Chapter III: Front Matter (3)

No. 19
ORPHAN GIRL, CSH 506

Pentatonic, mode 3 (I II III -- V VI --)

[Music]

"No home, no home", plead a little girl,
At the door of a princely hall,
As she trembling stood on the polish'd step,
And lean'd on the marble wall.

"My father, alas, I never knew",
And a tear dimmed her eyes so bright;
"My mother sleeps in a new-made grave,
'Tis an orphan begs tonight".

Her clothes were thin and her feet were bare,
But the snow had covered her head;
"O! give me a home", she feebly said,
"A home and a bit of bread".

The night was dark and the snow fell fast,
But the rich man closed his door;
And his proud face frowned as he scornfully said:
"No room, no bread for the poor".

The morning dawned, and the orphan girl
Still lay at the rich man's door;
But her soul had fled to a home above,
Where there's room and bread for the poor.

The Cooper edition of the _Sacred Harp_ gives the note: "Music by Eld. C. G. Keith, Nov. 1, 1906." See Henry, JAFL, vl., 66f, for further references as to its occurrence. The tune is a derivative of 'The Braes o' Balquidder'. See 'Lone Pilgrim' for references to related tunes in this collection.

No. 20
PARALYTIC, REV 4

Heptatonic aeolian; mode 4 a + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)

[Music]

Review the palsied sinner's case
Who sought for help in Jesus;
His friends conveyed him to the place
Where he might meet with Jesus.
A multitude were thronging round
To keep them back from Jesus;
But from the roof they let him down,
Before the face of Jesus.

Thus fainting souls by sin diseased,
There's none can save but Jesus;
With more than plague or palsy seized
Oh! help them on to Jesus.
Oh! Savior, hear their mournful cry,
And tell them thou art Jesus;
Oh! speak the word, or they must die,
And bid farewell to Jesus.

Now let them hear thy voice declare,
Thou sin-forgiving Jesus,
That thou didst die to hear their prayer,
And give them help in Jesus.
The great Physician now is near,
The sympathizing Jesus;
He speaks the drooping heart to cheer,
Oh! hear the voice of Jesus.

All glory to the dying Lamb,
I now believe in Jesus;
I love the blessed Savior's name,
I love the name of Jesus.
And when to that bright world above
We rise to see our Jesus,
We'll sing around the throne of love
The blessed name of Jesus.

The author of the text is given as Wm. Hunter. The tune is a variant of 'London Pride', Sharp, _Morris Dances_, Set vii, No. 6. Its proper mode would seem to be dorian and its correct signature therefore one flat.

No. 21
VILLULIA or BARTIMEUS, OSH 331

Pentatonic, mode 4 (I II -- IV V -- 7)

[Music]

Mercy, O thou son of David,
Thus poor blind Bartimeus pray'd;
Others by thy grace are saved,
Now to me afford thine aid.

Money was not what he wanted,
Though by begging used to live;
But he asked and Jesus granted
Alms which none but he could give.

"Lord, remove this grievous blindness;
Let mine eyes behold the day."
Straight he saw and, won by kindness,
Followed Jesus by the way.

Tune attributed to J. M. Day, a Georgian. Doubt as to the correctness of this source is cast by the appearance of both tune and text in the _Christian Lyre_ of 1830, No. 4. Variants are 'Invocation', GOS 67, and 'Lord Revive Us', PB 198. The _Sacred Harp_ editor evidently looked upon this tune as one in _a_-minor, whereas it is probably a dorian melody with _f_-sharp as its tonic, and should have also a _d_-sharp in its key signature.

No. 22
MOULDERING VINE, UH 101

Heptatonic aeolian, mode 4 a + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)

[Music]

Hail! ye sighing sons of sorrow,
Learn from me your certain doom;
Learn from me your fate tomorrow,
Dead perhaps laid in your tomb.
See all nature fading,
dying, silent all things seem to pine;
Life from vegetation flying,
Brings to mind the mould'ring vine!

See in yonder forest standing
Lofty cedars, how they nod!
Scenes of nature how surprising,
Read in nature, nature's God.
Whilst the annual frosts are cropping
Leaves and tendrils from the trees,
So, our friends are early dropping,
We are like to one of these.

Hollow winds about me roaring,
Noisy waters round me rise,
Whilst I sit my fate deploring,
Tears fast streaming from mine eyes.
What to me is autumn's treasure,
Since I know no earthly joy?
Long I've lost all youthful pleasure,
Time must youth and health destroy.

The tune was recorded, from oral tradition evidently, by William Caldwell (of eastern Tennessee) in the 1830's. His source was doubtless some variant of 'Banks of Inverary'. Cf. JFSS, viii., 198.

The unique opening melodic phrase is to be found also in 'Young Beeham' or 'Ship's Carpenter', Cox 528. Another tune variant in the fasola environment is 'Sons of Sorrow', OSH 332.

No. 23
CONVERTED THIEF (A), COH 147

Hexatonic, mode 4 A (I II -- IV V VI 7)

[Music]

As on the cross the Savior hung
And wept and bled and died,
He pour'd salvation on a wretch
That languish'd at his side.

His crimes with inward grief and shame,
The penitent confess'd
Then turn'd his dying eyes on Christ
And thus his prayer address'd.

The poem, given in full under 'Converted Thief (B)', is attributed to Stennett. William Moore of Tennessee, compiler of _Columbian Harmony_, lays claim to the tune, and probably did record it from oral sources. Found also SOH 9, OSH 44, GOS 140. The tune is a member of the 'Hallelujah' family. See the song with that title in this collection.

No. 24
TENNESSEE, HH 140

Hexatonic, mode 3 A (I II III -- V VI VII)

[Music]

Afflictions, though they seem severe,
In mercy oft are sent;
They stopp'd the prodigal's career
And caus'd him to repent.

Although he no relenting felt,
Till he had spent his store;
His stubborn heart began to melt,
When famine pinched him sore.

"What have I gained by sin?" he said,
"But hunger, shame, and fear?
My father's house abounds with bread,
While I am starving here.

"I'll go and tell him all I've done
And fall before his face;
Unworthy to be called his son,
I'll seek a servant's place."

His father saw him coming back;
He saw and ran and smiled,
And threw his arms around the neck
Of his repenting child.

"Father, I've sinned, but O forgive!"
"Enough," the father said;
"Rejoice, my house, my son's alive,
For whom I mourned as dead.

"Now let the fatted calf be slain;
Go spread the news around;
My son was dead, but lives again,
Was lost, but now is found."

'Tis thus the Lord his love reveals,
To call his children home;
More than a father's love he feels,
And bids the needy come.

The tune is a member of the 'Roll Jordan' family which is described under the song by that name in this collection. The 'Tennessee' tune's resemblance to Foster's 'Susanna' is evident. The melody, or some near relative of it, may well have furnished Foster with his inspiration in composing the latter. It had been sung widely in America for at least fifty years before the Pittsburgh composer published his minstrel song. (See the author's article 'Stephen Foster's Debt to American Folk-Song', _The Musical Quarterly_, xxii., No. 2.)

That the 'Tennessee' tune was "unwritten music" in the South, and therefore free for all, is indicated by the many claimants to its authorship; Chapin, J. Robertson, L. P. Breedlove, William C. Davis, and William Walker were among them. In various forms and with different texts the tune is found also, CHI 84 (published in 1805), SKH 23, GCM 134, SOH 28, GOS 229, HOC 114, WP 96, TZ 94, SOC 78, SOC 81, SOC 145, SOH 105, OSH 501, SKH 23. The second part of the tune is similar to 'Jamaica', Sharp, _Country Dances_, Set IV, No. 12.

No. 25
FAREWELL, HOC 32

Hexatonic, mode 3 b (I II III IV V VI --)

[Music]

The time is swiftly rolling on,
When I must faint and die,
My body to the dust return,
And there forgotten lie,
And there forgotten lie,
And there forgotten lie,
My body to the dust return,
And there forgotten lie.

Through heats and colds I've ofttimes went,
I've wandered in despair,
To call poor sinners to repent
And seek their Savior dear.

My brother preachers, boldly speak
And stand on Zion's wall;
Confirm the drunk, confirm the weak
And after sinners call.

My loving wife, my bosom friend,
The object of my love,
The time's been sweet I've spent with you,
My sweet and harmless dove.

My little children near my heart
My warm affections know.
Fer each the path will I attend.
O from them can I go?!

O God, a father to them be
And keep them from all harm,
That they may love and worship Thee
And dwell upon thy charm.

How often you have looked fer me
And often seen me come;
But now I must depart from thee
And nevermore return.

My loving wife, don't grieve fer me,
Neither lament nor mourn;
Fer I will with my Jesus be,
And dwell upon his charm.

The tune is attributed in the _Harp of Columbia_ to W. Atchley. It belongs to what I have called (Introduction, p. 14) the 'Hallelujah' type of melody. See 'Hallelujah' for other related spiritual tunes. A secular song using the same melodic formula is 'Virginia Lover', Sharp, ii., 150. The text of 'Farewell' is recorded from oral tradition and reproduced from _White Spirituals_, 202. See 'Hicks' Farewell' in this collection as to the authorship of the words.

No. 26
WICKED POLLY, WS 190

Hexatonic mode 4, b (I II 3 IV V -- 7)

[Music]

Young people who delight in sin,
I'll tell you what has lately been:
A woman who was young and fair
Died in sin and deep despair.

For the full text and much data as to the source and occurrence of this song, see _White Spirituals_, 189-193. A tune variant is 'Supplication', in this collection. Another is 'Lord Bateman', Sharp _One Hundred English Folksongs_, No. 6.

No. 27
MOSES

Hexatonic, mode 1 A (I II III IV V VI --)

[Music]

An' Phareoh's daughter went down to thee water
An' foun' there thee beauteeful child,
Among thee tall bushes thee reeds an' thee rushes
Thee babee look'd sweetlee an' smil'd.

Recorded from singing of Miss Will Allen Dromgoole, Nashville, Tennessee, as she remembered it sung in 1890 by Mr. Tate, stage driver from Beersheba to Beersheba Springs on Cumberland Mountain in Tennessee. The unusual spelling is an attempt at reproducing the emphatic rhythmic pronunciation of Mr. Tate. The one stanza given above was all Miss Dromgoole remembered. The full text, however, was recorded by Mr. Fred Haun of Newport, Tennessee, from the singing of his mother, Mrs. Maggie Haun, and placed at my disposal by Miss Mildred Haun, his sister. This rather defective text is as follows:

The ladies were wending their way
As Pharo's daughter stepped down to the water
To bathe in the cool of the day.
Before it was dark she opened the ark
And found the sweet infant was there.

She took him in pity and thought him so pretty;
That made little Moses so glad.
She called him her own, her beautiful son,
And sent for a nurse that was near.

By the side of the river so clear
They carried that beautiful child
To his own tender mother, his sister and brother;
Little Moses looked happy and smiled.

His mother so good done all that she could
To hear [rear?] him and teach him with care.
Then away by the sea that was red
Stood Moses the servant of God.

While in him confided the deed [sea ?] was divided
While upward he lifted his rod.
The Jews safely crossed while Pharo's host
Was drounded in the water and lost.

Then away by the mountain so high
Stood Moses with trembling an' awe;
With lightning and thunder, great signs and wonders,
While God was giving the law.
He wrote it down on two tables of stone
Before he returned to the sky.

Then away on the mountain so high
Stood the last one he ever might see.
While Isreal victorious, his hope was most gloriest,
Would soon over Jordan be free.
His neighbors did cease, he departed in peace,
And rest-es in heaven above.

No. 28
MOURNER'S LAMENTATION or CHURCH'S DESOLATION, CHH 265

Pentatonic, mode 1 (I II -- IV V VI --)

[Music]

Poor mourning soul in deep distress,
Just waken'd from a slumber,
Who wanders in sin's wilderness,
Out of the condemned number.
The thunder roars from Sinai's mount,
Fills him with awful terror;
And he like nought in God's account,
All drown'd with grief and sorrow.

Oh, woe is me that I was born,
Or after death have being;
Fain would I be some earthly worm,
Which has no future being;
Or had I died when I was young,
Oh, what would I have given!
Then might with babes my little tongue,
Been praising God in heaven.

But now may I lament my case,
Just worn away by trouble;
From day to day I look for peace,
But find my sorrow double.
Cries Satan, "Desp'rate is your state,
Time's been you might repented,
But now you see it is too late,
So make yourself contented!"

How can I live, how can I rest
Under this sore temptation,
Fearing the day of grace is past,
Lord, hear my lamentation!
For I am weary of my life,
My groans and bitter crying;
My wants are great, my mind's in strife,
My spirit's almost dying.

Without relief I soon shall die,
No hope of getting better;
Show pity, Lord, and hear the cry
Of a distress-ed sinner.
For I'm resolv-ed here to trust
At thy footstool for favor,
Pleading for life, though death be just,
Make haste, Lord, to deliver.

"Come, hungry, weary, naked soul,
For such I ne'er rejected;
My righteousness sufficient is,
Though you have long neglected.
Come, weary soul, for right you have,
I am such soul's protector;
My honor is engaged to save
All under this character.

"I came to seek, I came to save,
I came to make atonement,
I lived, I died, laid in the grave
To save you from the judgment."
By faith, my glorious Lord I see;
Oh, how it doth amaze me
To see him bleeding on the tree,
From death and hell to raise me.

The above homespun text points to the rural preacher or revival song leader of the late eighteenth century as its source. It is a conversion story in dramatic form, the Savior, the Sinner and the Devil having parts in the drama.

The earliest known occurrence of the tune is in the Vermont book, Ingalls' _Christian Harmony_ of 1805, p. 77. In the _Sacred Harp_ of 1844, p. 89, it is found with a different text and is entitled 'Church's Desolation'. It is claimed there by J. T. White, and in the _Christian Harmony_ of 1866, by William Walker. Both were South Carolinians, from which territory Reed Smith recorded the tune in 1913 as one of the 'Barbara Allen' settings; SCB 130. This tune was probably adopted for 'Church's Desolation' and for the 'Barbara Allen' ballad from the Scotch ballad 'Wae's me for Prince Charlie'. See Kennedy's _Handbook of Scottish Song_, p. 20. The London _Era_ in the early 1860's speaks of this as the "celebrated Jacobite song." The 'Prince Charlie' of the song is Charles II of England. Hence the song, the text at least, is nearly 300 years old. The same tune is used also for 'Geordie', _Last Leaves_, p. 133; 'Locks and Bolts', Sharp, ii., 19; 'Lazarus', Sharp, ii., 30; an old Irish tune in Petrie, No. 363; 'Johnny Fa'', SMM, No. 62; and 'Hynd Horn', Motherwell, Appendix, _Musick_, No. 13.

The noted composer of hymn tunes, J. B. Dykes, was influenced by the 'Prince Charlie' melody in the building up of 'Lindisfarne'; see _Hymns Ancient and Modern_, No. 156, second tune.

No. 29
ADDRESS FOR ALL, CHH 101

Hexatonic, mode 1 b (I II -- IV V VI 7)

[Music]

I sing a song which doth belong
To all the human race,
Concerning death which steals the breath
And blasts the comely face.
Come listen all unto my call
Which I do make to day,
For you must die as well as I,
And pass from hence away.

No human power can stop the hour
Wherein a mortal dies;
A Caesar may be great today,
Yet death will close his eyes.
Though some do strive and do arrive
To riches and renown,
Enjoying health and swim in wealth,
Yet death will bring them down.

Though beauty grace your comely face
With roses white and red,
A dying fall will spoil it all,
For Absalom is dead.
Though you acquire the best attire,
Appearing fine and fair,
Yet death will come into the room
And strip you naked there.

The princes high and beggars die
And mingle with the dust,
The rich, the brave, the negro slave,
The wicked and the just.
Therefore prepare to meet thy God
Before it be too late,
Or else you'll weep, lament and cry,
Lost in a ruin'd state.

William Walker claims this song. See 'Church's Desolation', a variant of the tune, for source references. See also 'Sweet William and Lady Margery' (Wyman and Brockway, p. 94) for a secular tune variant.

No. 30
CONDESCENSION, GOS 656

Hexatonic, mode 1 b (I II -- IV V VI 7)

[Music]

How condescending and how kind
Was God's eternal Son!
Our mis'ry reach'd his heav'nly mind
And pity brought him down.

When justice by our sins provoked,
Drew forth its dreadful sword,
He gave his soul up to the stroke,
Without a murmuring word.

Here we behold his bowels roll,
As kind as when he died;
And see the sorrows of his soul
Bleed through his wounded side.

This was compassion like a God,
That when the Savior knew
The price of pardon was his blood,
His pity ne'er withdrew.

Now though he reigns exalted high,
His love is still as great;
Well he remembers Calvary,
Nor let his saints forget.

Here let our hearts begin to melt,
While we his death record,
And with our joy for pardoned guilt,
Mourn that we pierced the Lord.

The words are attributed to Isaac Watts. I have supplied the second and third stanzas from _The Olive Leaf_, p. 129. The tune is from the eighteenth century; found also OSH 286, PB 38, HH 63, UHH 13. The tune's frame is found with the text of 'Good Morning, My Pretty Little Miss', Sharp, ii., 90, also in 'Ibby Damsel', Sharp, ii., 137. I surmise that we have, in the last line of the second stanza above, the source of the negro spiritual refrain:

An' he never said a mumblin' word.

No. 31
GOOD PHYSICIAN, SOH 49

Pentatonic, mode 2 (I -- 3 IV V -- 7)

[Music]

How lost was my condition,
Till Jesus made me whole;
There is but one Physician
Can cure a sin-sick soul.
Next door to death he found me,
And snatch'd me from the grave,
To tell to all around me,
His wondrous pow'r to save.

The worst of all diseases
Is light compared with sin;
On every part it seizes,
But rages most within.
'Tis palsy, plague, and fever,
And madness, all combin'd;
And none but a believer
The least relief can find.

From men great skill professing,
I thought a cure to gain;
But this proved more distressing
And added to my pain.
Some said that nothing ail'd me.
Some gave me up for lost;
Thus every refuge fail'd me,
And all my hopes were cross'd.

At length this great Physician
(How matchless is his grace!)
Accepted my petition
And undertook my case.
First gave me sight to view him,
For sin my eyes had seal'd;
Then bid me look unto him,
I look'd, and I was heal'd.

A dying, risen Jesus,
Seen by the eye of faith,
At once from anguish frees us
And saves the soul from death.
Come, then, to this Physician,
His help he'll freely give;
He makes no hard condition,
'Tis only--look and live.

This tune is found also in GOS, No. 227. A remake is in OSH 176. It is 'Banks of Sweet Dundee', Sharp i., 399. Related also to 'Pinery Boy', Shoemaker, 262; and 'Virginian Lover', Sharp, ii., 150. The negro song 'Sin-Sick Soul', SS, No. 66, is based textually and melodically on the above song.

No. 32
LOOK OUT or WHEN I WAS YOUNG, OSH 90

Hexatonic, mode 3 A (I II III -- V VI VII)

[Music]

When I was young of tender years,
My Savior did arrest me;
I then was fill'd with many fears,
But Satan still did tempt me.
He told me that I was too young
To leave my earthly pleasure;
That I might live till I was old,
And serve God at my leisure.

Again the spirit came one day
With his almighty power,
Which caused me to forsake my way
And tremble every hour;
And he caused me to weep and mourn,
Saying, Lord Jesus, save me,
If mercy thou canst me afford,
And to thy glory raise me.

When Jesus heard the rebel cry,
He sent his kind compassion;
Down at his feet my soul did lie,
There pleading for a blessing.
My heart was filled with tenderness.
My mouth was filled with praises,
While Abba, Father, I did cry,
And glory to my Savior.

B. F. White, compiler of the _Sacred Harp_, is given as the composer. It is dated 1842. The text is supplied from _Good Old Songs_, No. 154. A secular setting is 'Three Crows', Davis, p. 562, tune "P". Both 'Look Out' and 'Three Crows' are adaptations of 'Ye Banks and Braes', or 'Bonnie Doon', see Kennedy, _Handbook of Scottish Song_, p. 27. In _Church Harmony_, p. 134, we find the 'Bonnie Doon' tune in its original form under the little 'Star of Bethlehem'. A variant tune in this collection is ''Tis a Wonder'.

No. 33
SAINT'S REQUEST, OSH 286

Pentatonic, mode 3 (I II III -- V VI --)

[Music]

Young people all attention give
And hear what I shall say;
I wish your souls with Christ to live,
In everlasting day.
I want you to go to that bright world,
To dwell with saints forever there.

The _Sacred Harp_ gives but one stanza of this ballad. The rest of the text is to be found in _Zion Songster_. The tune is widely used among the secular ballads. See 'Barbara Allen', Sharp, i., 183; 'Geordie', Sharp, i., 240; 'False Young Man', Sharp, ii., 52; 'Lord Thomas and Fair Eleanor', Smith, 115; 'True Lover's Farewell', Sharp, ii., 114; 'Lizzie Wan', Sharp, i., 89; and 'Little Musgrave and Lady Barnard', Sharp, i., 164 and 166.

No. 34
NEWBERRY or LONESOME GROVE, SOC 131

Pentatonic, mode 3 (I II III -- V VI --)

[Music]

One day while in a lonesome grove,
Sat o'er my head a little dove;
For her lost mate began to coo,
Which made me think of my mate too.

Ah! little dove, you're not alone,
For I, like you, can only mourn;
I once, like you, did have a mate,
But now, like you, am desolate.

Consumption seized my love severe
And preyed upon her one long year,
Till death came at the break of day,
And my poor Mary he did slay.

Her sparkling eyes and blooming cheeks
Withered like the rose and died;
The arms that once embraced me round
Lie mould'ring under the cold ground.

But death, grim death, did not stop here;
I had one child, to me most dear;
He, like a vulture, came again
And took from me my little Jane.

But, bless the Lord, his word is given,
Declaring babes are heirs of heaven.
Then cease, my heart, to mourn for Jane,
Since my small loss is her great gain.

I have a hope that cheers my breast,
To think my love has gone to rest;
For while her dying tongue could move,
She praised the Lord for pardoning love.

Shout on, ye heavenly pow'rs above,
While I this lonesome desert rove;
My master's work will soon be done,
And then I'll join you in your song.

O hasten on that happy day,
When I must leave this clod of clay,
And soar aloft o'er yon blest plain
And there meet Mary and my Jane.

The song is attributed in the _Social Harp_ to Wm. C. Davis. The first stanza was evidently inspired by the lines in the traditional English ballad entitled 'Giles Collins', Sharp, i., 196, which reads:

Look away, look away, that lonesome dove
That sails from pine to pine;
It's mourning for its own true love
Just like I mourn for mine.

Four recently recorded (1917 and 1918) variants of the 'Newberry' tune, with one stanza of text each are in Sharp, ii., 197f. See also JAFL, xxv., 276. 'Lonesome Dove', Thomas, 162, has the same text but a different tune. 'Heavenly Dove' in this collection is a variant tune, but it is more closely related to the 'Barbara Allen' tune in Sharp, i., 183ff. 'Newberry' belongs to the 'Lord Lovel' type of tune mentioned in the Introduction, p. 14. Other melodies of the same type are listed under 'Dulcimer' in this collection.

No. 35
DEEP SPRING or CONVERTED THIEF (B), KNH 90

Pentatonic, mode 3 (I II III -- V VI --)

[Music]

As on the cross the Savior hung, and wept and bled and died,
He pour'd salvation on a wretch that languish'd at his side;
That languish'd at his side,
That languish'd at his side,
He pour'd salvation on a wretch that languish'd at his side.

His crimes, with inward grief and shame, the penitent confess'd;
Then turn'd his dying eyes to Christ and thus his prayer address'd:

"Jesus, thou son and heir of heaven! Thou spotless lamb of God!
I see thee bathed in sweat and tears and welt'ring in thy blood.

"Yet quickly from those scenes of wo, in triumph thou shalt rise,
Burst through the gloomy shades of death and shine above the skies.

"Amid the glories of that world, dear Savior, think on me,
And in the vict'ries of thy death let me a sharer be."

His prayer the dying Jesus hears and instantly replies:
"Today thy parting soul shall be with me in paradise."

The tune is found also UH 89, SOC 249, HOC 93, OSH 44. It is reminiscent of 'Little Musgrave and Lady Barnard', Sharp, i., 166; 'Lord Thomas and Fair Eleanor', Sharp, i., 118; and 'O Land of Rest' in this collection.

No. 36
SALUTATION or GOOD MORNING BROTHER PILGRIM, GOS 298

Hexatonic, mode 2 A (I II 3 IV V -- 7)

[Music]

Good morning, brother pilgrim, What, bound for Canaan's coast?
March you to Jerusalem To join the heav'nly host?
Pray, wherefore are you smiling, While tears run down your face?
We soon shall cease from toiling And reach that heav'nly place;
And reach that heav'nly place,
We soon shall cease from toiling And reach that heav'nly place.

To Canaan's coast we'll hasten, to join the heavenly throng;
Hark, from the banks of Jordan, how sweet the pilgrims' song!
Their Jesus they are viewing, by faith we see him, too,
We smile and weep and praise him, and on our way pursue;
(_repeated as above_)

Though sinners do despise us and treat us with disdain,
Our former comrades slight us, esteem us low and mean;
No earthly joy shall charm us while marching on our way,
Our Jesus will defend us in the distressing day.

The frowns of old companions we're willing to sustain,
And, in divine compassion, to pray for them again;
For Christ, our loving Savior, our Comforter and Friend,
Will bless us with his favor and guide us to the end.

With streams of consolation, we're filled as with new wine,
We die to transient pleasures, and live to things divine,
We sink in holy raptures, while viewing things above,
While, glory to my Savior, my soul is full of love.

This is evidently a marching tune and from the eighteenth century vintage. It occurs also OSH 153, SOC 216, HH 387. 'Walking on the Levy' (Newell, _Games_ _and Songs of American Children_, p. 231) has a similar beginning. Echoes of the text are found in Dett, p. 8:

Good mornin', brother trav'ler,
Pray tell me where you're bound,
I'm bound for Canaan's happy land,
And de enchanted ground.

Stephen Foster's 'Farewell My Lily Dear' and 'The Soldier's Home' show relationship to the tune. (See my article in _The Musical Quarterly_, vol. xxii., No. 2.) For the English source of this _dialogue_ type of song, see the note under 'Warrenton' in this collection.

No. 37
HEAVENLY UNION or EXPERIENCE, REV 42

Heptatonic aeolian, mode 1 A + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)

[Music]

Come, saints and sinners, hear me tell,
The wonders of Immanuel
Who saved me from a burning hell,
And brought my soul with him to dwell,
And gave me heav'nly union.
Union, union,
Who sav'd me from a burning hell,
And brought my soul with him to dwell,
And gave me heav'nly union.

When Jesus saw me from on high,
Beheld my soul in ruin lie,
He looked on me with pitying eye,
And said to me as he passed by:
"With God you have no union."

Then I began to weep and cry;
And looked this way and that to fly;
It grieved me so that I must die;
I strove salvation then to buy,
But still I had no union.

But when I hated all my sin,
My dear Redeemer took me in,
And with his blood he washed me clean;
And oh! what seasons I have seen
Since first I felt this union.

I now with saints can join to sing,
And mount on faith's triumphant wing
And make the heavenly arches ring
With loud hosannas to our King,
Who brought our souls to union.

The tune seems dorian in character. If so classed, the key signature should be natural. A variant of tune and text is in CHI 30 and SWP 69.

No. 38
MARION or I'LL RAMBLE AND I'LL ROVE, SOC 228

Pentatonic, mode 2 (I -- 3 IV V -- 7)

[Music]

I have a loving old father at home,
I've cost him many a tear;
And to make lament to him,
I'll travel ten thousand year.

I'll ramble and I'll rove and I'll call upon my God.
They may all say what they will,
Resolv'd as I am so long as I live,
For to be a rover still.

Further stanzas are made merely by the substitution of "mother" etc. for "father". The song, tune and words, was probably parodied from 'Seven Long Years'. See Sharp, ii., 79. From the latter song I quote the second stanza.

I have a good old father at home,
And I've cost him many a pound,
And now to make amends for this,
I'll travel the whole world round.
_Chorus_
I'll romp and I'll rave, and I'll call for my bode,
They may all say what they will;
Resolved as I am, just as long as I can,
For to drink good liquor still.

Compare also 'Lord Thomas and Fair Eleanor', Sharp, i., 124, tune 'N'. 'Marion' belongs to the 'Babe of Bethlehem' group of tunes. See the song by that title in this collection. 'Kingsfold', No. 270 in the _Christian Science Hymnal_ is the same. In the English _Methodist Hymn Book_, 'Kingsfold' is given as a traditional melody of England. See also Petrie, Nos. 193 and 863.

No. 39
UNION, OSH 116

Heptatonic aeolian, mode 2 A + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)

[Music]

Come, brothers and sisters who love one another
And have done for years that are gone;
How often we've met him in sweet heav'nly union
Which opens the way to God's throne;
With joy and thanksgiving we'll praise him who loved us,
While we run the bright shining way;
Though we part here in body we're bound for one glory,
And bound for each other to pray.

There was Joshua and Joseph, Elias and Moses,
That pray'd, and God heard from his throne;
There was Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and David,
And Solomon, and Stephen, and John,
There was Simeon, and Anna, and I don't know how many,
That pray'd as they journey'd along;
Some cast among lions, some bound with rough irons,
Yet glory and praises they sung.

Some tell us that praying, and also that praising
Is labor that's all spent in vain;
But we have such a witness that God hears with swiftness,
From praying we will not refrain.
There was old father Noah, and ten thousand more,
That witness'd that God heard them pray;
There was Samuel and Hannah, Paul, Silas, and Peter,
And Daniel and Jonah, we'll say.

That God, by his spirit, or an angel doth visit
Their souls and their bodies while praying,
Shall we all go fainting, while they go on praising,
And glorify God in the flame?
God grant us to inherit the same praying spirit,
While we are journeying below,
That when we cease praying, we shall not cease praising,
But round God's white throne we shall bow.

James, editor of the _Original Sacred Harp_, 1911, says: "The hymn is from a very old edition, 1820. It is not in any of the hymn books found since that date." The quick triple time of the tune indicates Irish influence and, probably, source. Similar is 'Royal Band', OSH 360.

As to the remarkable rhyme or assonance in the text--see for example the repeated "o" assonance in the first lines--I am reminded of what Cecil Sharp said of this feature in Anglo-Irish ballads of this sort, namely, that "They imitate with more or less success in an alien tongue the assonantal Gaelic rhymes with which their makers, whether hedge-schoolmasters or peasants, were doubtless familiar." The same metrical trend is in 'Green Grows the Laurel', Sharp, ii., 211.

No. 40
POOR WAYFARING STRANGER, GOS 714

Pentatonic, mode 2 minorized (I -- 3 IV V -- VII)

[Music]

I am a poor wayfaring stranger
While trav'ling through this world of woe,
Yet there's no sickness, toil nor danger
In that bright world to which I go.
I'm going there to see my father,
I'm going there no more to roam;
I'm only going over Jordan,
I'm only going over home.

I know dark clouds will gather round me,
I know my way is rough and steep;
Yet beauteous fields lie just before me
Where God's redeem'd their vigils keep.
I'm going there to see my mother,
She said she'd meet me when I come;
I'm only going over Jordan,
I'm only going over home.

I'll soon be freed from every trial,
My body sleep in the church-yard;
I'll drop the cross of self-denial
And enter on my great reward.
I'm going there to see my class-mates,
Who've gone before me one by one;
I'm only going over Jordan,
I'm only going over home.

I want to wear a crown of glory,
When I get home on that good land;
I want to shout salvation's story,
In concert with the blood-wash'd band;
I'm going there to see my Savior,
To sing his praise forever more;
I'm only going over Jordan,
I'm only going over home.

This is a comparatively recent recording (around the beginning of the present century) of an extremely widely sung folk-tune. It appears in _Good Old Songs_ as a bare melody, no harmonic parts. I suggest, as an explanation of the d-flat in the fifth measure from the end, the intrusion of dorian influence. The earliest known recording among the fasola folk was in the first edition of the _Sacred Harp_, 1844. The negro adoptions and adaptations are reviewed WS 251ff.

The tune is quite evidently borrowed from secular environment. I list here a number of secular songs whose tunes are variously related: 'Barbara Allen', Sharp, i., 194 and 195; 'In Old Virginny', Sharp, ii., 232-234; 'Come All Ye Fair and Tender Ladies', Sharp, ii., 128-136; 'Katie Morey', Sharp, ii., 120; 'Dear Companion', Sharp, ii., 109; 'George Reilly', Sharp, ii., 26; 'Awake, Awake', Sharp, i., 358-364, and Petrie, Nos. 1222 and 265.

A note on this song in the _Social Harp_ says that the compiler, John G. McCurry, Hartwell, Georgia, "when eight years old, learned the air of this tune from Mrs. Catherine Penn." That was therefore in the year 1829.

Text passages in the secular ballads which remind of those in the fasola song are seen in 'In Old Virginny', where we read:

I am a man of constant sorrow,
I have seen troubles all my days.
I'll bid farewell to old Virginia,
The place where I was partly raised.

We see also in 'Awake, Awake', how the poor wayfaring stranger appears as "your true love" who "is going away."

No. 41
ZION'S SOLDIER, SWP 118

Heptatonic aeolian, mode 4 a + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7).

[Music]

Christ is set on Zion's hill; He receiveth sinners still:
Who will serve this blessed King? Come, enlist, and help me sing.
This soldier sure will be Happy in eternity,
This soldier sure will be Happy in eternity.

I by faith enlisted am in the service of the Lamb;
Present pay I now receive, future happiness he'll give.
This soldier _etc._

Zion's King my Captain is, conquest I shall never miss;
Let the fiends of hell engage, fret and fume and roar in rage.

Let the world their forces join, with the fiends of hell combine;
Greater is my King than they, through him I shall win the day.

Wicked men I scorn to fear, though they persecute me here;
True, they may my body kill, but my King's on Zion's hill.

What a Captain I have got! Is not mine a happy lot?
Hear, ye worldlings, hear my song, this the language of my tongue.

When this life's short space is o'er, I shall live to die no more;
Therefore will I take the sword, fight for Jesus Christ, my Lord.

Come, ye worldlings, come enlist; 'tis the voice of Jesus Christ:
Whosoever will may come; Jesus Christ refuseth none.

Jesus is my Captain's name, now, as yesterday, the same;
In his name I notice give, all who come he will receive.

Be persuaded, take his pay, all your sins he'll wash away;
Now in Jesus' name believe; future happiness he'll give.
(_last chorus_)
Yes! in heaven you sure will be praising God eternally. (_repeat_)

For a related chorus text see 'O Ye Young and Gay and Proud' in this collection. The tune, claimed by William Walker, is keyed in the natural minor (aeolian) of _a_. I suggest the signature of one sharp, bringing the tune into the dorian mode, as more natural.

No. 42
FEMALE CONVICT, SOH (1835) 160

Heptatonic aeolian, mode 4 a + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)

[Music]

O sleep not my babe, for the morn of tomorrow
Shall soothe me to slumber more tranquil than thine;
The dark grave shall shield me from shame and from sorrow,
Tho' the deed and the doom of the guilty are mine.
Not long shall the arm of affection enfold thee;
Not long shalt thou hang on thy mother's fond breast;
And who with the eye of delight shall behold thee,
And watch thee and guard thee when I am at rest?

And yet it doth grieve me to wake thee, my dearest,
The pangs of thy desolate mother to see;
Thou wilt weep when the clank of my cold chains thou hearest;
And none but the guilty should weep over me.
And yet I must wake thee, and whilst thou art weeping,
To calm thee I'll stifle my tears for a while.
Thou smil'st in thy dreams whilst thus placidly sleeping,
And O how it wounds me to gaze on thy smile.

Alas, my sweet babe, with what pride I had press'd thee
To the bosom that now throbs with terror and shame,
If the pure tie of virtue's affection had bless'd thee,
And hail'd thee the heir of thy father's high name.
But now with remorse that avails not I mourn thee,
Forsaken and friendless as soon thou wilt be,
In a world, if they cannot betray, that will scorn thee,
Avenging the guilt of thy mother on thee.

And when the dark thought of my fate shall awaken
The deep blush of shame on thy innocent cheek,
Then by all but the God of the orphan forsaken,
A home and a father in vain thou wilt seek.
I know that the base world will seek to deceive thee
With falsehood like that which thy mother beguiled;
Deserted and helpless, with whom can I leave thee?
O God of the fatherless, pity my child!

The tune shows remarkable similarity to 'As I Was A-Walking' or 'Grenadier and the Lady', see JFSS viii., 194; also to 'Westron Wynde' from the early 16th century, see Jackson, _English Melodies from the 13th to the 18th Century_, p. 11. 'Female Convict' was widely sung in the early nineteenth century. The full title reads: "A Female Convict, After receiving pardon in the sight of God, thus addrest her infant. Set to music by R. Boyd."

No. 43
WEDLOCK (B), OSH 115

Heptatonic aeolian, mode 2 A + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)

[Music]

When Adam was created, he dwelt in Eden's shade,
As Moses has related, before a bride was made.
Ten thousand times ten thousand of creatures swarm'd around,
Before a bride was formed or any mate was found.

He had no consolation, but seemed as one alone,
Till, to his admiration, he found he'd lost a bone.
This woman was not taken from Adam's head, we know;
And she must not rule o'er him, 'tis evidently so.

This woman she was taken from near to Adam's heart,
By which we are directed that they should never part.
The book that's called the bible, be sure you don't neglect,
For in every sense of duty, it will you both direct.

The woman is commanded to do her husband's will,
In everything that's lawful, her duty to fulfill.
Great was his exultation to see her by his side;
Great was his elevation to have a loving bride.

This woman she was taken from under Adam's arm;
And she must be protected from injury and harm.
This woman was not taken from Adam's feet, we see;
And she must not be abus-ed, the meaning seems to be.

The husband is commanded to love his loving bride,
And live as does a Christian, and for his house provide.
The woman is commanded her husband to obey,
In everything that's lawful, until her dying day.

Avoiding all offenses, not sow the seed of strife,
These are the solemn duties of every man and wife.

A variant of the third line of the first stanza, found in SOC 188, reads:

Ten thousand times ten thousand things wheel-ed all around.

The tune is especially announced in the _Sacred Harp_ as "original" and by Elder E. Dumas, a Primitive Baptist. And it is dated 1869. An older tune to the same text is given in this collection as 'Wedlock (A)'. See also 'Wedlock', Sharp, ii., 272. 'The Banks of Newfoundland', a capstan shanty, is essentially the same tune. See JFSS, v., 300.

No. 44
LEP'ROUS JEW, SWP 43

Heptatonic aeolian, mode 2 A + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)

[Music]

Behold the lep'rous Jew, Oppress'd with pain and grief,
Pouring his tears at Jesus' feet, For pity and relief,
For pity and relief.

"O speak the word," he cries, "and heal me of my pain:
Lord, thou art able, if thou wilt, to make a leper clean,
To make a leper clean."

Compassion moves his heart, he speaks the gracious word;
The leper feels his strength return, and all his sickness cured,
And all his sickness cured.

To thee, dear Lord, I look, sick of a worse disease;
Sin is my painful malady, and none can give me ease,
And none can give me ease.

But thy almighty grace can heal my lep'rous soul;
O bathe me in thy precious blood and that will make me whole,
And that will make me whole.

A tune quite similar to the one above, though cast in two-four time, is 'Dependence', HH 250.

No. 45
SPRING PLACE or CHURCH OF MY YOUTH, GOS 44

Hexatonic, mode 2 b (I -- 3 IV V 6 7)

[Music]

I'm thinking today of the church of my youth,
Where first I rejoic'd at the sound of the truth,
Where oft I assembled with those that I love,
And join'd them in praising our Father above.

Ah! well I remember, when youthful and gay,
In mirthfulness sporting while time sped away,
With my parents went to the house of the Lord,
And wonder'd what made them rejoice in His word.

But when my dear Savior, so precious to me,
My blind eyes did open, my sins all to see,
With fearfulness, trembling, too great to express,
I went to that house fill'd with woe and distress.

When Jesus, my blessed Redeemer and Friend,
Reveal'd that He was the Beginning and End,
I long'd for the season of worship once more,
That I might join His saints, His dear name adore.

And when in that dear place of worship and praise,
My voice with His saints I endeavor'd to raise,
My heart fill'd with love and my hope bright and clear,
I thought surely trouble could no more appear.

When deeply impress'd with a sense of His love,
When this world could no more a resting place prove,
I went with a feeling I could not control,
And told what my Savior had done for my soul.

With loving caresses they welcomed me home,
And bade me no longer in darkness to roam;
The great joy of that hour I never can tell,
When I with such friends was permitted to dwell.

Though now sunder'd far from that blessed abode,
I feel, that I'm still with the children of God.
Dear brethren, I love you in deed and in truth,
Yet my heart oft goes to the church of my youth.

Ah! well I remember their kindness to me,
In my memory now their kind deeds I can see;
Wherever my lot is to publish the truth,
I'll never forget the church of my youth.

The oldest occurrence of the text seems to be in the _Hesperian Harp_, 1848. This song is a parody (words and music) of 'In the Days of My Youth', _Beggars Opera_, No. 42; Act 3, Scene 1. The tune there was that sung earlier to 'A Shepherd Kept Sheep'.

No. 46
REDEMPTION (B), OSH 501

Hexatonic, mode 2 A (I II 3 IV V -- 7)

[Music]

Come, friends and relations, let's join hearts and hands;
The voice of the turtle is heard in the land.
Let's all walk together and follow the sound,
And march to the place where redemption is found.

The place it is hidden, the place it is seal'd,
The place it is hidden till it is reveal'd;
The place is in Jesus, to Jesus we'll go,
And there find redemption from sorrow and wo.

That place it is hidden by reason of sin;
Alas! you can't see the sad state you are in!
You're blind and polluted, in prison and pain;
O how can such rebels redemption obtain!

But if you are wounded and bruised by the fall,
Then up and be doing! For you he doth call;
And if you are tempted to doubt and despair,
Then come home to Jesus, redemption is there.

And you, my dear brethren, that love my dear Lord,
Have witness for pardon, thro' faith in his blood;
Let patience attend you wherever you go,
Your Savior has purchased redemption for you.

The tune of 'Redemption (C)' is a variant of the above, as is also that of 'Redemption (A)'. See the last named song for mention of its tune relationship to the 'Grenadier and the Lady'.

No. 47
WEEPING MARY (B), SWP 102

Hexatonic, mode 2 A (I II 3 IV V -- 7)

[Music]

When weeping Mary came to seek
Her loving Lord and Savior,
'Twas early in the morning she
In tears to gain his favor.
With guards and soldiers placed around
The tomb that held the body
Of him whom she thought under ground,
By wicked hands all bloody.

But how her aching heart was torn,
To find the tomb was empty,
In solemn silence did she mourn,
As onward she did venture.
'Twas angels in bright raiment shone,
Anticipate [imagine?] her sorrow,
And said, why doth this creature mourn,
And why this gloomy horror.

Whom seek'st thou, Mary, they did say,
And why this solemn mourning?
Because they've took my Lord away,
I thought to see this morning.
He, standing by her, though unknown,
She thought it was the gardener;
In flowing tears she made her moan,
Not knowing 'twas her partner.

I'll grieve, and my poor Mary said,
'Till I know where they laid him;
And quickly turning round her head,
Began for to upbraid him.
Whom seek'st thou, Mary? said the Son;
She then perceived her Savior,
And quickly to his feet she run,
Not fearing harm or danger.

And now, like Mary, let us go
And kiss the feet of Jesus,
That we may hear his word also,
Which he delights to give us.
From God we have the word of life,
Through Christ the Mediator;
Like him we hope to die and rise,
And dwell with the Creator.

A version of both tune and words is found in Ingalls' _Christian Harmony_ of 1805, p. 73. Its seventh and eighth stanzas, reminding of the above text, are:

When weeping Mary came to seek
Her Lord with a perfume,
The napkin and the sheet she found
Together in the tomb.

The angels said, he is not here;
He's risen from the dead;
And streams of grace to sinners flow,
As free as did his blood.

The tune shows unmistakable family resemblance to a number of secular folk-melodies. See for example the score of 'Daemon Lover' tunes, Sharp, i., pp. 244-258; 'Lady Maisry', Sharp, i., 97; 'Locks and Bolts', Sharp, ii., 17; 'Betty Anne', Sharp, ii., 37; 'Swing a Lady', Sharp, ii., 379.

No. 48
REDEMPTION (A), WH 101

Heptatonic aeolian, mode 4 a + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)

[Music]

Come, friends and relations, let's join heart and hand,
The voice of the turtle is heard in our land.
Let's all join together and follow the sound,
And march to the place where redemption is found.

The tune was perhaps the inspiration of R. Boyd in making the melody for 'Female Convict', which is in this collection. (Or did the influence flow in the opposite direction?) The 'Grenadier and the Lady', as sung in England, is practically the same tune. See JFSS, viii., 194. Full text and a variant melody are given under 'Redemption (B)'. An ancestor of all these tunes seems to be 'Westron Wynde' of the early part of the sixteenth century. See Jackson, _English Melodies from the 13th to the 18th Century_, p. 11.

No. 49
PRODIGAL, SKH 35

Heptatonic aeolian, mode 2 A + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)

[Music]

Afflictions, tho' they seem severe, Are oft in mercy sent;
They stopt the prodigal's career And caused him to repent,
Altho' he no relenting felt Till he had spent his store;
His stubborn heart began to melt When famine pinch'd him sore.

What have I gain'd by sin, he said, but hunger, shame and fear;
My father's house abounds with bread, while I am starving here.
I'll go and tell him all I've done, fall down before his face;
Unworthy to be called his son, I'll seek a servant's place.

The father saw him coming back, he looked, he ran, he smiled;
He throws his arms around the neck of his rebellious child.
Father, I've sinned, but O forgive; enough, the father said.
Rejoice, my house, my son's alive for whom I mourn'd as dead.

Now let the fatted calf be slain, go spread the news around;
My son was dead, but lives again, was lost but now is found.
'Tis thus the Lord his love reveals, to call poor sinners home.
More than a father's love he feels and welcomes all that come.

Davisson, the compiler of the SKH, claimed this tune. It functioned as the melodic material out of which the "fuguing" tune 'Alabama', in the _Sacred Harp_, was built.

No. 50
HAPPY SOULS (A), OL 145

Hexatonic, mode 4 A (I II -- IV V VI 7)

[Music]

O happy souls, how fast you go,
And leave me far behind!
Don't stay for me, for now I see,
The Lord is good and kind.
Go on, go on, my soul says go;
And I'll come after you;
Tho' I'm behind, I feel inclin'd
To sing hosanna too.