ADDITIONAL BALLADS
345. He Courted Her in the Month of June
(Child 277)
'He Courted Her in the Month of June.' Sung by Mrs. James York. Recorded
at OHn, Iredell county; no date given. For other texts cf. PSL 41-2, 'Wee
Cooper o' Fife'; ABS 236, No. 118; OFS iii 190, No. 439; OSC 131 'Married
Me a Wife'; FSoA 36, 'Niggl'jy, Naggl'jy'; BISB 178-9, and VBFB, 449. The
refrain "Now, now, now" (cf. Ritson's Ancient Songs and Ballads, 64 and 270:
"O Anthony, now, now, now") dates back to the sixteenth century. Wedder-
burn's Complaynt of Scotland, 1548, quotes numerous songs, among them some
with the popular chorus : "Now, now, now." Cf. ASM 52.
She churns her but - ter in 'er dad's old boot,
Ni - eke - ty, na - eke - ty, now, now, now. And for her
dash - er she us - es her foot.
Ni - eke - ty, na - eke, John
Ta
bor see
Will
see Wall - ie.
qua - li - ty
ni - eke - ty, na - eke - ty.
now, now, now.
Corrected text (as given to the present editor while visiting Mr. and Mrs.
York in their home in June 1956) :
I She churns her butter in 'er dad's old boot,
Nickety, nackety, now, now, now.
And for her dasher she uses her foot.
Nickety, nackety, John Talbert,
Ee Willie, ee Wallace, ee rustico-Silas,
Ee nickety, nackety, now, now, now.
2 He courted her in the month of June,
He courted her by the light of the moon.
3 Oh, my old wife's a lazy old thing,
She laid in bed and died for shame.
Stanzas 2 and 3 follow the pattern of the first.
For melodic relationship cf. ***OFS iii 190, No. 439.
Scale: Tetratonic (4), plagal. Tonal Center: g. Structure: aba^bi (2,2,2,4) ;
b^ is considerably modified by internal incrementation, using first half of meas-
ure 3.