The times., 1899-02-12
| songs ON TAE MARCH
TO engage In BATTLE
Strains of Vocal Music Thrill
the Troopers Hearts.
Swinging Rhymes More Potent Than
the Drum and Trumpet.
Examples Set by Tommy Atkins and
the German Fusiiieers-ChoruscS
for Yankees to Set to Music

the German Eusiiicers-ChoruSc~
for Yankees to Set to Music.
The power Of music to arouse action and
energy has been demonstrated in many
ways, and in all armies the band has ever
been as much a part of the regiment as
the rifles handled by the troops
But the band cannot always play. and
during forced marches the band never
does play So in casting about for some
substitute for the music which would rouse
the men to long swinging step and cause
them to forget the heat, the thirst, the
dust of long forced marches some Of the
European armies have hit-upon singing.
For years the army song has been part
| OF the German army. Every man in every
regiment knows the songs and during the
| marches the corporals start up the first
bars OF swinging song and the men Join
in, keeping step to their singing
1t is stated that the benefits derived
from having the troops sing have been
| wonderful. The men can carry heavier
| burdens. make better time. and keep to-
| gether in such shape that after the French
| army had adopted the singing idea the
| attention of British army officers was at
| This has resulted in the distribution last
month OF 100000 British Army Songsters''
| among the troops. and now Tommy Atkins
| VIII punctuate his footsteps with "Oh. 1
| Went Into Public 'Ouse." and "'Ere's To
| You, Fuzzy WuZzy, in Your 'Ome in the
Soudan." The men will soon pick I'D the
words of any catchy song and will sing as
ordered.
The word may be passed down as would
any command. Sing No. 12," and soon
| No. Il would be doing a good work Sol
| dlers love to sing and it is the oppressive
| silence of a long march which "knocl.s
| them out as much as the actual fatigue
The possibilities of this idea may result
in some strange antics at present unknown
to army discipline Soldiers are quick to
note the faults and peculiarities of officers
and the song that will localize or indiyid-
| ualize will be the most popular
| 1t may be that this new idea like others
| Will be copied from the European forces
| by the American army, and the American
| soldier is not much unlike his foreign
| brother. Being a mixture of many ma
| tions he dares where reverence might
overcome the British Tommy and it might
be that in the future careless snappy
| regiment may be seen swinging along a
road singing:
| It's Curnel Chancey Lancey Nibs,
| Wit buttons on his neck;
| Look out, y dubs. here comes me jibs;
| Eyes front, an stan creek;
| He looks jist like a drink o. milk
| Wot handsome bayonet iegsI
| Aside o him a watch is slim,
! Hep! Hep! y corp'raPs kegsl
| The feelings of "Curnel Chancey Lam
| cey Nibs' may be imagined as he rides at
| the head of the column. But why arrest
| a whole regiment, and who may select the
| songs, when a regiment is ordered to singy
ha 70 hA o1n Fa1 H. a.
American army. the results of the late war
and the experience of the troops would
without doubt be the topics for the bulk
OF the army songs. The army scandals, the
errors, and the rations, especially the ra-
| tions When the soldiers rations are
| touched, he is also touched. and ne will
| remember embalmed beef until his last
| hour. Therefore it is not impossible that
| the following may be portion of the ar
! my repertoire:
The good old army beef. boys. an here's hopin'
| we get more;
| There's never nothin' like it, an its juicy
| the
| It's list sweet chicken, an well swear
| before the clerk
That we'd rather. rather have it than the ten
| derestest turk
| Chorus
| I'm liar. I'm a liar. I'm a liar.
| I'm liar. I'm liar, I'm liar.
| But the orders is to lie,
| Even if from beef you die.
! I'm liar, I'm 4 liar, I'm a liar
Then parodies On popular songs would
| be go. \ regiment would make four
miles per hour singing the following to the
air of She Was Bred in Old Kentucky;
| 1t was bad at Chickanausa,
An it looked like frozen glue;
| II had WhiSkeTs at Alger.
| An al Tampa it was blue
II could walk at Santiago.
| m it Looked Just like do--o
| When opened embsimed stew
Or the waltz time of the following pa
thetic ballad might appeal to the tramping
| powers of q cynical regiment:
Just break the news to mother.
She knows how dear l love her.
An tell her I've got hydrophobe
| From eatin' army beef.
list say theys lots o. others
That wants L their mothers,
IN tell them since they ct the grub
There's hair upon their teeth.
Then the dying soldier songs would be
stretched to suit ell tastes. A regiment
could find plenty of humor in such a bal
lad as the following:
One held lump Of cubalmsd beef, rare.
one held some timed ptomaine;
one fclt the acid destroy his hair,
one felt an awful pain
One turned around with a fearful veil
One his teeth turn brown;
| Bidding each other fond farewell,
just the beef went down
Then the swing of snappy song woIld
| ever be like unto refreshments and hat.
| The soldier is . close observer and is sell
| dom fooled by praise or promise. Such
song as the following would prove popular:
Scz the rookie to the cookie.
| VIII v hand out a dookic,
An iist put it on yer hookie
Gain my pay?
Stz the cookie TO the rookie.
Yer no he-o by yer lookec;
l won't hand v out no dooSie,
| Not todIy.
So. its hep. and b. hero with yer coffee
| down = zero.
| An yer hard-tack, playin' tag around yer
| sack;
So. its hep an doule-quick. though yer "a
tions makes ' sick.
| BE a hero an VI feed when y comes back
1t is therefore hardly likely that the
singing idea will ever be adopted in the
American Army. But, should it be, the
| above lyrics will form the nucleus for an
army songster.
They VIII Stand Comparison.
(From the Rochester Post Expressly
There is i disposition on the part OF some
II ~g ~