Howard Pyle: The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood

10. The Adventure with Midge the Miller's Son (continued)

" `Bewitched was I, in bitter pain,
But thou hast set me free,
So now I am myself again,
I give myself to thee.' "

"Yea, truly," quoth Robin Hood, when the Tanner had made an end of singing, "it is as I remember it, a fair ditty, and a ballad with a pleasing tune of a song."

"It hath oftentimes seemed to me," said Will Scarlet, "that it hath a certain motive in it, e'en such as this: That a duty which seemeth to us sometimes ugly and harsh, when we do kiss it fairly upon the mouth, so to speak, is no such foul thing after all."

"Methinks thou art right," quoth Robin, "and, contrariwise, that when we kiss a pleasure that appeareth gay it turneth foul to us; is it not so, Little John? Truly such a thing hath brought thee sore thumps this day. Nay, man, never look down in the mouth. Clear thy pipes and sing us a ditty."

"Nay," said Little John, "I have none as fair as that merry Arthur has trolled. They are all poor things that I know. Moreover, my voice is not in tune today, and I would not spoil even a tolerable song by ill singing."

Upon this all pressed Little John to sing, so that when he had denied them a proper length of time, such as is seemly in one that is asked to sing, he presently yielded. Quoth he, `Well, an ye will ha' it so, I will give you what I can. Like to fair Will, I have no title to my ditty, but thus it runs:

 "O Lady mine, the spring is here,
      With a hey nonny nonny;
  The sweet love season of the year,
      With a ninny ninny nonny;
           Now lad and lass
           Lie in the grass
           That groweth green
           With flowers between.
           The buck doth rest
           The leaves do start,
           The cock doth crow,
           The breeze doth blow,
           And all things laugh in--"

"Who may yon fellow be coming along the road?" said Robin, breaking into the song.