Originally prepared for textual analysis during his PhD research on the 'Origins and Development of English Folk Plays' by Peter Millington (2002).
Original spelling and typography is retained, except that superscripts, long s and ligatured forms are not encoded.
Line identifiers are those used for line types in the Folk Play Scripts Explorer.
"The texts is an exact reporoduction of Ms. Top. Oxon. D.199, ff.3014-306r"
"The original ms. was sent to Mr.E.H.Binney by an anonymous person who mailed it from Chichester, March 4, 1902. Binney's copy of his letter follows:
Mr. Binney
Sir, someone sent me the Oxford Journal this week tis not often I get it, I saw your article on the mummers was pleased with it, (fifty years ago I used to belong to a gang of mummers at Islip) and thought praps the enclosed might interest you. Copy made this afternoon the 4th Match 1902.
Following the letter, Binney copies from the ms.:
This copy, The Mummers Play, taken from an old M.S. date 1780 The M.S. was the property of the late Thomas Johnson of Islip Ocon & in his hand writing. He was Clerk of the Parish."