The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1916-06-15

FOLK SONGS OF THE SOUTHERN
MOUNTAINS
Anna MAY WaQers

years III Tue SOutUeTn hlgTiHnus ~
well aware Of the large number OF
folk songs known and sung by the
people. As the songs Of the wood
thrush or the brown thrasher Is
sweeter when heard in its native
haunts so the songs of the mountains
to be appreciated must be heard in
their native fields and woodlands.
They are better adapted to solitudes
among the hills than TO crowded
halls. They are heard at their best
when sung by the farmer girl as she
drives home the cows in the evening,
by the mother in the cabin home as
she sings TO her child while she is
churning, sewing, washing dishes or
sweeping the floor, by the mountain
girl as she gathers a few OF her
friends about the cabinet organ and
plays the songs which she and they
really enjoy. They are sung by the
water carrier as she goes to and
from the spring, by the lonesome
pillow boy as he returns home at twi-
light from his work. These songs
are sung mostly when alone, or that
is when I sing them, because there
is a sort OF lonesome feeling which
steals into my heart and makes me
feel as il an old friend had returned.
You may wonder how these songs
are scattered. Some girl or boy in a
community gets a ballad of some
song and a friend in another COM
munity hears them sing il and wants
the ballad. So il goes from one COM
TO another, and each time
perhaps the tune is slightly changed.
Many of the old English ballads
were brought by our Anglo-Saxon
forefathers from England, Ireland
and Scotland. These have in most
instances undergone certain changes
due TO the incident and accident OF
the traditional methods by which
they have been preserved. Some OF
these are the Dog and the Gun
Barbara Allen" "Pretty Polly" The
House Carpenter" and others. They
are similar to those Of old countries
but the tunes and words too have
been somewhat changed for in pass.
ing from one writer TO another vers-
eS are forgotten and new verses are
added and some times they are
changed to suit the conditions, and
the tunes are altered too.
There is another class which is
composed by local song writers.
These are of many kinds but are bal
lads in nature, that is, each one tells
a story about some tragedy, or some
incident that has attracted public at
They are written and sung
by some who have been disappointed
in love such as Charley Brooks"
Jack and Joe" "a Young Girls Ad-
vice." etc. Those about some we'll
known tragedy are: "Pearly Bryan
Helen Flannery" Assassination OF
]. B. Marcum," frankie Baker" and
others. These are so popular be-
cause people like TO talk about trag-
edies and they like to sing about
them too.
But not all the popular folk songs
Of the mountains belong to the kind
lust mentioned. There is a merry
side of life among the mountains
which finds expression in the songs
and the instrumental music Of the
people. can give little idea OF them
in this discussion, but the character
Of these may be surmised from the
following titles Of songs which are
often sung by the banjo accompani-
ment, "Going down Town" Hook
and Line" Granny Will Your Dog
Bite" Turkey in the Straw
Ground Hog" and many others OF
like kind. These are sung by boys
and rarely by girls. They are played
by the old flddlers at dances, Wills
tied by pillow boys and young men go
ing TO see their sweethearts. The
tunes are caught and passed on by
one fiddler to another.
Then there are the war songs COM
posed by the soldiers OF the sixties,
by sweethearts who remained at
home, by the boys in camp for the
girls they left behind. These are
sung now by the old soldiers and by
their grand children. We also have
songs about Bible stories, the cruci-
fxion, the birth Of Christ, etc.
Many OF these are the real folk
songs of the mountain people. They
have been written by men behind
the bars, by women on the sick bed,
some OF them by young men whose
girls have Tilted them, or by young
women whose lovers have proved
untrue. When the words are COM
posed they are nearly always sung
to familiar ballad airs for the peo-
H..