THE STORY OF YANKEE DOODLE
Yankee Doodle came to town,
Upon a pretty pony,
His coat-tails stuck straight out behind,
His legs were long and bony.
Yankee Doodle—Ha, Ha, Ha.
Cakes and sugar candy,
Come, listen to the story, now,
Of Yankee Doodle Dandy.
He wore a pair of striped pants,
A feather in his hat, sir;
His mouth was large, his nose stuck out,
His feet were long and flat, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
The red men, when they saw him come,
Cried, “What a funny fellow”
Some ran away, and some fell down,
And loudly they did bellow.
Yankee Doodle.
And then the squaws came running out,
To see what was the matter,
For Yankee Doodle rode so fast,
He made a dreadful clatter.
Yankee Doodle.
Yankee Doodle
Said he, ” I long have roamed about,
Like goosey goosey gander,
So now I think I’ll settle down,
And never more will wander.”
Yankee Doodle.
He chopped the trees, and cleared the ground,
And then he made a farm, sir,—
And then he made a fort of logs,
To keep his folks from harm, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
He dug a well and built a fence,
As true as I am born, sir—
And when the summer came, he ploughed,
And sometimes hoed his corn, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
And soon he built a little town;
And in it lived the people—
And next he built a meeting house,
And on it put a steeple.
Yankee Doodle.
And in the steeple then he put,
Upon my word, a bell, sir,
Which every Sunday morning rang
The time for church to tell, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
Then all the folks to meeting went,
And listened to the preacher,
But, ah! his name I cannot tell—
May be ’twas Mr. Beecher.
Yankee Doodle.
But Yankee Doodle had his cares–
Old England tried to tax him,
And when he said he wouldn’t pay,
She went to work to flax him.
Yankee Doodle.
So then he called his fighting men,
And gave them each a gun, sir,
And gave to each a cartridge-box,
And fixed them up for fun, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
They played the fife with all their might,
The drum, they made it rattle—
And when the British came along,
They fought a dreadful battle.
Yankee Doodle.
And all the Yankee boys were there
And used their guns so handy,
That Johnny Bull soon had to yield,
To Yankee Doodle Dandy.
Yankee Doodle.
Then Yankee Doodle said, said he,
Well form a mighty nation;
He took a quill and made a pen,
And signed the declaration.
Yankee Doodle.
And then he made a pretty flag;
Now what I say is true, sir;
The stripes were made of red and white,
The field was made of blue, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
Yankee Doodle
One fourth was covered o’er with blue,
The stripes were just thirteen, sir;
One for each State—a finer sight
Was never, never seen, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
For each new State he adds a star,
It is a fact, by jingo,
He’ll take all North America,
And, may be, San Domino.
Yankee Doodle.
He built a ship to sail the sea,
It was a funny notion,
And when he had her done, he sent
Her out upon the ocean.
Yankee Doodle.
And Johnny Jones had full command,
His name was funny too, sir,
Some very funny things he did
Out on the ocean blue, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
Yankee Doodle
He looked around for Johnny Bull,
And every time he found him,
He used to cut and bang away,
And do his best to pound him.
Yankee Doodle.
Said Johnny Bull, “I’ll thrash you now,
You curly-headed poodle,
come out and fight me, if you dare,
“All right,” said Yankee Doodle.
Yankee Doodle.
Old Putnam left his plough one day,
And started out to fight, sir —
He took the Yankee-Doodle side,
Because he thought it right, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
He watched his foes both night and day,
And every time he caught them,
He stood his soldiers in a row,
And bravely then they fought them.
Yankee Doodle.
And once when he was marching out,
A spy he chanced to see, sir,
And very soon he hung him up,
Upon an apple tree, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
The British followed him about,
And did their best to match him;
But he was cunning as a fox,
And never let them catch him.
Yankee Doodle.
And when they thought they had him fast,
Close by an old brown church, sir,
He galloped down a hundred steps,
And left them in the lurch, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
One day he went to hunt a wolf,
That killed his pigs and sheep, sir;
Next day the young wolves put on black,
And sadly they did weep, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
Yankee Doodle
Once Johnny Bull lived in New York,
But he has moved away, sir;
For Yankee Doodle came along,
And said you must not stay, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
His soldiers looked so very queer,
With hats so very high on—
And Miss Britannia wiped her eyes,
And Johnny led the lion.
Yankee Doodle.
And Yankee Doodle raised his hat,
And bowing very low, sir,
IIe said, Good-morning, Mr. Bull,
I’m glad to see you go, sir.”
Yankee Doodle.
“Go Home,” said he to Mr. Bull,
“And take your weeping daughter;”
And Johnny said, “I’ll lose no time,
But get across the water.”
Yankee Doodle.
The Eagle flapped his wings that day,
And did some joyful screaming—
The stars and stripes from every house
Throughout the land were streaming.
Yankee Doodle.
And General Washington was there
And rode along the street, sir,
And bowed to all the girls and boys,
They looked so very sweet, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
The horse he rode was white as snow—
He rode him on a trot, sir ;
And just how old that pony was,
I really have forgot, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
And soon they fired the cannon off,
And kept a dreadful drumming,
And then the little girls and boys
Saw Yankee Doodle coming.
Yankee Doodle.
His sword was swinging by his side,
And, every one did cheer, sir,
And when he smiled his mouth was stretch’d
Around from ear to ear, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
The flags were waving in the air,
Hats all about were flying,
And every one to make a noise,
His very best was trying.
Yankee Doodle.
The Yankees cried, “The man who thinks
To whip us is a noodle”—
Then gave three cheers for Uncle Sam,
And three for Yankee Doodle.
Yankee Doodle.
The British went on board their ships,
And sorrowful did look, sir,
And very soon were out of sight,
Way down by Sandy Hook, sir,
Yankee Doodle.
Yankee Doodle
Just look, when Yankee Doodle comes,
Upon his dashing charger—
You’ll look like him, I have no doubt,
When you’re a little larger.
Yankee Doodle.
The war was over now, you see,
And all the noise and flutter—
And girls, and boys, could eat in peace,
Their pie, and bread and butter.
Yankee Doodle.
A very fat man swung his hat,
And then so loudly called, sir,
That nearly all his hair came out,
And left him almost bald, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
The baby saw the pony pass,
And opened wide her eyes, sir.
Oh, ain’t a little baby sweet?
I mean, that never cries, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
Oh, don’t I wish I had been there,
To get some nuts and candy,
And then I would have shouted, too,
For Yankee Doodle Dandy.
Yankee Doodle.
Like Yankee Doodle, when a man,
I mean to have a pony,
But then I would not like to be
So long, and lean, and bony.
Yankee Doodle.
The people all went wild with joy,
And set the bells to ringing —
And some were eating ginger-bread,
And others loudly singing.
Yankee Doodle.
They threw their hats into the air,
And made an awful racket,
And Jerry Thomas, he fell down,
And spoiled his Sunday jacket.
Yankee Doodle.
And Billy Birch dressed up that day,
And looked just like a dandy;
Ile spent his money—all he had,
For nice molasses candy.
Yankee Doodle.
And now the Yankees love John Bull—
At least, they do not hate him,
And would not do a single thing,
To vex or irritate him.
Yankee Doodle.
But friendly words we mean to send
To Johnny, by the cable;
For when we dine with him he puts
Plum pudding on the table.
Yankee Doodle.
And we will give him pumpkin pie,
And apple sauce and chickens,
And never speak an angry word,
While we remember Dickens.
Yankee Doodle.
Yankee Doodle
Now Yankee Doodle lives at ease–
The White House is his home, sir.
He would not swap with any king,
Nor with the Pope of Rome, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
All nations gather on his lawn,
And laugh, and sing, and dance, sir.
And Irish, Dutch, or Chinaman,—
He gives them all a chance, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
They send their children to his schools,
To learn to read and write, sir ;
And when they all stand up to spell,
It is a pleasant sight, sir.
Yankee Doodle.
He is no friend to willful knaves,
Nor is he pleased with folly ;
But likes good people, high and low,
And likes to see them jolly.
Yankee Doodle.
He often takes a quiet smoke,
When he has read the papers,
And then he loves to watch the folks,
While cutting up their capers.
Yankee Doodle.
Now boys and girls, all gather ’round–
Come on, the whole “caboodle,”
And give three cheers for Uncle Sam,
For he is Yankee Doodle.
Yankee Doodle.
