The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #136851   Message #3127295
Posted By: Gurney
02-Apr-11 - 10:34 PM
Thread Name: Royal Oak/Turkish Man of War/Cpt Mansfield's Fight
Subject: RE: Origins: Turkish man of war
The version that I learned from Malcolm Clapp has 'seven sail of Turkish men-o-war,' and another verse on the battle:

The very next ship that come alongside,
it was the Harp and Lyre,
we poured our fire-buckets into her,
she quickly took upon fire!

Suitable numerical mods to the counting verse, and the captain's name changed at a whim, as far as I could tell. Wellfounder, Bellfounder, Carpenter. Pretty much as the version above, otherwise.