anon

“ And she lives in our Alley.
We are apt to account for the world-wide popularity of the songs of Burns by the fact that he was himself a son of the soil, one who wrote out of his own experiences the joys and sorrows, the loves and losses, the hopes and fears of the poor; but it is not necessary to be a dog to write about dogs, or even a costermonger to write about Covent Carden, and genius can soar or sink with equal ease, and "the short and simple annals of the poor" have often been most sympathetically presented by men who have never known privation.
That was the case with Carey. ”

“ The one song by which Henry Carey secures immortality is the famous "Sally in Our Alley." a song which has been sung some millions of times since it was written, and, it is safe to say, by almost every famous singer. ”

“ Every tradesman had his little posse of "'prentices," and a very lively lot they were. 'Prentices' riots were common. Occasionally, they would fight among themselves; but oftener make common cause against the rest of the town. ”