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The Riflemen's Song At Bennington
Burl Ives
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๐ฌ๐ง English ยท Original
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Lyrics
Original
Translation
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The following four songs about the battle of Bennington,
Saratoga, the Naval Battle of Charleston,
and the Cornwallis campaign
are the best expressions we have in song and verse
of the news reporting in ballad form.
ย
Why come ye hither, Redcoats,
Your mind what madness fills?
In our valleys there is danger,
And thereโs danger on our hills.
Oh, hear ye not the singing of the bugle wild and free?
And soon youโll know the ringing of the rifle from the tree.
ย
Oh, the rifle, oh, the rifle,
In our hands will prove no trifle.
ย
Ye ride a goodly steed,
Ye may know another master;
Ye forward came with speed,
But youโll learn to back much faster.
Then you'll meet our mountain boys,
And their leader, Johnny Stark,
Lads who make but little noise,
But who always hit the mark.
ย
Oh, the rifle, oh, the rifle,
In our hands will prove no trifle.
ย
Tell he who stays at home,
Across the briny waters,
That thither he must come,
Like bulllocks to the slaughter.
If we the work must do,
Why, the sooner โtis begun,
If flint and trigger hold,
The sooner โtwill be done.
ย
Oh, the rifle, oh, the rifle,
In our hands will prove no trifle.
ย