Sam Hilt Collection\boer war songs\a gordon for me.txt ************************************************************************ a gordon for me a gordon for me a gordon for me, a gordon for me, if he is nae a gordon, he's nae use ta me; you can take your highlanders, you' re blackwatch and a' my bonnie wee gordon's the pride o' them a' -------------------------------------------- from the singing of jimmy duffy, itinerant singer, son of jimmy duffy of stanthorpe, qld. this song was sung in the gordons scotiish regiment, before and after the boer war. Sam Hilt Collection\boer war songs\afschied von sannie.txt ************************************************************************ o sannie mijn hartje,bak gou nou beskuit o sannie mijn hartje,bak gou nou beskuit vriend kimberlein stuur die soldate al uit, hulle kom met die dum-dums en groote kanon, waar is nou miajn roer en die mauser patron? o sannie mijn hartje veeg af jou gezich, want jedere kogel die raak ons niet lich, as toch iedere kogel een kerel moet raak, waar krug ons dan oin mee oorlog te maak? die dum dum die maak net een heel kleine gat,da kanons kogel zal wel wat viniger vat. die kogels is allemaal van staal en van lood ach huil toch niet, sannie, waar is dan die nood? die engelse vlag, dat het ons gezien is net maar een voor school van oumeid sabien en onder die vlag zal die boer nooit nog staan daar komt al mijn jong met die oorslog perd aan. die beskuit is nu klaar en die roer is maal skoon kom, sannie, ik geef jou eenzoen voor jou loon onze zaak is recht vaardig, ons vertrouw op die heer; hij zal ons wel help, en die mauser gewehr, onze zaak is recht vaardig, ons vertrouw op die heer hij zaal ons wel help, en die mauser gewehr. --------------------------- leaving sannie come sannie, my heart, quick make up your mind; kimberley needs soldiers, must leave wives behind we' re come with our cartridges, and our cannon, where now is my helmet and my mauser gun? where now is my helmet and my mauser gun? come, sannie, my heart, wipe the tear from your eye, for not every bullet is fired in spite. by bullet and shrapnel some soldiers must fall leaving sannie con't though bullets maim bodies, they can't touch our soul though bullets maim bodies, they can't touch our soul. chorus the english flag, which our nation they'd rape; and under that flag no farmer (boer) is safe; I'll gather our children on horseback we' ll ride; we' ll fight for our land, or we' ll die side by side. the decision is made, helmets shining bright; as I give you a kiss, know our cause it is right. our cause it is righteous, trust in god and his son; they' ll strengthen our cause, god and the mauser gun, they' ll strengthen our cause, god and the mauser gun. --------------------------------------- the war museum of the boer republics in bloemfontein, sth africa, sent me this song, which they had in their records. my translation is close to the original, but I have not done a literal translation as I want to start singing this song in english, which wouldn't have been possible with a literal translation. dum-dum bullets are either lead bullets ith a flat head hollowed out, or crossed, or a jacketed bullet with the head cut off to expose the lead core, so that the bullet will then cause a maximum amout of damage to the target hit, possibly ripping off an arm or a leg rather than going straight through. the boers were accused of using dum dmu bullets--they did!!--but it was the original meaning of dum dum--bullets that were manufactured in the indian arsenal town of dum dum. : the bullets were fully jacketed, which was obvious to any one seeing them, the british just used the name of the arsenal to propagandise the boer republics and it's soldiers. helmets, in the army of the boer republics, the traansvaal and orange free state, were worn only by the staats artiliert, the state artilery, the republics only full time soldiers. Sam Hilt Collection\boer war songs\boer baptism.txt ************************************************************************ the baby's name is kitchener, carrington the baby's name is kitchener, carrington methuen kekewich white cronje plumer powell majuba gatacre waren colenso krujer capetown mafeking french kimberley ladysmith bobs union jack fighting mac victoria pretoria blobbs totally unsingable! recorded ex brad tate-yet this song was very popular during the war!! Sam Hilt Collection\boer war songs\boots.txt ************************************************************************ we' re foot-slog-slog-slog-sloggin' over africa we' re foot-slog-slog-slog-sloggin' over africa foot-foot-foot-foot-sloggin' over africa- chorus boots-boots-boots-boots movin' up and down again- there's no discharge in the war! 7, 6, 11, 5, 9, and 20 miles today 4, 11, 17, 32, the daay before-- don't, don't, don't don't look at what's in front of you! men, men, men, men, men, go mad with watching them-- try, try, try, try, to think of something different; oh-my-god!-keep- me- from- going- lunatic! count, count, count, count, the bullets in the bandoliers; if-your-eyes-drop-, they-will-get-on-top-of-you-- we-can-stick-out-hunger, thirst, and weariness; but not-not-not-not-not the chronic sight of 'em-- tain't-so-bad-by-day because of company; but-night-brings-strings-of-40,000 million- i-have-marched-6-weeks-in-hell- and certify; it-is-not-devils, dark, or anything-- ----------------------------------------------------- rudyard kipling wrote this song, and is, like all his material, published as a poem-this one in his 'barracks room ballads'. kipling, says his mate, chesterton, I think, wrote all his poetry with a specific tune in mind, to set the meter for the poetry: the tune he had in mind when he wrote boots is john brown's body. most folk music people that are aware of kiplings poetry are mostly aware of them in the settings that british singer peter bellamy pu to them--which were his own tunes, rather than the tunes kipling himself had in mind at the time. whether of foot or on horseback, as most of the australian troops were in the boer war, this song most accurately describes the daily course of events once 'black week', and then the capture of the boer capitols were completed and the de wet hunts, the guerilla warfare started--with this constant grind was also the constant fear of immediate attack. Sam Hilt Collection\boer war songs\butchered.txt ************************************************************************ in a prison cell I sadly sit, a damn crest-fallen chappie, in a prison cell I sadly sit, a damn crest-fallen chappie, and I own to you I feel a bit--a little bit unhappy! it really ain't the time or place, to reel off rhyming diction- but yet we' ll write a final rhyme-whilst waiting crucifixion no matter what 'end' they decide, quicklime or b' iling ile sir! we' 'll do our best when crucified to finish off in style, sir! but we bequeath a parting tip for sound advise of such men who come across in transport ships to finish up the dutchmen if you encounter any boers you really must not loot 'em; and if you want to leave these shores, for pity's sake, don't shoot 'em! and if you'd earn a d. s. c. , why every british sinner should know the proper way to go- invite them out to dinner! (rpt last 8 bars) let's toss a bumper down our throats before we go to heaven; and toast 'the trimset petticoat' we leave behind in devon. -------------------------------------------------- a few years back, must have been about may of '81 I was walking back to a friends residence at 239 russell st bathurst after stopping at the edinburg castle hotels bottle shop on the corner of william and russell s, bathurst. as usual, I stopped for a moment at the boer war memorial to pay my respects to lt's handcock and morant. --and peter handcock had returned to the memorial! true!! when kitchener came out to australia in 1911, he went to bathurst to dedicate the boer war memorial in carillon park, but refused to dedicate the memorial until peter handcocks name was removed! the police had arrested and gaoled peters wife and children for fear they or their presence would disturb the proceedings. the plate containing peter handcocks name had been missing for over 70 years--but some unknown bathurstian, undoubtedly elderly had kept peter in their heart and memory until that time, and put peters name back with those of his mates. he is remembered to this day, as is butcher kitchener ---- many people, folkies mainly, have put breaker morants 'poems' to their own tunes -- when it is obvious to anyone with a bit of nous tht he was writing within a folk tradition, and quite a few of his 'poems' were written to be sung to known tunes, and they are obvious ( I don't have a book of his 'poems' in front of me, for is this the place to put his bush poems with the tunes that were obviouosly intended); such is the case with butchered to make a dutchmans holiday and the tune brighton camp/the girl I left behind me. Sam Hilt Collection\boer war songs\connaught rangers.txt ************************************************************************ in our army we' re the best, from the north, south, east, or west; in our army we' re the best, from the north, south, east, or west; the best of boys at following the drum.