My name is Captain Kid, who has sailed, who has sailed,
My name is Captain Kid, who has sailed.
My name is Captain Kid;
What the laws did still forbid
Unluckily I did while I sailed, while I sailed.
Upon the ocean wide, when I sailed, etc.,
Upon the ocean wide, when I sailed,
Upon the ocean wide
I robbed on every side
With most ambitious pride, when I sailed, etc.
My faults I will display, while I sailed, etc.,
My faults I will display, while I sailed.
My faults I will display,
Committed day by day.
[Damnation is my lot, as I sailed,] etc.
Many long leagues from shore, when I sailed, etc.,
Many long leagues from shore, when I sailed;
Many long leagues from shore
I murdered William Moore,
And laid him in his gore, when I sailed, etc.
Because a word he spoke, when I sailed, etc.,
Because a word I spoke, when I sailed;
Because a word he spoke
I with a bucket broke
His skull at one sad stroke, while I sailed, etc.
I struck with a good will, when I sailed, etc.,
I struck with a good will, when I sailed;
I struck with a good will,
And did a gunner kill,
As being cruel still, when I sailed, etc.
A Quida merchant then, while I sailed, etc.,
A Quida merchant then, while I sailed;
A Quida merchant then
I robbed of hundreds ten,
Assisted by my men, while I sailed, etc.
A banker's ship of France, while I sailed, etc.,
A banker's ship of France, while I sailed;
A banker's ship of France
Before us did advance.
I seiz-ed her by chance, while I sailed, etc.
Full fourteen ships I see, when I sailed, etc.,
Full fourteen ships I see, when I sailed;
Full fourteen ships I see,
Merchants of high degree.
They were too hard for me, when I sailed, etc.
We steered from sound to sound, while we sailed, etc.,
We steered from sound to sound, while we sailed;
We steered from sound to sound,
A Moorish ship we found.
Her men we stripped and bound, while we sailed, etc.
Upon the ocean seas while we sailed, etc.,
Upon the ocean seas while we sailed,
Upon the ocean seas
A warlike Portuguese
In sport did us displease, while we sailed, etc.
At famous Malabar when we sailed, etc.,
At famous Malabar when we sailed,
At famous Malabar
We went ashore, each tar,
And robbed the natives there, when we sailed, etc.
Then after this we chased, while we sailed, etc.,
Then after this we chased, while we sailed,
Then after this we chased
A rich Armenian, graced
With wealth, which we embraced, while we sailed, etc.
Many Moorish ships we took while we sailed, etc.,
Many Moorish ships we took while we sailed,
Many Moorish ships we took;
We did still for plunder look.
All conscience we forsook while we sailed, etc.
I, Captain Cullifoord, while I sailed, etc.,
I, Captain Cullifoord, while I sailed,
I, Captain Cullifoord,
Did many merchants board,
Which did much wealth afford, while we sailed, etc.
Two hundred bars of gold, while we sailed, etc.,
Two hundred bars of gold, while we sailed,
Two hundred bars of gold
And rich dollars manifold
We seiz-ed uncontrolled, while we sailed, etc.
St John, a ship of fame, when we sailed, etc.,
St John, a ship of fame, when we sailed,
St John, a ship of fame,
We plundered when she came,
With more that I could name, when we sailed, etc.
We taken was at last, and must die, etc.,
We taken was at last, and must die,
We taken was at last
And into prison cast.
Now, sentence being passed, we must die, etc.
Though we have reigned awhile, we must die, etc.,
Though we have reigned awhile, we must die,
Though we have reigned awhile,
While fortune seemed to smile,
Now on the British Isle we must die, etc.
Farewell the ocean main, we must die, etc.,
Farewell the ocean main, we must die,
Farewell the ocean main;
The coast of France or Spain
We ne'er shall see again. We must die, etc.
From Newgate now in carts we must go, etc.,
[From Newgate now in carts we must go],
From Newgate now in carts
With sad and heavy hearts
To have our due deserts we must go, etc.
Some thousands they will flock when we die, etc.,
Some thousands they wi!l flock when we die,
Some thousands they will flock
To Execution Dock,
Where we must stand the shock and must die, etc.
abc | midi | pdf
Source: Palmer, Roy (ed),(1986),Oxford Book of Sea Songs,Oxford, OUP
Notes:
The tune is from d'Urfey, VI, 251 and the text is from Crawford, No 843.
An extract from the notes follows:
Captain William Kid (or Kidd) was born in Scotland in about 1645. Little is
known of him before 1688, by which time he was living in New York. In the
following year he saw action against the French in the West Indies as captain of
his own sloop. In 1691 he married, and acquired a comfortable estate in
Manhattan. Four years later he travelled to London in search of a command in
the navy. Kidd was persuaded instead to accept a privateering commission
against pirates and the French. The venture was funded partly by Kidd himself,
but mainly by Lord Bellomont (Governor of New England), various Whig
grandees in London, and even William III himself (though his share of the
capital was not in fact paid). Kidd fitted out a small ship, the Adventure galley,
and left Deptford in February 1696, for the Red Sea. However, after calling at
Plymouth he made for New York, where he hoped to strengthen his crew. On
the passage he captured a French 'banker', a fishing vessel bound for Newfoundland,
and sold her as a prize in New York. After a delay of several months
he sailed for the Indian Ocean, where, after an argument, he fatally injured the
gunner,Thomas Moore, by hitting him over the head with a bucket. After various
incidents the Adventure galley took two ships, both considered legitimate
prizes because they bore French passes. The second of these, the Quedah, had a
valuable cargo. In 1698 Kidd abandoned his own ship, which had become
unseaworthy, and set off for America in the Quedah. He arrived at Anguilla
(Leeward Islands) in April 1699, to discover that he had been declared a pirate
in London. He took the Quedah to Hispaniola, transferred the more valuable of
her contents to a small vessel which he purchased, and sailed to New York, then
Boston, to enlist the aid of Lord Bellomont. Kidd's defence was that although
Moore was mutinous, he had not intended to kill him; and that the prizes had
been lawfully taken. He handed the French passes to Bellomont. Nevertheless
Kidd was taken to London, where he lay for a year in Newgate Gaol awaiting
trial. A political storm was raging over the Tories' accusation that the Whigs
were implicated in piracy. Kidd was called to the bar of the House of Commons
to answer questions, and later put on trial. The passes and other documents vital
to his defence were not produced-indeed, were probably deliberately suppres
sed- and Kidd was found guilty of both murder and piracy. His effects, worth
six and a half thousand pounds, were confiscated and given to Greenwich
Hospital. Some of the money went towards building what is now the National
Maritime Museum.
Much of this material is (indirectly) drawn from The Newgate Calendar
Roud: 1900 (Search Roud index at VWML) Take Six
Laws:
Child:
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