Andrew said:
> ...A new question about the tune below, printed in Aird and McGlashan
> (and probably other collections). Does anyone know who the Misses
> Bell and Gray were? Regards, Andrew Kuntz
Yes, they were real people who lived and died not far from where I am
now (Perthshire).
In April 1645 the plague crossed the border, the first outbreak being
in Kelso, and subsequently spreading north. When it hit Edinburgh in
June parliament was moved to Stirling; in July it had to move again,
this time to Perth. In August Perth became one of the worst hit towns,
nearly 3000 people dying, with corpses left rotting in the street. The
townsfolk left in droves to live in huts in the surrounding countryside.
Mary Gray and her best friend Bessie Bell retreated to an isolated hut
in the woods to avoid the disease. Unfortunately, Bessie had a lover
who visited them occasionally, and one time he brought a gift - either
a string of pearls or a lace handkerchief - which had been stolen from
a plague victim. Bessie was struck down and Mary, who nursed her, soon
followed. They died holding each other in the hut.
Their bodies were carried on the road the Methven, where Mary's
family's burial was, but the people of the town refused to let them in,
terrified of the plague. Bessie and Mary were apparently left on the
ground, only to be buried much later, after the plague subsided. Later
still their burial place was surrounded by a wall and a stone placed by
it, and even later iron railings and a larger stone, on which was
carved "They Lived - They Loved - They Died". I haven't visited the
grave yet, but I expect I will.
The girls' story is known because of a ballad, "Twa Bonnie Lasses":
O Bessie Bell an' Mary Gray!
They were twa bonnie lasses,
They biggit a bower on yon burn-brae,
An' theekit it owre wi' rashes.
They theekit it owre wi' rashes green.
They happit it roun' wi' heather;
But the pest cam' frae the Burrow-toun
An' slew them baith thegither.
The ballad became popular after the girls' death, and was adapted by
Allan Ramsay, John Leyden (who worked with Walter Scott, and moved the
scene of the story to the Borders) and James Duff of Logiealmond.
Incidentally, in Co Tyrone, N Ireland, there are two hills named Bessie
Bell and Mary Gray respectively, and I have read that there are another
two hills outside Staunton, Virginia (US) with the same names.
David Kilpatrick: the plague reaching Kelso must have been a traumatic
time. Some infected houses were set on fire, but the flames went out of
control and destroyed the town. I wonder if this incident is recorded
in any local songs?
--
Nigel Gatherer, Crieff, Scotland
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://www.argonet.co.uk/users/gatherer/
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