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Songs Of Education: I. History, By: G.K. Chesterton

January 3, 2023 by Editors

Songs Of Education: I. History, By: G.K. Chesterton

Form 991785, Sub-Section D

    The Roman threw us a road, a road,
    And sighed and strolled away:
    The Saxon gave us a raid, a raid,
    A raid that came to stay;
    The Dane went west, but the Dane confessed
    That he went a bit too far;
    And we all became, by another name,
    The Imperial race we are.

Chorus

    The Imperial race, the inscrutable race,
    The invincible race we are.

    Though Sussex hills are bare, are bare,
    And Sussex weald is wide,
    From Chichester to Chester
    Men saw the Norman ride;
    He threw his sword in the air and sang
    To a sort of a light guitar;
    It was all the same, for we all became
    The identical nobs we are.

Chorus

    The identical nobs, individual nobs
    Unmistakable nobs we are.

    The people lived on the land, the land,
    They pottered about and prayed;
    They built a cathedral here and there
    Or went on a small crusade:
    Till the bones of Becket were bundled out
    For the fun of a fat White Czar,
    And we all became, in spoil and flame,
    The intelligent lot we are.

Chorus

    The intelligent lot, the intuitive lot,
    The infallible lot we are.

    O Warwick woods are green, are green,
    But Warwick trees can fall:
    And Birmingham grew so big, so big,
    And Stratford stayed so small.
    Till the hooter howled to the morning lark
    That sang to the morning star;
    And we all became, in freedom’s name,
    The fortunate chaps we are.

Chorus

    The fortunate chaps, felicitous chaps,
    The fairy-like chaps we are.

    The people they left the land, the land,
    But they went on working hard;
    And the village green that had got mislaid
    Turned up in the squire’s back-yard:
    But twenty men of us all got work
    On a bit of his motor car;
    And we all became, with the world’s acclaim,
    The marvellous mugs we are:

Chorus

    The marvellous mugs, miraculous mugs,
    The mystical mugs we are.

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