%ISOlat1; %ISOlat2; %ISOnum; %ISOpub; ]> A Worthy Example of a Vertuous Wife, who Fed her / Father with her own Milk, being Condemned to be starved to Death, and was afterwards / pardoned by the Emperor. University of California - Santa Barbara The Early Modern Center Director Patricia Fumerton 1686-1688 Early Modern Center, University of California Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 08/18/2008 20232

The University of California makes a claim of copyright only to original contributions made by Early Modern Center participants and other members of the university community. The University of California makes no claim of copyright to the original text. Permission is granted to download, transmit or otherwise reproduce, distribute or display the contributions to this work claimed by The University of California for non-profit educational purposes, provided that this header is included in its entirety. For inquiries about commercial uses, please contact:

Patricia Fumerton Early Modern Center - English Department University of California Santa Barbara, CA 93105 United States of America EMail: pfumer@english.ucsb.edu

1.492-493 R234198 1 Flying Fame Chevy Chase Flying Fame IN Rome I read a Noble Man, / the Emperor did offend, 2nd page condition: cast fleurons, 1/2 sheet folio, originally right part, 260 x 158, cropped top and right edges, damaged surface, uneven inking Pepys 1.492-493 Wing W3630A; Rollins (2) 1803 (April 30, 1596, III, 64, Tho. Millington); Rollins (2) 1235 (Dec. 14, 1624, IV, 131); Rollins (2) 3042 (Mch. 1, 1675, ii, 498). Woodblock 1: first 1/2 sheet folio, under title and tune, above columns 1 and 2.: To the right of the cut is a square jail house, with one cross-shaped window and one barred window at the ground level facing the front of the cut. A man with a beard (the noble father) has his head through a space in the bars, and is nursing from a young woman (his vertuous daughter) who stands beside the window. This woman wears a simple dress with an apron and a small ruff. She covers her bare breast with her right hand. Behind her, a child in a long smock or dress stands and gestures at the scene. To the left of the cut, three men (guards?) in hats and short pantaloons stand holding tall sticks and having a conversation. They don't appear to notice the breast feeding nearby.: 84 x 129 Pepys Library The Pepys ballads : facsimile volume Editor W.G. Day D.S. Brewer Cambridge [England] 1987 Information in this section of the Source Description refers to the original ballad manuscript. 1: 492 1: 493 A Worthy Example of a Vertuous Wife, who Fed her / Father with her own Milk, being Condemned to be starved to Death, and was afterwards / pardoned by the Emperor. A Worthy Example of a Vertuous Wife, who Fed her Father with her own Milk, being Condemned to be starved to Death, and was afterwards pardoned by the Emperor. A Worthy Example of a Virtuous Wife, Who Fed Her Father with Her Own Milk, Being Condemned to Be Started to Death, and Was Afterwards Pardoned By the Emporer. 1/2 sheet folio, originally left part, 260 x 150 cropped top and right edges, uneven inking cast fleurons 1686-1688 Printed for W. Thackeray, and T. Passinger. W. Thackeray, T.Passinger Blagden

This document follows the guidelines specified for TEI.

XML Generated Automatically at 8/18/2008 12:16:24 PM Using EMC

XBallad Parsing Engine developed by Carl Stahmer.

TEI Template developed by Gerald Egan and Modified by Carl Stahmer

All apostrophes are encoded as '.

Any dashs occurring in line breaks have been removed;

All dashs are encoded as ‐ and all em dashes as —.

 Taxonomy used by Pepys to Organize Ballads in Albums A Small Promiscuous Supplement Devotion & Morality Drinking & Good Fellowship History - True & Fabulous Humour, Frollicks &c Love Pleasant Love Pleasant and Unfortunate Love Unfortunate Marriage Sea State & Times Tragedy Various Subjects Early Modern Center Ballad Project Keyword Taxonomy advice affliction/health alcohol animals/nature appearance Bible/biblical figures buildings/architecture catastrophe children class clothing/fashion country/nation crime death economics/trade entertainment family/procreation folklore gender historical figures & events holidays/seasons infidelity law London love maritime marriage military/war monstrosity mythology/Classical world news nobility/court politics/government punishment religious concepts religious figures religious types & sects royalty rural life servitude sex/sexuality supernatural/magic The New World travel trickery/deceit urban life vice violence virtue vulgarities/crass humor Library of Congress Subject Heading Taxonomy 8/18/2008 Santa Barbara, California, United States of America A Small Promiscuous Supplement family/procreation law punishment royalty virtue 8/18/2008 Checker Jessica C. Murphy updated metadata, handcoded a page break in there, recorded 2nd page condition in notes 5/20/2008 Checker Cat Zusky Checked transcription, updated metadata, created XML 6/15/2006 Transcriber Dolly Smith Original transcription 7/26/2004 Bibliographer Simone Chess Bibliographic SQL Database Record Created
<seg n="1" rend="left"><hi rend="italic">A Worthy Example of a Vertuous Wife, who Fed her</hi></seg> <seg n="2" rend="left"><hi rend="italic">Father with her own Milk, being Condemned to be starved to Death, and was afterwards</hi></seg> <seg n="3" rend="left"><hi rend="italic">pardoned by the Emperor. Tune is, <hi rend="bold">Flying Fame</hi>.</hi></seg>
IN Rome I read a Noble Man, the Emperor did offend, And for that fault he was adjudg'd unto a cruel end: That he should be in Prison cast, with Irons many a one, And there be famish'd unto death, and brought to skin and bone. And more, if any one were known, by night or yet by day, To bring him any kind of Food, his hunger to allay: The Emperor swore a mighty Oath, without remorse, quoth he, They should sustain the cruel'st death that could devised be. This cruel Sentence once pronounc'd, the Noble-man was cast Into a Dungeon dark and deep, with Irons Fetter'd fast: Where when he had with hunger great, remained ten days space, And tasted neither Meat nor drink, in a most woful case. The tears along his aged face, most piteous did fall, And grievously he did begin, for to complain withal: O Lord, quoth he, what shall I do; so hungry Lord am I; For want of bread, one bit of bread,. I perish, starve and dye.
How precious is one grain of wheat, unto my hungry Soul, One crust or crumb, or little piece, my hunger to controul: Had I this Dungeon heapt with Gold, I would forgo it all, To buy and purchase one brown loaf, yea were it ne'r so small. O that I had but every day, one bit of bread to eat, Though ne'r so mouldy, black or brown, my comfort would be great: Yea, albeit I took it up, trod down in dirt and mire, It would be pleasing to my taste, and sweet to my desire. Good Lord how happy is the Hind, that labours all the day, The drudging Mule, the peasant poor, that at command do stay: They have their ordinary meals, they take no heed at all, Of those sweet crumbs & crusts that they do carelesly let fall. How happy is that little Chick, that without fear may go and pick up those most precious crumbs which they away do throw: O that some pritty little Mouse, so much my friend would be, To bring some old forsaken Crust into this place to me.
BUt O my heart, it is in vain, no succour can I have, No meat no[r] drink, nor water eke, my loathed life to save: O bring some bread for Christ his sake, some Bread, some Bread for me. I dye, I dye, for want of food, none but stone walls I see: Thus day and night he cryed out, in most outragious sort, That all the people far and near, were griev'd at his report: And though that many friends he had, and Daughters in the Town, Yet none durst come to succour him, fearing the Emperors frown. Yet now behold one Daughter dear, he had as I do find, Who liv'd in his displeasure great, for matching against his mind: Although she liv'd in mean Estate, she was a vertuous W[i]fe, And for to help her Father dear, she ventur'd thus her life. She quickly to her Sisters went, and of them did intreat, That by some secret means they would convey their Father meat; Our Father dear doth starve, she said, the Emperors wrath is such, He dies alas, for want of food, whereof we have too much. Sweet sisters therefore use some means his life for to preserve, And suffer not your Father dear, in Prison for to starve; Alas, quoth they, what shall we do, his hunger to sustain, You know 'tis death for any one, that would his life maintain. And though we wish him well, quod they, we never will agree, To spoil our selves, we had as lief, that he should dye as we: And Sister if you love your self, let this attempt alone, Though you do ne'r so secret work, at length it will be known. O hath our Father brought us up, and nourisht us, quoth she, And shall we now forsake him quite, in his extreamity? No, I will venture life and limb, to do my Father good, The worst that is I can but dye, to fit a Tyrants mood.
With that in haste away she hies, and to the Prison goes, But with her woful Father dear, she might not speak God knows: Except the Emperor would grant her favour in that case, The Keeper would admit no wight, to enter in that place. Then she unto the Emperor hies, and falling on her knee, With wringing hands and bitter tears, these words pronounced she: My hopeless Father, gracious Lord, offending of your Grace, Is judg'd unto a pining death, within a woful place. Which I confess he hath deserv'd, yet mighty Prince (quoth she) Vouchsafe in gracious sort to grant one simple book to me: It chanced so I match'd my self against my Fathers mind, Whereby I did procure his wrath, as fortune hath assign'd. And seeing now the time is come, he must resign his breath, Vouchsafe that I may speak to him, before his hour of death: And reconcile my self to him, his favour to obtain, That when he dyes I may not then, under his curse remain. The Emperor granted her request, conditionally that she Each day unto her Father came, should throughly searched be: No Meat nor drink she with her brought to help him there distrest, But every day she nourisht him, with Milk from her own Breast. Thus by her Milk he was preserv'd, a twelvemonth and a day, And was as fair and fat to see, yet no man knew which way: The Emperor musing much thereat, at length did understand, How he was fed, and not his Law was broke at any hand. And much admired at the same, and her great vertue shown, He pardon'd him, and honour'd her, [!]with great preferments known: Her Father ever after that, did love her as his Life, And b[l]est the day that she was made a loving Wedded Wife.
Printed for W. Thackeray, and T. Passinger.