[How Come This Blood?] (Edward)- Edith Ballenger (MA) c.1910 Olney- Flanders
[My title. From Flanders' Ballads Migrant in New England, with music. Also in Ancient Ballads with notes by Coffin. The title is obviously no local and probably supplied by Flanders. Collected in 1945 by M. Olney.
R. Matteson 2014]
[How Come This Blood?]- As sung by Edith Ballenger (Edith Ballenger Price) learned in Mass. c. 1910 when Edith was a young girl.
"How come this blood on your shirt sleeve,
Oh dear love, tell me, me, me?"
"It is the blood of my old gray hound
That traced the fox for me, me, me,
That traced the fox for me.'
"It does look too pale for that old gray hound,
Oh dear love, tell me, me, me."
"It does look too pale for that old gray hound,
That traced the fox for me, me, me,
That traced the fox for me."
"How come this blood on your shirt sleeve,
Oh dear love, tell me, me, me?"
"It is the blood of that old gray mare
That ploughed the field for me, me, me.
That ploughed the field for me."
"It does look too pale for that old gray mare,
Oh dear love, tell me, me, me."
"It does look too pale for that old gray mare,
That ploughed the field for me, me, me.
That ploughed the field for me."
"How come this blood on your shirt sleeve,
Oh dear love, tell me, me, me?"
"It is the blood of my brother-in-law
That went away with me, me, me.
That went away with me."
"And its what did you fall out about
Oh dear love, tell me, me, me?"
About a little bush
That never would have growed to a tree, tree, tree,
That never would have growed to a tree."
"And its what will you do now my love,
Oh dear love, tell me, me, me?"
"I'll set my foot into yongers ship,
And sail across the sea, sea, sea,
And sail across the sea!"
"And when will you come back again,
Oh dear love, tell me, me, me?"
"When the sun sets into yonders sycamore tree,
And that will never be, be, be,
And that will never be!