Page:Political ballads of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries (IA politicalballads01wilk).pdf/15

 modern books, in order to give a greater completenes to the eries. Thus by far the larger portion will be entirely new to the generality of readers.

In my election of the Ballads I have been guided (o far, that is, as the limited means at my dipoal would admit) by a deire to reproduce uch only as are particularly characteritic or illutrative of the periods to which they repectively refer; and, at the ame time are not unfitted to meet the general eye. Licentiounes, unfortunately, as every literary antiquary knows, is the rule rather than the exception with this clas of popular compoitions.

It is almot unneceary to tate that the names of the various parties alluded to in thee pages are rarely to be found in the original broadides, or in the early volumes whence they have been obtained. Sometimes names of individuals have been omitted altogether, at others their initials only have been given, for reaons too obvious to mention. In retoring them (which was by no means the leaf onerous part of my editorial labours), without the uual ditinguihing brackets, I have been led to do o imply to avoid fatiguing the eye of the reader, and disfiguring almot every page with very needles