The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-12-01
THE OLD AIR AND NEW.
WHO COMPOSED THE LATER
SONG.
Ats Long OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES Miss
.'hitty'' Stephens, Afterwards
Countess of Essex-Notes of In
terest to Lovers of Music.
BY S. ]. ADAIR FITZGERALD.
Copyright, 1895, by S. j. Adair Fitz-
III

snip OF the words OF AuDu hoplll
Gray" Prior to the appearance and
also to the writing of the world fam
Gus song there vas, however, french
ballad extant containing the glst Oh
the story and the plot.
Lady Anne Barnard was the eldest
daughter of James Lindsay, fifth Earl
of Balcarres, by his wife Anne, daugh-
ter of Sir Robert Dalrymple of Castle
ton She was born December s, 1850,
and married in 1898 Andrew Barnard
son of Thomas, Bishop of Limerick.
They went to the Cape (she and her
husband) where he died in 1907 with
out issue. Lady Anne returned to LON
don and lived with her sister in Berke-
ley square until 1872. The sisters
house was a literary center, and was
fIequented by Burke, Sheridan. VIVID
ham. Douglas and the Prince of Wales.
Lady Anne won the lifelong attach
1nent of the Prince Regent. Aud
Robin Gray" was written by Lady
Anne when she was q years old. 1t
was published anonymously, and vari-
Gus persons claimed the authorship.
Lady Anne did not acknowledge it as
her own until two years before her
death, when she wrote to Sir Walter
Scott and confided the history of the
ballad to him. Lady Anne Barnard
died May 6, 1925. in her 74th year.
The song was published in 1776 and
also in 1890. Lady Anne was suspected
of being the author before she went
to the Cape after her marriage with
Andrew Barnard in 1893. She herself
stated that she had been long suspec-
ted by her more intimate friends, and
often questioned With respect to the
mysterious ballad, but that she had
always managed to keep her secret TO
herself without a direct and absolute
denial. She was induced to write the
song by a desire to see an old plaintive
Scottish air. THE Bridegroom Graf
Whem the Sun Gaed Down." which
v7as favorite with her sister, fitted
with words more suitable to it's char
acter than the ribaldry which had
hitherto from want of better, been
sung to it. She had previously been
endeavoring to while the tedium oc-
casioned by her sisters marriage and
departure for London by the compost
ton of verses; but of all she wrote
either before or since none have
reached the merit OF this admirable
little poem. It struck her that some
4ale of virtuous' distress in hum BILE life
would be most suitable to the pIaintive
melody Of her favorite air, and she ac-
cordingly set about such an attempt,
taking the name of Aud Robin Gray
from an ancient herdsman of Bal
cares. When she had written two or
three of the stanzas she called to her
Junior sister afterwards Lady Hard
wickel, who was the only person near
her. and thus addressed her: 'I have
been writing a ballad. my dear; 1 have
been depressing my heroine with many
1nisfortunas: / have already sent her
jamie to sea and broken her fathers
arm and made her mother fall sick,
and given her Aud Robin. Gray for
her love: but / wish to load her with a
fifth sorrow within the four lines-poor
thing, Help me to one
steal the COW, sister Anne said
the little Elizabeth.
THE cow" adds Lady Anne, ''was
Immediately lifted by me and the
song completed. At our fireside among
our neighbours Aud Robin Cray was
always called for. l was pleased with
the appreciation it met with"
This is so circumstantially related
that there seems no doubt whatever
about the origin of the lyric, which [
now give in full:
Young Jamie lo'ed me weel, and he
sought me for his bride,
But saving a crown he had naething else
beside.
To make that crown pound my Jamie
And the crown and the pound were
bath for me.
He hadna been ava week but only twa
When my mother she fell sick, and the
COW was Stown ava,
My father brak his arm, and my jamie
at the sea.
And AUD Robin Gray cam acquiring to
me.
My father coudna work. and my mither
] toiled bath day and night. but the
bread l cou'dna win;
And Rob maintained them bath, and
wi tears in his ee
Said. Jenny for their sakes oh, Will you
marry me?"
My heart it said nay: look'd for Jamie
back;
But the wind it blew high, and the ship
prov'd a wreck:
The ship proved a wreck-why did'na
Jenny dee?
And why do live to say, oh, wae's me!
Aud Robin argued sair. Though my
mither did'na speak,
She looked in my face till my heart was
like 10 break.
So they gied him my hand. though my
heart was at the sea,
And Aud Robin Gray is gudeman to me-
I hadna been a wife a week but only
four.
When sitting sac mournfully one day
at the door.
say my JAMES wrath, for cou'dna
think ii he
Until he said. Jenny, I've come to marry
thee"
Oh sair did we greet and rnuckle did we
cry.
We took but ae kiss and tore ourselves
away.
wish I were dead, but I'm nae like to
dee:
And why do 1 live 20 say, on, wae's me!
/ gang like a ghaist, / carena to spin,
/ darena think Of Jamie. for that would
be a sin;
But I'll do my best guide wife for to be,
For Aud Robin Gray is kind unto me-
The famous Miss ''Kitty'' Stephens,
afterwards Cot tess of Essex is be-
lieved to have made the song popular
to English ears. It may be noted that
the melody of the first four lines
differs from the rest and it is strongly
believed that the first part was bor-
rowed from some old Scottish air,
while the rest was set by the Rev.
William Leeves. The song was first
printed anonymously in Hood s
Ancient and Modern Songs second edi-
ton. 1776: then in "Johnson's Museum. -
1890, both set to the old air only. A
correspondent to Notes and Queries
saws the words were very popular set
to the old air before Miss Stephens
sang it.
According to Groves Dictionary of
Music and Musicians the Rev. Will
liam Leeves was born in 174S, and be-
came in 1879, rector of Wrington, Som
erset. He composed some good sacred
music, but will be chiefly remembered
as the composer of the music of Aud
Robin Gray which he wrote in 1910,
though it was not known as his till
1872 He died May 25, 1928, at the
age of So There is a mistake here.
He could not have written the music in
1910 as the words were not written till