The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1909-05-29

mothers son of them was expected to
play his part in the coming struggle for
the emancipation of his native land.
It was surprising how impromptly
and quickly some of these street sing
ers could weave the patriotic threads of
an original song" Often in my early
days, on fair or market evenings, ]
watched with staring eyes and open
mouth a distinguished member of the
tribe with a steaming punch bowl in
his hand 'fmploring the aid of the
muses. nine" who rushed to his help
and answered his call 1 remember one
occasion, however, in which the same
genius, Mat Kavanagh, was in dire dis
tress. 1t was in the early days of the
struggle between Boer and Briton in
South Africa, and the great man., the
unassuming poet was, to use his own
words, "composin' short ditty" on a
certain 'hayro' named O'Hara, fight
ing with the Beers. Matters seemed to
run smoothly enough up to the final
line completing the stanza, when the
poet had to find a suitable word to
rhyme with O'Hara. After several I'M
successful attempts, he took a sweep
ing drink out of the punch bowl, leaped
ing the room, he shouted Eureka" and
bawled aloud:
och! good luck to our Captain O'Hara,
The girls all love him in sweet Come
mara
Most of the street songs, in my time,
were of a political nature. and dealt
with every "hayro" from O'Connell
down to William O'Brien. 1t was not
often that any of the patriots who lived
before the days of the great liberator"
was honored by the street singer,
though occasionally the names of Brian
Boru, Lord Edward Fitzgerald and Fa-
Their Sheehy were introduced admiring-
ly into the body of the ballad. Poor
Robert Emmett. the darling of Erin"
was, however, honored with complete
Come all ye," and the song is yet as
popular at country meetings as when it
made its first appearance thirty years
ago.
Bonaparte or 'Boney." as he is still
termed in the south of
Ireland, was always generally and gen.
erously claimed by the singer to be a
true bred Hibernian," and 1 am in
clined to think that there are many vet
living in the mountains of Kerry who
believe that the great "conqueror of
thin alP' first saw the light under the
matched roof of an Irish cabin. The
''hangin' " of the Manchester mar
tyrs," Larkin, Allen and O'Brien, fur
nished always popular theme for the
voice Of the singer, while the praises of
our own Charlie" (ParnelD were sung
in every town and market fair within
the circling seas of our native land"
Roughly speaking, there were-and
may be yet-two classes of street songs.
tn do
old favorites as THE Memory of the
Dead Kate of Castlerea," Patrick
Sheehan," and others which would be
almost worthy of a place in Duffy's
Songs and Ballads of Ireland" Of
the second class we have an inferior.
out equally popular collection, mainly
by members of the rowing
singers clan. To this latter class be-
ong the Come All Yes" and the blood
and thunder ballads of the early DAYS
If the land war, several of which are
yet as much in demand as when Carey.
he informer persisted by the hand of
O'Donnel on the southern shore of the
Dark Continent, or when the unarmed
peasants pleading for their right were
butchered on the square of
1t was just the style of ballad to suit
he peasantry, and the more sulphur.
ed fire and birthstone" infused into it,
he better they liked it. Once it de-
bounced an avowed enemy of the ma
ional movement it was sure to COM
nand a ready sale, and the singer and |
lawker Toasted sumptuously. This kind |
# ballad got its name from the three |
irst words of the opening line. In nv |
ime the popular and patriotic street |
ongs generally opened with:
Come all We true born Irishmen.
hope We will draw near,
md pay attenshun to the lines that 7
have written here"
Come all We true bred Irishmen and
listen to me song,
md if ye pay attenshun I'll not detain
we long"
The first line of the completing stanza
lvariably supplied an example of taut-
logy, for which, in the wide range of
he English language, it would be diff
ult to find its equal. This is a speci-
hen:
Now to conclude and finish 1 name to
end my song"
OConnell was for a long period, the
1ol of the street singer and the hero of
he market poet. Scores of ha'penny
ongs were devoted to his memory,
lille in most Of those written during
ne trying days Of the boycott, Michael
'avitt and William O'Brien were not
orgotten. In many of the O'Connel
allads, which 1 heard sung on the
-reets of Bantry, the great Irishman
as affectionately addressed as Our
rator," THE Tribune" THE Kerry
lyle" or THE Defender of Erin, the
reen." Many years have slipped by
nee 1 came across the name of the
reat Munsternan in badly bound
lition of Gems of Ireland" and truly
lis particular ode or epic to Our Own
an" was gem of purest ray serene.
ere's a part of it unprofaned by alter
ion or change since heard it sung by
erimiah Sheehan to a gaping crowd of
cOlleens" and "gossoons," when on my
ay to say a mouthful of prayers at
lie shrine of st. Finbar, Gougane
ARA:
)ne pleasant summers morning, my
mind being free from grief and care
DOO q hank Of SbamrOpkc cot oubjla |