This is the tale of a little boy Wandering far from his home Most of his family were with him then And nothing but life did they own Tortured by war in their native land Their only recourse was to flight Tracing the path of the sun by day And led by the north star at night Onward they pressed to the promised land Not knowing if that was the way And none of the children could understand And this little boy used to say Hey, hey, hey Mamma, where do we go from here Mamma, why can' t we stay Mamma, is daddy very near Mamma, why do you pray Down came the winter, the food was scarce The people were falling like flies Disease helped starvation make matters worse And parents resorted to lies Hush, your mamma will soon be well
Though all they can do is to wait And one little boy hears the doctor tell The others he thinks it' s too late It' s too late Mamma, he whispers quietly Mamma, you' re looking old Mamma, why don' t you answer me Mamma, your hands feel cold He rushes out into the chilly night He can' t beleive what he has been told The tears in his eyes start to blur his sight And freeze on his face with the cold But in the next camp, ther is a mother mild Who' s mourning a son pa**ed away And fate brings the cries of the little child To her just as he starts to say Hey, hey, hey Mamma, she knows what she must do Mamma, she thinks of her Mamma, I must take the place of you And take him into my care Mamma, oh oh...