8D. The Quaker's Courtship, or, Quaker's Wooing Roud 716 Quaker Courtship (Newell); Quaker's Wooing; He and She (Kanski); Sober Quaker; Shaker Song; Young Ladies All, I Come a-Courting; O Poor Me; Madam, I Have Come A-Courtin'; Uh, Huh, Boo Hoo.
Excerpt of The Quaker's Courtship- George Kanski pub. by William A. Pond Co., NY, 1878
A. "Quaker's Wooing." My title, from an Autograph Album once owned by John Niblo of Poplar Ridge and dated 1835; reprinted in "Early Cayuga Days: Folk lore and local history of a New York county" by Dorothy E. Snow - 1940.
B. "Quaker's Wooing." From: "A Pioneer Songster: Texts from the Stevens-Douglass Manuscript of Western New York; 1841-1856" by Harold W. Thompson, Edith E. Cutting. (10 stanzas)
C. "The Quaker's Song," sung in 1931 by Mrs. Rachel Post, Belding, who learned the song at school, about 1868. From Ballads and Songs of Southern Michigan- by Emelyn- Elizabeth Gardner and Geraldine Jencks Chickering, Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press London: Humphrey Milford, Oxford University Press: 1939.
D. "The Quaker's Courtship." Sung in 1934 by Mrs. Charles Muchler, Kalkaska, who learned the song when she was a child, about 1872. From Ballads and Songs of Southern Michigan- by Emelyn- Elizabeth Gardner and Geraldine Jencks Chickering, Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press London: Humphrey Milford, Oxford University Press: 1939.
E. "Quaker's Courtship" arranged by George Kanski and published in 1878 in New York by William A. Pond Co. (10 stanzas)
F. "Quaker Courtship." From "Games and songs of American children, collected and compared" by W.W. Newell; 1883. This was taken from children in Hartford, Connecticut. (8 stanzas)
G. "The Old Quaker." From the Rowell manuscript, c. 1883. From Ballads and Songs of Southern Michigan- by Emelyn- Elizabeth Gardner and Geraldine Jencks Chickering, Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press London: Humphrey Milford, Oxford University Press: 1939.
H. The Quaker Song- From "A Book of Nursery Songs and Rhymes," p. 35, S. Baring-Gould, Editor, published in 1895 by Methuen and Co. London. The song notes report it was "collected from a Devonshire nurse." The song is attributed to Mary Langworthy in Sabine Baring-Gould Manuscript Collection (SBG/3/12/6B). See text below.
I. "Quaker's Wooing." dated 1899. From "Some Traditional Songs" by Phillips Barry, 1905. Taken from The Allen Family Songs booklet which was "compiled by Rosa S. Allen; music arranged by Joseph A. Allen. As sung by the Allens at the Homestead, Castle Hill, Medfield, Massachusetts, 1899."
J. Quaker's Courtship about 1901, from Mrs. Carl Hubbell of Woodstock who learned the song when she was a very young girl from a summer visitor to the Catskills at the turn of the century. From the Album FH5311 (Folksongs of the Catskills) dated 1963 by Folkways Records by Moncure and Siemsen. Sung by Barbara Moncure.
K. "Quaker's Wooing." Anon informant, from Fall River, Mass. published in "Some Traditional Songs" by Phillips Barry, 1905.
L. "The Quaker Courtship" (with music) sung by R. B. C., Newbury, Vt. by 1911. From: Irish Folk-Song by Phillips Barry published in The Journal of American Folklore, Vol. 24, No. 93 (Jul. - Sep., 1911), pp. 332-343.
M. "Quaker's Courtship." Text obtained from Iowa by L. C. Wimberly, in 1916. From: American Ballads and Songs by Louise Pound, 1922.
N. "The Quaker Song," sung by Mollie Broughton of Barbourville, Kentucky on May 9, 1917. From Cecil Sharp Manuscript Collection (at Clare College, Cambridge) (CJS2/9/2720).
O. "Quaker wooing," contributed in 1917 by Miss Frances Barbour as sung by Flora Gunnerson of St. Louis. She learned it from her mother, who sang it as a girl; from Belden, "Ballads and Songs," 1940.
P. "The Quaker Song," sung by Esther Overstreet of Reba, Virginia on August 1, 1918. Fragment with music from Cecil Sharp Manuscript Collection (at Clare College, Cambridge) (CJS2/10/4411).
Q. "The Quaker Song." Sung by Mrs. Lawson Grey at Montvale, Bedford Co., Va., on June 6th, 1918. From Cecil Sharp Manuscript Collection (at Clare College, Cambridge) (CJS2/9/3100).
R. "The Courting Song,"-sung by Miss Fanny Mulhollan, Pineville, Missouri; Dec. 4, 1923. From Randolph's "Ozark Folksongs," Vol. 3, version 362A (c.1948).
S. "Young Ladies All I Come A-Courting." No informant named, from Mabel Evangeline Neal's "Brown County [Indiana] songs and ballads." M. A. Thesis, Indiana University, 1926. Reprinted in The Bennet Family - Volume 20 - page 313 by Mintie Allen Royse - 1958.
T. "Quaker's Wooing," sung by Harriet Louise Abbott of Bethel, Ohio before 1927. Collected by Eddy, first printed in "The American Songbag" by Carl Sandburg, 1927. Printed also in Eddy's "Ballads and Songs from Ohio" 1939. It was learned from her mother, Mrs. Elizabeth Abbott.
U. "Quaker's Wooing." From the singing of a housemaid— Adeline Langille, of Marshville, Pictou County, Nova Scotia before 1928. From Ballads and Sea Songs from Nova Scotia - page 380, by William Roy Mackenzie.
V. "Quaker's Courtship," sung by Ben Henneberry of Devil's Island about 1929. From Creighton's "Songs and Ballads from Nova Scotia," 1933. Reprinted with minor changes by Fowke and Johnston in "Folk Songs of Canada."
W. "Sober Quaker." Contributed by Mrs. Rosie Lattin, Pineville, Mo., Sept. 14, 1932, From "Ozark Folksongs," Randolph, Vol. 3, version B (c.1948).
X. "Quaker's wooing" performed by Ella Doten of North Calais, VT. Partial transcription of Cylinder 67; Flanders Ballad Collection, 1933.
Y. "Quaker's Wooing" Anon source, from "Game-Songs from Southern Indiana" by Paul Brewster in The Journal of American Folklore, Vol. 49, No. 193 (Jul. - Sep., 1936), pp. 243-262.
Z. "Madam, I Have Come A-Courting" (An Old Quaker Dialogue)- sung by George Vinton Graham at San Jose, California on December 8, 1938 as collected by Sidney Robertson. From California Gold: Northern California Folk Music from the Thirties (UC-WPA Disk No. 7E-A3).
AA. "Quaker's Wooing." From Harold W. Thompson (ed.) "Body, Boots & Britches," Dover, Bk, p.407 from c. 1939 as taken from Miss Clark.
BB. "Sober Quaker," sung by Charles B. Galbreath of Columbus Ohio before 1939. From Mary Eddy, "Ballads and Songs of Ohio" 1939, version B. This fragment is poorly remembered, the last stanzas have the chorus wrong.
CC. "Quaker's Wooing." attributed to Abiah Ashley through her children by Linscott, 1939. From: Folk Songs of Old New England, Linscott 1939.
DD. "Quaker's Wooing." Sung by Mrs. H. A. Mullenix, Farmington, Ark., Dec. 20, 1941. My title, from Randolph's "Ozark Folksongs," Vol. 3, version C (c.1948).
EE. "Quaker's Wooing," voice performance by Margaret Shipman at Lee (Ma.) dated 09-05-1941. Fragment from Track 02b archival cassette dub (stanzas 1 ans 2, Flanders Collection, 3 and 4 from C09B - archival cassette dub.
FF. "Madam, I have Come A-Courtin'," sung by Arthur Meyers of NY in 1941. Title spelling changed. AFC 1985/001: st070 MS transcription from Voices from the Dust Bowl: The Charles L. Todd and Robert Sonkin Migrant Worker Collection, 1940 to 1941 (526).
GG. "Sober Quaker," sung by Art Johnson of Fairfield, Illinois before 1941. From McIntosh, "Southern Illinois Singing games and songs" (by David Seneff McIntosh, Eva Honnold McIntosh), 1941. Reprinted in Buying the Wind: Regional Folklore in the United States - page 410 by Richard M. Dorson - 1972.
HH. "The Quaker's Courtship" with dulcimer acc. sung by Addina Palmore Wilson and Effie Wilson of Marrowbone, Cumberland County, Kentucky, recorded by Lomax on August 4, 1942; learned from a young girl in Allentown. From Lomax, The Kentucky Recordings, Internet Archive, a second recording was made with just Mrs. Addina Palmore Wilson singing.
II. "The Quaker's Courtship" from Mrs. Maggie Morgan, Springdale, Arkansas; Feb. 21, 1942. From Randolph's "Ozark Folksongs," Vol. 3, version D (c.1948).
JJ. "Madam, I am Come A-courtin'," from the manuscript songbook of Mrs. Harold Glasscock of Raleigh, lent to Dr. White in 1943. From Brown Collection, 1952 volume III.
KK. "A Sport Song," sung by Mary Avery of Stone Ridge, New York. From a recording AFS 07763 A01 Catskill Folk Festival; Camp Woodland August, 1944 also published by Cazden, "Folk Songs of the Catskills," pp.150-152.
LL. "Shaker Song," voice performance by Laura Britton at Putney (Vt.) dated 01-08-1945. From D41A - archival cassette dub. This is a digitized archival cassette in the Helen Hartness Flanders Ballad Collection at Middlebury College Special Collections & Archives.
MM. "Quaker's Wooing," voice performance by Alice Clark Gilmore at Westboro (Ma.), dated 03-16-1945. This version was "sung in the Aunt Polly Bassett singing school." From D51B - archival cassette dub, Track 09. This is a digitized archival cassette in the Helen Hartness Flanders Ballad Collection at Middlebury College Special Collections & Archives.
NN. "Quaker's Wooing," voice performance by Carrie Glines at Tunbridge (Vt.) dated 07-28-1945. From: D42B - archival cassette dub, Track 09. This is a digitized archival cassette in the Helen Hartness Flanders Ballad Collection at Middlebury College Special Collections & Archives.
OO. "Quaker's Wooing," sung by Mrs. Frank Ruppert of Oklahoma City about 1945. From Ethel & Chauncey Moore, (ed.) "Ballads and Folk Songs of the Southwest," Univ. of Okla, Bk (1964), p215, #101.
PP. "Courting Song." Sung by Mrs. Grace Hicks of Ezell of Birmingham, Al. on June 26, 1947. From Arnold, reprinted by Halli, "An Alabama Songbook" (2004) pp.130.
QQ. "Uh, Huh, Boo Hoo." As sung by Lavon Fowler taken down by Professor Madison L. Smith, Day. From Folksongs of Florida, Morris, 1950.
RR. "Quaker's Courtship," sung by Mrs. Edward "Kit" Gallagher (b.1897) of Chebucto Head, Nova Scotia before 1950. From "Traditional Songs from Nova Scotia," by Creighton and Senior; 1950.
SS. "Daddy Sent Me Here A-Courting" sung by Mrs. W.L. Deal. Recorded in Heber Springs, AR, 7/16/53. From: The John Quincy Wolf Folklore Collection.
TT. "O, Poor Me." As sung by Mrs. Pearl Brewer, Pochahantas, Arkansas on November 12, 1958. From Max Hunter Folk Song Collection Cat. #0287 (MFH #470), see also Ozark Folk song Collection transcription.
UU. "Quaker Lover" (The Quaker’s Courtship)- sung by Richard Dyer Bennett by 1960. Titled "The Quaker’s Courtship" in Lomax's "Folk Songs of North America" (1960) p.28 with the last two stanzas from Newell. Lomax notes follow. Also as Quaker Lover recorded on MORE SONGS BY THE 20th-CENTURY MINSTREL. 1962. Stinson Records. SLP60.
VV. "Madam, I Have Come A-Courting," sung by Buell Kazee of Magoffin County, Kentucky in 1965.
WW. "Madam, I Have Come A-Courtin'," sung by Isadore Craten Casto of Jackson County, WV. From Marie Boette, Singa Hipsy Doodle, 1971, p.35.
Géza Udvary- "Courting" no date (probably early 1900s)
["The Quaker's Courtship" or "The Quaker's Wooing" are two popular American titles of this once popular courting song which is similar to and probably based on 8. "Madam I Am Come to Court You" [hereafter "Madam"]. In this study the "Quaker's Courtship/Wooing" is listed as an appendix to "Madam." The standard opening line of "The Quaker's Courtship" is "Madam, I am come a-courting—" corresponds directly to the opening line of the second stanza of the mid-1700s English broadsides of "Madam." Whether "Quaker's Courtship" was adapted in the UK where it disappeared and was then brought to America or it was adapted from "Madam" after it came to America (New England) is unknown. Only one related version[1] of dubious origin has been found in the UK and no tradition of the ballad exists outside North America.
8B, "The Courting Case" and 8D. "The Quaker's Courtship" are of mysterious origin. Both use English denominations for money-- in Quaker's Courtship it's "forty shillings" while in the Courting Case it's "ten thousand pounds." The "Quaker's Courtship" is presumed to be exclusively a New England relic from the 1700s because of its popularity in the northeast, especially New York and Massachusetts, and its association of the Quaker religion which was once popular in the New England area. The collection of versions from the Virginia, North Carolina and Kentucky area[2] however gives additional credence to the theory of a UK origin although settlers from New England also migrated South. Louise Pound states[3] "It is an importation from England. . ." without discussing the obvious-- there is no history of the ballad in England. The lone collected English version[4], from a Devonshire nurse, uses the same form but the text is different. Both "The Courting Case" and the "Quaker's Courtship" seem to be English imports but there is not enough evidence to confirm this assertion. The possibility of an English origin must be weighed against the dissemination of the ballad in America and the stereotypical image of the dotting Quaker indicating an early American origin[5].
Aside from the opening line and one quasi-related stanza[6] which are similar to "Madam," the text of the "Quaker's Courtship" about an identical courting situation (an old, homely man courting a lovely young creature/woman) is different. The form of "Quaker's Courtship" is also different. The second and fourth lines are made up of a chorus of nonsense syllables so there are two dialogue lines (1 and 3) for the entire stanza. The stanzas sung by the doddering Quaker are usually sung slower (since he is old and slow) with a "Oh dear me" or "Hum" type chorus while the stanzas sung by the maid are sung briskly with a "Fal-der rol" type chorus. My conclusion: Although the theme of the old suitor courting the young maid is the same in both Quaker's Courtship" and "Madam," after the opening line the dialogue is different-- therefore they are different songs and should not be grouped together. The Quaker title is taken from the third line in the following stanza and is found in similar stanzas[7] of other versions:
6. She) Yes I know you are a flatterer
Fall liddle li dum diddle lalla da
But I never will marry a Quaker
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da.
This stanza is taken from my B, a New York version dated circa 1850 which comes from Stevens-Douglass MS as printed in Thompson's book, "A Pioneer Songster." Because the dialogue between the wooing Quaker and the maid is fairly consistent as well as the form in this and other versions, it suggests the song was printed in the New England area by the late 1700s or early 1800s even though the first extant sheet music was printed in New York much later--in 1878. Most of the New England and Canadian versions adhere to a" line- chorus, line- chorus" format. The stanzas sung by the Quaker wooer are sung slowly:
(HE) "Madam, I am come a-courting—
Hum, hum, heigh-o hum!
'Tis for pleasure, not for sporting—
Hum, hum, heigh-o hum! [W.W. Newell, 1883]
While the female's answer features a different chorus and is sung briskly:
(She) "Sir, it suits me to retire,
Teedle link turn, teedle turn a tee;
You may sit and court the fire,
Teedle link turn, teedle turn a lee." [W.W. Newell, 1883]
This form is significantly different than the form of "Madam"-- which has remained consistent from two early English prints of "Madam" dated of 1760s-1770s to the "Ripest Apple" UK titles of the 1900s-- "Madam" does not have the "line-chorus line-chorus" form. When "Madam" does have nonsense syllable choruses, they are in quatrain form like the verses.
"The Quaker's Wooing/Courtship," a humorous courting song about a Quaker, is not taken from the Quakers themselves[8] but rather is a stereotypical image associated with the old suitor. Since the "Quaker" versions are not found in the UK (with exception of the Baring-Gould children's song) this supports the theory that the origin is an early New England adaptation of "Madam" from the 1700s that spread across North America. The theory of a UK origin is supported by multiple areas of dissemination (Virginia colony, New England and Nova Scotia), the denomination of money as "shillings" and the Quaker religion's origin being England. Regardless of the origin, "Quaker's Courtship" is clearly a distinct song and not a version of "Madam." The Flanders Collection, for example, makes no distinction between, "Madam," "The Quaker's Wooing/Courtship" and "The Courting Case (Madam I have a very fine farm)" which makes identification impossible without listening to each version. The confusion and lumping of these similar but distinctly different courting songs continues today. The form is very distinct and should not be confused when comparing the texts-- only the titles by themselves create a problem.
The first extant print version (1878) is Kanski's 10 stanza (written as 5 double stanzas) arrangement which is very similar to the version published by Thompson of the Douglass MS (dated c. 1850). The natural assumption would be that the Douglass version was based on or copied from an earlier unknown pre1850s print version.
The earliest extant version, my A, is dated 1835 and was reprinted in "Early Cayuga Days: Folk lore and local history of a New York county" by Dorothy E. Snow, 1940. She comments: "In the back pages of an Autograph Album once owned by John Niblo, Poplar Ridge, and dated 1835. I found these lilting lines, obviously copied in the penmanship of owner Niblo."
This version from Cayuga County, New York brings the date closer to the 1700s. The penultimate stanza is similar to Ben Henneberry's stanza from Devil's Island, NS. Here is my A, original spelling kept:
Madam I have come a courting
O deary O - O deary me,
Madam I have come a wooing
c-m c-m c-m c-m c-m.
Get you gone you ugly Quaker
Tal lal laddy O
I'll have none your Quaker actions
Cuddy mading a daddy O.
O here is a ring cost forty bright shillings,
O deary O - O deary me
Thou shalt have it if thou art willing
c-m c-m c-m c-m c-m
O I wants none your rings nor money
Tal lal laddy O
I'll have a husband call me honey
Cuddy mading a daddy O
O must I be a presbytterian,
O deary O - O deary me
Or must I be of no religion
c-m c-m c-m c-m c-m
O you must learn to lie and flatter
Tal lal laddy O
Or else you never can come at her
Cuddy mading a daddy O
O going to bed I do not chose it
O deary O - O deary me
Going to bed I do refuse it
c-m c-m c-m c-m c-m
If sitting up is your desire
Tal lal laddy O -
O you may sit up by the fire
Cuddy mading a daddy O
The last stanza has "sitting up" instead of "courting" while the second refrain (c-m, c-m, c-m, c-m, c-m) of the first stanza has "c-m" which is evidently similar to "hm" or a "hum" sound (in this case "sim" sound). The sound "hm" is found in some versions.
Here's my B, the Douglass MS version with minor corrections dated c. 1850 (between 1841-1860):
The Quaker's Wooing
1. He) Madam I have come a-courting
Hum hum hi ho hum
More for pleasure than for sporting
Hum hum hi ho hum.
2. She) I'll go away 'tis my desire
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da
For you may sit and court the fire
Fal liddle li dun diddle lalla da
3. He) I've a ring worth forty shillings
Hum hum hi ho hum;
Thou shalt have it if thou art willing
Hum hum hi ho hum.
4. She) What care I for gold or money
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da
I'll have a man that will call me honey
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da.
5. He) Madam I know thou art tall and slender
Hum hum hi ho hum
And I know thy heart is tender
Hum hum hi ho hum.
6. She) Yes I know you are flatterer
Fall liddle li dum diddle lalla da
But I never will marry a quaker
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da.
7. He) Must I give up my religion?
Oh dear, oh dear me;
Must I be a Presbyterian?
Oh dear, oh dear me.
8. She) Cheer up cheer up my loving brother
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da
If you can't catch one fish catch another,
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da.
9. He) Must I leave without a token
Oh dear oh dear me
Must I leave with my heart broken,
Oh dear oh dear me.
10. She) Run right home and tell your daddy
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da
That I never will you marry
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da.
Aside from the opening line the only text related to Madam is found in the 4th stanza:
4. She) What care I for gold or money
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da
I'll have a man that will call me honey
Fal liddle li dum diddle lalla da.
which is found similarly in versions of Madam (first and last lines)[8]:
Oh what care I for your gold and silver?
What care I for your houses and land?
What care I for your ships on the ocean?
When all I wants is a good young man. [Scottish, sung by Alexander Harley of Cupar]
How old is "Quaker's Courtship"? In Folk Songs of Old New England (1939) Linscott attributed her version to Abiah Ashley (Hathaway), who was born in Freetown, Mass., October 12, 1780 and died in Assonet, Mass., October 11, 1873. This version was passed down from Ashley through an unnamed descendant (one of her 12 children). Since Linscott does not say who the descendant is or when it was taken from Ashley, it's impossible to give an early date-- which could be to the late 1700s since she was born in 1780. Similarly, the "Quaker's Wooing," my E, was compiled in a booklet which was published in 1899 by members of The Allen Family of Medfield, Massachusetts, could also date back to the 1700s through family members (see also the notes about E which give details on the Allen Family). Therefore, a date of late 1700s seems to be accurate even though it's not proven.
* * * *
The Quaker's are a Christian sect founded in England by George Fox about 1650. Members of the sect were called Quakers because they were said to "quake at the name of the Lord." Their belief was not based on any previous organized religion but they believed in pure Christian principles and on developing the spiritual inner light that "lighteneth every man that cometh into the world." As Jesus called his followers "friends" the Quakers sect became known as the Religious Society of Friends.
Fox himself came to America several times and despite early persecution the Quakers were firmly established in Jersey, Rhode Island and by Quaker William Penn in Pennsylvania by the later part of the 1600s.
In the early years of the movement "Quaker" was a term used by outsiders to convey contempt. It appears that this is the stereotypical image portrayed in the "Quaker's Courtship" songs of early America. The Quaker in the song is a slow older man doting on a young attractive maid. In the article "Quaker Knowledge of Quaker Folklore" by in Keystone Quarterly (vol. 4) 1959, Maurice Mook found only two examples of "Quaker's Courtship" among over 100 Quakers surveyed. One version's source was from outside the group while the other informant refused to sing the song they knew[9]. Mook concludes that the Quakers are not the source but the Quaker title comes from outside the group. Richard M. Dorson's version "Sober Quaker" uses the word "Quaker" in the text but it too is not taken from a Quaker. It appears the the Quaker designation was applied because the image of the aged suitor represented a stereotypical image of an old Quaker.
C and D are early traditional version collected in Michigan[10], which are both similar to B with less stanzas. E, the only extant printed version, is entitled "The Quaker's Courtship" with an alternate title, "He and She." It was arranged by George Kanski and published in 1878 in New York by William A. Pond Co. It also has the full 10 stanzas of B, although the stanzas are doubled here:
"The Quaker's Courtship."
1. (He) Daddy sent me here a courting
Oh! Oh! Oh!
I'm in earnest, I'm not sporting
Oh! Oh! Oh!
(She) You sit there and court the fire,
Teedling tee, tee, teedling ti,
To be let alone is my desire,
Teedling tee, tee, teedling ti.
2. (He) I've a ring worth twenty shilling
Oh! Oh! Oh!
Thou can'st have it if thou'st willing,
Oh! Oh! Oh!
(She) I want none of your rings and money
Teedling tee, tee, teedling ti,
I want a man to call me honey,
Teedling tee, tee, teedling ti.
3. (He) Lady thou art tall and slender,
Oh! Oh! Oh!
And I know thy heart is tender
Oh! Oh! Oh!
(She) Sir, I think you are a flatt'rer,
Teedling tee, tee, teedling ti,
And I cannot marry a Quaker,
Teedling tee, tee, teedling ti.
4. (He) Must I give up my religion,
Oh! Oh! Oh!
Must I become a Presbyterian?
Oh! Oh! Oh!
(She) Cheer up, cheer up, darling brother
Teedling tee, tee, teedling ti,
If you can't catch one fish go catch another,
Teedling tee, tee, teedling ti.
5. (He) Must I leave without one token,
Oh! Oh! Oh!
Must I leave with my heart broken?
Oh! Oh! Oh!
(She) You go home and tell your daddy,
Teedling tee, tee, teedling ti,
That you could not get me ready,
Teedling tee, tee, teedling ti.
No source of Kanski's text is given. The opening line introduces the idea that it was his "Daddy" who sent him courting which corresponds to the closing stanza, "You go home and tell your daddy." Both B and E are 10 stanzas and represent the full versions of Quaker's Courtship. It's likely they both are derived from an early unknown version printed in New York in the late 1700s that is missing.
* * * *
My F is taken from "Games and songs of American children, collected and compared" by W.W. Newell; 1883. Taken from children in Hartford, Connecticut, Newell describes the the singing game: "In this piece, two children (in costume or otherwise) impersonate a Quaker paying his addresses to a young lady of the world."
No. 31.
Quaker Courtship.
"Mudam, I am come a-courting—
Hum, hum, heigh-o hum!
'Tis for pleasure, not for sporting—
Hum, hum, heigh-o hum!
"Sir, it suits me to retire,
Teedle link turn, teedle turn a tee;
You may sit and court the fire,
Teedle link turn, teedle turn a lee."
"Madam, here's a ring worth forty shilling,
Thou may'st have it if thou art willing."
"What care I for rings or money?
I'll have a man who will call me honey."
"Madam, thou art tall and slender;
Madam, I know thy heart is tender."
"Sir, I see you are a flatterer,
And I never loved a Quaker."
"Must I give up my religion?
Must I be a Presbyterian?"
"Cheer up, cheer up, loving brother,
If you can't catch one fish, catch another."
F is close to B and E but missing two stanzas. It retains the opening of B. The use of this ballad as a children's game was also found by Brewster who published an Ohio version in 1936. Version G, "The Old Quaker." is taken from the Rowell manuscript, c. 1883 and was published in 1939 in Ballads and Songs of Southern Michigan. It's 11 stanzas and has an unusual opening:
The Old Quaker- From the Rowell manuscript, c. 1883
1 "O where are you going, you sober old Quaker?
Hi-hum for toddy O.
0 where are you going, you sober old Quaker?
Hi-hum for toddy O."
2 "I am a-courting some fair creature.
Ha, ha, ha, ha!
And can you tell me how to win her?
Ha, ha, ha, ha!"
3 "Tell her that you truly love her, [sim.]
That you'll die before you leave her."
4 "I had a ring worth forty shilling, [sim.]
And thou can wear it if thou are willing."
5 "I want none of your rings or money;
1 want a man that will call me honey."
6 "I call you honey and dearie
If thou wilt be my charming Mary."
7 "I knew that that would be the fraction,
For that is just a Quaker's actions."
8 "If thou didst know how I did love thee,
Thou wouldst not so answer me."
9 "Go away, you sober old Quaker,
"For I'm a jolly Prespertain[11]."
10 "I'll be a Prespertain;
I'll be of thy religion."
11 "I would not have you in my church, sir,
For you wear a dirty shirt, sir."
This is the first extant version of a small group of versions usually titled "Sober Quaker." It also similarly quotes a phrase from Madam -- the fair creature (lovely creature).
The controversial English version, "The Quaker Song" is H. It was published in 1895 in "A Book of Nursery Songs and Rhymes," p. 35 by S. Baring-Gould by Methuen and Co. London. Baring Gould's notes provide this information: "Collected from a Devonshire nurse."
Song XXIII. The Quaker Song
'O dear me! I've lost my lover!
Hum-hum-hum-hum-hum!
How shall I his loss recover?
Hum-hum-hum-hum-hum!
'Seek him dearest, thou shalt find him,
Fa-la-la-la-la-li-gee-wo.
Seek him when the spirit moves you,
Fa-la-la-la-la-li-gee-wo.
'O but how he does disdain me!
Hum-hum-hum, etc.
His cruel looks have almost slain me!
Mum-hum-hum, etc.
As for looks they need not matter,
Fa-la-la,' etc.
You must learn to fawn and flatter,
Fa-la-la,' etc.
'But that dreadful sin of lying,
Hum-hum-hum, etc.
A guilty conscience when I'm dying,
Hum-hum-hum, etc.
'Love and conscience ne'er went courting,
Fa-la-la, etc.
Youth and death is ill consorting,
Fa-la-la, etc.
Since Quaker is not mentioned in the text it was titled by Baring-Gould who was certainly aware of Newell's nursery rhyme version published in 1883 over ten years earlier. It has the form of "Quaker's Courtship" but the text, although similar with one line ("I have lost my own true lover") in common with some versions, is not of the North America tradition and is sung by the maid in first person throughout. Even if this unusual courting song is authentic, the text may have been altered by Baring-Gould's hand as he was a frequent editor of traditional text, freely changing and recreating text. The first line of text with melody appears in Baring-Gould's notebook and is attributed to Mary Langworthy: Sabine Baring-Gould Manuscript Collection (SBG/3/12/6B).
I, "Quaker's Wooing," is most likely one of the oldest texts as it was taken from The Allen Family Songs booklet which was "compiled by Rosa S. Allen with music arranged by Joseph A. Allen. According to Barry, who published it in 1905, it was "sung by the Aliens at the Homestead, Castle Hill, Medfield, Massachusetts, 1899." The booklet of twelve songs was privately published to preserve the old songs. As it explains in the introduction[12], "it is to be regretted that the later generations do not know them as well; and on that account, the compiler has undertaken this little book." According to Linscott[13], "Miss Lucy Allen of West Newton, Massachusetts, is a descendant of James Allen, who came from northern England to Dedham, Massachusetts, whence he moved almost immediately to Medfield in 1639. The Allen family gathered for reunions in the homestead in Medfield for nearly three hundred years. Records of these meetings are in the possession of the family today." It's certainly possible and probable that this 6 stanza version predates A (1850) and could be significantly older.
The Quaker's Wooing.
1. "Madam, I have come to woo thee,
O, hum, oh!
Madam, I have come to court thee,
Oh, hum, oh dear me!"
"Get you gone, you saucy Quaker,
Hi a dink a dady oh!
I'll have none of your Quakerish actions,
Kutty ka dink a dady oh!"
2 "I've a ring cost forty shilling,
Oh, hum, oh,
Thou shalt have it if thee art willing,
Oh, hum, oh dear me!"
"I 'll have none of your rings or money,
Hi a dink a dady oh!
I'll have a man that calls me ' Honey,'
Kutty ka dink a dady oh!"
3 "Must I then change my religion,
Oh, hum, oh!
And become a Presbyterian?
Oh, hum, oh dear me!"
" You must learn to lie and flatter,
Hi a dink a dady oh,
Else you never can come at her,
Kutty ka dink a dady, oh!"
* * * *
The following song from "The Shrine," volumes 1, page 30, edited by Isaac Clarke Pray and George Freeman Homer (1832) depicts the role of the "sober Quaker" which is found similarly in "Quaker's Courtship." Here's the opening stanza:
I am a sober Quaker;
So all the world doth say;
My peaceful life doth see no strife,
And pleasant is its way.
O for the joy, without alloy,
Of a calm and sober Quaker!
Although the above text is not related to Quaker's Courtship a number of versions are titled, "Sober Quaker" and include the "sober Quaker" in the text. The earliest (see text above) is "The Old Quaker" taken from the Rowell manuscript, c. 1883. The following version published by McIntosh and then Dorson is a good example:
Sober Quaker sung by Art Johnson of Fairfield, Illinois before 1941.
(Girl) 1. Where art thou going, sober Quaker?
Ti um a tu de a,
In the early dawn of morning,
Ti um a tu de a.
(Boy) 2. I'm hunting for a lovely creature,
Hey hi ho hum,
And can you tell me where to find her?
Hey hi ho hum.
3. I have a ring worth twenty shillings,
Hay hi ho hum,
And you can wear it if you want to
Hay hi ho hum.
(Girl) I neither want your ring or money,
Ti urn a tu dee a,
I've got a beau as sweet as honey,
Ti um a tu dee a.
(Boy) 5. I'll move my chair a little closer,
Hay hi ho hum,
And gently lay my arms around you,
Hay hi ho hum.
(Girl) 6. You move your chair up any closer,
Ti um a tu dee a,
I'll kick you straight into the fire,
Ti um a tu dee a.
The second stanza has the text "lovely creature" which is found in the first stanza of Madam and is another "connection" to the text of Madam. At least three versions[14] have an unusual ending where the wooed maid sends her dogs after the hapless Quaker. The first extant version with the "dogs" stanzas was collected by Sharp as sung by Mrs. Lawson Grey at Montvale, Bedford Co., Va., on June 6th, 1918:
She called her dogs, she set them on me,
O dear me,
Good Lord, how they did run me,
O dear me.
Run, O run, you little Quaker,
O de ling dum diddle um day,
If they catch you, how they'll shake you,
O de ling dum diddle um day.
Here it is as stanza 4 of "O, Poor Me," as sung by Mrs. Pearl Brewer of Pochahantas, Arkansas on November 12, 1958:
He: She called them dogs and set them on me
O, and it's O poor me
She called them dogs and set them on me
O, and it's O poor me.
She: Run, run, run a little faster
[O, yanktem-diddle-li-day.]
If they catch you, how they'll shake you
O, yanktem-diddle-li-day.
Some conclusions:
The old Quaker who is sometimes a "sober Quaker" courts a maid "not for pleasure nor for sportin' " and is told to sit by himself and "court the fire." He offers her a ring and forty shillings but she doesn't want his money she wants "a man to call him honey." This humorous ballad 8D. "The Quaker's Courtship" or, "Quaker's Wooing" is classified as Roud 716 and is similar to, or based on, 8. "Madam I Am Come to Court You."
Whether "Quaker's Courtship" is of English origin or early American originating in New England is a matter of conjecture since the UK has no history of the ballad. Since many of the versions are similar it suggests that "Quaker's Courtship" was printed during the late 1700s (after 1760) and that the print is missing.
R. Matteson 2017]
_____________________________
Footnotes:
1. Sabine Baring-Gould's version was printed in 1895 in "A Book of Nursery Songs and Rhymes," by Methuen and Co. London. According to Baring-Gould it was "Collected from a Devonshire nurse." It's either modeled after or possibly a remnant of a now lost artifact that once was sung in the UK. Folk Songs and ballad were brought to the UK from America by immigrants much as songs and ballads were brought from the UK by the early settlers. The verses are stilted as if manufactured or recreated from extant versions-- they do not seem to be from tradition.
2. The versions from Appalachia historically were brought to the Virginia colony (St. James River basin) area and dispersed from there. Sharp's three versions from 1917 (one from Kentucky) and 1918 (two from Virginia) as well as the later Lomax recording and Brown version are enough evidence to suggest that Quaker's Wooing came at least in fragmented form separately to Virginia.
3. Quote from "American Ballads and Songs" by Louise Pound, 1922.
4. See also Footnote 1. "The Quaker Song" from "A Book of Nursery Songs and Rhymes," p. 35, S. Baring-Gould, Editor, published in 1895 by Methuen and Co. London.
5. The stereotypical image associated with the Quaker in America is not exclusive to America since the Quaker movement originated in the East Midlands of England in the mid-1600s. Regardless of its origin, the Quaker's Courtship should not predate "Madam" and is necessarily a product of the mid-1700s. Until print evidence is discovered verifying a UK origin, the ballad can't be labeled a "British" ballad but rather is a suspected British ballad.
6. Aside from the "I want a man to call me honey" stanza, the use of "lovely creature" (see Sober Quaker versions, earliest is "The Old Quaker" from the Rowell manuscript, c. 1883) is common in both.
7. The "Sober Quaker" versions, for example, introduce "Quaker" in the first line. Most but not all versions have "Quaker" in one stanza.
8. The "gold and silver" phrase appears in different ways, as "gold and treasure," for example.
9. From "Quaker Knowledge of Quaker Folklore" by Maurice Mook in Keystone Quarterly (vol. 4) 1959.
10. Three early versions were published in Ballads and Songs of Southern Michigan- by Emelyn- Elizabeth Gardner and Geraldine Jencks Chickering, Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press London: Humphrey Milford, Oxford University Press: 1939.
11. Presbyterian
12. The following text quoted from the introduction was taken from a post on Mudcat Discussion forum.
13. Quoted from Folk Songs of Old New England, Linscott, 1939.
14. The versions are "The Quaker Song" (Sharp 1918), "O Poor Me" (Ozark Folk Song/Max Hunter, 1958) and "Madam, I Have Come A-Courting" (Boette WV, 1971).