"Throw No Stones in the Well that Gives You Water"
by Arthur Fields
Sheet music courtesy of Lester Levy Sheet Music Collection |
A companion piece to "Don't Bite the Hand That's Feeding You," "Throw No Stones in the Well that Gives you Water" echoes the same sentiment, but outlines exactly what is expected. The title may be a less-than-subtle reference to the rumors of German spies filling wells and poisoning water supplies—rampant since the Albert/Viereck discoveries and the allusion to the "cur" of the story makes it clear where the song writer is driving the point. "Harm should be done to no man" the lyric begins, "But if harm should be done to you / Stand up and fight, fight for what's right / Then all are behind anything you do or might." From "Keep Your Eye on Uncle Sammy" we know that Uncle Sammy will fight for "a cause that is right." Now we are assured that the cause is right and Uncle Sammy expects "you" to fight, and that everybody is behind "you." It is an interesting twisting of what was originally an anti-war sentiment. Paranoia then rears its ugly head out of the lyric when it goes on, "And now that we're tossed into battle / and liberty cries out for help / Don't stand in the way / Don't try to betray / The land that's made you what you are today." The writer makes suspicion the key to the lyric. It assumes that the listener WILL stand in the way and WILL try to betray, but the reminder of the listener's debt to the United States leaves an opening for him to do the right thing.
Throw no stones in the well that gives you water
Is a saying that's old but true
Remember the story about the cur
Don't bite the hand that's feeding you
There's a hat in the ring, and if it fits you
Put it on, there's a gun goes with it, too.
Throw no stones in the well that gives you water,
Come through, show us what you mean to do.
The obvious suggestion is that if the listener volunteers or appears voluntarily for the draft, then all is forgiven. He has aided "liberty" in trouble and may be redeemed. In fact, the second verse enjoins the listener to prove himself worthy of Democracy. Apparently those who take up the hat are "All and forever united / To sovereignty of every soul"; it promises and demands "Freedom for all / Answer the call / Humanity's at stake / Will you stand to see it fall?" and ends with "O, come show the world that you're ready . . . be fair and prove that you can stand the test. / (refrain)." The test of loyalty, of arms, of gratitude, all are part of what is demanded here. Issued just before the second call for the draft, the song writer prejudices his audience against anyone who is reluctant or foreign-born.
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