THE FLOWER OF ETON
I'm General Sir Douglas William Haig
And I have to decide
Who lives or who dies
As I send them forth, wave after wave.
Because that's the way
The game is played.
I've hundreds of thousands of men
But I'm pretty damn sure
There ought to be more
Young men that the country could send :
There's -
The flower of Eton
The dregs of Wales
The cream of Scotland
And boys from the Dales
Grocers from Birmingham
Gypsies from Kent
Miners from Nottingham
Shepherds from Gwent
Lice-ridden Londoners
Blue-bloods from Bath
Small Liverpudlians
And the scum of Belfast
They must stay in formation
Must walk, not run,
Till the order is given, to charge
I wish I could be there
And share their elation
As they follow the rolling barrage
Then the Germans will feel, cold British steel
They don't like it up 'em, The Hun !
But I'm Douglas William, General Haig
And I have to stay
Out of harm's way
Here in the rear where my plans are laid
I'm Sir Douglas William, now Field-Marshall Haig
I sincerely regret
That others have paid
In full for whatever mistakes that I've made
But that is the way
The game is played.
© nigel hallworth 2014