Stamford Bullards, The

DESCRIPTION: The song invites "bonny boys who love to bait the bonny bull" to join in the chase and even mount the bull. "Take him by the tail ... bridge him if you can, prog him with a nail... Every man must do his best to bait the bull in Stamford."
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1908 (OShaughnessy-YellowbellyBalladsPart2)
KEYWORDS: farming sports ritual nonballad
FOUND IN: Britain(England(Lond))
REFERENCES (1 citation):
OShaughnessy-YellowbellyBalladsPart2 49, "The Stamford Bullards" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roud #23378
NOTES [76 words]: OShaughnessy-YellowbellyBalladsPart2: "Every year, on November 13, a bull was publicly chased through the streets of Stamford and, if possible, 'bridged,' i.e., tumbled over the parapet of the town bridge and into the River Welland.... The bull was [finally] slaughtered and its flesh sold cheaply. If however, the animal proved itself 'a beast of spirit'... the bullards [chasers] spared its life." "The last bull-running in Stamford took place in 1839." - BS
Last updated in version 3.0
File: OSY249

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