LULLABIES OF THE FOUR NATIONS.* Tun " four nations "
of this book are England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland, and a delightful collection of little poems has here
• Lullabies of the Four Nationa a Coronal of Song, aid Renderinai from the Welsh and the Gaelic. Arranged by Adelaide L. J. Genet. London : Alex. Hornig. [7e. Od. net.]
boon gathered together, showing us all in some of our best and gentlest moods. Many of them, " especially those orally gathered, are hitherto unpublished," we read in the preface.
They are grouped under such headings as " Of Hope and Joyous. ness," " Of the Winds and the Sea," " Of Bogies," " Of Fairies," and so on. In the appendix there are very interesting notes on traditional lullabies and their origins, and their connexion with the folk-lore and history of the places in which they were sung.
Some modern examples are also included ; for instance, the bird lullaby by William Barnes, " The rooks' nest do rock on the tree-top." We were particularly attracted, we hardly know why, to the Orkney " Miller's Wife's Lullaby." It is introduced by the following note : " I heard an old woman in Harray Orkney crooning the following lullaby to her grandchild. She was sitting in front of a peat-fire, holding the bairn in her lap, with a foot in each hand, beating the bairn's toes before putting him into the cradle.—J. E. W. Tait, 1911." It begins :-
" Kenst doo hoo,
Dee, dogs gaod tao dae mill, Trill, trill, trill I Ap aboot dao clappers, An' dooms about dao happars, Dao dogs geed tro' dao mill . . . "
There is a queer sound of broken Flemish-English about some of the words. This attractive book is illustrated by reproduc- tions of pictures by Sir Joshua Reynolds, Romney, and other masters, and is prettily bound and well printed.
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