Excerpt from The Book of British Ballads Mr. S. C. Hall, the editor of this collection of British Ballads, gave a two-page introduction to each selection. These introductions have been abridged for the present edition. The source, both immediate and remote, of the poems, approximate date of their composition, historical foundation, if any were to be found, and the names of the authors, when known, have been given. Comparisons with more or less kindred ballads, and all historical or legendary matter merely suggested by, but not vital to, the subject of the poem, have been omitted. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.