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THE ESPERANCE MORRIS BOOK.—II. |
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seemed to have some difficulty in defining the difference. We have retained the title which seemed to be the most expressive of the dance.
4.— BL UE-EYED STRA NGER.
Played by Mr. Mark Cox.
Mr. Kidson tells us that this is the familiar " The mill, mill, oh ! " which appears in print as early as 1725. There is a strong family likeness between this and " Just as the tide was flowing." versions of which may be found in Mr. Cecil Sharp's " English Folk-Songs for Schools," and Mr. Kidson's " Traditional Tunes." Compare also " Lazarus" in " English County Songs," with which our tune is almost identical in the first phrase.
5.—DOUBLE SET-BACK.
From Mr. Joseph Trafford.
According to Mr. Kidson, an early 19th century hornpipe.
6.—HOW D'YE DO, SIR?
Played by Mr. Mark Cox.
Mr. Kidson compares this to the old tune " Blowza-bella " in " Pills to Purge Melancholy," and notes that the latter was originally an Italian air, and was once popular all over England.
7.—LAUDNUM BUNCHES. Played by Mr. Mark Cox.
8.—TRUNKLES.
Played by Mr. Mark Cox.
Some of the dancers called this " Trunk Hose" ; another variant of the name is " Old Trunco." The tune is a curious one, the first phrase being in the Lydian mode ; we give the tune, of course, exactly as Mr. Cox played it. Mr. Trafford gave names to the different parts of this dance (Shakes across, Corner cross, Full caper through, etc.), but we have sought to avoid confusion in the instructions by giving only those that seemed to be helpful.
cj.—OLD MOTHER OXFORD. Played by Mr. Cox. The dancers sang to this tune the words— " Old Mother Oxford's just come home; Had to light a fire in the big back room."
10.— BUMPUS 0' STRETTON. Played by Mr. Sam Bennett, of Ilmingion. He used it for a Morris On, and sang words to it. Mr. Kidson says " It appears to be a traditional remembrance of 'So merrily danced the Quaker's wife,' printed in 1730." It bears a resemblance to the tune " Pot stick," in Mr. Kidson's " Old English Dances."
11.—THE LIVELY JIG.
Played by Mr. Sam Bennett.
Mr. Kidson says that he is familiar with this tune as a hornpipe, but does not recall its title. Mrs. Bird, a country woman, of Little Snoring, Norfolk, on seeing the dance performed by the boys of the Esperance Club, said that she had often seen it danced by the keepers after a shoot. |
12.— STEP AND FETCH HER.
Played by Mr. Mark Cox, of Headington.
The first version of the dance given is that danced by Mr. Sam Bennett's set. The second version was taught by Mrs. Mark Cox and Mr. Joseph Trafford, of Headington. The tune is the same as " Sally Luker," in " Esperance Book, I." To the second section Mr. Trafford sang the following words—
" Down the middle, down the middle, j Fetch her back, my pretty little dear ; f [Or, Step and fetch her, my pretty little dear ; Don't you tease her, try to please her, 'Cause she is a pretty little dear."
13.—FIGURE OF EIGHT.
Played by Mr. Sam Bennett, of Ilmington.
The tune is, of course, " The flowers of Edinbro'," which Mr. Kidson describes as " a very popular hornpipe. The song itself is very old Scottish, printed early in the 18th century. The hornpipe does not differ very much from the original melody." The version of the dance given is that danced by Mr. Thomas Hands, who leads a set of country dancers at Honington, near Stratford-on-Avon.
14.—WE WON'T GO HOME TILL MORNING.
Played and danced by Mr. Sam Bennett.
The words of the first section are often sung while dancing. This well-known tune is, of course, the same as the French air " Malbrook s'en va t'en guerre."
15.—THE BONNY BREAST KNOT.
From Mr. James Rooke, of Knapp, Sussex.
This tune is neither of the two which appear under the same title in old books. Mr. Kidson is of the opinion that we have here one of the common cases of a tune misnamed.
16.—OVER THE STICKS.
From Mr. Frank Albery, Borden Wood, and Mr. Frank Dawtrey, Iping, Sussex.
It is probable that this dance is the survival of one danced with flails, or frails, as they are called locally. Traces have been found of such an one in Warwickshire danced by four dancers, and Mr. Albery said he had heard tell of this dance being done over flails. At any rate, it seems certain that the sticks have at no time taken the place of swords. A form of the tune was noted by Mr. Kidson over twenty years ago in Yorkshire, and called " The Roving Heckler Lad." The one published here is a fuller version, and was called by Mr. Albery " The Oyster Girl," though it bears no resemblance to the song of that name.
17.—SWORD DANCE.
From Mr. Richard Major, of Flamborough.
This spirited dance is danced by the sailors at Flam-borough, who perform it every year between Christmas and Plough Monday. The dancers are known locally as the " Plough Stots." The tune is, unfortunately, a poor one, and consists of several popular airs adapted and strung together. The first strain is a part of a song popular about thirty years ago, which the Headington dancers also utilised for a morris dance. The last strain will be easily recognisable by all as the tune which children sing to the game of " Round and round the village." |
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