Lament of John O Mahony

DESCRIPTION: The singer, growing old "in a foreign land, in a lonesome city" thinks "not a single hope have I seen fulfilled For the blood we spilled." He thinks of his home land. "My heart still lingers on its native strand And American land holds naught for me"
AUTHOR: Dr. Douglas Hyde (source: OLochlainn-MoreIrishStreetBallads)
EARLIEST DATE: 1965 (OLochlainn-MoreIrishStreetBallads)
KEYWORDS: homesickness rebellion exile America Ireland lament nonballad
FOUND IN: Ireland
REFERENCES (1 citation):
OLochlainn-MoreIrishStreetBallads 31, "Lament of John O Mahony" (1 text, 1 tune)
NOTES [90 words]: OLochlainn-MoreIrishStreetBallads: "O'Mahony, born in Co. Limerick, turned out with Smith O'Brien at Ballingarry, 1848, fled to France and in 1852 to America; with Stephens founded I.R.B. and was Head Centre in U.S.A. Died in poverty, New York, 1877." - BS
For background on the work of Douglas Hyde, see the notes to "My Own Dark Maiden."
For more on the events of 1848, see especially "The Shan Van Voght (1848)." It is ironic to note that the 1848 rebellion was the one attempt to set Ireland free that resulted in almost no bloodshed. - RBW
Last updated in version 6.4
File: OLcM031

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