Your dear old dad was Irish (your mother came from Wales)

"Your dear old Dad was Irish"
(Your mother came from Wales)

Written and composed by William Hargreaves and Lawrence Wright

The troop ship was waiting as friends said good-bye. 
The boys were departing 'midst many a sigh, 
A young Irish soldier erect in his place,
Was eager to fight for the cause of his race.
An old Chelsea pensioner crept to his side,
His form bent and feeble, his face flushed with pride, 
Murmured, "My lad, when you're facing the foe, 
Remember your breeding and let them all know": 

Your dear old dad was Irish, your mother came from Wales, 
Your granddad was a Scotchman from the bonnie hieland dales. 
So remember when you're fighting when foreign bullets whiz, 
You've got the blood in you to keep Old England where she is. 

Take this bunch of shamrock and guard it with pride. 
The rose of Old England, keep them side by side; 
If any one asks what their meaning can be. 
Just say they're an emblem of sweet liberty. 
The bugle then sounded, the partings were o'er. 
And how those boys fought on that far distant shore, 
An old soldier thought as of yictory he read 
Of the shamrock, the rose, and the words he had said.