dem. (2)

j

»Slig et guld-baand liaffde ieg aldrig i min haand. ( 1)

k

»Guldborring vild’ med i samme Stund. (2)

The maid makes two varieties of response to the solicitation, here divided into stages 3 and 4 of the narrative. In stage 3 the maid is shown as sceptical or uncertain, but nevertheless interested (A, C, E, F, X). In readings a-e (A, C, X) she seeks assurance that the knight will not deceive her, or wonders if she should believe him. He swears by Christ in ƒ (X) that he will not deceive her. This motif of deception is not at home at this point in the narrative; the dialogue about deception belongs properly in stage 13 of the narrative, as we shall later see.8 The idea has been revamped and forced to do service at this earlier stage. In g (E) the maid answers »No» by repeating phrases from the wonderland solicitation, piously offering the proverb that she owes God a death.9 In h-j (C, F) she reveals a distrustful fascination for the gold he has offered her; like the gold passage in the 2nd stage it may be interpreted as a corruption by way of a commonplace. The k reading (K, L) in which Guldborrig wanted to be off immediately, is clearly a corruption. None of the passages in the 3rd stage appears to be original with the ballad; all are commonplaces. They are probably reminiscent of the original reading only in so far as they reveal a sceptical attitude on the part of the maid or some resistance to his entreaties. The variants represented here are from Sjælland or south Jylland. The central Jylland variants G and H reflect the way in which this 3rd stage has developed; in these two variants the 3rd stage has been forgotten and singers have filled in with a prose statement, »She answered yes, and wished to go with him.»

/' X 3. g E 5—6. h F 4. j C 7. k K 3, L 3.

i F 4; var enn mand offuer trei kongers land G 7.

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4. Talk about the maid's being safeguarded a

»Huor komer ieg aff gaarde med edder For alle thi wogter, ther hollder paa meg?

(3)

b

»Meg wogter faader och moder

(2)

c

»Ifald jeg det turde for Faderen min.

(2)

d

»Mig wocte søster och unste broder.

(2)

e

»Der-till mine rige suooger

(1)

ƒ

»Mig wocte och-saa min fester-mand (1)

g

»Hin rige Chrest befaaler icg dem.»

h

Villain: Allt om eder wogtet nu all eders ict, y skall meg bortt føllge y denne natt.» (1)

(2)

In 3 Danish variants, the earliest recorded (A, B, C), occurs a passage of incremental repetition in which the maid protests that she cannot leave the homestead, for she is guarded by father, mother, sister and brother, brother-in-law, and lover. This passage is once again a commonplace in the Scandinavian ballad and serves, in one form or another, in 23 or more DgF ballads alone. The passage is nevertheless strongly reminiscent of Dutch stage 3, in which the maid seeks the consent of her mother, father, sister, brother before going off with Halewijn. The guarding theme is somewhat reminiscent of The Maid Freed from the Gallows and may account for the previous offers of gold band and gold castle. In variants V and W the incremental repetition is absent, and a single reference to the father is made (c). Only in A does the villain respond to her predicament with an answer suggesting abduction by force: »Even if all your ancestors guarded you now, you shall come away with me this nigh t» (A). 5. Preparations for flight a

Heroine: »Huor skall ieg daa kome aff gaarde med eder Thett min kcrre fader hand meg icke sier?» ( 1)

4 a A 7; landet med dig? Der hollder saa sterch en woct om m. B 6; dig? Hand [father] holder saa stadig vochter p. C 8. b A 8, B 7. e V 3, W 3. d B 7; min broder v [fern] A 9. ; A 8 ƒ B 8 g A 9; Den r. B 8. A A 10.

5 a A 11.

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

102 b

Villain : »Jeg førrer theg paa min ganger graa, Min gyllte hielem den setter du paa. (1)

c

»Jeg giorder deg med mitt forgyllte suerdt, Vlligt ridder du nogen iumfru-ferdt. (2)

d »Stalt Wenelild, sameil dit guld y skrinn, Men ieg saaier (Graa)ganger min.»

(10)

e

Heroine: »Men’ du, jeg ej saa snart kan samle Guld udi Skrin, Som du kan sadle Gangeren din!» (1)

ƒ

Skjøn Jomfru hun samled sit Guld udi Skrin, Skjøn Ridder han sadlede Gangeren sin. (1)

g

Hun satte Guld alt over Guld, Og alle sine Tingre dem satte hun fuld. (1)

h

Skjøn Ridder han ganger i Stalden Saa skuer han den blissed', saa skuer den hvide. Saa skuer han den brune, saa skuer han graa.

i

ind, han den (1)

Han sadled den gule, han sadled den graa. (

1

)

Whatever uncertainties the maid may have expressed in stage 3 (and they are not in any sense original in this bride-stealing opening, for here the maid is pleased enough to fly with her lover), the un­ certainties have been lost sight of as the principals prepare to leave. In a minor tradition (b-c), which appears in the old variants A and C, the villain disguises the maid as a knight with helmet and sword. In this way the watchers (stage 4) are deceived. In a more firmly established tradition (, »And you shall answer for (A, B, G, D), suffer for (J, K, L, M, N, P, Q . R), all the'ir sins,» is found only in the 4 older variants and in Jylland tradition. The q reading (Y) is a fabrication, replacing the language of stage 9 with phrases from an earlier part of the narrative, »Fader og Moder» and »i Fred og i Ro.» It is noteworthy that not until we have confronted incidents in the narrative that are peculiar to Kvindemorderen and that are no longer commonplaces do we find the variants more readily separating into groups. In stage 9 of the Danish ballad, although the multiple murder motif is found in nearly all variants, the Jylland group J —R is absent in J-n, shares n-o and e-g with the variants from the aristocratic MSS., and has d and h to itself. In the two broadside texts E and Z the maid is offered a choice of the means by which she is to die. The eastern variants from Sanuø (V, W), Sjælland (X, Y, Z), and Bornholm (AA) show no marked agreement among themselves or with any other group. The 4 variants from the aristocratic MSS. agree here with Jylland tradition for the most part. We learn in this stage that the villain has murdered a number of maids. The number varies as follows: five eight nine ten nineteen

F, AA (five graves) A, B, C, D, G, H, I,J, K, L, M, N, P,Q , R, X E, V, W14, AA (nine springs ofblood) Z Y

2 16 4 1 1

The figure »eight» holds for the older Danish variants and the latter-day Jylland tradition; the relationship between the two traditions will appear more significant as we proceed. The other variants suggest no pattern, except that the very nature of the formula — »I have killed eight; you shall be the ninth» — may explain the change of »eight» to »nine.» The figure »eight» is undoubtedly maintained so consistently in the older tradition and the Vestjylland tradition by the occurrences of »eight» in the ballad, all occurrences confined to these two traditions: »eight gold castles» (D) ; »eight maids in waiting» (C, D) ; »courted her (me) for eight years» (B, J, K, M, O, P, R, T). This internal consist­ ency of numbers extends to other variants; in Z the villain offers the maid »ten golden dice.» This point in the narrative is a convenient place in which to consider the means by which the villain perpetrates his crimes. Only in E and Z are the means of death clearly stated, for in these two broadside variants the villain offers the maid a choice among sword (and grave), linden tree, and raging stream. The choice is interesting, for the three means of death are all found in different national forms of the ballad; and

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the choice itself appears in the Dutch and German song. In E and Z the maid chooses the sword; and in a later stage in the narrative it is with the sword that the maid kills the villain. Hanging is mentioned in no other Danish variants, and in no other Scandinavian variants. The grave appears in all the variants that tell a complete story. Con­ sequently one must assume that the villain was represented in the original Danish ballad (perhaps the choice was present) as killing his victims with the sword and then burying them. The mention of blood makes sense only in the context in which a sword plays its part. And blood is mentioned in the following variants: A, B, D, J, K L, M, P, Q,, R, AA. In the Jylland variants in the group, the maiden blood is to be seen running from the stake pointed out by the villain; in AA the blood pours forth extravagantly from nine springs. The mention of blood is no doubt suitable in the ballad in its macabre and gruesome suggestiveness; and it enforces the idea that the maids have been put to the sword and later buried. Blood is mentioned in other national forms of the ballad, but not in the context in which the villain informs the maid of her impending death (see Dutch-German 10 a, French 3 k). Nothing comparable is found in the Swedish or Norwegian variants. It is important, therefore, that we consider more closely this motif that is so fixed in the older tradition and in the Vestjylland variants. It would appear that this gruesome detail of streams of blood entered Kvindemorderen from DgF No. 184, Den farlige Jomfru, in every variant of which appears a milldam from which run streams of blood, or simply streams of blood without the milldam. Den farlige Jomfru is in some ways a complementary piece to Kvindemorderen ; it might well have been named Mandemordersken, for the heroine in her pride kills every suitor until the right one comes along. As will be recalled, Kvindemorderen has borrowed other things from Den farlige Jomfru; The D variant has its stanzas 8— 13 from this ballad (see 6 e). The aristocratic tradition of which D is a part may well have expanded the ballad from suggestions implicit in a ballad as similar in theme as Den farlige Jomfru. In the older tradition the blood is said to run from a »staad» (A), a »blodige sver» (B), or a »stage» (D) (reading e). Grundtvig thought that both »staad» and »stage» were corruptions (despite »stakar» in Swedish B), for they are erroneously qualified by feminine pronominal adjectives. He suggested that Old Norse »stoô,» for post or prop, is perhaps the original reading,15 although the suggestion needlessly pushes the history of the phrasing in the ballad rather far back in time. The root of the matter rests with Den farlige Jomfru, in which the maid’s castle or estate is hedged about with drawn swords (No. 184 A, B, C), and staves (A), or swords which are spoken of as staves on account of the service they perform (E, F). On each sword or stave is mounted a suitor’s head. Variant D of Kvindemorderen, in stanzas 10—11 (see 6 /), equates the swords and stakes (like No. 184 E, F) in the passage

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The Ballad of Heer Halcwijn

that has been borrowed from No. 184. In A, B, and D of Kvindemorderen, in this stage of the narrative, the swords/stakes and the bloody stream of Den farlige Jomfru have been joined together to make a single (and not very meaningful) stanza. Only in A, B, and D does the blood stanza so strongly suggest indebtedness to No. 184. In the later Jylland tradition of Kvindemorderen the stream is described simply as bloodied with the blood of maidens; the blood does not come from a stake or sword. The same weakening (or strengthening for those who demand a naturalistic plausibility in their songs) has occurred in the later oral tradition of Den farlige Jomfru, for in No. 184 H 5 (from Mors, Jylland) the hero of the ballad arrives at a stream »in which ran not water, but the blood of strife,» and the variant lacks mention of swords or stakes. The swords and stakes are thus associated with the blood motif only in the older tradition of both ballads. The indebtedness of Kvindemorderen to Den farlige Jomfru in this particular is very likely when one considers that the two ballads share a place in seven aristocratic MSS. of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, from which fact one must assume that both were sung by the same people and that elaboration of one by way of the other was thus made relatively easy. Of the 4 older Kvindemorderen variants D is most heavily indebted to Den farlige Jomfru. The Vestjylland variants derive their stream with blood from the older Danish tradition, but in particular from D, which is the apparent link between the older tradition and the later Jylland song. The key to this relationship is supplied by reading i, which, however, cannot be considered separately from 12 b-c, the stanza that i reproduces. Since 9 i and 12 b-c provide further evidence of the chain of relationship from No. 184 to No. 183 D to the Vestjylland tradition of No. 183, the matter had best be discussed here. In all the complete Vestjylland texts of Kvindemorderen (G-R) appears a stanza that reads, Saa gik hun til skokke (blokke), Og der laa (stod) sværd i flokke.

This stanza belongs in the narrative after the maid has gained mastery over the villain and is preparing to kill him. In variant J the stanza makes an earlier appearance in stage 9, in which the villain points out to the maid the »flock of swords» at the »block» (/). This stanza, not in the Swedish or Norwegian ballad, has entered the Jylland variants by wray of variant 1), the only other variant that has it. But in I) the stanza reads, 20. Saa gik lain til slokkr, S o in swerden di s io d i flokke.

The stanza in this form is shared by the D variant and DgF No. 4A, the variant of Frændehvcvn that appears in the Karen Brahe MS. One

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must concede the point that the stanza is probably more at home in Frændehævn than in variant D, for in No. 4 a number of knights, asleep and about to be killed, might have their swords standing in the »stokke» (log or beam). But D can have taken the stanza unto itself only through the influence of No. 184, in which swords stand about in fence_fashion as a sign to the world of the proud woman’s fixity of purpose. In No. 183 there is no fitting place for a »flock» of swords; the knight’s lone sword is the instrument by which she kills him. The »stokke» (constantly rhymed with »flokke») can have entered the tradition of the D variant very easily by its similarity in sound and meaning to »stage,» which appears in D and interchangably with »stafer» in No. 184 A (a composite variant put together from seven aristocratic MSS.). »Stage» appears in D in the blood stanza (reading e) and in the passage in which each of the »ridder-sverde» is described as a »stage» (6 /). The D variant, then, which has borrowed the fence of swords from No. 184, has also appropriated the stanza in which the »flock of swords» stands in the timber. In the Jylland tradition of Kvindemorderen the »stokke» as a timber has given way variously to (1) »blokke» (which retains the meanings both of »timber» and »the stocks» — cf. »fangeblokk») ; (2) »skokke,» meaning »crowd,» a pleonasm that must be read as a corruption; and (3) »flokke,» a matter of the stanza having been garbled. In D and in G—R (by way of D) the villain (and thereby the maid) is equipped with a flock of swords festooned in a timber. In the rest of the tradition of Kvindemorderen, the sword the villain bears is sufficient. The Vestjylland tradition has thus here derived from a tradition re­ presented by variant D, which in turn is heavily indebted to the tradi­ tion of No. 184. The table on page 114 displays the interrelationships discussed above ; in the table each pair of words represents a stanza. At this point in the narrative we may well enquire into the villain’s motives, for singers might have been led to reveal what they thought them to be. In the Danish ballad the matter of his motives is coloured by the commonplace courtship and abduction opening. Once again in stage 9 he informs the maid that he courted his victims (/ — A, B, C, D) ; he robbed them of their honor (m — B, C, G, I) ; he proposes that she be his mistress (a — AA). In these variants the villain’s motives have been interpreted as sexual, however unaccountably strange and perverse his sexual interests appear from what he does with his victims. In V and W he calls himself the foremost of robbers in the land; and this mundane interpretation of him is reflected in D and the Jylland variants J, K, L, M, N, P, Q,, and R, in which he points out the hill where the gold of the maidens is buried. No other inferences of motive can safely be drawn. These are hardly sufficient to account for the extent of his wrongdoing. But as motives they are undoubtedly attempts to so do, to account for an evil that is not understood. In many folksongs evil does appear as an absolute in itself for which no accounting is attempted. The unaccountability of the act is then its own justification 8

14

The Ballad of Heer Halewijn

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for being, for what can be more gruesome than the evil which is inexplicable? The villain in Kvindemorderen may not at first have been conceived of as the embodiment of a motiveless malignity, but long before the records of our variants were written down he became so. The motives that we see here are hardly consonant with his acts; they are undoubtedly attempted remedies strengthened and perhaps even suggested by the commonplaces which the Scandinavian ballad has taken over in its opening stanzas. It is thus arguable that we have here a supernatural villain whose strange treatment of women has appeared even stranger once his otherworldly nature has been forgotten, and whose acts are therefore with time explained as the result of a combination of a perverted sexual drive and a humdrum desire for gold. 10. The maid's ruse a

Allt saad stallt Wenelild och thentte derpaa, Alt huad hun skulde till antsuar faa. (1)

b

»Til Guldborg er den for vid, Men Rimmelil skal selv ligg’ deri.»

c d e

(2)

Begyndte da den Jomfru at tale med List. (1) »Enhver har nok i Synder sin’, Saa har jeg ogsaa nok i min’.

(7)

»O gjærne vil jeg dø for jert eget Sværd, Og siden begraves i Jorden her. Alt dette vilde jeg gjærne lide her (2)

ƒ

»Hør du Hr. Ribold alt for din Navn

g

»Nu har jeg rejst den lange Vej med dig (1)

h

»I otte aar haffuer y meg giyld,

i

»Rett aldrig ieg eder loske wilde.

(2)

(11) (5)

j

»I haffuer icke en gang hoes mig huillet (1)

k

»Nu haffuer meg lengtes y allt thette aar,

_______________

(2)

o A 24.b G 14, H 14. c AA 8. d J 15, K 11, L 9, M 13 (i øgen min), N 6, P 9, Q 13. e E 17— 18; for dig Z 10 (1st verse only). ƒ N 7, hvad jeg begjær af dig R 5. g P 10. h A 25, B 20, C 15, D 22, K 12, P 10,R 5; Ja mangen Gang haver LIO; Længe O 5; lokket mig X 13; tjente I i min Faders Gaard A A 9. / A 25, D 22; ieg maat iche engang B 20, X 13; eders favre gule Haar AA 9. J C 15. A: A 26; Altid haffuer ieg effter traad D 23.

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116

/ m

»Thetl icg malte løske eders fuore haar.

(10)

»Men før end 1 mig bringer til Ro og Hvile sod, Saa kom og læg jert Hoved i Kjærligheds Skjod!» Villain: »Og om jv*g la’ mil Hoved i Kjærligheds Skjod (1)

n

»Vel (gerne) maa du (en Gang) lyske mig, Men du maa ej i Sovnen daare mig.»

o

Heroine: »Svig’ mig Gud Fader i Himmerig,

Om jeg i Sovnen skal svige dig!»

(8) (7)

f>

Villain: »Hor du Guldborre allerkæreste min, Vil du ej engangløske mig?» (1)

q

Skon Ridder han lysted at hvile sig lidt, »Og n aar han saa vaagner, saa gælder det dit Liv.» (2)

Only one ruse is found in the Danish ballad, and it appears in 17 of the total 27 variants. It has been lost from G, H, J, Q,, V, and VV (as well as the fragmentary I, S, T, U), with a resulting effect of illogicality in the sequence of events. In G and H (reading b) Guldborg remarks that the grave is too wide for her, but that Rimmelil will himself lie in it (cf. Swedish 9 h and Danish 9 d). The next thing we know in G and H is that he lays his head in her lap for a sleep; the fact of her duping him into a sleep has been dropped from the ballad. The same omission is made in variants J and Q,. In V and W the omission has been compensated for in that he (or she) expresses a wish to rest, after which the girl is to lose her life (reading q). The rest motif (7 a-d) is used here in place of the forgotten ruse. In the Vestjylland tradition, prior to her ruse, the maid makes a pious remark about the sufficiency of her sins apart from those of the other maids (reading d — J, K, L, M, N, P, QJ. In the broadsides E and Z the maid chooses the sword as the means by which she gladly will go to her death (reading e). I A 2b, D 21Î; Maate jeg ikkun engang lyske jer E 18, K 12, L 10. N 7, O 5, P 10, R 5; Naar jeg maa faa Tilladelse at 1. tlig Z 10. ni Y 15— 16. n X 14; daare mig O b , R 6; Saa sveg du mig vist udi S. saa sød Y 16 (2nd verse only) ; Om du agter ej Z 11; Har du kun ej i Sinde i S . . . dræbe mig E 19; aflive mig AA 10; dræbe mig P 11. o O 7. R 7; dræbe jer E 20; Krislus . . . agter nogen Tid at svige X 14; Saa sandl hjælp’ mig Gud og hans hellige Ord, Som jeg ikki udi S. Y 17; Bevare mig (i . . . Om jeg agier i s . . . svige Z 12; Krist . . . aflive AA 11. t> M 14. q V 12; Jomfru hon lysled . . . en Stund, »Og naar du VV 12.

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Her willingness we must understand to be an assumed affability that will lead the villain more easily into being duped by her. In a and c we also note her preparing for her countermove (A, AA). The ruse proper appears in h-m. The maid points out that the knight has courted her for eight years (h ■— A, B, C, D, K, L, O, P, R, X, AA), yet never has she deloused him (i — A, B, D, X, AA) ; she would like (once — Jylland) to delouse his fair hair (/ — A, D, E, K, L, N, O, P, R, Z); never has he once rested with her (j — C). In Y she asks him to lay his head in the lap of love before she goes to her rest (;w), a corruption of the usual phrasing. The M variant has been garbled somewhat; it is he who asks her to delouse him for once (p). We may see from these readings that the delousing motif appears in all 17 variants in which the ruse is employed (if we accept the »love rest» of C and Y as alterations of the delousing). We may also note that the villain’s having wooed the maid for eight years appears in 11 variants, from all parts of Denmark, among which are the four older texts. This motif is a repetition of 1 c-e, where the motif is confined to Vestjylland and the Z variant. In less than half of the 17 variants (E, O, P, R, X, Y, Z, AA) the villain is willing to let the maid delouse him provided she does not deceive him in his sleep (n). In these same variants she swears by the deity that she will not deceive him in his sleep (o). We have previously met readings n-o (without the delousing) in the maid’s response to his solicitation (3 c, ƒ — X) ; in X the passage seems to have replaced the readings 3 d-e of the older variants. But n-o belong here no more than they do in stage 3 ; the motif »not deceive . . . in sleep» has been borrowed from stage 13, in which the maid wakes the villain after having bound him. None of the older variants have the reading n-o in stage 10. And it is quite illogical that in a well constructed narrative the villain should anticipate sleeping just as he is about to kill the girl. That n-o is a corrupt tradition may further be seen in the use of the verb »kill» rather than »deceive» (E, P, AA). The villain is made to foresee the possibility of her slaying him, yet he permits himself a sleep in what consequently becomes a most tame arrangement of narrative incidents. By concocting the n-o passage singers have anticipated the action that will befall him. The ruse is only a ruse if the villain is left unaware of what the maid is up to. Consequently we must describe the last verses of n-o as un­ fortunate borrowings from stage 13. In the later stage the motif appears 20 times in 27 variants, a number that argues rather conclusively for prior claim by the thirteenth stage. The nature of the maid’s ruse is so visualized by singers of the ballad that the act of his laying his head in her lap to be deloused brings him into her power. Nothing in the Danish ballad indicates that she employs occult powers of any sort; the incident is phrased as if his sleep were a naturalistic consequence of having submitted to her playing with his hair. And yet it is in no way foreign to balladry that charms can be worked in this fashion, that,

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The Ballad of Hrer Halewijn

in, fact, by falling for her ruse he leaves himself open to her exercise of magic in working a sleep upon him. If the incident is to be credited as a ruse, and so it must, for the idea of the ruse is central to the concept of the ballad story in all its national forms, then one must accept the idea of her putting him in her power by in some fashion (probably occult in the original Danish ballad) working him into a sleep. The magic nature of the act has been lost from the Danish ballad, but suggestions of it appear, as we shall see, in Norwegian and British variants. In DgF No. 81, Søvnerunerne, we meet a clever maid who preserves her virginity by »writing a sleep» on the pillows. Proud Ellen in DgF No. 4 A, Frændehævn, also uses »søvneruner» to secure the sleep of the knights she intends to kill. The idea is widespread in Scandinavian balladry, and we meet it also in the »svelnjDorn» of Eddie poetry. We recognize the same motif in Child ballad No. 43, The Broomfield Hill, in which the maiden retains her virginity by strewing broom blossoms about the lover as a charm for sleep.16 Runes and their power to induce sleep are so familiar in the Scandinavian ballad canon that one in no way stretches plausibility in assuming that the heroine of our ballad induced the knight to lay his lead in her lap in order that she might work a rune sleep upon him. 11. The success of the ruse a Hand lagde hans hoffuet vdj hindis skød, Hand soffuede en søffuen, den var icke sød.

b c

YVindelraad (Hun) tog silche och røde guldband,

d Hund bant her Oldemor (et al.) fod och hand. e

i 23)

Guldborg, Guldborg stod og tænkt’ ved sig: »Mit Snaerebaand kan vel hjaclpc (redde; mig.» (9; (21) (22)

Saa løste hun hest aff fierder. Hun spentte denom om Ylffurrs feeder. (1)

a A 27, B 21, G 16. D 24, G 15, H 15. I 3, J 16, K 13, L 11, M 15. N 8, O H. P 12, Q 14, R 8, V 13 (lagde sig i), W 13 (lagde sig i), X 16; var vel sod E 21, Z 13; Saa sang hun for ham, til hand faldt i S. sod Y 18; Der fandt han en Hvile saa sod saa söd AA 12. b G 16, H 16, J 17, K 14, M16, O 9 (Snærctraad), R 9, S 1; løse mig L 12. r B 22; aff hans hals tliftt r. g. A 28; løste op det r. g. E 22, Y 19, Z 14; loste sit ene G. V 14, W 14; silche-lind G 17; silcke-snore-bond D 25; løst’ af hendes Snærebaand G 18, G 17, H 17, J 18, K 15, L 13, M 17, P 13, Q 15, R 10 ; Snæretraad O 10; Hosebaand N 9; drog ut sine flettede Baand X 17. d B 22, G 17, H 17, J 18, K 15, L 13, M 17, N 9, O 10, P 13,Q15, R10, X 17; fra P. og til H. E 22, Z 14; den Røveres Hoved og H. V 14,W 14; denMorder Y 19; Den Jomfru hun b. ham med Baand og Bast AA 13; b. hun . . . huiden haand A 28, C 17, C 18 (haarde h.), D 25. e A 29.

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Every variant but the fragments F, S, T, and U has the stanza: »He laid his head in her lap ; he slept a sleep that was (not) sweet» (