Lyr Req: Mama hears her darling's prayer...

Subject: Help needed - obscure lyrics
From: Mick Lowe
Date: 19 Nov 00 - 03:37 PM

Hi gang

The following is an email request I received which I am hoping one of you good folks can help us with..

"My 62 year old mother is intensifying a search begun
30 years ago to locate a verse or poem that her Irish
Catholic grandmother used to recite. She originally tried
to find it when we were young, now she'd like it for her
grandchildren. Here's what she remembers:

'Mama hears her darling's prayer,
Tucks him safely into bed,
Handies folded, peepers shut,
Nightgown white as white can be.'

Her grandmother was born in America in roughly 1869.
Mom is theorizing that it might have been something she
had to memorize for school since so much of the
learning in the late 1800's was done by rote memory.
It could also be the lyrics to an old lullaby or prayer."

Any help would be appreciated

Thanks
Mick

Subject: RE: Help needed - obscure lyrics
From: catspaw49
Date: 19 Nov 00 - 04:07 PM

Hey Mick......The only reference I can find to it is at THIS REFERENCE SITE and if you can figure out how to use it .... or maybe one of our resident librarians can, you might be able to get the text you're after!

Spaw

Subject: RE: Help needed - obscure lyrics
From: Mick Lowe
Date: 19 Nov 00 - 06:58 PM

Hi Spaw

I spent about an hour or so last night trying to figure that site out... thought it was just me missing something.

Mick

Subject: RE: Help needed - obscure lyrics
From: catspaw49
Date: 19 Nov 00 - 07:08 PM

I've spent some time looking elsewhere since and I can't find a thing. This may be a library only thing to find.

As far as that site goes, I'm glad I'm not alone......I have no idea how they're referencing the stuff. Its aggravating because you know they have the info, but you can't get it from them. Maybe the members access is needed but I doubt that helps from the look of it and the lack of hot links.

Spaw

Subject: RE: Help needed - obscure lyrics
From: SingsIrish Songs
Date: 20 Nov 00 - 02:25 AM

I never told you Mick, but I came across that site as well in my search...seems you missed my post (now circulated off the current threads) re this song search...Title is the first line of the lyrics/verse...no replies though....

I'm still looking....

ABSK-- Mary

Subject: RE: Help needed - obscure lyrics
From: Helen
Date: 21 Nov 00 - 11:50 PM

Hi all,

"Mama hears her darling's prayer. . . ," 35:296 Super-librarian to the rescue: On the reference site the numbers at the end refer to the Volume number (35) and page number (296) of a journal which could be called this:

Reference & User Services Quarterly (RUSQ)

Although they are referring to something called The Exchange, which may be a regular feature in that journal or anpther journal entirely.

Your best bet is to e-mail the contact person on that site and see if they will send you the information on the lyrics, or tell you which Journal they are referring to so that you can find it (hopefully) in a library near you.

Helen

Subject: RE: Help needed - obscure lyrics
From: Mick Lowe
Date: 22 Nov 00 - 01:16 PM

Shucks Helen,
When I started reading your thread I thought you were going to tell me you had a copy of the fabled RUSQ in question. I'm not sure which librarians that site is aimed at but I haven't found a library yet that's ever heard of it. I'm sure there must be a copy out there somewhere... but then again I believe in Santa Claus...

Thanks
Mick

Subject: RE: Help needed - obscure lyrics
From: SingsIrish Songs
Date: 22 Nov 00 - 04:51 PM

Mick, I'll do a search at the LAPL to see if they have the journal....something I forgot to put on my "to do" list....

Mary