Three Dukes (2)
1.
We are three brethren come from Spain,
All in French garlands;
We are come to court your daughter Jean,
And adieu to you, my darlings.
My daughter Jean, she is too young,
All in French garlands;
She cannot bide your flattering tongue,
And adieu to you, my darlings.
Be she young, or be she old,
All in French garlands;
It's for a bride she must be sold,
And adieu to you, my darlings.
A bride, a bride, she shall not be,
All in French garlands;
Till she go through this world with me,
And adieu to you, my darlings.
. . . .
Come back, come back, you courteous knights,
All in French garlands;
Clear up your spurs, and make them bright,
And adieu to you, my darlings.
. . . .
Smell my roses, smell my roses,
All in French garlands;
Which of my maidens do you choose?
And adieu to you, my darlings.
Are all your daughters safe and sound?
All in French garlands;
Are all your daughters safe and sound?
And adieu to you, my darlings.
In every pocket a thousand pounds,
All in French garlands;
On every finger a gay gold ring,
And adieu to you, my darlings.
2.
Here's two brothers come from Spain,
For to court your daughter Jane.
My daughter Jane, she is too young,
She has not learned her mother tongue.
Be she young, or be she old,
For her beauty she must be sold.
But fare thee well, my lady gay,
And I'll call back some other day.
Come back! come back! take the fairest you see.
The fairest one that I can see
Is bonnie Jeanie [or Maggie, &c.], so come to me.
Here's your daughter, safe and sound,
In every pocket a thousand pound,
On every finger a gay gold ring,
So, pray, take your daughter back again.
3.
Here's two dukes come out from Spain,
For to court your daughter Jane;
My daughter Jane is far too young
She cannot hear your flattering tongue.
Be she young, or be she old,
Her beauty must be sold,
Either for silver or for gold;
So fare you well, my lady fair,
I'll call again some other day.
4.
Here's one old Jew, just come from Spain,
To ask alone your daughter Jane.
Our daughter Jane is far too young
To understand your Spanish tongue.
Go away, Coat-green.
My name is not Coat-green,
I step my foot, and away I go.
Come back, come back, your coat is green,
And choose the fairest one you see.
The fairest one that I can see
Is pretty Alice. Come to me.
I will not come.
Naughty girl, she won't come out,
She won't come out, she won't come out;
Naughty girl, she won't come out,
To see the ladies dancing.
I will come.
Pretty girl, she has come out,
She has come out, she has come out;
Pretty girl, she has come out,
To see the ladies dancing.
5.
There came three dukes a-riding, a-riding, a-riding,
There came three dukes a-riding,
To court my daughter Jane.
My daughter Jane is far too young, far too young,
My daughter Jane is far too young,
She hath a flattering tongue.
They're all as red as roses, as roses, as roses,
They're all as red as roses with sitting in the sun.
6.
Two poor sailors dressed in blue,
Two poor sailors dressed in blue,
Two poor sailors dressed in blue,
We come for the sake of your daughter Loo.
My daughter Loo, she is too young,
She cannot bear your flattering tongue.
Whether she be young, or whether she be old,
It is our duty, she must be sold.
Take her, take her, the coach is free,
The fairest one that you can see.
The fairest one that we can see,
Is bonnie (name). Come to me.
Here's all your daughters safe and sound,
In every pocket a thousand pound,
On every finger a guinea gold ring,
So please, take one of your daughters in.
7.
Two poor sailors dressed in blue, dressed in blue,
dressed in blue,
Two poor sailors dressed in blue, come for the sake of
your daughter Loo.
My daughter Loo, she is too young, she is too young, she
is too young,
She cannot bear your flattering tongue.
Let her be young, or yet too old, yet too old, yet too
old,
But for her beauty she must be sold.
The haughty thing, she won't come out, she won't come
out, she won't come out;
The haughty thing, she won't come out,
To help us with our dancing.
Now we have got a beautiful maid, a beautiful maid, a
beautiful maid;
Now we have got a beautiful maid,
To help us with our dancing.
8.
One poor sailor dressed in blue, dressed in blue,
dressed in blue,
One poor sailor dressed in blue,
Has come for the sake of your daughter Sue.
My daughter Sue, she is too young,
She cannot bear your flattering tongue.
Whether she be young, or whether she be old,
For her beauty she must be sold.
Take her, take her, the coach is free.
The fairest one that I can see is bonny [name], come
with we.
[No!]
The dirty sclipe, she won't come out, she won't come
out, she won't come out;
The dirty sclipe, she won't come out to dance along with
me.
Now, I have got another poor maid, &c.
To come along with me.
9.
Here come two ladies down from Spain,
A len (?) [all in] French garland.
I've come to court your daughter Jane,
And adieu to you, my darling.
________________________________________________________
(1) Chambers PRS (1847), 278; (1870), 143. [Gomme
II.259.] Ford CR 88 has a few differences, and fills
out the lacunae: 1-2 Jane 4 the world [extra stanza:]
Then fare ye well, my lady gay,// We'll come again some
other day,// 5 scornful knight [another extra stanza:]
Of my spurs take you no thought,//For in this town they
were not bought,// The stanzas are sung alternately by
the suitors, a line of boys with linked arms, who
advance and retire dancing and singing st. 1; and the
mother, the rest of the girls motionless in a line. The
formula is repeated until every boy has his mate, when
all march round arm in arm in pairs. Chambers says "The
game, as it is called, then ends with some little
childish trick."
Gomme compares with "Three Dukes", making out a case for
separate development; the primitive marriage is treated
somewhat differently in each (parental element, sanction
given, etc.). It may also be compared with what Gomme titles
"Three Sailors"; see "Here's Three Sweeps".
(2) Gomme II.266, from People's Friend, quoted in a
review of Arbroath: Past and Present.
(3) Gomme II.269, from Galloway.
(4) Gomme ibid., from Berwickshire [A.M.Bell, Antiquary,
vol. XXX, p. 15].
(5) Ibid., II.270, from Perth.
(6) Ibid., 272, from Fochabers.
(7) Ibid., 273, from Nairn.
(8) Loc. cit., from Cullen.
(9) Ibid., 274, from Scotland [place unidentified], from
N&Q, 3rd series, V. 393.
There are points of resemblance with "Here comes gentle
Rover", q.v. Willa Muir Living With Ballads (1965), 24, has
fragmentary version (with tune, = How Dry I Am), from N.-E.
Scotland, c. 1901: We are three Jews,/ New come from Spain,/
To call upon/ Your daughter Jane// My daughter Jane,/ She is
too young,/ She cannot bear/ Your clattering tongue. [After
which the words had been forgotten, and it degenerated into a
rough-and-tumble snatch and rescue contest.]
Fraser (1975), 113, has "There were three knights who came
from Spain/ To call upon my sister Jane" etc. (no burden).
When rejected, and on their way, they are called back with
"Come back, come back, your coach is free,/ And choose the
bonniest one you see." All three knights choose their girls,
who take their places; etc.
Ritchie Golden City (1965), 154 ff. has a version close to
Muir's, with the same tune (p. 176); the suitor is rejected
with the name "Corkscrew", "Cock sparrow" (Restalrig, 1958)
and even "Cockshoe".
See Opies Singing Game (1985), 103 (no. 13); the curious name
seems to be a distortion o
MS
oct97
Thanks to Mudcat for the Digital Tradition!