YOUNG FORBEST
(from the singing of Pat Lumson)
(Doerflinger - 'Songs of the Sailor and Lumberman')

Come all you young men from the Nash-wask,
It's of a young man I'm going' to talk,
Young El-mer For-best wasa this man's name,
Of Christ-ian par-ents this young man came.

He worked five years for John MacBean*
He worked five years for John MacBean.
he worked five years in his employ,
And they called him their own serving boy.

The marched them up John Sullivan's hill,
the marched them to the forest gree
It was there to behold it was there to be seen,
With axes keen the cut them down**
And on the wagon their lumber bound.

The choppers stopped, they heard a groan,
The wagon partee, but never broke,
the wagon parted but never broke;
Young Forbest fel, and he never spoke.

His comrades washed his hands and face all o'er;
And for this young man they could do no more.
His parents bore him down, and on his grave you can sit and*** weep
While he lies under, fast asleep

These lines were written by a blind man,
and every verse it is complete
And every line it is the truth,
Here ends the days of a faithful youth

*pronounced McBane
** repeat notes for line three for line four
*** the quarter note that would normally follow the eight note for "grave" becomes 4 16ths regular melody resumes on dotted quarter for "weeps"