Barrack's Song, The

DESCRIPTION: "On Wednesday morning, May the third, nineteen and forty-four, We left our homes seal hunting went." Their ship is jammed in the ice. The sealers try to set out for the barracks. The T-14 finds them the next day and takes them home
AUTHOR: Nicolas Lane
EARLIEST DATE: 1973 (collected from Nicolas Lane)
KEYWORDS: ship wreck rescue hunting
FOUND IN:
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Ryan/Small-HaulinRopeAndGaff, p. 132, "The Barrack's Song" (1 text)
NOTES [104 words]: No tune is listed, but this appears to be based on "The Greenland Whale Fishery" [Laws K21].
Lane's song does not specify what sort of ship the T-14 is, but I believe it was a submarine. The British developed and built their "T" class boats in 1939-1941 (see Richard Worth, Fleets of World War II, Da Capo, 2001, p. 117), and although all of them were given names ("Triton," "Trident," etc.), they would also have numbers.
The "motors" of the third verse would be motor boats (by contrast to the rowboat of this song). Perhaps the "barracks" was one of the many military bases that dotted Newfoundland during the war? - RBW
Last updated in version 4.5
File: RySm132

Go to the Ballad Search form
Go to the Ballad Index Song List

Go to the Ballad Index Instructions
Go to the Ballad Index Bibliography or Discography