"All de world am sad and dreary (hands extended at sides, arm's length)
Eb'rywhere I roam; (hands brought together in front of body)
Oh! darkies, how my heart grows weary (right hand over heart)
Far from de old folks at home!" (left hand in pocket, head bowed on right hand, sad, dejected attitude)
At close of chorus the impersonator goes to right corner of front of stage and stands there during the second stanza. The curtain is now drawn, revealing two little darkey boys, scantily clothed, feet bare, and old hats on heads. They chase each other across back of stage during the words:
"All round de little farm I wandered
When I was young,
Den many happy days I squander'd,
Many de songs I sung;
When I was playing with my brudder
Happy was I;"
A girl with face blackened, bright cap on head, calico dress, large apron, and bright kerchief around neck comes on stage and one little darkey boy stands on either side of her as the words are sung:
"Oh! take me to my kind old mudder,
Dere let me live and die."
The mother and little boys stand at back of stage during chorus, the young man comes out to near-center and acts chorus as before, except at the words, "Far from de old folks at home!" he turns and extends both arms toward the group at back of stage.
As third stanza is begun the mother and boys pass off and a young colored lady, gaily and gaudily dressed in bright colors, with a large, "much-trimmed" hat, comes on and stands at back of stage. She gazes off to side of stage and a young man, dressed about like one who does the acting, comes on carrying a banjo. She goes to meet him, they walk back to center of back, she sits on a stump of wood (or something to give an outdoor effect), and he sits at her feet and pretends to play the banjo. During the singing of this stanza the impersonator stands as before, at side of stage, but as chorus begins he comes toward center of front and acts as during second singing of chorus. The mother and two boys come back on and stand, tableau effect, beside the girl and boy with the banjo.
The Blue and the Gray
Hang back of stage with black cloth and fasten on wall, staffs crossed, two good-sized flags. A few feet from the back, with about four feet aisle between them, arrange two graves by using small boxes covered with dark cloth for the mounds and nailing at the head of each a white board for a stone. If it is not desired to have the words sung they may be recited by someone at side of stage. A girl dressed as a woman, all in black, comes on slowly, passes across back of stage from left to right, down right side, up to aisle between two mounds and kneels beside one of them as the stanza is read: