Excerpt from The Crown Garland of Golden Roses: Consisting of Ballads and Songs<br><br>Johnson was probably the author of The History of Tom of Lincoln, 4to., by R. J who likewise reprinted Don Flores of Greece, 4to. His latest work appears to have been Dainty Conceits, printed in the year 1630. Of this we know no other copy than that sold in the White Knight's Sale. It may be conjectured that Johnson did not long survive this date for, if we suppose him to have been twenty-five years old in the year 1592, when we first hear of him as an author, he must have attained the age of sixty-three when the Dainty Conceits were published.<br><br>The following Garland is reprinted from the first known edition, viz. That of 1612, a copy of which is deposited in the Bodleian Library. It was frequently reprinted, each time receiving new additions. The greater proportion of the ballads are historical, and, from very early times down to the end of the seventeenth century, the common people knew history chiefly from ballads.<br><br>Aubrey mentions that his nurse could repeat the history of England, from the conquest down to the time of Charles I, in ballads.<br><br>It would be impossible to give anything like a complete list of the editions through which The Crown Garland passed; but those of 163] of 1659 and 1662, for W. Gilbert of 1680, for W. W.; and of 1692, for W. Thackeray (and probably others) are still extant.<br><br>It was at first intended to add, in an appendix to the present edition, the ballads included in that of 1659, but a careful examination has proved that the greater part, if not the whole, are to be found in other Garlands, which the Percy Society proposes at a future time to reprint. Many of the added ballads are by Thomas Deloney.<br><br>The contents of the two editions are the same as far as page 51 of the present reprint. All after that are omitted in the edition of 1659, and the following inserted in their place.<br><br>About the Publisher<br><br>Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com<br><br>This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.