Two thousand of us out of work,
Two thousand stalwart men.
And when we goes to Gov. Bureau,
We're told to call again ;
And so we're humbugg'd day by day
And so we hungry are,
And all we grets from Yankee Jenks
Is but a nasty jar.
We thought when Batchelor we returned
And also Tommy Price,
To Parliament, that things would gee
For uncommon nice;
But we're a deuced sight worse off
Than what we were before
We sent the Labour members in.
And that's what makes us sore.
Their promises on hustings were
But bunkum and claptrap.
Their beer and skittle promises.
Turned out not worth a rap.
O, Coneybeer! O. Hutchison !
And you MacGillivray,
We're about full up of you,
No matter what you say.
You Labour members can't deny
Deny it if you can,
You allowed the Kingston Government
To treat the working man
In harder and in harsher way
Than any Government
Had ever treated him before.
While you seemed quite content.
You 'lowed the Kingston Government
To make him crack hard stones
For bit of tucker, and when he
Would rest his weary bones
At night upon the cold Park Lands
His fate there to bewail,
You 'lowed that cruel Government
To trot him off to gaol.
Two thousand of us out of work
Two thousand starving men
Now swear by hungry stomachs that
"we never will again
To Parliament send Batchlor
Nor Price, nor Archibald,
Or if we do, may we be----,
And blanky fools be call'd."
TOWZER (H.C.Clark)
This song was one of many sent to Banjo Paterson but not used in his Old Bush SongsNotes From the Adelaide Newspaper The Evening Journal 19 Jan 1899 Page 2. Top