“Freedom of Labor” Sheet Music (pdf).
“Freedom of Labor” Karaoke (midi with lyrics).
Lyrics: John Leslie.
Tune: “March of the Cameron Men.”
Fill your glasses once more, fill them up to the brim,
And drink a last toast ere we part,
For here’s to the triumph, now well on its way,
Of the cause that lies nearest our heart,
Drink it long, drink it deep, ’tis the toast of the brave,
And lustily swell the refrain,
Here’s death to the system of master and slave,
And the Freedom of Labor again,
And again, yet again,
’Tis the Freedom of Labor again.
Ah, comrades, the men who toil and in gloom
Hewed the path that we tread on to-day,
Our rulers ordained us to kill them and we
Knew only to bow and obey,
And deep was our sin, yet repentance at last
Shall weaken and wash out the stain,
And repentance means tyranny tramled downcast,
And the Freedom of Labor again,
And again, yet again,
’Tis the Freedom of Labor again.
Ah, God, how the tyrants laughed loud in their glee,
As we swore to them true to abide,
And slaughtered each other all over the earth,
To pamper their pow’r and their pride,
And priests said hosannas in praise of the might,
And worshipped their rule and their reign,
But hurrah for the thinking that brought us the light,
And the Freedom of Labor again,
And again, yet again,
’Tis the Freedom of Labor again.
Fill your glasses once more, fill them up to the brim,
Let your cheers ring applause to the toast,
How the future will envy the name and the fame
Of the man who can honor it most.
To your feet! Here’s the cause that can never be lost
While burns a thought in the brain.
Here’s the man who died for it, ne’er counting the cost,
Here’s the Freedom of Labor again,
And again, yet again,
’Tis the Freedom of Labor again.