Sailor Boy's Request- Burns c.1865 (Sailor's Grave/ Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie)
THE SAILOR BOY'S REQUEST
"Oh, bury me not in the deep, deep sea,
These words came low and mournfully,
From the pallid lips of a youth who lay,
on the cabin couch at the close of day.
He had wasted and pined till oter hls brow
The death shade had slowly passed. And now,
$lhen the l and and the home of hl s fr.lends were nlgh,
They had gathered around to see hln dlo.
" 0h, bury me not in the deep, deep sea,
Yilhere the blIlowy ghroud wlll roll o t er me i
No llght wtII broak through the darkrcold, wave,
No swrbea& reg.t, upon ny grsve.rt
4. "It matters not , I have oft' been told,
where the boqy lleg when the heart grows cold
But, grant, 0 grant, thi s boon to me
0h, bury me not. ln the deep , deep sea."
5. t'In f ancy I I ve llgtened to the song of blrds
To t,he free, wlld rlnds and well known words :
I have thought of home i of cot and bower l:
And o,f, scenes I loved ln chlldhood t g hour . tr
6. " I had alway s hoped. to be ald when I dled
In the church yard tiiere on the green h111 slde
BJ' the bones of qy fathers ny grave ehould be i
0h , bury ne no t ln the deep , de ep $ & . tr
7 , t'Let nS d,e ath slumber be where a nnother t s prajrer
Ind a sl eter I s tear may be nalngled there i
l,et, ne lle where ttroso lovecl gnes w111 weep o t er nne
0h, 't:ury gie not ln tlre deep r deep gee,. rl
ttoh, lt worrld be sweet, er the heart tlrob ls otern
Tc know when tts fountalns shall gush no more t
TI'at, tlrose tt so fondly had yearned for w111 co&e
To plant the ftrst flowers of sprlng on my tonnb.H
"And tliere ls another whose tears w111 be shed
For hlnn who lles far ln an ocean bed ;
Iri hours t,hat lt palns r t,o thlnk of now
Slie hath turned tkieso locks anci kl Esed thl s brow " rl
10, t' Iri the halr she hath wreathed shall the sea snake nl.ss
And the brcw she hath pressed shall the cold waves ktss
For the salre of that brtght one whc walts for me
0h, bury me not ln tlre deep , deep s &, rl
11. " She hath been in my dreanrs --rt Hts volce f alled thero,
Stlll thoy.gave no heed to hls dylng prayer :
They lowered hln slow o'er the vesselfs sLde,
And above liln: closed the darkrccld tlde.
12" Where to dlp thelr llght wlngs the sea fowls rest,
And the blue waves dance orei the ooeanrs crest i
VJhere the b11lows bound and the wlndg eport free,
They burl ed h1m ti:ore ln the deep , deep se a ,
Thl s song was f ound among tfie p apers of ldrs . A,nanda
McDowell Burns r flr aunt of, L "L.lvfcDowell , born ln the
1840's and dled a few years ago.
It was wrltten by hor shortly after the War Eetween The States; probably copied from a paper.
both L.L.[icDowell and hins. MeDowell rer.ember ttre
sor6 and l ts tune as being sung lty nurnbens of people
with whon they were associated in chlldhood.
The above notatton 1s from theJ.r ldentlcal nomory .
The not atlon sonsldere the ecale a gapped nlnor,
but the fr at ln the slgnature glven ls-u-sbless , eince
the note on tlrat degree ls absent. rt nay be orrltted
and the tune congldered a Dorlan, though the wrlter
thlnks lt ratlrer as wrl tten , f,or reasons .