Isle of France

[Verse 1]
Oh the sky was dark and the night advanced
When a convict came to the Isle of France
And round his leg was a ringing chain
And his country was of the Shamrock Green

[Verse 2]
"I'm from the Shamrock," this convict cried
"That has been tossed on the ocean wide
For being unruly I do declare
I was doomed to transport these seven long years"

[Verse 3]
"When six of them they were up and past
I was coming home to make up the last
When the winds did blow and the seas did roar
They cast me here on this foreign shore"

[Verse 4]
So then the coastguard, he played a part
And with some brandy he cheered the convict's heart
"Although the night is far advanced
You shall find a friend on the Isle of France"

[Verse 5]
So he sent a letter all to the queen
Concerning the wreck of the Shamrock Green
And his freedom came by a speedy post
For the absent convict they thought was lost

[Verse 6]
"God bless the coastguard," this convict cried
"For he's saved my life from the ocean wide
And I'll drink his health in a flowing glass
And here's success to the Isle of France"