And from the Yankee side of the pond...

Stanton H. King (1867-1939) enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1885 or '86 after having spent several years on merchant ships. In his book "Dog-Watches at Sea" (1901), he related the following experience during his first cruise in the bark-rigged corvette "Alliance":

"The first evening of the bad weather the topgallant sails were stowed and the topsails single-reefed. As we manned the halyards
to sway up the main topsail yard, I led off on an old deep-water chanty, 'A Long Time Ago.' A few sailing-ship sailors joined in
the refrain. We had sung one verse when the officer of the deck, Lieutenant Hanson Tyler, got hold of me by the shoulders.

"'Here, what do you mean ? Where do you think you are ?'

"'I thought, sir, it would make the yard fly aloft to sing "A Long Time Ago."'

"'Well, we don't have chanties in the navy. The boatswain's mate's whistle will do all that. Let it be a long time ago before you
sing another.'"