Music: Anonymous Unknown
Oh! I'm the boy, from sweet Fermoy,
You'd hardly find a tighter,
At every fair, I'm always there,
And been a decent fighter;
But in a row, I can't tell how,
I got a whack that floor'd me,
And, strange to tell, when I got well,
Of fighting nearly cured me,
Until I heard the South had dared,
Columbia, dear, to harm ye
Then I came o'er and joined the corps
Of th' Irish American Army!
Then hip, hurra! come clear the way,
And list to Corporal Barney-
The ladies' joy-the soldier boy
Of th' Irish American Army!
And now enroll'd a soldier bold,
The sarvice I delight in;
I larned the trade with General Meade,
For he was made for fightin'.
Och had you seen me dressed in Green,
The Green Flag flying o'er us,
As down Broadway we march'd that day,
With spirits quite uproarious;
The boys were wild, the girls they smiled,
Och, ladies, won't we storm ye,
With Cupid's darts besiege your hearts,
The boys of the Irish Army.
Then hip hurra! come clear the way,
And let the girls come near me,
To see their joy-the soldier boy
Of th' Irish-American Army!
I could tell ye the tales about faymales
That after me are comin':
Young Nelly Gray, ould Biddy Bray,
And lots o' widdy women;
There's Peggy Bawn and Nancy Dawn,
(Her mother keeps a diary,)
The widow Wright-but she's a fright
And one-eyed Miss O'Leary;
But of them all, lean, fat or tall,
Miss Callaghan best warms me;
If she were mine, och wouldn't I shine
In th' Irish-American Army!
Then hip hurra! and clear the way,
Dear girls, I won't alarm ye;
To fight the foe, your beaux must go
With th' Irish-American-Army!
Brave Corcoran and Mulligan
Fell 'neath the rebel sabres,
But Meagher and Shields, on bloody fields
Revenged their death, be japers!
And as we charg'd thro' trenches gorged
With wounded, dead and dying,
A ball came by, and made me lie
But I'd no taste for lying;
For up I got, went at them hot
To see them run would charm ye;
We won the day, for that's the way
With th' Irish American Army!
Then hip hurra! and clear the way,
No rebel foe can scare me
The ladies' joy-the soldier boy
Of th' Irish-American Army!
And then at night, when clos'd the fight,
Around the camp-fire smoking,
Each boy in green, with his dudeen,
'Midst laughter, song and joking;
Oh, had we fought that day, I thought,
Lov'd Erin's bonds to sever,
How sweet the toil on Irish soil,
To crush her foes for ever!
Hark! "news from home ... .. the mail has come,"
From private to the colonel
All rush'd to hear the news that cheer,
In the' Irish-American journal.
Then hip hurra! come clear the way,
And let the boys come near me,
While I diffuse the glorious news
Of th' Irish American Army!
Then let all here give one loud cheer
For Erin's sons distinguished,
Who in a flood of Irish blood
Rebellion's flame extinguished.
When comes the hour to fight the Power
That tramples Irish freedom,
Columbia, then, will give us men,
A Grant, too, if we need him?
Then raise the cheer, ye despots hear,
And surely 'twill alarm ye,
For soon you'll see Ould Erin free
By th' Irish-American Army!
Then hip hurra! aye clear the way, We're coming, Saxon, arm ye;
The fight's begun-it will be won
By th' Irish American Army!