[43] Tommy
I went into a public-'ouse to get a pint o' beer,
The publican 'e up an' sez, "We serve no red-coats here."
The girls be'ind the bar they laughed an' giggled fit to die,
I outs into the street again an' to myself sez I:
O it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, go away";
But it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play,
The band begins to play, my boys, the band begins to play,
O it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play.
I went into a theatre as sober as could be,
They gave a drunk civilian room, but 'adn't none for me;
They sent me to the gallery or round the music-'alls,
But when it comes to fightin', Lord! they'll shove me in the stalls!
For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, wait outside";
But it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide,
The troopship's on the tide, my boys, the troopship's on the tide,
O it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide.
Yes, makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep
Is cheaper than them uniforms, an' they're starvation cheap;
An' hustlin' drunken soldiers when they're goin' large a bit
Is five times better business than paradin' in full kit.
Then it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, 'ow's yer soul?"
But it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll,
The drums begin to roll, my boys, the drums begin to roll,
O it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll.
We aren't no thin red 'eroes, nor we aren't no blackguards too,
But single men in barricks, most remarkable like you;
An' if sometimes our conduck isn't all your fancy paints,
Why, single men in barricks don't grow into plaster saints;
While it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, fall be'ind",
But it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind,
There's trouble in the wind, my boys, there's trouble in the wind,
O it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind.
You talk o' better food for us, an' schools, an' fires, an' all:
We'll wait for extry rations if you treat us rational.
Don't mess about the cook-room slops, but prove it to our face
The Widow's Uniform is not the soldier-man's disgrace.
For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Chuck him out, the brute!"
But it's "Saviour of 'is country" when the guns begin to shoot;
An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please;
An' Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool -- you bet that Tommy sees!
-- Rudyard Kipling
|
It's hard to apply superlatives to Kipling's poems. 'Tommy' is one of my
favourites, true, but that is a much-diluted honour. It's also one of his
best-known works, but again, that's saying little - the sheer volume and
diversity of his poetry has made many of them famous in many different
genres. Certainly no canonical list of war poems would be complete without
this minor masterpiece, expressing with a startling accuracy the plight of
the soldier. It is unsurprising that Kipling's reputation, great as it was,
was outstripped by his popularity - he was that wonderfully contradictory
being, the common man's Nobel laureate.
Note, once again, the wonderful interplay of form and content, as the rough
dialect of the 'common' man blends with the pulse-steady metre of the
soldier, and the way in which the natural rhythms of speech have been
captured without ever straining the scansion.
Background:
'Tommy' was Tommy Atkins, the generic term for a British soldier.
Thomas Atkins (also Thomas): a familiar name for the typical
private soldier in the British Army; arising out of the casual use of
this name in the specimen forms given in the official regulations from
1815 onward: see quots.
In some of the specimen forms other names are used; but `Thomas
Atkins' being that used in all the forms for privates in the Cavalry
or Infantry, is by far the most frequent, and thus became the most
familiar. Now more popularly Tommy Atkins or Tommy.
* 1815 (Aug. 31) War Office, Collection of Orders, Regulations, etc.
75 (Form of a Soldier's Book in the Cavalry when filled up).
Description, Service, &c. of Thomas Atkins, Private, No. 6 Troop,
6th Regt. of Dragoons. Where Born... Parish of Odiham, Hants...
Bounty, L6. Received, Thomas Atkins, his x mark;
-- OED
The 'Widow' in the last verse referred to Queen Victoria.
Criticism:
Rudyard Kipling was, in his grand style, the bard of British Imperialism,
and in his dialect poems, the voice of the common soldier. Anyone
interested in the military history of the period owes it to himself to
become at least passingly familiar with Kipling's soldierly verse.
Kipling is often ignored today, because his exultation in the supposed
moral and cultural superiority of European (and specifically British)
civilization makes liberal-minded twentieth-century readers wince. But the
human virtues that Kipling is most concerned with - courage, duty, honor,
decency, commitment and grit - he is quick to recognize in men and women
from all classes and races. That he shared and promoted the near-universal
prejudices of the pre-Twentieth Century worldview should not diminish our
appreciation of his artistic achievements.
Aside from the normal problems to be expected of reading century-old
poetry, reading Kipling introduces a few extra difficulties; born and
reared in India, he liberally seasons his verse with Asian and African
words, and his soldier poems are written in the lower-class dialect of the
archetypical British enlisted man, dropping final "g"s and any "h"s which
are normally
-- David Helber, <http://zeitcom.com/majgen/09kipling.html>
And finally, Kipling's self-appointed role as the spokesman of the common
soldier is best summed up in his own words: following is the dedication from
his Barrack Room Ballads.
Dedication
To T. A.
I have made for you a song,
And it may be right or wrong,
But only you can tell me if it's true;
I have tried for to explain
Both your pleasure and your pain,
And, Thomas, here's my best respects to you!
O there'll surely come a day
When they'll give you all your pay,
And treat you as a Christian ought to do;
So, until that day comes round,
Heaven keep you safe and sound,
And, Thomas, here's my best respects to you!
-- R. K.
m.
From: "Balfour" <balfour@>
TO WHOM EVER,
I've come to the stark realization, that even our country is guilty of
this.
We aren't treated well unless the cowardly populations are afraid.
R.P.Balfour
U.S.N. (ret.)
From: "DR. EDWARD L. ROSE" <rose01@>
Mickey: "Tommy" is so true and appropose . the good (cpt.?)balfour usn
ret. comments speak for me as well.
as for lawyers..some jag officer probably saw a way to greener pastures
and was the "real" father of all the tailhook fiasco when he undertook
to bury a warrior.
g.s.patton,jr. said about his warriors.
"if a man does not want to "fuck", he will not fight.!!"pass out those
"pro kits"now.g'damn it fuck this non- fratinization shit..
amen! as quoted from my father who at the time he heard this from gsp,jr
was on pattons staff in operations, outside of st. lo france.
leadership...!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hooah
rose
From: John Mitchell <mitchell100@>
I just posted "Tommy" on a web site where I frequently join in
discussions. Unfortunately, the events of 9/11/2001 will cause the
phenomenon so well expressed by Rudyard Kipling to be manifested yet
again.
jtm
usn (ret)
From: "Frederick Kaplan" <nalpakderf@>
The sentiments expressed in the poem are true but we must remember we had formerly in the White House a President and his staff who thought it was enlightened and sophisticated to be disdainful of the military. And also bear in mind the anti-Vietnam protesters who thought communism should be encouraged rather than suppressed.
They articulated that belief in concern for the wounds of war and disdain for our soldiers who inflicted those wounds. Interestingly enough, they
never showed sympathy for the stream of refugees who always went from north to south and never from south to north. That attitude was also considered sophisticated and enlightened.
Frederick I Kaplan Ph.DGet more from the Web. FREE MSN Explorer download : http://explorer.msn.com
From: Claudine Jones <clomax@>
Hello & could anyone tell me if they're aware of a song entitled
"Private Tommy", which would have been written around the turn of the
century. I've a Regina disc which plays the song, but the composer is
not legible. So far not able to find any info except this wonderful
poem.
thanks!
Claudine
From: "Tony Wesley" <tony@>
There is a similar sentiment expressed by Gordon Lightfoot in his song Don
Quixote:
"See the soldier with his gun, who must be dead to be admired"
--
Tony Wesley
tony@
From: "Howard Gordon" <hgordon@>
I remember this from my schooldays seventy years ago. This is so true to
life now as it were many years ago. RKY was truily one of the greatest
poets of all time.
hgordon@
From: "Sean Benton" <sean_benton@>
Hi
Came across this old link,I suppose you have probably found out by now
the answer to your query but if not the composers were Henry Hamilton
and S.Potter I believe.
Regards
Sean
PS I'm writing from East London England,the local dialect being as
Tommy speaks in this poem.It's still true today as seen in the gulf,when
Tommy goes to war Britain goes with him ....
From: "peter Corkell" <roman.fisherman@>
A certain member of the present British government refered to 'thick
squaddies', immediately after the latest Iraq conflict. Apparantly this
was not for public consumption as he backtracked very quickly when it
hit the media. What this proves is that little has changed since
'Tommy' was written.
From: Patgcox@
Nothing has changed since Tommy was written, indeed it gets worse. Now to be
in uniform is to be an "oppressive" or "reactionary" - apparently synonymous
with Fascist in some peoples minds. Some of your readers might find the
sentiments expressed by Kipling in the peom "Recessional" of interest - especially in
the light of anti-faith and "politically correct" propaganda.
From: "Sean Fernandes" <sfernandes@>
Hmmm...I have to disagree with most of the readers above, especially the
gentleman who made disparaging remarks about the Tailhook scandal.
Having honor and being able to fight for what you believe in is not the
exclusive province of those of us with male genitalia.