Home Comes The Old Man- Morse (ME) 1929 Barry B
[From: British Ballads from Maine, 1929. Barry et all have little to say about this ballad. No title or date given. Morse's version appears to be very old. It has the rare verse found in Herd's MSS (Child A) about the sword=(porridge stick) stirabout stick. Text is from Herd's MSS:
9 Hame came our goodman,
And hame came he,
And he saw a sword,
Whare a sword should na be.
10. 'What's this now, goodwife?
What's this I see?
How came this sword here,
Without the leave o' me?'
'A sword?' quo' she.
'Ay, a sword,' quo' he.
11. 'Shame fa' your cuckold face,
Ill mat ye see!
It's but a porridge-spurtle,*
My minnie sent to me.'
'A spurtle?' quo' he.
'Ay, a spurtle,' quo' she.
12. 'Far hae I ridden,
And farer hae I gane,
But siller-handed spurtles
I saw never nane.'
*11.3: 'porridge-spurtle,' stick for stirring porridge.
R. Matteson 2013]
OUR GOODMAN (Child 274)- British Ballads From Maine- Barry et all
This old song is rather common, yet, since the form of it makes improvisation easy it is often so vulgar as to be undesirable. A version, "Ods bobs, here's fun," was sung by Mr. Walcot at the Boston Museum, October 14, 1841.
B. [Home Comes The Old Man]- Mrs. Fred W. Morse of Islesford used to hear this sung and could recall a few lines.
1. Home comes the old man,
Home comes he;
He found a horse in the stable
Where his own ought to be.
(She could not remember his remarks)
"You blind cockle-comber,
Blind you must be;
Don't you see that's a cow
That my mother sent to me?"
"Miles have I travelled,
Hundreds and more,
But stirrups on a cow,
I never saw before."
2. [Home comes the old man,
Home comes he;]
He went into the hall
And a strange stick [1]did see.
"You blind cockle-comber,
Blind you must be,
Don't you see that's the stirabout stick [2]
My mother sent to me?"
"Miles have I travelled,
Hundreds and more,
But a silver-mounted stirabout stick,
I never saw before."
(He sees a great coat hanging up and comments on there being buttons upon blankets. Then he finds a man in his own bed.)
3 "You blind cockle-comber,
Blind you must be,
Don't you see that's the baby
My mother sent to me?"
"Miles have I travelled
Hundreds and more,
But whiskers on a baby,
I never saw before'"
("Then he catches her on something she can't explain and has no answer for")
1. stick should be sword. I've added the first two standard lines to complete the measure.
2. A "stirabout stick" is the same as a pudding stick, or porridge stick, used in making "hasty pudding," now regarded as an antique.