II

A skirling squeaky piping —
Tweedledee, tweedledee,
And the drubbing of a drum,
Tum ... tum ...
And the niggers on the quay
Stole my young heart from the sea;
And I leapt ashore and shuffled with them,
Ruffled with them, scuffled with them,
Prancing to that piping —
Tweedledee, tweedledee,
To the piping sharp and thin
That gets underneath the skin,
And the drubbing of the drum,
Tum ... tum ...
That rumbles through the midriff like the roll of kingdom-come —
Tum ... tum ... tum ...
And I couldn't face my messmates
When they'd seen me foot it there
To the drubbing of the drum —
Tum ... tum ...
Galumphing like a bear
Mother-naked to the air
With a lot of fantee stumping niggers,
Clumping belly-thumping niggers —
Lost to England, Home, and Beauty
By the piping sharp and thin
That gets underneath the skin,
And the drubbing of the drum —
Tum ... tum ...
That rumbles through the midriff like the roll of kingdom-come —
Tum ... tum ... tum ...