Nice work, guys. Many troops in the Mexican War embarked from New Orleans. And "Quebec" is just as likely to refer to the Seven Years' War and the battle of Quebec as to the War of 1812. In no case is the appearance of the place name a guarantee that it was in the original, or, if it was, that the original dated as far back as the reference. The clear predominance of Mexico, New Orleans, and the Rio Grande in the traditional versions strongly suggests that the verses came about during or just after the war of 1846-48.
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