Collection of eighty street ballads on forty sheets, mostly with a woodcut printed at London, the majority by J. Catnach (1820ñ1830). London: n.p., n.d.
University of Minnesota Libraries. WILSON Rare Books Quarto 820.1 C683.

Broadside pasted to album leaf 8, containing "The Battle Field," "Mary's Love," and "Answer to my Heart and Lute" (all in the left column), and "Blue-Bonnets over the Border" and "Buy a Broom" (right column). Colophon at lower right: "Printed by J. CATNACH, 2 Monmouth-C<o>u<r>t <7> D<ials>."


Image: banner inscribed "FINIS," ornamented with ivy.

The Battle Field.

MARCH to the battle field,
   The foe is now before us,
Each heart is freedom's shield,
   And Heav'n is smiling o'er us.

The woes and pains, the galling chains,
   Which kept our spirit under;
In proud disdain we've broke again,
   And tear each link asunder.
                        March to the battle field.

Who, for his country brave,
   Would fly from the invader?
<W>ho, his base life to save, 
   <W>ould traitor-l<i>ke degrad her.

Our hallow'd cause, our home and laws,
   'Gainst tyrant pow'r sustaining,
<W>e'll gain a crown of bright renown,
   Or die our rights maintaining.


Basic transcription by Brett Single.
Pointed brackets mark conjectural readings and emendations (except for apostrophe marks, here normalized from from the single open-quotation marks used in the original).

Bibliography:

Listed in Catnach's Catalogue (1832), 2.

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Michael Hancher
Department of English, University of Minnesota
URL: <http://umn.edu/home/mh/battle.html>
Comments to: mh@umn.edu
Created 27 April 1997