Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1899-02-25
YANKEE DOODLE.
Its Familiar Air Has Been owned by
Four Nations.

lNNl NNllNllHt
tchlcaFo Democratl
Yankee Doodle" ~ one Of the old
est songs In the world. and at different
periods N an unparalleled career has
belonged to England. to the once vast
empire ~ Holland and to the Roman
Catholic church. where II probably
originated. somewhere about the year
1900 \. u. n you happen to be-
musician and do not believe that such
an undlEnincd ditty ever could have
been Intended for solemn purposes. play
It over on pipe organ. very simply
aud slowly. aud ns the majesty 81 "a
grand Old papal chant nils your soul
all your doubts will vanish away,
Several hundred years ago the good
people n Holland thought 20 much of
Yankee Doodle" that they adopted the
tune Tor harvest Sung and made ~
new words Tor IT, MARY Mapcs Dodge
gives one ~ the verses In Hans lifin-
kerr"
Yankee didcc dude down
bldvU dudUl lnuntct
Yankee NiVor Vupyur vuWu.
Hetcrm"lt and tauntor.
Nobody knows exactly what this
verse means but the lines nro inter.
rstinF, hecuuH" they are primarily re.
sponsible Tor the word Yankee and
fgr The familiar English version Of
Yankee Doodle
soon after being nrst sung this
quaint verse became rn popular amuug
ull classes IN Holland that 10 became u
truly national song. II WIS sung In
livclier time than the old chant which
~ Hupplantcd.
CAUGHT NY THE ENGLISH.
while the great naval war u the
sixteenth century was In progress the
English under Admiral Drake. caught
the tune. Much to the surprise ~ cy-
ofyhpdy. England broke the mighty sea
powef uf Holland. and when the Tight
INK was over the English people sang
muckinE pnrodits u the old song
against ~ hated authors. Yankee war
understood e. mean fDutchmnn.
Since the Dutch were sharp trader.
the popular meaning of the word came
o. Dc a rhrcwd, hard headed, un-
gracious surt uf fellow. Holland then
| titled To forget the song, ana u thus
passed into the hands u another ma
| ton.
Al England Fang varying words to
II In oliver Crpmwclra time. hut one
dhy-thr day that the great refurmef
rode into oxford "a the head % the rcb-
ole 90 battle with the kings nrmN-hr
wore an immense ostrich fastened a.
hlH hat hy u band ~ heavy Hilk mas
Hufonl" cord Yankee Doodle then being
a term ~ contomriuoua rliiculc, one %
the CourtiefH ~ the boaHtful king COM
posed the famous refrain
Yankee Doodle came To town
Riding on q pony;
stuck feather In his hat
Ana call u maccat0ni,
The rhyme did not hold its nrst popu-
lnrity very long because the rebels
wcrr Huccrrsfui and probably Il would
have been forgotten entirely had not
| the old kings ION returned tu power
fuw Year, later Meanwhile the TO-
formers had sung the tune Co mnnS
nonsense verses. which soon spread to
Americn.
The bcrt known Of these was Lydia
Fishers Jig. which made NJ appear
uncc In New England about the year
/ iiil, aud became famous aH dance
song. The words ran.
Lucy I.ocket lost her pocket.
Lydia Fisher found a.
Not a bit ~ money IN Il.
only binding round a.
Lucky I.ockct' was very popular an
| i7tG, when british regulars were en-.
Il
natives ~ the city and surrounding
towns were organizing into companies
~ minute men" under John Hancock.
while az got there had been mo- open
war. the fcoling WIS yrry bitter among
| the coluniHta, who wcru held la such
contempt by tho soldiers that they
were tainted with the familiar tune TO
the words;
Yankee Doodle came to town
For 10 buy ffulock.
We viii tar and feather him,
Aud 10 we will John Hancock.
This made tho colouistH m angry That
| they declined any longer 10 sing an ale
put a. such coutpmptuouH words
| against thcmarlvcs. 4 few weeks later
something happened that changed their
| minds. Tor II was the destiny uf "Nuu-
| klec Doodle TO become. apparently
forever the undiHputed property OF
| America
In Apfil. 1875. Lord Percy marched
out 81 boston with q brigade ~ Brit
ish regulars to dispcse the rebels nH-
sonhlrd at Lexington and Concord,
| Amid cheering and ilying nugH, tho
/ bands played Yankee Doodle" ana
| tho relocated soldiers sang b1aHtfully
| the old words which had yainly ridi.
culcd oliver Cromwell over "a hundred
years before. Porhaps. when they be-
gan 10 sing, they had forgotten how.
even before Crnmwell'H time. the tune
had been turned against lta very au-
| thorH
SUNG At LEXINGTON
Ito must have remembered before re-
turning 10 nostou. Tor 40 Lexington
the Vhuntcd soldiers NJ King George
were routed by handful M patriots
who, when thoy saw how things We're
going. won't Wild with Joy, and talSing
the words right out NJ the mouths of
their adyersarirH shouted In eNultntiou
the song which had been aimed az them
iu contempt.
Durng the night back 10 camp the
regulars were popperci Win shot from
hphind stone wallis aud trees, 80 much
90 thelr own discomfort that Lord
Percy. iu ft ~ disgust next morning
confessed that after marching out to
the tune OF Yankee Doodle they had
danced 10 u an the way home.
Yankee Doodle has already be-
lluved Ia The three great families of
the cnucaslun racc-thp Latin, the
Teutonlc aud the Anglo-SaNon. Ia sew
rn centuries Il has been carried into tho
heart OF -four of tho greatest political
powers OF history Now that expansion
Is an accomplished fact who can tell
what new freaks destiny will play with
Il?