Lyr. Add: I WISH I WAS A LITTLE BIRD

Wisht I was a little fish,
I'd swim to the bottom of the sea,
And there I'd sing my sad little song,
'There's nobody cares for me'.*
2
I wisht I was a little bird,
I'd fly to the top of a tree
And there I'd sing my sad little song,
'There's nobody cares for me.'
3
I wisht I was a little boy
And learn how to rope a cow;
I'd learn how to put on a great many airs,
And then I'd learn to plow.
4
But as I am a little girl
I learn how to weave and spin,
Learn how to put on a great many airs
And learn to fool the young men.
*In "Kitty Cline," the refrain line runs, 'I can't stay hyar by myself'.
1909, from 'a hired girl.' "Most closely allied to "Kitty Kline.""
p. 489, H. M. Belden, ed., 1940, "Ballads and Songs Collected by the Missouri Folk-Lore Society."