Religious Folk-Songs of the Southern Negroes Part 13

The crown that my Jesus give me, Goin' to outshine the sun, _my Lord_, An' it's way beyond the moon.

Goin' to put on my crown in glory, An' outshine the sun, _O Lord_.

'Way beyon' de moon.

Other verses sing of putting on slippers, long white robe, in each case the singer is to "outshine the sun." The dazzling splendor of it all makes antic.i.p.ation full of staying qualities; it makes the picture one of reality because of the vigor of an imaginative power. Who knows if the negroes often dream of the grandeurs of the sky?

The negro uses many figures and symbols in his religion. He can see the chariot wheel and the chariot of fire taking him to heaven as easily as Elijah. He can imagine that he, too, can ascend even as Christ and the angels. Besides these methods he has the Gospel Train and the Ship of Zion. The train has much fascination for the negro: much will be seen of this in his social songs. It is but natural that he should bring it into his religious songs. The negro often goes to meet the train at the station, even when sick. It is a great social event of a Sunday. So again, he wishes to go on an excursion; few things can hinder him. Very much in the same strain is the religious song, "When the train come along."

Well, I may be sick an' cannot rise, But I meet you at de station when de train come along.

_When de train come along, When de train come along, I'll meet you at de station when de train come along._

Well, I may be blind an' cannot see, But I'll meet you at de station when de train come along.

Well, I may be lame and cannot walk, But I'll meet you at de station when de train come along.

While no mention is made of the exact kind of train, it is generally understood to mean the Gospel train. This song also has a popular variant which is used in a secular way. In either case it expresses in a very forceful way the importance of meeting the train. In proportion as a picture resembles real life or magnifies that which has been imaged, to that degree does it bring home its truth to the negro's mind. The negro continues to sing of the train on which he is to ride into the Kingdom.

Says he:

I am talkin' 'bout the same train, Same train that carried my father, _Same train_.

Same train that carried my mother, _Same train_, Same train will be back to-morrow, _Same train_.

Same train will be here to-morrow, _Same train_, Well you better be ready, _It's the same train_.

The "same train" also carried his _brother_, _sister_, _preacher_ and others. But the train which will come back to-morrow will not wait always.

One must not only be at the station but must also have a ticket. There is plenty of room, according to the negro's conception, but there is not plenty of time. It would be a wistful negro that looked upon the train pulling out for heaven and he all alone is left behind. He sings,

Well you better git yo' ticket, Well you better git yo' ticket, Well you better git yo' ticket, Bye and bye.

There's a great day er comin', There's a great day er comin', There's a great day er comin', Bye and bye.

For the train it's er comin', For the train it's er comin', For the train it's er comin', Bye and bye.

_I am sure G.o.d is ready, I am sure G.o.d is ready, I am sure G.o.d is ready, Bye and bye._

Instead of the chorus just given he often sings: "I sure G.o.d am ready,"

and "I sho' G.o.d is ready." With this in view he is willing and glad for the train to come along. If he is ready, all the better for him to be on his journey. So he continues in another song and at another time:

If G.o.d was to call me I would not care--um-u', For he done move away my fears--um-u'.

I'm goin' to heaven, an' I'm goin' fo' long--um-u', All don't see me will hear my song--um-u'.

When de gospel train come 'long--um-u', That's the train carry me home--um-u'.

Wake up, sinner, you will be too late--um-u', Gospel train done pa.s.s yo' gate--um-u'.

In the old plantation songs the exhortation was given to "Git on board little children, dere's room for many a mo'." So also they sang:

De gospel train's a comin', I hear it jus' at hand, I hear de car wheels rumblin', An' rollin' thru de land.

I hear de train a comin', She's comin' round de curve, She's loosened all her steam an' brakes, An' strainin' eb'ry nerve.

De fare is cheap an' all can go, De rich an' pore are dere, No second cla.s.s abord dis train, No difference in de fare.

In addition to the above stanzas the Jubilee singers added others. They heard the bell and whistle and "she's playin' all her steam an' power."

The rhyme and imagery of the old song struck a more responsive chord than the present song; this is due to the fact that the negro of to-day sings his railroad songs and enjoys them in his secular music. There he pictures the train with such vividness that the train may be easily heard and seen in his imagination. Other verses of the _Gospel Train_ as it was sung by the Jubilee singers are:

There's Moses and Noah and Abraham, And all the prophets, too, Our friends in Christ are all on board, O what a heavenly crew.

We soon shall reach the station, O how we then shall sing, With all the heavenly army, We'll make the welkin ring.

She's nearing now the station, O sinner, don't be vain, But come an' get your ticket, And be ready for the train.

No signal for the other train, To follow on the line, O sinner, you're forever lost, If once you're left behind.

While the song as reported by the Jubilee singers does not possess the mere characteristics of form and dialect, it nevertheless appeals to the negroes and it is sometimes sung. One of the fears of the negro is that others may go to heaven and he be left behind. This, as has been indicated, const.i.tutes the sum total of misery. So he has a number of songs in which he expresses this feeling and prays that he may not be left behind in the race of life for the eternal goal. One of the most touching of these songs represents the negro as an orphan who is unwilling to stay alone in the world:

My m.u.t.h.e.r an' my father both are daid, both are daid, My m.u.t.h.e.r an' my father both are dead, My mother an' my father both are dead, Good Lord, I cannot stay here by merself.

_I'm er pore little orphan chile in de worl', chile in de worl', I'm er pore little orphan chile in the worl', I'm a pore little orphan chile in de worl', Good Lord, I cannot stay here by merself._

De train done whistled an' de cars done gone, cars done gone, De train done whistled an' de cars ere gone, De train done whistled an' de cars ere gone, _Ezekiel_, I cannot stay here by merself.

My brothers an' my sisters are all gone, all gone, My brothers an' my sister're all gone, all gone, My brothers an' sisters all are gone, _Mer Jesus_, I cannot stay here by merself.

Git me ticket fer de train, fer de train, Git me ticket fer de train, _I got_ mer ticket fer de train, _Thank G.o.d_, I _ain't gwine_ stay here by merself.

Very much like the song just given the negroes used to sing: "Dar's room in dar, room in dar, room in de heaven, Lord, I can't stay behin'". So, too, "I can't or don't want to stay here no longer" are common and cla.s.sic verses of negro song. Again they sang the "good news" because "De chariot's comin', I doan want her to leave a-me behind, Gwine get upon dat chariot, Carry me home". In a prayer the negro sang: "Jesus, don't leave me behind". In his songs to-day the negro says:

Dear brother, don't you leave, Dear brother, don't you leave, This ole world's a h.e.l.l to me.

_This ole world's a h.e.l.l to me, This ole world's a h.e.l.l to me._

Yes, I bleedzed to leave this world, Yes, I bleedzed to leave this world, Sister, I's bleedzed to leave this world, For it's a h.e.l.l to me.

While the old negroes used to sing "Oh brother, sisters, mourners, don't stay away, For my Lord says there's room enough", the modern negro sings "You can't stay away".

_Sister, you can't stay away, Sister, you can't stay away, Sister, you can't stay away, stay away._

My Lord is a callin' an' you can't stay away, My Lord is a callin' an' you can't stay away, Yes, my Lord is a callin' an' you can't stay away, An' you can't stay away.

King Jesus is a ridin' an' you can't stay away, _O preacher, you can't stay away_.

There have been a great many versions of the song "Ole Ship of Zion", none of which differ materially. The four or five versions most common in the slave and plantation song represented the Ship of Zion somewhat as follows: "She has landed many a thousand, She can land as many more, Do you think she will be able, For to take us all home? You can tell 'em I'm comin' home", "Dis de good ole ship of Zion, An' she's maken' fer de promise lan'. She hab angels fer de sailors. An' how you know dey's angels? Dat ship is out a sailin' she's a sailin' mighty steady. She'll neither reel nor totter, She's a sailin' 'way cold Jordan. King Jesus is de captain, captain". "De gospel ship is sailin', O Jesus is de captain, De angels are de sailors, O is yo' bundle ready? O have you got yo'

ticket!" Another version has "her loaded down with angels"; Another "wid a-bright angels". Another asks what ship is that "you're enlisted upon"?

and answers that it is the "Good ship of Zion", which "sails like she's heavy loaded", and "has King Jesus for the captain", and "the Holy Ghost is de pilot" The coast negroes had many songs that originated in ideas suggested by the boats. To-day the river negroes have songs of their own, but they do not go into the church songs. The Old Ship of Zion, however, is sung, but only as a remnant of the former song, less elaborate.

This ole ship is a reelin' an' a rockin', This ole ship is a reelin' an' a rockin' rockin' rockin'