The Blues & the Sailors

Hoist up your blue my boys the brave & true
Are least in number yet but howsomiver
Heres two bold sailors — down right bits of blue
They'll join the free — so liberty for ever
By G[od] they never heed us boys or hail us
They dont know Tennison & theyre no sailors

Yet look theyre mighty stout & gallant men
& blues the turn pike road to liberty
& sure enough nine chances out of ten
Is that theyll join their courage with the free
For tho their trowsers are not over new
Tis blue & thats the colour for the true

Hail wandering britons wither do ye roam
Ye both seem hardy as the heart of oak
We too as britons bid ye welcome home
— & then one sailor to the tother spoke
Now d[am]me me Jim are these land lubbs to fright us
Theyve hoisted colours & are going to fight us

No no good strangers you for once mistake us
We will not war with britons such as you
No roast us boil us fry us burn us bake us
Well all die maryters for our bit of blue
The Bloody ches nuts & the 'lectoneering
Thats what we fight for — here they fell a cheering

The sailors stood agast — now Jim g[o]d[am]me
Weve both seen danger tho weve seldom cackled
But these same roasting lubbers want to cram ye
& make us robbers just to get us shackled
My grannys blue bag might make lecture hearers
But baked or boiled Jim bl[as]t em theyre no heroes

Nay nay good strangers we are heroes all
Tho not so great as sailors we are nixt you
So take the quart of beer tis ale not small
& drink to blue & soak it all betwixt you
The sailors took it — & no longer jealous
The mob roared out that they were glorious fellows

& France & Belgium & Tennison
Went forth in shouts from many a beardless lip —
But d[a]mme Jim that here rum Mr Anyson
Wor never mixed in grog on board our ship
So heres to england still — & france & belgam
Are no tars likings let em go to h-ll Jim

The blues right bluely took the empty quart
& vext as Turpins — masons coblers tailors
All swore blue trowsers were not worth a f[ar]t
& small beer even were too good for sailors
But then the sailors had got out of hearing
& so the mob as victors fell a cheering
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