Assignment 2

Assignment 2. American History Through Music

In a two page essay, each student will explore the attitudes, experiences, values, and beliefs expressed in a particular group of popular songs:

Topics

1. Songs of Revolution

2. The Irish American Experience in Song

3. Corridos: The Mexican American Experience Through Song

4. The Evolution of an American Song (Streets of Laredo)

5. New England Mill Girls in Song

6. Slave Culture Through Song

7. Westward Migration in Song

8. Sea Shanties

9. The Hutchinson Family

1. Songs of Revolution

In a 2 page essay, describe what the following songs tell us about the values and attitudes of the revolutionaries and identify the songs' authors.

The Liberty Song

John Dickinson

The tune of The Liberty Song and some information about the song is available at:

http://www.contemplator.com/america/liberty.html

Come, join hand in hand, brave Americans all,

And rouse your bold hearts at fair Liberty's call;

No tyrannous acts shall suppress your just claim,

Or stain with dishonor America's name.

Chorus

In Freedom we're born and in Freedom we'll live.

Our purses are ready. Steady, friends, steady;

Not as slaves, but as Freemen our money we'll give.

Our worthy forefathers, let's give them a cheer,

To climates unknown did courageously steer;

Thro' oceans to deserts for Freedom they came,

And dying, bequeath'd us their freedom and fame.

Chorus

The tree their own hands had to Liberty rear'd,

They lived to behold growing strong and revered;

With transport they cried, Now our wishes we gain,

For our children shall gather the fruits of our pain.

Chorus

Then join hand in hand, brave Americans all,

By uniting we stand, by dividing we fall;

In so righteous a cause let us hope to succeed,

For heaven approves of each generous deed.

Chorus

In Freedom we're born and in Freedom we'll live.

Our purses are ready. Steady, friends, steady;

Not as slaves, but as Freemen our money we'll give.

Chester

William Billings

The tunes of Billings's songs are available at:

http://www.nationwide.net/~amaranth/billings.htm

Let tyrants shake their iron rod

And slav'ry clang her galling chains;

We'll fear them not. We trust in God;

New England's God forever rains.

Howe and Burgoyne and Clinton, too

With Prescott and Cornwallis join'd,

Together plot our overthrow,

In one infernal league combined.

When God inspired us for the fight

Their lines were broke, their lines were forc'd,

Their ships were shelter'd in our sight

Or swiftly driven from our coast.

The foe comes on with haughty stride,

Our troops advance with martial noise.

Their vet'rans flee before our youth

And generals yield to beardless boys.

What grateful offerings shall we bring,

What shall we render to the Lord?

Loud hallelujahs let us sing

The World Turned Upside Down

Author unknown

The tune is available at:

http://sniff.numachi.com/~rickheit/dtrad/midi/WRLDUP2.midi

Goody Bull and her daughter together fell out,

Both squabbled and wrangled and made a great rout.

But the cause of the quarrel remains to be told,

Then lend both your ears and a tale I'll unfold.

Derry down, down, hey derry down,

Then lend both your ears and a tale I'll unfold.

The old lady, it seems, took a freak in her head,

That her daughter, grown woman, might earn her own bread,

Self-applauding her scheme, she was ready to dance,

But we're often too sanguine in what we advance.

Derry down, down, hey derry down,

But we're often too sanguine in what we advance.

For mark the event, thus for fortune we're cross,

Nor should people reckon without their good host,

The daughter was sulky and wouldn't come to,

And pray what in this case could the old woman do?

Derry down, down, hey derry down,

And pray what in this case could the old woman do?

Zounds, neighbor, quoth pitt, what the devil's the matter?

A man cannot rest in his home for your clatter

Alas, cries the daughter, Here's dainty fine work,

The old woman grows harder than Jew or than Turk

Derry down, down, hey derry down,

The old woman grows harder than Jew or than Turk.

She be damned, says the farmer, and do her he goes

First roars in her ears, then tweaks her old nose,

Hello Goody, what ails you? Wake woman, I say,

I am come to make peace in this desperate fray.

Derry down, down, hey derry down,

I am come to make peace in this desperate fray.

Alas, cries the old woman, And must I comply?

I'd rather submit than the hussy should die.

Pooh, prithee, be quiet, be friends and agree,

You must surely be right if you're guided by me,

Derry down, down, hey derry down,

You must surely be right if you're guided by me.

2. The Irish American Experience in Song

Write a 2 page essay that describes what the following two songs reveal about Irish American attitudes, values, beliefs, and struggles.

NO IRISH NEED APPLY

I'm a dacint boy, just landed from the town of Ballyfad;

I want a situation: yis, I want it mighty bad.

I saw a place advartised. It's the thing for me, says I;

But the dirty spalpeen ended with: No Irish need apply.

Whoo! says I; but that's an insult -- though to get the place I'll try.

So, I wint to see the blaggar with: No Irish need apply.

I started off to find the house, I got it mighty soon;

There I found the ould chap saited: he was reading the TRIBUNE.

I tould him what I came for, whin he in a rage did fly:

No! says he, you are a Paddy, and no Irish need apply!

Thin I felt my dandher rising, and I'd like to black his ere--

To tell an Irish Gintleman: No Irish need apply!

I couldn't stand it longer: so, a hoult of him I took,

And I gave him such a welting as he'd get at Donnybrook.

He hollered: Millia murther! and to get away did try,

And swore he'd never write again: No Irish need apply.

He made a big apology; I bid hlm thin good-bye,

Saying: Whin next you want a bating, add: No Irish need apply!

Sure, I've heard that in America it always is the plan

That an Irishman is just as good as any other man;

A home and hospitality they never will deny

The stranger here, or ever say: No Irish need apply.

But some black sheep are in the flock: a dirty lot, say I;

A dacint man will never write: No Irish need apply!

Sure, Paddy's heart is in his hand, as all the world does know,

His praties and his whiskey he will share with friend or foe;

His door is always open to the stranger passing by;

He never thinks of saying: None but Irish may apply.

And, in Columbia's history, his name is ranking high;

Thin, the Divil take the knaves that write: No Irish need apply!

Ould Ireland on the battle-field a lasting fame has made;

We all have heard of Meagher's men, and Corcoran's brigade.

Though fools may flout and bigots rave, and fanatics may cry,

Yet when they want good fighting-men, the Irish may apply,

And when for freedom and the right they raise the battle-cry,

Then the Rebel ranks begin to think: No Irish need apply

1. What is the song about?

2. What does the title of the song mean?

3. What is the tone of the song? How do you know that?

4. What do the words of the following songs tell us about the Irish attitudes toward migration and about their reception in the United States?

PADDY WORKS ON THE RAILWAY

In eighteen hundred and forty-one

My corduroy breeches I put on

To work upon the railway, the railway

I'm weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway

In eighteen hundred and forty-two

I didn't know what I should do

To work upon the railway, the railway

I'm weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway

In eighteen hundred and forty-three

I sailed away across the sea

To work upon the railway, the railway

I'm weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway

In eighteen hundred and forty-four

I landed on Columbia's shore

To work upon the railway, the railway

I'm weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway

In eighteen hundred and forty-five

When Daniel O'Connell he was alive

To work upon the railway, the railway

I'm weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway

In eighteen hundred and forty-six

I made my trade to carrying bricks

To work upon the railway, the railway

I'm weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway

In eighteen hundred and forty-seven

Poor Paddy was thinking of going to Heaven

To work upon the railway, the railway

I'm weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway

In eighteen hundred and forty-eight

I learned to drink my whiskey straight

To work upon the railway, the railway

I'm weary of the railway

Poor Paddy works on the railway

1. What does this song tell us about Irish attitudes toward work and toward their life in America?

2. Who is Daniel O'Connell? Why is this reference significant?

DRILL YE TARRIERS

Every morning about seven o'clock

There were twenty tarriers drilling at the rock

The boss comes along and he says, "Keep still

And bear down heavy on the cast iron drill"

And drill, ye tarriers, drill

Drill, ye tarriers, drill

For it's work all day for the sugar in you tay

Down beyond the railway

And drill, ye tarriers, drill

And blast, and fire

The boss was a fine man down to the ground

And he married a lady six feet 'round

She baked good bread and she baked it well

But she baked it harder than the hobs of Hell

The foreman's name was John McCann

By God, he was a blamed mean man

Last week a premature blast went off

And a mile in the air went big Jim Goff

And when next payday came around

Jim Goff a dollar short was found

When he asked, "What for?" came this reply

"You were docked for the time you were up in the sky"

1. What does the song mean when it uses the word "tarriers"?

2. What does this song say about Irish attitudes toward the workplace?

3. Corridos: The Mexican American Experience Through Song

In a 2 page essay, define a corrido; identify Juan Cortina and Joaquin Murrieta; and explain what the words of the "Corrido de Joaquin Murrieta" and Corrida of Juan Cortina tell us about the attitudes of nineteenth-century Mexican Americans.

THE CORRIDO OF JUAN CORTINA

Ese general Cortinas

es libre y muy soberano,

han subido sus honores

porque salvó a un mexicano That famed General Cortinas

is quite sovereign and free,

the honor due him is greater

for he saved a Mexican's life.

Los americanos hacían huelga

borracheras en las cantinas,

de gusto que había muerto

ese general Cortinas. The Americans made merry

they get drunk in the saloons,

out of joy over the death

of the famed General Cortinas.

THE CORRIDO OF JOAQUIN MURRIETA

Yo no soy americano

pero comprendo el inglés.

Yo lo aprendí con mi hermano

al derecho y al revés. I am not an American

but I understand English.

I learned it with my brother

forwards and backwards.

A cualquier americano

hago temblar a mis pies.

Por cantinas me metí

castigando americanos. And any American

I make tremble at my feet.

Through cantinas I went

punishing Americans.

"Tú serás el capitán

que mataste a mi hermano.

Lo agarraste indefenso,

orgulloso americano." "You must be the captain

who killed my brother.

You took him defenseless,

you boastful American."

4. The Evolution of an American Song

"The Streets of Laredo" is one of the best known cowboy songs. It is actually an adaptation of several earlier Irish songs. In a 2 page essay, compare and contrast "The Streets of Laredo" with the ballads that it grew out of. What are the themes or issues that the predecessor songs deal with? What does this example tell us about the development of American music?

THE STREETS OF LAREDO

As I walked out on the streets of Laredo.

As I walked out on Laredo one day,

I spied a poor cowboy wrapped in white linen,

Wrapped in white linen as cold as the clay.

"I can see by your outfit that you are a cowboy."

These words he did say as I boldly walked by.

"Come an' sit down beside me an' hear my sad story.

"I'm shot in the breast an' I know I must die."

"It was once in the saddle, I used to go dashing.

"Once in the saddle, I used to go gay.

"First to the card-house and then down to Rose's.

"But I'm shot in the breast and I'm dying today."

"Get six jolly cowboys to carry my coffin.

"Six dance-hall maidens to bear up my pall.

"Throw bunches of roses all over my coffin.

"Roses to deaden the clods as they fall."

"Then beat the drum slowly, play the Fife lowly.

"Play the dead march as you carry me along.

"Take me to the green valley, lay the sod o'er me,

"I'm a young cowboy and I know I've done wrong."

"Then go write a letter to my grey-haired mother,

"An' tell her the cowboy that she loved has gone.

"But please not one word of the man who had killed me.

"Don't mention his name and his name will pass on."

When thus he had spoken, the hot sun was setting.

The streets of Laredo grew cold as the clay.

We took the young cowboy down to the green valley,

And there stands his marker, we made, to this day.

We beat the drum slowly and played the Fife lowly,

Played the dead march as we carried him along.

Down in the green valley, laid the sod o'er him.

He was a young cowboy and he said he'd done wrong.

THE BARD OF ARMAUGH

Oh list' to the tale of a poor Irish harper

And scorn not the string of his old withered hands

But remember those fingers they once could move sharper

To raise up the strains of his dear native land.

It was long before the shamrock, dear isle's lovely emblem

Was crushed in its beauty by the Saxon's lion paw

And all the pretty colleens around me would gather

Call me their bold Phelim Brady, the Bard of Armagh.

How I love to muse on the days of my boyhood

Though four score and three years have fled by them

It's king's sweet reflection that every young joy

For the merry-hearted boys make the best of old men.

At a fair or a wake I would twist my shillelah

And trip through a dance with my brogues tied with straw

There all the pretty maidens around me would gather

Call me their bold Phelim Brady, the Bard of Armagh.

In truth I have wandered this wide world over

Yet Ireland's my home and a dwelling for me

And, oh, let the turf that my old bones shall cover

Be cut from the land that is trod by the free.

And when Sergeant Death in his cold arms doth embrace

And lull me to sleep with old Erin go bragh

By the side of my Kathleen, my dear pride, oh place me

Then forget Phelim Brady, the Bard of Armagh.

LOCKE HOSPITAL

As I was a-walking down by the Locke Hospital

Cold was the morning and dark was the day

I spied a young squaddie wrapped up in old linen

Wrapped up in old linen as cold as the day

Ch.: So play the drums slowly and play the fifes lowly

Sound a dead march as you carry him along

And over his coffin throw a bunch of white laurels

For he's a young soldier cut down in his prime.

Oh mother, dear mother, come sit ya down by me

Sit ya down by me and pity my sad plight

For my body is injured and sadly disordered

All by a young girl my own heart's delight

Get six of me comrades to carry my coffin

Get six of me comrades to carry me on high

And let every one hold a bunch of white roses

So no-one will notice as we pass them by

And over his headstone these words they were written

"All ye young fellows take warning from me.

Beware of the flash girls that roam through the city

For the girls of the city were the ruin of me."

THE UNFORTUNATE RAKE

As I was a-walking down by St. James' Hospital,

I was a-walking down by there one day,

What should I spy but one of my comrades

All wrapped up in flannel though warm was the day.

I asked him what ailed him, I asked him what failed him,

I asked him the cause of all his complaint.

"It's all on account of some handsome young woman,

'Tis she that has caused me to weep and lament.

"And had she but told me before she disordered me,

Had she but told me of it in time,

I might have got pills and salts of white mercury,

But now I'm cut down in the height of my prime.

"Get six young soldiers to carry my coffin,

Six young girls to sing me a song,

And each of them carry a bunch of green laurel

So they don't smell me as they bear me along.

"Don't muffle your drums and play your fifes merrily,

Play a quick march as you carry me along,

And fire your bright muskets all over my coffin,

Saying: There goes an unfortunate lad to his home."

THE WHORE'S (or MAGDALENE'S) LAMENT

Returning one night to my home rather late

From an old friend whom I'd just seen

I saw an old woman following a girl

Her daughter about seventeen

Her weak voice was calling 'come home with me now'

But the girl no attention did pay

As she was entering a house of ill fame

These words the old woman did say

Come back to your brothers and sisters

Come back to your father and me

So not desert us to lead a bad life

I've been a good mother to thee

You know very well your father is ill

Come home dear and try to behave

Don't go in that place, twill bring us disgrace

And drive your old parents to the grave

5. New England Mill Girls in Song

Write a 2 page essay that explains who the mill girls were and addresses the questions following the songs.

SONG OF THE SPINNERS

The day is o'er,

Nor longer we toil and spin;

For ev'ning's hush withdraws from the daily din.

And now we wing, with gladsome hearts,

The theme of a spinner's song,

That labor to leisure a zest inmpairts,

Unknown to the idle throng.

We spin all day, and then, in the time for rest,

Sweet peace is found,

A joyous and welcome guest.

Despite of toil we all agree, or out of the Mills, or in,

Dependent on others we ne'er will be

So long as we're able to spin.

1) What do the lyrics of this song tell you about the values of the workers who sang it?

2) What do the lyrics tell you about the singers' attitudes about their work?

3) How do the lyrics use the word "dependent" here?

4) What is the "idle throng" the words refer to? What is the attitude toward it represented in the lyrics?

1836 Song Lyrics Sung by Protesting Workers at Lowell

Oh! isn't it a pity, such a pretty girl as I

Should be sent to the factory to pine away and die?

Oh! I cannot be a slave, I will not be a slave,

For I'm so fond of liberty,

That I cannot be a slave.

1) How does this song reflect the debate over the comparisons between the lives of free workers in the North and slaves in the South?

2) How do the women strikers use the term "slave" in these lyrics? How would their audience--people in Lowell, Massachusetts and in the rest of the North--respond to this use of the term?

3) How do the women strikers use the term "liberty" here? What would the meaning of this be to the song's audience?

4) At the end of this strike, native-born Yankee middle-class "daughters of free men" were replaced with immigrant women workers, mostly from Ireland. What did this action on the part of the mill managers say about the power of liberty rhetoric in the 1834 and 1836 strikes?

6. Slave Culture Through Song

In a 2 page essay, address the issues raised in the following questions:

1. What references to religion appear in the following songs?

2. What might the songs have meant to enslaved African Americans?

3. What do these songs tell you about the values, beliefs, and struggles of the enslaved?

4. Do the songs contain any secret or hidden codes or messages? Which passages would you consider hidden codes?

NOBODY KNOWS THE TROUBLE I'VE SEEN

Refrain:

Nobody knows

The trouble I've seen.

Nobody knows but Jesus.

Nobody knows

The trouble I've seen.

Glory Hallelujah!

Sometimes I'm up,

Sometimes I'm down

Oh, yes, Lord.

Sometimes I'm almost to the ground

Oh, yes, Lord.

Refrain

I never shall

Forget that day

Oh, yes, Lord,

When Jesus washed my sins away,

Oh, yes, Lord.

Refrain

FOLLOW THE DRINKING GOURD

Follow the drinking gourd!

Follow the drinking gourd.

For the old man is awaiting for to carry you to freedom

If you follow the drinking gourd.

When the sun comes back and the first quail calls,

Follow the drinking gourd,

For the old man is awaiting for to carry you to freedom

If you follow the drinking gourd.

The riverbank makes a very good road,

The dead trees will show you the way,

Left foot, peg foot traveling on,

Following the drinking gourd.

The river ends between two hills,

Follow the drinking gourd,

There's another river on the other side,

Follow the drinking gourd.

Where the great big river meets the little river,

Follow the drinking gourd,

The old man is awaiting for to carry you to freedom

If you follow the drinking gourd.

GO DOWN MOSES

When Israel was in Egypt's Land:

Let my people go.

Oppress'd so hard they could not stand,

Let my people go.

Refrain:

Go down Moses

'way down in Egypt's land

Tell ol' Pharaoh,

Let my peoples go.

Thus saith the Lord, bold Moses said:

Let my people go.

If not I'll smite your firstborn dead,

Let my people go.

Refrain:

O let us all from bondage flee;

Let my people go.

And let us all in Christ be free!

Let my people go.

Refrain:

SWING LOW, SWEET CHARIOT

Refrain:

Swing low, sweet chariot,

Comin' for to carry me home!

Swing low, sweet chariot,

Comin' for to carry me home.

I looked over Jordan and what did I see,

Comin' for to carry me home!

A band of angels comin' after me,

Comin' for to carry me home! (Refrain)

If you get there before I do,

Comin' for to carry me home,

Jess tell my friends that I'm acomin' too,

Comin' for to carry me home. (Refrain)

I'm sometimes up and sometimes down,

Comin' for to carry me home,

But still my soul feels heavenly bound

Comin' for to carry me home! (Refrain)

STEAL AWAY TO JESUS

Refrain:

Steal away, steal away,

Steal away to Jesus!

Steal away, steal away home,

I ain't got long to stay here.

My Lord calls me;

He calls me by thunder;

The Trumpet sounds within my soul,

I ain't got long to stay here. (Refrain)

Green trees are bending;

Poor sinner stands atrembling;

The Trumpet sounds within my soul,

I ain't got long to stay here. (Refrain)

Tombstones are bursting;

Poor sinner stands atrembling;

The Trumpet sounds within my soul,

I ain't got long to stay here. (Refrain)

WADE IN THE WATER

Wade in the water,

Wade in the water children.

Wade in the water,

God's gonna trouble the water.

See that host all dressed in white

God's gonna trouble the water;

The leader looks like the Israelite,

God's gonna trouble the water.

See dat ban' all dressed in red,

God's gonna trouble the water;

Looks like de ban dat Moses lead,

God's gonna trouble the water.

7. Westward Migration in Song

In a 2 page essay explain what the following songs say about the attitudes and aspirations with which American pioneers ventured westward?

SWEET BETSY FROM PIKE

Oh don't you remember sweet Betsy from Pike,

Who crossed the wide prairie with her lover Ike,

With two yoke of oxen, a big yellow dog,

A tall Shangai rooster, and one spotted hog?

CHORUS:

Singing dang fol dee dido,

Singing dang fol dee day.

One evening quite early they camped on the Platte.

'Twas near by the road on a green shady flat.

Where Betsy, sore-footed, lay down to repose --

With wonder Ike gazed on that Pike County rose.

The Shanghai ran off, and their cattle all died;

That morning the last piece of bacon was fried;

Poor Ike was discouraged and Betsy got mad,

The dog drooped his tail and looked wondrously sad.

They stopped at Salt Lake to inquire of the way,

Where Brigham declared that sweet Betsy should stay;

But Betsy got frightened and ran like a deer

While Brigham stood pawing the ground like a steer.

They soon reached the desert where Betsy gave out,

And down in the sand she lay rolling about;

While Ike, half distracted, looked on with surprise,

Saying, "Betsy, get up, you'll get sand in your eyes."

Sweet Betsy got up in a great deal of pain,

Declared she'd go back to Pike County again;

But Ike gave a sigh and they fondly embraced,

And they traveled along with his arm round her waist.

The Injuns came down in a wild yelling horde,

And Betsy was scared they would scalp her adored;

Behind the front wagon wheel Betsy did crawl,

And there fought the Injuns with musket and ball.

They suddenly stopped on a very high hill,

With wonder looked down upon old Placerville;

Ike sighed when he said, and he cast his eyes down,

"Sweet Betsy, my darling, we've got to Hangtown."

Long Ike and Sweet Betsy attended a dance;

Ike wore a pair of his Pike County pants;

Sweet Betsy was dressed up in ribbons and rings;

Says Ike, "You're an angel, but where are your wings?"

'Twas out on the prairie one bright starry night,

They broke out the whiskey and Betsy got tight,

She sang and she howled and she danced o'er the plain,

And showed her bare legs to the whole wagon train.

The terrible desert was burning and bare,

And Isaac he shrank from the death lurkin' there,

"Dear old Pike County, I'll come back to you."

Says Betsy, "You'll go by yourself if you do."

They swam wild rivers and climbed the tall peaks,

And camped on the prairies for weeks upon weeks,

Starvation and cholera, hard work and slaughter,

They reached Californy, spite of hell and high water.

A miner said, "Betsy, will you dance with me?"

"I will, you old hoss, if you don't make too free.

But don't dance me hard, do you want to know why?

Doggone ye, I'm chock full of strong alkali."

Long Ike and Sweet Betsy got married, of course,

But Ike, getting jealous, obtained a divorce,

While Betsy, well satisfied, said with a shout,

"Goodbye, you big lummox, I'm glad you backed out!"

BOUND FOR THE PROMISED LAND

On Jordan's stormy banks I stand

And cast a wishful eye

To Canaan's fair and happy land,

Where my possesions lie.

Chorus

I am bound for the promised land,

I am bound for the promised land

O who will come and go with me

I am bound for the promised land.

O the transporting rapt'rous scene

That rises to my sight;

Sweet fields arrayed in living green

And rivers of Delight.

Chorus

I am bound for the promised land,

I am bound for the promised land

O who will come and go with me

I am bound for the promised land.

There generous fruits that never fail

On trees immortal grow;

There rocks and hills and brooks and vales

With milk and honey flow.

Chorus

I am bound for the promised land,

I am bound for the promised land

O who will come and go with me

I am bound for the promised land.

Soon will the Lord my soul prepare

For joys beyond the skies,

Where never-ceasing pleasures roll,

And praises never die.

Chorus

I am bound for the promised land,

I am bound for the promised land

O who will come and go with me

I am bound for the promised land.

THE DYING CALIFORNIAN

Lay up nearer, brother, nearer,

For my limbs are growing cold,

And thy presence seemeth nearer

When thine arms around me fold.

I am dying, brother, dying,

Soon you'll miss me in your berth;

For my form will soon be lying,

Beneath the ocean's briny surf.

Tell my father when you see him

That in death I prayed for him

Prayed that I might only meet him

In a world that's free from sin.

Tell my mother, God assist her

Now that she is growing old,

That her child would glad have kissed her

When his lips grew pale and cold.

Listen, brother, catch each whisper

'Tis my wife I speak of now,

Tell, oh tell her how I missed her

When the fever burned my brow.

Tell her she must kiss my children

Like the kiss I last impressed,

Hold them as when last I held them

Held them closely to my breast.

It was for them I crossed the ocean,

What my hopes were I'll not tell;

But they gained an orphan's portion,

Yet He doeth all things well;

Tell them I have reached the haven

Where I sought the precious dust,

And I gained a port called Heaven

Where the gold will never rust.

8. Sea Shanties

In a 2 page essay, explain what a sea shanty is; describe the functions that such songs served; and tell your reader what the following songs reveal about the attitudes and values of sailors.

To learn about sea shanties, see:

http://parlorsongs.com/insearch/seasongs/shanties.asp

http://www.contemplator.com/history/epedia.html

http://www.contemplator.com/sea/

BLOW THE MAN DOWN

(see http://www.contemplator.com/sea/blowdown.html)

Come all ye young fellows that follow the sea,