Riddleson's Daughter, Dinah- Dix (CA-ME) 1880s Flanders L
[This version is unusual because it names the wife. A similar version ("Ruggleton's Daughter of Iero") was collected by Sharp in Somerton, England in 1907. Flanders' extensive notes are below. She refers to the "Dandee" refrain which is almost always "Dandoo" in the South, not "Dandee."
R. Matteson Jr. 2013]
The Wife Wrapped in Wether's Skin (Child 277)
This ballad derives from an old tale which Child, v, 104, cites under the title "The Wife Lapped in Morrel's Skin" and is related to a whole host of stories on similar themes. See Aarne-Thompson, Mt. 1370*.
The ballad is still popular in America, where the basic outline of the story remains constant, but where the minor details vary greatly. william H. Jansen has made a careful study (HFQ IV, #3,41) of the ballad and its developments in America [see article attached to Recordings & Info page], and from his remarks two groupings of the American texts emerge: songs with the "dandee, clish maclinge" refrains, popular in the South and Midwest; and songs with the "juniper, gentian, and rosemary" refrains, popular in the South and Northeast. The plant refrains of the latter group have caused some comment. Phillips Barry, British Ballads from Maine, 324-5, suggests, on the authority of Lucy Broadwood (JFSS, II, 12-15), that the wife originally was beaten to exorcise the evil spirits that infested her and that "juniper, gentian, and rosemary" were regarded as charms against the demons. Later the names of the plants were forgotten and confused with the names of girls, June, Jenny, and Rose Mary.
The Flanders texts are highly representative of the American forms of the ballad. A-I, with the plant refrain, relate to Child F (from Massachusetts) and are normal Northeastern versions. J-L illustrate the "dandee" refrain and the common "old man who lived in the West" opening.
M-N (see also Child c) are from the Scottish tradition. Text L, which concerns "Riddleson's daughter Dinah," is the only unusual version in the group. See Coffin, 146-8 (American); Belden, 92-94 (English); and Greig and Keith, 218-20 (Scottish) for bibliographical material and discussion.
All of the tunes for child 277 except the Richards tune are members of the same tune family. Within this group, the Prevost and Baldwin tunes are especially close, as are the Hayward and Hall tunes. The Monson tune is slightly outside the group.
L. Riddleson's Daughter, Dinah- Sent by mail by Beulah Dix Flebbe of 636 Las Casas Avenue, Pacific Palisades, California, who writes of this song: "This was sung to me by my mother. I was born in 1875, so you see, that was quite a while ago. My mother, Maria Dix, was born in Machias, Maine, in 1848. Her parents were Samuel Morse (whose father came from York state about 1800) and Christiana Milliken. Christiana's parents were John Milliken and Sarah Brown, of St. Stephen's, New Bnunswick. I've always had a notion that this came down from Sarah Brown, who was, as her name might imply, of Scots descent." Copied literatim et punctatim.
H. H. F., Collector March 20,1916
Structure: A B C D (2,2,2,2); Rhythm D; Contour: descending; Scale: tetratonic l. c. F.
THERE was an old man
And he lived in the west-
(Right for diddle diddle Dinah!)
He had an old wife,
She was none of the best,
She was Riddleson's daughter, Dinah.
Oh, I won't bake,
And I won't brew,
(Right for diddle diddle Dinah!)
And I won't make
My white hands black,
For I'm Riddleson's daughter, Dinah.
The old man went out
And he got a stick,
(Right for diddle diddle Dinah!)
And whickety whack
Went over her back,
Though she's Riddleson's daughter, Dinah.
Oh, I will bake
And I will brew,
(Right for diddle diddle Dinah!)
And I will work out
In the kit-chin,
Though I'm Riddleson's daughter, Dinah.
And then, good husband,
If that won't do,
(Right for diddle diddle Dinah!)
I'll stoop down and
Buckle up your shoe,
Though I'm Riddleson's daughter, Dinah.