The Ould Orange Flute

In the County Tyrone near the town of Dungannon,
Where many's a ruction myself had a hand in,
Bob Williamson lived a weaver by trade,
And as all of us thought him a stout Orange Blade,
On the twelfth of July as it yearly did come,
Bob played on the flute to the sound of the drum,
You may talk of your harp, your piano or lute,
But there's nothing could sound like the ould Orange flute.

But this treacherous scoundrel, he took us all in,
For he married a Papish named Bridget McGinn,
Turned Popish himself and forsook the oul' cause
That gave us our freedom, religion and laws,
The boys in the town land made some noise upon it,
And Bob had to fly to the Province of Connaught;
He fled with his wife, and his fixings to boot,
And along with all others the ould orange flute.

At Mass every Sunday to atone for his past deeds,
He said Paters and Aves and counted his glass beads.
Till after some time, at the Priest's own desire,
He went with his ould flute to play in the choir.
He went with his ould flute to play in the Mass,
And the instrument shivered and sighed and said, 'Oh, alas'
As he blew it and fingered it made a strange noise,
For the flute would play only 'The Protestant Boys.'

Bob started and jumped and he got in a splutter,
And he threw his ould flute in the blessed holy water,
For he thought that this charm would bring some other sound,
When he played it again it played 'Croppies lie down,'
And all he could whistle and finger and blow
To play Popish music, he found it no go;
'Kick the Pope' and 'Boyne Water' and such like 'twould sound,
But one Popish squeak in it could not be found.

At the Council of Priests which was held the next day,
They decided to banish the ould flute away,
For they couldn't knock heresy out of its head,
So they bought Bob another to play in its stead,
So the flute was condemned and its fate was pathetic,
It was fastened and burned at the stake as heretic,
 As the flames rose around it they heard a strange noise,
'Twas the ould flute still whistling 'The Protestant Boys'.