Now ye gallant Sydney boys, who have left your household joys <br />To march across the sea in search of glory, <br />I am very much afraid that you do not love parade, <br />But the rum parade is quite another story. <br />For the influenza came and to spoil its little game, <br />They ordered us to drink a curious mixture; <br />Though at first it frightened some, when we found it mostly rum, <br />Parade became a very pleasant fixture. <br /> <br />Chorus <br /> <br />So it's forward the Brigade, if they'll hold a rum parade <br />At Pretoria there's nothing to alarm ye; <br />And it's easy to be seen if they leave the quinine, <br />Ye'll be there before the blessed British Army. <br />Then a corporal he come and he said I drank the rum, <br />But the quinine never reached its destination; <br />For begob he up and swored that I threw it overboard, <br />Sure my heart was filled with grief and indignation. <br />For I'm different to some, I prefer quinine to rum, <br />And I only take the rum just as a favour, <br />And it's easy to be seen I'm so fond of the quinine, <br />That I keep it lest the rum should spoil its flavour. <br /> <br /> <br />When we get to Africay we'll be landed straight away, <br />And quartered with the troops of Queen Victoria; <br />And we hope they'll understand that the moment that we land <br />We are ready for a march upon Pretoria. <br />And we'll pay off all the scores on old Kruger and his Boers, <br />And just to prove our manners aren't a failure, <br />And to show we are not mean, shure we'll give them the quinine, <br />And drink the rum in honour of Australia.<br /><br />Andrew Barton Paterson<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-rum-parade/
