Jane Tozer
07-06-2003, 05:53 AM
I've been given a beautiful pen-and-ink drawing, c.1900-10, in a style similar to the original H. J. Ford illustrations of Andrew Lang's Fairy Books, or the John D. Batten decorations for Joseph Jacobs' folk-tale collections.
The picture shows a weeping girl in a ribboned smock and Juliet cap. She is kneeling by a well, among grass and wild flowers. It's an English- looking landscape with a distant church spire. Under the drawing is the rhyme:
MY EAR-RINGS, MY EAR-RINGS I'VE LOST THEM IN THE WELL
AND WHAT TO SAY TO MUCAS I CANNOT TELL
Despite my passion for folk and fairy tales, I can't recall this story or find the name "Mucas" anywhere. Was he her lover, or a jealous husband? Help me, please, as I'd like to thank the giver of the drawing.
The picture shows a weeping girl in a ribboned smock and Juliet cap. She is kneeling by a well, among grass and wild flowers. It's an English- looking landscape with a distant church spire. Under the drawing is the rhyme:
MY EAR-RINGS, MY EAR-RINGS I'VE LOST THEM IN THE WELL
AND WHAT TO SAY TO MUCAS I CANNOT TELL
Despite my passion for folk and fairy tales, I can't recall this story or find the name "Mucas" anywhere. Was he her lover, or a jealous husband? Help me, please, as I'd like to thank the giver of the drawing.