The Sons of the Tyne: Or, British Volunteers
Tune—Hearts of Oak.
Come cheer up your hearts, my brave sons of the Tyne,
And boldly come forward to enter the line;
Your country it calls you, defend now her right,
Against that invader, who dares you to fight.
Sons of Tyne all advance,
For to humble proud France;
And teach Bonaparte,
Tho’ ever so hearty,
Not t’ insult British valour upon her own shore.
The proud sons of Spain, too, like fools did attempt,
With a large Armada to make a descent;
But lord Howard convinc’d them, long ere they came near,
That they were not to take the wrong sow by the ear!
Sons of Tyne, &c.
There was bold Sidney Smith, on the Palestine shore,
Made the army invincible lie all in gore;
When caught in his Mouse Trap17 at Acre de John,
Bonaparte (then Musselman) made a sad moan.
Sons of Tyne, &c.
The brave Abercromby shed his last drop of blood,
At Alexandria, for his country’s good:
And shall Corsican Tyranny ever come near
To Britannia’s shores?—No! we’ll all volunteer.
Sons of Tyne, &c.
He threats to invade us, and plunder us too,
And make us a province! but that will not do.
If he come, we will shew him a handful of men,
Who will take him in Trap, like Sir Sidney again.
Sons of Tyne, &c.
Bonaparte’s bravadoes we’ll treat with disdain,
Like the heroes of Britain, who rule on the main;
We will boldly stand forward in Britannia’s cause,
To protect her religion, her liberty and laws.
Sons of Tyne, &c.
Notes
17 The seamen call the breach made in the walls at St John de Acre, while Bonaparte was in Egypt, the Commodore’s Mouse Trap.