Published by Thomas M. Scroggy, Philadelphia, 1850
Seller: R & A Petrilla, Booksellers & Appraisers, Roosevelt, NJ, U.S.A.
First Edition
Condition: Very Good. First Edition. Eleven verses, in part: "Come all you jolly rams And listen to my song,-- I will tell you of a cowardly crowd, Called Scrougers, No. 1 . We run to no fires. At Second and Wharton we stand; And when we meet a friend, We will take him by the hand." Typographic ornamental border. 11" x 5.5". Sealed in archival mylar. [Wolf, American Song Sheets, 1964.] The Rams were a small, independent fire brigade in mid-19th-century Philadelphia. "Ordinances of 1840, 1855, and 1856 established a City Fire Department which was a voluntary association of independent fire companies which, in return for subsidies, accepted the direction of City Councils" (Wikipedia). This song refers to the Philadelphia fire-company riots of the 19th century, which led the City Council to eliminate the volunteer fire-company system.