And ever when thou comest to green wood,
Welcome, potter, to me.’
83.
Thus parted Robin, the sheriff, and the potter,
Underneath the green wood tree;
God have mercy on Robin Hood’s soul,
And save all good yeomanry!
ROBIN HOOD AND GUY OF GISBORNE
The Text.—The only text of this ballad is in the Percy Folio, from which it is here rendered in modern spelling. Although the original is written continuously, it is almost impossible not to suspect an omission after 2.2. Child points out, however, that the abrupt transition is found in other ballads (see Adam Bell, 2.2), and Hales and Furnivall put 2.3,4 in inverted commas as part of Robin’s relation of his dream. Percy’s emendation was:
‘The woodweete sang, and wold not cese,