American Old Time Song Lyrics: 43 After The Strike

Theater, Music-Hall, Nostalgic, Irish & Historic Old Songs, Volume 43

AFTER THE STRIKE.
Composed by George Hughes.
Tune-"After the Ball."

There was a strike ordered on the first of May:
The operators thought the men couldn't stay away.
One day a boss drove around to see his men,
And asked them if they wouldn't go And start the works again;
The men said, "No, sir; we are out upon a strike,
And we don't intend to go back until the scale is signed."
"List to my story," the boss he did say;
"We'll sign the scale, if you'll keep the union away."

Chorus.
After the strike is over, after all fighting is done.
After the blacklegs have vanished, after the deputies are gone-
Many a man will be laughing, if you could see them all;
Many a home will be happy after the strike is won.

Bright times are coming in this country now
If the miners of America will stand strong and firm;
We'll show the public we're not wrong
For coming out for the rights that was gained by Washington.
Now the operators, as we understand,
Is breaking the constitution of this free land;
They are making the workingmen all slaves,
Making them work from daylight until dark,
Just for the bite they eat.- Chorus.

Now if you will listen, I will try and state
Of a sad misfortune that happened here of late.
There were some blacklegs working on Painter yard,
Which made the striker feel very bad;
They held a meeting, tried to explain,
How they'd make the blacklegs quit work again;
Ho they got their women to go over there,
Thinking that the blacklegs would run with fear.- Chorus.

But when they assembled to go on the ground,
One of the deputies shot into the crowd:
He had two revolvers, emptied them, you see,
Then comes another as fast as he could be;
And when he got there, he found it out
That one of them had an axe, which made the blacklegs shout.
That's why he's lonely, no home at all;
She split his head, boys, after his last hall.- Chorus.