The right fide cloth of gold,

The left fide to behold,

Of woollen cloth still framed hee*.

Men thereatt did wonder ;

Golden fame did thunder

This ftrange deede in every pláce:
The king of France came thither,

It being pleasant weather,

175

In thefe woods the hart to chase.

180

The children then they bring,

So their mother will'd it,
Where the royall king

Muft of force come bye :
Their mothers riche array,

Was of crimson velvet :
Their fathers all of gray,
201 Seemelye to the eye.
Then this famous king,
Noting every thing,

185

190

* This will remind the reader of the livery and device of Charles Brandon, a private gentleman, who married the Queen Dowager of France, fifter of Henry VIII. At a tournament which he held at his wedding, the trappings of his horfe were half Cloth of gold, and half Frieze, with the following Motto,

"Cloth of Gold, do not difpife,

"Tho' thou art matcht with Cloth of Frize;
"Cloth of Frize, be not too bold,

"Tho' thou art matcht with Cloth of Gold."

See Sir W. Temple's Misc. vol. 3. p. 336.

2

Afkt

Strait he dubb'd her husband knight;

Then made him erle of Flanders,

*i. c. defcribing. See Glofs.

And chiefe of his commanders:

Thus were their sorrowes put to flight.

220

XVII.

THE SWEET NEGLECT.

This little madrigal (extracted from Ben Jonfon's Silent Woman, A&t 1. Sc. 1. First acted in 1609.) is in imitation of a Latin poem printed at the end of the Variarum Edit. of Petronius, beginning, Semper munditias, femper Bafiliffa, decoras, &c."" See Whalley's Ben Jonson, vol. 2. p. 420.

TILL to be neat, ftill to be drest,

ST

As you were going to a feast:
Still to be pou'dred, ftill perfum'd:
Lady, it is to be prefum'd,

Though art's hid causes are not found,
All is not sweet, all is not found.

Give me a looke, give me a face,
That makes fimplicitie a grace;
Robes loosely flowing, haire as free:
Such sweet neglect more taketh me,
Than all th' adulteries of art,

That strike mine eyes, but not my heart.

5

10

XVIII. THE

XVIII.

THE CHILDREN IN THE WOOD. The fubject of this very popular ballad (which has been fet in fo favourable a light by the Spectator, N° 85.) Seems to be taken from an old play, intitled, "Two lamentable Tragedies, The one of the murder of Maifter Beech, a "chandler in Thames-ftrecte, &c. The other of a young "child murthered in a wood by two ruffins, with the confent of his unkle. By Rob. Yarrington, 1601. 4to." Our ballad-maker has ftrictly followed the play in the defcription: of the father and mother's dying charge: in the uncle's promije to take care of their issue: bis hiring two ruffians to destroy his ward, under pretence of fending him to school : their chufing a wood to perpetrate the murder in : one of the ruffians relenting, and a battle enfuing, Sc. In other refpects he has departed from the play. In the latter the fcene is laid in Padua: there is but one child: which is murdered by a fudden ftab of the unrelenting ruffian: he is flain himself by his lefs bloody companion, but ere he dies gives the other a mortal wound: the latter living just long enough to impeach the uncle who in confequence of this impeachment is arraigned aud executed by the hand of justice, c. Whoever compares the play with the ballad, will have no doubt but the former is the original: the language is far more obfolete, and fuch a vein of fimplicity runs thro' "the whole performance, that had the ballad been written firft, there is no doubt but every circumftance of it would have been received into the drama: whereas this was probably built on some Italian novel.

Printed from two ancient copies, one of them in black letter in the Pepys Collection. It's title at large is, "The "Children in the Wood: or, The Norfolk Gentleman's Laft Will and Teftament: To the tune of Rogero, &c.".