The Wolfe Tones — Butchers Apron

(Chorus) Where is the flag of England? Go North, South, East or West Wherever's there's wealth to plunder Or land to be possessed! Wherever there's feeble races To frighten, coerce or scare Oh, you'll find a butcher's apron The English flag is there It waves above blazing hovels Where Africa's victims die To be shot by explosive bullets Or wretchedly starve and fly And where the pirate harries In the isles of sovereign seas At the peak of the hellish vessel The English flag is free The Maori often cursed it With its bitterest dying breath And the Arab hath hissed his hatred As he spat in its fold in death And the helpless Hindu feared it And the Kenyan did the same And the Irish blood has stained it With a deep and indelible stain (Chorus) Where is the flag of England? Go North, South, East or West Wherever's there's wealth to plunder Or land to be possessed! Wherever there's feeble races To frighten, coerce or scare Oh, you'll find a butcher's apron The English flag is there It has floated o'er scenes of pillage It is flaunted o'er deeds of shame It has waved above foul marauders As they ravished with sword and flame It has looked upon ruthless slaughter And massacre dire and grim And it's heard the shriek of victims Drowned in the Jingo hymn Where is the flag of England? Seek lands where natives rot Where decay and assured extinction Must soon be a people's lot Go search for once-glad islands Where death and disease are rife And the greed of callous commerce Now battens on human life (Chorus) Where is the flag of England? Go North, South, East or West Wherever's there's wealth to plunder Or land to be possessed! Wherever there's feeble races To frighten, coerce or scare Oh, you'll find a butcher's apron The English flag is there Where is the flag of England? Go sail where rich boats come With shoddy and loaded cottons And beer and Bibles and guns Go where brute force has triumped And hypocrisy makes its lair In your question you'll find the answer It was or still is there (Chorus) Where is the flag of England? Go North, South, East or West Wherever's there's wealth to plunder Or land to be possessed! Wherever there's feeble races To frighten, coerce or scare Oh, you'll find a butcher's apron The English flag is there