A View of Northumberland, by W. Hutchinson, Anno 1776,
Newcastle, 1778, II, 162-64. Communicated by the Rev. Mr. Lamb,
of Norham.
Kinloch's account of the tradition in relation to the queen,
as it maintains itself in Berwickshire, is quite in accord with
German sagen about enchanted ladies, innocent or guilty,
and as such may be worth giving: Kinloch Manuscripts, I, 187.
"Though the ballad mentions that the queen was transformed
into 'a spiteful toad of monstrous size,' and was doomed in that
form to wend on the earth until the end of the world, yet the
tradition of the country gives another account of the endurance
of her enchantment. It is said that in form of a toad as big as a
'clockin hen' she is doomed to expiate her guilt by confinement
in a cavern in Bamborough castle, in which she is to remain in
her enchanted shape until some one shall have the hardihood to
break the spell by penetrating the cavern, whose 'invisible' door
only opens every seven years, on Christmas eve. The adventurer,
after entering the cavern, must take the sword and horn of the
Childe of Wane, which hang on the wall, and having unsheathed and
resheathed the sword thrice, and wound three blasts on the horn,
he must kiss the toad three times; upon which the enchantment
will be dissolved, and the queen will recover her human form.
"Many adventurers, it is said, have attempted to disenchant
the queen, but have all failed, having immediately fallen into a
trance, something similar to the princes in the Arabian tale who
went in search of the Talking Bird, Singing Tree, and Yellow
Water. The last one, it is said, who made the attempt was a
countryman, about sixty years ago, who, having watched on
Christmas eve the opening of the door, entered the cavern, took
the sword and horn from the wall, unsheathed and resheathed the
sword thrice, blew three blasts on the horn, and was proceeding
to the final disenchantment by kissing the toad, which he had
saluted twice, when, perceiving the various strange sleepers to
arise from the floor, his courage failed, and he fled from the
cavern, having just attained the outside of the door when it
suddenly shut with a loud clap, catching hold of the skirt of his
coat, which was torn off and left in the door.
| 1 |
The king is gone from Bambrough castle,
Long may the princess mourn;
Long may she stand on the castle wall,
Looking for his return. |
| 2 |
She has knotted the keys upon a string,
And with her she has them taen,
She has cast them oer her left shoulder,
And to the gate she is gane. |
| 3 |
She tripped out, she tripped in,
She tript into the yard;
But it was more for the king's sake,
Than for the queen's regard. |
| 4 |
It fell out on a day the king
Brought the queen with him home,
And all the lords in our country
To welcome them did come. |
| 5 |
'O welcome, father,' the lady cries,
Unto your halls and bowers;
And so are you, my stepmother,
For all that is here is yours.' |
| 6 |
A lord said, wondering while she spake,
This princess of the North
Surpasses all of female kind
In heauty and in worth. |
| 7 |
The envious queen replied: At least,
You might have excepted me;
In a few hours I will her bring
Down to a low degree.
|
| 8 |
I will her liken to a laidley worm,
That warps about the stone,
And not till Childy Wynd comes back
Shall she again be won. |
| 9 |
The princess stood at the bower door,
Laughing, who could her blame?
But eer the next day's sun went down,
A long worm she became. |
| 10 |
For seven miles east, and seven miles west,
And seven miles north and south,
No blade of grass or corn could grow,
So venomous was her mouth. |
| 11 |
The milk of seven stately cows —
It was costly her to keep —
Was hrought her daily, which she drank
Before she went to sleep. |
| 12 |
At this day may be seen the cave
Which held her folded up,
And the stone trough, the very same
Out of which she did sup. |
| 13 |
Word went east, and word went west,
And word is gone over the sea,
That a laidley worm in Spindleston Heughs
Would ruin the north country. |
| 14 |
Word went east, and word went west,
And over the sea did go;
The Child of Wynd got wit of it,
Which filled his heart with woe. |
| 15 |
He called straight his merry men all,
They thirty were and three:
'I wish I were at Spindleston,
This desperate worm to see. |
| 16 |
'We have no time now here to waste,
Hence quickly let us sail;
My only sister Margaret,
Something, I fear, doth ail.' |
| 17 |
They built a ship without delay,
With masts of the rown tree,
With fluttering sails of silk so fine,
And set her on the sea. |
| 18 |
They went aboard; the wind with speed
Blew them along the deep;
At length they spied an huge square tower,
On a rock high and steep. |
| 19 |
The sea was smooth, the weather clear;
When they approached nigher,
King Ida's castle they well knew,
And the banks of Bamhroughshire. |
| 20 |
The queen looked out at her bower-window,
To see what she could see;
There she espied a gallant ship,
Sailing upon the sea. |
| 21 |
When she beheld the silken sails,
Full glancing in the sun,
To sink the ship she sent away
Her witch-wives everyone. |
| 22 |
Their spells were vain j the hags returned
To the queen in sorrowful mood,
Crying that witches have no power
Where there is rown-tree wood. |
| 23 |
Her last effort, she sent a boat,
Which in the haven lay,
With armed men to board the ship,
But they were driven away. |
| 24 |
The worm leapt up, the worm leapt down,
She plaited round the stane;
And ay as the ship came to the land
She banged it off again. |
| 25 |
The Child then ran out of her reach
The ship on Budle sand,
And jumping into the shallow sea,
Securely got to land. |
| 26 |
And now he drew his berry-brown sword,
And laid it on her head,
And swore, if she did harm to him,
That he would strike her dead. |
| 27 |
'O quit thy sword, and bend thy bow,
And give me kisses three;
For though I am a poisonous worm,
No hurt I will do to thee. |
| 28 |
'O quit thy sword, and bend thy bow,
And give me kisses three;
If I am not won eer the sun go down,
'Won I shall never be.' |
| 29 |
He quitted his sword, he bent his bow,
He gave her kisses three;
She crept into a hole a worm,
But stept out a lady. |
| 30 |
No cloathing had this lady fine,
To keep her from the cold;
He took his mantle from him about,
And round her did it fold. |
| 31 |
He has taken his mantle from him about,
And it be wrapt her in,
And they are up to Bambrough castle,
As fast as they can win. |
| 32 |
His absence and her serpent shape
The king had long deplored;
He now rejoiced to see them both
Again to him restored. |
| 33 |
The queen they wanted, whom they found
All pale, and sore afraid,
Because she knew her power must yield
To Childy Wynd's, who said: |
| 34 |
'Woe be to thee, thou wicked witch,
An ill death mayest thou dee;
As thou my sister hast likened,
So likened shalt thou be. |
| 35 |
'I will turn you into a toad,
That on the ground doth wend,
And won, won shalt thou never be,
Till this world hath an end.' |
| 36 |
Now on the sand near Ida's tower,
She crawls a loathsome toad,
And venom spits on every maid
She meets upon her road. |
| 37 |
The virgins all of Bambrough town
Will swear that they have seen
This spiteful toad, of monstrous size,
Whilst walking they have been. |
| 38 |
All folks believe within the shire
This story to be true,
And they all run to Spindleston,
The cave and trough to view. |
| 39 |
This fact now Duncan Frasier,
Of Cheviot, sings in rhime,
Lest Bambroughshire men should forget
Some part of it in time. |
