84 HOW BALLADS SPREAD

dead mother from her rest; she rises and terrifies her husband and
his new wife Silveriin. The ballad often takes her name, or her
title of stepmother; under those styles we encounter it in Sweden,
the Faeroes, and Iceland. It is found in Italy (La Madre risiiscitaia)
and in Provence (The Orphans). In Germany the conclusion has
been shed, doubtless for good theological reasons: the mother
cannot rise. We are concerned chiefly with the bitter tears of the
orphans, as also in Czechoslovakia and Lusatia, Orphans and their
woes occupy a considerable portion of the folk-songs of Lithuania
and Latvia, which are chiefly inspired by domestic joys and
sorrows, of which the bereaved state is typical. There are several
pieces which suggest that Laime, the goddess of luck, is especially
kind to orphans. The lack of narrative elements makes comparison
very slippery, but one of Rhesa's pieces, though extremely simple,
does indicate the tableau of the orphan girl weeping at her mother's
grave.

Two ballads of literary origin, the one classical, the other biblical,
have been referred to the Netherlands; The Two King's Children
and Hallewijn. The former is the legend of Hero and Leander, but
so simplified that the classical link has snapped. From Flanders
it passed into France (Flambeau d* Amour) and northern Italy. In
Germany it divided into two types: the one is narrative (Zwei
Konigskinder), and spreads to the Czechs, Magyars, Wends, and
Poles; the other is lyrical (Zwei Was$er)> and is of exceptional
charm. As for Hallewijn it is only in the Netherlandish version
that the heroine returns bearing the head of her would-be seducer.
The detail establishes firmly the connexion between this ballad and
the story of Judith and Holofernes. The Jews of Bethulia have
been forgotten, however. If the heroine goes out, it is because she
has been beguiled by the suitor Hallewijn or enchanted by his
music; and Hallewijn's crimes are all personal, since he has killed
many a bride. As the ballad pursues its career in Germany we are
presented with alternative solutions: the heroine may be murdered
and avenged by her brothers, or she may escape by quick thinking,
making a pretext to borrow a knife wherewith to stab Hallewijn!
The latter's name becomes Ulinger, Ulrich, Gert Olbert, &c.,
travelling always farther from the biblical Holofernes. Molndr
Anna is a Magyar derivative of the German versions. In Scandi-
navia the ballad made contact with others which describe elfin
malevolence, and so it appears in English in Lady Isabel and the