The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction. Volume 19, No. 544, April 28, 1832

The games of Robin Hood seem to have been occasionally of a dramatic cast. Sir John Paston, in the time of King Edward IV. complaining of the ingratitude of his servants, mentions one who had promised never to desert him, and "ther uppon," says he, "I have kepyd hym thys iii yer to pleye Seynt Jorge, and Robyn Hod, and the Shryf off Notyngham, and now when I wolde have good horse he is goon into Bernysdale, and I without a keeper."

In some old accounts of the Churchwardens, of Saint Helens, at Abingdon, Berks, for the year 1556, there is an entry for setting up Robins Hoode's bower; supposed to be for a parish interlude.

Perhaps the clearest idea of these games will be derived from some accounts of the Church-wardens, of the parish of Kingston-upon-Thames:

29 Henry 8th. Mem. left in the keeping of the wardens nowe beinge, a fryers cote of russet, and a kyrtle of a worstyde weltyd with red cloth, a mouren's cote of buckram, and 4 morres dawnsars cotes of white fustian spangelyd, and two gryne saten cotes, and a dysardd's cote of cotton, and 6 payre of garters with bells."

Having given so many items of the Robin Hood games, it will not be out of place to furnish some account of the Morrice.

The tabor and pipe strike up a morrice.—A shout within.

A lord, a lord, a lord, who!

ENTER THE MORRICE—They sing.

 
Skip it, and trip it, nimbly, nimbly,
Tickle it, tickle it, lustily,
Strike up the tabor, for the wenches favour,
Tickle it, tickle it, lustily.
Let us be seen on Hygale Greene,
To dance for the honour of Holloway,
Since we are come hither, let's spare for no leather,
To dance for the honour of Holloway.
 

Ed. Well said, my boys, I must have my lord's livery; what is't, a maypole? troth, 'twere a good body for a courtier's impreza, if it had but this life—Frustra storescit. Hold, cousin, hold.

(He gives the fool money.)

Fool. Thanks, cousin, when the lord my father's audit comes, we'll repay you again, your benevolence too, sir.

Mam. What! a lord's son become a beggar!

Fool. Why not, when beggars are become lord's sons. Come, 'tis but a trifle.

Mam. Oh, sir, many a small make a great.

Fool. No, sir, a few great make a many small. Come, my lords, poor and needy hath no law.

Ed. Nor necessity no right. Drum, down with them into the cellar. Rest content, rest content, one bout more, and then away.

Fool. Spoke like a true heart; I kiss thy foot, sweet knight.

(The Morrice sing and dance, and exeunt.)

SWAINE.

THE SELECTOR; AND LITERARY NOTICES OF NEW WORKS

SITTING IN THE DRUID'S CHAIR

We detach the following scene from one of Mr. Horace Smith's Tales of the Early Ages. The date is the fifth century, about twenty years after the final withdrawing of the Romans from Britain. The actors are Hengist, the Saxon chief, Guinessa, his daughter, betrothed to Oscar, a young prince, and Gryffhod, a Briton of some distinction, and proprietor of Caer-Broc, a villa on the Kentish coast, where the parties are sojourning. The incident embodies the superstition of sitting in the Druid's Chair, similar in its portentous moment to sitting in St. Michael's Chair, in Cornwall. It is told with considerable force and picturesque beauty.

"In the morning, Hengist informed his daughter, to her no small dismay, that he meant to take her to Canterbury for the purpose of introducing her to her uncle Horsa, desiring her to make preparations for her immediate departure. 'But before I leave Caer-Broc,' said the Saxon, 'I would fain mount that lofty cliff up which I climbed fifteen years ago, in order that I might discover, if possible, upon what coast the storm had cast me. It commands, as I recollect, an extensive inland view, and I would show my fellow-soldiers the beauty of the country into which I have led them.'

"'It must have been the Druid's Chair, for that is the loftiest headland upon our coast.'

"'The higher the better, my child, for so shall we gain the wider prospect. The morning is at present, clear, and I would climb the cliff before those clouds which I see gathering in the west, shall be blown hither to intercept our prospect.' So saying, he invited his comrades, as well as Oscar, to accompany him; while Gryffhod, on learning his purpose, joined his party with Leoline and others of his men, in order that they might render assistance, should any such be required, in climbing the broken and somewhat perilous ascent to the dizzy summit of the cliff. Ropes were provided in case of accident, as persons had more than once slipped from the narrow ledge, and fallen upon lower fragments of the cliff, whence they could be only extricated by hauling them up.

"Battered and undermined by the storms of ages, the Druid's Chair has long since been shivered into fragments and wasted away; but at the period of which we are writing it formed the outermost of a chain of crags which were connected together by a tongue of rock and cliff sufficiently continuous to allow a passage, but broken into sharp acclivities and descents which rendered the undertaking toilsome to all, and not without peril for those who were liable to be giddy, or who did not possess a good portion of activity. 'Surely,' said Hengist, as he followed Gryffhod, 'this ridge was much more even when I traversed it fifteen years ago.'

"'You are right,' replied the Briton; 'but rains and frosts have since broken away its surface. This is our steepest ascent, but it is the last. We will help Guinessa to surmount it, and when we gain the summit, she shall be the first to sit in the Druid's Chair.'

"With some little mutual assistance, the whole party gained the pinnacle of the cliff, which was a small and nearly circular platform, with a central crag that bore a rude resemblance to a chair. 'You shall have the honour that was promised you,' said the Saxon chief to his daughter; 'but we must first clear away the samphire and weeds which have taken previous possession of your seat.' So saying, he cut them away with his sword, and lead his panting daughter to the throne, upon which she was by no means sorry to rest herself. Hengist then walked repeatedly round the lofty level, pointing out with his weapon the distant objects that engaged his attention, and demanding frequent explanations from Gryffhod, more particularly as to the direction and distance of Canterbury. While he was thus occupied, the heavy western clouds, whose threatenings he had been so anxious to anticipate, were swept rapidly towards them by a sudden storm gust, which lashed up the waves into fury, and instantly surrounded the foot of the crag whirlpools of foam. The extensive prospect upon which they had so lately been gazing was now shrouded in a dense gloom, presently pierced and irradiated by a vivid flash of lightning, followed by a crash of thunder that made the lofty crag tremble beneath their feet. To a martial soul like that of Hengist, this warring of the elements presented a more spirit-stirring and congenial spectacle, than all the tranquil beauties of the previous prospect, and he pointed out to the admiration of his comrades the fiercer features of the scene, shouting with delight as a huge mass of the next projecting cliff, undermined by the raving waters, fell thundering into the depths below.

"While he was thus occupied, either his extended sword was touched, or his arm was unnerved by the electric fluid, for the weapon fell from his hand and instantly disappeared in the whirlpool beneath. 'My sword! my enchanted sword!' exclaimed Hengist with a loud cry of consternation: 'it is lost, it is gone! a hundred pieces of gold to him who recovers my precious weapon! I would plunge after it myself, but that I am prohibited by the magician who fashioned it. My sword! my sword! a hundred horses, besides the gold, to him who finds it. What! my brave comrades,' he continued, casting a reproachful look at his fellow-countrymen, 'will you see your leader ruined, and all his hopes blasted, rather than attempt to get me back my sword?'

"'We came hither to fight the Picts and Scots, not to drown ourselves in such a hopeless enterprise,' muttered the Saxons.

"'Oscar, my intended son-in-law! you are young and vigorous. Show yourself worthy of Guinessa by plunging into the waters in search of my lost talisman.'

"'It is inevitable death; and besides you have promised her to me already,' replied the young Prince, recoiling with a shudder from the edge of the precipice.

"'Craven! recreant! I recall my consent,' shouted Hengist, hoarse with rage, 'and here in the face of Heaven I promise her to him, and him only, who shall redeem my sword from the waters.'

"'Do you swear to that vow?' asked Leoline, starting forward.

"'Ay, I swear by the sword itself, an oath that I dare not violate, even if I would.'

"'Enough?' said Leoline; and springing instantly from the rock, he precipitated himself down the fearful abyss, and plunged into the foaming whirlpool below. Bewildered and aghast at this sudden act of desperation, Guinessa, uttering a scream of agonized terror, would have thrown herself after him, had she not been restrained by Gryffhod; but she still bent over the precipice, her long golden hair, as it streamed upon the wind, together with her white robes and arms, and her fair features, all shown in strong relief against the dark thunder-cloud, imparting to her the appearance of an aerial spirit, just alighted upon this craggy pinnacle to watch the conflict of the elements. Every eye was rivetted upon the spot where Leoline had cleft the eddying waves; not a syllable was uttered; every heart thrilled painfully in expectation of his reappearance, but he rose not again to the surface, and the fears of the gazers responded to those of Guinessa, as she at length ejaculated, in a deep and hollow voice, 'He is lost—he is lost!' Another brief but dreadful pause ensued, when Guinessa, clasping her hands sharply together, exclaimed, with an ecstatic shout, 'He rises—he rises—he has found the sword!' and she sank upon her knees, trembling all over with a vehement and irrepressible agitation.

"The object of her deep emotion was now visible to all, holding the recovered sword in his mouth, while with both hands he fought against the buffetting billows, which hurled him against the foot of the cliff, and as often by their recoil swept him back again; for the wave-worn crag offered no holdfast either for the foot or hand. 'He will perish still; he will be dashed to pieces against the rock,' cried Hengist, almost wild with apprehension.

"'He swims like a fish,' exclaimed Gryffhod, 'but he cannot strike out of that boiling whirlpool; it is too strong for him. The ropes! the ropes! where are they? let us lower them instantly, and we may perhaps succeed in hauling him up.'

"A rope, secured at top to the Druid's Chair, was instantly thrown over, but the lower extremity being blown about by the wind, it was not till after repeated efforts that Leoline could succeed in catching hold of it, when he raised himself out of the water, and began to climb upwards by supporting his feet against the cliff. More than once they slipped away from the wet chalk, and he swung in mid-air; but his teeth still firmly grasped the sword; he soon obtained a drier foothold, and thus climbed to the summit: which he had no sooner reached in safety than Guinessa, overcome by the revulsion of her feelings, sank panting and fainting into her father's arms. Eagerly snatching the redeemed weapon, its owner ran his eye over the blade, when finding that it had received no injury, nor suffered any obliteration of the talismanic characters, he repeatedly kissed it, replaced it in its scabbard, and then cordially embracing its recoverer exclaimed, 'Thanks, brave Leoline; ay, and something more substantial than empty thanks. Guinessa was right, after all; she knows where to find a valiant and a worthy man; and, by Heaven! I am glad that she preferred you to your rival. Right nobly have you won her, and honourably shall you wear the prize. There she is; speak to her; I warrant your voice will revive her more quickly than that of Gryffhod; her consent you need not ask, for that you have obtained already, so take her for your wife when you will, and God give you joy of your choice, as for my part, I thank Heaven for bestowing on me so dauntless a son-in-law!'