Click this icon to hear Watery God if it does not automatically play.
This song was written as a parody of another contemporary ballad: Watery God in 1776 upon the American victories at Trenton and Princeton. It commented on the taking of General Charles Lee as prisoner while he was marching his army through 'the Jerseys' to join with General George Washington's army.
As Mars, great god of battles! Lay In dalliance soft and amorous play, On fair Bellona' s breast;
Surprised he reared his hoary head, The conscious goddess shook with dread, And all her fears confess’d.
Loud thunder roll’d through Heaven's domain, The ethereal world was wrapt in flame, The god amazed spoke:
Go forth, ye powers, and make it known, Who dares thus boldly shake my throne, And fill my realms with smoke.
The gods, obsequious to his word, Sprang swiftly forth t' obey their lord, And saw two hosts away;
The one, great Washington, was thine; The other, Howe' s disordered line, In sorrow and dismay.
Appall’d they view’d Columbia's sons, Deal death and slaughter from their guns, And strike a dreadful blow,
Which made ill-fated British slaves, On distant shores to find their graves, And sink to shades below.
Amaz’d they tell of battles won, That Britain's ruin’d; Washington Alone triumphant rode;
Ha! cries fair, pray who is he That dares reverse e'en Jove's decree And thus insult a god?
The gods reply, In yonder lands, Great Liberty alone commands, And gives the hero force;
And when his thundering cannon roar, And strike with dread earth's distant shore, 'Tis she directs their course.
And when her winged bullets fly, To check a tyrant's treachery, And lay his glories low;
Then Washington serenely great, Tho' death and carnage round him wait, Performs the dreadful blow.
The god with wonder heard the story, Astonish’d view’d Columbia's glory, Which time can ne'er subdue,
Great Warren's deeds, and Gates's fame, Join’d to great Lee's immortal name; And cried, Can this be true?
Britain shall cease to plague mankind, With sister tyrants strive to bind, And check the free-born soul;
To Washington her trophies yield, Freedom shall triumph in the field, And rule from pole to pole.
Note: The midi file that is linked to this page was sequenced by ----- -----, and included on the website, Traditional And Folk Songs, located at: http://www.traditionalmusic.co.uk/song-midis/Watry_God_2_(A_Parody).htm
