Brown Collection- IX. Satirical Songs
IX. SATIRICAL SONGS (Contents)
328. The Carolina Crew 380
329. Cumberland Gap 381
330. Arkansas Traveler (I) 381
331. Arkansas Traveler (II) 382
332. Hard Times 385
333. The Dodgers 387
334. Calomel 389
335. Twenty (Forty, Sixty) Years Ago 390
336. If You Want to Go A-Courtin' 393
337. When Young Men Go Courting 394
338. Johnson Boys 394
— 339. Leave for Texas. Leave for Tennessee 395
340. The Wood Hauler 397
341. Walk in the Parlor 399
342. Preacher in the Pulpit 403
343. Preacher's in de Pulpit 403
344. Wait on de Lord 404
345. I Never Will Turn Back Any More 404
346. JOXAII AM) TlIK W'llAl.K 4O5
347. jKsrs LuvKK OF My Soil. 408
348. Boh Ix(;kr.s()i.i. an'd the 1)i:\ii. 408
349. I.oKi). I Never Wii.i. C'uMK Back Hkkk No Mo'
IX SATIRICAL SONGS
CLASSIC folkloristic studies of life in primitive communities indicate that satirical songs constitute an important aspect of folk singing. Gummere and Kittredge cite instances of communal
improvisations by Faeroes fishermen in ridicule of some hapless
fellow who had made himself obnoxious or unfavorably con-
spicuous. They tell us also about mocking verse treatments of
incidents and characters in cigarette factories in the days before
girls with nimble fingers were supplanted by tlie marvelous
machines that visitors see today in the Chesterfield, the Lucky
Strike, and the Camel factories of North Carolina. In the closely
cultivated areas of literary history the casual student of Robert
Burns and his milieu cannot fail to note a widespread and deeply
rooted tradition of satirical song among the Scottish peasantry of
the eighteenth century, as evidenced by Burns's references to such
rhyming "neeburs" as Davie and J. Lapraik, his casual mention
of the old custom of "sang about," and the profusion of satirical
songs of local and topical nature that Burns himself turned out,
many of them reworkings of pieces floating about the countryside.
The four songs of the North Carolina Regulators, placed among
the North Carolina native ballads because they are primarily nar-
rative and historical, undoubtedly stem out of a tradition of
eighteenth-century English popular verse wliich was contempora-
neous with Burns's background and which left its mark on New
England colonial and Revolutionary literature in such pieces as
'Revolutionary Tea,' 'The Battle of the Kegs,' and "Yankee Doodle.'
Both the conservative and the reproductive functions of any social
tradition re(|uire settled ways of life, especially those employing
verbal media. Constant moving about was a disturbing feature of
frontier life. This not only banged up the furniture but also shat-
tered skills, as anyone brought up in the South or the West real-
izes while looking at tlie furnishings of period rooms in museums
like that of the Concord Antiquarian Society, unconsciously com-
paring them with the "anti(|ues" of a newer region. And thus it
was with folk songs of all kinds, but especially with those that
sprang out of an intimate and self-conscious communal lite. New
songs were slow to arise because people need to live together and
observe one another a relatively long time before comlitions are
ripe for social satire.
SATIRICAL S N C. S 379
Other causes doubtless helped to break the tradition of satirical
song. One may have been the slow disintegration of the general
body of folklore in its broad sense of inherited knowledge, whether
from books or from oral sources, and of folk ways, that must
function in the creation of the most elementary satire. Still another
was the decided masculine preference for the anecdote or tall tale,
wliicii took a spontaneous prose form that made verse seem precious.
While women un(|ucstionabIy played the more important role in re-
membering the old songs and ballads, the men as un(|uestionably
made up most of the anecdotes and tall tales, and it seems probable
that men have been the most successful folk-tale tellers. Of the
many other possible causes of decline in satirical song, perhaps the
most important was the substitution of professional for homemade
entertainment. The minstrel and vaudeville songs, often based on
genuine folk originals, tended by their greater cleverness and
catchiness to crowd out the traditional pieces and abate the custom
of making up new pieces. Nowadays the process is being repeated
through the new media of the phonograph and the radio. Though
the situation is fluid and rapidly changing, it is nevertheless not
hopeless for true folk poetry. Songs introduced by the newfangled
publicity media sometimes go wild and flourish in the no man's
land of popular tradition. Up-to-date means of rapid communi-
cation simply accelerate the process by which a song of individual
authorship in the old days gradually became the possession of a
group, next a neighborhood, and finally a region or even a nation,
somewhere along the line becoming a genuine folk song.
The Collection has a group of satirical songs, but it is a rela-
tively small group, and the social features that the songs depict
have lost some of their early sharpness and color. The scarcity of
these songs is perhaps more apparent than real. Exigencies of
folk-song classification and arrangement have required the editors
to place in other sections of this book songs that are similar in
spirit but different in genre. Besides the ballad-like songs of the
Regulators, there are several satirical pieces among the native
North Carolina ballads, a few among the war songs, and scattered
examples among the courting, drinking, and homiletic songs, the
bird, beast, and fish jingles, and the secular Negro songs. The
following pieces have seemed to the editors to be more purely
satirical than anything else.
Apropos of the first group, regional and local satires, some read-
ers will recall William Byrd's caricatures of North Carolinians and
North Carolina manners in The Secret History of the Dk'iding
Line. Others will remember the gusty humors of Skitt's (H. E.
Taliaferro's) Fisher's River (North Carolina) Scenes and Char-
acters. A few will be reminded of the naivete of Shepherd M.
Bugger's The Balsam Groves of Grandfather Mountain. Such
380 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
readers will unanimously regret that the song examples of the species
are so few, so hrief, and on the whole so vague. After remarking
that the "Carolina crew" milked the cow in the gourd and "set
it in the corner and kivered it with a board" (as, doubtless, did the
Virginia crew), the Carolina Thalia takes a fling to hear banjo
music in Cumberland Gap and flies away to dance to the fiddle of
'The Arkansas Traveler' and listen to the life and hard times of
San ford Barnes.
Without specific local auspices. Thalia settles down to more sus-
tained efforts in poking fun at the various trades and callings, in
such pieces as 'Hard Times,' 'The Dodgers,' and 'Calomel.' In
'Twenty (Forty, Sixty) Years Ago' she describes social changes
in a manner that seems to have given the song an especial attraction
for North Carolinians. "If You Want to Go A-Courtin" takes the
conditional situation of its title as a starting point for extensive
satirical observations, including the handling of milk and proper
manners at Old Noah's house. "Johnson Boys' and 'When Young
JNIen Go Courting' stick more closely to the situation. The bucolic
muse may deny responsibility for 'The Wood Haulers,' but it seems
to the editors to belong more to her than to any of her sisters.
In ascribing to her such pieces as 'Preacher in the Pulpit,' 'Wait
on de Lord,' 'Walk in the Parlor.' and 'Jonah and the Whale,' the
editors are much surer of their ground. They are regretful, too,
that the vast and fertile field which such songs barely scratch was
not brought under the sharp plough of a native tradition such as
lies behind 'Holy Fair' and 'Holy Willie's Prayer,' and that it is to
the prose writers like the Reverend Lorenzo Dow rather than to
the songs of rustic bards that we must go for pictures of frontier
religious manners and the New W'orld analogues of the battles be-
tween the Auld Licht and the New Licht.
328
The Carolina Crew
This is a fragment of the song of regional satire best repre-
sented in our collection by 'If \'ou Want to Go A-Courtin'.'
p. 393. Reported heretofore from X'irginia ( SharpK 11 g ) and
North Carolina (SharpK 11 6-8 J. A variant stanza, with allusion
to "the Tuckahoe crew." is quoted in Margaret Prcscott Monta-
gue's Up Eel River (New York, 1928), p. 6. The author stated
in a letter to A. P. Hudson that the stanza "is an adaptation of
an old song I used to hear in the mountains of West Virginia. . . .
The last line I imagine is applied to any locality that the singer
holds in especial contempt. "'I'uckaliot.'' ]iai)])ens to be a hollow in
my neighborhood at White .Sulpjiur .Springs which is especially
looked down upon by its neighbors." (See A. P. Hudson. "The
Singing South," Scit.'anec Rc^'iira', July 1936. p. 20. )
S A T 1 K 1 C A L S O N c; S 38I
'Tlic Carolina Crew." Ropditctl by tlic Misses Ilolciiian of Durham in
1 had a little cow and 1 milked her in the gourd,
I set it in the corner and kivered it with a hoard.
That is the way we used ter do
\\ hen 1 lived 'lone with the Carolina C rew.
329
Cumberland Gap
This is known in Kentucky (BKH 176-8, JAFL xi.ix 241-2),
and Miss Scarborough (SCSM 65) describes it as a tiddler's piece
in North Carolina. It is included in Kand()l])h OFS in 264 and
listed by Davis FSV 247.
'Cumberland Gap.' From tlie manuscripts of G. S. Robinson of Aslie-
ville, in August 1939.
1 Lay down, hoys, and take a little nap ;
Forty-four miles to the Cumberland CJap.
2 Lay down, hoys, and take a little nap ;
Snow knee-deep in Cumberland [(JapJ.
3 Cuml)erland Gap's no gap at all.
Lve been shot with a cannon ball.
4 Cumberland Gap's a devil of a place,
Couldn't tind water to wash my face.
5 Pretty little girl, if you don't care
ril leave my demijohn a-setting right here.
6 If it ain't here when I get back
I'm going to raise trouble in Cumberland (Jap.
7 Me and my wife and my wife's pap
Walked all the way from Cumberland Gap.
330
Arkansas Traveler (I)
Not to be confused with the 'Bill Stafford' or 'San ford Barnes'
song, which sometimes goes by the same name. Both are satires
upon the state; but this appears to have originated (|uite definitely
in i)rint. See Cox's headnote, FSS 503. Only a fragment of it
has C(jme into the North Carolina Collection.
'Arkansas Traveller.' Reported by Thomas Smitii of Zionville, Watauga
county, as a dance song, fiddle and l)anjo, with the remark that while
not as old as some others it "has l)eeii popular for several years. Joe
382 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
Thompson, one of our great fiddlers, has played this tune for many
years."
'Hello, stranger!' "Hello yourself.
If you want to go to h jist go by yourself."
331
Arkansas Traveler (H)
This has no connection with the humorous dialogue known as
"The Arkansas Traveler'; instead, it is a piece of local satire akin
to "If You Want to Go A-Courtin" and 'Johnson Boys.' It is also
known as "Sanford Barnes' and as "Bill Stafford.' For its occur-
rence elsewhere see BSM 424, and add to the references there given
Indiana (BSI 267) and Virginia (FSV 142, listed). Our two
texts, though evidently forms of one piece, sliow the variations to
be expected in a song that passes by oral tradition.
A
'Arkansaw Traveler.' Reported by I. G. Greer of Boone, Watauga
county, some time in 1915-16.
1 My name is Santford Barnes.
I came from Little Rock town.
I've traveled this wide world over,
I've traveled this wide world round ;
I've had many ups and downs,
Through life better days I've saw,
P>ut I never knew what misery was
Till I came to Arkansaw.
2 'Twas in the year of eighty-two.
The merry month of June,
I landed at Hot Springs
One sultry afternoon.
There came a walking skeleton
And gave to me his paw.
Invited me to his hotel ;
'Twas the best in Arkansaw.
3 I followed my conductor
Into his dwelling place.
It was starvation and poverty
Pictured on his face.
His bread it was corn dodgers.
His beef I could not chaw.
He charged me hfty cents a meal
In the state of Arkansaw.
S A T 1 R I f A I. SON G S 3^3
4 I Started back next morning
To catch the early train.
He said. 'Young man, you'd better work for me.
I have some land to drain ;
I'll give you fifty cents a day,
Your washing and old chaw ;
You'll feel (|uite like a different man
When YOU leave old Arkansaw.'
5 I worked for tlie gentleman three weeks,
less Hare was his name;
Six feet seven inches in stocking length
And slim as any crane ;
His hair hung down like ringlets
Beside his slackened jaw ;
He was the photograph of all the gents
That was raised in Arkansaw.
6 His bread it was corn dodgers
As hard as any rock ;
It made my teeth begin to loosen,
My knees begin to knock.
Got so thin on sage and sassafras tea
1 could hide Ixdiind a straw —
I'm sure I was quite like a different man
When I left old Arkansaw.
7 I started back to Texas
A quarter after five.
Nothing was left but skin and bone,
Half dead and half alive.
I got me a bottle of whiskey
^ly misery for to thaw.
Got drunk as old Abraham Lincoln
When I left old Arkansaw.
8 Farewell, farewell. Jess Hare,
And likewise darling wife.
I know she never will forget me
In the last days of her life.
She put her little hand in mine
And tried to bite my jaw
.And said. 'Mr. Barnes, remember me
When you leave old Arkansaw.'
9 l-'arewell. farewell, swamp angels
Who can't break in the chills ;
Farewell to sage and sassafras tea
X.C.F.. Vol. III. (27)
384 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
And corn dodger jnlls.
If ever I see that land again
I'll give to you my paw,
It will be through a telescope
From here to Arkansaw.
B
'A Traveler in Arkansas.' From the manuscript of G. S. Robinson of
Asheville. Copy taken in August 1939.
1 My name is Elmer Page, boys, I came from Mil ford Cen-
ter, Ohio town.
For a long, long time I've roved this wide world around.
Of all the ups and downs of life, great many of them I've
saw,
But I never knew what misery was until I went to
Arkansaw.
2 It was in the year of 1889, in the merry month of June,
I landed in Helena one sultry afternoon.
Up came a walking skeleton with a lean and lantern jaw,
Invited me to his hotel, the best in Arkansaw.
3 I followed my conductor unto his very place.
While misery was depicted upon his peaked face.
Flis bread was corn dodger, his meat I couldn't chaw.
And fifteen cents he charged me in the state of Arkansaw.
4 He was to wake me in the morning to take an early train.
Says he. 'Young man, you better stay ; I have some land
to drain.
I'll give you twenty cents a rod. your washing, board,
and all.
And you will be a different man when you leave Arkansaw.'
5 Three long months I worked for this big swaiup angel,
with the ague and the chills.
They dosed me with sage and sassafras and corn dodger
pills.
As I lay upon my bed. was built of hay and straw ;
In faith I was a different man when I left old .Arkansaw.
6 The day I left that cussed place — I dread the memorv
still—
I nearly shook mv boots oft with a blasted ague and
chill.'
T straightaway went into a saloon my misery to thaw.
And 1 got drunk as blazes when I left Arkansaw.
S A T I R I C A I. S () \ r. S 385
Farewell to those swanip angels, the ague and the chills,
Likewise to sage and sassafras and corn dodger pills.
If ever I see that land again, 1 give to you luy paw,
It will be through a telescope from here to Arkansaw.
332
Hard Times
Moralizinj;- or satiric ballads upiin the vices and foibles of the
time were not infrequent in the heyday of printed balladry, the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and are not extinct yet. .See
B.SM 433, and compare the pieces of regional satire, 'If N'ou Want
to Go A-Courtin',' 'Johnson Boys,' 'Arkansas Traveler.'
A
'Hard Times.' From the manuscript songbook of Miss Liira Was.;nncr
of Vox, Alleghany county, lent to Ur. Brown in 1936.
1 Come listen a while, 1 will sing yuu a song
Concerning hard times, and it shall not be long.
Since everybody is trying to buy
And cheat each other and think it's right ;
And it's hard times.
2 From brother to brother, from sister to cousin.
They all have learned to cheat each other;
Since cheating has come so much in fashion
I fear it will spread quite over this nation ;
And it's hard times.
3 The blacksmith labors by the sweat of his brow,
And so does the farmer by following his plow ;
They're both a man on their own conceit
And will cheat each other in measure and weight ;
And it's hard times.
4 Here is the shoemaker ; he's worse than them all.
He bristles his end to follow his awl.
He'll sew a stitch an inch at a clip
And swear to the buyer the shoe will never r\\).
And it's hard times.
5 Here is the old doctor ; and, so they tell me.
He says he will cure y(ju for a very small fee.
He says he will cure you for half you i)ossess,
And when he don't kill you he takes the rest.
And it's hard times.
6 Here is the old preacher ; he rides in his stage.
He'll take out his Bible and read you a page,
386 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
He'll preach a sermon for you to go by,
And if you set him to trading he'll tell you a lie.
And it's hard times.
7 Young ladies will rise at the dawn of the day,
They'll rufifle and shuffle, they'll try to look gay,
They'll comb up their hair so nice and so neat
To make the young men think they look sweet ;
And it's hard times.
8 Young men will rise, to the church they will go,
They'll ruffle, they'll shuffle, they'll make a fine show ;
They'll stop at the tavern and there drink wine ;
And all such boys the gallows will find.
And it's hard times.
9 Here is the old nuTchant. I must have him in.
He's bound to extortion and thinks it's no sin.
He'll tip up his stillyards and make them weigh down,
And swear it's good weight if it likes^ ten pound.
And it's hard times.
10 Here is the old miller I'd like to have forgot.
He's always sitting a-pecking his rock.
He's always pleading his toll dish small ;
Sometimes he takes half and sometimes he takes all.
And it's hard times.
1 1 Here is the young men ; they're worse than all.
They tell you they love you to try their own soul.
They tell you they love you when they're sitting by
And when they get away they'll swear it's a lie.
And it's hard times.
12 And now I will make you an end of my song.
It was very well worded and not very long.
And if everybody don't come at this call.
If the Lord don't take them the devil gets all.
And it's hard times.
B
'Hard Times.' From Miss Jewell Rohhins (later Mrs. C. P. Perdue),
Pekiii, Montgomery county, some time between 1921 and 1924. With
the tune. Basically the same text as A hut reduced by omissions from
twelve stanzas to five and witli numerous minor alterations.
I Come all ye young ])c()])le, 1 sing you a song
Which is not very long,
^ This (for "lacks") is allowed to stand as lieing prol)ahly what the
singer really says.
SATIRICAL S N r. S 387
How everybody is trying- to trade
And cheating- each otlier. 1 cannot tell why,
h>oni father to mother and sister and hrcjther
And cousin and kin folks are cheating each other.
And it's hard. hard. hard, liard times.
2 There is the old blacksmith I'd like to've forgot;
I believe in my soul he's the worst of the lot.
He'll shoe your horses and sharpen }'our plows
And at the end of the year he'll dri\e off vour cows.
And it's hard. Iiard times.
3 There is the old shoemaker I'd like to've forgot;
I believe in my soul he's the worst of the lot.
He'll go stitching along an inch at a clip
And he'll swear by Joe it never will ri]).
And it's hard, hard times.
4 There is the old preacher I'd like to've forgot;
I believe in my soul he's the worst of the lot.
He'll go to church twelve times in the year.
And if you die and go to the devil he really don't care.
And it's hard, hard times.
5 There is the young lady I'd like to've forgot;
I believe in my soul she's the worst of the lot.
She'll slick up her hair and to church she will go,
And what is it for but to catch her a beau ?
And it's hard, hard times.
c
'Hard Times.' Reported by Vernon Sechrist of Thomasville, Davidson
county, in 1928, "as remembered by Mrs. Augusta Fonts at the age of
"J"] years." The first stanza only.
D
'Hard Times." From Miss Pearle Webb of Pineola, Avery county. The
tune, and a fragmentary stanza not found in A or B :
I really do believe it's for the sake of old
They starve the women and the children out of bed.
And it's hard times, hard times.
333
The Dodgers
A satire upon callins^s. like 'Hard Times,' but not so well known;
in fact, I have found it reported elsewhere only from Arkansas
(OSC 289), thougli very likely it circulated as a stall ballad at
some time. B. A. Botkin prints a version of it in A Treasury of
388 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
American Folklore (New York, 1944), pp. 875-6. See Randolph
OFS III 218. Rhythmically it seems to liave been suggested by the
old Scotch song 'We're A' Noddin'.'
'The Dodgers.' From the manuscript notebook of Mrs. Harold Glass-
cock of Raleigh, lent to Dr. White in 1943. The songs in this book
-Mrs. Glasscock learned from her parents.
1 Oh. the doctor he's a dodger.
Yes. he's a curing dodger.
Oh. the doctor he's a dodger.
Yes, he's a dodger too.
He'll tell you he can cure you
And dose you on rum and honey ;
If you die the next day
He's a-dodging for your money.
Chorus:
And we're all a-dodging.
A-dodge dodge dodge dodging^
And we're all a-dodging
Our way through the world.
2 Oil, the lawyer he's a dodger.
Yes, he's a talking dodger.
Oh, the lawyer he's a dodger.
Yes, he's a dodger too ;
He'll tell you to sue your neighhor
And look on him with scorn ;
But look out. farmer.
He's a-dodging for your corn.
3 Oh. the merchant he's a dodger,
Yes, he's a selling dodger.
Oh. the merchant he's a dodger.
Yes. he's a dodger too.
He'll bow and scrape and flatter
And show you all his colors.
But look out. ladies.
He's dodging for your dollars.
4 Oh. the preacher he's a dodger.
Yes. he's a jireaching dodger.
Oh, the preacher he's a dodger.
Yes. he's a dodger too.
He'll ]jreach to you the scriptures
And tell you of your crimes ;
But look out. sinners.
He's a-dodging for your dimes.
^ So the line in the manuscript ; l)ut tlie rhythm suggests tliat there
should be one less repetition of tlio "dodge" syllaldc.
SATIRICAL SONGS 389
5 Oh, the ladies they are dodgers,
Yes. they are co(|uetting dodgers,
( )h, the ladies they are dodgers,
Yes. they are dodgers too.
They tell you they can sew
And cook and nurse ;
But look out, gentlemen,
Thev are dodging for your purse.
6 Oh, the lover he's a dodger.
Yes, he's a courting dodger.
Oh, the lover he's a dodger.
Yes, he's a dodger too.
He'll kiss you and caress you
And wish you were his bride ;
And when a prettier one comes along
Then he'll let you slide.
334
CaLOiMEL
For other occurrences of this gibe at the old-fasliioned doctor's
reliance on calomel, one of them reaching back to the beginning
of the nineteenth century, see BSM 441 and add Indiana (BSl
308-10). Jordan and Kessler's Songs of Yesterday has it as sung
by the Hutchinsons.
'Calomel.' From the manuscript notebook of Mrs. Harold Glasscock of
Raleigh, lent to Dr. White in 1943. These songs she k-arned from her
parents.
1 Let Tom or Dick or Harry get sick.
Send for the doctor and be quick.
The doctor comes with a free good will
And brings with him his calomel.
2 He takes the patient by the hand
And compliments him as his friend ;
He sits a while his pulse to feel,
And then takes out his calomel.
3 He turns unto the patient's wife:
'Have you clean paper and a knife?
I think your husl)and woidd do well
To take a dose of calomel."
4 He then deals out those fatal grains
In hopes that these will ease his pains ;
"And every three hours at the sound of the bell
Give him a dose of calomel.'
390 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
5 He leaves has patient in her care
And takes his leave with a graceful air.
In hopes bad humor to expel
She freely gives the calomel.
6 The man grows worse, grows worse indeed.
'Send for counsel, ride with speed.'
The counsel comes with a free good will
And doubles the dose of calomel.
7 The man in death begins to groan.
The fatal work for him is done.
His soul is rushed to heaven or hell,
The sacrifice to calomel.
8 The neighbors all come in to see.
The fatal effects of mercury.
(Be not offended, though, and tell
It is the effects of calomel.)
or
(\\'hat is it eft'ects the smell?
It is the stench of calomel.)
9 Come, all ye doctors : my first choice,
Listen to counsel, take advice ;
Be not offended though I tell
I'm not so fond of your calomel.^
335
Twenty (Forty, Sixty) Years Ago
Perhaps newspaper verse, perhaps a music-hall piece, this seems
to have had an especial appeal for North Carolinians. Henry re-
ports two stanzas of it (FSSH 23-4) as sung by Mrs. Ewart Wil-
son (who also contributed songs to the Brown Collection) in the
Cane River country, and there are four texts of it, coming from
three western counties, in our collection. Nowhere else do I find
it recorded as traditional song. It has no connection witli William
Willing's song of the same title (Heart Songs 280-1, Ford's Tradi-
tional Music of America 318-19). The versions using "forty" or
"sixty" instead of "twenty" have lost the homely touch about the
new-fangled stove.
^ Here the manuscript notes : "Mama didn't know this verse. Papa's
verse as he used to sing it :
Since calomel lias been your boast,
How many patients have you lost?
How many thousands have you killed
Or poisoned with your calomel?"
SATIRICAL SONGS 39I
'Twenty Years Ago.' Contributed in 1921 liy Miss Jewell Robhins
(afterwards Mrs. C. P. Perdue) of Pekin, Montgomery county.
1 How woiulrotis are the changes since twenty years ago,
When girls wore homespun (h"esses and hoys wore pants
of tow.
When shoes were made of cowhides and socks of home-
spun wool.
And children did a lialf day's work hefore they went to
school.
Chorus:
Just twenty years ago go go, just twenty years ago,
The men and the hoys, the girls and the toys.
The work and the l)lay, both night and day.
And the world and its way are all turned round
Since twenty years ago.
2 Ah. well do I remember the Wilson patent stove
That father bought and paid for with cloth the girls had
wove.
And how the neighbors wondered when we got the thing
to go ;
They said 'twould burst and kill us all. some twenty years
ago.
3 The girls took music lessons upon the spinning wheel
And practiced late and early with spindles, swift, and reel.
The boys would ride the horse to mill a dozen miles or so
And hurry off before 'twas day. some twenty years ago.
4 Yes. everything has altered. 1 cannot tell the cause.
For men are always tampering with Nature's wondrous
laws.
And what on earth are we coming to ? Does anybody
know ?
For peo])le lived not half so fast twenty years ago.
B
'Some Twenty Years Ago, or, The First Old Cooking Stove.' Sung
and written down by Frank Proffitt of Sugar Grove. Watauga county.
in August 1937. He could not remember all "of the words.
1 Well do I remember that first old cooking stove.
That father bought and ])aid for in cloth the girls had
wove.
And how the jieople wondered when they got that thing
^° S° ■ . ,
Thev saifl it'd bust and kill us all some twentv vcars ago.
392 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
Some twenty years ago, some twenty years ago.
When the girls and the hoys, the men and the toys
They work and they play in the night and the day
And' the world and its ways is all turned round
Since twenty years ago.
2 The people rode to meeting on sleds instead of sleighs
And wagons run as easy as huggies do nowdays.
And oxens answered well for teams, luit now they air too
slow ;
The people did not drive so fast some twenty years ago.
3 And men wore woolen overcoats and boys pants of tow
And women linsey dresses, some twenty years ago. . . .
c
'Forty Years Ago.' Contributed by IMacie Morgan of Stanly county.
A considerably reduced form, which has lost the patent stove.
I How wondrous are the changes since forty years ago !
When girls wore woolen dresses and boys wore pants of
tow;
When shoes were made of cowhide and socks from home-
spun wool.
And the children did a half day's work before they went
to school.
Chorus:
Just forty years ago, just forty years ago.
The men and the boys, the girls and the toys,
The work and the play, the night and the day.
The world and its ways are all turned round
Since forty years ago.
D
'Sixty Years Ago.' Another text from Stanly county, this one from
Ruth Morgan. Like the preceding it lacks the patent stove, but it has
one more stanza.
1 How wondrous are the changes since sixty years ago!
When girls wore dresses of linsey and boys wore pants
of tow ;
Their shoes were n)a(le of cowsl<in, tlieir socks of home-
spun wool ;
The boys would do a half-day's work, yes, sixty years ago.
(7;r;r;(.s-.'
Yes, sixty years ago, some sixty years ago.
The world and its ways have changed around
Since sixty years ago.
s A T I K \ c A I. s () N <; s 393
2 W'c used to g(J to nieeting on sleds instead of sleiglis.
Wagons rode as easy as buggies^ nowadays.
Oxen answered well for teams; but now they're rather
slow.
LUit people didn't live so fast scjnie sixty years ago.
336
li-' You Want to (io A-Coukti.\'
This is a form of a rather widely known satire on frontier man-
ners and conditions, concerning;- which see BSM 426 and add to
the references there given Maine (MM 337-8), Florida (SFLQ
VIII 192-3), Texas (CS [iQio] 108-9), ^ow'a. (MAFLS xxix 96-7),
and for the Negroes JAFL xxiv 285 and NS 192. A reduced
treatment of the theme is 'Johnson Boys,' below.
'If You Want to Go A-Courtin.' Contributed by Miss Pearly W'cbl) of
Pineola, Avery county, in 1922, with the notation : "This is a ballad
made up on a mountain family in western North Carolina. 1 do not
know the name."
1 If yott want to go a-cotirtin' I'll tell yoti where to go,
Down to the ol' man's down below.
The children all a-s(|uallin' and the ol' folks gone.
The gals all married and their heads not condied.
The gals all married and their heads not eond)ed.
2 If you want to go to preachin" I'll tell you how to dress:
In ol' ragged breeches 1 think is the best.
Old ragged coat greased all around,
Old leather hat, no brim, no crown,
An old pair of cotton socks wore the winter roun'.
An ol' pair of cotton socks wore the winter roun'.
3 Wdien they go to milk I'll tell you how they do.
They milk the old cow and strain it in a gourd
And' set it in the corner and cover with a board.-
Some gets a little and some gets none.
Some gets a little and some gets none.
4 Babe bought a rooster and Joe bought a hen
And it was how ol' Noah and Delphy shouted hallelujah
then.
And it was how ol' Noah and Delphy shouted hallelujah
then.
5 Joe called me in to supper an' I thought it was to eat.
He set me down to carve up the meat.
^ The manuscript has a superfluous 'in" after "Iniggies."
-The manuscript has "gourd," evidently a slip. See tlie ^Hssouri text.
394 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
He had an ol' knife an' he had no fork.
I sawed about an hour an" I couldn't make a mark,
I sawed about an hour an' 1 couldn't make a mark.
6 I sawed an' I sawed an' I got it on the floor.
I gave a little kick and I got it out o' doors.
I gave a little kick and I got it out o' doors.
7 Up stepped ol' Noah with his double barrel gun.
I says. 'Mr. Noah, I guess you better run.'
Up stepped Noah, as brave as any bear.
I tangled my fingers in ol' Noah's hair,
I tangled my fingers in ol' Noah's hair.
337
When Young Men Go Courting
Compare tlie 'Courting Song.' p. 27. Texts of a like content,
though not perliaps to be identified with this, are known in Vir-
ginia (SfiarpK II 9), Kentucky (BKH 133), North Carolina
(SharpK 11 6-8, JAFL xlvi 36-7). and Iowa (MAFLS xxix
96-7). Sharp reports a single stanza of like content as a play-party
song in Virginia (SfiarpK 11 378).
'When Young Men Go Courting.' Reported by Mrs. Sutton, apparently
from Caldwell county, and introduced as follows : "She laughed as she
sang it and her 'old man' smoked his pipe complacently and asked the
teacher who was with us if he didn't think the men had to fool the
'womern' ? His wife replied with the broadest one in my collection."
But the two stanzas set down do not bear out this characterization.
1 When young men go courting
They dress up very fine.
For deceiving girls
Is their only design.
2 They'll tittle, they'll tattle,
They'll talk and they'll lie.
They'll keep the girls up
Till they're ready to die.
338
Johnson Boy.s
This is of the same temper as 'If You Want to Go A-Courtin"
but briefer. Sometimes it is described as a connnunity song, some-
times as a (lance song for fiddle and l)anjo.
A
'Johnson Boys.' Contributed by I. T. Poole of Burke county, with the
notation that it "used to be a popular coninumity song in Burke county."
The last two lines of eacii stanza are rei)eated by way of refrain.
SATIRICAL S N C. S 395
T Johnson boys they went a-courtin',
Johnson boys they didn't stay;
Reason why they didn't stay longer,
Thev had no money to i)ay their way.
2 lolmson hoys were raised in ashes.
Didn't know how to court old maids ;
lluiii^ed and kissed and called them 'honey.'
Andit made those little gals all ashamed.
3 Wake. oh. wake, ye drowsy sleepers,
Wake, oh, wake, it's almost day ;
Raise up your head and look out the window
And see those pretty girls going away.
B
•Jolmson Boys.' Reported by Mrs. Sutton from Lenoir, Caldwell county.
With the tune.
1 Johnson boys they went a-courtin" ;
Johnson boys they didn't stay;
The reason why they went no further.
Had no money fur to pay their way.
Had no money fur to pay their way.
2 Johnson boys brave and jolly.
They know how to court old maids.
Kis.s and hug and call them 'honey' ;
Rush up. pretty girls, don't be afraid.
Rush up. pretty girls, don't be afraid.
c
'Johnson Bovs.' Contributed bv Thomas Smith, Zionville. Watauga
county. The first stanza only, as in A and B. with the note : Dance
song— fiddle and banjo. There is another verse or two of the old time
banjo and fiddle tune which 1 haven't been able to get. 'Johnson Boys
is said by our oldest people to be one of the oldest tunes. __ It was years
ago one of the chief tunes played at parties, shindigs, etc.
D
•The Johnston Boys They Went A-Courting.' C\)ntributcd in i<j22 by
'- Pickens. First stanza only.
339
Leave for Texas. Leave for Tennessee
A somewhat similar song, but not the same, is reported from
Tennessee (SSSA 71-2).
A
No title. Obtained from Mrs. Minnie Church, Heatnn. Avery county,
in 1930.
396 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
1 Leave for Texas, leave for Tennessee,
Leave for Texas, leave for Tennessee,
Leave for Thalnia.
That gal has made a wreck out of me.
(yodel)
2 If }'ou don't want me. mama, you don't have to scold,
If you don't want me, mama, you don't ha\'e to scold,
'Cause I can get more women there
Than a passenger train can hold.
( yodel )
3 Going to huy me a pistol just as long as a pole,
Going to buy me a pistol just as long as a pole,
Going to shoot poor Thalma
Just to sec her jump and fall.
4 Going where the water tastes like cherry wine.
Going where the water tastes like cherry wine ;
'Cause the Georgia water
Taste like turpentine.
B
'Blue Yodel.' From the John Burch Blaylock Collection. Mr. Richard
Lewis of Chapel Hill knows the song by its opening line but is not
familiar with the last stanza.
1 T's for Texas, T's for Tennessee,
T's for Texas, T's for Tennessee,
T's for Thelma
That gal has made a wreck out of me.
2 If you don't v.-ant me, mama, you don't have to call.
If you don't want me, mama, you don't have to call.
For I got more women than a passenger can haul.
3 I'm gonna buy me a pistol just as long as I'm tall;
I'm gonna buy me a pistol just as long as I'm tall;
I'm gonna shoot poor Thelma, just to see her jump and
fail.
4 I'm gonna bux' nic a shotgun with a great Itmg sln"n\-
Ijarrel ;
I'm gonna buy mc a shotgun with a great long shiny
barrel ;
I'm gonna shoot that rounder that stole away mv gal.
5 I'm going wlierc tlie water di-inks like cherr\- wine;
I'm going where the water drinks like cherry wine;
For the Georgia water tastes like turpentine.
S A T I U 1 (,■ A I. S () X (". s 397
6 I'd rather drink muddy water and slcej) in a hollow log,
I'd rather drink nuuldy water and sleep in a hollow log
Than stav in ( ieorgia and he treated like a dirty dog.
340
TnK Wood I Iai'lf.r
Tliis song has traveled, if the account of its origin given to the
editors of I'crmont Folk-Songs and Ballads is to he trusted, con-
siderable distances in more than one direction; it is known in Ver-
mont (VFSB 43-5), Pennsylvania (NPM 51-2), West Virginia
(FSS 404), Kentucky (OSC 231-2), Michigan (BSSM 407-8),
and North Dakota (BSSB 132-3) as well as in North Carolina,
and the Lomaxes say (OSC 231) that they have found it in New
York State. It commonly carries a date in its first line: 1875 in
Vermont, 1855 in Pennsvlvania. 1865 in Kentucky, 1805 in Michi-
gan and North Dakota, 1845 i" North Carolina: in West Virginia
it is dated only by the hero's coming of age. In Kentucky he hauls
coal, not wood. ' His horse's name is Gray or Grayie in all the
texts except that from Pennsylvania, where it is Old Bill. His
father follows him to recall him from his spree in all the texts
except those from West Virginia and Michigan. All the texts
except that from Pennsylvania end with a reproof to talebearers.
Only in the second North Carolina text is the young man's drunken
frolic associated with election day.
'The Wood Hauler.' Obtained from Frank Proffitt, Sugar Grove,
Watauga county, in i937-
1 I came to this country in 1845,
I found it quite lucky to find myself alive.
I geared up my horses, my business to pursue.
Went out to hauling wood like I used for to do.
2 Instead of hauling five loads, I only hauled hut four;
I got so drunk in Curdell Town till 1 couldn't haul no
more.
1 picked up my saddle and I walked out to the harn
And saddled up old (iray. not thinking any harm.
3 I .saddled uj) old (iray, not thinking any harm.
I saddled up old Gray and I rcjde away so still
I scarcely drew hreath till 1 came to Laurel Hill.
4 My father followed after me, I heard them say;
He must have had a i)ilot or lie couldn't have fdund the
wav.
"(Frank couldn't recall two verses here.)
398 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
5 I peeped in at every tavern crack and ere I spied a light,
And the locks they got wet by the dew of the night. ^
Boys. I will tell you how the frolic did advance ;
They was four of us all out on the floor for to dance.
6 The fiddler being willing, his arms being strong.
He played 'The Groimds of (31d Ireland'- for four hours
long.
The morning stars are raining,'^ boys ; I think we've
danced enough ;
We'll spend one half a hour in collecting cash for cuff.^
7 I'll go home to my plow and I swizzle and I'll sing
(Two lines here that Profitt could not recall.)
And I never will be catched in such a scrap again.
8 Come all you old women that carries news about,
Pray never tell a lie. for it's bad enough without.
For them that tells lies and keeps up such a fuss
They're guilty of the same crime, perhaps a great deal
wuss.
'One 'Lection Morning.' Communicated by Ruth Morgan, Stanly county.
The manuscript is variously misspelled and sometimes hardly construable.
I have silently corrected it where the errors seem to be due merely to
careless writing, but in others, where the right reading is not apparent,
I have followed the manuscript.
I One Lection and morning, 1845,
I thought myself quite lucky to find myself alive.
I harnessed up my horse my business to ptirsue
As I went to hauling coal as I used for to do."'
^ The Vermont and North Dakota texts show how the first two lines
of this stanza should read ; the "he" is the young man's father :
He peeped through every keyhole where he could spy a light,
Till his locks were all wet with the dews of the night.
In the Michigan text, however, as in ours, it is the young man himself
who does the spying :
J peeked in every keyhole where I could spy a light
Till my locks were all wet with the dews of the night.
" The tune is called 'The Grounds of Ireland' in Vermont, 'The Bowls
of Ireland' in Pennsylvania, 'The Drowned Irish Boy' in West Virginia,
'The Bows of Ireland' in Michigan, 'The Crowns of C)ld Ireland' in North
Dakota, and 'The Ground of Louisville' in North Carolina B.
■' This should presumal)ly be "reigning" or "rising" ; North Dakota has
"the morning star has dawned."
^ This is "those old cuffs" in Vermont and "Cuff" in North Dakota:
in West Virginia it is "cash for snuff" and in Kentucky "Kasher-cuff,"
wiiicli is said to mean p^iying cash to cuff. None of these expressions
is quite intelligible to the editor.
'' This line reads in the manuscript :
As I went to haolding colds as I sue fur to do.
S A T I K I f A I. SONGS 399
\\ ith niv saddle on my l)ack a-goinj^- to the barn
1 saddle up my old gray, not thinking any harm.
I hopped upon his back and I rode away so still
That I scarcely drew a breath till I enterefl Louisville.
The barroom' l)eing opened, the licker goin* free.
As fast as 1 emptied one glass another was filled for me.
1 only haulded one load instead of haulding four.
Till 1 got so drunk in Louisville I could not haul no more.
My father followed me. he followed until day;
He nuist 'a' had a pilot or he couldn't found the way.
He peered in every corner wherever he saw light.
Till the old grey locks was wet with the dews of the night.
1 met an old acquaintance — his name 1 dare not tell —
He invited me where fiddle and dancing was to be.
There four young ladies walked out to take a dance ;
The four young gentlemen walked to take a vance.-
The fiddlers being willing, their arms being strong.
Till they played the ground of Louisville fulfilled four
hours long.
Come all ye young people who carries news about,
Don't tell no lies, for you're bad enough without.
You make a mighty racket and you carry news about.
And you guilty of the same thing, perhaps a great deal
worse.
341
Walk in the Parlor
The pieces here assembled under this title are all descendants of
a hig-hly popular song of the minstrel stage a hundred years ago.
concerning wliich see Cox's headnote to his West Virginia version,
FSS 503. In its fuller form it is a burlesque version of Bible
stories, as in A and B below. Texts from later tradition vary a
good deal. Cox's from West Virginia, Ford's from the Midwest
(Traditional Music of America 278-80), and our A and B, though
they all go back to the minstrel song of the 1840s, diiifer widely,
even in tbe chorus. Bits of it are reported as sung by Negroes in
Mississippi (JAFL xxvi 159) and Alabama (ANFS 136, 141, 144).
A song with a like theme but not, so far as I can make out, of the
same derivation, 'I Was Born about Ten Thousand Years Ago.' is
separately considered, as are also 'When .■Xdam Was Created' and
'Ye Lords of Creation,' which are (|uite dif^'creiit alTairs. The
' The manuscript has "barn room."
- West X'irginia has "advance" : the other texts throw no light on
the passage
N.C.F., \ol. III. (J8)
400 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
fragments E and F retain not much more tlian the cliorus of the
original song.
A
'Sunday School Song.' Contributed in 1923 by Miss Mary Scarborough
of Wanchese, Roanoke Island. What is here set down as the first stanza
is in B called the chorus.
1 Young folks, old folks, everybody come.
Come to our Stmday school and make yourselves at home.
Please check yotir chewing gum and razors at the door.
And you'll hear more Bible stories than you've ever heard
before.
2 Adam was the first man ; Eve was his spouse.
They never had a bit of trouble keeping house ;
Folks said their married life was happy in the main
Until they had a little kid and started raising Cain.
3 Noah was a sailor, he sailed upon the sea.
He took along a circus and a whole menagerie.
He spent his time a-fishing. so the Bible tale confirms,
But he couldn't do much fishing 'cause he only had two
worms.
4 David was a fighter, a plucky little cuss.
Saw Goliath coming, pining for a fuss.
He knew he'd have to fight him or else he'd have to dust ;
So he picked up a cobble stone and busted in his crust.
5 Salome was a dancer, she danced the hootchy kootch.
The people raised a racket 'cause she didn't wear so
mooch.
The King said, 'My dear, we cannot have that here.'
Saloiue said, 'The heck you can't,' and kicked him in the
ear.
6 Daniel was a naughty man, he wouldn't mind the King.
The King had never heard of such a funny thing.
So he put him a den with the lions underneath ;
P»ut Daniel was a dentist, so he pulled the lions' teeth.
7 I'haraoh kept the Israelites to make his cigarettes.
He wouldn't give them wages and he wouldn't ])ay their
debts.
So Moses, walking delegate, advised them all to strike;
So they ])icked up all the liay in sight and biat it down
the pike.
8 Jonah was a sailor, so runs the Uible tale.
lie tried to cross the ocean in the steerage of a whale.
s A r I K I r A I, s {) N c s 401
jdiiah in the whale teU a hit opprcsst'ch
So he merely i)ushe(l a Inittun and the whale did the rest.
B
'Yming Folks, Old I'dlks, Everybody Come.' Contributed by Mrs. W. L.
Pridgen of Durbani in 1923. Differs from A by omissions, contraction,
rearrangement, and tlie introduction of new matter. .\nd wliat is entered
in .A as stanza i is liere called, no doubt rigbtly, tlie cliorus.
1 Adam was the first man ever was invented.
Alonj^- eame hA'e and he was eontented.
.\l()n<,r came old Noali, fnmhlins^- in the dark.
(jrahhed n]) a hannner and lie hnilt himsell an ark.
Chorus:
(_)ld folks, vonng folks, everhody come.
Come join the Sunday School and make yourself at
home.
Please check your chewing gum and razors at the door.
And you'll hear more Bible stories than you ever heard
before.
2 David had a slingshot ; a funny little cuss.
Along came Goliath, just a-pining for a ftiss.
David saw he'd have to fight or else he'd have to dust,
So he grabbed him up a col)ble stone and Inisted in his
crust.
3 K\e had an ai)i)le. She cut it in two.
She gave Adam half, and that wouldn't do.
Cain fired up, got mad mighty c[uick.
So he slapped old Abel in the neck with a brick.
4 I thank you for your kindness and your \ery kind ajjplause.
I cannot sing for yott any more becatise — l)ecause —
because —
There's more upon the i)rogram. but I fear 1 am a bore.
The really truly reason is, I don't know any more.
'If Religion Was a Thing That Money Could Buy.' Contril)uted l)y
J. C. Paisley. Date and region not noted on tlie manuscript. This is
a Negro version, somewhat different in temper and with a quite different
chorus ; yet stanzas 2 and 5 are tlie same as stanziis i and 3 of B.
I If religion was a thing that money could buy •
The Jews would live and the Irish die.
Ain't I glad that this ain't so !
Dis ole nigger gunter stand a little show.
402 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
C liorus:
Live a humble, live a hunihle.
Live a humble till I die.
2 Adam was the first man that was ever invented.
Den come Eve and den he was contented.
'Long come Noah fumbling in the dark.
He grabbed up a hammer and built himself a ark.
3 Den come the animals two by two,
De hippopotumus, de kik kangaroo.
Den come de monkey, den come de bar.
Den come de elephant without any bar.
4 Next come de whale ; he was a snorter.
He grabbed old Jonah right under the water.
Three days and three nights he was a-getting mighty rank.
And he fired old Jonah right out on the bank.
5 Eve she had an api)le ; she cut it in two.
She gave Abel half. Well, that wouldn't do;
Cain fired up, he got mad mighty quick.
He soaked old Abel in the neck with a brick.
D
'Adam Wa.s the First Man." From Mr. Southgate Jones of Durham in
1920. He writes : "Some fifteen years ago I used to hear sung several
verses which began with
Adam was the first man ever was invented ;
Me lived in a mud house all contented.
"Long came brother Xoali stumbling in the dark.
lie got a hammer "n nails and built him an ark."
E
'Walk in the Parlor." Ccmtrihuted l)y Laura M. Cromartie of Garland.
Sampson county. Not dated.
The creeks all muddy, the ponds all dry,
'T wasn't for the tadpoles we'd all die.
J'irsf chorus:
Walk in, walk in. walk in, I say,
Walk in de ])arlor and hear de banjo play ;
Walk in de parlor and hear de banjo ring.
\\ atch a nigger finger while he pick upon a string.
Second chorus:
Walk in. walk in, walk in, 1 say.
Walk in de parlor and hear de banjo play.
Dere's a little ash cake an' not a bit of fat ;
The white folks '11 grumble if vou eat luuch of dat.
S A T I k I C A I. S () \ C. S 403
'Walk ill tlic Parlor." Contrilnitt-d by Jennie Belvin of Dnrliani in July
1922. Only fonr lines.
Walking and a-walking
-\nd a-walking, I say,
W alking in the parlor
I^'ur to hear the banjo i)lay,
342
PrKACIIKR in the F^ULl'IT
Except for the pos.sible .seriou.sness of its tone, this song resembles
some social songs in White ANFS 308, 367.
'Oh, Lordy, Come This A-Way.' From Miss Luna Weaver, Piney
Creek, Alleghany county: undated, but c. 1921-22. Phonograph record-
ing, Piney Creek, N. C, 1922.
Preacher in the pulpit, l>ible in his hand.
Preacher in the pulpit, Bible in his hand.
Preacher in the pulpit, Bible in his hand ;
Devil in the meal-sack, shaking out bran.
Oh, Lordy, come this a-way.
Oh, Lordy, come this a-vvay,
Oh, Lordy, come this a-way.
Never let the . . . you a-way.
343
Preacher's in de Pulpit
The first stanza is of the pattern parodied in songs reported by
White ANFS 308, 367. The chorus corresponds to 'Fm Going to
Land on the Shore,' Jackson WNS 205.
'Preacher's in de Pulpit.' From Julian P. Boyd, as collected from
Ruby Casey, a pupil in the school at Alliance, Pamlico county ; undated,
but c. 1927-28. "Negro fragment."
I Preacher's in de pulpit,
Preachin' mighty bold.
Preachin' fur de money
T(j save de sinner's soul.
Chorus:
Fm gwine de land on de sho',
I'm gwine de land on de sho',
I'm gwine de land on de she',
And rest forevermo'.
404 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
2 When I gits in 1 k-bcn,
Want you to be there too;
When I say, 'Thank God,'
1 want vou to sav so too.
344
Wait on de Lord
This is marked: "Nesro fragment?" Dr. White notes: "Stanzas
_' and 3 are adapted into Negro song from wliite spirituals. Stanza
,^ is a variation of
I'm Mttliodist Ixini and Methodist bred,
And wlicn I die I'm a Methodist dead,
which enters tlie University of North Carohna coHege song [chorus
of 'Hark the Sound of Tar Heel Voices'] by substituting 'Tar
Heel' for 'Methodist.'" Cf. 'Baptist. Baptist Is' My Name,' in the
present collection.
'Wait on de Lord.' From Julian P. Boyd, Alliance, Pamlico county ;
undated, but c. 1927-28.
1 I wonder where is Spencer gone,
That used to preach up town.
The church is all in mourning.
And Spencer can't be found.
Chorus:
I'm waitin' on de Lord.
Wait on de Lord, wait, wait.
Wait on de Lord.
2 Some .says John de Baptist
is nothing but a Jew.
The Holy l>ible tells us
He was a preacher too.
3 A P)a])tist, I>aptist is my name,
And a Baptist will 1 die.
ni l)e a Uaptist in the l>aptist C"hiu-ch
.And eat all the baptist pie.
345
I Ni:\i:r Will Ti'kx Hack Aw AIokf.
'i'hc song evidently belongs to the class which White, in ANFS
130- 1, calls "upstart crows," i.e., pieces mildly ridiculing religious
fervor or burles(|uing well-known songs of spiritual experience.
Refrain and chorus and "1 went down in the meadow for to pray"
are taken from serious spirituals. Cf. 'No More! No More!' in
this collection.
S A T I 1< 1 (.■ A I. S O N C; S 405
'1 Never Will 'rurn l?ack Any More' Vroiu MSS of G. S. R()l)ins(in,
Ashevillc, August 4, 1939.
1 W'lu'ii 1 was a hoy I had a liltU- nnile
That 1 always rode to Sunday School.
Lord. I never will turn hack any more.
2 I rode that mule to church one day.
And that old mule "ot in an awful way.
Lord. I never will turn hack any more.
Chorus:
Any more, my Lord, any more, my Lord,
Lord, I'll never turn hack any more.
3 I went down in the meadow for to pray,
I met old Satan on the way.
Lord, ril never turn hack any more.
4 1 turned around to run my hest,
And run my head in a hornet's nest.
Lord, ril never turn back any more.
346
Jonah and the Whale
There is some evidence that songs about Jonah and the wliale
have been sung as serious spirituals. White (ANFS 98-9) in-
cludes some versions as religious songs and cites W. E. Barton's
inclusion of it in Old Plantation Hymns (New York, 1899). But
most of White's versions and those in other printed collections
indicate that it has been sung chiefly as a "coon" or college glee-
club number. Such would seem to be the tone and usage of the
following versions.
A
'Jonah and the Whale.' With mnsic. From R. A. Swaringen, Trinity
College stndent (A.B. 1925?, Duke University summer school 1929,
1031, 1933). Kannapolis, Cabarrus county. Typescript, with two AISS
in Dr. Brown's hand.
( )h. for three long days and three long nights
Jonah lay in the helly of the whale.
Spewed him up in a sandy place.
The sun was a-shinin' right down in Jonah's face.
Well, a gourd vine growed up and around.
Along come a little worm and cut him down.
Now. wasn't that a cross on Jonah's little crown?
Chorus:
Living hunihle. humhle, hunihle,
Living humble all your days.
406 NORTH CAROLINA FOLKLORE
B
'Jonah and the Whale.' With music. From Misses Hallie and Jean
Holeman, Durham, 1922. Phonograph recording, Durham, N. C, 1922.
1 [Not recalled.]
Chorus:
Humble, humble, humble my soul,
An' de bell done rung.
2 Dey throwed Brer Jonah right over de board,
An' a big fish swallowed Brer Jonah whole.
3 Brer Jonah he prayed to de Lord fer Ian',
An' he heave Brer Jonah right on dry san'.
4 Brer Jonah he prayed to de Lord fer shade.
An' de gourd vine growed right over his haid.
'Jonah and the Whale." From Julian P. Boyd, as collected from Alinnie
Lee. a pupil in Alliance, Pamlico county ; undated, hut c. 1927-28. Dr.
White notes : "Mixes Jonah with the traditional gospel train and gospel
ship." This corresponds in part to 'Jonah and the Whale' in Randolph
OFS in 368-9. Randolph notes that three stanzas and the chorus of
his song appeared in Haiiiliii's Wizard Oil Soiujbook. 1897.
1 Old Jonah like a fool
Got as stubborn as a mule !
But the whale made him (|uiokly disajjpcar.
Jonah took out his razor
And cut the whale in two ;
He floated to the shore on his ear.
Chorus:
Hide away, hide away.
For there ain't no use
To try to hide away !
Put your l)aggage on the deck.
And don't forget yoiu- check.
For you stay in the boat.
There aint' no use tryin' to hide away !
2 ( )h, let me tell you boys.
You had better look out,
F"or the opposition l)oat am a-runnin' too;
For the boiler am a-liablc
To bust at any time
.And cook you Niggers up in a stew !
S A T 1 K 1 f A I, S N C S 4^7
D
'Jonah and the Whale' From Miss Fanccttc (no other information).
1 The whale he, yes. he did,
The whale he. no, he di(hi't.
The whale he swalltnved Jonah,
The whale he swallowed Jonah,
The whale he swallowed Jonah down.
2 He spit him np, yes, he did.
He spit him up, no, he didn't.
He spit him up on some sandy.
He spit him up on some sandy.
He spit him up on some sandy land.
3 The gourd vine, yes, he did.
The gourd vine, no, he didn't.
The gourd vine growed around Jonah's,
The gourd vine growed around Jonah's,
The gourd vine growed around Jonah's head.
4 The greedy worm, yes, he did.
The greedy worm, no, he didn't.
The greedy worm come along and cut it,
The greed}' worm come along and cut it.
The greedy worm come along and cut it down.
'Jonah.' From Mrs. J. W. Barbee, Durham; undated. The repetitions
shown in stanza i are continued throughout.
1 A whale did, oh, yes, he did,
A whale did, I know he did,
A whale did swallow Brother Jonias down.
A whale did, oh, yes, he did,
A whale did. 1 know he did,
A whale did swallow Brother Jonias,
A whale did swallow Brother Jonias down.
2 He throwed him up, oh, yes, he did.
He throwed him up on some sand}' land.
3 A gourd vine, oh, yes, it was,
A gourd vine growed round Jonias' head.
4 A greedy worm, oh, yes, it was,
A greedy worm came along and cut it down.
F
No title. From an anonymous contributor, without indication of date
and address. This is one form familiar in college glee-chib and other
humorous adaptations.
408 X (t R T II t" A R L 1 N A K O L K L R K
A whale did. a whale did.
A whale did swallow J. j. Jonah.
A whale did swallow J. J. Jonah.
A whale did swallnw hmah down.
347
Jesus Lover of My Soul
White, wlio puhlislied tlie text ( witliout music i in ANFS 133.
noted that it is a parody of a familiar liymn.
'Jesus Lover of My Soul." From K. W. l.itaker, Trinity College stu-
dent, December 5, 1919, witli music and note : "Heard in Cabarrus
county."
Jestis, lover of my sonl.
Set me on top of telegram pole.
When the pole begins to break
Take me down for Jesus' sake.
34S
P)OB Tngersoll and the Devil
Though we think tlie song is of minstrel or vaudeville origin,
we have not found it elsewhere. It is in different meter from
'Shinbone Alley.' No. 422.
No title. Contril)uted. witliout record of date and address, by William
C. Cumming. with the fdllowing note : "In my efforts to discover folk-
lore I was given a song that was said to be used at Negro camp meet-
ings (in Pirunswick Co.) a good many years ago. There are some
things about it that are indeed characteristic of Negro songs, but the
utter inconsistency of the meter shows that it has lost much in trans-
mission. It is said to be sung to the tune of 'Shin Bone Alley,' what-
ever that may be, and is as follows."
Some dese days gwine hit 'ini.
Ingersoll sing anndder song
\\ hen de dehbill git "im.
Debbil watch fo' sich as him.
Ketch 'im in de cnllar.
Choke 'im black an" hit "ini blini.
Butt "im till he holler.
Debbil stand kimbo straight.
Laugh at Ing'soll jirancin',
Stan' 'im in a red hot ])late.
I *at while I'.ob'.s adancin'.
SATIRICAL S N C S
4OC)
349
Lord, I Nfa'kr W'li.i. C'o.mk IJack IIi'-.rk No Mo'
From Miss Jewell Robljiiis, Pckin, .Montgimicry county (later Mrs.
C. B. Perdue). July 1922, with music. The first stanza is found in a
spiritual in this collection.
1 .Some <)' (k'se (l;i\'s ;il)<)iit twtJvc- o'clock,
Dis old worl's a gwi' reel and rock.
Lawd. I neber will come back bere no more.
Chorus:
No no', my Lawd ;
No mo", my Lawd;
I nebber come back bere no mo'.
2 \\ av down yonder about Arkansas
De niggers ain't a-arguin' a tiling but wa'.