But when the game came to be played,

Bold Robin he then drew nigh;

With his mantle of green, most brave to be seen,
He let his arrows fly.

And when the game it ended was,
Bold Robin won it with a grace;
But after the king was angry with him,
And vowed he would him chase.

What though his pardon granted was,
While he with him did stay,

But yet the king was vexed with him,
When he was gone his way.

Soon after the king from the court did hye,
In a furious angry mood,

And often inquired both far and near,
After bold Robin Hood.

But when the king to Nottingham came,
Bold Robin was in the wood:

O come now, said he, and let me see,
Who will find me bold Robin Hood.

But when that bold Robin he did hear
The king had him in chase,

Then said little John, 'Tis time to be gone,

And go to some other place.

And away they went from merry Sherwood,

And into Yorkshire he did hye;

And the king did follow, with a whoop and a hallo, But could not come him nigh.

Yet jolly Robin he passed along,

And went straight to Newcastle town;

And there stayed he hours two or three,
And then to Barwick is gone.

When the king did see, how Robin did flee,

He was vexed wondrous sore;

With a hoop and a halloo, he vowed to follow,
And take him or never give o'er.

Come now let's away, then cries little John,
Let any man follow that dare;

To Carlisle we'll hye, with our company,
And so then to Lancaster.

From Lancaster then to Chester they went,
And so did King Henry;

But Robin went away, for he durst not stay,
For fear of some treachery.

Says Robin, Come let us for London go,
To see our noble Queen's face;

It may be she wants our company,
Which makes the king so us chase.

When Robin he came Queen Katherin before,

He fell low upon his knee:

If it please your grace, I am come to this place,
For to speak with King Henry.

Queen Katherin answered bold Robin Hood again,
The king is gone to merry Sherwood;
And when he went away, to me he did say,
He would go and see Robin Hood.

Then fare you well, my gracious queen :
For to Sherwood I will hye apace;

For fain would I see, what he would with me,
If I could but meet with his grace.

But when King Henry he came home,
Full weary and vexed in mind,

And that he did hear, Robin had been there,
He blamed dame Fortune unkind.

You're welcome home, Queen Katherin cried,

Henry, my sovereign liege;

Bold Robin Hood, that archer good,

Your person hath been to seek.

But when King Henry he did hear,

That Robin had been there him to seek,
This answer he gave, He is a cunning knave,
For I have sought him this whole three week.

A boon! a boon! Queen Katherin cried,
I beg it here of your grace,—

To pardon his life, and seek not strife:

And so endeth Robin Hood's chase.

RITSON, & EVANS.

KING JOHN

AND

The Abbot of Canterbury.

SUPPOSED to have been modernized about the time of James I., from one much older, intitled, " King John and the Bishop of Canterbury;" from a copy of which, in Dr. Percy's possession, some lines have been inserted in this. There is another ballad, of inferior merit, called, "King Olfrey (supposed, to mean " Alfred") and the Abbot." St. Augustine's Abbey, at Canterbury, alluded to here, was founded in 978, and was one of the most considerable in the kingdom the Abbot had the Mitre, and sat in Parliament as a Baron he was also exempt from the Archbishop's jurisdiction, and subject only to the Pope. He had, at one period, the allowance of mintage and coinage of money, in right of his abbacy. At the Dissolution, when it is probable, from local circumstances, that its revenues had decreased, they were valued at 14781. 4s. 7d.,equal to 30,000l. in the present day.-ED.

:

-a sum

An ancient story I'll tell you anon,

Of a notable prince, that was called King John:
And he ruled England with main and with might,,—
For he did great wrong, and maintained little right.

And I'll tell you a story,-a story so merry,-
Concerning the Abbot of Canterbury :
How, for his housekeeping, and high renown,
They rode post for him to fair London town.

An hundred men, the King did hear say,
The Abbot kept in his house every day :
And fifty gold Chains, without any doubt,
In velvet coats, waited the abbot about.

KING JOHN AND THE ABBOT.

How now! Father Abbot, I hear it of thee,
Thou keepest a far better house than me:
And for thy housekeeping, and high renown,
I fear thou work'st treason against my crown.

My Liege, quoth the Abbot, I would it were known,
I never spend nothing but what is my own:
And I trust your Grace will do me no deere,
For spending my own true-gotten gear.

Yes, yes,-quoth he,-Abbot, thy fault it is high,
And now for the same thou needest must die;
For except thou canst answer me questions three,
Thy head shall be smitten from thy body.

And first, quo' the King,-when I'm in this stead,
With my crown of gold so fair on my head,
Among all my liege-men so noble of birth,
Thou must tell me, to one penny, what I am worth.

Secondly, tell me, without any doubt,

How soon I may ride the whole world about;
And at the third question thou must not shrink,
But tell me here truly, what I do think.

O, these are hard questions for my shallow wit,
Nor I cannot answer your Grace as yet;
But if you will give me but three weeks space,
I'll do my endeavour to answer your Grace.

Now three weeks space to thee I will give,
And that is the longest time thou hast to live;
For if thou dost not answer my questions three,
Thy lands and thy livings are forfeit to me.

Away rode the Abbot, all sad at that word,
And he rode to Cambridge and Oxenford;
But never a Doctor there was so wise,

That could, with his learning, an answer devise.

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