Chapter III: Preface

These volumes have been compiled from the numerous collections of Ballads printed since the beginning of the last century. They contain all but two or three of the _ancient_ ballads of England and Scotland, and nearly all those ballads which, in either country, have been gathered from oral tradition,--whether ancient or not. Widely different from the true popular ballads, the spontaneous products of nature, are the works of the professional ballad-maker, which make up the bulk of Garlands and Broadsides. These, though sometimes not without grace, more frequently not lacking in humor, belong to artificial literature,--of course to an humble department.[A] As many ballads of this second class have been admitted as it was thought might be wished for, perhaps I should say tolerated, by the "benevolent reader." No words could express the dulness and inutility of a collection which should embrace all the Roxburghe and Pepys broadsides--a scope with which this publication was most undeservedly credited by an English journal. But while the broadside ballads have been and must have been gleaned, the popular ballads demand much more liberal treatment. Many of the older ones are mutilated, many more are miserably corrupted, but as long as any traces of their originals are left, they are worthy of attention and have received it. When a ballad is extant in a variety of forms, all the most important versions are given.--Less than this would have seemed insufficient for a collection intended as a complement to an extensive series of the British Poets. To meet the objections of readers for pleasure, all those pieces which are wanting in general interest are in each volume inserted in an appendix.

[A] This distinction is not absolute, for several of the ancient
ballads have a sort of literary character, and many broadsides were
printed from oral tradition. The only _popular_ ballads excluded
from this selection that require mention, are _The Bonny Hynd_, _The
Jolly Beggar_, _The Baffled Knight_, _The Keach in the Creel_, and
_The Earl of Errol_. These ballads, in all their varieties, may be
found by referring to the general Index at the end of the eighth
volume. To extend the utility of this index, references are also
given to many other ballads which, though not worth reprinting, may
occasionally be inquired for.

The ballads are grouped in eight Books, nearly corresponding to the division of volumes. The arrangement in the several Books may be called chronological, by which is meant, an arrangement according to the probable antiquity of the story, not the age of the actual form or language. Exceptions to this rule will be observed, partly the result of oversight, partly of fluctuating views; the most noticeable case is in the First Book, where the ballads that stand at the beginning are certainly not so old as some that follow. Again, it is very possible that some pieces might with advantage be transferred to different Books, but it is believed that the general disposition will be found practically convenient. It is as follows:--

BOOK I. contains Ballads involving Superstitions of various kinds,--as of Fairies, Elves, Water-spirits, Enchantment, and Ghostly Apparitions; and also some Legends of Popular Heroes.