The Catalpa

First Published In Three Street Ballads In 1957
This Version Was Collected By Russel Ward From Victor Courtney A Journalist
On The Sunday Times, Perth, Western Australia, Who Commented,
"I Remember In My Early Days As A Cadet Hearing A Band Of Old Boys In A Pub In Fremantle
Singing This Song. It Is Said That The Song Became So Popular That It Was Banned By The
Authority Of The Day And Jail Was Threatened To Anyone Caught Singing It.
It Was Suggested, Too, That The Escape Was Made Easy Because There Was
Plenty Of American Gold And Some Of It Was Placed In The Hands Of Unscrupulous Warders.
The Incident Took Place In April 1876."

The Escape Of The Six Fenians From Fremantle Jail Was Funded By Collections In Australia
And The United States. Over Three Thousand Pounds Was Collected In Australia.

Several Tunes Are Associated With This Song, Including Tunes Used For 'Botany Bay' And 'The Dying Stockman'.
The Tune Given Here Is A Variant Of 'Rosin The Bow'.

Verse 1
A NCoble Whale Ship And CommandFer
CCalled The Catalpa, They SAmay
Came COut To Western AustraliFa
And TCook Six Poor FG7enians AwCay

Chorus
So Come CAll You Screw Warders And JFailers
RemCember Perth Regatta DAmay
Take CCare Of The Rest Of Your FeniFans
Or The YCankees Will StG7eal Them AwCay

Verse 2
SCeven Long Years Had They Served HFere
And SCeven Long More Had To StAmay
For DefCending Their Country Old IrelFand
For TChat They Were BG7anished AwCay

Verse 3
You KCept Them In Western AustraliFa
Till ThCeir Hair Began To Turn GrAmey
When A YCank From The States Of AmericFay
Came COut Here And StG7ole Them CAway

Chorus
So Come CAll You Screw Warders And JFailers
RemCember Perth Regatta DAmay
Take CCare Of The Rest Of Your FeniFans
Or The YCankees Will StG7eal Them AwCay

Verse 4
Now CAll The Perth Boats Were A-RacFing
And MCaking Short Tacks For The SpAmot
But The YCankee She Tacked Into FremantlFe
And TCook The Best PrG7ize Of The LCot

Verse 5
The GCeorgette Armed With Bold WarriFors
Went COut The Poor Yanks To AmArrest
But She HCoisted Her Star-Spangled BFanner
Saying YoCu'll Not BG7oard Me I GCuess

Chorus
So Come CAll You Screw Warders And JFailers
RemCember Perth Regatta DAmay
Take CCare Of The Rest Of Your FeniFans
Or The YCankees Will StG7eal Them AwCay

Verse 6
So RemCember Six Fenians ColoniFal
And SCing O'er These Few Verses With SkAmill
And RCemember The Yankee That Stole ThFem
And The HCome That They LG7eft On The HCill

Verse 7
Now They've LCanded Safe In AmericFay
And ThCey Will Be Able To CrAmy
Hoist CUp The Green Flag And ShamrFock
HurrCah For Old G7Ireland We'll DCie

Chorus
So Come CAll You Screw Warders And JFailers
RemCember Perth Regatta DAmay
Take CCare Of The Rest Of Your FeniFans
Or The YCankees Will StG7eal Them AwCay

Outro
So Come CAll You Screw Warders And JFailers
RemCember Perth Regatta DAmay
Take CCare Of The Rest Of Your FeniFans
Or The YCankees Will StG7eal Them AwCay