Jamaican Song and Story Part 77

These words taken as a whole refer to the carts of the United Fruit Company of which Captain Baker is the manager. In defiance of rules girls may be seen perched on top of the bunches of bananas in the laden carts.

CLx.x.xIX.

[Music: _5th Figure._

Come go da mountain, Come go da mountain, Come go da mountain go pick coco finger, Busha Webb an' all a pick coco finger, Busha Webb an' all a pick coco finger; Pick coco finger, Pick coco finger, Come go da mountain go pick coco finger.]

"Come let us go to the mountain and dig cocoes. Overseer Webb and everybody is digging them." A plan often adopted is to dig round the root, search for the tubers, pick them off and then push back the soil. This may be the picking referred to, only the tubers do not look like fingers. They are the shape of a peg-top.

Another suggestion is that the fingers are the young rolled-up leaves which are picked before they expand for spinach. This variety of interpretation, coupled with the fact that the word _finger_, always applied to bananas, is never used in speaking of cocoes, points to this being a very old sing.

CXC.

[Music: _Valse._

Amanda Grant, me yerry your name, yerry your name a bamboo root.

Why! Why! me yerry your name, Why! Why! yerry your name, Me yerry your name a bamboo root.]

Amanda stole some money and hid it at the foot of a bamboo.

CXCI.

[Music: _2nd Figure._

Last night I was lying on me number, An' a foolish man come wake me out of slumber, Say Why oh! Why oh!

I never see a woman dancing with a wooden leg.

Bammerlichy, bammerlichy, bamby, Bammerlichy, bammerlichy, bamby, Bammerlichy, bammerlichy, bamby, I never see a woman dancing with a wooden leg.]

The scene is laid in the People's Shelter at Kingston which has numbered sleeping-berths.

At "Bammerlichy" etc. the dancers imitate the stiff action of a wooden leg.

CXCII.

[Music: _5th Figure._

Me la.s.sie me dundooze, me dundooze come kiss me, The kiss that you give me it rest on me mind till it give me the aygo.

When we married an' settled down we have no cause to say, For as soon as the parson pa.s.s up the sentence nothing to part us.]

"Dundooze" (or dundoze, for it is rather hard to catch the vowel) is a term of endearment. Others are, honey, lover, sugar, sweety, marvel, bolow, bahzoon.

"Aygo" is ague; "say," perhaps, sunder.

CXCIII.

The next conveys an appreciative reference to a proprietor who is a large employer of labour.

[Music: _Polka._

Mister Davis bring somet'ing fe we all, Mister Davis bring somet'ing fe we all.

Oh him bring black gal, An' him bring brown gal, An' him bring yaller gal an' all.]

CXCIV.

[Music: _5th Figure._

A wh the use you da hang da me neck-back, Married man me no want you.

Turn back, married man, turn back, you brute, Turn back married man, married man a dog.]

CXCV.

[Music: _4th Figure._

Quattywort' of this!

Quattywort' of that!

till him come up to a s.h.i.+lling oh!

Why Brown man!

Why Brown man!

you have a nasty way, Robson.]