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Five Traditional Phraseology in the Serbo-Croatian Return Song
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Text 1

When Pero formulated the letter,
Then he found a messenger for the letter.              830
Wherever the multicolored letter went,
Wherever it went, it came down to Karlovo,
And to the hand of the ban's lady.


168

She looked over the letter, then she laughed at it,
And spoke this word:              835
"Ej! Alija, my foster son,
Since Mustajbeg of the Lika is afraid,
Since he is afraid of you in the Krajina,
If God grants it, when you return here,
I shall give you gifts, son."              840
Let him speak as he wishes—
Let us see what is happening here.
When the fifth morning dawned,
Then Alija prepared his raven horse.
Then he started for white Karlovo.              845
General Pero followed him,
And with him Djulic[*] . the standard-bearer,
And hajibeg Ograscic[*]  Alija.
When they said they would take their leave,
Alija went to rocky Kotar,              850
Pero went to Kara Bogdan,
Djulic[*]  went to the Lika and to Ribnik,
And Alija came down to Kotar.

The second sample passage, that from Bajgoric[*] . (Parry no. 6703, lines 4.10-35), consists of the opening part of the ubiquitous "Shouting in Prison" theme.[28] The clamor created by the lamenting captives causes the distraught banica to petition her husband the ban for their release; he responds by entering the prison to discuss matters with the troublemakers. The same analytical procedures as were employed with the first passage are applied here.[29]


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Five Traditional Phraseology in the Serbo-Croatian Return Song
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